How Mendota Heights is run
Who runs Mendota Heights, 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 Mendota Heights's own public documents. Every number links to its source and says which year it describes. Checked Oct 11, 2026.
Who runs Mendota Heights
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
Mendota Heights city staff
55 full-time-equivalent positions. FY2026. City of Mendota Heights · Dec 16, 2025
The city publishes pay ranges for its non-union jobs. We found no list of individual employee pay. We name pay only for elected officials and the city manager.
Is Mendota Heights 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: $13.2M (2025-12-31). The city's own target: The city aims to keep unassigned general fund balance equal to 75% of the next year's budgeted operating spending. City of Mendota Heights · Jun 9, 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$11.2M · 80%
- Charges for services$819,886 · 6%
- Intergovernmental$600,000 · 4%
- Utility franchise fees$520,000 · 4%
- Licenses and permits$492,200 · 4%
- Interest and miscellaneous$160,000 · 1%
- Other (Dakota County waste aid, fines, fund transfer)$208,899 · 1%
Goes to (FY2026)
- Police$6M · 43%
- Administration$1.9M · 13%
- Parks maintenance$1.4M · 10%
- Streets$1.4M · 10%
- Fire$797,893 · 6%
- Engineering$735,894 · 5%
- Natural resources$510,748 · 4%
- Other (code enforcement, IT, community development, recreation, elections, recycling, council)$1.3M · 10%
Who provides your services
Not everything in Mendota Heights is run by the city. Who provides a service decides whose budget pays for it and whose election decides it.
- PoliceThe cityMendota Heights Police DepartmentCity of Mendota Heights · Oct 11, 2026
- FireThe cityMendota Heights Fire DepartmentA paid-on-call department that also serves Lilydale, Mendota and Sunfish Lake. Fire contracts bring in $227,498 in the 2026 budget.City of Mendota Heights · Oct 11, 2026
- WaterAnother agencySaint Paul Regional Water ServicesCity of Mendota Heights · Oct 11, 2026
- Sanitary sewerThe cityCity of Mendota HeightsThe Metropolitan Council treats the wastewater at its regional plant.City of Mendota Heights · Oct 11, 2026
- Streets and snow plowingThe cityCity of Mendota Heights Public Works69 miles of city streets and 22 miles of trails.City of Mendota Heights · Oct 11, 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 | CambridgeMN | DaytonMN | Mendota HeightsMN | North BranchMN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 11,090 | 11,402 | 11,475 | 12,398 |
| Top administrator's base pay | Not confirmed | $192,000 | Not confirmed | $160,000 |
| Council member pay | Not confirmed | $4,968 | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| General fund per resident | $869 | $814 | $1,217 | $771 |
| Debt per resident | $2,529 | $1,446 | $1,888 | $1,102 |
| Unfunded pension per resident | $244 | $184 | $255 | $183 |
| City staff per 1,000 residents | — | — | 4.8 | — |
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 Mendota Heights publishes
What a resident can find online today. A "no" is something you can ask the council to publish.
- No: City manager's contract findable onlineWe found no posted employment agreement for the city administrator. The 2026 pay plan shows only the job's pay range. City of Mendota Heights · Dec 16, 2025
- Yes: Meeting videos and minutes onlineCouncil meetings are broadcast and streamed live and on demand. Minutes are posted after approval. City of Mendota Heights · Oct 11, 2026
- Partly: Council pay stated in a public document City of Mendota Heights · Dec 2, 2025
- Partly: Employee pay published City of Mendota Heights · Dec 16, 2025
Questions to ask your council
- Unassigned general fund reserves were $13.2 million at the end of 2025, against a target of 75% of the next year's budgeted operating spending. How does the council decide how much to hold?
- General obligation debt was $21.7 million at the end of 2025, most of it street improvement bonds repaid in part by special assessments. How does the council weigh assessments against the levy for future street projects?
- The paid-on-call fire department also serves Lilydale, Mendota and Sunfish Lake,. How does the council review what the other cities pay?
The fiscal year starts January 1. The council reviewed the 2027 budget at four work sessions in August and September 2026, and the preliminary budget and levy were on the September 15, 2026 agenda, to be certified to Dakota County by September 30. The public budget hearing is November 30, 2026, and the council will consider the final budget and levy on December 1, 2026. See who is running for council
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