The Bemidji City Council meets at 7 p.m. Monday night and might put a lake cleanup referendum on the ballot, sending voters to the polls six months before the usual autumn elections.

A survey a few months ago showed 51 percent of respondents wanted the to city clean up industrial byproducts on the south side of Lake Bemidji left from wood processing plants that once stood in the area.

The city has a May 21 deadline to select bids so one option to fund the $1.4 million cleanup would be a bond referendum, according to the Bemidji Pioneer.

Another option, if the special election idea fails, would be to seek state Legacy Amendment funding.