Fun for All!with a veterans service orga-nization or county veteran service staff to ensure that...

JUL AUG2018MINNESOTA

Citizen EngagementThe Minnesota Community Assembly Project educated citizens about local government and how they can get involved. PAGE 12

Fun for All!Shakopee’s inclusive playground project was a true community effort. PAGE 30

A PUBLICATION of the LEAGUE of MINNESOTA CITIES

CITIES GET Charged Up

ABOUTElectric

VehiclesPAGE 8

For more information, visit www.lmc.org/RM2018

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MINNESOTA CITIES | JUL/AUG 2018 | 1

JUL AUG2018

MINNESOTA

Features 8 Cities Get Charged Up About Electric Vehicles

12 Community Assemblies Educate and Build Citizen Engagement

17 Cities’ Continuing Health Insurance Obligations

19 A Three-Pronged Approach to Water Conservation in a Drought

Departments 3 St. Paul to City Hall Qualities of an Effective Governing Body

4 Bits & Briefs Environmental review, proper flag disposal, and more

7 Two-Way Street Does Your City Require Pet Licenses?

20 Focus on Small Cities Census 2020: Complete Count Challenge for Small Cities

30 Ideas in Action Fun for All! Shakopee Builds Inclusive Playground

Legal Ease 23 Letter of the Law Compensating Employees Working More Than One Job

24 From the Bench Court Rules in Favor of Driver in DWI Forfeiture Case

Up for Discussion 27 Ask LMC Computer Security: Always Change Vendor Defaults

29 Message Matters Interpersonal Communications: A Few Lessons for City

Elected Officials

On the web

Check out Minnesota Cities online, where you can add to the discussion by posting your comments! Visit www.mncities.org.

On the web

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2 | JUL/AUG 2018 | MINNESOTA CITIES

Volume 103, Issue 4

MINNESOTA

PUBLISHED BYLeague of Minnesota CitiesEXECUTIVE DIRECTOR David Unmacht

BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2018-2019

PRESIDENT Heidi Omerza | Councilmember, Ely

FIRST VICE PRESIDENT Mike Mornson | City Manager, Hopkins

SECOND VICE PRESIDENT Brad Wiersum | Mayor, Minnetonka

Rita Albrecht | Mayor, BemidjiCurt Boganey | City Manager, Brooklyn Center Amy Brendmoen | Councilmember, St. Paul Mark Casey | City Manager, St. Anthony Village Jeremiah Ellison | Councilmember, Minneapolis Lynn Kissock | Mayor, Maple Lake D. Love | Councilmember, CentervilleJoshua Malchow | City Clerk-Administrator, SlaytonBrent Mareck | City Manager, Carver Justin Miller | City Administrator, Lakeville Dave Smiglewski | Mayor, Granite Falls Kevin Staunton | Councilmember, Edina

EX OFFICIO

Jo EmersonLMC Past President Mayor, White Bear Lake

Sara Carlson CGMC Representative Mayor, Alexandria

Mary GaaschMetro Cities Representative Mayor, Lauderdale

Mary McComberMAOSC Representative Mayor, Oak Park Heights

WWW.MNCITIES.ORG

EDITORIAL Claudia Hoffacker | Publications Manager | [email protected]

Danielle Cabot | Communications Coordinator | [email protected]

DESIGN Kathryn Forss | DaisyMaeDesign

REPRINTS Contact Claudia Hoffacker at (651) 215-4032 or [email protected] to request permission to reprint articles. Minnesota Cities (ISSN-0148-8546) is published bimonthly for $30 per year, $5 per single copy, by League of Minnesota Cities, 145 University Avenue West, Saint Paul, Minnesota 55103. Telephone: (651) 281-1200. Website: www.lmc.org. Periodicals postage paid at Eagan, Minnesota, and other mailing offices. Publication number 351960. POSTMASTER Send address changes to Minnesota Cities, 145 University Avenue West, Saint Paul, Minnesota 55103-2044.

For upcoming Board meetings and minutes, visit www.lmc.org/board.

On the web

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St. Paul to City Hall


and having the ability to admit when you are wrong. Effective governing bodies are made up of human beings, not robots.

Why is it that some governing bodies have dysfunctional qualities? Experi-ence shows it is likely a combination of personal agendas, long-held animosities, lack of clear goals and expectations, and other reasons unique to each city. Sadly, there are some that revel in chaos and conflict; certainly, our current political culture reflects this state. But it does not have to be this way.

I close this column as I closed the earlier one—by encouraging you to talk to your colleagues at city hall about how well you execute each of these qualities and, ultimately, ask the questions: Are we an effective governing body? If not, why not? MC

David Unmacht is executive director of the League of Minnesota Cities. Contact: [email protected] or (651) 281-1205.

Agree to disagreeOne of the fundamentals of our democ-racy and representative government is differing opinions. Debate and disagree-ment are healthy and can lead to better policy and informed decisions. However, when they become personal, the effec-tiveness of the governing body collapses. Effective leaders leave personal animosity and lingering disputes outside the front door of city hall.

Personal responsibilityBeing an effective leader of a city coun-cil requires personal accountability and responsibility. Key components of responsibility include the importance of respectful public decorum during meetings; the ability to bring levity and humor to the workplace; and a genuine job of both holding staff accountable for mistakes, while also making sure they get credit for good work.

Effective governing bodies don’t look to blame. Instead, they learn from their mistakes and move forward. Reflect on how well you and your peers represent these values at city hall.

Stay connected to residentsThere is an underlying distinctiveness that elected officials have in relationships with residents that a city staff member does not and will not ever have. Yes, good staff work includes knowing and under-standing what residents want, but that is not its primary role.

Elected officials must stay connected to the community and ensure that all voices are represented at city hall. Create positive and constructive ways to listen, engage, and communicate with all constituents. Effective governing bodies balance the interests of everyone and not just those who are most vocal.

Be human Elected officials and city staff form a partnership through relationships and responsibilities. With that come princi-ples, including those that appear to be obvious, but not always practiced: hon-esty, open communication, transparency,

I previously wrote a column titled “Five Qualities of a ‘Premier’ City,” in which I described my experiences gathering

information on the best practices of Minnesota city governments (Nov-Dec 2017 issue of Minnesota Cities). Now I want to focus on the qualities of effective governing bodies.

Much has been written and attempted when it comes to building an effective governing body (city council, county board, etc.). There is no magic potion that makes it happen; it requires hard work, deliberate change when needed, and most importantly, a commitment from all participants. The role of staff in encouraging or inhibiting effective gover-nance cannot be understated; it is truly a joint effort.

I started collecting information on gov-erning body best practices when I worked in Scott County (1997-2008). During much of my tenure as county adminis-trator, the County Board and staff had an excellent working relationship. During one of my performance reviews, Commis-sioner Jon Ulrich asked me, “What works in this county? Can you define why we are a strong team?” The answer was, “Yes,” and my staff and I put together a list of qualities to share with the Board.

Over time, I have evaluated and tested these principles for authenticity and validity. The list is not perfect, nor does it apply to every situation, but the ideas work and, indeed, they make a difference. The original list included more than a dozen examples of effective qualities of a governing body. I will review the most important ones here.

Clear staff expectationsThe fundamental role of a governing body is to identify clear goals, expecta-tions, and accountabilities for your staff. Dysfunction is a symptom of confusion about duties and responsibilities. For example, councilmembers performing the roles of staff while staff is too deeply involved in policy or politics. Conflict is a certainty when expectations are unclear. Make sure there is consensus about expectations.

Share comments about this topic at www.mncities.org. Click on “St. Paul to City Hall,” and post your comments below the story.

On the web

Qualities of an Effective Governing BodyBY DAVID UNMACHT

Elected officials must stay connected to the community and ensure that all voices are

represented at city hall. Create positive and constructive

ways to listen, engage, and communicate with all

constituents.

2018 NLC CITY SUMMIT in LA

Don’t put your sunglasses away this fall, because the 2018 National League of Cities (NLC) City Summit is set for Los Angeles, California, Nov. 7-10. Once you hop off the plane at LAX, you can make an appearance at NLC University seminars, catch a wave of valuable case studies, tune in to marquee speakers, and hobnob with other rock star city officials. Learn more and register at http://citysummit.nlc.org.

Bits & Briefs

Respectful Flag

DisposalThe Warren City Hall now features a new collection box available for the public to eas-ily drop off worn-out or dam-aged flags. Warren worked with a local Boy Scout troop, but cities can also coordinate with a veterans service orga-nization or county veteran service staff to ensure that flags are disposed of respect-fully. Through a partnership involving the National Asso-ciation of Counties (NACo), the National Flag Foundation, and the National Sheriff ’s Association, NACo member counties can work with local jurisdictions and commu-nity partners such as the American Legion to request and distribute the collection boxes. The first box requested per county is free, and addi-tional units can be purchased for $100. Learn more at www.naco.org/naco-flag-box.

