Letters regarding tall grass/weeds irk at least one Mondovi homeowner, city leaders apologize

by Beth Kraft

When Shirley Conrad recently opened up a notice sent by the City of Mondovi regarding the tall weeds and grass growing in the back portion of her property, she took offense to the accusation.

Shirley and Kevin Conrad, who reside on Riverside Avenue, were present at the Mondovi City Council’s second regular meeting of the month on Tuesday, Aug. 25, looking for answers on the subject.

“We take care of our yard quite well,” Shirley Conrad said, noting she works hard to keep up the many flower beds on the property, drawing many positive comments from passers-by.

The weeds and grass in question are located in a marshy area on the back side of the property, bordering Mondovi’s water treatment plant. Conrad said they are impossible to mow unless there is a dry spell, and a phone call she made to the DNR raised the question if they should even be mowed at all.

Mondovi Mayor Treig Pronschinske acknowledged that letters were recently sent to about two dozen homeowners reminding them of the city’s ordinance regarding tall weeds and grass.

But the Conrads shouldn’t have received a notice, Pronschinske said, noting he took a look at the Conrads’ property  after hearing they were upset.

“I was embarrassed that we sent a letter there,” Pronschinske said. “She takes care of her yard quite well.”

Conrad acknowledged that she was quickly told to disregard the notice, but she wanted to bring it up with the Council all the same.

The city’s ordinance states that city leaders should take action to ask that property owners promptly mow or trim weeds and grass that are more than 10 inches tall. If no action is taken within five days following the notice being sent, city workers can then mow the offending area and charge it to the homeowner. That amount is eventually applied to the property owner’s tax roll if the bill remains unpaid.

City workers and Council members are charged with the task of taking note of properties around town with yards that may be in violation of the ordinance.

Councilman Dan Johnson pointed out that the ordinance exists in order to protect citizens’ property values.

Pronschinske said the procedure for enforcing the ordinance has now been changed to check into possible violations further and to take pictures before any letters are sent to property owners.

Addressing issues with the doors and book drop at the Mondovi Public Library was also up for discussion by the Council that night.

Councilman Mike Krisik said it came to his attention that the frame and jambs of the library’s exterior doors and book drop are in poor shape and are in need of repair or replacement.

“They’re long overdue,” librarian Arin Wilken told the Council.

The doors and book drop are all beginning to leak. The moisture could eventually lead to a mold issue in the building, Wilken said, as the carpet is getting wet. Items in the book drop, which also has sharp edges and rust, have also been damaged in the event of a hard rain and wind.

Wilken said he received an estimate of $13,000-$17,000 for the doors two years ago. Getting contractors to get back to him has also been a struggle, he said.

The Council agreed to table the issue in order to do further research on the cost of repairing/replacing the library doors and finding an alternative for the book drop.

In the meantime, Lauersdorf agreed to look into the cost of obtaining signs to install on light poles on Main Street that would point to the library and city hall.

Also that night, the Council approved signing on for a one-year contract with eCivis at a cost of $690.

Lauersdorf explained that eCivis is a database containing different grant sources for different initiatives. The service also provides examples of successful grants to use as references.

“I think it would be good to try it for a year and see if it’s worth our while,” said Lauersdorf, referencing recent conversations about working to obtain grant funding to make improvements in Mondovi, particularly for the city’s parks and library.

If the city can obtain even just one grant by utilizing the eCivis database, the subscription will likely have paid for itself, Lauersdorf reasoned.

Requests made by the Mondovi Housing Authority were also discussed by the Council that night.

The MHA Board asked the city in a letter to consider creating a temporary parking zone along Memorial Drive near the MHA apartments to allow for a loading/unloading zone. Abandoning plans for a street that was never constructed that borders the MHA and Mayo Clinic properties was also requested. Each would acquire half of the width of the area planned for a street.

Obtaining the unused parcel would help the MHA plan for a proposed tree planting program, the letter said.

Lauersdorf said ordinance changes would need to be drafted and approved in order to move forward, to which the Council agreed. Checking the area for utilities cutting through the parcel should also be conducted before any official action is taken on the MHA requests, city leaders agreed.

In other business that night, the Council approved the following:

• adopt certified survey map for Andy Heike lots in the Peeso Creek addition to make tax bills and property lines “cleaner.” Plans call for four duplexes to be built on three lots.

• operator licenses for Dillon D. Dziekan, Alyssa M. Pichler (Joe’s Shop Kwik); amend premise description for White Pig Tavern LLC