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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05.17.04 Council Minutes COUNCIL MINUTES REGULAR May 17, 2004 1. CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order by Mayor Ristow at 7:00 p.m. 2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Mayor Ristow led the audience and Council in the Pledge of Allegiance. 3. ROLL CALL Members Present: Members Absent: Also Present: Audience: Ristow, Cordes, Fitch, Soderberg Fogarty 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; Lisa Shadick, Administrative Services Director; Brenda Wendlandt, Human Resources Director; Jim Atkinson, Assistant City Planner; Tim Gross, Assistant City Engineer; Cynthia Muller, Executive Assistant Thomas Yauch, Lisa Zarza, Jon Einess, David McKnight, Aaron Humerickhouse, Phillip and Louise Pote, Michael Shaff, Pam Elvestad 4. APPROVE AGENDA Councilmember Soderberg pulled item 7a) Council Minutes to abstain. MOTION by Cordes, second by Fitch to approve the Agenda. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. 5. ANNOUNCEMENTS 6. CITIZEN COMMENTS Ms. Pam Elvestad, 3200 200th Street W, representing Farmington Lanes, spoke regarding the sewer project in the Main Street area. The road work began in April between Pine and Willow Street which is directly in front oftheir business. The construction project spans their parking lot, making access difficult and some days impossible. Some of the problems the customers have encountered include signs reading Road Closed to Thru Traffic on every road leading to the business. This has discouraged customers. People have called asking if they are open and how do they get there. Some customers are parking on Willow Street. There is no walking access. At many times the road is impassible and deeply rutted. An employee had to have her car repaired due to a part being torn off. There are no lights. Kids ride their bikes and it is not safe. The vendors have to park on Willow. If they did not have access through Peerless Plastic's sidewalk, they would not be able to get in. A lot of the bowlers have large bags that weigh 100 Ibs Council Minutes (Regular) May.Mf, 2004 Page 2" that they cannot carry. The garbage haulers are also having a hard time accessing the business. A lot ofthe older people have said they cannot come back until they can reach the bowling alley, as they cannot walk that far. The homeowner on the corner of 5th and Willow has been complaining because people are walking through their lawn because there is no sidewalk. There is also a hole in the middle of the road with orange fencing. She witnessed someone 4-wheeling in there yesterday with no helmets and twice it looked like they were going to flip over. They were gone by the time she went to call the police. It is a real hazard in the dark. On Friday, the sewer was plugged and the floor drain in the bar would not drain. The hole in the middle ofthe road was filling with water for the second time. They have not been provided with a phone number for after hours. They called the police to alert someone to the problem. It would have been a huge problem if the water had continued to run into the hole all weekend without the contractor's being there. They feel they have helped the city and the contractor by notifying them. Since the project started their revenues are down considerably due to inaccessibility. At the rate things are going they will have a difficult time keeping their doors open. Wages are exceeding revenues. Management does not want to lose good employees by cutting hours because there is so little business. A lot ofthe employees are depending on tips as part oftheir wages. They have considered closing early or reducing their hours but are fearful of the ramifications. Each day they are losing more customers. This encompasses all aspects of the business - bowling, a bar, and a restaurant. They have been in business for 17 years with the same owners and struggled for many of those years. This is the only bowling alley in Farmington and they want to keep it open for the community. They feel this project is not going well and feel they deserve better service. The contractor has been dragging their feet. The construction equipment was moved in in late April. The road construction was begun in early April and there seems to be no end in sight. Rain has delayed the project, but it seems like there has been some negligence by the contractor. They have left the project several times and there was water rushing into the hole. They should not leave the project without making sure everything is working properly. They feel they have saved the city a lot of money by alerting them to the problems. The owners would like to know when they can expect reasonable walking and driving access. If there is a deadline on the project, why is the contractor not working on the weekends. The owners would like to know if there is some compensation on the part ofthe city or the contractor due to what they feel is poor management on the part of the contractor. The owners would also like to have addressed angle parking in front of the bowling alley on the east side of 5th Street and no parking on the west side. This should make up for the loss of parking due to the design of the entrance to the bowling alley. It would take up less space in the street than the parallel parking. Kemps has a difficult time with trucks coming in and out with customers parking on the road. Mayor Ristow replied Engineering will review the situation and respond in two weeks. Mayor Ristow stated he was sorry, but construction does take its toll on things and the city tries to accommodate the businesses. Council Minutes (Regular) May lf72004 Page 3 7. CONSENT AGENDA MOTION by Cordes, second by Fitch approving Council Minutes (5/3/04 Regular) (5/3/04 Special). Voting for: Ristow, Cordes, Fitch. Abstain: Soderberg. MOTION CARRIED. MOTION by Soderberg, second by Cordes to approve the Consent Agenda as follows: b) Received Information Parks and Recreation Commission Minutes - Parks and Recreation c) Adopted RESOLUTION R38-04 - Accepting Donation - Police d) Set May 24, 2004 Council Workshop - Administration e) Received Information Capital Outlay - Parks and Recreation f) Approved Bills APIF, MOTION CARRIED. 