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HomeMy WebLinkAbout07 25 16 City Council Minutes 1 4646 Dakota Street SE Prior Lake, MN 55372 REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES July 25, 2016 CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order at 7:01 p.m. Present were Mayor Hedberg, Councilors Keeney, Morton, McGuire and Thompson, City Manager Boyles, City Attorney Schwarzhoff, Assistant City Manager Olson, Finance Director Uram, Public Works / Natural Resources Director Gehler, City Engineer / Inspections Director Poppler, Community / Economic Development Director Rogness, Police Chief Elliott, Fire Chief Hartman, Planner Matzke, Maintenance Supervisor Theisen and Executive Assistant Schroeder. PUBLIC FORUM City Manager Boyles reviewed the process for the public forum and explained that items sched- uled for public hearing or items for which a public hearing has been held but no final action taken, are not eligible for discussion on the public forum. No Members of the Public Spoke APPROVAL OF AGENDA MOTION BY MCGUIRE, SECOND BY MORTON TO APPROVE THE AGENDA. VOTE Hedberg Keeney McGuire Morton Thompson Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ The motion carried. APPROVAL OF CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES MOTION BY KEENEY, SECOND BY THOMPSON TO APPROVE THE MINUTES OF THE JULY 11, 2016 REGULAR MEETING AS PRESENTED. VOTE Hedberg Keeney McGuire Morton Thompson Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☐ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☒ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ The motion carried. CONSENT AGENDA City Manager Boyles reviewed the items on the consent agenda. A. Consider Approval of Claims Listing B. Consider Approval of June 2016 Treasurers Report C. Consider Approval of Building Permit Summary Report D. Consider Approval of Animal Control Services Report E. Consider Approval of Fire Department Report F. Consider Approval of Police Department Report Draft 07 25 16 City Council Meeting Minutes 2 G. Consider Approval of a Resolution 16-091 Adopting a City Social Media Policy H. Consider Approval of 2nd Quarter 2016 Investment Report I. Consider Approval of Preliminary 2nd Quarter Financial Report J. Consider Approval of a Resolution 16-092 Authorizing the Mayor and City Manager to Ex- ecute an Amendment to the AT&T Water Tower Antenna Agreement at the Cedarwood Street Water Tower K. Consider Approval of a Resolution 16-093 Accepting Bids and Authorizing the Mayor and City Manager to Execute the City's Standardized Construction Contract for the 2016 Street Overlay Project and Concrete Repairs L. Consider Approval of a Resolution 16-094 Accepting Donations and Grants to the City During the Second Quarter of 2016 MOTION BY THOMPSON, SECOND BY MCGUIRE TO APPROVE THE CONSENT AGENDA The motion carried. PRESENTATIONS No Presentations Scheduled PUBLIC HEARINGS 7A Consider Approval of a Resolution Affirming or Reversing a Decision by the Board of Adjustment to Grant Variances on Lot 51, Twin Island Planner Matzke and City Attorney Schwarzhoff presented on this topic dated July 25, 2016 Keeney: Asked if the City has the ability to track the history of properties to make sure lots are not separated and sold. Schwarzhoff: Stated the City could go back to 2009 when the state law came into place. Keeney: Replied that he disagrees because there are ordinances on the books that go back to the 70s that require development of adjacent lots that are substandard and prohibit sale of sep- arate substandard adjacent lots from one owner. Stated he is concerned that the City has no way to enforce those. Schwarzhoff: Commented that the City can track back but whether staff can go all the way back to the 70s is unknown but reiterated they can go back to 2009. Explained the City will keep track as of today going forward. Keeney: Asked if this lot was ever in common ownership with the neighboring lots. Schwarzhoff: Answered off hand she does not have that answer. Stated the rules are now clear and the City will keep track going forward. Noted when a property is sold the County nor the City track sales. Explained combining lots that are commonly owned at this time would be the best solution. Keeney: Questioned if the deck counts as impervious surface and why measurements on differ- ent documentation is not all the same. Matzke: Replied that the deck does not count as impervious surface unless there is a patio be- low the deck. Added there can be different measurements on survey records and building plans but when the building permit is made staff makes sure the numbers match; the official record for the setback will be the survey measurements. Keeney: Asked if the garage door and garage space will remain. VOTE Hedberg Keeney McGuire Morton Thompson Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Draft 07 25 16 