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MU210\4\1038080.v1 <br /> Fifth Street Towers <br />150 South Fifth Street, Suite 700 <br />Minneapolis, MN 55402 <br /> (612) 337-9300 telephone <br />(612) 337-9310 fax <br />http://www.kennedy-graven.com <br />Affirmative Action, Equal Opportunity Employer <br /> <br />MEMORANDUM <br /> <br />DATE: September 5, 2025 <br /> <br />TO: Mounds View Charter Commission <br /> <br />FROM: Joseph L. Sathe, Legal Counsel <br /> <br />RE: Vacancies <br /> <br /> <br />This memo is intended to provide additional information on when a vacancy occurs on the City <br />Council and is intended to supplement the information provided in my memo dated May 15, 2025. <br /> <br />Minnesota Statute defines when a vacancy occurs 1 and the attorney general has opined that a city <br />charter may not provide for additional situations that create a vacancy.2 <br /> <br />Occurrence of a Vacancy and Procedure for Filing A Vacancy <br />The proposed amendment to Chapter 4 establishes a process for filing a vacancy once that vacancy <br />occurs. For purposes of this memo, I am using the term “occurs” to mean that one of the situations <br />that creates a vacancy has happened – there are reasons a vacancy is created automatically at the <br />time of the event (e.g., death) and situations where the council takes action to “create” the vacancy <br />(e.g., abandonment). <br /> <br />The proposed amendment links the timelines for making the appointment to the City Council <br />adopting a resolution and not the occurrence of the vacancy.3 <br /> <br />Termination of City Residency <br />A vacancy occurs when a member of the City Council is no longer a resident of the City. Part of <br />determining residency in this context includes whether the member of the Council intends to live <br />within the City. Including a determination of “intent” provides leeway for situations where a <br />member of the Council may temporarily not have a permanent residence in the City. <br /> <br />This type of situation, where the date of the occurrence of the vacancy is not always explicitly <br />clear, is why the proposed amendment links the appointment timeline to the date the City Council <br />adopts a resolution declaring the vacancy. <br /> <br />1 Minn. Stat. 351.02 (enclosed). <br />2 Attorney General Opinion 59a-30 (July 24, 1996) (enclosed). <br />3 Proposed Amendment, Section 4.05, subd. 3 (A) requires the Council to declare the vacancy in a resolution and <br />subd. 3 (B) creates the timeline, starting on the date of the resolution, for the Administrator to present an appointee.