##VIDEO ID:cl6pwoZybic## e e okay uh we will please bring to open the Tuesday August 20th 2024 regular city council meeting you would all please stand and join me in the Pledge of Allegiance Pledge aliance to the flag of the United States of America and to the stands indivisible andice okay first item is to approve um I believe this should be an amended agenda because we're adding an item mayor Ryan just for reference um item F5 information was provided to the council earlier today so that will still be on the agenda but um information did go out to you will walk through that information and then item F6 uh can be removed from the agenda we won't have an update tonight but I will follow up with the council um with more information in the near future okay okay Mr may make apologies Mr May I'll make a motion to approve the agenda as presented I'll second all those in favor I I opposed carried next item is the consent calendar this is items that are considered routine by the council and be enacted by one motion actually I did have a question on one item there maybe Jenny you can help me out I was going through the um check register have a check to City of brainer was curious as to what that actually pertains to could have asked you offline but forgot until now 40100 you know hand go for it yeah thank you awesome it is for prosecution costs for our contract so we pay that every quarter understood thank you I don't know why it stood out this month but it did uh Mr May I'll approve the consent calendar as presented I'll second all those in favor I I I opposed next item is open form this is a time for anyone in the audience that wishes to address the council to uh that on an item that is not on the agenda we'll give you time to do uh address this at that time we're covering that but if there's anything they wish to bring up to the council um we'll open public form seen no one no one would close public form um second item under open form is the Ada transition plan a presentation from woodset thank you mayor Council uh my name is Alex bidder I'm a civil engineer with width um and we uh were asked to prepare an 88 transition plan for the city in niswa this whole process started um last year um talking with City staff and there had been a couple um complaints um to City staff about some of the Ada facilities and we'll get into what that is in a little bit but it's basically sidewalks um and access for disabled people and even abled people um so what we do is we we provided a proposal to complete the ad ada8 transition plan and we'll just go through kind of each of those parts um there's a lot to the entire plan so we'll just kind of cover this at a high level and if you have any more questions this is more or less just a public informational meeting um and then we'll go over the final report with final more in-depth findings um at a later date so the Americans dis Disability Act so Ada was introduced in uh 1990 um which basically prohibits discrimination against um those that are disabled uh this covers a wide variety of areas I mean buildings everything but this ada8 transition plan is geared towards public entities um so part of that is geared towards uh there's a section title two in there where um public agencies with greater than 50 employees are required to do this uh type of ADA plan and then also on top of that which is the last bullet if if there's Federal funding available um and if if the city qualifies but they don't have this Ada transition plan uh in place then they might not get that that Federal funding so we didn't want to exclude the city from possibly getting that funding in the future it doesn't sound like you're going for any right now but you never know so um this is a a self- evaluation it's it's hired by a subc consultant um but what that self-evaluation is it looks like at the policies practices and programs the city already has in place um and then we go around and take a look at The Pedestrian access routes or pars which is the most common term for that um so that whole pedestrian access route evaluation was done this July um in in the public right away and also on city property as far as parking stalls and of things like that so what the just a quick summary of that um there's approximately 111 pedestrian ramps 7 2 of them were found to be non-compliant 62 Road would require a full reconstruction whereas 10 of them you could just grind down um if there's a vertical discrepancy over a quarter inch um then that can typically be ground down very minor fix um as far as non-compliant Trail and sidewalks there's about 540 fet and then three traffic signals and all of those met the ADA requirements so this is very small but this is just a snippet one little area of the deliverable what this is going to end up being is in the city's GIS system that is available or is being worked on and developed right now so they'll be able to log onto here and you can zoom right to a ped ramp and see if it's compliant non-compliant typically we say in there what the problem is with it if it's just a full reconstruction or if it's just a minor f for that ped ramp to get it into compliance so we obviously looked at the city as a whole um and this is just a snippet or an example of of what you're going to see when you open up the gis program so part of this is going to help the city develop the policies and procedures when they get a complaint um under new construction what to do when there is a complaint um or an issue um so it's a very important part um to the city if they have especially a city with a lot of um tourist traffic and you know you don't want to have uh you want to be able to have a good response if there are issues and show that you're being proactive with with some of these sidewalks because there's there's some issues out there so one of the priority areas that we looked at was the downtown area since there is such heavy foot traffic obviously like I said we looked at the whole city area um city limits um but we did concentrate um and spent a lot of time downtown on Main Street hell Street and Lakers Lane um there's it's difficult because there are ped ramps in the city that aren't necessarily owned by the city there's ped ramps that are owned by other agencies those typically aren't on the responsibility of the city it all depends on how the Agreements are written for care of that uh facility to some extent and then uh we're going to go over some costs but typically when when we talk about doing these improvements we talk about these things are non-compliant that doesn't mean you have to go fix everything right away that would be financially huge in a lot of cases this was you know relatively small um but still a very large expense on something that you know when you go through and do a road project you're changing a lot of different things with that the road profile a lot of times the road profile is causing the Ada issue so you're chasing all those issues so if you just go and attack each ped ramp individually you might not necessarily fix it so the goal is to have this plan and then as the city does improvements to their streets then you go through and make those appropriate Ada Corrections so as part of the report and it's a major portion of the of the report and the process and everything is to identify an ADA coordinator um and that identifi that person is uh Stephen timblin perfect so we'll get into some of those responsibilities shortly um so kind of the whole plan that we've tried to lay out is public participation is very important um there was an advertisement in the local paper to submit any complaints or anything to the city sounds like nothing was submitted which isn't very uncommon um a lot of times you're not going to hear anything unless people are it's it's in the moment this happened I tripped I fell I couldn't get my wheelchair over this um you don't see a lot of people that have that just in the back of their mind a lot of times also the public informational meeting which is tonight um so the city would be accepting those public comments from July 19th when it was published until today and then we'll do one final review of the report um at the September 1 council meeting so as part of the procedure um it's it's very important that the city makes this document once it's approved public um a lot of entities just put that on the city website and then if people come in and have questions on that they can be directed towards the city website and access the report there um it is a living document it's something that's going to be continuously updated um so that's uh very important to remember it doesn't it's not consistent we we'll touch on a little bit um so there is a procedure um which is outlined in the appendix d as we note there I won't go word for word but basically you get a complaint you have a time frame to address the complaint um if they don't like how you have addressed it or want something more they can appeal that and then talk with the city administrator so the initial complaints go through the Ada coordinator if that individual can't appease that person then it goes to City administrator um and then they kind of deal with it from there and try to resolve the issue as best they can so like I said this is a a living document as you complete road projects you're going to want to go in do Ada evaluation of those ones that were just improved and then you can update either the report or you can just update the gis a lot of communities just update the GIS and then they'll revisit the the report every 10 years is there's not a timeline on when a city has to update this report it's kind of just as the city sees fit other communities that we're working with have gone either on a seven or 10 15 so we 10 seems like a nice round number to to update that report so if that's what the city would want to do that's something that can be included in the report um that every 10 years the city is going to take another whole look at everything update everything um and just keep updating it like I mentioned a couple times the city's developing a GIS system and that's going to be crucial to this because it's really slick to go in there and update these items um as they're improved so if if the city was kind of going to go tackle um all of the 62 uh ped ramps to be reconstructed that could cost about $310,000 obviously that's very dependent on um the bidding climate and how busy people are how far spread out these are what uh changes need to actually happen to make those things compliant like I said it could be a larger problem than just the actual ped ramp itself um so as a total it's estimated just shy of 320,000 to to improve all of these like I said it's not typically in the budget to just go in and make all these improvements these improvements are done over time with other Street improvements and that is totally okay with the whole process that's allowed any questions that you may have any of the 62 pedestrian ramps um do any of them that we need to do do they belong to the other entities you mentioned so there may be a couple um so we went through it the whole report and map and everything is being reviewed by City staff it is our understanding that we got all the city facilities there might be some overlap um in a few cases but that's you know we're reviewing with City and if we miss some we'll go get them if we have some that we got information on that aren't the cities we'll exclude that from the gis system anyone else has any questions do not thank you thank you thank you mayor R if I could um just want to thank Alex and a for their work on this project um it has been really informative there is also um a really well done video from the Minnesota Department of Transportation about ADA accessibility if you're interested in that I can send you that link uh there's also a leag webinar on Ada if you're interested in that as well um both are really well done but we appreciate your help and um working towards getting the final report thank you okay next item is the reports City administrator thank you mayor Ryan good evening again city council my report is in your packet couple of items just to highlight um tomorrow is our kickoff meeting for the downtown master plan uh which will be um we're long awaited and looking forward to um getting the group of individuals together and starting those U planning efforts so we will keep you updated on the progress with that group also just wanting to remind the public and Council that mot is um has a another survey out for their Corridor study so phase two looking for feedback on specific ideas for future intersection improvements along the highway that'll be open I believe until September 9th so there is still a few weeks for that and as we discussed um a little while ago we are in full swing of budget season and appreciate dep Department's efforts to put together their budget information it's a lot of work to put that together especially during the summer months and um thank you to Maggie for putting together all the spreadsheets and details that go into that as well uh we're making really good progress and uh look forward to continuing that conversation next month with the council that is all I have for you unless there are questions thank thank you quick comment on the trail remind me I have a update for you with the land owner you ask me to reach out to if you have't do you have are you saying you have an update yeah update that just reminding yeah we can talk offline but remind me thank you next