Duluth Mayor Roger Reinert delivered his second State of the City address from Ordean East Middle School on the evening of March 25.

Speaking to other city and community leaders, as well as public safety officials and ordinary citizens, Mayor Reinert’s second State of the City partly focused on the city government’s accomplishments for 2024.

These included highlights such as new housing construction, infrastructure and road repairs, and improvements to downtown, though in reference the latter, the Mayor admitted there was still work to be done.

“We have not made the progress this past year downtown that I wanted to see us make. Cleanliness and public safety remain challenges. These issues impact everyone, residents, businesses, the individuals, shoppers, our visitors, and addressing them is crucial to realizing the potential of our downtown as a residential hub.” The Mayor said.

Looking at 2024, the Mayor was proud of having kept his campaign promise of giving Duluthians tax relief by not raising the property tax levy for the first time in a decade. However, he reminded the community that this was not a sustainable option moving forward, saying that if nothing was adjusted in the budget, property owners would see a 24% property tax increase over the next two years.

“Rising valuation and property taxes have a real impact on everyday Duluthians, so let me be clear tonight. We’re not going to do that.” Reinert said. While he did say that property taxes would rise, he said that it would not be 24%.

The Mayor also stated that challenges with funding cuts at the federal level and a massive deficit at the state level adds uncertainty to the budget outlook, which is why his administration has already begun their budget 2026, a process that typically starts in June.

With further uncertainty at higher levels of government, Mayor Reinert also took time to emphasize what the role of city government is for citizens.

“It’s not to solve national political fights. Rather, our responsibility is to provide reliable, core city services. Those things upon which you both rely and you must depend. And our opportunity is to provide stability; stability in a historic time of disruption.”

Looking ahead, the Mayor also laid out plans for the future, including further conversations over the long-shuttered Lester Park Golf Course, possible consolidation talks with neighboring communities for things like libraries and parks, and expanded efforts for community engagement: the first citywide survey done this decade, an official city app, and even a Duluth-wide book reading, focusing on trying to foster renewed civility and responsible discourse surrounding politics.

And while many see chaos when it comes to all things political, the Mayor closed his speech urging folks to remember their sense of shared purpose.

“No matter what happens at the national level, what we build together as a community here in Duluth is what truly shapes our daily lives. And to be honest with dark clouds on the state and national horizon, we’re going to need your help.”

Watch the full State of the City program:

Read the full transcript of Mayor Reinert’s State of the City Address below.

Good evening, Duluth. It is my honor to be here with you tonight as your 40th Mayor and to
have this opportunity to deliver my second State of the City. Just 11 short months since my first
one. Those 11 months have been filled with hard work, challenges, sharp critiques, and plenty
of lessons learned. There’s no onboarding for a new mayor. So it’s been a period of learning
what you don’t know.

But it’s also been a critical time of building, realigning, and refocusing.

I want to begin by thanking Ordean-East for hosting us tonight. Last year we went west to
historic Denfeld High School, and this being Duluth of course this year we HAD to go east! Last
year we started with a bit of history about that place and space, so a special thank you to
former Mayor Don Ness for taking a few minutes away from his day job as Executive Director of
the Orden Foundation to share with us a bit about Mr. Albert Ordean. From the Foundation, to a
building downtown, to a Court and UMD, to this school – a name we know, but as a community
know little about.

Thank you as well to the East National Honor Society for volunteering tonight to help with
greeting and seating, and to the East High School Sterling Strings for their music that helped
welcome us all here tonight.

Thank you to Councilor Mayou for welcoming us to the Second District, and to President
Tomanek for your comments tonight. I want to recognize all our City Councilors here this
evening, other elected officials, and our city staff. As well as business, civic, and faith community
leaders. We are all partners in this big small town and working together to make Duluth a better
place for all.

And I want to thank each resident joining us tonight, whether in person or watching from home
via the livestream. You make Duluth the historic, unique, diverse, inclusive, and welcoming
community that we are.

And to my partner, my family, and my friends, your support, words of encouragement, and
assistance in helping me stay the person doing the thing versus becoming the thing is
instrumental—thank you.

