This transcript has been formatted with speaker names based on the provided context of the Lake Elmo City Council meeting. [00:00:00] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** ...to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. By the way, first on the agenda is approval of the agenda. I have two requests to make a change: one is to add under presentations a welcome and introduction to our County Commissioner representative Bethany Cox, and then I would like to pull number six from the consent agenda and put it in the regular agenda just for discussion and transparency. If nobody has anything else, I'll look for a motion and a second—I should have said. [00:00:30] **Matt Hirn (Council Member):** Motion to approve the agenda as amended. [00:00:32] **Nick Dragisich (Council Member):** Support. [00:00:33] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** All right, we have a motion and second to add those two items. All those in favor please indicate by saying "Aye." [00:00:38] **Council Members:** Aye. [00:00:40] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** All right, so then item C, we have approval of minutes from the February 4th, 2025. That was in the packet presented to us. If we don't have anything that's outstanding that needs correction, I'll entertain a motion. [00:00:50] **Nick Dragisich (Council Member):** Motion to approve the minutes from February 4 as written. [00:00:52] **Jeff Holtz (Council Member):** Support. [00:00:54] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** We have a motion and a second to approve the minutes from February 4th. All those in favor please indicate by saying "Aye." [00:01:00] **Council Members:** Aye. [00:01:02] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** All right, we have public comments and inquiries, and we have one from Susan Dunn. Miss Dunn, if you would like to approach the podium and state your name for the record, you'll have six minutes to speak. [00:01:10] **Susan Dunn (Resident):** Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you ever so much for allowing me to speak tonight. First off, I want to thank all our gentlemen who are going to be retiring this time from our fire department and also Rick Gerson who was retired last time. So once again, I've known these people for many many years and I wish them well in their retirement. What I'm here for tonight is something that you're going to be—that you pulled from the agenda—but I'm asking you to withdraw the item "Interfund loan and transfers for Ballfield property purchase" from the consent agenda. This was item number six under F. There needs to be open communication and active cooperation with the members of the community before any decision on finances is made. The developers of the Royal Golf paid the city $1 million as they said they wanted the city to be able to develop ball fields they were destroying in the construction of the development down at Old Tartan Park. Your proposals called for not only spending the $1 million but spending an additional $2.15 million for the purchase of the land. The amount of money over 3 million does not include any money toward development, maintenance, or upkeep. In order to pay for this purchase, the proposal was to borrow more than $2 million from the city sewer fund and having the residents repaying it over 10 years. The average home would be assessed $50 in 2026 and decreasing in 2035 to perhaps $37. We've had fees in the past—in fact, many of us are still paying surface water fees that started out at $35 and now we're over $90. So it's just something to be aware of. You recently discussed a strategic plan for the city. In it, you agreed to foster open communications and active cooperation with stakeholders. I assume that to be the residents; perhaps I'm wrong. You agreed to manage Capital Improvement plans to align asset management and fiscal responsibility. You thought exploring alternative funding sources to reduce and eliminate the debt was a goal, and yet you have done exactly the opposite with this plan. Residents of the city have to live within our budgets and so should the city. I suggest you buy as much land as you have money for at this time. If you wish to expand the purchase, you need to hold a community public hearing and listen to the wishes of the residents. You need to ask the residents: is this the correct time to be increasing their taxes for additional ball fields? And then listen to them. Thank you ever so much. Resident Ann Buek sent that, I believe, to each one of you, and it was just a cause of concern because many people are struggling now and fiscal responsibility is something that I hold dear and I think you do too. But thank you ever so much. [00:04:15] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** Thank you, Miss Dunn. [00:04:17] **Susan Dunn (Resident):** By the way, I have been on the Parks Commission. I'm all for ballfields; I was on that commission for 16 years. So it isn't that I'm against ballfields, I just think we can probably do this in a smarter manner. [00:04:30] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** All right, so now we have some presentations. We have a couple of gentlemen