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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCCWS 10-18-1999 . MINUTES eITY OF ARDEN HILLS, MINNESOTA WORKSESSION MONDAY, oeTOBER 18, 1999 4:45 P.M. - eITY HALL, 4364 WEST ROUND LAKE ROAD eALL TO ORDER Pursuant to due call and notice thereof: Mayor Dennis Probst called to order the City Council Worksession at 4:45 p.m. Present were Couneilmembers Gregg Larson, Paul Malone, and Lois Rem; Interim City Administrator, Terry Post; Public Works Director, Dwayne Stafford; Parks and Recreation Director, Thomas J. Moore; Associate Planner, Nancy Randall; Building Inspector, Dave Scherbel; and Administrative Secretary, Sheila Stowell. Councilmember Beverly Aplikowski arrived at 4:50 p.m. In order to accommodate schedules, Mayor Probst rearranged several items on the agenda. MIseELLANEOUS ITEMS Parks and Reercation Department Mr. Moore provided an update on the recent park tour by the Parks and Recreation Committee . and other activities of the department. Several items of note included Mr. Moore's participation in the Ramsey County Soccer Partners Technical Advisory Committee; and Parks Maintenance employee Fred Bell's attendance at a two day seminar, and completion of testing as a certified inspector with the National Playground Safety Institute Public Works Department Mr. Stafford reported on various activities of the Public Works Department. Mr. Stafford updated the Council on several problems encountered in completing punch list items for the West Round Lake Road, Phase I Improvement Project. Mr. Stafford noted the lack of any public response to the recently published Arden I-Ells Water Quality Report. Mr. Stafford advised the Council of several unique sump pump discharge issues identified by residents and staff, which would probably require Council review in the near future, related to city-required inspection and enforcement. Mr. Stafford also advised that he had been fielding questions from residents - by phone and in pcrson - regarding the sump pump discharge requirements, and that informational inserts would be included in the third quarter utility billing being processed at this time. Mr. Stafford advised Couneilmembers of a cooperative effort by Public Works Directors from . several surrounding communities, in an effort to increase coordination this winter regarding scheduling for snow plowing and sanding efforts. . ARDEN HILLS eITY eOUNeIL WORKSESSION - oeTOBER 18, 1999 2 Mr. Stafford stated that it was anticipated that several staff members would be available at City Hall and the maintenance facility on the evening of December 31,1999 to provide coverage in the event of any Y2K problems. eode Enforeement Update Mr. Scherbel and Ms. Randall updated the City Council on various outstanding code enforcement issues. Mr. Scherbel stated that the Vaughan tower safety issues were being addressed; that staff and City Attorney Filla had noted that when the Special Use Permit (SUP) was approved, agricultural use of land within the Gateway Business District was allowed; and that Mr. Scherbel would be meeting with an engineer regarding the safety issues. Mr. Seherbel also reported on the citation issued to Perkins Restaurant by the Lake Johanna Volunteer Fire Department's Fire Inspector regarding his concerns on code enforcement issues. Ms. Randall provided a database report on the status of several code enforcement issues, and discussed more details regarding the Ryder Student Transportation Special Use Permit (SUP) . items. Ms. Randall reported that the property owner was cooperating on the issues, with staff allowing an extension for landscaping items until the spring of 2000. Discussion took place regarding the City adopting a housing maintenance ordinance. Mr. Scherbel stated that the Uniform Building Code (UBC) does not address housing maintenance unless the building is structurally unsound. Councilmember Aplikowski provided staff with a copy of a 1993/94 housing study completed by the City of New Brighton to refer to the City's Operations and Finance Committee for review. Mr. Scherbel expressed a concern regarding residential homes being retrofitted into dormitories. Mr. Scherbel stated that, given the colleges in our community, the City might wish to specifically address that issue in future code requirements. Mr. Seherbel used a home on Noble Road as an example, stating that square footage requirements for each person and for sleeping quarters, as well as green space/lot covering requirements, were two items that should be incorporated into any future ordinance dealing with this housing issue. Staff was directed to provide the City Council with a copy of the International Property Maintenance Code (IPMC) for their review, and the Council will determine if it would be more appropriate for the Planning Commission, or Operations and Finance Conunittee, to review the matter before Council action. . . ARDEN HILLS eITY eOUNeIL WORKSESSION - oeTOBER 18, 1999 3 Mr. Post stated that he and Mr. Scherbel would be meeting with the I-35W Corridor Coalition on October 27th regarding this issue and the outcome may be that each Coalition city adopt their own ordinance, with a similar format but with community-specific language. RAMSEY eOUNTY PARKS DEPARTMENT, TONY SeHMIDT PARK IMPROVEMENTS Mr. Larry Holmberg, representing Ramsey County Parks Department, was present to review various aspects of the Architectural package for building construction (i.e., beach building; gazebo; restrooms; and two picnic pavilions) at Lake Johanna's Tony Schmidt Park. Mr. Holmberg stated that the City's Parks and Recreation Director, Mr. Moore, had served on the Ramsey County Architectural Selection Committee, and in September of 1999, the County Board had approvcd the selection of the architectural firm of Hagen, Christenscn & McIlwain. Mr. Holmberg introduced Mr. Tim McIlwain, who presented the overall concept plan for the park, with three styles of architectural design for Council consideration. It was the consensus of Councilmembers that they preferred the "Prairie" design style to the . other "Classical" and "Cottage" alternatives. Mr. Holmberg stated that the play areas would be built as part of the next phase, and would be incorporated with the building site plans. Councilmembers requested more detailed schematics be presented at their December Worksession, scheduled on December 20, 1999. MISeELLANEOUS ITEMS, eONTINUED eounciI Vaeancv, Appointment Proeess Mayor Probst and Mr. Post reviewed the process for filling the upcoming Council vacancy with Councilmember Malone's resignation effective November 30, 1999. Staff was directed to prepare a resolution for the October 25, 1999 City Council meeting declaring a Council vacancy, and initiating the process. The preferred timeline established by the Council was as follows: . October 25, 1999 Declare Council Vacancy . November 3,1999 Publish Notice in Otlieial Newspaper . November 10, 1999 Publish Notice in Official Newspaper . . November 22, 1999 Cut-off Date for Application Process . ARDEN HILLS eITY eOUNeIL WORKSESSION - oeTOBER 18, ] 999 4 . November 29, 1999 City Council decides on Interview/Appointment . December 6, 1999 Council Interviews (If Determined Necessary) . December 13, 1999 - Formal Council Appointment Hil!hwavs 10/96 Discussion Mr. Post requested the Council revisit the status of the Highways 10/96 pending improvement projects with Ramsey County and the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT). Ramsey County has contacted staff several times regarding the City of Arden Hills endorsing one of the plans as previously presented by Ramsey County. Mr. Post sought direction from the City Council on this matter. Mayor Probst reviewed the various options available to the City Council, consisting of: . No changes in design, with all access points remaining "as is;" . Endorse the design option that was originally brought forward, providing as many movements as possible; . Endorse the option that eliminates many of the existing movements and access points; . Endorse the MnDOT option providing future TCAAP service and a frontage road on . the west side of Highway 10. Discussion items included, impacts to local residents in the mobile home park and along Highway 10, as well as business owners along North Highway 10; consideration of a "folded diamond" design option; Jersey barriers; greater utilization of median space, bridge construction; and the possibility of seeking the input of a former MnDOT Engineer living in the community. Mayor Probst expressed his concern regarding the lack of cooperation being received from MnDOT with them only willing to uphold "design standards," with no further consideration apparently being given to achieving a viable solution to those needs of the Arden Hills community, as well as regional transportation problems. Arden Hills Resident, Becky Olson, of 4647 Highway 10, was in attendancc at the meeting and spoke representing her neighborhood. Mayor Probst asked for Ms. Olson's opinion of the residents' wishes; with Ms. Olson responding that, with the exception of one eldcrly resident, the homeowners were looking forward to moving. Further discussion included the need to verify who would be responsible for right-of-way acquisition costs. . . ARDEN HILLS eITY eOUNeIL WORKSESSION - oeTOBER 18, 1999 5 Mayor Probst stated that the newly hired City Administrator, Joe Lynch, has a good working relationship with MnDOT as a result ofthe proposed construction ofI-394 through the City of Long Lake. Staff was directed to provide Council, at the November 15, 1999 Worksession, copies of the various design diagram options that have been considered. Following that meeting, and upon reaching a Council consensus of the specific design that would be best for the City, an informational meeting would be scheduled in December or January with affected residents, at which Ramsey County and MnDOT would also be invited to attend. Water Main Petition City Engineer Brown had been provided with the original plans and specifications when the water main extension project for the residences along Old Highway 10 had previously been considered. In reviewing those documents, and in using those specifications, Mr. Brown estimated that the total cost of the project would be approximately $125 - $130,000, or $40 - $50 per linear foot, exclusive of the connection fees for each resident. One of the larger items driving the cost estimate was rebuilding approximately eighteen (18) driveways. . Staff was directed to notify residents, on a preliminary basis, of the figure, based on the City's Assessment Policy (100% Assessable to the property); and determine if petitioning residents are interested in pursuing the improvement, given the costs involved. Councilmember Larson requested that the informational letter to residents reference the City's Assessment Policy and note that if