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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01.20.09 Council Minutes }a.... COUNCIL MINUTES REGULAR January 20, 2009 1. CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order by Mayor Larson at 7:00 p.m. 2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Mayor Larson led the audience and Council in the Pledge of Allegiance. 3. ROLL CALL Members Present: Members Absent: Also Present: Audience: Larson, Donnelly, Fogarty, May, Wilson None Andrea Poehler, City Attorney; Peter Herlofsky, City Administrator; Robin Roland, Finance Director; Randy Distad, Parks and Recreation Director; Kevin Schorzman, City Engineer; Lisa Shadick, Administrative Services Director; Brenda Wendlandt, Human Resources Director; Tim Pietsch, Fire Chief; Cynthia Muller, Executive Assistant Tim Nielsen, Nick Luchsinger, Dustin Dingman, James Oates, Matthew Donnelly 4. APPROVE A GENDA Mayor Larson pulled item 7n) Appointments to Boards and Commissions. Councilmember Fogarty pulled item 7g) Council By-laws for discussion. City Administrator Herlofsky switched items Sa) and 5b), and removed item 7j) Amend Ordinance Cell Phone Towers. Councilmember Fogarty pulled 7a) 1/12/09 Workshop Minutes to abstain. MOTION by Fogarty, second by Wilson to approve the Agenda. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. 5. ANNOUNCEMENTS a) Recognize Fire Chief Appointment Tim Pietsch has served as Fire Chief for three years. He has been re-appointed for another three years. b) Introduce New Fire Fighters Fire Chief Pietsch introduced new fire fighters, Dustin Dingman, Matthew Donnelly, Nicholas Luchsinger, Tim Nielsen, and James Oates. Rob Murphy was unable to attend the meeting. Councilmember Wilson thanked the Fire Department for the Annual Meeting Banquet last week. Council Minutes (Regular) January 20, 2009 Page 2 6. CITIZEN COMMENTS Mr. David Pritzlaff, 20255 Akin Road, thanked the Fire Department for the wonderful banquet and presentation. He attended the Warrior to Citizen event at the American Legion and it was also very nice and thanked Annette and Steve Kuyper for organizing the event. Mr. Pritzlaff stated on December 31, 2008, there was a deadline to submit applications for the Planning Commission. He submitted his application before the deadline. On January 5, 2009, Councilmember Fogarty asked for an extension to the deadline as they were short on applications. At that time there were four or five applications for the Planning Commission. Mr. Pritzlaff felt the extension should have applied only to the other commissions that were short on applications. The deadline was extended to January 13,2009, the day before the interviews. The paper listed the deadline as January 12, but the Council had extended it to January 13,2009. His application still met the deadline. On Wednesday night he found out he was not appointed to the Planning Commission. He understood at least two applications came in on January 14, a day after the second deadline. Councilmember Fogarty's husband submitted an application late in the day on Wednesday. Mr. Pritzlafffelt there were deadlines set and there were enough applications, but Council was not happy with the ones submitted, so more were requested, and applications were accepted after the second deadline. He felt it was an unfair approach on how Council accepted the applications, and felt it was a conflict of interest for a Councilmember's spouse to be on a board or commission. He will not argue the qualifications, but does have a lot of experience with being on the Council. 7. CONSENT AGENDA MOTION by Fogarty, second by Wilson to approve the Consent Agenda as follows: a) Approved Council Minutes (1/5/09 Regular) (1/14/09 Special) b) Received Information 4th Quarter Building Permit Report - Building Inspections c) Approved Dakota County Sentence to Service Contract - Parks and Recreation and Engineering d) Adopted RESOLUTION R3-09 Accepting Donation Rambling River Center - Parks and Recreation e) Approved School and Conference - Administration f) Approved School and Conference - Finance h) Approved School and Conference - Engineering i) Approved Agreement for County Hauler Financial Incentive Payment Program - Municipal Services j) Tabled Ordinance Amendment - Cell Phone Towers - Planning k) Acknowledged Resignation Fire Department - Human Resources I) Approved Appointment Recommendation Fire Department - Human Resources m) Received Information Annual Fire Department Report - Fire Department 0) Approved Bills APIF, MOTION CARRIED. Council Minutes (Regular) January 20, 2009 Page 3 g) Amend Council By-laws - City Attorney Councilmember Fogarty noted the reason for changing the by-laws was to eliminate the 6:30 p.m. pre-Council meeting. She noted the by-laws do not match some of the clerical things we do. She asked that the language for Section II, SUBD. 2 A be changed to read that issues can be discussed before a motion is made. Councilmember Wilson asked for a modification in Section VIII, SUBD. 1 regarding the City Administrator's review. During the review process in the past, Councilmember Wilson has contacted staff regarding the City Administrator's performance and feels uncomfortable with that practice. He suggested a 360 degree review be performed and the results forwarded to Council so they do not have to contact staff members. City Administrator Herlofsky stated as part of his membership