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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - 2020/03/23APPROVED PROCEEDINGS OF THE MOUNDS VIEW CITY COUNCIL CITY OF MOUNDS VIEW RAMSEY COUNTY, MINNESOTA Regular Meeting March 23, 2020 Mounds View City Hall 2401 Mounds View Boulevard, Mounds View, MN 55112 6:31 P.M. MEETING HELD BY PHONE CONFERENCE CALL IN NUMBER 888-742-5095 CODE - 4470605061 1. MEETING IS CALLED TO ORDER: Mayor Mueller announced that this was the Council’s first phone/electronic meeting under the City’s Emergency status with the adoption of Resolution 9255 on March 20, 2020, and that all votes would be done by roll call. 2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE 3. ROLL CALL: Bergeron, Gunn, Hull, Meehlhause, Mueller NOT PRESENT: None. 4. APPROVAL OF AGENDA A. Monday, March 23, 2020, City Council Agenda. Mayor Mueller requested a change to the agenda moving Item 6 – Public Comment to Item 10. MOTION/SECOND: Gunn/Meehlhause. To Approve the Monday, March 23, 2020, agenda as amended. ROLL CALL: Bergeron/Gunn/Hull/Meehlhause/Mueller. Ayes – 5 Nays – 0 Motion carried. 5. CONSENT AGENDA A. Approval of Minutes: March 9, 2020 B. Just and Correct Claims. C. Resolution 9251, Declaring the Official Intent of the City of Mounds View, Minnesota, to Reimburse Certain Capital Expenditures of a Project from the Proceeds of Tax Exempt Bonds. D. Resolution 9252, Approving Recruitment Process for Police Officer. Mounds View City Council March 23, 2020 Regular Meeting Page 2 MOTION/SECOND: Meehlhause/Bergeron. To Approve the Consent Agenda as presented. ROLL CALL: Bergeron/Gunn/Hull/Meehlhause/Mueller. Ayes – 5 Nays – 0 Motion carried. 7. SPECIAL ORDER OF BUSINESS None. 8. COUNCIL BUSINESS A. Public Hearing: Resolution 9253, to Consider the On-Sale Intoxicating Liquor License and Restaurant License Request of Sota Tap House and Grill, LLC for the property located at 2535 Mounds View Boulevard, Mounds Vie Square Shopping Center (previously El Loro). This item was pulled from the agenda at the applicant’s request. B. Resolution 9254, Authorize Funds to Complete the 2040 Comprehensive Plan. Community Development Director Sevald requested the Council authorize funds to complete the 2040 Comprehensive Plan. He explained the City had a contract with Stantec through the end of 2019 to complete the draft of the Comprehensive Plan. This draft was submitted to the Met Council in December and staff needs additional funds to finalize the plan. He reviewed the expense to complete the Comprehensive Plan and requested approval of the fund authorization. City Administrator Zikmund indicated staff was requesting the assistance from a consultant due to additional requirements the Met Council has placed on cities. He reported he has reached out to a number of his colleagues and there were concerns regarding the requirements from the Met Council. He stated this was a non-budgeted item. He commented Metro Cities was working with the Met Council given the fact they have created a moving target. He explained even if this item is approved, staff may delay work on this project to ensure the City of Mounds View can properly meet the mark. Finance Director Beer discussed with the Council how the additional expense would be funded by the City. He reported the City could cover the full price of completing the 2040 Comprehensive Plan. Council Member Gunn expressed frustration with the manner in which the Met Council was handling this issue. She supported the City taking a stand given the fact the City complied with the original Met Council requirements. She recommended the City hold off on meeting the new requirements. Council Member Meehlhause asked if the City had additional funds available given the fact Jacob Martin had recently resigned. Finance Director Beer stated this was the case. Mounds View City Council March 23, 2020 Regular Meeting Page 3 Council Member Meehlhause commented he agreed with Council Member Gunn that the City should hold off on meeting the new requirements. He supported the City sending the Met Council a message that Mounds View did not support the new requirements. Council Member Gunn explained given the state of the world at this time, this was a frivolous expense and she would not be offering her support to spend additional dollars at this time. Council Member Bergeron indicated he agreed with the other Council members that action on this item could wait. City Administrator Zikmund requested comment from the City Attorney and asked if the item should be denied or tabled. City Attorney Riggs recommended the Council table action on this item versus an outright denial. City Administrator Zikmund commented tabling the item would allow staff more time to work with Metro Cities to address the concerns regarding the Met Council that have been voiced by the City Council. MOTION/SECOND: Hull/Bergeron. To Waive the Reading and Table Resolution 9254, Authorize Funds to Complete the 2040 Comprehensive Plan. Council Member Meehlhause stated this action did not reflect on the efforts of staff but rather was the City Council’s frustration with the Met Council. Council Member Bergeron concurred with this statement. ROLL CALL: Bergeron/Gunn/Hull/Meehlhause/Mueller. Ayes – 5 Nays – 0 Motion carried. C. Resolution 9255, Emergency Declaration. 