FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 17, 2026
Councilmember Cheniqua Johnson Will Propose Maximum Levy Amendment to Keep Dayton’s Bluff Library Open
Amendment would preserve funding as a last resort while Council continues pursuing
SAINT PAUL (MN) – Today, Ward 7 Councilmember and City Council Budget Chair Cheniqua Johnson announced today that she will introduce an amendment on September 23 to preserve the option of funding Dayton’s Bluff Library in Saint Paul’s 2027 budget.
The mayor’s proposed budget sets a maximum property tax levy increase of 6.8% while eliminating $286,722 for Dayton’s Bluff Library—the only Saint Paul library proposed for closure.
Johnson’s amendment would add the $286,722 needed to maintain the library to the library’s maximum levy and increase the City’s overall maximum levy from 6.8% to 6.93%. An additional 0.13 percentage, an estimated increase of $2 in property taxes per household, would be reserved to keep Dayton’s Bluff Library open in 2027 if another funding source is not identified. This amendment would not commit the Council to collecting the full 6.93% levy.
“Closing the Dayton’s Bluff Library is a nonstarter for this Council and for my community,” Johnson said. “I will not let the East Side be the shock absorber for the City’s poor planning. East Side residents should not be asked to pay higher property taxes while simultaneously losing their library and facing reductions to other neighborhood services.”
The September 23 vote will establish the maximum levy the City may collect—not the final levy that residents will ultimately pay. The Council can lower that amount before adopting the final 2027 budget.
Johnson emphasized that she does not consider a levy increase the first or preferred solution.
“Before the final budget vote in December, I remain committed to and will be exhausting every responsible option within the City’s existing budget before asking our taxpayers to contribute more,” Johnson said. “To be clear, I believe the money is there. But failing to preserve this proactive option now would make it impossible to consider later. I will not allow a procedural deadline to become the reason this library closes.”
Johnson said she will continue examining departmental savings, library year-end balances, reallocations and other available funding sources. Any viable alternative identified before final budget adoption could eliminate the need to levy the additional amount.
“This amendment is a safeguard, not a blank check,” Johnson said. “I know East Side families are already carrying a significant tax burden, and I do not take any potential levy increases lightly. That is precisely why I cannot accept a budget that asks us to pay more while we are receiving less.”
Dayton’s Bluff Library has served Saint Paul residents for 22 years in partnership with Metro State University. The proposed closure was not based on the library being the system’s least-used location, and no other library is proposed for closure in the 2027 budget.
Johnson noted that Saint Paul residents have repeatedly demonstrated that they are willing to invest in essential services that strengthen their neighborhoods, including parks, recreation centers, police, fire services, streetlights, street repairs and libraries.
“If the City is going to ask residents to pay more, East Side families deserve to benefit from those investments too,” Johnson said. “We should not receive a higher tax bill and fewer public services in return. Keeping Dayton’s Bluff open is a citywide responsibility, and the cost should be shared citywide.”
Johnson said it is her understanding that a majority of the Council considers the maximum-levy amendment a viable fallback if another funding source is not secured. She will continue working with Council colleagues, the Office of Financial Services, Saint Paul Public Library and the Mayor’s Office to identify a solution before the final budget is adopted.
“My community should not have to prove that it deserves a library,” Johnson said. “Our responsibility now is to keep the doors open, do the hard budget work to find the money, and ensure that the East Side receives its fair share of the services it helps fund.”
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About the Saint Paul City Council:
The Saint Paul City Council is the city’s legislative body, setting policy through ordinances and resolutions, adopting budgets, and providing direct constituent services across the city’s wards. Learn more at www.stpaul.gov/department/city-council.