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10-03-2011 CCMMEETING OF THE ELK RIVER CITY COUNCIL HELD AT THE ELK RIPER CITY HALL MONDAY, OCTOBER 3, 201 I Flembers Present: Flaeor Dietz, Councilmembers Zer«-as, Flotin, Gumphrey, and «'estgaard Flembers Absent: None Staff Present. Interim City- Administrator Bob Tlusde, Finance Director Tim Simon, Fire Chief T. Jolm Cunningham, City Engineer Justin Femrite, Police Cluef Brad Rolfe, t~'astewater Cluef Operator Gars Leirmoe, Waste«-ater Lead Operator Matt Ste~-ens, Liquor Operations Manager Dare Pott-in, Assistant Street Superintendent Flark Thompson, Human Resources Representati~-e Lauren ~Z'ipper, and Recording Secretary- Jennifer Johnson Call Fleeting To Order Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, the meeting of the Elk Ri~-er CitiS~ Council was called to order at 6:36 p.m. b5- Mayor Dietz. 2. Pledge of Allegiance The Pledge of Allegiance was recited. 3. Consider Council Agenda Councilmember Motin added an HRA update about the downtown under Other Business. FZaj-or Dietz requested to add item 6.7. -Yellow Ribbon CitS~ and requested the opportunity to comment on Energy City under Oilier Business. MOVED BY COUNCILMEMBER WESTGAARD AND SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER ZERWAS TO APPROVE THE AGENDA WITH THE CHANGES NOTED ABOVE. MOTION CARRIED 5-0. 4. Consent Agenda MOVED BY COUNCILMEMBER ZERWAS AND SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER MOTIN TO APPROVE THE FOLLOWING CONSENT AGENDA: 4.1. COUNCIL MINUTES ^ SEPTEMBER 12, 2011 ^ SEPTEMBER 19, 2011 4.2. CHECK REGISTER 4.3. RESOLUTION 11-60 ACKNOWLEDGING CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE POLICE AND FIRE DEPARTMENTS • 4.4. APPOINT FULL TIME RECEPTIONIST FOR THE POLICE DEPARTMENT AND AUTHORIZE FILLING PART TIME RECEPTIONIST FOR CITY HALL City Counci11~.1inutes October 3, ?011 Page 2 4.5. CONSIDER APPOINTMENTS TO ICE ARENA COD7MISSION AND ENERGY CITY COMMISSIONS 4.6. AUTHORIZATION TO PROCEED WITH DRAINAGE IMPROVEMENTS AT 194TH LANE AND CR 1 4.7. EMPLOYEE AGREEMENT WITH CALVIN PORTNER 4.8. PYROTECNIC DISPLAY LICENSE TO RES SPECIALTY PYROTECHNICS, INC. VALID SEPTEDZBER 14,19, AND 23, 2011 A7OTION CARRIED 5-0. 3. Omen 1~1tke Michael Hecker, the new Parks and Recreation Director, greeted the council and stated he has enjoyed lus first day at Cin- Hall. He stated he looks forward to lus emplol-ment «7th the CitS- of Elk River. Florence Schuldt, representing Pullman Place, presented the council u-ith a petition with signatures from members of Pullman Place in support of the City of Elk River retaining its "Energy City -Elk River" status. 6.1. Oath of Office -Firefighters Fire Cliief Cunningham introduced the two new firefighters to the council. Mayor Dietz administered the oath of office and swore in J. Christopher Sisk and Steven L. Bourdeaux as firefighters for the Elk River Fire Department. Their families then pinned their badges on them. 6.2. County Road 77 Turnback -Public Hearin Mr. Femrite presented the staff report. Present to answer questions was Sherburne County Engineer Rhonda Lewis. The public hearing was held to hear any comments from residents regarding the turnback for CR 77. Major Dietz opened the public hearing. Jim Nystrom, 19232 Proctor Rd., asked the council to consider more restrictions on this road. He is concerned with the damage done to the road from the heavy gravel mining truck traffic. He also stated concerns with cars parked near the school fields and suggested allowing parking on the east side of the road and restricting parking on the west side in order to prevent people from crossing the busy road. Jim Svendsen, 19291 Proctor Rd., agreed with the comments from Mr. Nystrom, and added his concerns regarding the potential of water ponding at the end of his driveway due to the rebuilding of the road. He also stated the road not only has heavy vehicle traffic, but has heavy use from people, such as hikers and bikers. He stated the speed limit is 40 mph but drivers typically speed on this road, which isn't well lit, making it dangerous. There being no one else to speak, Mayor Dietz closed the public hearing. r~ CitS= Council T4inutes Page 3 October 3, ?011 '~Ia~-or Dietz asked if the road name would change. • 'dlr. Femrite stated the road name would than e to Proctor Rd. and it would continue to be g a /ton road. He also stated when they striped the road, after consulting with the Parks and Recreation Commission for the safety- of foot traffic, they- made the shoulder ?' «-ider on the west side from Highland Rd., they- allo«-ed for a L' thru-lane for southbound traffic and a L' tlu-u-land for northbound traffic, and a i-8' shoulder on the east side of Proctor Rd. He stated he «-ould inspect i~Ir. Svendsen's concerns at the end of his driyewa~- before contractors leave the project. 