ELY- Cat owners in Ely are off the hook. The Ely City Council voted to drop the licensing requirements for pets other than dogs. Mayor Heidi Omerza noted that the rewrite of the city’s pet ordinances was prompted “because of dangerous dogs.”
Council member Al Forsman made the motion to drop the license requirement for pets other than dogs. “There are already fines for allowing cats to run free, but hundreds of families don’t let their cats run free and it’s not fair to them to bear the burden of those who are not responsible,” he said.
The council also voted to amend the language of the pet ordinances, to clarify that all household pets are prohibited from running free in city limits.
The revision of Ely’s pet ordinances has taken several contentious weeks, including some heated discussions among the council members. The revisions also brought several Ely citizens to council meetings to voice their concerns about fairness, costs, lack of clarity in the revision, and unenforceability of the licensing requirements, especially for cats.
When the voting on proposed law changes finished, Mayor Heidi Omerza looked at the council members in astonishment, remarking, “That was almost painless. Is everyone okay?”
The revised pet ordinances will be on the agenda for their final approval at the next city council meeting.

Open forum
Three residents asked to speak at the open forum portion of the meeting. Joe Prioreschi reported that the worn step-down on the City Hall’s front steps caused someone to trip two weeks ago and that the city may want to do something to address the issue.
Ely Clerk-Treasurer Harold Langowski thanked Prioreschi and agreed that the sandstone steps had seen some deterioration over time. “Actually Doug [Whitney, the city’s building inspector] and I looked at that stuff (for a project updating features at City Hall), not knowing why they even did that back to 1929. That will be something we’re taking a look at with that project.”
Doug Johnston shared his opinion about proposed RV park in the Spaulding neighborhood, stating, “another neighborhood is about to be destroyed.” The RV park issue was the subject of an article in the Sept. 29 edition of the Timberjay.
Frederica Musgrave thanked the city council for its openness and responsiveness to the public over the city’s new pet ordinances, noting, “You opened it up to public comment several times.” In contrast, she had words of discontent that the Ely Board of Adjustment would be continuing its public hearing for the conditional use permit for the proposed RV park in the Spaulding neighborhood without reopening the opportunity for the public to make further comments.
In other action, the council:
• Discussed a possible public hearing regarding a blighted property at 1545 E. Harvey St.
Ely Building Official, Doug Whitney, reported that the city received a communication from the owner earlier in the week, stating she intended to “make improvements and then sell the property.” Given this updated information, the council voted to request a schedule for completing this work from the owner and would revisit the issue at a future meeting.
 Heard the report from Langowski that the city was proceeding with shutting down the utilities at the city’s parks. The city will endeavor to keep the bathrooms in Whiteside Park open through the end of October for the “Trunk-and-treat” program at Halloween. Langowski also reported that road patching was still in progress around the city and cautioned drivers to be careful. “Watch for the contractors and watch for your traffic control workers,” he said.
• Heard Police Chief Chad Houde’s report that the city’s portable radar sign had arrived and was currently set up in front of the Ely School District campus.
• Heard the report of Fire Chief David Marshall, who said the city received an offer for its old 75-foot ladder truck from the city of Cook. “The offer is $15,300. That seems like a very fair offer, and the fire department feels good about the fact that this piece of equipment will continue to be put to good use,” he said. Marshall added that the ladder truck will replace Cook’s old aerial fire truck from the 1960s.
 Approved the recommendation from the Cemetery Committee to have the city’s Public Works Department do the landscaping and concrete work, including foundations, sidewalks, etc. at the Ely Municipal Cemetery. Langowski estimated the city would see $50,000 savings for the work at the columbarium site.
• Approved the recommendation from the Ely Utilities Commission (EUC) to approve change orders No. 9 for $1,897, No. 10 for $11,557 and No. 11 for $3,698 for the Waste Water Treatment Facility (WWTF) Project; payment of the August EUC bills in the amount of $394,058; payment of $1000 to Mick Shusta for the July and August “A Operator” services for the drinking water and waste water treatment plants; payment of $2,302 to Frontier Energy for professional services for conversion improvements; payment of $3,400 to Fryberger Law for the WWTF project legal services to prepare loan financing documents; and payment of $33,484 to AE2S for the WWTF project.
• Approved the second reading of Ordinance 374, second series, adding to Ely City Code, Chapter 5, Section 5.01, Alcoholic Beverages Licensing and Regulation. This ordinance updates Ely’s laws to parallel state statutes on what liquor stores can legally sell.
• Approved a note and mortgage for the residential rehab loan for Michael Dusich Jr. and Alyce Dusich at 129 S. 16th Ave. E. for $10,000 for a new furnace.
• Approved a note and mortgage for the commercial rehab loan for Surrey Trail, LLC., contact Abby Dare, at 15 E. Sheridan St. for $17,500 for a new heating system.
• Approved the city’s and Ely Utilities Commission claims for Oct. 3 for $291,782
• Approved the low bid of $2,760,000 ($862 per square foot) for the Trailhead Building project from Max Gray Construction of Hibbing. The bids were received by the city on Sept. 14.
• Approved the residential rehab loan for Joe and Nicole Shusta at 539 E. Chapman St. for up to $10,000 for a new energy efficient propane furnace, pending proper paperwork, fees. The council directed City Attorney Kelly Klun to work with the applicant and proceed with loan application.
• Approved Resolution 2023-023 for making levy assessments against taxable properties for delinquent water, sewer, and electric accounts.
• Approved a mortgage subordination agreement for the residential rehab loan for Jerome Debeltz, dated Jan. 26, 2021 as Document No. 1402078. Council member Jerome Debeltz recused himself from the vote.
• Approved Resolution 2023-024 supporting a grant application to the Minn. Department of Natural Resources Grant-In-Aid Off-Highway Vehicle Trail Assistance Program for Maintenance program.