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Page 1 of 2 <br /> <br />EDC AGENDA ITEM – 3D <br /> <br />MEMORANDUM <br /> <br />DATE: June 25, 2025 <br /> <br />TO: Economic Development Commission Chair and Commissioners <br /> <br />FROM: Elena Fransen, Senior Planner <br /> <br />SUBJECT: Business License Background <br /> <br /> <br />Requested Action <br /> <br />The Economic Development Commission should consider the provided information about <br />business licensing and the business license application form. <br /> <br />Background <br /> <br />During the 2024 Work Plan discussions and preparations for the in-person business visits, the EDC <br />discussed the business license process. This process has come up as a way to capture business <br />information that could then be posted to the City’s website. The business license process is <br />maintained by the City Clerk and Deputy Clerk. <br /> <br />All businesses in the City of Arden Hills are requested to complete and submit a business license <br />application form (Attachment A) annually. Information collected through the business license <br />application form is made available on the City’s website as a PDF document (Attachment B). Only <br />businesses that send in their licensing paperwork for that year are included in the list. Businesses <br />are contacted each year to submit a business license and two notices are sent. <br /> <br />The previous Deputy Clerk noted that there are a lot of businesses that use services to process their <br />licenses or have a parent company complete the paperwork. That means a number of names, <br />emails, phone numbers, etc. that are included in the business license spreadsheet are not local and <br />are not an appropriate contact for the business location in Arden Hills. The current business license <br />application does not ask for a company website as part of the application. <br /> <br />Business license fees are based on the City’s fee schedule which includes certain types of <br />businesses and an established fee. Some businesses do not have a fee associated with the type of <br />business. Generally, these businesses do not have tangible goods/services along with their <br />business, and examples are an insurance adjuster/company, counseling services, etc. <br /> <br />In the past the City Council has discussed revamping the fee schedule for business licensing to set <br />one general fee charged as opposed to different fee categories. Some fees are required statutorily