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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC 06-25-2001 . . . CITY OF ARDEN HILLS, MINNESOTA SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING, PAVEMENT MAGEMENT MEETING JUNE 25, 2001 6:30 P.M. - ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS CALL TO ORDEWROLL CALL Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, Mayor Dennis Probst called to order the special City Council meeting at 6:33 p.m. Present: Mayor Dennis Probst, Councilmembers Beverly Aplikowski, David Grant, Gregg Larson, Lois Rem, City Administrator Joe Lynch, City Engineer Greg Brown, BRW, Interim Public Works Director and Parks & Recreation Director Thomas Moore, and Recording Secretary, Nancy Czajkowski.. Absent: None. DISSCUSSION Mr. Lynch explained the Public Improvement process and noted they would have to start the neighborhood meetings next month in order to have a street project this year. He noted Council could possibly do a smaller project. Councilmember Larson noted he was not in favor of a small project since they would still need to come to a consensus on the issues. Councilmember Grant concurred and noted the issue should be, "do they need to do project?" Discussion followed on the particular smaller projects that might be possible. Mayor Probst noted the issue goes back to a neighborhood approach versus a worst first approach. Councilmember Rem noted one of the significant factors to consider would be to avoid leaving a cul-de-sac off a main street to be completed later, which by redoing would damage the work done on the main street. Councilmember Grant asked if they could divide neighborhoods into smaller pieces, so they could do the worst first, without land locking them or doing some roads prematurely. He noted good judgment, planning and good engineering was needed. He added they should consider how much variability there was from the worst road to the best road. Councilmember Rem stated they need to first discuss standards to be agreed on before discussion of PC I ratings and drainage issues. Councilmember Larson concurred with Councilmember Rem and noted they had to look at all of the factors. He stated they needed to decide on the important criteria and then exercise good judgment. Councilmember Grant agreed that there needs to be an objective set of criteria to go by and they need to inform the neighborhoods. . . . ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL - JUNE 25, 2001 2 Councilmember Aplikowski stated they need a five-year plan. She noted they should set criteria, decide what needs to be done and then get the money in place. Mayor Probst stated they know how much money they have and they have the ability to do all of the forecasting that had been suggested. He noted they need to define the outcomes collectively. He added if they are going to have a program they need to set the criteria as worst first or a neighborhood approach based on larger criteria. He stated as they make decisions they would get down to the details like curb and gutter, street widths, etc. He noted they have a fiduciary responsibility to take care of infrastructure of the city. Councilmember Aplikowski suggested a mixture of worst/first and neighborhood approaches would be the best approach. Mayor Probst stated they either have to agree to bring someone in to help resolve this issue or vote on each issue separately. Councilmember Aplikowski noted they agree they need a program. Mayor Probst stated the issue was how to define a program. He noted they need to use more than the PCI rating to determine what to do. He added there are some drainage issues in this community. He noted they need to solve the infrastructure issue more globally and not just deal with the road surface. He added this would put some streets higher on the priority list than just the PCI rating. Councilmember Aplikowski stated there needs to be a balancing between road condition and drainage and which issue comes first. She noted they needed further discussion on the issue. RECESS At 7:34 p.m., Mayor Probst recessed the meeting and reconvened the regular meeting in the ity H 11 Council Chambers. ~;l~ NOTICE OF MEETINGS The next Pavement Management Meeting will be held Monday, July 30, 2001 at 6:30 p.m. at the Arden Hills Council chambers. . . . CITY OF ARDEN HILLS, MINNESOTA ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY (EDA) JUNE 25, 2001 6:00 P.M. - ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, President Dennis Probst called to order the Economic Development Authority (EDA) meeting at 6:04 p.m. Present: President Dennis Probst, Commissioners Beverly Aplikowski, David Grant, Gregg Larson, and Lois Rem. Absent: None. Also present were Executive Director, Joe Lynch; Secretary/Treasurer, Terrance