63. Salt Shed for Public Forks Facility l~lr. Simon updated the council regarding the salt storage bid award. He stated initial reports indicated that some of the trusses in the shed are under stress and are cause for concern. He stated various staff are working on putting a safety policy into place. City attorney Peter Beck is also revie«-ing the ofiguzal contract. He stated they should hear the nest day the final report on the structural condition of the shed. ~t this time, T1r. Simon indicated they would not be awarding any bids on the salt storage shed relocation, but would like to move ahead with the electrical and fencing portion of the bids. He stated he will put something on a future agenda awarding the electrical and fencing portion of the bid and would continue to keep council up to date on the status of the salt shed. 6.4. Orono Park-cvav Median Visibility Stud= Chief Rolfe presented the staff report and a series of photographs that he and NIr. Femrite had taken along with sight line measurements at various key locations along Orono Park-way near the city= hall campus. He stated the result showed that the height of the median plants, in conjunction with the various roadway curves, does present site line obstructions and especially when drivers of compact cars are attempting to view approaching compact cars. Both he and b~. Femrite felt the median plantings as they currently exist do create a traffic hazard for motorists using Orono Parkway. Chief Rolfe spoke with Prairie Restorations, and they were informed by staff that mowing the median strips now will not adversely affect the health of the native plants for next y ear. Councilmember Gumphrey said to mow the native grass down now and have the Parks Department look into a long term solution for the median. Mayor Dietz stated Orono Parkway is not the place for native plantings and felt something else should be placed there. Councilmember Zerwas agreed, stating he receives many calls from residents in the area complaining about the lack of visibility. Councilmember Moon agreed and felt changing this would help with one of the City's goals to beautify the city. It was the consensus of the council to mow the median strips now and staff will come back in the future with landscaping ideas. • City Council DTinutes October 3, ?011 Page 4 6.5. t-pdate to the Cin- of Elk Ri~-er Debt Polic-~- l~Ir. Simon presented the staff report. He stated Ehlers has also revie~x-ed the updates made to our current polio and liked the ~t-a~- it is more detailed and addressed the items from the last rating call. MOVED BY COUNCILIt2EMBER ZERWAS AND SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER GUIIIPHREY TO APPROVE THE UPDATE TO THE CITY OF ELK RIVER DEBT POLICY AS OUTLINED IN THE STAFF REPORT. MOTION CARRIED 5-0. 6.6. Discuss Council ~Z'orksession _~gendas ~4r. Thistle presented the staff report. He asked the council if they would want to add regular city items to the Oct. 10 worksession as the joint meeting «-ith the school board wouldn't be very- long. Council agreed they could add other items to the Oct. 10 worksession if necessary. I\layor Dietz asked to discuss the commercial resei-~-e district on the November 14 worksession. 6.7. Yellow Ribbon Citv Dlayor Dietz explained the Yellow Ribbon Cite, which is a city which tries to identify- and assist families who have military personnel deployed somewhere in the world. He would like • city leaders and perhaps staff could participate and show support in this program. Council agreed this would be a good program to support and which wouldn't cost the city any money. RECESS TO WORKSESSION Council recessed to worksession at 7:16 p.m. and reconvened in the Utilities conference room at 7:25 p.m. 7.1. Enterprise Fund Budgets (Liquor and Wastewater Mr. Simon presented the staff report. Liquor Mr. Potvin reviewed the liquor operations goals for 2012. Mr. Simon reviewed the 5 year projections on the fund and Mr. Potvin answered questions from the council. i~a.rtesvater Mr. Stevens reviewed the wastewater goals for 2012. Mr. Simon presented a 12 year financial model on the waste water fund and discussed a 1.5% rate increase and the 2% increase to sewer access connection charges. Council concurred with the recommendations. Staff also reviewed in depth the capital projects and answered questions from the council. • City Council Minutes October 3. 2011 Page 5 ??. X013 - 2016 Capital Improvement Plan • ~Ir. Simon resented the staff re ort. l~Ir. Fernrite discussed the upcoining'~Iunicipal State P P mid CIS ~) allocations for the nett five ~-ears and the related projects. ~Ir. Femrite also discussed the Street Improvement Resei-~-e Fund, which covers annual improvements on roads in the citt_-, and the upcoming 2012 projects, which are to continue intersection enhancements, signal s~-stem and light painting, and making improvements along Business Center Drive Qoplin to Orono). 7.3. Street Division Snow Plow Procedure Plan i~ir. Thistle and ?