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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda Packets - 2009/04/06 CITY OF MOUNDS VIEW CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION AGENDA MOUNDS VIEW CITY HALL Monday, April 6, 2009 6:00 p.m. ROLL CALL: Flaherty, Stigney, Hull, Mueller, Gunn PUBLIC COMMENT Citizens may speak to issues not on tonight’s agenda. Before speaking, please give your full name and address for the minutes. Also, please limit your comments to three minutes. Agenda Items Discussed by Consensus __________ 1. Review Options for New City Logo __________ 2. Question and Answer Session with Cellar Boxing __________ 3. Discuss Grant Opportunities for the Police Department __________ 4. Discuss the Mermaid TIF Development Assistance Agreement __________ 5. Discuss the Role of the Cable Committee __________ 6. Employee Appreciation Luncheon and Gift Certificates __________ 7. Review Candidates for the 2008 Citizenship Award Next Work Session: Monday, May 4, 2009, at 7:00 p.m. Next City Council Meeting: Monday, April 13, 2009, at 7:00 p.m. Heidi Steinmetz From: Patrick Bettenburg [patrick@risdall.com] Sent: Thursday, April 02, 2009 11:34 AM To: Heidi Steinmetz Subject: letter to council Page 1 of 2 4/2/2009 Council Members and Economic Development Commission Members, I wanted to respond to the comments made at the last work session I attended regarding the idea of presenting the final logos for a public vote. At the time I spoke up and expressed my opinion that this decision is an important one and it must be made using a more strategic process than public opinion. I wanted to expand on my comments further in this letter. The idea of presenting the logo designs to the public for their opinion is laudable and I commend you for your efforts to be inclusive and receptive to the public. However, I want to point out that the entire branding project was developed to include efforts for extensive public input. Our research project was very successful in achieving a statistical confidence level and that information, together with the other discovery information, is what drove the brand strategy creation. This in turn has guided the creative process in generating logo designs that reflect the true character of the city. Creative is often subjectively judged with everyone having their own likes and dislikes, so pleasing everyone is not possible. The goal is to select the strongest logo to represent your brand, and our process of working with the city staff and committee has involved great efforts to evolve creative designs to the point that they are all viable candidates. This process has been lively, interactive, passionate, and diligent. I’ve been very impressed by how involved and committed your team has been and we’re all proud of our final results. There are several problems that can be encountered with polling the public for logo selection input. First of all, getting results that will be statistically representative of the community is not very likely without additional time and costs. If you recall the concern that our research projects faced regarding statistical accuracy, the problem here is that public polling would not represent the whole community. Also, public polling processes can create “camps” or factions that might work together to favor one certain design and encourage others to vote for the group’s favorite. The worst case would be only polling those who attend the annual Town Hall meeting, as that group is certainly a subset of your city’s political community. The report from the city’s economic development specialist on other cities logo development processes shows that virtually none of them elected to poll their communities for logo input. This is good research that gives you insights on how others in the situation handled it. It also shows that I am not alone in my recommendation that polling the public now is not the best method of selecting a logo. In the end, this decision belongs to those who are the elected representatives. I urge you to trust in the process and to respect the work that led us to this point. I can assure you it has been achieved though earnest efforts. I truly commend the city staff members who have worked very hard to be sure we present you with a variety of winning logo designs. Any of the finalists will work well for your brand and will have been borne of extensive public input and effective professional processes. Respectfully, Patrick Bettenburg Vice President / Account Supervisor Risdall Marketing Group Patrick@Risdall.com www.Risdall.com Direct: 651-286-6754 Page 2 of 2 4/2/2009 City Logo City Branding Reference Consultant Year Did They Poll the Public on the Logo Designs? InvestmentPam Bowman City Communications Coordinator763-576-2725Arnett Muldrow & Associates2008No. They had a steering committee of 12-15 reps. that consisted of business owners, residents, County reps., board/commission members, etc. They received public input at a Comp. Plan update meeting and another workshop but they did not poll.