OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Duluth City Council Meeting – July 28, 2025: Housing Study, Council Pay, Transportation Commission, and More

City Council — Monday, August 4, 2025
BodyDuluth, Minnesota
SessionCity Council
DateMonday, August 4, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
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Transcript — Verbatim
0:09

You don't want to do calling?

0:11

You don't want to be called on doing the committee of the whole thing.

0:37

I feel like I'd need more stars.

0:40

No, it does feel like kind of a big table for sit on the floor.

0:50

I mean, do these move around?

0:52

You can get up and pay.

1:02

Do you have a theater background?

1:06

Uh yeah, well, I mean I looks in high school musicals.

1:09

Okay.

1:11

Good evening.

1:12

We will begin our committee of the whole with our housing update.

1:16

If you would start by introducing yourselves, giving us the forest.

1:21

By giving us your name and uh your title in the city, and then you be can begin.

1:28

Uh yes, thank you, President Tomick and uh counselors.

1:31

We are excited to be here.

1:32

I am Tom Church.

1:33

I'm a senior housing developer with the City of Duluth.

1:36

Uh and I'll let Lena introduce herself.

1:38

And I'm Lena Fancook, I'm a housing planner.

1:42

Uh and we are here tonight to present the findings of the updated 20 uh 25 Maxfield comprehensive housing needs analysis.

1:51

Uh we are so excited to be able to be here to share this with you.

1:54

It's been a long time in the works, as I'm sure many of you know.

1:57

Um so we've got half an hour tonight.

2:00

We're gonna try to keep our rambling to 20 minutes and leave 10 minutes for questions, but um feel free to chime in as you have uh comments or questions as well.

2:10

Um I will also just say this is a fairly high level uh presentation.

2:14

This is a 200-page report, and we are just hitting the highlights tonight.

2:19

Um, but there will be many, many chances to learn more about both this report and the city's uh responses to it going forward over the next six months.

2:28

We'll get to that towards the end.

2:30

Um but tonight we're gonna start with a couple of the key demographic findings uh from Maxfield.

2:35

We'll go through their housing demand summary.

2:38

Uh we'll talk a little bit about about the rental survey findings that they um have published for us, uh, and then talk about the priorities and opportunities that uh seem to stick out based on their analysis.

2:51

So without further ado, we'll start with this highlight, and that's that Duluth is growing.

2:57

Um Maxfield finds that we grew by about half a percent uh between 2010 and 2020, uh added about 500 people to our population.

3:07

They also estimate that we uh have already added 1,300 more people between uh 2020 and 2025.

3:15

They expect that that's going to uh be repeated between 2025 and 2030, another 1300.

3:21

Uh and they're showing they're projecting that we will hit uh over 90,000 uh for our population by 2035.

3:30

Um so that is especially exciting after so many years of uh stagnant uh population.

3:37

Um another key finding.

3:38

Oh, I'll come back to this.

3:40

Um within this, uh I'll just mention the single uh fastest growing subgroup within uh our population is our senior population.

3:49

Um and so we'll come back to that later in the presentation, but just to highlight.

3:54

Uh Duluth is also building.

3:56

Um we have issued 1800 new permits, uh building permits between 2018 and 2024, averaging about 230 each year.

4:06

Obviously, that waxes and wanes, as you can see from uh the chart in front of you here.

4:11

Um but we've done a a pretty good job of being consistent in issuing those birding building permits.

4:18

Uh we even had a banner year back in uh 2024 uh with uh 621 certificates of occupancy being issued.

4:26

Uh so we are adding housing units.

4:28

Uh we are doing, I will flag one other uh note from from these findings, which is that we're doing an especially good job of uh issuing permits for single-family detached homes.

4:38

Uh we're doing that at a rate that we haven't seen since t uh 2002 to 2007.

4:44

Um there's additional detail about all of these statistics uh buried in the report.

4:49

Uh so forgive me if I fly past a a stat.

4:53

Um but we are continuing to add homes, uh add housing units, but there is still uh persistent demand for housing in Duluth.

