HomeMy WebLinkAbout11.20.23 Council Minutes City of Farmington
Regular Council Meeting Minutes
Monday, November 20, 2023
The City Council met in regular session on Monday, November 20, 2023, at Farmington
City Hall, 430 3rd Street, Farmington, Minnesota.
1. CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Hoyt called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Mayor Hoyt led everyone in the Pledge of Allegiance.
3. ROLL CALL
Members Present: Mayor Joshua Hoyt
Councilmembers Holly Bernatz, Nick Lien. and Steve Wilson
Members Absent: Councilmember Katie Porter (excused absence)
Staff Present: Lynn Gorski, City Administrator
Julie Flaten, Asst City Administrator/HR Director
Leah Koch, City Attorney
Deanna Kuennen, Community & Economic Development Director
Kim Sommerland, Finance Director
Kellee Omlid, Parks & Recreation Director
Gary Rutherford, Police Chief
John Powell, Public Works Director
Shirley Buecksler, City Clerk
4. APPROVE AGENDA
City Administrator Gorski requested to pull Item 8.2, Ordinance Amending Title 6,
Chapter 2, of the Farmington City Code as it Relates to Licensing of Dogs, for language
clarifications.
Motion was made by Councilmember Wilson and seconded by Councilmember
Bernatz to approve the agenda, as amended, removing Item 8.2.
Motion carried: 4 ayes / 0 nays
5. ANNOUNCEMENTS / COMMENDATIONS
Welcome County Commissioner Mike Slavik
Commissioner Mike Slavik provided an update on Dakota County. Council thanked him
for coming here to speak in Farmington.
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6. CITIZENS COMMENTS / RESPONSES TO COMMENTS
None.
7. CONSENT AGENDA
7.1 Contract for Printing and Mailing Services for The Currents Publication
7.2 Minutes of the November 6, 2023 Regular City Council Meeting
7.3 Contract Between the City of Farmington and Beaver Creek Companies Inc. for
Septic System Permitting and Inspection Services
7.4 Payment of Claims for November 1 - 14, 2023 in the Amount of$$805,417.17
7.5 Agreement with International City Management Association Retirement
Corporation, doing business as Mission Square Retirement
7.6 Staff Changes and Recommendations Including:
• Seasonal Warming House Attendants Mason Eby, Layne Johnson,
William Lally, Lauren Lansig, Ayden Perkinson, Haley Rentz, and
Brandon Tende
7.7 Lease Renewal for the City Hall Postage Meter System
7.8 New Copier Leases with Xerox
7.9 Resolution R73-23 Accepting a Donation of Coffee, Orange Juice, and Bananas
from Kwik Trip to the Rambling River Center
7.10 Resolution R72-23 Declaring Items as Surplus and Authorizing Disposal: 18
Trash Receptacles
Motion was made by Councilmember Lien and seconded by Councilmember Bernatz
to approve the Consent Agenda, as presented.
Motion carried: 4 ayes / 0 nays.
8. PUBLIC HEARINGS
8.1 Ordinance Amending Chapter 18 of the Farmington City Code Related to
Peddlers, Solicitors, and Transient Merchants
Mayor Hoyt opened the public hearing.
City Clerk Buecksler presented an ordinance amending Chapter 18 of the City
Code as it relates to peddlers, solicitors, and transient merchants. Some of the
significant changes include:
• A definition added for Non-Commercial Door-to-Door Advocate, as well as
language clarification for other definitions in this chapter.
• The inclusion of exceptions from licensing for certain activities (license not
required), some of which include:
o Persons establishing a regular customer delivery route for perishable food
and dairy products;
o Persons making newspaper deliveries or attempting to establish a
newspaper route;
o Any person holding a garage sale, rummage sale, or estate sale;
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o Persons holding a multi-person bazaar or flea market.
o Persons selling products grown, raised, or produced on a farm; and
o An auctioneer conducting an auction.
• An amendment to application requirements and procedures.
• The license term changed from either an annual or six-month license to an
annual license only.
• Hours for when business may be conducted:
o 9 a.m. — 7 p.m. Monday through Friday; and
o 10 a.m. — 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday
• A section added for Exclusion by Placard.
Seeing no one wishing to speak, Mayor Hoyt closed the public hearing.
Motion was made by Councilmember Wilson and seconded by Councilmember
Bernatz to pass Ordinance 023-778 Amending Chapter 18 of the Farmington City
Code Regarding Peddlers, Solicitors, and Transient Merchants.
Motion carried: 4 ayes / 0 nays.
8.2 Ordinance Amending Title 6, Chapter 2, of the Farmington City Code as it Relates
to Licensing of Dogs
This item was pulled from the agenda for language clarifications.
9. AWARD OF CONTRACT
None
10.PETITIONS, REQUESTS AND COMMUNICATIONS
None
11.UNFINISHED BUSINESS
None
12.NEW BUSINESS
None
13.CITY COUNCIL ROUNDTABLE
Councilmember Bernatz: I had a great time at the Boeckman Middle School auditorium
last weekend. Farmington High School put on the tale of Robin Hood, and it was great
to see many in our community come out to support our youth.
