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Home My WebLink About07-27-2022 Regular Meeting CITY OF FALCON HEIGHTS Regular Meeting of the City Council City Hall 2077 West Larpenteur Avenue AGENDA July 27, 2022 at 7:00 P.M. A. CALL TO ORDER: B. ROLL CALL: ANDREWS ___ GUSTAFSON____ LEEHY___ MEYER ___ WEHYEE___ STAFF PRESENT: LINEHAN____ C. APPROVAL OF AGENDA D. PRESENTATION E. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: 1. July 6, 2022 City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes F. PUBLIC HEARINGS: G. CONSENT AGENDA: 1. General Disbursements through: 7/19/22 $158,179.83 Payroll through: 7/15/22 $21,372.93 Wire Payments through: 7/15/22 $14,765.65 2. Six Month Employee Step Adjustment - Assistant to the City Administrator Megan Pavek 3. 18 Month Employee Step Adjustment – Community Development Coordinator Paul Moretto 4. Night to Unite Proclamation H: POLICY ITEMS: I. INFORMATION/ANNOUNCEMENTS: J. COMMUNITY FORUM: Please limit comments to 3 minutes per person. Items brought before the Council will be referred for consideration. Council may ask questions for clarification, but no council action or discussion will be held on these items. K. ADJOURNMENT: BLANK PAGE CITY OF FALCON HEIGHTS City Council Workshop City Hall 2077 West Larpenteur Avenue MINUTES July 6, 2022 6:30 P.M. A. CALL TO ORDER: 6:42 p.m. B. ROLL CALL: ANDREWS _X__(Attended Remotely pursuant to 13D.02- Limited Exception) GUSTAFSON__X__ LEEHY_X__ MEYER ___ WEHYEE__X__ STAFF PRESENT: LINEHAN__X__ SORENSEN__X__ C. PRESENTATIONS: D. POLICY ITEMS: 1. Just Deeds Resolution and Presentation Jack Linehan, the City Administrator, stated that Mapping Prejudice recently published its findings on racial covenants in Ramsey County. A total of 2,400 property deeds were found to have a racial covenant, of which over 100 properties in Falcon Heights have a covenant, with most located in the Northome/Northeast Quadrant areas. Just Deeds was a presenter at the 2021 Human Rights Day. Just Deeds is a group of attorneys working with the City of Golden Valley, Mapping Prejudice, and local realtors to help homeowners discharge the racial covenants on their deeds. The Community Engagement Commission approved the attached resolution to have the City of Falcon Heights join as a Participating City. By becoming a participating City, Falcon Heights would work with Just Deeds to create a registration form on our website that would put homeowners with a racial covenant in touch with Just Deeds. The City would also work to promote the project and notify homeowners listed on the Ramsey County Mapping Prejudice map of the status of their deed. Attorney Jared Shepherd of Campbell Knutson is one of the attorneys working with Just Deeds and will be present at the meeting to introduce the topic. Jared Shepard, Just Deeds Attorney, explains what Just Deeds is. Coalition members provide free legal and title services to help property owners find discriminatory covenants and discharge them from their property titles. The Coalition also provides education opportunities to help communities acknowledge this racist history and pursue reconciliation and anti-racist solutions. Our member organizations share responsibility for creating and correcting systemic racism in housing. We acknowledge the racist systems in our communities and are working together to dismantle them. Then Shepard explains what it looks like for a City to be involved with the process. No formal action is required to join the Just Deeds project, but most cities join by passing a resolution of support. All cities wishing to participate in Just Deeds must: • Commit to the Just Deeds mission statement in word and action. • Dedicate resources to support the Just Deeds mission. Some examples of how other cities are participating include:  Devoting staff or volunteer time to connecting residents with free help from legal and title professionals to discharge discriminatory covenants (required).  Discharging covenants on city-owned property.  Engaging in community conversations on race and housing.  Identify anti-racist action your City and community can take to address housing barriers.  Engaging your City's Human Rights Commission and City Council.  Joining with other Just Deeds cities to create new equity tools tailored to city government. Shepard also states that the City will need to create a web page with information and resources for residents. In addition, Just Deeds is still exploring how to discharge covenants from residents with Ramsey County. Mayor Gustafson asks, does discharge a covenant eliminate the convent from the deed? Shepard says no, it does not get rid of the covenant. This process is all about acknowledging the past, so no, it does not get rid of the covenant. Council Member Wehyee asks are there any hidden costs? Shepard states no, as far as we know Ramsey County is waiving the recorder fees, title companies usually waive this fee, and the lawyers are pro bono. The Mayor asks what the length of the process is for residents and will more covenants be discovered in Ramsey County? Shepard states it takes roughly 3 to 6 months per resident, and yes, mapping prejudice believes there will be more uncovered in Ramsey County. Council Member Andrews asks, what if people don't have access to technology? Linehan states that City staff can help with any questions and the City's commitment to this initiative. 