Chaska is outgrowing its police station, fire station, city hall and Municipal Services Building (MSB) — all of which are around 30 years old and have had little-to-no renovations.
In a preliminary tax levy establishment presentation on Sept. 12, City Administrator Matt Podhradsky outlined the city’s plans for the Building Improvement Plan.
“The main reason is so that we can provide high-quality services because, you know, that’s our mission — to be the best small town in Minnesota,” Podhradsky said.
Per his presentation, the tax levy policy should be utilized “to limit tax levy growth to capture only new growth in community, and expenditure inflation. Only increasing levy beyond this point if new service levels/assets are being added.”
Given the new positions being added through the staff study and implementing the building improvement plan, additional levy is required to support these new programs and services.
For a home worth $370,000, the median home value, residents would see a tax increase per year of:
- 2023 Facilities Tax Impact: $8/month ($96 annual)
- 2024 Facilities Tax Impact: $17/month ($204 annual)
- 2025 Facilities Tax Impact: $25/month ($300 annual)
- 2026 Facilities Tax Impact: $34/month ($408 annual)
“One of the things that this doesn’t take into consideration is any growth in our community,” Podhradsky said. “We wanted to try to provide a really conservative number out there. Growth is more than likely to bring these numbers down.”
The public safety campus is the priority and is slated to open in fall 2025, MSB in late summer of 2026, library in fall of 2027 and city hall in early summer of 2028.
Podhradsky says the city views this “as an investment in the future, this isn’t just trying to be a band aid.” There will be intentional continuity between building designs to ensure easy updates as Chaska continues to grow.
Taxation statements will be sent out in November, along with information on when the so-called “truth in taxation” hearing will be held to express concerns and questions.
THE FACILITIES
Podhradsky identified the big three reasons for the project to be: service level, space and safety. He identified the fire station as a good example of a space limiting the services available.
“We can’t provide 24-hour duty crew service, even though we need it in town, because we don’t have sleeping quarters,” Podhradsky said.
The police and fire departments, city hall and MSB are all on track to be given a facelift; the library will be the only building getting completely new property.
The breakdown of the total cost for the new facilities comes down to:
- Public safety campus: $41 million
- Municipal Services Building expansion: $44 million
- City Hall remodel: $11 million
- New library: $19 million
- Total for program: $115 million
Podhradsky identified the big three reasons for the project to be: service level, space and safety. He identified the fire station as a good example of a space limiting the services available.
“We can’t provide 24-hour duty crew service, even though we need it in town, because we don’t have sleeping quarters,” Podhradsky said.
Chaska Fire Department Chief Stephen Kraus noted that firefighters have choices now when it comes to where they serve and if the space is not up to par with other stations, it could impact the number of people fighting fires in town.
On a health and safety level, one common issue between MSB and the fire station is not having staff lockers away from the diesel fumes of their respective trucks. Lockers with coats, clothes, vests and other personal items are out in the open and end up smelling bad and covered in diesel residue.
According to the presentation Podhradsky gave, the concept design shows a combined public safety campus for the police and fire departments. The police department currently has about 7,600 square feet of space. A staffing study conducted in 2017 by Baker Tilly US, LLP identified that the police department should have about 40,000 square feet to accommodate the number of employees and equipment.
The initial design concept allocates 46,400 square feet to the police station, and the fire department would go from 23,000 to 46,4000 square feet.
“We need to be reinvesting in core assets so that facilities are adequate to meet the growth of the community and reflect community pride,” Podhradsky said.
Chaska Police Department Chief Ryan Seibert hopes to “balance being inviting and security” with an emphasis on having more confidential and private spaces, as well. For inspiration, Seibert looks to the police department designs in New Hope, Fridley and Minnetonka.
The updated design would feature proper training spaces, secure parking for staff and appropriately sized locker rooms and break areas that are designed with further growth in mind.
Moving the police department out of the city hall building allows the city administration, community developers, engineers and city officials to expand into that space.
“People in city hall will probably be moving into temporary spaces, and then once we get to the remodel, they can move into their permanent spaces,” Podhradsky said.
City staff are hoping for more collaborative spaces to avoid having to leave the building for meetings and roofs that don’t leak whenever it rains.
“I think they’ve said from the beginning, ‘We get it, this is not a cheap program to do,’” Podhradsky said. “These are the things that impact people’s lives on a day to day basis. If we don’t do these things right and if we don’t provide these services in a quality manner, it impacts people’s lives in a negative way.”
According to Podhradsky, 30% of MSB vehicles and equipment have to sit outside, which is “not good in this Minnesota environment.”
“We’ve always put emphasis on our front facing services,” Podhradsky said. “We’ve gotten to the point where it’s going to affect residents.”
Podhradsky also wants to have “building maintenance people be a big part of the design of these facilities.” The lead for building maintenance has already been a “big part of discussions”
The presentation on the tax levy and facility renovations given by Podhradsky can be found on Chaska Community Television YouTube channel.
“We don’t want this to be a surprise for people,” Podhradsky said. “We want people to understand the whys and the hows.”