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From YouTube: Council Minute March 8
Description
Mayor Tim Busse represents Bloomington at the White House, explains why residents are required to pay for organics and encourages you to attend the Police vs. Fire Hockey game this weekend.
A
Hello
Bloomington
I'm
mayor
Tim
Bussey,
and
this
is
the
council
minute
for
the
week
of
March
5th
last
week,
I
had
the
honor
of
representing
Bloomington
at
the
White
House
as
part
of
an
event
highlighting
the
impact
and
the
importance
of
recent
Federal
programs.
Here
in
Bloomington,
the
event
was
titled
communities
in
action,
building
a
better
Minnesota
and
attendees
included
City
and
County
elected
officials,
non-profit
leaders
and
Business
Leaders
from
across
the
state.
A
It
was
a
great
opportunity
to
hear
from
and
to
ask
questions
of
members
of
President
Biden's
Administration
I
thought
it
was
especially
insightful
to
hear
from
former
mayors
who
are
now
serving
in
the
administration.
Keisha
Lance
bottoms,
the
former
mayor
of
Atlanta
and
now
a
senior
advisor
for
public
engagement
and
Mitch
landrow,
former
mayor
of
New
Orleans
and
now
senior
advisor
and
infrastructure
coordinator
both
spoke.
It
was
also
nice
to
hear
from
Veterans
Affairs
secretary
Dennis,
McDonough
Dennis
is
a
native
of
Stillwater
and
he
brought
a
nice
Minnesota
perspective
to
his
comments.
A
It
was
also
a
great
opportunity
to
hear
how
other
communities
and
organizations
have
used
funds
they've
received
through
the
American
Rescue
plan.
The
cares,
Act
and
the
infrastructure
law
and
to
share
the
successes
we've
had
here
in
Bloomington
as
a
result
of
federal
dollars.
Over
the
past
few
years,
we've
focused
on
small
business
at
the
height
of
the
pandemic.
Bloomington
used
cares
act,
funds
to
keep
struggling
businesses
afloat
by
providing
more
than
150
forgivable,
small
business
loans,
totaling
nearly
eight
hundred
and
fifty
thousand
dollars.
We
focused
on
people
in
need.
A
We
directed
nearly
four
hundred
thousand
dollars
to
deep
to
meet
the
needs
of
thousands
of
Bloomington
and
South
Metro
families.
We
put
money
in
the
economy.
We
were
able
to
direct
more
than
six
million
dollars
into
infrastructure
projects
such
as
improvements
to
our
water
systems,
that
put
money
into
the
economy
for
companies
looking
for
work,
and
it
also
had
the
benefit
of
easing
Capital
replacement
costs
for
ratepayers.
So
we
were
able
to
hold
down
utility
charges.
A
During
the
economic
crisis
we
focused
on
affordable
housing
or,
more
accurately,
we've
invested
more
than
6
million
federal
dollars
in
housing
that
people
can
afford,
and
we
focused
on
Public
Safety,
using
federal
funds.
We
were
able
to
add
Battalion
Chiefs
to
strengthen
our
Bloomington
Fire
Department,
provide
increased
resources
to
the
police
department
and
fund
a
crime
victim
Advocate
and
even
though
I
was
very
prepared
to
make
a
pitch
for
the
World
Expo.
The
speakers
from
the
administration
beat
me
to
it.
At
least
three
different
speakers
brought
up
the
Expo
in
their
remarks.
A
That
tells
me
that
the
White
House
is
fully
committed
to
Minnesota's
efforts
to
host
Expo
2027..
In
short,
Bloomington
does
a
pretty
good
job
of
making
the
most
of
federal
dollars.
When
funding
becomes
available,
I
was
proud
to
share
the
work
we've
done
and,
as
always,
I
was
proud
to
represent
Bloomington
in
our
nation's
capital.
Every
couple
of
months,
when
City
utility
bills
are
mailed
out,
I
get
one
or
two
phone
calls
or
emails
from
residents
asking
why
they're
required
to
pay
for
Organics
recycling?
A
If
it's
a
service,
they
don't
use
it's
a
legitimate
question
and
one
that
I
try
to
answer
consistently.
When
asked,
and
recently
the
city
learned
that
City
policy
aligns
with
state
law
on
this
question.
First,
some
quick
background.
Hennepin
County
requires
cities
to
make
Organics
collection
available
to
Residents.
It's
part
of
the
County's
overall
goal
to
have
less
waste,
go
to
landfills
or
be
burned
for
energy
by
diverting
that
waste
to
Reuse,
Recycling
or
composting
for
context,
Hennepin
County
produced
about
1.3
million
tons
of
trash
in
2021.
A
of
that
about
34
percent
went
to
a
landfill.
27
was
burned
for
energy.
At
the
Hennepin
energy
recovery
center,
26
percent
was
recycled
and
13
was
composted.
The
county
has
identified
compostable
material
as
a
growth
area,
since
about
a
quarter
of
what
gets
sent
to
the
landfill
or
burned
for
energy
is
actually
organic
or
compostable
material.
