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Hermantown Council approves licenses, appointments, state-aid advance and arena change orders
Summary
Council approved a tobacco license, appointed Jim Sweeney to the utility commission, approved use of athletic fields with Hermantown Youth Baseball, advanced $800,000 of municipal state-aid, and approved arena change orders and a pay request; staff also updated council on ADU drafting, water testing contracting and THC licensing.
At its April 8 meeting the Hermantown City Council approved a suite of routine but consequential actions including business licensing, an appointment to the Utility Commission, a use agreement for youth athletics, an $800,000 state-aid advance and construction contract actions for the Northstar Ford Arena.
Licenses and appointments: The council voted to approve a tobacco license for Dollar General (4678 Vox Road) effective April 18 through Dec. 31, 2025, contingent on a complete application, successful background checks and fees. The council also appointed Jim Sweeney to the Utility Commission; Councilor Jelly moved the appointment and Councilor Peterson seconded.
Athletics and facilities: Resolution 2025-59 authorized the mayor and city clerk to execute a use agreement allowing Hermantown Youth Baseball to use the city athletic fields at Centricity Park / Fner Fields, reflecting changes tied to recent turf upgrades. Mr. Wickland described responsibilities for facility care and concessions under the agreement.
State aid and road project: Staff asked the council to advance $800,000 in municipal state aid for an August road federal-aid project to close out state and federal documents and reimburse the city’s state aid account; the council approved Resolution 2025-61. Mr. Moulder said the funding was necessary because a prior award had a sunset and the project could not be closed in time without the advance.
Arena construction actions: The council approved Resolution 2025-62 to accept change orders totaling $223,169 for Northstar Ford Arena to add rough-ins for enhanced lighting and audiovisual equipment and remodel a conference room overlooking the arena; staff noted the work is within project contingency and supported by the Arena Legacy Fund. The council also approved pay request number 10 to Kraus-Anderson Construction for work through March 31; staff reported the project “is still on budget and on schedule,” though the pay request amount in the transcript is unclear and should be confirmed in the official pay estimate.
Staff updates and public comment: During pre-agenda reports staff said Duluth will stop providing water testing May 1 and Hermantown will contract with Pace Analytics to receive and review samples; staff confirmed a $7.50 per-month flat infrastructure surcharge per meter would continue. Staff said the city will begin drafting an ADU ordinance per council direction, and discussed an administrative correction needed to a FEMA floodplain map after DNR feedback. Public commenters earlier in the meeting urged support for trail benches and memorial benches and for prompt ADU adoption to help older residents age in place.
What’s next: Several items (stadium pay estimates, final ADU ordinance, and final engineering for the road project) will return to staff and be brought back to Planning & Zoning or a future council meeting for final action.
