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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - 2000/12/11PROCEEDINGS OF THE MOUNDS VIEW CITY COUNCIL CITY OF MOUNDS VIEW RAMSEY COUNTY, MINNESOTA ," " , Regular Meeting ~~~`~ ~ ~ ~I °~~ ~"' ~' ' December 11, 2000 _.: ..__ ~ ~" Mounds View City Hall 2401 Highway 10, Mounds View, MN 55112 7:00 P.M. 1. MEETING IS CALLED TO ORDER 2. ROLL CALL: Coughlin, Quick, Marty, Stigney, Thomas. 3. APPROVAL OF AGENDA A. Monday, December 11, 2000 City Council Agenda. Mayor Coughlin asked the Council if anyone would like to add items to the agenda. Mayor Coughlin requested a closed session to discuss the ongoing golf course billboard action be added as Item G under Council Business. City Administrator Miller requested Council add discussion an ongoing investigation to the closed session. This item was added as Item H under Council Business. MOTION/SECOND: Marty/Quick. To accept the December 11, 2000, City Council Agenda as amended, dispensing with the reading of all ordinances and resolutions unless otherwise requested. Ayes - 5 Nays - 0 Motion carried. 4. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. Monday, November 27, 2000, City Council Minutes. Council Member Thomas requested the spelling of Mayor-Elect Sonterre's name be corrected to Sonterre. Council Member Stigney indicated on Page 14 the motion had him voting in favor of the motion and should be changed to reflect that he voted against the motion. • Mounds View City Council December 11, 2000 Regular Meeting Page 2 City Administrator Miller requested the words "fail to" be added on Page 14. 000 i Council MOTION/SECOND: Stigney/Thomas. To approve the November 13, 2 C ty Minutes with the noted changes. Ayes - 5 Nays - 0 Motion carried. 5. SPECIAL ORDER OF BUSINESS: Mayor Coughlin presented Council Member Quick with a plaque from the City acknowledging 15 years of service to the City. 6. REPORTS Council Member Stigney reported he had attended the Planning Commission meeting where the Home Occupations Ordinance was discussed. The Planning Commission had been asked to consider allowing home occupations to have non-resident employees. After much discussion and resident input the Planning Commission decided not to allow non-resident employees. There was also a minor change to allowed parking. This item will come before Council at an upcoming meeting for approval. Council Member Stigney reported he had checked Roberts Rules of Order and found Council erred in its parliamentary procedure at the last meeting when it disallowed a motion to breakdown an item on the agenda into parts to be individually considered and voted on. He also noted Council may have erred in allowing a motion to reconsider as well. He suggested Council be aware of this in the future and be careful to rule properly. Mayor Coughlin reported he, Mayor-Elect Sonterre, and City Administrator Miller attended the Ramsey County League of Local Governments holiday event. Mayor Coughlin reported he, Community Development Director Ericson, and Mr. Hammerschmidt, Golf Course Manager, attended a hearing on the billboard issue. Community Development Director Ericson and Mr. Hammerschmidt testified at the hearing and did a nice job of representing the City's interests. Mayor Coughlin commended the legal team from Kennedy and Graven on doing an excellent job on behalf of the City. Mayor Coughlin reported it had come to his attention recent attorney general rulings have made it difficult to hold an employee appreciation holiday event. He requested the consent of Council to direct City Attorney Long to conduct an investigation into the recent rulings and provide a report on a way to allow the City to hold a holiday event within the parameters of the rulings. Council Member Stigney indicated he would like to see an interpretation of the rulings. • Mounds View City Council December 11, 2000 Regular Meeting Page 3 City Administrator Miller reminded Council Members of the training for newly elected and experienced public officials and requested Council Members provide her with which of the indicated dates Council Members were available for training. City Administrator Miller invited Council Members to a small gathering at City Hall this week in celebration of the holiday season. Council Member Marty inquired as to whether City Attorney Long was still working on the summation concerning the Police Civil Service Commission. City Attorney Long indicated he was slightly delayed on the summation by the golf course billboard hearing but said he intended to have a summation available for the first meeting of the Council in January. 