06-11-2025 Workshop Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE WORKSHOP MEETING CITY COUNCIL LITTLE CANADA, MINNESOTA DUNE 119 2025 Pursuant to due call and notice thereof a Workshop meeting of the City Council of Little Canada, Minnesota was convened on the 1 lth day of June 2025 in the Conference Room in the City Center located at 515 Little Canada Road in said City. Mayor Tom Fischer called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. and the following members of the City Council were present at roll call: ROLL CALL: In attendance were Mayor Fischer and City Council Members Miller, Malone, Gutierrez and Kwapick. Absent: none. ALSO PRESENT: Acting City Administrator Laura Linehan, Community Development Director Ben Harrington and City Clerk/HR Manager Heidi Heller. Also Mikaela Huot, Baker Tilly. DISCUSS TAX INCREMENT FINANCING (TIF) APPLICATION FROM LUPE DEVELOPMENT FOR 99 COUNTY ROAD B EAST The Community Development Director provided background on the development of 99 County Road B East. He explained that the parcel is currently undeveloped other than a billboard but in September 2023 the Council approved rezoning the property to Planned Unit Development for a 106-unit affordable senior housing building. He noted that a city lift station must be upgraded for additional capacity in order to add housing units to this property. He explained that the development would be permanently classified as 4d which means the property would not pay the full tax rate. Mikaela Huot, Baker Tilly, reported that the developer, Lupe Development, submitted a request for TIF to assist with funding their affordable senior housing project. She gave an overview of the fundamentals of TIF and how TIF affects their development funding. She explained that this proposal from Lupe Development is for a pay-as-you-go TIF district for up to 26 years. She stated that Lupe Development has received three grants for the project and plan to apply for more this summer. There was Council concern over the length and amount of the TIF requested due to the land acquisition and developer fee amounts the developer has listed. There was Council consensus to offer a TIF district for $200,000 for five years since there is an additional expense to improve the lift station. DISCUSS DENTAL & VISION INSURANCE PREMIUM CONTRIBUTIONS The Acting City Administrator reviewed the survey that was done of 11 cities inquiring if they offer vision or dental insurance and if the city contributes anything towards the costs. She stated that Little Canada offers both vision and dental insurance to employees, but both policies are fully employee paid. She noted that six cities offer vision insurance, and none contribute towards the cost. She explained that all 11 cities offer dental insurance, and it really varies for if and how much the city contributes towards that cost. She stated that three cities pay 90-100% of the premium and four cities do not contribute anything.