I hear all the time – Mayor must be a hard job. My response? You have no idea. People think
that the City of Duluth is responsible for everything that happens in Duluth. And they think the
Mayor knows every single thing that happens at City Hall, and that you personally make every
single decision. And I’m just going to day it – in Duluth we make EVERY thing political, and most
things at the local level really aren’t.

Last year, I committed to focusing on five big issues: growing our commercial tax base, housing
across all income levels, streets and utilities, downtown Duluth, and affordable property
taxes. And in 2024 we accomplished a lot:
● Today we have a multimillion-dollar expansion underway at the Sofidel plant in
West Duluth. A $200M investment that will triple the current workforce.
● The new Amazon distribution center is currently hiring, and set to open soon.
● Along with Second Harvest these projects highlight our far west corridor as our
real growth corridor – a place where we have the land for business and residential
construction, and neighborhoods that welcome it. It’s also where rail, freeway, and
water come together – and an easy connection to the airport. Post pandemic
Multimodal is the competitive advantage.
● We broke ground on the Incline Village and Lakeview 333 projects. When
complete the Incline Village will be an entire new Duluth neighborhood with 1300
market rate apartments, condos, retail, and outdoor amenities.
● We repaired over 19 miles of streets in 2024 and are keeping pace in 2025 with
the roughly 15mi/yr EVERY year we need in order to refresh our street system every
30 years.
● We kicked butt on filling potholes, and something I’m ridiculously excited about –
we did cracksealing for the first time in years. It’s not just about refreshing and
rebuilding – it’s also about maintenance and preservation.
● In partnership with downtown stakeholders, we kicked off the Imagine
Downtown Duluth process
● As a community we now understand that the future of downtown is residential,
and we are actively moving in that direction. New construction at Lakeview 333 on
one end of downtown combined with the conversion of the Ordean building from
commercial to residential at the other. These two projects alone will add some 500
new residents to Downtown Duluth and meet ⅓ of our goal of 1500 new residents
and a significant step towards an actual downtown neighborhood.
● We hosted downtown Public Safety meeting with DPD, DFD, and City Attorney
● We passed a controversial but significant set of public safety measures that
gave our public safety team additional tools between the extremes of administrative
fines and a felony.
● We peacefully resolved a 2.5-month encampment in Priley Circle
● After 15 years, the Kozy is FINALLY down. And demolition of the Shoppers Ramp
has been approved and will begin soon.
● We completed securing the Hart, 1st St, and Tech Village Ramps.
● We have seven labor unions at City Hall and all had contracts up in 2024. That’s
a lot in ANY year, but especially your first year. We settled six of those labor
agreements, and negotiations are currently underway with Fire to get to seven.
● We moved tourism marketing out of City Hall and back to the DMO (Visit
Duluth) where it has historically been and where it belongs. We are not tourism
experts and the future of this key industry should not be so political.
● And with a 9-0 vote of the City Council we set a 0% property tax levy for the
first time after a decade of 9% average year over year increases. A significant step
towards a tax burden our residents and businesses can both afford and sustain.

I‘m also proud that we also spent last year committing City Hall to good process, even when
that didn’t make for good politics.

A major first year task for any new Mayor is building their leadership team. We already have an
exceptional one and in the next year it will only get better. They are highly skilled and deeply
invested in the City of Duluth organization. They are subject matter experts with strong ties to
this community, a clear vision for Duluth’s future, and the dedication needed to get us there.
Nine new hires at the leadership table. And a year ago I didn’t know a single one of them.
These are all Mayoral appointments. Key roles for accomplishing the agenda for which voters
elected me. I was not obligated to use ANY process. Simply make my recommendations to the
City Council and ask for their support.

But we didn’t hire friends or reward donors. It wasn’t about personal loyalty. And we didn’t
attempt to check any political boxes. Instead, we looked at the needs of the organization,
rewrote job descriptions, and in some cases created them where they had never existed. We
then went to market for the best candidates we could find – even if that meant some short-term
pain – and at times sharp criticism – while we took the time necessary to do it. This is the kind of
good work that goes unnoticed and doesn’t make the newspaper. Process over politics.
A couple other quick leadership notes before I leave this topic.