City Council Meeting Minutes 3 Matzke: Replied that the applicant is deciding on a couple different choices but the impervious surface calculation for the lot provides room for a patio which does not require a setback or a variance. Keeney: Stated even an unpaved driveway is considered impervious surface so how does that impact this. Matzke: Explained this is a garage faces the lake which is not required to have a driveway and the final design may not even have a garage. Morton: Noted there are two cabins under construction on the island. Asked how those two cabins compare to this requested variance. Matzke: Explained both of those cabins did receive variances for setbacks but are on larger properties. Added those are one story cabins and this is a two story. Stated it is uncommon for a four season house with 60x60 pads to be located on this island since they are secondary homes or cabins. McGuire: Asked if the developer consider moving the cabin back into the hill side which would meet the setbacks. Matzke: Responded the ordinance limits tree removal and changes to the grading because it is an island. Added the applicant has to put a holding tank about 75’ away from the high-water level and Scott County wants tanks further from the lake. Stated the further the house goes back you get closer to the pinch points of the 10’ setbacks. Hedberg: Stated the ordinance has a 12,000 square foot minimum. Asked why is there not a variance for overall lot size. Matzke: Explained variance requests for a lot of property on the mainland for what is consid- ered nonconforming lots of records and that is what this is. Added it is when the lots are being considered do not meet the lot width or lot area. Stated those properties are seen as buildable lots; they are lots of record whether they are given the variance or not they are allowed to be constructed on. Keeney: Asked if there is a minimum lot size for building listed on the ordinance. Schwarzhoff: Responded that the state statute does not have a minimum. Added there is a size where you can build without a variance and there is a size where a variance is needed and regulation states there has to be a septic on the property. Stated if the lot is too small you will not be able to meet the septic requirements. MOTION BY MCGUIRE, SECOND BY THOMPSON TO OPEN THE PUBLIC HEARING AT 7:38 P.M. The motion carried. David Olson, 3420 Twin Island Circle: Stated when he built his cabin resolution 78-22 spelled out everything they had to do to build a cabin. Believes there is a disservice to those who had to follow the rules. Stated there are approximately 34 lots that can have cabins built which would be six cabins per acre which is too any. Explained when he got his variane for his property he had to stay inline with the existing dwellings. Stated having a two story cabin blocks the view of others. Added he would like the council to consider that this is not a city and it is for seasonal use so there should be different guidelines. Concluded resolution 78-22 should be used since it was specific to Twin Island. VOTE Hedberg Keeney McGuire Morton Thompson Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Draft 07 25 16 City Council Meeting Minutes 4 John Meyer, 3313 Twin Island Circle: Presented paperwork regarding this topic. Stated he has lived in Prior Lake for over 20 years and the City Council’s predecessors have made Prior Lake what it is today. Stated there is wildlife in Prior Lake and one summer there were fox spending the summer on Twin Island, last summer there was a family of owls living behind his cabin and there is a bald eagle on the island as well. Requested City Code 1104.309 item 4 re- garding island development specific to Twin Island be removed requiring a minimum lot size of 12,000 square feet. Stated there is substantial differences between the mainland and the island. Explained the mainland has city sewer and water, large lots, and four season homes but the is- land does not have city sewer and water, there are small lots, and only seasonal homes. Stated City Code 1104.309 number 4 notes the minimum island requirement is 15,000 square feet or two contiguous (side by side) lakeshore lots, whichever is less. Added the City Council estab- lishes the regulations and the staff is responsible for enforcing the regulations and the residents are to abide by the regulations. Explained in 2009 the zoning ordinance changed and instead of having side by side lots or a minimum of 15,000 it changed to 12,000 square feet on Twin Is- land. Asked what happened between the applicant and the planning department when they got to this item on the check off sheet. Questioned if the City cannot enforce the ordinance then what is the point of having it. Referenced zoning ordinance 1108.406 and the five criteria needed to approve a variance. Suggested building a smaller cabin that fits