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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC 10-25-2004 ~ . ~HILLS Approved: November 29,2004 CITY OF ARDEN HILLS, MINNESOTA REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING OCTOBER 25, 2004, 7:00 P.M. CITY HALL COUNCIL CHAMBERS, 1245 WEST HIGHWAY 96 PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE CALL TO ORDERlROLL CALL Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, Mayor Beverly Aplikowski called to order the regular City Council meeting at 7:01 p.m, Present: Mayor Beverly Aplikowski, Councilmembers David Grant, Gregg Larson, Lois Rem (arrived at 7:05 p.m.), and Brenda Holden. Absent: None, .. Also present were City Administrator, Michelle Wolfe; City Attorney, Jerry Filla; Director of Operations & Maintenance, Thomas Moore; Finance Director/Treasurer, Murtuza Siddiqui; Community Development Director, Scott Clark; Assistant to the City Administrator, Schawn Johnson; City Planner, Peter Hellegers; and Recording Secretary, Kathleen Altman. 1. APPROVAL OF MEETING AGENDA MOTION: Councilmember Grant moved and Councilmember Holden seconded a motion to approve the meeting agenda as presented. The motion carried unanimously (4-0). 2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. October 12, 2004 City Council Meeting B. October 12, 2004 Special City Council Work Session Councilmember Holden requested the following changes: None, Council member Grant requested the following changes: October 12, 2004 Regular City Council Meeting Minutes, Page 6, third paragraph, second sentence change "decision" to "alternative". Page 6, fourth paragraph, should read: "He indicated that it was more difficult for e the residents driving on the south side to exit into traffic", Councilmember Larson requested the following changes: October 12, 2004, Regular City Council Meeting Minutes, Page 7, 19th sentence should read: "He stated the Council could not I IEarth \Admin ICouncilIMinuteslRegularl2004 110-25-04, doc ARDEN HILLS REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES OCTOBER 25, 2004 2 . base their decision on resident destinations, but the Council knew the residents crossed the bridge to use the businesses on the other side," Mayor Aplikowski requested the following changes: None, Ms. Wolfe requested the following changes: Starting time of the October 12, 2004 Special City Council Work Session be changed to 10:00 p.m. Councilmember Rem arrived at 7:05 p.m. MOTION: Councilmember Larson moved and Councilmember Holden seconded a motion to approve the October 12, 2004 City Council Meeting Minutes as amended and the October 12, 2004 Council Work Session Minutes as amended. The motion carried unanimously (5-0), 3. CONSENT CALENDAR a. Claims and Payroll b. Authorize Expenditures for Site Appraisal and Phase I Environmental Assessment at the old City Hall site . c. Approval of Utility Rate Study Resolution No, 04-58: Resolution Revising Utility Rates d. Approval of 2005-2009 year CIP MOTION: Councilmember Grant moved and Councilmember Larson seconded a motion to approve the Consent Calendar and to authorize execution of all necessary documents contained therein. The motion carried unanimously (5-0). 4. PUBLIC INOUlRIES/INFORMATIONAL Andy Holewa, 4480 Pleasant Drive, indicated he had lived in the City for 26 years. He stated his property backed up to Lexington Avenue with the side of his property along Pleasant Circle, He indicated he had six to eight 30-plus foot spruce trees, which would be destroyed when Lexington Avenue was changed, He stated he served on the Groundwater Task Force a few years ago and currently serves on the Assessment Task Force, as well as, being an election judge for the past 14 years. He thanked the Council for the work they have done, He stated there were two things hc was concerned about regarding the Lexington Avenue project The first was the left hand turn on Pleasant Circle, He stated all 120 homes in the development would need to use Amble to go north on Lexington Avenue. He noted even with the lights being e in sync it would still be a problem. He recommended allowing a left hand turn on Pleasant Circle to go north on Lexington Avenue or have a light put in on Amble. ARDEN HILLS REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES OCTOBER 25,2004 3 . He expressed concern that the Council approved a resolution in September to provide an existing pathway along Lexington Avenue be changed to a five-foot sidewalk. He indicated he used that pathway as a running path and he would not use a concrete walkway because it will be too small and too