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Councilmember Riley suggested putting an article in the Ramsey Resident about street lighting and <br />why everyone is charged for it. <br /> <br />Councilmember Howell asked if they are crediting rental housing licensees who paid a lot more <br />this year. She asked what the people who have not paid this fee are supposed to do now. <br /> <br />Finance Director Lund explained that since it follows how the ordinance was written, the fees <br />collected in 2024 would be for this year and this would change as discussed for 2025. <br /> <br />Councilmember Howell asked if they discussed crediting a certain amount back to the rental <br />license holders. <br /> <br />City Administrator Hagen said the credit was planned to be discussed this evening. He explained <br />that a credit could have been issued for the license holders who had to go to other cities to take the <br />Crime Free Housing class if they were charged. <br /> <br />Councilmember Riley asked about the people who have not paid their renewal license fee. <br /> <br />City Administrator Hagen shared that there are some people who have not gotten their 2024 <br />licenses. He asked City Attorney Knaak what they should do about making these people pay and <br />get their license. <br /> <br />Councilmember Howell stated that the fee was excessive, and the program was a bit of a flop from <br />the rental license holder’s perspective. She asked if there was an appetite to reduce the 2024 fees <br />and credit a portion back to the licensees for the upcoming year. <br /> <br />Councilmember Woestehoff said he does not have an appetite for changing the fees for 2024 and <br />he trusts Staff’s discretion to figure out what to do about those who have not gotten their rental <br />license for 2024. He noted that if they credit a portion back to single-family property owners, then <br />they should also be asking the apartment buildings to pay the 2025 fees, which would be a huge <br />increase in this year. <br /> <br />Councilmember Howell noted that there is a disparity per unit as the apartments bring in more <br />revenue. She reiterated that the fee for 2024 was excessive and crediting $200 back to the property <br />owners would alleviate this. <br /> <br />Councilmember Specht agreed that the $400 fee was excessive, and he would like to see the <br />differential amount refunded. He said if this would end up being a huge amount that would <br />negatively affect the budget then he would like to know. <br /> <br />Finance Manager Lund explained that when the budget was established for 2024, it was based off <br />of the rates that they put into the 2024 schedule. She said the budget would come in under if they <br />were to credit a portion back. <br /> <br />Councilmember Woestehoff said he would be okay with not charging the 3% credit card fee for <br />rental licenses. <br />City Council Work Session / October 22, 2024 <br />Page 7 of 15 <br /> <br />