item uh City attorney uh good even good evening everybody um nothing specific to report here just have worked on various things with City staff and Jenny over the course of the last 30 days city engineer yeah just like the City attorney I've been uh busy working with City staff on numerous items um yeah hopefully we'll keep working on them and get some things done here does anyone have questions for anyone otherwise we'll go to new business uh first item on new business approve resolution authorizing joint Grant applic for go Lake Trail anyone have any questions um read through it okay I'll entertain a motion Mr May I'll make a motion to approve the resolution authorizing The Joint Grant application for the go Lake Trail as presented second all those in favor I opposed carried uh next item is resolution approved resolution authorizing direct purchase for Wester this is in regards to the final goal Lake Trail project any I'll entertain a motion Mr May I'll make a motion to approve the resolution authorizing the direct purchase for the Wester property for the Trail second all those in favor I opposed Carri uh item three Public Works uh Direction reference Road Bond engineering I can start this one off if you would like please great um so in your packet tonight you have a couple of recommendations uh for consideration uh one recommendation um came from comes from the public works committee from their July meeting upon discussion at that meeting and planning for the 2025 Road Bond project uh the committee recommended to bring to city council consideration to go out for quotes for Engineering Services for the bond uh upon discussion of that recommendation after the fact um Tom our Public Works director and I did discuss that and we do um want to bring to council's consideration not to take that route um due to the timeline involved and the fact of the delay that that would put on this road Bond project so while it's a great question and something that we can certainly consider for projects moving forward um going the route of soliciting quotes for engineering um would mean that we we wouldn't complete the road Bond project in 2025 and that is a big concern for Tom and myself um so there are some different quotes provided by WTH um bill would be able to speak to the different ones for consideration uh with respect to staff's recommendation uh we would only recommend that we move forward with the plans and specs portion of the project and then we would step forward with bidding and potentially construction observation at a future date but really focusing on the one step we need to move the project forward at this time and then take the future steps as it comes that's a high level summary happy to answer questions and certainly bill can as well anyone have questions for Janie I guess I do okay so obviously I'm the liaison for this you know and stuff too and um I guess I'm going to question why we have that committee then if we're not going to take their recommendation what what are we doing I mean that's a a legitimate question for the council my question is why didn't that come up in January or February and just in the past meeting I mean if they had reservations they should have brought that up Ear that's my opinion they should have brought that up earlier well what came out of that discussion too to update the Council on is just the process that we have as the council as we're looking at these bigger dollar amounts bigger values what do we set forth as the city as hey this number has tripped a certain dollar amount a certain frame a certain percentage where we are going to get multiple bids on stuff you know as these dollar amounts increase the projects increase you know um obviously you know we just had the budget meeting with the bonding you know I mean the price of all this is quadrupled and it was the consensus of the committee that as these prices just keep increasing in cost you know we have to look at every Avenue of the project you know to see if there's any ways to save money because we're we're talking real money real dollars you know on this I mean we're talking you know uh just the road Bond stuff we just saw you know it's we're talking millions of dollars and just looking at everything so nothing against wood Seth but as a council what are we you know what's a dollar amount where we're like hey at a $100,000 project or at a $500,000 project you know we're going to you know let's just take the roof project here we're going to get multiple projects or bids or quotes for a roof project here you know kind of the same dollar amount is this you know why what are what are we doing also so the concern was from um a couple of the people on the committee um with more expertise in this just looking at the percentage it was their Viewpoint that the percentage was higher than kind of an industry standard and they were asking why just as an industry standard it was at a higher percentage and so I'm not sure if all of you have watch that meeting you know and we're up to speed with the concerns but I guess right away that would be my input on this is you just you know take this as an example we continue to move forward with these larger dollar amounts whether it be Parks or whatever that we need toal evaluate every aspect of it and what is our policy what's our procedure for doing that and I think that was the main question that came out of that meeting well I just my opinion is I'd like to see this start going forward and then when we for the 2026 that that get started in January you know what you're talking about we just got some of the numbers last meeting so why wasn't this brought up we didn't we didn't have the numbers we didn't have the information at that when were the initial numbers put out like the you're talking about the construction cost and all that kind of stuff or our proposal proposal your proposal when were you asked um that was some time ago wasn't it well the initial proposal I'm just looking at the date that was I think discussed by the committee in July right I don't know if that was if there was anything provided in June I don't no no okay so the proposal was provided um in July right for that the um Road Bond cost initial um was done by Jo jell back in December yeah um January um so I know that this has been discussed by the committee in different pieces throughout this year um but the committee just saw this proposal at its last meeting okay know just something to bring up is um the the fee that we're asking for the the standard is roughly 8% and that kind of depends on what the total cost of the construction project is and we are we're right at that um roughly depends on what the construction cost is but um and you know kind of what the contingency might be so we're we're very close to that number and then in the other in the what we discussed at the Public Works committee meeting the we had included in the uh construction admin rtion in there also and construction and basically all the in Construction Services observation staking and all that kind of stuff and that was um less than normally a number is like 10% and that was actually less than that so it was reasonable combined everything was what 17 18% yeah roughly yeah great so it's just I think you know maybe not pertaining to this project or this issue but a conversation to have with us as we continue to move forward with these larger projects obviously everything has gotten much more expensive since 2020 you know the dollar amounts are going up huge um I don't know you know we just had the budget meeting you know to talk to the general public on are we doing our due diligence in all the different areas that we can as we evaluate these projects in a making sure that we're getting the best SP for our dollar and B what is criteria that we're going to use as we move forward with any project to trip the trigger for us to do this to go out and look at competitive bids all the way through from project management to engering to you know whatever it might be and so I think that is the bigger question um that was brought up with this you know and so I think you know um it pertains to this but a conversation maybe that we need to have you know at a different time or a workshop to just talk about this as we move move ahead in the future so do you want to slow this down 2025 I'm just asking what what's everyone's Comfort level I mean when you add all this up you know um just we're just we're not getting it bit out but we're signing up for almost $500,000 worth of work without getting a bid you know a half million dollars worth of work with no competitive bid and I'm just going a half million dollars is a big number without getting a competitive bid we're going to do a half million dollars worth of work on this billing here and we just talked about the whole process for that about going out and getting bids but now here we are looking at this other project and we're like well we're going to spend another half million dollars and not get competitive bids and well let's correct the record we're spending 260,000 correct that's only for part we're we're not we have we're not looking at the the last phase of the project at this point where that and that is subject to going out for bids if we want to or whatever the council may decide at that time so that's the process I I've hear I hear a lot about I'm picking up process stuff and everything and that's great um the bottom line is this in 2018 I believe is when we let the last Bond the 2024 or 25 bonding streets and stuff should have started then we should be having we should be having basically this discussion January of of this year there's no reason we didn't have this discussion this has been something that I was liaison to PL uh the um part or to uh with Tom to Tom's department for a number of years and one of the problems I got is with the whole thing is why are we here today at this point if we don't move forward we don't have a 25 Bond we should be I mean I would for the 26 Bond I think we should be having this discussion we're having right now for the 2026 Bond I would be happy with that because we already know what streets we're going to be doing so we can have a workshop and discuss processes that's great that's fine we there's always a better way to build a mouse trap but the fact of the matter is that this has been on every Public Works agenda meeting agenda all year long why are we only at this point now and to to go out for bids due to the dollar amount I understand the reasoning for that we get behind that but I don't think we have a choice on this bid simply because we got to get the 202 I don't know how many of you have gotten calls from people about the roads and streets in town I've I've received a number um um I mean it's certainly not knocking my door down but a number enough to know that there's enough people out there that are concerned about it we can't afford to put it off um so I guess my question is I don't know the answer to that obviously I just got on as the Lee is on to the so why why are we here who can answer that question why why was this just in J July and not in January I can tell you who can answer that question that's staff but not here at a public meeting this is for you to sit down with Tom us to sit down with Tom maybe at a workshop or or you and Jenny and Tom sit down how do we move the process keep it on track keep it moving forward keep it um you know if we're going to entrust staff to do this without oversight on a day-to-day basis because some staff have said they don't want that kind of oversight if we're going to do that then we have to be able to rely on staff to do it now my question is are we as a council are we as a city giving staff the proper tools to get the job done so my answer to your question is simple you and Tom should sit down and discuss that and then with Jenny the three of you can come up if we need to change process I I wish all five of us could sit down together with staff and Jenny and and the whole staff and have a closed meeting but we can't yeah I I know our City attorney would be a little upset with us if we did that so well well that's what I'm saying I guess I'm getting at you know maybe we need some sort of Workshop um just because as we're going out and looking at all these bids all these proposals but a workshop to propose what that's why I say you and Tom I would recommend that you and Tom what I would do if I was in I'm talking about the process what is we're we're the leaders what is our process give the staff so they can do their job it starts with us I don't know that staff doesn't have what they need to do their job Joe it starts with you as a liaison or me as a liais on sitting down with that staff and having a discussion why aren't we further ahead what do we need to put in place so sure that's fine I'm I guess what my question with this with the council is are we okay spending a half million dollars potentially without getting another bid I mean and where where do we do that and where don't we do that and why because I think great question we can have that discussion at another time but today let's let's look at what's in front of us that that is what is in front of us what's in front of us is do we move forward with this do we take the recommendation of the department head Tom and the city administrator or do we take the recommendation of the Public Works committee and the fact is that if we go with the recommendation the Public Works committee has presented there is no 