City Council Meeting 9/23/2009

For those involved citizens that have been asking about the last Council session;

North Metro Cable has confirmed an error on their part regarding the re-airing of the 9/23 Council meeting. They are working on the issue and state that the Council session will resume it's regularly scheduled programming tomorrow.
The schedule is as follows;
Monday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday @ 6 p.m.
Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday @ noon.

We have also confirmed via the City website that the Council minutes for this date have not yet been posted online.

From the City website
Upcoming Meetings Here

A Blast From The Past - May 2008

An online post from our soon to be past Council member Tom Lee regarding mandatory water/sewer hook up and current Council member Linda Vickers.

Question from citizen.
"Does everybody have to hook up to city water/sewer right away or can they wait? Does the word everybody mean everybody or just the unfortunate people selected?"

Answer from Tom Lee.
Every one that has city water available will be required to hook up to city water. If you are referring to Council Member Vickers, she will not be included in this project as she lives on a COUNTY road, which is not part of this project. BUT, when the County road is done, the city SHOULD make water available to her property and since she owns…..140 plus acres, she WILL pay an incredible amount. Unfortunately, I will not be on Council to to weigh in on the matter. (though I suspect she may)
Link Here

News From Our Centerville City Website

The City Council currently has a vacant seat. Tom Lee has resigned.
The remaining term of this seat is slightly over one (1) year Council, per MN State Statute 412 will be filling this seat by accepting letters of interest from eligible citizens until October 21, 2009at 4:00 p.m.
You may submit your letter of interest to City Hall
Monday - Friday, 7:30 a.m.4:00p.m. (during regular business hours), mail or place in the City's drop-box.
Please ensure ample time for mailing or placement in the drop-box to meet the deadline. Click here for information regarding what the position entails. Click here for an application for appointment.

How about contacting Mr. Neale Rawlings? He was only 20 votes from being elected Council member last year! Speak out people, before the Council "selects" a replacement for us based on a letter of interest!
Neale Rawlings BLOG HERE

2009 Minnesota Statutes
412.02 CITY ELECTIONS; OFFICERS, TERMS, VACANCIES.
Subd. 2a. Vacancy.
Except as otherwise provided in subdivision 2b, a vacancy in an office shall be filled by council appointment until an election is held as provided in this subdivision. In case of a tie vote in the council, the mayor shall make the appointment

Don't Hold Your Breath On That Dedicated Road Fund

Council could not seem to come to a conclusion during the September 9th meeting. (which is still not posted online) and decided to vote for a compromise.

Instead of setting aside $100,000 needed for seal coating next year they chose to compromise at the suggestion of Mary Capra, dedicating approximately half of what is needed.
To her credit Linda Vickers voted against the resolution stating "you do not have a plan if that plan is not funded". Linda totally rocked!

According to Council minutes Tom Lee, Jeff Paar and Ben Fehrenbacher did not want to dedicate money to the road fund, as it would raise taxes for the citizens. Vickers wanted to set aside $100,000 but Capra the consummate politician came up with a compromise to dedicate not nearly enough to meet the City needs.

Oh but the way, the vote doesn't really count because they have "wiggle room" and can change their decision by December this year.

By Council's own admission, they have been trying to dedicate a road maintenance fund for the past five years to meet our needs and have failed and we are falling behind.

Look for the you tube video coming soon...

Where Are The Minutes Of The September 9th Council Meeting?

Almost one week later, the Council minutes are still not available online. This after our City officials argued with State Auditors regarding their transparency.
Who is responsible for updating and posting the minutes online?
Dallas Larson, City Administrator also current staff members Teresa Bender and Kim Stephen.
Thank you for disappointing us once again and disregarding the advice of the State of Minnesota, Centerville staff.

