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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCCMin_95Feb22CITY OF FALCON HEIGHTS REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING ® MINUTES OF FEBRUARY 22, 1995 1.i74 Mayor Baldwin convened the meeting at 7:03 p.m. PRESENT Baldwin, Gibson Talbot, Hustad, and Jacobs. Also present were Hoyt, Asleson, Maurer and Sampson. ABSENT Gehrz. COMMUNITY FORUM There were no comments from the floor. MINUTES OF FEBRUARY 8, 1995 Minutes were approved as presented. CONSENT AGENDA APPROVED Motion was made by Councilmember Gibson Talbot to approve the following consent agenda. Motion carried unanimously. 1. Disbursements a. General disbursements through 2/15/95: 5128,543.22 b. Payroll, 2/1 /95 to 2/15/95: 513,075.76 2. Licenses 3. Approval of budgeted 1995 wage compensation for personnel POLICY AGENDA REVIEW OF THE ALLEY ASSESSMENT POLICY Mayor Baldwin explained that this item was placed on the agenda due to concerns from a small number of people who are to be assessed for alley reconstruction this summer. The current policy is to assess all property owners on the alley for 90% of the cost of reconstruction with the city paying 10%. There are a handful of people who do not use the alley for garage access and these people have asked for recon- sideration of the assessment proportions. The city's assessment philosophy has been to assess public improvements based upon service to a property. Assessments are not proportioned upon any user fee, because user needs change over time. City Council Minutes February 22, 1995 Page 2 1.85 Mitch Rothman, 1485 Idaho Avenue, reiterated that he has a driveway to access his garage and does not use the alley at all. The builder of the house made the decision to build the garage that way, and even if he wanted to, he could not use the alley. Mayor Baldwin commented that the service to Mr. Rothman's property is that he is able to have a very narrow lot. The houses in his neighborhood could not have been platted the way that they were unless alleys were put in. Mr. Rothman also has the future option of constructing his garage in such a way that he can use the alley. A few homeowners in Northome have done this -converted their garage to living space and built a new garage on the alley. Councilmember Jacobs asked about the issue of the 1982/1984 assessments and the role that they might play in this project's assessments. Administrator Hoyt explained that while corner lot properties paid somewhat more for the 1984 improvements, the assessment amounts were not related to use. Councilmember Gibson Talbot expressed discomfort with comparing individual uses of improvements as the basis for assessments, since the use will change with the owner of the property. She asked how other cities' assessment policies compare to Falcon Heights. Engineer Maurer encouraged the council not to assess based upon usage. The assessment policy has changed since the 1984 improvements; some corner lots paid a bit more under the 1984 policy than they would if the same project were completed today. However, Falcon Heights' current policy for corner lots is much fairer than most for corner lots; many cities charge significantly more for improvements. Following a brief discussion, the council agreed that assessments for the 1995 alley improvement project would be calculated based upon current policy. IDEAS FORA "DONATION OPPORTUNITIES LIST" FOR THE FALCON HEIGHTS/LAUDERDALE LIONS CLUB AND OTHER INTERESTED PARTIES The city council adopted the donation list as provided by staff without additions, deletions, or corrections. PROPOSED GUIDELINES DURING THE MINNESOTA STATE FAIR FOR SECTION III D OF THE CITY'S ADMINISTRATIVE MANUAL Administrator Hoyt outlined the proposed addition to the city's administrative manual regarding State Fair policies. The policies contained therein are essentially the procedures that are in the city code and have been used by staff in the past. The City Council Minutes February 22, 1995 Page 3 ~.e6 purpose of placing them in the administrative manual is to have a reference for staff, residents, and business so that everyone knows up front what the rules are and how to comply with city ordinances. Councilmember Hustad asked about residential parking permits and why they are issued only to certain apartment residents. Administrator Hoyt responded that they are issued to those apartments who do not have sufficient off-street parking and rely upon on-street parking year-round. Most single-family residential homes have a driveway and at least a single car garage that can accommodate multiple cars, even if that means shuffling cars for the