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Home My WebLink AboutEC Packet 9.8.2025City of Falcon Heights Environment Commission City Hall 2077 Larpenteur Avenue West AGENDA Monday, September 8, 2025 6:30 p.m. A.CALL TO ORDER: 6:30 p.m. B. ROLL CALL:Beth Mercer-Taylor (Chair) ____ Georgiana May ____ John Pellegrini (Vice-Chair) ____ David Smith ____ Adam Keester ____ VACANT VACANT Staff Liaison Lynch ____ Council Liaison Mielke ____ C.APPROVAL OF AGENDA D.APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1.August 11, 2025 E. NEW BUSINESS 1.Community Park Landscaping Update 2. Future Topics Discussion F.INFORMATION AND ANNOUNCEMENTS 1. Staff Liaison Report 2.Council Liaison Report G.ADJOURN Next regular meeting date: October 13, 2025 City of Falcon Heights Environment Commission City Hall 2077 Larpenteur Avenue West Minutes Monday, August 11, 2025 6:30 p.m. A. CALL TO ORDER: 6:30 p.m. B. ROLL CALL: Beth Mercer-Taylor (Chair) _A_ Georgiana May _X_ John Pellegrini (Vice-Chair) _X_ VACANT Adam Keester _X_ VACANT VACANT Staff Liaison Lynch _X_ Council Liaison Mielke _X_ GreenCorps Member Siebert _X_ C. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Vice-Chair Pellegrini made a motion to approve the agenda. Motion passed by consent. D. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. July 14, 2025 Commissioner Keester made a motion to approve the July 14, 2025 minutes. Motion passed by consent. E. NEW BUSINESS 1. Native Landscaping Ordinance Discussion Staff Liaison Lynch opened the discussion about native landscaping, specifically in the right-of-way/boulevards, and asked Commissioners to discuss not how the language is currently written in City Code, but rather what they would like to see and not like to see out of rules around this. Regarding boulevard plantings, it was determined the Environment Commission would not want to see invasive/noxious weeds in boulevards and they would like residents to be educated about identifying and removing them. Commissioners also want to ensure Code does not show a preference towards turf grass over native landscaping in the wording and language. They want to ensure there is no intrusion of plantings into the road, sidewalk, or neighbors’ yards, and they do not want to see decorate fencing or landscaping rocks in the boulevard area for the safety of vehicles and pedestrians. Shrubs and trees would not be permitted, unless planted by City staff, plants would not be permitted to block signs, and fertilizers/pesticides/etc. would not be allowed. For what Commissioners do want to see in City Code around boulevard plantings, they would like to remove height limits from native and pollinator plantings, but rather have them restricted to a height that still provide site lines of the sidewalk, right-of-way, corners, and signs. They would be okay with restricting turf grass to a height of no more than 8”. They also want to ensure that anyone planting in a boulevard has called Gopher State One Call within 48 hours of planting to ensure they will not be interfering with utilities. Regarding pollinator yards, or other alternative yards to turf grass, there needs to be a “permit” system where the resident fills out a form to inform Staff about their pollinator yard. They will receive a small yard sign from the City for their yard to alert neighbors and possible code enforcement of their permitted yard. Commissioners also discussed boulevard trees and how to restart a boulevard tree planting program. The City’s GreenCorps Member, Olivia Siebert, who has been serving for 11 months, along with the City’s Climate Action Plan, have identified areas of the City that need boulevard trees based on heat island effect and space for those trees. The priorities for new boulevard trees should go as follows: 1) Replace any that were removed recently. Continue to replace trees as they are removed. 2) Plant trees where residents have requested one in the past, assuming space is available. 3) Begin going through the prioritized list. This will include a letter to the resident to alert them to their eligibility for a boulevard tree, and asking them to respond to the City to let Staff know if a tree is wanted. Three letters will be sent to the resident, each a week apart, before the address is moved to the bottom of the list due to non- response. If no response is received, a tree will not be planted. All new boulevard trees should be planted with a 20-gallon watering bag and residents having a tree planted in their boulevard should receive educational material to assist the resident with ensuring their tree survives. 