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HomeMy WebLinkAboutWK - November 30, 2010 0 1685 CROSSTOWN BOULEVARD N.W. . ANDOVER, MINNESOTA 55304. (763) 755-5100 FAX (763) 755-8923 . WWW.CJ.ANDOVER.MN.US City Council Workshop Tuesday, November 30,2010 Conference Rooms A & B 1. Call to Order - 6:00 p.m. 2. Recess to Special Andover Economic Development Authority Meeting 3. Reconvene City Council Workshop 4. Open Space Commission Update - Administration 5. . Alternative Energy/Solar Energy Options - Administration 6. Discuss NPDES Requirements/l O-l/Illicit Discharge Ordinance - Engineering 0 7. Discuss Proposed Amendments to City Code Title 8 Chapter 4 (Park and Recreation Areas Regulations) - Engineering 8. Discuss Proposed Crosstown Drive NW Reconstructionll0-30 & Crosstown Blvd. NW & Crosstown Dr. NW Intersection Improvements/06-48 - Engineering 9. 2010 Budget Implementation Progress Report & Monthly Investment Report- Administration 10. 2011 Budget Development Discussion - Administration 11. 2011 Proposed City Budget/Tax Levy Presentation Discussion - Administration 12. Other Discussion Closed Session 13. City Administrator Review End Closed Session 0 14. Adjournment I, ~ ~ C I T Y 0 F 4l'''''' \) 'NDOVER~ ,'~ 0 ' ' -, - .,,~~'~- .'~'" t ~:o . -" - - 1685 CROSSTOWN BOULEVARD N.W. , ANDOVER, MINNESOTA 55304 0 (763) 755-5100 FAX (763) 755-8923 0 WWW.CI.ANDOVER.MN.US ANDOVER CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP MEETING - NOVEMBER 30,2010 MINUTES The Workshop Meeting of the Andover City Council was called to order by Mayor Mike Gamache, November 30,2010,6:00 p.m., at the Andover City Hall, 1685 Crosstown Boulevard NW, Andover, Minnesota. Councilmembers present: Sheri Bukkila, Don Jacobson, Mike Knight and Julie Trude Councilmember absent: None Also present: Director of Public Works/City Engineer, Dave Berkowitz City Planner, Courtney Bednarz City Administrator, Jim Dickinson Natural Resource Technician, Kameron Kytonen Others 0 RECESS TO SPECIAL ANDOVER ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY MEETING AT 6:00 P.M. RECONVENE CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP AT 6:06 P.M. OPEN SPACE COMMISSION UPDATE Mr. Bednarz reviewed the Open Space Commission activities with the City Council. Councilmember Trude stated she would like to hear some opinions of the Open Space Commissioners that were at the meeting especially on property A (2452-161 st Avenue NW) listed on the map. Mr. Bednarz stated the land is pretty open. Commissioner Olsen stated it is mostly wild cedar that has popped up on the land. Councilmember Trude stated this parcel is highly accessible but probably not high on the natural features list. Mayor Gamache stated they have the five sites and asked if the Commission could review them again. He thought the Meadow Creek site was nice but noticed it had a low rating. He asked if Meadow Creek has shown some interest in selling the site on 161 st Avenue and Tulip Street. Mr. Bednarz stated they are interested now that they are committed to building a new school in 0 Ramsey. Mayor Gamache asked if Site D, the Anoka Grain and Feed Site, were they still interested Mr. Bednarz indicated they want more than the City is willing to pay based on our appraisal. - 0 Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - November 30, 2010 Page 2 Mr. Bednarz and Chairman Deric Deuschle reviewed the potential properties list with the Council. Councilmember Jacobson arrived at 6:18 p.m. Councilmember Trude wondered if Constance Free Church would be willing to sell a portion of their land along Ward Lake Drive because it is accessible and has that rural feel. Mayor Gamache asked if it is time to go out again to see about coordinating another referendum vote to provide more money for open space land. He did not think they should go out and try to get money in the coming year but thought additional money would help with the right purchase rather than using the money to purchase marginal land. Councilmember Jacobson asked ifthere is a time limit on spending the funds. Mr. Dickinson stated it is usually three years but in this economy with the poor investment yields they could likely keep it longer without spending it. If the proceeds are not used for open space land purchases, the residual money would be used for debt service on the open space bonds. 