02. Minutes of June 22, 2023 Meeting
City of Scandia
Capital Investment Committee
June 22, 2023
A meeting of the Capital Investment Committee was held on the above date. City Administrator
Kyle Morell called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. Also present were Committee members
Council member Steve Kronmiller, Parks & Rec Committee Chair Terry Gorham, Dominic
Mitchell, Public Works Director Charles Fischer, Fire Chief Mike Hinz, Engineer Ryan
Goodman, and Treasurer Colleen Firkus. Planning Commissioner Perry Rynders was absent.
A general consensus was reached to approve the minutes from May 24, 2023.
Review of draft Capital Improvement Plan 2023-2027
Morell guided discussion on a review of Projects 2024-2027 by Funding Source with the changes
from the prior meeting. The following corrections and changes were made:
Project No. Amount Notes
CC-017 Addl. Comm Ctr Locks change wording to Warming House locks
SW-003 Bliss Stormwater 139,185 Move to 2027 for separate drainpipe project
PR-064 Tennis Court/Pickle Ball 40,000 delete from 2024, move to 2025 @ $90,000
PW-061 Rink Boards 175,000 Identified as a higher priority than courts
PW-068 Add. Vehicle PW Staff 60,000 Fischer identified as low priority in 2025
ROAD MAINTENANCE
The discussion continued on the need for planning and funding road maintenance. Council
member Kronmiller asked if a plan could be developed to quantify and have a level expenditure
plan for annual road reconstruction and maintenance over the life cycle of the roads. Staff
indicated this had been done with the lowest Paser-rated roads scheduled for reconstruction in
2024-2027 and higher-rated roads scheduled for crack filling and seal coating to preserve them.
The city’s roads tend to get past the point of being able to do mill and overlay. Contributing to the
decline in road conditions were a gap in road projects between 2007 and 2017, only doing crack
sealing and seal coating in that period, and a decline in the Public Works General Fund
Contractual Road Maintenance/Repair budget from $330,000 in 2017 to $157,000 in 2023. The
years in between ranged from $215,000 to $150,000.
The plan recommends three large projects over $3 million each over the next three years to catch
up on the worst roads. Staff showed the effect of a $10 million road bond in 2024 on the levy and
fund balance. A $10 million bond in 2024 over 15 years required assuming a 5% interest, would
require an annual debt levy of $943,423 and increase the levy by 51%. Reducing that loan to $4
million with the same assumptions would require a debt levy of $385,369. The Committee’s
recommendation to staff is to find out from the Council the maximum levy amount/increase they
would support and then work out the bond amount.
June 22, 2023
Capital Investment Committee
Page 2 of 2
Engineer Goodman also pointed out other sources of revenue to support road maintenance and
other capital projects. More public roads are created with new developments. Developers could
be required to pay a Seal Coat Escrow to cover a new road’s first seal coat. Another typical fee is
a Stormwater Impact Fee. The Park Fee is currently $3,000, and an increase could be considered.
Currently, the fees for the City Planner are recovered once a planning application has been
submitted, but currently, the City Planner is spending many hours on consulting with all being
paid by the city.
Engineer Goodman stressed that the roads lined up for the 2024 project are over 20 years old, and
their repair is crucial. Another important factor to consider is that all the infrastructure money
awarded by the federal and state government will tie up many local contractors starting in 2026,
and it will be hard to get favorable bids. Timing is also crucial to get started on culvert
assessments, soil borings, and coordination with the local Watershed for upcoming road projects.
Mitchell and Kronmiller asked if citizen complaints were considered in the timing of road repairs.
Staff indicated decisions were based on annual reviews and Paser ratings set for all the roads.
City Administrator Morell suggested that $200,000 to $250,000 of excess General Fund Balance
could be used to take care of the Rink Boards and Tennis/Pickleball Courts projects with no
spend down of Capital Fund balance or additional levy. Morell also gave an update on
conversations with Midco as to whether there will be applications for grants in 2024. If no grants
are going to be applied for in 2024, then it may not be necessary to have a levy, as there is a
$600,000 Capital Fund balance that can cover any commitments to buildouts in the next budget
cycle. There is a Line Extension Program in the works with the State and Midco that would not
require any city funds.
No additional meeting is scheduled unless the City Council requests the Committee to weigh in
on any changes the Council considers.
The meeting adjourned at 8:05 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Colleen Firkus, Treasurer