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Record of Proceedings

Bloomington City Council Organizational Meeting - January 5, 2026

City Council — Monday, January 5, 2026
BodyBloomington, Minnesota
SessionCity Council
DateMonday, January 5, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
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Transcript — Verbatim
1:56

Good evening, everyone, and welcome.

1:59

I will call to order the first city council meeting of twenty twenty six for the Bloomington City Council.

2:05

Tonight is Monday, January fifth.

2:06

Thank you to all of you joining us here in the council chambers.

2:09

Uh welcome to everybody watching online.

2:11

We will begin our council meeting as we always do.

2:14

If you're able, please stand, remove any head covering, and join me in the Pledge of Allegiance.

2:22

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.

2:26

And to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

2:38

Once again, welcome to everyone here.

2:40

Uh and welcome to everyone watching.

2:42

Council, our first meeting of the year, our first order of business is to approve tonight's agenda, and this is what it looks like.

2:49

Uh our introductory items, item two, our item two point one is the biggie.

2:54

We've got our city council oath of office.

2:55

We'll have uh three folks taking the oath of office for our city council.

2:59

Item two point two is our proclamation for Martin Luther King Jr.

3:02

Day.

3:03

Item two point three is the introduction of new employees.

3:06

And item two point four is uh the review and the approval of the twenty twenty-six planning commission work plan.

3:12

Item three is our consent business, and Councilmember Carter has our consent agenda tonight.

3:16

It is rather abbreviated, I think with only five items under consent tonight.

3:20

Nothing under item four hearings resolutions and ordinances, and then we do move to item five, our organizational business.

3:26

And basically, council, this is our organizational business uh meeting for the year for this council.

3:31

There are seventeen items where we will be making uh either designations or appointments.

3:36

Uh, I'm not gonna read through all seventeen of them.

3:38

We will go through them in a little bit more detail as we get to that, but this is everything from our admir our municipal advisor to uh the Metro City's board of directors, uh, to the acting mayor appointments and everything in between, basically.

3:51

And so we will get to that.

3:53

We will uh then wrap up with our council policy and issue updates, and we will adjourn our first meeting of the year in a tidy and reasonable fashion.

4:02

That's my prediction council.

4:03

Council, any additions or changes or corrections to this evening's agenda.

4:09

Hearing none, I will move the agenda as stated.

4:12

Second.

4:12

Motion and a second by councilmember Carter to accept tonight's agenda.

4:16

No further council discussion on this.

4:18

All those in favor, please signify by saying aye.

4:20

All right.

4:20

Opposed.

4:21

Motion carries officially five zero because we're not quite sworn in yet.

4:25

And this gives me the opportunity to say Councilmember Dallas Hondo is not with us uh this evening.

4:29

Uh so that uh was approved on a five-zero vote, and we it will be six zero in just a matter of minutes.

4:35

We will move on to our introductory items.

4:37

Item two point one is the city council oath of office.

4:41

Uh I would invite our acting city clerk, Matt Brillard, to come forward, and I would invite our three city council members who will be taking the oath of office to go down front and take the oath.

4:52

I will also suggest to all of our uh people in the audience uh you get one shot at this.

4:57

So give yourself uh your best camera angle.

5:00

Do not be shy.

5:00

If you want to stand up, if you want to get a different angle, if you want to make the best shot possible, don't be shy about this.

5:06

Love to make sure that we get this uh is uh captured for you.

5:14

Come on, you guys, you you three you two of you have done this before.

5:17

Come on now.

5:19

Who are you on some?

5:20

Uh we can do uh Danielle first.

5:22

All right, so you can stand here.

5:24

We'll each get a mic.

5:27

Should be on.

5:29

All right.

5:30

Please raise your right hand and repeat after me.

5:33

I, Danielle Robertson, do solemnly swear.

5:36

I, Danielle Robertson, do solemnly swear.