hard. He stated he also biked and would not use this pathway for biking. He noted the City had always been fiscally conservative and he applauded that, but he reminded the Council that the 2002 survey of the residents indicated that paths and trails were high on the list. He noted pathways were important and kept a community together. He stated it was not a good procedure after two or three open meetings, that the City Council made the change to a concrete pathway. He reminded the Council that it was their duty to represent all of the citizens and if there were any financial obligations to maintaining the pathway, that they look to the City of Shoreview for assistance. He urged the Council to reconsider their position on this pathway. He indicated the citizens needed to be involved, Council member Holden asked if the pathway had been brought up at the neighborhood meetings. Mr. Holewa stated the Mayor had brought this up at the end of the neighborhood meeting, He noted this had always been proposed as a pathway until September 27, Councilmember Holden asked if he was advocating for a bituminous pathway, Mr. Holewa stated he could live with a six-foot bituminous pathway, but not a five-foot concrete pathway. .. Councilmember Larson asked if they had any further information regarding the Shoreview COilllCil's position. Ms. Wolfe replied she has not received any further infonnation from the City of Shoreview. Mayor Aplikowski stated she had only heard from two residents regarding this. Mr. Holewa believed this decision came too quickly and Council was not given sufficient time to analyze this. He stated his property would have more right-of-way taken and all of the properties along Lexington Avenue would be affected, including moving of fences. He stated they needed to consider how many pathways there were from Highway 96 to 1-694, He noted there were no paths. Councilmember Larson acknowledged the Council did not have sufficient time to look at this and suggested they look at this again. He suggested they contact the City of Shoreview for their thoughts also. He stated if they did something, they needed to do it soon. Councilmember Holden stated she would be willing to change this to a bituminous pathway. Councilmember Grant stated he would be willing to reconsider this also. ~ Mayor Aplikowski directed staff to contact the County and inform them the City had changed their mind and want to look at this again. She noted she was against this reconsideration due to one Shoreview Councilmember opposing this. She stated unless they got a formal request from ARDEN HILLS REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES OCTOBER 25,2004 4 . the City of Shoreview, she would not reconsider this request. She requested staff contact the City of Shoreview regarding this, 5. PUBLIC HEARINGS None, 6. NEW BUSINESS A. GUIDANT CORPORATION - NITROGEN GENERATOR Mr. Hellegers explained the applicant had requested a Master Plan PUD (5th) Amendment to allow for installation of a nitrogen generator and a 50-foot tall storage tank for nitrogen gas, The nitrogen generator and storage tank would be located east of Building B at Guidant Corporation's campus, He stated at the Planning Commission had recommended approval of this request subject to the conditions as noted in staffs October 25, 2004 report. Councilmember Rem asked what kind of a distribution list was being used for the Planning . Commission hearing, She noted there were no residents in attendance at the Planning Commission meeting last week Mr. Hellegers replied they notified 800 residents and he only heard from one resident who had left a telephone message in opposition to the tanle Councilmember Holden asked what the other businesses did instead of having a 50-foot tower. Mr. Hellegers replied some businesses could lay them flat, or have two 25-foot towers, but in order to achieve the purity Guidant needed, a 50-foot tower was required, Councilmember Holden asked how high the surrounding buildings were. Mr. Hellegers replied the highest building was 42 feet in height. Councilmember Grant asked why the tower had to be 50-feet tall and six-feet around, Mr. Hellegers replied it was a part of the distillation process for the purity Guidant needed to achieve. Judd Brasch, RSP Architects, stated the height of the tank was directly related to the purity of the nitrogen. He noted the tank had a series of filters that were stacked within the tank and it was necessary to run the nitrogen through all of those filters to achieve purity. He indicated right now they were trucking in the nitrogen daily, Councilmember Grant