By Jolene FarleyMembers of the Beaver Creek Sportsmen’s Club attended a Monday City Council meeting to discuss their plans to upgrade the Rez. Club members want to treat the water with barley straw again this year to control algae growth. The barley straw treatment was considered successful at stopping new algae growth last year.They plan to manually remove some of the algae already in the water by raking it off the surface. Members want to bring in gravel to extend the point further into the water. A portion of the point has eroded away and fishermen hook their lines on the slab of concrete that used to mark the end of the point. The group plans to spread sand on top of the ice on the swimming beach. When the ice melts, the sand will settle on the beach."We were throwing around the idea of a floating dock," said Club President Arlyn Gehrke. The group looked into purchasing a handicap accessible dock. "We thought that would be really nice if someone from the home would like to come out there," Gehrke said. A handicap accessible dock would cost $13,000 to $14,000, according to Gehrke. The group could get a dock without the extra rails needed for handicap accessibility for about $1,600. The group was advised that the chances of winning a grant for purchasing the handicap assessable dock were slim, because they would have to compete with the whole state of Minnesota.Mayor Jim Jellema suggested asking the Optimist Club for a donation from their pulltab account.The group will also look into adding rails to non-handicap accessible dock to make it into a handicap accessible dock.In other business:oThe council will decide at next month’s meeting whether or not to spray for mosquitoes this spring. The council elected not to spray last year because of the cost. The individual or company that sprays must be licensed, according to Ward.oSpring Clean Up Day in Hills is set for Saturday, May 15. City employee Wayne Ward suggested that the city not pick up sheetrock and building materials during Spring Clean Up. The council agreed it was unfair for the city to have to pay to dispose of the items. oThe council won’t build a skate park in Hills in the near future. "At this point, I guess we probably aren’t going to do anything with it," Jellema said.He told Hills resident Justin Hinks that the council places priority on rebuilding the tennis and basketball courts removed when the school built the locker room addition.Hinks attended the February council meeting with a petition signed by 45 people asking that a skate park be built in the community. oBud Hoogeveen has opted not to rent space in the American Legion building for his barbershop. Hoogeveen moved his business to his garage after the building where he rented space, owned by the city, was sold.
