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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC MINUTES 06111974 Meeting Sheet IIIIIIIVIIIVIIIVIIIVIIIVIIIIIIIIIII 105756 Box: 35 Folder: CC MINUTES AND AGENDAS 1974 Document: CC MINUTES 06111974 V CITY OF ST. ANTHONY COUNCIL MINUTES June 1111974 The meeting was called to order by Mayor Miedtke at 7:30 P.M. The following were present at roll call: Haik, Sauer, Sundland, Miedtke, Stauffer. Also present: Jerry Dulgar, City Manager William Soth, City Attorney Jim Fornell, Adm. Asst. The following amendments were made to the Council minutes of May 28, 1974: Amendment #2: Should be "beer" license for Doc's Purity. Page 2-Para. 7: Strike "retaining the present width of the road" Page 5-Para. 6: The following motion should follow the motion to reconsider: "Voting on the prior motion to table action Nay: All Motion failed." Page 6-Para. 2: "He assured her this 'possibly' could be done". Page 6-Para. 8: Should be Tom "Rohner". Page 8-Para. 1: Add "and to reject substitutions suggested by other • contractors" after "low bidders". Page 8-Para. 8: Should be"leashing" not "leasing". Motion by Councilman Sauer, seconded by Councilman Stauffer to approve the minutes of May 28, 1974, as amended. Motion carried. Action on the approval of the minutes of the June 4, 1974 Special Council Meeting were tabled to give the Council time to study them. Mr. I.C. Comstock, City Engineer arrived at 7:40 P.M. Marlys Berg, Chairman of the Human Relations Committee presented the minutes of her committee's May 21, 1974 meeting. She reported there had been no response to the invitations to apartment residents to attend a meeting of the Committee. At her recommendation the following motion was made: Motion by Mayor Miedtke, seconded by Councilman Sauer to reimburse Jerry Cowan the $7.00 entrance fee he paid when he attended the Minnesota Rights Committee meeting April 6, 1974. Motion carried. • -2- Mayor Miedtke suggested that the Manager review the youth contact program cond- ucted by Hans Selvog when the first year of that program is up. • Councilman Stauffer explained the Purpose section of the proposed Ordinance to Protect Water Courses and Water Bodies in St. Anthony. After the discussion initiated by Councilman Sauer on the "Limiting Use'.' section, it was decided that the proposed ordinance draft was intended to only set up the purposes of the ordinance and specifics would be dealt with later. Councilman Haik suggested contacts with Bob Schreiner regarding a meeting of the residents on Silver Lake and Jim Brown regarding the fill being placed in the pond at the Salvation Army Camp. Motion by Mayor Miedtke, seconded by Councilman Sauer to give conceptual approval to the outline of the purpose of the proposed ordinance dealing with water courses and bodies in St. Anthony. Motion carried. Mr. Frank Holien and his attorney, Mr. Robert Halva, appeared to seek approval of the final platting of Mr. Holien's property at 3901 Silver Lake Road. Motion by Councilman Sundland, seconded by Councilman Stauffer to approve the plat for Holien's 1st Addition. Motion carried. • Mr. & Mrs. Harold Henkel appeared to get approval for the final platting of their property on Foss Road but were informed by the Attorney that the legal description on the plat he had in his possession did not correspond to the Certificate of Tit- le. Motion by Mayor Miedtke, seconded by Councilman Sundland to table action on plat- ting the Henkel property until the next Council meeting June 25, 1974• Motion carried. Motion by Councilman Sundland, seconded by Councilman Stauffer to adopt Resolution #74-021.(Transfer funds for addressing machine) RESOLUTION No. 74-021 A RESOLUTION MODIFYING THE 1974 BUDGET Motion carried. The meeting was recessed from 8:13 P.M. to 8:17 P.M. in order that it might be held in the Wilshire School Cafeteria to accomodate the overflow crowd who were interested in the discussion of the Street Improvement Project. The discussion opened with Mayor Miedtke reading the two petitions and two letters addressed to the Council pertaining to the proposed project. One petition requested a "comprehensive document" be prepared by the Council em- bodying a program of street improvements for the whole community and a more stringent enforcement of speed laws,particularly on 29th Avenue N.E. A letter from Omar Shabaz, 3013 29th Avenue N.E. , requested that the residents be -3- provided with all the facts including results of environmental study and cost analysis for all the alternative methods of upgrading 29th Avenue N.E. before any • firm decision is made by the Council. He also requested that the speed be limited to 20-25 miles per hour on 29th until the road is repaired. The letter from Mr. David Freund, 3009 29th Avenue N.E. , agreed with the premises of Mr. Shabaz' letter and asked for a clarification of MSA funds requirements, legal aspects of restricting traffic on 29th and asked what the environmental impact a 9 ton road would have on the neighborhood. Mr. Richard Weatherman, 2613 29th Avenue N.E., said he felt the Council was trying to make a decision without adequate decision