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4.1 DRAFT MINUTES (2 SETS) 12-04-2023 Meeting of the Elk River City Council Held at the Elk River City Hall Monday, November 6, 2023 Members Present: Mayor John Dietz, Councilmembers Cory Grupa, Mike Beyer, Matt Westgaard, and Jennifer Wagner Members Absent: None Staff Present: City Administrator Calvin Portner, Business Services Director/Assistant City Administrator Joe Stremcha, Public Works Director/Chief Engineer Justin Femrite, Community Development Director Zack Carlton, Economic Development Director Brent O’Neil, Finance Manager Lori Stich, Multipurpose Facility Superintendent Tim Dalton, and Deputy City Clerk Jolene Richter 1. Call Meeting to Order Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, the meeting of the Elk River City Council was called to order at 6:29 p.m. by Mayor Dietz. 2. Pledge of Allegiance: Pledge of Allegiance was recited. 3. Consider Agenda Moved by Councilmember Wagner and seconded by Councilmember Beyer to approve the agenda. Motion carried 5-0. 4. Consent Agenda Moved by Councilmember Westgaard and seconded by Councilmember Grupa to approve: 4.1 October 16, 2023, Regular October 16, 2023, Closed 4.2 Check register as outlined in the staff report. 4.3 Approve Elk River High School Ice Contracts. 4.4 Approve the hire of Street Maintenance Operators: Samuel Sweat and Kevin Boser. 4.5 Approve the Snow and Ice Control Services Agreement with Sherburne County Soil and Water Conservation District. 4.6 Approve the Professional Services Contract Amendment for Water Resources. 4.7 Adopt Resolution 23-43 approving the Final Plat of Bradford Park as outlined in the staff report. 4.8 Adopt Resolution 23-44 approving the plat of The Cove on Lake Orono as it is renaming the previously approved plat of The Cove. 4.9 Approve the Professional Services Contract with Patchin Messner Valuation Counselors to complete a residential land valuation study. 4.10 Approve the City of Elk River (80%) and Elk River Municipal Utilities (20%) cost share partnership for an IT Risk Assessment as outlined in the staff report. 4.11 Approve the agreement between Elk River Fire Foundation and City of Elk River for reimbursement of promotional tokens at the indoor Farmers Market. City Council Minutes Page 2 November 6, 2023 ----------------------------- Motion carried 5-0. 5. Open Forum No one appeared for Open Forum. 6.1 Energy City Commission Interviews The Council interviewed applicants for the Energy City Commission. 7. Public Hearings There were no public hearings. 8.1 Resolution: Transfer Property from City to Economic Development Authority Mr. O’Neil presented the staff report. Moved by Councilmember Westgaard and seconded by Councilmember Wagner to adopt Resolution 23-45 authorizing the execution of a deed transferring property to the EDA. Motion carried 5-0. 8.2 Resolution: Findings of Fact Denying Conditional Use Permit for Home Occupation at 18643 Yankton Street Mr. Carlton presented the staff report. Moved by Councilmember Grupa and seconded by Councilmember Westgaard to adopt Resolution 23-46 making Findings of Fact for the denial of the Conditional Use Permit request for a home occupation by Jeremiah Shank at 18643 Yankton Street. Motion carried 5- 0. 8.3 Heritage Preservation Commission Appointment Mayor Dietz presented the staff report. The Council discussed the appointment and decided not to make a motion at this time. They directed staff to contact the candidates to inquire if there would be any interest in serving on the Energy City Commission. Staff will report back at the November 20, 2023, Council meeting. 8.4 Discuss Work Session Items Mayor Dietz presented the staff report. City Council Minutes Page 3 November 6, 2023 ----------------------------- 9. Council Liaison Updates The Councilmembers provided updates as outlined in the respective advisory board’s minutes. 10. Adjourn Regular Meeting Moved by Councilmember Beyer and seconded by Councilmember Grupa to adjourn the regular meeting of City Council. Motion carried 5-0. The regular meeting adjourned at 6:56 p.m. Mayor Dietz called the Work Session to order at 6:57 p.m. 11.1 Dodge Street Traffic Concerns Mr. Femrite presented the staff report. The Council invited members of the public to speak regarding the concerns of Dodge Street traffic. Monic Ede, 19216 Dodge Street NW, is concerned about the traffic going too fast down the street and the safety of the residents. She would like to see a lower speed limit. Susie Williams, 19176 Dodge Street NW, has concerns regarding the speed of traffic traveling down the street. She would like to see more enforcement along the street. Sue Hasskamp, 19190 Dodge Street NW, is concerned regarding