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HomeMy WebLinkAboutWK February 26, 2008 C I T Y o F 0 NDOVE 1685 CROSSTOWN BOULEVARD N.W. . ANDOVER, MINNESOTA 55304. (763) 755-5100 FAX (763) 755-8923 . WWW.CI.ANDOVER.MN.US City Council Workshop Tuesday, February 26,2008 Conference Rooms A & B 1. Call to Order - 6:00 p.m. 2. Joint Open Space Commission Meeting 6:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m. 3. Joint Powers Agreement Discussion/Assessment Services Contract 4. Review of Sewer Staging Plan 5. Single Family Residential Rental Licensing 0 6. 2007-2008 Council Goals - Progress Report 7. Other Business 8. Adjournment 0 C.&'ljl~ Q/J./ C I T Y o F LL~~ 3-L'6~()~ NDOVE 0 ANDOVER CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP - FEBRUARY 26,2008 MINUTES The Council Workshop of the Andover City Council was called to order by Mayor Mike Gamache, February 26,2008, 6:00 p.m., at the Andover City Hall, 1685 Crosstown Boulevard NW, Andover, Minnesota Councilmembers present: Mayor Mike Gamache, Mike Knight, Ken Orttel, Julie Trude Councilmembers absent: Don Jacobson Open Space Commissioners present: Chairman Deric Deuschle, Gretchen Sabel, Jody Keppers, Winslow Holasek, Bruce Perry and Kim Kovich Also present: City Administrator Jim Dickinson City Planner Courtney Bednarz 0 Director of Public Works/City Engineer Dave Berkowitz Assistant City Engineer Jason Law Building Official Don Olson. Assistant Building Official Herb Blommel Mike Smith, landowner Mark Smith, landowner APPROVEAGENDA The agenda was approved as presented. Motion carried unanimously. JOINT OPEN SPACE COMMISSION MEETING 6:00 P.M. TO 7:00 P.M. Mr. Bednarz provided Council with an overview of activities undertaken by the Open Space Commission. He stated the big focus in the short term is working on the DNR grant application for the March 31, 2008 deadline. Councilmember Trude stated once they are to the point of negotiating with property owners, it would be the appropriate time to see if the property owners would be willing to allow site visits. It would be helpful if the Open Space Commission members could do some of those visits. 0 Councilmember Orttel noted with the studies that have been done there is good data available to review the sites without going onto the property. Mayor Gamache noted there is information available through aerials and maps. 0 Special Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - February 26, 2008 Page 2 Mr. Bednarz provided an overview of properties included on the list of potential properties to be purchased for open space preservation. He reported on the interest level of each of the property owners that have been contacted, and the schedule for contacting the remaining property owners. Commissioner Kovich pointed out that the DNR grant is a natural and scenic area grant. It appears that the grant has been applied to properties with open water views. He has not seen any instances where the grant was applied just for a parcel in the woods. Also, there will need to be public access to the site. These grants are for parcels along corridors. He suggested identifIcation of corridors in the City, which had previously been a discussion and has been dropped for a while. Mayor Gamache asked what is required to officially designate the City corridors. Mr. Bednarz replied the mapping would work its way from the Open Space Commission to the Council for approval. Chairman Deuschle noted the Anoka Conservation District has identifIed some of the larger corridors. 0 There was discussion regarding the properties identifIed for potential purchase for open space preservation, including the possibility of purchasing conservation easements on the properties. It was noted that it will likely be difficult to meet the March 31 st deadline for the DNR grant application. Mayor Gamache pointed out that a conservation easement would seem to fIt in with the long-range goal of Mr. Windschitl. Commissioner Kovich stated in regards to natural open space, the piece south of Leeman Lake is probably the most diverse. It has great access and the highland is all oaks. Chairman Deuschle pointed out that this property has the most visual access with the location on Crosstown, and it provides a buffer for the lake. Some of the long-term plans include a road access going through this area; if this could be incorporated in terms of the alignment the access required with a grant could be provided. He noted a conservation easement on the property could provide the landowner with a buffer from the road. Councilmember Trude asked if this property could be considered a wildlife corridor. Chairman Deuschle and Commissioner Kovich replied in the affirmative. Commissioner Kovich left the meeting at 6:47 p.m. 0 Councilmember Trude expressed interest in preserving property along the creek, possibly through fIrst right of refusals or purchasing easements. She stated the Rice Creek Watershed District has done a gorgeous project with the corridor that had been protected. She inquired about the property on the north edge of Crooked Lake. 0 Special Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - February 26, 2008 Page 3 Commissioner Keppers stated the consensus of the Commission is that this parcel would