Rochester City Council Regular Meeting - August 4, 2026
Rochester City Council Regular Meeting - August 4, 2026
Note: The agenda and transcript indicate the meeting occurred on August 3, 2026, but the provided metadata specifies the date as August 4, 2026. This summary uses the provided date.
The City Council met for a regular session on August 4, 2026, at 6:00 p.m. in the Government Center Council Chamber. The meeting covered a consent calendar of routine approvals, public comments, and two major reports and recommendations: wood debris management relocation and the Willow Creek Regional Trail feasibility study. Several votes were taken, including a 4-2 approval for the wood debris relocation and a 4-2 approval for the Willow Creek trail alignment with a directive to report on property acquisition.
Consent Calendar
- Approved minutes from the July 20, 2026 meeting.
- Received and filed the 2026 Second Quarter Investment Performance Report and Budget Performance Report.
- Approved mayoral appointments: Michelle Rogers-Kull to the Library Board and Karen Rader to the Pedestrian and Bicycle Advisory Committee.
- Approved a mileage rate increase from $0.725 to $0.76 per mile, effective July 1, 2026.
- Accepted a $261 donation from Montessori at Franklin PTA.
- Authorized a Collective Bargaining Agreement with International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 49 – Parks and Recreation for 2026-28.
- Awarded a $107,500 contract to Asphalt Surface Technologies Corporation for 2026 Pavement Maintenance – Mastic.
- Authorized City-Owner contracts for public improvements: Stonebrooke Seventh (J5648), Pebble Creek Seventh (J5684), and amendments for Mayo Clinic BFUiR packages (J5632 and J5653) with professional services contracts.
- Authorized a Septic System/Sanitary Sewer Utility Connection Agreement with LDA Homes LLC and Neil and Amanda Cassidy.
- Authorized revocable permits for a fence in a drainage easement (Benjamin T. and Alison K. Kor) and a duct bank in the right-of-way (Mayo Clinic).
- Approved Annexation Petition No. CD2026-004ANX for approximately 16 acres.
- Authorized purchase agreements for four city-owned residential properties to First Homes Properties.
- Authorized a development agreement with Pulte Homes of Rochester LLC for Del Webb Solhaus.
- Amended the Affordable Housing Agreement for London Brook Ponds, reducing the contribution from $1,000,000 to $880,000 for 44 for-sale homes.
- Approved Text Amendment No. CD2026-002TA (UDC amendments) and directed the City Attorney to prepare an ordinance for first reading.
- Approved a settlement agreement related to the Transportation Improvement District fee dispute.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Samantha Loomis (property owner): Opposed the recommended trail route for Segment 1C of the Willow Creek Regional Trail (Alternative 1), which goes through the center of her family's 50-year-old property. She urged the council to choose Alternative 2 (border of property) and questioned the trail's purpose without funded spurs. She also raised concerns about safety and policing of the trail.
- Kelly Ray Kirkpatrick (president, East Side Neighborhood Association): Read an open letter from neighborhood leaders asking the city to engage neighborhoods early, recognize them as standing partners, evaluate neighborhood impacts, and establish ongoing communication. He emphasized that neighborhoods are not barriers but foundations of the city's future.
- Joe LaForge: Praised the Parks and Recreation adaptive recreation program, especially Sue Miller's work, and described how the program positively impacted his son with special needs.
- Molly Dennis (former council member): Criticized the council for reducing opportunities for public comment (e.g., open comment period shortened, lack of virtual participation, blocking social media feedback). She questioned why H2 (Willow Creek Trail) was not a public hearing and called for greater transparency.
Discussion Items
H1: Wood Debris Management Operations Update
- Staff presented a proposal to relocate commercial wood processing operations from the current site (2555 50th Ave NW) to the northeast portion of the KR3 reservoir site, while keeping residential drop-off services at the current location. The move is driven by encroaching residential development, upcoming 50th Avenue road construction, and the need to mitigate nuisances (noise, smoke).
- The proposed budget is $700,000, with staff requesting preliminary approval and $350,000 in contingency funds (50% of project costs).
- Council debate centered on timing and use of contingency funds. Councilmember Miller and Mayor Norton argued the project should be budgeted for 2027 rather than using contingency, as it was not an emergency. Councilmember Keene supported the proactive approach to avoid future conflicts with new homeowners.
- The motion passed 4-2, with Councilmembers Miller and Doring voting nay.
H2: Willow Creek Regional Trail Feasibility Study and Final Design
- Staff presented the feasibility study for a trail from 28th Street NW to Game Haven Regional Park, with a total project cost of $5.96 million (including a pedestrian bridge over County Road 47). The budget includes $3.6 million in state bonding and $1.875 million in city tax levy ($5.5 million total).