2. Climate Emergency Resolution Linehan explains the Climate Emergency Resolution. Many cities around the state have adopted Climate Action Plans addressing the pressing climate change issues. City Council had requested the Environment Commission study the issues and actions the City has taken so far and identify future action through a Climate Action Plan. On March 14, 2022, staff, directed by Council, presented a framework resolution for a Climate Action Plan Statement to the Environment Commission. At that meeting, the Commission proposed forming a small committee to further develop and fine-tune this resolution. The committee met several times to finalize a version for the Commission. At the May 9, 2022, Environment Commission meeting, the EC approved the resolution with the idea that Chair Mathwig would incorporate recommendations from the meeting into a final plan to present to Council. The draft recommendations were submitted to staff in early June, with July 6 being the next workshop. Mayor Gustafson asked what the implications of the Climate Action Plan are, such as cost. Council Member Wehyee stated the goal of this plan is to acknowledge that climate change is an emergency. He added that the resolution establishes that the City would create a Climate Action Plan but does not specify what that looks like. It would be on the Environment Commission to assemble another resolution that would be much more detailed and come to the Council again for approval. Wehyee emphasized that would be a different step and was different that what was before the Council now. Council Member Leehy stated that the City already has a climate action plan through the GreenStep Cities and does not want to mandate residents to do things. Council Member Wehyee explained that the resolution would not obligate residents or businesses to take any certain action because it’s not an ordinance and there are no specific criteria or bearing on the community. It was not written as a mandate. Mayor Gustafson says the resolution should show what the City has already done for the environment. In addition, it provides opportunities for residents and businesses to address climate change on a local level. 3. Police Contract Consultant Linehan stated that At the June 11th City Council Retreat, the idea of hiring a consultant to review the City’s contract for police services was discussed. Staff is seeking direction on the next steps to engage with a qualified consultant. The consultant will analyze our current services, conduct a series of community focus groups, and provide recommendations on the City’s options for police services beyond 2023. The City Council directed Linehan to move forward with releasing the RFQ. 4. Community Park Appraisal Linehan says at the June 8th City Council meeting. A contract was approved with Diversified Real Estate Services, Inc. (DRESI) was approved for an amount of $6,000. The contract was to provide a qualified appraisal of the Community Parkland. It was estimated that it would be a five-week turnaround before the City received the report. The City received the appraisal this week. The appraisal results can be used in the City’s negotiations with the University of Minnesota to purchase the park. The City Council reviewed the appraisal results, and directed Linehan to engage in next step discussions with the University of Minnesota. E. INFORMATION/ANNOUNCEMENTS: F. ADJOURNMENT: 8:36 p.m. DISCLAIMER: City Council Workshops are held monthly as an opportunity for Council Members to discuss policy topics in greater detail prior to a formal meeting where a public hearing may be held and/or action may be taken. Members of the public that would like to make a comment or ask questions about an item on the agenda for an upcoming workshop should send them to mail@falconheights.org prior to the meeting. Alternatively, time is regularly allotted for public comment during Regular City Council Meetings (typically 2nd and 4th Wednesdays) during the Community Forum. _______________________________ Randall C. Gustafson, Mayor Dated this 13th day of July, 2022 _________________________________ Jack Linehan, City Administrator BLANK PAGE REQUEST FOR COUNCIL ACTION City of Falcon Heights, Minnesota __________________________ Item General Disbursements, Payroll and Wire Payments Description General Disbursements through: 7/19/22 $158,179.83 Payroll through: 7/15/22 $21,372.93 Wire Payments through: 7/15/22 $14,765.65 Budget Impact The general disbursements, payroll and wire payments are consistent with the budget. Attachment(s) • General