that are retiring from our fire department. I'll like Chief Kalis to get up and do that now. [00:04:40] **Dustin Kalis (Fire Chief):** Mayor and Council, I appreciate the opportunity to celebrate two very deserving retirements from the Lake Elmo fire department. Woody, come on up. First, we honor chaplain and support service member Richard "Woody" Glaner on his retirement. Woody joined the department in 2013 and spent the next 11 years as our department chaplain. As a chaplain, Woody would respond to critical incidents within Lake Elmo and our surrounding communities to offer support to community members who were affected by some sort of tragedy. Woody has spent countless hours with our own staff counseling and supporting us when needed. Definitely anytime he comes into the office, he'll come in and pat you on the back and make sure you're doing okay. So Woody, thank you and enjoy your well-earned retirement. We appreciate everything you've done for us over time. Thank you. [00:05:40] **Dustin Kalis (Fire Chief):** [Applause] Sir, there you go. Thank you, sir. You want to do photos after? Okay, we'll hold off, hang tight. Next, we honor firefighter and support service member Richard Sax Jr., badge number 60, on his retirement. JR began his career with our department in 1997 as a firefighter and retired December 31st, 2024, as one of our support service staff. We recognize JR for his 27 years of service to the City of Lake Elmo, the Lake Elmo Fire Department, and the citizens of our community. His hard work has always demonstrated a commitment to our model: proudly serving neighbors and friends. We have benefited from his extensive knowledge of our fleet and definitely our department history. He's been my go-to since I got here on "who's this name" and "what this number means." He's always been willing to help out with whatever is needed. He has been an invaluable resource to all of Public Safety over the years, not including our department but with the Sheriff's Department and EMS as well. The contributions he has made to our department will not be forgotten. Thank you and enjoy your well-earned retirement. [Applause] JR, thank you, a gift card from the City. Thank you. We'll come on up for some photos. [Applause] [00:07:05] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** I can't thank those gentlemen enough for their service in the city. They do so much with all the training and meetings they have to make sure that our public is safe. Moving along, we have an introduction by Met Council District 11 member Dr. Gail Cedarberg. [00:07:20] **Dr. Gail Cedarberg (Metropolitan Council Representative):** Thank you, Mr. Mayor, staff. I guess that's a way to empty the room, right? Council and everybody go. So I just do the page down arrow? Perfect. Anyway, thank you for the opportunity to come and present to you and introduce myself. I was appointed on the Met Council in 2023 and I make it my responsibility to come and visit with all my communities and introduce myself. I'm a real person and I care about what's going on in District 11. I've met some of you at different Washington County meetings and some groundwater meetings as well. What I want to say is I'm your District 11 representative, but there is really a team behind here focused on District 11. Emma Dvorak is a senior planner assigned to District 11 and I know she's reached out to different staff at Lake Elmo and worked on different projects. And then Elias Montessa is my communication specialist and he helped set up this meeting and just checks my emails to make sure I'm keeping up with everything. I just wanted to do introductions, tell you a little bit about myself. I was born and raised in St. Paul, went to Highland Park High School, went to graduate school in California and earned graduate degrees in environmental engineering, hydrogeology, and groundwater modeling. When the seat became vacant for District 11, somebody called me and said, "Gail, you should apply." I've been living in Mahtomedi now for almost 30 years and I've been watching the groundwater issues, the PFAS contamination issues, and I thought this would be a good alignment for my expertise plus my passion. I spent a 30-plus year career in remediating Superfund sites and Brownfield sites. Fast facts: 16 Met Council Districts, 182 cities and towns, and about 3.2 million people. The 2050 plans have come out and projected growth is about 600,000 people by 2050. For me on District 11, starting March 1st, I will be the chair of the Environment Committee and I am on the Management Committee. I take managing financial projects to heart; I've worked on $300 million projects and $5,000 projects and how I've managed those has always been the same: transparency and spending every nickel like it's my nickel no matter who's paying for it. I also am the Council's representative on the Clean Water Council. I also try to stay abreast of the White Bear Lake Area Comprehensive Plan that meets almost every other month trying to come up with alternative water sources. History: It was founded in 1957; it really started out as wastewater treatment. The question was, does every little community need their own wastewater treatment plant? The