Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout07/22/1998 Council Minutes (2)• • • CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION JULY 22, 1998 CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION MINUTES DATE : July 22, 1998 TIME STARTED : 6:22 p.m. TIME ENDED : 9:56 p.m. MEMBERS PRESENT : Council Members Bergeson, Dahl, Lyden, Neal, Mayor Sullivan MEMBERS ABSENT : None Staff members present: Community Development Director, Brian Wessel, Planning Coordinator, Mary Kay Wyland; City Engineer, Dave Ahrens; Interim City Administrator, David Pecchia; City Attorney, Bill Hawkins; Community Development Coordinator, Mary Alice Divine; Parks and Recreation Director, Rick DeGardner; Finance Director, Mary Vaske; Building Official, Pete Kluegel; and City Clerk, Marilyn Anderson CIVIC COMPLEX PROJECT CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT PROCESS Brian gave an overview of the budget for the Civic Complex. He stated that the bids were received yesterday. He went over the project costs which will be a total of $7,700,000.00. Construction costs are $6 million dollars. Brian went over the bids with the Council. He stated that the Council will be asked to award the bids on Monday night, July 27, 1998. Chris asked about a problem regarding Adolfson & Peterson bidding on the project and also working as the construction manager. Mr. Craig Kronholm, A & P, explained that Mr. Scott Johnson will be on site as the construction manager. Someone else will be working as the project manager. Mr. Johnson noted that only one bid was received for roofing. He stated that the bid came within the estimated budget. Obtaining many roof bids at this time of the year is very difficult. Brian stated if there are any changes to the bids, they will be noted Monday night. He will be asking Council to award the contract to the low bidders. Brian reviewed the Cost Allocation Procedure. He stated that he will be asking the Council for approval of this procedure on Monday night. The Cost Allocation Procedure allows for flexibility to control the project costs. This procedure includes a provision that allows the City Administrator to make changes in the project of $10,000 or less. A report CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION JULY 22, 1998 outlining the changes will be provided to the Council from time to time. All change orders exceeding $10,000 would require Council approval. Kim stated that it must be noted in the motion for approval that this procedure is "going outside of policy". CONSIDERATION OF PLANNING ISSUES Site Plan Review, MnDOT Communications Tower - Mary Kay explained that MnDOT has requested a site plan review for a 260 feet communications tower to be located at 7525 4th Avenue within the Department of Corrections facility site. MnDOT does not need permission from the City of Lino Lakes to construct this tower because of State legislation. The tower will be used by the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT), the Anoka County Sheriff's office, and 911. A building permit will be required. Property owners within 1,000 feet have been notified. Mary Kay stated that towers not exceeding 200 feet in height are allowed in the City Code. Because there is nothing the City can do regarding this issue, the report is for informational purposes only. A representative from MnDOT will be present at the July 27, 1998, Council meeting to answer questions. Kim stated she wanted an assurance from MnDOT regarding safety issues. In addition, she asked that Anoka County Airport, the Sea Plan Base, and the Lino Air Park be informed of this meeting. David Pecchia noted that from a public safety standpoint, the tower is beneficial. Consideration of a Minor Subdivision, James Hill - Mary Kay explained that Mr. and Mrs. Hill are requesting a minor subdivision and variance for the property at 302 Elm Street. Mr. and Mrs. Hill object to dedicating a 14 foot right-of-way to the City without compensation. They have no objection to the Park Dedication fee. The current City policy is to not compensate property owners for dedicated road right-of-way when they request a subdivision. Mr. and Mrs. Hill have refused to deal with staff and want to negotiate directly with Council. It was the consensus of the Council that the current land dedication policy be followed. Kim directed staff to give Mr. and Mrs. Hill the option of waiting to subdivide until Elm Street is upgraded. The City will have to purchase the right-of-way at that time. Mary Kay was asked to advise Mrs. Hill of the guidelines for addressing the Council prior to the meeting. CITY ATTORNEY CONTRACT Bill stated that it is very reasonable to review contracts. He gave a brief overview of his legal history. He is currently the city attorney for the City of Andover and the City of 2 • • CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION JULY 22,1998 • Anoka. He stated that he enjoys working for Lino Lakes as do other attorneys and staff in his office. He has prepared a new contract for Council review. • Caroline stated that it is good business practice to review existing contracts every year. She recommended that the City obtain bids or RFP's from other attorneys to be sure the City is getting the proper services for the proposed fee. John noted the fees proposed by Bill and said they were very