OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Mandan City Commission Meeting - September 2, 2025

City Commission — Tuesday, September 2, 2025
BodyMandan, North Dakota
SessionCity Commission
DateTuesday, September 2, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 46:26

Transcript — Verbatim
0:12

Good afternoon and welcome.

0:13

Today is September 2nd.

0:15

It is 5 p.m.

0:16

and we are in the Bosch Frelick meeting room at Mandan City Hall.

0:20

Mr.

0:20

Newbauer, could you please take the roll?

0:22

Commissioners Heinshawn.

0:23

Here Braun.

0:24

Yes.

0:24

Roar.

0:26

Mayor Freilick.

0:28

Here.

0:28

Please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance and remove all headgear.

0:36

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

0:46

Indivisible and justice for all.

0:55

Okay, we'll start off the meeting with announcements.

0:58

First on the dock it is Shane O'Keefe, Director of Public Works.

1:05

Good evening, Mayor, Commissioners.

1:07

Well, it's that time again, fall is here.

1:10

Free fall landfill week will run from September 15th to the 20th from 8 a.m.

1:16

to 845.

1:18

Daily at the Mandan City Landfill.

1:20

Residents can dispose of furniture, clean appliances at no cost with proof of residency.

1:26

Tire fees will still apply and not acceptable accepted items are construction material, hazardous waste, or any liquids.

1:35

If it is in a paint can, it must be dried to remove it or get rid of it.

1:41

So free fall landfill week coming up, guys.

1:44

Don't forget, can't believe it's here already.

1:46

Shane, what were those hours again?

1:48

Uh 8 a.m.

1:49

to 4 45 p.m.

1:54

Okay.

1:55

Any other questions for Shane?

1:57

Nope.

1:57

Thank you.

2:00

Next up is Jarek with our construction update.

2:06

Good evening, Mayor and Commissioners.

2:08

On my screen here, I have some project updates around from around town.

2:13

On Memorial Highway, restoration of 21st Street and 19th Street are complete.

2:18

Both streets are open and seating will be completed this week.

2:22

60-inch storm sewer main is being installed east-west along the highway corridor, and it is currently installed from 46th Avenue Southeast to 43rd.

2:31

New six-inch water service and sanitary sewers lines continue to be installed along the south side of the highway.

2:37

And asphalt removal is being completed at 46th Memorial Intersection.

2:43

New water main will be installed through this intersection this week.

2:47

And concrete paving on the south side will begin once utilities are installed and the road subgrade is prepped, and that would likely begin in the second half of September.

3:17

Is to begin on the groundwater lift station.

3:21

For our Collins Avenue Reservoir, we began concrete placements for wall and dome panels and place concrete for the head wall and tank foundation slab.

3:30

Completed rebar for tank foundation slab and head wall, and concrete placements for wall and dome panels will continue.

3:37

I do have a picture here of the uh slab pour.

3:40

I think that was about halfway through.

3:43

For our 2025 reconstruction project, this is around Monty Drive.

3:47

Underground work is about 70% complete, and the contractor is prioritizing getting 14th Street paved from 6th to Sunset Drive.

3:56

Um concrete repairs and other restoration will continue all the way up until freeze up.

4:00

So contractor is going to be working to do as much as they can prior to the winter close uh shutdown.

4:05

Um also on this project we did grab a piece of cast iron water main for the public's enjoyment.

4:12

And thought we could show it off if you could maybe there we go.

4:18

That is that is the cast iron pipe that we removed um from underneath Monty Drive or around Monty Drive.

4:29

Um here I was talking about cast iron replacements a lot.

4:32

Mandan proper, um, the sweetbriar area.

4:35

Um a lot of our future uh reconstruction projects include the replacement of cast iron water mains, and hopefully that visual gives people kind of a good reference of uh why we're doing some of those things.

