City Council 9/15/2026

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[0:00] this. Year. Harmon is not available tonight, so I am Faik Mayor. Um, members, members of the public may attend this meeting in person by watching on cable channel 16 or streaming on media.
[0:26] The public can make in-person statements during public comment sections, including for the public forum, beginning at 620. And I like to call the meeting to order and then ask for those who can to stand for Pledge of Allegiance and for the land. Acknowledgments. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands.
[0:50] One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. We acknowledge and honor the Dakota nation, on whose ancestral land the city of Golden Valley is built, and whose land resources we use. We commit to counteracting the erasure of the cultural practices and presence of the Dakota people through education, and by amplifying a wide range of indigenous voices. You may be seated.
[1:11] First on the second on the agenda is a proclamation of honoring September 15th through October 15th, 2026. As Hispanic and Latino, a Heritage Month. And I like to call our community Connection Specialist, Sanchez Charrette Cob, I know you so well. I came right to the podium to present the proclamation.
[1:37] Oh, it’s I you know, I read off the script. No, um, and Seth Camper or Artie. So we’re both presenting to you today because, um, this is a multilingual proclamation. Um, and and I don’t speak Spanish, so if you want me to speak in German, maybe, um, but, um.
[2:00] Thank you, Council, for, um, your time to hear about the proclamation today. So, Hispanic and Latin Heritage Month is celebrated, um, from September 15th through October 15th. This month uplifts the rich cultural, linguistic and historical heritage, representing many countries, ethnicities and religious traditions that have contributed to America’s past, present, and future. From Hispanic and Latin people.
[2:21] This proclamation also calls upon the Golden Valley community to collectively work towards dispelling ignorance, prejudice, and fear through education about the history and countless contributions of this wonderful community in mathematics, science, history, law, literature, arts, education, entertainment, government, politics, and other endeavors, whether locally, statewide or nationally.
[2:43] I think it’s also really valuable to have a proclamation such as this during our current climate and time, when this community has faced many atrocities. This year, um, in our own state and communities near us, um, to recognize that we have the ability to acknowledge this community, understand that they have an important place here in Golden Valley and create insurmountable, um, amount of
[3:07] pride for this community as well. So, um, we are going to read off an excerpt. I will read it in English and runs it will read it in Spanish. So it’s been fun.
[3:27] Um, so one aspect that we want to highlight out of the proclamation today is the fifth, whereas so Hispanic and Latin Heritage Month is an opportunity to dispel ignorance, prejudice and fear through education about the history and countless contributions of Hispanic and Latin communities.
[3:54] Consider de la herencia hispana y latinas una oportunidad para despair, la ignorance Los prejudice y el nido a través de la educacion historico y las innumerable contributions de las comunidades hispanos and latinas en este pais. Thank you Council. Thank you so much both for you for the presentation. Any comments from council? Hearing none. I’ll read the final paragraph for the proclamation. Now, therefore, it be resolved to the City Council of the City of Golden Valley does hereby proclaim September 15th.
[4:19] Director of 15th as Hispanic Latino Heritage Month and call upon the people Golden Valley to recognize the contributions made by members of Hispanic and Latino, a community and to actively promote the principles of equality, equity, liberty and justice. Thank you so much for that. Thank you. Next, on the proclamation roll call, we go on.
[4:42] It’s to proclamation. We recognize Constitution Day. One of my favorites. Um, and I will have City Attorney Maria Cisneros to give the staff report on this. Thank you. Mayor Pro Tem Harris. Um, we actually also have a community member here and a council member is going to also offer her thoughts on this item.
[5:02] It was the community member who contacted the city and suggested that we consider passing this proclamation. This is, I think, the first time the city has, uh, considered a proclamation to honor Constitution Day.
[5:21] And I think it’s a great opportunity for the folks in the community, as well as those of us who work in the Constitution every day, as many government staff do, to just remember what the Constitution stands for and what it requires of each of us.
[5:42] And what an awesome responsibility it is to be the ones that are making sure that our government abides by the requirements and um, and provides the rights that our citizens are entitled to under the Constitution. So I will with that, I will turn it over to Councilmember Fuzzy. Thank you. City Attorney Cisneros, and thank you, Miss Avery, for bringing this idea to the city. I am delighted to be able to speak on this, and especially now more than ever.
[6:02] I think it’s really important for us to really think about and remember what our Constitution is about and what it is for. And so our forefathers had the idea to create a government here, and we agreed to give up certain rights in order to get certain protections from them.
[6:20] And in order to give them those rights, we made sure in the Constitution that it was a charter of what’s referred to as negative liberties. And what that means is that the Constitution is actually rules that the federal government must follow.
[6:40] It’s it’s their playbook that says what they may not do to us. Um, and so I think right now that that’s really important when we think about our, um, our democracy and especially our First Amendment rights and our Fourth Amendment rights, the 14th amendment as well.
[7:00] Um, and so when you look at, you know, sort of the legal considerations that support this initiative here, you talk about the separation of powers and the balance of authority among federal, state and local governments and the the way it’s supposed to be working in our country is that the, um, the Congress in, um, nothing but a benevolent heart is
[7:23] creating laws that are supposed to support the country and our citizenry. And then the Supreme Court in the lower courts are supposed to interpret those laws and make sure that they abide by what they are and are not allowed to do, as comes forth in our Constitution.
[7:44] Um, and so I think it’s important for us to be thinking about that now, recognizing Constitution Day now is more important than ever, because I think we’re seeing a lot of our constitutional rights being trampled on.
