We have scheduled two neighborhood meetings on Monday, February 27th and two meetings on Tuesday February 28th.  These meetings will be held at the National Eagle Center 2nd floor classroom.  A notice will be sent to affected property owners, but anyone may attend.  Copies of the notices may be downloaded below or check with City Hall for the neighborhood schedule and meeting times.

There are three main reasons why the council thought that it was important to consider this proposal:

1. These blacktop (asphalt) streets, which are 30-40 years old, are in poor condition with surface cracking and drainage problems.
2. The watermain under many of these streets was installed in the 1930-40′s, using lead as a jointing material.
3. The sanitary sewers (clay tiles) are cracked and have poor joints that let clear water enter the sewers during the spring and when the ground water table is high.

Plans were prepared for this work in 2010, bids were opened, but rejected because the city did not have a fair, simple, and clear way of funding the work.  The council is working to refine a simpler and fairer way of paying for this and future work.

Her is a quick primer on streets and utilities:

• Streets:

Blacktop or hot mix asphalt is “the black stuff” used as a pavement material. First, what is asphalt? Asphalt is a tar-like petroleum material.  Asphalt becomes a liquid at high temperatures.  When it is at room temperature it is a solid.  Asphalt is produced as a by-product of petroleum refining, which explains why it has had a very volatile cost during the past 3 years.  Generally, this type of pavement is used on lower-volume city streets and county roads.  Asphalt pavement is preferred over concrete because it usually costs less.  The life expectacy of an asphalt pavement is between 20 to 30 years.  As noted, theses streets have been in use for 30-40 years.  They have reached the point at which they have passed their useful life; no amount of maintenance can restore them to a useful condition.  The city proposes to recycle the existing asphalt and gravel to resurface the streets’ blacktop.  New concrete curbing and some minor storm sewer work is also proposed.

• Watermain:

Many of the city’s water mains were constructed in the late 1930′s and early 1940′s using molten lead to seal the joints.  Lead and oakum was used to seal the joints between pipe sections in most watermains installed before 19409.  Atarry fibrous rope (oakum) was pounded into the joint, and then molten lead was poured into the joint, creating a permanent seal.  The oakum swelled and sealed the joint; the “tar” in the oakum prevents rot and the lead keeps the joint physically tight.  Even today after 80 years many of these joints in Wabasha’s water system remain sealed and od not leak.  We do however have concerns that the tarry oakum will become porous and allow lead to be leached into the city’s water supply.  The council is considering a pipe relacement to eliminate the lead joints and may replace sesrvice connections while the street is being rebuilt.

• Sanitary Sewer:

Sanitary sewer collection systems collect sewage and other wastewater and transport it to a facility for proper treatment and disposal.  Sanitary sewers can back up and overflow when untreated sewage is discharged from the collection system due to pipe blockages, pipe breaks, infiltration and inflow from leaky pipes, equipment failures, and insufficient system capacity.  In wabasha the sewers waere installed in the 1930′s and 1940-’s using clay tiles, many of which don’t have tight-gasketed joints.  These pipes have many cracks and offset joints that allow ground water to drain into the sanitary system or catch material, causing backups and blockages.  The council is evaluating a proposal to replace the cracked pipes and leaky joints with modern material that will prevent ground water from entering the sanitary system.  Sewer service lines from the sewer main to the property line may also be replaced, while the street is being rebuilt.

The council will continue to work on developing a fair way of financing the project.  We hope that affected residents will attend the neighborhood meetings at the National Eagle Center and share any thoughts that you may have on this proposal to rebuild the streets.

As always, the City Council is interested to hear your input on this or any other issue, whether or not you are directly affected by this proposed project.

The following documents are all in PDF format:

Street Improvement Map

Draft Project Schedule Street and Utility Project

8th and 10th/Broadway Public Mtg -  Handout – 8th 10th Washington Ave  Handout – Broadway Ave

Alleghany & 12th Public Mtg -      Handout – Alleghany Ave 12th St

Bailey and Franklin Public Mtg  -  Handout – Bailey Ave Franklin Ave

Main Street Public Mtg -     Handout – Main Street

500.31 WATER RATES AND WATER RENTS.

Subd. 1.  All rates and rents must be paid promptly when due at the office of the City Clerk.

Subd. 2.  If the rents are not paid within ten (10) days after the same become payable, the said Utilities Commission may in such case order the water shut off forthwith.

Subd. 3.  No water shall be furnished consumers unless supplied through a meter approved by the Utilities Commission, at the meter rates monthly consumption as stated in Subd. 4.

Subd. 4.  Schedule of water rates:

Residential (all rates per month):

Base Rate:                               $4.00

1000-6,000 gal.                       $1.70 per 1,000 gal.

7000 – 12,000 gal.                  $2.13 per 1,000 gal.

13,000 – 24,000 gal.               $2.66 per 1,000 gal.

25,000-40,000 gal.                  $3.32 per 1,000 gal.

41,000 – and above                 $3.99 per 1,000 gal.

Business/Industrial/Commercial (all rates per month):

Base Rate:                               $4.00

0-30,000 gal.                           $2.13 per 1,000 gal.

31,000-60,000                         $2.66 per 1,000 gal.

61,000 and above                    $3.33 per 1,000 gal.

Multiple-Family Dwellings(all rates per month):

Total water use in a multiple-family dwelling, which has only one water meter for the entire dwelling, may exceed that of a single-family dwelling.  The required conservation rate at which the multiple-family dwelling’s water use is billed must consider the number of residential units within that multiple-family dwelling.