making information and felt they should consult an urban planner. He wanted a comprehensive plan developed for the community which could be phased out in 3, 5 or 10 years. Mr. Weatherman also reported on his contacts with the Minnesota Truckers Association and their promise to try to keep their rigs off 29th. Mr. John Andrychowic, 2$09 Coolidge St. N.E. , asked for details of the settlement between the contractor for the sewer project and the City of St. Anthony, inferr- ing that the settlement by the City for more than the contract price was a result of lack of supervision by the City Engineer. The Manager told him that the out-of-court settlement was made against the advice of the Engineer who felt the City could win the case handily and the suit was settled out of court to avoid court costs which would exceed the award amount if they won the suit. • Mayor Miedtke said the plan to upgrade Coolidge was part of the long range plans for upgrading the streets southwest of 29th Avenue and was placed first on the program because of the necessity of installing the storm sewer system in that street. He said funds allocated from the storm sewer funds would pay the cost of replacing roadbed damaged during the installation but that the whole street had outlived its life expectancy. He said the program of replacing streets in the municipality might not have been given as much publicity as it should but that any publication of long range plans of the City in the past had never resulted in any great input from the residents. Councilman Stauffer said the streets included in the Improvement Project were built with a short life expectancy which they have long outlived even though they might seem adequate for driving on. Mr. Art Belmont, 3216 36th Avenue N.E. was more concerned with maintenance than major repair. He said he had called regarding the cracks in the roadbed of 36th Avenue but nothing was done. Mr. Dulgar reported that the Maintenance Department had mudjacked 36th Avenue many times until such action no longer did any good. He said the budget for the Maint- enance Fund which included salaries, pensions, snowplowing, etc. , amounted to $5,000 per mile and stated further that St. Anthony doesn't have either the men or money to handle the repair of the cracks on all the streets of the community. • Mr. Don Wethe, 3320 36th Avenue N.E. , said 36th was so badly broken up because of the heavy traffic and felt it was unfair for the residents to be charged a full assessment for its repair. Later in the evening he expressed his dislike of a general assessment for all streets because some were "b uilt •to only stand up for 15 years and others for 50 years". • -4- Mr. 4-Mr. Gerald Dunphy, 3104 36th Avenue N.E. wanted to know why Minneapolis residents • only paid 15% of the costs of constructing new roads or maintenance expenses and was informed that Minneapolis used general fund monies for said purpose many years ago and were not therefore restricted by the levy limitation for such costs. When he questioned how much a machine which could handle all the crack filling would cost he was told that although no one at the meeting knew what it was, it was speculated that it was prohibitive since even the State Highway Department con- tracted for road repair and it was also pointed out that the cost of such a machine would have to include the manpower to operate it. Councilman Stauffer mentioned that there had been a discussion at the last Council meeting of the possibility of an increase in traffic on 36th Avenue resulting from the upgrading of 37th Avenue by Ramsey County and a consideration of the alternative of letting the repair go until that project is completed and gambling that the roadbed would not deteriorate completely before 37th was open again. Mayor Miedtke then presented a resolution which was seconded by Councilman Stauffer. None of the Council was against a comprehensive plan for the whole community and most of them defended the Preliminary Report and others like it from which they could get information regarding the conditions of the streets of the city. Mayor Miedtke said an urban planner could give advice on traffic but would not be able to help replacing deteriorated streets. Councilman Sundland Felt a public hearing on all street improvements and mainten- ance measures was necessary. He told the residents present "What you are really saying is "Show us a plan and maybe we'll buy it." Councilman Stauffer felt there had to be some way of letting the community know "what our plans are", but felt people didn' t pay much attention to publication of general plans and only became interested in projects which directly affected them. She expressed her belief that the public also had a responsibility to keep them- selves informed on the communications the City tried to get to them through newspaper articles, official publications and the newsletters which accompany the billing statements. Councilman Haik told the group that the Council had requested the Preliminary Report from the Engineer and pointed out other community planning reports which were not used once they were drawn up. She said she was against