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HomeMy WebLinkAboutWK March 27, 2007 0 1685 CROSSTOWN BOULEVARD N.W. . ANDOVER, MINNESOTA 55304 . (763) 755-5100 FAX (763) 755-8923 . WWW.CI.ANDOVER.MN.US City Council Workshop Tuesday, March 27, 2007 Conference Rooms A & B 1. Call to Order -7:00 p.m. 2. Discuss Passenger Rail - Resolution of Support - Administration 3. Railroad Quiet Zone/Wayside Horns Update/06-1 0 - Engineering 4. Review Sunshine Park Concession Proposals - Administration Q 5. Discuss Open Space Referendum & Conunission Creation - Administration 6. Discuss Fire Relief Association Board Member Appointment - Administration 7. Wi-Fi Progress Update - Administration 8. 2008-2012 Capital Improvement Plan Guidelines - Administration 9. 2008 Operating Budget Guidelines Discussion - Administration 10. Code Enforcement Policies - Community Development 11. Other Business 12. Adjournment C C I T Y o F (je-weJ:; (U) NDOVE un \ tKA L\-1l-61 0 ANDOVER CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP -MARCH 27, 2007 MINUTES The Workshop of the Andover City Council was called to order by Mayor Mike Gamache, March 27, 2006,7:01 p.m., at the Andover City Hall, 1685 Crosstown Boulevard NW, Andover, Minnesota. Councilmembers present: Don Jacobson, Ken Orttel, and Julie Trude Councilmember absent: Mike Knight. Also present: City Administrator Jim Dickinson; City Engineer Dave Berkowitz; Fire Chief Dan Winkel; Director of Community Development Will Neumeister; Others RAILROAD QUIET ZONE/WAYSIDE HORNS UPDATE / 06-10 0 City Engineer Berkowitz updated the Council on the Railroad Quiet Zone/W ayside Horns. He noted the BNSF has evaluated the crossings at Andover Boulevard and Crosstown Boulevard found the circuitry needs to be redone in order to make the wayside horns run appropriately. Originally BNS had identified $5,000-$15,000, but with the new BNSF estimate the total cost estimate has doubled for each crossing. Mayor Gamache asked if the siding track at Crosstown did not cross the road, why did they need the cross arms there. City Engineer Berkowitz noted the siding track has a motion sensor and the railroad wants an adjustment in both the arm and the horn. Councilmember Julie Trude arrived at 7:06 p.m. Councilmember Jacobson asked what was the total estimated cost is now. Mr. Berkowitz responded for all three projects it is $585,000.00. Councilmember Jacobson noted they would not have enough to do everything this year. Mr. Dickinson stated all of the circuitry may need to be done at one time. They could look in other locations for money, but at this point they have not done that. He asked how quickly the Council wants to proceed. Councilmember Jacobson stated due to the cost, maybe they should put in Bunker Lake Boulevard 0 and just put one horn in at this time and see what everyone thought of it before putting in the remaining horns. Mr. Berkowitz noted the challenge is if they did it at Andover and Crosstown, it is in the middle. Councilmember Trude believes doing Bunker would be a good start because they are the ones who complained the most. 0 Special Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - March 27, 2007 Page 2 Councilmember Jacobson asked if they could do Bunker Lake Boulevard and Andover Boulevard this year. Mayor Gamache believes Bunker and Andover make the most sense. Mr. Berkowitz stated to do Bunker and Andover would cost approximately $420,000 - $430,000, but he had to check on the motion sensor on that intersection also, which might need to be changed. Councilmember Jacobson stated this is a fInancial decision and if they do not have the money, they do not have the money. Mr. Berkowitz stated if they got a bid on two horns, he believes they would get a cost savings. Councilmember Jacobson indicated if they could get Bunker and Andover done within budget then that would be fine. Mayor Gamache noted with the $330,000.00, they would only be able to do two. Mr. Dickinson would prefer to do one agreement with BNSF and be at the table with them once because it is not easy working with them. 0 Mayor Gamache asked if they would have to have agreements with them on all three. Mr. Berkowitz stated they would. Councilmember Trude asked if it made fmancial sense to do this project all at once. Councilmember Jacobson stated he wants to go with the first two and have them come back to do the circuitry. Mr. Berkowitz stated they would talk to BNSF about this and see what makes the most sense. Mayor Gamache asked them to look at doing the horns this year and the circuitry next year. Councilmember Orttel stated he wants to see something working this year. DISCUSS PASSENGER RAIL - RESOLUTION OF SUPPORT Mr. Dickinson stated representing the Anoka County Regional Rail Authority, the Tinklenberg Group, has been charged with developing a grassroots effort to plan for and implement commuter and inter-city rail services between the Twin Cities and Duluth. This work involves engaging communities, counties and the general public along the Cambridge Corridor to generate support for 0 the initiative as well as to recognize and capitalize on the opportunities rail service can provide for economic development and enhanced quality oflife. He noted the Tinklenberg Group is present to answer questions and to determine if there is support for a resolution of support. Mr. El'wyn