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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11 07 2022 City Council Minutes 1 4646 Dakota Street SE Prior Lake, MN 55372 CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES November 7, 2022 1. CALL TO ORDER Mayor Briggs called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Present were Councilors Burkart, Thompson, Braid and Churchill. Absent: None. Also in attendance was Community Development Director McCabe, Finance Director Erickson, City Manager Wedel, Police Chief Frazer, City Attorney Kendall and Executive Assistant Schroeder. 2. PUBLIC FORUM Brent Siegel, 4421 Pondview Trail SE: Here on behalf of P.L.A.Y. Would like to comment on two items; First, thank you to the City of Prior Lake, the Council, Mayor and residents for the support that they provide to P.L.A.Y. programs for the past 50 years. Specifically, the allocation of resources for the creation, maintenance and improvement of the parks and facilities that P.L.A.Y. utilizes. It is instrumental to what we do. Without facilities, we would not have programs. The work the parks department does to maintain the quality of these facilities, as well as streets, roads and sidewalks for everyone attending and participating in P.L.A.Y activities is appreciated. Also thank you to the first responders for creating a virtual and real safety net for all the partici- pants and attendees. Secondly, I would like to define the constituencies that are represented by P.L.A.Y. On behalf of the nine members of the executive board, and 118 volunteer board mem- bers who coordinate activities of over 300 volunteer coaches I want to thank you. Also, 4,364 young people that live in Prior Lake that register and participate in P.L.A.Y. sports. There are other groups and individuals who would like to express thank you’ s; 1314 teams that traveled to Prior Lake to participate in tournaments and regular season events. These teams included nearly 17,000 athletes from teams in the local metro, state and even around the country as we hosted an international softball tournament. Over 42,000 fans that watch their athletes also appreciate the work and support of the facilities. Finally, merchants that were beneficiaries of those athletes and fans were grateful for what the Council and City has done. The purpose of P.L.A.Y.is to support athletics and the value that youth get from playing on competitive teams. Because of that we have two specific initiatives, one being Lake Alliance which is designed to combat bullying and the second is the positive coaching alliance which provides training and tools for parents, players and coaches to improve the interaction between athletes and other players. Dave Thompson, Commander of the Prior Lake VFW: Thanked the city and staff for their amazing job on the Downtown South reconstruction. Explained they were able to work with staff for moving utilities, making parking lot modification and they received timely updates on the con- struction progress. Jason Bruestle, 14376 Lois Ave NE: Member of boating association and past president. Asked questions regarding item 9A the dock extension. Last time we met on this the previous City Man- ager ordered an environmental impact study, which has been lost. They have already added 6 slips and I would like to know what happened with the study. Another big issue is parking spots, there isn’t enough spots for their current docks and they can’t add any more. They are starting to stack up boat lifts, which looks bad. Every fall they pull boats out and winterize them there on site 2 11 07 2022 City Council Meeting Minutes and all the chemicals they use run into the ground. They are talking about dredging, which I am not sure will be beneficial because we have the gas pipe going across the channel. Reading the language about the one-year conditional thing stated they would push their dock system out, my biggest concern is the environmental impact study that was done. Stan Kempton, 6750 Rustic Rd SE: Attended the May 2, 2022, council meeting addressing this issue that Jason Bruestle just referred to. I live in Boudins Bay and there are many concerned about the lake. Boudins bay impacts all of Prior Lake. Waters Edge Marina would do well to engage with the community. Diagram of the temporary extension was provided at the May 2nd meeting, which they did not follow. They did not follow what was agreed upon in the Council meeting creating concern for residents. Many citizens would be interested in this topic if they knew about it, and I just found out about it this morning. Representing the Oakland Beach asso- ciation and none of them have