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ARDEN HILLS REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES DECEMBER 8, 2003 4 . 6. COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT A. I-35W Corridor Coalition: 2004 Membership Mr. Parrish stated the 2004 dues for participating in the 1-35W Corridor Coalition were $11,594, In addition, based on Council's rcqucst, staff contacted a local GIS consultant to see what thc cost would bc to obtain equivalent GIS services from a private vendor. He noted equivalent services would cost approximately $3,000 annually. He asked Council if they wished to participate in the 1-35W Corridor Coalition in 2004, Councilmcmber Holden expressed concern about how the City's voice was being heard and she was not sure this was a good representation for Arden Hills, MOTION: Councilmember Grant moved and Councilmember Holden seconded a motion to withdraw funding and membership in the 1- 35W Corridor Coalition and cease the City's participation in that organization, . Councilmember Grant also expressed concem about how the City's voice was being heard within this organization. He noted, however, it was not his intent to say that this coalition was not valuable or did not have something to offer. He stated he believed staffs time should be focus cd on TCAAP, and the coalition had become much larger and much more diversified in the things it looked at than any of the members envisioned when it started out. Mayor' Aplikowski spoke against the motion, She stated she had concerns about how the City was perceived, but the coalition members did come to bat for the City on the Postal Service, which was recognized by the St. Paul Chamber. She noted many residents had also accessed the Housing Resource Center. She stated they should not base their vote on the recent New Brighton joint meeting, Conncilmember Larson stated he was ambivalent about this motion, He agreed with Councilmembers Grant and Holden in trying to gauge the value of the services they purchased, not only thc time, but also the cost of the membership. On the other hand, he believed there were some valuable services they received. He stated he did not know what the vision of the coalition was or what their goals were. He stated he did not want to see this coalition become another level of governmcnt. He stated he would feel more comfortable voting on this if he could see how the City benefited from this membership and what the vision and goals of the coalition were. Councilmember Rcm stated she also agreed with Councilmember Larson regarding what the goals were of the coalition and if Arden Hills was getting their money's worth out of this . mcmbership,