Get a Receipt for Your City Property Tax PaymentThe City of Cambridge takes budget transparency to the next level with an easy-to-use online “tax receipt” calculator and interactive budget tool called Balancing Act. Users can type in the taxable market value of their property, and then the cal-culator displays the property’s estimated total tax bill from the city with a breakdown of where that money is going—every-thing from bond payments to the maintenance and operation of ice rinks and warming houses. Each line item has a simple description of what services, staff, and capital are supported by that investment.

After calculating a tax receipt, residents and business owners can access the interactive budget tool to tinker with spending and revenue sources, and to provide comments that are then available for city staff to review in a colorful, fast, and user-friendly format. Check out the tool at www.ci.cambridge.mn.us/cambridge/departments/finance.

Environmental Review for Local GovernmentsEnvironmental review is a process that your staff or council may rarely face, but that doesn’t mean it has to be mysterious or intimidating. A new guide released by the Environmental Quality Board offers a quick and easy overview of what it is, when to do it, who does it, and what resources are available to help you. Access the Environmental Review 101 Guide for Local Governments at https://bit.ly/2kCJDKE.


Growing Your Garden CommunityThe City of Plymouth gave a boost to local green thumbs this year by hosting a plant swap in early June. Residents could bring perennials, seeds, and garden gadgets to the city’s mainte-nance facility parking lot and trade for new species or tools to liven up their yards. Interested in host-ing your own municipal garden get-together? Fall is also a great time for dividing and transplant-ing perennials.


Bits & Briefs

Learn more about these and other events at www.lmc.org/events.

On the web

LMC TRAINING & EVENTS

2018 LMC Regional Meetings Oct. 3–Fergus Falls Oct. 4–St. Cloud Oct. 10–Mountain Iron Oct. 11–Baxter Oct. 17–Bemidji Oct. 24–Marshall Oct. 25–Mankato Oct. 30–Rochester Nov. 29–Golden Valley

Newly Elected Officials: 2019 Leadership Conference Jan. 25-26–Mankato Feb. 1-2–Plymouth Feb. 22-23–Brainerd

Experienced Officials: 2019 Leadership Conference Feb. 1-2–Plymouth Feb. 22-23–Brainerd

Cities Connecting Children to Nature

A Clear Choice for Vacant Properties

CorrectionOn page 23 of the May-June 2018 issue of Minnesota Cities, there was an error regarding the process for changing a speed limit on a city street. To change a speed limit on a city street, the city council must have a traffic study performed and make a request to the commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Transportation for approval.

The wellness and educational benefits of allowing children to play and learn in nature have been well-documented. Now cities can help their youngest residents tap into these benefits with resources from the Cities Connecting Children to Nature (CCCN) initiative. CCCN is a collabora-tive project of the National League of Cit-ies and the Children & Nature Network.

The initiative strives to create and strengthen the bonds between youth and

nature by providing more equitable access to nature via city planning, programming, partnerships, and more. For the 18 partic-ipating cities, CCCN provides technical assistance, training, resources, documen-tation, and peer learning opportunities. St. Paul was chosen as a pilot city for the initiative, and Minneapolis has joined the cohort for peer learning opportunities. Learn more and access resources at www.childrenandnature.org/initiatives/cities.

Vacant homes with their windows and doors boarded up with plywood signify trouble to neigh-bors, prospective buyers, and the community at large. Some entities are doing away with the use of plywood for these rea-sons and are transitioning instead to a clear polycar-bonate sheeting. Propo-nents of the polycarbonate say it’s tougher, less likely to attract vandalism, and largely unnoticeable to passersby. It also allows for law enforcement to keep an eye on things inside the property.

The material may be more difficult for firefighters to remove it in case of fire; however, according to the U.S. Fire Administration, the visibility it provides may deter arson. Fannie Mae—the federal mortgage financing enterprise, the City of Phoenix, Arizona, and

the state of Ohio have all made the transition. Learn more from the U.S. Fire Administration at www.usfa.fema.gov/current_events/041718.html.

Waseca’s Sinister ForestWhen a local organization axed its popular haunted corn

maze attraction in the City of Waseca, the event orga-nizer and the city swooped in to relocate the fright fest to

a city park. Using existing buildings and trails, the new partnership’s “Sinister Forest” brought the spooky sea-sonal event back from the dead. Local businesses were solicited for start-up capital and to sell concessions for

those who dared make the trek. Proceeds from the event were used to fund the city’s Fourth of July fireworks.


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Two-Way Street


CORTNEY KOUNKEL CITY CLERK-TREASURER

JASPER (POPULATION 609)

In Jasper, which is partly in Pipestone County and partly in Rock County in the southwest corner of the state, we require licenses for all cats and dogs that live in the city limits. This requirement was imple-mented in 2010, and we have found it keeps our residents accountable for their pets.

The pet owner must pay a license fee of $10 for each spayed or neutered animal, and $15 for each animal that is not spayed or neutered. Pets must also be vaccinated for rabies to obtain a city license.

The one-year license fee is payable for any part year that an animal is kept in the city limits, and there is no refund of the yearly license fee for an animal that dies or moves out of the city limits prior to the expiration of the one-year license issued.

Annual renewalsOwners must obtain a license within 30 days of getting a pet, and the license must be renewed annually. Licenses expire on March 31 each year, and owners are given a one-month grace period in which to renew.

If the license isn’t renewed by April 30, a late fee of $5 per license will be charged until May 31. After that date, the owner will be in violation of the ordinance. The city contracts with the Pipestone County Sheriff ’s Office to help enforce the licensing program.

Other requirements for petsIn addition to licensing, we have a few other requirements outlined in our pet ordinances.

One requirement is known as our “leash law,” and man-dates that animals must be physically controlled by their owner or the person keeping the animal. To comply with the leash law, the person responsible for an animal can use a fence, cage, or leash to physically control the animal.

We also limit the number of pets a resident can have. Resi-dents cannot have more than three adult household pets.

In addition, we have a noise control ordinance that says pets or other animals cannot disrupt the peace of neighbors by barking or making other noise during sleeping hours. And we have an ordinance stating that no person will keep or harbor an animal within the city limits if the animal is known to have vicious tendencies.

A good experience for allPets usually bring a lot of joy to their owners, but we have found it’s important to lay some ground rules to ensure a good experience for owners, pets, and the entire community.

SONJA E. PELLAND CITY ADMINISTRATOR/CLERK-TREASURER

LITTLEFORK (POPULATION 626)

Dogs and cats have always been welcome in Littlefork, located in Koochiching County just south of the Canadian border. To ensure the safety of both the animals and residents, though, we require pet owners to comply with our pet ordinance. As part of the ordi-nance, we did require licenses for dogs, but we discontinued that this year.

We have never had a huge problem with dogs running at large, but a few have been famous for running away from home. A pet license was cheap, only $5, and assured that if your pet strayed, the owner could be easily identified.

We also once had a dog catcher to enforce licensing and take care of strays. The City Council decided the cost of $250 per month did not justify the benefit, and eliminated the position in 2015.

New pet ordinanceLittlefork adopted the Minnesota Basic Code for small cities in 2015, and got a new pet ordinance as part of that process. It has basically the same requirements as the previous ordi-nance except the new code requires proof of vaccination to obtain a license.

Vaccinations were always required, but we had never asked for proof. This was met with some resistance by many of our pet owners, especially those who didn’t see the benefit of licensing in the first place.

A losing battleWith the new proof-of-vaccination requirement, the number of licenses we issued annually fell from around 45 to about 25. This prompted the question: Why are we fighting this battle to make people buy a $5 tag when the pet ordinance is not other-wise being violated?

The city’s cost for the tags, license book, advertising, and staff time to sell tags and track licenses was more than the money collected for tags. So, the Council discontinued the licensing requirement at the beginning of 2018.

New ‘no license’ policy is workingAll other requirements of the pet ordinance remain in effect, including the leash law and the requirement to keep pet vac-cinations current. We still recommend that people have their pets wear a rabies tag and another form of identification so their owners can be identified if they stray. So far, we have not had any more pet issues than usual.

As for pets that wander from home, we have found that social media is a very powerful tool to help reunite them with their owners. It works well because Littlefork folks love their pets and try to look out for each other. MC

Does Your City Require Pet Licenses?


City officials in St. Louis Park, Warren, Edina, Elk River, Pine City, and Red Wing all worry about local issues like street repairs, taxes, and water services.

But they also believe that part of their respon-sibility to residents is to do their bit to try to save the earth, and maybe bring a little more commerce to town while they do so.

They are among the Minnesota cities work-ing to add environmentally friendly electric vehicles (EVs) and EV charging stations to their communities. Interest is surging as the technology improves, costs drop, and the economic benefits of embracing the technol-ogy become apparent, says Brian Ross, senior program director at the Great Plains Institute, a Minneapolis-based nonprofit that works to transform energy systems.

