Agenda - Council - 07/22/2025 - Laserfiche WebLink

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City Administrator Hagen said there would be a reduction in the operating budget under professional services. Finance Director Lund reviewed the request for a new City Engineer. She shared that the funding for this role would be taken from the pavement management and utility funds. She added that there is also a request for an Engineering Technician, and the funding for part of this role would also come from the utility fund. She explained that if they do not choose to move forward with the Engineering Technician role, then they would end up spending more out of the pavement management fund for hiring consultants. Councilmember Riley shared that he thought they had already replaced the Civil Engineer position with a Water Resource Technician. City Engineer/Public Works Director Westby explained that the former Civil Engineer spent half of his time on stormwater items and the other half of his time on other engineering items. He said the Water Resources Technician is taking on some of the stormwater items, but also other items that had not previously been done with the MS4 program and public education. He noted this Engineer position would take on all of the engineering items that were being handled by the previous Civil Engineer, including reviewing building permits, plan reviews for private development, and conducting reviews of City projects. He added that this position would also help with engineering inspections in the summer months. Parks and Assistant Public Works Director Riverblood shared the request for a new Park Maintenance Worker. He said this position would be able to reduce contracted services for this maintenance. He noted that this request represents the ratio of residents to maintenance workers that the Council discussed back in 2022. He said they have an aging infrastructure that requires more maintenance. He added that the waterplay area at The Waterfront will also require additional maintenance. Councilmember Specht said he remembers this discussion; however, he thought they would not need another maintenance worker for a few more years. Parks and Assistant Public Works Director Riverblood noted that their projections are calling for an increase of one maintenance worker per year. He explained that they also compared their Public Works operations to other cities in the metro area, and Ramsey runs a leaner and efficient operation than many other cities. Councilmember Specht said he would like to see the cost difference between contracted services and hiring for this new position. Councilmember Peters asked if this role would be able to take care of the maintenance of the pumps and electrical aspects of the waterplay area. Parks and Assistant Public Works Director Riverblood said this would be taken care of by one of the Park Maintenance Workers, not necessarily the new one. He explained that they shift workers around based on their talents and expertise. City Council Work Session / July 8, 2025 Page 4 of 9