the size of the prop- erty. Added the Brainerd City Council and the Star Tribune are promoting tiny homes. Re- quested if section 1104.309 number 4 is not going to be enforced and if every lot on Twin Island buildable, this should be removed. Troy Martin, Co-owner of Lot 51 on Twin Island: Stated building this cabin has been a strug- gle but Planner Matzke has been great to work with. Explained they have been willing to make adjustments and have been very flexible with angling the house and moving it multiple times try- ing to make neighbors happy. Stated the cabin is actually very small with a 600 square foot base with a second floor. Added that they are no longer having a garage door under the deck. Stated they cannot push the cabin back because of the septic system. Noted his frustration but he understands that the neighbors have the opportunity to speak their mind. Julie Ruzcraft, Lot 51 on Twin Island: Stated they want the 5’ variance so they can be away from the property line which would leave 20’ between the two cabins. Added on the footprint it is 560 square feet and the cabin next to us is larger than that. Explained most of the cabins on the lake are all shorter than the required setback. Thompson: Asked when they purchased the lot where they aware it was the smallest lot on the island and did they know variances were required to put a building there? Julie Ruzcraft: Stated it is not the smallest lot and she was told there was a cabin on the lot at one time and there is existing concrete. Noted they are the third or fourth owners of the lot. Schwarzhoff: Confirmed it is not the smallest but it is one of the smaller lots on the island. Dave Dahl, Lot 51 on Twin Island: Commented that John Meyer has three lots for sale on the island listed on Craigslist. Dave Olson: Stated he believes lot 51 was once combined with two lots to the north and then they were separated. Questioned if there is an ordinance allowing an orphaned property to be built on. Gary Revak, 5114 160th Street, owns Lot 50 and half of Lot 49: Stated lot 51 was originally part of 52 and 53. Noted the majority of the people on the island own two lots. Suggested if this variance is granted it will be difficult to say no to future requestors. Commented he has been go- ing out to the island since 1989. Believes the lot requesting the variance is too small for the cabin size. Stated the property owners knew well in advance they would need a variance and had asked him to share his septic which he declined. Noted the City Council does not have to grant the variance because it was requested; he believed variances are just bending or breaking the rules which are there for a reason. Noted the other two cabins being built had variances which he thinks is acceptable because the lots are larger. Draft 07 25 16 City Council Meeting Minutes 5 Jeff Bouset, 3369 Twin Island: Stated the people next to him own five lots, asked how can the City stop the owner from selling the lots separately. Believed the Planning Commission did not treat them respectfully at the last two Planning Commission meetings. MOTION BY MCGUIRE, SECOND BY THOMPSON TO CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING AT 8:15 PM The motion carried. Schwarzhoff: Stated an orphaned lot is not buildable but regulating the sale of orphaned lots is difficult and the City is trying to find ways to avoid this issue in the future. Explained that sellers are now fully aware; so if a lot owner were to sell an orphaned lot the buyer would have a cause of action against the seller. Noted the other two cabins on the island also required variances and she does not believe any lots on the lake would meet the lakeshore setback. Stated the 12,000 square foot requirement in the ordinance was put in place to prevent someone from buy- ing up the island and replanting in these small sizes; it ensures a minimum lot size. Noted the variances tonight are for a lake setback and a side setback; there is not a variance before the City Council regarding the on height of the cabin. Keeney: Suggested a 400 square foot building is a good size for a cabin if there was nothing else on the island already but since there are other buildings on the island it is hard to regulate appropriate sizes. Stated the two story is a good tradeoff for the footprint, impervious surface and the destruction of trees and vegetation. McGuire: Stated the size of the cabin is small compared to other homes built on the mainland on a similar size lot. Agreed that staff may need to look at maximum size buildings for these lots. Thompson: Asked how do councilors know there are bigger buildings on similar lot sizes. Matzke: Responded that the survey is labeled as 24x24 which is 576 square feet. Hedberg: Explained the state law in 2009 through all municipalities into a mess and the hard- ship is not the standard anymore so pressure