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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06-13-11-WSRpENHILLs Approved: July 11, 2011 CITY OF ARDEN HILLS, MINNESOTA CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION MEETING JUNE 13, 2011 9:00 P.M. - ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, Mayor David Grant called to order the City Council work session meeting at 9:00 p.m. Present: Mayor David Grant; Councilmembers Fran Holmes, Brenda Holden, Ed Werner and Nicholas Tamble. Absent: None. Also present: City Administrator Patrick Klaers; Community Development Director Jill Hutmacher; and Recording Secretary Tina Borg. AGENDA ITEMS A. Future land use /development for the old City Hall site Community Development Director Jill Hutmacher stated this discussion was to provide Staff with some direction for the future use of this property so that Staff may prepare the property for future marketing and sale. Staff does not foresee the sale of this property in the near future but would like to be sure the land is ready for sale and the City has a vision of what they would like to see happen on this property. This will make the marketing of the property easier once the market is better. Councilmember Holden stated there had been a previous development proposal for this property that was presented as medium density but it turned out to be high density. The residents have expressed they do not want to see businesses in this location but would be open to having townhomes located on this parcel. There had been concerns with the access to this property but this may change with the access to Hamline changing with the I -694 Project. It is difficult to determine what the City would like to see on this parcel with the potential Stadium development happening on TCAAP. The property was cleaned up a couple of years ago and there are no brown fields on the parcel. City Planner Beekman should be able to find the information pertaining to the cleanup of the property. Community Development Director Hutmacher stated she would follow up with City Planner Beekman to find out if the City had received a Report of Completion from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION — June 13, 2011 2 A. Future land use /development for the old City Hall site (continued) City Administrator Klaers asked what the history of the site had been before the City acquired the property. Mayor Grant stated the City Hall had been located on this property at the time of the City's incorporation. The previous owners of this property can be found by looking at the property abstract. City Administrator Klaers asked what the City would envision for this property if there were a stadium on the TCAAP site. Councilmember Holden stated she would like to see a mixed -use development with commercial and residential uses. Community Development Director Hutmacher stated the potential for retail use could change with the development of TCAAP. Currently there may not be enough population for a retail space to draw from, given that land to the north is vacant. An apartment development would look at the economy of scale for this property and would want to put in 200 units. Councilmember Holden stated any use would depend on the traffic needs. There is a lot of traffic generated by the day care and the access to this property does not line up with the street across from it on Hamline. This would make it difficult for traffic controls to be put in place for this area. City Administrator Klaers stated that based on the economy the City would not be marketing the property at this time but does want to start putting things in order and determining what uses would be acceptable to the City Council for when the market improves. Community Development Director Hutmacher clarified that the Council consensus was to check the City records for the documentation required for the completion of the environmental cleanup and that the potential uses for the property could include a mixed-use development or townhome development similar to the one that already exists in this area. Councilmember Holmes stated she does not want to rezone this property. Mayor Grant stated it is too early to really know what the City would envision for this property. What happens on the TCAAP property may impact the direction the City takes with this site. Councilmember Holden suggested talking with the townhome association and look at the possibility of having a townhome development that could be included in this association. If the new development could be included, the density may be lower than it would be otherwise. Community Development Director Hutmacher stated the City will wait to see what happens with the TCAAP property before moving forward with any rezoning or other items pertaining to the potential sale of this property. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION — June 13, 2011 A. Future land use /development for the old City Hall site (continued) City Administrator Klaers asked if there were any protected wetlands on the parcel. Councilmember Holmes explained the map did show there were some wetland areas. Mayor Grant stated he would like to see the property sell for $2 million. Councilmember Tamble stated the property would not sell for this amount in the current market. He also stated it is too preliminary for the City to make any determination on how they would like to see the property developed. The potential for a stadium on the TCAAP property will impact what the City would like to see for this property. Councilmember Holden asked what kind of public outreach the City would have for this property. She stated she would be interested in using a broker if the City could get a rate lower than the market rate for brokers. City Administrator Klaers stated Staff would bring this item back to the Council for further discussion once there is more information available on the potential development of a stadium on the TCAAP property. B. Discussion on Community Development vision and goals and discussion on redesign of the City's website Community Development Director Jill Hutmacher provided background information on what Community Development