8. PUBLIC HEARINGS a) Farmington Gateway Shopping Center PUD Agreement - Community Development Mr. Jon Einess has requested approval of a Final PUD Agreement to construct a commercial facility at the southeast corner of I 83rd Street and Pilot Knob Road. The building will be 9600 sq. ft. with parking around the perimeter of the lot. The Planning Commission recommended approval with two modifications: 1. The pylon sign be located 10 feet from the Pilot Knob Road right-of-way easement. 2. Add a third handicap parking space. There is one change in the agreement under 5c. deleting the last sentence referencing an 8 foot setback for a parking lot. The developer is proposing a 10 foot setback which meets the code. MOTION by Soderberg, second by Fitch to close the public hearing. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. MOTION by Soderberg, second by Cordes approving the Planned Unit Development Agreement for the Farmington Gateway Shopping Center located on Lot 1, Block I, Dakota County Estates 9th Addition with the above modifications. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. 9. AWARD OF CONTRACT 10. PETITIONS, REQUESTS AND COMMUNICATIONS a) Adopt Resolution- CSAH 70 Redesignation - Engineering Dakota County would like to reassign some County State Aid Highway mileage from County Road 70, which is not yet constructed, and transfer the mileage to County Road 50 just west of Cedar Avenue. The County will be able to accumulate more funds with the redesignation on County Road 50 than they would on County Road 70. The money can be used for any County State Aid Highway project in Dakota County. This has no impact on Farmington's State Aid money. MOTION by Fitch, second by Cordes adopting RESOLUTION Council Minutes (Regular) May M: 2004 Page 417 R39-04 approving the revocation of County State Aid Status for County State Aid Highway 70 within the City limits of Farmington. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. b) April 2004 Financial Report - Finance The revenues reflect 11.56% of general fund revenues. The majority of revenues are received in July and December from property taxes. Those numbers are not reflected at this point. The rest of the numbers are a bit lower than 33.33% of the year complete. The sale ofthe two properties in the Industrial Park are reflected in the HRA Operating Fund. The enterprise funds are consistent with other years. In expenditures, a couple departments are over in expenses. The Finance Department is at 34.6% due to up front costs for the software system purchased in a lump sum. The insurance premiums are also reflected in a lump sum. Police is slightly higher. Staff is monitoring overtime and comp time and this will be discussed at the June 9 budget workshop. GIS is higher due to training for the year. 11. UNFINISHED BUSINESS 12. NEW BUSINESS a) Traffic Safety 20Sth Street and Akin Road - Council (Supplemental) There have been 9 crashes at this intersection in the last 18 months. Three of them could have been prevented with a traffic control device. The criteria for control warrants are crashes, traffic volumes, and sight distance. The Traffic Engineer indicated crash experience alone did not warrant the installation of a traffic control device. The traffic volumes detected during the last traffic analysis did not meet warrants. However, based on more recent observations he believes that traffic volumes may now be approaching a level that deserve a closer analysis and could meet warrants. The past agreement regarding speed has been reviewed by the City Attorney and he did not see anything that would not allow a traffic control at this intersection. Staff presented several options to Council: 1. Traffic study 2. Permanent signal light - cost of$140,000 to $150,000 3. Temporary signal lighting - cost of $60,000 to $80,000 4. Personnel directing traffic during peak times. Staff did not recommend the use of a police officer due to overtime issues. 5. Permanent Stop Signs on Akin Road for north/south bound traffic. The Traffic Engineer was concerned that homes with driveway access onto Akin Road may have difficulty getting out, at times traffic is slower and stop signs would not be necessary. 