To avoid residential construction on city property, the Ranier City Council Monday denied a building permit request from resident Tom Bruer.

Bruer, who lives at 3500 River Street, requested a building permit to extend a wall of the residence seven feet to the north and 20 feet to the south.

In a letter to the council, Bruers said he purchased the residence in 1976. Originally built in the 1920s, the east facing wall of the residence sits about five feet beyond the Bruers’ property line on North Street. In 1977, the family was granted a 26-by-20-foot variance for additions.

“In the construction of our new home, we would like to maintain the location of the aforementioned (east) wall since this is part of the same footprint that has been occupied for nearly a century,” the letter said. “It is our hope that this would cause it to be grandfathered in.”

The letter also stressed that the construction would not encroach any closer to the alley facing east, River Street facing north or the lake to the west.

“The only direction in which the dimensions of our new home will extend beyond that of our current home is to the south, which is where our addition that was approved in 1977 will be....What we are proposing would not affect, in any way, any other citizen of Ranier, as the only properties that abut the alley adjacent to the area in question are those belonging to us and Buddy Lessard, whom we have spoken to about our plans and has kindly given his support without any objection.”

During the public comment period, resident Arden Barnes commended the council’s decision to deny the permit.

In other business, the council agreed to hire resident Leon Lessard as a seasonal maintenance worker during the summer months at a rate of $8 per hour.

Nick Sears, who works maintenance for the city, previously recommended the hire of Aaron Davis, who has been the summer helper for the past several years.

The council agreed to hire Lessard because he is a Ranier resident and Davis is not.

Councilor Todd Coulombe said the city “has to take care of their own.”

City Clerk Kim Nuthak reported that Lessard’s application was received on May 20 and the deadline for applications, as advertised, was May 15. Nuthak told The Journal that Davis is her son.

The council also agreed to appoint resident Mary Ann Kasich to represent the city on the area Convention and Visitor’s Bureau board.

Don Zierke from Miller McDonald, Inc. reported that the Ranier’s audit shows the city is in good financial shape.

The year-to-date net profit of $24,536 for the liquor store exceeds last year’s amount of $7,001.