0 Councilmember Jacobson stated instead of buying chunks of smaller acreage maybe they could look at building a trail system along Coon Creek and he did not think it would take much land through purchase or easement to build a trail. Chairman Deuschle stated they have looked at this but if one property owner does not want to sell they could not move forward. Councilmember Trude thought they should start pursuing negotiations of first right of refusals on the properties along the creek in order to obtain property if the homeowners decide to sell in the future. She also thought they should look at purchasing property by the high school and WDE and restore the property because it is highly visible. Mayor Gamache asked if it would be so bad to purchase land that is currently landlocked because eventually it will open up with development around it. Councilmember Knight stated the problem is that people will question the reason why it was purchased when it cannot be accessed. Mr. Dickinson stated the referendum question was regarding preserving open space land for wildlife habitat and water quality preservation, not for activities for residents. Councilmember Trude thought the Open Space Commission should also look at the Selmer land area again to see what they can come up with. Commissioner Olsen thought Selmer was not interested to begin with and then came back and 0 indicated he was interested. He thought the reason why people are coming to them to purchase property is because of taxes. He agreed with the Mayor that they should not jump on a property immediately because they do have time. Mr. Dickinson suggested the Commission look at the parcel on Andover Boulevard near , 0 Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - November 30, 2010 Page 3 Crosstown Boulevard because that could be the entrance to the Coon Creek trail corridor, also the land was affordable. Councilmember Jacobson thought the Commission should go back to the property owners on the current list to see if any interest has changed. Councilmember Knight thought they needed to get information out to the community on what can be done on the current City open land since there was already hunting done on one of the properties. Chailman Deuschle stated they have the rules posted along with property boundary signs. He did not know what else could be done. Councilmember Knight thought they could put some information in the newsletter. The Council thanked the Commissions for their service and encouraged the Open Space Commission to contin)le to analyze the current parcel list and develop land stewardship recommendations. ALTERNATIVE ENERGY/SOLAR ENERGY OPTIONS 0 Mr. Dickinson stated a past goal ofthe Council has been to continually pursue cost-effective altemative energy opportunities. A September Star Tribune article led City Administration to restart the pursuit of cost-effective altemative energy opportunities, in specific solar. A local company (Cedar Creek Energy) that assisted in providing some details with the Wind Turbine Ordinance provided some basic information on a concept of a Power Purchase Agreement. The concept was presented by the City Administration to the Council at the October 26th Workshop meeting, where the Council was open to a meeting with Cedar Creek Energy at a future workshop. Mr. Dickinson introduced Mr. Rob Appelhof from Cedar Creek Energy to the Council. Mr. Appelhof made a presentation to the Council. Councilmember Knight stated there have been some recent advances recently as far as solar panels. Mr. Appelhof explained some of the current technology used in solar panels. Councilmember Knight asked ifthere were any Federal dollars or grants available at this time. Mr. Appelhof stated there is, the investor would receive the grant and the municipality would be the host of the solar power. Mr. Dickinson stated his intrigue with this concept is the predictability of electrical rates. 0 Councilmember Knight asked what the life span is on these panels. Mr. Appelhof stated it is thirty years. Mr. Frank Kellogg asked what kind of warranty is there on the solar panels. Mr. Appelhof stated there is a twenty year warranty. -- - 1 0 Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes -November 30,2010 Page 4 Councilmember Knight asked what the scope of a project would be. Mr. Appelhof stated they would install at least 600kw at the Community Center. He stated ifthey tied more facilities in to make this larger it would look more attractive to an investor group. Councilmember Knight suggested they look at the closed landfill to place solar panels but would need the PCA approval. Mr. Kellogg further discussed the solar panels with Mr. Appelhof on the City Council's behalf. Mr. Appe1hof stated in this application, Solarworld finances and maintains the panels and Cedar Creek Energy would be doing regular inspections and coordinating a power purchase agreement. The Council indicated they are interested in pursuing the power purchase concept as long as there is not any upfront cost to the City. The Council recessed at 7:55 p.m. The Council reconvened at 8:00 p.m. 0 DISCUSS NPDES REQUIREMENTS/10-1/ILLICIT DISCHARGE ORDINANCE Mr. Berkowitz explained under the requirements of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) program, the City is required to have an ordinance in place that prohibits non- storm water discharges and to implement a program for detection and enforcement of illicit discharges. Natural Resource Technician, Kameron Kytonen reviewed the NPDES requirements regarding the Illicit Discharge Ordinance with the Council. Councilmember Jacobson stated on the first page under Illicit