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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

Blaine City Council Meeting: Truth-in-Taxation & Development Business - December 1, 2025

City Council — Monday, December 1, 2025

BodyBlaine, Minnesota

SessionCity Council

DateMonday, December 1, 2025

StatusFILED

Video Record

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Transcript — Verbatim

Speaker numbers apply only to this recording.

Speaker 1

4:20

Good evening, everyone.

4:21

We're going to call the City Council meeting to order for December first, two thousand twenty-five.

4:25

Please rise for the Pledge of Allegiance.

Speaker 2

4:45

Council Members Fleming.

Unassigned speaker

5:00

We don't have any awards or presentations this evening, so we'll start with communications, which is an opportunity for members or staff to provide any announcements or updates that they might have.

Speaker 1

5:05

Are there any communications this evening?

5:10

See none.

Speaker 3

5:13

Yeah.

5:14

Excuse me.

5:15

Mayor and council.

5:16

So there was an agenda item under administration this evening for a second reading related to sidewalk plowing.

5:21

And this was discussed by council at the September 8th retreat, and there was direction to bring an ordinance where the inconsistencies between city policy of plowing sidewalks and the ordinance that states that residents should plow sidewalks.

5:36

Um would be clarified, and the direction by council in September was to have the city continue to plow sidewalks.

5:43

And there's some been some additional information that's been gathered by staff and shared with some of the council, but it's important for the entirety of council to have all that information and discuss this issue again.

5:53

So we'll be bringing it to the January 24th retreat when we talk about other customer service levels that the city provides or should or should not provide.

6:03

So that can uh discussion will occur in January, and then direction will be provided by council as to whether the uh city should be continuing to plow sidewalks or have that fall on the resident's responsibility.

6:14

So benefit for the council and public if you've been paying attention to that item.

Speaker 1

6:19

Excellent.

6:20

Thank you, Manager Thorvig.

6:21

Are there any other communications?

6:23

Councilmember Masolia.

Speaker 4

6:24

Thank you, Miss Mayor.

6:25

Um, yeah, just to piggyback on that.

6:27

I mean, I I think it would have been kind of interesting to see how the conversation went around the sidewalk snow removal.

6:32

Um I think probably tabling it and having more conversation was the right thing to do.

6:38

Um but I do, you know, I just want the public that have been following this to know that we are seriously looking at you know, different options on on how we can try to level out spending, and this is a serious conversation.

6:50

And um, at least for me personally, I I think the city should follow our own ordinance.

6:55

And so um I'm a little disappointed that we didn't have the conversation tonight, but I I think tabling it and having more discussion hopefully will allow us to get to the proper end result.

7:07

So um thank you for letting people know that have been following that, Manager Thorvik.

Speaker 1

7:13

Any other communications or updates from council?

7:16

Seeing none, we'll move to the open forum, which is an opportunity for the public to share comments or concerns or input on other items.

7:23

While open form is not intended to provide back and forth uh response or discussion opportunities if follow-up is needed, city staff will contact speakers outside of the meeting to arrange for that follow-up.

7:34

Each speaker will be limited to three minutes, and there's a maximum of 15 minutes set aside for the open forum.

7:40

And if you are here to speak on agenda item eight, there's a public hearing, which you're welcome to speak uh on that agenda item during that time as well.

7:48

Is there anyone here this evening that wishes to participate in the open forum?

7:53

You're welcome to come to the podium at this time.

Unassigned speaker

7:58

Good

Speaker 1

7:58

evening, welcome.

8:00

Name and address for the record, please.

Speaker 5

8:03

Grace Anderson Shrunk 950, 113th Avenue Northeast in Blaine, of course.

8:11

Okay, I I'm only I'm here because I don't know who else to talk to.

8:17

This all started last summer when I was on my patio having a cup of coffee with a friend, and the neighbor in one of the new houses at four butt my acre lot over there, came over and said, Your tree is gonna fall on my house.

8:33

I said, What?

8:34

He said, Well, look, I said, Well, it's leaning my way, it can't.

8:38

Oh, yeah, it's gonna fall on my house.

Unassigned speaker

8:40

Well,

Speaker 5

8:41

he went and contacted our arborist from Blaine, and he came out and talked to

Unassigned speaker

8:47

Speaker 5

8:47

and gave me a legal look, legal looking paper about this tree.

8:53

And uh I started talking to him, and

Unassigned speaker

8:57

Speaker 5

8:57

said, I don't like the way you're treating me.

9:00

He just acted like I was an old lady with no brain.

9:03

Well, I'll go along with the old lady, but no brain.

