04-12-2006 Council Agenda - Laserfiche WebLink

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continue to look at this issue internally and perhaps the P & R Director will comment on it at an upcoming workshop. Explore Salt/Sand Options relative to snow removal — The city currently uses over 50% sand in its winter deicing operations. Most cities have been switching to straight salt or pretreated salt. The Watershed District has backed the switch to 100% salt due to the greatly reduced residual product left on the streets to run into ponds and lakes. The city currently cannot use 100% salt because we do not have a storage shelter for it. It has to be kept dry. There were a few events this past winter that we used straight salt from the County on. However, it is not practical to do this for every event. When a new public works garage is built we would like to build a salt storage shed also and make the switch to 100% salt. There will be some operator training involved and some minor modifications to our plow trucks, but the costs in the long run should decrease due to the greatly reduced sweeping and storm water costs. Go Wi- Fi/Wireless — This possibility has been discussed by the Cable Commission. One issue is public versus private construction of this system. Another is construction of the system in jurisdictions that do not control the utility poles. If it were to be pursued, a multi - city approach would seem to be more efficient. GIS for Commercial Buildings/Fire Hydrants, etc. — The Emergency Services Director is currently working on a project to gather information which will include digital pictures of buildings, listing of building owners, locations of key boxes and utility shut -offs, as well as other pre- incident planning data. He is hoping to enlist the help of GIS students at Century College. Anticipated completion time is late 2007. Update License Fees — Staff reviews license fees annually as part of the budget process. The Association of Metropolitan Municipalities distributes a survey with detailed info on most fees. In those cases where we feel additional study is needed, we will survey other jurisdictions. Review Compensation for Public Officials — A survey of compensation paid to Commission Members is attached. The Council has the discretion to change this at any time of your choosing. We are also attaching a survey of salaries paid for elected officials (information from Association of Metropolitan Municipalities — 2005 Survey — 2006 survey not yet completed). To make a change in this area requires passage of an ordinance with the effective date the first of the year after the next election. Conduct Annual Joint Meetings with Neighboring Cities to Discuss Key Issues - The City has a number of cooperative relationships with other jurisdictions. However, we have not held any joint discussions with neighboring jurisdictions on a proactive basis. The Council could take this initiative if they so desire. 6