Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Local Government topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Hugo City Council accepts 2023 audit, approves memorial donation and adopts resolution to apply for Met Council grant
Summary
At its July 15 meeting the Hugo City Council accepted a clean 2023 financial audit, approved a memorial bench donation for Samson Walters, approved a resolution authorizing a Livable Communities grant application, and approved the consent agenda; the council also scheduled multiple public meetings and tabled a proposed solar-farm prohibition pending a joint workshop.
The Hugo City Council on July 15 accepted the city's 2023 audit, approved a memorial bench donation, authorized a grant application and handled routine consent items.
Audit: Jason Miller of Smith Schaeffer & Associates reported an unmodified (clean) opinion on the city's 2023 financial statements and said there were no Minnesota legal-compliance exceptions and no single-audit exceptions despite ARPA expenditures above the single-audit threshold. The presentation cited revenue and expenditure trends: property taxes as the largest revenue source; general government, public safety and public works expenditure shares; and healthy general-fund reserves (about 74% of current-year expenditures and near the city's policy target when ARPA funds are included). Council voted to accept the audit.
Memorial donation: Members of the Mahtomedi Junior Gold hockey team asked the council to accept a memorial bench and plaque in Diamond Point Park for their teammate Samson (Sampson) Walters, who died in a November/December 2023 accident. Mayor White moved to accept the donation and council approved it.
Grants and resolutions: Staff asked the council to approve Resolution 2024-27 authorizing an application to the Metropolitan Council Livable Communities Program to fund residential-zoning planning work; the council approved the resolution.
Consent agenda: Council approved 11 consent items including the claims roster; personnel actions (removal of probationary status for an accounting clerk and appointment of a fire department engineer); special-event permits and a temporary liquor license; purchase of a public-works chipper; and pay requests for local street and lift-station projects.
Scheduling: The council scheduled a Highway 61 open house (Aug. 15), a Glacial Hills Regional Trail open house (July 29) and National Night Out neighborhood attendance (Aug. 6, time set by staff). The council also asked staff to set a joint workshop with the Planning Commission on the solar ordinance review and tabled the proposed text amendment in the meantime.
What's next: Staff will follow up with the audit documentation (annual comprehensive financial report is on the city website), hold the scheduled open houses and set the joint workshop date with the Planning Commission; the council will revisit any ordinance changes after that workshop.
Votes at a glance: minutes approved (07/01/2024) — approved; agenda approved with addition J1 — approved; Samson Walters memorial donation — approved; acceptance of 2023 audit — approved; consent agenda (items 1—1) — approved; schedule Highway 61 open house (08/15/2024) — approved; table solar ordinance text amendment and schedule joint workshop — approved; approve Resolution 2024-27 (Livable Communities grant application) — approved.
