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HomeMy WebLinkAbout0904 RegularREGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES September 4, 2001 CALL TO ORDER AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: Mayor Mader called the meeting to order. Present were Mayor Mader, Councilmembers Petersen, Gundlach, Ericson and Zieska, Assistant City Manager Walsh, City Attorney Pace, Finance Director Teschner, Public Works Director Osmundson, Planning Director Rye, Planning Coordinator Kansier and Recording Secretary Meyer. APPROVAL OF AGENDA: Z~ESKA: Requested an item be added regarding an update on the status of an additional well. ERICSON: Requested an item be added regarding a skateboard park. WALSH: Requested an item be added regarding a change order for construction of the pumphouse for well no. 6. MOTION BY GUNDLACH, SECOND BY ERICSON TO APPROVE THE AGENDA AS AMENDED. VOTE: Ayes by Mader, Gundlach, Petersen, Ericson and Zieska, the motion carried. APPROVAL OF REGULAR MEETING MINUTES OF AUGUST 20, 2001 MOTION BY ERICSON, SECOND BY ZIESKA TO APPROVE THE AUGUST 20, 2001 MEETING MINUTES AS SUBMITTED. VOTE: Ayes by Mader, Gundlach, Petersen, Ericson and Zieska, the motion carried. CONSENT AGENDA: (A) Consider Approval of Invoices to be Paid. MOTION BY GUNDLACH, SECOND BY ERICSON TO APPROVE CONSENT AGENDA AS SUBMITTED. VOTE: Ayes by Mader, Gundlach, Petersen, Ericson and Zieska, the motion carried. ITEMS REMOVED FROM THE CONSENT AGENDA: NONE. PRESENTATIONS: NONE. PUBLIC HEARINGS: Consider Approval of a Resolution Vacating a Portion of Ridgemont Avenue Right-of-Way Adjacent to the Property Located at 15543 Ridgemont. KANSlER: Reviewed the agenda item in connection with the staff report and discussed the options available to the Council. 16200 Eagle Creek Ave. S.E., Prior Lake, Minnesota 55372-1714 / Ph. (952) 447-4230 / Fax (952) 447-4245 AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER City Council Meeting Minutes September 4, 2001 GUNDLACH: Asked if the applicant has agreed to the legal description proposed by staff. KANSIER: Advised that there has been no indication by the applicant one way or the other. ERICSON: Asked staff to clarify the reason that there were two legal descriptions. KANSlER: Clarified that after the vacation was initiated, staff received a revised legal description from the attorney and when the description was reviewed, it became apparent that they were asking for a much larger area. Noted that once the title issues were resolved, the City has had no objection to vacating the 18 foot strip. PETERSEN: Asked why this street needs additional drainage and utility easement compared to other streets. KANSIER: Advised that a 10-foot wide drainage and utility easement along the property boundary is a standard easement acquired on all new subdivisions. MADER: Noted that state statute requires that the issue of the vacation must be considered in the context of whether the vacation is in the public interest. Mayor Mader declared the public hearing open. LARRY NICHOLSON (15543 Ridgemont Ave.): Advised that he as the applicant does not have any problem with the staff's recommendation. MOTION BY PETERSEN, SECOND BY ERICSON TO CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING. VOTE: Ayes by Mader, Gundlach, Petersen, Ericson and Zieska, the motion carried. MOTION BY MADER, SECOND BY PETERSEN TO APPROVE RESOLUTION 01-101 VACATING A PORTION OF THE RIGHT-OF-WAY ADJACENT TO PROPERTY AT 15543 RIDGEMONT AVENUE. ERICSON: Commented that it is important to note that the public interest in this case is to clean up the area and make it consistent with the standards that apply to new lots. VOTE: Ayes by Mader, Gundlach, Petersen, Ericson and Zieska, the motion carried. The Council took a brief recess. OLD BUSINESS: Consider Approval of A Resolution Approving Final Plat and Authorizing Execution of Development Contract for the Plat Known as Wensmann 2"d Addition. KANSlER: Reviewed the agenda item in connection with the staff report. MADER: Asked if final plat and development contract are consistent with the criteria of the preliminary plat. 2 City Council Meeting Minutes September 4, 2001 KANSlER: Confirmed. (}UNDLACH: Asked about an estimated build-out for the project. KELLY MURRAY (Wensmann Homes): Advised that the project is expected to be sold out and built by mid-summer 2002. MOTION BY GUNDLACH, SECOND BY ZIESKA TO APPROVE RESOLUTION 01-102 APPROVING THE FINAL PLAT AND AUTHORIZING EXECUTION OF THE DEVELOPMENT CONTRACT FOR THE PLAT KNOWN AS WENSMANN 2"D ADDITION. VOTE: Ayes by Mader, Gundlach, Petersen, Ericson and Zieska, the motion carried. NEW BUSINESS: Consider Approval of a Resolution Certifying Proposed 2002 City of Prior Lake Tax Levy to Scott County Department of Taxation. MADER: Understood that this is a preliminary levy that can be adjusted either up or down whereas in prior years the preliminary levy could only be adjusted downward. The additional latitude is a consideration due to the state statute changes regarding real estate taxes. TESCHNER: Confirmed. Further reviewed the agenda item in connection with the staff report regarding the