5:17

That's uh general occupancy as well as age restricted senior housing that 98,713 unit uh total is complemented by the near neighbors which need just under 5,000 units uh over the next 10 years um and that's again rental for sale and senior uh units um in all of those regions this just highlights the um seriousness of demand across our region for new housing units this shows you a breakdown uh for how that demand is uh split up between basically for sale and uh rental units that blue bar right there is our for sale demand over the next five years and I I'll back up and say uh for the rest of this presentation we'll basically be talking about our uh demand projected over five years the reason for that is is basically that we will plan to update this study again in five years uh and the five year numbers are kind of what we've grown accustomed to to talking about since the 2019 study um so we need just over 6,000 housing units of all kinds uh by 2030 of that we need just over a thousand units uh in the for sale market and we need um a significant number of rental units as well most of those are market rate rentals um we're calling that uh market rate and workforce rentals above 60 percent AMI but there is continued um significant demand for affordable and subsidized rental units that's shown in the gray bar there um those are projects that we continue to support primarily through the Minnesota house uh Minnesota housing finance agency RFP process um supporting developers who are competing for state money to fund those expensive developments um this shows you another breakdown um primarily focused on the demand for general occupancy units and uh as compared to the demand for senior units um so the blue bars you see here are housing unit products that are uh would be general occupancy and then the orange bars are uh age restricted senior units um you'll see again the hash marked bars are uh reflect the demand for affordable units below 60 percent AMI um whether those are senior units or general occupancy um and I'm gonna pause here I meant to include a slide about this but just so you know when we talk about AMI that refers to area median income um we'll be getting into the weeds a little bit about this in uh another slide but basically um what's considered affordable at different income levels uh is uh uh a rent level where you are paying no more than 30% of your income each month towards your housing costs um so for reference we'll say this again uh a little later but uh current area median income for a four-person household is just over a hundred thousand dollars a year uh 60% AMI for four-person household is just over 60% or $60,000 a year um that makes the math kind of easy um because of the the threshold for four uh for four-person household um uh this is the demand by 2030 um again an additional 2500 units would be needed between uh 2030 and 2035 um but we're gonna set that aside for most of the rest of this discussion this chart shows a developer church can I interrupt for a council question Counselor Forestman Thank you President uh Mr.

9:16

Church just quick question to clarify can you just give us a 30-second version of how demand is calculated how we're forecasting that we need the demand yes absolutely I should have started with that uh President Tomonic and counselors uh counselor forestman thank you for the question um I will preview this by saying that the best person to ask about this will be the Maxfield consultants when they are here for presentation later in the fall I'm sure they'd love to talk about their methodology but basically they are looking at um population forecasts and um many of which come from the American community survey it's census data and then other market data they're also looking at employment and workforce data to project what our um uh job market is likely to look to look like in 2030 and 2035 um and then based on those numbers they calculate these these projections thank you please continue thank you President Tomonic this slide uh gives us the uh the demand that they've calculated for just general occupancy rental uh housing units um over the next five years and so this is

10:04

And then based on those numbers, they calculate these these projections.

10:10

Thank you.

10:11

Please continue.

10:13

Thank you, President Tomonik.

10:14

This slide gives us the demand that they've calculated for just general occupancy rental housing units over the next five years.

10:29

And so this is showing the number of market rate rental units there on your far left as you look at the screen, 791 workforce rental units, 589 affordable rental units between 50 and 60 AMI.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Affordable Housing████████████████████20%
Procedural███████████████15%
Public Engagement███████████11%
Fiscal Sustainability███████████11%
Community Engagement█████████9%
Budget Equity Analysis███████7%
Child Care Facilities█████5%
Transportation Safety█████5%
Landlord Tenant Relations████4%
Summary of Proceedings

Duluth City Council Meeting – July 28, 2025

This regular meeting of the Duluth City Council (July 28, 2025, 6:00 PM) included a committee-of-the-whole presentation on the 2025 Maxfield comprehensive housing needs analysis, a public hearing on a $725,000 affordable housing grant, public comments, and action on several resolutions and ordinances. Key topics were a housing demand forecast requiring over 6,000 units by 2030, an amended resolution delaying a 24% council pay increase to 2027, tabling of the Transportation Commission ordinance, and adoption of a daycare ordinance amendment.

