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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2009/05/13 CCM - WSROSEMOUNT CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION PROCEEDINGS MAY 13, 2009 CALL TO ORDER Pursuant to due call and notice thereof a work session of the Rosemount City Council was held on Wednesday, May 13, 2009 at 6:33 p.m. in the Conference Room at City Hall, 2875 145 Street West, Rosemount. Mayor Droste called the meeting to order with Council Members DeBettignies, Shoe Corrigan and Bills attending. Council Member Weisensel arrived at 9:26 p.m. Staff members present included City Administrator Johnson, City Clerk Domeier, City Engineer Brotzler, Director of Parks and Recreation Schultz, Community Development Director Lindquist, City Attorney Bob Vose and Assistant City Administrator Foster. DISCUSSION 2.A. Safe Route to School (SRTS) Presentation City Engineer Brotzler provided background on the item. He stated that principals from Rosemount Elementary and Middle Schools along with Shannon Park Elementary were invited to the presentation. Gary Anger, Red Pine Elementary School Principal, provided a brief presentation on the SRTS program implemented at Red Pine Elementary School. Council Member Shoe Corrigan stated that with the redesigning of the Downtown the goal was to develop safe walking paths within proximity to local schools. She questioned who would identify the crossing areas. Mr. Anger stated that the National Center for Biking and Walking was instrumental in setting up the program at Red Pine. He noted that the City of Eagan paid for the traffic study as part of the non infrastructure costs and that Red Pine had a $7,000 partnership with Blue Cross Blue Shield. He also stated that a lot of things could be done without cost. Council Member Shoe Corrigan also questioned if Red Pine's PTO paid for the crossing guard training and gear. Mr. Anger replied that the district does an in- district camp for patrol captains and the school provides a patrol liaison. The district pays for the training which the captains and liaisons share with the students. Mayor Droste talked about the importance of parents being involved with the school and building a strong community. Mr. Brotzler asked what strategies were used to get the parents involved in the program. Mr. Anger stated that their strategy was trying to offer a variety of options. He added that some programs have a lot of energy at the beginning but then require reminders to keep a constant energy. Director of Parks and Recreation Schultz inquired about the biggest challenges and barriers with the program. Mr. Anger replied that the biggest barrier has been how easy it is for a parent to drop a child off at school versus having the child walk or bike to school. He added that once a parent becomes involved in the program they see how important it is a good thing. He also stated that it takes time to make the program work and how important it is to be patient in the process. Council Member Bills questioned if there were any concerns about liability. Mr. Anger replied that he didn't know how a school could be liable for encouraging healthy habits for kids. City Engineer questioned what things Mr. Anger found the City of Eagan was helpful on or what would they do differently. Mr. Anger commented that Rosemount has a very ROSEMOUNT CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION PROCEEDINGS MAY 13, 2009 progressive leadership and he was impressed by the City's initiative. He stated the City of Eagan had Red Pine write the grant and take the leadership. Council Member Bills questioned if there would be a cutback on busing. Mr. Anger stated that the District has regulations on the amount of busing that is provided. Director of Parks and Recreation Schultz stated that staff has met with the transportation director. He added the district did not want to change their busing policies because of Rosemount's uniqueness of having Highway 3 and the railroad tracks. Mr. Schultz stated that staff will have to go to district and show the safe routes indentified and it will be the district's decision to determine if the routes are safe enough for students to walk to school. Council Member Bills questioned the enforcement of fines in school areas and if they could be doubled similar to construction zones. Chief of Police Kalstabakken replied that he would check with the City Prosecutor and determine if it could be done through the City Ordinance. Mayor Droste suggested that the crosswalks should be more identifiable. Council Member Shoe Corrigan added that the police officers should be more visible. Discussion was held regarding the grant monies available for the program. Mr. Brotzler stated that this week the City was doing pedestrian counts around the school. Next week traffic counts in the area will be conducted. He explained that with the data collected staff will be able to bring the traffic volumes and other concerns back to the schools. With that information recommendations can be given to the school regarding travel patterns available to parents and creating drop -off locations. Mt. Brotzler added that additional information has been sent in the past to neighbors of schools and posted on the City's website. Staff will work with the school, if interest is shown, to coordinate and publicize a walk to school day event. Mayor Droste suggested contacting Pastor Goodwin after the data in collected. Mr. Brotzler stated that staff will identify recommendations based upon the information collected. Mr. Schultz provided information about the grants the City of Lakeville received for their SRTS program. Mr. Brotzler noted that this was the last year of the federal transportation bill. Staff was directed to inquire about potential partnerships with Blue Cross Blue Shield. 