Mayor’s Minutes: Maple Grove’s Mark Steffenson
Maple Grove Mayor Mark Steffenson spoke recently with CCX Media’s Dave Kiser about the city’s 2025 legislative priorities, expansions for a long-time city business, and organics recycling changes.
Maple Grove city leaders want to prioritize a funding stream to help pay for improvements at the now-damaged County Road 20 overpass over U.S. Highway 169.
The city, like most, typically identifies an agenda of projects and initiatives it wants help in paying for from the state. One of the biggest priorities will be state funding to help replace the damaged bridge at the intersection of County Road 20 and U.S. Highway 169, on the border with Brooklyn Park.
“It’s very simple. It needs to be redone,” said Steffenson. “It’s simply time to re-do the bridge.”
He also wants the city to seek amendments to the tax increment financing to help bring more businesses to the old gravel mining area.
The city also wants more bonding money from the state to help pay for expansion of the Community Center, which will now include updating the Lifetime Fitness facility to include it as a fully city-operated gym.
“The expansion of the Community Center needs to go forward,” said Steffenson. “We have the local option sales tax that’s helping pay for that, we have some bonding funds helping pay for that. We’re hopeful that we’ll get some additional bonding funding to pay for that community center.”
He also touched on the city’s change to organics recycling pick-up for everyone.
“The county initiated a rule or law that required that organics be done, and therefore, each of the local haulers was charging an organics fee on your garbage bill. We’re changing that so it will be one hauler, the fee will be less, and that way you’re saving money.