short duration of the state fair. In the past, permits have on occasion been issued to single family homeowners for truly unique circumstances that require on-street parking. The idea is to have residents use off-street parking first, even if it is a short-term inconvenience, an use on-street parking as a last resort. Councilmember Hustad suggested that staff err on the side of giving out permits to residents who request them, rather than restricting them. Mayor Baldwin stated that residents do not have a right to a parking space on a public street -the street is not an extension of private property. The apartments are a unique situation, as there is no other alternative but for those residents to park on the street. Councilmember Gibson Talbot commented that if staff started deviating from guidelines, the city may end up with many, many applications for on-street parking in the residential areas. Councilmember Hustad acknowledged that the deviations would be a judgement call by the staff and suggested that a log of requests be kept during the 1995 Fair. Councilmember Jacobs questioned the cost of distributing a flyer regarding the Fair rules to households. He suggested, and received concurrence from the council, that coverage of the topic in the city newsletter would be adequate to inform residents. Motion was made by Councilmember Jacobs to approve the addition of Section IIID to the city's administrative manual. Motion carried unanimously. REQUEST FOR AUTHORIZATION FOR THE CITY ADMINISTRATOR TO NEGOTIATE FOR A NEW FEE STRUCTURE FOR PROSECUTIONS Administrator Hoyt explained that the city currently pays an hourly rate for prosecution services. She suggested that the city begin negotiations for a retainer fee structure, as the prosecution workload is expected to increase with a 24 hour designated officer with the St. Anthony Police Department in the city limits. Hoyt City Council Minutes February 22, 1995 Page 4 r ~. 1 1.$'7 recommended that the city authorize staff to conduct direct negotiations with three firms, rather than sending out formal requests for proposals. Motion was made by Councilmember Hustad to authorize the Administrator to negotiate with any legal firm deemed appropriate for aretainer-based prosecution fee schedule. Motion passed unanimously. CONSIDERATION OF REQUEST FROM RAMSEY COUNTY FOR A DONATION TOWARD A COMMUNITY CELEBRATION EVENT This request is for a contribution toward a celebration event in honor of those citizens who participated in Ramsey County's long-range strategic planning process. The city had four representatives -two staff members (Susan Hoyt & Clem Kurhajetz) and two advisory commissioners (Jeff Alexander & Paul Martinez). Mayor Baldwin and Councilmember Gibson Talbot expressed concern with this donation, as the business community is also being solicited for donations and this might cause conflicts with the new state ethics laws. Attorney Sampson acknowledged that the ethics laws are very confusing and open to interpretation. With businesses getting involved in the contributions, the city may be crossing the line of receiving something of value from an "interested party". Mayor Baldwin noted that this request does meet the city's guidelines for donation requests. However, in light of the ethics concerns, he asked if the council would be amenable to denying the request for a flat contribution, but offer instead to pay the pro-rated cost of any volunteer attending function. The councilmembers agreed, expressing a desire to support the efforts of community volunteers. CITY INFORMATION AND ANNOUNCEMENTS Councilmember Jacobs updated the council on the activities of the Metropolitan Radio Systems Planning group. The lower frequency radio spectrum is completely used up. There are limited high frequency spectrum bands left at 800 megahertz. The legislature is presently looking at using this limited spectrum as shared frequencies between fire, police, regional agencies, and city and county government. Councilmember Hustad noted that the Park and Recreation Commission had recommended that the public phone at Curtiss Field not be reinstalled. The public phone, in the past, appears to have encouraged inappropriate behavior. There are houses near the park that could potentially be McGruff houses, which would address the safety concern. The commission will revisit this issue in the fall. City Council Minutes February 22, 1995 Page 5 ~.88 Administrator Hoyt announced that, due to warm weather, city ice rinks had been closed for the season. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 8:07 p.m. Tom Baldwin, Mayor rjj ' ,, ~ ~N i X~" /~~v~v~ Carla Asleson Recording Secretary 1