Oakdale City Council — Transcript
Tuesday, April 14, 2026
Pet ID Week Proclamation
Arbor Day Proclamation and Tree Board Recognition
Environmental Programs and Grants
City Infrastructure Projects
New City Administrator Appointment
Community Engagement and Events
Votes (11)
Proclamation: National Pet ID Week
Dissent: None
Moved by N/A · Seconded by N/A
Mayor Kevin Zabel read a proclamation recognizing April 17-23, 2026, as National Pet ID Week. The proclamation highlighted statistics on lost pets, recommended microchipping and ID tags, and acknowledged community efforts in reuniting pets with owners.
Proclamation: Peter Grasby Arbor Day
Dissent: None
Moved by N/A · Seconded by N/A
Mayor Kevin Zabel proclaimed April 25th as Peter Grasby Arbor Day, marking the 51st anniversary of the tree giveaway. He praised Oakdale's commitment to its tree canopy, acknowledged challenges like emerald ash borer, and thanked volunteers and staff for their efforts.
Recognition of Outgoing Treeboard Chair Nick Canola
Dissent: None
Moved by N/A · Seconded by N/A
The City Council and Mayor Zabel expressed gratitude to Nick Canola for a decade of service on the Environmental Management Commission and as Treeboard Chair. His contributions included expertise as a certified arborist, addressing emerald ash borer and buckthorn, and shaping tree preservation policies.
Approval of Consensus Motions A through I
Dissent: None
Moved by Unknown Council Member [9:55] · Seconded by Unknown Council Member [9:58]
The Council considered and approved consensus motions, which included the appointment of a new member to the Tree Board to maintain its full strength. No items were pulled for individual consideration, indicating broad agreement.
Planning Commission Update
Dissent: None
Moved by N/A · Seconded by N/A
Council member Severson reported on the April 2nd Planning Commission meeting, noting a public hearing on a zoning amendment for RV storage with limited discussion and an overview of the 2050 Comprehensive Plan update to educate commissioners.
Parks and Water Commission Update
Dissent: None
Moved by N/A · Seconded by N/A
Council member Morham provided an update on the March Parks and Water Commission meeting, detailing collaboration with LHB design consultants for new parks (GU, Tower, Tanners) and reporting high community excitement for park resources, with children's preference for swings noted from the Golf View engagement.
Acceptance of 2026 Municipal Recycling Grant Funds
Dissent: None
Moved by Unknown Council Member [13:42] · Seconded by Unknown Council Member [13:48]
Community Development Director Andy Gizoff presented a resolution to accept a $53,364 grant from Washington County for the 2026 Municipal Recycling Program. The grant supports educational content, waste reduction, and increased recycling access through programs like food scraps pickup, dual waste bins in parks, and city cleanup events, including a new clothing swap.
Authorization to Execute 2026 Municipal Recycling Grant Agreement
Dissent: None
Moved by Unknown Council Member [14:14] · Seconded by Unknown Council Member [14:19]
Following the adoption of the resolution to accept the grant, the City Council moved to authorize the City Administrator to formally execute the grant agreement with Washington County, enabling the implementation of the recycling program initiatives.
Approval of Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) Agreement for Police Expansion and City Hall Remodel
Dissent: None
Moved by Unknown Council Member [16:04] · Seconded by Unknown Council Member [16:20]
City Administrator Chris Vulkarers explained the approval of a $7,940,489 GMP agreement, marking a critical milestone for the police expansion and city hall remodel. This action included approving a pre-qualified subcontractor list and authorizing Krauss Anderson to solicit bids, with construction beginning June 1st.
Acceptance of Donation for Summerfest Parade
Dissent: None (Council member Morham abstained due to conflict of interest)
Moved by Unknown Council Member [19:07] · Seconded by Unknown Council Member [19:15]
The Council considered accepting a $500 donation from resident Andy Morham for the 2026 Summerfest parade. Due to the donor being a council member, Andy Morham abstained from the vote, requiring a two-thirds majority of the remaining members for approval.
Appointment of New City Administrator Kelly Bourgeoa
Dissent: None
Moved by Mayor Zabel [21:20] · Seconded by Unknown Council Member [22:04]
Mayor Zabel announced the successful hiring process for the new City Administrator, Kelly Bourgeoa, highlighting her background as city manager in Bristol, Tennessee, extensive Minnesota local government experience, and legal expertise. He emphasized the comprehensive selection process and expressed enthusiasm for her start on June 16, 2026.
Notable Quotes (12)
Therefore, I Kevin, mayor of Oakdale, Minnesota, do hereby proclaim the week, April 17th through the 23rd, 2026 as National Pet ID Week.
I just really want to put an exclamation point on doing your pet ID, but not just getting it done, keeping it updated so that when you move or when your phone number changes or anything like that is keeping up with it.
Therefore, I Kevin Zabel, mayor of Oakdale, Minnesota, hereby proclaim April 25th as Peter Grasy Arbor Day in the city of Oakdale and call upon the residents of our community to plant trees for their enjoyment and for the health of our generation and generations to come.
Nick Canola has served uh the city of Oakdale for the past decade as a member of the environmental management commission, chair of the tree board, and through countless hours of volunteering at city events.
Um, yeah. Uh, so being on the treeboard was just an incredible amount of fun and a super big honor for me. Um, getting to give back to my community in a way that like shares my expertise and all this information that rattles around in my brain and and helps nobody else. Um, it's good that it can be used to help other people.
Uh one was the zoning amendment. They had a public hearing um regarding the zoning amendment regard uh in relative to RV storage that we uh have talked about.
We've got GU in the north tower in the south and eventually looking at Tanners. So it was great to talk through that process. A lot of excitement around being able to put some resources back into these parks.
Purpose of the grant in some is really to assist municipalities in recycling program expenses. In 2025, funding was used to encourage recycling and reuse and waste reduction through educational content, promoting Washington County programs like food scraps pickup, purchasing dual waste bins for our new uh Willowbrook parks, and covering grant eligible costs for the 2025 cleanup event this September.
So, what this motion is before you is um to [snorts] authorize the GMP, the guaranteed maximum price for that for that bid package for the project um to the amount of $7.9 million. Approve the prequalified subcontractor list for this package.
And this one is from Andy Morome, resident of Oakdale. Um, for the 2026 Summerfest parade, he donated $500.
Um we are welcoming Kelly Bourgeoa, verified the pronunciation on YouTube. Um Kelly comes uh to us to Oakdale by way of Bristol, Tennessee, where she is the current city manager. Um before that um a long career in uh local government here in Minnesota, Columbia Heights Becker um she is an attorney um brings a law background which is uh fantastic for us
only to say that I'm I'm excited for what skills and talents that she brings. It was a very rigorous process when we did all the interviews and it's she's the right one for Oakdale.
Ordinances & Resolutions (10)
Resolution accepting 2026 municipal recycling grant funds.
Resolution accepting a $500 donation for the Summerfest parade.
Code section governing city employee appointments.
State statute pertaining to city administration.
Comprehensive plan update discussed by the Planning Commission.
Topic of a public hearing held by the Planning Commission.
Guaranteed Maximum Price agreement for police expansion and city hall remodel.
Agreement for Washington County municipal recycling grant funds.
Agreement for the new City Administrator's terms of employment.
List of approved subcontractors for the city hall/police remodel project.