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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010/05/12 CCM - WS1 1 1 CALL TO ORDER Pursuant to due call and notice thereof a regular work session of the Rosemount City Council was held on Wednesday, May 12, 2010 at 6:33 p.m. in the Conference Room at City Hall, 2875 145t Street West, Rosemount. Mayor Droste called the meeting to order with Council Members Bills, DeBettignies, Shoe Corrigan and Weisensel in attendance. Staff present included City Administrator Johnson, City Clerk Domeier, Director of Parks and Recreation Schultz, Community Development Director Lindquist, Project Engineer Olson, City Engineer Weiss and Chief of Police Kalstabakken ADDITIONS OR CORRECTIONS TO THE AGENDA 6.F. Shenanigans Updates reduction of hours from Community Development DISCUSSION 2.A. Discussion with Progressive Rail representative Dave Fellon of Progressive Rail provided more detail on the issues previously raised about train noise. He also talked about the number of requests received for potential growth and development. Discussion was held regarding the industrial development campaign. Mayor Droste suggested that a separate meeting should be held regarding the development. Bruno DiNella expressed his concerns regarding train noise. Further discussion was held regarding the quiet zones. Project Engineer Olson provided an update on the quiet zone locations. Mr. Fellon explained the federal requirements for sounding the train horns. Mr. Fellon stated he would be willing to meet in the future regarding industrial development. 2.B. Rosewood City Council Appeal Community Development Director Lindquist provided information about the park dedication fees. The subdivision agreement would include language related to the park dedication fee study and that the fee may be adjusted. Director of Park and Recreation Schultz stated the goal of the study was to be fair to the developers and to the City. The current park dedication fee is $85,000 per acre or approximately $3,400 per unit. Warren Isrealson stated that developers have not been buying land for the past four years. The six lot project was his biggest project in four years. He added that land values have dropped tremendously and lot prices have dropped to almost half of what they used to be listed. Mayor Droste questioned what park dedication fees he was seeking for the project. Mr. Isrealson stated it would not be feasible to develop the property at the current rate. Mr. Isrealson stated that he wanted to install his own sewer and water on the project. He stated that City Engineer Brotzler had informed him it required the public bidding process. He was requesting that the City Council would allow him to do the project and avoid the public bidding process. He wanted to design the project by himself since it was on a private street and to have an exception from the normal City policies. 1 1 1 Bret Weiss of WSB stated he was present when the policy was put into place. The policy was developed for City control as well as having quality control. He provided history on the quality of projects in the past. By having the City take over the project the City will be able to say the policies have been followed and there is no need for negotiating back and forth on the process. Further discussion was held regarding the design work estimates. Mr. Weiss stated that the City adopted standards were not out of the ordinary and the intent is for the sewer, water and streets to last many years. He would not advocate for doing things that could impact the quality of the systems just to get more lots in the door. He did note that Mr. Isrealson could bid on the project through the public bidding process. Mr. Weiss did not anticipate problems but noted situations may arise with disagreements about soil conditions and the construction. The policy allows the City to enforce standards and is a more efficient practice. Bill Ryan stated that Mr. Isrealson was a great guy and they never had trouble working on any other development projects. Mr. Weiss explained past issues with Mr. Isrealson performing unauthorized work. He added that at one point the FBI was involved. Mr. Weiss stated there are parameters around capabilities along with the contractor being bonded, insured and experienced. He stated that that the private roads should be built to the standards of public roads. The City should not limit its design standards for a shorter life span. Mr. Isrealson stated he has been busy doing similar projects. Mr. Weiss responded that Mr. Isrealson stated earlier that it had been over four years since he was bidding on projects. Mr. Isrealson stated that most developers have to hire an engineer to get the project done but he and his son are already an engineers. He added that he was strongly motivated. Council Member Shoe Corrigan questioned Mr. Isrealson on the communities he had done his own engineering work. He replied Lakeville, Farmington, Savage and Prior Lake. Community Development Director Lindquist stated she did recognize the financing shift due to the current economic conditions and talked about assessing the costs. She added that it was not all or nothing and different options could be discussed depending upon the situation at hand. Mr. Isrealson stated the fees and costs are more than he would make on selling six lots. He could not move forward without significant changes. Council Member Weisensel stated that the estimated costs is based upon an average cost and with such a small Mr. Isrealson would only be charged for what is actually done and the rest would be returned to the developer. Mr. Weiss explained the process when doing developer agreements. He provided more information on the cost for design work, staking, inspections, asbuilt and erosion control. He stated that 20% is used to set the dollar amount. Council Member Shoe Corrigan expressed her concerns and supported ensuring that the systems are built well and to standard. Mr. Wiess stated it is important for the City to have the control in order to get more consistent quality. Council Member Shoe Corrigan agreed it was reasonable to review the park dedication fees and suggested reviewing the engineering fees as well. Further discussion was held regarding the letters of credit the City currently has for Mr. Isrealson's past project. Mr. Weiss explained how the estimates are created for the letters of credit. Ms. Lindquist added there was a history on the last project and that is why the letters of credit had not been released. There were warrants issued on the project and the City was not a party to the lawsuit and because of that the City has requested additional information. Mr. Weiss explained that he would do all he could to keep the fees down. He stated that the policy was put in place in 1996 based upon standards and expectations. Mayor Droste noted it was 1 1 1 important for cities to work with developers. Council Member Shoe Corrigan stood behind the policy that was adopted in 1996. Council Member DeBettignies stated that Mr. Isrealson would have the