Pat Tepoorten
Wyoming Township Reporter

Last Tuesdayís regular meeting of the Wyoming Township Board focused on board discussion regarding the consolidation meeting tonight (Thursday) involving residents of both the township and city of Wyoming residents.

That meeting, to be held at Wyoming Elementary School at 7 p.m., will present residents of both entities a chance to ask questions before a straw poll is taken to determine if the process should move forward and legal counsel retained.

Supervisor Pat Fandel, who expressed concern that township residents could incur unwanted city debt in the process, asked Town Board Chairman Roger Elmore when those types of questions would be answered.

Elmore responded the city has agreed in principle to that request, but the specifics of that agreement could not be known until the actual document is researched and drawn up.

ìIt sounds very agreeable,î added Supervisor Ron Swenson, who has been part of the informal talks between the city and the township.

He added that he thought debt separation ìcan be worked out to both partiesí satisfaction, but that would be a good question for the attorneys on the 19th.î

ìIíd like that answered at the meeting,î Fandel said.

ìThis is a broadstroke overview,î Elmore said. ìThere will be another meeting to present the consolidation agreement.î

2nd meeting

He went on to explain that residents will have not one but two chances to decide on this issue. At tonightís meeting, they will determine whether moving forward and creating the agreement, at an estimated cost of $60,000 ($30,000 to each entity), is in their best interests, officials said.

Provided residents do vote to move forward, another meeting will be held upon the agreementís completion.

At that meeting, residents will be asked if they want to enter into the agreement.

Other issues

In addition to debt structure, the town board at its meeting May 10th discussed future zoning.

Elmore noted the city is delaying the adoption of a Comprehensive Plan and are indeed ìholding off until they can fold the townshipís (Comprehensive Plan) into it.î

He added though, that detailed zoning of the charter city was not something that would be part of a consolidation agreement.

Township Building Official Fred Weck explained that a planner would be hired to study the zoning of both entities and help create an acceptable plan.

ìLooking into it is about as far as we can go right now unless we hire the law firm,î Elmore concluded.

ìI just donít want to see us jerked into a city environment,î Fandel said.

ìI agree,î responded Swenson. ìBut I donít think anything we donít want to have happen will happen.î

ìThe city is willing to work in our zoning,î added Elmore. ìThere are no plans to throw out ours and come up with their own. Weíd have something to say about that because we would be in the city.î

The full board will be in attendance at Thursdayís meeting, along with the entire Wyoming City Council and representatives of Rinke Noonan, a law firm with experience in consolidation.

In other township news, the board approved a bid from Dressel Trucking for gravel delivery. Dressel was the only trucking company to submit a bid, and was awarded the contract at $6.70 a ton.

Top of Page

Forest Lake Times
P.O. Box 218
880 SW 15 St.
Forest Lake, MN 55025
651-464-4601
Fax 651-464-4605