The Brainerd City Council Monday night took the first step toward replacing a Brainerd & Crow Wing Public Transit bus totaled in a Jan. 12 crash.
The council approved an amendment to the city's annual contract with the Minnesota Department of Transportation in order to purchase an additional bus. The most recent bus, purchased last year, cost $80,000.
MnDOT has agreed to fund 80 percent of the costs of an additional bus this year as a replacement, which requires an amendment to the city's contract, council member Kelly Bevans said. The total local share is estimated at $15,000, which will come from the city's transit fund. Half of the local share cost will be passed onto agencies that contract for transit service, which are the city of Baxter and Crow Wing County, city Engineer Jeff Hulsether said.
The League of Minnesota Cities Insurance Trust is reviewing the claims and loss associated with the crash, Hulsether said. The estimated value of the bus was $5,000-$6,000, he said, so the city may see an insurance settlement of $4,000-$5,000, which will help cover the cost of the replacement bus. There's also some salvage value to the totaled bus, Bevans said.
The 2009 Ford bus, deemed a total loss, had 273,000 miles on its odometer. It would have been replaced in the next four to five years, Hulsether said, so replacing the bus now is helpful.
ADVERTISEMENT
"I guess that's a silver lining then," council member Sue Hilgart said.
The service has 10 buses, nine of which run daily, with the remaining bus serving as a spare. That spare bus is now out running daily until the 10th bus is replaced.
The crash occurred at 11:03 a.m. Jan. 12 at the intersection of Highway 371 and College Road, the Minnesota State Patrol reported. The bus was traveling east when the driver, Thomas David Keep, 59, Brainerd, stopped at a red light and then proceeded into the intersection.
A semitrailer, driven by Gary James Hines, 66, Baxter, was traveling north on Highway 371 and was traveling through the intersection on a green light when it broadsided the bus.
One passenger on the bus was transported to Essentia Health - St. Joseph's Medical Center in Brainerd where she was treated for injuries and released. There were three occupants, including the driver, on the 12-passenger bus. Keep was cited for failure to obey a traffic device.
In other business, the council:
Set a date of 7:30 p.m. Feb. 21 for a public hearing for three road construction projects planned for this year. The projects-on Jackson Street, Buffalo Hills Lane and Oak Street-will use municipal state aid and local funds. The council also accepted feasibility reports for the projects.
The three projects include resurfacing Jackson Street from Northwest Fourth Street to the west city limits, resurfacing Buffalo Hills Lane from South Sixth Street to Graydon Avenue and a mill and overlay of Oak Street from South Sixth Street to Southeast 19th Street.
The estimated cost of the Jackson Street project is $389,918, with $51,500 to be assessed to benefiting properties. The estimated cost of the Buffalo Hills Lane project is $396,630, with $81,500 to be assessed to benefiting properties.
The estimated cost of the Oak Street project is $644,000, with none to be assessed to benefiting properties, $262,000 for curb ramp construction and $382,000 for the mill and overlay on the street.
ADVERTISEMENT
Accepted with regret the resignation of Craig Katzenberger, investigator with the Brainerd Police Department, effective Feb. 3. He has taken a position as a forensic investigator with the Crow Wing County Sheriff's Office after spending more than 11 years with the police department. The council also authorized filling the position by making a conditional job offer to the next available candidate upon the establishment of a new police officer eligibility list.
Approved the promotion of Lori Turkowski, administrative specialist, to the recently created position of information technology specialist, effective Feb. 7. Her compensation will be 100 percent of the base pay for the position, which is $26.52 per hour.
Approved a temporary on-sale liquor license application submitted by the Brainerd Sports Boosters for an event April 22 at the NP Event Space, 210 Blacksmith Circle.
Authorized a conditional job offer to Justin Larson, the top candidate for an engineering technician position. The job offer is contingent upon pre-employment drug screening and background checks. The previous engineering technician, James Reed, resigned effective Dec. 31.
Set a date of 7:30 p.m. March 20 for the annual municipal separate stormwater system public hearing, as required by the Clean Water Act.
Approved a contractor payment to Short Elliott Hendrickson for the Brainerd Lakes Regional Airport utility extension project in the amount of $26,192.
Approved a contractor payment to Tom's Backhoe Service for downtown Brainerd snow removal in the amount of $11,782.
Received a written report from Fire Chief Tim Holmes on the department's activity in the month of January. The department responded to 35 calls for service during the month, with eight of those calls canceled enroute. Of those 35 calls, 19 were within the city of Brainerd. The report noted firefighter Josh Mailhot was named the 2016 Brainerd Firefighter of the Year at the department's annual dinner.
ADVERTISEMENT
Accepted with regret the resignation of Nikki Tabaka, administrative specialist, effective Feb. 10. The council also authorized backfilling the position as soon as possible. Tabaka's letter noted she has worked for the city for 10 years.
Adjourned to a city council retreat, from 12:30-5:30 p.m. Saturday in a basement meeting room at Essentia Health - St. Joseph's Medical Center. The purpose of the retreat is to discuss the city's challenges and to develop goals and objectives to meet those challenges. The city has hired Bruce Miles, consultant with Big River Group LLC, to facilitate the retreat at a cost of $5,620.
