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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12.06.04 Council Minutes COUNCIL MINUTES REGULAR December 6, 2004 1. CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order by Acting Mayor Cordes at 7:00 p.m. 2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Acting Mayor Cordes led the audience and Council in the Pledge of Allegiance. 3. ROLL CALL Members Present: Members Absent: Also Present: Audience: Cordes, Fitch, Fogarty, Soderberg Ristow Joel Jamnik, City Attorney; David Urbia, City Administrator; Robin Roland, Finance Director; Kevin Carroll, Community Development Director; Dan Siebenaler, Police Chief; Randy Distad, Parks and Recreation Director; Lee Mann, Director of Public Works/City Engineer; Lisa Shadick, Administrative Services Director; Brenda Wendlandt, Human Resources Director; Ken Kuchera, Fire Chief; Cynthia Muller, Executive Assistant Jeff Tilden, Dave Pritzlaff, Eric Hagen, J acki Dawson, Chris Bergsrud, Breanna Dirks, Shawna Dirks, Kaitlyn Dirks, Vicky Dirks, Georgina Dirks, Bob Dirks, Curt & Jill Lund, Derek Christensen, Bryan Hegseth, Jake Hughes, Alex Carlson, Kevin Kratz, Tony Webber, Steve Wilson, Aimee Greek, Ellana Gaithune, Patricia Ayunde, Tom Herme, Pat Hansen, Bob Curtis, Gary Lawrence 4. APPROVE AGENDA Mr. Colin Garvey requested item lla) Main Street Assessment Objections be pulled for another meeting with staff. MOTION by Soderberg, second by Fitch to approve the Agenda. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. 5. ANNOUNCEMENTS a) Swearing-In of Police Officer - Administration The City Administrator sworn-in Breanna Dirks as a new police officer. Her father, a former police officer, was in attendance to pin on her badge. b) Acknowledge Retirements Fire Department - Administration Council acknowledged the service of two retiring firefighters. Mr. Bob Curtis for 31 years and Mr. Gary Lawrence for 21 years. Council Minutes (Regular) December 6, 2004 Page 2 6. CITIZEN COMMENTS Mr. Jeff Tilden, 5314 203rd Street W, requested a stop sign be placed on 203rd Street and Eastview Avenue. He has had several conversations with Councilmember Fogarty and was disappointed with her comment, that it was his neighbors doing the speeding. Mr. Tilden felt the City needed to start the process of protecting the citizens of Farmington, especially those on 203rd Street W. He requested a speed box, but it was placed before the stop sign. He did not feel that was an appropriate place, it should be placed more to the east. He did not know where the process would take him, but he will be here until there is a stop sign on that street. He knows the traffic code says a stop sign is not the way to control speed, but he knows Police Chief Siebenaler is on the record for giving the courtesy 5 mph lower speed limit. Give your neighbor a break. He challenged the City to be the first city to post all of their streets at 25 mph. Be number one, think outside of the box, break the mold, be different. Be the first City in Minnesota to go to 25 mph. He does not care what the state thinks. He cares about the people, the children, himself. He asked others in the audience what they think about the speed on 203rd Street. Mr. Derek Christensen, 5289 203rd Street, stated there is a high volume increase at the time high school students are going to and from school. They cut across from Pilot Knob Road. Many times they are going 40-45 mph. At least his kids are old enough to look before going into the street. Mr. Tilden stated there are some children that don't look. He has heard children should not be in the street, they know that. But children do go in the street. He is here to ask for Council's help to make Farmington a safer place. Let's pick someone from your family and have them hit by a car. The message would be driven home very quickly. He was here as a citizen asking Council to help him, so he does not end up in that situation. He wanted someone to tell him this is what he needs to do or this is what we are going to do for you. Ms. Aimee Greek, 5349 203rd Street W, stated her daughter who is 8 was crossing at the stop sign at 203rd Street. A teenage ran the stop sign and almost hit her. Her daughter is no longer allowed to ride her bike across the street. She has to walk her bike across so if a car comes, she can throw the bike first. There is no stop ahead sign. There needs to be something to make it safe. You should not have to live on a cul-de-sac for your kids to be able to ride a bike. Her daughter is very responsible and went to the stop sign to cross the road and still almost got hit by a car because teenagers were speeding and not paying attention. The stop sign is at English and 203rd Street. Mr. Tilden stated the stop sign helped, but did not solve the problem. A stop sign is not going to do it. It is only for the people who recognize the stop sign. He has offered to pay for the officer to sit at the bottom of the hill, he has invited the Council to his house for a barbeque and we could shoot the speed gun at