[0:00] Yeah. Pledge of Allegiance?

[0:04] » I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the

[0:08] republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and

[0:14] justice for all.

[0:18] » All right. Um first thing on

[0:21] our agenda is to approve the agenda as presented. Does anyone have any

[0:25] questions or additions or changes to

[0:30] the agenda as presented? If not, I'll take a motion to approve

[0:35] the agenda. >> I move to

[0:37] » Okay, I got a motion by Shawn Ryan. Rick, you going to second? Second by

[0:41] Rick Seiler. If there's no questions, comments, all

[0:45] in favor say I. >> I.

[0:46] » I. Any opposition? Okay. Passes 5-0. Next item is our consent

[0:51] agenda. These are items that are pretty routine in nature. Um does anyone

[0:57] have any questions or issues on the items that are in the

[1:02] consent agenda?

[1:06] » I move to approve the consent agenda. >> Okay. Second.

[1:09] » A second a motion by Maggie Bass, second by Bruce Woolf. The only question I I

[1:14] just want to confirm that we will be doing

[1:17] the elections at the new city hall. >> Correct.

[1:21] » All right. >> Okay.

[1:23] So, I got a motion and a second. If there's no other questions, all in

[1:27] favor say I. >> I.

[1:28] » I. Any opposition? Okay, passes 5-0. Next on the agenda is government agency

[1:34] updates. Dennis, if you'd like to

[1:39] come forward and uh tell us what the heck the county is up

[1:43] to. >> Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Members of the

[1:45] council, thanks for having me again. It's always a pleasure.

[1:48] Sorry I wasn't here last month. I was enjoying Canada fishing, which was

[1:54] should be successful and it was, so thank you.

[1:57] Uh what's going on in the county? Um we're on our third week of doing our

[2:01] budgeting. Um again, I'm no veteran. I'm only a

[2:05] year and a half into my position as as a commissioner. However, talking with

[2:11] the county administrator and the other commissioners, usually at this time

[2:14] we're looking at a levy of double digits. I

[2:18] know, and then we have to try to work that down into the single digits, but

[2:22] right now we're we're sitting really good. They're really really really

[2:25] really pleased or at uh

[2:28] uh meeting with the department heads and

[2:31] figuring out next year's plan. Um also after the after the workshops,

[2:38] we have a we're going through our ordinances throughout the county. This

[2:41] is probably going on four or five weeks of doing that, so we've had long

[2:45] Tuesdays. We've had our regular Tuesday meetings.

[2:49] And now the workshops with the department heads and now ordinances, so

[2:52] we're usually Tuesday we're there till probably 3:00, 4:00 in the afternoon

[2:55] trying to get this out, but it's good because we're taking

[2:59] four or five department heads at a time rather than I guess in the past they've

[3:03] tried to cram this all into one or two days, and it just gets really

[3:07] long. And then you're looking at 12-hour days.

[3:12] Um some of the roads uh you know, obviously we had rain. There was rain

[3:17] anywhere from 3 to 7 in over in Lee Shores, so some of our roads took a

[3:22] a hit, but I talked to our county engineer along with uh assistant

[3:26] department head Robbie Kopet, which uh he figured by today I talked to him on

[3:33] Friday afternoon, late afternoon, and he figured by Monday, which is today and

[3:37] possibly tomorrow, they should be back on par with having the roads all back in

[3:42] order. Um just a couple highlights, our fraud

[3:46] investigator that uh Sheriff Mason I I I think I told you

[3:50] this already, Sheriff Mason designates a deputy solely to work on

[3:55] fraud in Le Sueur County. And it's saving our taxpayers in Le

[4:00] Sueur County and the state a lot of money. So, um

[4:04] just wanted that uh a little fact for you guys to know

[4:07] that that uh the money that we get

[4:12] is a grant money from the state which doesn't

[4:16] cover his salary, but we still think it's more

[4:20] important to you know, in the long run we're getting

[4:24] that money back. It did The money that we recoup from that goes to the state.

[4:27] The Le Sueur County residents don't get that. It goes

[4:30] to the state and then branches off from there.

[4:35] Um >> [clears throat]

[4:36] » as you know, Mayor Nicklay, the state baseball tournament's coming to New

[4:39] Prague, so I encourage any of you that maybe have a weekend off or a weekday

[4:46] off, um sign up,

[4:50] help out the city, and uh it's going to be a lot of good baseball

[4:54] coming to town. Um elections, I think I overheard you

[4:59] saying your elections our elections. So, our meetings tomorrow Yes, the last

[5:04] Tuesday and tomorrow and the following, I believe

[5:08] or no, just tomorrow yet.

[5:11] Our meetings are held at the courthouse cuz of the early voting is where our

[5:16] where we usually have our chamber meetings. That's getting

[5:20] allocated by early voting. Again, I'm getting phone calls or just

[5:25] in person people talking to me. As you turn on the news, data centers. I'm

[5:29] getting a lot of people not wanting data centers. My constituents, it's you know,

[5:34] the 90% please don't bring data centers. We have no

[5:39] intentions. Right now, we have a moratorium on data centers in the

[5:43] county, so nothing can be done anyways for a year, but

[5:47] um just to kind of put that at ease for

[5:50] right now, there's no one's at approach the county wanting one.

[5:55] Um, again, listening to my constituents, I have no interest in having one.

[6:01] All right. Any questions?

[6:06] Thank you all for what you do. Appreciate it.

[6:08] » Thanks, Dennis. >> All right, thank you, Dennis.

[6:12] Next on the agenda is our public forum. This is an opportunity where uh

[6:17] people can uh speak to the council. Um,

[6:22] there's not going to be really any inner reaction, but uh

[6:25] it will be noted. So, first on the list I have Brian Paulson.

[6:31] Brian, you know, state your name and address, please.

[6:33] » Uh Brian Paulson, 206 First Street Southwest. Uh may I remind the council,

[6:37] I just wanted to thank uh all you and the chief of police and the city

[6:41] administrator for turning on the transparency portal audit logs for the

[6:45] flood cameras. So, I noticed that was turned on. So, I just wanted to thank

[6:48] you. I know we've been talking about that for a long time. So, I just want to

[6:51] say uh thank you. >> All right.

[6:53] » [snorts] >> Thank you.

[6:56] Next on the list is it Heather

[7:01] or

[7:05] » Oh, I think I I thought it was a sign-up >> Yep, so that that was a sheet for if you

[7:08] would like to discuss >> No, you do

[7:11] Oh, you you don't want to speak? You just Okay. Well, that's fine.

[7:15] » you can't speak like Dennis, so. >> Well, who can? [laughter]

[7:20] All right. So, I Heather and John, you do not want

[7:23] to speak? Anyone else want to address the council?

[7:27] All right. If not, we'll go on the next

[7:30] item. We do not have any public hearings. And number seven, we're going

[7:34] to go into the 2026 electric utility revenue bond update.

[7:40] Um, that sale would took place on July 15th.

[7:44] And um, it was presented to utilities commission last at their last meeting

[7:50] last week. And

[7:52] » [clears throat] >> now we're just presenting it to the

[7:53] council. It has been a the council gave the

[7:57] utilities commission the authority to approve that bond. So,

[8:01] it looks like we have Brian Riley from uh

[8:05] I Ehlers to kind of give us a quick summarization, right Brian?

[8:11] » That is the plan. Thank you, Mayor.

[8:16] Um, I will try to be concise and brief. As was stated, these bonds have been

[8:20] sold and priced and the next step is closing, which is scheduled to occur

[8:24] just a few days from now. Um, so just for your benefit, you should

[8:28] have the sale day report in your packet and I'll just briefly walk you through

[8:32] that and I'll I'll preface by speaking a little bit about the rating. Obviously,

[8:36] the city is rated but our utility has its own rating with a

[8:41] different set of metrics and standards that are directly applicable to

[8:47] municipal electric providers. And so, the you know, the

[8:52] those standards are a bit different from what you would think about from a

[8:54] general obligation pledge. Um, the rating came out as an A and stable,

[9:00] which means there's no point of view on whether or not the rating will change up

[9:04] or down in the next few years. And by and large, if you go through that

[9:06] quickly, um, you'll note a number of references towards relatively strong

[9:12] financial operations, maybe a few things here and there regarding some

[9:16] improvements that can be made to some long-term management, but by and large,

[9:19] the utility itself is viewed to be in in positive condition and the A rating is

[9:27] is very reasonable for a utility of that size and within your geography.

