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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2025-12-17 City Council Meeting COTTAGE GROVE CITY COUNCIL December 17, 2025 12800 RAVINE PARKWAY SOUTH COTTAGE GROVE, MN 55016 COUNCIL CHAMBER-7:00 P.M 1.CALL TO ORDER The City Council of the City of Cottage Grove, Washington County, Minnesota, held aregular meeting on December 17, 2025, at Cottage Grove City Hall, 12800 RavineParkway.Mayor Bailey called the meeting to order. He said this meeting is being recorded by TrueLens Community Media. You can view City meetings live and replay them on Cable Channel 779, and the meetings are also streamed live and archived on the City of Cottage Grove’s YouTube channel. 2.PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The audience, staff, and City Council Members stood and recited the Pledge of Allegiance. 3.ROLL CALL Tammy Anderson, City Clerk, called the roll:Mayor Bailey-Here;Council Member Clausen-Here; Council Member Garza-Absent; Council Member Olsen-Here; Council Member Thiede-Here. Also present: Jennifer Levitt, City Administrator; Paul Sponholtz, City Engineer; Phil Jents, Communication Manager; Pete Koerner, Public Safety Director; Korine Land,City Attorney-LeVander, Gillen & Miller, PA; Brenda Malinowski, Finance Director; Emily Schmitz, Community Development Director. 4.OPEN FORUM Mayor Baileyopened the Open Forum. As no onewished to address the Council, Mayor Bailey closed Open Forum. 5. ADOPTION OF AGENDA Motion by Council MemberThiedeto adopt the agenda; second by Council MemberClausen.Motion carried:4-0. 6.PRESENTATIONS- None. 7.CONSENT AGENDAA. Approve the November 5, 2025City Council Regular Meeting Minutes. B. Approve the November5, 2025City Council Special Meeting Minutes. C.Approvethe November 19, 2025City Council Regular Meeting Minutes. D. Approve the November 19, 2025 City Council Closed Meeting Minutes. E.Approve the December 3, 2025 City Council Regular Meeting Minutes. F. Accept and place on file the minutes from the October 27, 2025 Planning Commission meeting. G.Approve the November 19, 2025 Economic Development Authority Special Meeting Minutes. H.Approve the issuance of rental licenses to the properties listed in the attached table. Approve Ordinance 1105, requiring a Federal Background Check for all Massage Therapist licenses as outlined by Minnesota Statute 299C.77 (Federal Background Checks by Political Subdivisions). Approve the 2026 City Council Meeting Schedule. Adopt Ordinance 1106, authorizing the implementation of fee changes, increases, and additions for the year 2026, effective January 1, 2026. Adopt Resolution 2025-190, 2025 Budget Revisions. Approve the 2026 CVB Final Budget. Approve Resolution 2025-184 adopting a 2026 Part-time Firefighters Pay Plan. Adopt Resolution 2025-183 approving the 2026 Part-time Pay Plan. Approve Resolution 2025-185 adopting a 2026 Pay Plan and Benefits for employees not covered by a labor contract for the City of Cottage Grove. All wage and benefit costs have been budgeted. Adopt Resolution 2025-192 updating the City Personnel Policy. Approve the MetLife Dental Policy and the Medica Master Group Contract for 2026. The MetLife Dental Benefits Summary and the Medica Summary of Benefits and Coverages (SBCs) are attached. The formal MetLife and Medica contracts will be issued later this month or early next month. Authorize the letter of engagement with Larkin Hoffman for State Lobbying Services in 2026. Accept the donation of equipment in the amount of $993.11 for the Fitness Center at City Hall from the Cottage Grove Police Foundation. Approve and sign the Joint Power Agreement between the City of Cottage Grove and the East Metro Training Facility. Adopt Resolution 2025-193 approving the City of Cottage Grove Fair Housing Policy. Adopt Resolution 2025-194 appealing the Metropolitan Council’s System Statement. 1) Authorize Resolution 2025-186 for application to the MN Department of Natural Resources Outdoor Recreation Grant Program for an amount up to $350,000, to be used for the Hamlet Park Skate Park rehabilitation. 2) Authorize Resolution 2025-187 for application to the MN Department of Natural Resources Outdoor Recreation Grant Program for an amount up to $350,000, to be used for the Peterson Park development project. 1) Authorize Resolution 2025-188 to apply to the MN Department of Natural Resources Local Trail Connections Grant Program for up to $250,000, to be used for Peterson Park trail construction. 2) Authorize Resolution 2025-189, to apply for the MN Department of Natural Resources Local Trail Connections Grant Program for up to $250,000, to be used for Military Trail Head trail construction. Authorize the Metropolitan Livable Communities Act Grant Agreement for $785,000 to be used for the Hadley Ridge Apartments project. Adopt Resolution 2025-191, approving final payment in the amount of $176,486.98 to Meyer Contracting, Inc. for the East Point Douglas Road and Jamaica Avenue Reconstruction Project. Authorize agreement with LiveBarn to provide live-streaming services at the Cottage Grove Ice Arena. Approve the renewal of the ESRI Enterprise 3-Year Agreement for $42,000 annually, for a total of $126,600. Approve the GPS Vehicle Tracking Policy as outlined. Approve the purchase of GPS-monitored devices from Precise for a total of $8,000 for install and a $22,032 subscription cost per year. Approve Change Order #2 in the amount of $1,660.04 for the Public Works Facility Mechanics Shop Remodel Project, increasing the contract amount from $299,797.82 to $301,457.86. Authorize purchase of a Foley 633 Reel Grinder from MTI Distributing for the amount of $57,500.89. Authorize Public Works to advertise and sell surplus property on MNBid or a similar auction site. None of the Council Members wished to pull any Items onthe Consent Agenda for further comment and/or discussion. Motion by Council MemberClausen to approve the Consent Agenda; second by Council MemberThiede. Motion carried: 4-0. 