Agenda - Council - 10/22/2024 - Laserfiche WebLink

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City Administrator Hagen stated the County handles all payments to Ames. He added that he is not sure if the County has withheld any funds from Ames because of this. Ms. Schumacher noted that the County has been wonderful to work with. She shared that the County had a meeting with Ames to explain that the County was doing to start fining Ames daily for this. She said nothing has happened at this point. She asked how Ames can continue to get away with this and other issues like breaking gas lines during constriction and still be allowed to work in Ramsey and Anoka County. Mayor Kuzma said they will continue to do all they can to move this along; however, working with the County would be the best approach to get the pressure applied to Ames. Councilmember Howell asked if the City can have more conversations with the County to see what kind of pressure they are putting on Ames. City Attorney Knaak said they can discuss this with the County and their legal team. He added that he is encouraged to hear that the County is threatening to withhold funds until this is dealt with. Mayor Kuzma directed City Administrator Hagen to go to the County and shared that they have Ramsey residents who have continued to give them updates on this situation for four months and nothing seems to be moving. Councilmember Specht asked if the City is still having general communication with the County on this. City Administrator Hagen said they receive weekly updates from Ames and their general counsel and he hears from the County every few weeks. He reiterated that the County is the one who holds the contract with Ames. Councilmember Specht stated they can continue to reach out to the County Commissioners on this to hopefully apply additional pressure. He added that County meetings also have a portion for citizens' input if the affected property owners wanted to address this directly with the County. Councilmember Musgrove asked if Ames was paying for the damages for the two gas leaks they caused. She said if they are paying for these fixes but not for the damages they have caused in these property owner's homes, that is an issue. Councilmember Howell also encouraged the affected property owners to go speak to the County Board so everyone is aware of this situation. She said she would like to see the County put financial pressure on Ames to get this moving. Councilmember Woestehoff shared that this is the only project that Ames has worked on since 2010 in Ramsey. He also encouraged the residents to go to the larger bodies of government that hold the contract with Ames. He added that they could even go to MnDOT to ask for help. City Council / October 8, 2024 Page 4 of 10