the traffic and safety of children along Dodge Street. She would like to possibly see local traffic only signs. Jennifer Carlson, 18869 Dodge Street NW, is concerned regarding the crosswalk, she stated people do not stop for the crosswalk. She would like to see the sidewalk extended and possibly see the th flashing lights at the crosswalks at Dodge Street and 189 Avenue and Elk Hills Drive and Dodge Street. Kathy Palmer, 19049 Dodge Street NW, has seen the traffic over the last five years increase and is concerned, she proposed using “20 is plenty” on all residential streets in Elk River and would like a true traffic study done. She also would like to see another way for traffic to be diverted for the construction. Chris Solomon, 18837 Dodge Street NW, stated he sees so many people go through the stop signs. He would like to see some kind of flashing signs or reminders for people to stop. Kellen Bennett, 19125 Dodge Street NW, has safety concerns, especially for his family. He would like to see sidewalks and speed reduction. He would like to see the speed limit go to 20 mph in residential areas and would like the issue to be investigated further. The Council discussed the traffic concerns and transportation infrastructure on Dodge Street and the impacts of the 169 Redefine project. There was a discussion between the Council and Mr. Femrite to possibly close Dodge Street for a few days to break the traffic patterns that have been developed from the construction. They also brought up changing to “20 is plenty”. Mr. Femrite stated that would be a decision the Council can make for residential areas. City Council Minutes Page 4 November 6, 2023 ----------------------------- Mr. Femrite stated regarding pedestrian safety we can look at that crosswalk to see if it meets the criteria for the enhanced technology traffic control policy. Mr. Femrite further explained the economics of the development when that area was developed it was not required for the developer to have sidewalks at that time and the developer did not take on the costs to add sidewalks. Mayor Dietz asked if we could ask the Police Department to do a 30-day saturation in that area. th Councilmember Beyer stated his concerns regarding the stop sign at 189 Avenue and Dodge Street. He said that the stop sign leads up to the pedestrian bridge. He also stated it is dark on Dodge Street and wanted to see if something could be done regarding the lighting. Councilmember Westgaard stated the traffic has always treated Dodge Street like a service road. He suggested the following: to re-train traffic to use other routes, such as periodic closures, post “local traffic only” now and not wait for spring, and possibly close off the street by the park. Councilmember Wagner asked if there was an opportunity to add a sidewalk in the neighborhood. Mr. Femrite said they would need to do a full feasibility study to add sidewalks. Councilmember Wagner also suggested having the city do a public awareness campaign regarding residential streets and pedestrian awareness. The Council directed staff to check with the Police Department regarding enforcement, ERMU regarding lighting standards, staff will look into crosswalk standards, speed limit signs, supplement signage stating it is a residential area, possible periodic closures along with sending letters to residents letting them know the plan for the closures, and possibly conduct a feasibility study regarding adding in sidewalks or trails. A resident asked if there could be a “Children at Play” sign added near the park. Mr. Femrite stated they would look into adding a sign. The Council recessed at 7:46 p.m. and reconvened in work session at 7:50 p.m. 11.2 Concept Review: Spectrum School Expansion Mr. Carlton presented the staff report. The Council discussed this with Dan DeBruyn Executive Director of Spectrum High School and provided informal, non-binding, feedback regarding their proposal. The Council consensus was that they would not support changing the zoning, however they would support a Planned Unit Development on the current property that Spectrum owns. They did express concern regarding future expansion requests as they would like to preserve the Business Park District. 11.3 2024-2028 Capital Improvement Plan Mr. Stremcha presented the staff report. City Council Minutes Page 5 November 6, 2023 ----------------------------- The Council reviewed the 2024-2028 Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) and decided to move forward with the 2024-2028 CIP as proposed. 11.4 Closing GRE Fund Mr. Stremcha and Mr. Portner presented the staff report. The Council decided to leave the GRE Reserve Fund as is for now to prevent the fund from getting lost within other funds for the time being. There is no harm in keeping the fund open. They will look at it again in the future. 