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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCCMin_94Oct26CITY OF FALCON HEIGHTS REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES OF OCTOBER 26, 1994 Mayor Baldwin convened the meeting at 7:35 p.m. PRESENT Baldwin, Gehrz, Gibson Talbot, Hustad, and Jacobs. Also present were Hoyt, Asleson, and Maurer. COMMUNITY FORUM There were no comments from the floor. MINUTES OF OCTOBER 12, 1994 Minutes were approved unanimously as presented. CONSENT AGENDA APPROVED Mayor Baldwin removed Resolution 94-22 from the consent agenda and added it to the policy agenda as item P-5. The remainder of the consent agenda, as noted below, was approved by unanimous consent of the council: 1. Disbursements: a. General disbursements through 10/17/94: 55,474.98 b. General disbursements through 10/21 /94: 526,344.33 c. Payroll, 10/1 /94 - 10/14/94: 51 1,951.87 2. Licenses 3. Request for renewal of lease for the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency monitoring equipment 4. Approval of final pay estimate for F.M. Frattalone for the 1993 street improvement project 5. Plan review for an essential service structure (water cooling tower) at Harvest States Cooperatives, 1667 N. Snelling Avenue 6. Request for use of Community Park shelter and site for Lions Club holiday tree sale 7. Remodeling of police/copy room at city hall POLICY AGENDA PRESENTATION OF GOALS AND WORK PLAN FOR THE MAYOR'S COMMISSION AGAINST DRUGS IMCAD) Connie Lanners Bernardy, the facilitator for the group Mayor's Commission Against Drugs IMCAD), outlined the group's mission and work plan. She also presented some of the findings of Dr. Peter Benson regarding the at-risk status of youth in the Roseville/Falcon Heights area. Bernardy thanked the council for their on-going support of MCAD and read a proclamation declaring November 7 - 1 1 as Minnesota Chemical Health Week. Mayor Baldwin asked that copies of the proclamation be distributed to the council and that the proclamation be included as an action item at the next council meeting. 1.~ City Council Minutes October 26, 1994 Page 2 1. ~ c3 PRESENTATION ON ACTIVITIES OF THE NORTHWEST YOUTH AND FAMILY SERVICE BUREAU Paul Ciernia and Kay Andrews of Northwest Youth and Family Services (NYFS) gave a brief presentation regarding the services provided by their organization. This presentation included statistics as to the number of Falcon Heights residents serviced, funding sources of the organization, and a breakdown of expenditure categories. Ciernia and Andrews stressed to the council the importance of city contributions to the success of NYFS and thanked the council for their on-going financial support. Mayor Baldwin expressed his support of NYFS and noted his disappointment in the fact that the cities of Lauderdale and St. Anthony have chosen not to make a city contribution in 1995. CONSIDERATION OF A POLICY ON SIDEWALK REPAIRS Administrator Hoyt reported on a proposed sidewalk policy for the city. She began by outlining the problem with sidewalk disrepair, which includes sidewalks that have cracks and heaves due to tree roots and settling soil. Sidewalk disrepair has been an on-going problem in the city, especially because of the city's well-established boulevard tree program (boulevard trees inevitably interfere with sidewalk panelsl. When a sidewalk is extremely cracked or raised 1 " or more, it is the responsibility of the city to assure that they are repaired to reduce the safety hazard on the public right-of-way. There are two neighborhoods in the city that have sidewalks and about 40 sidewalk panels that need attention. The city presently maintains public pathways (not technically sidewalks) along Cleveland Avenue, Hamline Avenue north of Larpenteur, and Coffman Street north of Folwell Avenue. Hoyt continued by saying that until 1992, the city practiced a policy of requesting property owners to repair sidewalk panels that were identified by city staff to be in hazardous condition. These repairs were often completed by property owners. However, there was no mechanism to assure that the repairs were completed or that the repairs were made up to city standards for sidewalk materials and surfacing. As a part of the 1993 Grove street project, the city was able to dramatically improve sidewalk safety in the Grove neighborhood. Many of the sidewalks were in disrepair ad were entirely replaced. The cost of the replacement was shared by the city and the abutting property