$23,250 Burnsville's logo (new logo yet to come)Bridget Dalrymple Special Projects Coordinator952-895-4473Medvec-Eppers 2008Their project is on hold due to budget contraints but she said all of her research on branding told her "do not pick your logo by a vote of the public". She said Mounds View has already done a lot to involve the public. The logo is just visual of what the public has already told us. $29,000 Stan GustafsonEconomic Devevelopment Director763-552-3209Marketing Source USA 2005No. He wasn't there during the process but he inquired and said that the consultant, staff and a committee worked on it. It was unveiled to the public but everything was pretty much "said & done" beforehand.$10,000($8,000 pro bono)Joni AndersonCity Clerk763-767-6457Tunheim Partners2008No. A Council member brought up the idea of polling the public and the consultant "adamently" opposed the idea, so the Council agreed. Staff narrowed down the options for the Council. $23,000Pat BrinkFormer Communications Mgr.763-300-8282, cellbrinkpr@hotmail.comBaker Assoc.2006The process was a contentious issue with their Police Dept. because they couldn't let go of the old logo. They hired a firm, were not pleased and fired them. The next firm came up with tons of great ideas. They did focus groups with citizens & businesses (renters, newcomers, families with kids, long-time residents). They used pictures as the basis of desiging the logo (they asked the focus groups "does this image represent Eden Praire and why?"). The firm then designed 5 or 6 logos and 1 really stood out. Staff showed the Mayor first, then the rest of the Council. $25-30,000 (between the 2 firms)Sampling of MN Cities That Have Gone Through the Branding ProcessPrepared by Heidi SteinmetzCity of Mounds View Tina AllardCity Clerk763-635-1003Dukor & Associates/Tammy Miller Design 2000No. City staff narrowed down the choices to 2 and the Council chose the final design. She warned that the public will probably chose a design based on a different criteria than City officials. $20,000Kersten Elverum Community Development Director952-548-6340CityImage2006No. They had a steering committee of about 15 people including a couple of residents who were interested in the project. If the public is polled, it could separate residents into "camps", which wouldn't be good.$13,900Jamie ZwillingCommunications Coordinator952-924-2632Periscope 2007No. It could "get crazy" if you poll the public. The City would have no control over conveying the messages that the logo is supposed to convey. Not everyone is going to agree. The public won't be designing the items where the logo would appear. Staff presented one final version to the Council. Everyone was indifferent about the logo (they either liked it or hated it or didn't care). In the end, the logo was about how the City wants to portray itself. The City wanted people to look at the logo and say "That's St. Louis Park". They focused on their tagline. Why go through the branding process and then go to public (that defeats the purpose)? You need to rely on professionals.$50,000Amy Barnett City Communications Coordinator952-882-2655City resident 2006No. Public input will dilute the strength of the logo. Part of developing a new logo is building up the excitement & unveiling it. Showing different designs is confusing to the public. Savage city staff chose the design & Council tweaked the colors. The public input was already rec'd before the logo was designed.Free ($15,000 value)Prepared by Heidi SteinmetzCity of Mounds View City LogoWhat They DidCity Reference Year City Staff Comments InvestmentnothingCurt LarsonEcon. Dev. Specialist763-785-6147mid-90sTheir logo was designed in the mid-90s and is the 2nd logo they've had. Falcon Heights (no logo)developed a taglineFamilies, Fields and FairJustin MillerCity Administrator651-792-7611 2008Be prepared to adopt an idea that you get from the public. The Council will be on the hook to choose one of those ideas. Polling kids was a bad idea. The process lasted from June-Oct. 2008. N/Aupdated their logoJudy GoepelMarketing/Events Coordinator651-638-2100 90sShe wasn't involved in the process back then. She can't imagine she could find cost records because it was so long ago. She did say that they didn’t want to let go of the "NB" so they just updated their logo.N/Arefreshed their logo &developed a taglineAdding Quality to LifeHelen LaFaveCommunications Manager763-509-5090 2004The Mayor didn't want a committee, so staff came up with tagline ideas and had a graphic designer update their logo. They didn't want the bad publicity that might come from spending $ on marketing. few hundred $created a new logoBarb HeldCity Clerk763-753-2630 2006A Community Ed. graphic designer gave them 12 designs. Too many people deciding on a logo is not a good thing. They tried to design a St. Francis pin but after polling the public, the scratched idea because it was so difficult. The reason they wanted a new logo is because they wanted a "fresh start". They chose the "SF" because a lot of their sports teams use that and they wanted people to see the "SF" and think "St. Francis".