9:05

No, I won't go along with

Unassigned speaker

9:07

that.

Speaker 5

9:07

So he handed gave me two more letters, six weeks apart.

9:13

He put one by he put one by my back door.

9:17

And my car, I was home, my car was there.

9:20

He didn't knock, put another letter out, six weeks, didn't knock.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Budget Equity Analysis████████████████████████████████████████40%

Public Engagement████████████████16%

Property Tax Assessment██████████████14%

Procedural█████████9%

Economic Development██████6%

Signage Regulation█████5%

Engineering And Infrastructure█████5%

Fiscal Sustainability███3%

Miscellaneous█1%

Summary of Proceedings

Blaine City Council Meeting: Truth-in-Taxation & Development Business - December 1, 2025

The Blaine City Council held a regular meeting on December 1, 2025, starting at 7:11 PM and adjourning at 8:56 PM. Key topics included the 2026 Truth-in-Taxation hearing, several development first readings, a street rehabilitation project, and public comments on property taxes and city services.

Public Comments & Testimony

Grace Schrunk, 950 113th Avenue NE, expressed concerns about being forced to remove a tree on her property at her neighbor's request. She stated she did not believe removal was necessary and felt treated unfairly by the city arborist. She also noted that an aerial photo she took now hangs in the council chambers.
Cindy Holzinger, a Blaine resident, criticized the late snowplowing after a recent storm. She opposed the city plowing all sidewalks and opposed the city pursuing broadband franchise fees. She expressed concern about rising property taxes and noted she observed numerous drones and poor water quality.
Dean Kruchten, 3017 Aspen Lake Drive, reported that his property taxes were proposed to increase nearly 30%, stating the city would price residents out of their homes and urged the council to curb expenses.
Steve Mitchell, 11815 Dunkirk Circle, spoke during the Truth-in-Taxation hearing, stating his overall property tax increase was 27.6% (23.8% from Blaine alone) and called the increase unreasonable, urging fiscal responsibility.

Consent Calendar

Approved unanimously: Schedule of Bills Paid, Approval of Minutes (2025-265), Lobbying Agreement with The Ferguson Group, and a Garbage Haulers License for Nitti Sanitation Inc.

Discussion Items

Communications: City Manager Erik Thorvig announced that Item 10.2 (sidewalk plowing ordinance) was removed and would be discussed at the January 24, 2026 council retreat. Councilmember Chris Massoglia expressed disappointment but supported the delay for further discussion.
Truth-in-Taxation (2026 Levy): Finance Director Jason Zimmerman presented a detailed overview. The proposed 2026 tax levy is $54,230,000, a 9.9% increase ($4,894,000) over 2025. The median residential property value is $346,000 (up 3.38%), which would see an estimated city portion increase of $112.63 annually ($9.39/month). The levy funds primarily public safety (46%), public works/recreation (25%), and debt/capital (23%). The city relies on property taxes for ~80% of its general fund due to no local government aid, municipal liquor, or franchise fees. Councilmember Jess Robertson clarified not all seven members support the levy; she noted efforts to pre-fund debt and that >70% of the budget goes to public safety and public works. Councilmember Massoglia stated he did not support last year's budget and criticized a 145% levy increase over 10 years, calling it unsustainable. Councilmember Tom Newland emphasized the year-long budget process and the need for new revenue streams. Councilmember Ford stated the city cannot operate like a for-profit business. Councilmember Leslie Larson voted no last year and was struggling with the 2026 proposal. Mayor Tim Sanders noted the city is working to increase commercial development to balance residential tax reliance. The public hearing was closed at 8:14 PM.
Development Business:
- McNeil Addition Final Plat Extension (RES 25-187): Approved unanimously to grant a 12-month extension for recording the final plat at 4324 117th Avenue NE, creating two lots.
- Rezoning First Readings (four ordinances): All introduced and placed on file for second reading at the December 15, 2025 meeting.
  - Northtown Villas (ORD 25-2589): Rezone from County Road 10 Mixed Use (MU) to Development Flex (DF) at 9011 9021 University Avenue NE and 120 90th Lane NE for infill twin homes and detached villas.
  - Van Buren Street (ORD 25-2594): Rezone from MU to Single Family Residential (R-1) at 8550 Van Buren Street NE for a single-family home on EDA-owned land.
  - Nova Real Estate (ORD 25-2592): Rezone from Community Commercial (B-2) to Light Industrial (I-1) at 8501 Old West 35W Service Drive NE for a light industrial building.
  - Zoning Ordinance Annual Revisions (ORD 25-2593): Annual updates to the Blaine Zoning Ordinance, including changes to contractor licenses, swimming pools, manufactured homes, definitions, and standards for EV charging and indoor cannabis cultivation.
Administration – 2026 Street Rehabilitation Project (RES 25-178): Director of Engineering Dan Schluender presented the feasibility report for South Lake Blvd NE from Lakes Parkway to Lakes Parkway, involving a 2-inch bituminous mill and overlay with chip seal and curb/gutter replacements. Estimated cost $934,949.94 ($900,000 from Municipal State Aid, $34,949.94 from Pavement Management Fund). No special assessments proposed due to lack of direct driveway access. Approved 6-1 (Councilmember Robertson opposed).