reasonable. John and Andy indicated that it is a good idea to update all City contracts. Chris stated that he would like to have some discussion with Bill prior to his making a decision on this matter. Kim expressed concern regarding management changes within the City. She stated that she has discussed her concerns with Bill. She noted that Bill should be more proactive on items that appear in the packets. Any red flags should be brought to Council directly. This issue will be discussed further at the next Council Work Session. TECHNOLOGY DISCUSSION WITH CENTENNIAL SCHOOL DISTRICT Rick explained that the Centennial School District will allow the City to use their phone system at the new City Hall and the Police Department. He noted the advantages for the City and the School District. The City will be saving $40,000-$50,000 in start up fees and maintenance costs will be $250 per month. The City will also have access to the Internet. John expressed concern regarding voice mail, future availability of a City system, reliability and security. Charlie Kretsch, Centennial School District, explained that the system offers voice mail as well as other feature. The system is designed to be easily split if necessary. The emergency system for the Police Department will be separate to guarantee privacy. Security of voice mail is also guaranteed and the City's system will have the new area code. There are only two (2) people within the system that can access the system to make necessary changes. City upgrades of the system will be independent of the School District portion of the system so that either the City or the School District can purchase upgrades independently. Service agreements will be required. It was the consensus of the Council to have staff negotiate an agreement with the School District. The agreement must come before Council for approval. AUDITOR'S CONTRACT/EXTENDED PROCEDURES David Pecchia updated the Council regarding the auditor's contract and the extended procedures billing for work involved with the Hoff investigation. He has asked Rob Tautges to provide a detailed billing so that all costs can be identified. The current CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION JULY 22, 1998 contract was approved at the August 12, 1996 Council meeting. The minutes of that meeting include a statement by Mr. Schumacher that a 30 day escape clause was included in the contract. However, the clause is not in the contract. David Pecchia will write a letter to Tautges terminating the contract and request negotiation on the extended procedures billing. Since the 1997 audit has been accepted by Council, it was the consensus of the Council to pay for the current audit only. GEORGE HOFF INVESTIGATION/EXTENDED PROCEDURES Since this matter involves personnel matters, a closed Council meeting was scheduled with George Hoff for Monday, July 27, 1998, 5:30 p.m. to discuss extended procedures. Kim asked that a Request for Proposals ( RFP) be prepared. She also noted that the City should have a policy that all final drafts of contracts come before Council for their review before they are executed. SECOND QUARTER BUILDING DEPARTMENT Pete reviewed the Second Quarter Building Department Report which detailed building permits and revenue generated from the building permits. He noted that 32 of the 115 building permits were for townhomes. This matter is on the July 27, 1998 Council agenda. Kim stated that until further notice, all department heads must attend the work session meetings. This policy will be reviewed in the future. DISCUSSION OF AUDIT EXECUTIVE SUMMARY REPORT AND STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS REGARDING CONCERNS NOTED IN THAT REPORT Kim asked about action that staff is taking to implement recommendations from the Executive Summary Report. Mary went over the report and recommendations. She explained what actions the staff is taking and stated that many of the recommendations just need to be affirmed and monitored. She noted that she has asked all department heads to come up with new ideas for additional revenue. John suggested designating dollars to implement suggestions from the audit or to pay for any additional audit work. He suggested that the responses to suggestions from the 1997 audit be given to the new audit firms when receiving bids. CONSIDERATION OF LIST OF CONTRACTS Marilyn presented a list of active contract files. The files included contracts that are currently active, Joint Powers Agreements, construction contracts and planning contracts. She stated she has no information on development contracts. 