Metro briefs: Inver Grove Heights delays vote restricting short-term rentals

Inver Grove Heights has postponed voting on an ordinance that would prohibit homeowners from offering their homes as short-term rentals through websites such as Airbnb and VRBO.

The ordinance proposes limiting short-term home rentals to a minimum lease length of 30 days in an effort to rein in disruptive parties at some of the properties. The ordinance would also add a six-month waiting period to reapply for a rental license with the city after a homeowner has been denied a license or had one revoked.

Other cities, including Minneapolis and St. Paul, have implemented varying restrictions in recent years in an effort to regulate the short-term rental market.

The Inver Grove Heights council heard from several property owners Monday night who rent out their properties on a short-term basis and don't want the city to implement restrictions, said City Administrator Kris Wilson.

The council plans to discuss the item again later in the fall with the goal of making a decision by the end of the year, Wilson said.

Erin Adler

After nearly two years of construction, Monday is move-in day for the Crystal Police Department.

Officers and staff will officially occupy the city's new 23,800-square-foot police station, located adjacent to the Rockford Road Public Library at 4141 N. Douglas Drive.

The new station features a secure, centralized evidence storage area, dedicated space for K-9 officers, up-to-date detention space, an expanded locker room and an indoor parking garage. The building also includes numerous energy efficiencies, the city said.

Crystal spent $16 million on the project, with $12 million from the city's building fund and other capital funds and $4 million from a state bonding bill.

The building replaces the city's former police station, which opened in 1965 on the same site and was last remodeled in 1993.

Tim Harlow

Ramsey County will receive $15.8 million of the state's $300 million opioid overdose prevention settlement, which is being paid by drug companies that produced and distributed opioids.

The county, which will receive that money over the course of 18 years, will use a portion of the funds to add six full-time staff positions in its public health department, according to a County Board action Tuesday. County staff will also establish a project budget for the funds.

Last December, the board agreed to the Minnesota Opioids State-Subdivision Memorandum of Agreement and opted in to the multistate settlements with pharmaceutical distributors McKesson, Cardinal Health, AmerisourceBergen and opioid manufacturer Johnson & Johnson.

The money comes from a sweeping $26 billion national settlement that will go to local governments across the country, an effort to compensate them for years spent grappling with the ongoing public health crisis.

Of the $300 million received by Minnesota, 75% is allocated to all counties and 33 cities that signed on to the lawsuit, with the remaining 25% going to the state. Ramsey County's share amounts to 7% of the total amount allocated to Minnesota counties and cities.

Shannon Prather