TOGETHER ONE LAST TIME
These five Victoria City Council-members posed together for one last time in 2006.  If you haven't previously met or become acquainted these past years, they are (l-r) Mary Hershberger Thun, Richard Tieden, Mayor Jerry Bohn, Kim Roden, and Terry Bishop. 
Two of the above will not be return-ing to the Victoria City Council in 2007.  Mayor Jerry Bohn and Councilmember Terry Bishop chose not to run for reelec-tion this past fall.
The 2007 Council will include Mayor Mary Thun, Richard Tieden, Kim Roden, Jim Paulsen, and Tim Amundsen.  Merry Christmas to all of you - past, present, and future - and thank you for your public service.

WORK TO BEGIN NEXT SPRING
RECONSTRUCTING SMITHTOWN ROAD IN VICTORIA

Councilmembers will conduct a pub-lic improvement hearing at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, December 14^th, in regard to the reconstruction of Smithtown Road from approximately 350 feet north of Highway 7 up to the northern city limits of Victoria.
City Engineer Cara Geheren re-viewed the upcoming project for council-members at the November 9^th city council meeting. 
"In 2005 Victoria became a state aid city and about the same time we became aware of metropolitan sewer interceptor work," she said.  Cost for reconstruction of Smithtown Road is now assisted by state aid funds and also by the Metro-politan Council.  Road improvements here were delayed for this very reason.
"You will basically be depleting your state aid dollars for 2005, 2006, 2007 with this project," she said, citing an amount of roughly $400,000.
"The road is currently 24-foot wide pavement," said the engineer.  "We're proposing 28 feet, face to face, which are state aid standards.  We're proposing the installation of drain tile, service stubs, storm sewer, televising the sanitary sewer, and construction of an 8-foot trail on one side of the road or the other."
She said that due to construction of a box culvert between Lake Virginia and Lake Minnetonka, "we'll basically need to close that road for six months in the win-ter."  It is not certain where the cutoff will be for Smithtown residents to find other north or south accesses.
Cara said the total estimated project cost is $2.1 million.  After aid deductions, the amount left to be assessed is estimated at $950,400.  Using 44 as the number of lots (or units) at the project, the per lot assessment becomes $10,800. 
She explained that the nine town-homes at the Harborage were given 4.5 assessed units.  The City of Victoria picks up 2.5 assessments along the city-owned South Lake Virginia Shores Park plus 11 additional units because the road is "singled loaded."  In other words, there are homes along only one side of the road, which drives up the per unit assessment that would be found in a typical neighbor-hood project.  The city picks up the tab here to help even out things.
"Assessments could be financed over 15 years at 2% above what we bonded for," said Cara.  "That amounts to $1,010 per year plus there are deferments for hardship."
She said the total estimated project cost does not include the cost for a trail and easements need to be acquired.  Said Mayor Jerry Bohn, "My opinion is that if the residents don't want to contribute easements for the trail, then it doesn't get built."
Councilmembers accepted the feasi-bility report and called for a public hear-ing on the improvements.

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