2025 Road Bond if we take the recommendation of the city administrator and the Public Works director um we still have to come back and look at the last portion of this which would be the what 200,000 or hundred and some thousand whatever it was for the the end run the the staking I believe it is and the the uh observation instruction services conru and all that okay that's not included in this so the the real question is do we want a road bond for 2026 or 25 or not that's the question that we're having here all the other stuff I'd be happy to sit down grab a cup of coffee with you and go over it because I'm sure there's ways we could make the process quicker easier for yeah for sure and and I I would also think at the next uh Public Works committee meeting you know they're going to need an explanation why their recommendation was discarded because we need to have a 2020 Road mnd right I guess I I yeah I mean that's one explanation I but anyway um so the motion the the the question in front of us is now as was as I just laid out so I I don't know what we wanted what the council wants to do has there been conversation I mean I I did watch I would say 80% of the hour and 45 minute long Public Works meeting couldn't finish the rest was there a consensus that or at least I should say a strong belief that we are going to be able to have some savings by getting an additional quote or two that's going to be justifiable to push this out because we're looking at two options obviously going the route that the Public Works committee suggested and then the second route would be what Tom um is sugges sugesting but going the route of the public works with respect to that that committee and I think we respect all committees here asking them to take their time to come and and do their work um do they believe or is there a belief that it's going to be a one two five seven and a half percent savings across the board on that specific line if you watch the meeting on not the expert there you know there's a couple former um individuals on that committee that have a lot of background knowledge in this uh they seem to think the overall thing instead of 17 18% would probably be down for a total down around the 10 to 12% I don't know what that does for numbers once again I'm not the expert on that what I am just trying to convey out is I think we need to take a step back look at it talk to it I don't know maybe there is maybe there isn't this isn't so much whether wood say numbers are correct or incorrect it is what what is our process as a city going to be as we continue to move forward and these numbers get astronomically larger than they've been in the past right you know I I guess that's that's the point that I'm trying to convey here tonight and that was the consensus from them they throughout their opinion and their knowledge in their background which that is their background and knowledge and and that's what they threw out whether it's worth doing it or not that's obviously would be to be determined I'm just looking at and going the process boy when we start talking this kind of numbers we need a system to have in place for these committees for anything with Parks Road works whatever to go hey this is our going to be our standard op operating procedure because you know everything is so much more expensive and I think that's you know yeah it might be too late right now John um I don't disagree with that I'm just saying hey we need to get this resolved quickly because look at all the stuff that we're up against and we need to operate the same and consistent with every um project that comes before us as a council and just not saying okay yeah we're going to we're going to sign off on these large dollar amounts you know without knowing that I don't know in this case we'll Pro we're not going to know we we don't know if there's savings but you know if if there is a if there is a 8% savings on $500,000 that's a big number you know may may Ryan if I could um I did share with the committee but for the council's benefit as well um we right for right or wrong we have been staff has been consistent in our process with respect to the road bond in that we have used our city engineer for those projects so even though the dollar has for the project has grown um that has been our process and I would say I don't think the council has to adopt the exact same process for every project but certainly earlier on in the conversation we should be asking the question so that we are all in the same page about what direction do we want to go with respect to each project because they're very unique and different um it's been very efficient to have our city engineer be the one to help us with the road project because they're doing a lot of road work and things like that already for us on an ongoing basis they have the information so we have been consistent with respect to using our city engineer for Road Bond specific work but that's lot to say of course you can as a council say for these larger projects we've been talking about we'd like to ask the question on the front end going forward and decide where the council wants to go with with each project I think that's a very valid question and exact I was just going to go I was just going to say basically the same thing you said at nier I did um that's what we've done in the past but using a large number like this going out for bids it has to be done sooner in the process no I I don't disag and I don't disagree with what you're saying um I know in the past that we've had um a lot of times using the city engineer for this stuff um and other projects we've been able to actually come in under bids too in the past because they already have some information they don't duplicate it but yeah I I don't disagree with it it's just the numbers you know we're talking you know this total project just under $4 million yep I mean it's it's a big number for us you know it's a $4 million project I just I'm just saying the consensus was to look at all aspects of this because it is such a large number it's going to be the biggest dollar amount that we've done so far to date on any project like this and that that's what they're saying is we need to look at it we we're spending $4 million total y well is there any further discussion otherwise I would entertain a motion on what the council would like to do I'll make a motion that we accept the The Proposal um to um as presented by uh Tom blommer and Public Works director in the memo um with Jenny Max City administrator that we go ahead with the $260,000 um the land surveying Services design plans and specifications for the 2025 Road Bond that'll be my motion not here in a second okay I'll second okay any further discussion all those in favor say I I I I opposed opposed oppos okay motion passed um I don't know what your schedule is Joe with everything coming up you know work-wise and everything I know you're not going to be whatever but more information but well but let's um let's maybe set a time if you and Tom could get together and then set a time to have a workshop to discuss some of these processes maybe once we get further down the line to see what works yeah we can and staff can brainstorm about the timing of when we can have those conversations we certainly 2026 Road Bond needs to be getting going right now they should be able to be do it both so let's let's have that this conversation that we're just discussing before they get too deep into that and then we can go out from there and you know if we have to if we take bids we take bids if we stick with what we got but then we'll all be on the same page yeah and that's what we need to do because the dollar amount is just getting too large with everything Tom was projecting that the 26 Rob Bond could be an excess of 7 million yeah so the the next the next one we're at four but yeah Tom thinks you know seven to eight million for the next one I mean it's just I don't no that's that's what he had shared at one point oh I have about five million total between the two bonds yeah that's what I thought it was oh well well I'm not sure I thought that's what it was but if it's different I'd like to know yeah figure that out but either way it's a good thing to go through this and get the procedures down so often because it's not only this it just needs to carry through for everything Parks anything yes y Parks has a pretty good system but um yes I understand what you're saying and yes that we should sit down and discuss that next item is uh continue on here liquor committee recommendation reference engaging pfm on financial analysis as noted in your packet uh the committee liquor committee met on August 12th and is bringing forward a recommendation to engage pfm financial advisers uh to complete the financial analysis um this is the same thing we use with our sewer fund um annually so we would just bring them on board to help us with our cash flow analysis and that information to give us kind of a first look at bonding capacity and other financial information they can help us with as a starting point to continuing this potential project there aren't any questions I'll entertain a motion Mr May I'll make a motion to uh approve the liquor committee recommendation to engage pfm on a financial analysis analysis for the pickle I'll second any further discussion all those in favor say I I I oppose here Parks proposal from wood Seth real real quick on the liquor stuff though first you want to update or update people where we going to do that we talked about do you want to just give a quick update I sure can tell me if I if I forget anything thing um as far as our liquor committee meeting so we did talk about the financial analysis we have been talking quite a bit about um who we can bring on board to help with some visioning of the liquor fund the pickle building for potential if we have a new building what components would that include and we've talked a lot about um trying to find the right person to help kind of walk us through those conversations and bring in other departments just to get some thoughts and feedback make sure we're we're counting for all the ideas and um including that in our in our um development of a potential new building so we will continue to work on that once we get some financial information and then likely bring forward additional recommendations to the council here in the coming months as we get this going where are we at on the possible expansion of the spirits uh that project um has is not planned to move forward uh there was a couple of just different variables that basically um I think the property owner wasn't going to be viable for them to expand the building okay so that's null and void now yes all right yes that fair Joe Fair high level but okay okay great thank you Amber awesome thank you um you guys did receive a memo today I'm going to go over it a little more in depth because you didn't have a whole lot of time to wrestle with it um so in in your packet um you have a proposal from witth for City Park planning um back in June the Parks Commission recommended a fundraising goal of $600,000 to be put towards a DNR outdoor recreation grant that Grant has a maximum Award of $350,000 so it's a pretty sizable Grant um but even all combined that doesn't get us to our full project cost um that Grant has a lot of requirements to it and so at the June council meeting city council approved us um working with width to obtain this proposal to help with getting the required documents for that Grant um so everything in this proposal is based off of the previous year's Grant um we don't know what's in the next C until December when that Grant reopens again um we do anticipate that'll be very similar and that a lot of this information is going to be valuable regardless um as we talk about the 2026 Road Bond the community center Park parking lot is in that road Bond um and so we need to do some of those evaluations sooner rather than later um with the playground it does require specifications from a manufacturer so we need to go through that process in figuring out a manufacturer in order to apply for the grant um when it comes to the survey work and stuff like that before winter is preferable um so you have a list of things um and all of this is based off of the grant requirements and then specifically outline the park as a whole so making sure that everything has its space when it comes time to touch that amenity in the park that area of the park um and so you have the proposal here in front of you um happy to answer any questions on The Proposal with Bill anything on the grant or um Park landing as a whole we need to do this to apply for the grant correct what kind of chances do we have do you have any sense for that like what are our odds um we have received grants in the past so we have two on City Park already um first one was 1976 and another one in 1995 um and the grant does score very favorably for inclusive playgrounds specifically so the more you can demonstrate that inclusivity um things like that are scoring very highly and so it does fit really well into the crit IIA of the grant but there's you never know until you know but the chances of the city being able to receive this grant are never to none if we don't have a proper Grant put together yeah so it requires different maps and like specific color codings and it's very um indepth with you know it needs a cross-section of your your access and that access has to be 5T long so it does have very specific criteria