[7:59] And I think the reason for that is a lot of people are forgetting what the Constitution says and what it means. And so thank you so much, and I’d like to invite, uh, Miss Janet Avery up to speak. Well, thank you very much, especially the two speakers to this issue.
[8:18] Um, I’m I’ve been a resident for 33 years, and I’m also a member of the Lake Minnetonka League of Women Voters, the League of Women Voters was instrumental in the early 1950s in getting Congress and the president to approve Constitution Day and Constitution Week for special attention. And part of the goal of the Da. One of the goals is historic preservation. Another is public community service, and the third is education.
[8:45] And part of our effort is to educate people about the Constitution. And to that extent, we’ve developed some quizzes about it. And also, um, I would just like to read one of the whereas which is where as the city, through its elected officials and dedicated staff, serves the community by demonstrating the principles of fairness, peace, safety and freedom for all residents,
[9:09] reflecting the values of the Constitution. Thank you. Thank you so much, Mrs. Avery, for that. Thank you as well. Councilmember foster, for your comments. I really appreciate that. Um, anyone else want to chime in on Constitution Day? And all the cool kids are doing it. Come on now. Um. I would like to hear you. Me chime in.
[9:32] I would like to. Every time you speak. We got a 30 minute litany here, I could go now. Um, no, I think when I, um, when I first read members of Constitution Day. No, um, in college, I had a con law professor, Elaine Sunderland.
[9:49] Um, who I admire greatly, but we always had a Constitution Day program at Knox. Um, and so we bring in a speaker to discuss, you know, you know, author or a, you know, scholar discuss this.
[10:08] And I think, as you mentioned, um, in these times that we’re living in, um, you know, we we proclaim about, you know, America being a great place and things like that. And for me, if you weren’t America, great. It’s because of one of the founding documents, the Constitution obviously had negative liberties. And so, you know, we hold these rights so dear because they’re in the law. They’re written down for us to obey.
[10:28] We all take an oath to uphold the Constitution of United States. Um, and it’s not just cheaper, as we say, just to get sworn in, but we should take that thoroughly and seriously that long as we make our in line with those principles that we hold.
[10:46] And so, as some may, you know, want to argue about safety and protection, I want to feel safe. Safety gets you so far. Um, when safety violates your rights, though, is that really a good thing or a bad thing? And so especially now as we, you know, I’m sure someone has a copy of the Constitution, a little book in her somewhere in
[11:04] her house, probably. Um, it’s it’s kind of it’s a dorky but flip through it, actually, um, it’s not a long read. It’s pretty straightforward. But that’s the founding basic blocks of how we get here. Um, we don’t do things on a whim.
[11:23] We try to follow the rules because that’s what we’re told to do. But we also want to protect people’s rights and freedoms. Um, and so Constitution Day may come from nowhere, which for me, I’m like, oh, a Constitution Day. I don’t know that, but it’s in these times it’s so vital to remember why.
[11:40] Why are we here? Why do we do these things? Why are right so important? And it flows from that constitution, um, that we all want to hold very dear. Um, we must also uphold them as citizens as well. So, um, happy Constitution Day. Pick up and read one. That’s fun. Um, and I will read the end.
[11:59] So now, therefore it be resolved. The city Council, the City of Golden Valley, does hereby recognize, declare September 17th, 2026 as Constitution Day in the city of Golden Valley and encourage our residents to reflect on enduring significance and significance of the United States Constitution.
[12:16] To engage in civic life and to support the rule of law, equal justice, and public service in our community. And we are done with the roll call of proclamations. Next up lies the script that new employee introductions. Thank you so much, Council member. Um, here we go. Uh, deputy, our deputy city manager, Chris Kirsten Santilli, says when you name it basher, our new communications manager. Hello.
[12:51] There we go. Good evening, mayor Pro tem council. I am so excited to introduce you all this evening and to our community. Our new communications manager, Naima Basheer. Uh, Naima brings more than 15 years of experience in public services. Uh, both in nonprofit leadership and in city government. Excuse me? Local government.
[13:19] Uh, career has spanned strategic planning, community engagement programs and operations, leadership, communications. Um, and she spent nearly 14 years with Northpoint Health and Wellness Center, which is a Hennepin County Department.
[13:41] And, uh, she held a variety of leadership roles while she was there and most recently served as a project manager with Brevard Health, leading public health and equity projects. And, of course, communications and community engagement. She brings a wide range of experience, and she has already hit the ground running a meeting. All of our staff and bringing ideas and excitement. So, um, our team, uh, our small little communications team, we’re so happy to have her here. So, Naima.
[14:02] Good evening. Thank you for having me. It’s my first. So a little nervous. Um, yes. My name is Naima, and I am very excited to join the city of Golden Valley. And more importantly, I’m really excited to bring, um.
[14:26] As Kirstin said, so much of what I’ve done in my career, which is to serve communities in the best way possible. Um, Golden Valley is, um, working for Golden Valley is both a personal and a professional decision. Um, my parents live on Winnetka and have been for the last 12 years, and my children, um, attended schools in Golden Valley, um, during their formative years.
[14:54] They were at Peaceful Valley Montessori and then later at Meadowbrook. And so, um, I come to Golden Valley not only, um, to a community that I care about, but as a family member, as a parent and as a resident connected member. I also live in Crystal. So I’m very close, and I love Golden Valley.
