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2025-11 Agenda SUSTAINABILITY COMMISSION Regular Meeting Agenda Thursday, November 20th, 2025, 7:00 pm Heredia Room, City Hall Commission Members Staff/Others Liaisons Amanda Kueper, Adam Burnside, Craig Heinen, Katy Boone, Chris Danner, Alexa Wozniak, Rose Thompson, Mohamed Noor Rachel Lindholm (Sustainability Coordinator) Zachary McCarty (Solid Waste Specialist) Rori Coleman-Woods (City Council) Hayley Tompkins (CSC) 1. Call to Order 2. Approval of Minutes/Agenda  Regular Meeting Minutes: October 23, 2025 3. Public Comment  Any resident comment and items not printed on the agenda 4. Staff Reports (Lindholm, McCarty)  General updates: SOPB-PW, ReLeaf grant, e-bikes  Solid Waste updates: • Pumpkin smash and fix-it hub recaps • County events next summer- building material (tentative) and furniture collection • Better futures confirmed for next meeting 5. Discussion Items  2025 workplan recap and accomplishments 6. Action Items  None 7. Committee Reports  Community Services Commission (CSC) (Tompkins) 8. Next Meeting Thursday, January 22nd, 2025, 7:00 pm Heredia Room, City Hall 9. Adjournment DRAFT MINUTES UNTIL APPROVED BY THE COMMISSION REGULAR SUSTAINABILITY COMMISSION MEETING Thursday, October 23, 2025 Bartholomew Room, City Hall PRESENT COMMISSIONERS: Amanda Kueper, Adam Burnside, Craig Heinen, Chris Danner, Katy Boone, Alexa Wozniak, Rose Thompson STAFF: Rachel Lindholm (Sustainability Coordinator), Zach McCarty (Solid Waste Specialist), LIAISONS: Hayley Tompkins (CSC), Rori Coleman-Woods (City Council) Call to Order Kueper called the meeting to order at 7:02 pm. Approval of Minutes/Agenda Boone motioned, Wozniak seconded, approved by all. Public Comment None Staff Reports Lindholm and McCarty reported: • Commissioner recruitment – Lindholm reported the city is still recruiting for commissioners and all are encouraged to promote this opportunity to fellow residents. The Sustainability Commission is expected to receive a second youth commissioner. • Earth Day Fair will be Saturday, April 25 from 1-4 pm. Commissioners are welcome to volunteer! • The County’s first fix-it clinic (of several coming to Richfield in the future) will be November 12. • WLNC partnered with Better Futures Minnesota for “de -construction” of the building (salvaging usable materials). McCarty provided a presentation discussing the organization, which trains formerly incarcerated men and focuses on recycling and reuse of build ing materials. They made good use of fixtures and appliances in the old building before demolition. • 2025 Recycling Audit – Completed recently. Audits have the goal of examining contamination and evaluating the commodi ties Richfield receives from collection. This year saw an uptick in cardboard and paper compared to 2024, along with a slight increase in aluminum and a decrease in glass. Generally, these changes put Richfield in a good position for finding markets for these materials. o The Commission discussed how the value of recycling for city revenue makes it worthwhile to shift messaging from contamination to encouraging residents to recycle items that are currently “m issed opportunities”. Discussion Items Presentation from Great River Greening The Commission heard a presentation from this nonprofit, which is dedicated to natural resource issues. They are currently working with the City of Richfield at WLNC and are working on a set of natural resource plans for four Richfield parks (WLNC, Richfield Lake, Veterans Park, and Taft Park). At WLNC, the project is in its first year of a five-year grant removing invasive buckthorn and re-planting the forest area, focused on the southeast part of the park. The Natural Resource Management Plans for the other parks are in their initial stages of development. Workplan Updates The Commission is planning to wrap up its project list at the November meeting and reflect on progress for the year. Commissi oners expressed interest in supporting any “last push” efforts needed for outstanding priorities. Action Items None Committee Reports From the Community Services Commission: •Check out the ice arena to see new updates to the facility. •City has been doing a lot of work on removing sediment, restoring native habitat, and improving water quality at Adams Hill park. This includes the installation of a hydro dynamic separator to remove future sediment from the Adams Hill pond. •Winterization of city facilities is underway. Next Meeting/Adjournment Next Meeting: Thursday, November 20, 7:00 pm Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 8:08 pm DRAFT MINUTES UNTIL APPROVED BY THE COMMISSION