or 5T wide um and so needing assistance from WID to help put some of this together some of the things under are environmental I have done with the other grants and so I can help in some of those areas um but a lot of the grants require very specific information and getting closer and closer to shovel ready um you basically get one full construction season for these Grant and a little bit a shoulder on each side so you got to be very ready to go um to get these grants but like I said regardless of if it's with if it's 2025 2026 whenever we want to apply for it we will need this information we need it for the parks um the parking lot for the road Bond there are things we need time with the playground company to design the playground and get those specifications um so is a lot of coordinating they do require a lot of specifications um and it does take time in conjunction with this we are still trying to fund raise and that's another level but it is good information and there's information we need for other aspects in decision making as well the playground we're looking at is ADA Compliant too and it's going to be wheelchair accessible that kind of correct correct correct okay where our current one really is not um it wood ships do meet Ada and we do have a couple elements but the idea is that is more all-encompassing not just an element here or there so just a couple more questions um with this money will it dictate what we do first second and third for instance the playground has to go in before the pickle ball boards vice versa um in part of looking so right now we just have the concept design we need to get closer to actual we need to start designating the area that the pickle ball will go in that the playground will go in um we've identified the playground and pickle ball as kind of phase one if time will tell I'm thinking if the money is not there and the playground infrastructure is close to its end of life um we're going to have decisions to make so I think in regard it will give each element its respected space it's going to identify which buildings are staying which buildings are going that will help us develop that plan further um but again in conjunction with our fundraising there are there is an element of the unknown I think the city of nisah and wood has a long standing history together right Bill pardon I think the city of nisah and wsn has a long history together right right a lot of upcoming projects we're going to be utilizing your services for correct this is this is a drop in the bucket relatively compared to what we just discussed they're all great projects amen however uh any consideration you think from wsn to be able to perhaps donate their services to be able to see this project come through on the back end of it I think there's going to be a bunch of additional services that wsn is going to be contracted for in the event of these projects coming to fruition and we get the funding I can sure ask the uh people that you know people above me I guess but my first guess is probably not but I can sure ask you know one of the things about this grant that Amber explained is that as far as like a grant goes it asks for a lot of information they really want to make sure it appears from the Grant application that um everybody is very like they that that you really want to do this project that you're that you're very um you're not going to back out that you're going to everything is all your ducks are in a row that you're not going to have any issues with this that they can move forward and that it doesn't die for whatever reason um yeah so again like Amber said is a lot of the information that you're going to collect you're going to probably keep and and use and other projects like the Community Center parking lot um some of that information can be used for that because a lot of the um that Park concept plan is we need to fine-tune that when we're doing the Community Center parking lot to make sure that we don't that we design the Community Center parking lot correctly to work with the concept plan for the park especially everything is kind of intertwined together the ball field pickle ball and the uh um playground area uh so this is just another conceptual plan on top of the one that we already have done no no it requires um like boundary lines for the park um it requires timelines and budgets it requires cross-sections and like some specifications for the pickle ball court we got to determine the surface material as we create that budget so no it is not updating concept design it's um bringing that concept design closer towards actual right so more defining the scope of work then yes I mean the concept plans big picture 10,000 feet or higher and we're going to bring it in closer to ground level to keep moving getting closer and closer to the plans if if you received the grant just argumented we if we received it how long do we have to do it I mean to spend the money so to speak two years okay but it's a full construction season and a shoulder and a shoulder no I I understand that I'm just because our fiscal year is July 1 Amber question um you noted kind of a distribution potential between calendar years so is there a portion of this that you would like to hone in on for 24 to say let's accomplish at least this much and potentially bud the rest in 25 yes so both in 2024 budget and 2025 budget we do have Professional Service these budgeted um specifically the survey work would be the top priority in getting that done before the snow flies um that area um would be in the 2024 budget um as I've already put in there um some of the environmental stuff I might be able to do some of that so that one probably has the biggest wiggle room on it and then as you get closer towards the um civil category there that more of that would likely be done in 2025 if we don't have the funds available we're not applying for the grant in 2025 so that would give us the whole year to then work through the rest of these items um but specifically the surveying work because that is going to be a pressing topic with the road Bond as well further questions for Amber anyone okay I entertain a motion or do we have any further discussion I would make a motion that we go ahead with what's presented here tonight and that we get it any further discussion all those in favor say I I opposed carried thank you um next item is City Hall Improvement recommendations from the budget Workshop um just to recap our discussion uh the recommendations were to establish a building committee consisting of the Public Works director the Public Works supervisor and the city administrator um utiliz gordian contract through sourcewell in partnership with width and set an initial meeting with Mike England with width to um develop those recommendations for selecting a contractor identifying a timeline and bringing an updated estimate to the council uh for the next steps for consideration to move this project forward questions comments otherwise I'll will entertain a motion Mr May I'll make a motion to approve the city hall Improvement recommendations as presented from the budget Workshop second any further discussion all those in favor say I I I I oppos carried Verizon cell tower site plan review the recommendation is to table till September I will make that motion no second all those in favor I I opposed carried uh number three was approved non-un vacation leave schedule update thank you may Ryan uh just an update from last month's meeting um took an opportunity um not myself but um staff to PLL the non-union staff um regarding the proposed vacation leave schedule to see what their input was um and feedback so that is summarized here for you um did present this information to the Personnel committee and um the committee recommended bringing this to Council for consideration um effective January 1 2025 um it is understood that if the city ends up going with a cruel base versus lump suum like we're doing it now that they that's what's going to happen they know that I guess I wouldn't say that I think um I think the bigger picture from a city perspective is ensuring we're consistent um if that makes sense I suppose but consistent to cross employee groups just for ease of payroll Administration and things like that so this recommendation would leave the system in place as is if there's a broader discussion about that that wants to continue I think certainly that's a welcome conversation um as part of other okay employee retention efforts that kind of thing so the only change for this would be just the simplification of the vacation schedule um tears as as presented everything else would be the same okay so is the employee retention committee or the Personnel committee I guess um engaging in those conversations or having yes I I we spoke with Jenny about it she spoke about I shared the feedback that was that was obtained yeah uh from staff for this specifically if that's what nonunion folks want I you know that's what the staff wants I mean that's okay I mean it would be no different than working with the unions if the unions we negotiate and agreed with with the unions when we agree with what the unions want to do and we pass the contract so I'm fine with it it's a um so I don't know how you no comment okay I mean I don't know if if we want to you know if there's nothing stopping um you know right now we're in contract with all the unions but it's definitely something that will'll you know they'll they're aware of it'll be brought up um people want to do it so council's decision what we want to do entertain a motion I'll make a motion to approve the modified non unification leas schedule effective January 1st 2025 as recommended by the Personnel committee second have any further discussion all those in favor say I I I oppos Carri um mayor reports uh we're almost done with the summer um it went fast it it flew by so um I just uh hope that uh the school's going to be back in soon so let's everybody and for the public safe let's start watching the mirrors let's start looking for the kids and watch the yellow buses um so that's all I have Mark I don't have anything chge yes um I'd like to bring it up at the meeting here tonight night here recently the last couple weeks uh while I was I spent a lot of time in downtown n that and U I was approached by uh three different citizens on different issues and that I got a lot of really good compliments about uh Maggie one of those individuals had a question about the bike trail and I didn't really know that much about it and um Maggie is like my Google person and uh so I go to her and she's my go-to person and she gave me some really good direction got back to this guy and U I was able to answer his questions he was very appreciative he started going off and I told him I contacted Maggie and uh this guy just went on and on about Maggie how helpful she is and things like that and then he started in on KiKi how great a job that she does for the city and I mean I was on the phone with this guy for 20 minutes and we could have gone long okay but uh I had to get going and that and he was very very grateful and two other local uh residents and business people made similar comments and compliments about both these girls and I um they really need to be appreciated they do a lot for the city and they work very hard and they're go-to people and they uh were really lucky to have them thank you thank you excellent j i second those comments Kik you do a great job and if Magie was in here I'd say the same thing but that goes to all staff you'll see Steve we have a great team here great team and a lot of fun challenges ahead so we'll see how we can all work together through very exciting 2024 five and six welcome to the team as well y nothing okay um announcements and upcoming meeting dates are on the bottom of the agenda if anyone has any question questions so other than that I will entertain a motion to adjourn I so move second all those in favor I oppos adjourn thank you all for coming --------- ##VIDEO ID:6goOqd7YgOA## e okay thank you Kiki we will call the Tuesday August 20th 2024 budget Workshop to order I will turn it over to city council or city administrator Max thank you mayor R good evening members of the council um tonight we are going to uh dig into our 2025 budget process and start to talk about some of the components that staff has been working on throughout the last month to two months and also then trying to start to align towards um a goal of setting a preliminary Levy in September I'm not on our agenda today but I just want to mention I think most of you have met Stephen Timlin our new city planner um so feel free to take a moment if you haven't said hello to him um to say hi once uh in between our meetings or after our meetings tonight so welcome couple goals for our meeting tonight um looking for Council feedback and Direction on three primary areas we'll start with discussing the 2025 budget at a high level and um a result of what then the 25 Levy looks like as of this point in time um the budget is very preliminary this is our first run and looking at everything so your feedback is really helpful so that we make sure we focus our efforts in the right places um the second item for discussion will be some Council feedback and Direction on um the city hall improvements recommendation I do have a placeholder on a regular agenda should the council want to recommend anything we could put it on our regular agenda if the council is inclined to do that we will talk about