Tinklenberg stated he wished he could have more detailed answers to the Council's questions, but at this time he could not. They have not initiated the feasibility study yet and 0 Special Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes -March 27,2007 Page 3 discussions are still in the preliminary stages. He indicated once the feasibility study is prepared that would address a lot of the issues. Councilmember Trude stated they worried about putting a half a million dollars into no whistle zones and have the railroad say they would need to move, rip up, or replace the track. Mr. Tinklenberg noted nobody is talking about doing this, but they might make an upgrade to the railroad bed and improvements to the existing track. The train speeds would be dependent upon the corridor on which they are traveling. There would need to be rail-crossing improvements studied all the way along the corridor. Councilmember Jacobson asked how they would determine where the stations would be. He noted they have a spot in the City for a station. Mr. Tinklenberg responded he would not be picking the station locations and this would be developed by the political jurisdictions along the corridor along with the ridership analysis. What is proposed in this corridor is that it begins with passenger rail service between the Twin Ports (Duluth) and Minneapolis with very few stops in between Duluth and Minneapolis. This would also continue to operate as a freight line. He indicated what was also being considered is that later on (years down the road) that it would be a fairly simple process of 0 expanding or adding to that passenger service a commuter service over some portion of the line. He did not know if it would be Hinckley, Cambridge, etc. and it might change over the years also. He believes it would take longer to develop a commuter service than four or five years. Councilmember Trude stated she has not spoken with anybody who thinks commuter rail is a good expenditure for public funds. She stated nobody understood why there should be a commuter rail to Duluth. Mr. Tinklenberg noted this is a fairly inexpensive service to initiate and he believes it would be cost effective. He indicated when the commuter rail was stopped in 1985 before all of the amenities existed in the north Minnesota area, it still carried over 100,000 riders in the last year of operation. He stated this is the plan for the future of Amtrak services. Councilmember Jacobson asked what type of financial contribution they would be asking of the City. Mr. Tinklenberg stated they would be asking cities that are potential station stops for the passenger rail (such as Hinckley and Cambridge) to contribute. The original commuter rail system plan identified stations along this corridor, which did show an Andover station in that plan. Mr. Dickinson indicated generally the fInancial arm is focused on the County Regional Rail Authority. 0 Councilmember Trude stated she would rather tie the wording into a possible future Andover station. Mayor Gamache stated it did not cost anything to support this because it would still go through and changing it will be remembered and the City might not get the potential rail station. 0 Special Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - March 27, 2007 Page 4 Councilmember Jacobson stated he could support looking at this, but when the study is done, they need to look at this again. He has no problem supporting the initial activity, but he did not want to support the entire thing at this time. Councilmember Trude stated from everything she has heard, this is not supported in the community, but it might be more supported if there was a potential for an Andover station in the future. Councilmember Jacobson asked if Mr. Tinklenberg is in agreement that the City would support contingent research and look at this again once the study is completed. Mr. Tinklenberg responded the effort would benefit from anything the City would like to contribute to the discussion and what is going to happen is that they are moving forward with a feasibility study to look at these issues and they would be coming back in front of the Council as things move along. He indicated they would do a train ride this summer and they want the City represented in that also. Councilmember Trude noted the more information the City has the better it is for them to get support from the residents. 0 Mr. Dickinson suggested Resolution wording: Now, Therefore, Be it Resolved that the City of Andover hereby supports the continued research of passenger rail service between Duluth and the Twin Cities and in anticipation that the development may lead to future commuter rail service which could benefit Andover. REVIEW SUNSHINE PARK CONCESSION PROPOSALS City Administrator Dickinson stated the Sunshine Park concession contract with C & H Enterprises expired October 31,2006. City staff conducted a final inspection in late November and the deposit was returned to C & H Enterprises. On January 2,2007 the City Council authorized staff to do a request for proposals (RFP) for the concessions at Sunshine Park. The expired contract with C & H Enterprises was for three years (2004, 2005, and 2006). Staff recommended the City do a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the concessions at Sunshine Park and evaluate proposals before entering into another longer term contract. He requested the Council review the proposals and provide direction to staff on how to proceed. He had no staffrecommendation on any of the proposals. Councilmember Trude asked when it comes to food costs, wouldn't it make sense to have someone go year round. 