North St. Paul finance director outlines 10-year capital needs and proposes 8% levy for 2026

Finance Director Dan Winnick told the North St. Paul Economic Development Authority and council that the city's proposed 2026 budget leans heavily on property taxes and a 10-year capital improvement plan to address aging streets, facilities and utilities.

Winnick said almost "58% of our revenue comes from property taxes," and that the city's 10-year capital improvement plan totals "a little over a hundred million dollars" in projected needs. He identified streets, facilities (including roof and HVAC replacements) and utilities as the largest capital drivers and recommended shifting toward more cash-funded projects to reduce long-term debt costs.

The finance director walked the board through revenue and expenditure drivers. He said personnel costs account for the largest share of general fund spending (about 69%), with public safety alone consuming roughly 63% of the general fund between police and fire/code enforcement. On the revenue side, Winnick said the city depends on property taxes and intergovernmental aid, noting that state Local Government Aid and the Twin Cities fiscal disparities pool affect net tax burdens for residents.

Winnick presented fund-level levy estimates: an annual streets funding need equivalent to roughly a 3.2% levy, about 1% for parks and about 1.8% for asset preservation, which together total about a 6.0% levy impact tied directly to capital needs. City staff proposed an 8% overall levy increase for 2026 to cover capital needs as well as routine operating pressures such as step increases and insurance costs; Winnick said a single 1% in levy revenue is roughly $74,000.

He cautioned that individual parcel impacts depend on assessed-market-value changes determined by the county assessor and on the shares of other taxing jurisdictions; with modest median value growth in recent years, Winnick said the city's component would be about a mid-single-digit percentage increase for many homeowners, but some parcels could see larger swings.

Council members present expressed support for the plan to prioritize infrastructure and noted the trade-offs between levying now and facing higher costs later. No final budget vote occurred at the EDA meeting; Winnick said the city council was scheduled to approve the 2026 budget the following Tuesday.

Looking ahead, Winnick said staff will continue to refine cash-flow timing and debt assumptions and that the city planned to monitor state budget action that could affect Local Government Aid and fiscal-disparities distributions.