that as well and then some conversation and feedback from the council around our liquor fund with respect to THC sales in 2025 so we'll get into that as part of the discussion as well uh there's a snapshot of our agenda tonight my presentation will Encompass all of those items kind of in one package and then we'll kind of break down some of those key components that I mentioned on this slide before as a reminder um the decision for our preliminary Levy will take place on September 17th at our regular council meeting so that's kind of the Target that we're looking to aim towards um we have a budget Workshop scheduled for September 10th if that's needed I anticipate probably will be once we get some initial feedback tonight we'll work to make some adjustments and then bring back an updated um budget presentation before the regular September meeting and as a reminder that the preliminary Levy is um the maximum Levy that the city can set and once that's set the final Levy can be lowered but it can't be raised so we want to make sure that we're leaving ourselves some room uh for accounting for any variables or things that aren't yet known for sure so that we have some time to work through that in October November and December as we finalize the budget and the levy for reference we usually like to just mention where the CPI is at um as of July um the CPI index was at 2.7 um pretty consistent um since January that 2.7 2.8 um for the year so far now I'll dig into some of the materials in your packet just to make sure that um you are orienting yourself correctly with the information there's a lot of information provided um I'll keep it very high level and certainly um please ask questions and or if the council would like Department presentations in SE setember on more detailed information or items in the budget that's also what we're looking for as well so we we'll keep it high level but if you said really like to know more about that I want the department heads to have a chance to to um address the council um in the next meeting so we have um our 2025 budget summary for our Citywide and the first portion of that document that you have in your packet um is focused on our general fund so we have one line that just identifies our general fund revenues and then under that that you'll see the general general fund expenditures that include the various departments that we have and that we account for separately you'll notice on the right side of the of that page is that our revenues and our expenditures both reflect the 20.09.2011 for the upcoming year we'll talk about that on the backside of that budget summary the next section is our proprietary or Enterprise funds summary so for our Wastewater our pickle and our Spirits departments um these departments as a reminder um really comprise of the functions of our city that um are more like business-like activities and they generate revenues so we SE we account for them separately and we reflect them here and then last but not least we have our non- major funds and the non- major fund category just is a reflection of the size of the fund itself smaller um as a percentage than our general fund and within those funds we have Community Center parks and wreck and fire there are detailed sheets for each department and Fund in your packet um for reference if you're interested in getting into some of the details similar um as we've done in the past couple of years um there is a new items expenditure list by Department that is provided for you and I will um bring each department up on this on the screen so you can see it a little bit bigger and just again very quickly at a high level talk about the items that have been included for consideration in the budget so for starters with our department requests I I grouped admin in Planning and Zoning uh because of the similarity to one of the items um so first on the list for consideration is to start an internship program with the PE Lake School District um this is something that I've been thinking about for the last couple of years and they launched um their internship program last year um and there's more information in your packet but looking to really try to figure out ways to engage our younger Community into what um our city does and what the community does and maybe give them a sense for what a career in city government might look like I had a question on that sure U will that be open to uh niswa students or any student it would be open to students seniors at the peat Lake School District okay might have a program um I couldn't find one at quick search okay but if in theory this would move forward and if it was a good a successful program I would love for that opportunity to also be for both districts more of a long-term plan but I just knew the pquad had one so that's where I started with that uh for the document management system uh references for both admin and planning and zoning as I shared with the council last month talking about operations efficiencies and um kind of creating that umbrella platform and function about how do we um manage information how do we provide customer service and integrate our systems together um there is a system called Civic plus that really that does that and it really stems from the website and then builds out from there so that for example someone from the public can initiate a planning and zoning permit and the information comes internally and we can communicate back and forth that way um so the module for administration is a website and the agenda management modules and the one for Planning and Zoning would be the Community Development which is permitting code enforcement things like that uh there are about if you look in the materials there probably about half a dozen other options um par Rec has a module things like that but certainly starting with what's the primary need and then building off into the future is kind of the thought there with parks and wreck um there are a handful of items as um the council knows that there have been um we have an increase in needs for um summer assistance uh with staff and so Amber has budgeted for a summer seasonal staff person um that would certainly help also with our new Between the Lakes Park and some of the increase in U maintenance and ongoing um updates that we had throughout our different facilities we do have replacement of a mower uh we have two new equipment request a turbine blower and a snow push and then replacement for the garage the maintenance garage roof and repair of a boulder wall at the pocket park um some of that I know um Amber and I have talked about from a pocket park perspective depending on how the downtown master plan Vision comes together making sure we coordinate with you know long-term goals but there are certainly needs and repairs there for both those items that are kind of beyond their useful life and looking at more of a a safety component and a concern in that regard how did we come up with 177,000 just how did we come up with 17,000 big pardon for which one which item uh the boulder wall for example um I took a quick run at it looking at some of the um bid documents from the go TR for retaining walls and calculated material wise and then added some cost for labor it is definitely something that if this is something you want to look more in depth on that I would come up with a better plan and refine that cost okay but first chance I just looked at some bid numbers from the goaly trail on retaining wall the maintenance line uh excuse me the maintenance garage line is that the maintenance garage at the rink correct it's the Z bony garage so again that one's an interesting one too it's beyond its useful life however there's plans that we don't have a timeline on for that facility as well yeah that'll be an interesting shingled roof right yeah so I wouldn't propose um a metal roof to match everything else I would just go shingles again um if that's the route we were going to go um so yeah it's a couple different things to over with those two topics specifically um but if it's something you want us to look into more then I can go back and get some quotes and figure out a more tangible plan do you think there's hail damage on that roof um not necessarily I don't think we've had a recent enough storm there could have been from years past but I don't think it was addressed I know a couple of years ago um we did did a repair on some shingles that blew away um but it was a small section and we already had the shingles so we have done repairs on it and it needs more okay and that all that will all tie in with the park too you know if so lots to consider on those to thanks Amber uh next we have our Police Department uh so there's a reference to uh a new County records management system so it has been U many many years uh potentially many decades um that the county has operated with the current um system that they have in place now that is um I think no longer supported technology is outdated and they have been they've spent um a good year if not more researching what the new system will be um so this item reflects um something that we will need to incorporate into our budget to be a part of that County system um and really it's here just to highlight because it is an increase in cost significantly over the current system we have but it will provide us the access we need to communicate with the county system um so just kind of making you aware of that also I know that the police department has been working on potential um funding to help offset some of the initial cost with that um so we will work to make sure we're aligning hopefully receiving funds in the right year for paying for that and if that will be an ongoing thing or just to offset the initial year I mean either is great but we're um they're working on that and kind of looking into that as well a couple other smaller items a new storage shed has been requested um to hold some of their um I think um equipment and things that they use at their shooting range and then they have um a flock camera system which is a camera system to monitor traffic and kind of does automatic scanning um with traffic that they can identify vehicles and things there's a lot of information in your packet um if this is something you would like the police department to talk more about in September have happy to bring them back um but there is some really good information in your packet about that I don't think any other jurisdictions in croing County use that but I know they've been talking about it and I do believe that there are some in Cass County that have used that and have implemented flock system and then the Wheeland Cloud platform or the hos system that it's referred to is a Fleet Management System I believe it allows for more in-depth management of their equipment their vehicles uh you know their cameras and then how that just integrates together and and provides I think more um information about where vehicles are and just I think helps um kind of support and expand their abilities to manage some of the technology um this is something I believe Chief Taylor told me that also could be used by the fire department at some point in time if they would like to do that so that could be another integration component um and um something that certainly um we could bring back more information there is a good amount of information in your packet too a couple more Public Works and sewers so Public Works has replacement of two um mowers for next year um standard rotation on our Capital Improvement plan and then a request for two new pickup trucks that are more daily use pickup trucks and not the larger ones with a new Public Works employee and then we are kind of increasing our Summer Staff uh we do need more vehicles to help accommodate and get people around to different areas um so that is those those two items for public works and then for sewer um there is a budgeted item to move the panel from lift station one to lift station 7 my assumption I thought about this today looking at this my assumption is that that would happen after an assumed lift station one rebuild that they would take down the panel that we wouldn't need any more on lift station one because we'd have a new one and put it in seven but we can I wasn't that item kind of tabled in the last Public Works meeting lift station one being rebuilt there's more there's more work yes as far as coordinating with lift station 12 and those kinds of things as well but I guess that's my assumption is that the panel once it's no longer in service can be put somewhere else okay there should be a pretty much brand new panel station one already yeah right it's not that old yeah they can be repurposed which is nice um just some programming and some I think probably mostly labor time involved with uh with something like this so coming at from a different perspective which I think the council um this might help the council is I I did it instead of by Department um I have the information by category so with respect to wages and benefits um our proposed budget increase is the 7.72% that was mentioned in a update a couple of weeks ago or a month month or two ago when we did an initial run of wages um but that information's there and that includes that intern and the Park summer seasonal person um up increases to our Capital Improvement plan um as we continue to fund those plans throughout all of our departments continues to grow a little bit every year so that increases 2.32% have some other kind of smaller mid-range