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HomeMy WebLinkAbout4A 08 07 2017 City Council Minutes 1 4646 Dakota Street SE Prior Lake, MN 55372 REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES August 07, 2017 CALL TO ORDER Mayor Briggs called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Present were Councilors McGuire, Thompson, Burkart and Braid, City Manager Boyles, City Attorney Schwarzhoff, Assistant City Manager Olson, Assistant Public Works Director/City Engineer Poppler, Police Chief Elliott, Fire Chief Steinhaus, Community Development Director McCabe, Public Works Interim Director Wedel, Finance Director Erickson, Recreation Coordinator Barstad 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. Mark Elliott, Police Chief: Explained to the City Council and to the citizens of Prior Lake the im- portance of calling 911. Noted some reasons people do not call is because they do not want to bother the police, thought someone else would call, was not sure if it was illegal or not, did not want to call if it turned out to be nothing or I did not know the non-emergency number. Requested the public to call the police to reduce and prevent crime. Noted the Police Department would much rather respond to a call and it turns out to be a non-issue then not be called until hours or days later by the parties involved. Stated the President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing co- vers community policing and crime prevention under pillar four which states community policing emphasizes working with neighborhood residents to co-produce public safety, law enforcement agencies should therefore work with community residents to identify problems and collaborate on implementing solutions that produce meaningful results for the community. Requested residents, business owners and visitors of Prior Lake to call 911 to help us help you and partner with us to keep our wonderful community safe and report suspicious activity immediately by calling 911. Stated if people are thinking about calling, you should be calling. Commented that in 2016 in Prior Lake history the city had the highest crime rate in Scott County. Explained the department is try- ing to reduce crime on limited resources such as staffing and technology but they cannot do it alone; they need the public to partner with them. James OMeara, 5299 Candy Cove Trail: Stated he is working on a project in Deerfield Industrial Park where he is required by City Code to use an insulated panel but he wants to use a non-insu- lated panel. Noted the building will be storage units so it does not need the insulated panel on the building because the building is not climate controlled. Briggs: Stated in the past he also questioned if he himself should call the police and now he knows if you are questioning a situation you should call. Thompson: Noted it is a good reminder to call 911 because there is a perception that it is only for emergencies; however, 911 is for any suspicious activity. DRAFT 08 07 17 City Council Meeting Minutes 2 APPROVAL OF AGENDA MOTION BY BURKART, SECOND BY MCGUIRE TO APPROVE THE AGENDA ADDING AGENDA ITEM 9A SUMMARY FROM STAFF TO REVIEW 2018 COMPREHENSIVE ROAD PROJECTS AND AGENDA ITEM 9B COUNCIL TO DISCUSS BUILDING REQUIREMENTS VOTE Briggs McGuire Thompson Burkart Braid Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ The motion carried. APPROVAL OF CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES MOTION BY BRAID, SECOND BY THOMPSON TO APPROVE THE MINUTES OF THE JULY 24, 2017 REGULAR MEETING AS PRESENTED VOTE Briggs McGuire Thompson Burkart Braid Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ The motion carried. CONSENT AGENDA City Manager Boyles reviewed the items on the consent agenda. 5A. Consider Approval of Claims Listing 5B. Consider Approval of June 2017 Treasurers Report 5C. Consider Approval of Resolution 17-125 Accepting a Quit Claim Deed for Property from Spring Lake Township 5D. Consider Approval of Resolution17-126 Implementing Proposed Organizational Hierar- chy and Pay Structure for Non-Union Employees MOTION BY MCGUIRE, SECOND BY THOMPSON TO APPROVE THE CONSENT AGENDA VOTE Briggs McGuire Thompson Burkart Braid Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ The motion carried. DRAFT 08 07 17 City Council Meeting Minutes 3 Briggs: Noted on item 5D he commends city staff for making their way through the compensation analysis and there will be modifications to salaries for some of the employees. Added it is essen- tial for the City Prior Lake to attract and retain key talent onto the city staff. PRESENTATIONS No Presentations Scheduled PUBLIC HEARINGS 7A Public Information Meeting to Discuss the 2018 Capital Improvement Plan Finance Director Erickson, Assistant Public Work Director/City Engineer Poppler and In- terim Public Works Director Wedel presented on this topic dated August 07, 2017. Burkart: Asked Erickson the difference between the $43,000 needed for Laserfiche that was noted in the work session versus the $167,000 list in the CIP. Erickson: Noted the CIP lists the total technology budget of $196,000 with the significant items listed out. Burkart: Asked if there is a 4-5% increase for the utilities. Erickson: Responded the change from 2016 to 2017 was 5.8% and the overall change for 2018 is 4.6% for an average user. Burkart: Asked if it is still appropriate to use the word ‘joint’ for the water treatment facility with the SMSC. Wedel: Responded right now the city will be purchasing water from the SMSC but in time the city will need a capacity above this purchased water, at that time the city will need to add onto that water treatment plant. Noted the city is investing into that future addition to the water treatment plant. Schwarzhoff: Commented that the name of the agreement is now called a water purchase and expansion agreement. Burkart: Asked if staff has any plans on the horizon for the park fund or can we use that for something such as pickleball? Wedel: Responded his role has been working on the 2018 plans and he has not