[15:17] If I haven’t said that, um, so this makes this opportunity to be the communications manager really meaningful to me. Um, like Kirstin said, I hit the ground running. Um, I enjoyed this work because it’s not only natural to me, but I, as a child of immigrants and I come from a large family of nine children. I’m the fifth born, and so I have to communicate.
[15:39] However, I have done so across older and younger, you know, so I’m really excited. And to be part of the team and, um, really excited to work with all of you and residents and everyone internally and externally. So thank you. Awesome. Welcome to the city. We’re happy to have you in a little bit, Crystal. It’s okay.
[16:00] So, um, but now we’re really excited to have you here on staff and, uh, really, really, really welcome to welcome to work with you Tuesdays, man. So moving on, um, is to additions and corrections to the agenda. Um, are there any additions, corrections Council members? Hearing none.
[16:27] Do I have a motion to approve the agenda as submitted? So moved here a second. Second. Okay. All those does a voice. Voice vote? All those in favor say aye. Aye, aye. Those opposed? And the agenda has been approved. Next up is the consent agenda.
[16:50] All items listed under this heading are considered to be routine by the City Council, and will be enacted by one motion. There’ll be no discussion of these items. Council members request. In which event the item will be removed from the general order of business, and considering his normal sequence on the agenda, also, we are accepting a grant on the consent agenda tonight and on behalf of the Council, I’d like to extend our
[17:06] heartfelt thanks to having County Public Health recognizing and supporting the states committed to fostering a healthier, more engaged workforce and workplace culture that prioritizes employment wellness. We greatly appreciate the partnership and support. Are there any items councilmembers wish to be removed from the consent agenda? No. Seeing none.
[17:27] A motion to approve a consent agenda as submitted. So moved. Do I hear a second? Second. Okay. Any other questions? Comments? Thoughts? Okay. This is a voice vote. All those all the support in favor of the extend agenda. Say a.. Hi. All those opposed? Consent agenda is approved. There are no items for public hearing tonight.
[17:54] Item consideration is the public input consideration resolution number 26058 to approve the proposed 2027 budget. Proposed tax levies payable in 2027 and resolution number. Number 626059 consenting to proposed 2027 eight A levy. We have our finance director, William Hodges, here to discuss the staff report. Good evening, Director Hodges. Uh, Mayor Pro Tem Harris and council members.
[18:25] Thank you for having me this evening again to talk about the 2027 proposed budget for the city. Um, well, I get to speak to this budget, and certainly it’s something I live every day.
[18:41] It’s definitely a group project, and it’s a culmination of efforts from staff across the city, uh, who give a lot of time and effort to make sure that the city’s resources are deployed, uh, carefully and in a way that benefits the citizens and and furthers the goals of the city. So, um, I just want to thank all my colleagues here at the city that have put time into this budget.
[18:57] So starting with just a reminder, today, we are asking the council to approve the property tax levy and budget for 2027, as well as to consent to the EDA levy that we just spoke about. Um, both of these items, as proposed, would then be communicated to the property tax payers within Golden Valley.
[19:16] Um, in November, the county will send out notices and then, uh, in December, I will be back up here. With a similar presentation. And I’ll ask you all to approve the final levy numbers for 2027. The first slide here is just a summary of the tax levy components for Golden Valley.
[19:35] So as a reminder, the City of Golden Valley uses the property tax levy for three things, primarily the general fund, the bonded debt required levy, and then the Economic Development Authority levy, uh, as well.
[19:54] So this table shows what those amounts were for 2026 and what they are proposed to be for 2027. Um, you can see there the general fund is going up by 8.3%. Our debt levy is actually being reduced by over 20%. And then the EDA levy that we just spoke about is going up by 25%. In total. We’re asking for an additional 4%.
[20:12] Excuse me, 4%, um, in total for the levy. And, uh, obviously the general fund is the largest component of those three pieces at 86.5%, followed by debt at 12%. And then the EDA at one and a half percent. Between 2026 and 2027. That makeup hasn’t changed significantly, obviously, uh, the levy is predominantly for the general fund.
[20:38] Um, with the only changes coming between debt and or EDA. So what changed in the general fund? We are looking at increased service levels. So we’ve got some staffing additions. Uh, two firefighters are being added to the fire department. Uh, that’s actually cost neutral because we reduced the budget for part time firefighters.
[21:02] Um, we’re asking for a fire marshal, uh, an engineering technician position within community development. Um, and then across the board, cost of living adjustments for all staff and positions. In addition to that, we are increasing the vehicle maintenance budgets. Uh, that helps to correct for increased cost, to maintain and repair modern vehicles.
[21:24] Um, we’re looking to expand some technology services, both hardware and software, as well as just general cost increases for those technologies. And then the final note, there is, uh, it funds a 2027 community survey. If you remember, in 2025, we had our first community survey in quite some time.
[21:43] And so we’re looking to provide a follow up two years later to that. So at the highest level, um, the overall general fund expenditures are going up 2.5 million, which is 7.1%. Um, that top table there, I’m trying to, uh, classifying those as either additional service level investments or as inflationary increases.
[22:07] So under the additional service level, those are the things I just talked about, like new positions, new technologies under the inflationary growth that includes the cost of living adjustments and other inflationary pressures that we see for the services that we buy for the city. On the revenue side, um, the total tax levy is increasing 2.5 million.