A big lesson for me in the first year was the distinction between the role of mayor and the role
of City Administrator. The job of Mayor is to provide vision and direction, and look externally.
The job of City Administrator is to implement that vision by focusing internally and overseeing
the day to day operations of the City. The mayor isn’t actually the most important job in City
Hall; the City Administrator is. So we are incredibly fortunate to have had an exceptional new
City Administrator start just under two months ago. Welcome aboard Matt.
Administrator Matt Staehling has

• 30 years in local government
• Is an attorney with HR and labor background, and served as City Attorney
• And most recently served for a decade as City Administrator in St. Cloud
• He brings experience with one of our competitors in the regional center market
  space, one that sits in three counties. He knows and understands partnerships and how
  to be regional
• He is also an Army veteran who deployed twice. Thank you for your service.
  The feedback so far on Matt has been outstanding. He has an upbeat attitude and positive
  outlook. He is approachable, listens more than he speaks, and is very collaborative. And perhaps
  the best compliment I can give him is that I have heard multiple times now that his former
  coworkers are either mad, or sad, that he left them and joined our team.This is also a good opportunity to make clear that despite the rhetoric at the national level, we
  remain committed in our organization to diversity, equity, sustainability, and resiliency.
  Last year we had an opening in our Human Rights Officer position, and took the opportunity to
  evaluate both external requirements and internal needs, and to develop the role’s first job
  description and expand responsibilities. It is now a key leadership role that covers the required
  Human Rights obligations contained in the city charter, but is also a leader for our important
  internal work of equity and inclusion, and also is a community level resource for our businesses
  and organizations. It took us a minute to find the right candidate, but Dr. Marsha Lue was worth
  the wait.
  She has been with us for just over a month and is already making a difference. We are thrilled to
  have her at our leadership table, and as a resource for other organizations in our community –
  especially at this moment in history. We continue to support this work not because it’s a
  political statement, but because we believe diversity is a strength within our community and
  also our organization.
  And earlier this year we lost an amazing leader in Mindy Grandley to the State of Minnesota.
  She is taking all that she learned and did for our organization, and as a key team leader
  providing that support to local units of government across the state. As with every other
  opportunity, we have spent the past month reviewing and revising the job description, and it
  still has a few more internal hoops to clear, but we expect it to post in early April. The revised
  job description has been expanded and is now responsible for leadership around environmental
  sustainability, energy efficiency, resilient transportation systems, and sustainable utility
  management. If you know someone who is progressive in their thinking and practical in
  application encourage them to apply. Being able to seek, obtain, and monitor grants and
  financial partnerships is a must.
  
  Along with better understanding my role, I also learned that the five big issues you told me
  about on the campaign trail, and were our focus as priorities in Year One, are really THREE:

1. Effective and efficient core city services
   ○ At a tax rate our residents and businesses can afford
2. Housing at all income levels
   ○ Including the focus on a downtown residential neighborhood
3. And Growing our commercial tax base
   ○ Because commercial pays 2/3 of the tax bill
   ○ So when we’re not growing commercial residential makes up the
   difference. And we need substantially more of it.
   
   We did A LOT of hard work in 2024 and are entering 2025 with positive momentum. We have
   many accomplishments about which we should rightly be proud. In 2025 we will have some
   significant challenges, but also some opportunities:
   
   First, we have not made the progress this past year downtown that I wanted to see us make.
   Cleanliness and public safety remain challenges. Graffiti and litter. Property damage. Behaviors
   that were in ramps have now moved into skywalks. And while most individuals struggling with
   mental health and substance use issues are non-violent – that’s not true for all. These issues
   impact everyone: residents, businesses, shoppers and our visitors. Addressing them is crucial to
   realizing the potential of our downtown as a residential hub. Because friends that IS the future.
   A place that was once commercial, then retail, then professional, will next be residential. It
   makes the most sense given the post-pandemic trends. And, we desperately need the housing
   to meet workforce needs and to meet our population goal of 90,000 by 2030.And to be blunt – we can’t afford for downtown property values to fall off a cliff. Neither can the
   County or the school district. Two months ago, a building in downtown Mpls that was purchased
   for $200M in 2016 sold for $6M in 2025. That’s a 97% decrease in value in nine years. 97%.
   Public safety and cleanliness are the foundation for a successful downtown. That’s why we have
   added our CSOs in addition to badged officers, outreach teams, and the Clean and Safe Team to
   create a stronger presence in the downtown core.
   It’s also why I supported the effort by City Councilors Arik Forsman, Roz Randorf, and Tara
   Swenson to examine the existing skywalk system. I look forward to these external
   recommendations. Because right now we are attempting to monitor, maintain, and activate
   three miles of elevated skywalk. In addition to 30+ blocks at street level. We are overdue to ask
   basic questions regarding when, where, and how much.
   But downtown issues can’t just be City of Duluth issues. They are community issues. Duluth
   issues. We do public safety, but we’re not the only ones who do public safety. And we don’t do
   health and human services at all. To focus on the root causes of issues we’ve seen
   post-pandemic means working closely with St. Louis County and state partners to address
   homelessness, mental health, and substance use. These aren’t challenges any single entity can
   solve. The City, County, state agencies, business community, civic groups, faith communities,
   private foundations and nonprofits all have a role to play. And all have responsibilities.
   
