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City Council Regular Meeting Minutes November 25, 2003 Page 2 experienced a small number of fires and a first-class station was being built "on the backs of the 2 residents." 3 4 Carol Patrek, 3633 Edward Street NE, stated she wanted to address the "fire station situation." 5 She asked if the City should rethink building the new station because of the need to send out for 6 new bids. She questioned the current response time and wondered if the building currently 7 housing the Fire Department could be used. She indicated she disagreed with the chosen 8 location and added she noticed homes across the street from the site were"up for sale." 9 10 Thomas Jaszewski, 3325 Croft Drive, indicated he agreed with Ms. Patrek and noted he had 11 lived in St. Anthony Village for 44 years. He stated he wanted to ask if all options were being 12 considered and cited the experience of driving by the Stonehouse and finding it had suddenly 13 been torn down and the employees no longer had their jobs. He questioned if the bidding system 14 should be reconsidered or scaled down and asked if a neighboring city could help cover fire 15 calls, as he felt most of the calls were for ambulances. 16 17 Mr. Jaszewski agreed taxes were a"situation"; however, he reminded the residents they had 18 voted for the increases to attract more people to St. Anthony Village. He added "we have to do it 19 smart,"however. 20 21 Chuck Haik, 2916 Hilldale Avenue, expressed concern regarding the additional new housing units in the Northwest Quadrant Redevelopment. He indicated the new housing would generate go a huge increase in traffic traveling on Silver Lake Road and Stinson Boulevard, which would 24 combine with traffic generated by"Big Box." He questioned if this had been studied by Council 25 or the developer, as he felt combining this new traffic with a fire station location would only add 26 to the confusion. 27 28 Mr. Haik indicated the urban-style townhomes and flats represented a stark difference in housing 29 and would not appeal to the broad range of residents in the Village. He stated he would like 30 feedback regarding his questions. 31 32 Barb Hickman, 3412—31"Avenue NE, stated she was a concerned parent regarding the 33 placement of the fire station and added she reiterated what had already been said. She noted the 34 firefighters appeared to like the temporary location and asked if the City should consider 35 remaining in the temporary location, considering the problems that were surfacing. She added 36 the response times from the temporary location were comparable to the new location. 37 38 Ms. Hickman also indicated the new station would be next to the community center, parks, 39 fields, tennis courts and schools, which would affect the safety of children. She added the new 40 station's location at the top of a hill would also cause safety issues on a busy street. 41 42 John Mondati, 3420 Highcrest Road, stated he had lived in St. Anthony Village for 14 years. He 43 explained he was an ex-pharmacist, cited his credentials and noted he had spent the last four years investigating mercury poisoning. He offered information to Council regarding this issue 10 and stated the City was building a fire station that would jeopardize the health of the firemen. 46 He added he wanted this information to be available to those involved in the use of the building.