Arden Hills City Council — Transcript
Tuesday, October 2, 2018
TCAP Redevelopment Update
New and Expanding Businesses
Emergency Siren System Upgrade
City Budget and Property Taxes
2040 Comprehensive Plan Development
Parks, Trails, and Recreation Projects
City Website and Communication Enhancements
Transportation and Infrastructure Updates
National Guard Readiness Center
City's Financial Standing and Awards
Affordable Housing and Code Enforcement
Votes (7)
TCAP Redevelopment Project Update
Brenda Holden provided an update on the Twin City Ammunition Plant (TCAP) redevelopment, emphasizing the partnership with Ramsey County and Alatus. She outlined the planned mixed-use development, including retail, office, housing, trails, and parks. A key focus was the ongoing negotiations for the Master Development Agreement and the upcoming public forum on November 15th to gather resident input on financing and civic site usage, with an estimated 60% increase in the tax base expected post-development.
New and Expanding Businesses in Arden Hills
Fran Holmes presented a vibrant overview of recent commercial growth, including Land O'Lakes' significant campus expansion, the nearing completion of Lexington Station Phase Two with new restaurants and services, expansions at HealthPartners Clinic, the opening of Dunn's Brothers Coffee, and the groundbreaking for a new Marriott hotel. She also noted the full occupancy of NorthPark Corporate Center and Entry Cone's manufacturing expansion, underscoring a booming economy and increased activity.
City Financials and Emergency Siren Updates
Dave McClung provided updates on two key areas. He announced the replacement of four old emergency sirens with two upgraded models in 2018, improving city-wide coverage and backup. He then delved into the city's budget and property taxes, noting efforts to keep taxes low and the allocation of funds to various services. McClung also announced a preliminary 5% levy increase for 2019 to support new staff, street maintenance, and increased public safety costs, and proudly shared the city's upgraded Triple-A bond rating and consistent receipt of financial awards.
2040 Comprehensive Plan and Parks & Trails Updates
Brenda Holden briefly introduced the 2040 Comprehensive Plan, explaining its purpose to guide land use in alignment with Met Council's regional goals and the extensive review process involving staff, commissions, and adjacent communities. Steve Scott then detailed Parks, Trails, and Recreation Committee activities, including annual park evaluations and specific projects like the Johanna Marsh Park renovation and the ambitious North Snelling trail extension, highlighting community engagement and regional coordination for trail development.
City Website, Communication, and Transportation Updates
Fran Holmes provided a tutorial on using the city's website to contact staff and track concerns, also previewing a new, more intuitive, mobile-friendly website launching in January 2019. Steve Scott then detailed city-managed transportation projects, including various street maintenance and reconstruction efforts, along with trail extensions and bridge replacements. He acknowledged resident cooperation during disruptions and the coordination of city projects with utility work.
MnDOT and Ramsey County Transportation Updates
Mark Lindberg of MnDOT detailed major state highway projects, including adding an exit lane from 35W southbound to US 10 east, scheduled for 2019 completion, and a multi-year, $208 million MnPASS and repaving project on 35W with ongoing preparatory work. Ted Gennaker, the new Ramsey County Public Works Director, outlined county projects such as pedestrian mobility enhancements on County Road 96 and efforts to complete widening and repaving on County Road F by mid-October, despite utility and weather delays. He also introduced future plans for Lexington Avenue reconstruction and encourages direct communication with project managers.
Q&A and Closing Remarks
The session concluded with council members addressing questions from the audience. Topics included the anticipated opening of County Road F, asphalt completion on Indian Oaks trails, and the rationale behind low-income housing requirements (citing Met Council mandates and societal needs). Discussions also covered code enforcement challenges, volunteer opportunities, future road upgrades (Old Snelling), and absentee voting procedures for upcoming elections. The potential 60% increase in tax base from TCAP development was discussed in the context of city operational costs. Brenda Holden reiterated the impact of the new National Guard Readiness Center and thanked all presenters and attendees.
Notable Quotes (17)
nothing has really changed on that tea cap is still planning to go ahead with retail office and light industrial a town center neighborhoods and with architectural features a variety of housing options that will serve multitude of young families empty nesters families and seniors
a public forum 40 caps since there's so much stuff going on we really need the residents input about taxes and how to pay for stuff it's gonna really affect us so we are having a public forum November 15th
Land O'Lakes is our large fortune 500 company now ranking 216 headquartered in our city so we're very value it's we value its presence here in arden hills
there's a lot going on as as councilmember Holden said a lot going on in the city with the economy booming we're seeing all sorts of activity
our emergency siren updates for sirens were replaced in 2018 with two upgraded sirens... now there's new technology which allowed coverage to be expanded from to cover the entire city from these two sites versus the four sites we used to have that didn't cover the entire city
Arden Hills is one of the lowest tax rates as I said in Ramsey County but also in the Twin Cities metropolitan area so that says something about us
Standard and Poor's one of the nation's bond rating agencies upgraded this year the city's bond rating for general obligation bonds to triple-a from double-a plus so those of you who know anything about bond ratings this is a big deal especially for a city our size
what the comprehend plan really is its land use land use and arden hills so every 10 years cities in the metropolitan area that are under Met Council have to update their comprehensive plans in alignment with what the Met Council's regional development plan and thrive is
what we eventually did is arrived at a compromise so we're just finishing up the construction of that there is a nice playground area...and there's a trail with an overlook so the mature people can enjoy the the physical scenic attributes of that area
we're fortunate with our website because it will take you directly to the name and number and website of the city staff some some cities you just have to send a general email but we have a direct contact with our city staff
our website was last designed back in 2012 so we're updating it just like all technology things need to be updated on a regular basis and it should have easier navigation more intuitive and it'll be for our important audiences which are geared towards the residents and our businesses
the feedback that we've gotten back is the construction crews have been very responsive to the residents during the major part of the reconstruction
This project like I said is 12 miles long it goes through eight communities in two counties and there are multiple other County or cities that are real close to that corridor with that many different partners involved into the project no two cities are going to want information provided to them the same way so MnDOT made a determination that we're gonna let a separate contract so we can hold the public engagement outside of that
It's it's one of those projects that you look at on the surface and you say it's it's a half mile in length all you're doing is widening it doing some pavement stuff it's not that big of a job it equated to once you start doing work in your house you open up the walls and suddenly you start finding out what's behind the walls that was a little bit of what this project was
we appreciate you calling City Council members and staff they typically are a middle person in this and they'll either tell you what they know and sometimes it's changing day to day but I would encourage you to reach out to us directly we welcome that that helps us be better at what we do too
part of it is that society has we have people that work in they're not minimum pain your honor but but lower-income jobs that are doing two two three four jobs to make it by and they need a place to live so Met Council does not want people to keep expanding out lower-income people don't have the newer vehicles to drive hundreds of miles or 20 to 30 miles to make it to to their jobs and out here we don't have buses
when you start thinking about an increase in your tax base it just means if you need a hundred dollars you have those additional people to get a hunt that hundred dollars from usually running a city is a break-even comercial pays a little bit more in taxes in property taxes then they spend residents usually pay a little bit less so having TCAP there...it costs us money and we try to break even in our increases every year
Ordinances & Resolutions (6)
Agreement for the TCAP redevelopment project, currently under negotiation.
City's land use plan, updated every 10 years to align with Met Council's regional development plan.
Metropolitan Council's regional development framework, which Arden Hills' Comprehensive Plan must align with.
Annual hearing in December where the city's budget and levy are finalized.
Awards received by the city for financial management and reporting, indicating fiscal stewardship.
Standards the new city website will meet for accessibility.