Disbursements, Payroll and Wire Payments Action(s) Requested Staff recommends that the Falcon Heights City Council approve general disbursements, payroll and wire payments. Meeting Date July 27, 2022 Agenda Item Consent G1 Attachment General Disbursements. Payroll, and Wire Payments Submitted By Roland Olson, Finance Director BLANK PAGE REQUEST FOR COUNCIL ACTION City of Falcon Heights, Minnesota __________________________ Item Assistant to the City Administrator Megan Pavek – Six Month Employee Step Adjustment Description Megan Pavek was appointed by the City Council as Administrative and Communications Coordinator and began employment with the City on November 15, 2021. It is the practice of the City after six months of service to reward the employee with an increase in their base salary. With Megan’s promotion to Assistant to the City Administrator occurring within her first six months, this traditional release of probation and service step adjustment did not occur. It is my opinion that the traditional employment probation release evaluation at six months after hire should occur, and that a subsequent six month promotion probation should be reviewed after six months of promotion (August 23, 2022). This follows past practice of the City to reward both employment probation ending as well as promotion probations ending. Budget Impact There are available funds for this increase. Attachment(s) N/A Action(s) Requested I recommend that the Falcon Heights City Council approve a 5% step adjustment for Megan Pavek effective May 15, 2022. Meeting Date July 27, 2022 Agenda Item Consent G2 Attachment N/A Submitted By Jack Linehan, City Administrator BLANK PAGE REQUEST FOR COUNCIL ACTION City of Falcon Heights, Minnesota __________________________ Item Community Development Coordinator / Planner Paul Moretto - 18 Month Employee Step Adjustment Description Paul Moretto was appointed by the City Council as the Community Development Coordinator/Planner on January 28, 2021. It is the practice of the City after 18 months of service to reward the employee with an increase in their base salary. Budget Impact There are available funds for this increase. Attachment(s) N/A Action(s) Requested I recommend that the Falcon Heights City Council approve a 5% step adjustment for Paul Moretto effective June 28, 2022. Meeting Date July 27, 2022 Agenda Item Consent G3 Attachment N/A Submitted By Jack Linehan, City Administrator BLANK PAGE REQUEST FOR COUNCIL ACTION City of Falcon Heights, Minnesota __________________________ Item Night to Unite Proclamation Description The Ramsey County Sheriff's Office has drafted the attached proclamation for the city council to issue designating Tuesday, August 2, 2022 as Night to Unite in Falcon Heights Budget Impact N/A Attachment(s) N/A Action(s) Requested I recommend that the Falcon Heights City Council approve the proclamation designating Tuesday, August 2nd, 2022 as Night to Unite. Meeting Date July 27, 2022 Agenda Item Consent G4 Attachment N/A Submitted By Jack Linehan, City Administrator WHEREAS, the Minnesota Crime Prevention Association, along with AAA, and local law enforcement agencies are sponsoring a statewide program called Night to Unite on August 2, 2022; and WHEREAS, Night to Unite is designed to get to know one another in the City of Falcon Heights, build neighborhood involvement by bringing police and communities together; and to bring an awareness to crime prevention and local law enforcement efforts; and WHEREAS, Night to Unite supports the idea that crime prevention is an inexpensive, effective tool in strengthening police and community partnerships; and WHEREAS, Night to Unite provides opportunities to celebrate the ongoing work of law enforcement and neighborhoods in Falcon Heights by working together to fight crime and victimization and increase public safety for all citizens; and WHEREAS, the citizens of Falcon Heights play an important role in assisting the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office through joint crime, drug and violence prevention efforts; NOW, THEREFORE, I, Mayor Randy Gustafson, and WE, Council Members, Kay Andrews, Melanie Leehy, Eric Meyer, and Yakasah Wehyee, DO HEREBY CALL UPON ALL CITIZENS OF FALCON HEIGHTS, RAMSEY COUNTY, to participate in Night to Unite on Tuesday, August 2, 2022. FURTHER, LET IT BE RESOLVED THAT I, Mayor Randy Gustafson, and WE, Council Members, Kay Andrews, Melanie Leehy, Eric Meyer, and Yakasah Wehyee, do hereby proclaim Tuesday, August 2, 2022, as Night to Unite in Falcon Heights, Ramsey County, Minnesota. _________________________ Mayor, Randy Gustafson _________________________ __________________________ Council Member, Kay Andrews Council Member, Melanie Leehy _________________________ __________________________ Council Member, Eric Meyer Council Member, Yakasah Wehyee _________________ Attested by: _________________________ Date City Administrator, Jack Linehan Night to Unite 2022 Proclamation CITY OF FALCON HEIGHTS BLANK PAGE