Consent Calendar

  • Resolution 25-0607R: Authorized acceptance of a $70,000 Crime Victim Services Prosecutorial Grant from the Minnesota Department of Public Safety to partially fund a Victim Services Specialist in the City Attorney’s Office.
  • Resolution 25-0596R: Authorized a three-year enterprise agreement with Environmental Systems Research Institute, Inc. for GIS licensing, support, and maintenance for a total of $180,900 ($60,300/year).
  • Resolution 25-0605R: Authorized an increase of $2,984 of HOME-American Rescue Plan Program funds.
  • Resolution 25-0615R: Authorized the grant of $725,000 in Statewide Affordable Housing Aid funds to One Roof Community Housing (public hearing held, no public testimony).
  • Resolution 25-0619R: Authorized an amended and restated master subordination agreement and estoppel certificate.
  • Resolution 25-0618R: Submitted a petition ordinance to voters at the November 4, 2025 municipal election amending city code to give tenants the right to repair and deduct costs; set the ballot question.
  • Resolution 25-0606R: Authorized a limited use permit with MnDOT for operation/maintenance of Fairmont Park/Lake Superior Zoo fence and landscaping in Trunk Highway 23 right-of-way.
  • Resolution 25-0608R: Amended a contract with Northland Constructors for 2025 blanket purchase order for utility repairs, not to exceed $193,128.80.
  • Resolution 25-0609R: Authorized an amendment with Ever-Green Energy for boiler system redesign engineering services, increase of $15,200 (new total $258,850).
  • Resolution 25-0611R: Revoked and established various road segments as municipal state aid streets per roadway exchange with St. Louis County.
  • Resolution 25-0612R: Amended contract with Northland Constructors for Upper Lakeside Water Interconnect – Phase 1, increase of $291,593.18 (new total $1,446,773.18).
  • Resolution 25-0564R: Approved application for a Greater Minnesota Legacy Grant for Spirit Mountain Nordic Center.
  • Resolution 25-0567R: Authorized a Greater Minnesota Legacy Grant application for Duluth Traverse bike skills area development and trailhead improvements.
  • Resolution 25-0613R: Authorized a contract with PEC Solutions LLC for electrical upgrades at Spirit Mountain for new chairlift installation, not to exceed $199,969.00.
  • Resolution 25-0615R (public hearing item on consent): No public testimony; hearing closed. Passed.
  • The consent agenda passed 8-0, with the exception of Resolution 25-0614R which was pulled for separate consideration.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Rachel Anderson (35-year resident) spoke about unsafe housing conditions, being overcharged on rent, and lack of healthy affordable housing. She urged better maintenance and city ordinances.
  • Liana Sweezer (323 N 13th Ave E) criticized the council for siding with landlords on the right-to-repair ballot measure, stating tenants lack representation and that the council system is inaccessible to renters.
  • Eleanor Dolan (4th district) spoke on the Transportation Commission (urging immediate passage), the right-to-repair amendment, and the MA nurses’ strike. She accused councilors of being out of touch and called for increased council pay to allow broader representation.
  • Mistfield Roberts (825 Partridge St, District 3) spoke about the LGBTQ+ Commission, expressing frustration that applicants (including themselves) had not received responses and that the commission had been neglected. They urged updating commissions to create a safer Duluth.
  • Jonas Randa (2318 W 11th, District 4) asked about the LGBTQ+ Commission’s quorum and lengthy application response times (over 3 months vs. ~1.5 months for other commissions). Referred to clerk for follow-up.
  • Lauren Martell (623 E 7th) spoke against the Incline Village developer, criticizing the original plan as too risky and praising the council’s decision to end the contract. She urged caution and public input on future deals.

Committee of the Whole – Housing Update

  • Presenters: Tom Church (Senior Housing Developer) and Lena Fancook (Housing Planner) presented findings of the 2025 Maxfield comprehensive housing needs analysis.
  • Key demographics: Duluth is growing – 0.5% growth 2010-2020 (+500 people), estimated +1,300 by 2025, projected +1,300 by 2030, reaching ~90,000 by 2035. Senior population is the fastest-growing subgroup. 1,800 building permits issued 2018-2024 (average 230/year), with a banner year in 2024 (621 certificates of occupancy). Single-family detached permits at highest rate since 2002-2007.
  • Housing demand by 2030: Over 6,000 units needed: ~1,000 for-sale units, ~791 market-rate rental units, ~589 workforce rental (50-60% AMI), ~770 subsidized units. Market-rate rentals demand includes 935 units (mix of studios, 1BR, 2BR). Affordable units below 60% AMI continue to be needed.
  • Rental survey findings: Median rent $1,443/month (up 6.5% from 2022’s $1,355). Vacancy rate 1.8% (healthy is ~5%); for affordable units, 1.1%. 53% of Duluth renters are cost-burdened (spending >30% of income on housing). Average rent for five newest market-rate properties is $1,792 (13% higher than citywide average).
  • Senior housing: A 50% return on investment – building two units of senior housing frees up one unit elsewhere in the market.
  • Homeownership: Market dominated by single-family detached homes; townhouse permits were zero in 2022 and 2023, with only nine since 2020. Need to add variety (townhomes, condos, co-ops).
  • Councillor questions clarified demand calculation methodology (population, employment, ACS data), and that the 2019 study’s market-rate need has been met but new demand persists due to population and household growth.
  • Upcoming: 300+ new housing units expected in next six months. Housing action plan in development. Maxfield will present in person end of September. Duluth Housing Strategies Conference November 14.

