BLUE EARTH– The Blue Earth City Council got down to business with a brisk meeting on Monday.

The council addressed three pending resolutions at the beginning of the meeting, the last of which concerns an issue which has inspired a lot of disagreement between council members.

Following much back-and-forth on the matter, the council conducted a first reading of an ordinance allowing residents to keep chickens if they comply with various restrictions.

The ordinance, first and foremost, redefines chickens as separate from the city’s definition of farm animals, which are otherwise not permitted to be kept on city property.

The ordinance also specifies restrictions for urban chicken keeping, including the necessary location and size for the chicken coop and run, the number of chickens one household may keep and the conditions under which the chickens’ coop must be maintained.

The council voted unanimously to approve the draft of the ordinance as written, and scheduled its second reading for the next City Council meeting on Monday, Oct. 3.

A second reading of a franchise agreement with Bevcomm also passed unanimously. The routine agreement grants Bevcomm permission to erect and maintain transmission lines or cable.

The council also conducted a first reading of an ordinance for the sale of city-owned property to G&S Drainage and Excavation for $3,000. They set the public hearing for the sale on Oct. 3.

Under old business, the council received an update regarding the replacement of three Blue Earth Fire Department officers who resigned their positions following a disagreement with Blue Earth’s fire chief.

“We did have people apply for all three positions,” mayor Rick Scholtes shared, adding interviews for the vacant positions will be conducted by a personnel committee over the next few weeks.

The committee will recommend candidates to the City Council on Oct. 17.

At the end of the meeting, the council set the proposed 2022 property tax levy, payable in 2023, at $2,064,288. The amount represents a 15 percent increase over last year’s levy.

The council will conduct its budgetary meeting and public hearing on Dec. 5, at 6 p.m.

“This is where we set it every year,”  Scholtes noted. ”We work really hard to get it down to 3.5 percent. I don’t see any reason we can’t this year.”

In other business, the Blue Earth City Council:

— Approved the hire of part-time liquor store employee Missy Huber.

— Reviewed a report from Blue Earth Community Library and Fossil Discovery Center director Heidi Schutt.

Schutt said the library’s hours will be increasing. It will now be open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday, and from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m on Saturday.

— Approved a $40.35 sewer forgiveness request from resident Michael Spencer.