HomeMy WebLinkAbout05/14/2019LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL
MEETING MINUTES
Lauderdale City Hall
1891 Walnut Street
Lauderdale, MN 55113
Page 1 of 6 May 14, 2019
Call to Order
Mayor Gaasch called the Regular City Council meeting to order at 7:34 p.m.
Roll Call
Councilors present: Roxanne Grove, Andi Moffatt, Jeff Dains, Kelly Dolphin, and Mayor Mary
Gaasch.
Councilors absent: None.
Staff present: Heather Butkowski, City Administrator and Jim Bownik, Assistant to the City
Administrator.
Approvals
Mayor Gaasch asked if there were any additions to the meeting agenda. There being none,
Councilor Dains moved and seconded by Councilor Grove to approve the agenda. Motion carried
unanimously.
Mayor Gaasch asked if there were any corrections to the meeting minutes. There being none,
Councilor Mofatt moved and seconded by Councilor Dolphin to approve the minutes of the April
23, 2019 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 $101,951.16.
Motion carried unanimously.
Consent
Councilor Moffatt moved and seconded by Councilor Dains to approve the Consent Agenda
thereby acknowledging the First Quarter Investment Report and approving the Performance
Agreement with Dawn Tanner and Adam Granger.
Informational Presentations/Reports
A. City Council Updates
Assistant to the City Administrator Bownik gave an update on the city wide garage sale taking
place on May 18. Administrator Butkowski gave an update on the Eustis Street and Roselawn
Avenue construction project. Councilor Dains stated that he was appointed to the Metropolitan
Council Transportation Accessibility Committee. He will be working with mass transit to
provide services to those with disabilities. Mayor Gaasch added that she heard a presentation by
the Red Cross at the Regional Council of Mayors meeting. Among their breadth of services is
in-home smoke alarm inspections and installations.
LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL
MEETING MINUTES
Lauderdale City Hall
1891 Walnut Street
Lauderdale, MN 55113
Page 2 of 6 May 14, 2019
Public Hearings
A. Real Estate Equities Planned Unit Development Application
Staff determined that Real Estate Equities' (REE) Development Stage Planned Unit
Development (PUD) application was complete. Thereafter, notice of the public hearing was
published in the Roseville Review and mailed to neighboring property owners. The purpose of
the public hearing was to take feedback from the community on the proposal.
Mayor Gaasch provided an overview of the City's reasons for purchasing 1795 Eustis Street and
the goal to redevelop the site into a community asset. Jennifer Haskamp of Swanson Haskamp
Consulting, Stacie Kvilvang, of Ehlers and Associates, and Patrick Ostrom of Real Estate
Equities addressed the Council and community to provide an overview of the land use
entitlement process, a financial overview, and a project description before opening the public
hearing.
Mayor Gaasch opened the floor to anyone in attendance that wanted to speak on the issue.
Daniel Sherman, 1808 Eustis Street, expressed concern that the proposed building would cast a
shadow over the solar panels at 1801 Eustis Street.
Bev Powell, 1819 Eustis Street, stated that she likes the idea of senior housing but does not like
the size of the project due to traffic concerns and the loss of the oak trees.
Lezlie Antoncich, 1806 Walnut Street, asked how the pedestrian entry and drop off areas on
Spring Street would be constructed. She was informed this was just going to be a door, not a
drop off area. She was glad the project would not cost the city tax payers.
Monika Davis, 1791 Malvern Street, explained why she believes the building proposal is too big
for the given space. She also asked questions about the construction process and sent her
comments via email to staff.
Kimberly Stuart, 1783 Malvern Street, stated that she believes the proposed building is too large
for the space provided.
Grace Dyrud, 1767 Malvern Street, believes that the proposed building is too big for the
community and puts the surrounding property owners at a disadvantage.
Josh Houser, 1778 Eustis Street, stated that the project will add too much traffic congestion to
the area. He also is concerned about environmental aspects of the building proposal and
questioned the amount of affordable housing being created in Lauderdale.
LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL
MEETING MINUTES
Lauderdale City Hall
1891 Walnut Street
Lauderdale, MN 55113
Page 3 of 6 May 14, 2019
Heather Brian, 1778 Eustis Street, explained her concerns about the size of the project and how it
will impact multiple aspects of the community including on -street parking if the apartment
residents don't pay for the underground parking.
Raymond Shogren, 1763 Carl Street, stated his concerns over the asbestos issues that could arise
from the demolition of the current building.
Victor Cruz, 1765 Eustis Street, expressed his concerns over how he could continue to access his
garage if the Malvern Street alley was vacated. He was informed the development agreement
would require access to the alley via Eustis Street.
John Murray, 1750 Eustis Street, wanted to know how far back the new building would be from
the street. He questioned the Council's decision to purchase the building.
Steve Merrill, 1794 Eustis Street, believed that the height of the building would affect the value
of his property. He expressed concerns about losing the character of the City.
Glen Grindahl, 1847 Eustis, inquired about the zoning restrictions regarding senior housing and
if that could be changed down the line. Haskamp responded that the length of the senior housing
designation would be in the development agreement and could not be changed.
Chris Chookiatsirichai, Minneapolis resident, believes that the size of the structure is too big and
would destroy the character of Lauderdale.
Mayor Gaasch closed the public hearing at 9:25 p.m. She called for a five minute recess. The
meeting resumed at 9:33 p.m.
Discussion/Action Items
A. Resolution No. 051419A Providing for the Sale of $1,000,000 General Obligation
Improvement Bonds for the 2019 Improvement Project
Stacie Kvilvang of Ehlers was at the meeting to discuss bonding for the portion of the 2019
Infrastructure Improvement Project not covered by Ramsey County or St. Paul Regional Water.
The bond includes borrowing for the portion of the project that is being paid by adjacent
homeowners via special assessments as the City will receive that money incrementally over the
ten-year repayment period.
The information put together by Ehlers details the anticipated debt service schedule and interest
rate based upon the City's AA bond rating. Those numbers may fluctuate based on the outcome
of the sale and any rate changes that happen in the market before the sale happens. The financial
LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL
MEETING MINUTES
Lauderdale City Hall
1891 Walnut Street
Lauderdale, MN 55113
Page 4 of 6 May 14, 2019
modeling showed the anticipated interest rate that would be charged to property owners that do
not prepay their special assessments.
In order to proceed with a bond sale, the City Council must pass the resolution allowing Ehlers to
advertise the bond sale and bring back the results to the June 11 city council meeting for final
consideration.
Councilor Moffatt made a motion to adopt Resolution No. 051419A—A Resolution Providing
for the Sale of the $1,000,000 General Obligation Improvement Bonds, Series 2019A. The
motion was seconded by Councilor Dolphin and carried unanimously.
B. Resolution No. 051419B Restricting Parking during the 2019 Infrastructure Improvement
Project
Butkowski said parking restrictions will be needed during the 2019 infrastructure improvement
project. The proposed resolution prohibited parking on Eustis Street and provided the city
engineer with the authority to establish no parking zones as necessary to complete the
infrastructure improvement project. Vehicles, trailers, dumpsters, etc. in the prohibited areas will
be ticketed and towed as necessary to prevent delays in the construction process.
Councilor Dolphin made a motion to adopt Resolution No. 051419B—A Resolution Restricting
Parking during the 2019 Infrastructure Improvement Project. The motion was seconded by
Councilor Moffatt and carried unanimously.
C. Petition and Waiver Agreements for the Installation of Sanitary Sewer Service Lines and
Water Service Lines during the 2019 Infrastructure Improvement Project
Butkowski said property owners along Eustis Street have inquired about replacing sanitary sewer
and water services in the right-of-way as part of the 2019 Infrastructure Improvement Project.
