Minutes - Council - 08/25/2026 - Laserfiche WebLink

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further explained that the revised agreement would remain subject to bond counsel review and the developer's acceptance. If the developer requested only non-substantive or mechanical revisions acceptable to bond counsel, the agreement would not need to return to the Council; substantive disagreements could require additional negotiations or Council action. Councilmember Specht and Councilmember Olson accepted the friendly amendment to remove Exhibit C and incorporate Minnesota Statutes, section 16C.285. Councilmember Specht emphasized his strong support for the project and his desire to avoid unnecessary delay while securing sufficient Council support. Councilmember Buscher requested an additional amendment requiring completion of responsible-contractor verification and certification documents and compliance with Minnesota Statutes, section 181.165, concerning wage protection for construction workers. She supported the housing project but wanted stronger safeguards for local labor, taxpayer funds, and construction quality. Councilmember Specht declined the additional amendment, preferring to proceed with the compromise already accepted with Councilmember Riley. Mayor Heineman thanked the speakers and the developer but cautioned against implying that the absence of apprenticeship or union requirements would necessarily result in fraud, waste, unsafe construction, or mistreatment of workers. He noted that both union and nonunion contractors can perform ethical work and that the Council shared a goal of preventing wage theft, labor trafficking, and other unlawful practices without selecting winners and losers. He referred to the August 10 work-session discussion and concluded that the statutory responsible-contractor language provided an acceptable middle ground. Councilmember Buscher responded that the speakers were advocating prevention rather than asserting that violations would automatically occur. She maintained that public assistance should be paired with strong enforcement tools and that protecting workers and public dollars should not be treated as a union-versus-nonunion issue. Mayor Heineman asked whether her support for working people included union and nonunion workers, and she confirmed that it did. Motion carried. Voting Yes: Mayor Heineman, Councilmembers Specht, Olson, Riley, and Stewart. Voting No: Buscher. Absent: Councilmember Peters. 7.02: Adopt Resolution #26-195 Accepting Bids and Awarding Contract for 2026 MSA Pavement Overlay Improvements, Improvement Project #26-02 City Engineer Hlel presented the proposed pavement improvements for 173rd Avenue between Armstrong Boulevard and Variolite Street and 175th Avenue between Variolite Street and Nowthen Boulevard. Motion by Councilmember Riley, seconded by Councilmember Olson, to adopt Resolution #26- 195 Accepting Bids and Awarding a Contract to North Valley, Inc. for the total amount of $1,129,093.12 for 2026 MSA Pavement Overlay Improvements, Improvement Project #26-02. City Council /August 25, 2026 Page 5 of 8