0 Mr. Dickinson noted the equipment needed for Sunshine Park would be moved in the off-season to the community center. He stated any of organizations would likely have to purchase equipment and to have anything less than a 3-year commitment would probably not interest these bidders. 0 Special Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - March 27, 2007 Page 5 Mayor Gamache stated the only issue he had with the athletic associations is that they are based on volunteers. C&S Concessions have done a good job previously. With respect to the Community Center, they did a good job. Councilmember Jacobson stated they need to look at where the City gets the best return on its investment and if the Community Center is the best return, they need to look at this. Councilmember Trude stated reliability is important, but she stated they also need to have good sanitation and this concerns her with youth working at the concessions. Mr. Dickinson stated they already have a contract drafted and once the decision is made, it would not take long to get it in place. Councilmember Jacobson stated the Community Center bid looks like it would put more money back into the park and if they give it to either one of the associations they would more than likely use all of the money for their particular association. With the Community Center proposal the improvements would be for everyone. 0 Mr. Dickinson stated if the consensus were to do this in-house, they would start notifying the other organizations. Councilmember Jacobson stated he would prefer going with the Community Center. Mr. Dickinson stated the one positive with going with the Community Center is the money they spend is for equipment they eventually want for the Community Center anyway. It was Council's consensus to go with the Andover Community Center. DISCUSS OPEN SPACE REFERENDUM & COMMISSION CREATION Mr. Dickinson stated on November 7,2006 the Andover voters approved the "Preservation of Water, Wildlife, and Natural Habitat Areas" ballot question. With this approval the City Council has the ability to levy taxes to meet what was identified in the approved ballot question. To assist in making the next steps, he anticipated that the City will want to utilize a number of resources along the way such as the Trust for Public Land, DNR and the Anoka County Soil and Water Conservation District to prepare for the purchase of preservation process. It is also anticipated the Council will want to start the process of advertising for and ultimately interviewing individuals to serve on a City of Andover established commission to assist the Council. With Council concurrence, 0 an advertisement seeking "Open Space Commission" applicants will be placed in the next newsletter. Interviews would be scheduled in early June and the Commission would be in full operation by July. Council concurrence on how many members the Council wants to make up the Commission is also sought. Councilmember Trude stated she would prefer having volunteer outside consultants. 0 Special Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - March 27, 2007 Page 6 The Council consensus was to advertise for 7 people for the Commission. DISCUSS FIRE RELIEF ASSOCIATION BOARD MEMBER APPOINTMENT Mr. Dickinson stated at the March 6 City Council meeting the Council approved by-law changes for the Andover Fire Relief Association. One of those changes was the addition of the appointment of a City Councilmember to the relief association board. The Council directed staff at the March 6 meeting to place the appointment of a City Councilmember to the Andover Fire Relief Association on a future workshop as an agenda item. He requested Council discuss which member of the Council will serve on the Andover Fire Relief Association Board. Councilmember Jacobson stated he would volunteer for one year. 0 Motion by Orttel, seconded by Gamache to appoint Councilmember Jacobson to the Fire Relief Association Board for a period of one year. Motion carried unanimously. WI-FI PROGRESS UPDATE Mr. Dickinson stated a previous 2005-2006 Council Goal was to explore wireless internet services for City of Andover residents. Survey questions were crafted for insertion into the Decision Resources community survey conducted last spring and just recently the Council has asked staff to review the feasibility of Wi-Fi implementation in the City of Andover. He updated Council on staff's conclusions. He asked if Council is willing to seek outside assistance for the project. If so, staff would present proposals to the Council at a future meeting along with a recommendation on where the budget dollars would come from. Councilmember Jacobson stated what concerns him is that most of the City has access to high speed internet and if they invest a lot of money into this and they only have 2,000 subscribers, it would not pay for itself. Mayor Gamache asked if Qwest/Comcast would give the City the number of their City subscribers. Mr. Dickinson stated he believes they would need 3,000 subscribers in order for this to pay for itself at approximately $28.00 per month. 