04-12-2017 Workshop Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP APRIL 12, 2017 will likely be some negotiating with the Met Council in order to get the plan approved. The City Planner reviewed the main topics that must be included in the update: land use, transportation, water resources, parks and trails, housing, resilience, economic competitiveness and implementation. He explained the process and timing, and reviewed the key dates for the work program that will begin in June 2017 and end with the submittal to the Metropolitan Council in October 2018. The City Planner explained the Council's adopted 2017 goals that will be reviewed as part of the plan update. He noted the proposed ideas to get community input: online surveys, maintain a web -based comment forum, hold City Council and Planning Commission workshops, hold neighborhood level workshops, hold a developer forum, take advantage of community engagement opportunities at city events, public open houses on plan drafts, and a public hearing on the full plan. The City Planner stated that resilience is a new required topic that pertains to environmental issues, such as solar and other alternative energy. He noted that the Comprehensive Plan will be discussed at each Planning Commission meeting during the process, and he is planning to have three joint workshops with the Commission and Council. The City Administrator stated that in the past there has been little resident engagement, and the Council may want to discuss how much they want to reach out to the community this time. The City Planner stated this topic is hard to get people interested and engaged in. Fischer asked how the Metropolitan Council decides on the growth and population numbers for each city. The City Planner stated they now use a new model to determine growth numbers, but he is unsure how they have in the past because their numbers in some instances are so unreachable. Keis asked what happens if the City does not meet the growth or housing unit numbers that the Metropolitan Council assigns. The City Administrator asked if the new senior housing building that is opening this year could be counted as housing units for the next 10 years. The City Planner stated these would count toward meeting future goals. The City Administrator stated that the Metropolitan Council also uses their Livable Communities grants as an incentive for cities to comply. He noted we have not been involved in that program for over 10 years. Montour noted that Little Canada uses the Comprehensive Plan as an important tool for guiding the City. Beltmann stated that there could be opportunities for community engagement such as the Nite to Unite event. Fischer noted that when doing community engagement, the City has to go out to the residents because residents don't typically come to City Hall. 2