Cities play a big roleWith electric utilities creating more of their power from green sources like wind and solar energy, gas-powered vehicles are now the top emitter of greenhouse gases in the U.S. Ross says that puts the issue squarely in the lap of city officials.

“Cities have a much bigger role to play here because so many of those transportation questions are handled locally,” he says.

“There are three ways to reduce emissions, all of which take place at the local level: using more efficient vehicles, enabling other modes of transport like bikes or transit or walking, or switching to low- or no-carbon fuels.”

This year, 25 Minnesota cities big and small are exploring EV readiness as part of the program Cities Charging Ahead! The group, which is about twice as big as expected, is taking part in educational webinars, analyzing their city fleets to see if EVs make sense for them, and exploring whether it’s viable to add EV charging stations.

“There’s a thirst for knowledge,” says Diana McKeown, who coordinates the program through the metro region Clean Energy Resource Teams (CERTs), based at the Great Plains Institute. “Cities like being seen as lead-ers and being forward thinking, and they know that saving money is a benefit.”

CITIES GET Charged Up

ABOUTElectric

VehiclesBY MARY JANE SMETANKA

Elk River’s electric vehicles are helping the city meet its energy-efficiency goals.

The City of Elk River has two electric vehicle chargers—this one in downtown and another in a grocery store parking lot—which members of the public can pay to use.PH

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FEATURE


and sustainability coordinator. “We wanted to make sure it was getting used,” Pinc says. “Mindfulness is part of our policies.”

Committed to energy-efficiencyElk River also studied fleet use and found it was rare for any-one to drive more than 40 miles per day. The city is selling two old vehicles and has a three-year lease on a hybrid elec-trical SUV, the Mitsubishi Outlander, that has a 1,500-pound towing capacity.

“We wanted a size comparable to other city vehicles, because everyone is used to driving trucks,” says Amanda Bednar, Elk River’s environmental coordinator. “Everyone really likes it. It’s a good size and there’s no learning curve.”

Elk River usually buys its vehicles, but the lease seemed wise when the technology is changing so fast, Bednar says. The city-owned municipal utility also has an electric vehicle, the Chevrolet Bolt.

The Bolt has a wrap clearly identifying it as an electric car and an Elk River Municipal Utilities vehicle. The city is planning to put a similar wrap on the Outlander. “We want to

One of the big arguments in favor of EVs is that, though the vehicles initially can be expen-sive, over time EVs are much cheaper to run than conventional vehicles. McKeown says that an EV will cost thousands of dollars less over its lifetime because fuel and maintenance are so much cheaper.

EVs help meet environmental goalsWhile hybrid vehicles are not uncommon among city fleets, Edina and St. Louis Park are among a handful of Minnesota cities that own all-electric vehicles. Both have a Nissan Leaf.

Purchase of the cars fit with the two cities’ aggressive environmental goals. Edina wants to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent by 2025. And the climate action plan adopted by St. Louis Park includes a goal to reduce vehicle emissions by 25 percent by 2030.

Both cities analyzed fleet use and found that people generally didn’t drive as many miles per week as they thought they did. Most EVs now have a driving range of more than 100 miles on a full charge, and a few models can go more than 200 miles.

In Edina, the Leaf, which was purchased in 2013, is used by the Engineering Department, which had been using a gas-gobbling truck to get to community meetings and other events even though a big vehicle wasn’t needed.

“Why not try the electric vehicle?” says Tara Brown, Edina’s sustainability coordinator. “We have an indoor parking garage, which makes it easy to charge and care for the vehicle. Since it’s doing mostly city driving, we found that range was not a limiting factor.”

Residents have noticed the Leaf, which carries the city logo, and ask about it, Brown says. “People get pretty excited to see these around,” she says. “We want them to have confidence that we are making good choices for the environment and for our residents.”

St. Louis Park got its Leaf in 2016. The car was intended as a pool vehicle, but it wasn’t being used much, so it was assigned to a full-time inspector, says Shannon Pinc, city environmental

Edina’s Nissan Leaf is helping the city reach its goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent by 2025.

ABOVE: St. Louis Park Environmental

and Sustainability Coordinator Shannon

Pinc says the city got its Nissan Leaf electric car

in 2016.

BELOW: Tom Sagstetter, of Elk River Municipal

Utilities, charges the city-owned Chevrolet

Bolt, which is marked to identify it as an electric

municipal utility vehicle.

(continued on page 10)

PHOTOS BY MATT M. JOHNSON

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advertise to our residents that we’re not just driving this for fun, that we are committed to being energy-efficient and to trying new technologies,” she says.

While most people with EVs charge them overnight at home, Elk River’s utility installed two high-powered public charging stations that can be used by visitors as well as residents. Tom Sagstetter, conservation and key accounts manager for Elk River Municipal Utilities, says the utility wanted to build confidence in the technology and draw passersby into town. The utility got a $40,000 grant to install two EV chargers, one downtown and one in a grocery store parking lot.

EV owners pay to use the chargers to help offset the cost of maintaining them, Sagstetter says. “Had we not gotten the grant, we probably wouldn’t have done it,” he says. “This is a strategic long-term initiative to focus on sustainability.”

Economic toolThe realization that EV chargers can be an economic tool for cities came early to Pine City, where years ago city officials encouraged a utility company to install a charging station just off the freeway near the city’s business district. The city wanted environmentally friendly policies, but also wanted to draw travelers to local restaurants and businesses.

“It’s been an asset for the community,” says Ken Cammilleri, Pine City’s city administrator. “It’s near four restaurants and a thrift shop and people stop to charge their cars and go into town. It’s worked out well.”

Already, a chain of EV charging stations lines the I-35 corridor from the Twin Cities to Duluth. That caught the eye of city officials in scenic Red Wing. The city recently decided to add a charging station to a public parking ramp “in time for leaf season,” City Coun-cilmember Evan Brown says.

“We watched as that Duluth tourist corridor got built up,” he says. “We are right on Highway 61 along the river. EV tourists are high-dollar tourists, with higher-than-average disposable income.”

The city will promote the charging station through the local chamber and visitor and convention bureau, the city website, social media, and apps that help EV owners locate charging stations.

A $2,000 CERTs grant will help pay for the roughly $10,000 cost, with the balance coming from the city’s public works budget. The high-powered charger can be used by two cars at once.

Red Wing has been a leader in adopting solar energy and now is directing its environmental efforts to the issue of trans-portation, Brown says. He was cheered by public enthusiasm for a city Earth Day EV car show. “It was incredible,” he says. “People are starting to get it, they’re starting to come around.”

Instead of investing in more hybrid vehicles for its fleet, Red Wing officials may wait until EVs with all-wheel drive are avail-able. “We think those vehicles are not that far off,” Brown says.

Opportunity in WarrenOn charging station maps, one yawning hole is in northwestern Minnesota. Warren, the 1,600-resident seat of Marshall County, sees that as an opportunity.

Three years ago, Warren was chosen as a Climate Smart City and developed a partnership with a city in Germany. Warren City Administrator Shannon Mortenson says her two visits there were eye-opening.

“It changed the thought process up here,” she says. She bought an EV for herself, and thinks that’s “a good economic decision and a good environmental decision.” Though some doubters thought the long Warren winter would be too cold for her EV, Mortenson says she proved them wrong by making it to work every day.

But for a recent trip to St. Cloud, she couldn’t drive her EV because of a lack of charging stations along the way. Right now, the nearest one is in Bemidji, 120 miles away.

She thinks Warren, at the crossing of two major highways and on the route to Canada, is a natural spot for a public charging

station. More than 500 people commute to the city each day to work at the county courthouse, a hospital, and other businesses, and 400 city residents commute elsewhere.

“If you have chargers available, people are going to be more curi-ous about EVs,” Mortenson says, “and if chargers are here, people are going to stop and have lunch and visit retail stores. If you have to sit for a couple of hours, you’re going to buy something.”

Cities seeking help from retailers, developersIn the metro area, cities aren’t rushing to add charging stations. Some grocery and big-box stores recently have begun voluntarily adding high-powered EV chargers when they build new projects. St. Louis Park is looking at ways to encourage that trend, but the city doesn’t want to duplicate efforts that are already going on, Pinc says.

She says city staff are considering how to make it more attractive for developers and others to expand EV charging in the community. Some developers already see charging stations as an asset.

“This is the way things are going,” Pinc says. “When I talk to peo-ple, it seems like a lot of developers expect to hear about this.” MC

Mary Jane Smetanka is a Minneapolis-based freelance writer.

St. Louis Park Property Maintenance Inspector Jason Bredenberg charges the city’s electric car, a Nissan Leaf.

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FEATURE


‘Transformative’ experienceLee says working with the other residents and hearing from city officials who pre-sented during the assembly helped him understand how much opportunity there is for people from all backgrounds to get involved in their community.

