By Jolene FarleyHow to combat disease-carrying mosquitoes was a pesky subject at Tuesday’s Hills City Council meeting. The council has purchased a sprayer and instructed city maintenance man Wayne Ward to become licensed to spray pesticides. Ward informed the council that he would need a commercial license instead of a general license to spray in other communities, as was discussed at a previous meeting."For us to do that is a no-no because you got to have a commercial license to do it," he said. The city or Ward would also have to be bonded and would likely incur higher insurance costs, according to Ward.The council discussed renting the equipment out, with the renter purchasing the chemicals themselves. Later in the meeting, the council addressed the topic of used tires that aren’t properly disposed, because water collects in the tires and becomes ideal breeding ground for mosquitoes.Ward told the council that the city of Luverne is fining people for having old tires around their homes or businesses. Mayor Jim Jellema wondered how far the council should go in policing the spread of the mosquitoes."Are we going to go after swimming pools?" he said. Mosquitoes won’t nest in deep water but residents need to watch birdbaths where water is shallow and not moving, according to Ward. "I do think that those tires should be cleaned up," said council member Dana Dahlquist. "I think it makes good sense to get rid of something that causes problems with mosquitoes."Jellema asked, "To what extent are you going to go?"Dahlquist said, "It’s a good start, I would think." The issue was tabled until the next meeting. City Clerk Connie Wiertzema was instructed to contact the city of Luverne about its policy and penalties on used tires.The council also discussed the possibility of having a tire pickup day or adding tires to the list of items that can be disposed of on citywide cleanup day. In other business …oThe council will allow Alliance Communications to park equipment on city shop property from about June 14 to Sept. 6 while the company works in the area.Alliance Communications agrees to keep the property clean and rent a dumpster. They offered to pay rent from $200 to $250 per month. The council debated whether the road to the city shop would be damaged if the trucks or equipment were too heavy.After some reassurance that the road had several layers of seal coating, council members decided to ask $200 per month rent. oCity Auditor Matt Taubert updated the council on the 2003 audit report.The city’s finances are healthy, according to Taubert. The city was within about 3 percent of adhering to the budget the council set for 2003. "That’s very good, very good," Taubert said. oThe council discussed a proposal by the Beaver Creek Sportsmen’s Club to add two signs, one on the east side of Hills and one on the west side, directing people to the Hills Rez. Some campers are reportedly having a difficult time finding the recreation area.The group will pay for the signs if they aren’t too costly, according to Wiertzema. The club has contacted the Minnesota Department of Transportation for permission to place the signs along the highway.