12/03/2007 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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• • CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION December 3, 2007 APPROVED 127 It was pointed out that the vehicle in question is licensed as a farm vehicle and would be 128 used only between his properties. 129 The police department is in the process of investigating the possibility and legality of an 130 exception for farm vehicles moving between parcels. 131 Not on Agenda Item — Council is receiving calls about the danger of making a left hand 132 turn from 35W north onto Lake Drive. Visibility is a problem. 133 Community Development Director Grochala explained that the roadway is set up as it 134 will be through the winter. They have addressed concerns as possible (sanding, visibility 135 improvements, signage, etc.) 136 Solid Waste Hauler Fees — Community Development Director Grochala noted that staff 137 was asked to compare the city's solid waste fees with surrounding communities. A 138 review shows that city fees are a little on the high side. The information presented by 139 staff provides information and comparisons among different fee systems. 140 There was some concern expressed about the wear and tear the large garbage trucks cause 141 on city streets with numerous companies operating numerous vehicles. 142 Director Grochala noted the modern streets in the city are built for vehicles up to seven 143 tons. One way to limit the number of trucks is to further limit the number of haulers or 144 the trucks they are allowed to use. 145 No change to the fee structure is indicated at the current time. 146 Five Year Financial Plan — Finance Director Rolek noted changes in the most recent 147 plan distributed to the council. Staff has removed any in-house engineering staff 148 included in the document, including related capital purchases. There are offsetting 149 revenue changes that come into play due to the loss of ability to do some duties in-house. 150 The number of staff positions for 2009 were reduced (including engineering and police). 151 Expenditures were reduced from 45.7% to 40.5% over the course of the plan, resulting in 152 a 5+ percent decrease in spending. The actual reduction in tax rate is about .6%. In order 153 to have a greater impact on tax rates, you would have to be less conservative in the 154 growth predictions or reduce expenditures drastically. 155 On the question of adopting the document, the process laid out by resolution of the 156 council dictates that after the council has agreed upon a final draft, a public hearing is 157 held for public comment, and following the hearing the plan is adopted by the council. 158 All of that is supposed to take place by the end of the year. The council has decided that 159 the plan will be discussed at a couple of meetings, the hearing held in January and the 160 plan adopted shortly thereafter. 161 The council concurred that the plan is a realistic view of what the city can forecast at this 162 time and they are prepared to move toward the public hearing stage. They will continue 163 to review the plan each year; it was clarified that the plan does not give spending 164 authority. 165 It was noted by a council member that the West Shadow Lake improvement project has 166 fallen off the screen. Staff explained that it was turned down numerous times and in