increases with respect to our employee recognition program and our employee the year program implementation of that for 25 um some increase in in legal costs just with all the projects we have in process right now um we're seeing a bit increase there so I did identify a few um items in that regard and then below that um I list the items we just went through with each department so you can kind of see the the different dollar amounts and uh what that looks like uh it doesn't quite line up to the 20.09.2011 uh most of all of the bigger ticket items that was the expenditure side of the general fund budget and now when we talk about the revenue side uh we have a couple of main categories we think of our general fund revenues we have two components with that we have the revenues from our fees and services that we charge throughout the year and then we have our Levy our property taxes so the 5, 81,000 is what was reflected in that budget summary a couple slides ago that 20.09.2011 needs the bonds we have currently issued and then the ones we're looking to so I have two to be determined 2025 bonds one for our road Bond and one for the property bond I'm working with pfm to uh help analyze this information the challenge that we will have uh with the timing is and and it probably happens no matter when a bond is issued but in order to have the funds on hand when the payment is due we have to Levy ahead of time so these numbers reflect an estimate but they reflect an estimate of both my payments due for 25 and 26 because our payments are due in February 26 I need the tax revenue in 25 to be able to pay that payment Jesse on the property bond does that include the down payment or is that we're not making a down payment it's advertised through the 12 months yeah all right well 15 years but don't you said 12 months I'm not sure what well for so the this is just for 2025 property uh for the property bonds so it's factoring payments or servicing it's factoring in our 25 and 26 payments got it because we have to have the money ahead of when the payments due okay never mind so we get a little bit kind of you know we have to bite off a bigger chunk right at the beginning yeah and then we have more level Debt Service so with all that being said um the increases in the bonds estimated at this point Point uh we had some one-time money that came in last year that we don't have in 25 um so we had to rebalance out for for that as well we're looking at a 26.6 4% Levy increase so now we move into our tax impact model which hopefully is a really helpful document to to get you to really drill down into what is 26% really mean and so on the left hand side of the document reflect are current Levy for 24 and then the resulting property taxes that are due I just took a screenshot of the first part of the page and then in on the right hand side it plugs in um our current numbers that we are known or estimated for 2025 so back in April when we had our Board of appeal meeting the county informed us that our property values will be increasing by 3% for 25 so much less than it has been for the last handful of years three 3% 3% we've been dealing with 8% I mean I think 30% one year the last couple years so 3% isn't unexpected considering the last few years we've had but it is lower so I plug in the 26.6 4% increase here on the right and as an example we will look at a $200,000 valued home in 2024 and that same valuation in 2025 it didn't really count for the 3 % I figured that's pretty much flat you can see that based on the 26% um Levy increase that's $106 increase in their tax for 2025 one more example here for residential Homestead Property at $400,000 in value that would be an increase of $233 for the year we will we will so we start at high level with the budget we will come back to that I'm going to drill down into City Hall improvements the THC liquor sales and then for Council feedback we'll kind of walk back up the ladder in that respect so with the city hall improvements conversation that we had last month um I provided a lengthy memo in your packet um that accounted for um some Council feedback and the staff feedback that I received at our meeting that we had in early August and with all that wrapped together um a recommendation I have a recommendation to initiate a city hall Improvement project with an estimated cost of 43 $30,000 through issuance of a general obligation Capital Improvement bond that we could potentially piggyback off of the property bond um efforts that we're working towards I'll walk through a couple high level um pieces to this so you have make sure we have right context and then um can certainly get some Council feedback on that so staff discussion and key takeaways um as I mentioned part of that was when we talked at our um at our staff meeting was really understanding what the council's vision was for this building and if the council wanted us to had the vision of being here for the foreseeable future was kind of One path if the council didn't see us being here for the foreseeable future was kind of a different path um the consensus that um I received from Council when I when I asked all of you was for the most part like I think that the city hall um isn't the highest priority in terms of the other projects we have um which means let's try to address the major issues in this building now and then see where anything else needs might come in the future so staff's feedback was the exterior issues are the highest priority keep the internal flow of the building as is for now if it's in repair due to the exterior issues that need to be addressed let's fix it so for example if this entryway area needs to be pulled apart because we have water infiltration in areas let's Ure sure we're putting it back to meet ADA requirements and some of those things um access control and cameras there was strong feedback that those are very important components to ensuring safety of Staff providing services to the public Etc um but thinking about process um I think it might make sense to say let's do that following the exterior improvements and then that's a smaller project we can kind of do off of just a quote process and and Achieve that after we get all of the exterior um repairs needed so if the council is um interested in that recommendation to move forward with focusing on the exterior improvements um there are a couple things that are still to be determined that we would need more assistance from width and from a contractor to help um address some of the um ice um issues in a couple spots in our building um so we would need to account for that um I spoke with Mike England from wood Seth uh last week and his recommendation that he has had success with in the past is to create a building committee they'd work with Mike from WTH and we'd work to identify a contractor um utilizing that gordian contract through sourcewell so there are about four or five local contractors that have met that contract criteria that the city could work with directly work with width they'd work to you know they'd work with staff um I think Tom and Mike deck would be key players in that that because they're very familiar with the needs of the building to identify kind of the final list of needs and then they could do cost estimates to bring back to the council for a final this should be our estimated cost um the contractor would work with gordian to confirm all that contract pricing piece of it and we can keep that project moving forward uh I'm going to do we know real quick on that do we know anything from sourcewell on some of that funding yet what do you mean do we know anything we have the $50,000 that we applied for did we get that yes okay yes so we have to spend that by next June the end of next June yes I got a question here on the U the remaining 57,5 for the placeholder funds that's that's kind of misscellaneous money then so like what does that get spent on well my thought was um kind of in reference to let's say that there might be some interior work needed in in the entryway because of whatever might be happening Behind the Walls based on the water issues we've been having so I just wanted to say well there's going to be a kind like maybe for a surprise or something something correct yes and again we'd finalize all of that with wooda and our contractor and we'd bring it back to you to say here's what we think we need I don't know if they could even get in Behind the Walls a little bit and assess some of the conditions I'm it's a contingency pot correct yes tried a small one tried to say there might be there might be some impact we would just need to want to make sure it's a clean and complete project but yes yes so who's going to develop the scope of work the committee or Mike both work together and with the contractors we'd actually bring the contractor here with Mike with the committee and they'd walk through the items and make sure we've accounted for everything that needs to get corrected and done the contractor would put together that pricing based on the sourcewell contract pricing that's already established and then we represent that as sort of a final here's what we believe would be included for each of those uh discipline areas are we going to have a liaison from the council also be a part of that like other committees we can or we can present to council the update um my anticipation was a meeting or two make sure we're identifying all of those items and then bring forth to the council one final cost estimate um kind of approved with the contractor the gordian and then you'd give us the green light and they'd have they'd also present their timeline and schedule and all those things at that time too so you'd have that they may back up here a little bit on these flock cameras for the police department we talk about that sure that's idea potentially everybody's going to benefit from those if you install them um residents all the businesses you know you've got four banks in the city you got a school here all these other businesses and stuff like that you know the residents the business people Plus plus all the visitors and that I think it's a great idea um I know a lot of other agencies you know throughout the state have used them and sure got great results from them I think the city would really benefit from those great thank you yes any thoughts from the council that would be have plenty of time um any thoughts from the council as far as this specific would you like to see this move forward in this manner do you have any feedback um otherwise we couldve forward I'd say move forward with the way it is there if the council wants Lea on if that's what they want to vote for I'd volunteer for that but I don't think we need a liaison but what the Yeah I I guess we'd move forward my only comment with that is you know we've missed this year's kind of window um meaning you know we're dealing with roof we're dealing with Windows whatever you know for I would recommend that we do not look at doing this work over the winter time frame because the cost is just going to go up 20% or whatever for winter work dealing that we're dealing with exterior roof snow conditions ice Windows it doesn't the costs are already established with the gordian process so the numbers are already identified so the contractor let's just say um high-tech for example um they they have their their costs already identified now if there's an outlier there could always be an outlier then they work with gordian to reconcile that and then would work with us so we know but that's kind of the streamlined benefit of that process is that the price are already locked in for at least for the year um I think they they don't rebid them until there's a need or there's a concern by the contractors to say this isn't meeting um you know actual costs anymore we need to address this but but that's all identified which is nice yeah I guess we'll just have to look at it when it comes in I just know the work is going to be more expensive to do in the winter months just that's not a sure is or isn't that and if it's a spring project I mean that could potentially work out just fine as well as long as we're done by June 30th that's that's the goal is it fair just seeing some head nods that on the regular agenda we'll just move forward with the recommendation as presented and we'll bring you back something as soon as yeah yeah great and I know a couple of the contractors that Source all goes through and they do not for Joe's concern that their price is set whether it's summer or winter we just want to have that all in writing yeah when we have three feet of snow on the roof they're trying to tear off unless we have a winter like last winter right yeah who knows but you know it's just kind of common sense I'm in favor great thank you appreciate that last item um to drill down into and then we will kind of come back to kind of higher level budget um questions and feedback is regarding our liquor fund and THC sales um for Brian and Terry's benefit as they're working to build their budgets the question for the council is do you plan to approve the sale of th products in spirits and or the pickle once that is established and allowed in the city in 202 and five uh that makes a difference as far as if they're going to plan for those revenues um and how they approach that and so that's certainly feedback we'd like to get Brian is here as well if you have questions um that he might be able to answer so I will just open it up for feedback well my feedback is