“The word I use to describe the experience is: ‘transformative,’” says Lee,

Brooklyn Park resident Xiongpao “Xp” Lee found inspiration and momen-tum for a life in public service after

taking part in the Minnesota Community Assembly last winter.

During eight days spread over three weekends in November and December 2017, Lee and a diverse group of 44 other participants came together for a series of workshops designed to give them a broad understanding of how local government works and how they could make it better.

The Brooklyn Park group is one of four such assemblies organized through the Minnesota Community Assembly Proj-ect, led by Hamline University Political Science Professor David Schultz.

When they started, some in the Brook-lyn Park group had such limited expe-riences with government that they had never met an elected official and didn’t know they could visit City Hall any time or call their mayor directly.

Group members heard lectures from experts about the differences between city, state, and local government and, with the help of facilitators, they broke into small groups for discussions about

election and decision-making processes and concepts like equity, transparency, and accountability.

In the end, Lee and the assembly par-ticipants came away with a strong grasp of their roles in the local democratic process. They presented their recommen-dations for reform to the City Council on March 12.

Community Assemblies

Educate and Build

Citizen Engagement

BY MARISA HELMS

Xiongpao Lee, Brooklyn Park resident and emerging leader, and other assembly participants plot out points of interest on a map to see how they can build community and strengthen connections.

PHOTOS COURTESY MINNESOTA COMMUNITY ASSEMBLY


a Hmong refugee who came to the U.S. when he was a baby.

Lee’s enthusiastic response to the assembly was nearly universal among the Brooklyn Park participants, says Mayor Jeffrey Lunde. As a city official, Lunde did not take part in the assembly, but he says he was impressed with the group’s sophis-ticated comments when they presented their recommendations to the Council.

“From what I saw, there was lots of excitement and a clear sense of purpose,” Lunde says. “We’re big on engagement, and the assembly organizers and speak-ers did a great job. They didn’t tell par-ticipants what to think, but helped them make informed recommendations.”

The Brooklyn Park assembly rec-ommendations included expanding the mayor’s hours from part-time to full-time, reconstituting a “Welcome to Brooklyn Park” kit that helps connect new residents to services and resources, making the police department more diverse, and providing access to capital for local small businesses.

Brooklyn Park’s assembly is a true success story and a great model for other cities, according to assembly project manager Schultz.

“Cities can really learn something from these assemblies about how to do community engagement for comprehen-sive planning or other activities,” Schultz says. “When you provide an opportunity for residents to talk with one another and receive good information about what local government does, they get excited and come up with great ideas.”

A focus on nontraditional communities Schultz secured $500,000 from The Joyce Foundation and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation to conduct the assemblies in four cities. Red Wing, Willmar, Brooklyn Park, and Maplewood were the cities chosen.

The grant was split among Ham-line University, Jefferson Center, the Wilder Foundation, and Northwestern University’s ForgeWorks. The Jefferson

Center facilitated eight-day assemblies in Red Wing in June and July 2017, and in Willmar in September and October 2017. The Wilder Foundation facilitated in Brooklyn Park and in Maplewood, where a shortened, two-day assembly took place in April. ForgeWorks pro-duced the project website (www.mnas-sembly.org) and instructional videos.

Schultz chose the four cities in con-sultation with the League of Minnesota Cities because he wanted to make sure they each met specific criteria. He wanted cities that had home-rule charters and citizen-led referendums, and that repre-sented different images of Minnesota.

“Red Wing is a politically and racially homogeneous city,” explains Schultz, “while Willmar and Maplewood’s demo-graphics are dramatically transitioning, and Brooklyn Park is the state’s largest near-majority nonwhite city, and it rep-resents where the state is going.”

Cities hosted the assemblies at no cost. All project expenses—including training, meals, and a $1,200 stipend and childcare reimbursement for each participant—were paid for by the grant.

Schultz and his team helped the cities publicize the assemblies and recruit par-ticipants, putting particular emphasis on reaching out to populations that don’t typically show up at city hall. In addi-tion to mailing flyers and using social

media to get the word out, Schultz and his team had face-to-face meetings in places like mosques, community centers, and barber shops.

“If you really want to reach the nontra-ditional communities, you have to find out who the leaders are and spend lots of time talking with them and winning over their confidence,” Schultz says. “They’re potentially the new future leaders for their cities.”

The strategy worked. In each city, hundreds of people applied for just a few dozen spots in the assembly.

‘Powerful’ projectEach of the assemblies included instruc-tion in the eight qualities of good govern-ment: accountability, transparency, equity, trust, strategic vision, effectiveness and efficiency, and consensus orientation. Par-ticipants also studied election processes, ethics, and other topics and then voted on recommendations for change.

The recommendations made by Red Wing’s 36-person assembly included establishing an ethics commission, strengthening financial disclosure requirements for city officials, and increasing public engagement through electronic communications. The assem-bly also studied the city’s election process and learned about ranked-choice voting

Participants receive certificates after the assembly in Maplewood.

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and the differences between at-large and ward elections. The group presented its recommendations to the City Council in September 2017.

Red Wing Council Administrator Kay Kuhlmann says the city is studying each of the assembly’s recommenda-tions, and has already moved toward implementing a strategy to increase digital engagement.

The assembly project was “powerful,” Kuhlmann says. “The more we can get residents involved in decision-making early in the process, the better the deci-sions will be.”

Since the assembly, one participant has joined the city’s Human Rights Com-mission and has expressed interest in running for a board or commission spot in the future, she adds.

Coincidentally, the city recently increased its commitment to outreach by creating a new position for a commu-nity engagement specialist, who started at the city just as the assembly got underway last summer.

“There’s no downside to this kind of engagement,” Kuhlmann says. “It’s our civic responsibility.”

Residents find their voiceIn Willmar, 32 residents participated in an eight-day assembly last fall and made their recommendations to the City Council in November 2017. The group asked the Council to adopt better public meetings and increase its digital citizen engagement, as well as consider ranked-choice voting and investigate a ward ver-sus at-large system for Council positions.

Assembly participant Dale Boxrud says the project helped him understand that he has a voice.

“The national political environment is so terribly frustrating, and the aver-age person feels absolutely powerless to change what’s going on in Washington,” Boxrud says. “I learned that, at least on the local level, a small group of people can change things.”

Willmar Mayor Marvin Calvin says the assembly process has reinforced for him the importance of reaching out to the city’s increasingly diverse residents, including Hmong and Somali immigrants.

“[The assembly] has had a tremen-dous impact,” Calvin says. “These groups are not used to having their voices heard, and it allowed some of our

citizens to find out they have more in common than apart.”

The City Council is still reviewing the assembly’s recommendations, Calvin says, but a couple of the propos-als have coincided with improvements already in the works, including updat-ing the city website, which became a priority after the assembly called for increased digital engagement.

Hamline University Professor David Schultz presents on the levels of power at one of the Minnesota Community Assemblies.

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He adds that two assembly par-ticipants have expressed an interest in running for City Council, and another joined the city’s Human Rights Commission.

“If a community is thinking of doing something like this, they should roll up sleeves and go after it,” Calvin says.

Maplewood City Manager Melinda Coleman agrees, calling the assembly process in her city “a very positive approach to community engagement.”

At the end of the two-day Maple-wood assembly in late April, Coleman and two councilmembers heard the group’s six recommendations, which included specific ideas aimed at build-ing trust, equity, and transparency in the community. The 21 assembly participants will formally present their findings to the full City Council some-time this summer.

“Listening to their recommendations made it apparent to me that people love to be asked to participate,” Coleman says. “I also learned we have to figure out how to create trust for residents and find ways to communicate in a way that’s meaningful to the different popu-

lations, residents, and businesses in our neighborhoods.”

Assemblies inspire tomorrow’s leadersSchultz says host cities were good part-ners, and city officials were willing to listen to what the assembly participants had to say.

He learned that engagement efforts like the Minnesota Community Assem-bly project cannot use a “one-size-fits-all” approach to outreach. Since many residents, particularly immigrant populations, may know very little about how their city is run, outreach has to be

tailored to the uniqueness of each com-munity with a significant effort to meet the residents where they are.

Another important outcome of the project is the understanding that out-reach efforts like the assemblies are effec-tive tools for building leadership among residents and finding a future mayor or city councilmember among younger and increasingly diverse populations.

Back in Brooklyn Park, resident Xp Lee, embracing all that he learned from his assembly experience, applied for an engagement position with the city. He started in his position as the city’s newest community liaison in February.

Lee says he and the rest of the assem-bly participants continue to meet monthly to discuss and refine their rec-ommendations and strategize about how to get them implemented.

“Before the project, I was just a concerned citizen,” Lee says. “But after I went through it, I have become more of an engaged resident who has the skills and information to participate [in local government].” MC

Marisa Helms is a Minneapolis-based freelance writer.

“The aver age person feels absolutely powerless to change what’s going on in Washington.

