August 14, 2023 Homer Township Meeting

Harlan called the meeting to order at 5:30PM. The minutes were read. Pat made a motion to accept. Frank 2nd. The minutes were approved as read.

Kim made a note that the Suchomel cartway was a done deal. A 2nd check was issued 2 years after the fact and that check was cashed.

Mail was presented and bills shared with treasurer. TNT covered. Levy is ready to go. Need 1 more bill for Emergency Management.

Harlan said that Pickwick is ready for Blacktop.
Pat gave a report from Winona County Township Officers meeting.

The roads in Pickwick need to be redone, Bluff Street, Little Trout, and Husman Hill, received a bid from Dunn Blacktop of $300,000. We also decided to pay our share to have our streets in Pickwick even though the church would have paid. Pat made a motion to accept the bid from Dunn and reimburse the church 10,000 for the work on our streets. Frank 2nd the motion. Motion approved.

No Chloride and Krumrie is cutting trees.

Tom Conway from River City Remodelers talked about a plan for the remodel. He would like to see a study done to see more specification as to the remodel. This would help with the bid process. The cost would be $500- $1000.

***Kim read a letter from Steve Fenske (MATT Lawyer) concerning the voting issues and meeting. (Letter posted below minutes)

Pat addressed the questions on the Driscoll email. Moving the annual meeting. There was discussion concerning the location change.

Pat made a motion to change the location of the Annual meeting to Witoka Hall. Frank 2nd the motion. Motion carried.

Notifications are posted and published in December for filing and Annual meeting and posted 10 days before the election for the Annual meeting.

Next question. Vote on building can only be done at the annual meeting but cannot be called a ballot. We need work on the wording on the vote for the building with prices for each option. Pat made motion to have a committee to work on the question once we have the costs involved. Frank 2nd. Motion carried.

Treasurer report. Kim showed the bank balance and all checks coming in and going. No new budget quotes.

Pat made a motion to have Tom Conway do a study on the remodel not to exceed $1000. Frank 2nd the motion. Motion carried.

There were concerns about the timing of the vote at the annual meeting. The vote must be taken at the meeting and the Annual meeting is held after the election.

We work within our budget to get road and bridges each.

There was discussion about how we would let the voters know about the vote. I said that I would put a notice in the post when we have enough information concerning cost. There was continued discussion concerning the vote and it being available to the whole township.

Pat made a motion to adjourn. Frank 2nd. Meeting adjourned at 8:15 Respectfully Submitted
Rita Prodzinski, Clerk Harlan Larsen, Chair

***LETTER KIM READ FROM MATT LAWYER CONCERNING TOWNSHIP BUILDING, VOTING, AND ANNUAL MEETING:

The process to build a new town building is set by Minn. Stat. 365.10, subd. 6, (https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/365.10). It describes a two-step process that starts with the voters at the annual meeting and then to the town board. The first step is that the voters at the annual meeting have to choose whether the township may build or buy a new town building and if so, then how much the town may spend. The town board may ask the voters to approve this, and may provide the information and options available to the town for the building. If the voters reject the proposal, then the town board cannot buy or build a new town hall. If the voters approve the proposal, then it goes to the town board for the second step.

The second step is when the town board considers the matter at a town board meeting, not at the annual meeting. The town board may agree with the voters or use the authority they've been granted to buy or build the new town hall, but they are limited by the amount decided at the annual meeting. If the town board refuses to buy or build a new building, the voters cannot force them to do so. But if the town board agrees with the voters, they can proceed with the construction or purchase.

The annual meeting is often called the voters meeting, because the voters decide what they will talk about and generally vote on whatever matter they want to. But their powers are limited by the legislature as described in statute. The town's annual meeting is not a matter of simple majority. In the context of the new town building, the only authority the town voters have is to approve or deny a town building and set the amount that could be spent. Outside of the question of a town building, remember the voters power comes only from a statute giving them that power. Just because they vote on something and pass it does not mean the town board has to do it and in some cases it would be illegal for the board to do what the voters told them to do. The town board should be certain of the authority to do something before they take on an action, regardless of the vote that happened at the annual meeting.

At the annual meeting, the person selected as moderator has no special power over the meeting. The person is selected to keep order but cannot decide anything himself or herself.

On the question of selling real estate, only the town board decides if and when it will buy or sell a piece of property subject to the limitation I described earlier about buying a new building. But this leaves open the possibility that a town board may choose to purchase a piece of land that does not have a building on it in the hopes that the voters will someday agreed to put a structure there. Likewise the town board does not need the permission of the voters to sell property the town already owns. The town is not supposed to change the location of the town hall without a 2/3 majority vote of voting on the question at the annual meeting. That could be considered a limitation on the sale.

We talked about moving the town hall location outside of the Township and that is allowed generally. The annual meeting is supposed to take place within 5 miles of the townships borders, and generally the town boards meeting should be in a place that is convenient to the Township, but that does not require it the within the township itself. Many townships purchase and use a building outside of their Township in a nearby city. Others share a town hall with neighboring townships or cities, or rent space in community centers or other meeting spaces.

Lastly, the voters do not have any authority to require the town board to fix up an old school house or to use the schoolhouse as the town hall building. It's possible that it's not worth repairing or renovating, and even if it were that it may not be appropriate for use as a township structure. An old school building is not ideal for municipal offices. Those who want the town hall building may want to consider purchasing it from the Township and moving it off site or purchasing the land and structure and allowing the town to find a new piece of land to purchase for the town hall.