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01-25-1988 CC MIN e MINUTES OF THE ELK RIVER CITY COUNCIL MONDAY, JANUARY 25, 1988 HELD AT THE ELK RIVER CITY HALL Members Present: Mayor Gunkel, Councilmembers Schuldt, Tralle and Holmgren. Councilmember Dobel arrived after Item #3 at approximately 7:05 p.m. Staff Present: Pat Klaers, City Administrator; Steve Rohlf, Building and Zoning Administrator 1. Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, the meeting of the Elk River City Council was called to order at 7:00 p.m. 2. Consideration of 1/25/88 City Council Agenda Mayor Gunkel was added to the agenda as Item 6.1 for an update on the Chamber of Commerce State of the City presentation and Pat Klaers, City Administrator was added to the agenda as Item 6.2 to provide an update on recent City activities. COUNCILMEMBER AS AMENDED. CARRIED 4-0. HOLMGREN MOVED TO APPROVE THE 1/25/88 CITY COUNCIL AGENDA COUNCILMEMBER. TRALLE SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION e 3. Consideration of 1/4/88 City Council Minutes COUNCILMEMBER SCHULDT MOVED TO APPROVE THE JANUARY 4, 1988, CITY COUNCIL MINUTES. COUNCILMEMBER HOLMGREN SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION CARRIED 4-0. 4.1. Consideration of Solid Waste Facility License Renewal for Northern States Power Stephen Rohlf, Building and Zoning Administrator provided background information to the City Council on why the Solid Waste License needed to be renewed at this time. This license renewal is required by City Code and is also a tool for the Council to keep abreast of changes in the operation at the NSP facility. e Don Chmiel, Senior Consultant from NSP, distributed to the City Council a January 4, 1988, status report on the Resource Recovery facility. This status report is attached to the minutes for background information. Mr. Chmiel reported that the vast majority of the engineering for the project is completed and all of the engineering work for the project is expected to be completed by May, 1988. Mr. Chmiel then reviewed the major (over $100,000) and the minor (under $100,000) contracts that have been awarded to date and that need to be awarded in the future for the purchase of equipment and materials. Approximately 80% of these contracts have been awarded to date. With the construction contracts, seven of the eleven contracts have been awarded to date. More detail on all of the contracts e e e Page 2 City Council Minutes January 25, 1988 was offered in the handout in Attachment A, B, and C. Mr. Chmiel then offered some comments on the permits that have been obtained by NSP for the facility and reviewed the construction schedule which calls for completion of the facility toward the end of 1988. NSP hopes to begin the preoperational testing of the faciltiy in December, 1988 and have the facility open for commercial operation by the end of May, 1989. Mr. Chmiel concluded his presentation by indicating that the construction of the facility is moving forward on schedule and as planned. In response to a question from the City Council, Mr. Glen Kaas from NSP indicated that there has been one theft from the NSP site and that was when a bobcat was stolen from one of the contractors working on the site. Mr. Kass further indicated that a fence has been constructed around the facility for security purposes and that the site has not been the subject of a public protest unlike some of the protests that are taking place in the Minneapolis area around garbage processing facilities. In response to questions regarding the Newport facility which is very similar to the facility that will be constructed in Elk River, Mr. Peter Jones from NSP, indicated that the Elk River facility will greatly benefit from the knowledge gained at Newport. NSP will be taking steps to correct any of the problems that have developed in Newport prior to any of the equipment being installed in the Elk River facility. Mr. Jones further indicated that there are no major problems with the Newport facility and that sometimes the problems that get publicized in the media relate to the expectations of officials involved in the project which may be unrealistic at the starting point. Mr. Jones further indicated that regarding the 1/18/88 Minneapolis Star and Tribune Article on the Newport facility, that if garbage was rejected at the Elk River plant, then such garbage would return to the originating County. Also, if the plant were to be shut down for some reason, that steps would be taken to reduce or stop the delivery of garbage during such a situation. The City Council asked NSP officials questions relating to the disposal of the ash that would result from the burning of the RDF. Mr. Jones indicated that no provisions have yet been made on the disposal of the ash. Six sites are currently being evaluated and it is anticipated that the number of sites for possible disposal of the ash will be reduced to two and that a final decision is expected by June, 1988. It was noted that the Elk River Landfill is one of the six sites currently under consideration, but officials estimate the chances of this site being selected as being very remote because of the criteria used in selecting an acceptable site. Mr. Chmiel noted that one additional permit is being obtained from the DNR that relates to the water volume that is needed for fire fighting capacity. This permit is expected very soon and is not listed on the 1/4/88 handout distributed to the Council. COUNCILMEMBER TRALLE MOVED TO APPROVE RESOLUTION 88-7, A RESOLUTION GRANTING A LICENSE RENEWAL TO NORTHERN STATES POWER FOR A SOLID WASTE FACILITY. COUNCILMEMBER DOBEL SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION CARRIED 