Minutes - Council - 07/28/2020 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Councilmember Musgrove stated that she noticed the balance of the MSA fund has decreased with funds used this year and therefore would want to revisit that topic to ensure funds are available for the Highway 10 project. Mayor LeTourneau invited any members of the public to provide comments. nd Frank Howsman, 7140 152 Ave NW, stated that this is everyone’s City and they should have it as they want, as the Mayor said earlier tonight. He stated that this issue appears to be driven by a want of the Council rather than the community. He stated that from what he has seen at meetings and on social media, the majority of residents feel that assessments are a fair form of funding. He stated that he believes that this question should have been placed on the ballot to allow the residents to make the choice on road repair funding. He stated that the residents pay taxes and pay the levy. He stated that the people purchasing the homes discussed earlier tonight do not understand that they live within a TIF District and therefore their taxes do not contribute to road improvements and other City operations. He asked what happened to funds that were claimed to have gone missing years ago by a previous Councilmember. He asked if the Council has been listening to the people of Ramsey and what they want or whether it is following its own agenda. Finance Director Lund stated that in 2013 there was about $1,300,000 budgeted in the general fund for road improvements and at the end of that year $832,000 was moved over into the road fund. She noted that the available balance in that account was used to get to the amount determined needed through the franchise fees. Mayor LeTourneau stated that the $1,300,000 was dedicated towards road funding. He noted that since that time there is much more funding needed to continue to repair the roads. He explained that this plan would help to bring the roads to the condition expected of residents and can be maintained over time to a standard expected by residents. He stated that a lot of repair is needed in the City on its roads and they are attempting to develop this plan in order to continue reconstructing the roads in a manner affordable to the community. Mr. Howsman stated that he believes that the roads could be funded by reallocating funds in the City budget. He did not believe that City funds are being managed correctly. Mayor LeTourneau commented that the Council has heard the comments from residents at public meetings, at information meetings, in person, and through social media. He commented that there are 27,000 residents that live in Ramsey, but you cannot assume that the entire City does not support something based on the comments of a few hundred. Councilmember Specht stated that he appreciates the input from the resident. He stated that the Council attempts to make its decisions based on the feedback received from residents. Councilmember Riley appreciated the input of the resident. He stated that the “missing money” was accounted for and has been used and factored into City needs going forward. He stated that he reads the social media comments and a lot of those users are against this topic. He stated that the Council has had individual comments and has received input from other residents as well, noting that the majority of those people are in favor of the franchise fee. He recognized that this City Council / July 28, 2020 Page 9 of 16