heard about it either. Why the rush to make a decision? Janet Misgens, 6730 Rustic Rd SE: Live close enough to swim to the boat club. Informed about this at about 5 pm this evening, unhappy that she wasn’t informed prior to today. She has lived in her house for 35 years and doesn’t believe that the owners of the boat club are residents of Prior Lake making her feel like a resident battling a business. Are concerns being met as residents that live on Boudin’s Bay? Briggs: Asked City Manager Wedel to address the questions. Wedel: In regard to some of the first questions related to the number of dock slips and what was approved, I am going to turn that over to our Community Development Director Casey McCabe. McCabe: Thanked the public for the comments. Stated no additional dock slips are proposed for the agenda item. Explained an environmental request was requested through the Planning Com- mission in the past but that was not approved so the study was not done. Last May council ap- proved a dock extension due to low water levels. Tonight, they are asking the City to consider keeping the temporary approval for another year or making the extension permanent. Briggs: Added that earlier this year Council approved approximately 6 dock relocations/exten- sions and I don’t know that notification went out or what is customary. McCabe: The DNR used to issue permits in years past but that was passed back to cities. 15-20 dock permits are now managed by the city. If a new request came in today, a conditional use permit would be triggered and would have a public hearing. Existing dock placements that are already permitted the city manages that internally. This spring staff brought items to the council, if approved notification went out to the property owners surrounding the temporary approval. Wedel: Noted that on agenda item 9A there are several options for the council to consider this evening on this topic. 3. APPROVAL OF AGENDA MOTION BY BURKART SECOND BY THOMPSON, TO APPROVE THE AGENDA AS PRE- SENTED. 3 11 07 2022 City Council Meeting Minutes VOTE Briggs Thompson Burkart Braid Churchill Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ The motion carried. 4. APPROVAL OF CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES 4A. APPROVE THE OCTOBER 17, 2022, CITY COUNCIL MINUTES MOTION BY THOMPSON, SECOND BY BURKART, TO APPROVE THE OCTOBER 17, 2022, CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES AS PRESENTED VOTE Briggs Thompson Burkart Braid Churchill Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ The motion carried. 5. CONSENT AGENDA A. Approval of Claims Listing B. Approval of 3rd Quarter Investment Report C. Approval of the 3rd Quarter Financial Reports D. Resolution 22-130 Approving the Decertification of Tax Increment Financing District No. 3-1 E. Approval of September Treasurer's Report F. Approval of September Animal Control Services Report G. Resolution 22-131 Approving Participation in the 2023-2024 Fixed and Spot Price Fuel Program H. Resolution 22-132 Approving Carriage Hills 5th Development I. Resolution 22-133 Amending the City of Prior Lake Community Engagement Committee Bylaws J. Resolution 22-134 Approving an Extension of the Deadline for Submitting the Final PUD Plan and Final Plat for Paul's Place K. Resolution 22-135 Approving 2022 and 2023 Truck Purchases MOTION BY BRAID, SECOND BY THOMPSON, TO APPROVE THE CONSENT AGENDA AS PRESENTED VOTE Briggs Thompson Burkart Braid Churchill Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ The motion carried. Briggs: Noted on agenda item 5D, decertification of tax increment finance district no 3-1, the dis- trict could have been kept open through 2029 but it is closing six years earlier. 4 11 07 2022 City Council Meeting Minutes 6. PRESENTATIONS 6A. Proclamation for Small Business Saturday on November 26th, 2022 Briggs read the proclamation. Briggs: Called a recess at 7:30 p.m. Briggs: Reconvened the meeting at 7:32 p.m. 7. PUBLIC HEARINGS 7A. Resolution Approving the Enlargement of Municipal Development District No. 1 and a Modified Development Program Related Thereto; Approving the Establishment of Tax Incre- ment Financing District No. 1-6 (Prior Lake Lofts) Within Municipal Development District No. 1 and Approving a Tax Increment Financing Plan Thereto; and Authorizing an Interfund Loan Burkart: Stated he is a bank shareholder for one of the banks that is being considered by the developer for financing of this project; he will therefore recuse himself and remove himself from the chamber and abstain from voting. Community Development Director McCabe and Northland Public Finance Tammy Omdal pre- sented the item. Thompson: Noted council has discussed this several times and we are pretty familiar with it; the impressive part is the pay as you go verses bonding, so the city has no risk in this. Where does the pay as you go money come from? T. Omdal: That money comes from the taxes that are paid by the developer; the tax increment is captured and available to assist in this project. It comes from the real estate taxes that are paid for by the property. Thompson: They pay us, we take a portion and give it back to them. Braid: Noted this is the second time he has seen this and thanked Omdal for the presentation. How does this TIF proposal compare to Lakefront Plaza next door? McCabe: Noted this is similar to Lakefront Plaza back in 2001 with a similar size building, redevel- opment sites were also similar in that there were a few homes on that site that were removed to allow further redevelopment. Main difference is the funding that was done; the developer collected the funds up front, and the city received repayment of the increment over the years. In this case it is proposed as a pay as you go so the developer will be paying taxes and then receiving reimburse- ment payments over the years. Briggs: Noted he has seen this presentation twice as well. The EDA was very supportive to this and looked at different TIF options. Public hearing opened at 7:54 p.m. opened by BRAID seconded by CHURCHILL 5 11 07 2022 City Council Meeting Minutes VOTE Briggs Thompson Burkart Braid Churchill Aye ☒ ☒ ☐ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☒ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ The motion carried. Del Lind, 16154 Main Ave SE: The proposed building for the existing site is wrong for this loca- tion. Economically feasible, cost of the land, tree removal, home removal and the underground parking makes it impossible to build without a TIF makes it the wrong building for this site. The best you can do is to vote down this TIF and come up with a more feasible plan. Lois Burkart, 16154 Main Ave SE: Noted 20 condo owners will be looking directly at this building. As a condo owner we immediately started paying taxes and Lakefront Plaza as they are condo owners vs. rented which is a large difference with this proposed building. Believes in growth and progress. Don’t believe that the City should be involved to help shoulder the responsibility of a business making an investment that provides long term profit return on investment. The City Council communicated that this is a Class A builder who is financially stable for a project of this size, it is a builder we want and that is the same reason we shouldn’t have to support the devel- oper. It is a retail rent project, and the developer will be charging retail rent that can be adjusted. The public should not be required to help support a retail rent profitable investment for an investor. Wrong site for a building of this density. If the building fit the location better, you may not need a TIF. Asked council to give more thought to this proposal for some downsizing to leave more green space and a current traffic study on Dakota street and Arcadia. Noted people are coming off of TH13 to go to the Arcadia roundabout. Are you putting the cart before the horse in regard to parking availability for apartment and restaurant guests? Asked for clarification on the interfund loan structure and the final resolution. What happens if the builder does not meet expectations. Thanked McCabe for his openness and his patience. Dave Chromy, 16731 Hwy 13 South: Been in business in Prior Lake since 1979 and has seen a lot of changes in this town, many of which has City investment in those projects. Prior Lake used to be a prosperous town back in the 70’s. The industrial park would not have happened without city investment. Early 2000’s we did this with Lakefront Plaza, the city put buildings down- town and it revitalized the downtown area. Served on the EDA for ten years so he sees where city investments and businesses is good for the community. Cities around are doing buildings like this more frequently. People that are going to live in the building will spend money in this town. The downtown needs to continue to grow; foresees something like this will spawn off other pro- jects that are similar which won’t need TIF. There have not been any closed store fronts since the recession, which shows a need for more store fronts. Downtown looks different than it did 20 years ago, and this building will enhance it. Frank Boyles, 5153 Hope Street: Stated he was the City Manager from 1993 to 2019. He is in support of this project and funding. For three decades the various city councils have been