A
When
the
county
mandated
Organics
collection,
the
city
of
Bloomington
made
the
decision
to
implement
the
process
in
a
way
that
would
give
it
the
best
chance
of
success.
Based
on
the
experience
of
other
communities,
it
was
clear
that
a
pay
only
if
you
participate
type
of
system
wouldn't
lead
to
the
participation
numbers.
We
were
hoping
for
frankly.
That
type
of
system
is
basically
set
up
to
fail.
A
Fewer
people
signing
up
for
collection
means
that
the
cost
for
each
household
is
higher,
which
means
that
fewer
people
sign
up
for
collection
by
spreading
the
cost
across
the
entire
Community.
It
keeps
the
price
a
bit
more
reasonable
and
it
encourages
greater
participation.
Bloomington's
participation
is
at
about
26
percent,
which
exceeds
the
goal
of
the
first
year
of
the
program,
so
I
think
we're
off
to
a
good
start
by
comparison.
Minneapolis
has
about
a
50
participation
rate,
but
they've
been
doing
it
longer
than
we
have
now.
A
It
turns
out
the
council's
decision
to
spread
the
cost
across
the
entire
Community
was
not
only
good
from
a
participation
perspective.
It's
also
what's
required
under
state
statute.
Last
week,
Hennepin
County
provided
City
Solid
Waste
staff.
With
a
letter
from
the
Minnesota
Pollution
Control
agency
regarding
Organics
collection,
the
mpca
letter
specifically
addressed
the
question
of
whether
all
residents
need
to
pay
for
organic
service,
or
only
those
who
subscribe.
A
In
the
letter,
the
mpca
made
it
clear
that
to
comply
with
Minnesota
state
statute,
115a
0.93
licensing
authorities
such
as
cities
are
required
to
prohibit
collectors
from
imposing
a
greater
charge
on
residents
who
subscribe
to
Organics
collection
than
those
who
do
not.
In
other
words,
all
residents
must
pay
for
organic
service
if
the
service
is
provided
in
the
same
way
that
all
residents
pay
for
traditional
recycling
service,
whether
or
not
the
residents
use
that
service.
A
The
mpca
interpretation
of
the
law
indicates
that
the
all-pay
Organics
program
that
we
have
in
place
here
in
Bloomington
is
in
compliance
with
the
state
statute
and
even
beyond
the
legal
requirements.
I
think
it's
important
to
remember
that
the
city
and
other
public
agencies
and
all
levels
of
government
make
decisions
about
Community
priorities
and
values
and
then
fund
and
operate
systems
and
programming
with
the
entire
community
in
mind.
Government
services
aren't
offered
on
an
A
La
Carte
basis.
You
can't
opt
out
of
something
that
you
don't
use
or
you
don't
like.
A
A
Finally,
my
kids
are
30
and
27
years
old
and
are
years
removed
from
Elementary
and
high
school,
but
I
still
pay
property
taxes
to
the
Bloomington
School
District,
because
a
strong
school
system
makes
Bloomington
a
better
place.
We
are
in
this
as
part
of
a
collective,
a
city
as
a
community
Works
toward
a
common
good.
That's
what
I
know
we're
doing
when
we
fund
Creekside
or
big
or
our
public
schools
and
I,
know
that's
what
we're
doing
when
we
fund
Organics
recycling.
A
Now,
if
you
haven't
signed
up
for
your
Organics
recycling,
cart
yet
I'd
encourage
you
to
give
it
a
try.
I
think
you'll
be
surprised
at
how
easy
it
is
and
how
much
you
generate
on
a
weekly
basis
and
how
much
lighter
your
garbage
cart
will
be.
And
finally,
today
this
Sunday
March
12th,
the
Bloomington
Police
Department
and
the
Bloomington
Fire
Department-
will
face
off
in
what
they
promise
will
be
a
friendly
hockey
game
at
Bloomington,
Ice
Garden.
The
event
is
free.
Everyone
is
welcome.
The
puck
drops
at
4
45
pm.
A
Now,
if
you
recall,
the
police
department
beat
the
fire
department
in
softball
over
the
summer.
You
might
not
remember
that,
but
I'm
pretty
sure
the
Departments
do
so
I'm
sure
it's
going
to
be
a
great
game
on
Sunday
police
and
fire,
have
partnered
with
Veep
and
will
be
collecting
items
for
donations
to
Veep.
Veep
is
in
need
of
items
like
rice,
pasta,
soups
and
canned
fruits
and
vegetables.
A
So
please,
if
you
attend
the
game,
bring
along
some
items
to
donate
to
Veep
once
again:
Sunday
March,
12th,
police
versus
fire
and
hockey
at
Big,
4,
45,
start
I.
Hope
to
see
you
there
that
will
do
it
for
this
week's
Council
minute,
thanks
so
much
for
joining
me
until
next
time
stay
safe,
Bloomington,.