[9:32] » [clears throat] >> I think what also speaks to that is as I

[9:35] get into the bids here, we went to competitive sale just like you have

[9:38] traditionally done with your own general obligation debt.

[9:42] Bids were solicited and received on July 15th as was stated.

[9:47] There were five bids offered which I would view as relatively strong

[9:51] for a small communities electric revenue with generation.

[9:55] And so you also you can see the benefit of the competitive sale where we've got

[9:59] the winning bid coming in at about 4.16%.

[10:03] The worst coming in at just under 4.35 with a few scattered around 4.25. And so

[10:08] on the day of sale there were two buyers who were very interested. Both the

[10:13] winning and the cover. We would view 4.16%

[10:16] on a 20 plus year structure as being relatively attractive. I will say as you

[10:21] look back knowing that it's early August, these bonds sold July 15th and

[10:26] while we're not in the business of recommending timing the market, you did

[10:29] hit it at a favorable time. Rates have been um

[10:33] pretty much up since then not dramatically but you know, certainly to

[10:37] the tune of about 15 to 20 basis points 0.15 to 0.2%. That certainly does add up

[10:43] on a transaction over 16 million dollars.

[10:47] On the day of sale, the pricing that was received allowed the city to reduce the

[10:53] size of the issue. We we make certain assumptions when

[10:56] we're putting kind of the pre-sale package together and working with you on

[11:00] all of that and we make some assumptions based on any number of things including

[11:04] the fees and expenses associated with the issue. There's also a debt service

[11:08] reserve fund which is very common for a utility revenue obligation.

[11:12] That is borrowed money that is set aside as additional security for the debt in

[11:16] the case that revenues are insufficient to support the annual payment

[11:20] requirements and then would be required if there's ever a draw on it, you'd be

[11:24] required to replenish it. So that additional credit enhancement

[11:28] proves to be a benefit and is kind of demanded for an issue like this. And as

[11:32] a result, we were also able to reduce that because the annual debt service

[11:35] requirements were less than originally estimated. So, um, all in, able to

[11:40] reduce the issue size um, roughly 600 some odd thousand

[11:44] dollars. Um, so again, a positive attribute of this, coming in less than

[11:48] expected. Um, you know, maybe I'll pause there and

[11:52] see if there are any immediate questions. The bid tabulation shows you

[11:56] the final pricing, the coupons, and the yields uh, for this issue,

[12:02] um, and some other salient details.

[12:04] Adjustments are made on the day of sale, and so, if you look to the bottom of the

[12:08] first page of the bid tabulation, there's a few notes there that reference

[12:12] the adjustments, and then what the final results are. Um, in that case, the sale

[12:17] day report also has summary level detail um, on the cover.

[12:23] What questions can I answer for any of you?

[12:28] » Anyone have any questions?

[12:33] » I have a general question, maybe not of you, Brian, but um,

[12:37] just for our audience, um, is the repayment of these bonds is

[12:43] actually [clears throat] coming from money coming from SIMPA, if that's my

[12:49] understanding. >> Correct. Yes.

[12:51] » Thank you. >> We have an agreement with SIMPA that

[12:53] they would pay for the energy that that

[12:56] generation plan could produce, and uh, so, this is going to

[13:03] pay more than what the bond payments will be by a couple hundred dollars

[13:07] thousand dollars each year. Isn't it something?

[13:10] » I just wanted to make sure that that was said, so, um, our taxpayers understand.

[13:16] » Right. This has no effect on our tax levy or tax burden at all.

[13:22] » Right.

[13:25] Any other questions or comments? No, I don't think we have any Brian. If

[13:31] you anything else you need to share? >> I do not. All action has been taken to

[13:36] your earlier point. The the sale has been awarded and we're proceeding

[13:39] towards closing. So informational only and I do appreciate your time.

[13:44] » I appreciate your time. >> Thank you.

[13:45] » Thank you. >> Thank you all.

[13:48] » [clears throat] >> Okay.

[13:52] » Um mention we mentioned this before but this does give us added capacity within

[13:56] the city and added redundancy so there's a a value to the city residents also by

[14:02] this agreement not just that it's uh provides additional capacity for Sumpter

[14:06] but it it gives us a better um

[14:11] service that we can provide. >> Thank you.

[14:16] » [clears throat] >> Okay. Uh there's no our city engineer

[14:20] and updates. Matt, you just kind of want to breeze us

[14:24] how the 10th Street project's going?

[14:29] » Yeah, 10th Avenue is going really well. Uh we're about a week ahead of schedule.

[14:32] Uh we actually had our first rain day on Friday which is not normal to have a

[14:36] your first rain day in uh end of uh July so that's great news. Um

[14:42] 10th Avenue and 3rd Street is still closed. We still ask people to stay out

[14:45] of that area. Uh the roundabout is I'm going to say it's 80% complete. Uh

[14:50] if you walked up there or up to the signs you could see that the

[14:53] roundabout's in place but they're still black dirt and sidewalks. Uh the trail

[14:57] will be removed most likely next week on the west side of the road and repaved uh

[15:02] the following week. Um so yeah, it's coming coming along really

[15:05] well. Mainly concrete work this week. Uh curb replacement and sidewalk

[15:08] replacement. >> Uh

[15:10] any plans to open that 3rd Street roundabout?

[15:14] » Uh as of now no because it's going to get have to be closed back down next

[15:17] week. Um so opening it up for 1 week and they're still actually working in the

[15:21] roundabout, um doing some dirt work. So, having it open for 5 days is just even

[15:26] going to be more confusing than >> Oh, yeah. No, no, I was thinking like I

[15:29] mean if it's all done and they're still paving. Uh

[15:33] » Yeah, so the contract reads they have to have that roundabout open within 30 days

[15:37] unless approved by um I guess myself or council. As of right

[15:43] now, it is up to the 30 days at the end of end of this week, but as of right

[15:46] now, we're going to leave it closed just because the

[15:49] uh second lift is only a week week and a half old.

[15:51] » Okay. Okay, thank you. Anyone any other

[15:55] questions on any city engineering projects update that

[15:59] maybe Matt can answer? All right, thank you, Matt.

[16:03] Next, ordinances for introduction. Is this uh are we looking at a first

[16:09] reading here? >> Uh yes, we are and I can give a little

[16:12] brief synopsis here if you'd like me to. >> Yes, please.

[16:14] » Uh Mitch, could you throw me the screen, please?

[16:35] That's not what I wanted.

[16:41] Uh so, Nicholas Borowski, the owner of 300 East East or 300 5th Street

[16:47] Southwest, um has a property down the southwest corner of town that's broken

[16:51] up by 140-ft and 212-ft easements um and rights of way.

[16:56] And he has submitted an application to the city to consider vacating these. Um

[17:01] as as staff looked through these, they are certainly supportive of these

[17:04] vacations um as there are no planned uses for the

[17:07] alleys, utilities, um planned use for these alleys or right of ways, and there

[17:12] are no utilities within these easements. Um one thing to note is we do have a

[17:18] electric line within the property that we are unable

[17:22] to find an easement for, but we are currently working through

[17:25] that at this point. This is just kind of an aerial of what

[17:29] the property looks like. Um,

[17:33] Mr. Borowski owns the entire parcel here and these are the right-of-ways and

[17:39] easements that are currently cutting across the property. So, he is he's

[17:42] asking if the city would just vacate these and come back to him as the

[17:46] adjacent property owner. >> Go back to that picture, would you,

[17:50] please? Do other properties

[17:53] east of that also have the same issue? >> Uh, it's entirely possible. I do not

[17:57] have that information on on top of my head with me right now. I

[18:02] would guess usually, especially as you with all cities, as you get into the

[18:05] older parts, if somebody buys property like across the line that was

[18:09] originally put on there in a plat from 100 years ago,

[18:13] yes, like these exist actually all over the city if we were to dig into them.