inquired about the safety of this nitrogen. Mr. Brasch replied this e system took nitrogen from the atmosphere and it was not corrosive or flammable. He stated the only issue would be the pressure. He noted there was more safety issues related to the liquid nitrogen than the nitrogen gas, ARDEN HILLS REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES OCTOBER 2S, 2004 S . Councilmember Holden asked why they were upgrading at this time, Mr. Brasch replied Guidant preferred to reduce truck traffic into the site. He indicated they would only need to truck in nitrogen once a month if they built this facility, instead of trucking it in daily. MOTION: Councilmember Larson moved and Councilmember Holden seconded a motion to approve the request by Guidant Corporation for a Master Plan PUD (Sth) Amendment to allow for installation of a nitrogen generator and a SO-foot tall storage tank for nitrogen gas subject to the conditions in staffs report dated October 2S, 2004. Mayor Aplikowski asked if the noise would be contained within the campus, Mr. Hellegers replied it would add a little bit of noise, but not significant. Councilmember Holden asked what would happen if they discover this was well above the noise level. Mr. Hellegers replied if necessary they would need to do another noise study if noise became a problem and revisit it at that time, He noted the noise would not be any louder than the traffic on Interstate 694. Mr. Brasch stated Guidant was concerned about the noise issue and had actually taken a noise engineer to Boise, Idaho where another facility of this type was located and that engineer came . back and analyzed what type of noise could be expected from the Guidant Campus. He handed out to Council the ESI Engineering noise report. The motion carried unanimously (S-O). B. PARTIAL SETTLEMENT - ROCHON LEGAL DISPUTE Mr. Filla stated part of the City's claim against Rochon involves damages to the traffic signal loops at the intersection of Highway 96 and Hamline Avenue. The damages were caused by one of Rochon's subcontractors. In order to correct the problem, the City incurred expenses of $11,2S0, The insurance carrier for the subcontractor has offered to reimburse the City in return for a partial release of claims. He recommended the City accept the offer and authorize the Mayor to sign the agreement. He noted if the offer was accepted, the City would reduce its claim against Rochon by this amount and proceed with the remaining claims in the arbitration process. MOTION: Councilmember Holden moved and Councilmember Larson seconded a motion to approve the partial settlement in the amount of $11 ,2S0 and authorize the Mayor to sign the agreement. The motion carried unanimously (S-O). . ARDEN HILLS REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES OCTOBER 25, 2004 6 . 7. UNFINISHED BUSINESS A. CHESAPEAK MASTER PUD EXTENSION Mr. Hellegers eXplained the applicant had requested a one-year extension for the Master Plan PUD, He reviewed the background for the Council and indicated staff recommends approval of the requested one-year extension (to allow Chesapeake Companies to submit a Final Plan PUD no later than September 25, 2005) subject to the application continuing to abide by the thirteen (13) existing conditions of approval and adding a fourteenth condition of approval to read: "At the time of application for the Final PUD the City would reserve the right for an updated traffic study, EA W, or other supplementary documents as necessary. If there are additional development regulations that change significantly prior to the application for the Final Plan PUD, the City would reserve the right to have Chesapeake comply with those new development regulations". Councilmember Rem asked if the applicant had agreed to all of the conditions, Mr. Hellegers replied tlle only change was adding Condition 14 and the previous Conditions had been previously approved by the applicant in 2001, . Mr. Carlson, applicant, stated they had agreed to all of the conditions. Councilmember Larson asked applicant if Council had previously approved two office buildings, Mr. Carlson replied they had discussed different options previously, Councilmember Larson stated he could not remember a schematic for two tall buildings, He asked if the applicant was thinking about a schematic that involved two tall buildings, rather than one, Mr. Carlson replied the market would determine what would be built there. Councilmember Grant stated he remembered there were two plans in 2001. Mr. Carlson replied they had presented various options to Council in 2001, MOTION: Councilmember