(Multi-family dwellings use charge shall be derived by dividing the total consumption of water by the total number of units in the dwelling and applying the gallonage rates as set forth in the current city Residential Water Rate schedule. One unit base fee shall be charged for each unit in a multiple-family dwelling.)

K&C Fisheries Global USA LLC Wabasha MN

Q: Where is this fish going? Who eats this?

A: All of the products go to Europe, Australia and Asia.  Despite its reputation in the United States and Australia, internationally, Carp is the highest consumed fish, with consumption per annum in China of 1.23million tons, Poland 80,000 tons and Israel 40,000 tons.

Q: Will you have a fleet of boats?

A: No. K&C Fisheries will be supporting the fisherman already licensed to harvest Carp from the water of Minnesota and other states of the USA.

Q: What do you do with the ‘waste’?

A: There is virtually no waste from the fish processed at K&C. Products created from the common carp include: filets, canned fish, caviar/Taramas, products for the craft market, leather goods, Animal Food Supplements and fertilizer  (see more information on the back)

Q: How much fish (tons) will you process at the Wabasha plan?

A:  We intend to process a minimum of 600 tons in the first year. The plant has been built with the capability of approximately 3,000 tons per year with designs in place to expand if needed.

Q: Why (& how) did K&C Fisheries come to choose Wabasha?

A:  Keith Bell, co-owner of K&C Fisheries, met Professor Peter Sorenson of the University of Minnesota when they were both members of the Invasive Animal Collaborative research Centre in Australia.  The center was looking at options for the removal of Carp from our water ways both in Australia and the USA. Professor Sorenson invited Keith to visit the University and to observe local fishing of Carp from the frozen lakes in Minnesota. Keith thought it would be exciting and took up the invite and arrived on January 18 of 2011. He went out and observed the fisherman catching a large quantity of Carp of which they had no commercially viable market.  After realizing the desire of the public for the removal of these fish from the waterways, He could see the opportunity to develop a business here as K&C has markets all over the world looking for this product.  K&C Fisheries will continued to be involved in Carp research and will offer what assistance they can to the U of M for the removal of Carp from the waterways of the USA.  On his 4^th trip to Minnesota in April of 2011 Keith selected the site in Wabasha as the location to build the new processing facility and as a central location for all of their U.S.  operations.

Q: Will this affect the Asian Carp population in the River?

A: Currently K& specializes in Common, but they are open to assist and be involved with the Asian Carp. in the River as well as opportunities arise. 

Q: How many new jobs are being created with the opening of K&C Fisheries Global USA LLC in Wabasha?

A: The construction stage of the project has had an average of 9 people employed at the facility.  At the start of operations they will be employing 6 people and increasing to 12 within the near future. When they go beyond 600 tons of carp to process, they will definitely be increasing staff numbers.

Other interesting information

 Uses of the Common Carp:

Fillets – these are commonly supplied into Europe for the restaurant or domestic market. Some fillets are used in the canning market in Europe and the middle East

Roe/eggs -  in Europe it is processed into a product called Taramas a mayonnaise based product from a greek recipy of approx 12,000 years.   In 2003 K & C Fisheries Global Pty Ltd developed a process to enable the production of a high quality value Carp Roe for human consumption.

Milt (Male gonad) – in Czechoslovakia it is either made into a traditional soup for Christmas day lunch or fried or poached. Prague alone uses 80 tons just on Christmas day.

Skins – K&C has been working with craftsmen who turns these into a leather product approximately 6 times stronger than cow hide.  It is used to makes purses, wallets, key rings, belts and similar items.

Trunks (gutted carp with head and tail removed)  – in Europe these are cut into cutlets and canned with vegetables.  This is the traditional way for many Europeans and Middle Easterners to eat fish.

Fish scales – these are used in the hobby markets for decoration and the paint Industry.

Pituitary Glands – these are preserved in acetone and then dried and used in the aquaculture industry

Air bladders - These are used in the wine industry as flocculent agent or in soups in Asia

Anything remaining – is used in Animal Food Supplements and fertilizer

Chances are you have received a citation already and that is what led you here. I would like to explain to you what this driving class is all about. For many years, our department, like others, has felt that issuing citations alone would make our highways safer. What we have come to see is that people are still dying and being seriously hurt as motorists are still disobeying some of our traffic laws.

We are trying to take a new approach on keeping you and your family safe. We feel that if there is some education given out, that just maybe people will see what we are trying to do. In the past, the thinking amongst most departments was revenue, revenue, and more revenue. Today, we are thinking safety, safety and more safety.

We are now handing out a Safe Driving Class brochure with all of our simpler traffic tickets. Those offenses are listed on the brochure. The new option for a motorist that is given a ticket from one of our officers is to attend a 2 hour Safe Driving Class on a scheduled Wednesday and have your citation dismissed. It will not go on your record, or affect your insurance. The class will cost $125.00 to attend which will cover the training costs. For your information, the basic speed citation is $127.00, with the majority going to the state.

The class will not be hard and hopefully something will be learned from it. It is not intended to be embarrassing, only informative. You may register in person at Wabasha Police Department in Wabasha City Hall or online. If you register online, the registration fee can be brought to the Police Department before your scheduled class.

Classes are currently scheduled to be held on the 3rd Wednesday of every month and are held at the new Wabasha County Criminal Justice Center located at 848 17th Street East, Suite 1, Wabasha, MN 55981.

Click to Register for the class