Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout03.17.08 Council Minutes COUNCIL MINUTES PRE-MEETING MARCH 17,2008 1. CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order by Mayor Soderberg at 6:30 p.m. Members Present: Members Absent: Also Present: Soderberg, Fogarty, Pritzlaff McKnight, Wilson Joel Jamnik, City Attorney; Peter Herlofsky, City Administrator; Robin Roland, Finance Director; Brian Lindquist, Police Chief; Kevin Schorzman, Interim City Engineer; Todd Reiten, Municipal Services Director; Cynthia Muller, Executive Assistant 2. APPROVE A GENDA MOTION by Fogarty, second by Pritzlaffto approve the Agenda. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. 3. CITIZEN COMMENTS 4. COUNCIL REVIEW OF AGENDA Councilmember Fogarty asked if the Councilmembers not in attendance had any comments regarding the resolution opposing the transit taxing district. City Administrator Herlofsky explained it is the same resolution approved in 2007. The purpose of this item is to re-affirm that resolution. Councilmember Pritzlaff stated it was nice to see vehicles come in under the budgeted amount, but noted the savings would be used to equip the pickup with tool boxes and other necessities. He asked if these items are not included in the original order. Staff explained those costs are included. This indicates there is more money to pay for those items. There is $9,173 left in the budget. Councilmember Pritzlaff noted the current card access system is six years old and is not capable of handling an additional 19 doors. He felt six years was not very old. Finance Director Roland stated six years ago when the police station and maintenance facility were built, they cut to the bone to keep things under budget. They covered what they needed to at the time and did not think about the future. Now the City has two additional buildings to include in the card access system and the technology has changed tremendously. Council Minutes (Pre-Meeting) March 17,2008 Page 2 Councilmember Pritzlaff also had questions regarding the 195th Street Agreements. He clarified that these agreements have nothing to do with Newland. Staff confirmed that these would be required for the project no matter what developer was in that area. Bids will be awarded by Council on June 2, 2008. Mayor Soderberg asked some questions on the 2007 Municipal Services Annual Report. Councilmember Pritzlaff had some questions on the Orderly Annexation Agreement with Empire Township. He asked if the agreement could include building regulations that match the City. Councilmember Fogarty noted the township follows State standards much like the City does. Councilmember Pritzlaff asked if they were to build something across the street from this line that is not up to standards and that portion wants to come into the City, should the agreement state anything around a certain line should be built to standards. Councilmember Fogarty stated they did not include this because Empire envisions incorporating and they will be putting in their own standards which are comparable. 5. STAFF COMMENTS City Administrator Herlofsky noted the supplemental items include an ad for bids for towing and impounding of vehicles, a resolution opposing Farmington being placed in the Transit Taxing District, and an informational item regarding State Patrol responsibilities. 6. ADJOURN MOTION by Pritzlaff, second by Fogarty to adjourn at 6:56 p.m. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. Respectfully submitted, f1:7, ~/ ~ ~~../77~ ~/ Cynthia Muller Executive Assistant COUNCIL MINUTES REGULAR MARCH 17,2008 1. CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order by Mayor Soderberg at 7:00 p.m. 2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Mayor Soderberg led the audience and Council in the Pledge of Allegiance. 3. ROLL CALL Members Present: Members Absent: Also Present: Soderberg, Fogarty, Pritzlaff McKnight, Wilson Joel Jamnik, City Attorney; Peter Herlofsky, City Administrator; Robin Roland, Finance Director; Kevin Schorzman, Interim City Engineer; Todd Reiten, Municipal Services Director; Cynthia Muller, Executive Assistant Audience: 4. APPROVE A GENDA City Administrator Herlofsky added supplemental items 7r) Towing and Impounding of Vehicles; 10c) Metropolitan Transit Taxing District; 13b) State Patrol. MOTION by Pritzlaff, second by Fogarty to approve the Agenda. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. 5. ANNOUNCEMENTS a) New City Hall Presentation - Wold Architects Mr. Chris Zeimer, Wold Architects, stated a tour was held last Friday for Council and employees. They are currently putting brick on the outside of the building and should be completed in four weeks. Windows will be installed at that point. Inside there is framing and sheet rock work being done, and electrical and mechanical work will be connected. The Council Chambers and conference rooms are taking shape on the first floor. On the upper level, mechanical and electrical work is being roughed-in. The project is on schedule. Regarding the First Street Garage, the roofing was recently finished and work will begin inside. This will be completed before the City Hall. Councilmember Pritzlaff wanted to make sure there was enough height on the flooring under the doors in case of heavy rain. Mr. Zeimer explained the stoop is sloped away from the building and the sidewalk will be reconstructed to match City standards. Councilmember Pritzlaff asked about the size and design of the first floor windows. Mr. Zeimer stated it was a goal in working with City staff to Council Minutes (Regular) March 17, 2008 Page 2 get as much light into the building as possible. The windows are larger on the first floor and smaller on the top to match the downtown. Councilmember Pritzlaff noted there are areas on the first floor where the wall stops in the center of the window and was concerned with how that would look from the outside. Mr. Zeimer explained the finishing on the wall and the window will make a smooth transition. Mr. Zeimer stated the stairs should be installed in the next one-two months and then another tour can be scheduled to see the second floor. 