Councilmember Lien: I had a blast at Turkey Bingo. Thank you to everyone for putting
that event together.
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Councilmember Wilson: I was at the Farmington Patriotic Day Celebration, and it was
very well attended. There are too many people to thank, including Farmington
American Legion Commander Doug Taube, the Veterans Organizations, and the
School District, who put a ton of time and effort into this event. The Farmington High
School Band and Choir were just fantastic.
Attorney Koch: I was admiring this lovely magazine of the Farmington Currents and am
excited to dive into it later.
City Administrator Gorski: City Offices will be closed on Thursday and Friday in
observance of Thanksgiving. Also thank you to Mr. Slavik for being here and giving us
an update.
Director Kuennen: The Eberts apartments construction project is moving right along.
We are building out a way to communicate with the public with weekly touch points.
Our Building Official and the Building Inspector Staff are meeting with the construction
manager there. Starting very soon, we will be receiving a weekly list of what's been
done and what is coming up. If, for example, cranes are going to be delivered, we will
be able to know in advance and communicate that. There will be three cranes on site
over the course of the construction, with the first in the middle of the site and should be
there by December 18th. We are also working to provide some drone footage so people
can see what the construction looks like with a snapshot once a week, so we can all
watch the construction come up out of the ground. This will be a way to communicate
and provide proactive information to our residents and our downtown businesses. More
to come. Thank you for the great EDA discussion, as well.
Director Powell: Reminder there is a Water Board meeting next Monday. On
Wednesday, we are having our second informational meeting for the 2024 Street
Improvements, which is the reconstruction area at 6th and Maple. You may notice, out
in the field especially, east of Highway 3, we will be doing our sidewalk inventory using
GPS and mapping that electronically through GIS this year for the first time. For the
benefit of the Commissioner, as City Engineer/Public Works Director, I really
appreciate the responsiveness and communicativeness of his Staff, particularly with
the County Road 50 improvements and the schedule being update almost weekly. That
was really helpful.
Director Omlid: The Open Door Food Pantry will be at the Rambling River Center
tomorrow from 3—4:30 p.m. As a reminder, they come the third Tuesday of the month.
The next two Saturdays we have holiday events at the Rambling River Center. Both
are from 9 a.m. — Noon. This Saturday, we have Trains and Treats, sponsored by the
Rambling River Model Railroad Club. Saturday, December 2nd, we have the Secret
Holiday Shop. Kids get to shop with volunteers while parents visit the downtown
businesses, and we are still in need of volunteers to help kids shop, wrap, and do tasks
that morning. Information is on the www.FarmingtonMN.gov website. You only need to
be in middle school up to 102 years old to volunteer.
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The Holiday Light Tour has 16 homes signed up as of today. The deadline is November
27tn and your lights need to be turned on by December 4tn. More information is on the
City's homepage, including the registration link.
Director Sommerland: As Commissioner Slavik mentioned, residents should have
received their Dakota County tax statements. Finance is busy preparing the proposed
final budget and will be presenting this to you at the next meeting.
Chief Rutherford: It is Toys for Town season. I always worry that we won't have enough
toys or monetary donations, or enough volunteers for this event. We are seeking new
unwrapped toys for kids from birth up to age 13. If your heart is set on taking care of
kids aged 14-17, we would probably look for a financial donation from you so that we
can purchase gift cards for them. Financial donations also go towards providing a really
nice holiday meal for each family involved. If you're looking to volunteer your time,
wrapping day is Saturday, December 16tn, from 9 a.m. — Noon at the high school.
Farmington always delivers, but I worry we won't have enough volunteers. Toys, time,
or treasure— whatever you prefer to donate, we'll take it.
Mayor Hoyt: Thank you to Riverview Elementary 4tn graders who invited me last week
to talk about local government, what we do, and our core services. I somehow got
convinced to do the "Gritty" dance, and I think that was the highlight of their day. It's
always fun getting to talk to our youth. Over the summer, Lynn and I met with some of
the kids from community education, who came to tour City Hall and Fire Station #1,
and that was fun.
It's that time of year when there is a lot of stuff going on. You'll find the winter edition
of the Farmington Currents in your mailbox. Please take the time to read through it —
there is a lot of good information in here. Quarterly events are on the back, and you
can plug those into your phone, so that you don't forget about them. You'll find
information on projects, park and recreation, and other tidbits. The Currents is on the
City's website, social media channels, and mailed to all residents and businesses
within the community.
14.ADJOURNMENT
Motion was made by Councilmember Lien and seconded by Councilmember Bernatz
to adjourn the meeting at 7:30 p.m.
Motion carried: 4 ayes / 0 nays.
Respectfully submitted,
S irley R cksler
City Clerk
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