7. CONSENT AGENDA A. Approve Just and Correct Claims. B. Resolution 5495 Approving 2001 Fee Schedule. C. Resolution 5496 Approving Timesaver 2001 Contract D. Resolution 5497 Extending Contract with Kennedy and Graven E. Resolution 5498 Establishing a Human Resources Committee F. Resolution 5488 Approving a Wetland Alteration Permit for 7375 and 7373 Knollwood Drive G. Resolution 5489 Approving a Minor Subdivision of 8480 Eastwood Road H. Resolution 5499 Authorizing Distribution of the Highway 10 RFP I. Set a Public Hearing for 7:05 p.m., Monday, January 8, 2001, to Consider the Introduction and First Reading of Ordinance 674, an Ordinance Amending Chapter 1005 of the Municipal Code Pertaining to the Housing Code J. Resolution 5550 Authorizing Execution of Sub-Grant Agreement K. Saturn Transportation Request L. Kathi Osmonson, Certified Building Official Mayor Coughlin asked the Council if anyone would like to remove items for discussion. Council Member Thomas requested Item B be removed for discussion. Community Development Director Ericson indicated he believed Item J's resolution number to be 5500 not 5550. MOTION/SECOND: Marty/Quick. To Approve the Consent Agenda for Items A through L with the exception of Item B as presented. Ayes - 5 Nays - 0 Motion carried. • Mounds View City Council December 11, 2000 Regular Meeting Page 4 Council Member Thomas indicated the fee schedule referred to accessory structures, sheds and garages. It is her understanding there is no longer a garage definition so this document would need to be amended. Community Development Director Ericson indicated she was correct and said the issue could not be resolved at this meeting. Council Member Stigney inquired as to whether the City was intending to charge small community groups such as girl scouts, boy scouts, and cub scouts to use a room at the Community Center. Assistant to the City Administrator Reed indicated she wanted to grandfather in those organizations currently using rooms on a regular basis. The groups Council Member Stigney mentioned were not using the rooms on a regular basis so were not added to the list. Council Member Stigney inquired as to whether these groups would be required to pay a fee. Assistant to the Administrator Reed indicated she would make a presentation to Council in January or February on this matter. MOTION/SECOND: Coughlin/Thomas. To Approve Consent Agenda Item B without the items in question. Ayes - 5 Nays - 0 Motion carried. 8. UNFINISHED BUSINESS None. 9. RESIDENTS REQUESTS AND COMMENTS FROM THE FLOOR Steve Begge 8261 Sunnyside Road expressed concern for the City charging groups like cub scouts, girl scouts, and boy scouts a fee for using rooms as these organizations do not have a lot of funds available to them for paying fees. He inquired as to whom he could obtain more information from on this matter. Mayor Coughlin indicated he could speak to City Administrator Miller for more information or attend the Council Work Session on January 2, 2001 where the item will be discussed. Stu Sinykin 8140 Red Oak Court expressed his support for the golf course expansion. His three boys have been involved in the junior program at the golf course since the program began. It gives the boys something to do in the summer and gives the family a place for a family outing. It is very convenient and a great benefit to the City. ~J Mounds View City Council December 11, 2000 Regular Meeting Page 5 Harlan 5071 Greenwood Drive expressed his support for the golf course expansion. As a casual golfer it gives him a local course to play that is very convenient. When his children and grandchildren are in town visiting the golf course is a nice place for a family outing. He indicated he believed the golf course to be a benefit to the City because it provides people a place to drive to in Mounds View rather than driving through. 10. COUNCIL BUSINESS A. Continuation of Public Hearing, Second Reading and Consideration of Ordinance No. 673, Amending Chapter 906 of the Municipal Code, Section 906.04, Subd. 4, Entitled "Liability for Repairs" of the Municipal Code (Water Services). Mayor Coughlin reopened the public hearing at 7:35 p.m. Public Works Director Ulrich told Council the only change to the proposal was to make participation in the program mandatory as Staff and the City Attorney agree that the administration of the program would be difficult and there may not be enough funds to run the program if residents are allowed to opt out of the program. He also indicated he had not received any additional comments for or against the program since the last public hearing. Russ Anderson 5159 Edgewood Drive thanked the City for its effort to help residents with a . potentially costly repair to water service. He indicated he and the neighbors he has spoken to are in favor of the plan and support it wholeheartedly and will happily pay the quarterly fee for participation in the program. Dana Mandoza 2633 Clearview Avenue inquired as to how much of the repair would be picked up by the City