6. CITIZEN COMMENTS a) Response to Mr. Robert Donnelly - Planning City Administrator Herlofsky noted Mr. Donnelly called to thank staff for moving quickly with his request. 7. CONSENT AGENDA MOTION by Fogarty, second by Pritzlaffto approve the Consent Agenda as follows: a) Approved Council Minutes (3/3/08 Regular) b) Approved School and Conference - Fire Department c) Approved School and Conference - Fire Department d) Approved School and Conference - Fire Department e) Received Information Capital Outlay - Municipal Services f) Approved Clean-up Day Agreement - Municipal Services g) Appointment Recommendation City Engineer - Administration City Administrator Herlofsky noted Mr. Kevin Schorzman was appointed City Engineer. Mr. Schorzman has been the Assistant City Engineer for the past year. h) Approved Card Access Upgrade - Police Department i) Approve No Parking Area - Police Department Mayor Soderberg noted this was a cooperative effort between the City and the School District. j) Approved Agreements 195th Street Extension to TH3 - Engineering k) Approved Dakota County Sentenced to Service Contract - Natural Resources I) Approved Local Surface Water Management Plan Vermillion River Watershed Joint Powers Organization Request for Review Extension - Natural Resources m) Received Information Capital Outlay - Fire Department n) Received Information February 2008 Financial Report - Finance 0) Approved 2008 Assistance to Fire Fighters Grant Application - Fire Department p) Approved Bills r) Authorized Advertisement for Bids for Towing and Impounding of Vehicles - Police Department APIF, MOTION CARRIED. 8. PUBLIC HEARINGS 9. AWARD OF CONTRACT Council Minutes (Regular) March 17, 2008 Page 3 10. PETITIONS, REQUESTS AND COMMUNICATIONS a) 2007 Annual Report - Municipal Services Municipal Services was formed in 2008 when Public Works was re-organized into two separate departments. Municipal Services covers six divisions. The Streets Division maintains 80 miles of streets and 92 cul-de-sacs. The Snow Plowing Division has divided the City into 12 zones. The Sewer Division is responsible for 83 miles of sewer lines and 6 lift stations. The Water Division maintains 2 towers and 8 wells. Two mechanics in the Fleet Division provide maintenance for 89 vehicles, 35 pieces of equipment and 10 trailers. The Solid Waste Division provides garbage collection for 5,613 residents and 164 commercial accounts. The City contracts with Lakeville Sanitation for recycling. Almost 1100 tons of recycling was collected in 2007. The first year of the revenue sharing program brought in $9,958 used to purchase amenities for the parks. Residents brought in 266 tons of cardboard. Global demand for cardboard was high and the City received $12,340 in revenue to cover the cost of collecting it. b) Accept Feasibility Report/Order Public Hearing/Authorize Plans and Specifications - Spruce Street/2nd Street Project - Engineering This project covers Spruce Street from 4th Street to the railroad tracks and 2nd Street from Spruce Street to Oak Street. The recommendation is to reconstruct the road, reconstruct the sanitary sewer and the water main as well as storm sewer improvements. The total estimated project cost is $1.18 million. $171,000 will be items removed from the City Hall project and done as part ofthis project because of the timing of the two projects. This includes streetscape, landscaping, lighting, etc. The trunk improvements will be funded from the trunk utility funds. The remainder of the project will be funded through a combination of bonding and special assessments. Due to the location of the project, the City owns approximately 25% of the benefiting properties. Therefore, the funding contribution from special assessments outside of the City's own will be smaller than normal. The public hearing will be held May 19,2008, and the amount of the assessment will be identified at that time. Councilmember Pritzlaff suggested, depending on the assessment amount, holding back half ofthe money this year and do the project next year. He asked if they would have to tear up $171,000 worth of streetscape if it was done now with the City Hall. Staff explained it would be that if not more, due to inflation. The Spruce Street project goes back to the north side of the sidewalk, so it is close to the building because of the location of the storm sewer and water main. Staff did not recommend doing some of the streetscape with the City Hall project. Councilmember Fogarty was concerned that the residents being assessed were also assessed for Elm Street. Staff explained they have not been assessed yet for Elm Street. Councilmember Fogarty did not want to do back to back assessments. The properties being assessed for this project are apartment buildings. This is a Council Minutes (Regular) March 17,2008 Page 4 part of doing business and assessments are deductible on their taxes. Staff noted there are no single family residences benefiting from this project. MOTION by Fogarty, second by Pritzlaffto adopt RESOLUTION R18-08 accepting the feasibility report, authorizing preparation of plans and specifications, and scheduling a public hearing for May 19,2008 for the Spruce Street/2nd Street Reconstruction Project. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. c) Transit Taxing District -Administration This is to re-affirm a resolution approved by the City Council in 2007 opposing the City of Farmington being placed in the Transit Taxing District. Councilmember Fogarty attended a meeting in St. Paul to urge the legislators not to vote to add taxing the residents of Farmington. Councilmember Fogarty feels Farmington has been caught in the crossfire between other entities. Nothing was said about why Farmington was to be included in the taxing district. Farmington will see no benefit from this tax. The Met Council said Farmington may see some benefit in 10 years, but that will be $3-5 million later. Lakeville is also being placed in the district. Mayor Soderberg noted this is the type of behavior that gives politics a bad name. Adding Farmington to the Transit Taxing District after we have engaged in discussions about this, does a lot to sour that. Councilmember Pritzlaff was unhappy about the process. He had to attend another event to represent the City, but felt more Councilmembers should have met with the legislators. MOTION by Pritzlaff, second by Fogarty to re-affirm RESOLUTION R40-07 opposing the City of Farmington being placed in the Metropolitan Transit Taxing District. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. 11. UNFINISHED BUSINESS 12. NEW BUSINESS a) Development Fee Structure - AdministrationlEngineering In an effort to improve the City's private development process, staff has been looking at ways to give the private developers a better understanding of the engineering costs associated with private development. Staff has developed a pre- development surety that will secure the City's interest in engineering costs on private development prior to a development contract. Sureties proposed are: Single Family Multi-Family Mixed Use Commercial $350 per lot $65 per unit $300 per unit $0.25 per building square foot Developers could provide the City with the surety through a cash escrow, a bond or a letter of credit. If cash escrow, they could draw it down as bills are occurred, or keep it aside and pay them on a monthly basis. The developers would also be provided with an average of engineering costs per lot or per unit as follows: Council Minutes (Regular) March 17,2008 Page 5 Single Family Multi-Family Mixed Use Commercial $730 per lot $250 per unit $630 per unit $0.70 per square foot This will replace the pre-plat surety currently in place. This will not change how the developers are billed. They are currently billed per month for the hours actually spent doing their reviews and inspections. Councilmember Pritzlaff asked if the developer has a construction trailer on site, if the inspector could check in with the developer and check out. Staff stated inspectors could attempt to do that, but depending on when the developer is there, it may not work. Staffhas no problem with letting the developer know when they are coming. If the developer is not there, the inspection would still need to be done. MOTION by Fogarty, second by Pritzlaffto approve the creation of a pre- development contract surety that will be collected from potential developers prior to engineering review of potential developments. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. b) Veteran Re-Integration Seminar -Administration City Administrator Herlofsky has received requests to hold an event to assist veterans who return to Farmington from an overseas assignment. MOTION by Pritzlaff, second by Fogarty to support the Beyond the Yellow Ribbon Campaign. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. 13. COUNCIL ROUNDTABLE a) Property Tax Update - Finance Finance Director Roland explained the new format of the property tax statements. She urged residents to check the Dakota County website for information. b) State Patrol - Administration Council received a copy of an e-mail from Rep. Pat Garofalo regarding the State Patrol shifting more responsibility to the Cities, even after receiving extra funding for State Patrol officers. Councilmember Fogarty: Thanked City Administrator Herlofsky and City Engineer Schorzman for dealing with the water issues on 190th Street. Councilmember Pritz/all: On Thursday he attended the Partners in Progress event. City Engineer Schorzman: There is a new mentor student in Engineering for the semester from Farmington High School. Council Minutes (Regular) March 17, 2008 Page 6 Mayor Soderberg: He received an invitation to attend a conference at Fairview Ridges Hospital which he is unable to attend and asked if other Councilmembers were available on April 25, 2008. CEEF is hosting their annual Easter event this Saturday at Meadowview Elementary School from 10 a.m. until noon. The State of the City address will be presented to the Chamber on Wednesday, at 7:30 a.m. at the Eagle's Club. 14. ADJOURN MOTION by Fogarty, second by Pritzlaffto adjourn at 8:27 p.m. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. Respectfully submitted, ~~/77~ Cynthia Muller Executive Assistant