City of Lake City - Common Council - August 17 Workshop

THE FOLLOWING IS A SUMMARY OF THE MINUTES FROM THE COMMON COUNCIL MEETINGS. COPIES OF THE FULL TEXT ARE AVAILABLE AT CITY HALL OR CAN BE ACCESSED ON THE INTERNET AT www.ci.lake-city.mn.us.

Lake City Common Council
Workshop MEETING
AUGUST 17, 2026, 5:00 p.m.
CITY HALL 2ND FLOOR
CONFERENCE ROOM
Members Present: Mayor Brian Quinn, Amy Alkire, Faye Brown, Megan Kramer, Cindy McGrath, Robert Newsome
Members Absent:    Russell Boe
Staff Present: City Administrator Rob Keehn, Finance Director Jerome Illg, City Clerk Michelle Seydel, Fire Chief Dan Patterson, President of the Fire Relief Association Luke Hartzell
The Mayor called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m. with a quorum present.
Call to Order and Introductions
Review, Adopt, or Amend Agenda
Motion by Brown, second Alkire to adopt the agenda as presented. All ayes, 6-0-0. Motion carried.
Informational Reports
Discuss the Lake City Fire Relief Association’s request for a pension increase
The Lake City Fire Relief Association would like the council to approve a pension increase. Currently the fire department pension fund is well past what it needs to cover all liability for retirements and payouts. The fund currently sits over 180% funding to liability ratio. LCFRA is asking that the council approve pension increase to maintain the account at 120% funded. Per the LCFRA accountant that is charged with overseeing this fund, maintaining a 120% funding ratio will allow for all possible payouts with no additional moneys needed from city funds. LCFRA is asking that the account be analyzed annually to maintain 120% funding. When the account is over 120% a pension increase will take place to bring the funding ratio down. When the account is under 120%, no action is needed and the pension amounts remain the same until the next annual evaluation. The LCFRA pension has not been increased since 2024, and this process will provide maximum benefit to the firefighters without causing the city to pay in more at the end of the year.
The requested pension increase approval mainly does two things: 1. It sets a higher per-year pension value for vested members of the LCFRA and 2. It commits the city to covering any shortfall in the pension benefit. There is no direct budgetary impact from the requested increase, as the pension payouts are covered by the pension fund, which is able to cover liabilities by 176% as of December 31, 2025. Increasing the pension amount to where the obligation would be covered at 120% of pension liabilities would equate to an increase from $6,500 per year of service to approximately $9,500 per year of service.
Motion by Brown, second McGrath to adjourn the meeting at 5:56 p.m. All ayes, 6-0-0. Motion carried.

/s/ Brian Quinn, Mayor

ATTEST:
/s/ Michelle Seydel, City Clerk

Published in the Lake City Graphic
on September 24, 2026