$100nothingJulie LehrCommunications Coordinator651-714-350080sTheir logo was designed in the 80s and is the 2nd logo they've had. A public poll would be a slippery slope. People are very passionate about logos. They have stayed away from taglines.N/AMisc. Logo/Tagline Comments From Other CommunitiesPrepared by Heidi SteinmetzCity of Mounds View Stephen Colbert Challenges NASA Over Node Name Thursday , April 02, 2009 By Tariq Malik — Comedian Stephen Colbert is pulling out all the stops in his campaign to have NASA name a new room of the International Space Station after him. "Well you voted, folks and look what happened," Colbert said Monday night on his faux-conservative show "The Colbert Report" on Comedy Central. "Unfortunately, Houston may have a problem with it." Colbert urged his viewers to write his name in during NASA's recent voting poll to name Node 3, a new room for the space station that will launch on a future shuttle mission. The move apparently worked, with Colbert's write-in name nabbing more than 230,000 votes, beating NASA's top suggestion Serenity by more than 40,000 votes. [Repeated queries by FOXNews.com to "The Colbert Report" eventually resulted in a brief e-mail from his personal publicist: "No comment, thanks!"] There has been some speculation on how NASA will respond to Colbert's popularity in space. NASA has said that while it reserves the right to have the final word on Node 3's name, it would take write-in suggestions into consideration. "We're still thinking about it," said William Gerstenmaier, NASA's space operations chief, on Saturday. Some sources have suggested that NASA will meet Colbert's audience halfway by opting to name the space toilet for Node 3 after the comedian. Gerstenmaier, however, shared little during a Saturday briefing after the shuttle Discovery landed in Florida. "We have a plan and we're working with some folks," Gerstenmaier said. "And in a couple of weeks, you'll know what the answer is." In addition to writing in their suggestions, voters were given the opportunity to select a name from NASA's list — Serenity, Earthrise, Legacy and Venture. "Serenity? That's not a space station, that's an adult diaper," Colbert said. Congress for Colbert Node 3 is a new room for the space station that will launch aboard a NASA shuttle. It will include an astronaut toilet, eight refrigerator-sized equipment racks and much of the station's life support gear. It will also be the site of an observation portal to serve as the main workstation for the orbiting lab's robotic arm. ADVERTISEMENT Page 1 of 2FOXNews.com - Stephen Colbert Challenges NASA Over Node Name - Science News | ... 4/2/2009http://www.foxnews.com/printer_friendly_story/0,3566,512023,00.html "Now for laymen out there, a space node is a node-like structure that is attached to other nodes in space in a ... I don't know what it is, but I want it!" Colbert said in Monday night's episode. Colbert has drawn support for his name not only from the public, but also Congress. In a March 26 statement, Congressman Chaka Fattah (D-PA) urged NASA to respect the results of the agency's online poll. "NASA decided to hold an election to name its new room at the International Space Station and the clear winner is Stephen Colbert," Fattah said in the statement. "The people have spoken, and Stephen Colbert won it fair and square — even if his campaign was a bit over the top." Fattah pointed out that NASA's top choice Serenity finished well behind Colbert's name. "When Americans look to the sky, they may see 'Serenity' but there will be no serenity here on Earth," Fattah said. Colbert also enlisted the support of Derrick Pitts, chief astronomer for Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, Pa., during Monday night's "Colbert Report." "As an astronomer, basically you are an ambassador for space," Colbert said. "Do you agree with him that the node should be named after me?" "I think that's something that NASA's going to have to figure out, but you know, it could be a good idea," Pitts replied during a discussion about Galileo. NASA's top vote-getter Serenity is a moniker that is also, coincidentally, the name of the fictional spaceship in the "Firefly" science fiction television series. While Serenity came in second, it was the only NASA-selected name to make the top three. Coming in third was the write-in selection "Myyearbook" with 147,637 votes, with the write-in "Gaia" a solid fourth with 114,427 votes. In all, the naming poll received about 1.2 million votes. "So NASA, I urge you to heed Congressman Fattah's call for democracy in orbit," Colbert said. "Either name that node after me, or I too will reject democracy and seize power as space's evil tyrant overlord. Ball's in your court." Copyright © 2009 Imaginova Corp. