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Record of Proceedings

Aberdeen City Council Meeting - November 17, 2025: Approvals, Airport Updates, and Youth Awards

City Council — Monday, November 17, 2025
BodyAberdeen, South Dakota
SessionCity Council
DateMonday, November 17, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 38:34

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it
1:09

530, so let's call the order of this meeting.

1:11

Jordan, would you give us a roll call?

1:13

Please respond by stating present.

1:15

Councilmember Ronane.

1:16

President.

1:16

Foberg?

1:17

Present.

1:17

We belt present.

1:18

Ward.

1:19

Present.

1:19

Johnson.

1:20

Present.

1:20

Econger.

1:21

Present.

1:22

Nelson.

1:22

Present.

1:23

Normstrup.

1:23

Mayor Shanneman.

1:25

Present.

1:25

Please stand with me for the Pledge of Allegiance.

1:30

Please.

1:35

And to the Republic for which are all of business here tonight.

1:48

It's to approve this meeting's agenda as printed.

1:51

I take a motion.

1:53

Move to approve.

1:54

Second.

1:55

Got a motion.

1:56

Councilman E.

1:57

Kniger.

1:57

Second.

1:57

Councilman Nelson.

1:58

All in favor, please say aye.

2:00

Aye.

2:00

Aye.

2:01

Oppose nay.

2:02

Motion carries.

2:03

Next order will be to approve the minutes of the previous meeting, which took place two weeks ago on November 3rd.

2:09

Move to approve.

2:10

Second.

2:10

Motion Libel.

2:11

Second ward.

2:12

All in favor, please say aye.

2:13

Aye.

2:14

Aye.

2:14

Oppose nay.

2:16

That motion carries as well.

2:17

Now we have an open forum speaker here tonight, Senator Carl Perry is here to talk about some awards that had been doled out.

2:26

Welcome to the meeting, Carl.

2:27

Good to see you.

2:32

Thank you very much.

2:33

I'm very excited to be here.

2:34

Uh I I think one of the most important things is when we can recognize our youth for the good things they're doing.

2:42

It's important that we spread the good word.

2:45

The Exchange Club of Aberdeen been around for over 50 years, and we have over 60 members.

2:51

We work with the prevention of child abuse, active in our community, and uh Americanism and youth activities.

2:59

And I want to tell you a little bit about the youth activities, but I want to give us a shout out to our sponsors of that, American Twistcomb.

3:08

And then Young Citizenship Award.

5:01

So it's pretty exciting for these young people.

5:04

And the youth of the month award winners are Aberdeen Central Youth of the Month, Hannah Anderson, Aberdeen Ron Collie, Youth of the Month, Claire Crawford, and Aberdeen Christian Youth of the Month, is E.

5:17

Helm.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Engineering And Infrastructure█████████████████████████████29%
Procedural█████████████13%
Economic Development█████████████13%
Water And Wastewater Management███████████11%
Public Engagement███████████11%
Youth Programs██████6%
Public Safety██████6%
Budget Equity Analysis████4%
Transportation Safety████4%
Summary of Proceedings

Aberdeen City Council Meeting - November 17, 2025

The Aberdeen City Council convened on November 17, 2025, at 5:30 PM to approve several agenda items including payment requests for water resource recovery facility improvements, bridge replacement, airport projects, water treatment chemicals, and a weapon surplus. The council also received a community presentation from an Exchange Club youth award ceremony and a city manager report on new initiatives and a community exchange program. An executive session was held after the regular business.

Consent Calendar

  • Approved the agenda as printed. (Motion by Councilmember E. Kniger, second by Nelson; unanimous aye)
  • Approved minutes from the November 3, 2025 meeting. (Motion by Libel, second by Ward; unanimous aye)
  • Consent calendar items included several approvals, with Councilmember Chad abstaining from item I5; motion carried unanimously.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Senator Carl Perry presented Exchange Club youth awards: Hannah Anderson (Aberdeen Central Youth of the Month), Claire Crawford (Aberdeen Roncalli Youth of the Month), and E. Helm (Aberdeen Christian Youth of the Month). The Exchange Club of Aberdeen, with over 60 members and 50 years of service, focuses on child abuse prevention, Americanism, and youth activities. Perry highlighted the importance of recognizing youth achievements.