opportunity to submit a bid for the project. Further discussion was held on the bidding process. Mr. Isrealson stated the project was a unique situation and would be a small and simple undertaking for him to complete. Council Member Bills suggested reviewing the letter of credit process as makes it difficult for a smaller guy to come in and do the project. Council Member Weisensel stated it doesn't make a difference and that the only difference is having a cash flow to get a letter of credit. He added that the City's fees were not on the top of municipal fees. He understood that the City would look at our typical fees and actual costs. He did not see the City Council changing the policy. Mr. Israelson asked the City Council to allow him to meet with Mr. Weiss and to do the improvements on his own. Ms. Lindquist asked Mr. Isrealson to send her the preliminary numbers he had developed for the project infrastructue. It was determined that Mr. Isrealson would meet with Mr. Weiss and Ms. Lindquist to discuss fees and letters of credit associated with the project and the subdivision agreement. 2.C. Shannon Parkway Pedestrian Underpass 2010 Street Improvements Project City Project #428 Director of Parks and Recreation Schultz summarized the information provided within the staff report. We think we will get the easement from the home owners association. Cannot guarantee we will be able to drain all the water through the underpass. The HOA wondered if the City might close the underpass.. Council Member Weisensel stated that he has heard complaints about the underpass. Different options regarding maintaining or completely eliminating the underpass were discussed. The City Council had interest in fixing the underpass with minimal repairs and investment. Mr. Schultz stated that staff would research the options and find a cost effective way to move forward. 2.D. Emergency Siren Replacements Chief of Police Kalstabakken provided a summary of the information within the staff report. Discussion was held regarding the addition of a fifth siren at Connemara Park. The City Council supported the replacement of all five sirens. 2.E. Extension of Connemara Trail to Akron Avenue City Administrator Johnson provided a summary of the staff report. City Engineer Weiss explained that the City may be able to advance the numbers. Mr. Johnson planned to stay one step behind the developer all the way. Discussion was held regarding the safety components with the extension of Connemara Trail. Further discussion was held regarding signals at the intersections. Community Development Director Lindquist stated that Dakota County would not install signal lights until the warrants are met. The City Council supported the planning of the extension. Staff assumed engineer review and work would be conducted in the summer or fall. 6.F. Liquor License Establishments Chief of Police Kalstabakken provided information on the general activity occurring at Shenanigan's. Officers have done walkthroughs as needed and will continue to once a night Wednesdays through Sundays. He stated that a letter was sent to the owner in March about the police calls occurring on 1 1 1 site and no response was received. He further explained the requirements for holding Class A and Class B liquor licenses. Discussion was held regarding the potential elimination of Class A liquor licensing or an increase in fees to hold the license. The change would require both Class A license holders to make different business decisions. Another option discussed was the elimination of 2 a.m. liquor licenses that expire on July 9, 2010 for Class A establishments. Mr. Kalstabakken added there may be unintended consequences to the Class B establishments that are allowed to remain open until 2 a.m. Further discussion was held regarding the management of the establishments, over service and police patrol. City Administrator Johnson stated that based upon discussions with the City Attorney a legislative approach should be taken in making changes to the liquor code regulations. The City Council directed staff to meet with Shenanigan's manager regarding the issues. If necessary, the City Council would have time to determine the renewal of the 2 a.m. liquor license before the July 9 renewal date. UPDATES 2.A. Recreation Program Update Director of Parks and Recreation Schultz provided a summary of the staff report. He added that the space could be used for senior programming coordinating. Council Member Weisensel questioned if staff were providing a list of alternatives for parents. Mr. Schultz responded that staff was providing parents with referrals. The item will be considered at an upcoming City Council meeting. 2.B. Pre Parks Dedication from University of Minnesota UMORE Director of Parks and Recreation Schultz provided a summary of the staff report. The City Council favored moving forward as proposed. 2.C. Community Development Department Discussion Community Development Director Lindquist provided a handout that included department job descriptions, background information, and permit counts as requested by Council Member Bills. Ms. Lindquist explained the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that induded the change in insurance benefits recognizing that part -time Community Development employees would receive insurance benefits only if they worked 32 -36 hours per week. She did not receive a lot of interest in the reduction of hours proposed. The AFSCME union will be voting on the MOU on May 13. Following the vote, a formal deadline will be provided to meet the hour reductions requested. The City Council will need to consider the MOU to approve the benefit change. Discussion was held regarding the number of building permits issued since 2000. Council Member Bills stated that with the reduced permits the change is necessary. Mayor Droste talked about the removal of the DMV services and that staff was retained to find other tasks. He added that there would be unintended consequences with the reduction in staff. Council Member Shoe Corrigan stated that employees as civil servants need to be reasonable when looking at work loads and projected revenues. 2.D. UDPATES Director of Parks and Recreation Schultz stated that he would be meeting with St. Joseph's school to discuss outdoor athletic fields. He added that a final lift was placed on Charlie's Park tennis courts. He also added that asbestos abatement will be needed at the St. Joseph's Church. Discussion 1 1 1 was held regarding the tennis courts. Council Member Shoe Corrigan requested more information on Baseball 191 gambling proceeds. Council Member Bills provided an update on the golf tournament scheduled during Leprechaun Days. Discussion was held regarding the drainage issues at Crosscroft. Community Development Director Lindquist provided an update on the code issues. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to come before the City Council and upon a motion by Droste, second by Shoe- Corrigan, the meeting was adjourned at 9:55 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Amy Domeier, City Clerk