Ramsey Resident - 1987 - January

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CRIME STOPPER NEWS The following thefts, vandalism and burglaries were reported in Ramsey during the month of December. If you have any information about these incidents, call 427-1410 and do your part to stop crime. Date Location 12-1 6043 Hwy. 10 12-3 160XX Armstrong Blvd. 12-5 Superbowl 12-5 140XX Azurite 12-5 71 XX 159th Lane 12-6 173XX Wolverine 12-6 157XX Armstrong Blvd. 12-6 150XX Hematite 12-7 163XX Yttrium 12-8 76XX 157th Avenue 12-9 82XX 158th Avenue 12-10 Berg Oil 12-10 Berg Oil 12-11 Jimmy B's 12-14 179XX St. Francis Blvd. 12-14 166XX Yttrium 12-14 71XX Hwy. 10 12-14 158XX Traprock Description Theft from building. Damage to mailbox. Burglary of cash. Burglary of cash. Theft of 3-wheeler. Vandalism to vehicle. Damage to property. Theft of bicycle. Theft of lights. Damage to property. Vandalism. No pay on gas. Check forgery. Theft from building. Theft of tree. Theft of lights. Theft of vehicle parts. Theft of mailbox. Date Location 12-16 Brook's Superette 12-16 145XX Nowthen Blvd. 12-17 177XX Gibbon 12-17 141XX Barium 12-20 Superbowl 12-20 140XX St. Francis Blvd. 12-22 161 XX Azurite 12-23 147XX Sunfish Lake Blvd. 12-24 6249 143rd Lane 12-25 73XX 151 st Lane 12-26 80XX 161 st Avenue Description No pay on gas. Theft of vehicle parts. Theft of wheelchair. Burglary. Theft of wallet. Damage to property. Theft of lights. Vandalism. Theft of Spruce tree. Vandalism. Theft of fishing gear/ tools from vehicle. Theft of money. Vandalism. Larceny. No pay on gas. 12-27 144XX Ramsey Blvd. 12-27 73XX 151st Lane 12-29 Superbowl 12-30 Brooks Superette ~ ----. I I I DEPARTMENT OF THE MONTH In the past couple of years there has been a great deal of discussion and emphasis placed on improv- ing communication between the Council, commis- sions, citizens and city employees. Hence, this city newsletter. We hope you have already noticed this newsletter being used as a tool to acquaint and up- date you on issues facing the city. Now we think it's time to carry it a step further and introduce you to the various departments within the city and the per- sons responsible for carrying out the functions of those departments. Taking into consideration the normal weather con- ditions for the season we are in, the Public Works Department is probably the most visible group you would be seeing and so, what better place to begin. Back in Ramsey's township days, 1972, Merle Mevissen was hired to be the City's public works department, with part-time employees available to him during busy periods of the year, a policy which still stands. Mr. Mevissen recalls that in those early days, a major and time consuming task of the depart- ment was to keep the gravel roads graded. Then in 1974, there was a sharp increase in residential development, bringing along with it even more roads to be maintained and neighborhood parks to be mowed. In 1975, it was necessary to hire a second full time employee to keep up with the workload. Growth continued and two more full time employees were hired in 1977 and 1983. That brings us to a department of 4; now let's meet them. Merle Mevissen was a resident of Ramsey Township until 1973 when Anoka annexed that neighborhood in which Merle resided. Merle and his wife, Ilene, have 3 sons, a daughter and one grand- child. Merle served with the Army Corps of Engineers in the late 50's and early 60's. In his leisure time Merle likes to fish Lake Mille Lacs and Lake Michigan for the big ones. Merle is also quite a guitarist and self-taught at that. These days he usually plays for his own enjoyment or proudly sits back and listens to his youngest son Alan, 13, who has obviously picked up on his dad's natural talent for music. Merle reminisced to the days when he first came to work in Ramsey and recalled that the equipment at that time consisted of one grader and two trucks, one of which was a 1942 Chevy 4x4. Merle says that "the department is using it's equipment as efficiently as possible in order to maintain 140 miles of city streets and park grounds and equipment." That equipment consists of 2 graders, one loader, 3 large snow plows, one smaller truck, two pick-ups, street sweeper, water truck and miscellaneous items like mowers, brush chippers and pumps. Merle commented that his department gets more compliments than complaints from the citizens and he would like to take this opportunity to let those peo- ple know how much he and his crew appreciate the citizens taking time out to let them know not only when there is a problem but when there is a job well done. Mick Stenquist, a Viet Nam Vet and recipient of the Purple Heart, was hired by Ramsey as a full time employee in 1977. Mick, his wife Susan, their 2 sons and 2 daughters have lived in Bethel for the last 10 years on a 47 acre hobby farm. Mick usually puts 10-12 acres of the farm into agricultural use and reserves the other 30 some acres of wooded area to pursue his favorite sport--hunting. As a matter of fact, Daryl, Ramsey's other heavy equipment operator, got his first bow and arrow deer on Mick's farm. Mick says that after 10 years, he has become very familiar with the City and it's residents; he's even on a first name basis with a couple of the more outgoing and curious children he meets while on the job. He's sure that after ten years he is a familiar sight to many and a friendly wave or hello every now and then adds a great deal to the job. Daryl Saathoff, U.S. Army veteran, was hired as a heavy equipment operator in 1981 to replace a department retiree. Daryl has 3 daughters and he and his wife Shirley and their twin daughters live in Maple Grove. Daryl says that his position as heavy equipment operator requires that he be familiar with all of the city's equipment and ready and prepared to handle any type of situation that might come along. Daryl commented that for the heavy equip- ment operators, Mondays