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HomeMy WebLinkAboutWK December 11, 2003 C I T Y o F NDOVE 1685 CROSSTOWN BOULEVARD N.W. . ANDOVER, MINNESOTA 55304 . (763) 755-5100 FAX (763) 755-8923 . WWW.CI.ANDOVER.MN.US CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP TRANSPORTATION/METH LAB ORDINANCE Thursday, December 11, 2003 - 6:30 PM (Meeting will be held in Conference Room A & B) AGENDA 1. Call to Order 2. Approve Agenda 3. Transportation Issues a. Hanson/Bluebird Intersection Improvements . i. Clocktower Commons/Community Center ü. City Hall Access on Crosstown Blvd b. Hanson/Andover Blvd Intersection Improvements i. Advance Funding Initiative c. Off-Site County Road Improvement Policy d. County Sponsorship of Tax Abatement District e, Bunker Lake Blvd. Pedestrian Crossing i. DNR Grant Funding Opportunity f. County Road Improvement Projects 4. Meth Lab Ordinance . a. Presentation (Quick Overview) b. Model Ordinance c. Financing Sources (Hand-out) 5. Other Business Items 6. Adjourn C I T Y o F NDOVE 1685 CROSSTOWN BOULEVARD N.W. . ANDOVER, MINNESOTA 55304 . (763) 755-5100 FAX (763) 755-8923 . WWW.CI.ANDOVER.MN.US ANDOVER CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP-DECEMBER I1, 2003 MINUTES TRANSPORTATION/METH LAB ORDINANCE The Special Meeting of the Andover City Council was called to order by Mayor Mike Gamache, December 11,2003, 6:36 p.m., at the Andover City Hall, 1685 Crosstown Boulevard NW, Andover, Minnesota. Councilmembers present: Don Jacobson, Mike Knight, Ken Orttel, Julie Trude Councilmember absent: None Also present: City Attorney, Berry Sullivan City Engineer, Dave Berkowitz Community Development Director, Will Neumeister City Administrator, John Erar County Commissioner, Dennis Berg County Engineer, Doug Fischer County Commissioner Dave McCauley Fire Chief, Dan Winkel Captain Dave Jenkins Anoka County Sheriff Bruce Andersohn Others AGENDA APPROVAL There were no changes. Motion by Jacobson, Seconded by Knight, to approve the Agenda as amended above. Motion carried unanimously. TRANSPORTATION ISSUES a. HansonIBluebird Intersection Improvements I. Clocktower Commons/Community Center 11. City Hall Access on Crosstown Boulevard Mr. Darren Lazan, Clocktower Commons Developer, made a presentation to the City Council and County Commissioners regarding the traffic on Hanson and Crosstown Boulevards. Mr. Lazan showed some graphics for proposed traffic changes. Andover City Council Special Meeting Minutes - December 11, 2003 Page 2 Mr. Lazan explained there are a couple of things in the process that became apparent. The intersection at Hanson and Bluebird need to be corrected for the Community Center and for the future development at Clocktower Commons. Another place that needs to be corrected is the area on Crosstown by the future development. Mr. Lazan gave a brief description ofClocktower Commons and what is proposed to be at the site. Mayor Gamache stated there will be an increase in traffic and one concern is the right in/right out to the Community Center and another concern is the access onto Tower Drive because it is a smaller road. He explained discussion developed previously that there would be a signal light at Tower Drive. He explained the Council also discussed access onto Bluebird from Hanson. As they go north onto 1541\ the plans are for a signal light on 1541h with a service road going between the middle school and city hall. He stated with the Community Center starting to be built, they will start hockey this coming fall so there will be an increase in traffic on the roads. Mayor Gamache stated his understanding was that the County planned on having a signal further north than the City planned and he would like to start discussions regarding this. Councilmember Trude stated there will be potential increase in traffic at night because of all the activities going on at the school and the Community Center/City Hall. Mayor Gamache asked if it was reasonable to talk about getting a light at the comer of Hanson and Bluebird with full access. He stated they obviously have a need that is more current because ofthe new projects coming in. Commissioner Berg asked how far it is from Bluebird to Crosstown. He asked ifthe City Council wanted to move the light. Mayor Gamache stated they would not have thoughts of moving the light. Mr. Berkowitz stated this was approximately 1200 feet. Councilmember Trude stated there are three different school speed zones within a mile radius. Mr. Lazan showed the different speed zones on the map. County Engineer Fischer showed the transportation map and explained the evaluation and recommendations they suggested. He stated the recommendations are consistent with their guidelines. They would allow full access at 154th and they are also concerned with the full access at the City Hall parking lot. He explained that it is undesirable as it is now. He stated that if the City Hall parking lot were connected to the Community Center parking lot, Tower Drive would become the full access in and out of the Community Center and the City Hall entrance would be a