date: september 25th, 2015 to: mayor & council members...
TRANSCRIPT
MEMORANDUM DATE: September 25th, 2015 TO: MAYOR & COUNCIL MEMBERS FROM: DANNY LENZ, CITY MANAGER SUBJECT: CITY MANAGER’S REPORT ELM AVENUE BIKE LANE STRIPING DEMONSTRATION Last week the City added 6-ft wide shoulder striping on both sides of Elm Avenue from 3rd Street East to 9th Street East. This striping was done to show what the proposed 6-ft wide bike lanes would look like along Elm Avenue if they were included in the final design for the reconstruction of the road. Comments on the striping or other elements of the Elm Avenue reconstruction project can be directed to City Engineer Mark Duchene at 507-835-9716 or at [email protected]. Project information, including current design recommendations and maps, can be found on the City’s website at: http://ci.waseca.mn.us/old-trunk-hwy-14elm-avenue-updates/ UPCOMING WASECA LIBRARY EVENTS The Waseca-Le Sueur Regional Library System is hosting several upcoming events at the Waseca Public Library. The full release for each event is attached, summary information is included below:
- Monday, September 29th at 12:00 PM – Simple Ways to Use Your Culinary Herbs in the Kitchen: Local gardener extraordinaire Stacey Weichert will help gardeners and cooks wake up their taste buds by showcasing the vibrancy of fresh herbs in delicious dishes. The event is free and open to the public.
- Tuesday, September 30th from 2:00 PM - 5:00 PM – Early Out Event: Target Practice: Kids will construct min-catapults, paper airplanes, slingshots, pompom poppers, marshmallow shooters and more. They will practice their aim for the Target Practice Championship. The event is free, with snacks provided and gears for grades K-6. Registration is required by stopping by the Library or calling 507-835-2910.
KEY CALENDAR ITEMS Just a quick reminder on a couple of calendar items:
- September 29th: Elm Avenue Project Open House - 4:30 PM – 7:00 PM at the Public Safety Building - September 29th: Zoning Code Update Review – 7:00 PM at the Public Safety Building
ADDITIONAL ATTACHMENTS:
• Updated September Calendar • Updated October Calendar • CGMC in Brief for 9/17/15 • CGMC in Brief for 9/24/15
The complete City Limits document can be found on the City’s website at: http://ci.waseca.mn.us/
WASECA-LE SUEUR REGIONAL LIBRARY SYSTEM
408 N STATE ST * WASECA, MN 56093 * 507-835-2910 Stacy Lienemann, Director
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 18, 2015
Simple Ways to Use Your Culinary Herbs in the Kitchen
Local gardener extraordinaire Stacey Weichert will help gardeners and cooks wake up their taste buds by showcasing the vibrancy of fresh herbs in delicious dishes at noon on Tuesday, September 29th at Waseca Public Library. Free and open to the public.
# # #
MEDIA: Please contact Waseca Public Library (507-835-2910 or [email protected]) with questions.
WASECA-LE SUEUR REGIONAL LIBRARY SYSTEM
408 N STATE ST * WASECA, MN 56093 * 507-835-2910 Stacy Lienemann, Director
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 18, 2015
Early Out Event: Target Practice
At Waseca Public Library’s next Early Out event, kids will construct mini-catapults, paper airplanes, slingshots, pompom poppers, marshmallow shooters, and more! Then they will practice their aim for the Target Practice Championship!
This free event will be held from 2-5 pm at Waseca Public Library on Wednesday, September 30th. Snacks will be provided. This event is geared for grades K-6. Due to limited space, registration is required. Stop by the Library to register or call 507-835-2910.
# # #
MEDIA: Please contact Waseca Public Library (507-835-2910 or [email protected]) with questions.
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CGMC in Brief Sept. 17, 2015 View this email in your browser
Newsletter for the Week of September 17, 2015
Workforce housing focus of meeting with Lt. Gov. SmithGreater Minnesota Partnership (GMNP) Executive Director Dan Dorman andPresident Ann Goebel met with Lt. Governor Smith and Allison Jones, a policy advisorto Governor Dayton, this afternoon to discuss economic development priorities,particularly workforce housing.
According to Dorman, it was a positive meeting with a focused discussion on theworkforce housing concerns in many Greater Minnesota communities. He said Smithinquired about potential solutions and how they compare with existing federal and statehousing programs. She also asked for more information on how neighboring stateshave dealt with workforce housing issues. It was apparent from the meeting that Smithunderstands that there is a need for housing in Greater Minnesota and expressed awillingness to work together to find a solution. However, she would not commit toincluding funding for workforce housing in the Governor’s budget plan at this time.