owner. The city covered the removal of the concrete and paid for 12' to 15' (or 2 1 /2 to 3 panels) of 6" concrete slabs for each property. The abutting property owner was assessed for the remainder of the work. The extensive nature of the project reduced the cost considerable, In the areas that the city did not replace the entire sidewalk, the city covered the cost of replacing the hazardous panels the appeared randomly, thereby eliminating the danger. In order to assure that sidewalk maintenance is done in a timely manner, Hoyt and Engineer Maurer reported on three alternatives for sidewalk repair: 1) the property owner does the work and if it isn't completed in 30 days, the city will do it and bill the owner; 2) the city does the work and assesses all or part of the job to the property owner; or 3) the city does the work and pays for it. Hoyt recommended option three, city replacement, as it can be done efficiently, provides more flexibility in replacing deteriorated panels once the job is underway, City Council Minutes October 26, 1994 Page 3 guarantees that specifications will be met, does not require extensive follow-up with staff and property owners, eliminates the cost of assessments, and is affordable within the city's capital budget. The initial cost is estimated at 56,500, which should decrease once the city undertakes the majority of the slabs in 1995. Hoyt and Maurer noted that sidewalk panel replacement is a cost that the city covers in St. Paul, St. Louis Park, Golden Valley, and Richfield. Councilmember Gibson Talbot inquired as to the annual cost of sidewalk panel replacement after the initial year. Maurer replied that after the initial 40 slabs are replaced, the city would only need to replace five to ten slabs per year. Councilmember Hustad moved a city financed sidewalk repair policy. The motion passed unanimously. CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION NO. 94-24, ORDERING A FEASIBILITY REPORT AND RECEIVING THE FEASIBILITY REPORT Engineer Maurer reported that the city is again proposing the reconstruction of some of the alleys in the Northome neighborhood. All alleys were recently evaluated, and with one exception, all are in need of some work. He is recommending the reconstruction of the five alleys rated in poor condition for the spring and summer of 1995, and is requesting that the city adopt an alley feasibility study so that preliminary survey work can be completed. The estimated cost of work on the five alleys is 5143,000. Councilmember Jacobs requested that the city discuss the alley assessment policy at the next council meeting. Councilmember Jacobs moved Resolution No. 94-24, ordering a feasibility report and receiving the feasibility report on alley reconstruction. The motion passed unanimously. CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION NO. 94-22, AUTHORIZING CITY CLERK TO APPLY FOR SCORE RECYCLING GRANT FUNDS FROM RAMSEY COUNTY Councilmember Hustad moved Resolution No. 94-22, authorizing city clerk to apply for recycling grant funds. The motion passed unanimously. CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION NO. 94-23, RELATING TO 1995 ALLEY IMPROVEMENT PROJECT DECLARING INTENT OF CITY TO REIMBURSE COSTS WITH TAX-EXEMPT BONDS Administrator Hoyt explained that the proposed resolution would allow the city the option to issue general obligation bonds to finance the alley reconstruction project. The city may decide at a later date to finance the project in another manner, but the council must pass the resolution to keep the bond option open. City Council Minutes October 26, 1994 Page 4 1~c~ Councilmember Jacobs moved Resolution No. 94-23, declaring intent of city to reimburse costs of 1995 alley improvement project with tax-exempt debt. The motion passed unanimously. CITY INFORMATION AND ANNOUNCEMENTS Councilmember Gehrz reported that the Human Rights Commission's Turn Off the Violence project had been successful despite the weather conditions of the day. Councilmember Gibson Talbot brought a message from the Parks and Recreation Commission, urging residents to learn about the proposed county charter amendment regarding parks and open space. Administrator Hoyt noted miscellaneous city activities, including street sweeping, boulevard tree trimming, the fire open house, and completed improvements to Community Park trails. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 9:16 p.m. ,~ ~~ Tom Baldwin, Mayor ~~ ~~~.~~1,--~ Carla Asleson Recording Secretary