[18:17] Generally, at times some cities are very proactive

[18:22] with it. It does take a lot of research time

[18:25] to really jump into these, but a lot of times, at least with New Prague, we've

[18:28] always been a little more reactive driven. If the property owner knows

[18:32] they're there, they may request them and we'll consider

[18:35] them on a piece-by-piece basis depending on if the

[18:38] city has plans for them or is currently using them.

[18:41] » So, this particular plat in our packet is from 1896.

[18:46] Okay. >> Correct. So, that was that was when the

[18:48] roads were put down thinking they may be needed and

[18:51] they have not been needed. Or if they

[18:54] » As noted, the one that Chuck was probably asked for to the east

[18:58] that's Southside Park. So, that would not

[19:01] uh >> Okay.

[19:02] So, that property butts up That butts up to Southside Park there.

[19:07] Okay. So, that's why there probably won't be

[19:10] an issue with that. All right, thank you.

[19:12] Is there any Was there a thought that Second Ave would eventually go through?

[19:19] » There might have been. If if that was a thought way way back at one point, as

[19:23] Maggie pointed out, it's a plat from 130 years ago.

[19:26] » Right. >> And I think in a lot of times when they

[19:28] do this, they it is Now they kind of take a property

[19:32] and they try to map it out and put houses on it. A lot of these old maps,

[19:35] they would take a four four square mile area and just drop all the roads on them

[19:39] and you could start buying lots. So, there may have been the thought at one

[19:43] point that that would be part of the street grid.

[19:46] » I know that sometime that further south of that is

[19:50] thought to be developed. And I don't know if it's conceivable for that road

[19:55] to ever go through or not, but >> I mean, if that's Southside Park, I

[19:58] guess the question of the council would be is would it be like like would it be

[20:01] worth it? You are running into a train track right there. And so, even if the

[20:05] road did go through, you'd either have to come up with a way to cross

[20:09] or that property owner would have to be

[20:12] willing to sell lots off, I guess. So, um

[20:16] As noted, as staff kind of looked at this, it is one of those that just kind

[20:20] of made sense that it's been around for a long time and

[20:23] this is one of those that the city could let go of.

[20:27] » Yeah, as part of this process before the hearing, I'd be interested to know

[20:30] staff's understanding or thought or

[20:34] would Second Street ever possibly go through or not?

[20:36] » Yep. >> And if we have a right-of-way, do we

[20:39] need it? >> Yeah, those are I will say these are

[20:42] certainly good questions because as part of this process with an ordinance, a

[20:45] public hearing is required. So, part of what I'd be asking you guys tonight is

[20:49] to approve the attached resolution that calls for a public hearing on

[20:55] our first meeting in September, which is the 1st of September.

[21:00] Um Well, wait.

[21:02] » No. >> No, the 8th of September.

[21:04] » 8th it's not on this Tuesday. The 7th is Labor Day and so it would be Tuesday,

[21:09] first two second Tuesday in this case. So the 8th of September would be our

[21:13] meeting and that is when we would have a public hearing

[21:16] that anyone can come comment on this as well as

[21:20] Ken who normally handles these would be back and so he'd be able to answer some

[21:23] of those questions. >> But are you still looking for us to

[21:29] » So we'd be looking to approve approve on the first reading and then do the public

[21:32] hearing as well as the public hearing resolution.

[21:35] » And then if there's issues we wouldn't we wouldn't do the second

[21:39] reading, is that >> Correct. Okay.

[21:43] » Okay, anyone have any questions?

[21:49] If not I guess I'll make a motion to approve ordinance number 366 the first

[21:54] reading of vacating certain rights of way

[21:58] um in the on this plat. >> I'll second.

[22:02] » I got a second by Maggie Bass. Any other comments? All in favor say I.

[22:07] Any opposition? Okay, passes 5-0. Next the resolution calling for the

[22:13] public hearing on September 8th. Um

[22:17] I guess I'll make a motion to approve that resolution just at the public

[22:21] hearing at our council meeting on September 8th. I'll second. Go ahead. I

[22:26] got a second by Rick Seiler. There's no other questions, comments?

[22:32] All in favor say I. Any opposition? Okay, passes 5-0. So we

[22:36] will get this thing all cleared up and answered and everything on September

[22:40] 8th. Number 10 we have no ordinances for

[22:43] adoption, no resolutions. 12 general business pay grade update. I

[22:49] know this is a recommendation from the utilities commission

[22:54] um due to the fact that um

[22:57] it is hard to find linemen uh at this time so we're looking to add a

[23:05] classification under grade two. And I think Robin, I think you had talked to

[23:10] uh the company that did our comp study. >> Yes. Um so, just briefly in Bruce

[23:15] Reimer's absence tonight, um I told him I'd speak to any questions.

[23:19] So, um exactly what you said, Mayor. Just um

[23:23] not having a big candidate pool for qualified linemen that meet all of the

[23:28] criteria. We're looking to create a position and add to our pay grade, an

[23:33] electric utility apprentice position. So, I did contact AutoSolve to work with

[23:39] them for placement on our grade, and it would be at

[23:43] our existing pay grade step two. So, I included the pay grade in the

[23:48] council packet as well. So. >> So, this the only thing is you just

[23:54] added this position at that grade. >> Correct.

[23:57] » On the in the existing thing. All right.

[24:00] » change in pay or anything, just putting placement on grade two.

[24:05] » So, move >> Anyone have any questions for Robin?

[24:10] Okay, I got to get a motion by Rick Seiler to approve the pay grade update

[24:15] adding the electric utility apprentice position on grade two of our current

[24:21] scale. >> I'll second.

[24:22] » I got a second by Maggie Bass. There is no other questions, comments?

[24:27] All in favor say I. I. Any opposition? Okay, it passes 5-0.

[24:33] Next, we have uh concept review of the Harvest Fields.

[24:38] Do we Are you taking this, Josh, or >> Yes, I will take this one again.

[24:47] » [clears throat] >> So, this uh this particular review is

[24:51] for a concept kind of a concept review of um

[24:55] the southern portion of what we have discussed in the past as the kind of

[24:59] Beswick land up on the northeast corner of town.

[25:03] Um, generally with the concept review, they kind of come in very, very high

[25:06] level and they are looking for just um

[25:10] feedback based off of are there things we like, are there things we don't like,

[25:14] is this something that we could foresee them going [clears throat] forward with,

[25:16] is it something that we want to completely throw the brakes on. I do

[25:20] also want to note that uh and I'm hopefully I don't butcher your

[25:23] last name, Lucinda Spenner, uh

[25:26] from uh JPB is here as well to kind of introduce herself and the company as

[25:31] well as hopefully um being able to answer any questions that may be about

[25:35] this, but I will run through some quick background

[25:38] uh that staff have been doing to this point

[25:40] as well as what both the park board and planning commission have done.

[25:47] So, as I mentioned, JPB land did apply for a concept review. Uh this particular

[25:52] development includes 185 single family lots on about 63 acres of land. Um, of

[25:59] note, this land is guided single family on the west side and medium density

[26:03] residential on the east side. Across the entire development, lots do

[26:07] vary from 42 ft wide to 72 ft wide. Um, of also of note that this particular um

[26:15] land would require uh a planned unit development or PUD zoning which allow

[26:20] you some flexibility in your zoning requirements. Um, that being due to the

[26:24] fact that lots under 50 ft wide and with side setbacks

[26:29] um lots current zoning code does not allow

[26:33] for lots under 50 ft wide and that setbacks are set at 7 ft instead of 6

[26:38] ft. And so, to be able to meet their particular concepts, um the cleanest way

[26:42] to do it would be to do a PUD unless you're willing to do variances for every

[26:46] single lot. So, PUD just makes it much cleaner.

