by Anthony Gockowski
The City of Champlin is considering seceding from Hennepin County and joining Anoka County.
The Champlin City Council discussed the idea during a worksession Monday at Mayor Ryan Sabas’ request.
“I am requesting to add an agenda item to the August [28th] worksession. It is regarding options of Champlin leaving Hennepin and joining Anoka county,” Sabas wrote in an email to city leaders.
In the email, he said he has “good reason to believe” the City of Dayton “will consider the move with us.”
“I am also going to move to start a commission on this item and would like to discuss the makeup of that commission with my council,” he said.
City attorneys explained in a memo that the idea would ultimately need to be approved by voters.
“The Minnesota State Constitution provides that the Legislature has the ability to change the boundaries of Minnesota counties, subject to voter ratification,” the memo said.
Without legislative action, the process would have to be initiated by voters through a petition to have the topic placed on the ballot, according to the memo.
Mayor Sabas said the discussions are still “very preliminary” and the “ultimate goal is to be heard by the county and have a willing partner to help with our needs here in Champlin.”
“We have many county infrastructure issues that we have continuously asked the county for help on, many of them regarding safety. We are continually told no, while major county tax dollars are spent elsewhere,” he said in a statement. “Rest assured, nothing would happen without many, many community meetings and a full resident commission to weigh in on the many Pros & Cons. And ultimately the decision would be the residents’ decision when it comes down to it.”
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Anthony Gockowski is Editor-in-Chief of Alpha News. He previously worked as an editor for The Minnesota Sun and Campus Reform, and reported for The Daily Caller.
Photo “Champlin City Council Members” by Champlin City Council.