   In my last SOTC I told you we would hold the line on property taxes – and we did. The first 0%
   levy in a decade. But at that time I also told you it was unlikely we could do that every year. We
   have all the same cost drivers as everyone else in materials and wages. Again, seven labor
   contracts – all of which were last negotiated during the pandemic. All of which include wage
   increases. In fact, in 2025, every city employee will see a wage increase but one. (raise hand).
   And we already spend 82% of our GF on wages and benefits. If we take NO other actions, we
   are already looking at an 18% property tax increase in 2025, and another 8% in 2026. And that
   smaller number in 2026 is based on the huge number in 2025.
   Rising valuations and property taxes have a real impact on Duluthians so let me be clear tonight:
   We’re not going to do that. We normally begin the budget process in June, but this year it
   started last week. I can’t tell you tonight what the property tax number will be, but I can tell you
   it won’t be 24% over the next two years.
   And that math does not account for what is happening at the state and federal level. With the
   recent passage of the continuing resolution we saw $1.5M in potential funding for the critical
   lift bridge and water treatment plant projects evaporate. And of course the State recently
   learned their budget deficit for the next biennium is a $1B worse and now totals $6B. That’s
   roughly 10% of the state’s general fund.
   Duluth must be concerned about this because local government aid (LGA) is our single largest
   source of revenue, and accounts for nearly 1/3 of COD income. Any loss of LGA will directly
   translate into reductions in the city budget. And if we’re honest with ourselves we know that
   the actions being taken at the federal level are only going to make the state budget situation
   worse, and in turn our budget situation worse. Because federal flows to state which flows to
   local. Yet streets and utilities must be repaired, bridges must be fixed, and we must ensure clean
   and safe drinking water to our residents and near neighbors.
   
   Before I speak about this next topic, I want to take a minute and acknowledge a couple other
   special guests tonight – the Mayors of our near neighbor cities. Mayor Boucher was unable to
   be with us tonight, but Mayor Chad Ward from Proctor and Mayor Suzanne Herstad from Rice
   Lake are both in attendance. Thank you for inviting me to your “State of the Cities” event last
   week, and for making it a priority to be here tonight. I appreciate you and the partnership we
   are all developing. It’s good for our communities and good for our region.
   In 2025 you will here me say regional a lot.
   ● Because what happens in your communities matters to Duluth. And I know that
   what happens in Duluth matters to your residents. If I had $1 for every time
   someone said, I don’t live in Duluth but . . . I wouldn’t be worried about the City
   budget.
   ● 2/3 of St Louis County population lives in Duluth or a community with whom
   we share a border. 2/3. Some 135,000 people.
   ● We have to focus on better partnerships with our near neighbors, and with St.
   Louis County
   ● And we have to seriously think about regional services: things like a regional
   library system, and a regional park system. Regional economic development
   represented by a regional EDA (econ dev authority). And of course a regional water
   treatment plant.
   ● Most of the systems and services in Duluth were developed in the 1950s and
   1960s at a time when Duluth had 110,000 residents, was the third largest city in the
   state, and the only near neighbor we had was Proctor with a population of under
   3,000 people.
   Things have changed a little in the last 70 years. We cannot continue to operate based on a
   model from the 1950s and 1960s of Duluth being THE big city. If we were to whiteboard these
   things today we would do things differently. I know we all have our hands full until the end of
   the Legislative session, but early this summer I look forward to an opportunity for the four of us
   to get together and see what might make sense for all four of our communities – and our tax
   payers.
   
