HomeMy WebLinkAbout01.19.10 Council Minutes
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COUNCIL MINUTES
REGULAR
January 19,2010
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, Fogarty, May, Wilson
Donnelly
Andrea Poehler, City Attorney; Peter Herlofsky, City
Administrator; Lisa Shadick, Administrative Services Director;
Cynthia Muller, Executive Assistant
Annette and Steve Kuyper
4. APPROVEAGENDA
Councilmember May wanted to comment on 7d) 2009 Fire Department Annual Report
and pulled 7g) Approve Fire Pension Benefit for discussion. Councilmember Fogarty
moved the supplemental item 11a) Fire Relief City Contribution Adjustment to the
consent agenda. Councilmember Wilson wanted to comment on 7h) Accept Park Bench
Donation and 7i) Accept Donation to the Rambling River Center Construction Project.
MOTION by Fogarty, second by Wilson to approve the Agenda. APIF, MOTION
CARRIED.
5. ANNOUNCEMENTS
6. CITIZEN COMMENTS
Ms. Annette Kuyper, Farmington Warrior to Citizen campaign, informed Council of their
plans for 2010. The organization helps to support and recognize military members and
their families. They would like to increase their partnership with local businesses,
churches, and schools. Farmington has mentored other cities on this program and has
joined with Rosemount, Eagan, Lakeville, and Hastings with many events. All of these
cities are working with Dakota County to become a Yellow Ribbon County. Starting in
February there will be free veteran's dinners once a month in cooperation with local
churches. There are three annual events planned again for 2010. On March 2, there will
be a Military Family Night at the Police Department. On March 7, they will hold a
spaghetti fundraiser dinner at the American Legion. The organization will be hosting a
Swarm game on April 9, played at the Xcel Energy Center. On May 8, there will be a
mother / grandmother luncheon of active members at St. Michael's Church. There will
be a Military Family Picnic on May 22, at the Fairgrounds. The work for the campaign
will receive greater attention this year as over 3,000 local Minnesota Army National
Guard members will be going to Afghanistan by the end of the year.
a) Response to David Pritzlaff
A response was sent to Mr. Pritzlaff.
Council Minutes (Regular)
January 19,2010
Page 2
b) Response to Colin Garvey
A response was sent to Mr. Garvey.
7. CONSENT AGENDA
MOTION by Fogarty, second by Wilson to approve the Consent Agenda as follows:
a) Approved Council Minutes (1/4/10 Regular) (1/11/10 Workshop) (1/13/10
Special)
b) Received Information 4th Quarter Building Permit Report - Building Inspections
c) Approved Amended Hauler Financial Agreement with Dakota County -
Municipal Services
d) Received Information 2009 Annual Report - Fire Department
Councilmember May noted it was a nice dinner at the annual meeting. The Fire
Department is using a split station response to reduce costs. She asked what can
be done to reduce the number of false alarms. City Administrator Herlofsky
stated we can charge higher fees for false alarms. Councilmember May noted the
use of the DCC has reduced the number of rescue hours with call prioritization.
The rescue squad is also going to a split station response to reduce hours. She
thanked Allina for providing First Responder and EMT training at no cost. The
department is also doing a good job in obtaining grant money. The report was
very thorough and easy to follow. Mayor Larson thanked Troy Corrigan for
making the report very easy to read and understand.
e) Appointed Alternate to DCC Executive Committee - Administration
f) Accepted Resignation Rambling River Center Board - Administration
h) Adopted RESOLUTION R5-10 Accepting Park Bench Donation - Parks and
Recreation
Councilmember Wilson noted this park bench was donated in memory of a
Farmington resident who had a tragic accident. He thanked the neighbors for
coming together and Parks and Recreation Director Distad. It is a nice way to
allow the community to honor someone.
i) Adopted RESOLUTION R6-10 Accepting Donations to the Rambling River
Center Construction Project - Parks and Recreation
Councilmember Wilson thanked residents for their contributions to the Rambling
River Center.
j) Approved Appointment Recommendation Fire Department - Human Resources
k) Approved Appointment Recommendation Fire Department - Human Resources
I) Approved Appointment Recommendation Fire Department - Human Resources
m) Approved Appointment Recommendation Fire Department - Human Resources
n) Approved Appointment Recommendation Fire Department - Human Resources
0) Received Information School and Conference - Administration
p) Approved Appointments to Boards and Commissions - Administration
q) Approved Bills
APIF, MOTION CARRIED.
g) Approve Fire Pension Benefit - Administration
Councilmember May had some questions on the spreadsheet. She asked when the
final 2009 number will be available. It will be available in 30 days.