[22:31] Our other revenue sources, um, collectively are actually decreasing. Just just under 13,000. Um, I’ve got a slide. Later on I’ll go into more detail on the specifics of that. Um, you can see here these two changes represent an equal increase to revenue and expenditure. So this slide has the expenditure changes by function.
[22:54] So um, when we look at categorizing the way that we organize ourselves as a city, these are the different functions that we have within the general fund. Um, you can see there the overall increase in the purple line at the bottom is 2.5 million. Um, department by department. I’ve just got a few notes here. Um, we see police at the very top.
[23:14] They’re going up 13.7%. That reflects a number of changes to fringes and cost of living adjustments for staff in that department. Um, under administrative services, we’ve got additional IT costs that’s pushing up that budget by 16.5%. Um, under fire. I mentioned before, we have that fire marshal position. That’s also causing that to go up as well.
[23:40] Again, as the cost of living for all staff. And then, um, further down, actually, I’ll take a look at the council and boards line item there. You can see, um, it’s decreasing by 150,000. That represents just a realignment of where some of the things that we had budgeted in there are going.
[23:58] So, I’ll use finance as an example. So the city’s financial audit was budgeted under the council. And uh, you know, I just feel like as the person that manages the audit and signs the contracts and pays the invoices, that would make more sense to be under finance. And so move that budget under finance.
[24:17] There are a number of other things in there as well. Uh, there are several memberships that we are we pay just to be part of civic organizations. Those were moved to the city manager’s budget because, again, that’s where those invoices are actually approved. And those contracts are managed.
[24:36] And then, um, things like legal notices were previously budgeted under council. The city clerk or the legal department is the one that’s utilizing those services. So those budgets were moved to those departments where they’re used. On the revenue side of the ledger. Um, again, a similar increase, obviously, we would have a balanced budget here. So additional 2.5 million.
[25:02] Um, and here you can kind of see the top line property taxes going up there. And then some of the reductions that I spoke of earlier, the net decrease to all those other sources was about 13,000. Um, some of the biggest changes in permits, uh, decreasing that estimate.
[25:20] We had a number of years in recent history where permit revenue was at the highest. It’s been um, and in 2026, I’m kind of seeing that soften a little bit. Uh, obviously a number of more kind of macroeconomic factors go into that. But just reduce that estimate for 2027. Um, we are not proposing to use any fund balance for 2027.
[25:40] So in 2026 we’ve got this built in use of fund balance that’s going to pay for one time things. Some studies and things like that that we don’t see in 2027. So that use of fund balance is removed as a funding source.
[25:58] And then the final kind of largest change on this, um, table is under the interest earnings. Uh, the past two years. So 2024 and 2025. Um, we saw interest earnings in the general fund, around 1.3 million. Um, so it felt comfortable to move that up to 750,000 for 2027. Um, anticipating a kind of continued, uh, interest earnings, uh, based on the types of investments that the city is able to make.
[26:22] And, uh, they’re very stable. So, um, when we look at how all of those changes affect our property owners, uh, we often just use the median value of homes as a comparative tool.
[26:46] So on this slide, I’m showing, um, you know, the median value of homes in Golden Valley did increase from 447,000 last year to 464,000 this year. That was a $17,000 increase, uh, 3.8%. Uh, under the proposed level of median value, home would pay approximately 166 more per year, or $14 a month. Um, in 2027 on their property taxes for city portion.
[27:13] That funding goes to, uh, obviously all the all the general fund, uh, operations of the city and these two charts here show that, um, on the left hand side, we’ve got 20, 26 on the right hand side, 2027.
[27:29] Um, maybe just noteworthy that there aren’t really a lot of significant changes, just kind of, um, some minor adjustments here and there between, um, you know, overall operations, police, fire, etc.. Um, but a pretty consistent, uh, funding proposal for 2027. Uh, moving away from the general fund levy into debt. So this graph shows the property tax and non property tax supported debt. And the city of Golden Valley for the last five years.
[27:54] So as you can see we’ve been paying it down. That just represents the fact that we’ve paid more debt down than we’ve issued over the past five years. A lot of that has to do with the transition from our pavement management program, where we were issuing debt every single year.
[28:08] It’s been a couple of years since that concluded, and we won’t start the the infrastructure renewal program until 2028. Um, so we’ve got the ability at this point to, to spend some of that down or to pay off some of that debt. Um, obviously other discussions and other meetings.
[28:26] We’ve talked about building forward and other things that will, uh, in future years, lead us to issue more debt in this graph. We’ll we’ll go back up. However, a lot of that building forward debt will be supported by local sales tax. And so the portion that’s supported by property taxes shouldn’t increase. Um, to greatly, uh, another note on debt.
[28:49] The, the the statutes and the county tell us how much we have to levy for debt. And that amount is 105% of the following year’s principal and interest payments. Um, something a little bit different this year.
[29:06] Uh, we have the option to basically tell the county that we’re not going to levy what they’re telling us we need to levy, or we can levy something less. And so, um, using our ten year financial management plan, we were able to look at those debt service needs for the remaining life of all of our debt. Um, and there was a total of eight issuances that we are asking the county to give us an exception.
[29:24] Um, it’s in the resolution. So you’ll see, one of the exceptions is because we use franchise fees to pay the debt. One of the exceptions is because we use state aid to pay for the debt.
[29:40] And then six exceptions are essentially reducing the amount that we need because we’ve got sufficient cash to pay those debt obligations off. Um, and by doing that, we were able to lower the levy by $394,000 from what the county would have had us levy had we just followed their schedule. This graph shows us the kind of the split between commercial, industrial and residential property tax payers.
