Behind the scenes with Public Works

Most Prior Lake residents would agree that living in a community with a large lake is a huge amenity. Few, however, may know what it takes to keep the rest of the city a desirable place to live based on roads, parks, basic city services and assurances that water coming into each home will stay flowing in a city of 30,000.

Those primary responsibilities fall to Nick Monserud, Prior Lake’s Public Works Director and City Engineer. He oversees the department charged with many of the city’s behind-the-scenes essential functions that directly impact local residents. With the help of 37 full-time employees, he is responsible for most of the city’s infrastructure, including all city buildings, equipment, fleet maintenance, parks, playground equipment, watermain services and sewage system.

A native of Iowa, Monserud says he was lucky to be stuck in traffic while driving into Prior Lake nearly a decade ago when he saw one of the city’s electronic billboard advertising for an open project engineer position. He applied and was hired for that role in 2016, and has since been promoted three times, the last being to leader of public works. In addition to nine direct reports and other staff members, his department expands during the summer months when up to 40 part-time and seasonal workers are hired to maintain parks and help with recreation program offerings.

The department must be prepared day or night to handle emergency situations such as severe storms in the summer months and major winter snowfalls. The city also has 41 sewer lift stations, and if an alarm goes off, even in the middle of the night, a city employee is dispatched immediately to address anything that needs to be done, according to Monserud.

“Our team is top notch,” he said, adding that he enjoys the variety of projects he gets to manage and work with staff members who know their respective jobs well. “I’d say most residents don’t even know they exist because our employees know what needs to be done and they get it done.”

It’s his job to also monitor water usage within the city. Consumption rates have always correlated directly to weather conditions and he says the city has made a concerted effort to educate residents about water being a natural resource that should be conserved. Prior Lake’s water demand hit an all-time high during the summer drought of 2023 when more than a billion gallons of water were distributed, with one peak day registering 6.3 million gallons being drawn from city sources. Monserud estimates that 40% of annual demand is used for lawn irrigation. While it’s a consistent and growing concern throughout the country, he says implementing restrictions and developing education programs for the public has not helped the situation.

“This is always a concern, and unfortunately, increasing prices for water use has not necessarily decreased demand,” he adds.

There are unique challenges faced by the department in both winter and summer months, according to Monserud. In winter months, employees are on-call 24/7 when heavy snowfalls are predicted. Parks can be difficult to maintain during wet summers and following significant rain events, making grass mowing difficult.

A big, changing department

Many cities of a similar size to Prior Lake have half the number of parks, Monserud said. The city has 49 parks with 40 playgrounds, of which more than half are more than 20 years old. More than 700 acres of land are dedicated to parks which have to be inspected monthly. More maintenance is needed during the summer months when there is greater use by the public, including the emptying of 324 trash receptacles up to three times each week.

“Based on the great results from the recent city parks survey,” Monserud said, “it’s clear that Prior Lake residents appreciate our parks and consider them a a big benefit to living here.”

He has seen many changes in his nine years of working for the city. The department generally follows a five-year maintenance/improvement plan that prioritizes and rotates projects that need to be done. A major project for the city this summer is major road reconstruction in The Wilds neighborhood. Another improvement phase will begin on the central concourse area of the Ponds Athletic Complex beginning in August, following the 2023 replacement of a playground and two ball fields in that park. The largest public works project planned for 2026-27 will involve pavement improvements in the Northwood Road area.

Street construction, in general, he said, is one of the biggest costs to the city and and impacts the largest number of people, both in terms of residents and staff. City crews currently maintain 122 miles of roads, 233 cul-de-sacs and 82 miles of trails and sidewalks. Those numbers will grow in the near future due to Prior Lake’s annexation of nearly 3,000 acres that were formerly part of the northwest corner of Spring Lake Township. City leaders have previously stated the land is viewed by the city as important for future commercial development.

“Everything we do within the department is team-oriented and we couldn’t get everything done that we need to do without the employee dedication we have,” Monserud said. “They do the heavy lifting and make certain the essential services get done when needed for the residents of Prior Lake.”