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Resident urges city to restore old Minnesota flag; council to discuss at work session
Summary
Resident Daniel Witty told the Wyoming City Council the city should display the old Minnesota flag and asked the council to add the issue to a future agenda; city staff said the state sets the official flag but recommended a public work session to consider local display options.
Daniel Witty, a Wyoming resident who identified himself at the meeting, urged the City Council to restore the old Minnesota state flag at city facilities, saying the recent change was made by "a small appointed group" without broad public input and asking the council to put the matter on a future agenda.
"Let's bring back the old Minnesota flag to our town buildings, to our parks, and to our community events," Witty said during the open forum, calling for local leadership on the issue.
A city staff member responded that Minnesota law sets the official state flag and that state buildings must display it, but that municipalities are not legally required to fly the adopted state flag. The staff member said displaying a different flag would be symbolic and "could give open to an argument on allowing other flags or other forms of speech," though they were not aware of legal challenges in other cities that have displayed the older flag.
Resident Theodore Hanson reiterated a statutory point, saying "state statute 14141" restricts when the new flag must fly at the state capitol and urged the council to have the city's attorney and administrator provide statutory background before a work-session discussion. Hanson also said a 13-member committee chose the new flag and that only one elected official served on that committee.
Council members discussed timing for a work session to consider the issue, mentioning April 21 and May 5 as possible dates and noting the city’s budget process in early May may affect scheduling. Council members asked staff to prepare legal and procedural background, with a request that Attorney Lundin and Administrator Lindstrom provide the relevant statutory context.
The council did not take formal action on the flag during the meeting; members agreed to place a fuller discussion on a future work session agenda so the public can participate and staff can present legal guidance.
