HomeMy WebLinkAbout2026-01-08 EEC Packet (Board Portal)
Energy & Environment Commission Meeting Agenda
January 8, 2026, 7:00 PM
Edina City Hall, Community Room, 4801 W. 50th St.
Accessibility Support:
The City of Edina wants all residents to be comfortable being part of the public process. If you need
assistance in the way of hearing amplification, an interpreter, large-print documents or something
else, please call 952-927-8861 at least 72 hours in advance of the meeting.
1. Call to Order
2. Roll Call
3. Approval of Meeting Agenda
4. Approval of Meeting Minutes
4.1. December 11, 2025 Meeting Minutes
5. Special Recognitions and Presentations
5.1. Dark Skies Presentation
6. Community Comment
During "Community Comment," the Board/Commission will invite residents to share issues or concerns that are
not scheduled for a future public hearing. Items that are on tonight's agenda may not be addressed during
Community Comment. Individuals must limit their comments to three minutes. The Chair may limit the number of
speakers on the same issue in the interest of time and topic. Individuals should not expect the Chair or
Board/Commission Members to respond to their comments tonight. Instead, the Board/Commission might refer
the matter to staff for consideration at a future meeting.
7. Reports/Recommendations
7.1. Advisory Communication Supporting ETC Study & Report
7.2. 2026-2027 Work Plan
8. Chair and Member Comments
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9. Staff Comments
10. Adjournment
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Item Report
January 8, 2026
Energy & Environment Commission
Item Number: 4.1 Department: Engineering
Item Activity: Action Prepared By: Marisa Bayer, Sustainability Manager
Item Title: December 11, 2025 Meeting Minutes
Action Requested:
Approve Meeting Minutes
Information/Background:
Approve minutes from December 11, 2025 meeting.
Supporting Documentation:
Documents marked with "Board Portal" do not meet ADA Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (URL)
and are not included in the public packet. To request a board portal document, please submit a data
request (URL).
1. Dec 11 Minutes
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Energy & Environment Commission Meeting Minutes
December 11, 2025, 7:00 PM
Meeting location:
Edina City Hall
Community Room
4801 W. 50th St.
Edina, MN
1. Call to Order
Chair Lukens called the meeting to order at 7:02 p.m. then shared the procedure for community comment.
2. Roll Call
Answering roll call were Chair Lukens; Commissioners LaCasse, Martinez-Salgado, Tessman, and Schima; and
student commissioner Lassig.
Student commissioner Tyshow arrived at 7:06 p.m. Vice-Chair Haugen arrived at 7:22 p.m.
Absent was Commissioner Bartholomew.
3. Approval of Meeting Agenda
Tessman made a motion, seconded by Martinez-Salgado, to Approve Meeting Agenda. Motion carried.
4. Approval of Meeting Minutes
4.1. Approval of Meeting Minutes, October 9, 2025
Martinez-Salgado made a motion, seconded by LaCasse, to Approve Meeting Minutes. Motion carried.
5. Special Recognitions and Presentations
5.1. Transportation Commission Presentation
Chris Brown, Transportation Commission Vice-Chair, presented the commission's report related to bike and
pedestrian infrastructure. EEC will draft an Advisory Communication in support of the Transportation
Commission's recommendation to Council.
5.2. Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Sustainability
Sustainability Manager Bayer and Sustainability Specialist Gabb presented on artificial intelligence (AI) and
associated environmental impacts.
6. Community Comment
No community comment was received.
7. Reports/Recommendations
7.1. Work Plan Item #1: Climate Action Plan Prioritization
EEC discussed the Advisory Communication, making one addition to the "background" section of the
document. Haugen motioned, seconded by Lukens, to Approve the Advisory Communication. Motion
carried.
7.2. Work Plan Item #5: Extreme Heat
EEC provided comments on the staff report. EEC has the option of drafting an Advisory Communication on
this topic at a later date.
8. Chair and Member Comments
9. Staff Comments
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9.1. Introduction of GreenCorps Members
Staff liaison Bayer introduced Edian's GreenCorps Members, Gabriella Rossow and Meaghan Hager-
Garman.
9.2. Meetings By Interactive Technology Policy
Staff liaison Bayer reminded EEC of the policy, which is effective January 2026.
10. Adjournment
Tessman made a motion, seconded by Martinez-Salgado, to Adjourn. Motion carried. Meeting adjourned at 8:36
p.m.