This is possible with the consent of the City Council and agreement by the property owners to
pay for the costs of the service. Property owners will have the option to reimburse the City for
the cost by November 1, 2019 or have the costs spread out over a term of years subject to a six
percent interest rate. In addition to approving this agreement, staff asked the Council to
authorize the mayor and clerk to sign future agreements.
Councilor Mofatt made a motion to approve the Petition and Waiver Agreement as presented and
authorize the mayor and clerk to sign future agreements. This was seconded by Councilor Grove
and carried unanimously.
D. Resolution No. 051419C Accepting Donations for Improvements to the Lauderdale Dog Park
Dog Park users have noted that the drainage system installed in and around the Dog Park is
working and they would like to reestablish wood chips in the area that doesn't grow grass due to
heavy use. They previously raised money for wood chips but the vendor donated the chips so
LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL
MEETING MINUTES
Lauderdale City Hall
1891 Walnut Street
Lauderdale, MN 55113
Page 5 of 6 May 14, 2019
that money remains available. By approving the resolution, the Council is permitting the delivery
of wood chips to be paid by the donations received.
Other users would like to donate the money to purchase a screen like the one attached to the
memo. They proposed installing it on the north side of the fence from the east side of the gate to
the corner. They believe the screen would minimize noise. Due to the late hour, the Council
decided to move the dog park screen conversation to a later date.
Councilor Dolphin made a motion to adopt Resolution No. 051419C—A Resolution Accepting
Donations for Improvements to the Lauderdale Dog Park. This was seconded by Councilor Dains
and carried unanimously.
Set Agenda for Next Meeting
Administrator Butkowski stated that the May 28 council meeting may include the Annual
Recycling Program Update by Eureka! Recycling and the Post Issuance Compliance Policy
Update.
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 at
9:46 p.m.
Josh Houser, 1778 Eustis Street, wanted to know how the general obligation bonds work. He also
wondered when the no parking signs were going to be put up.
Sherry Mills, 1856 Malvern Street, expressed that she does not want the alley. She is concerned
about her plants, trees, and loss of privacy.
John Holsinger, 1856 Malvern Street, stated that he is concerned about loss of privacy and an
increase in crime from extending the alley.
Craig Zbacnik, 1837 Eustis Street, expressed that he does not want the alley and has support of
the majority of his neighbors. He presented the Council with petitions from affected neighbors
asking for an alley vacation.
Glen Grindahl, 1847 Eustis Street, stated that he does not support the alley improvements. He is
concerned with crime and the costs associated with extending it.
LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL
MEETING MINUTES
Lauderdale City Hall
1891 Walnut Street
Lauderdale, MN 55113
Page 6 of 6 May 14, 2019
Artis Black, 1848 Malvern Street, echoed many of the same sentiments as the previous speakers.
She is not in favor of improving the alleyway.
B. Community Event Planning
This is a follow-up to the April 23 city council meeting regarding setting a date for Day in the
Park. Assistant to the City Administrator Bownik met with the Day in the Park Planning
Committee on May 13. They determined it was best to move the event to July and avoid a
scheduling conflict with band and orchestra students of various grades. Mayor Gaasch stated that
she was one of the affected orchestra parents and really wants to be in attendance in order to
speak to community members about the various projects going on right now.
The Council decided to move Day in the Park to July 18 and extend the event by 1 hour.
C. Community Development Update
Butkowski mentioned the City received the completed DNR Natural Heritage Review. The
Comp Plan is ready for resubmittal except the sewer portion as the Metropolitan Council has
been unresponsive to the city engineer. The developers of Luther Seminary's land will be
presenting at the St. Anthony Park Council meeting in July.
Adjournment
Councilor Grove moved and seconded by Councilor Mofatt to adjourn the meeting at 10:10 p.m.
Motion carried unanimously.
Respectfully submitted,
Xoiz
Miles Cline
Deputy City Clerk