make a fair amount of sense for the City to acquire. However, it is not open space type of land; it is more something for the Park Commission to acquire. Mayor Gamache suggested with the area off of Hanson Boulevard there could be consideration of utilizing a similar process to what was done with the Kelsey Round Lake property. Consensus of the City Council was to direct staff to continue discussions with the property owners of the thre.e highest ranked properties on the list of potential properties to be purchased for open space preservation, and to include an item on the Open Space Commission agenda to discuss corridors, in addition to the grant application. Mr. Bednarz indicated staff will provide an update at the next City Council meeting and will email the Open Space Commissioners regarding the status of discussions with the landowners. Commissioner Knight suggested including information in the City Newsletter that the Open Space 0 Commission is looking for parcels to purchase. Chairman Deuschle indicated the Commission has discussed including information in the Newsletter acknowledging that the Commission is pursuing grants. Mr. Bednarz stated the Commission has discussed allowing an open application from residents interested in having their land considered for purchase for open space preservation. Mayor Gamache noted there is an opportunity at the Home Improvement Show for the Open Space Commission to provide maps and information. He thanked the Open Space Commission for their work. JOINT POWERS AGREEMENT DISCUSSION/ASSESSMENT SERVICES CONTRACT Mr. Dickinson stated the City of Andover's current contract with Anoka County for assessment services was last reviewed in December of200 1. At that time, a six -year contract was signed with the City having the right to terminate the agreement by providing, at a minimum, two years written notice by certifIed mail. The earliest the Council could terminate at this point would be for assessment year 2011. When the assessment services contract was discussed with Council in December, the request was to review some of the neighboring cities to see if Andover is receiving a good value. Administration!Finance has reviewed the budgets of Coon Rapids, Fridley and Anoka 0 These cities currently have in-house assessing services. Staff has determined that even with the signifIcant cost per parcel increase, the Anoka County Assessor is still a cost effective solution. Mr. Dickinson recommended that the City of Andover continue using the Anoka County Assessor as the City Assessor and approve the proposed Joint Powers Agreement (JP A) between the City of Andover and the County of Anoka for Assessment of Property. 0 Special Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - February 26, 2008 Page 4 Mr. Mike Sutherland, Anoka County Assessor, provided Council with an overview of the process used to determine the JP A rate structure. Since he has been Assessor for Anoka County the contract allows the County to modify the rate if necessary in order to keep the costs in line. There has been enough growth in parcels that he did not feel it was necessary to go higher on the rate. He does not know if this will be true for the next fIve years, but he will do his best to keep the number as close to what is included in this agreement as he can. He pointed out that the agreement includes a separate charge for mobile home assessment service, but it has been determined that this will not be billed out to the jurisdictions. He distributed a breakdown of costs versus the billed estimate based on parcel counts. He noted that cities like Andover and Blaine do not cost the County as much as what is being billed out, while a city like Lexington is actually costing the County $10,000 more than they are being billed based on the parcel count. However, all of the jurisdictions serviced by the County are required to be billed the same. Councilmember Orttel questioned why, according to the breakdown of costs, it appears that Andover is paying .for the difference in Burns assessment charges compared to actual costs. He pointed out that Burns shows costs of $48,000, and is only being billed at $25,000. Mr. Sutherland explained 0 parcels in Andover are more concentrated; the assessment charges are based on the individual parcel count of each jurisdiction. Councilmember Trude stated with changing fuel costs and parcel differentiation it is much harder to value the homes that are remote and do not turn over often. Mr. Dickinson explained the County tries to use one size fits all billing. Andover may subsidize a rural area However, when looking at taxability, Burns Township, Lexington, and more rural areas pay taxes at the same level as a home in the City of Andover, and do not use the jail and prosecution services that Andover does. Mr. Sutherland stated there has been more than one time when he has needed to bring in temporary help for the cities of Andover, Blaine and Ramsey. These are services the County does not bill the jurisdictions for. The numbers reflected in the assessment service charge are direct costs in doing the appraisal; there are no indirect costs included. Mr. Dickinson reviewed the assessment services budgets of the cities of Anoka and Coon Rapids, which provide their own in-house assessment services. He reviewed the assessment services budget of the city of East Bethel, which contracts with a private assessment service. He indicated if there seems to be consensus from the Council, the JP A with the County will be included on the Consent Agenda of the next City Council meeting. 