Key Outcomes

Consent Agenda approved unanimously.
McNeil Addition Final Plat Extension approved unanimously.
Truth-in-Taxation hearing held; noaction taken. Final levy adoption scheduled for December15, 2025.
Four first-reading rezoning ordinances introduced for second reading on December15, 2025.
2026 Street Rehabilitation Project feasibility report accepted and improvements ordered (6 -1 vote).
Meeting adjourned at 8:56 PM.

Meeting Transcript

Good evening, everyone. We're going to call the City Council meeting to order for December first, two thousand twenty-five. Please rise for the Pledge of Allegiance. Council Members Fleming. We don't have any awards or presentations this evening, so we'll start with communications, which is an opportunity for members or staff to provide any announcements or updates that they might have. Are there any communications this evening? See none. Yeah. Excuse me. Mayor and council. So there was an agenda item under administration this evening for a second reading related to sidewalk plowing. And this was discussed by council at the September 8th retreat, and there was direction to bring an ordinance where the inconsistencies between city policy of plowing sidewalks and the ordinance that states that residents should plow sidewalks. Um would be clarified, and the direction by council in September was to have the city continue to plow sidewalks. And there's some been some additional information that's been gathered by staff and shared with some of the council, but it's important for the entirety of council to have all that information and discuss this issue again. So we'll be bringing it to the January 24th retreat when we talk about other customer service levels that the city provides or should or should not provide. So that can uh discussion will occur in January, and then direction will be provided by council as to whether the uh city should be continuing to plow sidewalks or have that fall on the resident's responsibility. So benefit for the council and public if you've been paying attention to that item. Excellent. Thank you, Manager Thorvig. Are there any other communications? Councilmember Masolia. Thank you, Miss Mayor. Um, yeah, just to piggyback on that. I mean, I I think it would have been kind of interesting to see how the conversation went around the sidewalk snow removal. Um I think probably tabling it and having more conversation was the right thing to do. Um but I do, you know, I just want the public that have been following this to know that we are seriously looking at you know, different options on on how we can try to level out spending, and this is a serious conversation. And um, at least for me personally, I I think the city should follow our own ordinance. And so um I'm a little disappointed that we didn't have the conversation tonight, but I I think tabling it and having more discussion hopefully will allow us to get to the proper end result. So um thank you for letting people know that have been following that, Manager Thorvik. Any other communications or updates from council? Seeing none, we'll move to the open forum, which is an opportunity for the public to share comments or concerns or input on other items. While open form is not intended to provide back and forth uh response or discussion opportunities if follow-up is needed, city staff will contact speakers outside of the meeting to arrange for that follow-up. Each speaker will be limited to three minutes, and there's a maximum of 15 minutes set aside for the open forum. And if you are here to speak on agenda item eight, there's a public hearing, which you're welcome to speak uh on that agenda item during that time as well. Is there anyone here this evening that wishes to participate in the open forum? You're welcome to come to the podium at this time. Good evening, welcome. Name and address for the record, please. Grace Anderson Shrunk 950, 113th Avenue Northeast in Blaine, of course. Okay, I I'm only I'm here because I don't know who else to talk to. This all started last summer when I was on my patio having a cup of coffee with a friend, and the neighbor in one of the new houses at four butt my acre lot over there, came over and said, Your tree is gonna fall on my house. I said, What? He said, Well, look, I said, Well, it's leaning my way, it can't. Oh, yeah, it's gonna fall on my house. Well, he went and contacted our arborist from Blaine, and he came out and talked to me and gave me a legal look, legal looking paper about this tree. And uh I started talking to him, and

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Blaine City Council Meeting: Truth-in-Taxation & Development Business - December 1, 2025

Public Comments & Testimony

Grace Schrunk, 950 113th Avenue NE, expressed concerns about being forced to remove a tree on her property at her neighbor's request. She stated she did not believe removal was necessary and felt treated unfairly by the city arborist. She also noted that an aerial photo she took now hangs in the council chambers.

