More home surveys needed in Lafayette

by Doug Hanson
The City of Lafayette has been trying to get funding for its Reverse Osmosis Project for a couple of years now. There always seems to be one more hoop to jump through before the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) and the Public Finance Authority (PFA) offer competitive options.
The most recent hoop is the Median Home Income (MHI) for residents in Lafayette. The American Community Survey five-year estimate values from the Census Bureau stated that Lafayette has a MHI of $95,500. More recent census data has the MHI for Lafayette at $88,750. Part of the reason for the higher totals is that the census survey uses a zip code for its data and that area extends into some farm land, which inflates the numbers.
The non-metro state average MHI was $73,386. These higher Lafayette MHI eliminates many funding options that could be available to the City.
The City of Lafayette submitted a report that stated that the MHI was closer to $34,306. Last year the City started a household income survey to certify its results. However, it needs a 90 percent response from the residents for the certification. The City is reaching out to residents asking for their information.
In unfinished business, the Council has been amending various ordinances. It updated its zoning code to clarify set backs from property lines. The Council also amended an ordinance stating that council members do not get paid for meetings they are not attending or participating in by a Zoom video. Finally, the Council has been discussing an ordinance for subdivisions which address minimum road width, water and sewer requirements. Recently the city engineer also added some recommendations for details in the subdivision ordinance.
The City has also been addressing a wind turbine ordinance which will address the locations available.
Mark Dick, president of the Lafayette Ambulance, announced that two members (Cletus Goblirsch and Ronda Goblirsch) recently retired from the squad. He also stated that he received information that the department will receive $5,000 from the State for 12 calls that were handled and the department was not reimbursed for.
Two members of Nicollet County Assessor’s office attended the meeting to hear any concerns from recent property taxes. No one attended the Local Board of Appeals. However, it was mentioned that the property taxes for the apartment units in Lafayette were increased from $586,500 to $688,700 to be more similar to other apartments in the county.
The cleaning of the Community Center was again addressed with the topic tabled until next month.
The meeting was then closed for the Council to discuss pending litigation for acquiring property for a new well that will be needed for the RO project.