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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05/26/2020LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES HELD REMOTELY VIA TELECONFERENCE Page 1 of 4 May 26, 2020 Call to Order Mayor Gaasch called the Regular City Council meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. Roll Call Councilors present: Andi Moffatt, Jeff Dains, Roxanne Grove, Kelly Dolphin, and Mayor Mary Gaasch. Councilors absent: None. 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. There being none, Councilor Dains moved and seconded by Councilor Moffatt to approve the agenda. Motion carried unanimously on a roll call vote. Mayor Gaasch asked if there were any corrections to the minutes of the May 12, 2020 city council meeting. There being none, Councilor Dains moved and seconded by Councilor Grove to approve the minutes of the May 12, 2020 city council meeting. Motion carried unanimously on a roll call vote. Mayor Gaasch asked if there were any questions on the claims. There being none, Councilor Grove moved and seconded by Councilor Moffatt to approve the claims totaling $95,880.19. Motion carried unanimously on a roll call vote. Consent Councilor Dains moved and seconded by Councilor Moffatt to approve the Consent Agenda thereby acknowledging the April Financial Report and approving Resolution No. 052620A — A Resolution in Support of the Protecting Community Television Act and Resolution No. 052620B — A Resolution Establishing an Absentee Ballot Board for the City of Lauderdale. Motion carried unanimously on a roll call vote. Informational Presentations/Reports A. Update on Federal and State Tobacco Legislation by Katie Engman, Association of Non - Smokers Minnesota In January, the Council adopted an interim ordinance to pause the issuance of new tobacco licenses. The purpose was to provide time to adapt to the changes in federal tobacco laws and any state law updates expected from the 2020 session. The state legislature updated its laws to conform with federal law right before the session ended. Katie Engman, Program Director of the Association of Non -Smokers Minnesota, presented specifics related to these legislative changes. LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES HELD REMOTELY VIA TELECONFERENCE Page 2 of 4 May 26, 2020 Following the conversation, the Council stated that they will continue studying the ordinance, including addressing the interest of existing tobacco license holders to open tobacco shops to sell a broader selection of flavored tobacco products. B. Fire Services Options and Contracts The City Council has been considering contracting with the city of St. Paul for fire services. This would provide the city with a fire response from a full-time fire departments and align provisions of services since the St. Paul Fire Department already provides the city of Lauderdale's emergency medical services including ambulance services. City attorney, Ron Batty, joined the meeting to discuss the contract negotiations with the city of St. Paul and contract termination with the city of Falcon Heights. Batty explained he just received edits from the St. Paul attorney representing the fire department but he had not yet reviewed them. He said he would and follow up as needed to move the agreement forward. C. City Council Updates Councilor Dolphin shared that CTV has provided a great deal of programming during the Stay - at -Home Order and has given timely updates on services that have begun to reopen. Dolphin noted that CTV has filmed the interpreter services for Governor Walz's news conferences. Mayor Gaasch stated that she has attended a number of teleconference meetings with the Ramsey County League of Local Governments, Minnesota Mayors Association, and the Regional Council of Mayors on how to keep our communities safe while also trying to rebuild the economy in the face of Covid-19. Discussion/Action Item A. Planning for the Opening of City Facilities With the Stay -at -Home order lifted, cities are gradually making plans to open facilities they are able to effectively manage. The cities in Ramsey County continue to share strategies in this area, while also taking guidance from the Governor and CDC. In Lauderdale, we need to look at plans to open City Hall and our two parks. Administrative staff returned to City Hall on Monday, May 18 with staggered working days to avoid contact. We asked residents to make appointments so we could prepare for their visits. This has worked well as foot traffic is down. Starting June 26, we begin administering absentee voting. Staff believed we needed to continue staggering shifts as much as possible to prevent a situation where all staff had to quarantine at the same time and were unable to administer ballots. The Council considered which park amenities to open and when to allow Social Room reservations. The Council focused on their responsibility to protect public health. While the Council decided to keep some park amenities closed, the Council encouraged residents to use all of the parks' open spaces. The Council decided to keep the Social Room closed through Labor Day to avoid additional cleaning costs. LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES HELD REMOTELY VIA TELECONFERENCE Page 3 of 4 May 26, 2020 Mayor Gaasch opened the floor to anyone that had comments or questions for the Council on this topic. Dave Borgman, Roseville resident, stated that by his calculations 35 people could safely be in the dog park 20 feet apart at the same time. He shared that St. Paul, Minneapolis, and Arden Hills have kept their dog parks open. Borgman said there was no evidence Covid-19 could spread from pets to humans and vice versa. Finally, he asked whether the dog park would reopen at some point this summer. Sara Nelson, 1784 Carl Street, stated that she runs a daycare in Lauderdale. She would like to see a snow fence or yellow tape surrounding the playground to act as a barrier to help children understand that it is closed. There being no additional parties interested in speaking, Mayor Gaasch closed the floor. B. Skyview Park Playground Replacement Update Staff presented a new concept plan for Skyview Park and updated stakes showing the layout. We changed the picnic shelter to a covered picnic table to save space. We are still looking at options to shrink the footprint and potentially install turf The city engineer will send out surveyors to create a CAD file so we know the final selections will fit the space. The City received permission from MnDOT to use their space up to the fence. Set Agenda for Next Meeting Administrator Butkowski stated that the June 9 council meeting may include a quotation from Midwest Playscapes for the purchase of playground equipment for Skyview Park. Work Session A. Community Development and Coronavirus Impacts Update Butkowski stated that alley work began on May 26 to complete the Eustis Street project. Staff will be ernailing the connnunity about the graduating seniors in the community. A meeting between staff and representatives of the University of Minnesota about the Seminary Pond storm water project concluded with the University stating they likely will be unable to support financially the effort. Staff looked for guidance from the Council on the feasibility of hosting Day in the Park this year; the topic will be discussed at the next meeting. B. Opportunity for the Public to Address the City Council Mayor Gaasch opened the floor to anyone that had comments or questions for the Council. As there were no parties interested in speaking, Mayor Gaasch closed the floor. LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES HELD REMOTELY VIA TELECONFERENCE Page 4 of 4 May 26, 2020 Adj ournment Councilor Dains moved and seconded by Councilor Grove to adjourn the meeting at 10:01 p.m. Motion carried unanimously on a roll call vote. Respectfully submitted, Cti412/ Miles Cline Deputy City Clerk