Eagan City Council Meeting - October 21, 2025: Chief Retirement, Assessments, Transit Support
STREAMING COPY IN PREPARATION — RECORDING AVAILABLE FROM THE ORIGINAL SOURCE
Eagan City Council Meeting - October 21, 2025
The Eagan City Council met on October 21, 2025, at 6:30 PM at the Eagan Municipal Center. The agenda included a recognition of retiring Police Chief Roger New, approval of a consent calendar with numerous routine items, six public hearings (including certification of delinquent lodging taxes and final assessments for five street improvement projects), and adoption of a resolution supporting suburban transit. One property owner filed a written objection to an assessment, triggering a potential appeal. The meeting concluded with a closed session to discuss litigation and a property purchase.
Recognition and Presentations
- The Council recognized Police Chief Roger New on his retirement after 31 years of service to the city. Chief New was appointed chief in 2018 and was praised for his leadership, compassion, and community engagement. Council members and staff expressed gratitude for his dedication. His retirement is effective November 30, 2025.
Consent Calendar
- Approved minutes from the September 9, 2025 special council meeting and October 8, 2025 special council meeting (police chief interviews).
- Approved personnel items.
- Approved check registers for October 3 and October 10, 2025.
- Approved contracts.
- Approved donations.
- Extended deadline for payment under a stipulated settlement.
- Approved a change of manager for the off-sale 3.2 malt liquor license at Kwik Trip #179, 4600 Slater Road.
- Approved final payment for City Contracts 24-57 and 24-50 for the Eagan Art House project.
- Adopted a resolution authorizing commitment of increased funds for a new citation software program.
- Awarded Contract 26-04 for Chloe Lane Sanitary Lift Station Rehabilitation.
- Adopted a resolution approving an off-site gambling application for the Eagan Lions Club for the Viking Lakes Winter Skoltice.
- Approved resolution authorizing issuance and sale of approximately $1,325,000 Taxable General Obligation Housing Improvement Area Bonds, Series 2025.
- Adopted resolution authorizing the execution of the First Amendment to the Housing Improvement Area Development Agreement with Townhomes of Widgeon Woods.
- Approved Change Order No. 16 for the Eagan Art House project.
- Amended the 2025 Eagan TV (PEG Fee) CIP to purchase and install Cablecast Broadcast Servers.
Public Hearings
- Delinquent Lodging Tax Certification: The Council certified delinquent lodging tax bills totaling approximately $16,000 against a budget host that had not remitted taxes since December 2023. The amount will be added to property taxes for collection. The public hearing was closed and the certification authorized unanimously.
- Final Assessments for Five Street Improvement Projects (Items B-F): The Council conducted a combined public hearing for Projects 1371 (Erin Drive/Erin Lane), 1566 (Birch Park/Windcrest/Denmark Ave/Deerwood Dr), 1569 (Harvey 1 & 2/Burrview Acres/Hwy 55 Frontage/Cherrywood), 1571 (Ridgecliffe 1st/Berkshire Ponds/Parkridge/Safari/Covington Ln), and 1573 (Sunset/Northview Meadows/Overview Estates/Saddle Horn/Daniel Dr/Lexington Pointe Pkwy/Patrick Rd). The five projects covered nearly 12 miles of streets and involved almost 1,400 properties. Total project cost was slightly over $6 million, with $1.4 million assessed to property owners. The city will cover $4.7 million. During the hearing, a property owner from the Harvey/Highway 55 Frontage area (Project 1569) objected to the assessment, arguing his property (currently residential but guided commercial) receives no benefit from the frontage road. He filed a written objection, preserving his right to appeal to Dakota County District Court. The Council closed the hearing and approved all five assessment rolls unanimously, with the objection noted.
Legislative / Intergovernmental Affairs Update
- Resolution Supporting Transit: Councilmember Hansen, who serves on the Minnesota Valley Transit Authority (MVTA) board, presented a resolution urging the Minnesota Legislature, Governor, and Metropolitan Council to preserve and strengthen suburban transit services. The resolution opposes proposals to eliminate suburban transit providers and merge them into Metro Transit, citing local control and the need for stable funding. The resolution was adopted unanimously after a brief discussion emphasizing local control.
Closed Session
- The Council entered a closed session, not adjourning the meeting, to discuss two matters pursuant to attorney-client privilege: (1) litigation related to a case filed by the next of kin of Kingsley Bimpong against three city officers, and (2) a proposed purchase of excess right-of-way near the corporate boundary with Burnsville for the Metcalf development. The meeting was to be adjourned after the closed session.
Visitors to Be Heard
- No members of the public spoke on items not on the agenda.
Key Outcomes
- Unanimous approval of the consent agenda and all consent items.
- Delinquent lodging tax certified for collection.
- Final assessments for five street improvement projects approved (with one objection filed, triggering potential appeal).
- Resolution supporting suburban transit adopted unanimously.
- Closed session conducted for legal and real estate matters.
Meeting Transcript
And the republic is one nation undergo individual with liberty and justice. We have a fairly uh brief agenda tonight with some substance. Uh, and some pump uh and circumstance. Uh, recognizing uh Roger News retirement after thirty-one years with the city of Egan. Um so uh hopefully we'll be out here at a reasonable time tonight uh on a bliss free night. Um Ms. Miller, are there any changes in the agenda tonight? No, Mr. Mayor. Council need to change the agenda. No, sir. We'll take a motion on the agenda. Motion to adopt the agenda as presented. Second. That's moved and seconded. Any further discussion on the agenda? Seeing none, uh all in favor, single saying aye. Opposed nay. That motion carries, and we have an agenda. The first thing up in our agenda is the aforementioned recognition of uh retiring police chief uh Roger New, uh, who has been with the city of Egan for 31 years uh and is retiring, coming up here on I believe November 30th. Is that right? Yes. Excellent. So I'm gonna hand over to Ms. Miller to start us out in this recognition. Uh I want to welcome Roger uh and uh his family in tonight saying it's good to see you and uh uh two good looking kids, Roger. Thank God they don't look like him. Yeah, right. They look a lot better than him. Anyways, you're welcome, Roger. All right, Mayor and Council. Well, first it's very strange to be on this side of the dais, but um I want a really important evening this evening uh to recognize Chief New, as you said, we'll be retiring at the end of November. I want to give a little bit of background um on Chief New and make a couple comments before we turn it over to him and then back to the council. So Roger began his career in 1994 as a community service officer. He rose through every rank within the department, uh, demonstrating his unwavering commitment to safety, leadership, and community. Uh Chief New was appointed chief in 2018, becoming only the sixth leader of the Egan Police Department, and certainly has guided the organization with integrity and vision. Uh Chief News impact, as you well know, go far beyond his professional achievements, as he is a he has devoted countless hours to community mentoring and volunteering and coaching athletics. And with his leadership, compassion and dedication, Chief New has helped shape Egan into a community that is truly safer and stronger for all, and for that we are very grateful. Um I'm gonna share more sentiments about Chief New at uh gathering next week, so I will keep this brief. Um I just simply want to say to Roger, you know, what a true honor it has been to have you as our chief and as our colleague. You truly epitomize care. Yeah, come on up. You epitomize care in how you lead the team. Um you're always present in good times and bad. And we had our leadership team meeting earlier today, and someone I think just summed it up perfectly. They said, whenever you have a conversation with Roger New, you become the most important person in the world. And it's so true. Like what a gift, um, what a talent to have. We're gonna miss that. Um, I know that we're gonna thank lots of family too, but Sandy, Elias, Sydney, thank you for giving your dad to us for so many years.
openpublica.com