Letter From a Centerville Resident

September 3, 2009
A big thank you for all the work your group did. In spite of the results of the audit, we know the adverse treatment we receive from our elected and appointed officials. They're all in lock step with each other in looking down on the city gentry of Centerville; claiming they know all and we are ignorant.
Your group is not alone; the signers of the petition are still behind you. There's work to be done during the next election cycle.
The Mayor and Council are bemoaning the bill of $12,500 for the audit, yet no one there has identified the reported $486,000 (2006 I believe) spent on engineering costs. That equated to $130 for every man, woman and child in the City and equal to 85% of what our police protection cost us that year.
Go figure where their fiscal acumen lies.
Again, your group did their job; we're still behind you.
Please pass this on to the others in your group.
Sincerely,
Centerville Resident
(name withheld)

Statement Of Core Petitioners Not Published In The Press

The group "Centerville Citizens for Ethical Taxation and Representation" who petitioned for the State Audit believes the results were helpful and productive for the City of Centerville.
Even though the investigation was very surface with little investigative findings, it still serves the citizens of Centerville an active participation in monitoring;

- massive spending, '05, debt of 500K to '08 of 9M
- checks and balances
- administrative monitoring
- massive developing in a downed economy

However, some residents believe that once again, in true Centerville fashion, the Council never showed any interest in what the citizens were concerned about... They very well could have arranged for questions to be answered by the State Auditor's Office Officials, but they were not interested in anything the citizens were thinking or had to say. The open forum was moved to the end of the meeting and the cameras were turned off before anyone was allowed to speak.

Perhaps the city could impose a levy or a special assessment to pay the cost of the audit, Capra suggested.

Here is a recent story from the Quad. Our Mayor, Mary Capra actually suggested another special assessment
Link Here
Perhaps the City could charge only the individuals that signed the petition? She wishes?

More Press HERE by Deb Barnes of the Citizen

State Audit Review

Bullet points as printed in the Pioneer Press
The city should consider opening up a competitive request-for-proposal process for things such as engineering services to "demonstrate impartiality."
It should provide more oversight of employee-reimbursement funds such as mileage to ensure information is recorded accurately.
It should do more monitoring of the city administrator's and finance director's time spent working and revise if necessary.
Full story here.
Audit Report Here

Centerville State Audit Release

The Nine Month Review of the Minnesota State Auditor's office will be released to the public:

Centerville City Hall
Wednesday, August 26
6:30 p.m.

All residents are welcome to attend.

Thank you to the 600+ residents that signed the petition and thank you to everyone that has supported the audit effort.

View agenda packet HERE

Check Out Recent Findings Spurred On By The Minnesota State Audit of Centerville

The Office of the State Auditor became aware of concerns regarding the City of Maple Lake’s (“City”) employment of John Meyer as its Economic Development Coordinator. Specifically, a newspaper article stated that Mr. Meyer was working for the City while working full-time as the City of Centerville’s Finance Director and full-time with the architectural and engineering firm Lightowler Johnson Associates. LINK HERE

Newspaper article mentioned above Star Tribune 5/2/2009
The Citizen 4/15/2009 Here

Previous Press Here

Quote Centerville Mayor Mary Capra
“Mr. Meyer is a professional and he would never compromise any of our grants,” she said. “It’s unfortunate that a small group out there is trying to find problems that are not problems.”
Quad Press 4/21/2009

Zumbro House Calls it Quits

According to the Eyewitness News broadcast this evening, Zumbro House will not open in Centerville after all.
"After protests from Centerville residents, the owner of a company that runs foster care homes for teens with serious behavioral and sexual issues says he won't open a facility in the northeast Metro suburb."

The Citizen 8/19/2008 Here
Editor's Viewpoint Here

KSTP TV - Minneapolis and St. Paul - Controversial Foster Home Pulls Out of Centerville

Anonymous Tip

Did you know that a "Zumbro House" is moving into Hunter's Crossing. Take a look at the link and educate yourself. These people were apparently given a permit to move into a foreclosed house. It's all apparently happening on the down low. People are finding out and are planning to attend the city council meeting tonight at 6:30 at the city hall.
http://www.zumbrohouse.com/whoweserve.html

UPDATE!
Zumbro House prior to the news cast.
Archive Zumbrohouse/whoweserve HERE
(Original text before sterilization) Why the curious and sudden change?

Verbatim prior text follows:
Serving individuals with high behavior needs, such as:
Sexual offending/acting-out
Self-abusive behavior
Physically aggressive behavior
Elopement
Destructive behavior
Anger management problems
Compulsive behavior
Defiant/oppositional behavior
When is Zumbro House Placement Appropriate?
Is the current caregiver unable to handle the overriding behavioral issues of the individual?
Is the behavior causing physical or emotional harm to the individual or others?
Does the person require a high level of supervision and staffing support in order to maintain the safety of the individual or others?
Is the individual's level of functioning compromised due to the behavior?
Has there been minimal pervasive improvement with other interventions such as psychiatric hospitalizations, crisis placements or outpatient treatment?

