HomeMy WebLinkAboutCCMin_05May11 CITY OF FALCON HEIGHTS
MINUTES
May 11, 2005
Mayor Gehrz convened the regular City Council meeting at 7:00 PM.
PRESENT: Mayor Sue Gehrz, Council members Laura Kuettel, Robert Lamb,
Peter Lindstrom and Richard Talbot
Also present: City Attorney Roger Knutson, Planning/Zoning Coordinator
Deb Jones, Parks and Public Works Director Greg Hoag and Deputy Clerk
Mary Shea Kodluboy
Absent with prior notice: City Administrator Heather Worthington
COMMUNITY FORUM: There was no commentary from the audience.
PRESENTATIONS: None Scheduled
APPROVAL OF MINUTES: The minutes dated April 27, 2005 were unanimously approved as submitted.
PUBLIC HEARINGS: None Scheduled
CONSENT AGENDA:
Kuettel moved approval of the Consent Agenda, as outlined below. The motion was unanimously approved.
General Disbursements through May 5, 2005: $ 53,737.92
Payroll (4/15/05 – 4/30/05) $ 12,015.64
2. Appointment of Linda Smith, 1592 Roselawn Avenue, to the Environment Commission
3. Appointment of Annie Green, 1442 Idaho Avenue, to the Parks
and Recreation Commission
4. Approval of slate of officers for Fire Department for 2005-2008:
Clem Kurhajetz, Fire Chief
Mike Clarkin, 1st Assistant Chief
Mark Allen, 2nd Assistant Chief
Proposals for recodification of Falcon Heights City Code
Planning and Zoning Coordinator Deb Jones said that in 2004, the Council directed staff to put
in motion a review and recodification of the City Code, a process that was last done more than 10-15 years ago. In preparation for this process, the Planning Commission undertook a
study
of Chapter 9 (the zoning code) to identify areas that might need updating or revising.
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May 11, 2005
Proposals for recodification of Falcon Heights City Code (continued)
Ms. Jones said that recodification involves taking the City code, finding the sections that don’t match or are conflicting, doing a comparison review with State statutes, revising the
code where necessary, and putting it together in an organized way. The end result will be electronically searchable and much more accessible.
Staff sought and received recodification proposals from three companies: American Legal Publishing, consultant for the League of Minnesota Cities; Municipal Code Corporation of Tallahassee,
Florida; and Sterling Codifiers, Inc. of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. All three firms
have worked with Minnesota cites, all three come highly recommended by City Attorney
Roger Knutson, and all three have received positive reviews from Minnesota clients. She gave
a brief, oral review of the Comparison of Recodification Proposals chart she had prepared and described the base cost for each firm, as outlined below:
ALP/LMC $ 9,125
Municipal 7,350
Sterling 5,960
Options available at additional cost would be supplemental service, electronic search and retrieval and hosting the code on the internet.
On April 21, staff met with the City Attorney to review the proposals. While it is staff consensus that any of the three companies would provide excellent service, staff is recommending
the Municipal Code Corporation for the following reasons:
Comprehensive service includes all the features we need
Base cost includes an on-site conference with our attorney, staff and other interested officials – the on-site conference expense can be costed out separately
Appearance and ease of use of the sample on-line codes for other cities
Flexibility of the Folio BoundVIEWS integrated code service and web options
Quality of the final printed product
Council member Lamb asked what the timeframe is. Ms. Jones said that staff would like them
to start as soon as possible. A preliminary draft could take anywhere from six weeks to three months. Council member Lamb asked if the City will have an electronic copy and Ms. Jones
said that will depend upon what the City asks for. Council member Lamb asked when the Council would entertain that decision. One of the City’s goals is to become as electronic as possible.
Council member Lindstrom said the Planning Commission has been looking at this for over a year and they are totally up to speed.
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May 11, 2005
Proposals for recodification of Falcon Heights City Code (continued)
Mr. Thomas Lageson, 1740 North Pascal Street, a Planning Commissioner, said the Planning Commission has been involved from Day 1 in looking at the code but has not been involved in any
of these proposals. Council member Lindstrom said the Planning Commission knows it has always been the plan to have an outside group do the nuts and bolts of putting this together.