6. Temporary Stop Signs on Akin Road for north/south bound traffic The Traffic Engineer did not recommend this option. Side affects of a traffic control device should continue to be monitored. MayoraRistow stated for the safety of the schools this should have been done a long time Council Minutes (Regular) May ~ 2004 Page 5/7 ago. This has been studied several times and all we get is requests for a stop light. He has been there and watched the traffic. The school does not have anyone available to direct traffic. It is a city street and the speed should be controlled. Mrs. Louise Pote, 4325 207th Street W, stated there is also a problem with the soccer games in the evening. There are 650 kids playing soccer. Cars park on both sides of20Sth Street. There is a 15 minute window between games for cars to enter and exit. On 20Sth a lot of people are making V-turns. Kids run in and out between parked cars. It is a safety issue. Parents are concerned about the crossing on 20Sth at Dallas. When there is not a safety guard there are a lot of people who drive right through the crosswalk and are not letting the kids cross. Today a school bus went through the crosswalk and three students had to stop in the middle of the street to let the bus go through. Mr. Phillip Pote, 4325 20ih Street W, asked about the methodology of the traffic study and if they are looking at it over a period of time or focusing in on peak hours of7 a.m. - S:30 a.m. and from 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. Ifthey look at the traffic over a full week it will not look that bad. It is about the peaks and valleys in traffic on 20Sth. People turn right on Akin and go north Y2 mile and make a U- turn. A car coming north on Akin and turning right onto 208th, will hide a vehicle behind it. Cars are going 50 mph at that point. Mrs. Pote noted in the paper because of budget cuts, the school district may be extending the distance for kids to be walking. If that happens, traffic will increase as parents will drop them off. Mr. Pote noted there will be 100 more students at the middle school next year. Mrs. Pote stated almost every house in the neighborhood has children, and parents have said they will drive their kids up to the school rather than have them crossing the street. Mr. Pote stated 20gth Street is a drag strip. It is parents racing down to the middle school to drop off kids and racing back. Mayor Ristow thought the school was going to have safety patrols on 208th at Dallas. Staffwill check with the school. Mr. Thomas Yauch, 4346 20ih Street W, his daughters exit the subdivision five mornings a week at 7 a.m. His daughter was almost hit by a car going 60 mph. People going north and south are traveling at 55-60 mph. He did not want there to be a fatality for the city to act. The speed on 20Sth not only during school time, is a freeway. He realized the police have many things to do, but the other night he noted a police officer giving parking tickets for parking too close to the corner. The cars also block in the fire hydrants. Traffic is spilling over on 20ih because of soccer games. They park right up to the driveway so you only have a short window to back out. He disagreed with the studies. If Council stays there for a Y2 hour at 7 a.m. for five days a week and again from 2:30 - 3:00 and Tuesday and Thursday nights, they would change their viewpoints. Going north on Akin and Council Minutes (Regular) May.}8; 2004 Page 6/7 make a V-turn is the only alternative they have. There is a fatality waiting to happen. Mayor Ristow stated he realized this has been an ongoing problem. 208th Street is posted at 20 mph when school is on. If it is parents, shame on them. Councilmember Fitch noted 7-8 months ago Council discussed putting in temporary signs. He is concerned with cars turning right and making a V-turn down the road. That is making the problem worse. Putting up a stop sign will make people think this is an easy way to get in and out. People take drivers training, but still they do not know how to work a 4-way stop. He agreed that intersection has warranted stop signs for a long time and it is time we do something about it. MnDOT has rules, but they do not control our community. He felt this situation warranted a permanent stop sign. Councilmember Cordes agreed something needs to be done. The permanent signal lighting is expensive and should be looked at in the future. She is in favor of putting in permanent stop signs, but is concerned with stacking between 208th and County Road 50. Addressing the parking issues, there is a lot of traffic parking on the street during soccer games. She did not know if posting no parking signs would help the situation on 207th. If they cannot park on 20Sth they will go to the next closest which is 20ih. They should be using the parking lot. Councilmember Soderber~ received an e-mail from the soccer association asking parents to not park on 20St and use the parking lot, but it has not made an impact. The crosswalk was also a concern and asked if it was a ticketable offense. Police Chief Siebenaler replied it is a ticketable offense. He understood the school was going to put crossing guards out there. Mrs. Pote stated the crossing guards are only out there for a short period of time. Councilmember Soderberg stated it is parents and teachers that are violating the crosswalk. How do we educate people to obey traffic laws? More enforcement would require a police officer out there from time to time writing tickets. He would be in favor of making 208th Street no parking and have an officer out there on soccer nights writing tickets. That eats up valuable resources in our police department, but more officers are needed. He asked ifthe agreement with the State regarding Akin Road, requires a study to place a stop sign. Attorney Jamnik replied no. Any action regarding speed limits would require contact with the State. Councilmember Soderberg recalled the traffic study did warrant an all-way stop for two hours in the morning and afternoon, but over 24 hours the warrants were not