Cindy Holzinger, a Blaine resident, criticized the late snowplowing after a recent storm. She opposed the city plowing all sidewalks and opposed the city pursuing broadband franchise fees. She expressed concern about rising property taxes and noted she observed numerous drones and poor water quality.

Dean Kruchten, 3017 Aspen Lake Drive, reported that his property taxes were proposed to increase nearly 30%, stating the city would price residents out of their homes and urged the council to curb expenses.

Steve Mitchell, 11815 Dunkirk Circle, spoke during the Truth-in-Taxation hearing, stating his overall property tax increase was 27.6% (23.8% from Blaine alone) and called the increase unreasonable, urging fiscal responsibility.

Consent Calendar

Approved unanimously: Schedule of Bills Paid, Approval of Minutes (2025-265), Lobbying Agreement with The Ferguson Group, and a Garbage Haulers License for Nitti Sanitation Inc.

Discussion Items

Communications: City Manager Erik Thorvig announced that Item 10.2 (sidewalk plowing ordinance) was removed and would be discussed at the January 24, 2026 council retreat. Councilmember Chris Massoglia expressed disappointment but supported the delay for further discussion.

Truth-in-Taxation (2026 Levy): Finance Director Jason Zimmerman presented a detailed overview. The proposed 2026 tax levy is $54,230,000, a 9.9% increase ($4,894,000) over 2025. The median residential property value is $346,000 (up 3.38%), which would see an estimated city portion increase of $112.63 annually ($9.39/month). The levy funds primarily public safety (46%), public works/recreation (25%), and debt/capital (23%). The city relies on property taxes for ~80% of its general fund due to no local government aid, municipal liquor, or franchise fees. Councilmember Jess Robertson clarified not all seven members support the levy; she noted efforts to pre-fund debt and that >70% of the budget goes to public safety and public works. Councilmember Massoglia stated he did not support last year's budget and criticized a 145% levy increase over 10 years, calling it unsustainable. Councilmember Tom Newland emphasized the year-long budget process and the need for new revenue streams. Councilmember Ford stated the city cannot operate like a for-profit business. Councilmember Leslie Larson voted no last year and was struggling with the 2026 proposal. Mayor Tim Sanders noted the city is working to increase commercial development to balance residential tax reliance. The public hearing was closed at 8:14 PM.

Development Business:

McNeil Addition Final Plat Extension (RES 25-187): Approved unanimously to grant a 12-month extension for recording the final plat at 4324 117th Avenue NE, creating two lots.
Rezoning First Readings (four ordinances): All introduced and placed on file for second reading at the December 15, 2025 meeting.
- Northtown Villas (ORD 25-2589): Rezone from County Road 10 Mixed Use (MU) to Development Flex (DF) at 9011 9021 University Avenue NE and 120 90th Lane NE for infill twin homes and detached villas.
- Van Buren Street (ORD 25-2594): Rezone from MU to Single Family Residential (R-1) at 8550 Van Buren Street NE for a single-family home on EDA-owned land.
- Nova Real Estate (ORD 25-2592): Rezone from Community Commercial (B-2) to Light Industrial (I-1) at 8501 Old West 35W Service Drive NE for a light industrial building.
- Zoning Ordinance Annual Revisions (ORD 25-2593): Annual updates to the Blaine Zoning Ordinance, including changes to contractor licenses, swimming pools, manufactured homes, definitions, and standards for EV charging and indoor cannabis cultivation.

Administration – 2026 Street Rehabilitation Project (RES 25-178): Director of Engineering Dan Schluender presented the feasibility report for South Lake Blvd NE from Lakes Parkway to Lakes Parkway, involving a 2-inch bituminous mill and overlay with chip seal and curb/gutter replacements. Estimated cost $934,949.94 ($900,000 from Municipal State Aid, $34,949.94 from Pavement Management Fund). No special assessments proposed due to lack of direct driveway access. Approved 6-1 (Councilmember Robertson opposed).

Key Outcomes

Consent Agenda approved unanimously.

McNeil Addition Final Plat Extension approved unanimously.

Truth-in-Taxation hearing held; noaction taken. Final levy adoption scheduled for December15, 2025.

Four first-reading rezoning ordinances introduced for second reading on December15, 2025.

2026 Street Rehabilitation Project feasibility report accepted and improvements ordered (6 -1 vote).

Meeting adjourned at 8:56 PM.

Meeting Transcript