preliminary budget and tax levy, noting several changes from last year's budget including addition of one park maintenance staff person, incorporating a street overlay program, a new civil defense siren replacement schedule, and an increase in the fire department pension contribution. Advised that the property tax levy does include the recovery of lost HACA aid, and is approximately $567,000 below the maximum levy limit. Further discussed the impacts on the market value of residential properties. Noted that this budget, had the legislative tax changes not taken place, would have amounted to an approximate 7.75% reduction in the City's portion of the property tax bill based upon new valuation and proposed expenditures. MADER: Asked the Finance Director to discuss the transit levy relative to the Council direction to opt- out of the Minnesota Valley Transit Authority. TESCHNER: Advised that the documents before you incorporate a transit budget rather than a transit levy. Since the opt-out, the City will be paid through the Minnesota Vehicle Excise Tax (MVET) rather than property taxes. ERICSON: Asked if there is a program for counties similar to what cities received for HACA aid. Commented that the legislative realignment of the tax laws is basically a shift of dollars from one pocket to the other, and that overall property taxpayers will see a property tax reduction, even though the City's portion of the tax bill may look like an increase. TESCHNER: Admitted that he is not completely up-to-date on county financing, but believed that the County is also subject to HACA aid, and that some pass through from the County direction to the taxpayer for the loss of HACA. Further discussed that the bottom line for the taxpayers is probably about an 18% tax reduction overall. 3 City Council Meeting Minutes September 4, 2001 MADER: Commented that the limited market value phase out period of five years is a somewhat tenuous issue and may ultimately be extended beyond a five year period. Z~ESKA: Commented that the City's property tax levy is approximately $500,000 or 13% below the maximum levy limit, and asked how that compares to other cities. TESCHNER: Advised that those number are not yet available. MADER: Commented that in his participation on the AMM Finance committee, there seemed to be an overall mentality by the participating cities to tax at the absolute limit. Added that his perception is that most of the metro cities will be looking at significant property tax increases. MOTION BY PETERSEN, SECOND BY GUNDLACH APPROVING RESOLUTION 01-103 CERTIFYING THE PROPOSED 2002 CITY OF PRIOR LAKE TAX LEVY TO SCOTT COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF TAXATION. TESCHNER: Noted that if the public has any comments or questions to please direct them to his office. Also noted that even though a public hearing is not required, the City will be conducting a budget information hearing at a later date. VOTE: Ayes by Mader, Gundlach, Petersen, Ericson and Zieska, the motion carried. Consider Approval of an Ordinance Regulating Placement of News Stands Within the Right-of- Way. RYE: Discussed the direction and concerns identified by the Council with respect to news racks, the criteria and standards in establishing an ordinance of this type, and the details of the proposed ordinance in connection with the staff report. MADER: Asked if news racks will be permitted in the right-of-way. RYE: Clarified that the ordinance establishes the location as between the curb and the right-of-way line. (~UNDLACH: Asked staff to clarify for him the distinction between a newspaper and an advertisement page and why advertising sales are subject to the first amendment. Further asked if the ordinance prevents an individual setting up a booth on any right-of-way to sell magazines. RYE: Advised that if an individual met the requirements of the ordinance, it would be possible to sell magazines from a booth. PACE: Added that one is commercial speech and the other is private speech. ERICSON: Believes there is a compelling public interest in addressing items such as this that will clean up the City. Also believed the ordinance was narrowly defined so as not to interfere with any first amendment issues. 4 City Council Meeting Minutes September 4, 2001 MOTION BY ERICSON, SECOND BY ZIESKA TO APPROVE ORDINANCE 01-09 ESTABLISHING THE STANDARDS FOR NEWS RACKS WITHIN THE RIGHT-OF-WAY. VOTE: Ayes by Mader, Gundlach, Petersen, Ericson and Zieska, the motion carried. MADER: Commented that he is pleased with this resolution because it is a step towards cleaning up the City and making it a more attractive place to live. Consider approval of an Ordinance Approving an Amendment to the Prior Lake Zoning Ordinance with Respect to Numerous Miscellaneous Issues. KANSIER: Reviewed the proposed amendments advising that the proposed changes would update the zoning ordinance so that it is consistent with state statute and current City policy. ERICSON: Asked if the state legislative change requiring a 4/5th vote in zone change requests from residential to commercial also applied in the reverse. KANSIER: Advised that under the statute it did