08-09-21 Special City Council MinutesCITY OF OTSEGO
SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING
MONDAY, AUGUST 9, 2021
5:30 PM
OTSEGO PRAIRIE CENTER
Call to Order.
Mayor Jessica Stockamp called the Special Meeting to order at 5:31 PM.
Mayor Jessica Stockamp; Councilmembers: Jeff Dahl, Tina Goede, and Brittany Moores. City
Staff: City Administrator/Finance Director Adam Flaherty; Human Resources/Assistant City
Administrator Sabrina Hille; Streets Operations Manager Kevin Lamson; Parks and Recreation
Director Ross Demant; City Planner Daniel Licht; and City Clerk Audra Etzel. CM Tom
Darkenwald arrived at 5:35 PM.
Those indicated with a (*) attended via video conference.
1. Progress Report: Public Works & City Hall Facility Study.
Jonathan Loose (*), Jake Wollensak and Jordan Medeiros from Wold Architects and Engineers
presented a progress report as included in the packet.
CM Darkenwald asked about Option B and Option C having no costs for City Hall remodeling.
City Administrator/Finance Director Flaherty said there would be costs. Jordan said they did
add a line item for City Hall remodel: furniture, lighting, upgrades, etc. for when the new
construction occurs.
CM Moores asked about Option C, not having as many locations for meetings. If there are not
a lot of options, will more rooms be added or where do you propose the meetings take place?
Jake said this is a downside for about 5-10 years. Jordan said the diagrams do show the
staffing accommodations, it will get tight.
CM Darkenwald said they decided to keep Option C to show the costs and directions starting
with Public Works with renovations and construction to meet the short-term needs. Going with
Option A gets City Hall built and avoids costs and phases of interruption for staff. CM Dahl
added this allows for the project to be done once.
Mayor Stockamp stated there is no costs included to purchase the proposed locations from the
property owner. CM Dahl added if City Council decides to move forward with a location, this
gives staff the authority to negotiate with a property owner. CM Darkenwald stated the Master
Plan showed the properties would be future Prairie Center growth. City Administrator/Finance
Director Flaherty said the Core Planning Group had not fully explored and wanted to wait until
the City Council reviewed. Mayor Stockamp thought some items in the cons vs. pros need to be
expanded to include more detail. CM Goede agreed with Mayor Stockamp regarding the details
for future knowledge on why City Council potentially selected Option A over Option B. Mr.
Wollensak stated they could include the five Guiding Principles and more detail.
City Administrator/Finance Director Flaherty noted the Core Planning Group will beef up the
pros and cons, adding principal, and asked what else should be added? Are three options
needed, should Option C be excluded? Mayor Stockamp stated she would like to include Option
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C for the residents to see this was well thought out. She would also like to get residents
feedback on moving forward.
CM Darkenwald asked if year ranges should be included to help with assigning funding? City
Administrator/Finance Director Flaherty agreed. Jonathan said they are trying to compare
apples -to -apple and tie back to the Guiding Principles. Wold can add in layers once moving
forward with the project, the group needed more direction.
CM Darkenwald is in favor of Option A. Would like a one-page summary to see all the details
for each option.
Mayor Stockamp on Option B want more outlined. Mr. Wollensak said facility options would be
included on the report.
City Administrator/Finance Director Flaherty said they will bring back a more comprehensive
plan for a future meeting. Mr. Wollensak said they will update and discuss with the Core
Planning Group.
Mayor Stockamp asked about moving forward with the purchase of land. City
Administrator/Finance Director Flaherty said staff will gather more information and consult with
the City Attorney on procedure for discussion on property acquisition in a closed meeting.
City Administrator/Finance Director Flaherty said Jessica Green from Northland Securities is
available to discuss funding options.
3. Community Survey.
City Administrator/Finance Director Flaherty reviewed version 4 of the community survey. The
contract with BakerTilly is for 30 questions. Currently there are 34 questions proposed, need to
either cut four questions or pay for additional questions. The cost is $1,700 to add the
additional five questions.