I learned that, at least on the local level, a small group of people

can change things.”DALE BOXRUD, RED WING RESIDENT

AND ASSEMBLY PARTICIPANT

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FEATURE

Cities’ Continuing Health Insurance ObligationsBY MARY D. TIETJEN

line of duty.” If PERA decides it was, PERA will notify the city that it must continue health insurance and that the city may appeal the determination.

To challenge PERA’s decision, the city must file a petition for review within 60 days of the PERA notice, requesting a contested case hearing before the Office of Administrative Hearings. The city is appealing only PERA’s “in line of duty” decision relating to the city’s obligation to continue health insurance.

Even if the city wins the appeal, the employee may still qualify for PERA “non-duty” disability benefits. Min-nesota Statutes, section 471.61 also requires cities to allow most former employees (including police officers and firefighters) and their dependents to continue to participate in the city’s health plan until the former employee reaches age 65.

If the city does not appeal within 60 days, it loses its right to do so. Therefore, filing a timely appeal is critical. After a contested case hearing, an adminis-trative law judge issues a decision. The employee, employer, or PERA may appeal the decision by writ of certiorari to the Minnesota Court of Appeals.

ReimbursementCities may apply for reimbursement to help defray continuing insurance costs. A city must apply by Aug. 1 for the preced-ing fiscal year to the commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Public Safety. Reimbursement is not guaranteed and is dependent upon state funding. MC

Mary D. Tietjen is an attorney with Kennedy & Graven, Chartered (www.kennedy-graven.com). Kennedy & Graven is a member of the LMC Business Leadership Council (www.lmc.org/sponsors).

spouse who becomes eligible after an employee dies. Therefore, cities should consult an attorney if this situation arises. The employer must provide coverage for a surviving spouse until age 65 and for dependents until age 26.

If a volunteer firefighter is killed while on duty, and the city does not offer them health insurance, it must provide coverage to the firefighter’s dependents equivalent to the average benefit pro-vided by the city to covered employees’ dependents. Alternatively, the city may reimburse the firefighter’s dependents for a minimum of 50 percent of the cost of the premiums for coverage selected by the dependents.

EligibilityOfficers and firefighters are eligible for continued health insurance under Minnesota Statutes, section 299A.465, when they meet the definition of a “duty disability” found in Minnesota Statutes, section 353.01, subdivision 41. “Duty disability” is defined as a physical or psy-chological condition expected to prevent the employee from working for at least 12 months and that is the direct result of an injury incurred during, or a disease arising out of, the performance of inher-ently dangerous duties that are specific to protecting the property and personal safety of others.

Whether the employee was performing an inherently dangerous duty at the time of the injury is often a disputed issue. One administrative law judge held, for exam-ple, that routine operation of a squad car was not an inherently dangerous duty.

Notice and appealDuring the application process for duty disability benefits, PERA determines whether an injury was sustained “in the

State law requires public employers to continue health insurance coverage for police officers and firefighters injured

or killed in the line of duty and determined by the Public Employees Retirement Asso-ciation (PERA) to have a duty disability. Because cities must cover eligible employ-ees until they are 65 and, in some cases, the employee’s dependents, the potential financial impact is enormous.

Therefore, cities should understand the eligibility criteria and, if necessary, the process to appeal a decision that it must continue health insurance.

The benefitThe requirement for employers to con-tinue health insurance for officers and fire-fighters injured or killed in the line of duty is found in Minnesota Statutes, section 299A.465. If the employee’s dependents were receiving dependent coverage at the time of the injury, then the employer must continue dependent coverage.

The employer is responsible to pay the employer’s contribution for coverage until the employee reaches the age of 65. If the employee is deceased, the employer must continue dependent coverage until the employee would have reached the age of 65. The employer may discontinue dependent coverage after a person is no longer a dependent.

When an officer or firefighter (includ-ing volunteer firefighters) is killed in the line of duty, the employer must continue to cover the employee’s dependents, including a spouse, if the employee had dependent coverage at the time of death or if the spouse was not covered as a dependent at the time of death, but became eligible afterward to be a depen-dent on the employer’s plan.

The statute does not provide guidance to employers for enrolling a surviving



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FEATURE


Aging infrastructure can be costly—and even more so during a drought, as thousands of gallons of potable

water spill from leaking pipes when municipalities can least afford the loss. More than 2.1 trillion gallons are lost across the country each year.

The most successful approaches to water conservation during a drought mit-igate the impact on the system, residents, and businesses. While you can’t always predict a drought, you can prepare for one by being proactive, being flexible, and communicating with your residents.

Be proactivePlanning for a drought may seem overwhelming, but many best practices double as drought preparation. Integrat-ing water, stormwater, wastewater, and sanitation management with planning and economic development not only will improve water resilience, but also help address environmental and economic issues in your community.

A holistic approach can combine plan-ning with water management to encour-age green spaces and ground cover. This not only improves water availability, but also decreases vandalism and stress, with studies showing that green space can be mentally restorative while building community pride.

Pairing up economic development and water management can also pay divi-dends. The Alliance for Water Efficiency estimates that a $10 billion investment in water efficiency across the country could increase the country’s gross domestic

product by $13 billion to $15 billion and create 120,000 to 260,000 jobs.

Be flexibleThere are several ways to diversify water supply, including increasing storage capacity. There are several ways to store water, from more traditional water towers and reservoirs to less conventional practices, such as recharging ground-water in times of excess water and using irrigation canals. With global declines in water storage, increasing storage capacity is more important than ever.

You can also diversify water supply by recycling gray water. Minnesota plumb-ing codes do not currently allow this, but recent discussions with state agencies suggest it may be allowed in the future. Reusing water that has been used in sinks, showers, and washers for flushing toilets and doing laundry can reduce a household’s water usage by a third. Homeowners can retrofit their plumbing or have homes built with systems to treat and store gray water for reuse. Some utilities in the U.S., such as the Orange County Water District, have replicated gray water recycling across an entire water system.

Communicate It is crucial to educate residents about simple practices to reduce their water use, as well as more elaborate conserva-tion measures, such as installing cisterns or rain barrels to collect rain water, and landscaping with native, drought-resis-tant plants.

Encouraging water-use efficiency across residential, agricultural, and commercial sectors, in conjunction with infrastructure efficiencies, such as leak detection and energy audits, can be scaled to the size of the system and have both long-term and short-term benefits. The Environmental Protection Agency’s WaterSense program helps identify plumbing products, such as low-flow fixtures, meant to conserve water and energy. Low-flow fixtures can save thousands of gallons of water over their lifetime. Learn more about the EPA program at https://bit.ly/2rIHuAL.

Communicating regularly with your residents about water conservation keeps it top of mind, but it also keeps open a line of communication if you need to inform them about voluntary or manda-tory restrictions on water usage. MC

Bill Eller is vice president, business development, with Utility Service Partners (www.utilitysp.net). Utility Service Partners is a member of the LMC Business Leadership Council (www.lmc.org/sponsors).

WHAT CAN Residents DO?Here are a few tips to help resi-dents conserve water during a drought:

Use washing machines and dish-washers for full loads only.

When washing dishes or hands, brushing teeth, or shaving, don’t let the water run.

Take shorter showers and install low-flow shower heads.

Water grass early in the morn-ing or late in the evening to reduce evaporation.

Put the hose away. Use a broom to clean sidewalks, patios, and driveways, and a bucket and sponge to wash cars.

A Three-Pronged Approach to

Water Conservation in a Drought BY BILL ELLER

Focus on Small Cities


burdensome, says Wendy Pederson, clerk-treasurer for the City of Franklin (population 476).

Jess Rich, city administrator of Floodwood (population 528), agrees. “It is very time-consuming for small cities because we don’t have the technology of the larger cities,” Rich says. Larger cities and most counties use sophisticated geographic informa-tion system mapping to speed the process.

The LUCA operation for Franklin involved 42 pages of list-ings, with 31 of them requiring corrections that took hours to complete. Floodwood also had to manually work out significant address discrepancies to complete the LUCA process.

Inadequate internet accessAnother roadblock to getting a complete count is a lack of internet access. The Census Bureau will encourage people to complete their census questionnaires online, but that may not be an option for many rural communities.

Brower notes that areas with inadequate internet service will receive the paper questionnaire, as they have previously, and any household can request the paper census form.

Government distrustIt is also a problem when people “choose not to participate in the census because of a general distrust of government,” says Andrew Virden, the state of Minnesota’s new director of census operations and engagement. It’s important to convey to resi-dents that the census is completely confidential.

Some people don’t believe that and worry that the informa-tion could be used against them if, for example, they are an undocumented immigrant or they owe back taxes. However, it is illegal for the Census Bureau to share personal information from census forms with any other government agency or even with the president.

These are just some of the obstacles small cities face in getting a complete count. Virden emphasizes that the state is available to help, and encourages cities to contact him with questions at [email protected] or (651) 201-2507. The state also has many online resources to help cities at https://mn.gov/admin/demography/census2020. MC

James Robins is a communications and policy specialist for the Minnesota Association of Small Cities. He is also the principal for Robins Consulting. Contact: [email protected] or (612) 597-0214.

