The Blaine City Council voted to continue designating the Blaine Life as the city’s official publication for required legal notices.

Council Member Newland argued for keeping the Blaine Life to support local coverage and for cost reasons. "I would rather that we stick with the Blaine Life as the official publication for cost reasons as well as just supporting our local newspaper," Newland said. City Clerk Kathy Sorensen explained a practical reason staff had proposed the Star Tribune: the Blaine Life’s print deadline is Tuesdays at 10 a.m. to appear in the Friday edition, and occasionally timing conflicts with statutory notice timelines have required staff workarounds. "The deadline for the Blaine Life is Tuesdays at 10 in order to have the publication the public notices in the Friday edition," Sorensen said.

Attorney Lunan explained the legal significance: certain statutes set notice start dates tied to the designated official newspaper, and the city must pick one official outlet for statutory timelines. "There are certain procedures that by statute, have a notice date and then like a timeline starts to run... whichever one you adopt as the official, that's when those timelines run when it's noticed in that paper," Lunan said.

Council Member Newland moved to keep the Blaine Life as the official publication; the motion was seconded and approved by voice vote. Clerk Sorensen said staff will continue to use other channels (website, electronic notification) in addition to the official newspaper to reach residents.