answer was no. It was really a vision to pull our money and do the best system we can. We have some of the lowest SAC rates and charge rates for wastewater in the country. We just finished and adopted our 2050 Regional Plan last week. It really is to look at the orderly development for this region. Lake Elmo’s vision for 2040 and this 2050 vision really do align. Every person, no matter what age or ability, should all be able to live a really sustainable healthy life, have access to clean water, and be able to enjoy the parks. When we talk about "Equitable, inclusive and welcoming," it really means: can everybody in the region take part in how they want to live their life? Get into nature, get on the bike trails, take the transit you want. We lead on addressing climate change. You have to look at these extreme storm events—how do you plan for them? When you're looking at developments, all of a sudden you have to catch more water, you have to infiltrate more water. Lake Elmo is classified in land use as "Suburban Edge" and "Rural Residential." As we go forward with 2050, that'll be revised. I know you've got a new school that's going to be built. That’s an example where someone from Lake Elmo reached out to me about the water so we could build that school. I may not have the answer for you, but if there's a question, you contact me or Emma. Water Resource Management: Everybody thinks it's wastewater treatment, but there are also funding and grants for water efficiency and private property Inflow and Infiltration (I&I) grants. Those are for your private septics or public lines—if you have rainwater going in, you're actually treating more water than the system needs. There are grants to help line those. The water efficiency grants are for low-flow toilets and showerheads; the money goes to the communities and then you give them to homeowners. One of your wastewater services planning projects coming up is the Lake Elmo West Connection project, which looks like construction is going to be finishing up in 2026. Regarding transportation, it's a bit of a "transportation desert" out here in Washington County. The Gold Line opens March 2025. You have Metro Mobility—if you're having any issues with those services, please let me know. Then there is "Metro Micro" transit. In Lake Elmo, this microtransit started in January 2025. The goal is to get riders to the bus stops and the Gold Line. It’ll be really interesting to see the ridership numbers. What can our team do? You have questions, comments, recommendations? I'm willing, and so is Emma, to come to planning meetings or environmental meetings. If you are sending something to somebody within the Met Council, copy me. If you don't hear back in a week, let me know, because then I will follow up and say, "Come on, you need to get back." That's kind of who I am. [00:15:30] **Jeff Holtz (Council Member):** Thank you for that presentation. You had mentioned the water efficiency grants and multiple times the White Bear Lake lawsuit and the comprehensive group. While we all can agree that the lawsuit was irrational, I think we all can agree on the importance of water efficiency. One thing I am hoping from the Met Council moving forward is that those grants can be expanded both in types and in usage. It varies by community; some communities aren't necessarily in need of changing out their toilets. In our case, the irrigation smart meters are very helpful. Something we're definitely going to be having more conversation on in this community is water reuse. Can we start to provide grants to change out turf types to things that need less irrigation? That's not something a city on its own can do; that's something where we need partners like Washington County as well. I'm hoping Commissioner Cox, who is here, can have those conversations because changing turf types to conserve water matters regardless of the lawsuit itself. [00:16:45] **Dr. Gail Cedarberg (Metropolitan Council Representative):** I appreciate that comment. Within the 2050 water policy plan, different turf grasses and efficiencies are mentioned. As part of the Clean Water Council, which is statewide, they are funding research into turf grasses that minimize water through the University of Minnesota. I would love to see a statewide water reuse policy plan—I'm speaking for myself there—but there is part of the water policy plan that talks about storm water reuse. Hugo is doing that, but how do we incentivize that? The more comments we have from communities, the more we can bring that into our grants. Thank you. [00:17:35] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** Thank you so much for having me. I appreciate it. Hold on, Andrew... I mean, she's already been talked about, you know, it's technically your boss, right? So we should probably have her go first. I would like to introduce Commissioner Bethany Cox so she can just so everybody knows who she is—she represents the City of Lake Elmo with Washington County now. [00:17:55] **Bethany Cox (Washington County Commissioner):** Thank you, Mayor Cadenhead. My name is Bethany Cox, I am Washington County Commissioner. I'm attempting to fill some really big shoes as Commissioner Gary Kriesel has