--- ## title: CITY OF FALCON HEIGHTS author: lisa.anderson date: D:20260807120518-05'00' --- ## CITY OF FALCON HEIGHTS ## City Council Workshop ## City Hall ## 2077 West Larpenteur Avenue ## AGENDA August 12, 2026 ## 6:00 P.M. ## A. CALL TO ORDER: ## B. ROLL CALL: GUSTAFSON____ MAY___ ## MIELKE___ MOGEN ___ WASSENBERG___ ## STAFF PRESENT: LINEHAN___ ## C. POLICY ITEMS: 1. 2027 Budget Workshop #1 (6:00 P.M.) a. 2026 2 nd ## Quarter Financial Report and Year End Estimates ## b. 2027 General Fund Preview ## D. ADJOURNMENT: DISCLAIMER: City Council Workshops are held monthly as an opportunity for Council Members to discuss policy topics in greater detail prior to a formal meeting where a public hearing may be held and/or action may be taken. Members of the public that would like to make a comment or ask questions about an item on the agenda for an upcoming workshop should send them to mail@falconheights.org prior to the meeting. Alternatively, time is regularly allotted for public comment during Regular City Council Meetings (typically 2nd and 4th Wednesdays) during the Community Forum. ## BLANK PAGE ## REQUEST FOR CITY COUNCIL ACTION ## City of Falcon Heights, Minnesota __________________________ ## Item ## Budget Workshop #1: Budget Priorities ## Description For the past several weeks, staff has been busy preparing their proposed budgets for 2027. A preliminary levy must be set by September 30th, so the City Council will formally act on the preliminary levy at the September 23th City Council meeting. The purpose of this workshop will be to present the Draft 2027 General Fund Budget to the City Council and allow staff time to incorporate changes before presenting it for possible continued discussion at the August 26 th Workshop and then for preliminary levy approval on September 23 th . Key points of interest for this draft budget include: 1) The current, preliminary levy sits at a 12.21% increase, with the total levy increasing from $2,882,408 to $3,234,420 ($352,012 increase). The projected city tax rate is currently 41.914% 2) 2027 police costs will be the primary cost factor of the budget. We received preliminary estimates from St. Anthony Village on these numbers, and it will be about a 10% increase from 2026. This is expected within the contract as police services increase to full capacity, with expectations the department reaches 30 FTEs by 2027. As part of our policing contract, we pay for our portion of the entire police budget based on our population and call volume. After 2027, the ramp up will be completed and the JPA can expect smaller and more predictable increases closer to the costs of inflation. 3) Staffing is critical to our operations, as we are a people-first organization. Second to policing, staffing is our largest cost of our budget (split between funds, so not all levied). Salaries follow the Grade & Step system instituted in 2026, where, following performance reviews, a step increase occurs each year a…