Minutes - Council - 01/09/1996 - Laserfiche WebLink

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to pay a juvenile to do something illegal. Mr. Stritesky stated he pays $4,200 in taxes for his little square of property and yet he will get fined if his alarm goes off again. He suggested Ramsey is not a good business environment unless you spend lots of money and deal with tax increment financing. Mayor Hardin inquired of Mr. Stritesky if he had spoken with Police Chief Auspos about any of his concerns to which Mr. Stritesky said yes, but their (Police) hands are tied too. Mayor Hardin suggested a meeting be set up with Mr. Stritesky, the City Council, City Administrator, and the Police Chief to further discuss these concerns. He also asked that City Attorney contact Mr. Stfitesky with regard to what's happening on the bad checks that have been turned over for prosecution. Margaret Connelly, 16235 Kamacite Street NW, Ramsey, stated she has been following the discussions pertaining to the preservation of the Old Town Hall and she applauds Council for this. She feels it's an excellent example of a gathering point for our community. She quoted Councilmember Beahen saying "It's a place where we have been and where we are going". She suggested a meeting place is needed for citizen groups to use and quoted the request by the Ramsey Women of Today. It would be a great place for concerts, theater events, socials, children's events, speakers, farmers markets, crafts, etc.; there are endless opportunities. Ms. Connelly asked that Council consider moving the Old Town Hall to a park/park-like location which could better handle parking and the exterior surroundings would be better. She suggested moving it over by the Ramsey Elementary School where trails would connect up to it. She realized the move would cause a loss of historical designation which would also result in loss of funding, but she felt that the money generated from the sale of the land could be used for the repair. She felt that the public would work on the construction also. Terry Hendriksen, 15631 Ramsey Boulevard NW, Ramsey, stated that on August 1, 1995, it appeared Mayor Hardin and Councilmembers Beahen and Peterson held a private meeting to plan their opposition to the August 15 Charter amendment and the timing was arranged to not include Councilmembers Beyer and Zimmerman. He suggested that if this meeting did occur, it violated the open meeting law. Mr. Hendriksen continued that as Mayor Hardin voted to designate Northeast State Bank and Investment Centers of America as depositories for City funds and that is his (Hardin) employer, based upon legal opinion he received, he believes this is a criminal offense. He added that customers of the Northeast State Bank have received speci',fl considerations and that the Mayor has voted on matters benefiting these customers. Mr. Hendriksen suggested that Mayor Hardin is behind the special considerations and his voting is unethical if not illegal. He stated that he will probably never know if he is correct about these things because Mayor Hardin refuses to provide financial information and Councilmembers Beahen and Peterson have blocked a local investigation. Mr. Hendriksen reported that his knowledge about projects and special considerations extended to Northeast State Bank customers came during his 15 years as a Planning Commissioner. He pointed out that now Mayor Hardin and Councilmember Peterson, who voted to re-appoint him (Hendriksen) in the past, have joined together with Councilmember Beahen to oust him from the Commission. He felt that these individuals should have abstained from the vote but they did not. "Their overwhelming desire to silence me overshadowed good judgement". He stated that the apparent reason for their action was retaliation for his blowing the whistle on suspected wrong doing, a fact, he claimed, Councilmember Peterson confirmed in private conversation. He added that there are both Federal and State whistle blower laws designed to protect people from retaliation. Mr. Hendriksen then informed Council that he is initiating legal action under the Minnesota whistle blowers statute because he felt that Mayor Hardin and Councilmembers Beahen and Peterson must be held accountable for their actions. "They must not be allowed to retaliate City Council/January 9, 1996 Page 3 of 20