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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC MINUTES 07261989 Meeting Sheet IIIIII VIII VIII VIII VIII VIII IIII IIII 101526 - Box: 21 Folder: CC MINUTES AND AGENDAS 1989 Document: CC MINUTES 07261989 ., 1 CITY OF ST. ANTHONY CITY COUNCIL MINUTES JULY 26 , 1989 The meeting was called to order at 6 : 30 p.m . with the Pledge of Allegiance led by Mayor Sundland. ROLL CALL Present: Enrooth (-enter 6.: 35 p.m-. ) , Makowske (enter 6 : 38 p.m. ) , Marks , Ranallo (exit 7 : 25 p.m. ) , Sundland Also Present: Susan VanderHeyden , Acting City Manager William Soth, City Attorney Planning Commissioner Werenicz LICENSES/PERMITS/PETITIONS Motion by Marks , seconded by Ranallo, to approve the, following licenses/permits : • Contractors : S & S Tree Specialists , Inc . , Inver Grove Heights , MN Carlson Lavine, Inc. , Minneapolis , MN New View Construction, Inc . , Minneapolis , MN Pacesetter Corporation, Omaha , NE McCallum Construction, Inc . , Shoreview, I4N Heating: Ray N. Welter Heating Company, Minneapolis, MN Motion carried unanimously. Motion by Ranallo, seconded by Sundland , to approve the following permits: 3 . 2 Beer Permits: ---.--Robert Anderson - 3523 Edward St . N. E. T. K. Gray - 2812 Anthony Lane South Aye: Sundland, Ranallo, Enrooth Nay: Marks Motion carried . 2 • PRESENTATION OF CLAIMS Motion by Marks , seconded by Enrooth, to approve payment of the verified claims . Motion carried unanimously. Motion by Marks , seconded by Ranallo, to approve payment of $19 , 627 . 86 to Metropolitan Waste Control Commission. Motion carried unanimously. Motion by Marks , seconded by Sundland , to approve payment of $444 . 91 and $925. 00 to Reike Carroll Muller Associates , Inc . Motion carried unanimously. Motion by Marks , seconded by Ranallo, to approve.. payment of. $7 , 203 to Corporate Resources Insurance. Motion carried unanimously. • REPORTS PLANNING COMMISSION - META Operating Limited Partnership Variance Request for 2701 Kenzie Terrace Planning Commission Recommendation Planning Commissioner Werenicz presented the matter of META Operating Partnership ' s variance request for the purpose of constructing a gravel/crushed rock parking lot at 2701 Kenzie Terrace . He reported that the Planning Commission had recommended a three-month time limit on the gravel lot, at which time the situation would be re-evaluated by the City Council . Mayor Sundland stated that he agreed with the Commission ' s recommendation of a three-month time period. Council Member __ Marks noted that an essential element of the Planning --- Commission' sdiscussion was the length of time involved in dealing with the PCA.- He asked whether any more information was forthcoming regarding potential pollution of the site. Commissioner Werenicz answered that he doubted whether such information would be available on short notice , and said that a more important issue from the Commission' s. perspective was the question of comparative costs among gravel , asphalt, and . 4 3 concrete surfaces . Mayor Sundland introduced Daniel Tyson , Attorney for META Operating Limited Partnership, and invited him to address the Council . Mr. Tyson informed the Council that META had met with the PCA a week before the last Planning Commission meeting,. and that the PCA had requested additional soil sample drilling basad on the fact that preliminary drilling had revealed ground contamination in the vicinity of the tanks as deep as 24 feet below the surface. Mr. Tyson stated that META' s consultant provided a report to META on July 20th recommending a remedial investigation work plan. The plan would cost approximately $20, 000 and would include the installation of three monitoring wells and the location of three additional tests to detect the presence of additional contaminants . He offered to share with the Council a copy of the draft of the contract between META and its consultant, but noted that it was as yet unsigned and subject to negotiation. . Mayor _. Sundland asked that Mr. Soth be given the copy of the contract for his review. Council Member Marks asked Mr. Tyson how deep the monitoring • wells would be . Mr. Tyson responded that the necessary depths would determined by their consultant. He said that the PCA' s method for 'determining the presence of groundwater contamination is to install wells in locations strategic to the underground flow of water. At this time that flow is unspecified, although the PCA believes it to be in a southeast direction toward the Mississippi River . Mr. Tyson stated that the PCA at this time was recommending one well in the parking lot area , one at the site of the tanks , and one a short distance away from the tanks in order to monitor the water flow up and down gradient . Council Member Marks asked if Mr. Tyson knew the time frame for the installation of the wells , the final recommendations ,- and ecommendations ;and the corrective action. Mr. Tyson indicated that META' s consultant had informed them that the testing and sampling would be concluded by the end of October and that at that time they would have a clear idea of what remediation would required. Mayor Sundland noted that the three-month time limit- for the gravel parking lot would nearly coincide with the conclusion of the- testing and sampling period. Mr. Tyson commented that the three-month time limit was acceptable to his client. Council Member Marks asked how long worst-case remediation • action would take. Mr. Tyson responded that META had hoped 4 to be able to combine the excavation of contaminated soil , if necessary, with excavation for construction purposes , although META has no identified use for the property at' this time . He speculated that excavation of contaminated soil , if required, could not be done in the wintertime but would have to wait until spring 1990. Mayor Sundland expressed the hope that Mr. Tyson' s client would