FAIRMONT — The last-minute addition of two agenda items seemed to catch the Fairmont City Council by surprise Monday.

At the beginning of the meeting, Councilman Randy Lubenow requested expanding the council’s slate of business to include a question for the City Attorney on making public part or all of the investigation into who, if anyone, on city staff knew about some expired criminal cases, and also having the city’s Safety Council evaluate the proposed mini roundabout at Downtown Plaza and Blue Earth Avenue.

“Had you let staff know that you were going to have these additions before today?” asked Mayor Debbie Foster, noting that staff would be prepared to answer questions if they had prior knowledge.

Lubenow responded he did not, that the issues only came up that day.

“I don’t expect that (immediate answers). I just want to ask the questions,” Lubenow said.

He directed his first inquiry to Robert Scott, an attorney with the city’s interim civil council Flaherty & Hood, who participated in the council meeting via telephone.

“I was just wondering, and you don’t have to answer tonight, if we can make the investigation results that we received in an email late last week, if we can make that public if we vote on that? Or if we can make parts of that public?” Lubenow asked.

In November, after interviewing city staff, an investigator determined that “it was not established that city officials and/or city staff outside of the city prosecutor knew or should have known that the city did not prosecute or dismiss criminal cases prior to the applicable statute of limitations.”

Councilman Tom Hawkins, who had lobbied intensely for the investigation of city staff, requested that the investigator submit the transcripts from the conversations with the four people she interviewed. The council had designated Hawkins and Foster to work with the investigator and hear the summary of the report, but Hawkins insisted that these summaries contained “valuable information” beyond the scope of the investigation that should be shared with the rest of the council.

In January, Ruth Cyphers joined Hawkins and Lubenow in a 3-2 vote to pay an additional $1,000 for the extra report, with Wayne Hasek and Bruce Peters opposing the measure.

Now that all council members have the same information, Lubenow seemed interested in sharing some or all of that information with the public.

Although the attorney offered to provide a detailed report of his opinion, he offered words of caution.

“I do believe the majority, if the not the entirety, of these reports still concern private personnel data on current and/or former city employees so the council would not have the option to make it public,” Scott advised. “It would be required to keep it confidential, but I can certainly follow up.”

Scott said he would email his determination to the city administrator who would then share the information with the council.

Lubenow said he did not want to share specific comments, but comments as a whole, but Scott said he did not understand the question.

“There is some things in that report that I think would be useful for the citizens of Fairmont to know,” Lubenow said.

Scott said it would be dependent on what Lubenow wanted to make public and was amenable to having a conversation with Lubenow and interim city administrator Mark Sievert to get further information.

“We’re in a public meeting right now so we have to be a little careful,” Scott said.

Peters said the individuals who were interviewed had wondered if they could see a copy of the transcript or summary of their interviews with the investigator, the same information that was provided to the council, and asked Scott for his opinion on the matter.

Lubenow’s second agenda addition involved the mini roundabout issue being reviewed by the city’s Safety Council, one of the city’s advisory boards, although it has not met in more than three years because of a lack of agenda items.

“Did this issue go before the Safety Council committee?” Lubenow asked Troy Nemmers, city engineer/public works director.

“No,” Nemmers said. “The Safety Council generally brings concerns forward that they hear in the public regarding speed limits, stop signs, yield signs, pedestrian crossings that are needed. They will bring that forward to have investigated, but they don’t evaluate the design of projects in construction.”

“In my mind, this is a safety issue, and we should get the Safety Council to back up whatever vote we have,” said Lubenow, adding that the council relies on determinations from other committees. “I’m just wondering why this issue didn’t go that normal route.”

Peters said he hoped the project was close to the bidding process instead of “rehashing” the same points.

“This started last summer. We had public input. We had an online survey,” Peters said. “I hope you’re getting bids because we had this discussion two weeks ago, and it just can’t keep going on. We need to move on.”

Nemmers said there has been a lot of focus on just one small piece of the entire $4.7 million project that includes reconstruction of Lake Avenue from Fourth Street to Downtown Plaza. The city’s share of the cost, $1.7 million, represents its share of the total project, not just the Downtown Plaza intersection.

In other business, the council:

o Set a special meeting for 5:30 p.m. March 16 to continue the selection process for a permanent civil attorney. Representatives from the council and city staff will visit the offices of the finalists this week and report back at the meeting.

o Heard an update of YMCA programming from Dennis Dieser and Whitney Sauer of the Albert Lea Family Y. Sauer soon will occupy office space with CER at Fairmont Elementary School.

o Approved a plan developed by the city and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency for the closure of the lime ponds. The $2.9 million project likely will not qualify for any state grants but should be eligible for a low-interest loan.

o Heard a report from Sievert that the city has received 11 applications so far for the city administrator position.

o Approved a request from Mark Atkinson for demolition assistance for a home at 931 Albion Ave. Through the city’s demolition assistance program, the city will pay 50 percent, up to $5,000, to assist property owners with razing blighted structures.

o Approved a donation of $5,000 to help fund the 2020 Minnesota Governor’s Pheasant Hunting Opener, to be held in Fairmont.