prudent and established guidelines for the protection of the city and the taxpayers which are: use pay go TIF and don’t bond unless you have to, the developer cannot come to ask for something without financial skin in the game, the project must prove that the project is not viable without the TIF. Prior Lake has a number of TIF efforts it has undertaken meaning they have experience such as Lakefront Plaza is a classic example. It is a bonded project. They not only helped the project itself, but with the street and construction because of special assessments. The auto shops adjacent to 6 11 07 2022 City Council Meeting Minutes Kop parkway were TIF. The idea was to try and start a downtown that had previously been strug- gling. TIF also has helped in facade improvements downtown; there was a $200,000 fund from TIF that was provided to businesses to help façade. Many multifamily buildings that received TIF in one way or another, again showing the city has lots of experience in this. Finally, TIF does provide on going taxes to everyone in the taxing bodies in the course of its lifespan. The project is also trying to be sensitive to the residents of Lakefront Plaza. Matthew Winter, 16323 Main Ave: Co-owner of PLate restaurant stated his support for this pro- ject. They love the idea for creating a destination for downtown Prior Lake. Understands the con- cerns of the residents. Dan Stanley, 5833 Medlar Lane: Spoke in support of the TIF. General contractor here in town and it is a tough environment to build in. Excited about the people this will bring to Prior Lake. He is a homeowner and active in the Prior Lake Rotary and Chamber. Emmet Swarthout, 2840 Spring Lake Road: Owner of Boathouse Brothers. Stated originally, he was hesitant about fully supporting the project but trusts that the right decisions will be made but echoes comments made by Winter, anything that is good for someone downtown should be good for everyone if you are willing to adapt. Also agree with some of the members of Lakefront Plaza about the economic feasibility of the project. Closed Public Hearing closed at 8:20 pm by BRAID seconded by THOMPSON VOTE Briggs Thompson Burkart Braid Churchill Aye ☒ ☒ ☐ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☒ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ The motion carried. Wedel: In response to one of the first questions which was clarification on the interfund loan; what it boils down to is the city won’t start recouping some of our costs with the TIF until property taxes start to be paid. Between now and then, there will be some staff and consultant time where we will use interfund loans to pay ourselves. The other question was what happens if the project does not meet developer expectations. That is where we are talking about pay go - the risk is on the developer. If the building does not generate the tax revenue they think it will, then they don’t collect as much. We are only paying them a portion of what the building actually generates. Briggs: What if the developer doesn’t perform translates to me that they don’t hit its value but I am not sure if it was meant for other aspects of the developer not performing. Wedel: Adding that tonight we are only approving the establishment of the TIF district, not the development agreement. There will be a separate Council item where those parameters would be established. Briggs: Many comments about this project being the wrong site for this type of building as there is a need for TIF. Is there any alternate information that McCabe would like to address? Wedel: Requested McCabe to explain. 7 11 07 2022 City Council Meeting Minutes McCabe: Many of those topics were discussed in the preliminary land development public hearing as well as the City Council meeting following. Our zoning ordinance is set up where we encourage this type of use downtown. Several of the city’s goals and objectives in 2040 comprehensive plan align with this project. Traffic was discussed as part of the preliminary plan. At that time Engineers felt Dakota Street was capable of handling the traffic and with the recent improvements on CR21 that only enhances this capability. Briggs: Another question, if a bank would not support this, is that the reason for the TIF? Omdal: There are preliminary bank commitment letters provided. It is not a matter of bank fund- ing; it is the return on that equity investment at a level that would attract investors in order for the project to move forward. Also, to put another question out there- what happens if it is more suc- cessful than what we have estimated? In that case, their taxes and value would be higher than we have