~Lr. Thompson presented the staff report. ~Zr. Thistle recommended a change in the snow plow procedure plan to outline snowplowing operations fora `t<-pical" snow event, which hasn't changed from the previous plan, and to include procedures for "extreme «-eather conditions" as declared by the CitS- administrator in conjunction with the Police Cluef, Fire Cluef, and Street Superintendent. The extreme conditions would add an additional nine employees to assist with snow removal operations, as outlined iti the staff report. MOVED BY COUNCILMEMBER GUMPHREY AND SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER ZERWAS TO APPROVE THE UPDATED SNOW PLOW PROCEDURE PLAN AS OUTLINED IN THE STAFF REPORT. MOTION CARRIED 5-0. 7.4. Compensatory Time/Overtime Policy Mr. Thistle and Ms. Wipper presented the staff report. Council expressed concern with consistency between departments. It was suggested that perhaps the policy could allow for an extended time period to use comp time, noting that it is difficult to use comp time and still provide adequate staffing levels. Councilmember ~X~estgaard expressed concern with the level of service the city would be able to provide without having to raise taxes. Councilmember Gumphrey agreed with Councilmember Westgaard's comments and said if you extend the use of compensatory time too far into the future; it only pushes off duties even further. Mr. Thistle suggested having the polity reviewed by an attorney but in the meantime, for the current snow removal season, have staff return with an interim polity that will address overtime pay and compensatory time usage. Staff will get quotes from two different consultants. 7.5. Council Employee Recognition Program Mr. Thistle presented the staff report. He recommends having the council employee recognition take place at the annual employee appreciation luncheon or at the summer picnic. City Council Dlinutes October ~, 2011 Page 6 after discussion, it «-as the consensus of the council to recognize emplo~-ees of the rear at either the annual emplo~-ee appreciation luncheon or at the surntner picnic. Council will review at a future worksession. 8. Other Business Councihnember ~Zotin updated the council on the decision by the HRy earlier that evening to demolish both the 716 and 720 plain Street buildings due to the significant damage and failed roof trusses and safety- issues. The cost to repair the buildings would be more than the cost to remove them and the HRH decided to move ahead and quickly demolish the buildings before winter. Council Updates Mayor Dietz verbally presented a list of ideas regarding the Energy City- budget that were suggested to hun since the Council met jointly «-ith the Energy- City- Commission in September. He stated that included in the 556,800 proposed Energy City- budget is 536,000 in staff time. Mayor Dietz said approximately 55,000 of that is for Project Conserve and most of the remaining 531,000 is for the Energy Expo. He proposed funding the 55,000 for Project Conserv=e from the council's contingency- fund. He also suggested discontinuing the Energy- Expo and having an "energy wing" at the Elk River ,area Chamber of Commerce's Business Expo instead. DZayor Dietz said that would increase risibility= for the vendors because the Business Expo draws a larger crowd. Because it is a chamber event, it wouldn't involve city staff time and allow the city to reduce the city's environmental staff hours. and save about 530,000, he said. • Mayor Dietz also proposed to fund 510,000 of the Energy City budget from annual contributions from Elk River hZunicipal Utilities, and he would like to ask Connexus Energy, Great River Energy and CenterPoint Energy to donate $3,500 each to fund the rest of the program. X11 three entities are involved in Energy City and have representatives on the Elk River Energy City Commission. Mayor Dietz stated if these ideas are put in place, it would make Energy City "cost neutral" to the city. 10. Staff Updates Chief Rolfe asked the council to approve a resolution approving the execution of agreement between the Elk River Police Department and the Minnesota Department of Public Safety to enter into a grant agreement for the Minnesota Department of Public Safety Crash Program. MOVED BY COUNCILMEMBER MOTIN AND SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER ZERWAS TO APPROVE RESOLUTION 11-61 APPROVING THE EXECUTION OF AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE ELK RIVER POLICE DEPARTMENT AND THE MINNESOTA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY TO ENTER INTO A GRANT AGREEMENT FOR TRAFFIC SAFETY ENFORCEMENT PROJECTS DURING THE PERIOD OF OCTOBER 1, 2011 THROUGH SEPTEMBER 30, 2014. MOTION CARRIED 5-0. Councilmember Gumphrey asked when Mr. Thistle's last dap of employment with the city • would be. City Council Minutes October 3, ?011 Page 7 ~Sr. Thistle stated he ~~-ould like to ha~-e some o~-erlap «-ith the ne~x- cit<- adtnuustrator but not more than a «-eek. He stated he «-ould also be a~-ailable to ans«-er questions b~- phone should Cal Fortner ha~-e questions after he's gone. He stated he «-ill discuss this ~sith 1~1_r. Fortner and report back to council. 11. ~diournment There being no further business, l~Ta~-or Dietz adjourned the meeting of the Elk Ri~-er Cit<- Council at 9:25 p.m. ~Tinutes prepared b~-Jennifer Tohnson Tin((((((,,,,,,a~~~~~-~1-1-ard, City= Clerk Jo J. D~ Tapo •