be able to make good use of the property in the future once the contamination problem was solved. Mr. Tyson next presented cost information regarding various parking lot surfaces which was requested by the Planning Commission. He informed the Council META had received bids for grading and gravel surfacing of $5, 400 and $7 , 300; grading and asphalt surfacing, $13 , 200 ; and asphalt surface only, $11 , 000. He noted that landscaping with timbers , which could be included with either a gravel or an asphalt surface , would cost $3 , 600. z. Mr . Tyson expressed the view that the hardship to his client is not primarily economic, but that META is more concerned with the fact that they own a contaminated piece of property and that the contamination must be dealt with before • permanent use can be made of that property. He stated that META recognizes Kenzington ' s need for more parking but does not feel that it would be responsible at this time to install a concrete or asphalt parking lot which would be perceived as a permanent parking facility. Council Member Marks asked Mr.. Tyson whether his client would be willing to pave the parking lot with concrete or asphalt at the end of the three-month time period. Mr . Tyson responded that he did not know at this time what his client ' s reaction would be and that he did not have the authority to commit them to a course of action. Council Member Makowske asked Mr . Tyson whether there was a difference between the parking requirements of unit owners and renters at Kenzington, and whether the parking problem would be alleviated once purchasers of units outnumbered renters of units . Mr. Tyson responded that alleviation of the parking problem would be a logical outcome of minimizing _the number of renters in favor of purchasers , and that META originally foresaw the building being occupied by purchasers rather than renters -and planned parking the accommodations accordingly. Council Member Marks commented that the timing of Kenzington' s opening unfortunately coincided with a soft • condominium market. Council Member Ranallo pointed out, and 5 the Mayor and other Council Members concurred , that their approval of the Kenzington development had been based on the best information available to them at the time , although some of that information has since been proved erroneous . Council Action Motion by Marks, seconded by Enrooth, to accept the recommendation of the Planning Commission to grant a variance to META Operating Limited Partnership to construct a gravel parking lot at 2701 Kenzie terrace for a period of three months based on required future environmental tests on the soil of the parking area; the three-month time period to commence with Council approval . Motion carried. unanimously. VILLAGEFEST CHAIRPEOPLE THANK CITY Council Member Ranallo presented Dorothy and Tom Thorsen, VillageFest chairpeople . The Thorsens on behalf of the entire VillageFest Committee thanked the City Council and • Acting City Manager VanderHeyden for their cooperation and aid in making VillageFest a success , and expressed their hope that next year ' s VillageFest would be even bigger and better . Mayor Sundland commended the VillageFest Committee' on behalf of the Council and the City for their outstanding job. Ms . Thorsen commented that the Committee is still working to utilize the float in additional activites since it was budgeted to participate in six parades but has only participated in two to date. Council Member Ranallo suggested that the VillageFest Committee operate as a non-profit entity in the future. APPROVAL OF JULY 11 , 1989 Council Minutes Motion by Marks , seconded by Enrooth, to approve with the following changes : Page 1 , second paragraph: Change "Markowske" to "Makowske . " _ Page 5, last paragraph: Add the word "of" between "Joseph DiSanto" and "Victoria Management. " Page 6, last paragraph: Delete the words , "throughout the years . " Page 7 , fourth paragraph: Change "that Council" to "the Council . " Motion carried unanimously. 6 COUNCIL REPORTS Council Member Makowske reported that the St. Anthony Historical Society is beginning to receive information sheets from community members for its compilation of St. Anthony ' s history. She noted that Flash Photo, Black ' s Photo, and Ame ' s One-Hour Phot& have donated film and developing to the St . Anthony Historical Society for its project . Council Member Enrooth _reported on landfills , drawing statistics from a report presented in Congressional hearings prior to Minneapolis ' s institution of a plastics ban. He noted that the contents of landfills across the nation are the same, and that newspaper constitutes the largest percentage of landfill refuse. Much refuse that is considered biodegradable , such as paper, actually remains in landfills without deterioration for decades because landfills are packed so tight, and paper refuse actually presents more of a problem than refuse traditionally considered troublesome, such as plastic pop bottles. Council Member Marks commented that recycling of paper products is an important means of protecting our forests . He also expressed the opinion that research is needed to produce non-toxic ink for recyclable paper . Mayor Sundland reported that St . Anthony ' s participation in the Central Avenue parade was excellent exposure for the community, and offered thanks to all those to organized the event. Council Member Marks reported that the Ramsey County Regional Rail Authority recently approved an additional five routes , and that prospects look good for establishment of an integrated light rail and bus system in the metro area within the next few years . DEPARTMENTS AND COMMITTEES Budget Reports Acting City Manager VanderHeyden informed the Council that her office would begin to prepare a budget overage report for. the Council ' s review rather than highlighting the overages in . the full budget report. The Council agreed that such a report would be useful . In light of the information presented by Council Member Enrooth about waste paper, the Council agreed that, rather than including the full budget s 7 report in the Council packet on a monthly basis , a circulating monthly budget report would be made available to the Council and that only the overage report would be included in the Council packet on a monthly basis . Orders were then given to file the following: 1 . Budget Reports through June 30 , 1989 . 