retired after 20 years. I'm spending a ton of my time in orientation, so I love the question, Council member, and I took notes. I'm getting a lot of questions and I just go back to our staff and I kindly say, "Will you please help me through this because I don't know even where to start." So, I'm happy to tag along when Public Works and other County departments come and do presentations. I've got two kids in the elementary school up in Stillwater; we are a public school family. We use Lake Elmo Park Reserve probably every weekend. So, just happy to be here. My email is easily accessible and the Mayor has my cell phone number if you guys have any questions. Thank you. [00:18:50] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** Absolutely, appreciate you stopping by and introducing yourself. Thank you. Next, we have an update on Highway 36 Lake Elmo Avenue Improvement project. Mr. Geeson from Washington County is here with us today. [00:19:05] **Andrew Geeson (Project Manager, Washington County):** Good evening Council, my name is Andrew Geeson. I'm a project manager for Washington County. Today I will be providing an update on the Highway 36 and Lake Elmo Avenue intersection improvement project. We are not looking for any action from the Council tonight; this is simply an update. This intersection has an extensive crash history; we see about one crash here every two weeks. Since the opening of the new bridge in 2017, we're seeing continued growth of traffic on Highway 36, leading to increased congestion. We have completed our intersection study phase and determined the preferred alternative. We are now moving into final engineering. Construction is scheduled for 2026 through 2027. The preferred design includes Highway 36 being raised over Lake Elmo Avenue. The project includes a new frontage road on the south side of 36 with direct access via ramps. Over the last six months, the project team has also decided to include changes to the intersection of Keats Avenue as part of the project. MnDOT already had a separate project programmed for Keats, but through our engagement efforts, we heard the desire to make changes at Keats Avenue as well. We are recommending the two projects be combined to reduce overall costs and impacts. This will allow access from Keats Avenue to Highway 36 via the newly constructed ramps, and then we would close the Keats Avenue intersection to improve safety. This "button hook" design has received consensus from the entire project team including the Federal Highway Administration, MnDOT, Lake Elmo, and Grant. We are also working with property owners for Right of Way. We've determined the frontage road intersections will be controlled with traffic lights. We are also working to confirm the extent of necessary relocation of the existing city water main in the southeast quadrant. We plan to host a pre-construction open house in the spring of 2026. With that, I'm happy to stand for any questions. [00:23:45] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** I have a question on that added scope for that frontage road. Is MnDOT picking up the tab on that? [00:23:55] **Andrew Geeson (Washington County):** Mayor, that's a great question. MnDOT had $3 million programmed for Keats. They're actually bringing $6 million to the project. They're bringing $3 million to pay for that additional scope and another $3 million to help close a small funding gap we had. [00:24:15] **Jeff Holtz (Council Member):** I presume the frontage road would then be a city-owned road? [00:24:17] **Andrew Geeson (Washington County):** Mayor, Council member, that's correct. That would be a city-owned and maintained roadway, and the right of ways for that would meet our design specs. [00:24:25] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** Thank you, nice presentation. All right, we're all the way to item F, the consent agenda. Item number two is approve payment disbursements, number three is approve EDA work plan, number four is approve Planning Commission work plan, number five is approve Parks Commission work plan. Now, number six [Budget/Transfers] was pulled. Number eight is approve job posting for public work seasonals. I'll entertain a motion to approve the consent agenda. [00:24:55] **Nick Dragisich (Council Member):** So moved. [00:24:57] **Matt Hirn (Council Member):** Support. [00:24:58] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** We have a motion and second for the consent agenda. All those in favor please indicate by saying "Aye." [00:25:02] **Council Members:** Aye. [00:25:04] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** Consent agenda is approved. Going into our regular agenda, number nine is accept 2025 Street feasibility report and call for improvement hearing. [00:25:12] **Nicole Miller (City Administrator):** Mayor and Council, I'll just note that description that was just read by the mayor is slightly inaccurate for what we're actually doing here. [00:25:20] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** I just read the script cards! Mr. Stanley, you know... I—if it's on the card, I'll read it. Well, we got to be real careful from there. You got it from there? [00:25:35] **Nate Stanley (City