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Click here for FOX News RSS Feeds Advertise on FOX News Channel, FOXNews.com and FOX News Radio Jobs at FOX News Channel. Internships At Fox News (Summer Application Deadline is March 15, 2007) Terms of use. Privacy Statement. For FOXNews.com comments write to foxnewsonline@foxnews.com; For FOX News Channel comments write to comments@foxnews.com © Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Copyright 2009 FOX News Network, LLC. All rights reserved. All market data delayed 20 minutes. SEARCH GO Page 2 of 2FOXNews.com - Stephen Colbert Challenges NASA Over Node Name - Science News | ... 4/2/2009http://www.foxnews.com/printer_friendly_story/0,3566,512023,00.html Item Number: 1 Meeting Date: April 6, 2009 Type of Business: WS Administrator Review: _____ City of Mounds View Staff Report To: Honorable Mayor and City Council Cc: Economic Development Commission (EDC) From: Heidi Steinmetz, Economic Development Specialist Item Title/Subject: Review Options for New City Logo Background In August 2008, the EDA authorized a contract with Risdall Marketing Group to work with City staff to complete the Mounds View Branding Project. The main purpose of the project is to refresh and accurately portray Mounds View’s image or brand to residents, businesses, prospective businesses and visitors. Part one of this project is to create a Brand Strategy and develop a new logo/tagline. Risdall prepared a Preliminary Brand Strategy that the EDA reviewed on February 23, 2009. Staff will recommend that the EDA formally adopt the final Brand Strategy at the April 13, 2009 EDA meeting. Within the Brand Strategy is the following Brand Promise, which Risdall used to create the logo designs: “The City of Mounds View is a friendly and active community with a small town feel, committed to being family friendly, safe and fun, with planned and managed growth and development, overseen by an open government that is responsive and fiscally responsible.” It is now time for the EDA/Council to review logo options. Once the EDA/Council chooses a logo, Risdall will begin part two of the project, which is to develop a marketing/communications plan for the City. Discussion During the April 6, 2009 City Council Work Session, Patrick Bettenburg from Risdall Marketing Group will present the City Council with each logo option and describe the thought process behind each design. He will then ask the City Council to discuss the options and narrow those down to three finalists based on a process of elimination. The process used to create the logo options was extensive and included the work of three groups: the public, City staff and Risdall Marketing Group. Detailed below is each group’s involvement thus far: City Council Work Session Item 1 – Logo Review April 6, 2009 Page 2 of 3 Public Input Risdall Marketing Group designed the logo options based on public input received through resident and business surveys distributed by the City last fall and winter. About 700 residents and 50 businesses chose to respond to surveys. The City’s Economic Development Commission (EDC) also served as a voice for the residents and businesses since four residents and three business representatives serve on the Commission. Finally, Risdall’s lead logo designer for this project is Mark Arnold, a Mounds View resident. City Staff Team City staff formed a logo review team to ensure that the logo options would reflect day-to- day City business. The team consisted of representatives from each City department. The team met three times and provided valuable creative input that directed Risdall to create different logo iterations, tweaks and all together new logo designs. Jim Ericson, Ken Roberts and I were part of the staff team meetings and the three of us held several additional meetings with Risdall to ensure that the logo designs reflect the City’s Brand Promise. Risdall Marketing Group Risdall has been in business for 37 years. Their 19-member creative staff (under the leadership of 3 art directors and 3 copywriters) worked to create logo options for Mounds View. Risdall’s team created and tweaked the logo designs based on their own internal debates before presenting them to City staff. Research of Other Cities Earlier this year, a couple of Council members brought up the idea of polling the public on the logo designs. Patrick Bettenburg of Risdall Marketing Group submitted the attached correspondence stating his professional opinion about doing a public poll. Staff also contacted other cities that have gone through the branding process to find out how the public was involved and attached is a summary of that research. Finally, the attached article describes a dilemma NASA is having because of a public poll. Recommendation Staff recommends that the EDA/Council: • Receive additional input from the Economic Development Commission on the logo options at the April 6, 2009 Work Session; • Select the final three logo designs at the April 6, 2009 Work Session; • Chose a final logo design at the April 13, 2009 EDA meeting; and • Unveil the final logo design for the City at the April 25, 2009 Town Hall Meeting. City Council Work Session Item 1 – Logo Review April 6, 2009 Page 3 of 3 Respectfully submitted, ___________________________ Heidi Steinmetz, Economic Development Specialist Attachments • E-mail from Patrick Bettenburg of Risdall dated April 2, 2009 • Research of Other Cities • “Stephen Colbert Challenges NASA Over Node Name”, FOXNews.com, April 1, 2009 Item Number: 2 Meeting Date: April 6, 2008 Type of Business: WS Administrator Review: _____ City of Mounds View Staff Report To: Honorable Mayor and City Council From: Desaree Crane, Assistant City Clerk-Administrator Item Title/Subject: Discuss the Role of the Cable Committee It has come to the attention of Staff that there is no record of any officially adopted Cable Committee bylaws and guidelines. Staff thought that this would be a great opportunity to have an open discussion with the City Council on the role/mission of the Cable Committee. Below are some questions of discussion: 1. What is the role/mission of the Cable Committee? Are they an advisory committee to the City Council? 2. Who has the final authority on City cable programming? Does the City Council have the final authority or is it the Cable Committee? 3. Should the Cable Committee be appointed by the City Council? There are no City Code guidelines on appointments to committees. The Streets and Utilities Committee was appointed by the City Council. What excludes the City Council from appointing members to the Cable Committee? 4. If the City Council wishes to appoint members to the Cable Committee, then should there be term limits in place? Attached are rough drafts of Cable Committee bylaws and guidelines, submitted by the Cable Committee, for your review and comments. There is a joint meeting with the City Council and the Cable Committee scheduled for the May Work Session to discuss cable programming, the bylaws/guidelines of the committee, and the role/mission of the Cable Committee. Respectfully submitted, Desaree Crane Item No. 02 Type of Business: Work Session Date: March 2, 2009 City Administrator Review _______ City of Mounds View Staff Report To: Honorable Mayor and City Council From: Desaree Crane, Assistant City Clerk-Administrator Item Title/Subject: Question and Answer Session with Cellar Boxing Background: On June 23, 2008, the City Council approved Ordinance 807, which prohibited ultimate fighting events in Mounds View. Since the approval of Ordinance 807, Staff has received several phone calls from a few City Council Members on kickboxing events that have been held at The Mermaid and Robert’s Sports Bar and Entertainment. Staff wanted to discuss with the City Council on the intention of this ordinance, and whether the City Council would like to revise this ordinance further. Discussion: Ordinance 807 amends the City Code to ban ultimate fighting events. Exempted from this prohibition are officially sanctioned boxing and wrestling meets or other team sports in which physical contact is incidental to the primary purpose of the game, and contests that are governed and sponsored by schools of martial arts. The Mermaid and Robert’s Sports Bar and Entertainment have recently had kickboxing events at their facility, which were sponsored by a marital arts school in New Brighton called Cellar Kickboxing. Cellar offers adult classes in kickboxing, fitness kickboxing, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and mixed martial arts. They also offer pre-school and youth karate instruction. For more information on Cellar Kickboxing, please review their website at www.cellarkickboxing.com. On February 21, 2009, The Mermaid had a kickboxing event that was sponsored by Cellar Kickboxing. It is staff understanding that this was purely a kickboxing event and not an Ultimate Fighting Event. This event was also sponsored by Cellar Kickboxing. Since this event was sponsored by a martial arts school, The Mermaid was in compliance under the current City Code. The Mermaid had another event on March 28, 2009, which was also sponsored by Cellar Kickboxing and the Minnesota Kickboxing Association. This event was a traditional kickboxing event and a Muay Tai boxing event. Traditional kickboxing combines the kicking of karate with the punching of boxing. Points are scored when a punch or kick makes contact above the waist of the opponent. Matches are divided into five two-minute rounds and can be won by knockout or judges’ decision. Competitors wear 12-ounce boxing gloves and foot pads. Muay Tai (originated in Thailand) is very similar to traditional kickboxing; expect in Muay Tai you can use eight points of contact which are the fists, feet, elbows and knees. In traditional kickboxing you can use only four points of contact which are only the fists and feet. The same rules apply for Muay Tai as in traditional kickboxing. This event also is compliant with the current City Code. Staff went to the fight at The Mermaid on March 28, 2009, to observe how the fights were managed. Staff observed that was a referee (who was wearing surgical gloves), an EMT, a doctor and security on the premises. The crowd seemed calm, and there were no major security incidents found. At the direction of the City