Discussion Items

  • Resolution 25-0595R – Council Pay Increase: Charter Commission recommended a 24% increase (last raised in 2015; inflation since 2015 ~36%). Proposed amount is $29,000 total increase, 0.07% of property tax levy, $108M general fund. Discussion on equity – current pay $13,000/year, no health insurance, makes it hard for diverse voices to serve. Councillors shared personal financial struggles. Councillor Randorf proposed amendment to delay effective date to January 1, 2027. Passed 8-0. Then the full resolution as amended passed 8-0. Also discussed need for ongoing formula-based adjustments and including mayor’s pay.
  • Resolution 25-0614R – Hayfield Solar Energy Project: Authorizes negotiation of development and lease agreements with Eden Renewables. Project would generate ~1.6 million dollars in revenue over 25 years, offset ~60,000 tons of carbon, power ~1,700 Duluth homes annually. Passed 7-0 (one abstention).
  • Ordinance 25-020-O – Daycare Facilities: Amendment to make daycare facilities more permissible in residential neighborhoods by removing redundant city regulations and deferring to state licensing. Motion to take off table passed 8-0. Motion to amend passed 8-0, making it first read. Next meeting will be second read.
  • Ordinance 25-014-O – Transportation Commission: Councillor Awell explained previous tabling to allow administration to incorporate staff edits. Mr. Staling requested sending back to administration for revised draft by August 25. Council voted to keep it tabled (motion passed 8-0). Discussion acknowledged need but frustration over delays.
  • Second reading ordinances:
    • 25-017-O (zoning map change R-2 to MU-N) passed 8-0.
    • 25-018-O (commercial container screening) passed 8-0.
    • 25-019-O (zoning map change R-1 to R-P) passed 8-0.

Key Outcomes

  • Council pay increased to be effective January 1, 2027 (amended from January 1, 2026). Full resolution passed 8-0.
  • Hayfield Solar Energy Project negotiation authorized 7-0 (one abstention).
  • Daycare ordinance amendment passed as first read (8-0); second read at next meeting.
  • Transportation Commission ordinance remains tabled; administration to bring revised draft by August 25, 2025.
  • Consent agenda (including right-to-repair ballot question, affordable housing grant, and many routine items) passed 8-0.
  • Housing needs analysis presented; future presentations scheduled at HRA (July 29), DITA CD committee, and Affordable Housing Coalition. Maxfield to appear in person end of September.

Meeting Transcript

You don't want to do calling? You don't want to be called on doing the committee of the whole thing. I feel like I'd need more stars. No, it does feel like kind of a big table for sit on the floor. I mean, do these move around? You can get up and pay. Do you have a theater background? Uh yeah, well, I mean I looks in high school musicals. Okay. Good evening. We will begin our committee of the whole with our housing update. If you would start by introducing yourselves, giving us the forest. By giving us your name and uh your title in the city, and then you be can begin. Uh yes, thank you, President Tomick and uh counselors. We are excited to be here. I am Tom Church. I'm a senior housing developer with the City of Duluth. Uh and I'll let Lena introduce herself. And I'm Lena Fancook, I'm a housing planner. Uh and we are here tonight to present the findings of the updated 20 uh 25 Maxfield comprehensive housing needs analysis. Uh we are so excited to be able to be here to share this with you. It's been a long time in the works, as I'm sure many of you know. Um so we've got half an hour tonight. We're gonna try to keep our rambling to 20 minutes and leave 10 minutes for questions, but um feel free to chime in as you have uh comments or questions as well. Um I will also just say this is a fairly high level uh presentation. This is a 200-page report, and we are just hitting the highlights tonight. Um, but there will be many, many chances to learn more about both this report and the city's uh responses to it going forward over the next six months. We'll get to that towards the end. Um but tonight we're gonna start with a couple of the key demographic findings uh from Maxfield. We'll go through their housing demand summary. Uh we'll talk a little bit about about the rental survey findings that they um have published for us, uh, and then talk about the priorities and opportunities that uh seem to stick out based on their analysis. So without further ado, we'll start with this highlight, and that's that Duluth is growing. Um Maxfield finds that we grew by about half a percent uh between 2010 and 2020, uh added about 500 people to our population. They also estimate that we uh have already added 1,300 more people between uh 2020 and 2025. They expect that that's going to uh be repeated between 2025 and 2030, another 1300. Uh and they're showing they're projecting that we will hit uh over 90,000 uh for our population by 2035. Um so that is especially exciting after so many years of uh stagnant uh population. Um another key finding. Oh, I'll come back to this. Um within this, uh I'll just mention the single uh fastest growing subgroup within uh our population is our senior population. Um and so we'll come back to that later in the presentation, but just to highlight. Uh Duluth is also building. Um we have issued 1800 new permits, uh building permits between 2018 and 2024, averaging about 230 each year. Obviously, that waxes and wanes, as you can see from uh the chart in front of you here. Um but we've done a a pretty good job of being consistent in issuing those birding building permits. Uh we even had a banner year back in uh 2024 uh with uh 621 certificates of occupancy being issued. Uh so we are adding housing units. Uh we are doing, I will flag one other uh note from from these findings, which is that we're doing an especially good job of uh issuing permits for single-family detached homes. Uh we're doing that at a rate that we haven't seen since t uh 2002 to 2007. Um there's additional detail about all of these statistics uh buried in the report.

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