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HomeMy WebLinkAbout07/24/2018LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES Lauderdale City Hall 1891 Walnut Street Lauderdale, MN 55113 Page 1 of 5 July 24, 2018 Roll Call Mayor Gaasch called the Regular City Council meeting to order at 7:31 p.m. Councilors present: Andi Moffatt, Roxanne Grove, Kelly Dolphin, Jeff Dains, and Mayor Mary Gaasch. Staff present: Heather Butkowski, City Administrator; Jim Bownik, Assistant to the City Administrator; and Miles Cline, Deputy City Clerk. Approvals Mayor Gaasch asked if there were any additions to the meeting agenda. Butkowski stated that she would like to add a rental housing fee petition to the Additional Items section. Furthermore, Mayor Gaasch stated that the 2018-2019 Goal Setting Session would be moved to the next meeting. Finally, Butkowski mentioned that depending on when Fire Chief Hinrichs is able to arrive, his presentation may come at a different time than is stated in the agenda. There being nothing else, Councilor Moffatt moved and seconded by Councilor Grove to approve the agenda. Motion carried unanimously. Mayor Gaasch asked if there were any changes to the meeting minutes. Councilor Moffatt stated that the timeframe in which she attended a Metro Cities Transportation Advisory Meeting is different than what was recorded. There being nothing else, Councilor Grove moved and seconded by Councilor Dolphin to approve the minutes of the July 10, 2018, city council meeting. Motion carried unanimously. Mayor Gaasch asked if there were any questions on the claims. There being none, Councilor Dains moved and seconded by Councilor Grove to approve the claims totaling $133,696.80. Motion carried unanimously. Consent Councilor Dains moved and seconded by Councilor Grove to approve the Consent Agenda thereby approving the June Financial Report. Informational Presentations/Reports A. Day in the Park, August 16 Bownik updated the Council on Day in the Park planning He mentioned that it will coincide with the August Farmers Market and feature vendors, food trucks, games, water slide, and more. LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES Lauderdale City Hall 1891 Walnut Street Lauderdale, MN 55113 Page 2 of 5 July 24, 2018 B. City Council Updates Councilor Dains encouraged residents to vote in the primary. Councilor Moffatt shared that she attended a Metro Cities Transportation Advisory Committee meeting on municipal state aid. Mayor Gaasch stated that she attended a two-day Metro Cities orientation. Public Hearings Annual Storm Water Report and Public Hearing Annually, the City must report on its storm water efforts as one of the requirements for the Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) permit. Butkowski went through the most recent annual report with the Council as it was reported to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA). Mayor Gaasch opened the floor at 7:44 p.m. to anyone in attendance that wanted to address the Council on this issue. There being no interested parties to speak, Mayor Gaasch closed the floor at 7:45 p.m. Discussion/Action Items A. Tobacco Law Updates by Katie Engman, Ramsey County Tobacco Coalition Program Manager Katie Engman and Alicia Leizinger of the Association of Nonsmokers Minnesota (ANSR) and Ramsey County Tobacco Coalition, presented information on tobacco regulations that cities in Minnesota are adopting to curb the upswing in tobacco use among youth. ANSR has provided the trained minors for tobacco compliance checks for many years. They asked whether the City would like to continue to receive that service through their Tobacco Compliance Project. After the conclusion of their presentation, Edisson Siouffy, owner of Super USA, approached the Council. He did not express concern over raising the tobacco age to 21 but offered a differing opinion on flavored tobacco. He equated regular cigarettes versus menthol cigarettes to Coke versus Diet Coke, meaning they are the same thing so what is the point of banning just one. Councilor Grove made a motion to participate in the North Suburban Tobacco Compliance Project with the Association of Nonsmokers Minnesota as presented. This was seconded by Councilor Dains and carried unanimously. LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES Lauderdale City Hall 1891 Walnut Street Lauderdale, MN 55113 Page 3 of 5 July 24, 2018 B. Request for Fence Variance at 1743 Eustis Street Joe Taylor, owner of 1743 Eustis Street, received a violation notice for his fence on the southern portion of his property, along Ione Street. The fence was constructed without a permit, is located on the right-of-way, and is made from prohibited materials. Taylor approached the Council asking for the rules to be waived in this particular situation to allow him to keep the fence. He stated that it is vital for his elderly dog to access this small fenced in area which is adjacent to a small dog door on his house. Council members discussed the matter including issues related to use of the right-of-way, fence materials, past issues when residents would not remove right-of-way encroachments, and precedent setting. Councilor Moffatt made a motion to deny the fence request. Councilor Dains asked for a clarification on the motion. The motion is to deny allowing the fence to remain as it currently stands. The motion was seconded by Councilor Dains. Butkowski polled the Council with Councilors Dains, Dolphin, Moffatt, and Gaasch voted in favor of the motion. Councilor Grove voted against. Motion to deny fence to remain as is carried 4-1. C. Fire Department Training Opportunities, Chief Rich Hinrichs Chief