Mayor Stockamp asked about adding another question on a question that gets a poor rating, to
get more details. City Administrator/Finance Director Flaherty stated the contract allows for two
open-ended questions and there are currently two.
CM Moores said the options in question 9 and 24 are hard to select just one option. CM
Darkenwald asked if they could rank the choices? City Administrator/Finance Director Flaherty
noted this is difficult for the call center.
City Administrator/Finance Director Flaherty said if council approves, the call center could start
making calls next week.
CM Darkenwald motioned to approve the community survey as amended and add
five questions for a total of 35, seconded by CM Goede. Roll Call: In favor; Goede,
Stockamp, Darkenwald, Moores and Dahl. Against: none. Motion carried 5-0.
Mayor Stockamp at 6:53 PM motioned to reconvene this special meeting following
the 7 PM City Council meeting, seconded by CM Darkenwald. Roll Call: In favor;
Goede, Stockamp, Darkenwald, Moores and Dahl. Against: none. Motion carried 5-0.
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Mayor Stockamp reconvened the special meeting at 8:19 PM
2. 2022 Budget, Tax Levy and Capital Improvement Plan Review.
City Administrator/Finance Director Flaherty presented the budget meeting #4 materials that
were included in the packet, and noted that the full proposed 2022 general fund budget was
distributed to the City Council on August 6m
City Administrator/Finance Director Flaherty discussed the Revenues, highlighting property
taxes, which account for 68% of the revenue. There was discussion on building permit revenue,
which is based on 261 new home permits, which is the 7 -year average. The City Council
concurred as presented.
City Council 41100 Account included funding for the strategic plan, this will continue to go back
and forth every other year with the community survey. Since the City Council's compensation
had not been reviewed in some time, staff compared City Council salaries with neighboring
cities and others in the compensation study. The City Council concurred that no change in
compensation was necessary after the comparison, and concurred with the budgeted
expenditures as presented.
Legal 41700 Account is based on a formula of previous year actuals and current year-to-date.
The City Council concurred as presented.
Emergency Management 42500 Account includes additional 800mhz radios to provide radios for
our growing staff. The City Council concurred as presented.
Animal Control 42710 Account are contracted fees to pick-up and board stray animals. The
budget is based on a formula of previous year actuals and current year-to-date. The City
Council concurred as presented.
Street Operations Manager Lamson presented the 2022 budget narrative, highlighting a
recommendation for a staff addition, a staff development plan, and vehicle replacements.
City Administrator/Finance Director Flaherty summarized the 43100 Street budget. There was
discussion on wage/benefit increases, increases in signage to account for crosswalks and speed
radar signs, as well as a new budget line item for Clean Up Day. Streets Operation Manager
Lamson reviewed a capital request for a loader bucket. The City Council concurred as
presented.
Street Lights 43160 Account is for street lighting electricity. New installation is LED lighting.
The City Council concurred as presented.
Fleet Management 43240 Account is similar to 2021 at this point. Fuel cost expenses and
supplies have increased with more vehicles in the fleet. GPS monitoring included in the
vehicles/equipment with a battery to track data ($15 per month/per monitor). Also, contracted
services beyond the mechanics ability. The City Council concurred as presented.
Economic Development 46580 budget is the same as 2021. The City Council concurred as
presented.
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CM Dahl asked if unused funds carry over. City Administrator/Finance Director Flaherty said the
funds do get adjusted and are balanced.
Future budget meetings are scheduled for: August 23rd and August 30th. The Council would
adopt the Preliminary Tax Levy for Taxes Payable 2022 at the September 13th meeting.
4. Adjourn.
CM Darkenwald motioned to adjourn the meeting at 9:24 PM, seconded by CM
Goede. Roll Call: In favor; Dahl, Darkenwald, Goede, Stockamp and Moores.
Against: none. Motion carried 5-0.
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ATTEST: ax -o— 'U
Audra Etzel, City Clerk
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