with the ICMA a 360 degree review is required every seven years. He will contact ICMA and bring information back to Council. Councilmember Fogarty noted this year the City Administrator's contract needs to be discussed. As far as the review process, Councilmember Wilson stated the more insight he can receive from the City Administrator's peers and his own thoughts on the direction of the City, the better served Council will be. Councilmember Donnelly asked if the by-laws need to be changed to do this. Regarding the City Administrator's contract, it was determined that Councilmembers Fogarty and Donnelly will meet with the City Administrator to discuss his contract. The by-laws will not be changed regarding the review process. This item was tabled to the next meeting. a) MOTION by Wilson, second by Donnelly to approve 1/12/09 Workshop minutes. Voting for: Larson, Donnelly, May Wilson. Abstain: Fogarty. MOTION CARRIED. n) Approve Appointments to Boards and Commissions - Administration MOTION by Wilson, second by May to approve appointments to the Water Board, Heritage Preservation Commission, and Rambling River Center Advisory Board. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. MOTION by Wilson, second by Donnelly to appoint Dirk Rotty to the Planning Commission. Voting for: Larson, Donnelly, May, Wilson. Abstain: Fogarty. MOTION CARRIED. MOTION by Donnelly, second by May to appoint Doug Bonar to the Planning Commission. Voting for: Larson, Donnelly, May, Wilson. Abstain: Fogarty. MOTION CARRIED. MOTION by Donnelly, second by Larson to appoint Steve Fogarty to the Planning Commission. Voting for: Donnelly, Larson. Voting against: May, Wilson. Abstain: Fogarty. MOTION FAILED. Council Minutes (Regular) January 20, 2009 Page 4 MOTION by Larson, second by Wilson to appoint David Pritzlaffto the Planning Commission. Voting for: Larson, Wilson. Voting against: Donnelly, May. Abstain: Fogarty. MOTION FAILED. MOTION by Larson, second by May to appoint Joseph Vanderbeck to the Planning Commission. Voting for: Larson, Donnelly, May, Wilson. Abstain: Fogarty. MOTION CARRIED. Applications will be taken for a seat on the Parks and Recreation Commission until February 6, 2009. Interviews will be conducted on February 9, prior to the workshop. Councilmember May noted there were some school and conference requests in the Consent Agenda. She asked that the memos include all costs such as mileage, etc. It was unclear if all costs were included. She also asked if Council receives any feedback from the conferences. This will be discussed by staff. 8. PUBLIC HEARINGS 9. AWARD OF CONTRACT 10. PETITIONS, REQUESTS AND COMMUNICATIONS a) Approve Park Master Plans - Parks and Recreation Master plans for Rambling River Park, Lake Julia Park and Pine Knoll Park were presented. The plans for Rambling River Park were designed by Hoisington Koegler Group and the plans for Lake Julia Park and Pine Knoll Park were designed by staff. Input was solicited from neighbors within 350 ft. of each park. The Parks and Recreation Commission has reviewed the plans and unanimously recommended approval of all three plans. Ms. Amy Bower, Hoisington Koegler Group, presented the plans for Rambling River Park. The park is divided into sections with a busy county road running through the park, and railroad tracks running through the eastern part. It is close to downtown and there is a school on the north side. There are ball fields and picnics along the river. The plans show adding another picnic shelter, adding additional restrooms and expanding the parking lot to make the picnic shelter, restroom and parking lot more cohesive. Also shown is an additional basketball court, improving the tennis courts, keeping the volleyball court, updating the play equipment, adding storm water improvements to any additional parking lots. If adjacent residential lots come up for sale, it was recommended to purchase them for expansion of the park. Regarding the existing Feely Fields, it was proposed to change them to three adult softball fields, after the Fairhill development youth complex is completed. This also includes expanding parking, concession stand, Council Minutes (Regular) January 20, 2009 Page 5 restrooms, and rain water gardens. The ice arena area is used for overflow parking. The plans show adding a paved outdoor rink that would be covered to extend the skating season and improved parking. Another improvement is to Kuchera's park. It would become a neighborhood park by adding play equipment, expanding the size of the parcel and improve the buffer along the river. Other improvements include improving the trail system, mileage markings, map markings, loops to trails by adding bridges across the Vermillion River, trail signs at park entrances, a bridge across the railroad tracks (this was not included in the park budget). The county sees the Vermillion River as a green corridor. A regional route may come through the park, so there will be a need to have a safe crossing over the railroad tracks whether it be on the north side near the school, or on the southern side towards downtown. With a regional trail, the consultant suggested the corner of Spruce and Denmark as a parking lot and trail head. In the flood plain near the school, a boardwalk, trails, cross country ski trails were proposed. Council discussed several items regarding this park. An outdoor rink was not envisioned by the ice arena, could the current