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Slayton Police Office Johnathon Reim was sworn in by Slayton Police Chief Jeremy Steinle Monday, September 15. -
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While friends and family proudly looked on, the Slayton City Council on Monday officially swore in Police Officer Johnathon Reim. Slayton Police Chief Jeremy Steinle praised Reim’s ability to become part of the community and law enforcement community in such a short time.
“In the military there is a saying, ‘Choose your circle like your life depends on it, because it does,’” Steinle said. “We are proud and excited to welcome (Reim) into our circle.”
After Reim recited the oath, his parents were given the honor of pinning his badge onto his uniform.
In other business, the council approved a motion for the next few steps in pursuing Small Cities Development Program funding. According to Dan Popowski of DSI, there were roughly 48 responses to an initial survey for owner-occupied housing. Because the maximum that can be funded through the program is $600,000, Popowski said that would help fix approximately 21 units in Slayton.
The next steps include pledging $20,000 of city monies for the administrative part of the program, holding two public hearings and working on a citizen participation plan. Council members were asked to disclose any conflicts of interest. Both Mayor Miron Carney and Councilor Blake Heronimus will abstain from any motions and votes as the process moved forward – Carney as an applicant and Heronimus as a business owner that may enter into contracts with clients who need repairs. Both men also abstained from voting during the last Small Cities Development Program round that involved the City of Slayton.
The city hopes to hear back regarding whether or not their application has been accepted in late spring of 2026.
The council’s other big discussion of the evening largely revolved around interpretation of the words “may” and “shall not.” As they have worked for more than a year to prepare a cannabis ordinance for the city, a frequent question has been in regard to how the Murray County ordinance and Slayton City ordinance would work together. The county ordinance states there can be one cannabis business in the county. With one being allowed in the city, the intent and verbiage has resulted in considerable council discussion on the topic.
The question – if a cannabis business opens elsewhere in the county, should one still be allowed in the city of Slayton. If the first cannabis business were to open in Slayton, the discussion would be moot.
In a 4-1 vote, the council approved verbiage which states, “If Murray County has one (1) active cannabis retail business registration for every twelve thousand five hundred (12,500) residents, the City shall not register additional state-licensed cannabis retail businesses.
According to Slayton City Administrator Josh Malchow, the ordinance will become effective as soon as it is published.
The council also approved not-to-exceed levy for 2026 of 4.96 percent. While they will be able to bring the levy amount down before setting the 2026 budget, it cannot go above the 4.96 percent figure.