Here is the latest news report from Fox 9 news.



The current license does not allow level one or two sex offenders. For citizens of Centerville there are still a lot of unanswered questions, plus a second corporate foster home going through the application process just a few blocks away.
Link Here
Minneapolis Forum Here

Is Potential Use of Land a Reason to Get the Shaft?

It appears that two residences on Old Mill Road have not ended their court dispute with the City of Centerville regarding their $90,000 special assessments. Currently, they are awaiting a hearing in Anoka County scheduled the afternoon of August 24th.
A little history;
May 23, 2007
"In a letter addressed to the city, the Fruths wrote, "that proposal put forth by Jeff and Laura Hanzel [sic] is solely for their financial benefit and does not, in any way, serve to benefit us, our property, or the City . It is our intention to exercise each and every legal right available to us to prevent this ridiculous cost to ourselves." A nearly identical letter was sent to the city by Fred Fischer, who also opposes the project.
At the public hearing, Peter Fruth told council and staff that "we cannot afford a $100,000 assessment. After Peter spoke, Cathy, visibly upset, told council and staff that "we're not gaining a thing . We are being pressured to pay for something for [Hanzals'] development which I don't think we should have to pay for."
Although the Fruths' and Fishers' properties are currently zoned as Rural Residential, which stipulates a density of one lot per ten acres, staff pointed out that it is almost guaranteed that the zoning will change as the city moves through its Comprehensive Plan revision process this year and next, allowing them to subdivide.
"I've got no beef with Jeff Hanzal," Fisher said, "but my problem is that he wants to make money and he's doing it on my back. "He's the one selling the lots; let him pay for the road," he added. After the public hearing was closed, the council passed a resolution ordering the Old Mill Road improvements to go forward.
Prior to that vote, Council Member Lee, turning to look Peter and Cathy Fruth in the eyes, said "As much as it pains me to see old time residents feel like they have to move, this project was going to happen in a year anyway, and be more expensive."
"[However], if I were in your shoes, I'd feel like I was getting the shaft, too," he added.
Council Member Tom Lee argued that the size of the Fruths' property was part of the reason their assessment was so high. "Because your property has the potential to be many lots, the assessment is what it is," he said.
The Citizen

July 10, 2008
Only one person spoke at the hearing, Jeff Carroll, a lawyer representing Old Mill Road neighbors Cathy Fruth and Fred Fischer, but he said both his clients were very dissatisfied with the bills they had been sent.
He questioned the assessments, which he said indicated the property values would increase by $100,000 apiece, from a current estimated value of $375,000.
“The current taxes are over $5,000,” said Carroll. “This is going to increase their taxes to $14,000 a year, an increase of 140 percent, which is incredibly substantial.”
Fruth had appeared before Centerville City Council at a previous meeting, at which she claimed her drive had been left four feet above street level since the road improvements had been made.
She was offered two options to remedy the situation by the city engineer at the July 10 meeting, but explained she would need further time to decide which course of action she wished to pursue.
The City Council voted to delay the passing of a resolution on Old Mill Road residents’ special assessments until a later meeting when Fruth’s situation had been resolved.
The Citizen

The Fruth and Fisher families are considering taking their case all the way to the Minnesota Supreme Court if unsuccessful in Anoka County. Ms. Fruth questions why the City of Centerville is insisting her property is potentially worth over one million dollars while the Anoka County property tax statement shows her property value has dropped approximately $50,000 since this all started two years ago. Ms. Fruth also is willing to sell to any developer willing to pay the price the current council claims the property is worth.
Update:
As of today, the driveway situation has not been resolved between Ms. Fruth and the City of Centerville and both properties are still zoned Rural Residential (one lot per ten acres)

Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation

Minnesota has ANTI-SLAPP laws on the books.
What is a SLAPP?
Retaliatory lawsuits intended to silence, intimidate, or punish those who have used public forums to speak, petition, or otherwise move for government action on an issue.
Link Here

