06.a2 Draft minutes 09-03-2025 Work SessionSeptember 3, 2025
A work session meeting of the Scandia City Council was held on the above date. The meeting was
conducted in the Council Chambers at the Scandia Community Center and over an electronic
platform. All participants who joined the meeting remotely could hear ea ch other and contribute to
discussions.
Mayor Steve Kronmiller called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. The following were present:
Council members Kirsten Libby, Jerry Cusick, Mike Lubke, Jim Gribble, and Mayor Steve
Kronmiller. Staff present: City Administrator Kyle Morell, Public Works Director Charles Fischer,
and City Treasurer Veronica Korby.
APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA
Libby, seconded by Lubke, moved to approve the agenda as amended. Motion carried 5-0.
County Attorney Kevin Magnuson – Washington County crime updates and trends
Magnuson gave an overview of the types of crimes and the trends since 2018. Topics included auto
theft, high-risk juveniles and keeping them accountable, sting operations, human trafficking recovery
operations, and looking for help in the recovery field. A majority of crimes are committed by
individuals coming from outside the county.
Citizen Request regarding ditch mowing
Brad and Sonja Borg have requested that the ROW on Oxboro Circle not be mowed, as they have
planted native plants. Council is in favor of allowing native planting and believes that rules could be
established for this purpose. PW stated that it is a safety issue to allow the ROW to be uncontrolled/
not maintained. It currently cuts 5-7’ of ROW on Oxboro Circle in front of the Borg’s house as a
compromise with the owners. IT would prefer to mow the full 12’ allowed in the City’s ROW
Policy. Morell suggests looking into policies that could help protect the plantings, but stated the area
along Oxboro is dedicated ROW, owned by the City, and the property owners have no right to make
improvements that do not comply with the City’s ROW Policy.
TiiGavo – Clean Water Partnership Loan
City Staff are continuing to assist Tii Gavo to obtain a Clean Water Program Loan (CWPL) for their
community septic system repair/replacement. One of the items that has come up is the timing of the
items that the Council would need to approve and the related financial costs. Tii Gavo
representatives are asking for the City to agree to sign off on the related loan documents for the
CWPL before the association provides executed assessment waivers for all the properties. Their
concern is that if the DNR does not approve the loan, then there will be no point in completing the
assessment waivers. According to the DNR representative, the project should qualify for the loan, but
that is not a guarantee. Council agreed to support the loan application, provided the City can
withdraw from the loan obligation if fewer than 100% of property owners agree to sign the
assessment waivers. Council also stated they wanted to make sure the HOAs understood the City i s
not agreeing to take over their systems.
2026 DRAFT PRELIMINARY BUDGET
Morell presented the draft 2026 preliminary budget and the budget timeline for meetings.
Recap of the August presentation: levy increased to 6.59%, council requested to lower it to 3.3%.
CIP Funds were reduced with projects moving to 2027 and applying for grants in 2026. We have
reached %. IF we wanted to cut further, we could cut rink attendants, calcium chloride down to 1
treatment a year, stop decorating light polls. Council chose to go with the September proposed
budget. The public will have the opportunity to comment on the 2026 draft budget at the next regular
meeting on September 16, 2025, where the Council will vote on a 2026 preliminary budget. The final
public hearing is at the Truth & Taxation meeting on December 3, 2025.
Scandia City Council Agenda
September 3, 2025
Page 2 of 2
ADJOURNMENT
Gribble, second by Libby, moved to adjourn the meeting. Motion carried 5-0.
The meeting adjourned at 8:21 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Veronica Korby
City Treasurer