2.B. Discussion of Franchise issues relating to FTTH /Rudder and Charter City Administrator Johnson summarized the information as provided in the staff report. City Attorney Bob Vose expanded on the background information provided by Mr. Johnson. He noted that it was evident from the materials provided and what has been said in the past that the issue is the build out obligations. He stated that Rudder no longer wanted to be the provider but the obligation to build out has been an impediment to the sale. Mr. Vose reminded the City Council that Rudder has agreed to the build out provision twice as part of the contractual agreement. He added there was a suggestion that if the City enforces the franchise by revocation (bullet 5 within the staff report) that it would force Rudder to file bankruptcy. He stated that residents would suffer from the bankruptcy and the system may be sold in pieces. Mr. Vose made it clear that it was a complicated set of circumstances and that FTTH /Rudder would have obligations to their customers when they declare bankruptcy. ROSEMOUNT CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION PROCEEDINGS MAY 13, 2009 Mayor Droste questioned the PEG channels update that was provided in a letter by Rudder. Kevin Kawell stated that the City of Apple Valley would not grant access for fiber to be added their City Hall. He stated that later they did gain access but had to pay $100 a year to lease the space in the four inch duct. Mayor Droste was concerned about the rates provided by Rudder because of the inability to build out or finance the system. He felt the best option was to liquidate it and allow the market to dictate what should happen next. Mr. Kawell apologized for the situation and stated it was not the intent when they negotiated the agreement. He explained the Rudder's lending situation. He added that if there was any way possible to do the project they would do it just to keep to their word. Mr. Kawell stated that Rudder is spending every minute trying to get leads from different companies in the area. He provided information on the potential telecom companies interested in purchasing the system and letters of intent they have received. Clyde Ahlquist, the attorney representing Rudder, provided more information on the letters of intent they have received along with the liquidation values. He noted that Rudder was most interested in continuing to serve the subscribers in Rosemount and the other communities being served by FTTH. Mr. Vose stated his concerns about the second option which focused on small buyer. He was worried about continuing to say the system must be built out by a date certain as it would affect who would buy the system from Rudder. Mr. Johnson questioned if the City Council would consider extending the build out beyond three years. Mayor Droste stated the City would have to because they are currently forcing something that is not reasonable. Council Member Shoe Corrigan was reluctant to extend the build out period as the goal has been to provide infrastructure for the community not just for residential areas but for commercial and industrial areas. Further discussion was held on the built out obligation period. Jim Hickle, President, Velocity Telephone, Inc. expressed concern about the system being sold to Embark or Sprint. He provided information on the cities he has worked with along with the goals, practices and financial information of Velocity. Discussion was held about possible joint ventures. Mayor Droste questioned the timeline moving forward. Mr. Vose explained the options as outlined in the staff report. Discussion was held about the walk -away date. Council Member DeBettignies stated they needed to think about the stakeholders. Mr. Vose further explained that the City would have rights should have rights should Rudder chose to liquidate. Mr. Johnson stated that Rudder has not made a franchise fee payment in 2009. Mr. Ahlquist stated he would follow up on the status of the payment. Council Member Shoe Corrigan requested another update in 30 days. Mr. Vose provided information on Charter filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy. He stated that the City Council will need to pass a resolution approving the reorganization. Mr. Vose expected the item to be before the City Council within the next 30 to 60 days. 1 1 ROSEMOUNT CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION PROCEEDINGS MAY 13, 2009 2.C. Consider proposal to renew WSB Engineering Agreement City Administrator Johnson summarized the contract proposal as summarized in the staff report. Mayor Droste stated that if the City had its own full-time engineer the engineer would be able to bill back their time. Mr. Johnson stated that typically it