Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout05-15-17 WSEN HILLS Approved: June 12, 2017 CITY OF ARDEN HILLS, MINNESOTA CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION JOINT MEETING WITH PLANNING COMMISSION MAY 15, 2017 5:00 P.M. - ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, Mayor Grant called to order the City Council Work Session at 5:02 p.m. Present: Mayor David Grant, Councilmembers Brenda Holden, Fran Holmes, Dave McClung and Steve Scott Absent: None Also present: City Administrator William Joynes, Public Works Director/City Engineer Sue Polka, Senior Planner Matthew Bachler, Deputy Clerk Jolene Trauba, Recreation Coordinator Sara Knoll, Recreation Programmer Aaron Thelen, Ramsey County Traffic Engineer Erin Laberee, Ramsey County Environmental Health Supervisor John Springman, Ramsey County Environmental Health Director Zach Hanson, Director of Regional Municipal Partnerships, Waste Zero, Paul Gardner, PTRC Chair Rich Straumann, PTRC Committee Members Keri Bloyer, Josh Bloyer, Nancy O'Malley, Harold Peterson, and Paul Beggin 1. AGENDA ITEMS A. RAMSEY COUNTY TRAFFIC ENGINEER UPDATE Ramsey County Traffic Engineer Erin Laberee presented information on the following road construction items: • County Road F Roadway Project The County has been working with Land O'Lakes to work on this project scheduled for 2018. A center left turn lane and one through lane in each direction will be added along with a signal light at Innovation Way. There will be a left turn lane in each direction. The portions of trail on the south side will be reconstructed as a bituminous trail and new sections will be added. Xcel power lines will be relocated due to the road being widened. Innovation Way will remain a private road. • Hamline/CR 96 right on red The "No Right On Red" sign eastbound on Hwy 96 to go southbound onto Hamline Avenue was removed due to complaints from the public and non-compliance. No safety issues were identified with removing the sign. An engineer from Ramsey County did some studies on length of time it ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION — MAY 15, 2017 2 took to make a left turn onto Hamline Avenue from Arden View Drive and Colleen Street. He found the average time was approximately 45 seconds. The County would like to reserve the "No Right On Red" signs for times that there is a safety issue but they are willing to restrict rights on red from approximately 6:00-9:00 a.m. for a trial period. They will coordinate enforcement with the Sheriff's Department once the sign is in place. • Lexington Avenue Roadway Project The developer for Lexington Station is being required to build a signal light on Lexington at the Target entrance when their third phase is complete. Lexington Avenue from County Road E to I694 will be reconstructed in 2020 although preliminary design work has not been done. Signal lights will be retimed as part of the project. 0 CR 96 Traffic Signal Upgrades All signal lights on County Road 96 from Highway 61 to Hamline Avenue will be upgraded to include flashing yellow arrows, new controllers in the cabinets, new communication fiber, and upgraded pedestrian ramps. Signals will also be retimed. This project will be done in 2018. Mayor David Grant stated that there have been complaints about the intersection of Lake Johanna Boulevard and County Road E and rush hour traffic being very backed up and asked the County to look into the issue. B. RAMSEY COUNTY ORGANICS COLLECTION Senior Planner Matthew Bachler stated that in 2013 the Ramsey County Board of Commissioners approved the expansion of services at the yard waste sites in the County to include organics collection. In 2014, Arden Hills received an application from Ramsey County to include organic collection at the Tony Schmidt yard waste site. The application was turned down due to concerns regarding increased litter, traffic and possible attraction of unwanted wildlife. Mayor Grant noted that Ramsey County said they were going to be implementing curbside collection and that was another reason the application was denied. Senior Planner Bachler went on to say that since that time he has received several phone calls from residents inquiring if organics collection could be added to the Arden Hills yard waste site. Now that the program has been in place at the other County yard waste sites for three years, he invited Ramsey County to provide an update. Ramsey County Environmental Health Director Zach Hanson stated that the County's master plan states that the City should have curbside collection of organics or some provision of service by 2018. They are backing off that requirement and revising the master plan because the infrastructure hasn't been put in place. The County Board has authorized six more drop off sites around the County. They are requesting the site in Arden Hills be open year round. Councilmember Brenda Holden wondered if most people were compliant in using compostable bags and only dropping off organics, not other compostables. Director Hanson responded that this is similar to what happened in the 1980's when recycling first started, by offering a drop off site before curbside develops. There has been very high compliance because it is early adopters that are making the effort. Typically there would be a ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION — MAY 15, 2017 3 monitor there to inquire if a particular item is acceptable. Although there has been a demand for 24/7 drop off, which at times could be non -monitored. Councilmember Fran Holmes asked if they could address what if any problems they are having at other sites. Ramsey County Environmental Health Supervisor John Springman responded that since they began operating in 2014 there has only been one occurrence of illegal dumping. Participants seem to be engaged and responsible by using the compostable bags and bringing in non -contaminated material. Odors are confined to within 10-15 feet of the container. Along with items being put in bags, the containers are serviced weekly so there is not a lot of odor. The vendor is also required to clean the container as needed. The only rodents that they have seen are squirrels on occasion. Mayor Grant inquired about the costs of running the program. Director Hanson responded that the costs include paying the monitor, and the contract with Waste Management to collect the materials and bring it to the composting facility. Costs are going down from a dollar per visit per resident to .81. Last year all facilities operated for under $50,000. The state has mandated that the County hits a 75% recycling rate by 2030. Twenty six percent of what is currently in the garbage is food waste, and 40% of that is organics. So to hit recycling rates it will have to come from organics. Drop off is the first step, curbside will be coming. Councilmember Steve Scott noted that he would be willing to have the program run as a year round pilot program to see if usage justifies continuing. Councilmember Holmes stated that she's been for it all along and doesn't understand why some of the Council hasn't been agreeable. Councilmember McClung is not actively supporting or rejecting the issue, but would agree to a year round program as it is mandated by the State. Councilmember Holden is willing to try the program due to history showing there have not been issues at other sites. Mayor Grant commented that he thinks they can try the program but he is cautious about being open in the winter. Director Hanson stated that they would be happy to come back with an annual report. Senior Planner Bachler informed the Council that once the application is received from the County they would be required to hold a public hearing with the Planning Commission for a Conditional Use Permit. The Planning Commission would then make a recommendation and it would be brought forward to the Council for consideration. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION — MAY 15, 2017 4 C. SIMPLE RECYCLING Senior Planner Bachler stated that as part of the 2017 work plan for the SCORE Recycling Grant that the City received from Ramsey County, the City is required to explore textile recycling options. The City's current recycling provider does not pick up textiles. Staff met with Simple Recycling, a for-profit company that specializes in curbside collection of textiles and other housewares, and are expanding in Minnesota. Director of Regional Municipal Partnerships, Waste Zero, Paul Gardner provided background information on Simple Recycling. The service is free and year round, and textiles and home goods would be picked up the same day as regular recycling. A postcard would be sent to the residents, and an envelope with special plastic bags for placing the items. Simply Recycling picks up the materials using a transit van, weighs them and sends a report to the City and County. The City would receive a penny a pound for the material, or $20 a ton. Most haulers are neutral or supportive and don't want clothing in their recycling by mistake. The national average shows eighty five percent of our clothing still goes in the garbage, despite people donating to charity. The average collection is 10 pounds per household. The program does requires a 4-5 year contract. Mayor Grant asked if pick up was necessary every week. Mr. Gardner replied that the company has made a strategic choice to run the entire route on every recycling day. If pick up was only once a month, people tend to forget and numbers go down. The business model of the resident calling an organization for pick up is expensive compared to driving the entire route each recycling day. Councilmember Holmes commented that she feels Arden Hills residents would donate nicer usable items to charity and use this service for less desirable clothing items. Mr. Gardner noted that Simple Recycling's philosophy is to put the material to the highest and best use. They have a grading facility where they determine what could be sold in a thrift store and what could be sold to international markets. Some material has no resale value and is repurposed into insulation, mattress padding etc. Councilmember Dave McClung wondered how much a program like this is capturing of the percent that is going into the landfill. Mr. Gardner stated that if this increased the percentage in the Metro area by one or two percent that would be substantial. Over the last four years, three million pounds have been collected in the states they are operating in. He noted that for every bag that is picked up, Simple Recycling will leave two. Templates are available for newsletters, handouts, and websites for educational purposes. Mayor Grant, at the approval of the Council, instructed Staff to move forward with the necessary meetings and contract details. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION — MAY 15, 2017 5 D. 2017 STATE OF THE CITY This item was moved and was discussed following item IE. E. 2017 PTRC WORK PLAN AND PROJECT PRIORITIES DISCUSSION Mayor Grant invited members of the PTRC to the table and asked everyone to introduce themselves. PTRC Chair Rich Straumann and members of the committee presented a Powerpoint highlighting their goals and work plan priorities for the Parks, Trails and Recreation Committee for 2017. The proposed list of priorities for their 2017 work plan are: 1. Parks Goals 2. Trail Goals 3. Recreation Goals 4. Community Partnership Goals 5. The Council discussed various items of interest such as trails and future projects with the PTRC members. F. 2017 STATE OF THE CITY Senior Planner Bachler said the Economic Development Committee (EDC) recommended that two events be held this year, one in the morning oriented toward businesses, and an evening event geared toward residents. The EDC recommended transportation, development projects, and TCAAP as possible topics for the morning meeting along with having a representative from the business community speak. It was also suggested that the Council consider a different venue for the morning event. Staff spoke with the Tavern Grill and they are happy to host if selected. Councilmember Holden said she feels the residents want the same type of information as the business community. Senior Planner Bachler said there would be a lot of overlap in topics for the two events. The EDC suggested inviting Land O'Lakes to the morning event. Councilmember McClung requested the presentation be put together in such a way that it would be interesting to all residents, whether they are businesses or home residents. He suggested that a networking event for businesses could be a separate event. The consensus was to plan two sessions, and preference was to hold one on a Thursday and one the following week on a Tuesday. Tentatively Thursday, September 28 and Tuesday, October 3. The morning session at the Tavern Grill was agreeable and the evening session could be held in the Council chambers. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION — MAY 15, 2017 6 G. CUMMINGS PARK SIGN Mayor Grant suggested a proposal for a new sign be submitted, to look similar to the signs at the other parks. H. HIGHWAY 96 TREES Mayor Grant noted there are gaps in the trees along Highway 96 that would need to be replaced. Councilmember McClung said that we need to find out what kind of tree would be successful and develop a canopy along the road. Public Works Director/City Engineer Sue Polka said she would get proposals and bring them to the Council. 2. COUNCIL/STAFF COMMENTS Councilmember Holden requested that once the right on red sign goes up on Highway 96 and Hamline that the Council be told so they can write a letter to the Sheriff asking them to enforce it. She also wondered if the Hot Dog with a Deputy events could be held at different city parks next year instead of the County park. Councilmember Scott mentioned that he will be taking a tour of Public Works facility. Councilmember Holmes discussed her desire to have another alternate to the Planning Commission and changing the ordinance to reflect two alternates. Councilmember McClung noted that the Public Works staff did a great job on patching Highway 96 after the water main break, as well as the water main break in his neighborhood. ADJOURN Mayor Grant adjourned the City Council Work Session at 8:07 p.m. /-,a& I), , a J ene Trau a David Grant Deputy Clerk Mayor