[26:50] Um, this particular plan also does expand

[26:54] out Heritage Park um with an additional 1.4 acres as well as continues the

[26:58] Greenway truth trail through um

[27:01] the development. On July 14th, the park board did

[27:07] uh review this and provided general support for the

[27:11] concept plans in terms of how the park uh Heritage Park was expanded as well as

[27:15] the Greenway trail extension. And then on July 22nd, the planning

[27:19] commission also reviewed the plans. Um, there was not a pub- formal public

[27:23] hearing for this as it was a concept review, but they

[27:26] um we did send out 250 notices to the area um and kind of residents around

[27:31] that area. Overall, we had about 30 people in attendance um and we uh the

[27:37] planning commission did choose to take public comment.

[27:41] Generally, and township people are here as well, um but they have the township

[27:46] has uh expressed support for annexation. Um, and just general comments were kind

[27:51] of about traffic and weeds uh on kind of this development area.

[27:55] The developer did note um that their build out is expected to take

[27:59] about 5 years, but that obviously depends on market conditions and what

[28:03] kind of demand that they would see. So, here is a large overall map um with

[28:09] that southern portion being their uh concept proposal being dropped onto it.

[28:14] Of note, those blue roads uh are and you can see that small

[28:19] roundabout are taken preliminarily from the uh feasibility study for uh the

[28:25] realignment of Alton Avenue there, and so uh it actually lays very well onto

[28:30] what our um potential projected um roads would be for the north half of

[28:36] that property. >> [clears throat]

[28:40] » And then here's just more of a zoomed-in area. You can see um the larger lots are

[28:44] in the pink for this, and then you get into uh

[28:47] the uh I guess we'll call them turquoise which are your a little bit smaller and

[28:52] they kind of size up to the middle. So, of the adjacent neighborhoods,

[28:56] the lots lot sizes line up pretty well in terms of size and so nobody is

[29:00] necessarily getting a house built next next to them that is significantly

[29:04] different than what they have built and the smaller lots are tucked into the

[29:09] middle also next to a lots of similar size.

[29:16] Some notes on this, the city engineer did review and comment.

[29:21] And just kind of noticed some changes as we've gone forward that they'd like to

[29:24] see for future submissions. Both public works and utilities did not

[29:29] have any comments beyond what the city engineer provided.

[29:33] The police department did note that the siren nearby here

[29:38] has been plugged since 2009 but it does still

[29:41] provide coverage.

[29:45] I'll be honest with him, I'm not sure what that comment means. I'm assuming

[29:47] » Yeah, go ahead. I was I found a

[29:52] Well, I found it when I was going through looking at some of emergency

[29:55] management things and wondering why that zone for that siren was smaller than the

[30:01] other five that we had. So, I went and I did some digging and I

[30:04] found that in 2009 there was a resident that had

[30:09] some type of medical condition that the noise from that siren

[30:15] was bothering his something to do with his health. So, at

[30:19] that time Dennis Sawyer and Chief Wolschke decided

[30:23] to put some I guess mufflers into some of the

[30:27] ports in that siren. And I did have Bob Brazina with city

[30:33] staff go up there and check and just ensure that that was still the case.

[30:37] And it is to this date and there's a memo on that dating back to 2009. So,

[30:42] the ability there is to unplug that and I don't know what that conversation

[30:46] looks like with that resident after it was decided

[30:50] years ago to do that. So, um there could be some additional coverage there if

[30:55] city chose to take those baffles out of that um

[31:00] siren.

[31:03] » And that resident still resides there? >> Yes.

[31:08] » That was my question. >> Yep. That is my understanding right now,

[31:11] yes. >> But, the fire department did not have

[31:15] any comments at this time and the community development department just

[31:18] noted that um the this concept did fit very well

[31:22] with not only the area um but also kind of the comprehensive plan goals such as

[31:25] life cycle high is housing, park and greenway expansion, and um protection

[31:30] and enhancement of natural features.

[31:34] Uh the school district school district also provided a letter noting that they

[31:37] have um significant capacity within the schools to be able to absorb kids or

[31:42] families who may move into this neighborhood.

[31:46] Uh talking about development fees, and

[31:48] these are the fees that are generally paid um most of them right up front, but

[31:52] also some kind of as you go through. There would be um with this particular

[31:57] development as it's shown, a park dedication fee of either $383,327

[32:04] or 9.2 acres of parkland or a combination there of both.

[32:09] Um an emergency siren fee of a little over $10,000,

[32:14] a sidewalk fee of a little over $10,000, a water area access charge of $177,000,

[32:23] a sewer area access charge of $378,000, and then an electric area

[32:31] uh access charge uh ranging somewhere between $475 to $500,000

[32:36] um kind of based off of uh, electric usage

[32:40] and then uh, last one I've got here is a saw and

[32:44] seal fee for $22,000. Uh, this was a new one to me. I did have

[32:48] to ask Matt about it and he can correct me if I'm wrong. Um, once we kind of

[32:52] stop seal coating because we were spending money and not getting what we

[32:56] were looking for, uh, what we do now is we go and we uh, cut the preliminarily

[33:01] cut the asphalt very similar to how concrete is cut to create that

[33:05] pre-crack. Um, that way as it expands and contracts

[33:09] keeps stays on the crack better and then uh, so we'll make that saw cut and then

[33:13] we'll seal that up. It's much smaller than the toilet

[33:17] papering you'll see around town. In fact, many times you won't even know

[33:20] it's there if you're not walking along looking for those cuts. So.

[33:25] Uh, and these are just kind of some pictures kind of from around the

[33:28] neighborhood um, as of right now. So, these

[33:31] » [clears throat and cough] >> pictures are from the intersection next

[33:33] to Heritage uh, Park. Uh, and then kind of looking out from

[33:38] there, um, these are to the south there. This is uh, that area if you remember

[33:44] about a year ago that a bunch of those trees were cut down. Is that correct,

[33:47] Matt? Um, kind of looking to the north.

[33:51] Uh, and then these ones are surrounding I

[33:54] believe from the uh, east side of the area.

[33:59] So, ultimately staff's recommendation, uh, the city does not take any formal

[34:03] action on concept plans. This is more of a provide and the the ability for the a

[34:08] developer to get feedback short of sub- having to submit formal plats and

[34:14] storm water and all those other various uh, much more expensive plans

[34:19] to get some high-level feedback. So, we are just looking for feedback from staff

[34:25] um, uh, uh, to the developer as well as city

[34:28] council. Um, a a hearing is not held on concept

[34:32] reports, but the city council, similar to what the planning commission did, may

[34:36] certainly open up and take public comment from anyone who is present.

[34:40] And then the next step in the process would be to annex the property

[34:45] and then review the zoning that would go along with annexation as all land must

[34:50] be formally zoned. Part of the zoning process does include

[34:53] a traffic impact study, so it's at that point that we'd get a lot more

[34:56] information on how these roads would be affected. And then platting would follow

[35:00] that, both preliminary and final.

[35:04] So. We'll certainly stand for any questions

[35:07] at this point and as I said, Lucinda

[35:11] Spahnier is certainly here and I know she had a small presentation if the

[35:14] council wishes to hear it, just kind of introducing the company and herself as

[35:18] well as any other thoughts that she may want to share about the concept review.

[35:23] » Okay. Does anyone have any questions? Just to clarify on the southwest corner,

[35:28] that open space, is that actually going to be a water retention area or just

[35:32] left as a wetland area? >> Uh

[35:37] you know, I am not 100% sure. I can I think it marks it on the map if I could

[35:42] zoom in on it right now, but >> I think it says wetland, but I just I

[35:46] » It does. >> Not seen that before.

