ITEM 1
City of Otsego│13400 90th Street NE, Otsego, MN 55330│Tel. (763) 441 -4414 Fax (763) 441-9163
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: Adam Flaherty, City Administrator & Finance Director
DATE: May 8, 2017
SUBJECT: Budget Kickoff Meeting
On Monday, Council and staff will begin the 2018 budgeting discussions. This meeting is intended
to focus on the big-picture and not specific departmental budget requests. I have developed an
outline of discussion topics below, however; the most important aspect of this meeting is to provide
the opportunity for the Council to set priorities, set expectations and to provide direction to staff for
preparation of the draft budget.
2018 Budget
1) Council Roundtable – This is an opportunity for the Council to express their current view on
City services and programs. This would also be the time for the Council to share any
comments they have received from the public regarding City services or programs.
2) Direction for 2018 Budget – Please use this opportunity to outline your priorities and
expectations for the draft General fund budget.
3) Budget Calendar – Attached with this memorandum is a calendar that outlines the budgeting
process as it has been completed during the past two years. This process can be kept the
same, expanded upon, or even reduced at the discretion of the Council.
4) Budget Assumptions – The most significant assumption within the General fund budgeting
process are those in relation to personnel. It was discussed during the prior budget cycle,
those personnel assumptions would be clearly defined at the beginning of the budgeting
process going forward. It was also discussed that assumptions for personnel costs would be
directly tied to an agreed upon index. Attached with this memorandum are two different
indices provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
5) Preview Next Meeting – I would request that the next budget meeting be scheduled for June
12th. The discussion at that meeting would primarily focus on the property tax levy impact
for debt service and capital reserve funds.
City of Otsego│13400 90th Street NE, Otsego, MN 55330│Tel. (763) 441 -4414 Fax (763) 441-9163
Economic Development
1) Review Priorities – In June 2015, the Council developed an economic development
strategies and priorities policy, which was formally adopted in May 2016. It has been nearly
two years since these priority projects were set, and there has been some significant
development activity since that time. These priority projects were set by the Council prior to
my tenure with the City, and given my new role as the City Administrator, I would like to
review these first-hand with the Council. Developers quite often ask what the City’s
priorities are, and having an accurate list for reference is important for staff.
2) City Owned Parcel – The City acquired a parcel in the Great River Centre development
through tax forfeiture process. Subsequent to acquisition, the City installed infrastructure
and sold a portion of the parcel to P&F Machining. At this point, the City still owns a 5.82
acre parcel which is available for development. Staff receives calls quite frequently asking
about available development sites within the City. Staff is seeking direction from the
Council on how to proceed with marketing of this parcel.
3) MN DEED Advertisement – For the past two years, the City has purchased an advertisement
in a publication sponsored by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic
Development (MN DEED). This publication has nationwide hard copy and electronic
circulation. I met with the sales representative for the publication on April 26th. A
commitment for an advertisement in this fall’s publication is required at this time. The
quoted price was $4,090 and is within the 2017 economic development budget amount for
marketing materials. The City’s current advertisement is attached with this memorandum.
4) Business Outreach – This idea has been briefly discussed as of late with the initiative being
driven by the Wright County Economic Development Partnership. There has also been a
brief discussion about sending a survey to Otsego businesses. Before starting this process, I
believe it might be beneficial to outline what the Council is hoping to achieve by conducting
either the survey or site visits.
Materials Attached for Discussion
1) Budget Calendar
2) Bureau of Labor Statistics Indices
a. Consumer Price Index (CPI-U)
b. Employment Cost Index
3) Economic Development Strategies and Priorities Policy
4) MN DEED Publication – Current Advertisement