4 • • CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION JULY 22, 1998 Kim stated that all contracts need to be up to dated. She directed David Pecchia to work with Marilyn to get the contracts updated and establish a policy for reviewing contracts. She asked if there is a place that the City policies are kept. Marilyn indicated that she has a file for all City policies. John stated that the City's policies should be kept in a booklet. Kim asked David Pecchia to report back with an update regarding the contracts and policies in a month. Brian stated that he will provide the Council with all development contracts. The Development department keeps their own files. COMPREHENSIVE LAND USE PLAN UPDATE Brian stated that on July 23, 1998, 6:00 p.m., a Comprehensive Task Force meeting will be held regarding Birch Street and transportation policies. On July 30, 1998, a Comprehensive Task Force meeting will be held in the work session format regarding Commercial/Industrial development. He encouraged everyone to attend. Kim asked if the transportation concerns brought up by the Council have been addressed. Brian stated that revisions are currently being made. Chris suggested that the Comprehensive Plan be addressed in a moderate growth scenario and a slow growth scenario. Kim noted that the Comprehensive Plan is an overall copulation of citizens concerns and will not satisfy all people. Chris suggested that the citizens of Lino Lakes vote on a moderate growth plan or a slow growth plan. Kim stated that most citizens do not have the detail and background on what is involved in a Comprehensive Plan. Two (2) plans are not representative of the citizens of Lino Lakes. John noted that the Comprehensive Plan is a land use plan and the report should focus on land use only. Kim asked Caroline and Chris to contribute their ideas to the plan. She felt it is very important to not fragment the community. She asked that the Council come to some consensus because the Council provides the leadership for the community. The Comprehensive Plan Task Force cannot start over with a new plan. They need to make the current plan work so everyone can live with it. Kim encouraged Chris and Caroline to participate in the Comprehensive Plan discussions. Chris stated that his ideas have been met with roadblocks. He stated the current plan will not have full support of the Council. He asked about regulatory mechanisms of the Comprehensive Plan. Kim stated that regulatory mechanisms within the plan are being addressed. There are many pieces to the Comprehensive Plan. It will involve goals and reviews. Chris stated that he believes the City can achieve all its goals with a slow growth plan. John asked for an update regarding Birch Street. Brian stated that there has been a lot of confusion regarding Birch Street. Birch Street will be directly addressed at the next Comprehensive Plan meeting. Chris asked how much influence the City has regarding CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION JULY 22, 1998 County roads. Brian stated that the City is in partnership with the County. The City does have input regarding County roads. DISCUSSION OF POLICY ON REPLACING DAMAGED SPRINKLER HEADS FROM STORM CLEANUP, DAVE AHRENS Dave Ahrens explained that he has received phone calls from property owners regarding damaged sprinkler heads due to the storm cleanup. He stated that the current policy is that property damage is the responsibility of the property owner if damage occurs due to snow removal. He asked if the Council wanted to support the same policy regarding the sprinkler heads. It was the consensus of Council to direct Dave to inform the property owners that the City is not responsible for damage to sprinkler heads due to the storm cleanup. STORM UPDATE, DAVID PECCHIA uaG David�is informed the Council that the June, 1998, storm will be combined with the May, 1998 storm and the Federal Government will fund 80% of the dollars spent on storm cleanup including overtime, contracts, and seasonal employees. The State will fund 10% of the storm cleanup and the City will fund 10%. David is currently working on a plan that would have the State fund the City portion as well. JOINT MEETING WITH THE CITY OF HUGO, DAVID PECCHIA David asked the Council if anything needed to be added or deleted from the Agenda for the Joint Meeting with Hugo. He asked the Council Members to let him know if they are unable to attend the meeting. ELM STREET TRAIL, ANDY NEAL Andy explained that citizens have contacted him asking when the trail from the Senior Complex to Sunset Road will be completed. Dave Ahens gave the background regarding this issue. He stated that the City had a mutual agreement with the developer of the Senior Complex that the trail would be completed when the homes are completed. Now, most of the homes have been completed. Dave stated that he has made the initial contact to get the trail completed. Caroline asked what is being done with the trail in Trapper's Crossing. Rick indicated he is working with the developer to install the trail. Kim gave an update regarding the Reshanau Lake Trail. She stated that she has visited the area. Residents feel that the Homeowners Association is not representing all the members. Since the City has to work through the Homeowners Association Board to 6 • • • CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION JULY 22, 1998 resolve this issue, she is meeting with Ms. Barb Moes this Friday to get input from the • members of the association. She encouraged the Council to visit the area. • • REGULAR AGENDA, JULY 27,1998 Item 5, Consideration of a City Administrator's Contract, has been deleted from the July 27, 1998, Agenda. The candidate selected for the position has notified Kim that he has accepted a position with the City of Spokane Washington. The meeting was adjourned at 9:56 p.m. These minutes were considered, corrected and approved at a regular Council meeting held on August 10, 1998. 614,644.A.) . h4-ia,s--1 M lyn G. Anderson, City Clerk Transcribed by: Kim Points TimeSaver Off Site Secretarial, Inc.