building be used as a warming house, paper maps would be more efficient along the trails. Council would prefer to see pavers used rather than paved parking lots or environmentally friendly options for infiltration. There are grants available for some of these options. Regarding widening the trail, this would be due to it connecting with a regional trail and the cost should be paid by the county. There is a space identified in the park for a Veteran's Memorial. It was noted as a long-term plan, but Council did not consider 2013 long term. Perhaps some of the economic considerations should be directed toward neighborhood parks first to help residential growth. Staff explained that master plans are good for 20-25 years. Staff would start identifying priorities in 2013. Council preferred to table approval of the plans for Rambling River Park and have a workshop with the Park and Rec Commission to provide options and to obtain priorities for all parks. Pine Knoll Park is a 4-acre park with 525 ft. of bike trail on the west side, sidewalk along the front of the park, a play equipment area, a ball field, basketball court that is in poor shape, existing signs identifying park, and natural areas. It was determined to take out the old basketball court, increase the size, update play equipment to include a climbing boulder, add a shelter, and a looped trail through and around the park. It was also proposed to make the 204th Street entrance more visible, change the sidewalk along 203rd Street to an 8 ft. wide trail to be consistent with the trail that loops around the park. Lake Julia Park is 17.5 acres, with 8.4 acres being storm water pond. There are 1100 ft. of sidewalk along 18ih Street, 1700 ft. of paved bike trail, a 4,000 sq. ft. existing playground structure, existing fishing dock, and ball field. Updates would include new playground equipment, new shelter/warming house that would coincide with a paved outdoor pleasure rink in the winter, and use as a basketball court in the summer. Other items include a new off-street parking lot, a potential Council Minutes (Regular) January 20, 2009 Page 6 soccer field, add a trail that would terminate at the street with a bike lane, to the east there is a trail connecting to the Lake Julia waterway and into the North Creek greenway, add lights along the trail and at the dock, and plant new trees. MOTION by Fogarty, second by Donnelly to approve the Pine Knoll Park and Lake Julia Park master plans. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. The master plan for Rambling River Park was tabled until after a workshop with the Council and Parks and Recreation Commission. b) Appoint MVTA and Cedar Group Representative -Administration MOTION by Wilson, second by May to appoint Councilmember Fogarty and City Administrator Herlofsky to the MVT A and Councilmember Donnelly and City Administrator Herlofsky to the Cedar Group. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. c) Approve Seal Coat Project Feasibility Report - Engineering The seal coat program was established in 1994. City Engineer Schorzman presented a map showing the routes. Most of the areas are on the northern end of Farmington, Akin Road, the north and south sides of downtown, and other scattered areas. Some streets will be covered through development funds for the first seal coating. The remaining areas would be assessed, which is a 50/50 cost sharing with the road and bridge fund carrying 50% of the cost and residents assessed 50%. The estimated assessment is $132.90/REU. It is higher than last year because of the difference in the make-up between single family, multi-family and commercial/industrial properties within the project area. Councilmember May asked how it is determined how the streets are grouped as it does not seem fair that some years have more multi-family or commercial that could be a bigger divider to spread the cost out. This year there is more single family. She asked how staff justifies the fairness when one homeowner is paying more than another for the same work. Staff explained when the program started, the City was broken up into seven equal pieces for each year. Seven years is the maximum life of a seal coat. Development has not happened evenly, but to readjust them every year would take streets off their normal schedule. Councilmember May noted some people pay double just because of the group they are in. Councilmember Wilson asked about the cost of the feasibility report. City Engineer Schorzman stated with staff time and work from Dave Sanocki it costs approximately $3,000. Councilmember Wilson did not see the need to have the need for a feasibility report as we know who we are partnering with and use the same map each time. City Administrator Herlofsky explained it is done as a staff document and the cost is for our own people doing the work. Councilmember Wilson noted the report was signed by Dave Sanocki, and did not see that the report needed to be done by a contracted service. City Engineer Schorzman explained Dave Sanocki signed the report under his direction. The information in the report was obtained by City staff and Dave inserted the numbers. City Council Minutes (Regular) January 20, 2009 Page 7 Attorney Poehler noted a feasibility report is required to be done by statute as a part of the assessment process. City Engineer Schorzman stated the estimate last year was $115. Councilmember Fogarty noted the majority