[30:03] So the purpose of this is to show, you know, going back just five years, 41% of the tax capacity of the city was borne by commercial, industrial, and 59% was residential. When we look at 2027, that commercial industrial capacity is reduced to only 35%, while residential properties are picking up 65% of that tax capacity.
[30:29] So, um, not only are the homes becoming more valuable, they are also supporting more of the the tax capacity. Um, this is basically that graph in a chart. So again, you can see that our commercial industrial, the top two lines are going up by less than 2%, while the bottom three which would be those residential components of the
[30:50] tax capacity, are all increasing. Um, by more than that. So six, 6%, 3.8% and then 7.4%. Um, this is just a quick summary. Again, I think I mentioned these numbers before, but the median value home, we saw the value increase by 17,000 based on the Hennepin County Assessor’s reports,
[31:13] which is a 3.8% increase. And we see our proposed property tax will impact those homes again. But $166 per year. Um, moving on to capital. So the city adopts an actual tenure capital improvement plan. Um, so I’m here, I’m just showing the current year plus the next five, but it does go out five additional years beyond this.
[31:41] Um, and the purpose of that is so that we can plan for, uh, you know, as many of the needs that we can with the information that we have. And so right now, this is the capital plan. Um, I’ve got it listed by category here.
[31:59] So you can kind of see what are the different funding sources for the different types of capital that we do. Um, obviously the first four lines there, we rely heavily on general fund transfers. Uh, once we get into streets, we start talking about special assessments and bonds.
[32:18] Um, and then once we get into the enterprise funds, we look for those funds to support their capital needs through user fees. Grants, or, if needed, bonds. Um, just some highlights from this capital improvement plan. Um, we’ve got the lilac Drive realignment work that’s associated with the East Fire Station. We’ve got, like I mentioned before, the infrastructure renewal program beginning in 2028.
[32:44] Those projects are included in streets, water, sewer and storm sewer. Um, the golf course is looking to to build a new golf facility for card storage and other uses. Um, and then finally, obviously, we’ve talked several times about building forward and the capital plan for that will be forthcoming. But any debt associated with that wouldn’t be in the levy program until at least 2028.
[33:14] Um, non general funds. So general approach for these is that we you want to balance the budget for operations. Um, you know the Brook view special revenue, the golf course, our utility funds.
[33:34] Um, they’re all also expected to cover their capital needs as well as transfers and other non-operating, uh, uses of funds. So, um, when we look at those funds, I kind of break them into some pieces here. The first thing we’ll look at are the two special revenue funds that we adopt budgets for. That’s the Brook View Community Center and the Community Services Fund.
[33:54] Uh, you’ll see Brook View Community Center for 2027 as proposed, is seeing a net loss. Um, again, a lot of these, uh, funds, the the operations are self-supporting. And then we look to support as much capital as we can. Um, kind of or as is needed, really, in any given year.
[34:16] So in this case, if Brook view completes the $200,000 worth of capital outlay, they have scheduled, that would result in a net loss. However, of course we keep an eye on cash and fund balance, and you can see that at the bottom. The Brook View Community Center has sufficient cash and fund balance to support a loss in 2027. The Community Services fund.
[34:33] That’s always a break even. Um, we just want to to to basically, uh, spend as much as we take in for, for that fund. Um, we have one internal service fund that we budget for the vehicle services fund. This is used to maintain all city vehicles, including in-house repairs, contractor repairs that we can’t perform, and fuel sales.
[34:55] Uh, so this as an internal service fund, uh, should always be balanced. There’s all the source of all the funds our city departments, um, and all the uses are right back into those city vehicles. So, um, this fund will be balanced. Uh, this the vehicle services fund is also getting, um, a maintenance technician in 2027.
[35:17] Um, just to keep up with increased demand and the cost of that position would then be funded by those charges out to departments. Um, utility funds. So the three utility funds here conservation, recycling, water, sewer and storm sewer.
[35:43] Um, again, uh, supporting operations on their own and then, you know, investing in infrastructure and other capital outlay as, as needed. Uh, the conservation recycling fund doesn’t have capital outlays, so that fund does break even. We manage a contract for that. Um, and we charge a service for those services, or charge a fee for those services. Um, that’s equal to the contracted amount.
[36:03] Uh, water and sewer and storm sewer, both right now. And, you know, presented here have projected net losses for 2027. Again, we look then to cash and net position. Um, unrestricted net position to help support those losses in any one year.
[36:25] And we we plan, you know, multiple multi year planning approach to those funds to ensure they don’t fall into a financial a position of financial distress. And then the last two enterprise funds are the golf course and our motor vehicle licensing fund. Um the golf course of course. Uh pretty self-explanatory.
[36:52] Operates the golf course out at Brook view, as well as the 316 grille. Uh, here again, as I mentioned before, they’re looking to invest in, uh, some capital projects related to a new facility. And so for 2027, we are showing, uh, a net loss. Um, in this case, we see the cash as just 2.5 million or slightly less, actually.
[37:12] And so we would anticipate that this fund would need to issue debt to, to cover, uh, the cost of that facility. Um, if and when it comes to pass. And then for motor vehicle licensing. Uh, this fund really, you know, obviously the source of revenue for them are the DMV charges that we share with the state.
[37:33] Um, and so the goal for this fund is to break even. Um, supporting not only the staff costs and other fees, but they also do transfer some money to the general fund. And when that’s all said and done, we hope that they, uh, break even.
