At the March 3, 2025 meeting of the Hastings City Council, the council discussed the 2025 Neighborhood Infrastructure Improvement, Gores Pool #3 and received a PFAS update from City Administrator Dan Wietecha.

2025 Neighborhood Infrastructure Improvement
The council heard from City Engineer Cody Mathisen about the 2025 Neighborhood Infrastructure Improvements. In 2025 the neighborhood infrastructure improvement construction will focus along First, State and Prairie streets with both reconstruction and reclamation of various streets. The total cost of the project is estimated at $4,515,000.
Fraiser and State streets are both to be narrowed from 36’ to 32’, a form of “right-sizing our roadways,” said Mathisen.
A public hearing for the assessments on this construction will be held on April 7, but estimations for assessments are $7,200 for reconstruction and $6,000 for reclamation for single family houses.
The project is expected to go to bid in April with construction beginning early in May of this year.
Mathisen was unable to provide information about Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) for the project: “As of right now with everything else going on with federal pausing of funds, the CDBG funds are in that group so that now is a little unsure.”

Gores Pool #3
Hastings Police Chief Dave Wilske spoke to the ongoing issues regarding hunting near Gores Pool #3. The city council previously heard from both Chief Wilske as well as residents from the area who described hunters shooting towards residences.
The city moved forward with submitting a resolution to the DNR that requests a 500-foot buffer from all occupied buildings.

ATV/UTV
The council also heard from Chief Wilske on all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) and utility-terrain vehicles (UTVs). The Public Safety Action Committee (PSAC) issued a recommendation in order to not change city ordinance 70.02.
“We the Public Safety Advisory Commission, do not support endorsing a change in our current ordinance concerning the use of ATV/UTV on our city streets. We support the current ordinance that allows for the use of ATV/UTV with a disability.”
Safety was the city council’s main concern on this issue, which is already playing out on Hastings’ streets. According to Chief Wilske, many residents erroneously think it is legal to drive these vehicles on city streets.
“There’s going to be a big education part of this,” said Wilske.
The city council agreed with the PSAC recommendation and did not make a change to city ordinance 70.02.

E-Bike Ordinance
The city council also discussed the PSAC recommendation regarding e-bikes in the city. PSAC’s recommendation includes a minimum rider age of 15 as per Minnesota State Law, working front and taillights as per Minnesota State Law, no helmet requirements, barring e-bikes from riding on sidewalks, a speed limit of 15 mph and not requiring a permit.
The city council adopted PSAC’s recommendation with a unanimous vote.

PFAS update
City Administrator Dan Wietecha provided the council with the PFAS update for March. Wietecha spoke about four bills proposed by Rep. Tom Dippel (R-Cottage Grove) which provide four different ways to fund Hastings’ water treatment plants.
While Hastings’ legislators have publicly sparred over just how Hastings PFAS WTPs should be funded, Sen. Judy Seeberger recently signed Dippel’s recent bills H.F. 1193 and H.F. 1192 which would provide $16.6 million to Hastings via a future bonding bill and through the general fund respectively.
“Definitely appreciate where they are working together,” said Wietecha.
Wietecha also spoke to the city soon being able to share architectural drawings of the central WTP on the site in order to “allow neighbors to have some idea of what it would mean in their neighborhood.” A future public open house in April or March would showcase the WTP and how it might look.
As to construction of the central WTP, “it’s tight, but we could be putting this out to bid in May,” said Wietecha.
The city council also agreed to send a letter to the co-trustees of the 2018 3M settlement fund asking them to prioritize clean water with the funds, rather than use funds set aside for secondary priorities like “projects that restore and enhance aquatic resources, wildlife, habitat, fishing, resource improvement, and outdoor recreational opportunities,” according to the letter.
“Last year, the state acknowledged that they are on target to run out of money and not have enough money to do all the anticipated drinking water improvements in the east metro. But here in January, they decided to go forward and put out an application process to fund recreation projects. My recommendation is a letter calling them on that saying: get your priorities straight,” said Wietecha.