Meeting Information

• Date: September 26, 2024
• Title: Regular Meeting of the Climate Infrastructure Committee
• Present: Vetaw, Osman, Chavez, Chowdhury, Koski, Cashman (Chair)
• Absent: None noted
• Guests: Ted Davison (honoree), Jeff Handeland (Public Works), Meg McMahon (Public Works), Joslin Bremmer (City Attorney’s Office)
• Votes: 6

Highlights

• Honoring Ted Davison for 38 years of service to the City of Minneapolis
• Passage of an ordinance extending the electric franchise agreement with Xcel Energy
• Discussion and vote on the Blue Line Light Rail Extension Municipal Consent
• Adoption of assessments for sanitary sewer service charges
• Addition of a legislative directive on street lighting copper wire theft

Discussion

Honoring Ted Davison

The committee presented an honorary resolution to Ted Davison for his 38 years of service to the City of Minneapolis. Davison served in various roles, most recently as District Street Supervisor managing street maintenance south of Lake Street. Several council members and city staff spoke about Davison’s dedication and impact on the city. Davison briefly thanked everyone for the recognition.

No vote was taken on this ceremonial item.

Electric Franchise Extension with Xcel Energy

The committee discussed extending the current franchise agreement with Xcel Energy (Northern States Power) for six months, through April 17, 2025. This extension allows time for negotiations on a new agreement while maintaining current terms and fees. Chair Cashman emphasized the importance of connecting the agreement to clean energy goals and improving service reliability.

The motion to approve the extension passed unanimously.

Blue Line Light Rail Extension Municipal Consent

The committee discussed approving municipal consent for the Blue Line Extension project. Public Works staff presented updates, including Hennepin County’s approval of anti-displacement efforts and the addition of a new station at Washington and Broadway. The resolution includes conditions and requests for further work on various aspects of the project.

Council Member Vetaw expressed strong concerns about the lack of meaningful changes since the public hearing and the feeling that North Minneapolis residents are not being heard. She stated, “People don’t feel heard. Nothing has changed except for there’s been slides acknowledging what we’ve heard in people’s testimony. There has been no commitment of money or anything to these businesses in North Minneapolis for anti-displacement.”

Other council members, particularly those from south Minneapolis, expressed more positive views on the project’s progress and staff efforts.

The motion to approve the resolution passed with one nay vote (Vetaw).

Sanitary Sewer Service Assessments

The committee initially voted to delay the adoption of assessments for sanitary sewer service charges by one cycle. However, after hearing concerns from Public Works about timing constraints, the committee reconsidered and voted to move the item forward without recommendation to the full Council. Chair Cashman committed to organizing a briefing for council members to address questions before the full Council meeting.

The motion to reconsider and move forward without recommendation passed unanimously.

Legislative Directive on Street Lighting Copper Wire Theft

Council Member Chowdhury introduced a legislative directive for an overview of street lighting copper wire theft activity over the last three calendar years. The directive aims to address constituent concerns about lighting outages and understand the city’s efforts to combat this issue.

The motion to add this item to the agenda and approve it as part of the consent agenda passed unanimously.

Public Comments

Mr. Chughtai: Spoke about issues with his property’s sewer line disconnection during nearby construction. He objected to being assessed $28,000 for a new sewer line, arguing that the disconnection was due to city error and lack of communication between departments. The committee decided to move his case forward without recommendation to allow for further discussion and potential appeal.