In 2015, the CGMC and GMNP were successful in helping to advocate for a workforcehousing grant program, which is administered by the Department of Employment andEconomic Development (DEED) and funded at $5.4 million over the next biennium (seenext article). However, the legislature failed to pass a tax bill and the workforce housingtax credit – which incentivizes private investment in workforce housing – did not pass.The tax bill is currently in conference committee. In the coming year, the CGMC andGMNP will be advocating to pass the workforce housing tax credit, and will be seekinga robust funding level for this muchneeded program. For more information click here.
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DEED launching workforce housing programThe Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) willbegin accepting applications Nov. 2 for grants awarded by the Workforce HousingDevelopment Program. The program, which is open to cities and joint citycountyeconomic development authorities in Greater Minnesota, provides matching funds thatcommunities can use to encourage developers to build marketrate rental housing. Atotal of $2 million will be awarded in 2016 and another $2 million in 2017.
Under the program, grants cannot exceed 25 percent of the cost of building a newrental housing development. Local governments, nonprofits or benefiting businessesmust contribute $1 for every $2 provided by the program.
The deadline for applying for the 2016 funding is Jan. 15, 2016. Projects will beselected on the basis of need, statewide economic impact, project financial plan andproject readiness. Preference will be given to areas with fewer than 18,000 people.
Other details about the program are available here or by [email protected].
Public information sessions about the program and the grant application process will beheld in October at the following locations:
Austin Thursday, Oct. 1, from 9 to 11 a.m.Jay C. Hormel Nature Center (Ruby Rupner Auditorium)1304 21st St. NE
Redwood Falls Friday, Oct. 2, from 9 to 11 a.m.City Council Chambers333 S. Washington St.
Grand RapidsTuesday, Oct. 13, from 1 to 3 p.m.Sheriff’s training room (basement)440 NE First Ave.
Detroit Lakes Wednesday, Oct. 14, from 9 to 11 a.m.City Council Chambers
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1025 Roosevelt Ave.
Cities encouraged to apply for a BDPI grantThanks to all of you who shared stories about how your city has utilized the GreaterMinnesota Business Development Public Infrastructure (BDPI) grant program. If yourcity has a good story of how BDPI made development possible, we would love to hearit! Please send it to CGMC lobbyist Carolyn Jackson at ccjackson@flahertyhood.com.
If you are considering applying for a BDPI grant, we encourage you to send in yourapplication. The grant application states that $250,000 is the maximum grant amount,but this is in contradiction to current law. The statutory cap on BDPI grants is 50percent of the cost of the project or $1 million—whichever is less. CGMC staff are inthe process of clarifying with DEED that cities can apply for grants up to $1 million. Ifyou are seeking a grant of more than $250,000, please apply for the entire amount youare seeking. There is no deadline; the grants are available as long as funds areavailable. The application form is available here, and the DEED website has anexplanation of the program and application process. The BDPI program is waiting tohelp your community grow!
Studies explore inequality, economic growth in MinnesotaTwo reports were recently released that may be of interest to city leaders:
The first, Widening Inequality in Minnesota: A CountybyCounty Analysis, waspublished by the nonprofit research and advocacy group Growth & Justice. As statedin its foreword, the report provides context for understanding the widening economicinequality in Minnesota, particularly as it varies cross the Twin Cities urban core, itssuburbs and exurbs, and Greater Minnesota. The report explores how inequality differsacross the state, countybycounty. Notably, it found that poverty and inequality levelsare highest in Hennepin and Ramsey counties and the most rural counties in northernand southern Minnesota, in contrast to some of the suburban and exurban countiesthat have relatively high incomes and lower poverty rates.
The second report, Pillars of prosperity: Leveraging regional assets to growMinnesota's economy, was conducted by the Metropolitan Policy Program at theBrookings Institution. The report is the culmination of a multiyear collaboration withDEED to analyze the opportunities and challenges to economic growth in the sevenregions of Minnesota, as well as the state as a whole. It identifies the three tenets ofeconomic growth—innovation, trade and talent—and provides guidelines for aneconomic development strategy that would ensure all regions benefit from Minnesota’sstrong economic performance.
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Save the date!Please mark your calendar for upcoming CGMC events and important dates:
CGMC Fall Conference: Nov. 1213, Arrowwood Resort, AlexandriaLegislative Action Day: March 16, 2016, St. PaulCGMC Summer Conference: July 2022, 2016, Austin
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Visit us online at greatermncities.org
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525 Park St., Suite 470St. Paul, MN 55103
Contact: Bradley Peterson at bmpeterson@flahertyhood.com or 6512591940
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CGMC in Brief Sept. 24, 2015 View this email in your browser
Newsletter for the Week of September 24, 2015
LGA to be focus of CGMC Fall Conference; Register today!You should have received an email this afternoon announcing that registration is nowopen for the CGMC Fall Conference. As we stated in the email, we have decided todevote most of the first day of the conference to LGA: why it matters and what we canall do to strengthen the program. The second day will focus on setting the CGMC’spolicy positions and legislative strategies for the upcoming year. The full conferenceagenda is available here.