[37:54] Uh, we just spoke of the EDA levy, so I probably don’t need to go through this again. But again, we’re, you know, we’re looking at a 25% increase to that levy. Um, and the other major source of funding is that local affordable housing aid.
[38:11] And then finally, for those, uh, you know, the residents, we get questions from time to time about, um, opportunities for relief. And these are some, some resources that we have available to share with community members. Um, including property tax refunds. Um, there’s a veterans with disability program that the state runs, and then, um, there’s a tax deferral program for senior citizens.
[38:38] Um, these are income based relief programs that help property tax owners who see, you know, fixed income but see an increase in their costs year over year from from our taxes. And with that, I will stand for questions. Thank you so much, Director Hodges. Uh, any questions for Director Hodges from Council? I got a couple. Um, so just two quick ones.
[39:04] Um, the interest earnings you mentioned in the table. Um, where does that go? Does that go to the general fund? Does it go to a special place? And for savings? Where does that interest funding go to in general? Uh, Mayor Pro Tem Harris, thanks for the question. So, uh, investment earnings at the city.
[39:20] Uh, all of our investments are pooled, in one account, basically. Um, and so we take that cumulative earnings, uh, which I think in 2020, 2025 was something like $3.5 million. And we allocated across the city to the funds that have those cash balances. And so the general fund has a fairly large cash balance.
[39:38] So it gets a fairly large allocation of of interest earnings. But all of our debt service funds that have cash balances get their interest earnings. The the enterprise funds get interest. And so it’s allocated out based on the running balance of cash in any given fund. Okay. Great.
[39:56] And then the you mentioned with the exceptions for um for debt, um, for 100%, 5% went to level four. Um, is that for upcoming budget years or is for that what you mentioned for this for this year, budget. Yeah. Great question. So, uh, the debt is levied for the following years. Uh, payments.
[40:21] So for the amounts that we are levying for collection in 2027 will be paid on our debt obligations in 2028. Okay. Um, that’s why we don’t see anything related to infrastructure renewal or other things like that in the 2027 levy, because we won’t have to levy for those until the year following the issuance.
[40:40] And so we won’t issue until 2027, the first year of levy will be 28, and then we’ll go to pay 29. Gotcha. A two year lag there. Okay. Councilmember Clancy. Thank you. I have. Um. I have a question. Um. We take on. debt for for certain reasons.
[41:01] And then is it accurate to say that that then allows us to spread out that cost at a smaller rate over a larger period of time? Um, yeah. Councilmember. The, the that’s basically it. So we we issued that, um, as an alternative to using stored cash to purchase, uh, things. And obviously they’re usually related to capital assets and long term, long term infrastructure investments.
[41:24] And so the advantage of using debt is that the taxpayers who use those assets in the future will be paying the tax levy to pay off that debt. And so it better aligns the use of the resources with the citizens paying the taxes.
[41:46] And so then the follow up question I have is if it allows us to, um, pay smaller increments at any given year, then that would reduce the amount of property taxes. To that, say, senior citizen. Uh, correct. So the goal of kind of aligning the tax, the debt levy with our debt funds.
[42:11] Um, so once we issue debt, we use the actual debt up right away because we’re building the thing, we’re building the road wherever it might be. Um, and then that obligation sticks around for 20 years. And so for 20 years, we’re levying taxes, and we have to levy 105%. And so in any given year, if we’re collecting, say, 101%, um, over time that balance grows.
[42:29] And so by reducing it, um, we can keep that balance lower, which it lowers the tax levy, it lowers the risk to the city of having to pay a penalty. If we earn too much interest on our debt cash, um, we have to pay a penalty to the IRS. And so it just it’s beneficial. And then just.
[42:46] One more question. You had talked about. Um, and forgive my ignorance interest. What’s the expression? Oh, the interest earnings. Interest earnings that seemed to gone, that seemed to have gone up significantly. What do you attribute that to? Well, we’ve been really lucky with our local sales tax.
[43:06] As that revenue comes in. We’re able to use that to cash flow. Um, different operations of the city. And that allows us to keep our core investment balance, um, at a high level. And so that, again, that core investment account is where we’re earning all of our interest.
[43:20] And so the longer that we can keep that, uh, intact and high, and as long as the markets cooperate, um, we’ll continue to earn a fairly decent interest. Thank you. Thank you. Any other questions from council? Oh. Oh, well, um, we’re going to public input zone here.
[43:43] Um, so this item is open for public input. Uh, for those who you will share when it’s your turn, please come to the podium speaking to microphone and share your name. Um, three minutes is allotted time for each commenter.
[44:00] Um, during your comments, if you’re asking any questions, please note a staff for taking notes and all to be answered after the public input session has concluded. Looking out in the audience. Anyone? Any questions? No one. Someone guess is a no. Um. So I will close the public input portion of it and go to general comments. Um, Council comments, thoughts about budget. Councilmember fuzzy.
[44:27] I don’t mean did you want to say anything? No. I just, um, I know I’ve, you know, I’ve seen kind of the, um, the levy increases around the metro area, and I think 4% is is really dynamite. Um, and I appreciate the, the efforts you guys have made to to keep the costs down low.
[44:50] I know that that’s something that’s on many. I’m property owners and really renters. I mean, that’s something that it would increase the cost of their rent. Um, so I appreciate that. Thank you very much. Council member McGinnis. I can’t. Move forward to budget without. At least a couple comments.
