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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCCMin_02Aug14City of Falcon Heights Council Minutes August 14, 2002 Mayor Gehrz convened the meeting at 7 p.m. PRESENT: Gehrz, Kuettel, Lamb, Lindstrom, Talbot. Also present was Heather Worthington, City Administrator and Pat Phillips, Deputy Clerk COMMUNITY FORUM: There was no one present wishing to speak. MINUTES: The minutes of July 24, 2002 were approved as written. CONSENT A payment of $445.66 was identified as a double payment and removed from the total disbursements. Councilmember Kuettel then moved to approve the following consent agenda. The motion passed unanimously. General disbursements and payroll Licenses Council approval of expenses related to telephone system repair Approval of purchase of 1.5 and 2.5 inch fire hose and couplings Approval of election judges for the 9/10/02 primary election and the 11/5/02 general election Appointment of officers to the Fire Department Letter of support for the nomination of Bill Downing to the Capital Region Watershed Board of Managers. POLICY Update on activities of the Neighborhood Commission and review of the Neighborhood Liaison Handbook Mayor Gehrz introduced Bruce Mielke, chair of the Neighborhood Liaison Commission and also Kris Grangaard, who is the person in charge of the handbook preparation. Gehrz asked council to make any suggestions or changes to the handbook and also asked Mielke to update the council on what the Neighborhood Commission has been doing during the past four months. Bruce Mielke said the commission has met four times since April and their charter was to “strengthen and build neighborhoods”. Neighborhood liaisons (formerly called block captains) are being recruited and Mielke said presently there are 46 with a need for 50 more. Mielke focused on some of the highlights in the Liaison Handbook. Council expressed their unanimous approval of the handbook and thanked Grangaard and her subcommittee for all their work. Several questions were asked including to whom the handbook would be distributed. Mielke said the handbook was primarily designed only for the neighborhood liaisons at this time. Page 2 Council Minutes August 14, 2002 Mielke said if there is interest from outside people in knowing more about the handbook, staff should get their names and addresses and pass this on to he or Grangaard. Mielke also suggested e-mailing a stripped down version of the handbook which might be the most efficient way of distribution. Administrator Worthington suggested posting it on the website. Mayor Gehrz said she would be in favor of asking for a donation for the handbook in order to defray some costs. A discussion followed regarding whether there should be a cost involved and what, if any, that might be. Grangaard said she would feel uncomfortable charging since some of the articles in the handbook came from other sources that she and Mielke discovered. Councilmember Lamb suggested a smaller format be posted on the website for free with an offer to buy the higher grade bound volume for a fee as a way to help defray the cost of copying. Council said this should go back to the commission level to get their input and wishes on how they would like to see this handbook distributed outside the city and whether or not there should be a fee charged.. Councilmember Lindstrom then made a motion to approve the liaison handbook in its form and content (with a few minor changes and corrections) and authorize its distribution to the neighborhood liaisons. The motion passed unanimously. INFORMATION AND ANNOUNCEMENTS: Councilmember Talbot, as cable commission liaison, said if anybody has a question about their cable or broadband services, they should call 222-3333 (AT&T Broadband). If they do not receive a solution to their problem, contact Talbot by calling city hall at 651-644-5050 and he will respond as soon as possible and try to help. Councilmember Lamb encouraged people to contribute to the “Friends of the Park” fund which will help build and maintain the city’s park system. It is tax deductible. Presently, the city has received $1,400 to this fund, $500 of which was recently donated by Twin City Co-op Federal Credit Union. Mayor Gehrz thanked staff, particularly Diane Meyer, Recreation Coordinator, and Bill Maertz, Parks/Public Works Director, for their work in making the Ice Cream Social a huge success. Gehrz also mentioned a meeting to be held at city hall on August 16, sponsored by the mayors of Shoreview, St. Paul and Falcon Heights. Invitations were sent by the Mayors Regional Housing Task Force.to many people who are running for legislative offices in Ramsey County who are interested in the affordable housing issue. Page 3 Council Minutes August 14, 2002 Gehrz said council has been working on the 2003 budget and the city is facing some challenges in lieu of possible loss of Local Government Aid from the state. Gehrz encouraged residents to feel free to give their suggestions on how the city might cut back on some things and raise more revenue. The next budget workshop will be held September 4th at 6 p.m. at city hall. Administrator Worthington said she and two firefighters attended the Federal Emergency Management Institute for training at Emmitsburg, Maryland. This was paid for by the federal government except for the cost of food and Worthington said it was extremely valuable training in emergency management issues. ADJOURN The meeting adjourned at 8:20 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Pat Phillips Deputy Clerk