06-22-99 Council Workshop Minutes

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MINUTES CITY COUNCIL JUNE 22, 1999 Mrs. Betty Dlvison, resident Mr. Bob Dolle, owner of D& T Trucking Mr. Tom Duray, resident and owner of Hoggsbreath Mr. Mike Finegan, resident Mr. Steve Garske, resident Mr. 3im Maahs, resident Mr. John Newstrand, resident and Slumberland employee Mr. Roger Schiltz, owner of All American Recreation Mr. Tom Vogt, owner of Gas-N-Go. Duray noted that the committee members were a diverse group, and felt that their recommendation is representative of Little Canada property owners. Duray reported that during its first meetings, the committee spent a significant amount of time reviewing the very complicated property taxation process and the multiple factors that affect property taxes. Next, the committee reviewed the City's debt levy history, levy buy down, and debt stabilization program. They also looked at how the City determines the amount it needs to levy for the General Fwid, Bonded Debt, and Capital Improvements. The Commrttee then reviewed the 1998 and 1999 tax rates of other Ramsey County cities. Finegan pointed out that Little Canada is currently ranked #I S for taxes, with #1 being the lowest, of the 21 Ramsey County cities. The Committee determined that if the City were to return the entire debt levy to the taxpayers, Little Canada would rank #2 in the list. Finegan noted that in applying the Debt Levy Committee's recommendation, which will be reviewed later in the report, Little Canada wil] rank #10 of the 21 Ramsey County cities. Duray reported that Little Canada has had a past history of being a high debt city. The committee looked at the rankings for the surrounding cities, and decided that it wanted to see Little Canada somewhere in the middle. The committee chose to focus on the City of Roseville given the shared School District, and determined that it wanted to see Little Canada at or below Roseville's ranking. Duray reviewed the percentage of the tax bill that goes to each jurisdiction, noting that School District #623 receives 43%, the County receives 36%, the City 15%, and miscellaneous jurisdictions receive 6%. Finegan indicated that the committee wanted this information noted in its report so that their recommendation could be viewed in context with the entire tax bill of which the City represents 15%. Duray noted that the committee recognized that while 15% of the tax bill is a relative small amount, this was the only portion that the City had a chance to change.