4:48

Um for our 2024 reconstruction project.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural██████████████████████████████████████38%
Fiscal Sustainability██████████████████████22%
Engineering And Infrastructure██████████████14%
Workforce Development████████8%
Water And Wastewater Management██████6%
Personnel Matters████4%
Cannabis Regulation████4%
Transportation Safety████4%
Summary of Proceedings

Mandan City Commission Meeting - September 2, 2025

The Mandan City Commission met on September 2, 2025 at 5:00 PM in the Bosch Frelick meeting room at Mandan City Hall. The meeting included announcements, construction updates, approval of minutes and consent agenda, a presentation of the 2024 audit results, introduction of an infant at work policy, approval of task orders for lead service line inventory, and consideration of several ordinances and resolutions. All votes were unanimous.

Announcements & Reports

  • Free Fall Landfill Week: Public Works Director Shane O'Keefe announced that free fall landfill week will run from September 15 to 20, 2025, 8:00 AM to 4:45 PM daily at the Mandan City Landfill. Residents can dispose of furniture and clean appliances at no cost with proof of residency. Tire fees still apply; unacceptable items include construction material, hazardous waste, and liquids (paint cans must be dried).
  • Construction Update: Jarek presented updates on multiple projects:
    • Memorial Highway: Restoration of 21st and 19th Streets complete; 60-inch storm sewer main installation ongoing; water and sanitary sewer lines being installed; concrete paving expected to begin second half of September. Contractor (Riedy) plans to complete mainline concrete paving before winter shutdown; temporary asphalt if needed.
    • Collins Avenue Reservoir: Concrete placements for wall/dome panels and tank foundation slab underway.
    • 2025 Reconstruction (Monty Drive area): Underground work ~70% complete; contractor prioritizing paving 14th Street from 6th to Sunset Drive; concrete repairs continue until freeze-up. A section of cast iron water main removed was shown as example of replacement need.
    • 2024 Reconstruction: All underground work complete; paving complete this week; chip seal early summer 2026.
    • MDU (Michael's) Gas Main Replacement: Second construction season of a seven-year project; Northern Improvement began asphalt restoration. Commissioner Rohr questioned water in a ditch; Jarek noted possible drainage from Memorial Highway.

Consent Calendar

  • The agenda was approved unanimously.
  • The minutes of the August 19, 2025 Board of City Commission meeting were approved unanimously.
  • The consent agenda was approved unanimously.

Discussion Items

2024 Audit Results

Mindy Piazza, shareholder with Brady Marts, presented the audit results for fiscal year 2024:

  • Opinions: Unmodified (clean) opinion on financial statements; unmodified opinion on internal control and compliance (with two repeat findings: segregation of duties at the airport, and auditors preparing financial statements); unmodified opinion on federal compliance (tested Coronavirus State and Local Recovery Funds and Highway Planning and Construction Fund).
  • Financial Highlights (as of December 31, 2024):
    • Net position: $270 million, up $25 million (9.8%) from 2023.
    • Revenues: Largest source (40%) capital grants/contributions at $27.5 million (including $23 million in special assessments); charges for services 23% ($16 million, mostly water/sewer); property taxes 12% ($7.9 million).
    • Total expenses: $42.8 million; largest categories public works 23% ($9.7M), public safety 22% ($9.4M), water/sewer 19% ($8.3M).
    • General fund ending fund balance: just over $11 million; unassigned balance of $3.6 million exceeded the 17% policy minimum ($3.04 million); policy recently changed to 25%.
    • Budget vs actual: Revenues $1.2M over budget; expenditures $134,000 under budget.
    • Debt: Total principal and interest payments required annually just below $10 million.
  • Other Items: One uncorrected misstatement (not material); management letter issued with housekeeping items.
  • Commissioners voted unanimously to approve the audit results.

Infant at Work Policy

Amy presented a proposed policy allowing eligible employees to bring infants under six months old to work under specific conditions, with approvals from supervisor, department director, city administrator, and HR director. The policy is voluntary, requires equipment provided by employee, and includes a post-program evaluation. Fiscal impact expected to be none. Commissioner Heinshawn raised concern about adequate changing tables; Amy noted the breastfeeding policy provides private space and they would ensure appropriate facilities. Policy approved unanimously.