through this program. Public Works Director Ulrich explained the program and indicated that residents would be responsible for the costs for surface restoration, (i.e., grass or sod). Mr. Mandoza told Council he supports the program and believes this will offer him protection against an unexpected water service failure. He indicated he also believed it would save the City money not to have broken water service lines leaking for long periods of time as is sometimes the case when residents can not get a contractor to repair the problem in a timely manner. Russ Anderson 5159 Edgewood Drive told Council his son who lives in Eau Claire, WI had to repair his water service within the last ten days and it cost his son over $7,000.00. When he told his son the City of Mounds View was offering this program for protection from that type of problem his son indicated it would have been very nice not to have to pay for this himself. Steve Begge 8261 Sunnyside Road commented on an article in a local paper discussing the water services repair program which was quite negative. He indicated he wished there had been Mounds View City Council December 11, 2000 Regular Meeting Page 6 resident input from those residents supporting the program. He expressed his support of the program and said he is glad the City is offering a program to help alleviate the rather large expense of repairing water service. As a homeowner, preventive maintenance on various equipment can save a person money but there is no preventive maintenance that can be done to your water service. When it breaks it is unexpected and usually a large cash outlay which would set just about anybody back. Steven Berk 2614 Louisa Avenue expressed his support for the program indicating he was a single parent who would be hard pressed to come up with a large amount of cash to repair his water service. Mayor Coughlin closed the public hearing at 7:44 p.m. MOTION/SECOND: Quick/Marty. To Waive the Second Reading and Adopt the Proposed Changes to Ordinance 673, Chapter 906 of the Municipal Code, Section 906.04, Entitled "Liability for Repairs". Council Member Thomas expressed her concern for residents calling the proposed program an insurance plan and indicated it was simply another tax being collected to fund a City welfare program for water service repair. She stated she does not like the precedent this type of program would set if approved. She also stated she does not approve of collecting yet another tax when taxes are proposed to be raised considerably for next year Council Member Stigney expressed his displeasure with the fact the issue was not more thoroughly discussed at the Work Session. He inquired as to what the Ordinance specifies for repairs now, when the Ordinance was changed and why. He indicated Staff was not able to explain why the City made the change to require residents to pay from the home to the main rather than from the home to the curb stop box. It is his opinion anything in the boulevard should be City responsibility not the residents' responsibility. Council Member Stigney inquired as to whether new homes would be hooked up to service as part of this program at City expense. This proposal as he understands it is to have the City pay to repair from the home to the curb stop box. Requiring residents to pay for this program even if they do not wish to be involved in the program is not right in his opinion. The resolution that came before Council at the last meeting gave the option for residents to opt out of the program and that would be his preference. In his opinion he does not believe it is right to charge residents for yet another fee over and above what they are paying to go into the general fund if those residents do not wish to pay the fee for participation in the program. Council Member Stigney expressed his desire to have the program better defined. He then inquired as to whether the covered repairs were for a one time repair or if the service was ongoing. Public Works Director Ulrich indicated authorization for payment for repair of services would be at the sole discretion of the City but said he did not expect this to be a one-time service repair for residents. • Mounds View City Council December 11, 2000 Regular Meeting Page 7 Council Member Stigney inquired as to whether there was a curb stop box on either side of the street allowing the City to shut off water should there be a water service leak or someone is not paying for their service. Public Works Director Ulrich indicated there was a curb stop box on either side of the street to allow the City to shut off water service if the need arose. Council Member Stigney stated what the City is proposing is ongoing repair for any break in service now or in the future whether or not somebody has already paid to repair their service. He knows of no other City