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Home My WebLink About04-11-25 The Fresh NewsletterApril 11, 2025 PUBLIC MEETINGS Schedule Planning Commission Meeting Monday, April 14, 2025, at 6:30 P.M . Economic Development Authority Meeting Tuesday, April 15, 2025, at 6:30 P.M. City Council Meeting Tuesday, April 15, 2025, at 7:00 P.M. Meetings are held at City Hall, 3880 Laverne Ave N., Lake Elmo, MN 55042. Changes or cancellations will be posted at Lakeelmo.gov/calendar. How to Watch Watch online or on cable television here. Find meeting agendas and minutes at City of Lake Elmo, MN Arbor Day Proclamation Celebrate Arbor Day The City of Lake Elmo has proclaimed Saturday, April 26, 2025, as Arbor Day and May 2025 as Arbor Month in Lake Elmo, Minnesota. The City will celebrate by hosting the annual Free-Tree giveaway on Saturday, April 26, from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. at Lake Elmo Public Works. Trees will be distributed one per household on a first-come, first-served basis until supplies run out. You must reside in Lake Elmo to receive one. Read the Proclamation Bay West to Partner with the City to test PFAS Destruction Technology On February 4, 2025, Bay West, a nationally acclaimed environmental consulting and remediation firm, presented a Site Access Request to the Lake Elmo City Council to test PFAS destruction using the General Atomics PERSES™ system at the public works facility located at 3445 Ideal Ave in Lake Elmo. The Site Access Request has been approved, and groundbreaking will take place on April 21, 2025, at Lake Elmo Public Works. Testing is tentatively scheduled to begin on May 15. Learn more here: Bay West Project. Fire Hydrant Flushing Lake Elmo Public Works will conduct a water main and fire hydrant flushing program starting April 14 and continue through the end of the month. This notice informs our customers that the flushing and valve operation may cause temporary water outages and a decrease in pressure in certain areas, which could affect automatic flushing and pressure-sensitive equipment. Residents may also notice mineral particles in their water that can affect laundry operations. If mineral particles are detected, run cold water to clear household water lines. If the problem persists, residents should contact Lake Elmo Public Works at (651) 747-3941. Lake Elmo Crosswalk update Public Works crews have started working on two new crosswalk markings: one at Laverne Ave. N. and 39th Street, and the other at 39th Street and Wildflower Dr. The project is expected to be completed by May. Find the Lake Elmo Crosswalk Policy, adopted by the city council on December 3, 2024, here. Important Notice - Utility Rate Change You will see an increase in your utility rates reflected on your 2025 Quarter 1 statement. In a concentrated effort to secure funding for the operations and maintenance of Lake Elmo's water treatment facilities and to place the utility funds on a more stable long-term footing- the City Council accepted the finance department’s recommendation for a rate increase in the water and sewer funds, effective with the Quarter 1 bills this April. No increases are planned for stormwater fees in 2025. Learn more about rate changes and sample calculations at Lakeelmo.gov. Local Board of Appeal and Equalization (LBAE) Meeting Tuesday, April 15 Every March, Washington County sends property owners a Valuation Notice detailing their property's assessed market value. If you disagree with the assessment and want to appeal the valuation, or want to learn more, attend the 2025 Local Board of Appeal and Equalization (LBAE) meeting on Tuesday, April 15, from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at Lake Elmo City Hall. To learn more, visit Washington County's website Understanding Your Property Value and Tax section. Spring Load Restrictions will end on April 16, 2025 at 12:01 a.m. The Minnesota Department of Transportation, MNDOT, will end spring load restrictions in the SOUTH, SOUTHEAST, AND METRO frost zones, including Lake Elmo, on Wednesday, April 16, at 12:01 a.m. Lake Elmo follows MNDOT's start and end dates for the metro seasonal load limits. Road Restrictions Pothole Patching Public Works crews have started to fill potholes on city streets. Please reduce speed when approaching street crews. You can report potholes by calling Public Works at 651-747- 3945 or report a pothole here. Master Gardeners Plant Sale Mark your calendars now for the annual Plant Sale and Garden Expo