spreading the assessments for all improvements over the entire community after only one public hearing attended by a small proportion of the residents. She also pointed out the community wide plan which would result from the revision of the zoning ordinance by the Planning Board. C.W. Kirk, 3612 Penrod Lane, still doubted that 36th Avenue "had to be improved in such a manner" and felt "The street was no different than it has been". He also questioned why a decision was not being made that evening by the Council and was told that the letter he had been sent explained the Council was unable to make a decision until they were in receipt of further information regarding soil borings and MSA funding. Councilman Stauffer stated that the Maintenance Department had given them some information on maintenance costs which would help them arrive at a decision. • Councilman Sauer then stated he wanted to amend the Mayor's resolution to read that 100 % of the improvements be assessed on the abutting property" and Councilman Stauffer felt that the percentage of assessment should not be stated in the resolution. She wanted more background information on assessing. Mr. Dulgar told -5- her our fiscal consultants could work with the Council on their decisions re- garding assessments. Councilman Sauer then withdrew his motion to amend the resolution. Mayor Miedtke withdrew the resolution. Motion by Councilman Stauffer, seconded by Councilman Sauer to table action on the Street Improvement Project until the Council has received all the inform- ation it had requested regarding soil borings results, a decision on MSA funding and assessing advice from a fiscal consultant. Motion carried. Mr. Comstock tried to estimate the time it would take to get the infozmation the Council needed. Motion by Mayor Miedtke to direct the Engineer to prepare a plan for upgrading 29th Avenue with a 40 foot, back to back, 9 ton road utilizing all the existing curbing possible. The motion died for lack of a second. Councilman Stauffer then expressed a desire for more information on the costs for a road of lesser design and wanted to know if trucks could legally be kept off a 5 ton road. The City Attorney said that if the street is a municipal street the city can impose reasonable restrictions on trucking. He said he felt reasonable restrict- ion might mean not cutting off the flow of existing traffic. The Council and the Engineer again discussed the methods of changing a designat- ion of a street from a Minnesota State Aid to a municipal street. Mayor Miedtke reminded the Council that if the street is removed from MSA the act- ion will result in a drop in allocation of MSA funds for the whole community. He told them that he and State Senator Stowkowski had discussed future legislation dealing with the practice of municipalities designating a good percentage of their streets as MSA streets in order to get state funding. He asked the Council to consider whether they wanted to take 29th off MSA designation and lose funding or if they wanted to designate another street to take its place to retain the funding. Councilman Stauffer wanted to consider the alternatives of (1) making a smaller road (2) paying the full amount of construction costs of such a road and (3) making the best efforts possible to limit traffic on 29th. She also wanted to consider the drawbacks of waiting for a decision. Councilman Sundland felt that, if the completion of construction of Highway 8 might alleviate the truck traffic problem on 29th, the Council should wait and see. Tom Shaffer, 2513 29th Avenue N.E. , accused the Council of ignoring the first petition the residents had delivered to the Council at the May 28th meeting which • he said stated that the road did not require replacement and the residents did not wish replacement. He said "The present petition is only a holding action". -6- Leonard Toth, 2900 Roosevelt St. N.E. agreed with Mr. Shaffer that "with a few exceptions, 29th Avenue is in good condition" and said it was not fair to RsAess residents on 29th for the cost of a major street. He wanted restoration to a good street, not major replacement. John Miskowiec, 1300 29th Avenue N.E. wanted the May 28th petition considered and the Council to wait until Highway 8 is completed to make a decision. Motion by Councilman Stauffer and seconded by Councilman Sundland to direct the Manager to post 29th Avenue limiting the weight of trucks to a reasonable weight to be determined by the Manager and a consultant. Voting on the motion: Aye: Haik, Sauer, Sundland, Stauffer Nay: Miedtke The meeting was recessed at 10:05 P.M. to be reconvened at 10:25 P.M. in the Council Chambers. Motion by Councilman Sauer, seconded by Councilman Sundland to strike Rule 8 of the Building Use Rules of the City of St. Anthony to allow political parties to use city facilities for political meetings. Motion carried. Mr. Comstock discussed with the Council the letter received from the Irving Lamppa Company,contractors for the Water Pressure Improvement Project and re- commended that the Council proceed to suspend work on the project for 90 days. Motion by Mayor Miedtke to direct the