Census 2020 Complete Count Challenge for Small CitiesBY JAMES ROBINS

It’s the federal government’s job to conduct the census, but local governments also play a significant role in ensuring an accurate and complete count. Reviewing lists of addresses

and promoting participation in the 2020 Census are critical jobs for cities.

This can be a major undertaking for any city, but it’s espe-cially challenging for small cities, which often don’t have the resources to easily handle the extra work. Still, it’s important to make it a priority to get a complete count because of the dollars attached to population numbers.

Why a complete count mattersOne person completing their census form is worth $1,532 per year, or $15,320 per decade, in federal money to the state, county, and local communities. That estimate doesn’t even include state funding, such as local government aid, which uses census data to calculate amounts.

Congressional representation is another reason for a com-plete count. Minnesota currently has eight representatives in the U.S. House, but it is at risk of losing a seat with the new census counts.

Hard-to-count populationsMany of Minnesota’s small, outstate cities are considered “hard to count.” That’s why State Demographer Susan Brower has led nine workshops across the state to teach communities about forming Complete Count Committees. More workshops will be offered soon.

Complete Count Committees are established by local govern-ments, community leaders, and volunteers to increase aware-ness about the 2020 Census, and motivate residents to return completed forms.

In 2010, an estimated 14,695 Minnesota households were in tracts that didn’t receive the mailed questionnaire, which resulted in nearly an 8 percent undercount in those tracts, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. You can find communi-ty-specific data on the Census Hard-to-Count 2020 website at www.censushardtocountmaps2020.us.

An administrative challengeAs part of the Census Bureau’s Local Update of Census Addresses (LUCA) initiative, local governments were asked to review the Bureau’s address file for accuracy, and supplement it with new or overlooked addresses. For very small cities, which usually have little or no staffing help, that task is extensive and

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Letter of the Law | Legal Ease

There are many reasons cities some-times choose to employ an individual in more than one position, ranging

from difficulty in finding enough qual-ified applicants for seasonal jobs, to the desire to have employees you know you can count on to respond to fire and other emergency calls during weekday hours.

Keep in mind, though, that there may be important overtime calculations and pension issues for the city to consider. Specifically, if an employee works more than 40 hours in one workweek, the city is typically required to pay overtime at one-and-one-half times the regular rate of pay. Thus, generally the city will want to combine hours worked in different positions for the purposes of determin-ing overtime.

‘Volunteer’ firefightersWhile many cities do not have paid, full-time firefighters, commonly fire depart-ments designated as “volunteer” are not, strictly speaking, true volunteers and are more aptly referred to as “paid on-call” firefighters. The federal Fair Labor Stan-dards Act (FLSA) allows volunteers who are paid “expenses, reasonable benefits, or a nominal fee” to be exempt from minimum wage laws.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, fees and stipends paid to volunteer firefighters that are less than 20 percent of what would be paid to a full-time firefighter are likely to be con-sidered nominal. Distinctions between paid on-call and true volunteers are important when considering compen-sation responsibilities for regular city employees who also volunteer or work on-call as a firefighter for the same city. For additional information, see a table at www.lmc.org/overtime.

As with every rule, there are excep-tions. Following are several FLSA exceptions that often apply to cities. Remember, even if an employee meets an exception under the federal FLSA, a city must still comply with the Minnesota

Fair Labor Standards Act, which requires overtime pay after working 48 hours in one workweek.

Occasional and sporadic employmentHours worked in more than one posi-tion do not need to be added together for the purposes of calculating overtime if an employee works occasionally or sporadically on a part-time basis in a different capacity from his or her regular capacity. To qualify for this federal exemption, all of the following criteria must be met:

The employee must freely choose to work in a different position without any coercion from the employer.

The occasional or sporadic work must be substantially different from the employee’s primary work. It is likely that a custodian could work occasion-ally taking registrations at the com-munity center for classes, whereas an administrative assistant could not.

The additional work must be “occa-sional or sporadic”—meaning infrequent, irregular, or occurring in scattered instances. Thus, a full-time city worker who also responds to fire calls would not likely meet this exception. If you are unsure that the work would meet these tests, the safest course of action is to pay overtime for more than 40 hours worked in both positions combined.

Police and fire The federal FLSA allows cities to define longer workweeks for police and fire

personnel, and that can reduce overtime liability. The federal FLSA also has an overtime exemp-tion for small police departments with fewer than five employees.

Police and fire personnel are also exempt from the overtime requirement of the Minnesota Fair Labor Standards Act. Therefore, police and fire departments with

less than five employees are not legally required to pay overtime.

Calculating overtimeWith advance agreement of the employee, overtime wages can be paid at one-and-one-half time the regular rate of pay for the actual work performed during the overtime hours. It is recommended that this agreement be in writing. Other-wise, the city must determine a weighted average hourly rate for each workweek, and pay the overtime hours at one-and-one-half times that rate.

More informationThe League of Minnesota Cities (LMC) has several FLSA memos available at www.lmc.org (search “FLSA”). If you have questions, contact LMC HR & Benefits staff at (651) 281-1200 or [email protected].

Cities recruiting full-time employees for their volunteer or paid on-call fire-fighter positions can reach out directly to the Public Employees Retirement Association (PERA) at (651) 296-3636 or (888) 892-7372 to navigate through contributions toward PERA and a city’s fire relief pension. MC

Joyce Hottinger is assistant human resources director with the League of Minnesota Cities. Contact: [email protected] or (651) 281-1216.

Compensating Employees Working More Than One JobBY JOYCE HOTTINGER

Fair Labor Standards Act

Legal Ease | From the Bench


Court Rules in Favor of Driver in DWI Forfeiture Case

F O R F E I T U R E L A W

Due processMegan Olson was arrested for driving while impaired (DWI) on Aug. 16, 2015. Because of past DWI convictions, she was charged with first-degree DWI, which is a “designated offense”

under Minnesota Stat-utes, section 169A.63, a statute authorizing the civil forfeiture of vehicles used in certain criminal offenses. Forfeiture laws gener-ally give the state the right to seize property associated with certain crimes and assume its ownership. Police

seized the vehicle Megan was driving. Megan was the vehicle’s primary driver, but her mother, Helen Olson, is its registered owner. The state notified both Megan and Helen of its intent to forfeit the vehicle.

On Oct. 7, 2015, the Olsons filed a timely demand for a judicial determination of the proposed forfeiture. The forfei-ture trial date was rescheduled six times, pending the outcome of Megan’s related criminal matter. The statute provides that a judicial determination must be held “at the earliest practicable date, and in any event no later than 180 days following the filing of the demand by the claimant.” But it also provides that, if “a related criminal proceeding is pending, the hearing shall not be held until the conclusion of the criminal proceedings.” On Oct. 12, 2016, Megan pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree DWI. On Oct. 14, 2016, the Olsons made a motion for sum-mary judgment in the forfeiture action, claiming a violation of their constitutional right to procedural due process under the U.S. and Minnesota Constitutions. A forfeiture hearing took place on Feb. 23, 2017.

The district court granted summary judgment in the Olsons’ favor, concluding that the statute did not provide for mean-ingful review after a prehearing vehicle seizure and, therefore, violates the constitutional right to procedural due process. The Minnesota Court of Appeals affirmed, ruling that the statute was unconstitutional, as applied in this situation, because the Olsons were denied prompt, post-deprivation judicial review for more than 18 months. But the Court of Appeals noted that the Olsons had not demonstrated that the statute could never be applied in a way that would satisfy procedural due process. The Court of Appeals declined, however, to decide what would

qualify as a constitutionally sufficient, prompt, and meaningful review of the initial seizure. Olson v. One 1999 Lexus, N.W.2d (Minn. Ct. App. 2018).

E M P L O Y M E N T L A W

Arbitration award The City of Richfield sought to vacate (void) an arbitration award that overturned its decision to terminate police officer Nathan Kinsey after he was involved in an incident with some young Somali males at a city park. During the incident, Kinsey threatened, shoved, and slapped 19-year-old Kamal Gelle in the head after citing him for careless driving, and then failed to report his use of force, even though the city had repeatedly counseled, disciplined, and trained Kinsey on use of force and report writing. The incident was captured on a video that went viral on the internet.

The district court upheld the arbitration award, ordering Kinsey’s unconditional reinstatement, subject only to a three-day unpaid suspension. Generally, an arbitration award will be upheld if the award provided was within the arbitrator’s pow-ers. But there is a narrow exception that authorizes a court to vacate an arbitration award if it is contrary to public policy. This exception must involve a public policy that is well-de-fined and dominant, and that is discovered by reference to laws and legal precedents, not from general consideration of supposed public interests.