from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, May 17, hosted by the University of Minnesota Extension Washington County Master Gardener Volunteer program. Home gardeners can buy a wide selection of plants, including varieties featured in ready-made garden exhibits, and get their gardening questions answered at a free Diagnostic Clinic. This event will be held inside Building A at the Washington County Fairgrounds, located at Highway 5 and Manning Avenue in Lake Elmo. Bring a wagon or cart for shopping; cash, checks, and credit cards will be accepted. For more information about the UMN Extension Washington County Master Gardener Volunteer Program, visit: washingtoncountymg.org. New Lake Elmo Lions Club The Afton Bayport Lakeland Lions Club is hosting a meeting on Wednesday, April 16, at 6:00 p.m. in the Lake Elmo Community Room at City Hall to establish a Lake Elmo Lions Club. Lake Elmo once had a Lions Club that was chartered in 1956 and operated for 65 years. However, due to declining fundraising efforts and a lack of interest, the charter was dissolved. The mission of the Lions Club is to empower Lions Clubs, volunteers, and partners to improve health and wellbeing, strengthen communities, and support those in need through humanitarian service and grants that impact lives globally and encourage peace and international understanding. *Please note the time change- the meeting will begin at 6:00*Please note the time change- the meeting will begin at 6:00 p.m.p.m. Double the fun Standing on the future site of Lake Elmo Elementary, Iliana and Brielle Quam, Brandon and Stephanie Quam's twin daughters, are very excited about their new school. They drive past the site daily and love to see the progress. The Quam twins will be part of the first graduating class from the new Lake Elmo Elementary School, which will open in the 2026/2027 academic school year. Follow along on the new school progress here. Lake Elmo Landscape Revival Native Plant Expo & Market Mark your calendars! The 14th Annual More-Than-a-Plant Sale, part of the Landscape Revival and Native Plant Expo & Market, is scheduled for Saturday, June 7, 2025, from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at Rockpoint Church. Buy native plants from Minnesota growers and connect with local conservation and restoration groups to learn about pollinators, wildlife, and water quality. Sally Manzara Interpretive Nature Center Save the date! We are so excited to announce this year’s fundraiser dinner will be Tuesday, May 6th at 6 p.m., at the Lake Elmo Inn Event Center, and will feature a delicious surf and turf dinner. We are extremely blessed and fortunate to have award-winning nature photographer, Layne Kennedy, as our guest speaker. Layne is nationally-recognized magazine photographer shooting assignments around the globe for publications like Smithsonian, National Geographic Traveler, National Geographic Adventure, National Geographic Book Division, Outside, and Newsweek. Individual tickets are $125, or, you can get a table for eight for $1,200, which includes two bottles of wine. Did you know that the SMINC is an independent nonprofit organization? We enjoy a really great partnership with the City of Lake Elmo, but we do not receive financial support from the city. Instead, we rely on individual donors to keep our doors open and provide the kind of engaging nature-based programming people have come to expect from the SMINC. We hope you will consider joining us on May 6th, so that we can Grow Together! To sign up, visit our website (https://sminc-lake-elmo.org/) and click the “Fundraiser” tab! The next Toddler Tuesday is coming up on April 15th at 10 a.m. This month’s topic is “Spring Flowers!” We’re hoping to be outside this month—but with the way April is starting, there is no guarantee! Toddler Tuesdays are for kids aged 0-5, $8 per kiddo (under one are free!) You can register on our website here. April Recycling Focus: Paper Shredding Did you know shredded paper cannot be recycled in your curbside bin? You can take confidential documents to be shredded at a community-sponsored event or participating business. Washington County offers free paper shredding events for confidential papers at the Environmental Centers. These events are only open to residents and businesses of Washington County. Proof of residency is required to participate. Documents are shredded on- site by Shred Right and recycled. The next shredding event is Wednesday, April 16, from 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. at the South