5:39

That I will support the Constitution of the United States.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Personnel Matters███████████████████████████████31%
Procedural██████████████████████22%
Community Engagement████████████12%
Urban Planning███████7%
Public Engagement███████7%
Budget Equity Analysis██████6%
Racial Equity███3%
Zoning Regulations███3%
Federal Policy███3%
Summary of Proceedings

Bloomington City Council Organizational Meeting - January 5, 2026

The Bloomington City Council held its first meeting of 2026 on Monday, January 5, 2026, at 6:00 PM. The meeting included the swearing-in of three council members, proclamations, review of the Planning Commission work plan, and approval of numerous annual appointments to boards, commissions, and external organizations. The meeting also featured a substantive debate over HRA board appointments.

Consent Calendar

  • The consent agenda (items 3.1–3.5) was approved, with item 3.3 held separately. Items 3.1, 3.2, 3.4, and 3.5 were approved 6-0. Item 3.3, the first amendment to an agreement with VEP, was approved on a 4-1-1 vote (Councilmember Rivas opposed, Councilmember Nelson abstaining due to a conflict of interest).

Discussion Items

  • Oath of Office and Opening Remarks (Item 2.1): Councilmembers Danielle Robertson (at-large), Dwayne Lohman (District 1), and Shawn Nelson (District 2) were sworn in by Acting City Clerk Matt Brillard. Each offered brief remarks thanking voters and pledging to serve the community. Mayor Bussey welcomed Councilmember Robertson, apologizing for initially referring to her by the wrong name.
  • Martin Luther King Jr. Day Proclamation (Item 2.2): Mayor Bussey read a proclamation declaring January 19, 2026, as Martin Luther King Jr. Day in Bloomington. Arian Williams and Shante Brown of the Bloomington Black Employee Network spoke, urging residents to lead with kindness and participate in healing. They announced a National Day of Racial Healing event on January 20, 2026, hosted locally at the Black Box Theater from 6:00 to 7:30 PM.
  • New Employee Introduction (Item 2.3): Community Development Director Kim Bergen introduced Jake Lee, new office support specialist in building and inspections, who started December 1, 2025. Lee holds a political science and business law degree from the University of Minnesota and previously worked at the Minnesota Department of Human Services.
  • 2026 Planning Commission Work Plan (Item 2.4): Planning Supervisor Dakota Castendate and Planning Commission Vice Chair Kevin Cunningham presented the work plan, which includes 23 projects totaling 4,065 hours, with 17 led by planning staff. Major focus is the 2050 comprehensive plan update. Councilmember Nelson suggested aligning airport parking and sustainability reviews, and recommended using priority-based budgeting and AI tools. Councilmember Carter inquired about community engagement for the comprehensive plan, which will include a resident advisory committee and launch in summer 2026. Councilmember Lohman requested an update on the equity review of the zoning code; Castendate noted it has been reassigned and will use the APA's Zoning for Equity guide, with findings expected by summer 2026. The work plan was approved 6-0.
  • Organizational Appointments (Item 5): The council voted on 17 appointments to various boards, commissions, and advisory bodies. Nearly all passed unanimously (6-0) except for the HRA Board of Commissioners appointment (5-1).
    • 5.11 – HRA Board of Commissioners: Councilmember Rivas and Councilmember Robertson both expressed interest. Rivas noted his seniority and desire for diverse viewpoints; Robertson cited her background in housing. After debate, Councilmember Robertson was appointed 5-1 (Rivas opposed). Rivas voiced concerns about inconsistency in appointment practices and asked for written guidelines. Councilmember Carter explained her vote by citing Rivas's prior votes on the HRA levy and remarks perceived as disrespectful to HRA members. Councilmember Lohman supported Rivas based on seniority but accepted the majority decision.
    • 5.8 – I-35W Solutions Alliance: Councilmember Robertson was appointed as representative and Councilmember Nelson as alternate (6-0).
    • 5.16 – Acting Mayor Appointments: A rotation for 2026–2027 was approved: Councilmember Lohman (Jan–Apr 2026), Nelson (May–Aug 2026), Dalessandro (Sep–Dec 2026), Rivas (Jan–Apr 2027), Carter (May–Aug 2027), Robertson (Sep–Dec 2027).
    • Other appointments included depositories/brokers, bond counsel, external auditor, municipal advisor, Fire Department Relief Association, corridor coalitions, Port Authority, SHAC, Travel and Tourism, and council secretary.
  • Council Policy and Issues Update: Councilmember Lohman raised concerns about a potential federal government shutdown at the end of January and asked the city manager to prepare a contingency plan. Councilmember Rivas reiterated his call for written appointment guidelines to ensure consistency and public understanding. A brief exchange between Councilmember Carter and Councilmember Rivas covered disagreements over HRA and VEEP funding, with Carter stating she felt disrespected by Rivas's comments about HRA members.