The Minnesota Court of Appeals unanimously held that the arbitration award reinstating Kinsey violates the clear public policy requiring transparency and proper reporting of the use of police force. The Court of Appeals concluded that to “pro-hibit excessive force on the part of police officers, police depart-ments must be able to monitor occasions when police officers use force.” The Court of Appeals reasoned such monitoring cannot occur unless police departments can require police offi-cers to comply with their use-of-force reporting requirements. City of Richfield v. Law Enforcement Labor Services, Inc., N.W.2d (Minn. Ct. App. 2018). Note: The League of Minnesota Cities filed an amicus curiae brief in the city’s support.

During the incident, the

police officer threatened,

shoved, and slapped the

19-year-old in the head

after citing him for careless

driving, and then failed to

report his use of force.

From the Bench | Legal Ease


F O R F E I T U R E L A W

Insurance proceedsCity of Savage police officers arrested Russell Briles’ intoxicated son after he crashed Briles’ vehicle. The Police Department seized the vehicle and notified Briles of its intent to forfeit the vehicle under the impaired-driving forfeiture statute. Briles did

not intend to recover the totaled vehicle; instead, he planned to recover insur-ance proceeds. The Police Department’s attorney told Briles’ insurer to hold any

insurance proceeds, implying the department had the right to them. Briles discovered this after the end of the deadline for filing a complaint to challenge the forfeiture through a judicial determination. Briles filed a demand for a judicial determi-nation anyway, arguing that the vehicle had been improperly seized and that insurance proceeds are not forfeitable under the statute. The district court rejected his filing as untimely. The Minnesota Court of Appeals affirmed the district court in part and reversed in part, holding that Briles had forfeited his claim because it was untimely. But the Court of Appeals also held that

the city did not have any right to the insurance proceeds. The Minnesota Supreme Court affirmed, ruling that a complaint for judicial determination under the statute is time-barred if it is filed more than 60 days after receipt of the forfeiture notice. The Supreme Court also held that the statute does not authorize the forfeiture of insurance proceeds because they are not a part of the “right, title, and interest” in the vehicle. Briles v. 2013 GMC Terrain, 907 N.W.2d 628 (Minn. 2018).

D A T A P R A C T I C E S A C T

Term-search demand Tony Webster sought administrative remedies against Henne-pin County for alleged violations of the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act (MGDPA). Webster initially demanded that the county conduct a computer-aided search of all its employees’ email accounts for a two-and-a-half-year period and produce only those containing 20 separate search terms relating to biometrics and facial recognition. The county claimed this term-search demand is not a valid request under the MGDPA and that, even if it is valid, it is unduly burdensome. The administrative law judge


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(ALJ) ruled against the county, finding it had violated the MGDPA in several ways, by failing: (1) to establish procedures to ensure appropriate and prompt compliance with data requests; (2) to keep records containing government data in an arrangement and con-dition to make them easily accessible for convenient use; and (3) to provide access to requested public government data.

The Minnesota Court of Appeals affirmed the ALJ’s decision in part and reversed it in part. The Court of Appeals concluded that the county’s procedures and records arrangement did not violate the MGDPA, but affirmed the ALJ’s ruling that the county failed to provide access to requested public government data. The Court of Appeals noted that the MGDPA does not authorize a requester to dictate how a government entity gathers requested data. Therefore, the Court of Appeals concluded that the county is not required to perform a computer-aided search of its employ-ees’ email accounts if it can locate the requested data on the county’s use of mobile biometric technology without doing so. The Court of Appeals also noted that the MGDPA does not con-tain an express exception from compliance with broad, complex, or otherwise burdensome data requests, and that the decision whether to adopt such an exception is a policy decision for the Legislature or the Minnesota Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Appeals’ decision in part and reversed it in part. The Supreme Court held that there was substantial evidence to support the ALJ’s conclusion that the county failed to establish procedures to ensure appro-

priate and prompt compliance with data requests, but also concluded that there was not substantial evidence to support the ALJ’s conclusion that the county failed to keep its records in an arrangement and condition to make them easily accessible for convenient use. (The county did not appeal the ALJ’s third determination that it had failed to provide access to requested public government data.) Finally, the Supreme Court concluded that it did not have “appellate jurisdiction” to consider the issues of whether the term-search demand was valid or whether the county may refuse to comply with a request it deems unduly burdensome because the county did not file the required appel-late pleading to preserve its right to raise these issues before the Supreme Court. Webster v. Hennepin County, N.W.2d (Minn. 2018). Note: The League filed an amicus curiae brief in the county’s support. MC

Written by Susan Naughton, research attorney with the League of Minnesota Cities. Contact: [email protected] or (651) 281-1232.

The county claimed

this term-search

demand is not a

valid request under

the MGDPA and that,

even if it is valid, it is

unduly burdensome.

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Ask LMC | Up for Discussion


let him or her know what is happening and request that the behavior stop or that another person be assigned to the city’s account. Even if your front desk staff have not yet complained, there is a very good chance they might do so in the future. Tak-ing quick action to stop inappropriate behavior helps create a positive workplace culture. For more information and resources to help your city prevent sexual harassment, visit the League’s website at www.lmc.org/preventharassment.Answered by Human Resources Director Laura Kushner: [email protected]

Data Practices

Q What is the classification of lodging tax data under the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act?

LMC Minnesota summers bring many tourists to cities across the state to visit and explore, and they often stay in a local lodging establish-ment. Some cities impose a lodging tax on lodging businesses located in their juris-diction. Cities may receive a request for data surrounding the lodging tax. However, according to Minnesota Statutes, section 13.495, data collected from taxpayers under a lodging tax ordinance is nonpublic data (except for basic taxpayer identification data).

“Nonpublic data” is not accessible to the public, but it is accessible to the subject of the data, which in this case, would be the local lodging estab-lishment. Prior to responding to a data request for lodging tax data, cities should work with their attorney to ensure proper compliance. MC

Answered by Research Manager Jeanette Behr: [email protected]

Computer Security: Always Change Vendor Defaults

Cybersecurity (Part 4 of 4)

Q I work in a small city and do not have technical support staff. What are some things I can do to keep our computer systems more secure?

LMC There are three low-cost actions all cities should take. In the last three issues of Minnesota Cities magazine, we addressed password usage, updates, and backups. In this month’s bonus entry, we will cover vendor access accounts.

By leaving default passwords, you give hackers the Golden Ticket to your systems. Always change vendor-supplied defaults, and remove or disable unnecessary default accounts before installing a system. If you have comput-

ers that operate systems such as your city’s heating/ventilation, water, wastewater, security cameras, sirens, and doors, you’ll want to make sure the vendor-supplied passwords are changed. Software like this often comes with a default password, allowing someone to log in and set them up. Keep in mind hackers will download the same software and try to use the default password to enter into your systems and cause great harm. If you con-tract for systems or software installation, it’s OK to require the default access to be changed and even ask the vendor to show you when it’s complete. Don’t forget to document the passwords and keep them in a safe place. To learn more, see the LMC information memo at www.lmc.org/cybersecurity.Answered by Chief Information Officer Melissa Reeder: [email protected]

Respectful Workplace

Q We have a vendor who comes into city hall and makes sexually inappropriate remarks to our front desk staff. Would the city be liable for this if the front desk staff

complained, even though it’s not our employee who is making the inappropriate remarks?

LMC The city could be held liable for a hostile environment created by vendors or other nonemployees if the city could have taken reasonable steps to resolve the issue but did not. The best practice in this situation would be to have a member of city management or human resources call the vendor’s manager to

Got questions for LMC?Send your questions to [email protected].



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may get your juices going and make the front page of the local paper, but that’s not the sort of news story that moves your community forward.

Listen to learn, not just to respond. This isn’t a battle between two lawyers on a TV show, jousting back and forth to score points. Try hard to listen better to your colleagues and residents, to take out any toxic language in their statements, and work to uncover their underlying concerns.

When they claim you are a “bleeding heart liberal,” reply that you appreciate that all projects need to be financially sound and realistic. When they claim you don’t care about the community because you favor

shifting police services to the county sheriff, say that you are simply exploring options to slow rising public safety costs and to keep local taxes affordable.

Imagine the message sent throughout the community if you could find ways to effectively communicate differences, yet still work together in your own ways to improve your community.

Consider reaching out to those you struggle with to have a brief but important conversation.It can happen on the way to the car after one of your council meetings or at a community event. Mention discreetly that some-times it seems like the disagreements have become personal, and that you are going to try to change that.

Say that you appreciate there is a difference of opinion, but you are going to limit your attacks and to look for ways to better understand where he or she is coming from.

Try your best to hold your tongue and slow down your response, even if others won’t. It does indeed “take two to tango,” and there may be times you could avoid taking the bait. Or consider enlisting a colleague to help you out by stepping up during the beginning of a clash to slow things down, to ask a few questions about the topic rather than letting it become personal. This gives you time to catch your breath and to be more careful in your responses.

