HomeMy WebLinkAbout2.b. St. Joseph Church Task Force ProcessAGENDA ITEM: St. Joseph Task Force Process
AGENDA SECTION:
Discussion
PREPARED BY: Kim Lindquist, Community Development
Director, Dan Schultz, Parks and
Recreation Director
AGENDA NO. 2s
ATTACHMENTS: None
APPROVED BY:
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Provide Staff Direction
�C ROSEMOLIN'1
CITY COUNCIL
City Council Work Session: August 9, 2006
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
ISSUE
The City acquired the St Joseph campus to facilitate construction of the new County Library in
Rosemount, to be located in the southern portion of the site The church use has pnmanly vacated the
premises and the school is scheduled to cease on -site m 2011 With these tunelmes m mind, along with the
opening of the library m 2009, the City is interested in reviewing alternative uses for the existing structures
and property It has been stated by the City Council that they wish to use a citizen's task force to tackle
this discussion However, staff believes, to obtain the best information out of the process, the Council
needs to provide some direction to staff After This discussion, staff will again come to the Council with a
recommended process and the composition of the task force.
DISCUSSION
Staff has internally talked about the reuse of the property for some time There are a variety of issues that
need to be flushed out to determine what is best for the community within the financial constraints of the
city and the site confines of the property The following is a listing of items that are important to consider
when discussing the property reuse.
Use needs to be a generator of traffic /bringing visitors to Downtown
Impact on tax rate; either positive or negative
Histonc preservation within the Community
Can the buildings /property achieve a vanety of uses?
What Community need is the reuse fulfilling?
Can the City provide a use that is financially self- sustammg? If not, what type of subsidy is
the City willing to take on?
Does the site /buildings lend themselves to a particular use or conversely do the
buildings /site negate the ability to provide certain desired uses?
These are the types of issues staff would look forward to the Task Force discussing However, staff
believes the charge of the Task Force needs to be appropriately framed Rather than ask a wide open
question such as "What should the City do with the St. Joseph sire", staff would like to provide direction
to the Task Force
Tonight, staff is asking the Council to provide direction as to what the vision is for the site Are there
certain guidelines that can be incorporated within the task force study process, so that the end
recommendation is consistent with the Council vision? This does not mean that the Council needs to
"choose" a use such as a teen center. Perhaps though, Council members are aware of some uses that they
feel should be explored or on the other hand should not be considered If the Council is sure that the
church building must stay in any reuse scenario, the Task Force should be aware of that desire. Similarly,
the City Council should provide direction regarding their wishes for the future of the school.
Ultimately with Council direction in mind, the Task Force will begin to devise a vision for the property
that assesses the needs of the community, recognizes the financial Impacts of the reuse, and considers its
relationship to the new library and existing residential neighborhood
SUMMARY
At this time staff is requesting the Council define existing expectations regarding the future reuse of the St.
Joseph's property and buildings Staff intends to bung this item back to the Council in September,
providing an outline of the proposed Task Force process, suggested composition of the Task Force, and
definition of the question(s) the group needs to answer.
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