right in/right out only. Councilmember Trude stated her thought was this would be similar to the approach to the schools in the area and will generate traffic back and forth through Bluebird/Crosstown and Hanson Boulevard. Councilmember Jacobson asked what the other problems are that the County sees for the area. Mr. Andover City Council Special Meeting Minutes - December 11, 2003 Page 3 Fischer stated everyone is complaining that the turn lanes are too short in the area. Their minimum standard is a three-foot left turn lane. Access to them is a conflict because there are safety issues involved. He explained that Hanson Boulevard is a high-speed arterial road. Councilmember Jacobson stated the County needs to take a look again at a traffic study because of the development and economic growth. He wondered iflights could be timed to take care of the problems. Mr. Fischer stated it probably would not work because the time would go to Hanson. He stated they made a concession to allow the left turn lane onto Bluebird off of Hanson. He explained building a service road may be cheaper than building a signal. If a signal is added, they would need to add left and right turn lanes. They would prefer to run the service road up to 157th along Hanson with a stoplight there. Councilmember Knight stated the problem is residents will be at the Community Center and the City does not know how to solve the problem with the traffic. Mr. Fischer stated they need to preserve the investment they made at Crosstown and Hanson. They may need to extend the median past Bluebird Street and eliminate the left turn lane onto Bluebird Street. Councilmember Trude discussed the different ways to finance this and assessments involved. Mr. Lazan stated the construction in the southern portion is much less than in the northern because the roadway has already been widened. They have the configuration in for a 300 foot left turn lane into the Community Center and that geometry works. As they go north, they only get a 280 foot left turn lane into the school. Councilmember Jacobson stated the reason they are meeting with the County is to try to find a way to make this work because they already know the traffic will be there. Councilmember Trude stated Tower Drive is a smaller than normal road and Crosstown in that area is an unimproved road and traffic will end up backing up to Hanson. Mr. Lazan stated if they move the Community Center traffic up to Oakview School, this will make that area more congested because in the morning and after school that road is already maxed out. Commissioner Berg stated if they do not keep Hanson moving, it will not matter because there will be traffic backed up throughout. Councilmember Trude stated her concern is that kids are crossing by the clinic to get to school. Mr. Fischer stated that is another reason to upgrade 157th to allow the children to cross there to get to the school. Mayor Gamache recapped what Anoka County has approved for Hanson. Councilmember Knight stated an overwhelming majority of the traffic coming to the Community Center would be coming from the South. Mr. Fischer stated he assumed that traffic would come into the Community Center úom Crosstown to Tower Drive. Councilmember Knight stated if they do this, people will go through the City Hall parking lot to get to the Community Center. Mr, Fischer Andover City Council Special Meeting Minutes - December 11, 2003 Page 4 stated ifthey connect the parking lots together, they should extend the median entering the City Hall parking lot so people do not try to leave the City Hall Parking lot to go south. Councilmember Trude thought this would make the City Hall parking lot too congested and dangerous with all the traffic going through. Mr. Erar stated the City Hall parking lot was used in the count for the Community Center and ifthey do close this off, it will affect that count. He stated there has never been an accident coming or going. Councilmember Orttel stated they have not seen a lot of traffic at City Hall and when the Community Center opens, there will be a lot more traffic going through. Councilmember Trude stated when the Community Center takes offit may make more sense to have full access at Bluebird and Hanson instead of 157th and Hanson. Commissioner Berg asked where the congestion problem is going to be. Councilmember Knight stated he thought there would be pedestrian traffic coming and going to the Community Center and to the retail area. Commissioner McCauley stated his understanding is this is a problem that is never going to go away and they are moving local traffic onto major arterial highways. There is major growth going on in Andover and Oak Grove without the roads to get them through the City. Councilmember Jacobson stated they are going to have a potential problem in a year and he thought the County could give them a little more leeway. They are only asking for one intersection to help alleviate the traffic. Mr. Fischer stated three years ago, they would have said Bluebird would have to be right in/right out. When they look at business, the