Thomson Township supervisors approve needed, costly sewer work

Updating infrastructure can be costly. That's a lesson Thomson Township officials learned earlier this month when they got bids ranging from $303,000 to over $440,000 for a Randall Avenue sewer extension project. The bids were close to double what the township expected.

After delaying the decision earlier this month to explore the idea of staff doing the work instead, Thomson Township supervisors took the plunge at their meeting Nov. 21, accepting the low bid.

"Three hundred thousand is a lot to service four homes," said supervisor Tony Compo at the Nov. 7 meeting.

Township board chair Ruth Janke reminded those at the meeting that the township ordinance says residences can't have shared [sewer] lines, meaning the four homes in question can't sell until the sewer lines are separate. However, before that can happen, the township has to tear up the Randall Avenue roadway, install over 500 feet of sanitary sewer main line running in front of the residences, create hookups, then fill and replace the roadway.

Two weeks later - after city staff determined township crews lack the expertise to do it in-house - Janke pushed the other supervisors to take the next step and allow township clerk Beth Elstad to explore lower-interest financing through the Minnesota Rural Water Association.

"We've been working on this project since 2019 and we right now have the estimates we need to move forward, taking our lowest bid," Janke said. "I feel strongly about going forward rather than delaying any longer."

Janke went back to the homeowners, who have been waiting.

"They were here years ago, requesting that something be done ... because it's our ordinance that is holding them up from selling their home," she said. "I think that there's some credibility to their request. It's our ordinance."

Supervisor Dave Sunnarborg made a motion to accept the low bid from Veit & Company, and give Elstad the authority to apply for financing with the Minnesota Rural Water Association. The board passed the motion 4-1, with Compo voting against.

Road policy

Township attorney Dave Pritchett said a revised road policy is in good shape and should be ready for adoption at the Dec. 5 board meeting once staff confirm specifications.

"The two things we need to make sure are added to that are the specs for private driveways and private roadways, which are a new category," Pritchett said. "If those get added, then I think this thing is in shape to finally approve."

Lift fees possible

During the Nov. 7 board meeting, Esko fire chief Kyle Gustafson asked the town board to consider implementing a lift assist policy for businesses, because of a growing volume of calls from senior living facilities in the township. The policy would not apply to private homeowners who call for assistance.

Gustafson shared a Proctor policy that charges businesses for repeat calls, and suggested a fee of $350 for the first lift, $500 for the second lift call and $850 after that.

"These assisted living [facilities] charge some of these residents between $5,000 and $10,000 a month to be there," he said. "They should have staffing to be able to take care of these clients."

Gustafson said repeat calls for simple lifts also can contribute to burnout for fire department staff.

"A lot of these calls are consistently coming in at 3, 4, 5 or 6 a.m. and they're literally just lift assists," he said, explaining senior living facilities can invest in tools to help with lifts and staff training.

The board didn't vote on the proposal, which Gustafson would like to see implemented next spring sometime.

Supervisor Terry Hill requested the fire chief contact the business owners and then come back.