Engineer):** This is my first time, sorry. Are we good to go? Okay. Mayor and Council, tonight we have a presentation regarding the 2025 Street utility improvements, and we're asking for some feedback on the preliminary design. I'll be presenting some information surrounding some options, and then what we're asking for is to authorize final design—so no improvement hearing or feasibility report quite yet. This map outlines the project areas: Rolling Hills Estates, Pride’s Hamlet, Lake Elmo Vista, Teal Pass Estates, and Irish Court. The big issue here is that some of these neighborhoods have an option to potentially extend city water main as part of this work. However, the geotechnical characteristics support not doing that and just reclaiming and rebuilding with curb and gutter. There's a big difference between these two scopes cost-wise. The geotechnical results yielded that these streets are able to be reclaimed without full reconstruction. Reclamation saves money by staying in the upper levels of the roadway base. Regarding water main, if we extend it into these neighborhoods, the assessment per unit just to extend the water main is $46,000 per house. Additionally, street reconstruction costs would be almost $45,000. So we're talking about in excess of $90,000 here, plus connection fees and private plumbing costs. Under the "reclaim" option (not extending water main), the assessments are significantly less—an estimate of $22,300 rather than 90,000. At 59th Street Court, we’re looking at $39,000 for the water main option versus $7,800 for the road reclaim. At Irish Court, it’s $45,000 versus under 11,000. The total project cost was budgeted in the CIP at about $2.6 million. If we stick with the reclaim option, we align with the CIP budget. We are proposing a "B-style" 4-inch concrete curb, which is easily mounted by a vehicle but performs better for winter maintenance. We are proposing some parking restrictions on streets 24 feet or narrower. Assessments for the water main are so high that we are actually recommending we move forward with the street reclamation option for each area. The general feedback from those that did reach out to staff has been: "That's just too much money, we can't afford that." So we're asking you to authorize final design based on reclamation with a budget of $121,500. I am here for questions. [00:30:15] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** We got a couple of people that want to talk. When I call your name, please come to the podium and state your name and address for the record. You'll have six minutes. Jennifer Anderson. [00:30:30] **Jennifer Anderson (Resident):** Good evening. My family and I are 100% in favor of replacing the roadway pavement on our street. Every spring, our street is riddled with potholes. While the city has done a great job of patching, the road is now at the point where there's more patches than original pavement. At this time, however, we are not interested in the option of extending water to our home. We ask the Council to vote in favor of improving our road but not burden us with the cost of extending the water. Thank you. I live at 9850 55th Street North. [00:31:10] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** Thank you, Miss Anderson. Next, we have Katherine Todd. [00:31:15] **Katherine Todd (Resident):** Thank you very much. I live at 9961 55th Street North. We would concur with the staff—our road absolutely needs to be reclaimed. We have significantly invested in our own water and our own water treatment. The cost associated is extreme for each of us, and there isn't one homeowner we spoke with that wanted water sent to their home. Thank you. [00:31:45] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** Thank you. Any questions for Mr. Stanley? [00:31:50] **Matt Hirn (Council Member):** Just one thing here. I think in the past with some of these water main extensions, was it Grant funds that covered all of the cost for previous ones? [00:32:00] **Nate Stanley (City Engineer):** I'll defer to Jack [City Clerk/Staff], but in chatting with him, I believe that was—if not all—it was largely funded by the state, and that pot of money has run dry. [00:32:10] **Matt Hirn (Council Member):** Move to approve the preliminary design findings and recommendations and authorize final design for 2025 Street and utility improvements. [00:32:15] **Nick Dragisich (Council Member):** Support. [00:32:17] **Jeff Holtz (Council Member):** Thank you to Miss Anderson and Miss Todd for attending. This is an hour into the meeting, so thank you for providing feedback. I fully agree. As much as I long-term want to make sure City water is going to places where there is PFAS, that cost—because there is not a PFAS grant for it—would be absolutely absurd for homeowners. It’s not sustainable. I appreciate staff's work on this. [00:32:45] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** I'll just say that, yeah, good job. People have done things to their water system to make sure they have clean drinking water. I've been on these roads, and getting those back into play and creating that curb and gutter is something I certainly agree with. All those in favor of the motion please indicate by saying "Aye." [00:33:00] **Council Members:** Aye. [00:33:02] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** Motion passes. Next on our agenda is adopt strategic plan. [00:33:05] **Nicole Miller (City Administrator):** Thank you, Mayor and Council. It is my pleasure to be presenting the 2025 Strategic Plan. First, I just want to pause and look at this picture. It really is powerful when you look at all the folks there, all the years of expertise and their dedication to the community. The point of the plan was to develop the long-term direction and values. We had lots of discussion about our current conditions. We heard from department heads and commissioners. Our core strategies include: 1. Build a vibrant, inclusive, and connected community. 