3.3. SR 04-03-2006 - Laserfiche WebLink

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City of Elk River REQUEST FOR COUNCIL ACTION Agenda Section Meeting Date Consent A ril 3, 2006 Item Description Request Donations from Local Businesses to Continue Archaeolo . cal Work Item Number 3.3 Prepared by Rebecca Hau , Environmental Admin Reviewed by Introduction The City of Elk River, on behalf of the Heritage Preservation Commission (HPC), applied for a grant in the amount of $15,150 from the State Historical Preservation Office (SHPO) to continue the archaeological work at the Hoebelheinrich property off Twin Lake. The grant was denied because the work is not a program activity eligible for Historic Preservation Fund (HPF) grant assistance through the Certified Local Government (CLG) grant program. The reasoning for the denial is because work was done at this site in 2005 and the grant does not allow for further testing at the same site. Discussion Approximately 200 individuals attended last year's excavation, with half spending at least 4 hours getting hands-on experience. The project was offered to volunteers for two consecutive weekends. The City was able to receive donations from area businesses for food and beverages. The individuals were surveyed to determine if there was enough interest to pursue another project in 2006. The overwhelming response was to continue the work in 2006. The HPC and St. Cloud State University (SCSU) believe this is a public educational opportunity rarely matched in the State and believe this work to be valuable to the community and should be continued. The HPC, along with St. Cloud State University (SCSU), discussed pooling their monies together to continue the work. The HPC has $5,000 budgeted for this work and SCSU will match the $5,000. Dr. Rothaus is willing to donate his time, which is worth $50/hour. There is still a need for additional paid archaeologists to continue this work. Once the work is completed, additional time and money are spent on reporting the data, soil testing, dating the materials found, etc. The $10,000 does not allow for the work to be adequately completed nor does it allow many opportunities for the volunteers to receive hands-on experience. At the March 9, 2006 HPC meeting it was discussed that the HPC members talk to local businesses about receiving donations to continue the work. A few businesses, First National Bank, the Bank of Elk River, Elk River Landfill, and Wal-Mart, have been contacted and each is willing to donate $1,000 to continue the work. If this request is approved, the HPC will continue pursuing further donations. Financial Impact $5,000 out of the HPC budget, staff time Attachments N/A C: \Documents and Settings \tallard\Local Settings \ Temporary Internet Files \ OLKF\REQUEST COUNCIL ACTION-hpc.doc