Interpersonal communications are critical to the successful workings of a city council and a community. Start by increasing your own awareness of the impact of your actions, and then stretch yourself to improve for the sake of the community you are sworn to serve. MC

Dave Bartholomay is the mayor of Circle Pines and program coordinator with the Office of Collaboration and Dispute Resolution at the Minnesota Bureau of Mediation Services. Contact: [email protected] or (651) 539-1402.

I will never forget how my first City Council meetings became a nasty back and forth about a proposed housing develop-ment. After the third contentious meeting, I was walking to

my car when a retired (and widely admired) councilmember who had supported my election as mayor asked if we could talk.

He told me that while he had no doubt I could win these skirmishes, he was very disappointed in me. He said he expected me to exercise more restraint, demonstrate better behavior, and bring a more positive leadership approach to the Council. As he walked away, I was shell-shocked, but I also realized he was right.

I’m a much better person for his pointed criticism. I changed how I communicate with my colleagues, and I quit seeing issues as win-lose propositions.

Now I admit to occasionally falling back to bad habits, but I am much more aware of how my words and actions can change a conversation for better or worse. And how much all of this can reflect poorly on my city, whose image I am elected to pro-tect and improve.

Here are a few lessons I’ve learned about interpersonal com-munications over the years.

Remember you were elected to represent your community, not simply present your own opinions. The citizens didn’t elect a right-winger or a left-winger; they elected a neighbor who professes to care first and foremost about the community, and who wants to make it better. Residents may or may not favor the project or new ordinance being considered, but they expect you to be civil and fair as you work through it.

Every community wants and needs a good, rigorous discussion of the options, along with an opportunity for public participation, not just a clash of opinions by strong voices. A nasty back and forth with a council colleague or a squabble with the audience

Interpersonal Communications: A Few Lessons for City Elected Officials

BY DAVE BARTHOLOMAY


neapolis, Minnetonka, St. Paul, and Woodbury. Another one is going up soon in North Mankato.

Support for the playgroundThe idea for an inclusive playground started when Shakopee resident Angela Tucker and another parent of a special needs child talked to City Councilmember Jay Whiting about building such a playground in their city. Whiting, a member of the local Lions Club, suggested they focus on Lions Park because he thought the Lions Club members would get involved.

Tucker has two sons, a 20-year-old with Angelman Syndrome and a 5-year-old. Characteristics of the syndrome include mobil-ity and balance issues.

“Texture changes from concrete to grass or sand would be very hard for him to navigate,” she says. “He would fall, or we would sit on a park bench just watching other kids play.”

Whiting saw the immediate benefit to kids in Shakopee and told her to go for it. “I tried to give as much encouragement as I could,” he says. “To me, it was something that would enhance our parks, and I know we have a community that gets together and where everybody gets on board.”

He and the parents met with the Lions Club Park Committee and also brought the idea to city staff, who offered a great deal of support.

“This was an opportunity to take this big playground that we had and make it into something special with the help of com-munity organizations,” says City Administrator Bill Reynolds. “We had accessible playgrounds, but we didn’t have any inclu-

Ideas in Action

The City of Shakopee opened the inclusive Fun for All Playground in 2017, and it is providing new and delightful experiences for children and adults of all ability levels.

Inclusive playgrounds comply with the Americans with Disabil-ities Act (ADA), but they also go beyond ADA requirements. They are designed to accommodate an array of children and families, including those with physical, development, and social challenges.

Growing awareness“There’s been a growing awareness of the diverse needs of a broader range of the population,” says John McConkey, mar-keting insights manager with Landscape Structures in Delano. “The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) says that one in 68 children have autism, and as many as one in 16 have some type of sensory, social, emotional, or developmental disorder.”

Kids with these disorders typically do not enjoy or use city playgrounds. A boy with autism, for instance, might run the other way if his mom brings him to a playground; the noise and physical interactions frighten him.

Unique features of inclusive playgrounds“A lot of these kids want to play, but they’re not sure how to engage, don’t know the right social cues, or don’t have com-munication skills,” says McConkey. “An inclusive playground typically spreads out the activities in different play zones that are scaled to accommodate fewer kids at a time.”

When it comes to inclusive playgrounds, one major differ-ence that stands out is the smooth rubber surface of the ground instead of wood chips or sand. It makes it easy for everyone to get to the equipment or near the kids, like a grandparent using a walker or a veteran in a wheelchair.

The playgrounds allow children to discover a nook or struc-ture that is just the “right fit.” Children with a sensory disorder, for example, might circle the perimeter of the playground until they spot a zone and other kids they can be comfortable with.

“Inclusive playgrounds are a highly visible way for cities to demonstrate their commitment to social equity and inclusion for everyone in the community,” says McConkey. “They become a valuable community asset in today’s competitive environment.”

City officials quickly see families emerge to use an inclusive playground, families they never knew were in the city and who rarely go to a traditional playground.

“Families with a child with a disability are the most socially connected group in a community,” McConkey says. “When they find something that works, they tell all their friends and become the most loyal residents a city can have.”

Inclusive playgrounds have been built in several Minnesota locations, including Bemidji, Cottage Grove, Lakeville, Min-

Fun for All! Shakopee Builds Inclusive PlaygroundBY RENEE MCGIVERN

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Angela Tucker’s sons, Lukas (left), who has a condition called Angelman Syndrome, and Brody enjoy playing together on the inclusive playground.

Tucker helped make the playground a reality.

Ideas in Action


In the process of fundraising, the task force, residents, and businesses learned that there’s more to inclusive playgrounds than offering everyone the chance to play. These playgrounds impact how everyone thinks about disabilities.

“Inclusive parks create an ethos where it becomes common-place for kids of all abilities to play with each other and grow up as friends,” says McConkey of Landscape Structures. “The bias against those with special needs disappears.”

Grand openingThe park was completed by November 2016, when some fam-ilies were able to test it out. It officially opened in the spring of 2017 when the other city parks opened. And on a rainy day in August, the city held an official donor appreciation event.

“Kids of all ages and ability levels moved around the play-ground, oblivious to the weather, squealing and trying out every piece of equipment,” says City Administrator Reynolds. “It was wonderful to see people of all abilities come together to have fun and be themselves.”

Schuele, of the Lions Club, says he was proud to bring his own kids to play there where they could see the impact of a club project.

“We don’t always get to show our family and kids what the Lions are working on,” says Schuele. “But when I took my kids there to play, they said, ‘That’s really cool, Dad, that you made something like this happen.’”

It’s wonderful, Schuele adds, to “see that people of any age, physical disability or ability level, and from any background can go out there and find something to do on that playground.”

According to parent Angela Tucker, the park is always busy now.“You see the smiles on everyone’s faces and it’s wonderful to

watch,” Tucker says. “It opens your eyes to all the different people who’ve been left out over the years who haven’t been able to play.”

She believes the playgrounds ought to be in many more cities, so families don’t have to drive miles and even hours to get to an inclusive park.

“That saying, ‘If you build it they will come,’ is really true with these parks,” says Tucker. MC

Renee McGivern is a freelance writer based in Woodbury, Minnesota.

sive playgrounds, and this would serve a lot of people our parks hadn’t been serving.”

True community effortThe city, parents of children with special needs, and the Lions Club forged an effective partnership, Tucker says.

Starting in March 2016, with City Council approval, a vol-unteer-led fundraising task force was formed. Coordinated by the city, the task force was made up of parents and passionate community members. The group approached every company in Shakopee and, within a few months, it raised $450,000. Con-tributions included $60,000 from the Lions Club and $150,000 from the city, which had already set aside funds for replacing the park’s aging equipment.

Other major donors included the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community/Mystic Lake Casino with $50,000; Canter-bury Park with $20,000; Rahr Malting with $10,000; Lion’s Tap with $5,000; and a private family with $5,000.

“It truly was a community effort with the task force, Lions Club, City Council, and everyone who donated,’’ says Tucker. “I was so grateful to the entire community who pulled together to make this playground happen. There was a lot of love, passion, and hard work by many to make this playground happen in Shakopee.”

The Lions Club became very hands-on with the playground, as several members helped clear out old equipment and prepare the area for the new surface and equipment.

Bringing people together“When the inclusive park idea came up, it fit perfectly with our Lions Club mission to be involved in something that brings a lot of people together,” says John Schuele, a Shakopee Lions Club board member. “We donated about 125 hours in addition to the money.”

Schuele says it was clear that the city had a vision for the playground and that the staff were well prepared when they made a presentation about it to the Lions Club board. He also noted that a project like this can be run mostly by volunteers and need not require a lot of city staff time.

For more city news, visit www.lmc.org/citynews.

On the web

Resident and parent Angela Tucker and City Councilmember Jay Whiting were instrumental in bringing the inclusive playground to Shakopee.

Families enjoy playing on Shakopee’s inclusive playground, which opened in the spring of 2017.

PHOTO BY MICHAEL BRAUN

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