[35:48] » It says open space with wetland and it may just be maybe Lucinda could

[35:53] speak to that. She's certainly She's shaking her head

[35:56] that she can, so. >> Okay.

[35:58] And they had a great presentation, so. >> Yeah.

[36:02] I'm going to give the floor to you and you can kind of

[36:05] give us a who JBP Land LLC is and uh

[36:11] » Thank you, Mayor. >> I do think she has a presentation if you

[36:14] if she'd open the podium.

[36:37] » Do I need to do anything on my end? Besides putting

[36:40] » Mitch, does she need to do anything on her end?

[36:49] Oh, yeah, sure. Typical IT guy. Just control

[36:53] [laughter and clears throat] alt delete. Just unplug it now. It'll come back.

[36:59] » [laughter] >> It's not turned on.

[37:12] Yeah, maybe you need Are you off it now?

[37:20] » Yeah, you can find it there.

[37:24] Okay. Thank you. Um but Council member Wolfe, to answer

[37:29] your question, the property has gone through a wetland delineation process

[37:35] and it has a total of four wetlands. Um all quite small.

[37:41] Um and the the area that you are inquiring about is indeed a wetland.

[37:47] It's not planned for any man-made water storage anything like that.

[37:53] » Thank you.

[37:57] » Yeah, there are a number of different types of wetlands and sometimes it's for

[38:04] the untrained eye it may not appear to be a wetland. You know, it doesn't have

[38:07] the canary reed grass growing and visible water, but if it has hydric

[38:13] soils and vegetation that grows in hydric soils, then it is

[38:19] classified as a wetland.

[38:23] Here we go. Yes, okay, wonderful. Thank you.

[38:26] » All right, good evening mayor members of the city council. Thank you for your

[38:29] time this evening. Um, we are very excited to present our

[38:32] project to you um and hopefully get some valuable feedback that we can take back

[38:37] to our engineering team um and my colleagues back at JP Brooks

[38:41] Land um and um get started on our engineering

[38:45] um drawings and um proceed as um Josh mentioned with the next round of

[38:51] applications which are a petition for annexation of the parcel into the city

[38:55] limits as well as um the PUD rezone that we are requesting.

[39:01] My name is Lucinda Spanjer as introduced. I'm here tonight with JP

[39:04] Brooks Builders and JP Brooks Land LLC. We are a local builder and land

[39:11] development company based in Maple Grove. Um all of the decisions that we

[39:15] make are made locally um and they all um ensure that there's a consistent and

[39:20] unified community that's constructed because we are starting it from land

[39:24] development all the way through the construction of all of the homes on all

[39:28] of the lots.

[39:31] Um JP Brooks has been in business since 2013 and has constructed over a thousand

[39:35] homes in over 45 communities. We are currently building 19

[39:40] neighborhoods in 16 jurisdictions within the Twin Cities Metro and Western

[39:44] Wisconsin. We have averaged 188 closings um between

[39:50] the years of 2024 and 2025. And we are consistently ranked for the

[39:56] last seven years as a top 15 builder in the Twin Cities market.

[40:03] And last but not least um we are certified by um the

[40:09] Green Path or actually I'm not sure who does the

[40:12] certification but um we are a certified Green Path builder which um speaks to

[40:17] our dedication to um, energy efficiency and efficiency in building materials.

[40:26] Oh, it's you, not me. Okay. Okay. [laughter]

[40:30] All right. Um, >> You got to deal with the monkey, okay?

[40:32] You're going to You're the organ grinder.

[40:36] » So, uh, here's a look at our site plan. Um, Josh did a nice job of summarizing

[40:40] what we have uh, presented here. I'll just add a little bit more detail. Um,

[40:44] but that's been a whole lot of time um, so the four different lot sizes for us

[40:52] work really nicely as a life life cycle community. Um, you have an entry-level

[40:57] lot, which is the 42-ft wide lot. Um, I'll I'll get into the product that

[41:02] we're proposing to build on those lots here in a minute. Um, but that is for an

[41:06] entry-level buyer. Um, and then the lot scale all the way up to 72-ft wide,

[41:12] which is going to be a more executive home site. Um, we can do four four-stall

[41:16] garages on those homes. And so we really have a nice mix of um, different

[41:21] households that we like to integrate into a single neighborhood. Um,

[41:24] different [clears throat] income brackets and so forth. And we've

[41:27] uh, really thoughtfully designed the layout of integrating these four

[41:31] different lots in this 63-acre parcel um, with the the smaller lots um,

[41:38] adjacent to other lots that are of similar size to theirs. And um, not

[41:42] having those up against the existing neighborhood that does have a little bit

[41:45] larger size lots.

[41:51] We are asking for your consideration of a planned unit development. Um, this

[41:55] slightly deviates from your unified development code standards. Um,

[42:02] these setbacks are the same um, in the R3 district and in

[42:07] the PUD district with the exception of the side yard setback. Your R3 zoning is

[42:13] a 7-ft minimum and we're proposing a 6-ft minimum. But otherwise meeting

[42:17] those setbacks as you have in your R3 zoning standards.

[42:21] And then for the area, like we have quite a range here. So our

[42:26] smallest lot would be 5,880

[42:31] sq ft. Whereas your smallest lot in the R3 zoning is 6,200 sq ft.

[42:37] However, it is important to note that the other three lots

[42:43] exceed the minimum standard and they are the the majority There's of the lots

[42:49] that we're proposing are exceeding the standards.

[42:53] And lastly just noting that those 42s make up 28 total of the 185

[43:00] lots and then 52 we have 34 of those. The 62-ft wide lots are um

[43:07] our most popular lot. So we are proposing 100 in that size and then 23

[43:13] of the 72s.

[43:19] This slide is simply acknowledging that we have reviewed your comprehensive

[43:23] plan, familiarized ourselves with your goals and what you are seeking to

[43:27] achieve with construction of new subdivisions, neighborhoods, integrating

[43:32] trails, natural amenities, parks and so forth into them.

[43:37] And so we wanted to acknowledge that we feel that the proposal here incorporates

[43:44] the life cycle housing approach that you are

[43:47] explicitly seeking also which was really exciting to see that our

[43:52] our goals were aligned on that housing goal.

[43:55] And then we are proposing to preserve existing wetlands and in fact

[44:01] incorporate one of the wetlands into an open space to be dedicated to the city

[44:05] that is adjacent to the trail Um the expansion of the Greenway Trail.

[44:11] And then um we are also expanding upon your

[44:14] multimodal transportation network through the expansion of the Greenway

[44:18] Trail and um local roadways as well as minor

[44:22] collector roadways. And lastly

[44:26] um just highlighting that there is um

[44:30] been a lot of thought put into the streetscape here with the curvy

[44:33] curvilinear roads, the varying lot sizes with a variety of different views for

[44:38] each um each area of the plan and then providing

[44:43] those important links to the existing neighborhoods and infrastructure.

[44:50] All right. And then this slide touches on the PUD benefits that are proposed.

[44:55] Usually there is um you know, a bit of a give and take with the city allowing for

[45:00] some flexibility in their lot standards and then a developer providing some um

[45:05] enhanced enhancements in the neighborhood. And so we are proposing

[45:08] you know, the dedication of uh an acre and a half of Parkland to expand the

[45:13] existing Heritage Park. We are looking to extend the Greenway

[45:16] Trail from Bohemia Street to 7th Street Northeast.

[45:20] Um we are also going to be contributing to your park dedication and improvement

[45:24] fund as mentioned in the presentation. We are preserving existing wetlands and

[45:30] uh incorporating them into the Greenway Trail corridor.

[45:34] Our architectural standards that are um just that come standard. Uh they are

[45:41] they exceed the city's standards. So we will have enhanced architecture and

[45:45] we'll get into that in the next slide. Um

[45:47] each one of our floor plans does offer three distinct elevations and color

[45:52] schemes um to allow for some nice variation at the streetscape.