would not happen that way and that the bill back rate would be less than 25 He added that the City would still need to use an engineering firm for project related items. Mr. Johnson stated that that majority of the volume is development related and not ultimately paid for by the City. Mr. Brotzler added that in 2006 the City had the highest development related activity and since that time the amount has tailed off. Mayor Droste suggested having a three month termination clause. He was also concerned about the changing of job titles because of the hiring of two supervisors since he has been on the City Council. Discussion was held regarding the structure of the engineering, public works and building departments when the City had its own engineer and the current set -up. Mr. Johnson stated the importance of having Mr. Brotzler in an authority role. The City Council also discussed having a cause clause within the agreement. Council Member Bills questioned how many other cities WSB serves. Mr. Brotzler explained that all of WSB's clients are municipal clients such as cities, counties and MnDOT. He provided more information about WSB's transportation and municipal groups. He also provided company information on WSB including that it was locally owned with approximately 165 employees. City Council present supported the proposed contract, change in job title, three month termination clause and cause clause. The item was proposed to be on the June 2, 2009 agenda for consideration. 2.D. Goals Work Plan City Administrator Johnson stated that following the adoption of the citywide goals for 2009 staff developed a generalized work plan for a number of specific desired outcomes included in the goals. Council Member DeBettignies suggested that Alan Cox should be the staff member assigned to "Link services to other comm. Groups Mayor Droste also wanted to ensure that three town hall meetings were held. He suggested discussing key items such as the water rates. Council Member Shoe Corrigan suggested holding a meeting in the new community room at the Waterford Project or at the new library. UPDATES 3.A. Water Utility Rates City Engineer Brotzler shared the water rates that Utilities Commission has considered on two occasions and their proposed recommendation to the City Council. He stated that the Utilities Commission also reviewed the sewer rates at the meeting and discussed the use of second meters. Mr. Brotzler provided history on the sewer rates. ROSEMOUNT CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION PROCEEDINGS MAY 13, 2009 Council Member Shoe Corrigan questioned the planning for a water treatment plant. Mr. Brotzler provided more information on the debt service and stated that the water treatment plant debt service was estimated to begin in 2016. Mayor Droste requested that staff clarify the issues and hold a public meeting to discuss consumption, conservation and second meters. Mr. Brotzler provided information on the communications strategy he and Communications Coordinator Cox were developing. The City Council wanted to receive input from the residents on the proposed water rates. They also requested that the sewer rates be addressed at a future work session. 3.B. Updates by City Council /Staff Council Member Bills questioned if Planning Commissioners were given City business cards. Community Development Director Lindquist explained that the Planning Commissioners were not considered City employees and they should not be representing the City when meeting with the general public. Community Development Director Lindquist stated that DCTC has started a Chrysler repair shop in the former City Hall building. She explained that DCTC did not apply for or receive a building permit or go through the required site plan review. Ms. Lindquist added that staff was also concerned about the outdoor storage. She planned to send a letter to DCTC about the situation. Community Development Director Lindquist stated that Tom Perkarski was selling landscaping materials again this year in violation of the City Code. She provided history on the issues to the new Council Members. Community Development Director Lindquist stated that Wally Johnson was planning to hold a ribbon cutting at the Waterford project in the beginning of June. Director of Parks and Recreation Schultz stated the City Council will be asked to consider renewing the lease for the athletic complex land on May 19. Discussion was held regarding garden plots. City Engineer Brotzler provided an update on the Shannon Parkway progress. He added that the road should be back together by the end of the week and the temporary bypass would be taken down. City Engineer Brotzler stated that all indications show that the City will receive $2.96 million in federal stimulus monies for the Akron Avenue improvement project. Mayor Droste stated that the Planning Commission met on May 12. He noted that Valerie Schultz is the new chair with Kyle Irving serving as the Vice Chair. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to come before the City Council and upon a Motion by Droste, Second by DeBettignies, the meeting was adjourned at 10:20 p.m. ROSEMOUNT CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION PROCEEDINGS MAY 13, 2009 Respectfully Submitted, Amy Domeier, City Clerk