2. Energy Action Plan Update & Next Steps GreenCorps Member Siebert gave an update on her work on the Energy Action Workplan during her 11 months with the City. There has been a lot of outreach and education to residents. She recommends moving forward to work with multifamily homes, businesses, potentially having a discussion with the University about the Energy Action Plan and Climate Action Plan, and working with Falcon Heights Elementary School and the MN State Fair. Staff Liaison Lynch also explained the next outreach step she will be taking with the workplan will be to reach out to multifamily landlords via annual licensing to provide them with information on the programs offered for electrifying and upgrading their buildings. 3. Green To Go / Packaging Fair Updates Staff Liaison Lynch explained she and GreenCorps Member Siebert recently attended the City of Roseville’s Sustainable Packaging Fair and attended a restaurant visit at Stone Pho in Roseville with their city staff. She detailed the large number of options that exist for compostable and recyclable to go packaging and gave a rundown of how the restaurant visit went. She explained she believes it would be possible for Falcon Heights city staff to handle enforcement of a Green To Go ordinance in Falcon Heights for the 6-7 restaurants that exist in the City at a time. GreenCorps Member Siebert also suggested the City adopt a purchasing policy for kitchen supplies to ensure only compostable and/or recyclable supplies are purchased. These are available via the State contract and can be purchased for City use internally and also for special events. 4. Lawn & Garden Tours – Recap and Recommendations Council Liaison Mielke explained the Lawn and Garden Tours seemed successful with 7- 10 residents visiting her garden. She explained there probably could have been a bit more promotion of the event by city staff, but acknowledged that was difficult at the time due to the City’s annual Ice Cream Social being the same week. Commissioner Keester agreed and stated he thought it was successful and the timing and duration of the event seemed to be perfect. F. INFORMATION AND ANNOUNCEMENTS 1. Staff Liaison Report – Staff Liaison Lynch explained GreenCorps Member Siebert’s last day of service with the City is August 12, 2025 and thanked her for her service to the City. She also explained the SolarAPP+ system for solar permitting will be up and running shortly, and updated Commissioners that the new City Hall solar panels have received all building permits and the process to remove the existing panels and install the new panels will begin as soon as the interconnection request with Xcel Energy is approved. 2. Council Liaison Report – None. G. Adjourn Meeting was adjourned at 8:17 p.m. Next regular meeting date: September 8, 2025 ITEM FOR DISCUSSION City of Falcon Heights, Minnesota __________________________ Item Community Park Landscaping Update Description City staff shared the feedback regarding the landscaping choices for the Community Park remodel. The comments were heard and responded to by WSB and they have swapped out certain plants as advised. The updated plant order is attached. Budget Impact None. Attachment(s) - Community Park Planting Order Action(s) Requested None. Meeting Date September 8, 2025 Agenda Item E-1 Attachment Community Park Planting Order Submitted By Hannah Lynch, Community Development Coordinator New Look Contracting is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer and is committed to excellence through diversity. 14045 Northdale Blvd. Rogers, MN 55374 Phone: 763-241-1596 Fax: 763-241-9196 Date: 7-10-25 To: WSB Project: Falcon Heights Community Park Product: Landscape Items Submittal #: 9 For Review: Product Data: X Shop Drawings: Jason Marquette Project Manager jmarquette@newlookcontracting.net 612-213-6794 Erik Pliego Erik.Pliego@hoffmanandmcnamara.com Brian McNamara Ken Partch 651-437-9463 (Pay Estimates/Prevailing Wage Reports) Ken.partch@hoffmanandmcnamara.com Mike McNamara:612-366-3544 24 HR Traffic Control Contacts: Erik Pliego 651-230-8966 Forthcoming Office Manager: Brian McNamara 612-366-7547 Staking Foreman: Forthcoming 651-230-8966 Superintendent:612-366-7547 Foreman: Forthcoming Forthcoming Project Manager On site Employee with first aid training: Brian McNamara Project Suppliers: See Attached Contract Information: 8/5/2025 Falcon Heights