[45:57] And um the

[45:59] same Let me word this properly.

[46:03] These same um uh

[46:07] elevation or color scheme cannot be built um across the street or next door

[46:14] to one another um because we do observe uh an anti-monotony self-imposed

[46:19] anti-monotony code to make sure that um there's a lot of interest from the from

[46:23] the streetscape.

[46:26] And I'm not going to go through all of our architectural distinctions um but

[46:30] they are um provided in your packet if you are interested um but we do a lot

[46:35] just as standard and basic that the majority of builders [clears throat]

[46:39] aren't going to incorporate at a base level but would do, you know, um added

[46:43] charge ups for.

[46:46] And then this is just a look at the anti-monotony code um as was discussed

[46:52] at the planning commission meeting last week. Um the same floor plan can be

[46:59] constructed. However, um this the elevation must be different. So, each

[47:03] one of our homes comes in three different distinct elevations.

[47:07] Um and then it would have have to also have a um different color scheme.

[47:12] So, we've found a lot of success in doing that.

[47:16] Here is a list of the floor plans that we are proposing to offer in the

[47:19] community. As you can see, um they range from two-story

[47:24] slab-on-grades, regular two-stories, villas, split-level, multi-level,

[47:30] ramblers, um and it and a variety of options for all

[47:35] three of those lot sizes there. And then for the um smaller lot size, which is

[47:41] not pictured on this um table, the 42-ft wide lots, they will accommodate a newly

[47:48] designed 30-ft wide two-car product with a two

[47:53] or sorry or sorry um with a two-story garage. Um

[47:57] and I'm going to you can take a look at those on the next slide. There's a

[48:02] Yep, elevate um rendering of those. So, these are currently in the process

[48:07] of design, so I don't have um all of the specifics pertaining to square footage,

[48:11] um number of bedrooms and bathrooms, but it's estimated to be between 1,800 and

[48:16] 2,400 square feet. It is a slab-on-grade product with um two, possibly three

[48:21] bath- bathrooms, and uh three possibly four bedrooms. And then these are

[48:27] » And this is for the smallest lots, correct?

[48:29] » That's correct. Yes. Yep, so this this home is 30 ft in

[48:34] width, and it would sit on a 42-ft wide lot with 6-ft side yard setbacks.

[48:41] Um and have the um attached garage.

[48:47] All right, and then I won't spend too much time going through our repertoire

[48:52] of homes that we have curated for the neighborhood, um but I am more than

[48:56] happy to ask answer any questions, address any concerns, um but most

[49:00] importantly just receive your feedback this evening.

[49:03] » You could um the the there was really only one

[49:06] big question that was presented, and that was the deforestation that happened

[49:11] already and anything that'll happen in the future, and you can go ahead and

[49:14] answer that. Because the deforestation that did

[49:17] happen, that was by a previous owner, and I believe your plan is more

[49:22] environmentally friendly.

[49:26] » Yes, Councilman Burseiler, so that that was a focus of the discussion at the

[49:29] planning commission meeting. Um there was a lot of concern that was voiced by

[49:33] residents of the community pertaining to uh the removal of some trees on the

[49:37] property, and um that was done um

[49:42] prior to our involvement with the um with the property and um entering into a

[49:49] purchase agreement with the seller. Um so we understand that that was rather

[49:55] devastating to the neighborhood and um, our intention

[49:59] for landscaping um, would be to adhere to the city's standards for um, required

[50:06] trees and um, any landscaping requirements that the that the city has.

[50:10] Furthermore, um, we are um, we will be needing to um, potentially mitigate of

[50:17] about .13 acres of wetland at a two-to-one ratio. So, we would be

[50:24] » [clears throat] >> creating uh, .26 acres in another

[50:28] location to um, allow for some fill for a very, very small area of the wetland.

[50:33] Um, that just so happens to be in the middle of a planned road. Um, so in

[50:37] terms of uh, environmental um, um, consideration for this project, we

[50:44] um, will be mitigating those wetlands, but

[50:47] outside of that, it's it's a farm field.

[50:52] » I think >> So, if this goes forward, do you build

[50:57] a house once you have someone a buyer or are you going to be building some spec

[51:01] homes or how's the process work for you guys?

[51:05] » Sure. Um, Mayor, we do both of those. So, we like to obtain model home permits

[51:12] and have the ability to get constructing as quickly as possible. Um, ideally one

[51:18] model home on each lot so that folks can have an idea of the offerings that are

[51:23] available for each one of those price points. Um, excuse [clears throat] me.

[51:26] And then we certainly do build spec homes and also uh, we do have um, lots

[51:33] that are for sale and an individual can come and select the lot of their choice

[51:37] and then come into our um, design studio in Maple Grove and select all of their

[51:42] finishes and cabinetry and so forth unique to their home.

[51:46] » Okay. One question I have as I look at this,

[51:49] um, since I wasn't at the planning

[51:50] commission meeting, for the lots down in the southeast corner, [clears throat] it

[51:54] looks like they're double frontage lots. Um,

[51:57] are they exiting onto the existing road or they exiting onto the new road?

[52:03] » Thank you for bringing this up. I I do think it's an important part of this,

[52:06] uh, design here that we have considered. And the proposal is for the new lots

[52:14] that have the double frontage to not front on the existing 7th Street, but to

[52:19] instead have frontage on the new road that we are proposing. We are showing

[52:23] an, um, a

[52:25] added depth to those lots so that we could have some vegetative screening,

[52:30] um, along the rear yards and along 7th Street.

[52:35] » So, I'm not sure if I got you correctly on that on the south south portion that

[52:39] road is that written on the concept plan there, but it's not going to be there.

[52:43] Is that it? >> No, my question was those lots down in

[52:47] the southeast corner are double frontage lots, which means they're touching a

[52:51] road on two sides of the property. 44 and 45.

[52:55] » Can you point them out? >> The these right down here. So, they're

[52:59] yeah, they're touching a street >> and they're touching this street.

[53:03] » Yep. >> And so, she just mentioned that they're

[53:05] going to be slightly deeper so they can put vegetation on one side to help kind

[53:09] of create that buffer. >> Okay.

[53:10] » And and that they will not front the existing roadway. We did consider that.

[53:14] However, we didn't want to tear up that road.

[53:17] » So, they're all going to be face north. >> Correct.

[53:20] » Okay. >> Yes.

[53:23] » Could you, um, have you uh,

[53:27] already conceptualized how you're going to phase this in?

[53:32] » We are currently having those discussions. We have some informal ideas

[53:37] that we're generating. Um, it it sounds like, um,

[53:42] sewer and water will dictate the first phase in particular where that starts

[53:48] and it's looking to be about the northwest corner area. And if public

[53:53] works wants to comment on that. >> That is correct.

[53:56] Sewer has come off of Bohemia Street. >> That doesn't have to but that's how we

[54:01] envision it. And then Bruce said the same thing for power I

[54:05] believe and water would need to come out of that northwest

[54:09] corner.

[54:12] » So near the existing Heritage Park. >> So would it follow up Ironwood then?

[54:20] Or down Ironwood? >> That would be a tie-in yes. So for the

[54:24] water wise the water is a big

[54:27] for a looping water you don't like to have dead end services

[54:31] uh if you don't need to so I know Bruce

[54:33] mentioned at one time that Ironwood would come up to north and it would tie

[54:36] into Bohemia. Sanitary that would work fine for

[54:39] sanitary once you get further to the east

[54:43] this lot or this development would kind of get split where sanitary most likely

[54:47] would be going down to an existing lift station to the south.

[54:51] But we haven't really dug into those fine details of

[54:55] the first 20 lots where you guys proposals yet or anything but yeah the

[54:58] northwest corner is where we envision the sanitary and water and electric

[55:02] coming from.

[55:08] » This isn't a question for you so much but for you guys

[55:11] I I see that Alton is uh presumed to have this

[55:18] look to it. Is that we haven't seen the study yet so is this from the study?