Himichs approached the Council to discuss ways for the fire department to use 1825 Eustis Street. In the short term, they can train and help with the demolition of the garage. Staff plans to raze what remains of the garage in the near future. Further ahead, Hinrichs is interested in exploring options for a controlled burn at 1825 Eustis Street after the asbestos has been removed along with anything of value. The Council supported Chief Hinrichs' exploration of a controlled burn to support the fire department's training opportunities, seeing that the City planned to demolition the home anyway. D. Community Park Lighting The City Council has received comments from neighboring properties about the light at the dog park being intrusive in their homes. As discussed previously, Xcel Energy will not install a timer on the pole to allow the City to control the times of day the light is on. When city staff spoke with Xcel Energy recently, they said they could sell the pole to the City for $950. With ownership of the pole and light, the City can hire an electrician to install a timer that staff can use to control the light as needed. The cost to the City to make this change is $950 up front to purchase the pole and light from Xcel Energy along with the expense to hire an electrician to install a timer. The on-going costs are to maintain the light and pay for electricity. LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES Lauderdale City Hall 1891 Walnut Street Lauderdale, MN 55113 Page 4 of 5 July 24, 2018 Councilor Moffatt made a motion to buy the Community Park light pole from Xcel Energy. The motion was seconded by Councilor Dolphin. Butkowski polled the Council and Councilors Grove, Dolphin, Moffatt, and Gaasch voted in favor of the motion. Councilor Dains' voted against. Motion to purchase the light carried 4-1. E. Resolution 072418A — Dividing Two Previously Consolidated Residential Parcels of Land at 1825 Eustis Street Butkowski explained that 1825 Eustis Street consists of two forty -foot wide lots that were consolidated into one eighty -foot wide parcel of land. The proposed division would recreate the two originally platted forty -foot wide lots, with an existing house on the southern lot. A garage exists on the northern lot. Adoption of the resolution would advance the lots for eventual resale and development. 'The resolution with map will be recorded with Ramsey County Property Records and Revenue. This will enable the City to acquire a property identification number (PIN) for the parcels. Councilor Grove moved to adopt resolution 072418A allowing for the division of two previously consolidated residential parcels of land and address assignment of 1825 and 1831 Eustis Street. The motion was seconded by Councilor Dains and carried unanimously. F. Sale of Salvageable Items from City Owned Property Butkowski noted that as the owner of three old buildings, the City has acquired some items that are salable but not of tremendous value. Staff don't have much time to spend on this but also don't want to throw usable items in landfills. Especially in regard to the former Lauderdale School, people have asked about the opportunity to purchase items largely as keepsakes. Staff believes it is our greatest opportunity to sell to residents and those with ties to the school. Staff could make use of different avenues to disseminate sale information. We would ask for the highest and best offers by a certain date. The best offer would get the item. Items that wouldn't be of interest to this group could be put on Craigslist or sold via auction. Staff also began speaking to companies that salvage and deconstruct buildings. Councilor Dolphin made a motion permitting staff to sell items from 1795 Eustis Street, 1821 Eustis Street, and 1825 Eustis Street as presented. The motion was seconded by Councilor Moffatt and carried unanimously. Additional Items A. Rental Housing Fee Waiver Ernest Dopp, owner of 1816 Malvern Street, filed a petition to have his late rental housing fees waived by the Council. Dopp is requesting this exception due to unforeseen medical issues that prevented him from completing the rental housing process by the deadline. LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES Lauderdale City Hall 1891 Walnut Street Lauderdale, MN 55113 Page 5 of 5 July 24, 2018 Councilor Dolphin moved to waive the late fees associated with rental housing at 1816 Malvern Street. The motion was seconded by Councilor Grove. Butkowski polled the Council and Councilors Dains, Grove, Dolphin, and Gaasch voted in favor of the motion. Councilor Moffatt voted against. Motion to remove the late fees carried 4-1. Set Agenda for Next Meeting Administrator Butkowski stated that the August 14 council meeting may include the Second Quarter Financial Report, the 2019 Budget and Levy, and the 2018-2019 Goal Setting. Work Session A. Opportunity for the Public to Address the City Council Mayor Gaasch opened the floor to anyone in attendance that wanted to address the Council. Jon Abeler, Roseville resident, approached the dais. He stated that he had recently hosted a meeting with his neighbor Allison and Roseville Mayor, Dan Roe. They discussed the Lauderdale Community Dog Park and the issues Jon is having with the people and dogs who visit the park. He expressed to the Council his concerns about the noise and mentioned that he believes a lot of the problems come from visitors to the Park who are not Lauderdale residents. Adj ournment Councilor Moffatt moved and seconded by Councilor Dolphin to adjourn the meeting at 9:23 p.m. Motion carried unanimously. Respectfully submitted, 0144, Cejzkit Miles Cline Deputy City Clerk