this yeah the city could make some money selling THC products if we were the ones that got the uh license but I don't think the city needs to be in the sale of THC products that's just my opinion Bruce I agree I I'm my question is with the THC products like the gummies and those kinds of things I agree I don't think we need to sell that schafers will be selling it we know that there'll probably be other stores that are going to sell it they can can't prevent them from doing that's fine whatever my only question is and this is and I haven't looked into it too deep but with the THC infused beverages if you don't offer that do we run into the same problem that Brian has mentioned multiple times where they'll just stop at in Baxter pick up all their stuff and then come up do we lose business does that hurt us if it does to what extent is it worth worrying about I don't know I mean I all in all I'm the THC gummies and that but if you you have THC infused Beverages and things like that I don't know if that's something that you know separates us or if that would be something that would be an exception to or not I don't know what Brian's thoughts are on the Terry's thoughts are on that I am just curious if kind of how frequently you're asked about those types of products we're losing the sales currently because other people are selling it and we're not so I mean right but it's our books would look like they do right now maybe I we don't but that's because we're not selling them right but there's also a lot of places that aren't really do deeply into it because there's still trying a lot of cities are still trying to figure out what the state's going to let them do like that's why I'm curious what right we have numerous people throughout the day asking for THC products and I am not pushing one way or another personally I wish it would have never became legal but that's my personal beliefs financially the store would make money on it it's um if right now we have to send people to bequad lakes or we have to send people to Baxter when schaer had the product it was nice because we could send people over there and I don't hide this at all I knew they were selling it and it was nice because we could keep our customers happy and the bottom line is that's one of my goals is to make sure people come in happy and they leave happy so if they could buy it at schafers it would definitely fill that void it will be a little bit of an inconvenience that they can't pick it up at our store and we definitely will lose money are we going to lose customers because they can't buy it under our roof we that's possible that realistically you know like during a day like in a weekend probably in the summer time when you're going to you know get hit up most on it how often does somebody really come up and ask for it how how many times a day are you talking about gummies are you talking about infused alcohol infused stuff well talking to managers out there they pretty much recommend going with just the in the can not the gummies not brownies all this other stuff just sell the beverages I if if I did an average I would say three times a day but I it's it's hard because I'm not out on the sales for all the time but um it's numerous times every day that we get asked for for THC products yeah because I'm I'm against us selling any product period THC wise okay um like the gummies the brownies and all that that schafers can sell schafers can't sell alcoholic beverages though we can that's that's the question that the bru back to what I just you know if we don't have infused products there with liquor you know infused beers and salzers and stuff do you see it being much of a big problem or a big deal to you you see us losing any more than what we're already losing that category in my opinion you're just going to keep growing and growing and growing and alcohol sales in a lot of categories are flat if not down and most of those category managers are attributing it to THC products so I I think that is the world that we're living in and I do see the future of THC products just growing it's going to be interesting to see what happens when the leaf version of marijuana is made legal and you can have dispensaries out there I still think uh a lot of people that are buying that product are elderly people and either they smoked when they were young or they just want something to calm them down in the evening helps people with sleep so it's not a strictly young person it's all ages 21 up that are asking for this product and yeah I I do think that the city will lose a potentially lose a fair amount of money if they don't approve it so on that note say we sell $100,000 in THC products whether that's a wash versus the Lesser alcohol sales or we just have a flat bottom line increase in Revenue by cool 6 or six figure $100,000 you take your average profit between 8 to 10% you're talking $8,000 additional Adder I mean I think we've all kind of been on the same page Pro we don't have to have progress for the sake of progress congratulations to the state of Minnesota for pulling something out of their legislation from last year but I don't think that we would need to make the rush to do it in 2025 we can pull data perhaps from then other uh other munities across the state that you know we've been looking at at the on the liquor committee level see what type of figures they're pulling maybe Detroit Lakes with their monstrous Community Monopoly they have there maybe they're going to be able to put THD products and we can Garner that um sales are going to be what they are whether you have somebody maybe go to a different liquor store Cashwise or Westside on their way up through the 371 Corridor but I would be in favor of not having it for 2025 and then reconsider if I if I can that that's what I wanted to know is if you think it's going to be a big deal the at what I'm ascertaining here is we don't know that it will be or it won't be so I would say not to do it and we can always change our mind yeah wait see you know do you do you have any idea what these other liquor stores or cities are making on this stuff a lot for for a gross profit net profit a percentage which which numbers are you looking for um you know like you know let's say back you can buy it at Super One liquor I mean any idea what those stores are taking in for uh in a month or the Inc beverages yeah I would if I had to guess I would say 10,000 a month so I Jesse mentioned 100,000 I think in the budget I mean I was all over the board but um I think I might have end it with 880,000 that I put in there 60,000 um that was a very conservative number if we would carry it going off of past sales of other municipals and what we've heard we you know it's such a new category it's hard to tell what the future is going to be especially with the leaf version becoming legal I believe that is the 1 of 26 is when that is we going to be able to have have that for um for sales but 25 okay um with um with that though we can easily take it out of our budget and have a budget that looks very respectable and you can always add it in down the road there is one thing that we would want to I would want to get approval for is if you apply for the license to sell it before January it is so much easier to get a license because they will grandfather you in compared to if we apply for a license in 20 2 then we just we're just going to have to jump through a lot of Hoops so's the cost of the license I'm not sure but it I I would it's very minimal um I wouldn't be opposed to getting a license now for the prospect of if we say in June or July go okay we'll go with it that way you have it and you can just run instead of saying July or June let's go with it and not up and running until October so I would be in favor of that but I I don't know and we can always get more information and bring it back to can easily get numbers from other municipals and bring that data back give you an example of 15 or 20 different stores various different sizes what they made on it what percentage all that information that would because that at that point that's that's what I was a we would need a lot more information before we made that call but I'm I'm with um what I'm hearing up here is that we're I'm not for it at this time but get the license fine we can always just secure a license but you know I never thought it would have became legal in the United States but it has been very accepted by the public out there people of all different nationalities and ages are asking for it and I'm really old schooled sounds like everybody else here is but let's get the information we'll bring it back to you and we can go from there but I will Terry and I will check into what a license costs and if it is um under which I think it is under $300 I have your permission to go ahead and apply for it I think I think the way to I think the way to do that just given the nature of this topic is do the research we'll bring forward an action item in September just to make sure we're on the same page and then I think um there's a lot of really good information like Brian mentioned about municipals um some are doing very very well with this so we want to maybe get a range of municipals data and see what that looks like and the other thing too is would the pickle and the spirits have to have their own license or would there be an umbrella because they're munis no we would definitely have to have a license for that because of different on sale off sale yep on sale off sale yeah and we have some time and what for now what we'll do is we'll take it out of our budgets and um if we sell it it's going to make our budget that much easier to attain okay thank you now i' would propose something right now and I mean this is just a if but um is there some way to set that specifically the profits of the sale of the infus to one specific or that can't be done because it's the liquor you want to designate the profit from THC to a special category is that what you're asking well that's what I would can we do that well we can designate any percentage of our Pro of the profit from Spirits to a certain area with a vote and approval of the city council it wouldn't have to just be THC products it could be any it could be anything but generally what I would recommend is not taking just one category and does ated I would if you want a certain percentage to go to Parks or the fire department or the police would just say we you know what we're going to budget for $50,000 to one of those categories okay can do that at any time right for reserves okay all right thank you thanks B great feedback thank you to the council for that um it's very helpful uh with that I will rewind a little bit here here and open up the conversation to the back to the broader budget and Levy question so as a reminder right now we are looking at a 20% increase in our budget with a 26.6% increase in our Levy preliminarily and a lot of those things are you know placeholders for example for our bonds and things like that so Bond council is working on and our financial advisers are working on um fine-tuning those pieces with our road Bond projects and things like that so part of that is ensuring we just have enough of cushion to to work with um you know some variables that might come into play but I certainly want to open that up for feedback um thoughts Direction questions for September all of the above specifically with the road Bond yes um one thing that might be helpful for us and the public to know and understand is what is uh uh with the inflation you know from last time we did the road Bond three years ago 20.1% yeah than inflation so what is that as a percentage to the levy so meaning last time we did it one mile of asphalt cost x amount of dollars sure this time it is four times expensive we don't have an option so what is that automatic percentage um does that make does my question make sense to show that to show that potentially we can show that however there is a difference right now with the with the increase in the cost for this road Bond compared to the one in 2018 so we're at a million and a half in 2018 we're looking at um 3 million for 2025 plus more coming in 26 um the difference the other variable that we have to consider is that was a seven-year bond in 2018 we're probably looking at a 10-year because of the cost and trying to just make that more manageable so it's not quite as easy as just saying well what's the levy because we're spreading it over a different period um but we can certainly look at that as far as um Levy percentages yeah because that in itself is going to be a big percentage right you know because it's just the increase which we don't really have an option part of this too is our financial advisers um can get really creative with how to ladder our debt service so they're going to see what our existing Debt Service is and they're going to be able they can say well we want to put x amount on the front end and then strategically place how we pay off that debt so sometimes there's a little bit of maneuvering on their end too as opposed to just what's the straight amortization um so there are kind of a few variables in that I was thinking about um perhaps it would be beneficial for them to um present to the council with some of these big projects that might be really helpful for the council as well to see some of that um but yes there's certainly a significant increase in our debt service um you know amount coverage coming up with 25 with the 26 Road Bond property