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general fund. She provided additional clarification on tax increment districts and financing and <br />how those funds could be used. <br />Deputy City Administrator Gladhill read aloud an email received earlier today from the property <br />owners at 14431 Wolfram St NW that was distributed to the Council which supports the franchise <br />fee. <br />Matt Look, 2614 Wingfield in Anoka, stated that the Council has a tough job. He noted that his <br />first vote as a Councilmember in Ramsey was a $1,500,000 road project in Ramsey. He stated that <br />after a while perhaps the members of the Council become numb to the cost of road projects. He <br />stated that Anoka County is the second fastest growing County and Ramsey is one of the fastest <br />growing communities. He stated that the concept of previous Councils kicking the can down the <br />road on road projects is true as many Councils did not want to tackle that issue. He stated that <br />when he was on the Council, $1,500,000 was allocated for roads. He stated that decisions have to <br />be made on how funds will be spent, such as the $20,000,000 City Hall building. He noted that a <br />fire station was torn down and a $5,000,000 fire station was constructed in its place. He stated <br />that tonight the Council will consider a Public Works Facility, which is a priority. He noted that <br />roads are a priority but have not been identified as a priority in the budget. He stated that there are <br />certain jobs that the government is required to do, such as roads and unfortunately this becomes <br />an issue of needs and wants. He stated that the need in Ramsey is roads and has been for a long <br />time. He asked the Council to consider what the current budget is being spent on and whether <br />those are needs or wants. <br />Mayor LeTourneau stated that it is difficult to make tough decisions such as this, noting that he <br />has not yet felt numb to any of those decisions. He appreciated the acknowledgement of the <br />difficulty in making these decisions. He stated that it is unfortunate that a sustainable road funding <br />could not have been found when Mr. Look was on the Council or prior to his time on the Council. <br />He stated that they have learned from those past examples that dedicated funding is needed. He <br />stated that Ramsey is a community that is growing and therefore something cannot be ignored to <br />fix something else and therefore they try to do the best job of managing all the needs of the <br />community. <br />Deputy City Administrator read aloud a written comment from the residents at 6040 Radium Circle <br />NW which states that they support the franchise fee method as over a 30-year period the $14 per <br />month would be cheaper than the assessment they would receive if their upcoming road project <br />were assessed. <br />City Administrator Ulrich advised of an online survey available for residents, noting that written <br />copies are also available at City Hall. <br />Mr. Madden stated that he does not see a guarantee that the fee would remain $14 per month in <br />perpetuity. He stated that he likes that this would be dedicated funding but does not like the lack <br />of transparency in how the fee could be increased. <br />Mayor LeTourneau commented that the amount of the fee would be set in ordinance and therefore <br />for that amount to change, the ordinance itself would need to change. <br />City Council / July 14, 2020 <br />Page 9 of 18 <br />