8.A. APPROVE DISBURSEMENTS Staff Recommendation: Approve disbursements from 11-28-2025through 12-11-2025in the amount of $1,171,675.82. Motion by Council MemberOlsento approve disbursements; second by Council MemberThiede. Motion carried: 4-0. 9.PUBLIC HEARINGS- None. 10.BID AWARDS- None. 11.REGULAR AGENDA Commission and Committee Appointments Staff Recommendation: Approve the 2026 Commission and Committee Appointments as presented. Mayor Bailey said the following are my commission and committee appointments for 2026, which have been sent to the Council Members. I spoke with each of them individually to see which commission or committee they’d be interested in, and I will read them aloud so the general public is aware. Mayor Pro Tem: Council Member Olsen Beyond the Yellow Ribbon: Council Member Olsen Cottage Grove Chamber: Mayor Bailey Cottage Grove Convention and Visitors Bureau: Council Member Olsen East Metro Strong: Council Member Clausen Economic Development Authority: Mayor Bailey-President, Council Member Olsen-Vice President Great River Rail Commission: Council Member Garza Historic Preservation Advisory Committee: Council Member Thiede Holiday Train Committee: Mayor Bailey Investment Committee: Council Member Clausen and Council Member Olsen Parks, Recreation, and Natural Resources Commission: Council Member Thiede Planning Commission: Council Member Olsen Public Services Commission: Council Member Clausen Red Rock Corridor Commission: Council Member Garza South Washington County Telecommunications Commission: Council Member Thiede, Alternate is Council Member Clausen South Washington County Watershed District: Council Member Clausen Strawberry Fest: Council Member Thiede and Council Member Clausen Motion by Council Member Olsen to approve the Commission and Committee Appointments for 2026; second by Council Member Clausen. Motion carried: 4-0. 12.COUNCIL COMMENTS AND REQUESTS Council Member Clausen said nothing on my list tonight, mayor, thank you. Council Member Olsen said thank you, mayor, I have a couple items this evening that I’d like to share: First and foremost, I want to take a moment to honor one of our Public Safety team members, Terry Raymond, who is looking at retirement here at the end of the month. He is one of our outstanding detectives in the Cottage Grove Police Department, and he has decided that December 31, 2025 will be his last day working with the City. I want to just make mention of the fact that Terry’s been with us from February, 2003 through the current year, so he’s been a long term performer with the City, who’s done a variety of different jobs: Not only was he a patrol officer, but he also did some Use of Force training at one time, and I know he did traffic stop training as well. I actually got to observe him do that when the training was done out at the 3M track, and he was very, very good at that. I think his real source of pride and something that I know he aspired to do for quite some time was forensics, specifically working with computer forensics, cell phones, electronics, those kinds of things. Terry really specialized in a relentless pursuit of justice and victim advocacy, that was really his passion and remains his passion in addition to working on cyber crimes. So, again, I just want to honor Terry and say thank you for being a long-term guardian of our community. We very much appreciate your exceptional service and your commitment to all of the residents of the City of Cottage Grove and South Washington County, and we wish you well in retirement. The second thing I wanted to mention today is something that maybe is not as prevalent in the conversation as it needs to be at times, and that is specifically related to the holiday season. We all love to celebrate and get together and have fun events and do things like that, but it can be a really hard time for people, too. This is one of those times of year when people can be very hard on themselves, maybe they’re missing a loved one or a family member, and it can send people into sometimes depression, oftentimes anxiety, and really put them in a position where they’re just not themselves. So, I want to just ask people who are watching at home to keep an eye out for your friends and your family members and really listen and try to understand that there are some people, who as much as they want to celebrate, they find this to be maybe a darker time for their mental health. Oftentimes, they’ll resort to things like drugs and alcohol or other self medications. So, let’s try to help those around us and make sure that they understand that they’ve got friends, they’ve got family members, they’ve got people in the community who care about them. For those who maybe don’t feel like they have anywhere to turn, there’s always somewhere to turn; if you’re really feeling down, there’s a 24/7, 365 hotline, staffed with mental health professionals that you can call any time of year. That number is 1-866-903-3787, and that is the National Mental Health Hotline. As I said earlier, it’s available to you 24/7, 365, but