Northeast Radio SD's The People's Pulse with Mayor Holien (Dec 2, 2025)

In this week's bi-weekly episode of The People's Pulse, brought to you by the locally owned and operated family business Arrow Paper Products, Mayor Ried Holien joins Steve to keep a finger on the community's pulse, offering detailed insights from the recent City Council meeting and providing an optimistic outlook on Watertown's financial health.

🌉 Bridge Maintenance Report


The Mayor reported on the recent bridge maintenance/inspection report presented to the City Council. Holien noted that most of the city's 13 bridges are in good condition, citing the historic 1931 bridge on 1st or 3rd Avenue (rated 6 on a 0-9 scale) as noteworthy. Currently, no city bridges require load limit restrictions.




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The only structure flagged for future attention is a small bridge on North Lake Drive near Compesca Lodge, which may require repair or replacement in the next five to ten years.




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Holien addressed a citizen concern raised by Councilman Mohrmann regarding the lack of a sidewalk on the US 212 bridge near Menards. He clarified that this is a State Department of Transportation (DOT) matter, which can often be slow-moving due to the volume of requests across the state. He gave an example of the long process required to install a turn signal at the highly trafficked intersection of 14th Avenue and Highway 81 (by the middle school).




💰 Budgeting, Overtime, and Long-Term Planning


The conversation shifted to city finances, including a final change order for the 2nd Avenue reconstruction project ($64,000 overrun on a $1.2 million project, described as "housekeeping") and a deeper dive into improving the city's operational efficiency.




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Asphalt Hot Boxes: The city has approved the purchase of new asphalt hot boxes. Mayor Holien highlighted this as an example of doing business better. With more equipment, road crews can repair potholes in Watertown while others travel to Brookings for asphalt, reducing downtime and improving road conditions.




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Realistic Budgeting for Staff: A significant point was the approval of an agreement with the Watertown Police Officers Association, which addressed the need to realistically factor in overtime for emergency services personnel (Police and Fire). Mayor Holien explained that under-budgeting for expected overtime—historically limiting it to 5%—leads to frequent, undesirable budget supplements. He stressed that having good, realistic budgeting helps the entire system and is crucial for large projects like the proposed east side fire station.




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Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) Shift: Holien stated the city is changing its CIP mindset by:




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Extending the plan out to 7–10 years (instead of the traditional 5).




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Adopting a policy to not automatically replace good, functional equipment (like a great pickup truck) just because it has reached an arbitrary age limit (e.g., 8–10 years). This move aims to improve resource allocation.







📈 Economic Growth and Legislative Watch


Mayor Holien provided an optimistic report on Watertown's economic vibrancy:




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Sales Tax Growth: While the city had two months this year that saw a dip in sales tax revenue compared to the previous year, overall growth is estimated at 8%. Holien noted that with inflation running around 4%, an 8% growth rate means the community is genuinely growing and vibrant, not just keeping pace with rising costs.




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Upcoming Legislative Session: Holien is closely monitoring two main issues in the upcoming state legislative session:




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Property Tax Repeal: The Mayor is concerned about the impact of a total repeal on the state's budget and its ability to provide matching funds for local projects (like airport and road construction). Watertown's budget is only marginally dependent on property taxes (less than 10% of revenue).




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TIFs (Tax Increment Financing Districts): He is closely monitoring proposals to eliminate TIFs. While acknowledging that TIFs can be complicated and some may underperform, Holien favors keeping them as a necessary economic tool for community development and wants to advocate for "doing them better," not doing away with them altogether. He and City Manager Stager are considering lobbying in Pierre to advocate for Watertown's interests.









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