[45:11] And, uh, just just want to point out, just the long term financial management approach that is being taken by the city overall. Um, I think it, it it is, um, reassuring for me to both, uh, know that we’ve managed this year’s budget well, as well as projecting into future years.
[45:31] And yeah, we we have some we have some things to do, but, um, kind of knowing that we have the plans together and, um, I think as illustrated by some of the council members questions, uh, just even the amount of expertise that has been brought to maintaining and managing our budget overall. Um, I know our finance director, uh, doesn’t always like the praise.
[45:51] Maybe in the public forums, but just need to recognize, um, the level of expertise that we have at our city right now. And then I’m very grateful. Um, for it. And, you know, I know we get, uh. Well, we don’t have anybody in the audience tonight.
[46:08] I know we often get questions when we are adding, uh, staffing to the budget. And, you know, just really we want to point out that what, um, we were doing with our fire department is in line with the future that it needs to be in, and very important and very aligned with what we’ve been hearing from, I think, residents in terms of
[46:22] needs and wants, as well as best practices, and that goes to some of the other other things in the budget as, as well. Uh, so I want to say that, you know, always mindful when we’re adding additional things that carry on from budget to budget, potentially.
[46:41] Uh, but we’re also very cognizant of what residents are asking for us in terms of high quality services, especially those that are life saving and making sure that we are aligning those needs with how what is reflected in the budget and very confident with what got put together. Thank you. Councillor McGuinness. Any other comments, thoughts? City manager Shukman. Uh, thank you, Mayor Pro Tem.
[47:01] Thank you. Council, I just want to take a moment to first of all, say thank you to all of you for the feedback you provided throughout the budget process.
[47:18] I recognize that we, uh, have to adopt the budget in December, but this is the third year running where we’ve had fairly low levies, and my suspicion is we won’t have a whole lot more discussion before then. And so I want to just take a minute. Four of our department heads are in the room. Um, and recognize the work that all of our department heads do to manage their budgets.
[47:35] Uh, both day to day and looking out at the long term. Um, I also want to say that this is something that all of our staff take very seriously. And I really want to appreciate that. And then, uh, specifically want to call out. And Councilmember Guinness did a good job of it. So I’ll be brief for his sake.
[47:52] But, uh, Director Hodges and assistant Director Hoffman and their team for the work that they do, um, managing the city’s budget and all the incoming and outgoing, uh, money and tracking where it all goes and putting us in a position where we get to have levies that are, uh, and Councilmember Fuzzy said it.
[48:09] Well, dynamite, uh, numbers relative to many of our other cities and all those cities, to be clear, are doing good work. They’re doing it in a different way that they need to do it. Uh, I don’t want to be seen as, uh, suggesting otherwise.
[48:26] Um, but I wanted to just say thank you to everybody that’s been involved in the process and recognize that it is something that we all take very seriously and recognize the impact that it has on community members. Um, and I want to make sure that that is said very clearly that from the staff side that, uh, staff do understand what a levy means.
[48:44] Um, and work very hard to keep it at the lowest possible number. That also allows us to, uh, to deliver the services that residents expect. Thank you. Thank you, Mister Zuckerman. Any other you want to say? You know, your first budget. Chris. Come on. It’s quite. Bullying. I’ve done.
[49:07] I will say I do also echo the the thanks to all of our our staff and, uh, our finance team doing a good job. A lot of work. Um, and, and yes, it’s been in the, the face of right now, I will say looking at the economic outlook of the country and in general, a 4% basically inflationary increase is pretty incredibly looking at, given what we have to service in the
[49:27] city. And, uh, I’m very impressed with all of our department heads and how they’re managing those budgets so we can maintain this, the same service as we expect going forward. So we’ve been using the word dynamite. I don’t want to echo. That word today. But yes, dynamite is great.
[49:44] Even we’re a fire chief in the audience. Dynamite. Word of the day. Um. I don’t know. Is there no dynamite next year? No. Um. I did what everyone said. I think, you know, this is my seventh budget. Um.
[50:03] Which you go to a lot of these budgets, and you, you know, you, you see the needs that the city has and you try to be the balancing act of who knows? It could be eight. Uh, yeah, it feels like eight. Let’s go with eight.
[50:23] Um, but you go through the budgets and you try and balance the needs, ensuring, you know, budgeting during a pandemic, confusing. Um, post pandemic with inflation through the roof. Um, the one year we did, like, a eight 9% levy and I. I remember. That was queasy as I voted yes.
[50:44] Um, but I think, you know, for us as a city, I think the one key I would say across is to be we’re trying to be fiscally responsible as possible. Um, knowing of the needs that we’re residents have that service need to provide and doing so in a cost effective manner.
[51:01] I think, you know, every year we have our meetings with staff, and it’s the magic time of what’s the levy number proposed? Um, and this year you’re seeing it for I was very happy. Um, and the goal is to try to be, um, that, um, city manager as a very. It’s a plan. Very well, where there’s no shocks to the system. I think residents want that continuity, understanding that we’re trying to make sure we balance, we spend and balance and plan.
[51:23] And so we’re as a as consistent as possible and not get a sticker shock one year because something would arrive. And again, as mentioned, cruise to the financial financial team as well as our other department heads of, you know, understanding the balance.
[51:41] We try to we have all feelings that you guys have as well. So, um, this budget is rock solid. Um, that leaves us in a good place for not just for this year, but for future years as well. As start building forward and a new fire station that’s being constructed, a new public works facility.