   Our final big issue in 2025 will be to take tangible steps forward with the former Lester Park Golf
   Course. It simply cannot continue to sit and deteriorate.
   The Lester Park Golf Course was established in 1934. The land for Lester was acquired through a
   combination of donations and financial contributions. Thomas Cole, president of Oliver Iron
   Mining, donated land in 1890 for city development. In 1929, prominent community members
   formed the City Land Co. to finance the construction of the golf course. The course was
   expanded in 1985 to 27 holes with the addition of the “Lake 9,” providing a more challenging –
   and incredibly scenic – layout. With 20 of its holes offering views of Lake Superior, the course
   was listed as one of the ten most scenic courses in the state by Explore Minnesota.
   The City closed Lester in 2020 due to financial constraints and the impact of the COVID
   pandemic. In 2021, the Duluth City Council unanimously approved a resolution to transfer 37
   acres of Lester to the Duluth Economic Development Authority (DEDA) with the goal to build
   new residential and help address our housing shortage as well as generate revenue to support
   operations.
   I heard a LOT about Lester on the campaign trail. Sure, this is a HUGE issue in the First District.
   But not only the First District. I heard from advocates throughout the community who felt there
   hadn’t been enough opportunity to engage with this decision and consider alternative
   possibilities to permanent closure. I pledged to those folks that they would have another bite at
   the apple. Or, swing from the tee box.
   So last year I created a working group charged with exploring year-round recreational activities
   including, but not exclusive to, golf. They were also asked to evaluate nonprofit and alternative
   management models where the city would retain ownership but external partners would
   manage operations. Akin to the Lake Superior Zoo model. They were also asked to consider the
   potential for additional adjacent housing.
   This was no easy task, and I want to thank members of various groups like the DAOA, COGGS,
   DXC, DuFTA, SHT, and Friends of Duluth Public Golf who participated and provided input. I also
   want to thank the golf advocates, neighborhood residents, and Lester area business owners
   who participated and provided input. And I especially want to thank Tim Meyer who took on
   the thankless task of trying to facilitate some very disparate interests.
   The working group has a deadline of April 1, which is now just days away. And my understanding
   is that four different possibilities have developed and been explored. All of which require fairly
   substantial financial resources. I’ve been told none of these has a consensus of support from
   the entire group. I’ve asked Mr. Meyer to make a presentation to the Council at a Committee of
   the Whole in April.
   While it may be disappointing to those passionate about Lester that there isn’t a clear path
   forward as a result of the working group’s efforts, I will take this very public opportunity to
   thank them for their work. As we consider next steps some elements of a future master plan
   have become very clear as a result of their work: public green space. A building that can provide
   equipment rental, community meeting space, event space, food and beverage. A connection of
   all the adjacent hiking, biking, and ski trails. Housing. And yes – golf.
   
   As I bring this 2025 address to a conclusion, I want to highlight three other smaller, but
   important, initiatives in 2025 intended to increase communication, connection, and resident
   engagement.
   
   By show of hands – how many people know the resident problem reporter portal exists, and
   how to use it? Exactly.
   I have spoken repeatedly about the need for a City of Duluth app. Superior has one that works
   well, and Duluth is overdue. A dedicated mobile app would help streamline communication and
   services. The city app will better centralize key functions like reporting issues—whether a
   pothole or streetlight outage—and provide easy access to city news, bill payments, permit
   applications, and emergency alerts. A city app will increase transparency, improve
   responsiveness, and foster a stronger connection between the city and its residents by offering
   a more simple, efficient, and convenient way to engage with the City. It will replace the resident
   problem reporter portal and take advantage of a powerful tool nearly all of us have at our
   fingertips (pull out my phone). And be much for effective than calling the City complaint line
   (aka the Mayor’s phone line).
   
   In 2025 we plan on conducting the first resident survey since 2019. Nothing has changed since
   2019 right? We make our best decisions when they are based on data, and in too many
   instances we make decisions based on information that is anecdotal. The resident survey will
   give the City valuable insight on how our residents think things are going. Not just those who
   show up to a neighborhood meeting, focus group, or public input session. But also those who
   are working multiple jobs, have transportation limitations, or are struggling to raise our
   youngest Duluthians as single parents. This survey will allow us to gather direct feedback on the
   quality of life in our 34 neighborhoods, city services, and priorities for future city investments.
   And for as long as I’m your mayor, we will refresh this survey annually. Regularly collecting this
   data will help our 900-employee $458M operation make better informed decisions that align
   with the needs and concerns of the community.
   
