How Cottage Grove is run
Who runs Cottage Grove, what it costs, and where your money goes
The city manager, council pay, the budget, your property tax bill and who provides each service, from Cottage Grove's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Cottage Grove
Cottage Grove is a Statutory Plan A city. The mayor and four council members pass ordinances, set the budget and appoint the city administrator, who runs all city departments day to day.
What they are paid
Cottage Grove city staff
237 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police officers 36, Firefighter/paramedics 13. FY2026. Budgeted full-time equivalents for 2026, all funds, including 42.48 seasonal FTEs. The 2027 preliminary budget proposes 246.56. City of Cottage Grove · Sep 30, 2026
The city publishes its non-represented pay plan with hourly ranges for each job grade. We found no list of individual employee pay. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Cottage Grove in the red?
Cities must pass a balanced budget, so "profit" and "deficit" mean something different here. The useful questions: does the city's everyday money (the general fund) cover its everyday costs, how much does it keep in savings compared with its own target, and how big are its pension and debt bills.
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $15.6M (2025-12-31). The city's own target: Keep unassigned general fund balance between 45% and 55% of the next year's budgeted spending. At the end of 2025 it was 50.1%, within the range. City of Cottage Grove · May 21, 2026
Why we skip the "budgeted deficit": many cities plan to dip into savings, then spend less than planned. The audited result tells you what really happened.
Where the money comes from and goes
The general fund only: the city's everyday money for FY2026.
Comes from
- Property taxes$23.8M · 76%
- Licenses and permits$2.5M · 8%
- Charges for services$2M · 6%
- Intergovernmental (state and federal aid)$1.6M · 5%
- Transfers in$805,000 · 3%
- Other (fines, miscellaneous)$459,600 · 1%
Goes to (FY2026)
- Police$12.2M · 39%
- Public works (streets, snow plowing, engineering, forestry)$5.8M · 19%
- Parks and recreation$3.6M · 12%
- Administration, council, clerk and contingency$3.5M · 11%
- Fire$2.6M · 8%
- Community development (planning, inspections)$2.4M · 8%
- Finance$846,300 · 3%
- Other (animal control, emergency preparedness)$124,160 · 0%
Your property tax bill: who gets it
Minnesota property taxes are mostly set as a rate on a property's tax capacity. Not all overlapping rates apply to every property in the city. This split leaves out voter-approved school levies charged on market value.
38¢
of each property-tax dollar goes to the city of Cottage Grove
- City of Cottage Grove37.199 · 38%
- Independent School District 83332.973 · 34%
- Washington County23.846 · 25%
- Other districts2.776 · 3%
- Total (percent of tax capacity)96.794
2025 tax capacity rates for property in Cottage Grove in ISD 833 (Washington County). City of Cottage Grove · May 21, 2026
See what a Cottage Grove home costs each year, line by line →Who provides your services
Not everything in Cottage Grove is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityCottage Grove Police Department49 sworn officers.City of Cottage Grove · Sep 30, 2026
- FireThe cityCottage Grove Fire DepartmentCity of Cottage Grove · Oct 10, 2026
- Ambulance (EMS)The cityCottage Grove EMS (city fire department)A property tax levy for EMS began in 2026: $70,000, rising to $467,000 proposed for 2027.City of Cottage Grove · Sep 30, 2026
- WaterThe cityCity water utility13 wells and 1 water treatment plant; a second treatment plant is under construction.City of Cottage Grove · Sep 30, 2026
- Sewage treatmentAnother agencyMetropolitan Council Environmental ServicesCity of Cottage Grove · Sep 30, 2026
- Trash and recyclingPrivate companyLicensed private haulersThree licensed residential haulers.City of Cottage Grove · Oct 10, 2026
- Streets and snow plowingThe cityCity public worksCity of Cottage Grove · Oct 10, 2026
- Street lightsThe cityCity street light utilityCity of Cottage Grove · May 21, 2026
Compared with similar cities
The cities in this state closest in population that we cover. Read it for scale, not as a ranking: cities provide different services.
| Per city | MaplewoodMN | Cottage GroveMN | MankatoMN | MoorheadMN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 40,717 | 43,604 | 46,529 | 46,533 |
| Top administrator's base pay | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | $218,046 | Not confirmed |
| Council member pay | Not confirmed | $10,057 | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $706 | $714 | $846 | $891 |
| Debt per resident | $1,195 | $1,399 | $1,575 | $6,196 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $317 | $229 | $266 | $321 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 4.5 | 5.4 | 6.7 | 6.4 |
Figures as shown in each city's section, divided by its population. Years differ by state, and pension figures are measured differently in each state (each city page says how).
What Cottage Grove publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Partly: Adopted budget posted onlineThe budget page posts the 2027 preliminary budget and an archive library. The adopted 2026 budget totals are in the December 3, 2025 council packet. City of Cottage Grove · Oct 10, 2026
- No: City manager's contract findable onlineWe found no City Administrator employment agreement online. The 2026 pay plan lists only an hourly range for the job. City of Cottage Grove · Jan 7, 2026
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public documentThe Mayor & Council page lists yearly stipends of $13,351.43 for the mayor and $10,057.33 for council members. City of Cottage Grove · Oct 10, 2026
- Partly: Employee pay publishedThe 2026 non-represented pay plan with hourly ranges is in a council packet. We found no list of individual pay. City of Cottage Grove · Jan 7, 2026
Questions to ask your council
- Unassigned general fund reserves were $15.6 million at the end of 2025, 50.1% of the next year's budgeted spending. How does the council decide where to keep them within its 45% to 55% range?
- Bonds, equipment certificates and loans totaled $61.0 million at the end of 2025. How much more borrowing does the capital plan expect?
The fiscal year starts January 1. The council approved the preliminary 2027 budget and levy on September 2, 2026. The Truth in Taxation hearing is at 7:00 pm on December 2, 2026, when the final levy is set to be approved. The 2026 budget was adopted December 3, 2025. See who is running for council
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