of the difference comes down to the cost of the product. Over the years there have been groups of townhomes and other years single family homes. She was very comfortable with the program. Councilmember Donnelly felt some of the difference would be from the amount of frontage. Staff agreed, as that is the majority of the reason, also the density with the number of homes in the area. Councilmember May noted Main Street residents were assessed over $6,000. A difference of $50-$60 more from last year is a big difference. She also asked about the work on 4th Street north of Elm and if that was done because of the watermain. Staff clarified that was part of the Main Street project. There are certain restrictions under statute 429. The funding is not allowed to come from prior projects. The City is required to prove by appraisal that the project actually adds the amount of value to the property before the City can assess any amount. Under the assessment policy, the City is limited to the amount to be assessed by the appraisal. We need to confirm the assessment amount by an independent appraisal. Any amount not paid for by assessments is paid for by the road and bridge fund which is made up of MUSA funds, investment interest, and some tax levies from the past. If Council did not assess the residents, that difference would need to be made up. If the funds were not available in the road and bridge fund, it would require a separate tax levy. At one point, $50 was the set amount to assess residents, however, eventually that was not enough to cover the costs. City Engineer Schorzman noted any streets proposed for a reconstruction will not be seal coated. Councilmember May asked if the groupings of streets could be reviewed periodically and if there was a limit on assessments. Main Street was assessed for the new street and they were also assessed for Elm Street. Finance Director Roland replied all assessments are subject to Council approval, so it is up to Council as to how many assessments can be assessed against a property. There is no limit. Councilmember May asked how Council would know which streets have been assessed multiple times. Staff will identify recent projects. Councilmember Donnelly asked about MSA funds. Finance Director Roland explained those funds are used for MSA projects. Mayor Larson asked staff to look at the groupings to obtain a more equal amount of single family homes and townhomes. MOTION by Fogarty, second by Wilson to adopt RESOLUTION R4-09 accepting the feasibility report, scheduling the public hearing for March 16,2009, and authorizing preparation of plans and specifications. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. d) Adopt Resolution - Approve Joint Powers Agreement Seal Coat - Engineering The City of Farmington completes seal coat and crack sealing improvements through a Joint Powers Agreement with several other cities, and administered by Council Minutes (Regular) January 20, 2009 Page 8 the City of Burnsville. MOTION by Fogarty, second by Wilson to adopt RESOLUTION R5-09 authorizing the City to enter into the Joint Powers Agreement administered by the City of Burnsville for the seal coat and crack sealing improvements for 2009. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. e) Project Updates - Engineering City Engineer Schorzman provided Council with an update on projects. The 195th Street extension project has the majority of the earth work done. They finished setting the beams on the bridge last week. Work will continue in March or April. It is anticipated to be finished in the fall. The lighting alternate will be re-bid soon and brought back to Council. The Spruce Street and 2nd Street project is complete except for the wear course. The Seal coat and crack seal project was discussed in the previous item. The annual curb and sidewalk replacement project will be done in the spring. Staff prioritizes damaged sidewalks and curbs. The Denmark Trunk Sanitary Sewer Extension, 4th Street Storm Sewer Improvements, and 5th Street Sanitary Sewer Improvements are undergoing feasibility reports now. The Denmark project will take the trunk sanitary sewer from Spruce Street to Ash Street in anticipation of the reconstruction of the Westview neighborhood and will eliminate the lift station by Dakota Electric. The 4th Street project will extend the storm sewer from ~ block south of Elm Street down to Walnut Street. The 5th Street project has the same area limits for the sanitary sewer trunk extension. Both are done in anticipation of a reconstruction project on Walnut Street. Funding for all three projects will come from the trunk funds and not assessed. The feasibility reports will be brought to Council on February 17,2009. 