is and how it is different in each city, depending on their visions. She also explained Staff was looking for feedback and direction on the City's website and what the City would like to see in the future for this means of communication. Mayor Grant explained he would like the website to be easier to navigate. It is difficult to find things within the site. Councilmember Tamble stated the current City website is outdated. He would like to see the whole site redone and this would take time. He stated the City should also consider hiring a person to manage the site so that there is only one person to contact for updates and changes. This will streamline the City's ability to provide information to the residents. Mayor Grant asked if there was a vendor package available that would make it easier for the City to design a new website. Councilmember Tamble stated there were vendors that specialized in city or government websites which Staff could contact for pricing and other information. He suggested the City also look into purchasing a different URL so that it would be easier to remember and make it easier for residents to get to the website. The purchased URL could just direct the person to the current site. He asked who handled most of the website management for the City. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION — June 13, 2011 4 B. Discussion on Community Development vision and goals and discussion on redesign of the City's website (continued) Community Development Director Hutmacher stated the duties are split between three to four people and City Planner Beekman does a portion of it. Councilmember Holden stated the website is an important tool in communicating with the residents and should be updated and kept current. City Administrator Klaers stated the Cable Fund has funds available that could be used for the website. The City could also look at the possibility of hiring a person to maintain the website or contracting these services. Councilmember Holden asked if Staff could put together a Request for Proposals to find a person that could be put in charge of the project and make the calls and research needed for this project so that Staff would not have to do this. Community Development Director Hutmacher stated some of the websites that are easier to utilize have a division between business and visitor information and also by department and services. Councilmember Holden stated the City's current website was done with GovOffice. This package had been a good product at the time the City purchased it. She asked if Staff had looked into these updates for GovOffice. Community Development Director Hutmacher stated GovOffice is planning a major upgrade but at this time there is no release date and she does not know what the software entails at this time. Councilmember Tamble stated if the City is going to pursue a new website then the technology should be as new as possible. If GovOffice is planning major upgrades to their software it may be worth looking at it but he suggested looking at other products City Administrator Klaers stated Staff will contact other cities to find out what products they use, if they have an internal person to maintain the site, or if they contract out these services. Staff will compile the data and bring it back to the Council for further direction. Councilmember Holden suggested contacting a professor at Bethel University who may be able to help Staff in mapping out the direction that Staff should take, or the information that Staff will need to proceed. They may be able to tell Staff what options are available. She also stated the City could look at bringing in college students for the maintenance of the website. City Administrator Klaers stated Staff would be able to do the research and determine the options available to the City without hiring a contractor. Councilmember Tamble stated there are two costs involved with this project; the initial design of the website and the ongoing expense of maintaining the website. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION — June 13, 2011 5 B. Discussion on Community Development vision and goals and discussion on redesign of the City's website (continued) City Administrator Klaers stated Staff will bring additional information back to the City Council for consideration. The project will need to be moved to a higher priority than it had been previously. Councilmember Holden asked what the City's vision of Community Development was and what the City was going to do for resources for the residents. Community Development Director Hutmacher stated the City could direct residents to existing resources even if the City does not offer them. This way residents can be made aware of what is available. Councilmember Holden asked if Community Development encompassed both commercial and residential aspects. Community Development Director Hutmacher explained the differences between residential community development and commercial community development. Community Development includes housing and the economic development of the City. The City could do more in the area of economic development. Community Development involves both the tangible development of the community and the feeling of community that residents have. She also stated that a Community Development Director is different for each city based on their visions. Councilmember Holden stated the City should prioritize those things they feel the Community Development Director should do. Councilmember Tamble suggested the Council go back to their goal setting to determine the priorities for the Community Development Director. Mayor Grant stated the Council would need to meet and set the priorities for this. City Administrator Klaers stated Staff would provide additional feedback to the Council on how other communities view the position of Community Development Director at a future meeting. He stated the City would also need to set its own vision of Community Development. ADJOURN It was the consensus of the Council to adjourn the meeting. Mayor Grant adjourned the City Council Work Session Meeting at 10:09 p.m. Patrick Klaers City Administrator David Grant Mayor