developers want people to get into their businesses and what the County is doing is making it possible to safely get into the retail area. The only thing they cannot do it make a left turn onto Hanson. If the predominant moves are there and they can do it without a signal, which impedes traffic, this is what they will try to do because signals tend to cause accidents. He stated safety wise they do not have enough space. Councilmember Trude stated they are taking a little offense that the County does not want to help alleviate the traffic problem on Hanson when Radisson Road in Blaine has traffic lights almost every 100 feet. Mr. Fischer explained where the signals are located on Radisson Road. He stated they try to have signalized intersections every half mile. He stated the next signal they would like is on 157th and Hanson. He stated a signal on Bluebird and Hanson is something they would not want to do. Councilmember Trude explained even the left turn lane on Hanson and Crosstown will be inadequate and will stop traffic wanting to go through town in the afternoon when people are coming home rrom work and going to the Community Center. Mr. Fischer stated they are finding the 300 foot left turn lanes are inadequate and in the future will need to expand left turn lanes to 600 feet. Councilmember Knight stated it seemed to him the numbers are going to be there and they should try Andover City Council Special Meeting Minutes - December 11, 2003 Page 5 to do something now to alleviate the traffic. Mr. Berkowitz stated this is a unique area because of all of development. Mr. Fischer explained that what they have to look at is the speed of the route addressed. Hanson is high speed and they cannot allow a lot of different accesses. Councilmember Orttel asked how the infill of the land on the southeast comer of Crosstown and Hanson will impact this. Mr. Fischer stated they are saying as the development occurs, they need to maintain Hanson until a massive reconstruction is made. Councilmember Orttel asked ifthere were any plans to run Hanson further north into Oak Grove. Commissioner Berg stated they have it in their plans to run it further east but there are a lot of wetlands involved and they do not have a site specific plan for it. Mr. Lazan stated they cannot ignore the fact of the development in the area. Those movements are going to exist whether they call it an urban core or not. One of the things they have looked at is reducing the speed through the four legs. They already have a large mix of speed zones, why can't they look at decreasing the speeds as one movement. What is the impact of all the movements within the quadrant. Mr. Fischer explained different areas that need to have major reconstruction on the roadways. He stated ifthe traffic movements are going to be as bad as stated, the County may have to rewrite their recommendation for a major reconstruction on Hanson Boulevard. Mr. Fischer stated their comments are the same as they are in other communities. Their responsibility is to make the roads safe for travel. Councilmember Orttel asked what the long term plans are for Crosstown Boulevard. Mr. Fischer explained what the future plans are. He stated their 5 year CIP will not include this in it because this is listed as unfunded and what they will put in the CIP next are only projects that have other funding. He stated this proj ect is not very high in the ranking. Councilmember Knight asked if an urban stretch was out of the question. Mr. Fischer stated it was at this time. Mr. Neumeister asked ifthey tried to work towards the urban core section by making available ways to get in and out. He wondered why the 1200 foot lanes would not work. Mr. Fischer stated he agreed they need multiple ways to get in and out of the area. Mr. Neumeister asked what the difference is in putting all the traffic at Hanson and Crosstown or breaking it between two intersections because the traffic is going to be great. Mr. Erar stated something is going to have to be done to alleviate the traffic. They need to have at least a temporary solution to this. Commissioner Berg explained this was tried in other communities and did not work. Councilmember Trude stated they cannot afford to build a sixteen and a half million dollar community center without adequate access to it. Mr, Fischer stated he thought all the movements were there. Andover City Council Special Meeting Minutes-December 11,2003 Page 6 Mayor Gamache asked the County ifthey would be interested in a signallight at I 54th if they put in a service road. Mr. Fischer stated that was correct. Councilmember Trude stated there are not any financial partners in the signal light at 154th but there are financial partners at Bluebird and Hanson for a signal light. Mr. Lazan stated they have been working on this, Mr. Fischer stated this whole area is controversial going back eight or nine years. The fact that they are starting in a bad situation, any more access onto a bad intersection will make it worse. Councilmember Knight asked what the difference was in double stacking at one intersection