11.5 Multipurpose Facility Budget Mr. Stremcha and Mr. Dalton presented the staff report. Councilmember Wagner stated that staff had answered most of her questions and she had a lot of the same questions that the Council asked at the last meeting, which were answered. She expressed concern regarding the budget and questioned the Unrecoverable Costs from the Senior Center. She stated those rooms were for the Senior Center programming during the day. Mr. Stremcha clarified and said that if the Senior Center is using a room for a program, then it cannot be rented out and stated the Unrecoverable Costs is a way for us to capture all the costs of the Senior Programming. Mr. Portner stated that we are tracking it to find out where everything is over a period of time, then we will develop a plan. 11.6 Advisory Board Attendance Mr. Portner presented the staff report. The Council discussed having proxy voting members for the commission positions that have specific representatives, such as a school representative or Chamber representative. The proxies will have to be known to staff before the meeting. Councilmember Wagner suggested having the staff liaison send calendar invitations to the members on January 1 for the whole year. The Council discussed the need for excused absences. The members need to let the staff liaison know ahead of the meeting if they are going to be absent. The Council decided to retro-excuse Dave Williams and Ryan Holmgren for their last excused absences and reinstate both Kara Walker and Michelle Hegarty. Staff will draft a policy and bring it back to the Council. City Council Minutes Page 6 November 6, 2023 ----------------------------- 11.7 IT System Technician Position Mr. Calvin and Mr. Portner presented the staff report. The Council discussed the IT System Administrator position and job description as presented and decided to move forward with the position. 12. Motion to Adjourn Moved by Councilmember Westgaard and seconded by Councilmember Grupa to adjourn the meeting of City Council. Motion carried 5-0. The meeting adjourned at 9:30 p.m. 13. Closed Meeting – PID 75-566-0110 Members Present: Mayor John Dietz, Councilmembers Cory Grupa, Mike Beyer, Matt Westgaard, and Jennifer Wagner Members Absent: None Staff Present: City Administrator Calvin Portner, Business Services Director/Assistant City Administrator Joe Stremcha, Economic Development Director Brent O’Neil, Community Development Director Zack Carlton, Liquor Store Operations Manager Joe Audette, Liquor Store Manager (Northbound) John Colotti and Deputy City Clerk Jolene Richter 13b. Motion Calling Closed Meeting Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, the closed meeting of the Elk River City Council was called to order at 9:32 p.m. by Mayor Dietz. He read the statement on the agenda before closing the meeting. 13c. Hold Closed Meeting The Council held a closed meeting pursuant to Minnesota Statute, Section 13D.05, Subdivision 3 to develop or consider offers or counteroffers for sale of real estate at 19348 Evans St NW – PID 75- 566-0110. 13d. Motion Adjourning Closed Meeting Moved by Councilmember Wagner and seconded by Councilmember Beyer to adjourn the closed meeting. Motion carried 5-0. The meeting was adjourned at 9:50 p.m. City Council Minutes Page 7 November 6, 2023 ----------------------------- 14. Closed Meeting – Nature’s Edge Members Present: Mayor John Dietz, Councilmembers Cory Grupa, Mike Beyer, and Jennifer Wagner Members Absent: Councilmember Westgaard (due to conflict of interest) Staff Present: City Administrator Calvin Portner, Business Services Director/Assistant City Administrator Joe Stremcha, Economic Development Director Brent O’Neil, Community Development Director Zack Carlton, and Deputy City Clerk Jolene Richter 14b. Motion Calling Closed Meeting Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, the closed meeting of the Elk River City Council was called to order at 9:50 p.m. by Mayor Dietz. He read the statement on the agenda before closing the meeting. 14c. Hold Closed Meeting The Council held a closed meeting pursuant to Minnesota Statute, Section 13D.05, Subdivision 3 to discuss the possible sale of city owned property PID 75-929-0020, Outlot B, Nature’s Edge Business Center Fourth Addition. 14d. Motion Adjourning Closed Meeting Moved by Councilmember Wagner and seconded by Councilmember Grupa to adjourn the closed meeting. Motion carried 5-0. The meeting was adjourned at 10:00 p.m. 16. Adjournment Minutes prepared by Jolene Richter. ___________________ John J. Dietz, Mayor ___________________ Tina Allard, City Clerk