City Council

City of Mantorville LBAE & Regular City Council Minutes April 22, 2024 LOCAL BOARD OF APPEAL AND EQUALIZATION MEETING 1. Call to Order Mayor Bradford called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. Present: Mayor Chuck Bradford Councilmembers Lyle Hoaglund, Jeffrey Ingalls, & Lynnette Nash Absent: Henry Blair Others Present: City Clerk-Treasurer Gretchen Lohrbach Public Works Lead Joe Adams Public Works Wade Schroeder Ryan DeCook, Matt Naatz, & Eric Hannigan - Dodge County Assessor’s Office 2. Local Board of Appeal and Equalization General rules of the Local Board of Appeal and Equalization meeting:  All appeals will be heard by City Council before making a ruling.  Everyone should remain civil and open minded.  The burden of proof is on the taxpayer, so they must be prepared to present an appeal.  The Assessor’s Office must be in attendance and make record of adjustment and provide clarification to the Local Board.  The purpose of the meeting is to discuss value and/or classification (no tax appeals).  The scheduled meeting is for the valuation listed on the 2024 valuation notice payable 2025.  Taxpayers who refuse a property inspection/review are not allowed to appeal.  If Council chooses not to make a change, the taxpayer is allowed to present their appeal to the County Board on Tuesday June 25, 2024 (by appointment only). Mantorville City Council Minutes of April 22, 2024 Page 1 of 6  Assessor Ryan DeCook gave an introduction and provided the Local Board of Appeal and Equalization report. Also attending tonight’s meeting is Matt Naatz & Eric Hannigan from the Dodge County Assessor’s Office. Mr. DeCook said the 2023 median adjusted ratio was 93.98% for all good residential sales, 91.45% for all good commercial/industrial sales, and 91.84% for all good agricultural sales greater than 34.5 acres. The 2024 revalued ratio for all good residential sales was 96.88%, Mantorville City Council Minutes of April 22, 2024 Page 2 of 6  94.67% for all good commercial/industrial sales, and 93.7% for all good agricultural sales greater than 34.5 acres. The resident at 711 West Street, PID 25.017.0200, spoke about the work she has done to update and better her home. There was a significant flood and she had to deal with the damage, but the value of her home was not decreased because of it. A realtor told her that her home, as it is now, is worth $185,000.00. She said that if she finishes her updates, the realtor told her it would be worth around $240,000.00. If she replaces the carpet flooring, the realtor said it could be worth $275,000.00. Her tax statement lists the homes assessed value at $239,100.00. Mayor Bradford asked about comparable homes to hers and what they sold for. Eric Hannigan said a comparable home to hers was just sold for $252,000.00. Councilmember Hoaglund asked what she would list it for today if she wanted to sell it. She said her realtor said it couldn’t be listed for more than $185,000.00. Hannigan said that he feels the $239,000.00 assessed value is accurate. Ryan DeCook said the review was just done today, so if the Council rules that “no change” is appropriate, they will have time to do more research and she will have an opportunity to bring it to the County Board for re-evaluation. Councilmember Ingalls moved and Councilmember Hoaglund seconded to rule no change: Motion carried: 4 ayes / 0 nays A resident at 502 Monroe Court, PID 25.425.0030, asked why his home has increased so much in value over the last 2 years. Back in November 2021 when he agreed to purchase the home, it was valued at $331,800.00 and today it is valued at $500,000.00. The home was purchased for $460,000.00 in January 2022 and sits on 2 ½ acres. He has not done any improvements except to fix a few doors and repaint some walls. DeCook said that at the time the home was valued at $331,800.00, the owner residing in the home had re-sided the home and done other improvements without pulling permits for this work. The owner also had refused an inspection and told the assessors to stay off his property. That is why when the inspector finally looked it over and saw the un-permitted work that had been done, the new estimated market value was based on these improvements that the assessors were not aware of before. DeCook also said that property values had to increase to meet the states level of assessment which must be between 90 and 105%. Two years ago, they had to go back and change their numbers because they didn’t reach that, and the state ordered an additional five percent added on. Mantorville City