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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/11/2014LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES Lauderdale City Hall 1891 Walnut Street Lauderdale, MN 55113 Page 1 of 3 March 11, 2014 Mayor Dains called the City Council meeting to order at 7:32 p.m. Councilors present: Mary Gaasch, Roxanne Grove, Lara Mac Lean, and Mayor Jeff Dains. Councilor absent: Denise Hawkinson. Staff present: Heather Butkowski, City Administrator; Jim Bownik, Assistant to the City Administrator; and. Kevin Kelly, Deputy City Clerk. Mayor Dains asked for changes to the meeting agenda. There were no changes to the agenda. Councilor Grove moved to approve the agenda. Councilor Gaasch seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. Councilor Gaasch moved to approve the February 25, 2014 City Council meeting minutes. Councilor Mac Lean seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. Councilor Grove moved approval of the claims totaling $158,997.39. Councilor Gaasch seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. There were no items on the Consent Agenda for this meeting. Informational Presentations: Representative Alice Hausman and Senator John Marty Representative Hausman and Senator Marty addressed the Council regarding the legislative session which is in progress. Hausman stated that increased revenues have allowed the legislature to pay back school districts and put money in reserves for emergency situations. Hausman who is the Chair of the Capital Investment Committee would like to see more spent on infrastructure projects around the State while interest rates remain low. Hausman and Marty agreed that an increase in the minimum wage will happen this session. Marty stated there will be an increase in wages for people who work in the disability care field. Marty is pushing bonding to address homelessness and improve housing infrastructure which will also help respond to school achievement gaps of low income students. The Council took a break from 8:26 p.m. to 8:36 p.m. when the Council Meeting resumed. LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES Lauderdale City Hall 1891 Walnut Street Lauderdale, MN 55113 Page 2 of 3 March 11, 2014 Discussion Items Larpenteur Avenue Temporary Construction Easement Agreements Butkowski stated there were four more temporary construction easement agreements to be approved by the Council. Butkowski also said there were only six easement agreements left to be approved. Councilor Mac Lean moved to execute the Temporary Easement for Construction Agreements with the owners as presented. Councilor Gaasch seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. Payment for Purchase of 2430 Larpenteur Avenue Butkowski said the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency environmental review was completed and the property was ready for the closing. Councilor Mac Lean moved to authorize staff to transfer the balance of the purchase price of 2430 Larpenteur Avenue and the associated closing costs totaling no more than $155,000.00. Councilor Gaasch seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. Agenda items for the March 11 Council Meeting will include the Annual Police Report presentation by St. Anthony Police Chief John Ohl and the Tobacco Ordinance Public Hearing. Mayor Dains explained that the Council was moving into the work session. Work sessions are a continuation of the meeting but not aired on community television. Mayor Dains asked if anyone wished to address the Council. No one came forward. Work Session: Music under the Trees (MUTT) Discussion. (The MUTT discussion was held prior to the Informational Presentation section of the meeting.) Butkowski explained attendance has been down at MUTT events in recent years. The Council and staff discussed possible reasons for this including the start time and music licensing restrictions which limit bands from playing copyrighted music. Licensing fees will be in the area of $1,000.00 a year for Lauderdale. Staff suggested adding events which families with young children could take part in to improve attendance. The Council suggested getting sponsors to cover the music licensing costs so groups like the Roseville Band can return. The Council also suggested pairing down from two to one summer event. Police Contract Renewal Butkowski stated she met with Bart Fischer of Falcon Heights and Mark Casey of St. Anthony. St. Anthony is proposing a longer term contract with the City for police services for the long- LAUDERDALE CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES Lauderdale City Hall 1891 Walnut Street Lauderdale, MN 55113 Page 3 of 3 March 11, 2014 term stability of the department and to assist the cities in better budgeting. Casey will be at the April 22 council meeting to further discuss extending the length of the police contract. Community Development Update Corval has put off making a decision on the redevelopment of their site for now. Butkowski said representatives from Croix Oil will attend the March 25 council meeting regarding the tobacco ordinance and may discuss their building progress. Staff met with representatives from Luther Seminary to answer questions related to their proposed replatting. Butkowski said the sale will add approximately 20 million dollars of taxable value to the City. A company looking to start a micro distillery has approached the City. Staff is evaluating whether this would require a change to the City's liquor laws and whether it is an allowed use where they want to operate. There being no further business on the council agenda, Councilor Grove moved to adjourn the meeting. Councilor Mac Lean seconded the motion and it carried. The meeting adjourned at 9:15 p.m. Respect lly submitted, `� Kevin Kelly Deputy City Clerk