0 Councilmember Trude commented on how the public might feel when receiving their statements in about two weeks. Every community has concerns about property values, vacant homes, mortgages, and properties not selling. There are also concerns about group homes. Councilmember Orttel questioned how increases will be justifIed with the housing values dropping. 0 Special Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - February 26, 2008 Page 5 Mr. Sutherland replied townhomes and condos are suffering the most. Single-family homes are a mixed bag; it appears that overall in the County it is flat. There are arguments being made at the Department of Revenue on how things like foreclosures will be handled. The challenge is to explain to people that while they have a right to be worried about their values, the assessment values are taken from a set of data in a specifIc point of time. As far as the solidity of market values, he compares real estate closings against the County's assessment values regularly; they are running at approximately 90% but still trailing at upper ends. As the values get under $200,000 that value is closer. Councilmember Trude suggested there should be consideration of the expense involved with appraising more rural and unusual parcels when preparing assessment contracts in the future. Mr. Sutherland explained with this contract he went back to 2002 and looked at total revenue in comparison to the total budget, which was at 56%. He then determined what needed to be done to bring it back to that level. He asked if Council would prefer in the future that the contract be adjusted prior to the end of the contract. 0 Councilmember Trude stated she would prefer the increases to be spread out, rather thanjumps like there are with this contract. She commended the appraisal staff that services the City of Andover and the consistency they have provided. Mr. Dickinson indicated from here on out the contract rates will be very predictable. Consensus of the City Council was to direct staff to include the Joint Powers Agreement between the City of Andover and the County of Anoka for Assessment of Property on the agenda of the next City Council meeting for consideration. REVIEW OF SEWER SYSTEM AND STAGING PLAN Mr. Dickinson stated during the review of the Comprehensive Plan Update at the City Council meeting ofPebruary 6, 2008 there was discussion about having further review of the sewer staging plan at the next Council workshop. The staff report includes a history of how they have arrived at the current system that is in place today. It should be noted if a major change is recommended to the sewer staging plan that is currently in place it will affect transportation counts, etc. that are included in the Comprehensive Plan Update. Mr. Berkowitz discussed the history involved in the conclusions made regarding the sewer plan in 2004 and the study completed by TKDA. He stated since that time, and as part of the Comprehensive 0 Plan Update, staffhas completed an analysis of the entire City in moving forward with the sewer plan. It should be noted that each alternative provides sufficient capacity. 0 Special Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - February 26, 2008 Page 6 Mr. Berkowitz provided an overview and cost estimates on the following sewer and sewer stating plan options: . Option 1: Yellow Pine Lift Station Alternative (Current proposed system) . Option 2: Prairie Road Alternative . Option 3: ModifIed Prairie Road Alternative with Yellow Pine Lift Station Staff answered questions from the Council on the above sewer staging plan alternatives. There was discussion of the following in relation to the sewer staging plan: . All scenarios assume the building of the sewer system is done under the road . The proposed sewer staging plan for the 2008 Comprehensive Plan Update pushes dates previously set at 2015 to 2020 to a 2020 to 2025 timeframe. . Properties in the City currently ready for development; approximately 500 lots with access to sewer and water currently. . Possibility of moving up the Smith and Day parcels in the current proposed sewer staging plan versus the possibility of a comprehensive plan amendment request for development of the Smith and Day parcels sooner than the 2020 to 2025 timeframe. . Capacity . Soil analysis 0 . Changes to the current sewer staging plan will effect the transportation numbers and population estimates included in the Comprehensive Plan Update Mr. Winslow Holasek addressed the Council and stated his concerns regarding the current sewer staging plan. He recited statements made by the City Attorney at the February 6,2008 City Council meeting in relation to obligations of the City to provide service within the timeframe included in the Comprehensive Plan. He stressed that the Comprehensive Plan is in place to plan these things in an orderly fashion. He stated his opposition to the Yellow Pine Lift