met. He would favor an all-way stop and look at more enforcement in the area. Mayor Ristow asked if the crosswalk was marked. Police Chief Siebenaler replied it is as marked as a crosswalk can get. Mayor Ristow stated all we can do is keep taking steps and felt a stop sign is a good start. He would be open to no parking on 208th Street. Mrs. Pote suggested limiting the no parking to the north side of 208th Street. Council Minutes (Regular) May..18; 2004 Page 7/7 Police Chief Siebenaler stated in the past when they have initiated no parking in areas they have bowed to the wishes of the residents in the area and requested a petition be filed showing the majority of residents are in favor of it. Staffhas received denial from the school district. They are not interested in posting the south side of 20Sth Street as no parking. The most recent petition for the north side from residents abutting 20Sth failed to get half of the residents. If Council wants to consider no parking on 20Sth and maintain past practice of honoring the wishes of the residents, he suggested asking for a petition again. He agreed if 208th Street is posted as no parking, the issues that will arise are 20ih and perhaps 206th being used as alternate parking. There have been extensive discussions with soccer parents, players, and management regarding options on how to get people to park in the parking lot with very little success. Council has the authority to order any signage they want on that street, but beware when this was done on the south side of the high school, you drive people to park further away. On Hickory Street there are three dozen cars parked and they walk through people's yards to get to the high school. You will see the same type of thing because it is longer to walk around the block to get to the soccer fields than through someone's yard. Police Chief Siebenaler stated he is not telling Council they should not do it, he is saying there will be side affects to any action. Mayor Ristow stated he appreciated that and he brought out many good points, but tonight Council has one thing and that is stop signs at 208th and Akin Road. He requested staff discuss the no parking and bring it back to the next meeting. He felt the stop signs are the most critical. Councilmember Cordes agreed. She also felt if the neighborhood wants no parking that could be discussed in the future. Mr. Yauch asked if there was a posted speed limit on 208th Street past Devonshire. Police Chief Siebenaler stated they generally do not post residential speed limits. It is 30 mph in residential districts. MOTION by Cordes, second by Fitch, approving option 5, permanent stop signs on Akin Road for north/south bound traffic. Councilmember Soderberg stated normally he would concur with the Traffic Engineer, but this is a situation where it does warrant traffic control given the fact it is by a school and there have been a great number of accidents. This is one of those times he will stray away from the recommendation of the engineer. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. Councilmember Soderberg asked Police Chief Siebenaler if there was anything he would recommend with regard to the crosswalk. Police Chief Siebenaler replied they have made suggestions regarding using lighting. He was under the impression crossing guards were being used. They can be used effectively. Councilmember Soderberg suggested staff review this and come up with some suggestions. Mayor Ristow suggested using the little green men with the flag in the middle of the road. Police Chief Siebenaler stated they create a perception of safety that does not exist and he would not recommend them. Mayor Ristow Council Minutes (Regular) May 1-8: 2004 Page 8 n stated in New Prague they have them and if you do not stop, you will get a ticket. Mrs. Pote stated when the crossing guards are out, it does work, but they are not always there. City Administrator Urbia stated a meeting has been set up with the school district and all ofthese items will be followed through. Councilmember Fitch asked when this will be done. Police Chief Siebenaler stated the City Engineer did not believe the signs were in stock and they would have to be ordered. 13. COUNCIL ROUNDTABLE Councilmember Fitch: The MUSA Review Committee is discussing the phasing of the land. He thanked Planning Commission Chair Dirk Rotty. He has given good input into the process and how important this is to decide how the city should look. He has asked a lot of questions. The results will be very impressive and well thought-out. Staff has been very accommodating throughout the process. City Administrator Urbia: The topic for the Chamber's Coffee with the Council will be the McVicker Lot. Mayor Ristow and Councilmember Soderberg will be attending. Mayor Ristow: He has received a few complaints regarding the parks. Some parks especially the one on Heritage Way, the one in Westview, and Rambling River have a lot of dandelions. Also the grass has not been trimmed around the trees.. There have also been noise complaints regarding trucks on Hwy 3. On Hwy 60 by Waterville, signs are posted that noise will not be tolerated. He wanted staffto research why some areas can post signs and others cannot. They might not enforce it, but the signs are there. Police Chief Siebenaler will look into this. 14. ADJOURN MOTION by Cordes, second by Soderberg to adjourn at 8:12 p.m. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. Respectfully submitted, ~ 177~d?g~ Cynthia Muller Executive Assistant