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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05.01.23 Work Session MinutesCity of Farmington City Council Work Session Minutes Monday, May 1, 2023 The Farmington City Council met in a work session on Monday, May 1, 2023, at 5:00 p.m. in the City Hall Council Chambers, 430 31d Street, Farmington, Minnesota. 1. CALL TO ORDER Mayor Hoyt called the work session to order at 5:00 p.m. Members Present: Mayor Joshua Hoyt Councilmembers Holly Bernatz, Nick Lien, and Steve Wilson Members Absent: Councilmember Katie Porter Also Present: Lynn Gorski, City Administrator Julie Flaten, Asst City Administrator/HR Director Deanna Kuennen, Community Development Director Chris Regis, Finance Director Justin Elvestad, Fire Chief Kellee Omlid, Parks & Recreation Director John Powell, Public Works Director Gary Rutherford, Police Chief Shirley Buecksler, City Clerk Will Schroeer, Executive Director, East Metro Strong Maureen Scallen Failor, Former President, Dakota County Regional Chamber of Commerce Jon Althoff, Chamber President, Dakota County Regional Chamber of Commerce Mike Verdoorn, Gallagher Benefit Services 2. APPROVE AGENDA Motion was made by Councilmember Wilson and seconded by Councilmember Bernatz to approve the agenda, as presented. Motion carried: 4 ayes 10 nays, 3. DISCUSSION ITEMS 3.1 Discuss Transportation Needs and Options for Farmington Administrator Gorski introduced Will Schroeer and Maureen Scallen Failor. Currently, Farmington does not provide transportation options within the city limits. City Council Work Sessisn Minutes May 1, 2023 Page 2 of 6 Mr. Schroeer said the mission of East Metro Strong is a public -private partnership of businesses, cities, and counties working together to bring more and better transit investment to the east metro and catalyze job growth and economic development opportunities. Mr. Schroeer shared a presentation to discuss the obstacles employers and residents face with not having transportation options available, along with possible funding sources and resolutions. Why jobs accessible by transit is critical• • Connect people and work o Attract and retain employees o Attract and retain employers • Support quality of life o Connect people to shopping, doctors, family, recreation o Save money i E Possible sources of transit funds: • Dakota County o County collecting $17 $20millionfyear in transportation -dedicated sales tax i o Transit projects can be funded with County dollars (doesn't mean County operates) • Other State and Federal dollars Discussion: • The House and Senate have both passed bills off the floor to dedicate funds to transit, but still need approval. The Federal government is spending a lot of money on new transit options. • Ms. Scallen Failor said her engagement with Farmington over the years and the growth of Farmington -- now is the time to capitalize on these changes and funding. • Jon Althoff stated that businesses will grow, and we need to find a way to get people to fill these jobs. I am impressed you found a way to start those discussions. • Councilmember Wilson said he's not excited about using tax dollars for transit but open to looking at different ideas. Do we have the ability to not enter the taxing district but create a circular community transit mode? o Administrator Gorski said there are many options,- such as a bus company at the industrial park; DARTS to loop for appointments, the grocery store, etc.; park and ride; or transportation for those who are interested in a bus that would take them to a bus stop. • Mayor Hoyt said over the last 12 months, Administrator Gorski and he met with DARTS and talked about"bridge transportation, but we would need a City Council Work Session Minutes May 1, 2023 Page 3 of 6 local funding source. Last week, the Dakota County Mayors communicated disparity in state funding. Hennepin and Ramsey Counties get a lot of our funds. Between 2016-2020, only 13% ended up in the five collar counties. Federal wants to bypass the state and get it to the cities for local control. We have local control as it pertains to economic development. We have a huge outflow of our residents leaving to work in other communities. • Ms, Scallen Failor said as we talk to employers, it's important to note that there are options for private funding partnerships. Not only do you need to think about transit, but you also need to have various types of housing stock; it's inter -related. Transit today isn't what we knew from growing up. Into the future, there's UBER, Lyft, Dial -A -Ride using technology to become more efficient moving people around. • Mayor Hoyt said transportation, housing, proximity to employers, all factor in. We need to make sure we are doing everything we can to fill those buckets. We have been adding housing, but transportation will continue to be a huge factor. Understanding our options and figuring out which segment of our community is most in need. • CounGilmember Bernatz said there is a wage bracket of $15 - $20/hour and those underserved. Families are finding it difficult to afford vehicles for their kids to get to their jobs. Public transportation isn't just seniors and bringing workers in, but it's also our youth and how they can contribute to the area. • Mr. Schroeer said you can run an employee shuttle, a student shuttle, an elder shuttle. They're expensive on their own but if combined into shifts, the costs are spread over a lot of shifts. It's also harder to plan but builds the community. As for similar communities, MVTA is doing nice work combining regional