not apply in reverse. However, a comprehensive plan amendment still requires a 4/5th vote. MOTION BY PETERSEN, SECOND BY GUNDLACH APPROVING ORDINANCE 01-10 AMENDING PRIOR LAKE ZONING ORDINANCE WITH RESPECT TO NUMEROUS MISCELLANEOUS ISSUES. VOTE: Ayes by Mader, Gundlach, Petersen, Ericson and Zieska, the motion carried. MADER: Commented that he appreciated that staff continues to look for ways to make our ordinance more resident-friendly. Consider Approval of a Resolution Electing to Continue Participation in the Local Housing Incentives Account Program under the Metropolitan Livable Communities Act. RYE: Briefly reviewed the program and advised that there appeared to be no disadvantage to participating and that the advantage was that it could be a potential funding avenue for future projects. MOTION BY MADER, SECOND BY PETERSEN TO APPROVE RESOLUTION CONTINUING CITY PARTICIPATION IN THE LIVABLE COMMUNITIES PROGRAM. VOTE: Ayes by Mader, Gundlach, Petersen and Zieska, Nay by Ericson, the motion carried. 01-104 Consider Approval of a Report Regarding Potential Parking for Fishing along CSAH 21 and for Boaters on DNR Accesses. OSMUNDSON: Discussed the options for providing additional parking near the fishing pier at Grainwood Park, near the boat access at Sand Point Park, at Lakefront Park, and at the boat access off DeWitt Avenue. Advised that it appeared that the best option would be to install an additional 5 City Council Meeting Minutes September 4, 2001 parking lot at Grainwood Park, and to re-stripe the parking lot at Lakefront Park as well as pursue the feasibility of installing steps from the upper parking lot to the beach. ERICSON: Liked the idea of adding at least some spaces near the fishing pier. Also believe re-striping the upper lot at Lakefront Park was a Iow-cost resolution to providing some additional trailer parking. Further suggested that staff look at the possibility of working with the regional park to move the boat access to Spring Lake Regional Park property at the snowmobile access area. PETERSEN: Asked why it is the responsibility of the City rather than the DNR to provide parking for lake access. OSMUNDSON: Admitted that he was unclear where the responsibility for funding in this instance fell. GUNDLACH: Commented that he believed the issue of inexpensive alternatives for parking came to the Council because the DNR was not providing adequate parking for vehicles with trailers. Believed some re-striping at Lakefront and Sand Point would be acceptable alternatives. ERICSON: Also commented that he believed that pursuing the options for installing the steps from the upper parking lot at Lakefront was a good idea because people were using the dirt trail anyway and it is a safety hazard. GUNDLACH: Concerned that installing a parking lot at Grainwood for the fishing pier is too much money for so few spaces. Did support having staff pursue providing the feasibility of installing the steps from the upper parking lot at Lakefront. ZIESKA: Noted that since West Avenue is being utilized for parking cars and presents a hazard, providing at least some additional parking at Grainwood Park seems appropriate. Believes that the steps at Lakefront Park should be finished. MADER: Discussed the costs compared to the number of spaces gained and whether City taxpayers should be responsible for those costs rather than the DNR. Further noted that he believed that the steps at Lakefront Park were removed as a result of a recommendation of the park improvement program because of the hazard presented. Other trails were added instead. Also commented that even though parks are used during peak times, there is not always high utilization, which raises the question of how much money we continue to spend to access those area. Believed the re-striping at Lakefront is Iow-cost alternative and the City could see how much it is utilized and wait to decide if the City should incur the cost of installing the steps. There is also the consideration of how these options would affect the neighborhoods. ERICSON: Agreed that the parks may not be utilized to their fullest extent, but maybe that indicates that the Sand Point parking lot should also be re-striped on a first-come first-serve basis. MADER: Believes that staff could consider that but that it is a trade-off between providing one trailer spot versus two cars. ERICSON: Believes that re-striping at Sand Point is at least worth a try to see how it plays out and if it helps in determining the right mix. Noted that since the lake is one of the City's best attributes, we should encourage its use. City Council Meeting Minutes September 4, 2001 MADER: Commented that the DNR has advised, although it has not been confirmed, that Prior Lake is the most used lake in terms of boats per acre of water of any lake in the state. Noted that it should not be interpreted that we are limiting access. ERICSON: Also suggested that the DNR be encouraged to provided the adequate funding and number of spaces. ZIESKA: Agreed that waiting to install the steps seems appropriate until we are able to determine how well the upper lot as re-striped will be utilized, it's also