Council Minutes of April 22, 2024 Page 3 of 6  Mayor Bradford mentioned that there has been a huge housing bubble that is now starting to correct itself, but the valuation of this resident’s home was two years in arrears. Mayor Bradford stated that as long as residents come to the City’s Local Board of Appeals and Equalization meeting, they are then eligible to go to the County. If they just go to the County and bypass this important step, the County cannot help them. A resident not present tonight would like to change his property at 16 Riverview Road, PID 25.176.1020, from Commercial to Residential because he has closed his business. Councilmember Hoaglund motioned and Councilmember Ingalls seconded to change this property from Commercial to Residential: Motion carried: 4 ayes / 0 nays Mayor Bradford asked if there is anyone else that would like to be heard, seeing none; Councilmember Hoaglund moved and Councilmember Ingalls seconded to close the Local Board of Appeals and Equalization meeting: Motion carried: 4 ayes / 0 nays 3. Adjourn Mayor Bradford closed the Local Board of Appeal and Equalization at 6:40pm. REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING 4. Call to Order Mayor Bradford called the meeting to order at 6:40 pm. Present: Mayor Chuck Bradford Councilmembers Lyle Hoaglund, Jeffrey Ingalls, and Lynnette Nash Absent: Henry Blair Others Present: City Clerk-Treasurer Gretchen Lohrbach Public Works Lead Joe Adams Public Works Wade Schroeder Mantorville City Council Minutes of April 22, 2024 Page 4 of 6  5. Pledge of Allegiance Everyone stood and recited the Pledge of Allegiance. 6. Changes to the Agenda City Clerk Lohrbach would like to add approval of a permit for Patty Hanson’s Ice Cream truck for one year to the consent agenda. 7. Consent Agenda A. Accounts Payable – Warrant List 4.22.24 B. Accounts Payable – Warrant List March 2024 C. Accounts Payable – Warrant List February 2024 D. Council Meeting Minutes 4.8.24 E. Council Meeting Minutes 3.18.24 F. 03.26.24 County Board Regular Draft Minutes Motion was made by Councilmember Ingalls and seconded by Councilmember Hoaglund to approve the Consent Agenda, as presented. Motion carried: 4 ayes / 0 nays 8. Proclamations, Presentations and Recognitions – No Items 9. Public Concerns - No Items 10. Public Safety Update – No Items 11. Public Hearings – No Items 12. Old Business/New Business – No Items 13. Tabled Items A. Annual review of Council Bylaws, Policies, and Procedures B. Master Fee Schedule date C. HWY 57 Brochures 14. Reports A. Public Works Report 1. The cardboard dogs to scare off the geese have been put in Riverside Park. 2. Public Works Lead Adams did not locate a watermain underneath Seventh Street, but they will be installing one under HWY 57 for future use. 3. Adams will come up with a way to discourage traffic from driving through the Campground. Mayor Bradford wanted to remind residents to attended the coffee and conversation about the HWY 57 Project at the County Seat Coffeehouse on Wednesdays at 2:00pm. Mantorville City Council Minutes of April 22, 2024 Page 5 of 6  B. City Clerk’s Report 1. Auditors were in house on April 17th and 18th and it went well. 2. Lohrbach will be absent May 6-10 for the MCFOA Clerk’s Institute 2 nd Year Training. C. Consultant Report – No Items D. Committee Reports 1) Chamber – The Cahmber will be electing a new President at their next meeting. 2) Economic Development Authority 3) Fire Department 4) Infrastructure 5) Kasson Mantorville Joint Powers – meeting Thursday at 7:30am 6) Mantorville Restoration Association 7) Park and Recreation Board – meeting on Tuesday April 30. 8) Personnel 9) Relief 10) Township E. Councilmember Reports Councilmember Hoaglund said that they had a meeting at the Welcome Center and they decided not to open up until August because of the HWY 57 Project. He also mentioned that they are not sure how long they will be able to continue due to lack of funds. Lights, heat, water, and insurance are their main costs because they are staffed by volunteers. F. Mayor’s Report Mayor Bradford said he is being more proactive with his blog and that residents can access it from the City’s Website for information about HWY 57 and other things. The EDA has a site as well, but the best source of information is MNDOT’s website. 15. Executive Session – No Items 16. Adjourn Motion was made by Councilmember Ingalls and seconded by Nash to adjourn the meeting at 6:59 p.m. Motion carried: 4 ayes / 0 nays Meeting adjourned. Mantorville City Council Minutes of April 22, 2024 Page 6 of 6