route service, with a line hauling to downtown Minneapolis and MVTA Connect and On Demand. They're mixing those things. • Ms. Scallen Failor added Southwest Prime in Eden Prairie, Chaska, others. They use minivans and coaches to move people around. You can use it to get to doctor appointments, groceries, students, etc. This is a good example that you could model from. • Councilmember Lien asked how far off do you see the driverless market? Our comprehensive plan does assume it's coming. We may need to address this at some point. o Mr. Schroeer said the current conventional wisdom is that it is always 15 years out, but it's difficult and unpredictable (i.e., snow, rain, etc.). • Mayor Hoyt said there is clearly a lot of information that we lack as it pertains to our community and their needs. Some things in public transportation are out of our control. What are the mechanisms that we do have control over and can pursue? o Mr. Schroeer said there is real money being collected in the county. There is a growing understanding of the needs you're talking about. Define what you want the service to do for you and I can work with you to raise the money to fund that. I encourage you to talk with MVTA. City Council Work Session Minutes May l,2023 Page 4 of 6 o Administrator Gorski talked with MVTA last week and they're very open to discussions. We need to survey the whole industrial park, then meet with those companies. Mayor Hoyt questioned how we can pull employers in for residents here that are not working. o Mr. Schroeer said you can contract with MVTA, but if you're in their district, you can demand the service. o Ms. Scallen Failor added that MVTA wants to expand their service area. We feel strongly that we need a regional connective transit system in all communities. If not, we will be passed over by communities that have it. o Director Kuennen said she can get agreements from other cities to see their service levels and who their active users are. Administrator Gorski said she just needs the green light from Council to continue investigating into transit for Farmington and right -sizing of what that will look like for us, talking with the businesses, and seeing where we go from there. Council agreed to move forward. Councilmember Bernatz asked Police Chief Rutherford if there are any concerns from the Police Department with public transportation. Based on the conversation he's hearing, Chief Rutherford said he has no concerns. Administrator Gorski thanked Will Schroeer, Maureen Scallen Failor, and Jon AtIhoff for coming and for their support. 3.2 Present Compensation Structure Study Results Assistant Administrator/Director Flaten said the City has worked with Gallagher Benefit Services to review the current step and grade compensation structure to determine competitiveness with the current market, maintain compliance with pay equity and ensure appropriate relationships between job classes exist. Compensation Structure Options • Challenges: o Expense of hiring o Decreased morale when short staffed o Increased consulting costs to backfill vacancies o Current market dictates hiring near top of scale o Less upward movement on scale for employees o Retention • 2023 Options o 60th Percentile equals 2.25% increase July 1 - $108,300 September 1 - $70,500 City Council Work Session Minutes May 1, 2023 Page 5 of 6 o 651h Percentile equals 3,25% increase July 1 - $156,400 September 1 - $103,200 o 75th Percentile equals 5.5% increase July 1 - $229,800 September I - $151,700 I - . I • ail •2024 Options 0 60ttl Percentile equals 2,25% increase: $226,200 0 65th Percentile equals 3.25% increase: $326,300 0 751h Percentile equals 5.5% increase: $571,400 ,•- funding: • Compensation Insurance Refund - $250,000 Compensated Absences Fund - $100,Ili Next Steps • Bring any recommendation to City Council on May 15th for non -union compensation adjustment, effective on selected date. • Prepare Memorandum of Understanding for all union groups. • Include compensation scale increase in 2024 proposed budget. Findings and Recommendations • The current salary structure is still very well aligned with the market. • No overall salary structure adjustment is needed; however, the City should consider the following: o Plan to adjust structure in 2023. Based on industry data from WorldatWork, would be between 3-4%. o Due to proximity to larger metropolitan area than other like -sized peers, which impacts the City's ability to recruit and retain, the City may want to consider setting target pay at the 60th and 75th percentile, • Maintain ongoing administration practices: o Continue to review internal alignment and classification of jobs to ensure proper leveling between jobs. o The salary structure should be adjusted by a structure movement trend factor every year to remain competitive with the market (i.e. WorldatWork annual report). o In addition to adjusting the salary structure each year to keep pace with the market, the City should continue to conduct a comprehensive market City Council Work Session Minutes May 1, 2i2 Page 6 of f compensation study similar to the salary study part of the project, at least every three to five years; o Conduct another full -scald Compensation Structure Review eery - years. wouldWise. He big picture, This item will be brought to the Council's regular meeting on May 15th. Administrator Gorski and Director Flaten will talk with all unions and factor into the 2024 6. ADJOURNMENT It11c tl n was made by Councilmember Wilson and seconded by Councilmember Bernatz to adjourn the tweeting at 6:53 p.m. Respectfully submitted,