Council, Staff has invited representatives from Cellar Boxing, Chris Cichon and Justin Whiley, to help answer any questions that the City Council may have about these fighting events. They will be present at this Work Session to discuss these fighting events and to answer any questions that the City Council may have about their organization. Respectfully submitted, Desaree Crane Item No: 3 Meeting Date: 4-6-09 Type of Business: WS Administrator Review: _____ City of Mounds View Staff Report To: Honorable Mayor and City Council From: Chief of Police, Mike Sommer Item Title/Subject: Grant opportunities for the Police Department Date of Report: April 6, 2009 Background: This memo is to advise the council of some grant opportunities that are available to the police department. The first grant is The U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs' Bureau of Justice Assistance funding under the Recovery Act Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program. The provisions of this grant provide the City of Mounds View Police Department with $23,665.00 in funding as part of the 2009 Federal Stimulus package. This grant will be administered on a county wide basis with St. Paul Police Department assigned as the fiscal agent for the grant. The funding for this grant will be used to purchase in squad cameras and complete a third security camera for the city camera security system. We have submitted a memorandum of understanding with St. Paul Police regarding their role as the county wide fiscal agent for the grant. The second grant opportunity open at this time is The Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) Hiring Recovery Program (CHRP). The provisions of this grant are as follows: “CHRP is a competitive grant program that provides funding directly to law enforcement agencies having primary law enforcement authority to create and preserve jobs and to increase their community policing capacity and crime-prevention efforts. Up to $1 billion in grant funding is available for the hiring and rehiring of career law enforcement officers. There is no local match requirement for CHRP, but grant funding will be based on current entry-level salary and benefits packages, and therefore any additional costs for higher salaries or benefits for particular individuals hired will be the responsibility of the grantee agency. CHRP grants will provide 100 percent funding for approved entry-level salaries and benefits for three years (36 months) for newly-hired, full-time sworn officer positions (including filling existing unfunded vacancies) or for rehired officers who have been laid off, or are scheduled to be laid off on a future date, as a result of local budget cuts. Although there is no cap on the number of positions an agency may request, but awards will be limited to available funding. Grantees must retain all sworn officer positions awarded under the CHRP grant for a period of one year (12 months) following the conclusion of grant funding. The retained CHRP-funded position(s) should be added to the grantee’s law enforcement budget with state and/or local funds, over and above the number of locally-funded positions that would have existed in the absence of the grant.” A suggestion for this grant is to hire an additional officer and assign an officer to the Drug Task Force for Ramsey County, or add an officer to the patrol schedule thereby increasing the number of police officers on duty. Having an officer assigned to the task force would allow the city of Mounds View to better focus on active narcotics investigation within the city. Recommendation: The JAG grant funding will be accepted, as there is no funding match for this grant. Staff seek council direction on whether or not the council would like to proceed with a COPS grant for a new officer. The COPS office is accepting applications for this funding at this time. The grant is competitive, so there is no guarantee that all applications will be funded. Respectfully submitted, Mike Sommer, Chief of Police Item Number: 4 Meeting Date: April 6, 2009 Type of Business: WS Administrator Review: _____ City of Mounds View Staff Report To: Honorable Mayor and City Council From: Heidi Steinmetz, Economic Development Specialist Item Title/Subject: Discuss The Mermaid Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Development Assistance Agreement Background In October 2001, the EDA entered into a Development Assistance Agreement with MoundsVista, Inc. (d.b.a. The Mermaid). Per the agreement, the EDA agreed to issue Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Revenue Bonds. The EDA took out a loan (bonds) on behalf of MoundsVista and then authorized selling the bonds to third parties (First Bank and Western Bank). MoundsVista received $631,897 in assistance and the bondholders received the interest earnings. The amount of assistance was based on MoundsVista’s May 2000 TIF application to the EDA. The total amount of assistance at the conclusion of the Development Assistance Agreement (payable 2002-2013) will be $1,278,006. The