please reach out. Don’t hurt yourself, don’t hurt a family member, don’t feel like you’re alone because you’re not, help is available. And with that, mayor, I’ll turn it back to you. Council Member Thiede said all right, well, I just do want to say that as we think and we feel the rain tonight and the 40-degree temperatures and so forth, unfortunately the Holiday Train came by when it was quite, quite cold. But just to let everybody know, the cable commission actually recorded the whole thing, so you can either go to the cable website and view it. I actually automatically recorded it, too, so I’ve got it recorded. So, it was a good show and so forth, and I think you’ll probably talk a little bit more about the dollars raised and how people can still donate and so forth, and all those people that need a little help with food and things like that this year. Also, I guess Strawberry Fest, our next meeting is on January 6, and it’s over at Carbone’s at 6:00 p.m.; so, if you want to participate, come on by. I just want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and a prosperous and Happy New Year! Mayor Bailey said I hope I’m not going to put him on the spot too much here, I don't know, Pete, do you know what the latest number is? Director Koerner replied I think it’s around $150,000. Mayor Bailey said okay, that’s the last one I heard. So, for the public, and thanked Council Member Thiede for segueing into that, our community is just amazing and Council Member Olsen was commenting about people who maybe are gong through some life crises or mental health issues or whatever. What he didn’t tell you is I think it was about two weekends ago, the Lions Club actually did a whole bunch of shopping, went to Target, I believe. Council Member Olsen said it was last Saturday, it was the Lions and Beyond the Yellow Ribbon. Mayor Bailey said both went and bought a bunch of toys and things for children and families who are in need during this holiday season. Council Member Olsen said it was 90 kids and about 40 sets of parents. Mayor Bailey said there you go, that’s what I’m saying, he didn’t talk about that, but I was expecting him to bring that up. The Holiday Train, of course, supports the Friends in Need Food Shelf, and I am fortunate enough to be able to ride on the train and also talk to some of the people that are consistently with the train, year after year after year. They are so amazed by the group they see when coming into Cottage Grove, everything from the glowsticks to frankly when we told everybody, hey, you probably don’t want to come out because it’s like really, really cold, and we pull in and there were just shy of 2,000 people who still braved the elements to come out and see the train, which is amazing. The Holiday Train, CPKC Rail, presented the Friends in Need Food Shelf with a $10,000 check, which I thought was amazing, too. So, they love to stop in Cottage Grove, and they are amazed at the amount of money that our community raises. So, I think if I heard right, the original amount that they were looking for was about $130,000, and that went up from $90,000, I think it had been at $90,000. The latest I heard, it was actually on the train from somebody from the Friends in Need Food Shelf, was $156,000, and that was before the $10,000 check and so on. So, I just want to say thank you to the public for your generosity and your support of those that are in need in our community, and you’re still welcome to provide funding or provide preferably they’d like paper or health care products to be donated to the Friends in Need Food Shelf. If you need to find out how do I do that or where do I go, I’m certain, I’ll just throw it out there, I think all of us Council Members up here or even if you contacted the City or myself, we’d make sure that we’d get you to the right people to be able to continue to do that. Again, thank you. Now, it is interesting this year, we had our Hometown Holiday celebration, which frankly had more people than I thought, too, as it was flipping cold that night, and then we followed it up with the Holiday Train, and that’s very cold, but it’s like 40 degrees outside today. But the fact of the matter is people love this time of year, people do challenges this time of year, but I do want to thank the citizens of Cottage Grove, and I want to thank our staff for an amazing 2025, since I guess, technically, this will be the end of it until 2026. And thank you to the public for believing in the community, believing in what we’re doing and continuing to grow and prosper. Mayor Bailey said the last thing I’ll just mention is our staff members, Council Members, Mayor, and spouses are going to be joining together down at the River Oaks Golf Course for a little holiday social after the Council Meeting is done here. So, I’m just letting the public officially know that, and no actual business or anything is going to get done down there. The only business is eating and having a good time, so. With that, I want to wish everybody a Merry Christmas, to the rest of my Council Members as well as to the public, and a very prosperous New Year. Being that we have no workshops this evening, I’ll look for a motion to adjourn 2025. 13.WORKSHOPS - OPEN TO PUBLIC- None. 14.WORKSHOPS-CLOSED TO PUBLIC- None. 15.ADJOURNMENT Motion by Council MemberThiede,second by Council MemberClausen,to adjourn the meeting at7:15p.m. Motion carried:4-0. Mayor Bailey said Merry Christmas, Everyone! Minutes prepared by Judy Graf and reviewed by Tamara Anderson, City Clerk.