Update for the Week of October 3, 2022

Columbus' Newest Business - Caribou Coffee

Need a caffeine boost? Columbus' newest business might help you get your fix.

Caribou Coffee will be opening its newest location tomorrow, on Tuesday, October 4. Located at 15561 Hornsby St. NE on the northeastern corner of I-35 and Lake Drive NE, piping-hot coffees will be supplied by the company's Caribou Cabin model - a 438 square-foot building focused on convenient drive-thru and pick-up service, though orders will also be accepted at the window. Patio seating will be available during the warmer months.

Winter Prep Tips from Public Works

With winter weather drawing closer by the day, Columbus' Public Works Department has a few helpful tips to help residents prepare for winter services.

Residents are recommended to place yard markers at lawn and driveway boundaries. This is beneficial not only to Public Works to ensure they keep their plows on the roads and out of the ditch and resident yards, but residents will also reap the benefits while driving or shoveling out of their own drives.
Speaking of shoveling driveways, residents should remember to not blow or shovel their snow into the road at the end of the drive. Not only is this against the law, but it's very dangerous to all parties. Snow that gets piled up at the end of driveways runs the risk of compacting and freezing into a hard block of ice, which makes it hazardous for vehicles to drive over. Further, a snowplow that strikes one of these ice blocks could be severely damaged or be knocked off course.
As a courtesy to Public Works snowplow drivers, they've also requested that residents be mindful and keep their garbage cans on their driveways and not put them in the road. Any damage to a trash dumpster in the public right-of-way is not the City's responsibility to replace, nor will the drivers be cleaning up any scattered trash. Keeping your dumpster in the driveway will also protect it from being buried in snow as the plows clear streets.

New Interactive City Code

Columbus City Staff has great news! The City Code has been uploaded to American Legal Publishing, a company that has designed software to allow for the code to be easily researched. New features include setting alerts to future edits to the code, a way to easily download all or part of the code, translation from English into 106 different languages, advanced search capabilities and the ability to make notes or bookmarks after making a free account.

Feel free to give it a look HERE!

Early Voting

Early voting for the November 8 election opened September 23 and has been in full swing. Voter turnout to vote early in-person at City Hall has been exceptional!

But did you know you don't even have to visit City Hall to vote early?

Absentee voting by mail is an option that is not limited to the precautionary measures we were all forced to take during the last election. All you need to do is:

Apply to vote absentee. This application is necessary whether voting early in-person or via mail, but know that if you hand-in the completed application at Columbus City Hall, you are applying to vote same-day in-person. To vote by mail, the application needs to be submitted to the Anoka County Elections Office by email, mail (2100 3rd Avenue | Suite 160 | Anoka, MN 55303) or fax (763-324-1160).
Once you've received your ballot in the mail, follow the enclosed instructions to appropriately cast your vote in the races in which you wish to participate. Once you're done filling out your ballot, follow the enclosed instructions for directions on how to properly secure your ballot within the provided envelopes. Whether mailed or hand-delivered, voters' ballots must arrive at their final destination on or before November 8. Ballots hand-delivered to Columbus City Hall or the Anoka County Elections Office must be received by 3 p.m. to be counted.
Note that a witness' signature is required for all absentee voters this year.
For more information, visit Anoka County's informative ""Vote Early" page" on the Election Office's website.