assistance paid for redevelopment activities (land acquisition, building demolition, site clearance, etc.) that allowed for the construction of the hotel and banquet center. The EDA makes semi-annual payments to the bondholders using the TIF revenue generated by the project. The outstanding balance of the bonds is about $409,000. Discussion On March 23, 2009, the City Council postponed consideration of The Mermaid’s 2nd Addition Final Plat. The plat would subdivide MoundsVista’s property into two lots (one for the hotel and another for the restaurant and banquet center). The reason for the Council’s postponement is that the EDA needs to first provide consent to the sale of the property. MoundsVista’s attorney provided a letter to Jim Ericson on March 20, 2009 stating that MoundsVista has started the process of selling the hotel and that MoundsVista is requesting that the EDA amend the Development Assistance Agreement. The amendment would allow for the sale of the hotel and the continuation of semi-annual payments to the bondholders. City Council Work Session Item 4 – TIF Assistance Agreement April 6, 2009 Page 2 of 2 Recommendation Staff recommends that the City Council have a policy discussion at the Work Session and consider the precedence that amending the EDA’s Development Assistance Agreement with MoundsVista, Inc. would set for future EDA/Council policy-making decisions. For instance, would the EDA be willing to amend development assistance agreements with other Mounds View businesses? SYSCO may be approaching the EDA in coming weeks requesting an amendment to their development agreement with the EDA. Next Steps At the April 13, 2009 EDA meeting, the EDA will consider MoundsVista’s request to amend the Development Assistance Agreement. If the EDA authorizes the amendment, the City Council will consider The Mermaid’s 2nd Addition Final Plat at the April 13, 2009 City Council meeting. Respectfully submitted, ____________________________ Heidi Steinmetz, Economic Development Specialist Item Number: 5 Meeting Date: April 6, 2008 Type of Business: WS Administrator Review: _____ City of Mounds View Staff Report To: Honorable Mayor and City Council From: Desaree Crane, Assistant City Clerk-Administrator Item Title/Subject: Discuss the Role of the Cable Committee It has come to the attention of Staff that there is no record of any officially adopted Cable Committee bylaws and guidelines. Staff thought that this would be a great opportunity to have an open discussion with the City Council on the role/mission of the Cable Committee. Below are some questions of discussion: 1. What is the role/mission of the Cable Committee? Are they an advisory committee to the City Council? 2. Who has the final authority on City cable programming? Does the City Council have the final authority or is it the Cable Committee? 3. Should the Cable Committee be appointed by the City Council? There are no City Code guidelines on appointments to committees. The Streets and Utilities Committee was appointed by the City Council. What excludes the City Council from appointing members to the Cable Committee? 4. If the City Council wishes to appoint members to the Cable Committee, then should there be term limits in place? Attached are rough drafts of Cable Committee bylaws and guidelines, submitted by the Cable Committee, for your review and comments. There is a joint meeting with the City Council and the Cable Committee scheduled for the May Work Session to discuss cable programming, the bylaws/guidelines of the committee, and the role/mission of the Cable Committee. Respectfully submitted, Desaree Crane Item No: 06 Meeting Date: March 24, 2008 Type of Business: CA Administrator Review: _____ City of Mounds View Staff Report To: Honorable Mayor and City Council From: Desaree M. Crane, Assistant City Clerk-Administrator Item Title/Subject: Employee Appreciation Luncheon and Gift Certificates Introduction: As stated in Resolution 5617 (attached as Exhibit A), the City will provide eligible employees gift certificates for a Five-Year Employment Milestone. In the past, the City has also provided a luncheon to appreciate the hard work and dedication of city employees. These gift certificates have been awarded to the eligible employees during the annual employee appreciation luncheon. Discussion: One of the clauses in Resolution 5617 is that the City would provide to employees “gift certificates in the amount of $5 per year of service at five-year increments.” Currently there are 10 city employees that fall under these criteria. Both the Employee Lunch and Gift Certificates are currently budgeted for 2009 (Budget # 100-4100-1600). The employees below qualify under the criteria set in Resolution 5617: Employee Name Department Years of Service as of 2009 Gift Certificate Amount Benesch, Barbara Community Development 30 years $150.00 Wienke, Jeffrey Public Works 20 years $100.00 Fredberg, Timothy Public Works 15 years $75.00 Anderson, Jeremiah Community Development 10 years $50.00 Hughes, John Public Works 10 years $50.00 