Waseca clinic plans to add physicians

The Mayo Clinic facility in Waseca is a critical access hospital, which means that it must meet specific requirements to continue receiving certain funding. One such requirement is that the facility have no more than 25 beds: it has 12 and is considering increasing the number in the future. A presentation during the city council meeting included highlights of telehealth and emergency medicine and their meaning for the community. Also talked about was the list of primary care physicians for Waseca, Janesville, and Waterville. It was reported that Mayo has signed on two additional physicians starting this August; next August the number of physicians is expected to increase from four to six  for outpatient and inpatient settings. The presentation also included the building maintenance update that started in 2021 and continues in 2022: the emergency department expansion and renovation totaling $4.2 million. Spokesperson Mackenzie Miller conversed with Mayor Srp about the good quality of service in Waseca and that “working in Waseca has been an absolute joy.”

Council members were thanked by one Waseca citizen that mowing had taken place along the shore of Gator Lake. Ironically, when city staff members looked into the matter, they discovered the mowing was not actually allowed, but had been done by someone who did not realize that. In fact, it had originally been intended that the grass should grow long enough to be harvested as hay. Council members discussed ways the misunderstanding could be prevented in the future, including possibly making more official agreements with area farmers in advance. 

Anita Nelson, Waseca citizen, advocated for Mykayla Clark, an 11-year-old girl paralyzed from the waist down who hopes to be able to swim in the city water park. Nelson requested that the city council review the ADA Title II pool disability access requirements and invest in an aquatic wheelchair, a portable pool lift, and staff training that is up to code; she pointed out that several components for safe access are not in place at the park. 

Mayor Srp responded positively to the request, saying “We are going to do what we need to do to get Mykayla into the Waseca waterpark.”

The Dairy Queen was granted a lane encroachment variance for its drive-thru lane, allowing the restaurant to reduce the usual 25-foot setback by 5 feet.

A renovation project for the Johnson Pavilion in Clear Lake Park was discussed, with a number of possible variations: the park board recommended a plan which rebuilds the pavilion wall in the hillside, but which does not include adding restrooms.