Station alternative and stated his position that this option does not provide options. Mr. Mike Smith and Mr. Mark Smith addressed the Council and expressed their position in support of including the Smith parcel in the 2015 to 2020 timeframe. They pointed out that a comprehensive plan amendment to move the timeframe up from the 2020 to 2025 timeframe would require a 4/5 vote of the Council. Councilmember Trude noted that a comprehensive plan amendment would involve the full public input process, which would allow comments from the neighborhood. Mr. Bednarz explained the Smith parcel was staged in the 2020 to 2025 timeframe because it is located at the end of the line. 0 Mayor Gamache stated he is not guaranteeing support, but is in favor of a discussion at a City Council meeting of moving the Smith parcels back to the 2015 to 2020 timeframe. Consensus of the City Council was to direct staff to schedule an agenda item for Council consideration of the sewer staging of the Smith and Day parcels in the Comprehensive Plan Update. 0 Special Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - February 26, 2008 Page 7 Mr. Berkowitz stated a review report was received from the County requesting a train station located on Bunker Lake Boulevard. Staff would like to make that change in the transportation section of the Comprehensive Plan. The meeting was recessed at 9:24 p.m. and reconvened at 9:35 p.m. SINGLE FAMILY RESIDENTIAL RENTAL LICENSING Mr. Dickinson stated the last time Council discussed the topic of single family residential licensing was in February of2007. A lot has happened in the community since that time, and there have been signifIcant impacts by foreclosures and the slowed housing market. It has been requested that this topic be discussed in workshop. Staffhas conducted an analysis of what other cities do with single family rentals. What becomes the larger issue in deciding whether or not to proceed with single family residential rental licensing is how to locate all the rentals and maintain a valid list of where they are located. To develop the list the cities engaged in this process have taken steps such as: 1) 0 Public information campaigns; 2) Logging word-of-mouth complaints from residents; 3) Cross- checking public records on ownership and determining where utility bills are being sent, if not to the subject property. Mr. Dickinson stated staff feels if single family residential rental licensing were to be taken on, there would be the need to dedicate staff to the efforts. Councilmember Knight stated the number of single family homes being rented is increasing rapidly; an enforcement official would be needed full time for single family residential rental licensing. Councilmember Trude stated the costs could be covered by fees. Councilmember Orttel asked if there have been complaints. Mayor Gamache indicated there has been a lot of pressure in the area south of Bunker Lake Boulevard; the townhomes behind Target have had rental issues. Mr. Blommel stated staff's efforts on rental properties are currently being focused in the area of 138th and 140th Lane, as well as on Poppy Street and 134th, and in the Arrowhead area Mr. Dickinson indicated staff is also working with properties off of Bunker Lake Boulevard and along 140th Lane close to the landfIll where there are a lot of twin home units, as well as some parcels out in the rural area Staff does not get involved in the basic residential neighborhoods, which is most of Andover, due to the current reading of the ordinance. 0 Councilmember Orttel stated he would venture to say that people renting single family homes are not doing it willingly; often they have a home they cannot sell. Mayor Gamache questioned if this would give the City more leverage where they are having problem 0 Special Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - February 26, 2008 Page 8 houses. Councilmember Trude suggested this could force property owners to take care of homes that are in disrepair. Councilmember Orttel stated there should be an ordinance in place to enforce housing standards, because owner occupied homes have the same problems. He pointed out that the last three meth houses in the City were owner occupied, not rentals. He expressed concern in going after people that are losing their houses, and the staff that would be required to keep up with efforts. Mr. Dickinson stated with the beginning of the program they would look at existing staff. They are currently in a housing downturn; however, the building department is working on properties with storm damage, as well as commercial projects. It is likely that there would be a need to look at outside staffing and fees that are not cheap for this to take place. Mayor Gamache noted the fees in Fridley do not appear to be too large, but the issue is whether it will solve the problem. 