people. He is determined to get something done. He wants to work with Council to accomplish that. He asked Council to tell him what he needs to do to help Council to help the people on 203rd Street. Council Minutes (Regular) December 6, 2004 Page 3 Ms. Ellana Garthune, 5321 203rd Street W, runs a daycare and has a lot of small children. If someone were to run into the street, it would be over. The cars are going way to fast. She has a fence in the backyard, but when they go in the front, she is really nervous. What if a two-year old ran into the street? It is a problem. Councilmember Cordes stated Council takes these comments and concerns seriously. Police Chief Siebenaler stated there have been previous complaints. Councilmember Cordes stated the Police department and Engineering department will review the situation and reply at the next Council meeting. A response will also be sent to the residents. Mr. Tilden stated he will buy the sign and pay for it out of his personal funds. 7. CONSENT AGENDA Councilmember Fogarty noted regarding item 7d) Set Boards and Commissions Interviews, there has been some discussion about changing how some of the boards and commissions are set up. For example, the HPC has 7 members and wondered ifit should be 5 so it is concurrent with the rest of the boards, and also changing the mix of the HRA and have two Councilmembers rather than one. She asked staff to put that discussion on the agenda for the January 3,2005 agenda. MOTION by Soderberg, second by Fitch to approve the Consent Agenda as follows: a) Approved Council Minutes (11/15/04 Regular) b) Approved Appointment Recommendation Police Department - Human Resources c) Approved Appointment Recommendation Finance - Human Resources d) Set January 15, 2005 for Boards and Commissions Interviews - Administration e) Adopted RESOLUTION R98-04 - Approving HPC Consultant Contract- Administration f) Received Information HPC 2004 Annual Report - Administration g) Approved Capital Outlay - Solid Waste h) Approved Sale of Small Garbage Truck - Parks and Recreation i) Received Information October 2004 Financial Report - Finance j) Adopted RESOLUTION R99-04 Authorizing Use of Eminent Domain Ash Street Project - Engineering k) Proposed Pedestrian Signage - Engineering I) Approved Annexation Petition! Assessment Agreement - Community Development m) Adopted RESOLUTION RI00-04 Authorizing Initiation of AUAR Process- Giles Development - Community Development n) Approved Rejecting Tanker Bids and Authorized Re-Advertisement - Fire Department 0) Approved Sale of City Equipment - Fire Department p) Approved Bills APIF, MOTION CARRIED. Council Minutes (Regular) December 6, 2004 Page 4 8. PUBLIC HEARINGS a) Truth in Taxation Hearing - Finance The City has requested a levy of$5.849 million for 2005 which is 25.8% greater than the adopted levy of 2004. This is due to the impact of deep cuts in state aid programs in 2003 and 2004 and strict levy limits in 2004. The City added one police officer in 2004, did not lay anyone off and did not cut any services. For 2005 the $1.2 million was proposed to replace the lost aid from prior years as well as to maintain the proforma in place since 1997 with a 10% increase in the levy. This puts general fund revenues at $7.12 million with 66.7% of that revenue from property taxes. In 2003,54% ofthe general fund revenue was from property taxes, and in 2004,58% was from property taxes. There is no levy limit in 2005. The City has levied the amount of money needed to provide services in the budget which includes added positions, and increased expenditures throughout the City. The proposed budget for 2005 shows a 15.6% increase in expenditures over 2004. For the third consecutive year, the City's tax base has increased by more than 20%. In 2005 all ofthe capital outlay items will be paid for with certificates of indebtedness. They will be paid off over a 5-year period by the taxpayers. The additional staffing includes 3 new patrol officers, 2 promotions to sergeant, an IT specialist, an economic development specialist, a % time building inspector, and a parks/facilities maintenance position. For 2005 there is a shift away from reliance on other revenue sources, to a reliance on tax revenues. Taxes will be paying for the services the City provides in 2005. The increase in expenditures would drop the fund balance from 32.8% at the end of2004 to 28.3%. The percentage the City would like to keep is 35%-40% for future expenditures. The property tax rate went from 41 % in 2004 to 44% in 2005. The market value ofa median value home showed a market value increase of7% from 2004 to 2005. Taxes payable increased from 2004 at $927 to 2005 at $1,065. The total tax increase of 15% was half due to the increase in market value and half due to the additional dollars the City is requesting to run City operations. The budget is growing at a rate of 10% a year and the tax base is growing at a rate of20%. If the budget increases more than the tax base increases there will be an increase in the tax rate. Mr. Patrick Hansen, 5037 