estimated. That means that the city would pay them back sooner than the 15 years and would be done with the terms of the agreement with them. Essentially paying it back faster. Braid: Couple comments were made as it pertains to Lakefront Plaza and their TIF; I assume that because it was not a pay as you go TIF, it was a Bonded TIF that they still would have to pass but/for test the same way this project has to pass but/for test, correct? Omdal: That is correct. Braid: With that being said, with the bonds vs. pay-as-you-go you heard testimony tonight that the residents in Lakefront Plaza started to pay tax immediately. The developer for this project will start to pay taxes immediately as well correct? Omdal: That is correct. Braid: Wanted to touch on some of the comments we heard tonight from Mr. Chromy and talk about the EDA and the past 5 years. The EDA has been able to produce more commercial in- vestments than the previous 10 years. They did this without TIF dollars as well. The EDA budget, 6 years ago for property acquisition and economic development was along the lines of $20,000 a year. The Council and community has supported modest increases yet impactful increases which has produced significant returns for the city. These two properties adjacent to city hall were pur- chased by the city and EDA for $415,000. If the project moves forward, the developer will pay the EDA $1.176 million for that land. That is a significant return on investment which can be used for further property acquisitions and economic development within our city. This building has a com- mercial component, thanks to the EDA. When you start tearing into the numbers of TIF, you have the $1.176 million for the property acquisitions, most of the remaining portion of the TIF goes to parking which alleviates a city cost to create ample parking. If you do that math at $60,000 per parking stall, that equates to $2.16 million dollars alone in just underground parking so the city doesn’t have a parking problem to invest in. This is a Class A facility with Class A apartments which draws renters with disposable income which helps our boutiques and downtown. Churchill: Had informal conversations with many of the downtown businesspeople who are very much in favor and very excited about this project. This will be good for our city as a whole. Thompson: Stated she liked what Braid noted. This is one of the healthiest TIF presentations she has seen, and the council has said no to TIF in the past. TIF has a bad name because other cities have used it and abused it, but our city has not. This is one of the best reasons to use TIF. 8 11 07 2022 City Council Meeting Minutes Briggs: Two weeks into serving as mayor voted no on a TIF. It was for a work force housing project that did get built, but/for test what was the benefit that it brought to the community? It did not rise to the level. It was a tough vote. It was a development that previous council has discussed but not passed. This project is not that and is actually something that has come to our community that they want. MOTION BY BRAID, SECOND BY, THOMPSON TO APPROVE RESOLUTION 22-136 APPROV- ING THE ENLARGEMENT OF MUNICIPAL DEVELOPMENT DISTRICT NO. 1 AND A MODIFIED DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM RELATED THERETO; APPROVING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF TAX INCREMENT FINANCING DISTRICT NO. 1-6 (PRIOR LAKE LOFTS) WITHIN MUNICIPAL DEVELOPMENT DISTRICT NO. 1 AND APPROVING A TAX INCREMENT FINANCING PLAN THERETO; AND AUTHORIZING AN INTERFUND LOAN VOTE Briggs Thompson Burkart Braid Churchill Aye ☒ ☒ ☐ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☒ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ The motion carried. 8. OLD BUSINESS None. 9. NEW BUSINESS 9A. Resolution Approving Permanent Dock Placement at Waters Edge Marina Community Development Director McCabe presented the item. Burkart: Noted it is unique to have a parcel run the basin of the lake. Asked if there is anything else like this on Prior Lake? McCabe: Not that I am aware of. Some of our Plats and property lines extended out into the water were done years ago, I am not sure if that would be the same case. This was done before the channel was opened up. Burkart: They don’t own the surface of the water correct. McCabe: Correct. Churchill: Someone mentioned that 6 slips were added, and I am wondering if that is accurate? McCabe: They have maintained 50 boat slips, but I have not gone to count unless a complaint is submitted to staff. 