or single stacking at two. Mr. Fischer stated in the future, the turn lane may need to be extended further back. Commissioner McCauley stated it is obvious to him they will need to do something major to Hanson Boulevard. Eventually it will need to be double lanes both ways. They need to do more work to solve the problems they are headed for and they need to think about this before they go too far. b, Hanson! Andover Boulevard Intersection Improvements 1. Advance Funding Initiative Mr. Erar asked what is going to happen to the intersection of Andover Boulevard and Hanson Boulevard because he continually gets complaints about bottlenecking and stacking at the intersection. He wondered if the County would entertain making an improvement to this intersection. Commissioner Berg stated they do a lot of reverse funding but the funds are usually earmarked. Mr. Erar stated the City Council would need to make the decision whether they should improve the intersection with reimbursement in the future. He asked if the County would go along with that. Commissioner Berg stated they could not exactly say when the City would get reimbursed for this project. He stated the City may not have to do this because the County has earmarked funds from the State to improve this intersection if funds become available. Mr. Erar stated if the funds do not come through, could they discuss the possibility of advance funding and having the City improve the intersection. Commissioner Berg stated he would not rule it out. c. Off-Site County Road Improvements Policy Councilmember Jacobson asked if they had an offsite policy in writing. Mr. Fischer stated the City staff was given a copy. Mr. Erar stated this is a done by situation policy. Mr. Berkowitz stated the problem they have is that they have a lot of small infill developments and they are going to incur the cost for improvements when they should not have to because it serves a greater area. Mr. Fischer stated the city will need to tell the developers they need to bear the brunt of the expense and they have a responsibility to the County to move traffic through safely and quickly. They are not in the financial position to make all the improvements to new accesses. If it was something that was Andover City Council Special Meeting Minutes-December 11,2003 Page 7 funded in their five year plan, their answer would be different. d. County Sponsorship of Tax Abatement District Councilmember Orttel asked what the County's feelings on tax abatement for the Community Center are. Commissioner McCauley stated they have a policy on this. Commissioner McCauley stated he has not read the policy for a while and they would have to discuss this to see if it is something they would want to do. He explained they have only had one real request and it was denied. What they need to do is get information on how the City would apply this and they would review it to see if it is something they would want to get involved in. Commissioner Berg stated he would like to look at it. Commissioner McCauley stated he thought it was worth reviewing. e. Bunker Lake Boulevard Pedestrian Crossing I. DNR Grant Funding Opportunity Councilmember Trude asked if they were going to do anything with the Bunker Lake Boulevard Pedestrian Crossing this year. Mr. Berkowitz stated they have talked about moving the signal. He explained they need to move on this before the end of the year because the funding grant for this will expire at the end of2004. The project needs to be completed by the end of2004 to get the grant out. The grant cannot be utilized for the signal but it can be utilized for the trail improvement. Mr. Fischer stated they did meet on this and he asked his staff to do some analysis and the intersection at Prairie Road meets marginally the merits for a signal. He stated this is a relatively safe intersection. If they were only doing a signal for traffic he would suggest a signal not be installed. He stated an intersection signal on a curve is not ideal because it is dangerous. It seems like there is a need for a crossing closer to the railroad signal. That intersection with its configuration marginaJly meets safety warrants. They would want to make left turn lanes. Councilmember Trude stated even if they make a right turn lane coming out of the park, it would help alleviate the backup. Mr. Fischer stated without a right turn lane, a lot of people do not go right out of the park which is good, otherwise there may be more accidents there. Mr. Fischer stated if they are looking at using the money quickly, this is not the project to work on because the railroad does not work fast and only the railroad can do work on the railroad property. Councilmember Trude asked ifthere was any way to straighten out the road because the road is too dangerous and curved and the lake is shrinking up. Mr. Fischer stated the accident report showed a very low rate. Councilmember Jacobson asked if they could install a pedestrian crossing signal that would stop traffic to cross the road. Mr. Fischer stated the only intersections that meet pedestrian crossings