Jasper, Debbie Finance 10 years $50.00 Demarest, Keith Police 5 years $25.00 Hellpap, Jeremy Police 5 years $25.00 Wolf, Timothy Police 5 years $25.00 Zender, Benjamin Police 5 years $25.00 The City has $950 in the budget for gift certificates, and an additional $950 for the employee luncheon. In years past, the luncheon has been catered, and held at the Mounds View Community Center. Staff would like direction from the City Council on whether the City should proceed with the employee luncheon and gift certificates program. If the City Council wishes to cut this section of the budget this year, then Staff would like to make a recommendation to at least proceed with awarding the gift certificates. There are employees this year with many years of service, and Staff feels that this dedication to service to the community should be rewarded. Respectfully submitted, Desaree Crane EXHIBIT A ATTACHMENT RESOLUTION NO. 5617 CITY OF MOUNDS VIEW COUNTY OF RAMSEY STATE OF MINNESOTA RESOLUTION APPROVING CERTAIN EMPLOYEE AND VOLUNTEER APPRECIATION EVENTS WHEREAS, the Mounds View City Council wishes to show its appreciation to employees and volunteers for dedicated and committed service; and WHEREAS, the City Council is committed to responsibly expending public funds; and WHEREAS, the City Council believes that showing appreciation to employees and volunteers benefits the City. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the City of Mounds View will annually (when funds are available) contribute $1000 toward an annual employee appreciation event to be held at the Mounds View Banquet and Conference Center; and NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED the City of Mounds View will issue to employees gift certificates in the amount of $5 per year of service at five-year increments. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the City of Mounds View will annually (when funds are available) contribute $1000 toward an annual volunteer appreciation event to be held at the Mounds View Banquet and Conference Center; and NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the City of Mounds View will present plaques ($60 max.) to retirees with 10 years of service at regularly scheduled City Council meetings. Adopted this 8th day of October, 2001. ATTEST: Richard Sonterre, Mayor SEAL Kathleen Miller, City Administrator Motion by: Quick Second by: Thomas Sonterre Aye Quick Aye Stigney Nay Marty Aye Thomas Aye Item Number: 7 Meeting Date: April 6, 2008 Type of Business: WS Administrator Review: _____ City of Mounds View Staff Report To: Honorable Mayor and City Council From: Desaree Crane, Assistant City Clerk-Administrator Item Title/Subject: Review Candidates for the 2008 Citizenship Award Background: The City of Mounds View Citizenship Award recognizes ordinary citizens who have demonstrated to improving the community. Past recipients of this award include: 2004: David Jahnke 2005: Frank Silvis 2006: Ed Lanz 2007: Don Hodges 2008: Barbara Haake Discussion: The City of Mounds View Citizenship Award recognizes a Mounds View resident who represents the energetic, courageous, persistent and informed involvement of an ordinary citizen in the issues and challenges that affect the City of Mounds View. The award seeks to honor highly effective community leaders who have invested a significant amount of time improving their community. Nominations are open to the public and the award is subject to the following guidelines below: Eligibility: Nominees must be: • A Mounds View resident, business owner or land owners. • Recent elected officials, City employees, City contractors, or political candidates are not eligible. Selection Criteria: 1. Courage: Exemplifies courage and determination to follow one’s own values. 2. Initiative: Demonstrates drive and initiative in his/her approach and overcoming challenges on the way. 3. Time Commitment: Volunteers a significant amount of time and energy to the betterment of the City of Mounds View and its residents; more than just financial contributions. 4. Effectiveness: Generates positive results for the community. 5. Unselfishness: Does not expect anything in return for his/her actions, i.e., financial compensation, fame or political notoriety. The City received three nomination forms (two of the nomination forms are for one resident) for the Mounds View Citizenship Award. Nomination forms are attached for the Council’s review. The attached applications have been labeled Applicant A and Applicant B to allow discussions to occur without mentioning specific names. The Mounds View Citizenship Award is scheduled to be presented at the April 25th Town Hall Meeting. If the award recipient cannot attend the Town Hall Meeting, then the City Council may consider presenting this award at a regular meeting. Recommendation: Based upon the City Council’s direction, Staff will present a Resolution for adoption at the April 13, 2009, City Council Meeting, and a plaque will be prepared for a formal presentation at the Town Hall Meeting. Respectfully submitted, Desaree Crane