9 11 07 2022 City Council Meeting Minutes Braid: Also heard testimony regarding the neighborhood not getting notice for involvement in this process. Also, complaints about navigation pertaining to the dock extension. Have you received any complaints? McCabe: Regarding the notification, the City of Prior Lake administers the marina permit. Our pref- erence would be the DNR continue to do it, but they passed that onto the cities in 2000. We do have a process. If this was proposed today, it would not be approved due to limited shoreline through either recreational marina or homeowners’ association dock. But since it exists, it is our duty as a city to maintain and monitor the permit. Notice requirements: if this came in today there would be a conditional use permit that would be handled through the planning commission. That would require a public hearing and notice. Braid: Is there something we can add to these permits based on water level? McCabe: For this dock system, council could authorize staff in the notes regarding water levels and permit. Permits in general regarding lake levels I would be hesitant with. We don’t want an admin- istrative burden. Burkart: Explained this seems premature to him, since we don’t know what the lake level will be next year. Prior Lake is in danger of becoming the next White Bear Lake. Worried the channel will get cut off. Appreciates the residents who came forward, believes there does not need to be a rush on this. The bay needs to come together, including the marina owners to decide what will be done. Especially with wavering lake levels. The previous temporary extension was appropriate. As we move forward, there needs to be better planning. Noted the residents would come first in the use of that waterway. Braid: Agrees with Burkart. Asked staff to figure out more dock configurations for the entire bay and adding language on the permit for this extension for water level and have the neighborhood have more input. Briggs: If we chose to deny the request would there be anything to preclude anyone to come back with another request? McCabe: No, there would be nothing precluding anyone else from coming back. Briggs: Councilor Burkart made a great point; we don’t know what the water levels of the lake will be next year. A plan with the neighbors and the marina owners is a reasonable thing also taking the city out of the middle. Inclined to not approve this evening. Burkart: To be clear, I suggest denying the permit and the temporary extension through next year as it is premature until we know what the water shed will be. Be more holistic for staff to evaluate next year. 10 11 07 2022 City Council Meeting Minutes MOTION BY BURKART, SECOND BY BRAID, TO DENY WATERS EDGE MARINAS REQUEST TO PERMANENTLY APPROVE THE 48’ DOCK EXTENSION AND DENY THEIR REQUEST TO EXTEND THE TEMPORARY AUTHORIZATION FOR A 48’ DOCK EXTENSION FOR THE 2023 BOATING SEASON VOTE Briggs Thompson Burkart Braid Churchill Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ The motion carried 10. Removed Consent Agenda Items No items were removed. 11. COUNCILMEMBER LIAISON UPDATES / COUNCILMEMBER REPORTS Churchill: 10/24 planning commission meeting, 10/26 Live Learn Earn housing workgroup meeting, 10/31 Candy crawl, 11/3 ladies’ night, 11/4 agenda review, 11/7 mobility management advisory board Braid: numerous calls about snowmobile trails, calls on traffic concerns about Mushtown and fish point, calls on the transitional housing complex, 10/31 candy crawl, 11/4 agenda review Burkart: 10/24 Met council monthly meeting and highway 169 corridor coalition meeting, 10/26 Minnesota valley transit association board of directors meeting, 10/27 legislative agenda committee meeting for the suburban transit association, 10/27 Prior Lake association annual meeting, 11/1 county meeting, 11/3 met with City Manager and Tammy Omdal regarding TIF, 11/4 agenda review Thompson: 11/4 agenda review Briggs: 10/24 MLC housing subcommittee meeting, 10/31 candy crawl, 11/1 county neighborhood meeting, 11/4 SCALE executive meeting, 11/5 school district heritage festival, 11/5 Project Pink at Charlies on Prior Wedel: Representative from P.L.A.Y. spoke this evening during the public forum has been doing this a very long time, thank you for coming 12. OTHER BUSINESS None. 11 11 07 2022 City Council Meeting Minutes 13.ADJOURNMENT MOTION BY THOMPSON, SECOND BY CHURCHILL, TO ADJOURN THE MEETING AT 8:59 pm. VOTE Briggs Thompson Burkart Braid Churchill Aye ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ ☒ Nay ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Abstain ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ Absent ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ The motion carried. Respectfully Submitted, _____________________________ Jason Wedel, City Manager