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ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION — JULY 22, 2024 6 Councilmember Holden requested that the preventative maintenance costs be broken out from the repair costs for public works equipment. Councilmember Rousseau questioned if there was interest in setting funding aside over the next three years for this piece of equipment. Public Works Director/City Engineer Swearingen indicated he would have to circle back with his staff members and could report back to the City Council. Councilmember Fabel commented he operated under the understanding Public Works wanted to be efficient when serving the City. He explained he was going to trust the vehicle replacement schedule as presented from staff. He indicated the Council's only other option would be to complete an audit on the fleet, but this did not make a lot of sense to him. Mayor Grant stated he was surprised by the Toolcat and how few hours it has in the past four years. He questioned why the City was trading in this piece of equipment. Public Works Director/City Engineer Swearingen explained the City trades in the Toolcat's when the warranty runs out, it still has a high trade in value and then the City has a new piece of equipment that was under warranty. He stated he could bring back the recommended replacement cycle to the City Council for further consideration. He indicated this plan was put in place to ensure pieces of equipment were not stacking up on the same year. Councilmember Fabel asked if the City's replacement schedule has been compared to other smaller cities. Public Works Director/City Engineer Swearingen explained he could get more information on how the fleet schedule was created. Councilmember Holden stated she did not want the City spending money just to spend money, but rather she wanted there to be a balance or reason for replacing vehicles or pieces of equipment. Mayor Grant suggested Public Works Director/City Engineer Swearingen provide the Council with further information on the fleet replacement schedule in the next administrative update. Councilmember Holden questioned why the County was not obligated to assist with paying for trails along a County road. City Administrator Perrault explained the City had cost sharing agreements in place for street replacements, but noted these agreements do not address trails. Councilmember Monson asked if the franchise fee amount would remain at $375,000. Mayor Grant recalled the amount would remain at $375,000 because this was the amount needed for the fire station. Councilmember Fabel expressed his profound disagreement with the use of a franchise fee. He stated a franchise fee was a tax, disguised as a fee and this troubled him.