Senior Citizen Arraigned on Criminal Charges

A Centerville senior citizen was arraigned July 22nd in Anoka County on four criminal counts of ordinance violation. This resident was an active participant in obtaining petition signatures for the State audit of the City of Centerville. She was also vocal in the disagreement with City officials on the 2009 road project (Link Here) in which the City scaled back the scope and cost from the initial $7.8 million to approximately $4.5 million. Last but not least, she was also involved with a dispute regarding a variance the City approved for development on her street. Here and Here

This senior citizen is now being charged with violating the Centerville right of way/easement ordinance 93.17. One violation is due to two bricks placed in the ground (see photo above) to protect a sprinkler head from being damaged at the edge of the property. Meanwhile, there are 80+ other properties in town with same or similar easement violations that the city officials have chosen to not pursue.
One interesting example is a mailbox violation (same ordinance 93.03) in which a developer also former planning and zoning member is in violation. The matter was brought to the attention of the City Administrator Dallas Larson and here is his response Feb. 2008. As of today, the mailboxes still stand but not in the required clusters of no less than 4 no more than 6... Right next door to the alleged criminal senior citizen!
Currently there are no charges pending against the two year old mailbox violation.
Click images to enlarge
Other criminal counts the senior is facing pertain to ordinance 150.01 bringing in more than 10 yards of fill, altering the drainage plan for the property and constructing retaining walls without obtaining a permit.
Although the resident has obtained the necessary permits from the Rice Creek Watershed District approving the recent work our City officials have decided to move forward with criminal charges paying City Attorney Kurt Glaser a minimum of 95 (taxpayer) dollars per hour to prosecute.
Neighbors have verified that the retaining walls in question have been there for years and wonder why the City is now pursuing criminal charges.
Mayor Mary Capra is on record stating that the City of Centerville enforces ordinances on a complaint basis. City Administrator Dallas Larson has stated that the matter has been referred to the City Attorney and it has been left to the attorney to resolve the issues.

Is this complaint based/selective enforcement or is this the price citizens will pay for exercising their Constitutional Rights by walking petitions or speaking out at public meetings?

Wikipedia;
Selective enforcement is the ability that executors of the law (such as police officers or administrative agencies, in some cases) have to arbitrarily select choice individuals as being outside of the law. The use of enforcement discretion in an arbitrary way is referred to as selective enforcement or selective prosecution.

Historically, selective enforcement is recognized as a sign of tyranny, and an abuse of power, because it violates Rule of Law, allowing men to apply justice only when they choose. Aside from this being inherently unjust, it almost inevitably must lead to favoritism and extortion, with those empowered to choose being able to help their friends, take bribes, and threaten those they desire favors from.

Regarding Cannon Falls History Repeating Itself in Centerville

A blast from the past...
One resident in the know understands how City government works, or doesn't.
Click Here

Anonymous said...

There are two residents on Old Mill Road (10 acre parcels) that have been assessed $90,000 each for "best use of land" and "potential value" while Linda Broussard-Vickers sitting council member (80 some acres) has been assessed NOTHING!
Meanwhile, these property values have dropped dramatically!

The Anoka County court cases are still being litigated

Another resident on Peltier Lake Drive being assessed over $10,000 had the case thrown out on a technicality... Filing the wrong paperwork!

Link Here

Is there is a reason that the State audit has not been revealed?
Could Cannon Falls history be repeating itself here in Centerville?

July 8, 2009 11:19 PM

City Council Meeting 6/10/2009

Should the opinion of a "professional" (City obtained) Appraiser trump the findings of the Anoka County Assessor? Apparently, here in Centerville it does so by a unanimous City Council vote! The business was assessed more than the entire worth of the property!
June 10, 2009 City Council minutes taken directly from the Centerville City website.

City Attorney Glaser stated that he had reviewed all the numbers with City Engineer Statz and City Administrator Larson and conducted due diligence He had also hired a professional appraiser He stated there was one exception a previous assessment to the property in approximately 1990. At that time the entire parcel was owned by Sheehy and fourths to they sold three Lloyd Drilling Later the City purchased the Lloyd Drillings portion The total assessment was $82,000 He suggested that the Council be conservative and credit fourth or 500 which was paid on the old Sheehy approximately one $20,000 assessment This would make Sheehys assessment approximately $380,000.