Discussion Items

  • WRF Improvements Pay Request #5: A $3,253,851 payment to PKG Contracting for work on aeration basin concrete, pipe procurement, and other costs. Staff noted $24 million in total ARPA funding ($18.9M state + $5.1M local) was allocated, with $7 million remaining after this payment. Approved unanimously.
  • 10th Avenue Bridge Replacement Pay Request #9: Payment of $255,751.72 and a change order of $11,066.80 to Promer (of Slayton). City Engineer Stu confirmed substantial completion expected first week of December, with remaining work on barrier slabs and approach labs. Approved unanimously.
  • 2026 Water Treatment Chemicals: Quotes for chemicals were presented; prices similar to last year (some up, some down). Approval of quotes recommended. Approved unanimously.
  • Airport Improvement Projects:
    • General Aviation Apron Reconstruction Phase 2: Payments of $4,008.86 to Helms & Associates (resident engineering) and $13,716 to Aaron Swan & Associates (material testing). Project substantially complete. Funding: 90% federal, 5% state, 5% city. Approved unanimously.
    • Airport Terminal Access Road and Parking Lot (Projects AIP 53/54): Payments of $59,867.23 to Helms (engineering), $997,656.23 to Dominic Construction (work through Oct 25), and $1,450 to Night Towing (car relocation). Minor punch list remaining. Funding: 95% federal, 2.5% state, 2.5% city. Approved unanimously.
    • Airport Terminal Expansion (AIP 55/56): Payment of $806.64 to Helms. Project in planning, construction start April 1, 2026 due to structural steel availability. Funding: $1.2M from Senate Bill 2024, $800K federal AIP, ~$60K local. Approved unanimously.
    • Preconditioned Air Units (AIP 57): Payment of $390 to Helms for engineering assistance. Project starts April 1, 2026. Funding: 95% federal, 2.5% state, 2.5% city. Approved unanimously.
  • Surplus Service Duty Weapon: Police Chief John Dahl requested declaring surplus a service duty weapon (serial BZAE531) for retiring officer Dave McNeil, now city manager. The weapon will be transferred to a local firearms dealer with costs covered by private donations from police department members. Approved unanimously.
  • Review of Bills and Payroll: Pay period November 2-15, 2025. Motion to approve by Councilwoman Liebelt, second by Fulberg. Some members abstained on specific payments (Banner, First Interstate Bank, Basiko Pensine & Climate Control, and Development Corporation). Motion carried with partial abstentions.

City Manager's Report

  • Administrative Holidays: Two administrative holidays for city staff set for Friday, January 2, 2026 and Friday, November 27, 2026.
  • Wolf Line Pilot Program: Ride Line partnership with Northern State University to provide student transportation on Tuesdays from 4-5 PM, funded collaboratively. Named by student government.
  • Southeast Presentation College Building: Discussions ongoing for potential educational use or senior center.
  • Community Exchange Program: SDSU extension agents presented findings from Brookings residents visiting Aberdeen. Positive impressions: web presence, friendliness, cleanliness, parks (Wiley Parks), downtown atmosphere, dining, education institutions. Challenges noted: need for more signage, downtown retail, road/sidewalk repairs, affordable housing, west side development, limited public transportation, and cold weather. Next steps include planning sessions.
  • 8th Avenue Water Transmission Line Update: Contractor installed water main from booster station to 8th Avenue; street paving set for next day, opening by Friday. Work continues east of Brown County 19. Water tower foundations completed; wall forms expected in December.

Key Outcomes

  • All payment requests and agenda items were approved unanimously (with noted abstentions on payroll items).
  • The meeting concluded with an executive session to discuss contractual details.

Executive Session

The council moved to executive session for contractual discussions; no further actions were taken publicly.

Meeting Transcript

530, so let's call the order of this meeting. Jordan, would you give us a roll call? Please respond by stating present. Councilmember Ronane. President. Foberg? Present. We belt present. Ward. Present. Johnson. Present. Econger. Present. Nelson. Present. Normstrup. Mayor Shanneman. Present. Please stand with me for the Pledge of Allegiance. Please. And to the Republic for which are all of business here tonight. It's to approve this meeting's agenda as printed. I take a motion. Move to approve. Second. Got a motion. Councilman E. Kniger. Second. Councilman Nelson. All in favor, please say aye. Aye. Aye. Oppose nay. Motion carries. Next order will be to approve the minutes of the previous meeting, which took place two weeks ago on November 3rd. Move to approve. Second. Motion Libel. Second ward. All in favor, please say aye. Aye. Aye. Oppose nay. That motion carries as well. Now we have an open forum speaker here tonight, Senator Carl Perry is here to talk about some awards that had been doled out. Welcome to the meeting, Carl. Good to see you. Thank you very much.

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