We're going to switch I'm going to propose switching um uh section six and section seven. So, we would move the adoption of the consent agenda behind special recognitions and presentations. We've got four of those this evening and we want to make sure those folks have a chance to um make those presentations and and in some cases accept awards.

Edina's high real estate values, not Edina's fiscal management, is the reason for our AAA bond rating. The council's poor budget performance has nothing to do with Moody's rating. Rather, your well-deserved F minus is based on the $1 million added to residents' utility bills, the $586,000 added to Hennepin County's tax levy, and the $1.8 million deferred to future years.

In terms of schools, for those living north on 54th Street, there's no safe way for a child to bike to Concord, Southview Middle School, or Normandale without being side-by-side with trucks and cars going 30 mph... adding protected bike lanes on Wooddale is also in accordance with the city's guiding principles, including the comprehensive plan's transportation chapter, the pedestrian and bike master plan, the climate action plan, and the living streets plan.

If you choose to reject it, you'll be using precious taxpayer dollars and limited public right of way to subsidize free parking for private establishments. You'll also be providing convenience for our residents on that street and more accurately the guests of those residents on the street... I'm asking you to have conviction and don't lose sight of the two outcomes that there are and what that means not only for the current residents but for our future generations as well.

The city and the city staff anticipates that the property will remain in the TIF district for at least 5 to 6 years in order to avoid unexpected increases in tax burden that would be borne by all taxpayers in Edina, not just the taxpayers in this TIF TIF district.

Our city is in excellent financial condition. And with respect to our budgeting, we have I don't know how many years we've had at least a dozen years we've gotten we've received a certificate of financial excellence from uh some of the accounting rating agencies with regard to our budgetary performance, which is exactly what he was talking about.

It is super easy to throw rocks at a process when you have absolutely no accountability accountability for the outcome... I know how much work I'm putting into looking at the budget, working with staff to figure out what changes we might be able to make. I know the questions that the rest of the council has been making.

I do think this year with this budget we do need to look at the schedule and try to figure out how we can create a situation where we are looking at actual more potential cuts. And then we as a council will have more choices to make. I feel like the past two years that hasn't happened and I do remain concerned that basically the way things were laid out at the retreat, we have a date in August and then from that date we have a date in September where we have to do a turnaround and produce our preliminary levy and that makes me nervous and I really would like to see something in July so that we can have more a more refined process and do a little bit more of a deep dive.

The trend is not sustainable and we are having, just like you're talking about um council member Wester talking about having earlier budget meetings and mayor, we are doing that at the county because right now we're looking at um if we change nothing now, we'll have a double digit uh levy increase and we cannot do that.

So, that's $40 million. So, if we in fact get a sales tax at a 0.5, then what we would do is remove that 40 million and we would cuz we had it can't do double double taxation, right? Let's just be honest here. That's not the right thing to do. So, we would take that 4% that four levy points out. It would go there. But what we are doing for all So, that's just one way to bring it down.

I am a a fan of trying to figure out how we can use AI... I am all for trying to figure out how we can make it more accessible. We are using chats um that are answering questions more easily, directing people um but I would love to see um AI used more. So right now services are so disjointed.

The work that you've done, that you represent, uh both of you that are here with us this evening, uh our police department uh and the trust that you've engendered in people in our community, I think is really something uh special.

Any day in one of the things that truly stands out as a department's uh culture of building trust. It's not just a goal, it's an expectation that's built in the way we do our work. It's reflected in the way our officers communicate, in how they approach interactions, and in the efforts they make to be present and engaged in the community beyond just responding to calls.

He has, uh, come up with a delightful product in If These Streets Could Talk... It's a delightful montage of different areas of Edina that, uh, covers their associated streets, interesting historical facts, and just simply a fun notions about that part of our city and the streets that run through it.

The names reflected on a city's map tell the story of the people and places that existed before us. They are expressions of a city's identity and values and that history deserves to be shared with the community.

I wanted to pull this just to have an opportunity to get more clarity on the timing of this and the whole process once the petition has been submitted... One is the flashing light request at the crosswalks, and then the other is to um engage in a study.

It's allowing us to turn our heavy-duty fleet vehicles into soy diesel vehicles... it's something that if we um are successful in this, it's something that can be scaled up across the state, not only in the public sector, but in the private sector as well. And also, I just have to say, you know, looking at the statewide thing, the market for soybeans is soft, and it would be wonderful if we could have a homegrown fuel source that we can run right here in Minnesota.

The notion of uh taking a uh well, close to a dozen of our pieces of heavy equipment and converting them over to something that reduces greenhouse gas by 90% is pretty remarkable.

I am concerned about the cost um other aspects of the cladding, um possible vis- visibility issues, and maintenance issues because there is that gap that occurs with the cladding angle and the fencing that goes up.

Edina Rotary Club Foundation gave $4,000 for canine vests and the Circle of Discipline project that they're working on with a um local boxing club. Edina Park and Rec and got a couple of donations for trees. Edina Rotary Foundation almost $4,000 for CPR mannequins and AED trainers.

The first one is to restore nature's role. So, this is providing critical ecosystem services to an area of the city that is in is under increasing flood in flood pressures. Also has heat island issues as well... The second goal is to create pathways for play and health... The third goal is to invite the whole community to really create a welcoming space, create year-round access, to create safe and inviting spaces for all users.

Every tree that was removed was either identified as a hazard, invasive, or had a conflict with the grading on the site or the new proposed layout... 575 trees are planned to replace these. That's more than a two-for-one ratio. That doesn't make it any easier to stomach, but it does mean that we're planting in succession, and we will have a resilient community.

I I would really would like to thank our um our work group and the advocates in the community who have helped us to look at inclusivity and accessibility in a whole 'nother lens, um not just looking at physical, but looking at cognitive. Um and not just looking at um abilities, but making sure it's good for all ages, but also all interests.

You've you've figured out how to return it to what it what it was and what it should be for about half or 2/3 of the use and then we've got places where we can accommodate more active uses. So that combination of passive and active, I think, is really it's a it's a wonderful thing.

DDA really stood out... Their fee is in line with the other um consultants that we heard from. So, I'm very comfortable with that. They actually reduced the amount that they're going to be charging to accommodate the work that Dave Unmacht did for us preliminarily... The other thing that they're offering are post-hiring onboarding support um and uh that including a mentor from DDA.

This is a really important decision that we're going to be making as a council for our community. Um and I think we all have an appreciation for that importance. Um so just want to thank you both for kind of taking the lead and and doing this in a way that feels um focused and transparent and and kind of engaging us all.

City manager Scott Neal, the impact of his leadership has been felt across the state. He's one of our biggest cheerleaders in growing the profession of city leadership, and he's been a tremendous support to those that are entering into this career as well as provide support to those that that need it along the way that have been doing it for a while. So I take this um this very seriously.

The city committed to a goal of zero traffic deaths and serious injuries on all roadways by 2050, and also set an interim goal of a 50% reduction toward 2035.

Pedestrians and cyclists face greater risk of death and serious injury than motorists... cyclists risk of serious injury or fatality is about four times greater than a motorist and for a pedestrian it jumps up to 18% or 18 times more likely.

I've noticed that cities in Minnesota it says generally prohibit or strictly limit new residential driveways or commercial driveways onto arterials or collectors if there is another access from a lesser-used road... I'm wondering is Edina kind of an outlier in that we're not removing these points, but actually going in a direction where we're encouraging or allowing development that goes beyond what, you know, the legal buildable area is.