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Record of Proceedings

Faribault City Council Meeting - October 27, 2026: Firefighter Swearing-In, Delinquent Accounts, and Facility Manager Position

City Council — Tuesday, October 27, 2026
BodyFaribault, Minnesota
SessionCity Council
DateTuesday, October 27, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
Meeting Thumbnail
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Speaker numbers apply only to this recording.

Speaker 1

0:24

Welcome everyone.

0:25

Let's call the Tuesday, October 27th, 2026, Fairville City Council Order.

0:31

First item on tonight's agenda is a roll call.

Speaker 2

0:33

Councilmember Anderson.

0:34

Here.

0:35

Barnes.

0:35

Here.

0:36

Ross?

0:36

Here.

0:37

Rowan.

0:37

Here.

0:38

Cancel this?

0:39

Here.

0:40

Here.

0:40

Mayor Spooner.

Speaker 1

0:41

Here.

0:41

And pledge allegiance.

0:42

Please stop.

0:45

Congratulations.

Speaker 3

0:47

The flag of the United States of America.

0:50

The Republic.

0:54

God is liberty and

Speaker 2

0:57

justice for

Unassigned speaker

0:57

all.

Speaker 1

1:03

Item number two is approval of the agenda.

Speaker 4

1:08

There's I make a motion to approve the agenda.

Speaker 5

1:12

Second.

Speaker 1

1:14

Motion by Van Sluce, second by Barnes.

1:16

All those in favor, signify by saying aye.

1:18

I aye.

1:19

Aye.

1:19

All opposed.

1:20

Agenda is approved on armor item number three.

1:25

Presentation and introduction, swearing in of a full-time firefighter.

1:30

Two full-time firefighters.

Speaker 6

1:33

Chief Dusty Deeds.

Speaker 7

1:45

It's my pleasure tonight to introduce our two newest full-time firefighters, Jonah Baller and Ben Finholt.

1:52

They've both been firefighters with our fire department for some time now, but they uh went through the promotion process, and tonight we're here for their swearing in.

2:00

So we're gonna have them come right over here.

2:03

Stand right up on there.

Speaker 3

2:05

Would you like to do it individually or together?

2:08

So the first thing I'll say is I that's the hard part.

2:16

I state your name.

2:19

You solemnly swear to support the Constitution of the United States, and of the state of Minnesota.

Unassigned speaker

2:31

And

Speaker 3

2:32

that I will faithfully discharge

Unassigned speaker

2:35

the

Speaker 3

2:36

duties of firefighter.

Unassigned speaker

2:39

Of

Speaker 3

2:39

the city of Fairboard, Minnesota, to the best of my judgment and ability.

2:47

Congratulations.

Speaker 7

3:00

Okay, we'll have our badge pinners come up here.

3:03

So again, I want to congratulate these two young men.

3:06

Uh they've been on our fire department for some time, and they've been great additions.

3:10

Uh, when they won 15 years ago, one not quite that long ago, more like a year.

3:16

Uh but we look forward to working with them in their new capacity at the fire department.

Speaker 6

3:46

Congratulations.

3:49

Welcome.

3:49

Thank you.

Speaker 1

4:01

Item B is recognition of the values and action honorees.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural██████████████████████████████████████38%
Water And Wastewater Management███████████████████████████27%
Community Engagement█████████████████17%
Personnel Matters████████████12%
Budget Equity Analysis██████6%
Summary of Proceedings

Faribault City Council Meeting - October 27, 2026

The Faribault City Council met on Tuesday, October 27, 2026, at 6:00 PM. The meeting included the swearing-in of two new full-time firefighters, recognition of Values in Action honorees, approval of consent agenda items (with a pulled item for discussion on delinquent utility accounts), and a discussion and vote on creating a new Facility Manager position.