Upper 182nd Street, stated he did not get a raise the last 2 or 3 years, health care has gone up double digits, and his taxes have gone up 28%. He did not hear anything about cuts in the budget, he heard increases, property increases, values increased, but he did not hear anything about cuts. He felt the City needed to do some cutting. Everyone has had to cut. Now the City is asking for more of his wages so the City can increase. He did not think this was fair, especially a 28% increase. He stated he lives in Dakota Estates, that is not the rich neighborhood and that is not new housing. There has been nothing said about cutting. You have to cut. Mr. Eric Hagen, 5890 Lower 182nd Street, stated he moved here three years ago and has seen his property taxes increase 9%, they went down .5%, and this year an overall increase of 27.5%. He worked for an airline and lost his job. The increases in numbers went from $450 to almost $700 for his taxes just for the Council Minutes (Regular) December 6, 2004 Page 5 City. He also did not hear any cuts. He understands spending money on fire, police and schools. The City went from $4.6 million to $5.8 million which is a 25% increase in the budget. His budget in his household has gone down 10% and it is going down another 25% when they have a child. He suggested the City buy their gas on wholesale, call around for insurance to find the best deals, let's save some money. He is all for more police, but noticed they have not increased fines. He has traffic speeding on his street all the time. He asked where the money is from all the permits. His neighborhood is an older neighborhood. All are retired. They have already done the work, why are they getting hit as hard as him. There is a difference between medium and median values. He wanted to know which was used and how the numbers were reached. He has been hit hard in the last three years, but has tightened his belt. The City should look for ways to decrease operating costs. He noticed the City is hiring, which is good. He is saying look at the raise base. He does not get a raise and the increase in wages for the last three years is 8%. That is less than the gross national product. It is time to tighten our belts. Instead of buying a lot ofthings, buy a little of the good items, so they last longer. If the state is cutting money, the City should do the same. Let's come up with something together. Mr. Tom Herme, 905 Larch Street, thanked Finance Director Roland for answering his questions after he attended the school district meeting. He asked some questions of Council and staff. He noticed the state disfavors the City levying the maximum tax and asked why. Finance Director Roland replied the City for 2 or 3 years levied $1 million below it's levy limit. The City was doing a fiscally responsible thing and kept spending to less than 10% a year. The City thought if they took away state aid, the City would be allowed to levy back what we had under the million dollar cap. The state took that away, so there was no excess levy. The problem with 2005, is that iflevy limits are put back in place, that will determine how much money the City can levy in the future for services for a growing community. Mr. Herme noticed permit revenue was decreasing. Finance Director Roland stated that is a conservative budgeting matter. It is better to under-estimate revenues and over-estimate expenses. This includes building permits. For the 2004 adopted budget the City's revenue estimates included 440 new housing units. It now appears we will build less than 300 housing units in 2004. Consequently, the adopted budget is far higher than we will actually receive in permit revenues for 2004. The 2005 permit revenues are based on 350 new houses. Ifwe build more houses, there will be excess revenue. Mr. Herme noted the fund balance seemed to be increasing. Finance Director Roland stated the fund balance between 2004 and 2005 is the same. There is no gain or loss. At the end of 2004 there is $2 million in reserve, but ifthe expenditures are $7 million, it is only 28% of next year's expenditures. The City has to live off that money because the City gets paid twice a year in property tax, July 1 and December 1. Mr. Herme stated there used to be market value limitations, but those are coming off, so the actual taxable amount for properties will continue to increase. Finance Director Roland replied that is correct, it is called limited market value and the state is slowly removing those limited market values over 3- Council Minutes (Regular) December 6, 2004 Page 6 4 years. Mr. Herme stated he is like a lot of taxpayers. There is a lot of growth here and you would think the wealth would be spread across a broader base, but it doesn't seem to be that way. He did not understand why they do not see some benefit of having more taxable properties. Is it being eaten up by City service costs? He has read in the newspaper about the desire to broaden the tax base and have more commercial development. He felt everyone would like to be able to buy things in