Park Improvements Information Regarding Safety Program: Safety Officer: Brian McNamara Size Qty Supplier 2.5"6 Hoffman & McNamara 2.5"6 Gertens 2.5"9 Hoffman & McNamara 1.5"3 Hoffman & McNamara #1 5 Gertens #1 5 Gertens #1 15 Gertens #1 10 Gertens #1 8 Gertens #1 32 Gertens #1 4 TBD 103 Size Qty Supplier Rumpca Rumpca 9045 180th St. E Hastings, MN 55033 5500 Blaine Ave E Inver Grove Heights, MN 55076 651-437-9463 651-450-1501 651-459-1556 Cottage Grove, MN 55016 9600 Glendenning Rd VENDER LIST Hoffman & McNamara Co. Gertens Rumpca Compost Type 2 TOTAL: Misc Items (Edger, Fabric, Fertilizer Etc) Comments: Type 6 wood mulch Unknown Species Can we get confirmation on what species you would like. Nothern Acclaim Honey Locust Swamp White Oak Autmn Brilliance Serviceberry Purple Cone Flower Powwow Wild Berry Coneflower Mesa Yellow Blankeyconeflower Walkers Low Catmint Black Eyed Susan Prairie Dropseed Plant Material Supplier Schedule - Date:8/5/2025 Items Comments: Falcon Heights Park Improvements Autmn Blaze Maple COMPANY: Hoffman and McNamara Co.Last Name First Name Cerfication #Expiration Abbott Ryan 1840 30-Apr-27 Beissel Nicholas 1838 30-Apr-27 Connor Joshua 1618 30-Apr-27 Dodge Ben 1397 30-Apr-27 Ehlers Hunter 2201 30-Apr-26 Grussing Durant 2045 30-Apr-26 Hoffman Peter 1051 30-Apr-27 Hougnon Tom 2361 30-Apr-28 McCallum Adam 2199 30-Apr-26 McNamara Brian 460 30-Apr-27 McNamara Mike 467 30-Apr-27 Peterson Evan 2198 30-Apr-26 Pliego Erik 2377 30-Apr-28 Puertas Salvidar Favian 2379 30-Apr-28 Puertas Saldivar Jesus 2376 30-Apr-28 Puertax Salvidar Ruben 2378 30-Apr-28 Ramirez Rodriguez Juan 2380 30-Apr-28 Thell John 887 30-Apr-28 Tetzlaff Hanna 2271 30-Apr-27 Trotter Bill 466 30-Apr-27 Wald Mitch 2059 30-Apr-26 Mn/Dot Certified Landscape Specialists 700 Pullman Avenue, St. Paul Park, MN 55071 • Phone: 651-459-1556 • Fax: 651-458-0793 March 28, 2025 Hoffman & McNamara Nursery & Landscape 9045 180th St., E. Hastings, MN 55033 Rumpca Companies is a pre-approved manufacturer of MN Dot Type 2 compost and Type 6 mulch. We certify that our compost and mulch meets MN Dot specifications 2020 Edition. You can see us listed at www.dot.mn.us/products/erosioncontrol.com as an approved vendor. Thank You, Matthew Rumpca Rumpca Companies Phone: 651-459-1556 Email: rumpca-office@comcast.net 700 Pullman Avenue, St. Paul Park, MN 55071 • Phone: 651-459-1556 • Fax: 651-458-0793 March 28, 2025 Hoffman & McNamara Nursery & Landscape 9045 180th St., E. Hastings, MN 55033 Rumpca Companies is a pre-approved manufacturer of MN Dot Type 2 compost and Type 6 mulch. We certify that our compost and mulch meets MN Dot specifications 2020 Edition. You can see us listed at www.dot.mn.us/products/erosioncontrol.com as an approved vendor. Thank You, Matthew Rumpca Rumpca Companies Phone: 651-459-1556 Email: rumpca-office@comcast.net Organic Mulch: Shredded hardwood, double shredded, natural color, free from deleterious materials and suitable as a top dressing of trees, shrubs, and planting beds. Date: 8/5/2025 Project: Contractor:Hoffman & McNamara Co. RE: Corrugated white plastic tree protection Erik Pliego Project Manager (Hoffman & McNamara Co. / Contractor Erik Pliego Falcon Heights Park Improvements We are seeking permission to install corrugated white plastic tree protection from on all deciduous trees. We are proposing the installation on all shade trees regardless of location (blvd, wetlands, parking areas, TPSS sites, etc.). This would be in lieu of the wire mesh rodent protection at the base of the tree. Our proposal stems from experience and successes on similar sites. We are looking for more protection from deer, rabbit, and mice damage. Further, corrugated trunk protection help prevent frost cracking on soft trees such as maple and crabapples during the early establishment years. Wire guards have not proven to protect well against these variables. Further, long term removal can be costly for the owner and often not able to be removed before wire has caused damage or restricted plant establishment. Lastly, we have witnessed countless examples of snow accumulation, snowplow damage, mower damage, and vandalism that leaves the wire up bent up against the trunks of trees which can cause health issues. Trunk protection is important during the early years of establishment. Post establishment becomes a time to allow trees to ‘grow’ on their own. Thus, we would plan to remove all corrugated plastics at the end of establishment period. This is a no cost change proposal.