dug into future needs so he would want to evaluate that before the city commits to any large agreements. Boyles: Noted staff knows how much a park will cost for a neighborhood and that is charged to the development. Added all of the funds are programed for usage and over a 20 year span it is difficult to come down to the exact dollar. Noted there is not money just sitting there, it is a fund built into the plan. Braid: Thanked staff for their time going over the CIP with the new council during training ses- sions and work sessions. Noted originally the budget for the water treatment plant was $12 million but now it is $1.5 million; even with the items programmed into the CIP we will pay down half of our city debt by 2026. Asked if that is in part because of the water treatment plant change? Erickson: Responded yes in part, the staff was projecting a higher debt amount and at times pro- jects shift and move; she can go back to see what exactly shifted to provide a better answer. Braid: Noted he too looked at the capital parks funds to repurpose a park with pickleball courts but understands there are certain park fees coming up. Stated if the city pushes a project back for reconstruction, would it still issue debt for the sanitary sewer or how does that affect sanitary sewer? DRAFT 08 07 17 City Council Meeting Minutes 4 Erickson: Replied it would depend on which project is shifted and what the sanitary sewer costs were for that project. Poppler: Added the Duluth project does not have sanitary sewer contributions but on another pro- ject it may. Braid: Asked how many years the fire truck has been pushed out. Wedel: Recalled the rough life is 20 years and this truck is 3-4 years beyond its useful life. Noted over the years equipment on the truck has changed which added weight creating a challenge for the suspension system on the truck. Briggs: Asked for an update on the water meter change out and with the rate increase, has staff investigated about a third tier for the water fees. Wedel: Stated the request for proposal is being finalized for replacing the water meters; staff is looking at all avenues to make sure we are spending our money wisely. Noted to the water rates, as part of the comprehensive plan we will look at the rates on our future needs for wells, trunk oversizing, storage and water treatment. Added we will be looking at the tier rate structure as the overall rate study. Briggs: Suggested the city create a condition index metric for the parks like we have the OCI metrics for our roads. Believed this will help with the condition of the park but also the park regula- tions that change over time and the use of parks. MOTION BY THOMPSON, SECOND BY MCGUIRE TO OPEN THE PUBLIC INFORMATIONAL HEARING AT 7:48 P.M. VOTE Briggs McGuire Thompson Burkart Braid Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ The motion carried. Dennis Russla, 5434 Deerfield Circle SE: Noted the pickleball players in Prior Lake have a mis- sion and play on six to eight courts. Requested more benches for people who are waiting to play pickleball. Explained last Sunday there were two fathers who brought their children down and played pickleball; this sport is for all ages. Stated pickleball started in Prior Lake in 2011 with seven people and now there are over two hundred people. Suggested two tennis courts to be converted to pickleballs courts, use the existing hockey rinks for pickleball or build new courts. Noted Lakeville converted two tennis courts into six pickleball courts for $60,000 and Richfield converted two tennis courts into eight pickleball courts for $47,000. Presented paperwork with ad- ditional findings. Sharon Lindgren, 15291 Jeffers Pass: Noted she has lived here since 1976 and has paid tons of taxes. Stated when she hears a new park is going in she never thinks it would be a park she could use but it would be nice to start looking at parks that provide use for all ages. Noted pickle- ball is a wonderful sport to play for all ages and people here would volunteer to help train. MOTION BY MCGUIRE, SECOND BY BRAID TO CLOSE THE PUBLIC INFORMATIONAL HEARING AT 7:59 P.M. DRAFT 08 07 17 City Council Meeting Minutes 5 VOTE Briggs McGuire Thompson Burkart Braid Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ The motion carried. McGuire: Noted during the work session pickleball was discussed and council should direct staff to look into this and look into rebuilding the stairs from the upper parking lot at Lakefront Park down to Watzl’s Point Trail. Asked if they should vote on option two to differ action until council has more information. Boyles: Explained council does have the 2018 CIP, council can approve that then give staff direc- tion to the other two new items which are independent this current plan. Thompson: Noted she is sold on pickleball and cannot wait to start playing; it is for all ages so she would like to see something done with the tennis courts at the top of the hill. Asked if staff could look into resurfacing the ice rinks. Wedel: Stated it would be fairly expensive to resurface the ice rinks also the pavilion is rented out which is right next to the hockey rinks, this would cause parking issues. Noted staff has to work through usage of the parks to make sure changes are complimentary to one another. Thompson: Commented if it is affordable to do something quickly now then down the road do something more permanent. Noted she has concerns doing a water and sewer increase and a tax levy increase. McGuire: Stated staff should look at other parks for the pickleball courts that have existing park- ing. Briggs: Noted he will not direct staff on which place to provide the pickleball courts but wants staff to see if there are existing funds that could be used for the pickleball courts. Braid: Stated he noticed the Met Council is increasing 5%, asked if that is included in the pre- sented raised rates. Erickson: Responded yes it includes the Met Council rates. Thompson: Noted she is struggling to approve the CIP because items within the plan are moving; she will