2. Manage growth with purpose and intent. 3. Balance finances. 4. Maintain responsive, transparent, and adaptive governance. 5. Deliver efficient, reliable, and innovative public services. 6. Build and sustain resilient infrastructure. A short-term goal includes developing master plans for the recently purchased 77 acres and the existing 180 acres. Another is developing the old fire station site and exploring the future of the Old City Hall. We also paired our values down from nine to three: Excellence, Integrity, and Service. We talked candidly to each other about roles and responsibilities. Going forward, we will be linking our long-term direction to short-term action plans, with quarterly updates to the Council. [00:37:00] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** You missed one—I think expectations from staff was "healthy treats" was in there if I remember correctly. [00:37:10] **Nicole Miller (City Administrator):** Yes, that is an important one! [00:37:25] **Jeff Holtz (Council Member):** What other means will we have for increasing access for this? It’s a fantastic plan, but how are we going to communicate that to the community? [00:37:35] **Nicole Miller (City Administrator):** It will be on the website, but we will break it down into digestible chunks and provide quarterly updates in the packet. We will also incorporate our three new value statements into our work. [00:37:45] **Jeff Holtz (Council Member):** Would it be reasonable to presume that if a random agenda item next month hits home on one of those short-term goals, the packet will say "this originates with the strategic plan"? [00:37:55] **Nicole Miller (City Administrator):** That's a good point. I was looking at adding our core objectives to our Council memos so we can identify how an item relates. [00:38:05] **Nick Dragisich (Council Member):** I agree with my learned colleague. Communicating to the public will be key, maybe in our newsletters, so people know we have adopted a plan. [00:38:20] **Matt Hirn (Council Member):** I really appreciated the time spent with everybody. The activity about the roles and expectations of the staff and city council was really powerful. I love that we have these goals, but I also want to remember that other things are going to come up. I don't want these goals to hamstring us from being able to pivot and change as things change over the next two years. [00:39:10] **Nicole Miller (City Administrator):** I agree. Our job as staff is to come to you with recommendations and resources needed so you can make that decision. [00:39:20] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** I'll entertain a motion. [00:39:25] **Jeff Holtz (Council Member):** Motion to adopt 2025 Lake Elmo Strategic Plan. [00:39:30] **Nick Dragisich (Council Member):** Support. [00:39:35] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** All those in favor please signify by saying "Aye." [00:39:40] **Council Members:** Aye. [00:39:45] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** Motion passed. Next, we have "approve finance software purchase." [00:39:50] **Clarissa Hadler (Finance Director):** Good evening, Mayor and Council. Nina and I are super excited. I'm asking this evening for you to approve our purchase of financial software. The objective is to make our processes more efficient. It's been mentioned in audits that we have separate utility software from our financial software, and much of our process lives in spreadsheets. We researched the top companies: BS&A, Casselle, and Tyler. In the end, we are recommending BS&A for functionality. The upfront costs will be around $124,000. It will increase our annual fees, but we will see significant improvements in efficiencies. [00:43:00] **Nick Dragisich (Council Member):** Why are we not charging any of the cost of the other utility funds like sewer and storm water? [00:43:05] **Clarissa Hadler (Finance Director):** Great question. We certainly can; they’ll all benefit from it. [00:43:10] **Jeff Holtz (Council Member):** With BS&A, have there been other cities where we've been able to ask what that transition looked like? [00:43:20] **Clarissa Hadler (Finance Director):** Most rave reviews we got were about BS&A. Roseville just recently went from SpringBrook (what we use now) to BS&A, and we haven't heard a single poor review. [00:43:45] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** I see a noticeable difference between