Mayor Gehrz said the discussion was getting into details and she wanted to back up and talk about the process. The City code is an accumulation of ordinances and gets to be cumbersome
after a while. This will make it easier to retrieve information and easier to understand. She asked City Attorney Knutson to talk about what happens and what the company does. City
Attorney Knutson said the company performs a technical review. They take all of the ordinances, integrate them, put them in an order that makes sense and compare them with current State
law requirements. They then give the City a draft with the changes. It is a very technical process performed by lawyers and technicians.
Council member Talbot asked if the company will alert the City to things that are not in the code but should be mentioned. City Attorney Knutson said this is very much a policy question.
If the City asks them for suggestions they will do that but they won’t get involved in policy issues.
Mayor Gehrz asked what happens with the new City code when changes are made. City Attorney Knutson said that ordinance amendments will be made. Use the supplemental service. If you
don’t, you have a good chance of having a real mess on your hands in two to three years.
It is money well spent to have the company do the supplemental service because they keep the code in good shape. Mayor Gehrz said the City has budgeted for this for several years.
If the supplemental service is used, a future Council won’t have to do this again. City Attorney Knutson said you can tell people the code is on the web site. All the rules are in
front of them. They don’t have to come to City Hall and staff doesn’t have to run copies. Web sites are more current than what is in print.
Council member Talbot said the City needs something that is consistent. As the City makes new ordinances, they are best done through their filters. He would also like to see something
that helps people in their search of the City code.
In response to a question from Council member Kuettel about ordinance updates, Ms. Jones said she has been assigned to shepherd this project through and has been keeping a file of things
that need to be looked at and revised. The Planning Commission also had a lot of good ideas that have been noted. The City code is always a work in progress. The City will get the
benefit of advice as to what is needed and what should be changed.
Mayor Gehrz said the Planning Commission’s responsibility is Chapter 9. Their job is not the other chapters. For example, they shouldn’t be involved in alcohol compliance issues.
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May 11, 2005
Proposals for recodification of Falcon Heights City Code (continued)
Mr. Lageson said he agrees with the City Attorney that the City won’t get anything more than what the City puts into it. What we give them is what we are going to get back. An electronic
copy is an absolute must. The City can put it on its own web site. There are lots of search engines. He asked if the City Attorney shouldn’t be tracking and keeping things in line.
He thought that was one of their roles. Once the City code is solid, it should be very straightforward to keep it consistent. City Attorney Knutson said that when his office is asked
to amend a provision of the ordinance, they certainly look to eliminate inconsistencies. Because of cost, the City has never asked him to audit the City code.
Mayor Gehrz said that State laws change. The whole thing needs to be redone cover to cover and the City can’t afford to have the City Attorney do this. This is what these companies
do. She is very interested in saving staff time in the future by having the City code on the web
and keeping it current.
Ms. Jones said these companies provide a very technical service. No one on staff is qualified
to do this. The legal copy, the final authority, is actually the printed copy. The web copy is not the last word, the printed copy is. The present City code is not on the web, except
for the sign ordinance. The City code can be hosted on the City web site or on the company’s web site.
Council member Lamb said two things need to be addressed: One is the responsibility for updates. The Council needs to direct staff to make a recommendation regarding responsibility
for updates. One option is to buy the update service. Or, the Council can direct the City Attorney or staff to be responsible. If the Council doesn’t address updating, six months
from now the City will be back with a code that potentially doesn’t match. The Council can ask staff to research the issue and come back with a recommendation regarding the management
of updates. The Council has committed to making the City code electronically accessible. We don’t know if we want to host it ourselves or through one of the providers. Direct staff
to look at electronic access in terms of cost, efficiency, timeliness and accuracy. His personal bias is to go with the vendor’s proposal. Pay the fee. We spend $500 on the supplemental
service. That is a very small percentage if it keeps us from having to redo the whole thing. The base fee for recodification will be about $8,000 and maintenance costs will be $400-$500
a year.
Lamb moved that staff be authorized to contract with the Municipal Code Corporation for recodification of the Falcon Heights City Code for the base cost of $7,350.00, and purchase of
the supplemental service from them. Staff is directed to look at the options and costs regarding electronic search and retrieval, and location of the code on the internet, keeping in
mind cost, efficiency, timeliness and accuracy, and bring this information back to the May 25, 2005 Council meeting. The motion was unanimously approved.