1. Read Mayor Declaration 2. Act on Resolution 9255 3. Act on Meetings by Phone This item was addressed at a Special City Council meeting held on Friday, March 20th. D. Resolution 9258, Accepting the Bid for the 2020 Seal Coating Project. Public Works Director Peterson requested the Council accept the bid for the 2020 seal coating project. He explained this was an ongoing program the City had in place. He reported areas F and G would be completed in 2020, which was 7.4 miles of street. He described the joint powers agreement the City had in place with the City of Coon Rapids and reviewed the expense for this project in further detail. Staff recommended a 10% contingency be put in place bringing the total project cost for the 2020 seal coating project to $119,885.11. Mounds View City Council March 23, 2020 Regular Meeting Page 4 MOTION/SECOND: Gunn/Meehlhause. To Waive the Reading and Adopt Resolution 9258, Accepting the Bid for the 2020 Seal Coating Project. Council Member Meehlhause stated he spoke with Finance Director Beer earlier today and noted this project came in slightly higher than budgeted. He reported this overage would be covered by the Street Improvement Fund balance. ROLL CALL: Bergeron/Gunn/Hull/Meehlhause/Mueller. Ayes – 5 Nays – 0 Motion carried. E. Resolution 9259, Awarding a Construction Contract for the 2020 Street Reconstruction Project. Public Works Director Peterson requested the Council award a construction contract for the 2020 Street Reconstruction Project. He reviewed the streets that would be reconstructed which included a segment of Quincy Street and Sherwood Place. He explained Stantec had completed the final street design and the Council authorized the project to be bid in February of 2020. He reviewed the bids and noted the low bid came in at $1,126,604.98. He recommended the project area be hydroseeded and not sodded. Staff reported this project came in slightly over budget due to the fact several alternates were included. He stated this project would be addressing a stormwater drainage concern along Quincy Street and would be putting in wider sidewalks for pedestrian safety. He explained these alternates would bring the total project cost to $1,169,950.78. It was noted this was a State Aid Street which required special testing. Staff recommended a 10% contingency be approved for this project which would bring the total project cost to $1,230,654.53. Council Member Bergeron asked when the project would begin and if this would impact the work being done at the Pinewood Elementary School. Public Works Director Peterson stated some cities were contemplating holding off on the street projects given the COVID-19 issue. He discussed how the project would impact residents if they were required to shelter in place. He commented homeowners may be required to not use their sewer line for a period of time in order to allow for slip lining to be completed. He anticipated the Pinewood Elementary School work would be done prior to the City beginning its street project. City Administrator Zikmund requested the Council add in the Quincy Street stormwater pipe as an alternate to this project. Finance Director Beer recommended the Council add Item 9 to the Resolution increasing the budgeted amount for account 485-4470-7050-323 by $316,000. MOTION/SECOND: Meehlhause/Gunn. To Waive the Reading and Adopt Resolution 9259, Awarding a Construction Contract for the 2020 Street Reconstruction Project, as amended. ROLL CALL: Bergeron/Gunn/Hull/Meehlhause/Mueller. Mounds View City Council March 23, 2020 Regular Meeting Page 5 Ayes – 5 Nays – 0 Motion carried. 9. REPORTS A. Reports of Mayor and Council. Council Member Gunn reported the school district is offering free breakfast and lunch at the schools between the hours of 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. She commented an adult had to be present with the students. She encouraged the City Council to spread the word on the free meals. Council Member Meehlhause stated the Gateway Convention Board canceled their meeting last week. He reviewed the year-end financials from this group with the Council and stated 2019 was a great year for hospitality tax revenue. Council Member Meehlhause reported the NYFS Board would be meeting on Thursday via a conference call. He indicated the NYFS has hired a new President/CEO and her name is Tara Jebens-Singh. Council Member Meehlhause encouraged all Mounds View residents to complete the 2020 Census. He explained the census process was very easy to complete online and could be done in less than 10 minutes. Council Member Bergeron stated the Census was simple to complete and he encouraged all residents to complete this task. Mayor Mueller reported that the League of Minnesota Cities building is closed to the public and all in person events and seminars through April 6th have been cancelled. Mayor