are Andover City Council Special Meeting Minutes - December 11, 2003 Page 8 in Minneapolis and St. Paul where people are continuously crossing the road. He stated a simple project to do would be the Prairie Road Signal. Mr. Berkowitz asked if there was any way to advance fund this and receive advance funding back for this at a later date because they hate to give up the grant. Mr. Fischer stated ifthey are looking to advance fund this, the signal is not a high priority on their list. f. County Road Improvement Projects City Engineer Berkowitz explained the Anoka County Highway Department has completed their Five Year Highway Improvement Plan. There are' several projects within the next 5 years that are within the City liinits and will directly impact Andover. The projects listed in the County's Five Year Improvement Plan that directly impact Andover are as follows: 2004 - Intersection and Traffic Signal Improvement at CSAH 9 (Round Lake Boulevard NW) & CSAH 20 (157'h Avenue NW). 2006 - Corridor Reconstruction for CSAH 78 (Hanson Boulevard NW) from TH 242 to 1000 ft north ofCSAH 116 (Bunker Lake Boulevard NW). - Intersection and Traffic Signal Improvement at CSAH 78 (Hanson Boulevard NW) & Andover Boulevard NW. This improvement is currently listed as unfunded. The county has applied twice for Hazardous Elimination Safety Funds (HES) with no success. 2007 - Corridor Reconstruction for CR 18 (Crosstown Boulevard NW) rrom Andover Boulevard NW to CSAH 78 (Hanson Boulevard NW). This project is also listed as unfunded. Unfunded projects will not be constructed until an additional funding source such as federal funds have been identified. Typically a project is constructed 1-3 years after the approval of the additional funding source. METH LAB ORDINANCE a. Presentation Mr. Erar explained Council indicated they did not want to have a full length presentation. He showed a model ordinance and introduced financial information for the cost. Captain Dave Jenkins explained his role in this is as an officer. He sees this as a safety issue. He explained they have educated themselves and found there are health hazards with chemicals left behind. Andover City Council Special Meeting Minutes - December 11, 2003 Page 9 Captain Jenkins gave a history of increased Meth labs in Anoka County, He stated this drug has become an epidemic and the age of the users has lowered. Councilmember Trude stated she thought it was great that they have been to the schools and educated the kids on this drug. Captain Jenkins stated education is very important, Sgt. Steve Johnson, Sheriffs Office Crime Lab, reviewed the historyofMeth labs in Anoka County and explained what they are. He stated he has been certified in taking down Meth labs. They are aggressive and informed and enforcing the take down ofMeth labs. Sheriff Johnson eXplained what a Meth lab is and what chemicals are used to make methamphetamine. Mr. Spencer Pierce manages the County Environmental Health Department. He explained he got involved because they license hotels and they were first informed ofMeth labs in hotels. They do community coordination and deal with their social services department as well with the Sheriffs Department. They make sure the children in the Meth houses are placed appropriately and checked because children absorb chemicals quickly. They deal with child protection. Without an ordinance, they do not have any controls over keeping the kids out of that type of environment. Ms. Carolyn Braun, Anoka City Planning Department, stated they passed the ordinance because a Meth lab was found in Anoka County and before it could be cleaned of the chemicals, another family moved in. She stated the primary issue is to make sure the house is truly cleaned up so future residents do not get contaminated. Councilmember Trude asked if these were rental homes. Ms. Braun stated they were not and typically people think these labs would be located in lower income homes but they have been located in higher end homes with motion detectors to alert them of someone coming. Councilmember Orttel asked what the typical cost of clean up is. Ms. Braun stated it is between $3,000 to $5,000 depending on the amount and size of home. She stated Andover's ordinance is different because they need to consider wells and septic systems so it may be more costly to clean up. Councilmember Knight asked ifthere is a landlord who is not involved, would he be liable for clean up. Ms. Braun stated they are held liable. City Attorney Sullivan stated sometimes the burden is placed upon a victim to clean it up. Ms. Braun stated it is always the property owner who incurs the cost and if done correctly, the cost would go back to the person responsible. Mr. Erar stated there are Federal programs with funds set up that will help the victims. Councilmember Knight asked what the health effects on children are who come in contact with the chemicals. Mr. Pierce stated there could be liver damage, brain damage and other developmental damage. Andover City Council Special Meeting Minutes - December 11, 2003 Page 10 Deputy Dustin