Environmental Center in Woodbury. For more information, see Washington County Shredding Events. Lake Elmo Public Works is hiring! We are currently accepting applications for Public Works Operator III. The Public Works Operator performs intermediate work, providing skilled operations and maintenance of City infrastructure (water, sewer, stormwater, parks, and streets) and equipment. We are also hiring seasonal maintenance staff to assist our full-time Public Works staff in maintaining and repairing our city streets and parks. Apply Here Become a Washington County Tree Steward Join the Washington Conservation District and UMN to learn more about trees and how to help care for our collective urban forest! The Minnesota Tree Steward program is designed for people who love trees, enjoy being outdoors, and want to volunteer with their community. Through a partnership with the Washington Conservation District (WCD) and the University of Minnesota, you’ll learn how to care for young and newly planted trees in public spaces of Washington County. After completing the training and short assessment, you‘ll also become a certified Tree Steward Volunteer who can participate in activities under the guidance of WCD/ host site Forestry staff. To stay active, volunteers must complete 25 hours of volunteer work and/or participate in 3 tree-related volunteer events each year. Questions? Email Jessica Sahu Teli Workshop dates (Pick one): April 5th: 9am - 2 pm: Scandia Community Center April 12th: 9 am - 2 pm: Nordic Center in Lake Elmo Park Reserve. Register Here. What do my property taxes pay for? Property Tax Calculator The City Council adopted the 2025 Tax Levy on December 17. City Finance Dept. staff has developed a downloadable tool that estimates 2025 city taxes (not other jurisdictions) on your home and shows approximately how much of your taxes go toward each service area. Check it out here. Lead Service Line Inventory Project The City of Lake Elmo has completed and submitted its service line materials inventory to the Minnesota Department of Health. The service line inventory is publicly available, and you can check the materials for your service line by visiting the Lead Inventory Tracking Tool (LITT) at https://maps.umn.edu/LSL/. To complete the service line inventory, our system gathered information from building records, along with door-to-door efforts and self-verification. As of September 27, 2024, our inventory consists of 0 lead lines, two galvanized lines requiring replacement, 280 lines with unknown materials, and 3,327 non- lead service lines. You may contact the Lake Elmo Public Works Department at any time to update the tracking records. You may also contact Lake Elmo staff @ 651-747-3946. Attention – NEW Utility Billing Payment Portal We have moved to an intuitive new Utility Billing Portal called Paya. Grab your City of Lake Elmo utility account number and proceed to Paya at the link below to register, manage your account, set up autopay, or make payments. LakeElmo.PayaCP.com If Autopay isn't for you, try out the new Text-and-Pay option. If you need assistance, reach out to us at RNess@LakeElmo.gov or call 651-747-3906. Safe Drinking Water Meeting Replay is Available The City of Lake Elmo, along with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) and Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), hosted an informational meeting regarding PFAS, safe drinking water, and private wells on July 25, 2024, where presentations were given by MPCA, MDH, and Lake Elmo’s City Engineer as well as a question- and-answer period for the participants. The presentation slides are available here as well as printed copies are available at City Hall. A recording of the meeting is available here. The Lake Elmo Community Development Department is happy to share our new Sign Guide, created to help local businesses and residents understand the sign regulations in our community. This guide offers information on the types of signs allowed, size requirements, placement, and more. Whether you are a business owner looking to advertise or a resident curious about neighborhood guidelines, this is a good resource for you. Check out the Lake Elmo Sign Guide (linked here: Sign Guide) to learn more. Join us on Nextdoor Visit our website Our mission is to provide quality public services in a fiscally responsible manner in partnership with our community. City of Lake Elmo | 3880 Laverne Avenue North | Lake Elmo, MN 55042 US Unsubscribe | Update Profile | Constant Contact Data Notice