purchase uh moving forward with some of the big projects we have planned so trying to balance that with our operational needs is is the key here can you flip back to yeah there you go yep so as far as our feedback on our top 10 20 list whatever we want to call that yes in regards to what you've put together is this showing some of our feedback that we gave you in this list um it is not these items aren't the the feedback requested from Council was more Project Specific Road bonds building Parks plan things like that um this is just operational and addressing the kind of annual needs for each department um I didn't include I I can send that out to the council I didn't include a slide on the council's feedback to be perfectly honest everyone was all over the place so I'm trying to look at that saying how do I and not that that's bad I think it speaks to the complexity of all of these projects we have going and what we're talking about um but how do I try to bring that back to the council to say let's try to Define and better identify you know the the priorities and the projects that we have in process already and the ones that are upcoming to to ensure that we're picking the ones that we want to focus our efforts on and another thing that the council asked to think about is in the next couple of years we'll probably have to bring on another person with Parks so that's certainly staffing needs Y in a in a handful of potential areas depending on um water is another one we've been talking about that so being strategic about onboarding new staff is absolutely part of that okay is there anything uh from a department presentation wise you would like department heads to come back with more information to talk through some of these things um provide you more context or do you just need some time to think about it and and we'll find- tun in what we can between now and that September 10th workshop and just bring you where we're at um ultimately the goal is to have some feedback no later than that date so that we have time to prepare the levy documents for Council approval um just depending on what your comfort level is I realize it's higher than where you want to see it um so your feedback is very helpful as I mentioned uh already about the maintenance building roof just in l of what we are trying to do especially on the fundraising front even with it being simply Point what 65 seven of the levy increase just for that one single line perhaps table that I mean don't want the rof to collapse obviously but um that's were if we were able to take perhaps an insurance route even just getting a free uh having adjuster come out and see if there's hail damage even if it's years old it can still warrant a new roof to be installed on it versus us paying out of pocket sure because we're going to be at the point where we're going to be trying to nickel and dime this thing as much as possible so even $3,000 for an in turn perhaps that's something that we can consider to push off as everything could add up we can shape $500,000 it's going to be able to bring that down a happy amount I yeah I guess along with those lines another thing that I would like to see us do and maybe it's just a a workshop or something but really look at the uh Public Works and the parks department and see if um you know some sort of um new structure with people equipment overlap just the way that we're doing processes with both throughout town if we can't come up with some savings on lawn mowing it's you know things of those nature with with you know just kind of looking at the whole big picture together specifically with those two and just seeing if there's any way to save money by just restructuring something a little bit with personnel and equipment and any any savings with that you looking Personnel or just I'm just saying you know let's let's look at both let's you know I don't know how the weekly and daily operations go with both on taking care of you know but hey this is getting mowed Monday Tuesday Wednesday this is getting mowed Thursday Friday is there just one mowing team that can go through that you know I'm just just a thought you know as we continue to go and prices of stuff keep going up um I'm just saying we've got to keep thinking outside of the box on how we can do stuff more efficient and better internally with what we have between that makes good sense you know utilizing all these people in the equipment and share it stuff like that Vehicles pickup trucks mowers and stuff like that we do the public works and Parks um partner very well already um Amber could speak to that and we could certainly have Amber and Tom maybe bring some of the more specific efforts that they've put in place together but they they they do a good job or have been last handful of years really asking that question more often um to see where we can be as efficient as possible where it's mowing outside of say the parks area that's I think maybe more Public Works and inside parks area is Parks dep so I'm trying to you know same with plowing really trying to align our our Department's functions um so certainly something we do talk about always can improve and along those lines I guess there are other entities places whatever I mean with the price of equipment right now and looking you know I don't know let's say that there's 26 Mo Cycles in a year you know rather than having all this equipment trucks people Personnel um seems like there's no lack of lawn mowing companies out there to just subcontract this out and what would we pay in subcontractor fees versus labor insurance overhead and all of this to do that and just look at completely subcontracting out certain portions I know for other uh a lot of other places you know myself included I don't mow my own lawn it's cheaper to subcontract it out for 60 bucks a week versus go by a $15,000 lawnmower it doesn't doesn't work out so maybe that's another thing that we look at at some of this is just subcontracted out I can ask um department heads to kind of use that lens and think about it from not just law knowing but you know other options as well can we can look at that yes lots of options like that no removal anything so yep one thing one thing I would remind the council about is you have that opportunity to sit down with those department heads to take advantage of that go down and talk to them bring these ideas up to them personally sure you know make time I mean they'll talk to you they'll show you what they got and whatnot I I've done that myself multiple times and you know it's throwing out ideas and stuff like that so yeah talk to the staff you some feedback additionally though um I don't know the status of the storage shed for uh I believe it's the firing range yes yeah I don't know know the status of it but if that's something that can be tabled um it's worth considering um additionally even though it's in the the CIP is a truck is one of the two trucks perhaps able to be considered to be put off until next year okay one and 25 one and 26 what is the status of these vehicles are we able to even consider both pushed off by a year okay um no idea what the appreciated value is of the current trucks that would be replaced and then obviously there's going to be some value coming back from the sale of we wouldn't be selling any trucks we are short Vehicles so these are short Vehicles short Vehicles yes we that's been a ongoing process for three years now yes with our increase in Summer Staff and now with a new full-time maintenance person but certainly a valid question as far as I mean even a one is better than nothing but uh so yes I can and there's manufacturer problems too going off State bid too saves us a lot of money but yeah there's always I mean Tom has his his amitz schedule Etc and I realize that but yeah can you if we put one truck off the other thing too is um um well the shed for example uh I can't remember what the dollar amount was on the shed but 000 65 police department does also some of the Departments do have money set aside for other you know they have monies put aside that forfeiture funds things of that nature that they can use for some of these things um you know they should I mean that's what it's there for um they could use some of that that help save us on the levy too so I would ask them to look into those things that they can use for a one-time purchase a shed is not going to go away it's going to last for a long time you especially if you buy the right one um the other thing that the police department's going to have to understand is they no longer have Bill's Gun Shop to shoot at okay that's gone um so what are they going to do um but they do they want to build a range now or do you get them uh a like I suggested the other you know earlier in the year get them and last year it was get them a uh um over at the Lakes Shore Gun Club you know do we get membership a membership there that they can go and use the range and everything there that's close by I bet you donate something Dave Grill and the the gang over there will work will work with all the Departments so they might even just donate a membership to the department just you know so they can come over there obviously there'll be some they can still go down to the gravel pit and site and do things that they do now but that's what you know so there are other options there for them as well um the onetime purchas is what I would ask staff to look at the one time the one shot deal um if there's other money other ways that we can take that off the levy balance or potential Levy increase um again now you're going to have to amuze out your shed you're going to have to amuze out some of that equipment so that when it comes time to replace it you know that was the whole purpose of the long-term planning we started to begin with was you know make sure we have money set aside as we can we may not be able to cover 100% of the cost of the new item but at least we could hopefully cover the majority of it preferably all of it so that would be my where I'm looking at with some of the requests here um the RMS system there zero Choice got to go with it and that's going to that's something those types of things for uh police and fire are going to continue to happen and there's no choice in the matter because it's just you're going to you're going to need to be in sync with the county period that's just how it's going to be so is a total cost for that document management system 25,000 and you have a broken out between admin and pnz um yes just high level estimates uh for the different modules trying to figure out what components without getting too far into it just to say well there's certain um where if you wanted to do online fillable forms for pnz it's a little bit extra but it's a one-time you know setup type of a thing so I try to just say well here's what would more than cover it if um if you thought there was value to that we would certainly investigate further to try to really hone in on that cost um hoping that that is a fair amount less at least 30% less but just trying to at least have a a placeholder for that conversation I just want the council be prepared Jesse and I were I think we were the only ones here where we set the preliminary was that last year the year before at 19 it was John I think yeah okay yeah and I mean yeah you're going to get some calls and actually on that note because I thought about it when you're showing the dates please be here on that day y because we actually made a decision to error on the high side to because the other two council members were not here at the time um and I just mentioned the John too the week of September 10 10th I think that's a Monday yeah I'm out of town now entire week and it's unlikely I'll be able to attend virtually so and that's not the day we would be approving it but certainly another feedback round for based on your feedback y thank you appreciate that um I'll be in California Place nobody wants to be I feel for you um yeah I guess being my third go around on this it seems a relatively straightforward versus past two years yeah great certainly we will work to continue to update the information for some of the unknowns and um got some good feedback to talk with departments about and can bring back some additional information for Council and we can just provide an update in September and you can give us your direction on where you'd like that preliminary Levy to land if that is agreeable to the council but happy to hear any more Fe feedback you have if you have any thank you also I think August CPI came out last week oh was I oh maybe I was off the month it's all right was it was it much different I don't know it was PPI on Wednesday and CPI it would have been July because it's only mid August no it was what' you have on there June or July July oh you signing off this other than that that is all I have mayor Ryan um again there's any other questions but I appreciate your feedback tonight and I have none and again I'll just I'll just repeat myself if you have questions any council member has questions get a hold of Staff talk to them they're more than willing to answer your questions and or get that information to you ahead of time so um and um um if you if you need to sit down and get a a budget 101 session going just talk to any or and they can I went through several of them so they're helpful so um that's it I'll entertain a motion to adjourn I'll make a motion to adjourn roof second all those in favor I I okay we'll be back at the 7 PM meeting