5- o. Page 3 e City Council Minutes January 25, 1988 4.2. Consideration of Solid Waste Facility License Renewal for United Power Association The Zoning Administrator provided some background information on why this license needed to be renewed at this time. Mr. Rohlf indicated that City Code required this renewal and indicated that UPA officials are present to update the Council on the status of the project. This license is related to the NSP license as the RDF that is produced from the garbage processing plant is to be burned at the UPA site. Mr. Steve Shurts from UPA provided a brief technical update to the City Council on the work that has taken place at the UPA site to prepare for the burning of the RDF. Mr. Shurts provided an update on work to date on the boiler system, the scrubber, the ash containment, fuel, and receiving building. Mr. Shurts indicated that a visit to a similar site in Pennsylvania provided UPA with a great deal of knowledge and information on how to improve the UPA site. UPA officials indicated that work on the burn facility is also moving forward on schedule. This includes the retraining of many of the workers at the UPA site. e The Council asked a question relating to the large influx of construction workers this summer and what effects the workers would have on local traffic. UPA officials indicated that approximately 150 to 200 construction workers were anticipated to be on the UPA site during the summer months but that the workers starting and ending time and work days would all be staggered so that there would not be trucks and cars for 200 workers entering into the traffic system in Elk River at one time. In response to the Council's question on the first test burn of the refitted boilers at the UPA site, Mr. Shurts indicated that such a burn is anticipated around January, 1989. Mr. Shurts also indicated, in response to a Council question, that additional County renewals were also needed on an annual basis but that these type of renewals are for completely different permits than is what is required at the City level. COUNCILMEMBER DOBEL MOVED TO APPROVE RESOLUTION 88-8. A RESOLUTION GRANTING A LICENSE RENEWAL TO UNITED STATES POWER FOR A SOLID WASTE FACILITY. COUNCILMEMBER SCHULDT SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION CARRIED 5-0. 5.1. Library Board Interviews At this Bronniche Elk River time the City Council interviewed Ms. Jean Lucas and Mr. Daryl for possible appointments to the two vacant positions on the Lib rary Board. e MOTION BY COUNCILMEMBER TRALLE TO APPOINT MS. JEAN LUCAS AND MR. DARYL BRONNICHE TO A THREE YEAR TERM ON THE ELK RIVER LIBRARY. BOARD WITH THE TERMS EXPIRING ON 12/31/90.COUNCILMEMBER HOLMGREN SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION CARRIED 5-0. Page 4 e City Council Minutes January 25, 1988 5.2. Consideration of Economic Development Commission Appointments The City Council reviewed the recommendation from Mr. Clifford Lundberg, EDC Chairman, which recommended certain reappointments and the non reappointment of other members which would reduce the EDC overall membership through attrition. Council also reviewed a letter from Mr. Joe Schiff, which indicated his desire to serve on the Economic Development Commission. Mayor Gunkel reviewed with the Council the consensus reached with the Economic Development Consultant, Mike Mulrooney, on the restructuring of the Economic Development Commission and the goal to reduce the overall membership of this commission. It was noted that in 1986 the Commission had 20 members and in 1987 the Commission had 16 members. Regarding a possible interview to consider appointing Mr. Schiff to the EDC, it was indicated that it would be best to keep his name on the list of resource people to work on various task forces for specific projects as they arise. e Councilmember Schuldt indicated that if it is the goal of the City to reduce the membership of the EDC, that the Council should strongly consider making no reappointments to the EDC in 1988. In this manner, once the Economic Development Coordinator is hired, this individual could advise the Council on the best composition of the EDC and its role within City government. COUNCILMEMBER TRALLE MOVED TO REAPPOINT DICK GONGOLL AND ELAINE ANDERSON TO A THREE YEAR TERM ON THE CITY OF ELK RIVER ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION AND THAT THE TERMS WOULD EXPIRE ON 1/1/91. COUNCILMEMBER DOBEL SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION CARRIED 4-1. COUNCILMEMBER SCHULDT VOTED AGAINST THE MOTION. 5.3. Discussion on City Goals for 1988-89 e The City Council reviewed a memo from the City Administrator dated 1/22/88 which listed a number of staff priority projects and other projects the City Council has indicated are of a high priority. No list of these projects was developed for "which project was more important than another project." Council simply directed the Staff to proceed working on the work list. However, the Council did indicate a desire for the Staff to pay special attention to: the purchase of the railroad bed; the development of the City Park and Rec Board; the Liquor Store traffic pattern; plus the old and new city hall sites. Additionally, the Council asked that the following projects be added to the work plan: possible improvements to Railroad Drive; location of a compost site; work on the development and preservation of the river bank around the downtown area; development and use of consent agenda; and periodic updates on the 1990 census project. Council also reviewed a list of projects from the Building and Zoning Administrator. Most of the projects on this list related to improvements of the existing City Code in order to eliminate some problems that have become obvious in the last two years. Mr. Rohlf also indicated a high priority in working with the gravel mining industry and the landfill. The City Council indicated its desire to have a joint City Council/Planning Commission workshop on an upcoming Saturday morning to discuss planning principals and goals for the City. Page 5 e City Council Minutes January 25. 