Agenda Packets - 2025/03/24 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Mounds View City Council March 3, 2025 Special Meeting Page 4 1 He explained the strategic plan calls for $360,000 to be collected in franchise fees which meant 2 $130,000 should be going to street improvements. He recommended as managers of the City that 3 the Council follow up on this. He stated there is no ordinance in place that says a street levy is 4 allowed. He suggested if a street levy is going to remain going forward, that an ordinance be put 5 in place to make this permissible. 6 7 Council Member Meehlhause reported 50% of the franchise fees goes to the street fund. 8 9 Mayor Lindstrom commented on how it was cheaper for the city to levy for dollars than to do a to bond. 11 12 Sharon Kirsher, 8406 Red Oak Drive, thanked the City for allowing Project Ardan to hold their 13 event on Saturday. She discussed how the City's plow drivers were salt safe. She recommended 14 those individuals who salt the front sidewalk take the same training as the plow drivers in order to 15 reduce the use of salt. 16 17 Robert Beligensky, 8198 Groveland Road, discussed his grant application for $500 for a new 18 applicant. He felt the program was run poorly and led to confusion. He feared the City had done 19 some things that were not legal when it comes to data practices. He explained the program was 20 first advertised in Mounds View Matters and residents were encouraged to apply noting there 21 would be a lottery. He noted there were no eligibility requirements. He commented there was no 22 protection against a landlord swooping in and having his tenants take a bunch of these grants. He 23 noted he owns a bunch of property in other communities to see if he could apply for similar grants. 24 He reported he had his third kid around the same time the grant was due, but he did get his 25 application in on time. He indicated he sent in two applications, one for himself and one for his 26 wife, asking if a household could receive two grants. He stated the grants were awarded in 27 December and he was notified his wife's grant was awarded. He indicated this program was 28 advertised so poorly that the City only received 69 applications for free money. He reported he 29 submitted a data request to see who won and if a landlord had swept in to receive a number of 30 grants. Through the data request process, more problems popped up with the City. He explained 31 he received bad information from the City Administrator when Mr. Zikmund stated 72 of the 72 32 grants were approved.He commented this was suspicious to him that the City had received exactly 33 enough applications for the amount of grant funding. In addition, he questioned why the City was 34 handing out 72 grants when the Mounds View Matters said there would be 74. He stated the fact 35 was the City received 69 grants, with three additional grants that were for duplicate households. 36 He reported he asked for a list of grant winners and the three properties that had been thrown out. 37 He stated he asked for 10 days to see the list of properties that were thrown out and this information 38 was being withheld from him. He understood he was one of them, but wanted to see who else had 39 been eliminated. He commented he made a second data request on January 17 regarding the 40 instructions the City received from the Met Council to administer this grant program and this 41 request has not yet been filled. He believed this was illegal, noting he believed the City had 10 42 days to respond. He stated he was disappointed with how poorly this grant program was written 43 and administered. He did not believe it was fair his grant application was denied especially when 44 there was only 69 of the 74 grants administered. He feared something shady was going on with the 45 City. 46