should be considered that if there is no direct trail to the lake, utilization may be diminished. If it's built, it seems a relatively small price to pay over the long-term to relieve some of the congestion in the neighborhoods currently experiencing problems. MOTION BY ERICSON, SECOND BY GUNDLACH TO DIRECT STAFF TO RE-STRIPE FOR VEHICLE WITH TRAILER PARKING AT LAKEFRONT PARK AND A PORTION OF SAND POINT PARK AS DETERMINED BY STAFF BY MEMORIAL DAY 2002 IN ORDER TO BEGIN SEEING THE EFFECTS. MADER: Did not support the motion with respect to re-striping Sand Point Park without additional data because he believes it shows preferential treatment. ZIESKA: Advised that there is still off-street parking for cars without trailers, and that the intent of re- striping at Sand Point would provide an option on a first come-first serve basis. MADER: Still believes the re-striping is a net reduction in availability of access to the lake. Suggested that it may also be helpful to monitor license plates to gather data to determine whether users are residents or non-residents. Believes we need data before making a decision. VOTE: Ayes by Gundlach, Petersen, Ericson and Zieska, Nay by Mader, the motion carried. MOTION BY ERICSON, SECOND BY ZIESKA, DIRECTING STAFF TO RESEARCH AND BRING BACK TO THE COUNCIL A PROPOSAL FOR INSTALLING STEPS AT LAKEFRONT PARK AS WELL AS THE PROPOSED PARKING LOT AT GRAINWOOD PARK. GUNDLACH: Believed the option was worth looking at. MADER: Doesn't support the motion because it assumes that the estimated costs are in the ballpark VOTE: Ayes by Gundlach, Petersen, Ericson and Zieska, Nay by Mader, the motion carried. Consider Approval of a Resolution Changing a Street Name in The Wilds South to Wild Horse Circle. KANSlER: Reviewed the agenda item in connection with the staff report. MOTION BY MADER, SECOND BY PETERSEN APPROVING RESOLUTION 01-105 CHANGING WILD HORSE PASS TO WILD HORSE CIRCLE. 7 City Council Meeting Minutes September 4, 2001 VOTE: Ayes by Mader, Gundlach, Petersen, Ericson and Zieska, the motion carried. Update on the Status of Acquiring a New Well OSMUNDSON: Described the discussions staff has had with DNR officials regarding an additional well after Well No. 6 is established. Further discussed the structure of the aquifers, the advantages and disadvantages of placement options for another well, the yield and capacity of a FIG well versus a Jordan well, the concerns of the DNR regarding the Savage Fen, and the next steps in the process. Advised that the DNR would like to collect data from a model that staff will be working on with the Met Council, as well as the two monitoring wells the City placed as a condition of drilling Well No. 6. Advised that in the best case, a well could not be on line until summer 2003 at the earliest. Recommended that some of the data be collected and analyzed and then staff would come back to the Council with a recommendation. MADER: Asked if there has been any analysis of consumption of water in Prior Lake versus other communities. Suggested looking at how the added capacity would affect the margin in situations such as the past summer emergency. OSMUNDSON: Believed those numbers were done as part of the comprehensive water report, but did not believe Prior Lake was much different that other similar communities at about 75 gallons per person per day. Advised that under the circumstances of last summer, even the added capacity of well no. 6, the emergency would have still existed. Skateboard Park ERICSON: Advised that he had heard of a skateboard park in Shakopee that seemed to have been converted from an old tennis court. Recalled that the School District had recently suggested that the City take over ownership and maintenance of some of their tennis courts. Asked staff to follow-up on the feasibility of such a project. Consider Approval of a Change Order to the Contract for the Construction of the Pumphouse for Well No. 6 (City Project 02-00). OSMUNDSON: Reviewed the agenda item in connection with the staff report. MADER: Asked if $12,000 is the total cost of the impact, including placement, compacting, etc. OSMUNDSON: Confirmed. MOTION BY MADER, SECOND BY ERICSON APPROVING CHANGE ORDER NO. 1 TO THE CONTRACT FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE PUMPHOUSE FOR WELL NO. 6 (City Project 02- 00). VOTE: Ayes by Mader, Gundlach, Petersen, Ericson and Zieska, the motion carried. 8 City Council Meeting Minutes September 4, 2001 OTHER BUSINESS / COUNCILMEMBER REPORTS: MADER: Asked the staff to work with the City Attorney to consider a possible provision and criteria for giving someone the authority to waive survey requirements under certain circumstances in order to be more resident-friendly. Discussed several situations where the survey requirement seemed obviously unreasonable, except that the current ordinance requires it. Recognized that it is impossible to create an ordinance that addresses every situation, but believed that City ordinances should also keep a degree of common sense in the practical application. A motion to.adjourn was made and seconded. The meeting a~ Frank Boyles, Ci~ I~elly Meyer, ~cording Secretary 9