[55:25] That's and is this feel like the county's approved this?

[55:30] » This yeah so this is the study that's kind of been high level presented and I

[55:34] believe we may have even got a draft in our emails here today for us to review.

[55:40] And this is kind of the alignment that is being proposed both

[55:43] basically from the feasibility study from the engineers. So, the county has

[55:46] seen this as well, yes. >> And then how does that work when you're

[55:50] looking at Alton veering to the right from the left?

[55:54] That property owner's now going to have land on the west side of Alton.

[56:00] And to get that road connector in there, we would need cooperation from that

[56:06] owner. >> Correct, yes. So, let me put part of

[56:07] this process now with the feasibility study and we've been talking with the

[56:10] county of kind of revising the MOU. And part of that MOU kind of lays out how is

[56:15] property going to be acquired, who's going to be kind of the lead on that,

[56:19] who's going to be the support. So, yes, for property with Alton that is not

[56:23] currently there and that's a good kind of veers off of it, there will be some

[56:27] sort of acquisitions that are probably going to be made. Whether it is due to

[56:32] development of the land around there and it's dedicated as part of the

[56:35] development similar to the dedication of E streets, or if we get to a point where

[56:39] the city and or the county says, "Hey, it is in everybody's best

[56:44] interest if we move this along faster than maybe where development is in this

[56:48] one spot, then we'd be talking about acquiring right of way

[56:51] to make that happen. But yes. >> And just so I'm clear then, for this

[56:55] plat and I'm totally supportive and conceptually of

[56:59] what we have got going here, but there will only be three exits then on

[57:03] the plat then. Or not only, but there will be three basically exits from it

[57:08] until Alton is constructed. >> And so, that mean part of part of it

[57:11] will be the traffic study will kind of help bear

[57:14] that out. If the traffic study says that they're going to need more,

[57:18] it could be something too where we start having to talk about do we need to go

[57:21] north and get one or two in there sooner even if it's more of a

[57:27] temporary road knowing that it might change a little bit depending on how it

[57:31] pokes out. But yes, that's That's The traffic study will help bear out

[57:34] exactly what what is needed for this and whether three is sufficient in the short

[57:39] term. >> Okay, thank you.

[57:43] » Okay. >> So, is there We don't have to take any

[57:47] action at this time, do we? >> That's correct. There's no action to be

[57:50] taken. It's really feedback and um for some of that, I would actually um

[57:55] look to Ms. Spanier to say, "Have Have you gotten

[57:58] feedback you're looking for? Are there questions that are unanswered that you

[58:01] would like from the City Council and or staff at this time

[58:05] um as this concept review is really for your benefit or JPB's benefit um with

[58:11] this?" >> Yeah, I appreciate that um

[58:14] prompt because I would love to have um

[58:20] my engineers start work tomorrow, but um I would like to know that you are in

[58:25] fact supportive of the project um at least conceptually uh at this point

[58:30] before we go ahead and make that next step. And so, that would be um

[58:34] essentially what I'm looking for here tonight.

[58:37] » And this would be I would I mean, I'd like to remind like it would be a

[58:40] high-level support, obviously, until we dig into the zoning and the specifics

[58:43] and all that. And things could change a little bit um

[58:46] as we get into all that lays out. So, >> Yeah. So, from what I've seen and have

[58:52] read, I am in support of the concept. Um I would be very interested to understand

[59:01] the traffic study um

[59:03] just because traffic in this area will be altered significantly. Um I mean,

[59:09] it's a a neighborhood that sees a little bit of traffic like on Heritage going

[59:14] out to 15, um but this is definitely going to change those patterns a bit.

[59:20] So, that would be my only request is to to understand the traffic flow.

[59:28] » Sean, you >> Yeah, I'm very supportive. I think it

[59:31] looks nice. I like the style of houses and um

[59:35] looking forward to seeing when it's completed what it ultimately

[59:39] looks like. >> Okay.

[59:40] » [cough] >> Rick?

[59:41] » Yeah, it's great project actually the and they put in a great presentation and

[59:46] I'm looking forward to the traffic many or the traffic um

[59:49] study as well and um oversight on

[59:55] assembling the roads is what I I really we don't want no contractor roads. We

[59:59] don't want no temporary roads. Um >> And and and when when I had mentioned

[1:00:04] temporary talking about Alton Avenue there for some reason say you right now

[1:00:08] Alton swings to the west and the proposal is to swing to the right in the

[1:00:13] future. We wouldn't make them build some sort of

[1:00:16] road out to where it'd be sticking out into the future farm field that Alton's

[1:00:20] not currently there and so you may temporarily have it pause at the

[1:00:25] gravel road or something like that. That's That's what I mean by not I don't

[1:00:28] mean throughout the whole neighborhood we're building gravel roads and and that

[1:00:31] sort of thing. It was trying to do it in a way that I

[1:00:35] know government routinely gets um

[1:00:40] and maybe rightly so we build roads that we tear up two years later. So trying to

[1:00:44] think smartly about how we design stuff if we know that it is temporary in

[1:00:48] nature. Okay.

[1:00:51] Bruce? >> Uh no, I support the concept. I

[1:00:53] appreciate all the work that you guys have put into it and I I think it's it's

[1:00:58] seems to be a lot of thought put into it. So I really appreciate the work that

[1:01:01] you guys have done. >> I also support the concept. I think it's

[1:01:06] something that is needed for the city of New Prague

[1:01:09] as we continue to figure ways to get more kids in the school district. I

[1:01:14] know that's a big issue that superintendent does say, "Hey, we need

[1:01:19] more housing and things like that too so that we can fill our schools up, so.

[1:01:24] » And >> Appreciate the project and

[1:01:27] good luck. >> Yeah, and also our businesses, you know,

[1:01:29] with the EDA going out and talking to our various businesses, it's, you know,

[1:01:33] housing is needed to draw employees into the

[1:01:37] the area. >> Absolutely.

[1:01:39] » All right. >> Again, I really appreciate your time

[1:01:41] this evening and your support as well. So, look forward

[1:01:44] to seeing you soon. >> All right, thank you for coming and

[1:01:47] presenting. >> Thank you. See you on the next one.

[1:01:49] » Yep.

[1:01:53] » Next on the agenda is miscellaneous. So, we're at this point. Rick, do you have

[1:01:57] anything to add? >> No, I'd say no.

[1:01:59] » Okay, Bruce. >> I can't believe we had 7 in of rain in

[1:02:03] Lee County this fall. Um

[1:02:06] » And Henderson didn't flood? >> [laughter]

[1:02:08] » Yeah, and Henderson didn't flood. Um earlier on you were talking about

[1:02:11] elections at the new city hall. Uh technically it won't be the city hall at

[1:02:16] yet at that time. I guess I've had questions, will will there how will that

[1:02:19] all going to be laid out and things, but I don't know that really matters that we

[1:02:24] have any more information on that. You figure it out how that will work.

[1:02:27] » Yeah, I mean that's part of it too. Um and I'd kind of mentioned in my weekly

[1:02:30] update to you all um on Friday that we we begin we begin conversations with

[1:02:37] the architect. And I think part of that conversation will be how how do you

[1:02:40] recommend we temporarily lay this out like

[1:02:44] there's on certain areas or certainly locked doors in certain areas, so kind

[1:02:47] of just shut just the building down into two areas that we work out of.

[1:02:52] Um I believe the name that we submitted to

[1:02:54] the um state was new city hall {slash} election center or

[1:03:00] something like that cuz they wanted us to name it, but we tried to make it

[1:03:03] obvious and as obvious as possible to people when they read the name that they

[1:03:07] knew what we were talking about. >> And if if we're not going to have them

[1:03:09] come through the front door, then we should make sure we communicate that

[1:03:12] somehow in the future too. >> Yep.

[1:03:16] That's all I got. >> Okay.

[1:03:18] » Maggie? >> No, sir.

