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ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION – OCTOBER 27, 2025 16 F. EDA Membership City Administrator Jagoe said this item was discussed in 2023, regarding a request to look into the Economic Development Authority (EDA) membership. Per our ordinance the EDA is made up of the mayor and councilmembers. The State Statute language allows for a seven member authority. The 2023 discussion asked if there should be a Planning Commission or Economic Development Commission (EDC) member on the EDA. This was tabled previously and was put back on to our Agenda Planning. Staff is seeking direction if there should be any changes to the EDA membership. Councilmember Holden is in favor of an EDC member being on the EDA. This authority is fundamentally looking at funding and money. She said the Planning Commission doesn’t seem to fit but believes an EDC member is appropriate. Councilmember Weber agrees. He would like to see two additional members and he thinks it should be two EDC members. Councilmember Rousseau also wants two additional members. She is okay with it being two EDC members. Mayor Grant said the EDC advises the City Council. He is okay with it remaining the way it is. He’s open to adding one EDC member. We would be changing the structure and it may require separate meetings rather than meeting prior to a work session, as we did today. Councilmember Holden said there is turnover on the EDC. She asked how long people stay on that committee. Councilmember Rousseau said, not counting the youth commissioners, there have been three commission members turnover, over the last three years. Council all agreed the EDC youth commissioners would not be eligible to be members of the EDA. City Administrator Jagoe said the authority membership numbers are either three, five or seven. If we are talking about adding only one, would someone from the current authority be removed? Or do we add two, that would get us to seven members. Councilmember Weber thinks letting two members of the EDC serve on the EDA would probably go a long way in reducing any perceived or real turnover. Councilmember Monson wants to add two. She agrees it may lessen turn over and help people get more engaged. Having seven members pushes us into a more organized state of the EDA that has been very light-touch over the past couple of years. City Administrator Jagoe wondered if an EDA member can be an Arden Hills business owner who is a non-resident. The EDC membership allows for a business representative who isn’t a resident to serve on that commission. She would have to verify with State Statute.