Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-10-2003 Charter Minutes Charter Commission April 10, 2003 Page 1 APPROVED CITY OF LINO LAKES CHARTER COMMISSION DATE : April 10,2003 TIME STARTED : 7:06 P.M. TIME ENDED : 8:45 P.M. MEMBERS PRESENT : Dahl,Aldentaler,Vacha Trehus,Zastrow,G.Lane, DeMotts,and Carlson MEMBERS EXCUSED : S. Lane,Bening MEMBERS UNEXCUSED : Montain,Zych,Rafferty COUNCILMEMBER'S PRESENT: O'Donnell,Dahl and Mayor Bergeson STAFF MEMBERS PRESENT : City Administrator, Linda Waite Smith (part) and City Clerk,Ann Blair(part) City Clerk Blair swore in Commissioner Vacha as a new member to the Charter Commission. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL Acting Chair Carlson called the regular meeting of the Lino Lakes Charter Commission to order at 7:06 p.m. on April 10, 2003. APPROVAL OF MINUTES January 9,2003 Commissioner G. Lane noted the minutes reflected that the proposed resolution relating to the Charter Amendments are attached to the Charter Minutes. He advised that resolution was not attached to the Charter Minutes. City Clerk Blair advised she will attach the proposed resolution to the Charter Minutes. Commissioner Trehus referred to page 2,paragraph 10, and corrected the first sentence to read "Commissioner Trehus advised he distributed a proposed resolution to send to the Council that indicates the changes in the Charter and the intent of the changes". MOTION by Commissioner DeMotts, seconded by Commissioner Vacha to approve the January 9, 2002 meeting minutes, as amended. Motion carried with Commissioner G.Lane abstaining. 1 Charter Commission April 10, 2003 Page 2 APPROVED JOINT MEETING WITH LINO LAKES CITY COUNCIL Discussion of Charter Amendments (Clerk-Treasurer amendment)—Acting Chair Carlson stated the Council did receive a copy of the proposed changes and this issue has been discussed in the past. He inquired about the next step in the process. City Administrator Waite Smith advised the next step is for the proposed changes to come before the Council to ratify them. This item can be placed on the April 28 Council agenda. Commissioner Trehus advised the Commission did have the City Attorney and an attorney from the League of Minnesota Cities review the changes and make a recommendation. Acting Chair Carlson stated the proposed changes are simply a statement on how the City Hall offices are set up. City Administrator Waite Smith asked the Commission who would be present the changes to the City Council. Acting Chair Carlson advised Chair Montain should be contacted to determine if he can present the proposed changes. If Chair Montain is unable to attend the meeting the City Clerk can present the changes. City Clerk Blair advised she should not present the changes because the proposed changes relate to her job position. City Administrator Waite Smith advised she would present the changes to the Council if Chair Montain is unable to. Commissioner DeMotts advised he would also contact Commissioner Bening regarding the presentation of the proposed changes. City Administrator Waite Smith advised she would include a copy of the proposed change in the Councilmember's packets prior to the Council meeting. Five-Year Plan—City Administrator Waite Smith advised the City Council has formally adopted the Five-Year Plan. The Plan may have to be revised depending on what changes the legislature makes. She noted she would distribute a copy of the Plan to the Charter Commissioners. City Administrator Waite Smith noted the Plan would be updated every year. Hopefully,the legislature will convene in June so the City will know what cuts have to be made. Some changes the legislature may make will affect the City greatly, including the Five-Year Plan and any referendums for road reconstruction. 2 Charter Commission April 10, 2003 Page 3 APPROVED Acting Chair Carlson stated he does not see any dollars in the Plan for the Village. He stated there must be plans for the Village within the next five years. Councilmember O'Donnell advised there are infrastructure costs within the Plan. City Administrator Waite Smith advised the City does have some funding from the Metropolitan Council for the Village. At this point, the City does not know what the City's involvement will be with the development of the Village. The City is hoping a developer comes in and develops the area. The City does not have a viable project yet for the Village. There is,however, a developer working with the Tagg's on development of their property along with the City's property. Commissioner G. Lane stated the Commission is very happy the Five-Year Plan has become a reality. Road Reconstruction Update- City Administrator Waite Smith distributed and reviewed notes regarding street reconstruction in Lino Lakes along with an article written for the newsletter. The City has been planning for a$3.5 million dollar referendum for this fall for a reconstruction project in 2004-2005. However, the legislature may change the City's ability to hold referendums for street reconstruction. City Administrator Waite Smith reviewed the proposed reconstruction schedule for years 2003- 2007. Commissioner Trehus clarified that the road reconstruction will be funded by assessments and state aid dollars only. Councilmember O'Donnell inquired about any recourse the City has if the referendum does not pass or the legislature eliminates the City to hold a referendum. City Administrator Waite Smith advised she is unsure about any recourse the City may have. Right now the City can not go out and bond for road reconstruction. The City may have to leave the street as is. Commissioner Trehus suggested a letter listing road referendum pros and cons is sent out to residents. If residents understood the process better they may be more supportive of the referendums. Commissioner Dahl asked if the City is going to do any surveys prior to the referendum. City Administrator Waite Smith advised the City has no choice but to do a referendum for road reconstruction projects. However, it might be helpful to get information on how to sell the referendum to residents. 