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City Council Regular Meeting Minutes February 8, 2011 Page 3 1 Motion by Councilmember Roth, seconded by Councilmember Gray, to approve Resolution 11- 2 019; Concerning the Commencement of Formal Renewal Proceedings under the Federal Cable 3 Communications Policy Act of 1984, as Amended. 4 5 6 7 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 Motion carried unanimously. B. Resolution 11-020; Authorizing the City of St. Anthony to Participate in the Minnesota GreenStep Cities Program. Jay Hartman, Public Works Director, presenting. Public Works Director Hartman presented background information regarding the GreenStep Cities program, which is a new assistance program available to all Minnesota cities that recognizes the implementation of 28 sustainable development best practices. He stated that the program has been developed by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency who will take the lead on the program. He explained that the best practices focus on cost savings and energy use reductions that lead cities beyond compliance and encourage a culture of innovation. He stated that depending on city size, a city that implements 8, 12 or 16 best practices organized into five categories will be recognized as a GreenStep City and implementation of additional best practices will garner additional recognition. He discussed the five categories of best practices, including building and lighting, land use, transportation, environmental management, and economic/community development and explained that within the 28 best practices there are 160 action steps to help cities accomplish each best practice in the five categories. He stated that the GreenStep Cities program represents a good fit for the City in that it fits well with the City's current mission statement and the program is in line with the City's strategic initiatives and goals set forth by the Council; in addition, the City should take credit for some of the projects it has completed in the past, e.g., the water re -use project and the connection of the Northeast Diagonal Trail. He added that the City would be considered a "B" classification which would require 12 best management practices. Mayor Faust noted that the City's commitment to participate in the GreenStep Cities program does not mean the City will be spending money on this program, rather, this is a way for the City to keep focused on some of the sustainable -type activities that the City needs to do in all future planning. He added that the City's participation in the program is intended to be concurrent with the ongoing work of the City and will keep Council and staff, as well as developers, focused on best practices. Mayor Faust suggested that the City place a link under green programs on its website to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's website so that residents can view the entire GreenStep Cities program requirements. Public Works Director Hartman agreed to place a link on the City's website for this program and to provide updates as necessary. Councilmember Stille commented that this program provides a framework for what the City has already been doing in terms of having a green component in its goals for a number of years and the City will not be spending any additional money on the program. He also asked what type of recognition the City will receive for completing the best practices. 3