the annual fees between BS&A and the next one in order—like $15,000. Can you comment on that? [00:44:00] **Clarissa Hadler (Finance Director):** I tried to summarize these expenses in the first attachment. BS&A actually has a couple of modules for special assessments that were not available in the other softwares. [00:44:20] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** I see that Council has made several comments throughout the contract. I want to make sure we get those in place. [00:44:30] **Clarissa Hadler (Finance Director):** My apologies. I had the contract reviewed by Chris Smith at the League of Minnesota Cities. BS&A adopted the redline changes. [00:44:50] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** The indemnification language is always a big deal. Sarah, do you think you could work with me on seeing if we can get that... [00:45:00] **Sarah [City Attorney]:** Mr. Mayor, members of the Council, I did review Chris Smith’s comments and I agree with them. I think the indemnification language needs to be changed in accordance with his comments. I might have some additional comments I want to share with you. [00:45:30] **Matt Hirn (Council Member):** The annual fees—is that expected to stay the same or increase year-over-year? [00:45:40] **Clarissa Hadler (Finance Director):** I would expect them to increase along with inflation. [00:46:25] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** I was looking at Section 7—5% annually or the Consumer Price Index. 5% seems generous. In my industry, increases are usually 3%. Sarah, do you find that language common? [00:47:15] **Sarah [City Attorney]:** It varies. Delaware governing law is also something I’d look at. [00:47:30] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** I'm going to make a motion to table this item until at which time we can have a fully agreed upon contract. [00:47:40] **Matt Hirn (Council Member):** Second. [00:47:45] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** All those in favor of tabling... signify by saying "Aye." [00:47:50] **Council Members:** Aye. [00:47:55] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** All right, we pulled "Approved interfund loan and fund transfer for Ballfield purchase." There seems to be a conception that some of this was not being transparent. The purchase of these properties was agreed to back on the January 7th meeting. We are preserving open space next to Sunfish Lake to provide community space and ball fields for our ever-growing community. The land became available as opposed to letting it go to a potential housing development. This interfund loan is just a way to handle that purchase for now. [00:49:15] **Nick Dragisich (Council Member):** Mayor, we already made this decision a month ago to buy the property. Now we have to determine the best way to finance it. Finding it through an internal loan made the most sense rather than paying higher interest in the bond market. It was in our Parks Master Plan. I fully support our decision. [00:50:30] **Jeff Holtz (Council Member):** The origination of this was the $1 million from Royal. To do nothing is not okay; we are already short on fields today. Land prices will only go up. This loan transfer is the best option. [00:51:30] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** Motion to approve resolution 2025-016 approving interfund loan and fund transfers for land purchases. [00:51:40] **Nick Dragisich (Council Member):** Second. [00:51:50] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** All those in favor... signify by saying "Aye." [00:51:55] **Council Members:** Aye. [00:52:00] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** Resolution passes. Council reports. Council member Dragisich? [00:52:05] **Nick Dragisich (Council Member):** No report. [00:52:07] **Jeff Holtz (Council Member):** Thank you to the fire department for going out in the frigid cold last week and making sure the lives of residents were protected. Thank you to the residents who have been involved in doing meal trains for that family; they lost everything. [00:52:25] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** Council member Holtz kindly invited me to a local community event—the Tri Lakes Home Association. It’s been around for 70 years. I thought that was a real testament to neighborhoods getting together. Also, this is National Engineers Week. If you see your engineer, even though they don't want a hug, you might want to give them a hug. Council member Hirn, do you want your hug now? [00:53:15] **Matt Hirn (Council Member):** We'll wait till after! No report. [00:53:20] **Julie Johnson (City Clerk):** No report. [00:53:22] **Clarissa Hadler (Finance Director):** No report. [00:53:25] **Dustin Kalis (Fire Chief):** Just wanted to touch base on that home fire last week. I want to express my appreciation to responding departments: Oakdale, Stillwater, Bayport, Woodbury, Lower St. Croix Valley, and Mahtomedi. No firefighter injuries. I want to express gratitude to a quick-thinking teenager for alerting the family; smoke alarms do save lives. [00:54:10] **Charles Cadenhead (Mayor):** Good message. With that, I'll adjourn the meeting for this evening.