RLAA Board Meeting Minutes for January 12, 2010 meeting

Location: Maple Grove Government Center (Room 115)                                                                              Time: 7:00 pm

Call to Order at 7:15

Board Members present: Rick Stulac, George Schneider, Wade Quale, Bill Kidder, Nika Rybinski, Scott Roeglin, Larry Bick

Board Members absent: Joy Roeglin (ill), Eric Lind

Quorum is present (7 of 9)

Approved this Agenda with no changes

Introduction of Board Members and Guests

Welcome new board member Larry Bick from 8647 Glacier Lane

Guests present

Bob & Sue Drag (moving into Tristan Bay at 14131 92nd Pl.)

Treasurer Report (Rick Stulac)

Current finances

$9,500 currently in the bank (Savings & Checking)

Guest Bob Drag commented that it is strange that we do not have better participation from members in paying their dues. He also suggested RLAA seek dues from the townhome associations surrounding the lake. He offered to provide guidance in that area to the board members.

Any more new members since our last meeting?

1 more lakeview contributor for $60 for 2009 dues

Old Business

Rough Fish Removal project (Nika/Scott/All)

Lake access point - Do we want to pursue Glacier Lane for on-going special use?

Let's pursue for 2010 winter use only.

George working with City on Permit approval process

Nika stated that Jeff (Riedemann Fisheries) wants to start working on Rice Lake this winter as soon as we have access provided. He may need to visit several times during the winter before the ice goes out to continue tracking fish and planning the netting. He also wants to make sure he can time the catch to get the best price (typically March).

Need to work on Proposal with Commercial Fisherman

Bill has been talking to Jeff to get a formal proposal written up for him to sign so we can provide to the City and move forward with Carp Removal efforts.

Winter vs. Summer removal programs

Winter will be from the Glacier access point only.

Summer (predominantly Bullhead Removal) will be done from Boat Launch Ramp on 87th.

Scott and Bill will work with Dick Drangeid (boat launch owner) to see how RLAA can provide Riedemann Fisheries with summer access.

Scott and Bill also will be working with the City to pursue contractor to dredge out channel entrance from launch to the main lake. This needs to be deepened for both the commercial fisherman as well as for many of the boaters who launch and use that access.

Lake Management Plan update (George)

Finish an abbreviated version drafted by Bill

Identifies both long and short-term goals

Includes current rough fish removal plans

January 12 - Bill and George met with Randy Lehr (Three Rivers manager for Elm Creek TMDL Project Plan) to get his approval of RLAA Lake Management Plan. Randy suggested keeping the government entities in mind as resources and interested parties of our plan. Randy also recommended doing Plankton monitoring (zoo and phyto) both before and after any projects to establish a benchmark for habitat sustainability. (To our knowledge, Plankton monitoring has not been done in the past.)

Rick Stulac made a motion to allocate up to $1,000 in 2010 for doing at least 3 samples of Plankton monitoring on Rice Lake. Scott Roeglin seconded the motion and the board approved 7-0.

George and Bill will work with Randy Lehr to secure contact for Plankton monitoring kit and where samples can be processed.

Historical Maps from City (Bill/George)

City provided us with some electronic images from 1937, 1940, 1945, 1967 and 1984. We would like to add current lakeshore boundaries on these images to show how Rice Lake has evolved over the years.

On-Going Business

Elm Creek Watershed TMDL Project Plan (George)

MPCA meeting in January?

There will be a General Info meeting sometime in January. Members currently on ECWMC notification list (George) will receive invitations at that time.

There will also be a Stakeholders meeting after that for those who are currently involved in monitoring.

By the end of Spring 2010, RLAA should have a better idea of how the project plan is coming and what efforts need to be undertaken by local entities to complete the plan and begin efforts to reduce TMDLs within the watershed.

New Business

Board Member meeting attendance

Discussion about attendance requirements to be a board member. Currently, RLAA does not have a policy on how often a board member must be present at meetings.

Scott suggested that there should be exceptions for hardships or illness.

George stated that our current by-laws do not say anything about how often a member must be present at meetings, but it does stress that all must have their dues paid to be on the board.

Consensus is to forward this item to the Executive Task Team to incorporate into the current by-laws.

RLAA Winter Event on the lake?

Come up with some ideas of activities, such as:

Cross Country Ski

Ice Fishing

Snowmobiling

Sledding

Schedule for early to mid February

Maybe the day before Superbowl (Saturday, February 6)?

Need to provide a cancellation option/notification method

Board members agreed any activities must not be sanctioned by RLAA for both insurance and liability reasons. The notice for any activity should be done where those willing to participate are aware they do so at their own risk.

George to come up with e-mail draft to be reviewed by board before sent to members.

Project Updates

Storm Water Drain Inventory (Bill)

Nothing new since last meeting. Waiting to meet with City contact to discuss concerns about unlisted drains. Also would like to better understand how MnDOT manages runoff from the highway (I-94).

New Website redesign (George)

Coming along and should be released soon. New pages have been set up which have better navigation and layout. Last steps are to incorporate historical data into the new layout.

Other lakes projects to keep track of (George)

Bullhead reduction on Lake Nokomis with Channel Catfish introduction

Cedar Island Lake fish kill/stocking delayed until 2010

Task Team Updates

Lake Management (George)

DNR Fee Permit changes for Aquatic Plant Management program (All)

For our information only. No action needs to be taken by RLAA at this time.

Media/Membership (Rick)

Need more people to staff this team

Scott mentioned that his wife, Joy, would be interested in being on this team.

Other Business

None

Next Meeting date

Not decided at this time, but board will communicate via e-mail and plan on having our next meeting at the MG Government Center no earlier than the 2nd week in February.

Adjournment at 9:00

Minutes Draft written by George Schneider  1/16/10

Approved by RLAA Board  1/23/10

Rice Lake Area Association website = http://www.ricelakemn.com