Presentations and Recognitions

  • Swearing-in of Firefighters: Chief Dusty Deeds swore in Jonah Baller and Ben Finholt as full-time firefighters. Both had previously served as part-time firefighters.
  • Values in Action Honorees: Five individuals were recognized for embodying city values: Chief John Sherwin (Honesty) for transparent communication about Flock camera use; Travis Craig (Respect) for going above and beyond to help a customer with a water leak; Monica Wilder (Dedication) for assisting with summer reading programs; Finance Director Kendra Papenfuss (Visionary) for leading the utility billing software launch; and Donald Doling, Anthony Pemrick, and Jacob Warner (Accountability) for staying after hours to repair a water main break on September 4, 2026.

Consent Calendar

  • Approved: Items A through C and E through L were approved unanimously in a single motion. These included: Claims List, Board and Commission Meeting Minutes, September Financial Report, several resolutions (2026-312, 2026-314 through 2026-317, 2026-319, 2026-320, 2026-321), and appointment to Library Advisory Board.
  • Item D Pulled: Resolution 2026-302 (Levying Special Assessments for Delinquent Water, Sewer, and Storm Water Accounts) was pulled for discussion by Councilmember Barnes.

Discussion Items

  • Delinquent Utility Accounts (Item D): Councilmember Barnes initiated discussion on the high delinquency amount. Finance Director Kendra Papenfuss reported that the total delinquent amount for water, sewer, and storm water was $243,042.28, representing approximately 25% more properties and 25% more in total amounts compared to the previous year. She attributed the increase to the economy and improved collection communication, not a change in process. Barnes suggested amending the city ordinance to approach landlords directly for tenant delinquencies. City Attorney noted that state statute allows this but it is a policy question. The discussion concluded with a motion to approve the resolution, which passed unanimously.
  • Facility Manager Position (Resolution 2026-313): Jessica Kinzer presented the need to create a new Facility Manager position immediately, rather than waiting for the December budget adoption. The position is grade L, with a starting salary at L3 and a six-month bump to L4, totaling approximately $101,000 annually. The resolution also authorizes hiring part-time light duty custodians. The motion to adopt the resolution passed unanimously.

Key Outcomes

  • Votes:
    • Consent agenda items A-C and E-L: Approved unanimously.
    • Resolution 2026-302 (Delinquent Assessments): Approved unanimously after discussion.
    • Resolution 2026-313 (Facility Manager): Approved unanimously.
  • Next Steps: The City will immediately post the Facility Manager position and begin hiring. Councilmember Barnes requested that the ordinance on utility delinquencies be discussed at a future work session.
  • Upcoming Meetings: No regular council meeting on November 3 (Election Day). A special joint work session with Planning Commission and HRA on November 5 (Thursday) at 6 PM to discuss housing ordinance audits. Election results will be certified at the regular November 10 council meeting.

Note: The meeting minutes from October 13, 2026, were approved but not provided in the source materials.

Meeting Transcript

Welcome everyone. Let's call the Tuesday, October 27th, 2026, Fairville City Council Order. First item on tonight's agenda is a roll call. Councilmember Anderson. Here. Barnes. Here. Ross? Here. Rowan. Here. Cancel this? Here. Here. Mayor Spooner. Here. And pledge allegiance. Please stop. Congratulations. The flag of the United States of America. The Republic. God is liberty and justice for all. Item number two is approval of the agenda. There's I make a motion to approve the agenda. Second. Motion by Van Sluce, second by Barnes. All those in favor, signify by saying aye. I aye. Aye. All opposed. Agenda is approved on armor item number three. Presentation and introduction, swearing in of a full-time firefighter. Two full-time firefighters. Chief Dusty Deeds. It's my pleasure tonight to introduce our two newest full-time firefighters, Jonah Baller and Ben Finholt. They've both been firefighters with our fire department for some time now, but they uh went through the promotion process, and tonight we're here for their swearing in. So we're gonna have them come right over here. Stand right up on there. Would you like to do it individually or together? So the first thing I'll say is I that's the hard part. I state your name. You solemnly swear to support the Constitution of the United States, and of the state of Minnesota. And that I will faithfully discharge the duties of firefighter. Of the city of Fairboard, Minnesota, to the best of my judgment and ability.

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