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Councilmember Riley asked for an update on the Council's previous direction to strengthen <br />responsible-bidder requirements for publicly funded projects and tax-increment-financing <br />agreements. <br /> <br />City Administrator Hagen recalled that the Council had directed staff to proceed with the Trident <br />development agreement using the labor-protection language presented in Exhibit C and separately <br />consider broader responsible-bidder language for future policy. He reported that the City's existing <br />ordinance required compliance with Minnesota responsible-contractor statutes for sealed City <br />bids. Still, the requirement did not automatically apply to TIF or other business-incentive projects. <br />Staff had not yet developed proposed policy language because no completion date had been <br />established. <br /> <br />Councilmember Buscher expressed concern that the responsible-bidder requirements were <br />intended to be in place before approval of the Trident development agreement. She supported <br />applying the State's responsible-contractor verification and certification requirements to publicly <br />funded and TIF-supported projects. She also questioned language in Exhibit C that she believed <br />could conflict with Minnesota law regarding downstream contractor liability. <br /> <br />City Attorney Johnson explained that the City's bond counsel, Mary Ippel, prepared the <br />development agreement and had substantial public-sector TIF expertise. City Attorney Johnson <br />had not drafted or independently reviewed the specific language but was willing to review it if <br />directed. <br /> <br />City Administrator Hagen advised that changing the negotiated Trident agreement before approval <br />would require tabling the item and reopening discussions with the developer. He acknowledged <br />that he had understood the previous Council direction differently and accepted responsibility for <br />the misunderstanding. <br /> <br />Mayor Heineman recalled supporting a three-year review of serious labor violations and <br />incorporation of the Exhibit C protections into the Trident agreement. He stated that approval of <br />the current agreement would not prevent the Council from developing a broader responsible-bidder <br />policy for future projects. <br /> <br />Councilmember Specht supported screening contractors for recent serious labor violations but did <br />not support adding prevailing-wage requirements. Staff clarified that prevailing wages were not <br />included in the proposed responsible-bidder discussion. <br /> <br />The Council agreed that additional information regarding State responsible-contractor <br />requirements, certification forms, Exhibit C, and the scope of a future City policy should be <br />provided for continued discussion. No formal action was taken. <br /> <br />5. ADJOURNMENT <br /> <br />The Work Session of the City Council was adjourned at 6:55 p.m. <br /> <br />Respectfully submitted, <br />City Council Work Session / August 25, 2026 <br />Page 6 of 7 <br />