2 . Hance. & LeVahn, Ltd . re : Matters conducted at the Hennepin County District Court up to and including July 5, 1989 . ACTING CITY MANAGER Playground Equipment Acting City Manager VanderHeyden informed the Council that . the PTA had requested that the Public Works Department, free of charge , remove old and dangerous playground equipment from the Wilshire Park Elementary grounds and then excavate the area in preparation for the installation of new equipment. Acting City Manager VanderHeyden added that similar work had • been done in the past at the request of the school board, and that the Public Works Department had billed the school board for the work. Because of controversy over the charges at that time, the current request comes from the PTA . Council Member Makowske asked whether the City would incur any additional liability because the work would be done on school property, and Acting City Manager VanderHeyden responded that none would be incurred because the work would be done within the city limits . Mayor Sundland suggested that the first step should be to find out whether the Public Works Department has the time available for such a project. If so, and if the project is to be done without charge, then the work could be done at the convenience of the Public Works Department. He further suggested that the City itself inform the school that the. work has been requested by the PTA. ----_-Counc.i_l-_Member Marks said that the Public Works Department might be allowed- to proceed with the project on the basis that the. school grounds are effectively used as a park most of the time. Waste Management Newspaper Pickup- No Longer Free Acting City Manager VanderHeyden introduced a letter from R Waste Management indicating that they are no longer able to pick up St. Anthony' s newspaper for free because they cannot dispose of it for free . Acting City Manager VanderHeyden indicated that the cost would be approximately $150 per month from now on, which would deplete the Beautification Fund . Council Member Enrooth indicated that curbside newspaper pickup will be instituted within two to four months . On that basis , Council Member Makowske recommended that the City continue to have Waste Management pick up the newpaper until curbside newspaper pickup is in place . Mayor Sundland agreed that to halt the current program might discourage people from recycling their newspapers . Acting City Manager VanderHeyden agreed to investigate the availability of funds to pay Waste Management to pick up the newspaper for the next several months . Well #3 Acting City Manager introduced a memo from Public Works Director Larry Hamer describing damage to Well #3 resulting in discontinuance of its use . She stated that the City now has a signed agreement with the MPCA to go ahead with the • permanent system, but that Hamer recommends an immediate, interim repair of Well #3 because of the length of time required to proceed with the permanent system. Responding to Council Member Enrooth' s question, Acting City Manager VanderHeyden stated that Hamer does not plan to give Bergerson Caswell Company consideration in the future, although he intends to use their services at this time because it is the cheapest and fastest way to accomplish the interim repairs . Council Member Makowske asked whether another company might be hired to make the interim repairs and whether the City might be able to obtain a settlement from Bergerson Caswell Company for the failure. Acting City Manager VanderHeyden responded that no compensation is available from Bergerson Caswell because the work was a revamping project and no new parts were used. City Attorney Soth concurred, noting that if no warranties were provided no compensation could be demanded on that basis . Council Member Marks suggested that performance criteria be written into contracts the City lets in the future, although he admitted that performance standards are difficult to formulate and to document and evaluate . Council Action 9 Motion by Marks, seconded by Makowske, to approve expenditure of funds to Bergerson Caswell Company to repair Well #3 . Motion carried unanimously. Agha Khan Requests Lease Agreement Commitment Acting City Manager VanderHeyden reported that Agha Khan, which leases space in City Hall under the Community Services agreement, has requested an option to renew their lease beyond the coming four years . VanderHeyden informed Agha Khan that such an option could not be put in. the contract because the future disposition of the building is unknown. City Attorney Soth commented that he felt Agha Khan would be willing to lease the space without the option even though they would rather have it. Mayor Sundland recommended that the City follow the advice of the City Attorney and Acting City Manager and omit the option from the contract. Contribution to Mayor ' s Finland Trip Acting City Manager VanderHeyden presented a check -to Mayor Sundland in the amount of $100 from Lois , Judy, Pat, Connie, • and VanderHeyden, to be used towards his Finland trip. The Mayor expressed his appreciation for the contribution and his intention to personally thank the donees. ADJOURNMENT Motion by Enrooth, seconded by Marks , to adjourn the City Council meeting at 7 : 56 p.m. Motion carried unanimously. Respectfully submitted , Doris Hoskin, Secretary .14f) Ph A & A 4,V ffs 400%eydjum OW A44 --- - - Mayor A4D ATTEST: �rin City Clerk