Laserfiche WebLink
3 <br />J <br /> <br /> <br />June 16, 2025 <br /> <br /> <br />Honorable Mayor, Members of the City Council, <br />and Citizens of Elk River: <br /> <br />The Annual Comprehensive Financial Report for the City of Elk River for the fiscal year ended <br />December 31, 2024, is hereby submitted. Minnesota state statutes and the city’s ordinance require <br />an annual audit of the city’s accounts by the Office of the State Auditor or an independent certified <br />public accountant. The firm of BerganKDV was selected to perform the city’s audit and their <br />unmodified opinion has been included in this report. The independent auditors’ report is included <br />in the financial section of this report. <br /> <br />The responsibility for the completeness and accuracy of this data, as well as the fairness of this <br />presentation including all enclosures, rests with the city. To the best of my knowledge and belief, <br />the enclosed data are accurate in all material respects and are recorded in a manner designed to <br />present fairly the financial position and the results of operations of the various funds of the city. <br />To provide a reasonable basis for making these representations, management has established a <br />comprehensive internal control framework that is designed to both protect the city’s assets from <br />loss, theft, or misuse, and to compile sufficient reliable information for the preparation of these <br />financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). Because <br />the cost of internal control should not exceed anticipated benefits, the objective is to provide <br />reasonable but not absolute assurance that the financial statements are free of any material <br />misstatements. <br /> <br />GAAP requires management to provide a narrative introduction, overview, and analysis to <br />accompany the basic financial statements in the form of Management’s Discussion and Analysis <br />(MD&A). This letter of transmittal is designed to complement the MD&A and should be read in <br />conjunction with it. The city’s MD&A can be found immediately following the independent auditor’s <br />report. <br /> <br />Profile of the City <br />Elk River was originally incorporated in 1880 and consolidated with Elk River Township in 1978 to <br />form a city of roughly 44 square miles. Elk River is the Sherburne County Seat and is located <br />approximately halfway between the metropolitan areas of Minneapolis/St. Paul and St. Cloud along <br />the Mississippi River. The city has been growing and will not reach full development in the near <br />future. The current population is approximately 27,520. Urban services are available to about one- <br />third of the city’s land area. <br /> <br />Elk River operates as a Statutory Plan A form of government consisting of a four-member city council <br />and an at-large mayor who is also a voting member. Council members are elected by ward to a <br />four-year term with two council seats up for election each even year. The mayor is also elected to <br />a four-year term. The mayor and council are responsible for adopting the city’s budget and tax <br />levy, passing resolutions and ordinances, all hiring and firing decisions, policy making, development <br />and growth planning, and overall direction of the city. <br /> <br /> <br />Page 193 of 637