FALCON HEIGHTS CITY COUNCIL MINUTES -5-
May 11, 2005
Approval of Community Park roof replacement
Parks and Public Works Director Greg Hoag said the roof on the building at Community Park has developed some leaks in the area over the kitchen and restrooms. Staff met with three roofing
contractors to review the problems and all three contractors were asked to submit three separate proposals to: 1) repair just the problem areas; 2) replace just the entire north section;
3) replace the entire roof on the building. All three contractors were in agreement that the best action is to replace the entire roof. There are indications there may also be some
areas on the south side of the roof that may soon be problem areas due to depressions or birdbaths in the roof that hold water.
After reviewing the three proposals staff is recommending a complete roof replacement. All three companies are providing a five year warranty on the installation and a thirty year warranty
from the manufacturer of the shingles. The following is a summary of quotes to do a complete re-roof: Please note the second cost listed is the cost per sheet of new plywood as needed
for the decking. This is an unknown cost until the roofer tears off the old roof. The total cost of the project will be the company’s base bid plus plywood.
Stock Roofing Company (Central Roofing) $10,625 $48.75
Tacheny Roofing $10,260 $60.00
Twin City Roofing $10,237 $60.00
Staff recommends that Tacheny Roofing be awarded the contract to re-roof Community Park Building. The City worked with Tacheny last summer when they re-roofed Curtiss Field’s shelter
building, and they did good work. Note: This work does not meet the competitive bidding threshold ($50,000) under State statute, and staff always solicits at least three proposals
for work such as this.
Kuettel moved that staff be authorized to contract with Tacheny Roofing for replacement of the building roof at Community Park. The motion was unanimously approved.
Consideration of a resolution regarding consolidated 911 dispatching
Mayor Gehrz said that currently there are four different dispatching centers in Ramsey
County: Saint Paul, Maplewood and White Bear Lake, with all of the rest of Ramsey County served by the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Department. Over the past year, Ramsey County and the
municipalities have been working on the 800 MHz system to develop the backbone for that, and Ramsey County and the City of Saint Paul have been talking about the benefits of merging
their dispatching centers. The Ramsey County Board of Commissioners voted to build a dispatch center for the entire county and, on Tuesday, April 26, adopted a resolution that authorizes
the shift of costs for 911 dispatching to the County property tax levy, under a consolidated approach to dispatching services.
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May 11, 2005
Consideration of a resolution regarding consolidated 911 dispatching (continued)
Mayor Gehrz said that voting in favor of the resolution were Commissioners Bennett, Carter, McDonough, Ortega, and Reinhardt. Voting against the resolution were Commissioners Rettman
and Wiessner. The resolution directs each community to, in turn, adopt a resolution “opting in” to the consolidated services, and designating someone to negotiate on behalf of their
city. The formula adopted by the County Board allocates 100% of the dispatching costs to the countywide property tax base, despite the fact that 71% of all call volume in the county
comes from the City of Saint Paul. For Falcon Heights, this change will mean an increase of more than 350% in dispatch costs for our taxpayers. The City of Falcon Heights is on record
in support of consolidated dispatch; however, we feel strongly that the cost allocation formula, and shift of dispatching costs to the suburban communities under that formula, is inequitable.
The resolution the City Council is being asked to adopt this evening reflects our support for consolidated dispatching, with the understanding that this support is conditional upon
the Ramsey County Board of Commissioners reexamining the cost allocation formula, and including both tax base and usage data in that formula.
Mayor Gehrz said that she, Administrator Worthington and Council member Lamb participated in a meeting with Ramsey County Manager David Twa about this. Council member Lamb attended
the meeting because of his knowledge and expertise in the telecommunications industry.
Council member Lamb said there are nineteen political entities in Ramsey County. All currently have police and fire services, either their own or they contract with neighboring communities.
Saint Paul is almost everyone’s backup. They have specialized units that no one else can afford to have. Currently, the nineteen entities have dispatching services for police, fire
and municipal sewer blockages. The Ramsey County Board of Commissioners voted to shift the entire cost to the County property taxes. Based upon property values within the County, what
is the big deal about that? He gave an oral review of the allocation of costs for consolidated dispatch under a County takeover of costs spread over City tax base, and the table of
information for the nineteen municipalities in Ramsey County is outlined below.