[51:58] Um, and ensuring that we are using funds as efficiently as possible. So kudos to staff. Um, residents. Um, this is our first go. This is the final approval. So we’ll have your comments and questions. So feel free to even email us if you have questions about the budget. Um, we’re happy to to answer with us. We can. Just see.
[52:18] Yeah. Just one more. I’m sorry, I should have mentioned this before, but, um, legal the legal team here actually saves the city money. That’s true. I mean, how much money are we saving from the city attorney that we have right now? And I know how hard she works. And I know how incredibly. talented she is. So, um.
[52:40] And I’m not saying that because I also feel. That way, but my. City attorneys unite everyone. Yes. I mean, it is it is a it’s the only department that literally saves. City money. It’s an incredible department. It’s, you. Awesome.
[53:02] Any other final comments, thoughts? Hearing none, I will now ask someone to make the motion to approve and I’ll read the full thing out loud. Public input in consideration of resolution. Number 26058 to approve the proposed 2027 budget. Proposed tax levies payable in 2027 and resolution 26059 consenting to the proposed 2027 EDA levy. I move both resolutions.
[53:25] I have a motion for both. I hear a second. Second. Tracy. Councilmember fussy, we got a second. Um. Any questions? Comments before the vote? This is a roll call vote. So we have the honors. Absolutely. Council member Guinness. Yes. Council member. Fuzzy. Yes. Council member. Koike. Yes. Mayor pro tem Harris. Yes. Hearing for I zero nays.
[53:50] The resolution 260058. Passes and then 059 consent to the 2027 Economic Development three tax levy payable in 2027. Um, so Mayor Pro Tem Harris actually. Separate motions. Those o. This together. It was fine to have them together. Okay. So we did the voting together and everything was still unanimous. So they both passed. Awesome. Two birds, one sound.
[54:13] We did it. Okay, um, review of the council calendar real quick. Um. Tomorrow, Wednesday, September 16th, is League of Women Voters candidate forum here for the Hennepin County Sheriff here in City Hall Chambers at 7 p.m. Saturday, September 19th. The big festival global Festival from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. at the WaterTower.
[54:37] Uh, I know, um, there. Yes, you’ll be there. I’ll be there volunteering. Um, should we? Fun time. Bring the kids. It’s an all day affair here at the watertower. So the weather looks ish. Um, hopefully the rain holds off. I think cold and rainy, maybe, but it’s still fun. It’s still. Fun. Music. Great music. Beer? Yeah, there’s beer here.
[54:57] There’s a beer garden. I will be working the, um, ID table, so don’t try to pull fast with me. I’ll spot it, um, as well. So hopefully people show up. Um, it’s a lot of work.
[55:13] Um, can you go to the community foundation this now or year two of having a festival back? So really hope to build upon the momentum from last year. So we’ll see you there. Um, then some. Sunday, September 24th. Mark in the Valley City Hall campus by the water tower, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and then for the Sunday, September 27th, Marketing Valley, 9 a.m. 1 p.m.
[55:29] that’s campus as well. To in September as well. Um, any other events? Oh, no. Yeah. Okay. Hearing none. Um, we’ll go to mayor and council communications. So, um, summary of the conclusion regarding of city manager performance evaluation from closed session on August 31st and continue on September 10th, 2026. Councilmember Guinness will be providing a summary of that.
[55:54] Awesome. So, uh, on August 31st and September 10th, the council went into closed session to discuss the annual performance review evaluation of our city Manager, Noah Shukman. And that is per statute, 13 D..
[56:19] 05, subdivision three, A and a summary of that meeting is provided at the next regular city Council meeting, which is what I’m doing right now. And the performance evaluation process was facilitated by Charles Weinstein of Ethical Leaders and Action Incorporated, and council members reviewed and guided the revisions of this confidential performance evaluation and then discussed the evaluation with the city manager.
[56:40] I’m going to provide a summary of a part of the poor performance evaluation, um, that was subject to the closed session. And so the council reviewed a review of the city manager’s performance is very positive.
[57:05] Uh, the City Council identified several strengths, including Noah’s, uh, organizational management and leadership, strengthened relationships with elected officials and staff, and his ability to resolve complex challenges, and also hire engaging and excellent employees, many of whom are sitting in the room right now. Uh, the overall appraisal of Mr. Schwartzman performance reflects the council’s great appreciation, um, for his vigilance. I skipped a line.
[57:29] Uh, Council did not identify any areas of deficit or problems to be remedied. Uh, we did seek some refinement in meeting structure and communication. And so with that, overall, the appraisal of Mr.
[57:48] Waxman’s performance, uh, reflects the council’s great appreciation for his vigilance and ensuring staff actions reflect the direction of City Council and the ability to stay calm and professional under pressure. Uh, with his effective and steady leadership. And after that formal thing, I just want to personally thank Noah. He’s been a joy to work with, and I’m very glad to have him at the city’s helm. And I believe many of my colleagues, uh, reflect very similar, um, opinions as well.
[58:04] So thank you very much. Council member. Any other committee meeting updates, communications? Um, office hours haven’t done in a while. I’ve been busy with life. Um, September 26th. If you want to stop by, chat London Barclays, 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Saturday, September 26th. I’ll be there. Grab some coffee, grab some breakfast, some breakfast bar.
[58:30] It’s fun times. Um, here, go see your comments. Concerns, um, ideas. So see nothing else. I will move to adjourn the meeting. Thank you so much, guys. Have a good rest of