R. Post; and Recording Secretary, Nancy Czajkowski. APPROVAL OF MEETING AGENDA MOTION: Commissioner Aplikowski moved and Commissioner Rem seconded a motion to adopt the agenda for the June 25,2001 meeting ofthe Economic Development Authority. The motion carried unanimously (4-0). APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. December 4, 2000 Special EDA Meeting MOTION: Commissioner Larson moved and Commissioner Aplikowski seconded a motion to approve the December 4, 2000 Special EDA Meeting minutes as corrected above. The motion carried unanimously (4-0). UNFINISHED AND NEW BUSINESS A. Business Subsidy Criteria 1. Discussion 2. Schedule Public Hearing Mr. Post introduced Ms. Shelly Eldridge of Ehlers and Associates. Ms. Eldridge gave a presentation on Business Subsidy Criteria. In response to questions, she noted the Council could deviate from the criteria with documentation or it could revise the criteria through the public hearing process. She added one way to determine the base value of land would be by the county assessor when the property was going from tax exempt to taxable. She stated an alternative would be to get an appraiser to state the value of what land would be. She noted the value would be somewhere between what the city paid for it and what the market . ARDEN HILLS EDA MEETING - JUNE 25,2001 2 value was. She added a variance from what would normally be allowed under zoning or subdivision rules would not be considered to be a business subsidy. Councilmember Aplikowski noted her concern about who would determine whether the interest rate was below what was available. Ms. Eldridge stated as long as the city keeps documentation since the state could not really mandate how the city comes up with its formula. Mayor Probst noted he would suggest keeping the criteria as general as possible to allow the city the most latitude. He added his concern if the criteria were too stringent it could cause problems. He stated he wanted to retain full rights to accept or deny someone the opportunity. He noted just because someone meets the criteria do not guarantee them a business subsidy. Mr. Post suggested the Council hold offthe discussion in order to assess the impact of the 2001 legislation session. Mayor Probst suggested the EDA meet before the second Council meeting in July. All Councilmembers agreed. B. Schedule Meetin~ to Discuss 2002 EDA Bud~et Ramifications from 2001 Le~islative Session Mayor Probst noted it should be scheduled during the same July 30, 2001 EDA meeting. . ADJOURN . MOTION: Commissioner Grant moved and Commissioner Aplikowski seconded a motion to adjourn the meeting at 6:32 p.m. The motion carried unanimously (5-0). NOTICE OF MEETINGS The next EDA Meeting will be held Monday, July 30, 2001 at 6:00 p.m. at the Arden Hills Council chambers. . . . CITY OF ARDEN HILLS, MINNESOTA REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING JUNE 25, 2001 7:30 P.M. - ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, Mayor Dennis Probst called to order the regular City Council meeting at 7:38 p.m. Present: Mayor Dennis Probst, Councilmembers Beverly Aplikowski, David Grant, Gregg Larson, and Lois Rem. Absent: None. Also present were City Administrator, Joe Lynch; City Accountant, Terrance Post; City Attorney Jerry Filla; Interim Public Works Director and Parks & Recreation Director, Thomas Moore; Interim City Planner, Mike Cronin; and Recording Secretary, Nancy Czajkowski. APPROVAL OF MEETING AGENDA Mr. Lynch asked that the handout regarding the water tower situation be added under Administrator Comments. MOTION: Councilmember Aplikowski moved and Councilmember Larson seconded a motion to adopt the agenda for the June 25,2001, regular City Council meeting. The motion carried unanimously (5-0). APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. June 11, 2001 Regular Council Meeting, Pavement Management Plan (PMP) Discussion B. June 11, 2001 Regular Council Meeting C. June 18,2001 Council Worksession Councilmember Grant noted the June 11, 2001 Regular Council Meeting, Pavement Management Plan Discussion minutes and the June 11,2001 Regular Council Meeting minutes should reflect both of Mr. Moore's titles of Parks & Recreation and Interim Public Works Director. Councilmember Grant stated the June 11, 2001 Regular Council Meeting, Pavement Management Plan Discussion minutes have a reference in the second paragraph to the "policy making nesting bowl". He noted this comment does not accurately reflect the discussion that followed regarding that handout. He added his concerns about the change in the regular minutes from 20 pages to a brief summary. He stated he prefers the previous method utilized for taking minutes, which reflected specific comments. . . . ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL - JUNE 25, 2001 2 Councilmember Larson noted he was an advocate of the new method of minute taking and felt the June 11,2001 set was a vast improvement on what they had received previously. He added they could tape the meeting in addition to having minutes taken, a taping of the meeting should be done as well. He stated he reviews past minutes to find out the action taken. He noted the minutes were a fair representation of who appeared. He added he was satisfied with this method. Mayor Probst concurred with Councilmember Larson. Councilmember Aplikowski stated the concept is good, but she missed the names of the persons who spoke at the public information meeting. She noted she agreed that shorter minutes are more to her liking but she missed the minutia. Councilmember Rem stated she was speaking strongly in favor of full minutes. She noted they receive full minutes from the other commissions and it helps to know where the commission is at on the issues. She added it was not necessarily helpful to say the matter was tabled when additional information was asked to be brought forward. She stated that to her these minutes are the records for public meetings. She noted the minutes should also reflect the discussion that got them to the actions taken. She added until they have an adequate video recording and broadcast that this was all that was available. She stated she felt strongly that it was helpful to have some of the main points of the discussion included in the minutes along with who had raised them. Councilmember Grant requested the following change in the June 11, 2001 Regular Council Meeting minutes: in the motion on page 5, Councilmember Grant seconded the motion to authorize purchase of the stone and not Councilmember Rem. Councilmember Larson requested the names and addresses of the people who appeared be included in the minutes. Councilmember Aplikowski requested the following change in the June 11, 2001 Regular Council Meeting minutes on page 5, in third paragraph, in the Council Comments, delete the second sentence and replace with "She added the Public Works staff was concerned that the Council was getting back to fixing the roads and were open to be consulted regarding their opinions on the Pavement Management Program." Councilmember Rem noted the caption of the June 11,2001 Special Council Meeting, Pavement Management minutes should reflect the meeting was held in the Council Chambers. Councilmember Rem requested the following changes to the June 18, 2001 City Council W orksession minutes: 1. The caption should reflect the meeting was on Monday and not Tuesday. 2. On page 2, under Comprehensive Park Plan, in the second paragraph, staff was directed to send the first class letters within seven to ten days. . . . ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL - JUNE 25, 2001 3 MOTION: Councilmember Larson moved and Councilmember Grant seconded a motion to approve the June 11, 2001 Regular Council Meeting, Pavement Management Plan (PMP) Discussion, June 11,2001 Regular Council Meeting, and June 18,2001 Council W orksession, minutes as corrected above. The motion carried unanimously (5-0). CONSENT CALENDAR A. Claims and Payroll B. Employee Recognition, Adopt Proclamation, Former Planner, Jennifer Chaput Councilmember Aplikowski noted her concerns with the Proclamation for Ms. Chaput. She added her concerns are no reflection against the good work done by Ms. Chaput. She stated they have had other employees leave and they have not done a Proclamation. She noted they should send a thank you letter or commendation. Councilmember Grant concurred with Councilmember Aplikowski. He stated that in light of the recent departures it would be inappropriate to single out one individual in view of the accomplishments made by others. He agreed that they should send a letter of thanks and gratitude to City Planner Chaput. Councilmember Larson disagreed. He noted although they may have failed to recognize others in the past, they should start with this one. He added it was an omission in the past to not do anything. He stated he has no problem with this Proclamation. Councilmember Rem stated they used to read proclamations in the past have not done so for awhile. Mayor Probst stated they should remove Agenda Item 4 B. from the Consent Agenda and move it to Agenda Item 6 C. MOTION: Councilmember Larson moved and Councilmember Aplikowski seconded a motion to approve the Consent Calendar and authorize execution of all necessary documents contained therein. The motion carried unanimously (5-0). PUBLIC COMMENTS Mayor Probst invited those present to come forward and address the Council on any items not already on the agenda. No public comments were made. UNFINISHED AND NEW BUSINESS A. Plannin2 Cases 1. Case #01-19, Dunnett, 1543 Oak Avenue, Subdivision and Consolidation . . . ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL - JUNE 25, 2001 4 Mr. Cronin explained this case was about moving a lot line and both neighbors were in agreement. He stated the Planning Commission recommended approval. MOTION: Councilmember Larson moved and Councilmember Grant seconded a motion to approve Planning Case #01-19, minor subdivision of 1543 Oak Avenue for consolidation with 3651 Snelling Avenue with two conditions as recommended by Staff. The motion carried unanimously (5-0). 2. Case #01-08, United Properties, 1987 and 1887 Gateway Boulevard, Planed Unit Development (PUD) Amendment Mr. Cronin explained the amendment to the PUD concerning the landscaping necessary to screen two parking lots. He stated the applicant did not accept the recommendations by the Planning Commission. He noted the dumpster was currently placed on the property line and the Planning Commission recommended tightening the plantings. He added the real solution is to move dumpster back. He stated the Applicant has worked with the owner and the owner has agreed to move the dumpster back and relocate it on plan. He noted the Applicant feels that with the movement of the dumpster the fence and the height of the trees would be all right. MOTION: Councilmember Aplikowski moved and Councilmember Larson seconded a motion to approve Planning Case #01-08, Planned Unit Development amendment, to install additional landscaping on 4300 W. Round Lake Road and 1987 Gateway Boulevard to screen refuse containers subject to the recommended conditions 1,3, 4,5, and 6. The motion carried unanimously (5-0). Mr. Cronin explained that staff had recommended a better quality of screening. Ms. Kelly Oertli explained the landscaper recommended staying with 6 to 8 foot trees. She stated since the trees would be located in a planter, larger trees would lose the lower limbs. She noted the retaining wall is what the landscaper calls a planter. MOTION: Councilmember Aplikowski moved and Councilmember Larson seconded a motion to reconsider Planning Case #01-08. The motion carried unanimously (5- 0). MOTION: Councilmember Aplikowski moved and Councilmember Grant seconded a motion to approve Planning Case #01-08, Planned Unit Development amendment, to install additional landscaping on 4300 W. Round Lake Road and 1987 Gateway Boulevard to screen refuse containers subject to the recommended conditions 1,3, 5,6 and subject to condition 4 as amended to require 8 foot trees. The motion carried unanimously (5-0). 3. Case #01-12a, Manufacturers' Services, 4300 West Round Lake Road, PUD Amendment (Phase II Parking) ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL - JUNE 25, 2001 5 . Mr. Cronin explained the Planning Commission has recommended approval of this PUD amendment. He noted no one was present to speaking at the public hearing and the applicant accepts the recommended conditions. MOTION: 4. Councilmember Larson moved and.Councilmember Aplikowski seconded a motion to approve Planning Case #01-12, PUD Amendment for Manufacturers' Services Phase II, PUD Amendment, subject to the five conditions recommended by the Planning Commission. The motion carried unanimously (5-0). Case #01-10, Arden Towers, 1777 Gateway Boulevard, Concept pun Mayor Probst explained the Applicant has waived the 60-day requirement and requested this matter be tabled until the July 30, 2001 City Council meeting. MOTION: Councilmember Grant moved and Councilmember Aplikowski seconded a motion to table Planning Case #01-10 until the July 30,2001 Council meeting as requested by the Applicant. The motion carried unanimously (5-0). Case #01-13, City of Arden Hills, Adult Entertainment Ordinance Amendment A. Adopt Ordinance #329 B. Adopt Ordinance Summary #329 . Mr. Cronin explained since the Ordinance was tightly written the Planning Commission requested it be sent back to them if changes were needed. 5. MOTION: 6. Councilmember Larson moved and Councilmember Aplikowski seconded a motion to adopt Ordinance #329, incorporating the Adult Entertainment Ordinance into the Zoning Ordinance #291 ofthe city and to direct that a summary of Ordinance #329 be published, as recommended by Staff. The motion carried unanimously (5-0). Council Update, Codification Process, Regulation of Excavations Mr. Cronin indicated this was an informational item only. B. City Hall Construction Project 1. Cost Update Mr. Lynch explained change order #3 for the City Hall Construction Project, which totaled $38,593.93. . Councilmember Grant stated his concern that the decision to grout the stone cap should have been caught long ago. . . . ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL - JUNE 25,2001 6 Mr. Lynch stated he did not know the level of detail provided to the parties prior to his employment with the city. Mayor Probst noted this was not a staff issue, but a consultant issue. Councilmember Grant stated there should be some accountability on the part of the architect that this is something they overlooked. Mr. Lynch stated the city has already put the architect on notice about the roof drains and they could take the same approach here. Mayor Probst stated he felt they could find examples of doing this work both ways. He noted he believes there was no clear answer. He added the roof drain issue was one of added value. He stated they would pay for some of the cost since there was clearly some added value to the project in having the drains, but they would not pay for all of the cost. Councilmember Grant stated they should caulk and not grout, but staff and the architect should be aware that some of these items should have been caught in the design process. Councilmember Rem concurred with Councilmember Grant's concerns. MOTION: Councilmember Aplikowski moved and Councilmember Larson seconded a motion to approve Change Order #3 as outlined in the June 4, 2001 staff memo, in the amount of$38, 593.93. The motion carried unanimously (5-0). C. Proclamation from the Consent Calendar. Councilmember Aplikowski stated her concerns had nothing to do with giving Ms. Chaput her due thanks. She noted she was concerned that they did nothing for Public Works Director Dwayne Stafford who was with the city for six years and Ms. Chaput was a one-year employee. She added in the past the Council was asked first if they wanted to do something and this was just a surprise. Mayor Probst stated he concurred with Councilmember Larson that they do not do enough of this type of recognition. He noted he was concerned that this discussion could be viewed as a negative thing about Ms. Chaput's service. He added the issue was what was to be done from now on when staff members leave. Councilmember Aplikowski stated a letter of commendation would be appropriate, but not a Proclamation. She noted a Proclamation asks something to be done and a Commendation was recognition of a job well done. Councilmember Rem stated it was very clear that everyone's comments were not intended to be negative against Ms. Chaput. She noted the issue was that in the past the council was asked how it wanted to handle these things. . . . ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL - JUNE 25,2001 7 Councilmember Larson stated the policy should be that they always do something and then if need be they could do something beyond that. He noted he liked the Proclamation rather than a letter because it looks official and means something more than just a letter. Councilmember Grant stated it was clear this was not an issue about Ms. Chaput. He noted the Council agreed that something should be done, but disagreed on what that should be. He added . it was presumptive of staffto draft this and put it on the consent agenda. He stated a well-written letter, sighed by each council member would be appropriate. He noted a Proclamation declared special events and not the departure of a staff member. MOTION: Councilmember Aplikowski moved and Councilmember Larson seconded a motion to recognize the departure of any staff member by a letter of Commendation, if it was fitting, and to direct staff to reword the Proclamation as a letter of commendation to be signed by all Councilmembers. The motion carried unanimously (5-0). ADMINISTRATOR COMMENTS Mr. Lynch explained the letter on the north water tower situation. He stated when the tower was emptied it became apparent that additional work was needed. Mr. Moore noted an independent examination showed that the rust was as bad as the Contractor had indicated and that the work needed to be done. MOTION: Councilmember Grant moved and Councilmember Larson seconded a motion to approve the completion of the renovations, the extra remobilization and demobilization of the water tower as outlined in the June 20, 2001 letter to Mr. Moore, in the amount of $26,450. The motion carried unanimously (5-0). Mr. Lynch noted he had hired two new support staff members. He added they would fill the Planner Position and then continue towards working on quotes for job descriptions. CLOSED EXECUTIVE SESSION Mayor Probst adjourned the regular session to an executive session to discuss pending litigation at 8:49 p.m. RECONVENE Mayor Probst reconvened the regular session at 9:00 p.m. Mayor Probst stated that the Council approved settlement ofWC #223, City of Arden Hills vs. Evenson, in the closed executive session. D. Minutes Discussion ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL - JUNE 25, 2001 8 . Mayor Probst stated he strongly supported staying with the abbreviated