Allocation of costs for consolidated dispatch under a County takeover of costs spread over City tax base
Prepared by City of Falcon Heights, 5/5/05
Cost at end of
8-year clock
down period
Current Total % of % of Ramsey for dispatching
Dispatch Cost Countywide County (allocated to tax
By City Tax Base Population base countywide)
Arden Hills $ 66,568 2.80% 1.90% $ 280,000
Blaine 1,416 0.00 0.00 -0-
Falcon Heights 23,372 0.90 1.10 90,000
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May 11, 2005
Consideration of a resolution regarding consolidated 911 dispatching (continued)
Cost at end of
8-year clock
down period
Current Total % of % of Ramsey for dispatching
Dispatch Cost Countywide County (allocated to tax
By City Tax Base Population base countywide)
Gem Lake 5,117 0.20 0.10 20,000
Lauderdale 11,626 0.40 0.50 40,000
Little Canada 70,560 2.10 1.90 210,000
Maplewood 788,297 9.40 6.80 940,000
Mounds View 80,489 1.70 2.50 170,000
New Brighton 145,282 4.20 4.30 420,000
North Oaks 43,845 2.60 0.80 260,000
North Saint Paul 75,664 2.10 2.30 210,000
Roseville 321,863 10.50 6.60 1,050,000
Saint Anthony 5,882 0.50 0.50 50,000
Saint Paul 5,810,238 44.10 56.20 4,410,000
Shoreview 146,939 6.80 5.10 680,000
Spring Lake Park 343 0.00 0.00 -0-
Vadnais Heights 80,345 3.20 2.60 320,000
White Bear Twp 58,799 2.80 2.20 280,000
White Bear Lake 440,971 5.20 4.70 520,000
TOTAL $8,177,616 TOTAL $9,950,000
NOTE: Assumes a yearly operational cost of $10,000,000, per County estimates. Final totals may vary
slightly due to spreadsheet calculations.
Council member Lamb said that when you shift everything to the County on a uniform tax basis, there is some justification for that. We are all dependent upon Saint Paul for backup services,
specialized services, and dependent upon everyone’s community health. If you charge for usage, 71% of the total calls originate in Saint Paul. When you shift this entire cost to the
County, you end up with huge cost increases for the suburbs and you lower the cost for Saint Paul. Mayor Gehrz, Administrator Worthington and he met with the Ramsey County Manager and
proposed the following alternative: 50% of the cost would be based upon property value and 50% would be on a rolling usage basis. It is ironic that Saint Paul opposes this formula.
Ramsey County passed this with a notification of about three days. Council member Lamb said he has built call out centers and has operated them--call out centers with hundreds of employees.
With call out centers it is easier to supervise and train people and cover absences. What he is concerned about is the new cost formula. What happens in our environment when you shift
costs like this from the City to the County? Taxpayers will be assessed $90,000 on their property taxes.
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May 11, 2005
Consideration of a resolution regarding consolidated 911 dispatching (continued)
Council member Lamb said that some cities will not reduce their levy by $23,000, like Falcon Heights will, and will use that money for other services. Taxpayers will have a real $10
million property tax increase, minus the $23,000. Falcon Heights has contacted City administrators, managers and mayors in Ramsey County to explain our position. We wholeheartedly
endorse a single dispatch center in Ramsey County, have crafted a resolution and have asked them
to consider passing a similar resolution.
Mayor Gehrz said that under this shift, the suburbs will pick up a good share of the cost for Saint Paul. She doesn’t know if will be successful to convince the Ramsey County Board
but feels a responsibility to warn the residents and taxpayers. The two commissioners who voted against this were Janice Rettman and Jan Wiessner, who tried to get flexibility in the
funding formula.
Council member Lindstrom read the resolution aloud for the benefit of the viewing audience.
Council member Lamb said he believes we are all in this together. We are very dependent upon the health of Saint Paul, their backup and specialized services, but he has a real problem
with the process here. There was no real notification. The suburbs will bear the biggest share of the cost when it is a County tax levy. The municipalities were asked to pass a resolution
supporting consolidated dispatch. The only resolutions the County Board will entertain have to be passed by May 17. Most cities don’t have the matrix of the costs. The point of the
resolution is to ask the County to take another look at the reallocation. On the face of it, it looks as though you have an option and can say you won’t be involved. But, even if you
aren’t involved, your citizens will pay for it.