[1:03:19] » Sean? >> Nope.

[1:03:22] » Josh, you have anything else? >> I did have one thing that I wanted to

[1:03:24] mention. It sounds like we're going to be two down, but if the three

[1:03:29] who will be at the city council meeting on the 17th, we did actually receive an

[1:03:33] application for a planning commissioner. I know that

[1:03:36] we've been short one. And um

[1:03:40] Rick has graciously stepped up to fill that role, but we did actually get an

[1:03:43] application here at the end of last week.

[1:03:45] And so, if possible for the three that will be here

[1:03:49] to have maybe an interview 15 minutes 10 minutes before the meeting on the 17th.

[1:03:54] » And then we're going to move the budget meeting to a different date.

[1:03:58] » Correct. Yeah, we're down to three. It doesn't make sense to have a budget

[1:04:01] meeting when half the team's gone. >> Right.

[1:04:04] Yeah, that would work. We're room for you guys.

[1:04:06] » I should be able to hear you. >> Yep.

[1:04:11] » Oh, that's fair. I didn't even think about that. Um

[1:04:14] as we were trying to get to the end knowing that we usually on that second

[1:04:18] meeting in September, we have have approved our

[1:04:23] preliminary in the past. Um we do have an extra meeting and with

[1:04:27] labor Labor Day being late, it kind of pushes everything back. And so,

[1:04:32] I guess the other option would be to say on the Monday before Labor Day, we don't

[1:04:37] have a meeting. The 31st, we could also do a special budget meeting too if we

[1:04:42] don't want to push all the way back, but I guess that would be up to you guys if

[1:04:45] you're available for the 31st.

[1:04:48] Then I know we can come in and just kind of

[1:04:50] tackle it out and see if we could get the preliminary kind of set from there.

[1:04:55] » Yeah, it works for me. >> I'm available.

[1:04:59] » Sounds good to me. >> Say all this as you speak. I'm sure I'm

[1:05:02] available. >> Yeah, the only thing I have is a utility

[1:05:06] commission meeting at 3:30, so but that's the 24th. Are you talking about

[1:05:10] the 31st? >> talking

[1:05:11] » the 31st. >> Can are do it on the 24th instead?

[1:05:17] » Do the budget meeting on the 24th, you mean?

[1:05:19] » Yeah, you mentioned you told me that's the 24th, isn't it?

[1:05:23] » Well, I got >> the 31st?

[1:05:25] » So, for 31st at 3:30. >> That's the utility.

[1:05:28] » Okay. It is the utility commission. >> Right.

[1:05:30] » Yeah, the 31st at 3:30. >> Glad you said that. I must have said the

[1:05:33] wrong date. >> Yeah.

[1:05:35] » So, it like So, we did the 31st like 5:00. I guess I don't know how long the

[1:05:39] utility commission >> It could be done by 4:30.

[1:05:41] » Yeah, I don't think we had any major on there. Usually we're done within an

[1:05:43] hour. >> And I yeah, I find I mean I guess I know

[1:05:47] four people are retired. I guess John, would you be available at 5:00 on the

[1:05:50] 31st? >> Yeah. Yeah.

[1:05:52] » Don't assume things because someone's retired.

[1:05:54] » Yeah, fair enough. That's fair. >> That's right.

[1:05:56] » That's fair. >> [laughter]

[1:05:57] » Sorry, Bruce, are you available at 5:00 on the 31st?

[1:05:59] » Our days are busier than you think. >> No, I know. It's amazing how that

[1:06:03] happened. [laughter] >> Become my staff and

[1:06:04] » Yeah. Yeah, I got people. I'll take a look at it.

[1:06:08] So, right now it's tentatively on Monday the 31st at 5:00

[1:06:15] our second budget meeting. Rescheduling from

[1:06:19] the one that was going to be handled on the 17th.

[1:06:23] » Correct. >> Okay.

[1:06:25] So, let's put it on the calendar. >> Got that, Patrick?

[1:06:27] 5:00 on the 31st of August.

[1:06:33] Show up in October, you might be late.

[1:06:39] That's all I have, then. >> Okay.

[1:06:41] Robin, you have anything? Tim? How's the new uh police station?

[1:06:46] » When my turn go? >> I didn't I I said Robin.

[1:06:49] » He said Robin. >> Did he say 5:00?

[1:06:51] » I know I was finishing updating on the budget meeting.

[1:06:54] » you got to be >> Okay, Tim.

[1:06:56] » No, no. Robin, do you have something? >> Or are we on to Mitch already?

[1:06:58] » No, we're on Robin. >> I think we're on to Patrick already.

[1:07:01] » No, I'll put you in before Patrick, okay? But Robin, do you have something?

[1:07:05] » need like an hour of your time. >> That's all?

[1:07:08] » Okay, since elections has been a hot topic, I just wanted to clarify that we

[1:07:12] do have early voting here at the building we're in right now, 118 Central

[1:07:18] Avenue. Um for Scott County residents, Le Sueur

[1:07:21] County residents can go to the Le Sueur County Government Center.

[1:07:25] Um >> That is by county design, not ours.

[1:07:28] » County design, correct. Not our own choice.

[1:07:31] » Sure. Dennis Sneak Outta Here, you know. >> Um this Saturday from 9:00 until 3:00,

[1:07:37] this building will also be open for early voting for Scott County residents.

[1:07:43] » Primaries. >> As well, for primary.

[1:07:44] » Yes. And primaries on the 11th.

[1:07:48] » Yes. >> And that will be handled

[1:07:51] » at the new city hall. >> Yes.

[1:07:53] » Building, correct. >> So that'll be a good test.

[1:07:57] That'll be a good test for our general election

[1:08:00] to make sure >> Correct.

[1:08:02] » All right. >> Yep. And of course we'll be spreading

[1:08:04] the word during that primary election as well. That the general election will be

[1:08:07] occurring there as well, so. >> Are you done now, Robin?

[1:08:11] » Thank you, yeah. >> [laughter]

[1:08:13] » Okay. Tim.

[1:08:17] » Matt. >> How's the new police station?

[1:08:20] » Uh it's really good. Um really thankful and we're getting settled in there, so

[1:08:25] figuring out how everything works and uh boiler inspection tomorrow morning that

[1:08:31] um shouldn't be any issues with that, so.

[1:08:34] And we've got a lot of positive feedback from folks that we've already served out

[1:08:39] of that building, and so very good, positive feedback, so.

[1:08:44] It's great. >> Okay, good. Matt, do you have anything?

[1:08:47] Mitch. Patrick.

[1:08:51] Hello, are you there? Brian, anything else? All right.

[1:08:55] Uh the only thing I'd like to say is I know Dennis mentioned it that in a

[1:08:58] couple weeks we're going to start the state amateur tournament. We are looking

[1:09:01] for volunteers. Um I think there's a sign-up genius out

[1:09:05] there that if you can get a hold of Nick Sheneker or I think the Facebook

[1:09:10] page is Memorial Park rebuild or something like that. It's I think that's

[1:09:14] the Facebook page that you can link up for uh

[1:09:18] volunteering on the different uh committees that they have going there.

[1:09:22] So. I don't have anything else. I'll make a

[1:09:25] motion to adjourn. >> Second.

[1:09:26] » Second by Rick Siler. All in favor, say aye.

[1:09:29] » Aye. >> Aye. Any opposition? Okay, we're out of

[1:09:31] here. Thank you, everyone. Couple minutes and uh we'll go into our

[1:09:35] closed session. >> You're just full of humor today, aren't

[1:09:38] you, Chuck? I heard you on the radio this morning. It was like

[1:09:41] » Well, gets a I come here and >> [laughter]

[1:09:43] » there was cars all over. They had the uh Lonsdale people there. Holy mackerel.

[1:09:50] Junior royalty and the royalty. >> Yeah, well, yeah, that's right.

[1:09:54] » I could

New Prague City Council - August 3rd, 2026

Transcript