   The third initiative in 2025 designed to better connect us as a community is a return of the
   citywide book read.
   Today’s politics amplify any mistake or misstep and seek out controversy. Instead of debating
   and discussing we wage social media wars where we seek to defeat and destroy. If someone is
   happy they tell you personally. If they are unhappy they go online and try to tell the world.
   This behavior is eroding our civic fabric. We need more opportunities in our big small town to
   connect personally and relearn how to treat each other with civility and respect. We are a
   stronger community when we find ways to build deeper relationships with old friends and new
   neighbors, as well as think and speak positively about our community and Duluth’s future.
   Duluth can, and should, be the community to model better behavior. Accountability to each
   other for our words and actions – whether in-person or online. And a great opportunity for
   doing that is to leverage a wonderful public resource: the Duluth Public Library. I’ve asked Carla
   Powers, Manager of our Library and Erin Kreeger, Executive Director at the Library Foundation,
   to suggest a book we could all read over the course of the next twelve months. One that would
   help us focus on countering the growing trend towards harsh, negative, and bullying online
   behavior. Behavior that discourages, rather than encourages, the most basic tool in civil society:
   respectful public discourse.
   One potential read is Sherry Turkle’s Reclaiming Conversation. It focuses on how technology is
   affecting our ability to communicate meaningfully. She gives tangible suggestions for restoring
   human connection, improving our communication skills, and fostering accountability in
   conversation. I’m open to other suggestions, but that’s a good place to start.
   My goal is that at the end of the read, much like 2013 when Rebecca Skloot came to Duluth to
   discuss The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, we will invite the author of our 2025 read to come
   to town and help lead a community conversation. It will be an investment not only in ourselves,
   but also our community. And perhaps show other communities a better way to engage with
   each other in this digital age – and also engage with our democracy.
   
   Finally, let me close by acknowledging the elephant in the room. Your concerns, fears, anxieties,
   frustrations, and confusion about what’s happening at the national level. These are all valid. I
   share them—not just as your mayor, but as an individual who is also living through this moment
   in history. We are in a time of intense national division, and it’s natural to want to bring those
   conversations to the local level, where government feels more tangible, more responsive, and is
   easier to access. But that’s likely going to feel frustrating. Because we live in a federal system
   where various levels of government have specific areas of responsibility. At the local level our
   job is to deliver core city services. Effective and efficient and at a tax rate you can afford and
   sustain. It’s not to solve national political fights. Rather, our responsibility is to provide reliable
   core city services. Things upon which you can rely and depend. Our opportunity is to provide
   stability in a historic time of disruption.
   But let me also say this: the highest office in the land is not mayor, governor, or even
   president—it is citizen. Real change doesn’t just happen from the top down. If you are
   concerned then become engaged, get informed, and take action. If you are frustrated, turn that
   frustration into something productive—volunteer. Get involved in ways that make a difference
   right here in Duluth. Because no matter what happens at the national level, what we build
   together as a community is what truly shapes our daily lives. And, with dark clouds on the state
   and national horizon we’re going to need your help.
   
   Thank you again to everyone who took the time to join us tonight live or online. We’re going to
   close with our Clarence Maddy Award, Citizen of the Year Award, and Good Neighbor Award so
   stay with us for a few more minutes. These individuals deserve more attention and recognition
   than I do.
   Friends, what I love most about Duluth is that we’re a big small town. We’re not one degree of
   separation – we’re more like a quarter degree of separation. In 2025, let’s use that closeness and
   connectedness to our advantage. Let’s encourage and support those who serve. Let’s call out
   those who behave like bullies. Let’s engage in a community book read that helps us build the
   skills to do better. Let’s decide that in Duluth not everything has to be political. And let’s resolve
   that in 2025 we’re not merely going to survive, but choose to work together to thrive as a
   community.
   Thank you

Mayor Reinert’s 2024 State of the City can be found here.