privately developed property, the developer would be responsible for the entire improvement cost, and also reminding residents of the connection fees over and above the assessment costs. Mayor Probst left the meeting at 7:15 p.m., and turned the gavel over to Acting Mayor Beverly Aplikowski. St. Paul Water Utility Distribution Services Diseussion Mr. Stafford briefed the City Council on the array of distribution services the St. Paul Water Utility is proposing to provide the City of Arden Hills, including taking over ownership of the City's water infrastructure assets. Mr. Stafford suggested looking at select services proposed by the Water Utility as a test of a potential cooperative relationship, such as water main break repairs; water leak location and detection; water tower inspection; pump and electrical equipment maintenance; bacteria testing; billing and/or meter reading. . . ARDEN HILLS eITY eOUNCIL WORKSESSION - oeTOBER 18, 1999 6 Mr. Post reviewed the recent meeting he and Dwayne attended with Mr. Bullert of the St. Paul Water Utility. Discussion items included Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant (TCAAP) infrastructure; potential staff reductions if outsourcing were considered; miscellaneous pending maintenance items; potential operational and administrative cost savings; recognition of the value of the new radio read system; and the estimated manpower hours for quarterly utility billing. Staff was directed to utilize several services on a test basis, preferably those currently outsourced, and seek Council authorization by resolution to pursue a contractual relationship with the St. Paul Water Utility for the provision of such selected services. eitv Hall Land Transfer Update Mr. Post provided Councilmembers with a draft of the proposed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to be considered in the conveyance of the acreage for the proposed new City Hall. The City's consultant, Impact Planning, had prepared the draft. Mr. Post noted that, in his conversations with Mr. Fix of TCAAP, that Mr. Fix had expressed . concerns that while the authorization bill was signed, there were no related appropriation dollars. It was Mr. Fix's contention that, until funding is provided, the Department of Army would have difficulty implementing the authorization bill. Mr. Fix, however, did seem amenable to the process as drafted by Impact Planning, with the process recognizing inputs by the City to facilitate a shorter timetable. Staff was directed to include the Memorandum of Understanding on the October 25,1999 Council Agenda for action. Mr. Post also noted his conversations with Mr. Fix regarding the immediate relocation of the fence, to facility necessary site work once the paperwork process had been completed. It is the position of the Department of Army that the perimeter fence not be moved until the City has fee title. Mr. Post will continue pursuing having a secondary fence in place, immediately south of the access road, on the proposed property line prior to fee title being acquired. Draft Year 2000 eitv eouncil Meetinl!/Planninl! eommission Dates With the addition of one holiday in July, the draft Year 2000 calendar was preliminarily approved by consensus of the Council and staff was directed to include it on the October 25, 1999 Council Agenda for formal action. Mr. Post was directed to ask City Attorney Filla again regarding Columbus Day as a holiday . with no meetings allowed and how that affects the City's October meeting schedule. . ARDEN HILLS eITY eOUNeIL WORKSESSION - oeTOBER 18, 1999 7 Anita Larson Resil!nation Councilmembers discussed the recent resignation of Parks and Recreation Committee member Anita Larson, and opinions expressed by other committee members regarding various park Issues. Councilmembers expressed concerns regarding misinterpretation by former committee members of Council actions and requests. Council Liaisons were asked to express to committee chairpersons and members that the Council and/or staff needed to be made aware of potential committee concerns so they could be addressed immediately. County Road I. Shoreview WisP ark Proiect Mr. Stafford requested clarification from Councilmembers regarding the request from Ramsey County to allow their contractor for the Rice Creek bridge project to work on Sundays to facilitate the project. It was the consensus of Councilmembers present to notify Ramsey County of the City's cooperation. Mr. Post noted that he would be pursuing additional discussion with the City of Shoreview, . Ramsey County, and MnDOT regarding the Schutta Road intersection as part of the County Road I year 2000 improvement. Miseellaneous Administrative Items Mr. Post reported the status of several items including, working with the City of Roseville on pursuing a joint grant for water quality studies; pursuing, along with Ms. Randall, those outstanding items for the City's Comprehensive Plan Update; concerns regarding staff becoming aware of several easements issued by the Rice Creek Watershed District (RCWD) that the City had not been made aware of and the extent of this practice by RCWD; and finalization of the agreement with new City Administrator Joe Lynch, with formal action coming before the Council on October 25th, with Mr. Lynch starting on November 10th ADJOURN MOTION: Councilmember Rem moved and Councilmember Larson seconded a motion to adjourn the meeting at 8:05 p.m. The motion carried unanimously (4-0). .