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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC 11-30-1995 I - .. I . MINUTES - CITY OF ARDEN BILLS, MINNESOTA I TRUTH IN TAXATION PUBLIC BEARING NOVEMBER 30,1995 7:30 PM. - ARMY RESERVE FACILITY CLASSROOM 105 I I CALL TO ORDERlROLL CALL I Pursuant to due call and notice thereat: Mayor Dennis Probst called to order the Public Hearing for Truth in Taxation for Arden Hills at 7:30 p.rn. I Present: Mayor Dennis Probst; Councilmembers Beverly Aplikowski, Dale Hicks, Paul Malone and Susan Keirn. I Also present were: City Administrator, Brian Fritsinger; City Accountant, Terry Post; Parks and Recreation Director, Cindy Walsh; Community Development Director, Kevin ~ Ringwald; City Engineer, Dwayne Stafford, and Recording Secretary, Ruth McLaurin. ADOPT AGENDA MOTION: Malone moved and Aplikowski seconded a motion to adopt the agenda for the I Truth in Taxation meeting as presented. The motion carried .mRnimously (5-0). I MAYOR'S EXPLANATION I Mayor Probst briefly explained the protocol for the meeting. He noted the City Accountant, Terry Post, would present the information regarding the proposed sums to be levied for 1995, payable in 1996. There would then be an opportunity for the public to comment on the proposed I levy as well as the proposed 1996 budget. The Council would comment and ask questions after the public had an opportunity to comment. I CITY ACCOUNTANT PRESENTATION " I City Accountant Post presented a detailed explanation of the levy and the proposed allocation of the funds from the levy. . I I .' .. . I ~EN HILLS TRUTH IN TAXATION - ;NOVEMBER 30,-1995 2 . - Mr. Post used overhead transparencies and handouts to review the information of the proposed I taxes. He used overheads consisting of the following information: Tax Computation Examples, I Chart- Components of Total Local Tax Rate, Chart- 1996 Proposed City Taxes for Homestead Property with an EstimAtp.(/ Market Value of$120,000, I Chart- 1996 Real Property Market Valuation, Chart- 1996 Real Property Tax Capacity, Chart- 1991-1996 Tax Capacity Percentage Change, I Chart - Proposed Payable 1996 Levy in Arden Hills and various SUlTOunding co=unities, Chart- Proposed 1996 General Fund Revenues, I Chart - 1996 General Fund Expenditures, Chart- 1996 General Fund Snmmary, Chart - SnmmAry Comparison of General Fund Expenditures & RevenuelTax Levies I 1992 Actual to 1996 Proposed. ~ Counci1member Malone commented on the chart of the Proposed Payable 1996 Levy which indicates just how much State aid Arden Hills receives, .which is low compared to other co=unities. Councilmember Hicks inquired as to how the rates are determined in regard to computation for 1996 on a Homestead Property. Mr. Post noted the totalloca1 capacity rate is the snmmanon of I the various jurisdictional capacity rates applied against the tax capacity of the parcel. PUBLIC COMMENTS I Mayor Probst opened the Public Hearing at 7:45 p.m. I Mr. Roger Aitkin, 4863 HHmline, indicated the City Accountant deserved a lot of credit for the fine job of preparing the presentation and the Arden Hills Budget Document. He noted this helps residents understand the budget of the City. I Mr. Aitkin noted an amount of the adopted 1995 budget in the 1995 Arden Hills B\1llgf't I Docnme.it and indicated it is $1.5 million where in the handout materials it is $1,743,150. He questioned the difference. Mr. Post noted the amount is $1,743,150 and pointed this amount out . '. in the 1995 Budget Document. He noted Mr. Aitkin may have found the lower number from a I previous year in the book. Mr. Aitkin inquired as to the changes in expenditures from year to year. Councilmember Malone . reviewed many of the expenditures noted in the Chart 1996 General Fund Snmmary and I I ... ... I ,ARDEN HILLS TRUTI:J Il'LTAXATION - NOVEMBER 3..1U 995 '\. . - City Admini!ltrator Fritsinger pointed out the allocation of salaries is based on a typical year. I This allocation does not account for salaried employees that work overtime or attend meetings, etc" so this amount of time is not tracked. I Mr. Thomas Mulcahy, 3530 Siems Court. commented the 2% levy increase, although not as large as in the past, is still a consistant increase and he encouraged the City to stop the growth rate and reduce spending as much as possible. I Mr. Mulcahy suggested a review of Staff productivity, not necessarily more hOUlS out of Staff, but of how Staffs time is spent. He noted the City needs to organize so the big issues do not I submerge the other issues. Mr. Mulcahy noted one area that is time consuming is the requests for information from I residents. He felt residents have the right to information, but not at the expense of consuming the Staffs time so as not to conduct daily business. He suggested a response time policy in the I interest of efficiency. Mayor Probst indicated the City is working on such a policy that would enable the City to ~ respond to the needs of the residents without hindering the daily business of the City. Mr. Aitkin inquired as to street repair and the trucks that exceed the weight limits creating cracks, etc. Mayor Probst indicated the City Engineer is rating the streets and developing a Pavement Management Program that will indicate the necessity of improvement and type of improvement. I Mr. Aitkin inquired if there is a way to check roads before, during, and after development in nearby neighborhoods. Mayor Probst indicated the City cannot prohibit truck traffic. He noted I the streets are reviewed by staff as much as possible. Ms. Lois Rem, 1670 Glenview Court, inquired as to State Aid and the reasoning behind the I decisions to obtain or not obtain State Aid. Mayor Probst indicated most State Aid is unavailable to Arden Hills due to statutory formulas. The City applies for other State Aid when appropriate. I Councilmember Malone noted Arden Hills residents contribute to funds that they are not always able to receive back in the form of various State Aids. I , I . I ., -.. - -. '..