1988 As work on upgrading Highway 101 was one of the projects listed in the Administrator's memo. Counci1member Tra11e provided an update of the 1/20/88 Highway 101 Task Force meeting. Mr. Tra11e indicated that MnDOT Officials attended this meeting and the time frame for improvement of Highway 101 is not as positive as originally anticipated. Mr. Tra11e indicated that the major concerns with the improvement of Highway 101 relate to the total cost of the _ project. other projects which are competing with Highway 101 for state funds. and the reconstruction of the bridges. 6.1 Discussion on City Council presentations at the Chamber of Commerce State of the City Address/Mayor Gunkel It was noted that this Address is planned at Broadway Bar & Pizza meeting room on Tuesday. February 16. 1988. The Mayor indicated that an appropriate topic for all the speakers at this presentation could be the ten year anniversary of the City/Township consolidation. In this regard. all Counci1members could discuss their topic in relationship to what was then versus what currently exists and where the City plans to go in the future in regards to various departments and projects. e It was further suggested that all past Mayors and City Counci1members since consolidation be formally invited to this Chamber dinner. The Mayor indicated that a cake celebrating the anniversary may be appropriate and that she would contact Chamber of Commerce Executive Vice President. Jackie Shue1ein. for making arrangements for such a cake. The entire City Council concurred that such a "theme" for the presentations at this State of the City Address is appropriate. 6.2 City Administrators Update City Administrator updated 2/1/88 Council meeting. present at this meeting to on the county petition for the Council on tentative agenda items for the It was noted that the City Engineer will be discuss the Main Street project and the report sewer and water to their new facility. It was also indicated that the Fire Department ordinance revisions would be on this agenda and that the Fire Department will be in the process of recruiting more fire fighters as it is proposed that the total number of fire fighters be increased from 30 to 35. The Council had no problem with this recruitment of more fire fighters. e The City Administrator asked for motions to establish special City Council meetings. MOTION BY COUNCILMEMBER TRALLE TO HOLD A SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING ON SATURDAY. FEBRUARY 6. 1988. BEGINNING AT 9:00 A.M. AT THE ELK RIVER CITY HALL CONFERENCE ROOM FOR THE INTERVIEWING OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COORDINATOR APPLICANTS. - COUNCILMEMBER DOBELSECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION CARRIED 5-0. ',' MOTION BY COUNCILMEMBER TRALLE TO HOLD A SPECIAL JOINT ELK RIVER CITY COUNCIL AND SHERBURNE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS MEETING ON WEDNESDAY. JIB l\UAl\Y " 1908. AT 7 I 00 P. M. AT THE ELK RIVER CITY HALL CONFERENCE ROOM TO DISCUSS ISSUES OF MUTUAL CONCERN. COUNCILMEMBER HOLMGREN SECONDED THE MOTION. THE MOTION CARRIED 5-0. e - e Page 6 City Council Minutes January 25. 1988 The City Administrator distributed the recently received Chamber of Commerce survey results on the Atlas Incinerator issue and a League of Minnesota Cities policy statement for the next legislative session relating to the Tax Increment Financing Law. The City Council discussed with the City Administrator a concern over how to treat all city volunteers in a similar manner. It was noted that the City has a wide variety of volunteers and to give special recognition to certain volunteers and not others may not be appropriate. The Council requested the Administrator to research the possibilities of having "Certificates of Appreciation" developed and for the time being continue with City resolutions that express the appreciation of the City Council. The City Administrator updated the Council on the Economic Development Coordinator interviews that were held at the staff level on Saturday. January 23. 1988. Of the four applicants that were interviewed the Administrator indicated that all four plan to be present during City Council interviews on 2/6/88. City Administrator updated the Council on the 1/21/88 informational hearing on Main Street improvement costs for the beautification aspect of this project. It was indicated by the Administrator that no significant opposition to the total cost or components of the project as recommended by the committee were voiced at this meeting. However concern was expressed over the assessment district and more concern was expressed over the assessment method. The concensus of this meeting was that an assessment method by a straight dollar amount per unit would be more appropriate so that each business received an identical assessment for the beautification part of this project. It was the concensus of the City Council that they would like to receive monthly paychecks rather than quarterly paychecks for their services. MOTION BY COUNCILMEMBER HOLMGREN TO ADJOURN THE MEETING OF THE ELK RIVER CITY COUNCIL. COUNCILMEMBER TRALLE SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED 5-0. The meeting adjourned at 10:35 p.m. Respectfully submitted P~~i;P~~ Patrick Klaers