The conference will be held Thursday, Nov. 12Friday, Nov. 13 at Arrowwood Resort& Conference Center in Alexandria. To register, please fill out this form and email,mail or fax it to the listed contact. Please register by Nov. 2. If you have any questionsabout the conference, contact Julie Liew at 6512591917 or jlliew@flahertyhood.com.
Please note that attendees are responsible for booking their own hotel rooms. A blockof rooms is reserved for the CGMC at a rate of $94 a night. Call Arrowwood at 3207621124 to make a reservation. The block closes Oct. 13.
We hope to see you there!
We need your LGA stories!The CGMC is conducting a short survey to help put together case studies detailinghow communities benefited from the 2013 LGA reform and appropriation increase, with
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a focus on what cities were able to do as a result of the increased funding (i.e. capitalprojects, salary increases, levy reductions, equipment purchases, etc.) and howcommunities were strengthened as a result. The survey is available at http://bit.ly/lgasurvey. Please answer the questions asspecifically as possible. The deadline to respond is Wednesday, Oct. 7. We appreciateyour support in helping to make Greater Minnesota stronger! Requests for broadband funding nearly triple the amount availableThe application period for the BordertoBorder Broadband Development GrantProgram closed Sept.15, and the Department of Employment and EconomicDevelopment (DEED) reported Wednesday that 44 entities submitted applications withfunding requests totaling more than $29 million. The applicants are competing for justover $10 million in available funds. DEED will now review and score the applications,with plans to announce the grant awards in November.
If you are considering applying but missed the application deadline, entities may stillsubmit an “expression of interest” for future funding until Oct. 1 athttp://mn.gov/deed/programsservices/broadband/grantprogram/bbinterest.jsp .
The CGMC and Greater Minnesota Partnership (GMNP) were instrumental inadvocating for the creation of the broadband fund. Greater Minnesota consistently lagsbehind the metro area in meeting Minnesota’s broadband goal, which was set in 2010and is currently 100 times slower than states such as Connecticut and Hawaii.Although experts have cited an up to $3 billion need for highspeed broadbandinfrastructure in Minnesota, the state has only appropriated $29.4 million since theprogram’s inception in 2014. In the past two quarters, Minnesota continues to fallbehind other states – going from 24th to 29th place in Akamai’s nationwide rank of
states (“State of the Internet” report), which looks at access to broadband speedsequaling Minnesota’s speed goals. $250k cap on BDPI application is an errorTo follow up on an article in last week’s CGMC in Brief, we have confirmed with DEEDthat the cap for a Business Development Public Infrastructure (BDPI) grant is 50percent of the project cost or $1 million, whichever is less, and that the $250,000 caplisted in the BDPI application is an error. Please apply for the entire amount you areseeking when filling out a BDPI application. There is no deadline; the grants areavailable as long as funds are available. The application form is available here, and theDEED website has an explanation of the program and application process. The BDPIprogram is waiting to help your community grow!
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MPCA discusses mercury and municipal liaisonOn Monday, CGMC lobbyist Elizabeth Wefel attended a meeting with Gilbert city staffand elected officials, Sen. David Tomassoni (DFLChisolm) and several MinnesotaPollution Control Agency (MPCA) officials, including Commissioner John LincStine. The meeting was called to discuss mercury limitations that are being imposed inwastewater permits for communities near the Great Lakes, as well as challengesfacing municipal wastewater systems as their systems age and new standards areimposed.
Commissioner Stine started the meeting by thanking the CGMC and Sen. Tomassonifor calling legislative attention to the significant issues that municipal wastewatersystems are facing and for assisting in the creation of the municipal liaison position atthe MPCA. The conversation covered a wide range of topics relating to municipalwastewater, including the role that the municipal liaison will play in assisting cities,particularly those in Greater Minnesota, with addressing compliance, seekingvariances and identifying funding for wastewater upgrades. Commissioner Stine alsostated that the MPCA is aware that providing funding solely through low interest loansdoes not provide the relief that cities need and that the agency is urging the Governor’sOffice to put more money into grant funding. The municipal liaison will be hiredsometime in the next two months and the CGMC will monitor whether this new roleprovides some of the assistance Greater Minnesota communities need with respect towastewater regulatory issues.
Save the date!Please mark your calendar for upcoming CGMC events and important dates:
CGMC Fall Conference: Nov. 1213, Arrowwood Resort, AlexandriaLegislative Action Day: March 16, 2016, St. PaulCGMC Summer Conference: July 2022, 2016, Austin
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Copyright © 2015 Flaherty & Hood, P.A., All rights reserved.
Visit us online at greatermncities.org
Our mailing address is:Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities
525 Park St., Suite 470
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St. Paul, MN 55103
Contact: Bradley Peterson at bmpeterson@flahertyhood.com or 6512591940
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