3 Charter Commission April 10, 2003 Page 4 APPROVED Mayor Bergeson asked if the changes the legislature may make in relation to referendums would be permanent. City Administrator Waite Smith advised the changes to the referendums would mainly be for years 2004-2005. Acting Chair Carlson advised it sounds like the City should move forward with the referendum this fall. Commissioner Trehus stated in the past the Commission has discussed the idea of setting money aside every year and then going to the voters to use it on road reconstruction. City Administrator Waite Smith stated that option is still taxing people and the way the Charter is written the City can not do that. The reality is there is no money in the budget to put dollars aside for road reconstruction. At one point the City was going to put aside franchise fees for a road reconstruction fund but that has not yet happened. Commissioner Trehus asked if there are any alternative to City sewer. City Administrator Waite Smith advised the City's new ordinance does allow alternative systems. Mayor Bergeson stated there is an alternative system in Twilight Acres. Acting Chair Carlson asked if people will be informed about the Charter process in relation to the referendum. City Administrator Waite Smith suggested a staff member attend the next Charter meeting to discuss ideas about educating residents about the process. She noted that if the July meeting is too late a staff member could meet with a sub committee or Commission representative. The Joint Meeting with the City Council concluded at 8:05 p.m. Acting Chair Carlson called for a brief recess. The Charter Commission meeting reconvened at 8:15 p.m. REPORTS OF THE CHAIR Membership—(Chair Montain)—Acting Chair Carlson advised the City Clerk would be advertising the two additional openings for the Charter Commission. Commissioner DeMotts stated he hope the City Clerk does not advertise there are only two additional openings. 4 Charter Commission April 10, 2003 Page 5 APPROVED Acting Chair Carlson advised he will speak to Chair Montain about conferring with the City Clerk in regards to how the City advertises for the openings. Chair Montain will give an update at the next meeting. Five-Year Plan (Chair Montain)— Acting Chair Carlson advised this issue was discussed earlier with the City Council. REPORT OF COMMITTEES Archives Report(Commissioner Rafferty,Dahl and Trehus)—Commissioner Trehus asked if Commissioner DeMotts was going to contact the City Clerk regarding previous Charter minutes. Commissioner DeMotts stated the City does have all the previous Charter minutes from when he was the Commission's secretary. Commissioner Dahl advised Commissioner Rafferty indicated he was sending the City Clerk something regarding this issue. Commissioner Trehus suggested this item remain on the agenda for an update at the next meeting. UNFINISHED BUSINESS Report on Proposed Charter Amendments and Action (Commissioner Rafferty)—This item was tabled until the July 2003 Charter Commission meeting. By-Laws (Commissioner Rafferty)—Commissioner Trehus stated he believes this issue related to term notification and expiration. He suggested this item also be placed on next meeting's agenda. Review City Council Meeting Minutes for Charter Compliance—Acting Chair Carlson asked if the Commission noted any items within the City Council meeting minutes that are not in compliance with the Charter. Commissioner DeMotts noted that the November 25, 2002 meeting minutes referred to February 2002 and should be February 2003. Commissioner Dahl advised she will confer with the City Clerk regarding that correction. The Commission indicated there were no other problems identified with the City Council meeting minutes. 5 Charter Commission April 10, 2003 Page 6 APPROVED NEW BUSINESS Set July 10 Agenda— Acting Chair Carlson advised the following items would appear on the July, 2003 agenda: 1. Call to Order and Roll Call 2. Approval of Minutes: A. April 10, 2003 3. Reports of the Chair A. New Members/Legal Ramification of Posted List(Chair Montain) B. Five-Year Plan (Chair Montain) C. Status of Member's Absences D. Report of April 28 Council Meeting (Regarding Charter Amendments) 4. Reports of the Committees A. Archives Report (Commissioner Rafferty, Dahl and Trehus) 5. Unfinished Business A. Report on Proposed Charter Amendments and Action (Commissioner Rafferty) B. By-Laws (Commissioner Rafferty) C. Review City Council Meeting Minutes for Charter Compliance 6. New Business A. Set October, 2003 Agenda 7. Adjourn ADJOURN MOTION by Commissioner G. Lane, seconded by Commissioner Trehus,to adjourn the meeting at 8:45 p.m. Motion carried unanimously. Respectfully Submitted, Kim Points TimeSaver Off-Site Secretarial, Inc. 6