See all posts in the Mayor & Cities Corner series
(Mayor’s Corner is a regular feature where Carver County mayors share updates, insights, and messages with their communities. Carver Mayor Courtney Johnson is providing this week’s edition.)
In the following you’ll see a common theme of engagement … ways you can get involved, participate and follow along, and also see how Carver City Council and I are working to get our elected leaders at the state and county levels involved. Let’s get to it!
Mayor’s Office Hours
Please join me for my first Office Hours of 2025 on Sunday, Feb. 16, at Carver Elementary from 2 to 4 p.m. I’ve intentionally scheduled this at the same time as the very popular Open Gym. This is your opportunity to ask questions, provide feedback, or even challenge me to a game of H-O-R-S-E. I can almost guarantee you’ll win! 😉
Council Meetings & Work Sessions
Come see how the sausage is made! This refers to an old saying describing the often-deliberate process of lawmaking and policy development. Even though it’s not always pretty, a collaborative effort filled with resident engagement creates the best outcomes. Our City Council meetings and work sessions are open to the public and interested parties are always welcome to attend:
- Work sessions start at 5:30 p.m. and are held in the Rapids Conference Room on the second floor of City Hall. Work sessions are where we get our first look at topics that will be coming up on agendas of future City Council meetings.
- City Council meetings take place at 7 p.m. in Council Chambers on the second floor of City Hall. At the beginning of each City Council Meeting, we have “Community Comment” on the agenda. This is your opportunity to speak publicly with me and the Council, and to share your thoughts, ask a question, or just say “hi.”
- Work sessions and City Council meetings take place on the first and third Mondays of the month, unless it falls on a holiday. In those cases, we’ll meet on the following Tuesday. For example, this month we’re meeting on Monday, Feb. 3, and Tuesday, Feb. 18, because Monday, Feb. 17 is Presidents’ Day.
- Packets, which is where we get information on the topics we discuss, for both work sessions and City Council meetings can be found here: cityofcarver.com/AgendaCenter
- Can’t make it to either one of these meetings? No problem. Our work sessions and City Council meetings are available on youtube.com/@CityofCarver, where they are broadcast live and archived, so you can watch them whenever and wherever is convenient for you!
Dinner with Constituents
I am inspired by former St. Cloud Mayor Dave Kleis, who invites small groups of people he doesn’t know to his house for dinner, and want to do the same thing. I believe sharing a meal has the power to bring people together in a unique way. Because I’m always looking for new ways to meet residents and other stakeholders, and encourage community involvement, I’m going to host small groups in my home for brief, informal dinners throughout the year. If you’re interested in taking part, or want more information, please email me at cjohnson@CityOfCarver.com!
Legislative Priorities
Last month, City Council and I determined our 2025 Legislative Priorities – the items that are important to us here in Carver that we want others who are representing the city of Carver at the state and county to be aware of. At a high level, our 2025 Legislative Priorities include supporting local decision making, requesting funding to modernize the Carver levee, amending requirements for remote participation in City Council meetings, eliminating public notice requirements in newspapers, and asking for an exemption from the unfunded mandate which is the Minnesota Paid Leave Law. You can find additional details on all our 2025 Legislative Priorities, which will be shared with Senator Gruenhagen, Representative Harder and Carver County Commissioner Fahey, here: cityofcarver.com/432
As always, if you have any questions, comments or concerns about something from this newsletter or anything that’s going on in our community, please don’t hesitate to reach out. I look forward to hearing from you!
Mayor Courtney Johnson
CJohnson@CityOfCarver.com
Cell: 612.702.7703
Facebook.com/CarverMayorCourtney
Instagram.com/Carver_Mayor_Courtney
