Hormel Foundation grant, natural gas contract on council agenda
Published 10:14 am Saturday, August 17, 2019
The Austin City Council will be voting to approve a prioritized list for Hormel Foundation grant applicants during its next regular meeting.
Every year, the Hormel Foundation asks the council to prioritize the list of grant applicants from highest to lowest. The Hormel Foundation takes the council’s rankings into consideration when awarding grant money.
During its last work session, the council ranked the applicants as follows:
- Austin Police Department drone – $42,792
- Riverside Arena ceiling insulation – $150,000
- Austin Public Library 2019 Hotspot Data Plans – $45,000
- Targeted Area Redevelopment – $300,000
- Todd Park bridge – $100,000
- Jay C. Hormel Nature Center education programs – $40,000
- Curling program equipment – $20,000
- Sumner Area Revitalization Plan – $90,000
- Todd Park scoreboards – $40,486
- Austin Utilities energy education program – $10,300
- Austin Utilities electric car differential – $20,000
- Fire Prevention and Education – $5,000
The council will also vote on appointing Austere Apolo as the next honorary council member during the regular meeting.
Austin Utilities General Manager Mark Nibaur will discuss a natural gas prepay opportunity with the council during the council’s next work session. AU was approached by the Minnesota Municipal Gas Agency (MMGA) in late 2018 with an opportunity to participate in a natural gas prepayment transaction. Under the agreement, there will be a minimum discount of 29 cents on the volumes AU purchases for the initial pricing period. This will be re-priced every bond reissuance (5-10 years) with a minimum discount set at 19 cents. AU could exit the agreement if the minimum discount isn’t achieved.
AU successfully executed a natural gas prepay opportunity in 2018 with Public Energy Authority of Kentucky.
Administrative Services Director Tom Dankert will continue to review the 2020 budget during the work session.
The council’s next regular meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 19, in the City Council Chambers located in the basement of City Hall. The work session will be held immediately following the regular meeting in the conference room located across the hall from the Council Chambers.
For a complete agenda, visit http://www.ci.austin.mn.us/city-council.
