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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-09-09-TCAAP WS ,-,-AP%,,,DEN HILLS APPROVED: December 14, 2009 CITY OF ARDEN HILLS, MINNESOTA CITY COUNCIL TCAAP WORK SESSION MEETING NOVEMBER 9, 2009 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 TCAAP Work Session meeting at 5:05 p.m. Present: Mayor Stan Harpstead, Council Member David Grant (arrived at 5:10 p.m.), Council Member Brenda Holden (arrived at 5:06 p.m.), Council Member Fran Holmes, Council Member Dave McClung. Absent: City Attorney, Jerry Filla Also present: City Administrator, Ron Moorse, Community Development Director James Lehnhoff, Finance Director Sue Iverson APPROVAL OF AGENDA Councilmember Holmes questioned if the Council could discuss the TCAAP Conference Call and Ramsey County Plan as Item 1 D. MOTION: Councilmember Holmes moved and Councilmember McClung seconded a motion to approve the meeting agenda as amended above. The motion carried unanimously (3-0). 1. AGENDA ITEMS A. Embrace Open Space Presentation City Administrator Moorse indicated that Mark Schiffman and Jenna Fletcher, representing Embrace Open Space would be presenting the Council with ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL TCAAP WORK SESSION-NOVEMBER 9.2009 2 A. Embrace Open Space Presentation (continued) information regarding a study that has been done on how open space affects land values. Mark Schiffman introduced himself along with his organization to the Council. He passed out a copy of his presentation to the Council and explained how open space was becoming a valuable commodity in the metro area. Mr. Schiffman indicated there was 255,000 acres of high quality natural land in the metro area with 32% being protected. He noted the metro area was continuing to grow rapidly which would have an impact on Arden Hills. Mr. Schiffman stated that as the City reviews its comprehensive plan the Council should consider open space planning. He explained the value of open space will continue to rise as the population and density within the metro area increases. Mr. Schiffman presented information for Hennepin County and how property values are affected by open spaces. He noted that 81% of properties that sold benefitted from an open space value increase, similar to the rise inproperty value of lakeshore homes. Councilmember Grant questioned if homes adjacent to golf courses had increased land values. Mr. Schiffman stated golf courses were considered open spaces and that these property owners did see an increase in their land value. He further reviewed the information and asked for questions or comments from the Council. Councilmember Holden questioned if a formal study would be completed on Ramsey County. Mr. Schiffman explained that a study was not being done but that the same property value increases would be found as the more urban the higher the property value near open spaces. - Mayor Harpstead asked how communities get access to a document of best practices. Mr. Schiffman stated there were many organizations doing best practices that are trying to take a look at different pieces of embracing open space. He reviewed several websites that could provide resources as well ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL TCAAP WORK SESSION-NOVEMBER 9, 2009 3 A. Embrace Open Space Presentation (continued) Mayor Harpstead questioned if the property values were increased in multi-family residential similar to single family properties. Jenna Fletcher, Embrace Open Space stated this was the case. She indicated more research was being completed on this but that higher density living did require open space, which was creating a higher property value. City Administrator Moorse indicated a large portion of Arden Hills was developed and that the Council has discussed creating more trail connections and questioned if the study found this was a benefit. Ms. Fletcher noted that trails were included in the definition of open space when they meet the size requirement and were seen as an asset to open space. Mr. Schiffman thanked the Council for their time and left his contact information if any additional comments or questions were to arise. B. Draft TCAAP Reuse Statement City Administrator Moorse presented the City Council with information on the Draft TCAAP Reuse Statement. He indicated the TCAAP bidder's conference was going to be held on November 1 gth City Administrator Moorse explained the City would need to provide an indication to potential developers about what the expectations of the City were for the reuse of the property. He noted staff has drafted a Reuse Statement, which lays out the general expectations of the City, providing a general overview and becomes more specific with reuse expectations and considerations. City Administrator Moorse further reviewed the draft statement and asked for comments or questions from the Council. Mayor Harpstead suggested the approximate acreage of each land use category be provided within the document. Councilmember Holden asked for the definition of design standards. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL TCAAP WORK SESSION-NOVEMBER 9, 2009 4 B. Draft TCAAP Reuse Statement (continued) Community Development Director Lehnhoff stated that design standards include such topics as building materials, landscaping, lot lay-out, and lighting. Councilmember Holmes stated the use of the word "clean" was a bit vague when referring to the redevelopment on TCAAP. She suggested this language be "remediation." Mayor Harpstead indicated the statement regarding remediation could be turned around to indicate the development must meet all of the requirements of the regulatory authorities, while tying it to the approval process for the use of the land. Councilmember McClung and Councilmember Holmes were in favor of this suggestion. Councilmember Holden questioned if financial assurances were tied to the cleanup and if this should be greater defined, whether these assurances come from the County or the state. Mayor Harpstead suggested the word assurances be changed to commitments. Councilmember Holden questioned if "big boxes" were going to be allowed on the TCAAP site. Community Development Director Lehnhoff indicated this could be determined by the Council at a later date as it would be decided later in the design standard phase. Discussion ensued regarding further language changes to the draft TCAAP Reuse Statement. Councilmember Holden expressed concern regarding park dedication and how the land would be dedicated or paid to the City. Mayor Harpstead indicated this section could read, may require designated park land, park land dedication and/or park dedication fees. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL TCAAP WORK SESSION-NOVEMBER 9,2009 5 B. Draft TCAAP Reuse Statement (continued) Councilmember Grant suggested the Council come to an agreement on the amount of land that should be set aside for park dedication. He indicated this would provide for a uniform answer if the item were to be discussed at the bidder's conference. After discussion on this ensued, the Council decided to defer establishing a land amount until a future date. Councilmember Holden asked that the language stating the City may require a path on the eastern border of the property be struck from the document as this was not within the Comprehensive Plan. Mayor Harpstead indicated he liked the phrase "trail corridor" and asked that the word connection be changed to read trail corridor as it implies there is more than just a sidewalk or roadway. Councilmember McClung indicated the Council was supportive of the first portion of the statement but that the location of the corridor was yet to be determined. Councilmember Holmes questioned if the City's current landscaping and tree ordinance would apply to the redevelopment of this site. Community Development Director Lehnhoff indicated this Ordinance would be applicable, unless outlined differently within the design standards. Mayor Harpstead suggested this language read that the City has landscaping and tree ordinances in place and will expect substantial landscaping and trees. Further discussion ensued regarding the potential commercial development on the site. Councilmember Holden indicated she was not in favor of big box development on the site. Councilmember McClung noted prior Council had strong opinions on big box development and stated he was hoping for less than big box development on the site as well. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL TCAAP WORK SESSION-NOVEMBER 9, 2009 6 B. Draft TCAAP Reuse Statement (continued) Councilmember Holmes explained she did not have a problem with big box development as it would draw people into the site. Councilmember McClung agreed this would be a draw and refined his statement to state he did not want to see row after row after row of big box. He indicated he maybe in favor of one or two big box stores. Councilmember Grant explained the problem with big box was they were not all the same. Community Development Director Lehnhoff indicated even if the Council did not all agree on big box at this time, there was some agreement in regulating the number of big boxes, which would come down to the design of the commercial area. City Administrator Moorse noted the scale of the commercial area could be kept to a local scale with one Target, and smaller, neighborhood sized shops that are walk-able. Councilmember Grant indicated it would be great to create awalk-able area and that this would hinge on the design. Councilmember Holden expressed concern about a large number of neighborhood shops as this has not been successful in St. Anthony. She did not want to see the space go unused and remain empty. Councilmember Holmes indicated the City could recruit certain retail establishments that would benefit the residents in the area. She suggested the retail allowed in this area should be high-end retail that would be sustainable. Mayor Harpstead stated this was a good idea and added that the City could be proactive in seeking cohesive retail developments. He suggested the language read, the City will seek to establish cohesive retail groupings to enhance long term sustainability. Councilmember Holden indicated that if there was going to be a bridge to the Rice Creek West, that it follows the County guidelines. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL TCAAP WORK SESSION-NOVEMBER 9 2009 7 B. Draft TCAAP Reuse Statement (continued) Mayor Harpstead suggested the Rice Creek Watershed section read, other connections through public lands must meet the criteria of the appropriate public entity. Councilmember Holden asked if the Council should address the expense of 6 lighting in this document. Community Development Director Lehnhoff indicated this could be addressed at a later date. Mayor Harpstead questioned if the Council would like to vote on the document at tonight's meeting or have it revised and returned for further comment. Councilmember Holmes suggested that a special Council meeting be held next Monday to approve this document, after it is revised with tonight's comments. The Council was in favor of this suggestion. Community Development Director Lehnhoff explained that any further comments or questions from the Council could be brought to him prior to the special meeting. C. TCAAP Reimbursable Expenses City Administrator Moorse indicated he has had several conversations with Eric Anderson, with RLLD in an effort to reach resolution regarding the TCAAP reimbursables. He asked Mr. Anderson what the bottom line was at this time and Eric had a conversation with Rick Collins. At this point, the number is up around $120,000, with some flexibility. Councilmember Holden indicated she had lunch with Rick Collins where this was discussed and his analysis was that the City was over budget by $75,000. She explained that they were willing to go to mediation to have the matter settled, with the City providing a number, to try and have this issue resolved. Mayor Harpstead asked for staff to review the mediation process. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL TCAAP WORK SESSION-NOVEMBER 9 2009 8 C. TCAAP Reimbursable Expenses (continued) City Administrator Moorse indicated that if no agreement were made, Ryan agreed to an eight hour mediation process. Prior to that would be a time of discovery, for both parties. Councilmember Holmes explained everything was well documented and that the discovery period should be quick. Mayor Harpstead questioned how the Council would like to proceed and if they were in favor of mediation. He stated it appears the City would be moving forward with mediation to resolve the financial issues at hand. Mayor Harpstead suggested the City abide by the initial PDA contract at one million dollars. Councilmember Holmes agreed with this comment. Councilmember McClung felt this was the only real option at this point. Councilmember Grant indicated that mediation was the route to take. Councilmember Holden stated Ryan is looking to go into the bidders' conference and wants the issues resolved. She asked if the Council was willing to go above the $75,000 mark. The Council was not in favor of going above or beyond the $75,000 mark. Councilmember Holmes questioned if Jerry Filla or Steve Bubel would be used to resolve the issue. City Administrator Moorse noted that Jerry Filla would represent the City on this issue. He indicated the City would need to select a mediator and that he would speak with Jerry about this in order to schedule the mediation procedure. Mayor Harpstead requested that staff present the Council with a mediation schedule in the next admin update. Councilmember Holden reiterated the fact that the mediation expenses would be split jointly between both parties. The Council agreed as this was established within previous documents. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL TCAAP WORK SESSION-NOVEMBER 9, 2009 9 D. TCAAP Conference Call and Ramsey County Plan Councilmember Holmes stated she would like more detail on the TCAAP conference call along with the Greg Mack email from Ramsey County. City Administrator Moorse reviewed the information discussed on the conference call. He noted an email was being sent by the GSA to all developers in the Twin Cities metro area regarding the public sale to remind them of the bidders' conference, and the GSA would also be putting out a press release. City Administrator Moorse indicated a stenographer would be present at the bidder's conference to report the happenings at the event, which will be summarized after the meeting and provided to all organizations present. He indicated a "for sale" sign would be posted at the intersection of CR96/TH 10. City Administrator Moorse noted that at the bidder's conference there would be a fact sheet provided by the City with information and expectations for the site and that this would be presented by the City. Councilmember Holmes questioned if the leasing issues were discussed. City Administrator Moorse explained the GSA is now planning to use a license and not a lease, to clean up the property, which has been done in Denver, Colorado. The City requested a copy of this license to allow for review of the documents. Councilmember Grant suggested that the municipality in Colorado be contacted to provide the City with comments on the licensing situation. Mayor Harpstead asked if the GSA has provided the City with information on past leases. Community Development Director Lehnhoff stated they have not, but that they were providing information about the licensing. Councilmember Holden suggested that Mike Comadeca be contacted to review the differences between the lease and the license. City Administrator Moorse stated this would be the next step after asking questions from Kevin Legare and then with Carmen Netton. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL TCAAP WORK SESSION-NOVEMBER 9. 2009 10 D. TCAAP Conference Call and Ramsey County Plan (continued) Councilmember Holden stated she did not want to see the City's time and resources wasted if Mike Comadeca were brought in on this. Mayor Harpstead questioned if staff knew when to expect the documentation from the GSA. City Administrator Moorse stated. Mike could be contacted tomorrow and provided an update on the conference call He could then speak with Carmen and get her feel on the license option. Mayor Harpstead indicated he would be interested to know the schedule that staff was following at this time and when the GSA would be providing additional information. Councilmember McClung added that he wanted to see the details. Mayor Harpstead suggested staff follow up with Kevin Legare and ask for a schedule on when the details would be provided to the City. City Administrator Moorse noted that Ramsey County and the National Guard have developed a proposal that relates to the Primer/Tracer area. He indicated the far western portion of the Primer/Tracer area would be transferred to the County and the rest would be retained by the Army but leased to the National Guard under the County's concept. City Administrator Moorse indicated a 500 foot corridor would provide access for a road or trail from County Road I down through the Primer/Tracer area and that would be owned by the County. He explained this information was passed along to Kevin Legare and the Army for their review. At this point in time, the Army was not in favor of holding onto the land. Mayor Harpstead questioned if this item would come up at the TCAAP work session later this month as it would require additional discussion. City Administrator Moorse noted this could be brought up at that time along with land use control on November 30tn The Council was in favor of this suggestion. ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL TCAAP WORK SESSION-NOVEMBER 9 2009 11 2. COUNCIL COMMENTS AND REQUESTS Councilmember Grant questioned what Walgreens was doing at this time. Community Development Director Lehnhoff indicated they were working through contract details at this time. Mayor Harpstead adjourned the City Council TCAAP Work Session meeting at 6:52 p.m. r a tan Ha ste Ronald J. orse Mayor i�y,.Administrator