Key Outcomes

  • Councilmembers Robertson, Lohman, and Nelson were sworn in for new terms.
  • Proclamation for Martin Luther King Jr. Day (January 19, 2026) was adopted.
  • Jake Lee was welcomed as new office support specialist.
  • The 2026 Planning Commission Work Plan was approved (6-0).
  • Consent items 3.1, 3.2, 3.4, 3.5 approved (6-0); item 3.3 (VEP amendment) approved 4-1-1 (Rivas opposed, Nelson abstained).
  • All 17 organizational appointments were approved, most unanimously. The HRA Board appointment (Councilmember Robertson) passed 5-1.
  • Acting mayor rotation for 2026–2027 was set.
  • The council directed staff to provide federal shutdown updates and consider written guidelines for future appointments.
  • Meeting adjourned at approximately 8:30 PM.

Meeting Transcript

Good evening, everyone, and welcome. I will call to order the first city council meeting of twenty twenty six for the Bloomington City Council. Tonight is Monday, January fifth. Thank you to all of you joining us here in the council chambers. Uh welcome to everybody watching online. We will begin our council meeting as we always do. If you're able, please stand, remove any head covering, and join me in the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. And to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Once again, welcome to everyone here. Uh and welcome to everyone watching. Council, our first meeting of the year, our first order of business is to approve tonight's agenda, and this is what it looks like. Uh our introductory items, item two, our item two point one is the biggie. We've got our city council oath of office. We'll have uh three folks taking the oath of office for our city council. Item two point two is our proclamation for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Item two point three is the introduction of new employees. And item two point four is uh the review and the approval of the twenty twenty-six planning commission work plan. Item three is our consent business, and Councilmember Carter has our consent agenda tonight. It is rather abbreviated, I think with only five items under consent tonight. Nothing under item four hearings resolutions and ordinances, and then we do move to item five, our organizational business. And basically, council, this is our organizational business uh meeting for the year for this council. There are seventeen items where we will be making uh either designations or appointments. Uh, I'm not gonna read through all seventeen of them. We will go through them in a little bit more detail as we get to that, but this is everything from our admir our municipal advisor to uh the Metro City's board of directors, uh, to the acting mayor appointments and everything in between, basically. And so we will get to that. We will uh then wrap up with our council policy and issue updates, and we will adjourn our first meeting of the year in a tidy and reasonable fashion. That's my prediction council. Council, any additions or changes or corrections to this evening's agenda. Hearing none, I will move the agenda as stated. Second. Motion and a second by councilmember Carter to accept tonight's agenda. No further council discussion on this. All those in favor, please signify by saying aye. All right. Opposed. Motion carries officially five zero because we're not quite sworn in yet. And this gives me the opportunity to say Councilmember Dallas Hondo is not with us uh this evening. Uh so that uh was approved on a five-zero vote, and we it will be six zero in just a matter of minutes. We will move on to our introductory items. Item two point one is the city council oath of office. Uh I would invite our acting city clerk, Matt Brillard, to come forward, and I would invite our three city council members who will be taking the oath of office to go down front and take the oath. I will also suggest to all of our uh people in the audience uh you get one shot at this. So give yourself uh your best camera angle. Do not be shy. If you want to stand up, if you want to get a different angle, if you want to make the best shot possible, don't be shy about this. Love to make sure that we get this uh is uh captured for you. Come on, you guys, you you three you two of you have done this before. Come on now.

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