approve the projects that are in there recognizing that some of them may move around. Erickson: Noted the numbers are incorporated into the 2018 budget and staff will be coming back at the budget workshop at the end of August. MOTION BY BURKART, SECOND BY MCGUIRE TO APPROVE 2018 CAPITAL IMPROVE- MENT PLAN AND DIRECT STAFF TO FURTHER INVESTIGATE THE COST, LOCATION AND IM- PLEMENTATION OF PICKLEBALL COURTS, SPECIFICALLY, USE OF THE CAPITAL PARK FUND BALANCE AND DIRECT STAFF TO FURTHER INVESTIGATE REPLACEMENT OF STAIRWAY FROM WESTERN UPPER LOT IN LAKEFRONT DOWN TO WATZL'S POINT TRAIL VOTE Briggs McGuire Thompson Burkart Braid Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ DRAFT 08 07 17 City Council Meeting Minutes 6 Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ The motion carried. OLD BUSINESS No Old Business Scheduled NEW BUSINESS 9A 2017 CIP Project Update Poppler and Wedel presented an update on the 2017 CIP projects. Thompson: Asked for an update on the utility burial on Sycamore. Poppler: Responded there was a deadline that was not met by the residents; the residents are working directly with Xcel on the burial project. 9B Council to Discuss Building Requirements Burkart: Thanked OMeara for bringing the fact that the city’s zoning ordinance for materials is constraining to the council’s attention. Noted OMeara is interested in building a storage facility in the Deerfield Industrial Park which will not be climate controlled; it seems nonsensical to require the purchase of an insulated veneer panel for the building but that is what our current ordinance calls for. Noted the council recently remedied the adjustment of paneling for changing market de- mand and should continue with this flexibility adapting as new building materials and technologies become available. Explained the new materials still need to meet the requirements of visual ap- pearance and durability. Noted the industrial park has seen very little activity for nearly two dec- ades and the city is finally seeing some activity and he would like to continue that trend by show- ing flexibility and a commercial friendly attitude by our council. Suggested the City Council should be able to preemptively direct the Planning Commission to address an opportunity since the coun- cil is the lead policy making body of the community. Noted when the ordinance was amended in June, he was not aware of other materials that are available that accomplish the same look; coun- cil should carefully consider the new information brought before them this evening. Stated he only wants to start the conversation here and not form the policy; wished to elevate and delegate to the Planning Commission. McGuire: Asked the attorney or city manager to explain the options for this individual. Schwarzhoff: Explained a zoning ordinance amendment can be done by staff, the Planning Com- mission, the City Council or the individual can apply by paying the fee and filling out the applica- tion; it does have to go through the Planning Commission who has to hold a public hearing. McGuire: Stated he thinks the EDA should look at this as it is a development issue. Braid: Noted at the June 26, 2017 the zoning ordinance was changed to be more business friendly in Prior Lake. Noted from his experience doing business all over the cities, you have to go through the Planning Commission and pay the fees. Added this is not unique to Prior Lake; it is the process of city government. Stated if the applicant wants to receive the benefit of a different building material, he should go through the application process. Briggs: Supported councilor Braid’s comments. Added he wants to encourage commercial devel- opment. Noted he does not want the City Council to act prematurely and wants to rely on the Planning Commission to bring forward the complete information through the established process. DRAFT 08 07 17 City Council Meeting Minutes 7 Burkart: Noted in June it was a commercial friendly action and now new information has come forward about the materials. Thompson: Stated she needs more background information in order to make a decision. Burkart: Asked how often has the council initiated that direction to the Planning Commission. Boyles: Stated the city attorney and staff have updated ordinances because they were outdated which happens often. Burkart: Responded with that he will let OMeara know to apply and go through the established process. ITEMS REMOVED FROM THE CONSENT AGENDA No Items Removed from the Consent Agenda COUNCILMEMBER LIAISON UPDATES No Councilmember Liaison Updates OTHER BUSINESS / COUNCILMEMBER REPORTS 12A TH13/CR21 Intersection Project Status Report Poppler: Noted the consultants were at the Lakefront parade handing out information on this project. Added this week there is another project management team meeting to look at the pro- ject and dissect this information to come up with alternatives. Stated on September 7, 2017 there is another joint meeting between the council and the county board. Briggs: Noted he is meeting with Chairman Beard next week and the city engineers and county engineers continue to work on options. Believes strongly that September 7 should be the first- time county commissioners, councilors and the public should see the alternatives. McGuire: Thanked Mayor Briggs for setting up the council’s Lakefront Days parade float. Briggs: Thanked fellow councilors for the fun parade. Thanked the city staff finance team that was highlighted in the MN Cities magazine regarding the new financial software. Noted the third town hall meeting will be on August 17, 2017 and the topic will be the community survey results. Added the raw results from the survey are up on the website. ADJOURNMENT With no further business brought before the Council, a motion was made by Braid and seconded by McGuire to adjourn. The motion carried and the meeting adjourned at 8:36 p.m. VOTE Briggs McGuire Thompson Burkart Braid Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ The motion carried. _______________________ Frank Boyles, City Manager