that does this in the area so Mounds View would be setting precedent by approving this program. In his opinion it gets back to who is responsible for what. Residents should not expect the City to provide a driveway, water and sewer lines to the street that is a resident responsibility. Providing the ability to hook up to streets, sewer and water is a City responsibility. Council Member Stigney stated he believes the City is remiss as it did not survey residents through the water bill to determine how many residents would be in support of paying for such a program. Mayor Coughlin indicated Council did not direct Staff to survey residents when water bills were sent out. Staff was directed to inform residents of the proposed change through other forms such as the billboard out front of City Hall. Council Member Stigney indicated the majority of Council did not want residents surveyed when the water bills were sent out but he had expressed a desire for polling of residents to determine interest level and inform of the proposed change. Mayor Coughlin indicated Council and City Staff had done a responsible job of informing residents of the proposed change as shown by resident turnout at the first public hearing and at tonight's meeting. Council Member Stigney indicated the Council elected not to have residents surveyed as he believes should have been done. Council Member Stigney inquired as to how much the City will have to pay the contractors to be under contract with the City. Public Works Director Ulrich explained that contractors had not yet been contacted so he had no price at this point in time. Council Member Stigney indicated the City is attempting to help residents pay high water service repair bills through this program. He knows of one City who helps by paying the first $1,000.00 of the repair. In his opinion there is a question as to whether or not the City should be paying for repairs. The way to fund those repairs is also an issue for Council Member Stigney. If the City took 1/10`" of the franchise fee and put it into this fund the City would not need to charge residents for water service repair. Mounds View City Council December 11, 2000 Regular Meeting Page 8 Council Member Stigney indicated the City could charge the water service repairs as a special assessment on the property allowing residents time to pay for those repairs or could use the interest earned on the TIF funds. Council Member Stigney indicated he would first like the program defined and then discuss how to fund the program. Charging the residents $16.00 a year to fund the program is fine if residents don't mind paying but some do and he would have liked to have residents polled for more resident input. MOTION/SECOND: Stigney/Thomas. To Table the Second Reading and Adoption of Proposed Changes to Ordinance 673, Chapter 906 of the Municipal Code, Section 906.04, Entitled "Liability for Repairs" Until the Issues Council Member Stigney Raised in Discussion are Discussed and Resolved at a Work Session. Ayes - 2 (Stigney/Thomas) Nays - 3 (Quick/Marty/Coughlin) Motion failed. Council Member Quick indicated the only way to survey all residents would be to pay a professional survey company to conduct a survey. Council Member Stigney has expressed an unwillingness to pay for said services. Council Member Stigney indicated surveying residents through water bills would have been sufficient due to the fact that this is a change to water services and all residents receiving water services receive a water bill. Mayor Coughlin clarified that this program has been likened to an insurance program and referred to as such by residents. Staff and Council have not referred to the program as an insurance program. In his opinion a targeted fee set to go to a specific fund is easier to pay than a fee going into the general fund to purchase miscellaneous items for the City. In reference to the franchise fee 2% of the franchise fee has been dedicated to specific street reconstruction. Regardless of which fund the money comes from it is or will be paid by the residents of Mounds View in some way, shape or form. The City has been discussing this issue off and on since earlier in the year when a resident addressed Council to discuss the hardship placed upon her when her water service broke twice within two weeks. Mayor Coughlin praised City Staff for their diligence and hard work in developing a program to assist residents with the high cost of water service repair. Council Member Marty reiterated the Mayor's comments that this program came out concern for assisting residents with large water service repair bills. There are people in the City on fixed incomes who cannot afford to pay to have their water service repaired. Even those not on a fixed income would have a hard time coming up with such a large amount of money