0 Councilmember Jacobson noted Wi-Fi is the "hot" thing now, but there is more technology coming, which would make Wi-Fi obsolete. Councilmember Trude stated she did not believe this is a municipal utility at this time. 0 Special Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - March 27, 2007 Page 7 Mayor Gamache stated the cost seems pretty high and for the most part people like what they have. 2008-2012 CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN GUIDELINES Mr. Dickinson stated in early April, AdministrationIFinance will conduct a 2008-2012 CIP kick- off meeting with Department Heads where discussion will center on the 2008-2012 CIP development calendars and the need of other committees and commissions to start their work. He requested Council provide direction to staff on Council priorities for the 2008-2012 CIP. Mr. Dickinson stated one item not on the list is exploring a new phone system. He indicated this would be an expensive proposition. Councilmember Trude stated she wants them to look at additional trails by using the levy. She did not want to stop the trails. 0 Mr. Dickinson stated the City sign outside of City Hall needs to be replaced. He asked if they want to replace this. It would cost approximately $20,000.00. Council's consensus was to leave the sign as it is for now. 2008 OPERATING BUDGET GUIDELINES DISCUSSION Mr. Dickinson stated City Departments will soon start preparing the 2008 Annual Operating Budget Development process and is looking to the City Council to establish the Council's guidelines for the preparation of the 2008 Annual Operating Budget. Council is requested to review the proposed Budget Development guidelines, discuss whether or not they are appropriate for developing the 2008 Annual Operating Budget, and provide additional comments or direction to staff. Councilmember Jacobson stated he likes the idea that they are one of the lowest taxing authorities in the area and they are trying to keep it to the rate of inflation. Mayor Gamache recessed the meeting at 8:48 p.m. and reconvened the meeting at 8:58 p.m. 0 CODE ENFORCEMENT POLICIES Mr. Neumeister stated at the Council workshop on February 27, 2007 there was discussion about repeat code violations and what could be done to prevent these in the future. There were a few other items that were brought up by the Council that night that staff needed to do further research 0 Special Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - March 27, 2007 Page 8 on. Since that meeting, a few other issues have surfaced that need further discussion, which he reviewed at the work session. He requested Council provide staff direction on the policies they would like to move forward with. Mr. Neumeister stated staff has been working on the completion of one-year exterior home improvements, but the issue is that the homes have been turned over to the banks and are now in foreclosure. How they deal with the foreclosure cases was an entirely different issue. Mr. Dickinson stated at the end of the year when they have mowing assessments those assessments are basically for the foreclosed properties. Councilmember Jacobson asked if somebody has a financial responsibility for the home. Mr. Dickinson responded after the redemption period, the bank has the obligation to take the home, but asked how they would force the bank to do this. 0 Mr. Dickinson stated they could start an abatement process on the foreclosure properties to get the mortgage company to come to the table. Councilmember Jacobson asked how expensive it is to go through the abatement process. Mr. Neumeister responded it could run between $4,000-$8,000. Councilmember Orttel recommended they bring these properties to the bank's attention in an attempt to avoid the abatement process. Mr. Neumeister stated staff would write letter to the bank/mortgage company attaching pictures so they knew what the condition of the property was. He stated rather than going to abatement right away, staff might need to go through a little bit more effort to get in touch with the bank/mortgage company. Mr. Neumeister noted as long as someone shows progress it could take someone as long as they want for the interior work, but the exterior has to be completed within one year. Councilmember Jacobson asked staff to look at uncompleted homes at 133rd and Hanson. Mr. Neumeister summarized the establishing of escalating fines for repeat code violators. Councilmember Jacobson recommended they shorten up the time in order for the violators to 0 respond. Councilmember Trude stated she receives a lot of calls on code violations and she does not believe she should be receiving these calls. They need better customer service. 