on the state legislator was to be more accommo- dating to the property owners. Stated the City has a tough job to deny variances. Noted his con- cern is not about the size but to the character of the neighborhood and the health and safety of the neighborhood. Noted he shares concerns about having 40 cabins on Twin Island but he is more concerned about the health and welfare involving the sewer/water and police/fire on the island. Added he does not think the DNR is considering what 40 wells will do to the lake levels and the City has not considered island development concerning police and fire. Stated he is in favor of a deferral action to get more information. Schwarzhoff: Responded the council has 30 days to make a decision. Reminded the council this is a variance for a setback from the lake and a side set back; the lot is legally buildable. Stated if all use is denied you might have a taking claim. Keeney: Asked if residents share the two water wells. Matzke: Answered that the building department stated there are shared wells and individual wells on the island; property owners can dig their own well. Noted wells and septic are verified through the county before the building permit is granted for residency. McGuire: Stated he shares the concern for public safety but since there are already cabins on the island, it is already an issue for fire and police to get on the island. Keeney: Stated we have to grant or deny this variance under the current ordinance. VOTE Hedberg Keeney McGuire Morton Thompson Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Draft 07 25 16 City Council Meeting Minutes 6 Hedberg: Asked if a moratorium can affect applications in progress. Schwarzhoff: Responded putting a moratorium in place will not affect current applications. Thompson: Explained her concern about the size of the variance requested is unreasonable. Hedberg: Asked Matzke to re-summarize the comparison for neighborhood characteristics. Matzke: Responded from the aerial photo you can see some of the cabins are even closer than the 50’ setback. MOTION BY MCGUIRE, SECOND BY MORTON TO APPROVE RESOLUTION 16-095 AF- FIRMING A DECISION BY THE BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT TO GRANT VARIANCES ON LOT 51, TWIN ISLAND The motion carried. MOTION BY KEENEY, SECOND BY MCGUIRE TO DIRECT STAFF TO BRING BACK A PRO- POSAL FOR ISLAND DEVELOPMENT TO ADDRESS CONCERNS FOR MAXIMUM STRUC- TURE SIZE, LOT COMBINATION ENFORCEMENT, HEALTH SAFETY AND WELFARE CON- CERNS The motion carried. RECESS Hedberg declared a recess at 8:38 p.m. for the City Council Chambers to clear. RECONVENE Hedberg reconvened the meeting at 8:41 p.m. OLD BUSINESS No Old Business Scheduled NEW BUSINESS 9A Consider Approval of an Ordinance Amending Section 1102 of the Prior Lake City Code as Subsection 1102.1600, Expansion of a Nonconforming Restaurant Use Related to Out- door Music Community / Economic Development Director Rogness presented on this topic dated July 25, 2016 Keeney: Noted the decibel limit presented for dinner music is the same for outdoor events which he considers to be a special instance. Asked if there is a public nuisance sound level that is a different standard. Schwarzhoff: Stated there is a public nuisance requirement and both standards do apply. Keeney: Stated he would be in favor of the lower sound level for live and non-live music. VOTE Hedberg Keeney McGuire Morton Thompson Aye ☐ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☐ Nay ☒ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☒ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ VOTE Hedberg Keeney McGuire Morton Thompson Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Draft 07 25 16 City Council Meeting Minutes 7 Boyles: Explained that Charlie’s on Prior has sophisticated electronics so all the speakers around the building will not exceed a preset decibel level; they also have monitors to make sure the sound is not going above the decibel level. Added staff settled on the standard 65 decibels to keep one understandable limit for all events. Keeney: Stated he does not think dinner music would be a special case for one restaurant. Suggested this should be a general part of the ordinance for all restaurants. Schwarzhoff: Noted it can be added it to all restaurants but no one else has had the need for regulations. Added Charlie’s on Prior has its own ordinance so it would have to be updated as well. Keeney: Stated he still wants it to be the same across the board. Schwarzhoff: Noted the ordinance states the state statute for the decibel level. Thompson: Explained she is in favor of this because her experience with the dinner music at Charlie’s on Prior was very non-invasive. Morton: Stated she feels like Charlie’s on Prior has had so many exceptions making her not in favor of yet another exception. Hedberg: Explained he is in favor but the City needs to