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Item Report
January 8, 2026
Energy & Environment Commission
Item Number: 5.1 Department: Engineering
Item Activity: Information Prepared By: Marisa Bayer, Sustainability Manager
Item Title: Dark Skies Presentation
Action Requested:
No action requested.
Information/Background:
Edina Resident Kate Hage will present on dark skies.
Supporting Documentation:
Documents marked with "Board Portal" do not meet ADA Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (URL)
and are not included in the public packet. To request a board portal document, please submit a data
request (URL).
None
Page 6 of 12
Item Report
January 8, 2026
Energy & Environment Commission
Item Number: 7.1 Department: Public Works
Item Activity: Action Prepared By: Marisa Bayer, Sustainability Manager
Item Title: Advisory Communication Supporting ETC Study & Report
Action Requested:
Approve Advisory Communication
Information/Background:
The Transportation Commission (ETC) is asking Council to direct staff to write a policy that would
require pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure in the Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan to be
automatically included in future street reconstruction and rehabilitation projects. Transportation
Commission Vice-Chair Christ Brown presented the Transportation Commission's report and
recommendation at the December EEC meeting.
Chair Lukens prepared the attached Advisory Communication in support of the Transportation
Commission's report.
Supporting Documentation:
Documents marked with "Board Portal" do not meet ADA Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (URL)
and are not included in the public packet. To request a board portal document, please submit a data
request (URL).
1. Draft Advisory Communication
Page 7 of 12
Commission Advisory
Communication
Date: 01/08/2026
To: City Council
From: Energy & Environment Commission
Subject: Support for ETC Study & Report Request for Walking & Biking Improvements
Approved Work Plan Item: N/A Council Charge: N/A
Action Requested:
As part of their 2025 Workplan to “study & report" on policies and ordinances that would require walking and biking
improvements, the Edina Transportation Commission is asking Edina City Council to direct staff to write a policy that
would require the inclusion of pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure in the Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan in future
street reconstruction and rehabilitation projects. The Edina Energy and Environment Commission fully supports this ask
as it has direct potential, positive impacts on the Edina Climate Action Plan.
Situation/Background:
To achieve our CAP goals, Edina needs to maintain its current greenhouse gas emission reductions and reduce another
196,865 metric tons of carbon dioxide by 2030. Sixty-three percent of those emission reductions need to come from
the transportation sector. Further, the Climate Action Plan includes a strategy to decrease community-wide vehicle
miles travel (VMT) 7% by 2030. According to the MnDOT Carbon Emissions Tool, for every 1 mile of sidewalk added,
Edina would expect to reduce 6,009 miles a year in Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) over the useful life of the sidewalk.
Assessment:
Investing in Edina’s bike and pedestrian infrastructure is a key action to reduce VMT by making it easier and safer to
walk and bike in our community.
Recommendation:
Support Edina Energy & Environment Commission and Transportation Commission efforts by directing staff to write an
ordinance with language that accomplishes the following and adopted no later than December 31, 2026:
1. Require inclusion of all infrastructure recommended in Edina’s adopted Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan (2018) per
the proposed pedestrian and bicycle networks.
2. Modify the adopted bicycle network using professional judgement and current industry best practices to upgrade
proposed bicycle infrastructure off-street or on-street and physically protected.
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3. Add new pedestrian or bicycle connections in addition to the master plan’s pedestrian and bicycle networks using
professional judgement on a case by case basis.
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Item Report
January 8, 2026
Energy & Environment Commission
Item Number: 7.2 Department: Public Works
Item Activity: Discussion Prepared By: Marisa Bayer, Sustainability Manager
Item Title: 2026-2027 Work Plan
Action Requested:
No action requested.
Information/Background:
City Council approved the Commission's proposed 2026-27 work plan in December. Approved
changes included adding "lawn care equipment" to item 1, adding "vehicle idling" to item 2, updating
the neighbor-to-neighborhood contest metric to set out rates for item 4, and adding an evaluation
step to item 7 related to the green business outreach program.
The Commission should confirm next steps for work plan items as appropriate.
Supporting Documentation:
Documents marked with "Board Portal" do not meet ADA Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (URL)
and are not included in the public packet. To request a board portal document, please submit a data
request (URL).
1. Approved 2026-27 EEC Work Plan (Board Portal)
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