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Record of Proceedings

Ramsey County HRA Meeting Approves Maximum Tax Levy for 2026 Budget - September 23, 2025

Board of Commissioners & Authorities — Tuesday, September 23, 2025
BodyRamsey County, Minnesota
SessionBoard of Commissioners & Authorities
DateTuesday, September 23, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
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0:56

All right, I will call today's housing and redevelopment authority meeting to order roll call, please.

1:01

Chapin Singh.

1:03

Here.

1:03

McGuire.

1:04

Here.

1:05

Mike Murtry.

1:06

Here.

1:06

Midler.

1:07

Here.

1:08

Moran.

1:09

Ortega.

1:09

Hi.

1:10

And John.

1:11

Here.

1:12

Item number one.

1:14

The agenda of September 23rd, 2025 is presented for approval.

1:18

So moved.

1:19

Second.

1:20

See no further discussion.

1:21

Roll call, please.

1:22

Ortega.

1:23

Aye.

1:24

Chubbin Singh.

1:25

Aye.

1:25

McGuire.

1:26

Aye.

1:26

McMurtry.

1:27

Aye.

1:28

Midler.

1:28

Aye.

1:29

Moran.

1:30

Aye.

1:30

And John.

1:31

Aye.

1:31

Item number two.

1:32

The minutes from July 1st, 2025 are presented for approval.

1:36

So move.

1:37

Second.

1:39

See no further discussion.

1:40

Roll call, please.

1:41

Ortega.

1:42

Hi.

1:42

Chabin Singh.

1:44

Aye.

1:44

McGuire.

1:45

Hi.

1:45

McMurtry.

1:47

Miller.

1:48

Aye.

1:48

Moran.

1:49

And John.

1:50

Hi.

1:51

Item number three.

1:52

Um, it's a policy item, the certification of the maximum tax levy for the Ramsey County Housing and Redevelopment Authority.

2:00

So move.

2:01

Second.

2:02

Great.

2:03

Um, with that said, um, I would uh first I'd like to have um Director Olson um come and present um about the action that we are taking here.

2:13

Um I know that we spent some time already through the budget discussions talking about some of these investments, but I'd love to um uh give you uh time to just present this, what it means, as well as um uh uh provide an opportunity for our commissioners to ask any questions.

2:32

Uh madam uh madam chair, commissioners, thank you again for the opportunity to to be here and to discuss specifically the housing and redevelopment authority levy.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Affordable Housing█████████████████████████████████████████████69%
Economic Development████████████19%
Procedural████████12%
Summary of Proceedings

Ramsey County HRA Meeting Approves Maximum Tax Levy for 2026 Budget - September 23, 2025

The Ramsey County Housing and Redevelopment Authority (HRA) met on September 23, 2025, at 10:15 a.m. (meeting called to order at 10:22 a.m. per minutes) to approve routine items and certify the maximum tax levy for the 2026 budget. The meeting adjourned at 10:39 a.m. All seven members were present: Jebens-Singh, McGuire, McMurtrey, Miller, Moran, Ortega, and Chair Xiong. Also present were County Manager Ling Becker and Assistant County Attorney Scott Schwahn.

Consent Calendar

  • Agenda Approval (2025-384): Approved unanimously on a motion by Miller, seconded by McGuire.
  • Minutes Approval (2025-385): Approved unanimously on a motion by Ortega, seconded by Miller. The minutes were from July 1, 2025.

Discussion Items

  • Certification of the Maximum Tax Levy for the Ramsey County HRA (2025-316): The HRA approved a motion to certify the maximum tax levy of $14,266,482 to finance the 2026 budget. Josh Olson, Director of Community and Economic Development, presented the item. He noted that the HRA levy, first levied in 2022, is a primary funding source for housing and redevelopment programs. In 2024, the levy accounted for nearly 59% ($10.9 million) of all affordable housing investments. Funds also support the First Home down payment assistance program (46 closings in 2024, 34 with first-generation buyers), the Emerging and Diverse Developers program (160 applicants for 50 spots in 2025), and redevelopment projects. The levy is countywide except North St. Paul, which opted out. Commissioner McGuire clarified that the levy is the statutory maximum and that recent legislative changes only expanded allowable uses, not the amount. Commissioner McMurtry asked about the potential allocation for economic development (EDA) programming; Olson responded that 10-15% ($2 million) is being considered, pending consultation with cities. Commissioner Moran asked about a 5.2% increase in the levy; Olson deferred to the finance team for a precise answer. Chair Xiong and other commissioners emphasized the importance of the levy for growing the tax base and leveraging other funds.

Key Outcomes

  • Motion to Certify Maximum Tax Levy: Approved unanimously (7-0) on a motion by Ortega, seconded by Miller. Resolution H2025-013 was adopted.
  • Next steps: Staff will continue to engage with cities on economic development programming and provide a written response on the levy increase details.

Meeting Transcript

All right, I will call today's housing and redevelopment authority meeting to order roll call, please. Chapin Singh. Here. McGuire. Here. Mike Murtry. Here. Midler. Here. Moran. Ortega. Hi. And John. Here. Item number one. The agenda of September 23rd, 2025 is presented for approval. So moved. Second. See no further discussion. Roll call, please. Ortega. Aye. Chubbin Singh. Aye. McGuire. Aye. McMurtry. Aye. Midler. Aye. Moran. Aye. And John. Aye. Item number two. The minutes from July 1st, 2025 are presented for approval. So move. Second. See no further discussion. Roll call, please. Ortega. Hi. Chabin Singh. Aye. McGuire. Hi. McMurtry. Miller. Aye. Moran.

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