LANDSCAPE IMAGE OF BOTTINEAU COUNTY

We are sorry to announce that our website for the City of Kramer will

shortly be turned off permanently.

We want to thank the over 700 visitors for their use of the site.

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"We are not our best intentions. We are what we do."
Upon careful examination of your personal intentions, before an action, 
you may discover the better practice is cast away those intentions and simply do what is right.

Gaming Funds Awarded to Kramer Skating Rink

The Souris Volunteer Firefighters award $103.00 in gaming funds for wall posters in the Kramer Skating Rink.  

The walls on the rink are dark and gloomy. So the council moved to acquire over 20 motivational posters as well as some roller skate art  to brighten the atmosphere for our youth skaters.  To the left and right are some samples. We hope to have these up before we leave. 

Thanks go out to the Souris Volunteer Firefighters.

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J. Clark Salyer National Wildlife Refuge

    The refuge just donated nearly a dozen posters for the walls at city hall and they are beautiful. We also set in motion for the City of Kramer to be become "Friends of the Refuge." This is a program which sets up lines of communication between the Refuge and the City when volunteers are needed for banding, counting wildlife and such. This is another opportunity for the City of Kramer to shine and be on the map for a good cause and serve the greater region.

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Account Reconciliations 

    " Bank reconciliations are one of the strongest tools a city has to prevent mistakes and catch irregularities. Doing them monthly, keeping them documented, and having someone review them builds trust and keeps your city finances on track." (CITYScan, November 2025, page 39). I want to thank Councilwoman Peters and Auditor Timbrook for doing account and mail reconciliations every month for this past year with exception of Jan-March, which was beyond their control.   

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Above:  The rink's Let's Roll banner is just for fun but was also planned for photo shoots next season. It was paid for by Walmart of Minot Good Sparks grant.  

Above:  The new skating shelves are it place along with the new quad roller skates, which are individually covered for protection and with some of the newly rejuvenated skates.  

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Above:  We hope the best for the skaters in 2026.  We did the best we could with the limited funds and time we had. We really enjoyed our time with you.

Update on changes directed by the North Dakota state legislators on Public Commentary Rules at Council Meetings.

    Following the November 6, 2025 League of Cities webinar on Public Commentary, it has become necessary to make changes to City of Kramer Resolution 25-10: Public Commentary at Kramer City Council Meetings. To be in accordance with North Dakota SB 2180 we need to just tweak a few issues. We could leave it alone but it would not meet the full intention of the bill as proposed. So, here we go...

The training video:  Public Commentary Guidance video 

Part I of the City of Kramer Municipal Code

After two readings, the Kramer City Council approved the following municipal codes with no abstentions or nay vote. Penalties were submitted to the Bottineau Courant and posted on November 11, 2025 and the code was enacted on November 11, 2025. 

  • City of Kramer Municipal Code – Chapter 1 - Management of Kramer Municipal Code and the Governing Body  
  • City of Kramer Municipal Code – Chapter 2 - City Council - Management of Chapters and Resolutions 
  • City of Kramer Municipal Code – Chapter 4 - Management of City Garbage Disposal System
  • City of Kramer Municipal Code – Chapter 5 - Management of the City Sewage Disposal System 
  • City of Kramer Municipal Code – Chapter 7 – Regulation of Animals within the City of Kramer
  • City of Kramer Municipal Code – Chapter 9 - Property Maintenance 
  • City of Kramer Municipal Code – Chapter 10 - Regulation of the Sale and Consumption of Alcohol and Alcoholic Beverage in the City of Kramer 
  • City of Kramer Municipal Code – Chapter 13 - Manufactured and Mobile Home Code 

Part II of the City of Kramer Municipal Code has completed the first reading on October 5, 2025. 

  • City of Kramer Municipal Code – Chapter 3 - Flood Management
  • City of Kramer Municipal Code – Chapter 6 - Police Services by Contract
  • City of Kramer Municipal Code – Chapter 8 - Code of Ethics, Conduct, and Conflict of Interest for the Kramer City Council
  • City of Kramer Municipal Code – Chapter 11 - Otter Tail Power Company
  • City of Kramer Municipal Code – Chapter 12 - Regulation of Council Purchasing
  • City of Kramer Municipal Code – Chapter 14 - Operation of All Terrain Vehicles and Golf Carts within the City of Kramer

The council will announce the time and place of the second reading.  ----------------------------------

North Dakota Community Foundation (AgriBank)

     The foundation just informed the Kramer City Council that the grant for helping with the rip rap installation at the city lagoons pond #2 has been accepted.  So the review process is about to begin. We may not get the grant, or perhaps be awarded only part of request. The city may have to do a pared down repair by focusing on the worst areas at the lagoon until more funds can be obtained. Keep your fingers crossed and pray we get this help or at least part of it.

    With the grants all paid out and the lift station project completed, a review of city funding reveals the city has the money to accomplish the lagoon project if we are awarded the grant. These dollars, our contribution to the project ($5,000.00), will be used to prepare the road to the lagoon for heavy trucks, replace the gates as those in place will be removed for access to the area by large trucks and excavator, and make up for the increase in the bid price from 2025 to 2026.  But everything will be determined by the next city council.  Yet we are confident that the pillars of the community you selected to replace us will see the work done with the grant or not and move forward into 2026.

    We are at this moment finishing a 2026 grant for a tornado/severe storm shelter for the people in town without basements or only crawlspaces. It will be the last grant we do.  If it falls through, I'm certain your next auditor and mayor will follow through with this effort.           

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