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HomeMy WebLinkAbout20141209 CCM WS 6.a. ROSEMOUNT CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION PROCEEDINGS DECEMBER 9, 2014 CALL TO ORDER Pursuant to due call and notice thereof a work session of the Rosemount City Council was held on th Tuesday, December 9, 2014 beginning at 6:31 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, Weisensel and Demuth and Council member-elect Nelson attending. Staff present included City Administrator Johnson, City Clerk Hadler, Community Development Director Lindquist, City Planner Lindahl, Parks and Recreation Director Schultz, Public Works Director Brotzler, Fire Chief Schroeder and Finance Director May. Guests included Emily Zimmer of the Town Pages. City Administrator Johnson stated there were some changes to the agenda, as the Resilient Communities Communications students could not attend. DISCUSSION 2.A. Replacement of 1991 Ford Grass Rig Fire Chief Schroeder stated the Grass Rig is aging and needs to be replaced. The truck is 23 years old and has numerous items that are breaking on it. Chief Schroeder has obtained two bids for new trucks through state contracts. Council members inquired about length of time before delivery, whether this type of truck was absolutely necessary. Chief Schroeder stated that this complete Grass Rig is necessary, as they are useful for immediately accessing grass fires. Chair Weisensel inquired whether we look at other purchasing consortium other than the Minnesota one. Johnson responded we did with another fire truck, but there are reasons for using the state one for smaller purchases such as this. Staff was directed to place this on the consent agenda on the 16th. 2.B. Cable Commission Issues – Bob Vose Bob Vose, attorney for the Cable Commission, was in attendance to discuss some Charter related items. Charter has not responded to franchise negotiations, but has asked for an extension of the existing franchise agreement. The Cable Commission is recommending that the City grant that extension for one year. Another issue is that Comcast and Time-Warner are in the process of merging. Charter will have a management relationship with Greatland, which is a future spin-off of Comcast-Time-Warner. Charter is also investing in obtaining additional customers. The City will need to approve this restructuring. A third issue is that there have been a number of violations of their current franchises, including attempting to charge the City for the cable boxes needed to receive the cable signal. 2.C. Regional Indicators Initiative City Planner Jason Lindahl introduced Becky Alexander of LHB, Inc., who presented the Regional Indicators Initiative data. Ms. Alexander gave a background and an overview on the Regional Indicators program. Data was presented on each Regional Indicators topic; water, energy, waste, and travel. Ms. Alexander outlined some next steps utilizing the Regional Indicators data in planning activities. ROSEMOUNT CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION PROCEEDINGS DECEMBER 9, 2014 Students with the Resilient Communities program were in attendance and discussed the project they are working on that relates to the Regional Indicators report. They will be presenting a report that outlines best practices that are being used by other cities. Mayor Droste inquired about public engagement processes. City Planner Lindahl stated staff is discussing with the Resilient Communities program director about a spring class focusing on public engagement. Lindahl stated that staff will continue to work with LHB and the students about best practices, as well as a climate adaptation plan. 2.D. Fee schedule for 2015 City Administrator Johnson introduced the Fee Schedule and stated there were few changes, but invited council members to ask about changes. Council member Weisensel asked about the percentage of increases in utility charges. City Administrator Johnson replied they are approximately 5% for water and 2% for sewer. Parks and Recreation Director Schultz explained some of the increases to the Recreation facility fees. Mr. Schultz stated there may be future increases in ice arena fees after discussions with the hockey association and other users. Council members discussed the amount of the ice arena budget that is subsidized and compared facilities to neighboring communities. Council member Weisensel inquired about future revenue ideas to fund parks. Schultz explained some of the current and future opportunities. Council members discussed some water issues around future development. 2.E. Inter-City passenger rail study City Administrator Johnson explained the potential for inter-city passenger rail in the area. There are a couple of different route options. The group leading the effort is looking for input as to whether MnDOT should be initiating feasibility studies. Johnson asked whether the community should support the rail. Council member elect Nelson compared it to the Northstar Rail and had concerns. After further discussion Council members in general agreed to support an initial study. 2.F. Council meeting schedule for 2015 The Council discussed the council meeting schedule for 2015. City Administrator Johnson inquired whether it would be possible to have Monday night Work Sessions, as this was preferable for Council member – elect Nelson. Council was in agreement this would work. UPDATES City Administrator Johnson inquired whether Mayor Droste and Council member Weisensel should attend the NLC conference in March. Council was in agreement and no one else planned on attending. Mr. Johnson stated this item would be on the next consent agenda. Director of Public Works Brotzler updated Council on a groundwater study that was presented at the working group. ROSEMOUNT CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION PROCEEDINGS DECEMBER 9, 2014 Council member Weisensel discussed ideas from the November National League of Cities conference he attended; including Open Data, ECM, and performance management. Council discussed potential task force to work with communications, engagement, metrics and data. Mayor Droste stated he was frustrated about recently finding out that McNamara is moving to Empire Township from Apple Valley, and their facility will be too close to residential areas in Rosemount. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to come before the City Council and upon a motion by Droste, second by DeBettignies, the meeting was unanimously adjourned at 10:19 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Clarissa Hadler, City Clerk