0 Mr. Olson stated Mr. Blommel spends a lot of time dealing with rental properties. He explained the housing maintenance code only deals with rental properties. With the current codes they are not able to enforce anything with the rental of single family homes. Mr. Blommel explained a house that is in disrepair is dealt with as a zoning issue. Mr. Olson stated if a staff member sees a vehicle that is unlicensed or siding/windows in disrepair, a note is given to staff to follow up on the property. Staff follows up on any complaints. Councilmember Trude expressed concern regarding party houses where problems have been occumng. Councilmember Orttel stated the other communities doing this are all inner ring suburbs with the exception of Anoka Andover has people losing their homes, and they are trying to rent them out to keep them. Any enforcement action for rental properties should also be followed with owner occupied homes where most of the problems are. Mr. Blommel stated when people renting out single family homes have a problem staffinforms them that the rental of the homes are not regulated by the City and gives them a book of information from the Attorney General's office. When he receives a call it is usually that they are not paying their rent and the owner wants them out or the renter wants something fixed. 0 Mr. Dickinson presented information regarding properties in the Bunker Lake Boulevard area that have gone through foreclosure and have commonalities in the fInancing group. He indicated it may be found at some point in time that the properties will be for sale by the fInancing group. Staff is monitoring the situation. If the properties go up for sale the City may want to review the tax 0 Special Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - February 26, 2008 Page 9 increment fInancing plan and consider purchasing the properties. Mayor Gamache indicated he will forward to staff the email that he received expressing concerns about single family home rental. 2007 - 2008 COUNCIL GOALS - PROGRESS REPORT Mr. Dickinson stated Council has been provided with the 2007-2008 Council Goals Progress Report. The listing is scored, ranging from' No action necessary' to 'Aggressively pursue, work on to assure completion as soon as possible '. He requested Council to provide input if they would like any changes made to the goals and scores as they have been presented. Regarding the Council goal to evaluate the entire sound and visual system in council chambers and request our city's allocation of funds from QCTV for equipment, Councilmember Trude inquired about the amount available for the City to draw from the QCTV fund. She stated a better viewing system is needed in the council chambers. 0 Councilmember Orttel stated the need for improvements to the acoustics. Mr. Dickinson stated staff has requested that the focus be improved, which may help with the viewing quality. Acoustical treatments in the roof may improve the acoustics, and could be done with dollars reserved at QCTV. Some of the funds available to the City will be used for cooling and humidifying needs in the control room. He requested Council to submit any proposed changes to the goals to him so the appropriate action is taken. OTHER BUSINESS ITEMS A. Joint Meetings Mr. Dickinson stated the previously scheduled joint meeting with the member cities of the Lower Rum River Watershed Management Organization (LRR WMO) for March 13th has been cancelled. The Park Commission would like a joint meeting with the City Council, and has requested to fIll the March 13th opening. The Commission would like to discuss current projects, including the skate park. 0 Consensus of the City Council was to direct staff to schedule a joint meeting with the Park Commission during the fIrst hour of the next City Council workshop. Mr. Dickinson stated the LRRWMO would like to reschedule the joint meeting to April 2nd, April 9th or April 1 Oth at Greenhaven in Anoka The topic will be included on the agenda of the fIrst meeting 0 Special Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - February 26, 2008 Page 10 in March for discussion by the Council. B. Fun Fest Helicopter Rides Mr. Dickinson stated the Fun Fest Committee would like to have helicopter rides by Sunshine Park. He requested input from Council as to whether there would be opposition to staff working with the Committee to ensure that the rides do not affect the ball tournament. The process would involve an administrative permit. Councilmember Trude noted there would be a need for a good perimeter, as there are a lot of children at Fun Fest. Councilmember Orttel suggested consideration oflocating the helicopter rides in the fIeld behind the water treatment plant. C. Connexus Substation 0 Mr. Dickinson stated Connexus is searching for a substation location to serve the rural reserve area. Connexus has contacted staff regarding the Slyzuk property that is under option by the City. . Councilmember Trude expressed concern that a substation in this location would ruin the parkway entrance to the City Hall complex. Mr. Dickinson stated Connexus is willing to set the substation into the ground and do heavy screening and buffering. The screening would be similar to a substation in Maple Grove. The substation will be imposed onto the community center/city hall complex master plan, including the roadway, and presented to Council for further discussion at a future workshop. Motion by Trude, Seconded by Orttel, to adjourn. Motion carried unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 10:29 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Carol Hamer, Recording Secretary 0