Lead Service Line Inventory Task Orders

Jarek explained the background: Initial phase identified ~4,000 service lines as lead or unidentified. State phase two is focusing on smaller communities; Mandan too large to benefit. Task orders with AE2S (totaling $220,000) cover Phase II inventory work (records review, customer surveys, public notifications, door-to-door surveys) and future replacements. The city budgeted $100,000 in 2025 and $105,000 in 2026 for lead service line replacement. 66% state funding available, reducing local impact to under $75,000. Funding source changed from special assessments to utility fund. Task orders 11 and 12 approved unanimously.

Key Outcomes

  • Ordinance 1474 (2nd and final consideration): Created new Article 7 to Chapter 2 of the Mandan Code authorizing annual appropriation bonds. Approved unanimously.
  • Ordinance 1475 (2nd and final consideration): Amended Sections 12-8-1 and 12-8-9 relating to cigar lounges. Approved unanimously.
  • Ordinance 1476 (1st consideration): Introduced updates to traffic and vehicle code to align with state law changes, including: no doubling of speeding fines; drivers may exit roundabout without signaling; window tint transmittance changed to 35% for side/rear; careless driving fine $100; interstate speed limit raised to 80 mph; construction zone speeding fine $150. Introduced and approved first reading unanimously.
  • Resolution authorizing SRF loan application for lead service line replacement: Authorized application for a State Revolving Fund loan up to $4.5 million for lead service line inventory and replacement, to take advantage of 66% loan forgiveness. Approved unanimously.

Future Meetings

  • September 16, 2025 at 5:30 PM (preliminary budget public hearing at 6:00 PM)
  • October 7, 2025 at 5:30 PM
  • October 21, 2025 at 5:30 PM

The meeting adjourned.

Meeting Transcript

Good afternoon and welcome. Today is September 2nd. It is 5 p.m. and we are in the Bosch Frelick meeting room at Mandan City Hall. Mr. Newbauer, could you please take the roll? Commissioners Heinshawn. Here Braun. Yes. Roar. Mayor Freilick. Here. Please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance and remove all headgear. I pledge allegiance to the flag in the United States of America. Indivisible and justice for all. Okay, we'll start off the meeting with announcements. First on the dock it is Shane O'Keefe, Director of Public Works. Good evening, Mayor, Commissioners. Well, it's that time again, fall is here. Free fall landfill week will run from September 15th to the 20th from 8 a.m. to 845. Daily at the Mandan City Landfill. Residents can dispose of furniture, clean appliances at no cost with proof of residency. Tire fees will still apply and not acceptable accepted items are construction material, hazardous waste, or any liquids. If it is in a paint can, it must be dried to remove it or get rid of it. So free fall landfill week coming up, guys. Don't forget, can't believe it's here already. Shane, what were those hours again? Uh 8 a.m. to 4 45 p.m. Okay. Any other questions for Shane? Nope. Thank you. Next up is Jarek with our construction update. Good evening, Mayor and Commissioners. On my screen here, I have some project updates around from around town. On Memorial Highway, restoration of 21st Street and 19th Street are complete. Both streets are open and seating will be completed this week. 60-inch storm sewer main is being installed east-west along the highway corridor, and it is currently installed from 46th Avenue Southeast to 43rd. New six-inch water service and sanitary sewers lines continue to be installed along the south side of the highway. And asphalt removal is being completed at 46th Memorial Intersection. New water main will be installed through this intersection this week. And concrete paving on the south side will begin once utilities are installed and the road subgrade is prepped, and that would likely begin in the second half of September. Is to begin on the groundwater lift station. For our Collins Avenue Reservoir, we began concrete placements for wall and dome panels and place concrete for the head wall and tank foundation slab. Completed rebar for tank foundation slab and head wall, and concrete placements for wall and dome panels will continue. I do have a picture here of the uh slab pour. I think that was about halfway through. For our 2025 reconstruction project, this is around Monty Drive.

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