- The key decision point was Segment 1C: Alternative 1 (recommended, $275,000) goes through the Loomis property using an easement; Alternative 2 ($1.6 million) requires a boardwalk along the property boundary. The difference of about $1.3 million would affect the ability to fund the pedestrian bridge over CR 47.
- Councilmember Palmer moved to approve Alternative 2 (boardwalk/alternative two). That motion tied 3-3 (Fredericks, Palmer, Doring aye; Keene, Miller, Schuberg nay) and failed.
- Councilmember Keene then moved to accept the feasibility study with the recommended route (Alternative 1) and authorize the $418,170 design contract with Alliant Engineering, adding a directive to return with a legal update on any condemnation action. That motion passed 4-2 (Keene, Miller, Doring, Schuberg aye; Fredericks, Palmer nay).
- Councilmember Doring attempted to table the original motion to seek funding from the county for the pedestrian bridge, but the tabling motion failed 2-4 (only Palmer and Doring aye).
Key Outcomes
- Wood Debris Relocation: Approved (4-2) preliminary approval for relocation of commercial operations to KR3 reservoir site, and preliminary support for up to $350,000 in contingency funds. Final construction and permits still required.
- Willow Creek Regional Trail: Approved (4-2) acceptance of the feasibility study with the recommended route (Alternative 1, through the Loomis property), authorized the design contract with Alliant Engineering for $418,170, and directed staff to return with a legal update on the property acquisition process (including potential condemnation).
- Ordinance First Reading (J1): Unanimously waived the 25-day minimum between first and second readings for Text Amendment CD2026-002TA, setting the second reading for August 17, 2026.
- Ordinance Second Reading (K1): Approved the 2026 Amended Master Fee Schedule.
Other Business
- City Administrator's Report: Announced closing of Civic Center North parking lot on August 15, rescheduled fireworks to September 4, and upcoming events (Aurora Lights presentation, Downtown Art Walk).
- Mayor's Report: Announced National Farmers Market Week, Night to Unite, primary election August 11, Safe City Nights, Back to School Day, and a town hall on transit/biking on August 20.
Meeting Transcript
Please rise as you're able for the Pledge of Allegiance. Welcome everybody to our August third, it's already August, uh City Council meeting. And we begin every city council meeting with our uh our open comment period, and this is an opportunity for anyone from the public to speak on items that we will not be taking public testimony on later in the agenda. Uh each person has up to two minutes to speak for a total of twenty minutes, and I keep track uh through two methods. One is the uh stop light here at the dais, and the other is the digital clock on the wall. Uh I'd ask each speaker to be concise to allow others to speak, and participants are also encouraged to limit comments generally to topics that are within the scope and jurisdiction of the council's ability to affect policy. Council members and staff do not respond to your comments during the public comment period, but will instead follow up on any specific requests separately. And if you have materials to share with the council, you may give them to the city clerk who is to my right there, Miss Caseel, uh, and she will distribute them to uh the council. With that, you will be invited up as you uh signed up. And first we have Samantha Loomis. Hello. You may have to turn the mic on. It pushed the button right in front till it turns green. You gotta push it hard sometimes. Harder. There you go. There we go. All right. All right, I'm Samantha Loomis. I'm coming to talk about H two, the Willow Creek Regional Trail Visibility Study. Um, and specifically about segment one C alternative one. That portion of the map is going right through the center of our family's property, which we've lived there for over fifty plus years, going back a few generations. Um alternative two goes on the border of the property, and I want it not have to go through the center for the bike path that they're recommending. Um I read in the report narrative that this trail will help provide access to jobs, food, and recreation for at least one thousand households within a half mile or a mile, and then twenty-seven hundred within a half mile. But those actually aren't even part of this project to put in this report narrative. Those are spurs that are unfunded and for years down the road. So I feel like currently that doesn't actually have a true purpose for this bike path with connecting the people to the jobs and to the groceries and activities. Um so basically my point here is wherever I wrote it. I asked the city council to vote nay on segment one C if it's possible to just take that and choose the alternative two option, which would include a bridge. So, but they do have funding for up to 5.5 million, so they just are needing to get 463,000 more dollars to achieve to cover for the bridge costs. Otherwise, everything else is funded. So my thought was the property tax. They did an error this year. I don't know if the 1.5 million error would go into parks and recs as far as for the project next year where they could cover that $463,000 to do the bag path through our home. We already have homeless people. In fact, I let some live at the end of our road because they weren't safe where they were. They actually helped me keep all the other people out. Who's gonna police your bike path? Who's gonna police everything that happens in this area? If you put it closer to alternative two. But if you go to two, maybe you'd have the option to do different things with your money to make it safer for people that are gonna use your bike path. And I don't even go under the bridge. I didn't study like my family studied more than I did about your bridge. I think if you went under the overpass, there's other options. You really need to study it. And you really need to save money. And fraud's a big thing. Spending money is a big thing right now. And I think you really need to look at the spending. You bought the piece of cost from us.
openpublica.com