Little Falls council approves construction contracts, vehicle orders and interfund loan; BNSF crossing agreement passes with conditions

Little Falls City Council approved multiple contracts, vehicle orders, personnel actions and an interfund loan during its Feb. 3 meeting, including a $41,000 award for a clubhouse deck, authorization to lease two police SUVs and adoption of a $2.44 million interfund loan for the clubhouse renovation.

The measures matter because they commit the city to construction and lease costs, allocate internal loan funding for a major renovation and move forward a railroad crossing project that council members said will require additional easements and a separate public hearing on street closure.

The council voted to award the clubhouse deck reconstruction to Josh Studnitzky of Deck Tech LLC of Fort Ripley for $41,000, with the cost charged to the clubhouse project. Public Works Director Kim said the city solicited quotes for green-treated and composite decking and recommended the composite low bid of about $41,000. "We did get 2 grants for that project," Kim said when summarizing the rail-crossing grants later in the meeting.

On public safety and equipment, the council authorized purchase of a new police server, with the police chief saying, "Our current server is at the end of its life and it needs to be replaced." The server and setup cost listed in the packet is $30,575 and was noted as included in the 2025 capital improvement budget. The council also authorized ordering two 2025 Ford Interceptor Utility vehicles under the Enterprise lease program (the packet lists an approximate vehicle base cost of $49,866 each) and approved equipment and setup for those vehicles totaling $56,175.73; the packet says those equipment amounts are included in the 2025 capital improvement budget.

Public works approved vehicle purchases off the state bid from Dodge of Burnsville: a Dodge Ram priced at $40,967 per vehicle. The public works director said funds had been set aside in the 2025 budget to cover the purchases and that the two outgoing units would be declared surplus and sold, with proceeds returning to the equipment fund.

Personnel actions included ratifying the hiring of Josh Jennings as golf course superintendent at Grade 11, Step 1, with an annual salary of $68,120 effective Feb. 4; the council approved the appointment by motion and voice vote.

On transportation infrastructure, the council approved agreements with BNSF Railway for pedestrian crossing improvements at First and Fourth streets tied to the Ripley spur project. The city reported it had secured two grants—the Minnesota Rail Service Program and a Transportation Alternatives Program grant—totaling $1,096,106 against an estimated total project cost just under $1,500,000, requiring a local share. The packet lists easement and processing fees for the crossings (Fourth Street: $8,175 plus a $2,500 processing fee; First Street: $3,000 plus a $2,500 processing fee). The motion passed with the council adding that approval is contingent on the separate closure process for Fifth Avenue Northeast; the closure will require its own public hearing.

The crossing agreement generated the evening’s most extensive debate. Some council members questioned why closure of Fifth Avenue NE had been included as a railroad stipulation and said the city should not bundle unrelated matters. Councilmembers raised concerns about property ownership and the city’s ability or intention to acquire adjacent parcels (referred to in the packet as the Centra Sodap property); the public works director clarified that the city is only testing the BNSF right-of-way and that any land acquisition would be a separate matter.

The council approved two change orders for the 4th Street improvement project with R.L. Larsen Excavating: change order No. 1 is an increase of $20,586.04 for additional rock shoring and trench stabilization due to poor soils; change order No. 2 is a deduct of $10,114.80. The packet indicates these adjustments are charged to project 408 and that contingency funding and assessment mechanisms were considered in budgeting.

The council adopted Resolution 2025-5 (listed in the packet as "Resolution 20 20 five-five") to authorize an interfund loan for the clubhouse renovation project. The packet describes the $2,440,000 project and an interfund loan allocation of $950,000 from the wastewater improvement fund, $750,000 from the water improvement fund and $740,000 from the EDA general operations fund, at a 1% interest rate; annual principal and interest payments are scheduled Dec. 31 and the resolution was approved pending verification of the EDA enabling resolution to confirm the EDA can provide the $740,000 share.

Routine consent items were approved by voice vote, including minutes, accounts payable batches, routine reports and acceptance of the resignation of Zach Turcotte. Several council members noted they would like significant retirements or long service recognitions to appear as separate agenda items rather than be bundled in the consent agenda.

The council closed the meeting after brief announcements and adjourned at about 8:11 p.m.