are their worst day of the week. Mondays seem to be the most popular gar- bage pick up day in Ramsey and people often times place their garbage receptacles too far out into the roadway than is necessary and it makes it very dif- ficult to effectively operate the city equipment without causing damage to private property. Daryl com- mented that he finds it exciting to watch a young ci- ty grow and see all the new neighborhoods come into being and as a taxpayer himself, he is a firm believer in 'people deserving service'. Daryl says that he likes to break from the fast-paced city life by hunting and fishing in the Alexandria, MN area or Wisconsin. Mark Boos was hired full time in 1983 as a light equipment operator. Mark was born and raised in the Andover area, graduated from Anoka Senior High and currently resides in Andover. Mark enjoys fishing area lakes like Vanny and Coon and also Mille Lacs when he gets the chance. Mark admits that most of his leisure time is spent maintaining his toys-Enduro dirt bike, snowmobile, 4-wheeler, camper, ice fishouse and 1967 GTO convertible. Mark said that he is also into self growth and pur- sues this aspect of himself by continuing his educa- tion at the Anoka A VTI by taking courses he feels might be interesting, even though they might not be job related. Mark says he "likes working for Ramsey and the people seem to be perhaps more personable than a lot of people you meet. It would be nice to see even more people get involved in their communi- ty." r SNOWMOBILES AND RAMSEY The snowmobile season is coming upon us. This is a fine time to let everybody know the basic rules for snowmobiles in Ramsey and, hopefully, everybody with a "sled" will read this. As it stands now, Ramsey has no snowmobile or- dinance and goes entirely by State statutes. However, within a couple of years we will have our own ordinance, which will be quite restrictive. Why? It's really quite simple. It seems that there is that good old 10% who feel that the only rights which are valid, personal or public, are theirs. Parents who wouldn't ever consider letting their children have the family car, give a ten, eleven or twelve year old 440 cubic centimeters of power and let them go where they please. Of course, Junior will drive slowly and stay in the proper areas and off yards! Who could doubt that? And it is really not the kids fault in that we, as parents, sometimes have to say, "No", for their own good. And we also have the case of the booze befuddl- ed brain which tells the temple in which it is housed that is capable of superhuman feats with the machine, when in reality, it's nerve impulses are about 50 yards behind the first obstruction which looms up and...crash! Will we have a restrictive ordinance? Yes...if there isn't a real effort made by afficianados of snowmobil- ing to curb the abuses of others and cooperate. Nar- cing, squealing, ratting, we don't care what you want to call it, it can also be responsibility towards your community and your own pursuit of pleasure. As it stands now, what follows is basically what we go by under the laws of the State of Minnesota. By the way, you can pick up a copy of Snowmobile Safety Laws, Rules and Regulations at the Police Dept. at no charge. It is recommended reading, since we are only touching on the rules in this column. SOME LAWS, RULES AND REGULATIONS 1. No snowmobile can be operated or transported unless it is registered in the State. 2. The registration number must be displayed in let- ters of at least 3" high and 3/8" stroke on the machine, clearly visible. 3. Snowmobiles cannot be operated on the roadway, shoulder or inside bank or slope of any trunk, coun- ty state aid or county highway. 4. You must have a headlamp, tail lamp, and 16 sq. inch minimum reflective material on each side of the machine forward of the handle bars and brakes. 5. All provisions of chapter 169 (general traffic laws) apply to snowmobiles except those which, by their nature, have no application. 6. Any sled, trailer or other device being towed must have reflective material on it. 7. You cannot operate or drive a snowmobile on an airport. 8. All snowmobiles must be equipped at all time with a muffler in good working order. 9. No person under the age of 14 years may operate a snowmobile on any city street or highway. This in- cludes the ditches, shoulders and boulevards. 10. No person 14 years of age through and including 17 years of age can make a direct crossing of a trunk, county state aid, or county highway unless he/she has in immediate possession a valid snowmobile safety certificate issued by the Commis- sioner of Natural Resources. 11. It is unlawful for the owner to permit a person to operate his/her snowmobile contrary to law. 12. The owner of a snowmobile may be fined up to $300.00 if a snowmobile bearing his/her registration number is operated contrary to law. (In other words, if the person driving flees from a police officer or other person witnessing an offense, the owner can get burned!) 13. Persons operating snowmobiles on private pro- perty, not their own, must have written permission, on their persons, when operating snowmobiles on said private property. (This also includes 3-wheelers, ATV's, 4-wheel drive trucks/cars, etc.) 14. All snowmobile accidents involving an injury re- quiring medical attention or hospitalization or death of any person or total damage of $100.00 or more must report the accident to the Department of Natural Resources, on the proper form, within 48 hours. We repeat, this list is by no means all-inclusive and the above rules are only paraphrased, so if you are stopped by the police, please don't say you felt you were within the law because what you did wasn't mentioned in this issue of the Ramsey Resident. Pick up the little booklet at our station and if you have any questions about what you read, give us a call. If we can't answer it, we'll get you through to so- meone who can.