incorporate similar standards in the gen- eral ordinance. Added that he agrees to this but only until a revision can be done to the entire or- dinance before the next summer season addressing the on street parking issue. Morton: Stated that parking lot is for the boat slips and not general parking. Hedberg: Responded it is for the boat slips and additional parking which still removes parking from the main lot which in turn removes parking off of the street. Agreed it is not for general park- ing. Keeney: Added he would like his questions about the decibel levels answered before approving and suggested this be pushed off until next season. Hedberg: Agrees with Thompson’s comment about it not being invasive music but wants a sunset approval. Thompson: Commented that she likes the idea of sun setting this amendment and likes the fast this is only 20 days where the music cannot go past 8:00 pm and can only be done on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Schwarzhoff: Explained L10 is the limit allowing 65 decibels over 60 minutes and 60 decibels for over 30 minutes; point being the state statutes lower level would be 60 decibels for the daytime limit. McGuire: Stated he agrees on the sunset approval and agrees parking should be addressed. MOTION BY THOMPSON, SECOND BY MCGUIRE TO APPROVE ORDINANCE 116-15 AMENDING SECTION 1102 OF THE PRIOR LAKE CITY CODE AS SUBSECTION 1102.1600, EXPANSION OF A NONCONFORMING RESTAURANT USE RELATED TO OUTDOOR MUSIC WITH A SUNSET DATE OF DECEMBER 31, 2016 The motion carried. MOTION BY KEENEY, SECOND BY MCGUIRE TO DIRECT STAFF TO ADDRESS DINNER- MUSIC FOR THE GENERAL RESTAURANT ORDIANCE VOTE Hedberg Keeney McGuire Morton Thompson Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☐ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☒ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ VOTE Hedberg Keeney McGuire Morton Thompson Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Draft 07 25 16 City Council Meeting Minutes 8 The motion carried. 9B Consider Approval of a Resolution Approving a Preliminary Plat for Maple Place Community / Economic Development Director Rogness presented on this topic dated July 25, 2016 MOTION BY THOMPSON, SECOND BY MORTON TO APPROVE RESOLUTION 16-096 FOR A PRELIMINARY PLAT FOR MAPLE PLACE Keeney: Asked if staff considers ordinance changes that have happened since initial approval. Matzke: Responded yes that is why a preliminary plat is only good for one year to avoid this go- ing through with old ordinances. The motion carried. ITEMS REMOVED FROM THE CONSENT AGENDA No Items Removed from Consent Agenda RECESS Hedberg declared a recess at 9:22 p.m. for the City Council to go into a closed session. OTHER BUSINESS / COUNCILMEMBER REPORTS Closed Session Pursuant to M.S.13D.05 Subd. 3b with Respect to Condemnation of Portions of the Dosedel Property Located at 6366 150th Avenue, Prior Lake, MN for the 150th/TH13 Im- provement Project RECONVENE Hedberg reconvened the meeting at 9:38 p.m. Hedberg: Stated a report was received from the city attorney in the closed session and the city council gave direction for negotiations. Schwarzhoff: As another matter of potential litigation, explained the County Highway 12 project was done in 2012 and the City is cost sharing with the County. Stated Chard was the contractor that installed the water pipe and a number of the flares that connect the pipe have been failing and need to be repaired. Added Chard came out for a number of years and fixed the pipes at no cost as warranty work. Explained last year Chard stated they were no longer going to do warranty work and made a claim to the City for all of the work that was done. Stated Chard claims it is the soil creating the problem but the City report claims the soil is fine and it is workmanship. Con- cluded that negotiations are continuing with Chard. Keeney: Asked if the City has a list of responsible contractors and if it can be noted that this con- tractor should not be used again. Schwarzhoff: Responded that staff has addressed this and Chard has not bid on any contracts but if they would bid in the future, a discussion would take place. Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ VOTE Hedberg Keeney McGuire Morton Thompson Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Draft 07 25 16 City Council Meeting Minutes 9 Hedberg: Announced on Thursday, July 28 Twin Cities Live will be at Charlie’s on Prior where he will be reading a proclamation. Added Lakefront Days is August 4, 5, and 6. ADJOURNMENT With no further business brought before the Council, a motion was made by Morton and seconded by McGuire to adjourn. The motion carried and the meeting adjourned at 9:42 p.m. VOTE Hedberg Keeney McGuire Morton Thompson Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ The motion carried. ________________________________ Frank Boyles, City Manager