minutes. He noted they spent more time correcting minutes than with the Planning Commission cases. He added they have the tapes available. Councilmember Rem stated she did not think omitting information was the way to deal with this issue. She noted she has sat through Pavement Management Discussions wondering how they came to that place in the discussion. She added more proofreading could make some of the corrections. She stated that in ongoing discussions it was helpful to know what was covered. She noted it also helped to focus on where they have been. Councilmember Aplikowski stated they should receive more than the abbreviated minutes, but does not think they should cross all the t's. She noted spelling errors could be fixed later. She added the discussion was important too. She stated she liked the names and addresses of the people who speak at the public hearings. Councilmember Grant stated he would like to see the meeting minutes expanded. He noted it was important to reflect how they arrived at the decisions and the actions that they take. He added the individual comments of Councilmembers are important from a historical prospective. Councilmember Larson noted they do minutes for the work sessions very differently from the council minutes. He added they have been comfortable with those minutes and perhaps that should be the format they use. . Mr. Lynch stated it was a continuing process and staff would look at the style and format of the worksession minutes. Councilmember Larson stated the minutes should reflect who raised the concern and where they ended after discussion. Mayor Probst concurred strongly with Councilmember Larson. He stated if someone has an issue they could request that the minutes reflect the reasoning behind why he or she voted a certain way. He noted they would move forward on that basis. COUNCIL COMMENTS Councilmember Grant stated the Operations and Finance Committee met and chose to work on the maintenance facility as a priority issue. He noted they would make recommendations to the Council. He added this decision was based on the fact this issue has a deadline and the County would like to move forward quickly. Councilmember Larson stated the Parks and Recreation Committee meets tomorrow night to get an update on the Comprehensive Park Plan process. He noted that the first neighborhood meeting is July 9, 2001. . Councilmember Aplikowski stated the people loved the whole event for the 50th Anniversary. She noted many commented they should do it every year. She added it was a lovely day and . . . ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL - JUNE 25, 2001 9 gave a special thanks to Mr. Moore and the Public Works staff. She noted to date they have expended $32,500 for the event. She added they have received that much and more from the sponsors. She stated they still had a few things going on, like the video, history book, and dedication of City Hall to plan yet. She proposed they rent the horse and buggy and be part of the New Brighton parade. She noted New Brighton sent their float over to the Arden Hills parade. Councilmember Larson stated he thought it was a good idea. He noted New Brighton sent a float and a couple of businesses. He noted it would be a nice gesture in return. Mayor Probst stated the event was one of most fun days he has had as Mayor of Arden Hills. He noted everybody was smiling and a lot of people approached him to ask if it would be an annual. event. He added there are so many people that were not thanked including the staff. He stated there was a mini-emergency every 30 minutes and they were all handled. He noted they needed to find a way to thank the volunteers on the committee. He suggested something could be done at the dedication of City Hall. He thanked Councilmember Aplikowski for her insistence and persistence that got this project done. Councilmember Larson suggested a volunteer picnic this summer. Councilmember Aplikowski stated it was the result of a good group of people working together. Councilmember Rem thanked staff for its hard work. She noted some of the staff seemed to be everywhere all at once. She added it was a great idea to put volunteers in T-shirts. She stated many people commented on that they should do the event again. Mayor Probst stated that the Army Reserve is looking to purchase raw land and not looking to expand the present location. He added that he also has had contact with Mr. Steve Nelson as a follow up to the Lake Johanna informational meeting. ADJOURN MOTION: Councilmember Aplikowski moved and Councilmember Grant seconded a motion to,adjourn the meeting at 9:30 p.m. The motion carried unanimously (5-0). NOTICE OF MEETINGS The next Council Meeting will be held Monday, July 9,2001 at 7:30 p.m. at the Arden Hills Council chambers.