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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06-16-08-WS ~ ~HILLS Approved: July 14, 2008 CITY OF ARDEN HILLS, MINNESOTA CITY COUNCIL WORKSESSION MEETING JUNE 16,2008 5:00 P.M. - ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, Mayor Stan Harpstead called to order the City Council Work Session meeting at 5:04 p.m. Present: Mayor Stan Harpstead; Council Members Fran Holmes, Brenda Holden (arrived 5:14 p.m.) and David McClung. Absent: Council Member David Grant (excused). Also present: City Administrator Ronald J. Moorse; Assistant City Administrator Noah Simon; Public Works Director Gregory Hoag; Fire Chief Tim Boehlke; and Deputy Fire Chief Ralph Adair, from the Lake Johanna Fire Department. 1. AGENDA ITEMS A. Replacement of Ladder Truck for the Lake Johanna Fire Department Public Works Director Hoag presented the City Council with information from a past Board of Directors meeting. He stated Fire Chief Boehlke has brought preliminary information regarding a demo ladder truck that is available for purchase and fit the department's needs. Public Works Director Hoag indicated the Fire Chiefhas met with Shoreview and North Oaks. Fire Chief Boehlke thanked the Council for their time and handed out a memo from himself and Terry Schwenn, City Manager, Shoreview, summarizing the needs of the department. He indicated the truck proposed for replacement is not scheduled to be replaced until 2010. Fire Chief Boehlke stated the demo aerial ladder truck offered the department more options, carries rescue tools and has a water pump. He indicated this truck was innovative and would serve the public well. Deputy Fire Chief Adair stated the fire department has proposed several minor changes to the ladder truck but would not alter the core of the mechanics. He explained the department would gain 220 gallons of water on board this vehicle. Mayor Harpstead questioned what changes the department was proposing to make to the ladder truck and asked why the existing truck was being replaced. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION - JUNE 16, 2008 2 Fire Chief Boehlke stated the fire pump was rear mounted which freed up additional storage space and increased the on board water supply. He further explained the truck being replaced was a 1988 truck that had a 50' ladder. Deputy Chief Adair stated this truck has served its purpose but has limited compartments for rescue tools. He added that the new truck would be a first responding truck for the community. Councilmember Holden questioned what a demo truck was and if it held a warranty. Fire Chief Boehlke indicated this truck would hold a two-year warranty and that this was a show truck with roughly 30,000 road miles. He stated the current truck did not need to be replaced immediately but that the demo truck would save the City a great deal of money. Councilmember McClung expressed concern for the 30,000 miles on the chassis stating the abuse on this engine could increase the future maintenance expenses. Discussion ensued regarding the feasibility of purchasing the aerial ladder truck for the Fire Department. Mayor Harpstead questioned if EP A and NFP A standards should be considered before purchasing this truck. Fire Chief Boehlke stated the EP A standards were good for the environment and would assist in reducing pollution but the NFP A continues to come up with safer fire trucks to reduce rollovers, etc. He explained these standards continue to evolve each year and that new standards would be in place January 1,2009 and January 1,2010. Mayor Harpstead questioned what would happen to the existing 50 foot fire truck if the new aerial ladder truck is purchased. Fire Chief Boehlke stated this truck would be sold with an asking price of roughly $50,000 to $60,000. He indicated the truck was in good physical and mechanical condition. Mayor Harpstead asked if the new aerial ladder truck would fit into the existing station doors. Fire Chief Boehlke indicated the new truck would fit into the current stall as it was only three inches taller than the current truck but that it was very maneuverable with smaller outriggers when in use. He explained the new engine was far superior to the current truck and would be a first responder,. Public Works Director Hoag presented the financials provided by Finance Director Iverson. Mayor Harpstead summarized that the financials show a savings of$27,000. Councilmember Holden asked if the funds acquired from the sale of the old truck would be passed along to the City. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION - JUNE 16, 2008 3 Fire Chief Boehlke explained these funds would be retained by the fire department and placed into the general fund. He added that the department has proposed fronting some money to purchase the new aerial ladder truck from their general fund. Councilmember McClung suggested that the $50,000 gained by the sale of the old truck be used to pay down the expense of the new aerial ladder truck. Mayor Harpstead questioned if the City should be concerned that this was a first model/first unit type engine. Fire Chief Boehlke indicated he had spoken with the department's maintenance crew to see if there were any problematic concerns. He explained the box booms are the most economical, cheapest to maintain, and are simple by design. Councilmember Holden asked how future budgeted trucks would be affected by purchasing this unit two years in advance. Fire Chief Boehlke explained the capital replacement plan wouldn't change at this time but would be reevaluated as time goes on. He indicated in 2012 an additional truck was due for replacement, but an adjustment could be made based on the wear and tear of the engines. Councilmember Holden questioned if the needs assessment survey would assist the fire department in going forward with the purchase of this engine. Mayor Harpstead indicated the department needed two aerial engines, one large and one mid- sized. The only question was whether or not the proposed demo unit fit the upcoming needs of the community. Mayor Harpstead questioned how Shoreview and North Oaks responded to the new truck request. Fire Chief Boehlke indicated Shoreview approved the request unanimously and North Oaks approved it on a 4-1 vote. Mayor Harpstead asked for a consensus from the Council. Councilmember Holmes stated she was in favor of the aerial ladder truck but questioned how the financing would be handled. Fire Chief Boehlke explained the aerial ladder would be paid off over four years and that further financial infonnation would follow once approval was gained from all three cities involved. Councilmember McClung indicated he was not in support of this plan. Mayor Harpstead suggested staff move this item forward to the June 30th Council agenda for a vote. He added that he would like the response ratios solidified and that the purchase price of the truck being replaced be passed along to the cities to pay down the new truck. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION - JUNE 16, 2008 4 It was the consensus of the City Council to direct the Lake Johanna Fire Department staff to sign a letter of intent on behalf of the three cities, but that a formal decision would be made at the next Council meeting. B. Update on Ingerson Park Tree Damage Public Works Director Hoag indicated Ingerson Park suffered extensive tree damage on Saturday. He indicated 22 large trees were down with additional damage under the fallen trees. Public Works Director Hoag estimated the cost of clean up to be $7,000-10,000. He noted this was over the spending threshold for staff and would need Council approval to begin the clean up process. Mayor Harpstead stated the trees that have fallen are extremely large and have damaged neighboring property. He encouraged the Council to place this item on the next agenda for approval. Discussion ensued regarding how this expenditure would be funded. Staff noted there were funds within the forestry budget to fund the cleanup. It was the consensus of the City Council to authorize staff to spend up to $7,500 to begin cleanup with the additional funds to be approved June 23, 2008. C. Discuss Future Worksession Meeting Topics City Administrator Moorse updated the Council on future worksession meeting topics. He addressed all department heads to see when items would be ready to bring to the Council. City Administrator Moorse reviewed the tentative schedule stating there were additional topics that would still need to be plugged into the schedule. Councilmember Holden questioned if the National Guard facility plan were gOIng to be discussed this summer. City Administrator Moorse stated he would be meeting with Dave Hamemick regarding this issue and further discuss the timing of this issue to see when it could be further discussed. Mayor Harpstead asked that the TCAAP meetings be intennixed or that places be held until agenda items are set. Councilmember Holmes indicated the PTRC wanted to have a meeting with the Council to discuss trail issues. Mayor Harpstead agreed, stating a worksession was held with the Parks Committee last summer and was beneficial. Councilmember Holden expressed concern regarding the direction for each of the committees reporting to the Council and asked that this be further discussed. Mayor Harpstead suggested this be a Council/Staff retreat agenda item. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION - JUNE 16, 2008 5 Councilmember McClung questioned if administrative fines were going to be addressed with regard to rental properties. City Administrator Moorse indicated work has begun in this area and that the committee would report back to Council in July. Discussion ensued regarding the regulation of rental properties for the City of Arden Hills. Councilmember Holden asked if an additional worksession would be held to discuss the Comp Plan. City Administrator Moorse stated further discussion would be held after the Comp Plan was reviewed by neighboring cities and before it was sent off to the Met Council. Councilmember Holden suggested a discussion be held on non-profits within the City and if they could be contacted for major purchases for the City. She stated this could benefit the City greatly. 2. COUNCIL COMMENTS AND REQUESTS Public Works Director Hoag stated he was notified by his crew that a computer failed on one of the pumps at the booster station, so cost estimates are being gathered. Public Works Director Hoag recommended the computer module be replaced with a new unit along with repairing the existing unit to be used as a spare. Mayor Harpstead questioned how much the new unit would cost. Public Works Director Hoag stated the new unit was roughly $4,600 plus tax and would require two hours of programming and installation at $115 per hour. He indicated the current spending limit was $5,000 and this expenditure could be just over that limit. Councilmember Holmes asked how much it would cost to repair the existing broken unit. Public Works Director Hoag stated it was $2,100 plus tax with the two hours of programming at $115 per hour. Mayor Harpstead asked how quickly a new unit could be brought to the City. Public Works Director indicated a new unit could be here in one week and that the repair work to the spare would take 3-4 weeks. Discussion ensued regarding the spending limits of the Public Works Department. Mayor Harpstead explained he would be in favor of purchasing a new unit but would not be in favor of repairing the spare as technology may change before that equipment would be used again. Councilmember McClung added that he was not in favor of increasing the Public Works Department's spending limit because a special meeting could always be held to approve critical expenditures. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION - JUNE 16, 2008 6 It was the consensus of the City Council to direct staff to review the expenditure limits on budgeted versus non-budgeted repair items to see if this item would fit within the current spending limits. If this item does not, then staff was to bring it before Council on June 23, 2008. It was reported that Jim Perron retirement luncheon would be held June 24, 2008. Staff noted a gift certificate would be presented to Mr. Perron based on years of service and that staff was passing around an envelope as well for donations. Councilmember Holden asked for clarification on the 1&1 discussion at the past Council meeting. Staff noted they were given direction by Council to answer questions and report back monthly to the Council. Councilmember Holmes questioned if the new bridge from TCAAP to Arden Manor Homes needed to be the size suggested within the current plans. She understood the bridge was only going to be four lanes with a median. Mayor Harpstead encouraged Councilmember Holmes to contact SEH to gain further insight on the traffic study. Councilmember Holmes stated she was not prepared to vote on this item on June 30th without furtller information. She indicated she would like to see a smaller bridge in this area, reducing the impact on existing homes. ~ Work Session meeting at Ronald J. Mo se City Administrator