Discharge, he wondered how a person would know what an illicit discharge was and if a judge were to look at this and wonder what the criteria was. He thought this was a little fuzzy and should be revised. Mr. Berkowitz stated there is a detailed area in the original permit by the PCA showing what is allowed and they would use that for the criteria. Councilmember Trude stated she liked the City of Ham Lake Ordinance because they describe what a pollutant is. Councilmember Bukkila thought the information in the general permit with the PCA should be included in the ordinance. O. Councilmember Jacobson stated Under 4.1, Inspections he thought they should remove the word "will" and add "may" and under Section 8 he would like after the word inspect to add "industrial and commercial or institutional" facilities. - - --- 0 Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - November 30, 2010 Page 5 Councilmember Jacobson stated under Section 11 he thought the appeal time was too short at 7 days and should be extended to 14 or 20 days. The Council agreed to 14 days. Councilmember Jacobson stated under Section 14, Financial Penalties, it was not clear if it was a penalty for every day or one event. Councilmember Bukkila asked what the financial penalty was based on. Mr. Kytonen stated that would go back to the nuisance code for guidance. Staff stated the penalty would be based on the specific event. Councilmember Bukkila asked if there is a way to move Section 10 down. Mr. Dickinson indicated Section 11 would need to be moved with it. Mr. Berkowitz stated under Section 14, Cost of Abatement, the cost ofthe abatement would need to be determined, so depending on what they would need to do in a specific situation would be the cost of abatement. Councilmember Jacobson thought that needed to be made clear that it was per event. DISCUSS PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO CITY CODE TITLE 8 CHAPTER 4 (PARK 0 AND RECREATION AREAS REGULATIONS) Mr. Berkowitz explained the City Council is requested to discuss the proposed City Code Title 8 Chapter 4 (Park and Recreation Areas Regulations, Violations and Penalties) amendments that are being recommended by the Park and Recreation Commission. Councilmember Bukkila asked if there is a reason why they would include County in the wording for Bunker Park. Mr. Dickinson stated Bunker Hills Regional Park is partially contained within the City and they have the ability to regulate it. The Council suggested changing letter H, Regulations where it states "dawn to dusk" to "dusk to dawn" and under K, 5 Pets and Animals not agreeing with the Park and Recreation Commission recommendation. Motion by Jacobson, Seconded by Bukkila to direct the City Council to hold a public hearing at a City Council meeting. Motion carried unanimously. DISCUSS PROPOSED CROSSTOWN DRIVE NW RECONSTRUCTION/10-30 & CROSSTOWN BLVD NW & CROSSTOWN DR. NW INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENTS/06-48 Mr. Berkowitz stated the City Council is requested to discuss proposed improvements to 0 Crosstown Drive NW and Crosstown Boulevard NW & Crosstown Drive NW intersection improvements and provide direction on how to proceed with the preparation ofthe feasibility report. Mr. Berkowitz reviewed the proposed reconstruction with the Council. He noted his 0 Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes -November 30,2010 Page 6 recommendation for this area would be to assess on a front foot basis. He also explained a portion ofthe land along Crosstown Drive is owned by the City and he wondered if the Council wanted to include the City in this for assessment because the address to this property is to Crosstown Boulevard which the property technically fronts and not Crosstown Drive. Mayor Gamache noted there would be a few corner homes that would not be assessed also because they front on other roads. Mr. Berkowitz agreed. Councilmember Trude thought the assessment needed to be nominal because ofthe high traffic on the road. Mr. Berkowitz reviewed the reason why he recommended to assess on front footage instead of per lot. This stretch of road has both residential and commercial properties present. Councilmember Jacobson thought Mr. Berkowitz should run the numbers at the different percentages and let the Council decide what amounts would work for the assessment. Councilmember Trude thought the highest they should go is one thousand dollars because of the neighborhood location and the high traffic on the road. She stated the traffic is as high as a 0 County Road and people on a County Road generally do not pay anything. Staff was directed to provide a percentage breakdown based on 10%, 15%, 20% and 25% assessed. Councilmember Jacobson stated he would like to look at the numbers using percentages before a decision is made on the assessment. Councilmember Bukkila agreed. Councilmember Bukkila stated she would like to know if they have any similar sections of roadway in the City that would be comparable. Mr. Berkowitz did not