to pay for an unexpected repair to water service. Council Member Marty indicated he believed the program makes sense and there is support for it. • Mounds View City Council Regular Meeting December 11, 2000 Page 9 Vote on Motion to Approve • A es - 3 Cou hlin/Mart / uick Na s - 2 Sti ne /Thomas Motion carried. Y t g YQ ) Y ~ g Y ) ROLL CALL: Coughlin/Marty/Quick Ayes; Stigney/Thomas Nays. B. Consideration of Resolution No. 5487, Creating a Water Service Repair Fund Account and Adopting a Fee Schedule. Public Works Director Ulrich explained this Resolution sets the fee for participation in the water repair service at $4.00 per quarter and establishes an account for those funds within the water services accounts. Council Member Thomas indicated she had requested a written copy of the actuarial numbers used to arrive at the fee per quarter to fund the program and had not received it. Public Works Director Ulrich indicated he had given her a copy after the last Council meeting. Council Member Thomas indicated she did not have a copy and would like one. Public Works Director Ulrich left the meeting, made a copy of that document and returned with a copy which he handed to Council Member Thomas. MOTION/SECOND: Marty/Quick. To Waive the Reading and Approve Resolution 5487, a Resolution Creating a Water Service Repair Fund Account and Adopting a Fee Schedule. Council Member Stigney raised a concern for the funding source for the program. He also indicated a concern for the funds collected if the City decides not to continue with the program. City Attorney Long indicated a new Council could opt to change or discontinue the program. At that time there would need to be a decision from Council as to what to do with the collected funds. It may be appropriate to refund those monies to residents as they were collected to fund a specific program that is no longer existing. Council Member Stigney stated his preference for funding sources to be 1/10`h of the franchise fee or interest off the TIF funds rather than charging residents $4.00 per quarter. Council Member Marty indicated the TIF funds Council Member Stigney was referring to would be discussed at a later point in the evening at the EDA meeting but are not readily available at this point for use as they are tied up until certain decisions concerning their use are made. Council Member Stigney indicated "tied up" is open to interpretation but said the franchise fee is readily available and the City would not be negatively impacted by designating 1/10"' of the franchise fee for this program. Mounds View City Council December 11, 2000 Regular Meeting Page 10 Mayor Coughlin expressed concern for using the franchise fee as it would hurt those residents not receiving the benefit of water services such as those who live in apartments or businesses. He believes the best order of business would be to have the program funded by those residents directly receiving the benefit of the services. Council Member Thomas agreed with Marty that the TIF funds are not available. She then inquired if Council would be amenable to discussing the particulars concerning the program now that the program has been approved in a work session. Council Member Thomas proposed a friendly amendment to the motion for approval of Resolution 5487 to move the discussion on funding for the program to the work session. Council Member Marty as the motioner declined Council Member Thomas' request for a friendly amendment. Ayes - 3 (Coughlin/Marty/Quick) Nays - 2 (Stigney/Thomas) Motion carried. C. Consideration of Resolution No. 5491, Adopting the 2001 Property Tax Levy and General Fund Budget. MOTION/SECOND: Quick/Marty. To Waive the Reading and Approve Resolution 5491, a Resolution Adopting the 2001 Property Tax Levy and General Fund Budget. Finance Director Kressel asked for the latitude to be able to make changes wrthm the budget if needed keeping the bottom line numbers as approved with the Resolution. Mayor Coughlin suggested a friendly amendment to allow Staff the latitude to change the numbers within the budget provided the bottom line numbers remain the same. Council Member Marty, the motioner, and Council Member Quick, the seconder, agreed to the friendly amendment. Council Member Stigney expressed his displeasure with the 22.4% increase in taxes indicating the City has the highest tax increase in the northern suburbs and he believes it to be excessive. With the 4% franchise fee, water meter fee, street light and utility fee, and the recently added water services fee, he feels the City is going to extremes and he does not and will not support it. Mayor Coughlin clarified the increase in taxes stems from certain issues residents have asked Council to address. Community based policing required the hiring of two additional officers. Poor long term planning has led