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HomeMy WebLinkAbout6.d. Minutes of the January 2, 2008 City Council Special Work Session Proceedings 5 )/t to v/. ROSEMOUNT CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL WORK SESSION PROCEEDINGS JANUARY 2, 2008 CALL TO ORDER Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, a special work session of the Rosemount City Council was duly held on Wednesday, January 2, 2008, at 9:02 p.m. in the Conference Room at City Hall, 2875 145 Street West. Mayor Droste called the meeting to order with Council Members Baxter, DeBettignies, Shoe Corrigan and Sterner attending. Staff members present were City Administrator Verbrugge, Director of Parks and Recreation Schultz, Finance Director May, Assistant City Administrator Foster, City Engineer Brotzler, Communications Coordinator Cox and City Clerk Domeier. DISCUSSION 2.A. Parks and Recreation Referendum Director of Parks and Recreation Schultz provided three different options for a referendum and the taxpayer's estimated costs. He provided different scenarios and costs per year based on 20 years and a home value of $250,000. Mayor Droste questioned if the homeowner's tax statement would show a special item for the referendum. Finance Director May stated that under the City taxes it would show up separately but would be added to the amount for the fire station referendum. St. Joseph Facilities Director of Parks and Recreation Schultz provided a floor plan of the church and surrounding area. The improvements proposed would allow the public to use the facility and the City to manage it. The plan was to add an assessable ramp to the front, a ramp to the staging area, restrooms, mechanical space as well as including air conditioning, a new boiler, and cosmetic changes. Some of the cosmetic changes include upgrades to the ceilings. Mr. Schultz explained that the architect wanted to add restrooms where they wouldn't limit the view and would be close to the sewer line. The proposed restroom location would also have good access from a door by the stage. He added that the lobby area could serve as a ticket booth location and future location of additional restrooms. Mr. Schultz provided 3D view of the proposed church drawings. He stated the back of the building would not look much different and that the brick would be matched as close as possible. The plan also included an enlarged stage. He added that side exterior and front building changes would provide accessibility with new stairs and ramps. The church did not have any fresh air returns. He added that a final walk through would take place on Friday and that by the following week he would know what the final project would include. Council Member Sterner questioned the use of the bathroom in the basement. Mr. Schultz replied that the restroom would be removed and become a new mechanical and storage area. Mayor Droste was concerned with the neighborhood to the back of the church. He stated it would be a great place to build a garden and add a patio space. He stated they may need an exit at the back side of the church. Council Member Shoe Corrigan felt anyone would think the improvements proposed were reasonable. Council Member Baxter worried that the ROSEMOUNT CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL WORK SESSION PROCEEDINGS JANUARY 2, 2008 addition to the back of the church would block the entrance to the school. Mr. Schultz figured there would be at least 12 feet in between those areas. Council Member Baxter suggested removing the wall between the foyer and the balcony. Mr. Schultz noted that in Lakeville they used that space to display public art. He added that the wall may have structural significance. He would check further into Council Member Baxter's request. Council Member DeBettignies questioned if the intent was to keep the balcony. Erickson Park Tennis Court Layout Director of Parks and Recreation Schultz provided more information on the proposed tennis court layout. He talked about the seating and fencing options, the trail system and possible additional parking. With the increase in impervious surface he would need to work with the engineering department regarding the stormwater. He believed that the estimate cost based on the concept plan was $563,974.95. Further study will need to be done to ascertain costs for the stormwater and grading. Council Member Baxter questioned how many fields would be removed. Mr. Schultz replied that one soccer field would be removed but noted it was a great location for the tennis courts based upon where the trails were located. He planned to ask the school to participate in a cost share. Council Member Shoe Corrigan stated they could receive a grant to light the courts. Mr. Schultz stated that with all projects he planned on writing grants to offset the costs. Discussion ensued regarding the lighting of tennis courts. Mayor Droste stated that most kids would not be allowed to cross the busy highway to get to the courts. Council Member Shoe Corrigan pointed out that the courts could be used for tournaments and not just for recreation. Council Member Sterner thought the location was great because of the proximity to the trail system. Council Member Baxter questioned what could be done with the courts in the winter. Mayor Droste suggested putting a dome over the courts so they could be used year round. Mr. Schultz stated they could look into other options but wanted to keep the costs in mind. Council Member Baxter stated it would be nice to use the courts more months out of the year. Outdoor Recreation Complex ("ORC Director of Parks and Recreation Schultz displayed the final master plan which included the moved access from Akron Avenue. He stated that Dakota County wanted the City to consider adding a second entrance off of Bonaire Path. He added that after the last discussion with the City Council changes included lighting only the two medium baseball fields, one full -sized baseball field and three full -sized soccer fields. Mr. Schultz stated the base cost for the facility was $5.8 million dollars. He noted that estimate did not include the design and preliminary fees. It was proposed that those fees ROSEMOUNT CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL WORK SESSION PROCEEDINGS JANUARY 2, 2008 would come out of the parks improvement fund. The price with the fees included would be $6.3 million dollars since the original estimate did not include any offsite costs. Mr. Schultz stated that the packet included a description of what items would be included in the referendum. He stated there may be potential add -on items. Some