Farmington. Mr. Steve Wilson, 5342 203rd Street, stated Finance Director Roland's presentation was very well done. He asked why the City needs to have the budget reserve. The average homeowner may be taken aback seeing a 15%-30% increase and then seeing a $2.8 million reserve. Finance Director Roland replied the fund balance is the City's reserve. Because the City gets paid the tax money twice a year in July and December, that money has to last for 6 months. The City makes the money last because of the reserves. The reserves are used to pay the bills. If you have 50% of annual expenditures in your reserve, that means you can fund 6 months of expenditures. You would not have to borrow any money and be able to live off of it. A few years ago the budget reserve was 42%-43%. Which meant the City could make it for 5 or 6 months without borrowing money. In 2005 it is projected that only 28% of annual expenditures will be held in reserve. There will have to be postponing of expenditures, and doing some short term borrowing. The auditors ask for a 35%-40% fund balance. Councilmember Cordes asked if the permit revenue does not come in as expected the fund balance will help offset those operational costs. Finance Director Roland stated that is correct. If the permit revenues do not match expectations, the City would have to dip into the reserves such as a household would dip into their savmgs. Mr. Patrick Hansen, asked why wasn't there any mention of cuts. He was sure there has to be somewhere to cut. Everything goes up, but 28% is a little high. He asked Council to look at the budget and do some cutting. This is out of hand. Councilmember Fogarty replied for the past three years the City has not added staff and the City has been growing at least 20% a year, which means we have the same number of patrol officers patrolling the streets. We have been cutting along the way by not hiring needed staff. We have had a budget that sat flat while the City exploded in growth. There are not a lot of fines, because the police department has to be reactive. They are responding to calls and do not have the time to do the proactive police work to generate fines. Weare hiring an economic development specialist that will help bring in commercial development for the City which will help keep the tax base solid. Weare making the hard decisions this year so we do not have to continue to raise the levy in increments. This was very hard for Council to swallow. If she did not believe in every dollar in this budget, she would not approve it. Council Minutes (Regular) December 6, 2004 Page 7 Councilmember Soderberg agreed the City has been cutting all along. Staff does look at insurance and everything they can to save. Almost all of the increase is due to new staff. The economic development specialist position will pay for itself in one year if one business comes in. He would have to ask where do we cut. The rate increase averages considerably less than the actual growth in the tax base. Councilmember Cordes stated there is no fluff in the budget. The added positions are needed and will help in the long run. It is time to increase the budget to help out. Councilmember Fitch stated it has been said that the Council does not like to spend money. They have not been able to because they have not had the money. The Council made a policy decision to increase public safety. We will be hiring three police officers. The City Administrator has made a video which is aired on cable TV to explain the budget. He is also planning for the contingencies what if certain things happen beyond our control. We have one of the lowest per capita rates of police officers to citizens. There are times we have one police officer patrolling the City which is unsafe for the citizens and the officer. There are plans to build another fire station at the north end of the City. The Council has approved putting gas tanks at the maintenance facility to buy gas in bulk. As far as fines, when there is a police department going from one call to another, it is hard to do a lot of traffic. When people call for service, people want to see a police officer come to their door. This is an important service. As far as permits, the City did not grow like it should have in 2004 and we took a hit in permit revenues. For the next budget, staff has been conservative, but we cannot continue to dip into reserves if we are going to be a viable City. The staffhas done a good job with not much to work with. He challenged anyone to look through the budget to see where we can save some money. Finance Director Roland stated after the state took away the local government aid which was $500,000, the City did not think there was anything left to take away. There is still market value homestead credit, which is the portion of the taxes the City levies and the state pays. The state could take this away in 2005 and use it to balance their budget. This amounts to $347,000 which is a third ofthe increase in the levy. If the state does that, we will not be able to hire staff and will run on a status quo budget. Everyone wants something different in a community. Someone wants parks, or cleaner streets, or more or less gravel on their alley. When Council looks at the budget, they try to balance what everyone wants. The budget process starts for staff in May and they look at every item. MOTION by Soderberg, second by Fogarty to close the public hearing. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. The adoption of the levy and final budget will occur at the December 20, 2004 Council meeting. 9. AWARD OF CONTRACT Council Minutes (Regular) December 6, 2004 Page 8 10. PETITIONS, REQUESTS AND COMMUNICATIONS a) Enterprise Fund Rate Analysis - Finance At the budget workshop, staff discussed whether sewer and refuse rates should be increased for 2005 to support the expenditures in those areas. The sewer fund shows over the last 5-6 years sewer revenues have increased every year by 10% all based on growth. Expenditures have increased from 49% to 51 %. Revenues cover expenses from 85% - 100% over the last 6 years. Staff determined revenues should be enough to cover expenditures for 2004 and 2005 and staff is not recommending an increase for 2005. The rates will be reviewed in 2006 to see the effect of the new sewer meters. Solid Waste operating rates were last changed in 1999. There are 5,000 customers in the City. Commercial rates were changed in 2002. Since 2000 operating revenues have increased by 7% each year due to household growth. The disposal charges have averaged 44% ofthe total expenditures. In 2003 the City began curbside cleanup at no charge. The proposed budget included revenue projects for 2004 and 2005 and showed increased expenditures due to the curbside cleanup program and increased disposal costs. Tipping costs have doubled between 2004 and 2005 for the same amount of tonnage. The additional cost of curbside cleanup puts a strain on the solid waste budget. If Council increased residential rates by $2.50 at each level of service, the revenue would cover half of the $100,000 shortfall in 2005. The cost of recycling is included in the fees. If Council does not increase rates, a flat fee could be imposed of $1 O/household for curbside cleanup whether they participate in curbside cleanup or not. Dick's Sanitation has proposed a change in service to go from a four-week curbside cleanup to a two-weekend drop off in the spring at the Maintenance Facility. Council agreed it was worth the $2.50 increase to be able to continue the curbside cleanup rather than having a drop off place. The Water Board recommended the metered water utility rates be increased by 7%. The rates would increase to $1.07 from $1.00 per 1000 gallons for the first 25,000 and to $1.25 from $1.16 per 1000 gallons over 25,000 gallons. The reason for the increase would be to encourage water conservation and to accumulate additional cash reserves to fund future water construction projects. Council agreed to support the increase. 11. UNFINISHED BUSINESS 12. NEWBUSINESS Council Minutes (Regular) December 6, 2004 Page 9 13. COUNCIL ROUNDTABLE Councilmember Fogarty: There was a great turnout at the Ash Street meeting and staff did a great job. There was a meeting for the master planning of the parks and staff received good ideas. She attended the Vermillion Watershed Open House and received good information. She encouraged people to check their web site. She wanted to tip her hat to the EFP AC Committee. There was an issue on the Consent Agenda having to do with annexation and it was handled very well due to good communication with the township. Regarding the open Council set, she would like to fill the position with a special election. Without a special election, the next best way is to appoint the third highest vote getter. It is the next best public opinion we can have. She had staff try to figure out a way to hold a special election with the school election, but due to various circumstances, that would not work. While the state allows themselves to fill a vacant seat in 28 days, they require cities to wait 60 days, and we cannot afford to do that. She wanted to make it clear she holds the same opinion she did two years ago. City Administrator Urbia: Staffwill be working with the newly elected Councilmembers on December 15, giving them a tour and an orientation meeting. He also provided Council with information on the Newly Elected Officials Conference. Councilmember Soderberg urged the newly elected officials to attend. Police Chief Siebenaler: Reminded everyone the annual toys for town is underway. Collections have been slow, but he is confident the City will come through. The list grows every year for people who have a need. The toy drive will culminate on December 18 and will be meeting at 8 a.m. at the Rambling River Center to wrap gifts. If anyone knows of someone in need, he urged them to contact the Police Department. 14. ADJOURN MOTION by Soderberg, second by Fogarty to adjourn at 8:51 p.m. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. Respectfully submitted, ~CX{~ /Y7--/~ v Cynthia Muller Executive Assistant