Residents air frustrations at city council meeting

After watching the rental property next door deteriorate for 20 years, Cloquet resident Mark Vandervort turned to the Cloquet City Council on Tuesday.

At his wits' end, Vandervort asked the council to create a better path for holding landlords accountable for hazardous conditions or nuisance issues at their properties. He talked about garbage piling up outside the rental home on Prospect Avenue until he paid to have it removed himself, and plenty of police visits over the years. A renter told him the sheetrock in the back bedroom fell down on their child's bed, and another resident has breathing issues from mold.

Calls to the city building inspector, Matt Munter, made him feel like the city was powerless, he said.

"I'm not trying to make landlords' lives miserable or even demand yearly inspections, but if you receive repeated nuisances or hazard complaints, someone like Matt Munter should be able to condemn a building or remove a rental license," Vandervort said. "I had six inspections for my new workshop/garage, yet something like [this apartment] can continue to be rented?" he asked.

Something can be done, city administrator Tim Peterson explained the following morning. He had followed up on the case and found Munter was following city code and had talked with the renter.

According to city code, Section 10.7 states that rental inspections "will be done on a complaint basis" and landlords are required to get a registration permit from the city. Inspection guidelines in the city code include minimum space, heat and utility requirements, spelled out in detail. Additionally, the dwelling unit "must be free from dangerous air pollution levels from carbon monoxide, sewer gas, fuel gas, dust, and other harmful pollutants," which would apply to mold issues.

Peterson explained that tenants should request repairs from their landlord first and call the city if the landlord doesn't respond or act. The city can then perform an inspection of the entire property and require the landlord to fix whatever the inspection finds or lose their certificate of occupancy, which happened earlier this year with the Victory apartments on Eighth Street.

To be valid, complaints should come from tenants, or professionals who are called to the building to repair or install something, Peterson explained. Neighbor complaints about exterior issues, such as trash, or nuisance complaints can be directed to the police department.

"We have to balance government overreach, and we don't want to enter private property based on hearsay," Peterson said.

Vandervort found a receptive audience in the council, with at least three members expressing support for future discussions.

Another unhappy resident, Richard Colsen, also addressed the council Tuesday about a spate of break-ins - and the theft of his motorcycle - at or near his home on the 500 block of Carlton Avenue. After numerous calls to police, Colsen also decided to bring it to the council publicly. He blames the apartment building across the street for the increase in crime.

"It's my stuff, it's my house, it's my community," he said. "I should feel safe in my community."

Stormwater costs

Ward 5 Councilor Lyz Jaakola raised the issue of residents who don't have city sewer or water paying - or not paying, in this case - stormwater fees before the council voted on adding special assessments for delinquent utilities to next year's taxes. Many of the residents on the list live in her ward and don't want to pay the $12 stormwater fee every quarter.

Public works director Caleb Peterson explained that the city has chosen to cover the costs of the storm sewer system through fees rather than property taxes. Every developed parcel pays at least $4 a month, although many pay more. Versus property taxes, Peterson said the fees generally mean lower payments for rural residents - whose culverts and ditches are part of the system - but results in higher payments for churches and schools, for example, which don't pay property taxes.

Fees pay for maintaining the stormwater drainage system, which helps keep pollution out of local waterways, he explained. Other items covered include street sweepers, construction of the state-mandated sand and salt storage shed and public education.

People may be confused because the bills have a city utility header, Peterson guessed.

"It's for drainage infrastructure and improvements related to that," he said. "It's not for potable water and sewage. Those are separate utilities and a separate fund."

Jaakola was the lone "no" vote on the delinquent utility list.

In other matters Tuesday, councilors:

• Voted unanimously to allow advertising at Mettner Field, to help pay for future improvements at the baseball field. The money would be managed by the Cloquet varsity baseball program, although the city must give final approval before any purchases.

• Tabled a resolution on extending hours at the SKB Environmental industrial landfill in Cloquet, which would require changing the conditional use permit. The delay was requested by landfill manager Kyle Backstrom, who said he would prefer a full council vote on the issue. The request was tabled until the Ward 3 seat is filled. (See "Vacant Ward 3 seat remains up in the air" for more on that.)

• Found out the city was approved for a $483,649 grant from the Minnesota Small Cities Development program which will pay for new street lamps in Cloquet's West End business district, along with signage at Wentworth Park, removal of the old lamps and streetscaping. City administrator Tim Peterson praised community development director Holly Hansen for applying for the grant, which will replace lights that are old and difficult to repair. The new lights will look exactly like the lights along Broadway Avenue, Hansen said. The grant requires very little additional investment on the part of the city.