alternative add -on items were removed in hopes that local groups could raise funds for those features. Mr. Schultz requested direction on the different projects discussed. Council Member Sterner really wanted to see the lighting added to the four fields. Mr. Schultz stated that the City would trench and put the conduit in for future lighting. He noted during the public bid process alternative bids for lighting could be included. Mayor Droste expressed concern on spending over half of million dollars to light six fields. He stated the lights were not as important as getting the complex built. He stated that lights were an amenity. City Administrator Verbrugge stated that teams could not play until 10 p.m. at night in the height of summer. If there are no lights on at 9 p.m. in June it's not safe to play. Mayor Droste stated that the lighting was related to demand and that Erickson Park could be used. Mr. Schultz stated that the full -sized adult field would benefit by having lights. Teams could play doubleheaders. He added that lighting three soccer fields expanded more opportunities for the fall when the fields would be used. Older people who were available to play in the late evening would need the lighting. He stated that by gaining one or two more games per night would be an enhancement to the complex. Lighting would also make the field usages more flexible. Council Member Baxter stated the proposed lighting was more then he would like to pay for but stated that staff has reached a compromise he could deal with. He wanted RAAA and other associations to step up to the plate and take some responsibility for lighting the fields. He felt the City was asking property owners to pay a reasonable amount for lighting. City Engineer Brotzler questioned if the underground conduit was included in the lighting cost. Mr. Schultz responded that a line item would be included for the conduit. Mr. Verbrugge summarized the ORC funding. He stated that a portion of the off -site costs should be included in the referendum as they directly relate to the project. Council Member DeBettignies stated when marketing the project it would cost a resident about $.24 a day depending upon the different scenarios. Mr. Verbrugge stated it would be about $7.00 a month for a $9 million dollar referendum. Mayor Droste wanted to be cautious noting that the different newspapers will be showing the tax rates. Council Member DeBettignies stated the acreage was a gift to the City. Mr. Schultz stated he wanted direction on what projects and dollar number to include in the referendum. He wanted to get a resolution passed and the ball rolling for an April 8 Special Election. Mr. Verbrugge questioned if the City would be bound by each project. Finance Director May stated it would depend upon how the questions were framed. ROSEMOUNT CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL WORK SESSION PROCEEDINGS JANUARY 2, 2008 Council Member DeBettignies stated his priorities included the ORC and St. Joe's site. Conversation ensued on how to sell the tennis courts and Erickson Park improvements. Council Member Baxter stated that the Erickson Park improvements did nothing for the project. He preferred to bond for the ORC, St. Joe's site and the tennis courts at an estimated $8.25 million. Mayor Droste stated that Erickson Park was heavily used. Council Member Sterner also wanted to see enhancements made at Erickson Park. Mayor Droste questioned the City's debt. Mr. May stated when looking at the debt of 30 million dollars at least 10 -15 million dollars is in revenue issues. The water towers, wells and stormwater issues are a different type of debt. Three to four million of the debt is Port Authority issues that are outstanding for City Hall and the Community Center. He was hoping to call in the Community Center bonds to in 2009 to get rid of that debt and levy. He added that the City had about eight million dollars in assessment debt that is paid through special assessments. The only true debt is the levy debt for the Community Center from the 1992 referendum and the fire station referendum. He noted that a very small part of the 30 million dollars affected the resident's taxes. Council Member Baxter stated the City has the 57 acres and the St. Joe's site. It would only make sense to let the citizens decide if the sites should be developed. Mr. Verbrugge spoke of access issues raised by the County. He stated there was a good chance the City would lose a soccer field. Discussion ensued regarding the access to the site and the County requirements. Council Member Sterner suggested going up to $9.8 million for the referendum. He stated the difference to tax payers would be small and that way some amenities could be included. Mayor Droste stated that $8.5 million would be too big to pass based on the population. Council Member DeBettignies wanted to see a marketing plan. Mr. Schultz stated that when comparing Rosemount to other communities the City was behind in some athletic facilities. The dynamics of sports has changed over the last 20 years. Mr. Verbrugge stated when analyzing the environment in Rosemount the City has always worked hard to bring the taxes down. At the Truth -in- Taxation meetings nobody is critically commenting on the city's taxes. He talked about current voter turnout and the number of votes necessary to pass the project. Mr. May added that typically with the 20 year referendum that is being projected with conservative growth the rate would drop over time. Council Member Baxter and Mayor Droste were comfortable with the $8.25 million for the ORC and St. Joe's site. Mr. Schultz stated the City could not market the project. Organizations such as RAAA will need to educate and inform the public about the projects. Mr. Schultz stated the City was at a point to start the final design so when the referendum happens the bidding process could begin. Council Member Baxter stated that if the referendum failed the City would need to find another way to do the projects. It was decided that it would be from $8.25 to $8.50 million to start the ORC, St. Joe's site and Erickson Park tennis courts and other improvements as available. ROSEMOUNT CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL WORK SESSION PROCEEDINGS JANUARY 2, 2008 ADJOURNMENT Council Member Baxter made a motion to move into closed session for the purpose of discussing labor negotiations. Second by Sterner. There being no further business to come before the City Council, the meeting was adjourned to closed session at 10:36 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Amy Domeier, City Clerk