to substandard buildings at some of the park facilities. One in particular needs to be completely replaced as it is in danger of being condemned. The City of Mounds View is an aging community and, as such, there are things that need repair and updating. Playground equipment in the parks needs to be updated which is a large expense. There are several other redevelopment issues budgeted for also. Mounds View City Council December 11, 2000 Regular Meeting Page 11 • • Council Member Quick added the City is paying for 25% of the salary of the police liaison officer at Edgewood Middle School. Council Member Thomas noted her agreement with Council Member Stigney that a tax increase of 22.4% is excessive but due to the fact she has no alternative plan she will support the increase this year noting she would not support such an increase in future years. Council Member Stigney expressed concern the City is going on a spending spree now that levy limits have been lifted. It is his opinion that things could have been done differently to avoid such a large increase in taxes. Mayor Coughlin noted that it was the unanimous direction of the council to direct the police chief to proceed with his previously presented recommendations for community policing. He stated that to be in favor of the plan, which included the addition of two officers, and then be opposed to the funding of the plan was an unfounded mandate placed on staff. Council Member Marty indicated the City has been losing money since it does not have an officer available to serve on the drug task force. Now that the City has authorized the hiring of additional officers the Chief has indicated one of the officers should be able to serve on the drug task force allowing the City to begin receiving some of the funds it has been losing. The school board came before Council asking for a police liaison officer at Edgewood Middle School. Playground equipment needs to be upgraded at many of the parks. The tax increase is going to provide for things residents have asked for and as such, he is in favor of the tax increase. Ayes - 4 Nays - 1 (Stigney) Motion carried. D. Consideration of Resolution 5492 Adopting the 2001 Budgets for Funds Other Than the General Fund MOTION/SECOND: Quick/Marty. To Waive the Reading and Approve Resolution 5492, a Resolution Adopting the 2001 Budgets for Funds Other Than the General Fund. Ayes - 4 Nays - 1(Stigney) Motion carried. E. Consideration of Resolution 5493, a Resolution Approving Transfers for 2000. MOTION/SECOND: Marty/Quick. To Waive the Reading and Approve Resolution 5493, a Resolution Approving Transfers for 2000. Ayes - 4 Nays - 1(Stigney) Motion carried. F. First Reading of Ordinance 676 Approving the 2000 Long Term Financial Plan. Mounds View City Council December 11, 2000 Regular Meeting Page 12 r~ ~~ MOTION/SECOND: Marty/Quick. To Waive the Reading and Approve Ordinance 676, an Ordinance Approving the 2000 Long Term Financial Plan. Finance Director Kressel indicated the Ordinance required a public hearing and asked Council to set the public hearing for 7:10 p.m., January 8, 2001. Mayor Coughlin proposed a friendly amendment to set the public hearing for 7:10 p.m., January 8, 2001. Council Member Marty, the motioner, and Council Member Quick, the seconder, approved of the friendly amendment. Ayes - 4 Nays - 1 (Stigney) Motion carried. • r~ L._ Mayor Coughlin explained that Items G and H as added to the agenda were items to be discussed in an executive session following the EDA meeting. Mayor Coughlin requested the consent of Council to allow Mayor-Elect Sonterre to be present during the executive session. Consent was reached by the Council to allow Mayor-Elect Sonterre to be present during the executive session. The Council Meeting recessed to the EDA meeting at 8:38 p.m. 11. Next Council Work Session: Next Council Meeting: Tuesday, January 2, 2000 - 6:00 P.M. Monday, January 8, 2001- 7:00 P.M. 12. ADJOURNMENT Mayor Coughlin adjourned the meeting at 10:15 p.m. Transcribed and recorded by: Joan Lenzmeier Timesaver Off Site Secretarial, Inc. Mayor Coughlin's proposed corrections to the December 11, 2000 council minutes: Page 5 - Change Dan Mandoza to Dana Mandoza Page 10, Iast paragraph, 3rd line -add "long term" between "poor" and "planning" Page 11, after 3rd paragraph -add: "Mayor Coughlin noted that it was the unanimous direction of the council to direct the police chief to proceed with his previously presented recommendations for community policing. He stated that to be in favor of the plan, which included the addition of two officers, and then be opposed to the funding of the plan was an unfunded mandate placed on staff." Page 12 -end of document -note that with the consent of the council the closed session portion of the council meeting was adjourned by Mayor Coughlin at 10:15 p.m. •