10 20 2026 CC Work Session PacketCITY OF MENDOTA HEIGHTS
CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION MEETING AGENDA
October 20, 2026 at 4:30 PM
Mendota Heights City Hall, 1101 Victoria Curve, Mendota Heights
1.Call to Order
2.Discussion
a.Curbside Organics Update and Discussion
b.Claims List Agenda Update
3.Adjourn
Alternative formats or auxiliary aids are available to individuals with disabilities upon request.
Please contact City Hall at 651-452-1850 or by emailing cityhall@mendotaheightsmn.gov.
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2.a
City Council Work Session Memo
MEETING DATE: October 20, 2026
TO: Mayor, City Council and City Administrator
FROM: Courtney Selstad, Recycling and Sustainability Coordinator
SUBJECT: Curbside Organics Update and Discussion
ACTION REQUEST:
The City Council is asked to receive the staff’s update and presentation.
BACKGROUND:
Since the last City Council Work Session update on the topic of curbside organics collection
in May 2024, Dakota County finalized and approved their Solid Waste Management Plan
in 2025, mandating curbside organics collection as one of several required strategies for
waste reduction as outlined in the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's Metropolitan Solid
Waste Management Policy Plan. The requirement is for communities over 5,000 residents
to have the service available by 2030. Dakota County also hired a consultant to create a
Residential Organics Collection Best Practices Toolkit for Municipalities, which was finished
this summer. That toolkit is available on the Dakota County website by clicking here or copy
the link below into a web browser.
https://dakotacountymn.gov/content/dam/site/main/documents/recycling/reports/
residentialorganicscollectionbestpractices_ada.pdf
Please note that staff will bring an update on the other sustainability projects to Council
at the beginning of 2027.
FISCAL AND RESOURCE IMPACT:
Impacts will depend on the level of city involvement (if any) that Council chooses to have in the
collection process.
ATTACHMENTS:
None
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2.b
City Council Work Session Memo
MEETING DATE: October 20, 2026
TO: Mayor, City Council and City Administrator
FROM: Kelly Torkelson, Assistant City Administrator
SUBJECT: Claims List Agenda Update
ACTION REQUEST:
Information Only
BACKGROUND:
Beginning November 3, 2026, the City will no longer include the financial claims list in the
publicly posted City Council meeting packet available on the City's website. The claims list will
remain available to the public through the City's standard data practices request process and
will continue to be provided to City Council members for review. This change is a cybersecurity
precaution intended to reduce the City's exposure to financial fraud by limiting the public
availability of detailed financial information that could be used to target the City and its
employees.
The claims list contains detailed information about payments made by the City, including
vendor names, contact information, and invoice amounts. While this information is public data,
its availability in a publicly posted meeting packet may make it easier for cybercriminals to
identify vendors, impersonate legitimate business contacts, and exploit payment information to
facilitate financial fraud.
Public agencies have increasingly needed to consider how publicly available information can be
used to facilitate sophisticated cyberattacks and fraudulent payment schemes. Requiring an
additional step to access the claims list is intended to create a barrier to automated collection
and mass targeting of this information while preserving the public's ability to review the City's
financial transactions.
To mitigate this risk, the City will follow an approach already implemented by other
municipalities by removing the claims list from the publicly posted City Council meeting packet
while continuing to make it available upon request through the City's data practices request
process.
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Under this approach:
•City Council access: The claims list will continue to be included in the printed City
Council meeting packet for review. When the City transitions to digital meeting packets,
the claims list will be provided in a digital format accessible to City Council members for
their review.
•Public access: The claims list will remain available as public data. Members of the public
may request a copy through the City's standard data practices request process.
•Public website: The claims list will no longer be included in the publicly accessible City
Council meeting packet posted on the City's website.
The intent is not to reduce transparency or restrict the public's right to access the City's
financial information. Rather, the change introduces a single additional step for accessing the
claims list to help deter automated data collection and reduce opportunities for cybercriminals
to use the information to target the City, its employees, and its vendors.
This approach also aligns with the City's preparations for upcoming digital accessibility
requirements that will affect public meeting packets. By April 2028, the City will need to meet
applicable digital accessibility requirements. As part of its planned approach, documents that
cannot readily be made accessible will be removed from the publicly posted packet, made
available in a separate digital Board View for City Council members to review before meetings,
and provided to members of the public upon request.
Implementing this process with the claims list provides an opportunity to test and refine the
City's procedures before broader implementation of the larger digital accessibility process. It
also allows the City to take an immediate, practical step toward reducing its cybersecurity risk.
ATTACHMENTS:
None
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