11. UNFINISHED BUSINESS a) Rambling River Center Update -Administration Staff is looking at options for funding to remodel the old City Hall for the Rambling River Center. Staff will bring a proposal to the Council that will suggest additional money be raised. Staff is working on how that will be accomplished. Construction management will be done in-house to minimize costs. Councilmember May asked if staff has identified a cost of having the old City Hall vacant as far as utilities. She felt that number should be considered when evaluating how to move forward. There are insurance costs and utilities. Staff will prepare those numbers. Council Minutes (Regular) January 20, 2009 Page 9 b) City Hall Change Orders - Administration There have been approximately 65 change orders totaling $66,586. There was a deduction of $40,000 for the landscaping along the south side of City Hall. This was included with the street project. There was $16,000 received from other sources through negotiations, so the financial impact is $44,000 plus $40,000 for the street project which is under .1 % of the project. Council was asked to approve change orders 37-67 totaling $6,262. Councilmember Wilson noted the memo on the change orders is dated early December and asked why it was not taken up by the previous Council at the second meeting in December. City Administrator Herlofsky explained there were issues to be resolved and negotiations. They were on the agenda, but issues came up and they were removed from the agenda. Councilmember Wilson suggested something to consider for other municipal projects, is there was no contingency for the facility not being completed on time. The original completion date was around early November and there is still work to be done. He asked if any credit would be received for the timing of the completion. City Administrator Herlofsky agreed staff was not pleased with having to move in without the building being completed. This has been discussed with the architect and contractor. While work was being done after we moved in, utilities were paid for by the contractor. We did not suffer any negative impact other than inconvenience. Councilmember Wilson stated we have a nice building, low change orders, but the building was not done when it was supposed to be done. He did not see where the City has negatively impacted that scenario. Finance Director Roland noted that is referred to as liquidated damages which fall into place if we were significantly impaired from the enjoyment of this building from moving in on time. The proof is extraordinary to obtain these damages. The contractor is back and finishing the work. Weare holding 10% of the contract as retainage until the final paperwork is received. Councilmember May asked when the inspection period starts. John McNamara, Wold Architects, stated the warranty period for any item not on the punch list starts as of the date of substantial completion of the project. An II-month inspection is done and the warranty on those items starts when corrected. The substantial completion date was approximately November 12,2008. Councilmember Fogarty noted the building is beautiful, we occupied it ahead of schedule and under budget. That is due to the hard work of staff. MOTION by Fogarty, second by May to approve change orders 37-67 for a total of $6,262. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. 12. NEW BUSINESS Council Minutes (Regular) January 20,2009 Page 10 13. COUNCIL ROUNDTABLE a) Community Expo - Administration The Expo will be held January 31, 2009. The Y will be sharing a table with Parks and Recreation. b) Workshop Schedule Discussion - Administration City Administrator Herlofsky suggested doing a strategic planning workshop on February 9, 2009. The Bonestroo contract will be discussed at the March 9 workshop. City Administrator Herlofsky noted the historic photos have been re-framed due to a grant and are now hanging in the new City Hall. Public Works and the Police Department handled the issue on Flagstaff. Maintenance staff has worked hard on managing the new Flagstaff Avenue. Councilmember May: Thanked staff for their prompt answers to her questions. Friday night is senior night at the basketball game hosted by a youth development group, Community Ed, and the Rotary. Busses from Marschall Line are being provided for the seniors to attend. Councilmember Fogarty: pictures. She would like to reschedule the date for the Council She suggested collecting information at the Expo for listing home base businesses in the Business Directory. Staff will discuss this. She and Mayor Larson have met with the hockey board regarding the need for a second sheet of ice. They have asked City Administrator Herlofsky and Jeremy Pire to attend the next meeting. Councilmember Wilson: Attended the Fire Department banquet and thanked the members. It was one of the busiest years on record for the department. Saturday there was a great event with the Warrior to Citizen program. Councilmember Donnelly: Also attended the Warrior to Citizen event and there was a nice showing by the community in support of the veterans coming home. City Administrator Herlofsky: Regarding the Yellow Ribbon entrance signs at the borders, MnDOT was not aware of them. Staff has contacted Rep. Garofalo and the initial issues were the design and no money available. They are working on it with the state. Administrative Services Director Shadick: She and Mark Moore, Cable Coordinator are working with the audio-visual contractor to rectify issues with the audio in the Council Chambers. Council Minutes (Regular) January 20,2009 Page 11 Mayor Larson: was a nice event. Attended the ribbon cutting for Beans and Bakery and it He attended some of the Fire Department banquet and had a nice time. He attended the steak fry at the VFW for the Rambling River Center. They ran out of steaks by 20-30 meals. The Warrior to Citizen campaign is a wonderful event. He encouraged residents to attend these community events. 14. ADJOURN MOTION by Fogarty, second by Wilson to adjourn at 9:49 p.m. APIF, MOTION CARRIED. Respectfully submitted, :P7~ ynthia Muller Executive Assistant