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ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL—MAY 13 2024 10 Councilmember Rousseau commented she feared the City has not made appropriate accommodations for Councilmember Fabel. She was concerned the City may be violating the American with Disabilities Act b not making appropriate accommodations. She understood Y g Councilmember Fabel has spoken to the Mayor in the past regarding the challenges he has hearing at public meetings. She asked that the City Council work to address these concerns so Councilmember Fabel can actively participate in the meetings. Councilmember Rousseau thanked the Public Works Department for keeping the City running. She suggested the great efforts of the Public Works Department be highlighted in an upcoming City newsletter. Councilmember Rousseau stated the EDC met with Ling Becker from Ramsey County Workforce Solution at their last meeting. Councilmember Rousseau explained the two members from the Rotary Club were interested in partnering with the PTRC. Councilmember Rousseau indicated the Valentine Hills annual carnival would be held this Friday. Councilmember Rousseau thanked the Spring Lake Park Lions Club for their donation of $15,000 which would be used for parks and recreation. She asked that the City send a formal thank you to this organization. Mayor Grant suggested staff write a formal thank you note that could be signed by the City Council at their next meeting. Councilmember Fabel discussed the franchise fee topic that was before the City Council. He was of the opinion the topic of a franchise fee was poorly misunderstood by residents. He commented on the large expenditures the City had upcoming which included a fire department, trails, and the replacement of public works equipment. He indicated the City needed to collect more revenue than would normally be coming into the City. He stated the difficulty with this was that franchise fees were collected by utility companies and residents may think this has to do with the receipt of gas or other utilities, but rather it was a tax that gets collected and passed along to the City. He indicated his problem with the concept was that it was not well understood and he was concerned with the fact this was a regressive tax that charged a flat fee to every resident. He encouraged residents to speak to City Councilmembers regarding franchise fees in order to learn more. Councilmember Holden reported she attended the PMP meeting and stated there was great attendance at this event. Councilmember Holden explained the store that is not named, will now be a data center. Councilmember Holden indicated a local business recently reached out to her and she learned this business creates the dry mix for the McDonald's hamburgers as well as products for Caribou Coffee, to name a couple.