Grant moved and Councilmember Holden seconded a motion to approve a one-year extension of the Master Plan PUD subject to the fourteen conditions of approval as stated in staffs October 25, 2004 report. Councilmember Larson stated he hoped now that the applicant had the land under their control they would be more aggressive with their marketing. He indicated he would support this, but he would like to see some progress with the development '. The motion carried unanimously (5-0). ARDEN HILLS REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES OCTOBER 25,2004 7 . B. TCAAP INTERIM AGREEMENT EXTENSION Mr. Clark stated the current TCAAP Agreement between CRR, Inc. and the City expired on November 8, 2004 and since more time was needed to resolve various issues, e,g. a City policy position on economic development assistance, a six-month extension was viewed as the best mechanism to continue the current development team contractual relationship, A key premise of the Agreement is the City working on an economic development assistance policy with an understanding that some type of policy position will be arrived at before the extension's termination date in May, 2005. He reviewed the Interim Agreement for the Council. MOTION: Councilmember Larson moved and Councilmember Holden seconded a motion to approve the Interim Agreement Amendment Extension as written and its execution by the City, The motion carried unanimously (5- 0). CITY COUNCIL REPORTS Ms. Wolfe - Stated they would canvass the election results on Wednesday, November 8th, She asked if the Council had any thoughts about changing the street signs for streets with "circle" in . the name from Cr to Cir at a cost of $1,600 plus labor. Councilmember Holden stated she would like the signs to be compliant with the Post Office. Mayor Aplikowski replied she had no preference, but she would like them to be consistent Councilmember Larson stated he was comfortable with the added expense to comply with the Post Office standard. Ms. Wolfe stated there was some confusion that "Cr" could be a designation for "Court". Councilmember Rem indicated she did not have an issue with correcting the signs. Mayor Aplikowski acknowledged that they did not want to spend the money, but believed it was important there was consistency in the signs, Ms. Wolfe stated she has been doing research on a noise ordinance and noted they were tremendously difficult to enforce. She asked if staff should continue to work on this, Council member Rem suggested staff give Council a basic report as to what a noise ordinance was, what other cities in the surrounding communities were doing, and why it would or would not work . Councilmember Holden - Stated the PTRC meets tomorrow night at 7:00 p.m, at City Hall. She stated the newsletter articles were due now. She noted Northwest Youth and Family Services Harvest Event was November 6, She stated there was an electrical pole down on Beckman, She requested staffto look into this, ARDEN HILLS REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES OCTOBER 25, 2004 8 . Councilmember Grant stated he had no report Councilmember Rem - Stated at the Planning Commission meeting had discussed a possible worksessionltraining session at their last meeting, She noted the development tour was this Saturday at starting at 8:00 a.m. returning at 11 :00 a.m. Councilmember Larson stated he had no report, Mayor Aplikowski - Stated they had a bit of excitement generated by people who purchased street signs, She noted the signs would be available for pick up in the near future, Mr. Moore stated the winning bidders were sent a letter telling them of the status and they will be contacted in the near future to pick them up. He stated he believed there were signs still available and he would post the signs that were still available on the web site. Mayor Aplikowski stated that since there was not an agenda for the Planning Commission in November she suggested they use that opportunity to have a meeting with all City Committee members and have ajoint worksessionltraining session. Mayor Aplikowski requested staff send a letter of recognition to various residents within the . City who had achieved special awards. Mayor Aplikowski stated there was a School Board meeting tomorrow night, Tuesday, October 26, 2004, Mayor Aplikowski adjourned the Regular City Council Meeting at 8:36 p,m, A ",' :, d )~'li '.Lt;H-thf :aft"L i~ I G / BeVerlYAP~WSki Michelle Wolfe Mayor City Administrator NOTICE OF MEETINGS The next Council Meeting will be held Monday, November 8, 2004 at 7:00 p.m. in the Arden Hills Council Chambers. .