HomeMy WebLinkAbout15.F.2. Designation of Official Newspaper
16. f. 2- ,
CITY OF SHAKOPEE
Memorandum CONSEr~T
TO: Mayor and City Council
Mark McNeill, City Administrator
FROM: Judith S. Cox, City Clerk
SUBJECT: Designation of Official Newspaper
DATE: December 30, 2004
INTRODUCTION:
City Council is asked to designate the official newspaper for 2005.
BACKGROUND:
The City is required by law to publish certain matters in its official newspaper, during the course of
the year. We publish the Council minutes (motions primarily), Ordinances, Resolutions when
required by law, notices of public hearings on planning matters and public improvement projects,
and advertisements for bids. It is appropriate that this designation be made at this time.
To be qualified as a medium of official and legal publication, a newspaper must meet certain
qualifications set forth by State law. To name a few, it must distribute the paper at least once a
week for 50 weeks out of the year; be circulated in the local public corporation which it purports to
serve, and either have at least 500 copies regularly delivered to paying subscribers, or have at least
500 copies regularly distributed without charge to local residents; have its known office of issue
established either in the county in which it lies in whole or in part, the local public corporation
which the newspaper purports to serve, or in an adjoining county; file a copy of each issue
immediately with the state historical society.
As long as I can remember, the Shakopee Valley News has been the City's official newspaper.
The City has received the attached letter from Mark Weber asking that the City consider appointing
the Shakopee Valley News as its official newspaper.
The 2005 charge for legal notices will be $11.18 per column inch. Previous years charges for legal
notices were:
2004- $1 0.85/column inch for 1 st insertion
2003- $1 0.63/column inch for 1 st insertion
2002 - $1 0.23/column inch for 1 st insertion
2001 - $9.75/column inch for pt insertion
During the middle of 1997, the City began submitting legal notice copies on floppy disk, which
resulted in a cost savings because the Shakopee Valley News staff did not have to retype the notices
for publication in the newspaper. In 1999 we began transmitting our legal notices bye-mail. The
2005 charge for legal notices submitted in this manner will be $7.27 per column inch, reflecting a
35% cost savings to the City. (The cost to publish in the Star Tribune or Pioneer Press would be
five to six times the cost to publish in the Shakopee Valley News).
The City has budgeted $17,350 for 2005 for legal publications for the City Clerk and Community
Development departments.
The City has had a very good working relationship with the Shakopee Valley News. They have
been very accommodating in publishing notices that were sent to them after their deadline and have
published them whenever possible. They have published items at no charge in their "Brief' section
as well as press releases. They have also written articles on matters when requested to get the word
out.
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Move to designate the Shakopee Valley News as the official newspaper for the City of Shakopee
forthe year 2005.
i:c1erk\judy\SVN-OFFi
Shakopee Valley News
December 27, 2004
Ms. Judy Cox, City Clerk
City of Shakopee
129 Holmes Street
Shako pee, MN 55379
Dear Ms. Cox,
Please consider our request for appointment of the Shakopee Valley News as the official newspaper for the City of
Shakopee in 2005.
Legal notices published in the Shakopee Valley News during this time period will be billed at the rate of$II.18 per
column inch for the first insertion and $8.50 per column inch per subsequent insertions.
The city can again take advantage of a lower rate if it submits legal notice copy electronically via e-mail.
Publication copy must be submitted in a generic text format and readable by our IBM compatible word proces-
sors. This system worked well in past years and allows for a substantial labor savings if the Shakopee Valley
News staff does not have to retype the notices prior to them being published in !he newspaper. ~-mailed legals
should be sent to: legal@swpub.com. The rate for the materials submitted in this manner would be $7.27 per
column inch, reflecting a 35% cost savings to the City of Sh<lkopee.__
We recognize that financial challenges are being faced by most government branches, and feel very strongly that
the publishing of legal notices in the newspaper is of vital. importance to local residents who wish to stay
informed about the important decisions being made by your elected body. We welcome the opportunity to
partner in that process.
-~. "_. ,.
Legal notices submitted by the City of Shakopee will continue to be posted on our newspaper website,
www.shakopeenews.com, free of charge.
Our legal notice deadline is at 4 p.m. on Thursday, p~ecediri.gthe following' week's publication date; during
holiday weeks the deadline may be advanced.
Thank you for the opportunity to be of service to you in the past. We hope that relationship can be continued in
the co~ing year.
'1 Respectfully,
I ~~tJ~"
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CqP; _<<??~'-~,
Mark Weber
(JeneralManager
327 Marschall Road, Suite 125 · Post Office Box 8 · Shakopee. Minnesota 55379 · (952) 445-3333