Patrick Lee OHalloran, Sheehys attorney stated that Sheehy objection is two fold.

1. According to the Minnesota Supreme Court and the statutes all you can assess is an increase in the property value from the improvements. $316,000 is the entire property value according to the County Assessor

2 All benefiting properties should be assessed In this case no other property owners who benefited have been assessed

MrLee O Halloran stated that when Sheehy owned the entire parcel they were assessed and paid for the assessment Therefore they already paid for the same improvements and do not have to pay for them twice He continued that the east side of property borders Lino Lakes and Lino Lakes benefited as much as Sheehy The total amount received from Lino Lakes was $150,000 for the same amount of frontage. Mr Lee OHalloran stated that only a small section of their property needed improvement Sheehy would like Centerville to consider $154,000 the real offer for the as assessment, they believe is more than fair.

Adopting the Assessment Roll for the 21St Avenue Backage Road Improvements
Council member Lee stated that he is in agreement with the City Staff about the expected increase in value Council member Fehrenbacher stated that he agrees with staff recommendation on the $400,000 number City Attorney Glaser stated that when a party appeals an assessment to the District Court the Court does not decide what the number will be If it believes the City number is wrong it will be sent back to the City He noted that litigation could cost approximately $20,000 Councilmember Broussard Vickers stated that she supports the findings of the appraiser, City Administrator Larson, City Engineer Statz and City Attorney Glaser. Mayor Capra stated that she disagrees with the $154,000 number proposed by Sheehy She stated that she would agree to decrease the proposed assessment amount by the $20,500 credit for the earlier assessment
Motion by Council Member Broussard Vickers seconded by Council Member Paar to approve Res Adopting the Assessment Roll for the 21 St Avenue Backage Road Improvements setting the Sheehy assessment at $379,000. All in favor Motion carried unanimously.
Link Quad Press Story Here

Did Centerville Have a Full Time Finance Director?

While not illegal, Centerville's finance chief also worked for other cities and a private firm.

Meyer was the town's finance director, with a salary of $83,000, until he resigned from the suburban community of 3,800 earlier this year. And he had a full-time job at an architectural and engineering firm based in Fargo, N.D.

There's more: Meyer was on the payroll one day a week in Maple Lake, earning about $42,000 last year, city officials said. Plus he had a consulting business, assisting small towns such as Frazee and Canby, according to his website.

City Administrator Larson credited Meyer with bringing in $3 million in grants since the fall of 2004, when he became finance director. He said the controversy over his employment is a "nonstory" prompted by a group of disgruntled citizens.

But his marathon moonlighting is very unusual, said Robin Roland, immediate past president of the Minnesota Government Finance Officers Association. Roland, who has been active in the 600-member organization for 15 years, said she didn't know any other finance director with two jobs, much less three.
"We have a code of ethics that basically says if we work for a city, we work for the city," said Roland, Farmington's finance director. "We don't do three or four different things."

Full Story Here
Star Tribune
05/02/2009
Jean Hopfensperger

Exit Question:
Will Mary Capra and current Council take any action?

What is Happening With The State Audit of Centerville?

Here is what we know today. (Re post of April 1st)

The audit was completed between November and January.
Centerville will be charged approximately $60 per hour for the investigation. We do not know how many hours will be billed.

The audit is currently under review.
Centerville will not be charged for the review process.

The review completion is done in multiple steps.
The audit of Cambridge was not released for nine months.
Link to audit Here
At this time we are waiting for a phone call from the State and have no inside information as to the approximate completion date.

Per Minnesota Statute 6.715
Data that support the conclusions of the report and that the state auditor reasonably believes will result in litigation are protected nonpublic data or confidential data on individuals, until the litigation has been completed or is no longer being actively pursued.
Link to statute Here

Whether the formal proceedings against a Centerville business is related to the audit or simply coincidence is unknown to us at this time.

CENTERSTONE TITLE LLC
Respondent created and controlled sham affiliated business arrangements; and provided other forms of kickbacks to referral partners in exchange for the referral of title insurance business.
Link to findings Here

Thank you to everyone that has supported the State audit. We will continue to do our best to keep you informed of our findings.