0 Special Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes -March 27,2007 Page 9 Councilmember Jacobson stated 90 percent of the people comply and he wants them to follow through with the other 10 percent who did not comply. They should come up with a method for going after the constant violators. Councilmember Orttel recommended they have the CSO's deliver the letters. Mr. Neumeister stated they could also have a 30 and 60-day follow-up inspection, so it would be an ongoing case instead of a new case each time. Council agreed this is a good idea. .Mr. Neumeister stated they had done a survey of other cities' lower standards for grass height. Councilmember Trude stated she wants the grass height at six inches. Councilmember Orttel noted he has a lot of area he could not cut because there are protected plants and his grass gets pretty high in places. Mr. Neumeister noted there were more grass length complaints than any other complaints 0 received. Fire Chief Winkel noted if they lowered it too low, they would have boulevard issues. Councilmember Trude stated it is the fInished lawn they are concerned about. Mr. Neumeister agreed it is the urban lots they should be addressing. Mr. Dickinson recommended 8-inch lawn height, or if it had gone to seed on urban lots only. Councilmember Jacobson stated if staff is out doing something else and sees an obvious code violation, staff needs to be more proactive in enforcing the code. Mr. Neumeister summarized the home-based businesses in the City. Councilmember Jacobson recommended staff send new home businesses a copy of the Ordinance and have the home business send back a form stating they did or did not comply with the home-based business code. Fire Chief Winkel stated part of the issue is that if they were in commercial zones, they would be inspected on a regular basis. Councilmember Trude stated she has received complaints regarding home businesses that have excessive traffic or equipment. 0 Councilmember Jacobson stated they have criteria as to what uses are acceptable and not acceptable in a residential area. They have to preserve the neighborhoods. Mr. Neumeister asked how proactive the staff should be. Councilmember Jacobson stated if the business receives a personal letter from the City, that should solve some of the issues. 0 Special Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - March 27, 2007 Page 10 Councilmember Trude stated they should also put this in the newsletter to inform everyone about the home-based business ordinance. Mayor Gamache asked what happens if a business certified they were allowed. Mr. Dickinson stated he did not know if they want to use code enforcement staff time on some of the enforcement and they might need to use the Sheriff s Department for some of these issues. Councilmember Orttel recommended they advertise this in the spring clean up information. Mr. Dickinson stated the issue he is more concerned about is the unknown they are going to run into when they start flushing these things out and he was not quite sure what would happen. Councilmember Orttel stated they need to look closely at other cities. OTHER BUSINESS ITEMS 0 A. Outdoor Swimming Pool Fencing. Councilmember Trude presented a picture of an outdoor swimming pool that is not fenced. She believes the pool is a hazard. She noted there is usually a ladder on the pool at all times. Mr. Dickinson noted the pool meets the code. B. Wetland Intrusion. Councilmember Trude stated at a future workshop she wants to discuss wetland intrusion. Motion by Orttel, Seconded by Jacobson to adjourn to the City Council Workshop. Motion carried unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 9:51 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Kathy Altman, Recording Secretary 0 0 REGULAR ANDOVER CITY COUNCIL MEETING - APRIL 3, 2007 MINUTES The Regular Bi-Monthly Meeting of the Andover City Council was called to order by Mayor Mike Gamache, April 3, 2007, 7:00 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, Scott Baumgartner City Engineer, Dave Berkowitz City Administrator, Jim Dickinson Community Development Director, Will Neumeister Others 0 PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE RESIDENT FORUM Mr. Victor Razinski - 13864 Bluebird Street, discussed the 2007 Overlay Projects. He stated the appparent low bidder of the project was Knife River or formerly known as Bauerly Brothers, Inc. As a resident and representative of over seventy members of the community, they do not want their tax dollars to be spent on a contractor from out of the area who does not pay area standards and wages and benefits and in his opinion, they do substandard work at best. He understands the City has to take the lowest, responsible bidder but he did not believe Knife River Corporation is one of those. He believes this problem would not come up in the City in the future if the City would adopt prevailing wage language on all City projects that are let out for bid. Mr. Dickinson stated internally they have discussed this and on some of their projects they have bid with prevailing wage, such as the Community Center and Jay Street project. It is a topic they can bring up over the summer as they work on next year's projects but he recommended the Council to move forward with this to stay on schedule and get their projects done. Mayor Gamache noted the Council will have some discussions this summer regarding this as they prepare for the next bidding season. 0 Councilmember Trude stated in this case, if they did not accept the bid they would have to go back and rebid the project and it would delay the project and possibly have higher costs. Councilmember Jacobson stated there would be a disadvantage because everyone knows what everyone has bid and that would put everyone at an economic disadvantage. Councilmember Trude thought this would actually cost the taxpayers more money because on this project they are assessing out twenty-five