How Edina is run
Who runs Edina, 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 Edina's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 10, 2026.
Who runs Edina
A city manager hired by the council runs the city day to day. The council sets policy, adopts the budget and sets the tax rate.
What they are paid
- Six months' salary, accrued leave and six months of benefits if fired without cause
- $400 monthly car allowance
- $100 technology allowance for his personal phone
Edina city staff
364 full-time-equivalent positions, including Police (general fund) 86, Fire (general fund) 78. FY2025. Budgeted full-time employees for 2025, from the ACFR statistical section. Excludes part-time, contract and seasonal workers. City of Edina · Jun 5, 2026
We found no posted list of individual employee pay. The 2024 full-time pay plan, with pay ranges by grade, is in a March 6, 2024 council packet. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Edina 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.
The city's own outlook
For 2027 the city manager proposes a $56.2M general fund levy, with $810,300 of general fund reductions. Staff recommend using surplus only for one-time investments to avoid creating structural deficits. City of Edina
Savings against the city's own target
Unassigned general fund balance: $31.3M (2025-12-31). The city's own target: Keep unassigned general fund balance at 42% to 47% of the next year's budgeted property tax revenue; the excess typically goes to the Construction Fund. At the end of 2025 it was 58.95%, $6.3M above the top of the goal. City of Edina · Jun 5, 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$53M · 75%
- Charges for services$6.7M · 9%
- Licenses and permits$5.8M · 8%
- Intergovernmental$2.4M · 3%
- Franchise fees and other taxes$735,400 · 1%
- Transfers in$666,437 · 1%
- Other (fines, interest and misc.)$1.5M · 2%
Goes to (FY2026)
- Police$19.9M · 28%
- Fire$17.6M · 25%
- Parks and recreation$8.6M · 12%
- Public works$6.7M · 9%
- Engineering$5.4M · 8%
- Administration$3.5M · 5%
- Finance$3M · 4%
- Other (community development, HR, communications)$6.2M · 9%
Who provides your services
Not everything in Edina is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityEdina Police DepartmentCity of Edina · Jun 5, 2026
- FireThe cityEdina Fire DepartmentCity of Edina · Jun 5, 2026
- Ambulance and paramedicsThe cityEdina Fire DepartmentFull-time paramedic/firefighters provide fire and ambulance response from two stations.City of Edina
- WaterThe cityCity of EdinaCity of Edina · Jun 5, 2026
- SewerThe cityCity of EdinaCity of Edina · Jun 5, 2026
- StreetsThe cityCity of EdinaCity of Edina · Jun 5, 2026
- Liquor storesThe cityCity of Edina (three stores)City of Edina · Jun 5, 2026
- RecyclingContractorRepublic Services (city contract)City of Edina
- Organics recyclingContractorVierkant Disposal (city contract)City of Edina
- Property assessingThe countyHennepin CountyCity of Edina
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 | ShakopeeMN | EdinaMN | Apple ValleyMN | Eden PrairieMN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 49,366 | 54,356 | 55,248 | 63,075 |
| Top administrator's base pay | $240,525 | $220,084 | $220,509 | $253,864 |
| Council member pay | $7,500 | $14,860 | Not confirmed | $14,137 |
| General fund per resident | $871 | $1,302 | $919 | $1,014 |
| Debt per resident | $788 | $3,473 | $1,528 | $746 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $204 | $369 | $205 | $256 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | 3.7 | 6.7 | 5.1 | 4.7 |
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 Edina publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- Yes: Adopted budget posted onlineThe finance page links the 2026 budget. The adopting resolution and fund tables are in the Dec. 16, 2025 council packet. City of Edina
- Yes: City manager's contract findable onlineScott Neal's 2024-2026 agreement is in a March 6, 2024 council packet; his successor's contract is in a Sept. 22, 2026 packet. City of Edina
- Yes: Council votes recorded member by member onlineMinutes list votes by name, such as the 5-0 vote adopting the 2026 budget on Dec. 16, 2025. City of Edina
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes online City of Edina
- Yes: Council pay stated in a public document City of Edina
- Partly: Employee pay published City of Edina
Questions to ask your council
- Unassigned general fund reserves were $31.3 million on December 31, 2025, $6.3 million above the top of the city's goal. How much of that surplus should go to one-time projects, and how much to paying down debt early?
- Police ($19.9 million) and fire ($17.6 million) make up more than half of the $70.8 million general fund budget for FY2026. How will the six new firefighter/paramedic positions affect later levies?
- Bonds outstanding reached $188.8 million on December 31, 2025. How will payments on the new Fire Station 2 and aquatic center bonds shape the FY2027 levy?
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