Reichert stated he is a recognition expert with the Sheriffs Department. Sheriff Bruce Andersohn stated he is at the meeting because he needs to have this ordinance approved in order to get funding for clean up issues. Councilmember Trude asked what happens to the cars that have Meth in them. Sheriff Andersohn stated the titles of the cars would be tagged with a notice ofMeth contact and also deeds to homes would be tagged until cleaned to a set standard. Mr. Erar stated that alone, the chemicals are dangerous but mixed together, they are combustible. Councilmember Orttel asked what happens if contaminants are disposed of outside. Mr. Pierce stated the pollution control agency would become involved at that point because it would be an environmental issue. City Attorney Sullivan stated the idea of the Ordinance is to create a means for the City to maintain control. The City Officials are to react immediately and declare the property a hazard and demand clean up of the property. b, Model Ordinance Councilmember Jacobson questioned the authority the City would have to go into a private home because they live under a law and the City cannot step in because the Sheriff thinks there is a problem without due process. He wondered what the City could do. City Attorney Sullivan stated this ordinance presumes that the site is a Meth lab. Councilmember Jacobson asked how they can react to this with just the Sheriffs Department notification. Mr. Erar stated there has to be evidence of activity in order for the City to go in and shut the house down. Councilmember Orttel asked if a resident has all the chemicals in the house, does the City have the right to go in and tell them it is hazardous and to clean it up. Mr. Pierce explained they have tests and know how to detect a Meth lab. Sheriff Andersohn stated they will not be in a house unless they have a search warrant and determine it to be a Meth lab. Councilmember Jacobson stated that would be fine if they have a report stating it is done. Councilmember Jacobson did not want the City to get sued because of this Ordinance. Mr. Erar stated there are definitions in the Ordinance that explain this. Discussion ensued in regard to the City's liability regarding the Ordinance. Councilmember Jacobson stated if on page four, Item f, "recovery of public costs", this would require court approval to go in and do this stuff. City Attorney Sullivan stated they would need to have some authoritative action by the courts to do some of this. Andover City Council Special Meeting Minutes - December 11, 2003 Page 11 Councilmember Jacobson stated he would like wording added to the Ordinance on page 4, Item f, numbers 1 to 3, stating "subject to legal process." In numbers 1 and 2 it should be at the end of the paragraph and in number 3, it would be after the first sentence. Motion by Knight, seconded by Orttel, to approve the Ordinance as amended. (Cr..D.cl79} Councilmember Jacobson thought they need to approve this at a regular City Council meeting for the residents to hear. Mr. Erar stated they could make a motion at the regular meeting or at the workshop. Mayor Gamache stated Councilmember Jacobson had some changes to the Ordinance so maybe they should wait to approve this at the regular City Council meeting. Councilmember Jacobson asked ifthere is an appeal process. Ms. Braun stated they have ten days to appeal. Mr. Erar stated everyone would like to move forward with this but he thought they might want to televise the motion. Councilmember Orttel withdrew his second. Mayor Gamache stated they could still get this on the agenda for the Tuesday City Council meeting. Mr. Erar agreed. Councilmember Jacobson stated he wanted to make sure the items were changed. Councilmember Trude stated there may be a time when the City has to go after the property owner to deal with the problem and she wanted to make sure they got their money back. Councilmember Orttel stated they could get their money back by putting a lien on the house. Councilmember Trude asked what ifthey had to tear the house down; they would probably not recover the costs there. Mr. Erar stated they will initially have an outlay of dollars. Mr. Erar stated if the Council would like to adopt the Ordinance tonight they could and he would put it on the agenda for notification to the public, Motion by Knight, seconded by Orttel, to approve the Ordinance with the noted changes. Motion passed unanimously. c. Finance Sources Mr. Erar explained possible sources of funding and/or reimbursement for Meth lab clean-up costs include: Order for Abatement, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, City Assessment Procedures, "Potential" Notification of Clean-Up Costs to Mortgage Companies. MISCELLANEOUS BUSINESS ITEMS There were none. OTHER BUSINESS ITEMS Andover City Council Special Meeting Minutes - December 11, 2003 Page 12 There were none. Motion by Jacobson, Seconded by Knight, to adjourn. Motion carried unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 9:50 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Susan Osbeck, Recording Secretary