Mueller stated she has been attending conference call meetings and noted the Ramsey County Emergency Communication Center is fully staffed. She noted this organization has been practicing social distancing and are handling calls within normal response times. She commented as the virus continues to spread, the Arden Hills emergency branch could be opened, if deemed necessary. Mayor Mueller indicated the Mounds View Town Hall meeting would not be held in April. She explained staff would be discussing this further at a future worksession meeting. Mayor Mueller expressed concern with the fact that residents were getting information on social media that may or may not be accurate. She thanked Governor Walz for keeping residents updated with accurate and up to date information. She encouraged residents to visit the City of Mounds View or Ramsey County websites with any questions regarding the virus. Mayor Mueller stated the Ralph Reeder Food Shelf was in need of donations at this time. Mayor Mueller commented that she and Dan put Christmas lights back up on their deck railing as a sign of encouragement and to serve as a visual reminder that the community would get through this pandemic. Mounds View City Council March 23, 2020 Regular Meeting Page 6 B. Reports of Staff. 1. April 6 Work Session. City Administrator Zikmund questioned if the Council would like to hold the April 6th work session meeting via conference call. He reviewed the items that were being proposed to be addressed at this meeting. Public Works Director Peterson commented the items he had to discuss could be held off until May or June. Council Member Meehlhause supported canceling the worksession meeting scheduled for April 6th. The Council was in agreement. Mayor Mueller questioned if the Council could cancel a worksession meeting per the Charter. City Attorney Riggs reported the Charter was silent on worksession meetings and explained the City Council had the flexibility to act on these items at a future meeting. Mayor Mueller stated based on the consensus of the Council she recommended staff cancel the April 6th worksession meeting. 2. Letter of Support – Ramsey County – Mounds View Boulevard Improvement. City Administrator Zikmund stated Ramsey County Senior Planner Joe Lux has been talking about submitting a grant for an improvement project for Mounds View Boulevard. He explained the underlying infrastructure along Mounds View Boulevard needs to be replaced and upgraded. He stated the proposed grant would assist with this work, along with pedestrian improvements. He reported Ramsey County was requesting a Letter of Support from the City of Mounds View for this work. Finance Director Beer discussed the level of MSA funding the City had in place and reported the City will use up its MSA funds by 2024. City Administrator Zikmund commented further on how this grant would support improvements along Mounds View Boulevard. Council Member Gunn supported the City drafting a letter of support to Ramsey County for the grant funding. The Council was in agreement. 3. Request from Creative Kids – Rajiv Garb – Rent Relief City Administrator Zikmund stated Creative Kids has requested rent relief for the next three months (or up to 18 months) given the fact their revenues were down. He explained staff has discussed this further and noted the State may be providing subsidies to assist childcare facilities. For this reason, staff was recommending action on the rent relief hold off. Mounds View City Council March 23, 2020 Regular Meeting Page 7 Council Member Bergeron commented the State was one step ahead on this and recommended the City hold off with offering rent relief at this time. The Council was in agreement. City Administrator Zikmund indicated no staff members were out sick at this time. He reported all staff members were working from home, whenever possible. He explained department heads were coming in at times. He stated the City of Mounds View was in good shape and strong contingency plans were in place if an illness were to occur. Council Member Gunn indicated she was extremely proud of the City staff and all employees for taking this virus seriously and for working diligently to maintain their health, while providing a full continuum of City services. C. Reports of City Attorney. City Attorney Riggs commended the City Council and its’ staff for their efforts to provide a smooth transition given the difficult circumstances the City was facing on a daily basis. 10. PUBLIC COMMENT Finance Director Beer reported Officer Keith Czarnecki recently retired. He requested the Council approve the payment of $1,921.96 in severance to Officer Czarnecki. MOTION/SECOND: Meehlhause/Bergeron. To Authorize Staff to Make a Severance Payment to Officer Keith Czarnecki in the amount of $1,921.96. ROLL CALL: Bergeron/Gunn/Hull/Meehlhause/Mueller. Ayes – 5 Nays – 0 Motion carried. 11. Next Council Worksession: TBD Next Council Meeting: Monday, April 13, 2020, at 6:30 p.m. 12. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 7:40 p.m. Transcribed by: Heidi Guenther Minute Maker Secretarial