MFDA Finance Committee Meeting – October 21, 2026

See full minutes.

A regular meeting of the Metro Flood Diversion Authority Finance Committee was held on October 21, 2026. Members present: Eric Gjerdevig, Mayor, City of West Fargo; Susan Thompson, Finance Director, City of Fargo; Mike Redlinger, Administrator, City of Fargo; Rick Steen, Manager, Cass County Joint Water Resource District; Jim Kapitan, Cass County Commissioner; Josh Boschee, Mayor, City of Fargo; Shelly Carlson, Mayor, City of Moorhead; Chad Peterson, Fargo City Commissioner and Sarah Heinle, Cass County Finance Director.

Members absent: Lori Johnson, Clay County Treasurer/Auditor; Tony Grindberg, Cass County Commissioner and Mike Rietz, Assistant City Manager, City of Moorhead.

1. CALL TO ORDER

Mr. Steen called the meeting to order at 4:00 PM. Roll call was taken, and a quorum was present.

2. APPROVE THE MINUTES FROM THE SEPTEMBER 2026 MEETING

MOTION PASSED

Mr. Peterson moved to approve the minutes from the September 2026 meeting and Mayor Boschee seconded the motion. On a voice vote, the motion carried.

3. APPROVE THE ORDER OF THE AGENDA

MOTION PASSED

Mayor Carlson moved to approve the order of the agenda and Mr. Peterson seconded the motion. On a voice vote, the motion carried.

4. APPROVAL OF BILLS

Ms. Thompson reported that the bills payable through October 14, 2026, total $10,363,112, with the City of Fargo being the largest at $4,876,927 and CCJWRD being the second largest at $4,486,753.

MOTION PASSED

Mr. Kapitan moved to approve the bills, and Mr. Redlinger seconded the motion. On a roll call vote, the bills were approved as presented.

5. FINANCE REPORT

Ms. Thompson reported that the total assets as of September 30, 2026, are $321,127,628; liabilities total $299,638, and the total net cash position is $320,827,989.

MOTION PASSED

Mayor Gjerdevig moved to approve the financial report as presented and Mr. Kapitan seconded the motion. On a voice vote, the motion carried.

6. CASH BUDGET REPORT

Mr. Benson reported that there has been good growth in the 2026 sales tax receipts. Cass County is up 15%, and the City of Fargo is up 10.6%.

Mr. Benson also reported that there was not a WIFIA draw this month due to the lack of invoices received from the developer. He also noted that there will not be any draws on the temporary sales tax revenues until the funds are needed.

Mr. Benson noted that $191,964,721 has been paid to the developer in milestone payments and there is currently $582,266,989 remaining to be paid.

7. DA BOARD APPROVAL CONTRACTING ACTIONS

Mr. Bakkegard provided an overview and summary of the following contracting actions:

a. Task Order 101, Amendment 17, Design and Construction Services, Houston-Moore Group, Inc., $3,925,000

Mitigation and Permitting Support – budget adjustments are required to align project funding with current schedules, resource needs, and anticipated workloads. Some of the budget changes include, decreased 2026 budget due to less than anticipated efforts for permit compliance monitoring, operations plan, H&H support and land surveying, just to name a few. Other budget changes include (not limited to) additional budget for FEMA Physical Map revisions, 2027 budget for wetland mitigation monitoring, fencing and signage support, and project closeout documents. The Finance Committee tabled $800,000 of this at the September meeting and asked for further discussion at the October meeting.

b. Task Order 4, Amendment 0, Consulting Services, Program Advisor Services, $500,000

Consulting services to be provided in 2027.

c. New Service Agreement, Gauging Station Program, United States Geological Survey, $72,970

This task order work includes installation of new gauging stations, modification of existing gaging stations, and maintenance of existing gaging stations.  This is a cost share agreement for gaging station work to be completed in FY 2027. The Authority’s cost share is $72,900 and the total program cost for FY 2027 is $184,850.

d. WP-31B Change Order 05, I-29 Crack Repair Project, PCiRoads, LLC, $154,425

This Change Order is required to address cracking identified in concrete panels placed during Phase 1 construction that necessitates removal and replacement of the affected panels, installation of additional Company Budget/Estimate reinforcement, and replacement of the existing 3-inch expansion joint. The supplemental work is needed to restore the pavement, improve structural performance, and provide durable long-term repair.

MOTION PASSED

Mr. Kapitan moved to approve the contracting actions as presented and Mayor Bosche seconded the motion. On a roll call vote, the motion carried.

8. OTHER BUSINESS

a. Crop Loss Reserve Fund Sub-Committee Update

Mayor Carlson reported that the group met prior to the Finance Committee meeting, and the chair, Mayor Carlson and vice-chair, Chad Peterson, were elected. The three RFPs were reviewed, and it was unanimous to recommend Johnson Financial as the fund oversight manager.

MOTION PASSED

Mayor Carlson moved to recommend Johnson Financial as the fund oversight manager and Mr. Peterson seconded the motion. On a voice vote, the motion carried.

b. WIFIA Update

Mr. Shockley reported that we will not be submitting a WIFIA draw again this month as we are awaiting invoices from the developer. The policy is to hold submission until there is at least $25,000,000 to be requested.

c. PPA Pledge Resolution

Mr. Shockley provided an overview and summary of the PPA Resolution indicating that the issuance has been pushed back to November or December due to the delay with the developer and the funds are not needed at this time.

MOTION PASSED

Mayor Carlson moved to recommend approval of the Resolution and Ms. Thompson seconded the motion. On a roll call vote, the motion carried.

d. NDDOT & MFDA Access Agreement

Mr. Shockley provided an overview and summary of the agreement reporting that he was happy to see it as it indicates that the Diversion is nearing the O&M phase of the project.

MOTION PASSED

Mayor Carlson moved to approve the agreement as presented and Mayor Boschee seconded the motion. On a roll call vote, the motion carried.

e. 2027 Cash Budget

Mr. Benson and Mr. Barthel provided the second rendition of the draft 2027 Cash Budget. There were not many changes from the first iteration other than there will be a $500,000 reduction in MOU payments and the funding from the Minnesota DNR will be received sooner than originally anticipated.

9. NEXT MEETING

The next meeting will be on November 18, 2026.

10. ADJOURNMENT

The meeting adjourned at 4:30 PM.