Mayor Gehrz said Falcon Heights kicked up a big fuss. Letters were sent to every mayor, city administrator/manager, the county board and the county manager. The distribution of the
costs is the issue. The distribution should be fair.
Council member Lamb said that, currently, Saint Paul collects $5,810,238 for dispatch. Under the County’s proposal, the cost for Saint Paul will be $4,400,000. Unless Saint Paul does
something to rescind or adjust their levy downward to reflect this, Saint Paul residents will pay $9,000,000.
Mayor Gehrz asked the viewing audience to contact County Commissioners Janice Rettman and Jan Wiessner and thank them. It is important that they be supported for their decision.
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May 11, 2005
Consideration of a resolution regarding consolidated 911 dispatching (continued)
RESOLUTION 2005-05
Talbot moved adoption of Resolution 2005-05, outlined below, regarding consolidated 911 dispatch in Ramsey County, and the motion was unanimously approved.
WHEREAS, the City of Falcon Heights supports consolidated 911 dispatch in Ramsey County, and;
WHEREAS, the City wishes to appoint Heather Worthington, City Administrator to represent the City in negotiations with Ramsey County regarding consolidated 911 dispatch services, and;
WHEREAS, the City of Falcon Heights’ support of consolidated 911 dispatch is conditional upon the County Board reconsidering the cost allocation formula, and utilizing a formula that
takes into account both tax base and usage of 911 dispatching, rather than relying upon tax base only;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FALCON HEIGHTS, MINNESOTA:
The City of Falcon Heights will support consolidated 911 dispatch, and participate in negotiations for this service, with the understanding that the Ramsey County Board of Commissioners
will reevaluate the cost allocation formula for a consolidated dispatch center that takes into account both tax base and usage of 911 dispatching.
ADOPTED by the Falcon Heights City Council on May 11, 2005.
REPORTS FROM COUNCIL MEMBERS: None
INFORMATION AND ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Council member Lamb said that this evening a new Commissioner was added to the Environment Commission, formerly the Solid Waste Commission. Right now, there are two vacancies and by
August there will be a third. He reassured the viewing audience that organized collection is not a subject the Environment Commission will be looking at. Mayor Gehrz said that right
now all of the Environment Commissioners live west of Snelling and there is a need
for geographic distribution. She invited residents who live east of Snelling to apply for the Environment Commission and said their applications will be given the highest priority.
Mr. Thomas Lageson, 1740 North Pascal Street, said he had hoped to speak during the Community Forum portion of the meeting but did not arrive in time. He said he wanted
to talk about a little girl who lives on his street, Kylie Gibbons, six months old, who has tuberous sclerosis, a disease that causes non-cancerous tumors to form in different organs
such as the brain, eyes, heart, kidney, skin and lungs. A walkathon is going to be held on Sunday, May 22, at Como Lake to increase awareness and raise money for the Tuberous Sclerosis
Alliance for research.
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May 11, 2005
INFORMATION AND ANNOUNCEMENTS (continued)
Mr. Lageson said that 73% of the money raised goes toward research and the organization gets a four star rating from the Charities Review Council. He encouraged the viewing audience
to provide financial support for tuberous sclerosis research.
Council member Lindstrom said that Michelle Krug will be the new Falcon Heights/Lauderdale Lions Club President for 2005/06.
Mayor Gehrz thanked the Falcon Heights residents who filled out cards requesting that a traffic study be done with regard to the Gopher stadium. While the stadium will be built on the
Minneapolis campus, there will be parking on the State Fair campus and attendees will be bused
to the stadium. A traffic study is going to be done. On Thursday, May 5, the North Suburban Gavel Association gave Kris Grangaard, Co-Chair of the Neighborhood Commission and a CERT
trainer, the Distinguished Leadership Award for Volunteers. There is an opening on the Metropolitan Council, District 10, because of the resignation of Mary Krinkie, effective May 9.
Falcon Heights is a part of District 10, which includes portions of Anoka and Ramsey Counties. Residents interested in the position, can download application forms from the Secretary
of State’s website, www.sos.state.mn.us.
The regular City Council meeting was adjourned at 9:00 PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Mary Shea Kodluboy
Deputy Clerk