think there is a roadway with the same characteristics and high traffic volumes. Mayor Gamache stated they will not have much of an assessment on the State Aid Roads so why are they assessing them. Mr. Berkowitz stated they only get so much State Aid money and by assessing they can spread the money out to do more projects. FLINTWOOD STREET DISCUSSION Mr. Berkowitz stated that Flintwood Street north of l73rd A venue is scheduled for reconstruction in 2011. Staff met with the neighborhood and a few property owners were concemed that 230- 1 77th A venue was not included to be assessed for this project. Mr. Berkowitz explained that the property does not front Flintwood Street and based on policy and past practice only property fronting or addressed to the improvement are assessed. 0 Mr. Berkowitz also updated the Council that staff had met with the property owners a few months ago to the south of this proposed project, on the gravel road to discuss paving their road. The residents have not responded to having the road paved, which they did not want to pay for. ~ 0 Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes - November 30, 2010 Page 7 The Council concurred with staff that the comer lot at 230-1 77th Avenue should not be assessed for this project. 2010 BUDGET IMPLEMENTATION PROGRESS REPORT & MONTHLY INVESTMENT REPORT Mr. Dickinson reviewed the 2010 budget implementation progress report with the Council. Mr. Dickinson indicated expenditures are on target and revenues are exceeding expectations slightly. 2011 BUDGET DEVELOPMENT DISCUSSION Mr. Dickinson stated based on City Departments submitted 2011 Budget materials and after Administration review, Finance compiled the proposed 2011 expenditure budgets, analyzed/prepared 2011 revenue estimates, analyzed/prepared 2011 levy calculations and continues to analyze/monitor the 2010 revenue and expenditure estimates. In addition the Council has had a number of reviews at monthly workshops of the 2011 Proposed General Fund Budget supported by the 2011 Tax Levy. 0 Mr. Dickinson reviewed the 2011 budget development with the Council. Mr. Dickinson indicated an outstanding item for the Council was related to staffing costs. He noted that pay steps were included in the budget and pursuant to Council direction a place holder for a 1 % COLA was in the budget. Mr. Dickinson asked how the Council wanted to proceed with COLA. Councilmember Bukkila asked if Mr. Dickinson knows of any cities giving COLA and what were they. Mr. Dickinson stated the comparable index they use would yield 1.6% increase over 2009. He stated he heard Blaine maybe looking at a 1 % increase next year but other cities have not yet disclosed. Councilmember Trude thought it would be better to say nothing until the legislature has been in session for a while and they know what they plan on doing. Councilmember Trude stated she would be ok with 1 % for COLA. Councilmember Bukkila stated the problem the City is going to see is that the people who live in the city are not seeing a salary increase to cover the increase in their property taxes for City employees and it is a conflict for her. She stated if they can successfully maintain expenses at a flat level so it is not costing people more to live here she would be ok with it but at the same time to give people raises when people are losing homes is not right. Councilmember Bukkila asked if salaries across the board are comparable to others in other cities. Mr. Dickinson stated he was a little apprehensive on showing that because they have a number of employees below comparables, his position included. Councilmember Bukkila stated she would like to see the under-paid employees brought up to par in order to keep them. Mr. 0 Dickinson indicated at this point he is not afraid oflosing anyone because of pay levels. Councilmember Knight wondered if they could hold off on this to see what the winter costs will be because it has started off rough. Mr. Dickinson stated so far 2010 expenses are going well and there will be savings on their 2011 operating budget because they are purchasing road salt on 0 Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes -November 30,2010 Page 8 their own. Most of the Council was in favor of a one percent COLA for the employees, a decision would be made at budget adoption time, December 21,2010. 2011 PROPOSED CITY BUDGET/TAX LEVY PRESENTATION DISCUSSION Mr. Dickinson reviewed the 2011 proposed City budget/tax levy presentation that will be presented at the December ih City Council meeting with the Council. Mr. Dickinson indicated only a few residents have contacted him with questions. OTHER TOPICS There were none. The City Council recessed at 9:50 p.m. to go into a closed session to discuss the City Administrator Review 0 The City Council reconvened at 10:32 p.m. to adjoum the Workshop meeting. ADJOURNMENT Motion by Knight, Seconded by Jacobson to adjoum at 10:33 p.m. Motion carried unanimously. Respectfully submitted, Susan Osbeck, Recording Secretary 0 -