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06.a2 Minutes of July 1, 2026 Council Work SessionJuly 1, 2026 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 each other and contribute to discussions. Mayor Steve Kronmiller called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. The following were present: Council members Jerry Cusick, Kirsten Libby, and Mike Lubke over Zoom, and Mayor Steve Kronmiller. Staff present: City Administrator Kyle Morell. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA Kronmiller, seconded by Gribble, moved to approve the agenda with the addition of data center discussion to the end of the agenda. Motion carried unanimously. RESOLUTION 07-01-26-01 – SCANDIA 2026C GO REVENUE BOND FOR BLISS WWT PROJECT The City received funding from the Public Facilities Authority (PFA) for its Bliss Wastewater System upgrades. The PFA funding consists of an 80% grant and a 20% loan. The total cost of the project is $1,878,933. The City will receive a $1,503,146 Point Source Implementation Grant from PFA, an additional $114,392 grant from the Clean Water State Revolving Fund, and a $261,395 loan from PFA. The total project funding consists of 86% grant funds. Staff presented Council with the Resolution 07-01-26-01, Scandia 2026C General Obligation Revenue Bond, which is required as part of the loan. The bond will kick in if the City fails to collect enough revenue to repay the loan. The City plans to add the loan repayment amount as a line item in the Bliss sewer budget. The loan amount will result in a $55.82 quarterly cost for each resident. Cusick, seconded by Gribble, moved to approve Resolution 07-01-26-01. Motion Carried Unanimously. CODE ENFORCEMENT Mayor Kronmiller brought this discussion item forward, stating that residents have approached him and said the City does not do a good job enforcing its rules. They would like to see the City do more about code enforcement, beyond the revision of its Administrative Citation Code Chapter 32, which was completed in 2024. Kronmiller asked what priority level the City should assign to code enforcement. Councilmember Libby stated the process is complaint-driven since we do not have a code enforcement officer. Staff outlined the code enforcement process, beginning with the initial complaint, then investigating it, and sending a notice of violation letter if needed. If the violation is not corrected within the allotted time, a citation is sent. Kronmiller stated that the City Code allows for the City to take residents to court if they continually violate the code, but it does not specify when that step should occur. Staff will talk with the City Attorney about revisions to the Administrative Citation Code Chapter, specifically adding language about when a case will be sent to court. Councilmember Gribble believes residents should have 12 months before their case goes to court. Carol Varhalla, 18819 Layton Ave N., spoke on behalf of her neighborhood. She stated residents have made complaints every month, sometimes weekly, and nothing gets done. She asked why the City has rules if it will not enforce them? Failure to enforce its rules shows residents they can violate them Scandia City Council Work Session July 1, 2026 Page 2 of 3 without consequence. She believes the City should work to allocate more resources to this matter. Councilmember Gribble stated that the Washington County Deputy should be able to assist with code enforcement. Staff will speak with the City Attorney and the Deputy and include this item on the July regular meeting agenda for further discussion. CITY CLERK AND TREASURER JOB DESCRIPTIONS AND WAGE ADJUSTMENT Changes in office staff, contracted work, and task reassignment have necessitated revisions to the job descriptions for our Treasurer and City Clerk. The City has contracted with Washington County to organize and run its elections, a function formerly performed by the City Clerk. The City no longer performs accounting services for Forest Lake Television (FLTV), a function formerly performed by the Treasurer. Tasks within the office have also been reassigned amongst the staff, with the Treasurer taking over Payroll (a change made in 2025, but not reflected in the job description at the time) and carrying the County-required Food Service Manager certification so the City can continue to rent out its commercial kitchen. With the retirement of our City Clerk, I have elected to promote Office Assistant Brenda Stignani to City Clerk. The Treasurer position has changed since we hired Veronica in 2025. The position took over payroll and plays a larger role in Accounts Payable than it did prior to 2025. While the position no longer does the accounting for FLTV, it has taken on a larger role in the EDA. Veronica is also our Food Service Manager, carrying the required certification, now that Brenda has retired. The Treasurer's job description has been updated to better reflect the work done currently being done. The previous job descriptions were presented to Council for review, and the new ones for approval. With Bee's job title change and Veronica's updated job description, I would like to adjust their pay to better reflect the value of their positions. I would like to increase their compensation by $5.00 per hour. This would bring both positions to around $30.00 per hour. Resolution 07-01-26-02 was presented. It amends the 2026 pay rates for Office Assistant, Treasurer, and Clerk. The amended rates will go into effect for the Treasurer and Clerk for the pay period beginning June 28. Both positions have been working in their current roles since March. Lubke, seconded by Libby, motioned to approve Resolution 07-01-26-02 Amending 2026 Pay Rates. Motion Carried Unanimously. Cusick, seconded by Libby, motioned to approve revised job descriptions for the City Clerk and Treasurer. Motion Carried Unanimously. PLANNING MEMO PROPOSED ZONING MAP AMENDMENT – BIG MARINE LAKE LOTS The City received a variance application for the construction of a dwelling that would encroach into the side yard setback on a riparian lot on Big Marine Lake. After reviewing the application, staff believes the most appropriate action would be to re-zone the property and those around it. The properties in question meet all the standards of properties within the Rural Residential – Neighborhood, but are currently zoned Rural Residential – General. Rezoning the parcels would eliminate the need for a variance for side-yard setbacks. Libby, seconded by Cusick, motioned to move the proposed rezoning to the Planning Commission for a public hearing. Motion Carried Unanimously. OFFICE ASSISTANT HIRING Scandia City Council Work Session July 1, 2026 Page 3 of 3 The City posted and interviewed for a new Office Assistant. Staff would like to hire Kara Risinger for the position at a wage of $24.00 per hour. She will start on Monday, July 6. Libby, seconded by Gribble, moved to hire Kara Risinger as the City’s new Office Assistant. Motion Carried Unanimously. COMMUNICATIONS INTERN Staff would like to hire a Communications Intern to help the City improve its communication with its residents. As the City begins its 2050 Comprehensive Plan (Comp Plan) work, resident engagement is more important than ever. Mayor Kronmiller stated he views the Comp Plan as a coincidence and not the reason for this. He believes the City has struggled to meet its residents where they are for a long time. Council asked staff to reach out to other communities and residents within the City to see whether anyone might be interested in helping the City. Councilmember Cusick stated he was not in favor of this; he believes that residents who want information from the City will seek it out, and the City does not need to push it out. Councilmember Gribble likes the idea as a way to counter misinformation. Staff will reach out to the community and other cities to see what help might be available. DATA CENTER DISCUSSION Councilmember Gribble asked to have a brief discussion on data centers after seeing the Mayor's statement on Scandia Then and Now. He stated he is not opposed to data centers, only cloud storage centers. He believes Scandia does not have sufficient electrical capacity or internet bandwidth to host a data center. Councilmember Lubke believes it is good to get ahead of the discussion, but believes it is difficult to say that a developer would not pay for infrastructure improvements. Mayor Kronmiller stated the City’s Unified Development Code is restrictive and does not currently allow data centers. Carrie Mitchell – 14192 209th St N. – Conversations about data centers generally focus on hyperscale data centers. These are a newer type of data center that is a drain on local resources. She is encouraged by the City's willingness to discuss this topic. This item will be added to a future work session for further discussion. ADJOURNMENT Lubke, seconded by Cusick, moved to adjourn the meeting. Motion carried unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 7:59 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Kyle H. Morell City Administrator