The Duluth City Council convened on December 16 for it’s final meeting of the year.

As the year wrapped up, so too did the City’s budget, meaning the 2025 budget would have to be approved.

“You’ll see what that with this budget we were very intentional about some investments with public safety some investments to help us on the business growth side and some investments back into parks, maintenance and just basic supply lines.” Said Mayor Roger Reinert in an interview with WDIO.

The budget was Reinert’s first, and he was able to deliver on a campaign promise to provide tax relief to Duluthians by offering up a budget without a tax levy increase. Councilors passed the budget unanimously during their meeting, something that Reinert noted hasn’t always been easy for other city governments in the state.

“You know a couple examples are Minneapolis where the mayor vetoed the budget and the council had to override that mayor’s veto or St. Paul where the council changed the levy at the last minute and they now have a several million dollar hole in their budget that they have to figure out.”

The meeting also saw a heavy union presence in the audience.

Members of AFSCME showed up to address the council, as their Union continues negotiations with the city administration. The council is not involved in contract talks, though several council members did offer their support for the city workers.

Also in attendance were members of the recently formed Duluth Tenants Union. A handful of members spoke before the council, detailing issues they’ve had with current and former run-down rental properties throughout the city, while over a dozen other members looked on. The union did thank the city for including money in the budget to hire an additional fire inspector, who the union believes will help speed up inspection issues.  

Other measures passed in the final council meeting included a new five-year contract for the DECC to run Bayfront Festival Park, as well as setting legislative initiatives for the city in the coming year.