Councilmember May asked about the line item for Administrative Professional
Services. Staff will research this item. Regarding the benefit level increase,
Council Minutes (Regular)
January 19,2010
Page 3
Councilmember May felt there should be a stabilization of the fund before
considering any change to the benefit level. MOTION by Fogarty, second by
May to maintain the current pension benefit level at $4,575 per year of service.
APIF, MOTION CARRIED.
8. PUBLIC HEARINGS
9. AWARD OF CONTRACT
10. PETITIONS, REQUESTS AND COMMUNICATIONS
a) City Communications Guide - Administration
Administrative Services Director Shadick presented a Communication Guide used
to document and identify communications efforts the City uses to get information
out to residents. The goals identified in the guide were based on the mission
statement and the values statement of the City. The guide consists of a list of
various publications, media resources, and target audiences.
Councilmember Wilson asked for an example of what staff can do easier now by
having this guide in place. Staff replied the guide was used by staff to document
water education conservation. They created a plan based on the guide to
document the different ways the water use policy was disseminated. The guide is
for use by City staff.
Councilmember May suggested adding the mode of distribution to the items.
Such as under the Economic Development materials it states what they are, but
not how they are distributed and who is in charge of it. Staff will add the
information.
b) City Website Presentation - Administration
A representative from Design Write Studios gave a presentation on the new
website. Danielle Cahlander, Communications Specialist, worked with this firm
on the new design. Council felt the new design was very user-friendly.
11. UNFINISHED BUSINESS
12. NEW BUSINESS
13. COUNCIL ROUNDTABLE
a) Set Date Continuation of Engineering Workshop
At the previous Engineering Workshop only half the items were discussed and
staffhad noted the most critical items are left. Councilmember May suggested
moving the Engineering Workshop ahead of the EDA Strategic Planning.
Councilmember Fogarty suggested turning an EDA meeting into a Strategic
Planning session and using the January and February EDA meetings to layout an
agenda. It was determined to have the March 22 EDA Meeting used for an EDA
Strategic Planning Workshop and have the Engineering Workshop on March 8,
2010.
Council Minutes (Regular)
January 19,2010
Page 4
Councilmemher May: The City Attorney provided her with some information
from the State Statutes regarding selecting an official publication for the City. The
This Week newspaper could qualify as the official publication if conditions are met and
they submit the paperwork within a specific period of time. So according to the Statute
there is the possibility another publication could be considered the official publication. If
another publication was to submit the paperwork she asked that bids be submitted in a
way that they could be compared for next year. She felt there is a need to be open and
fair to all businesses in the community.
Councilmemher Fogarty: Reminded residents the Farmington Community Expo will
be held on Saturday, January 30, 2010.
Councilmemher Wilson: Attended the Annual Firefighter Banquet. All the
firefighters do an outstanding job. Joe Tullar is the Firefighter ofthe Year for 2009. He
had an appreciation for the Fire and Police Departments when he started on the Council,
and that appreciation grows every year. They are serving the City of Farmington,
townships, and mutual aid to other communities.
He enjoyed the Boards and Commissions interviews. There are some high quality
residents representing the City on these commissions.
City Administrator Herlofsky: Council had been given two different evaluation
forms for the City Administrator's evaluation. He asked Council which one they would
like to use. Upon completion, the forms are sent to the City Attorney for compilation.
Council reached a consensus to use both forms.
Regarding the Finance Director position, staff is doing background checks, and plan to
have an appointment on the February 1,2010, agenda.
Mayor Larson: He asked residents to shovel out the fire hydrants. He
urged residents to support the businesses in Farmington. Residents should sign up for
Nixie to receive City information. He thanked all of staff, especially Danielle Cahlander,
for their work on the new website.
14. ADJOURN
MOTION by Fogarty, second by Wilson to adjourn at 7:54 p.m. APIF, MOTION
CARRIED.
Respectfully submitted,
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~thia Muller
Executive Assistant