Engineer to inform the contractor that the Council refuses to pay any additional costs feeling that his $3,000 figure is unjustified and that the Council directs him to begin construction or they will find him in default of the contract. Motion withdrawn. Motion by Mayor Miedtke to direct the Engineer and Attorney to initiate the con- demnation proceedings to secure easements necessary to the project and to suspend the work for 90 days. Motion withdrawn. Action on the matter was temporarily tabled until the Engineer and Attorney had been given time to consult on procedures. After receiving recommendations from Monroe Hall, Fire Chief, regarding the purchase of new fire engine, the following motion was made: Motion by Councilman Sundland, seconded by Councilman Sauer to accept the bid and award the contract for a new fire engine to General Safety Equipment Corporation for $59,305.00 and that $17,000.00 of this amount be designated from Revenue • Sharing Funds now on hand. Motion carried. -7- The discussion of the Lamppa matter was resumed with the following motion being made: • Motion by Mayor Miedtke, seconded by Councilman Sundland to table action on the letter of June 10, 1974 from the Irving Lamppa Company, contractors for the Water Pressure Project and direct the Attorney and Engineer to begin condemnation proceedings. Motion carried. Motion by Councilman Sauer, seconded by Mayor Miedtke to direct Engineer to inform contractor that unless he responds within 3 days to the agreement of installation of water mains at the easterly side of the school property at no additional charge that the contract will be suspended for 90 days as allowed in contract documents. Motion carried. Following a discussion of whether it would be wise to authorize a change order whereby the general contractors for the liquor lounge remodelling job would take over that portion of the project which had been let for bids and rejected but which had not been included in the original general contracting bid, the follow- ing motions were made: Motion by Mayor Miedtke, seconded by Councilman Stauffer to direct the Manager to advertise for bids for the items numbered 8,9,10,13,15,16,17,18,19,20 and 22 in the April 22, 1974, Harrison House quotation for equipment, furniture and • fixtures necessary for the remodelling of the municipal liquor lounge. Motion carried. Motion by Councilman Sundland, seconded by Councilman Sauer to direct the architect to prepare the plans and specifications for the items numbered 1 thru 7 of the Harrison House quotation of April 22 and to authorize the Manager to advertise for bids for the equipment and fixtures included. Motion carried. The Council discussed Police Chief Ed Brown's memorandum concerning the parking conditions at the Apache Medical Center and since his report did not indicate a serious safety problem at that location, Mayor Miedtke ruled that action on restricting parking from 37th Avenue N.F. to Silver Lane be tabled. Motion by Councilman Sauer, seconded by Councilman Stauffer to express the Council's sympathy with the Food Shelf Program and to authorize the use of the St. Anthony Fire Station as a collection depot. Motion carried. Motion by Councilman Sundland, seconded by Councilman Stauffer to refer to the Community Services Advisory Committee the May 29th,1974 letter from the Mirror Lake Investment Company protesting the establishment of a park on City property • at Mirror Lake Manor. Motion carried. -8- Motion by Councilman Sundland, seconded by Councilman Sauer to authorize the City Manager to enter into an agreement with Independent School District 282 .whereby the Maintenance Department will seal coat the district's school parking lots. Motion carried. The Suburban Health Nursing Service Report of May 1, 1974 was filed as inform- ational. Mayor Miedtke reported the merger of Suburban League of Municipalities and the Metro. League of Municipalities into an organization to be known as the Assoc- iation of Metropolitan Municipalities under which he felt the suburbs would now have more clout. Motion by Councilman Haik, seconded by Councilman Stauffer to grant all licenses listed in the June :_llth,1974 agenda. Motion carried. Motion by Councilman Haik, seconded by Councilman Stauffer to authorize the payment of all Verified Claims listed in the June 11th agenda. Motion carried. There was no action on remodelling City Hall following a discussion of possibility of a bond issue passing and other alternatives to finding the needed expansion space for the City government. It was agreed that Mayor Miedtke was to inform the School Board that there was no urgency to govern their making a decision re- garding the use of Parkview School. There was also no action cn the Mayor's suggestion that the Engineer be directed to prepare plans for a 7 ton road with existing curbs on 29th Avenue N.F. and the group again indicated their desire for more information of comparative fig- ures on costs and life expectancy for 9 ton, 7 ton and 5 ton road beds. Motion by Councilman Stauffer, seconded by Councilman Sauer to adjourn at 12:37AM. Motion carried. ZIayor ATTEST: wlvs CLERK C'ty Man 7dV •