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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1982/03/22 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Study Session MINUTES CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION ST. LOUIS PARK, MINNESOTA March 22, 1982 1 . Call to Order A study session of the City Council was 11 -- called to order at 7:16 p.m. by Mayor Phyllis McQuaid. 2. Roll Call The following Council members were present when the meeting was called to order: Lyle Hanks Richard Strohl Jerrold Martin Phyllis McQuaid Keith Meland Also present were the City Manager and the City Clerk. 3. Communications from the City Manager The City Manager informed the Council , on the status of the following items: , 1 . W. 36th St./Highway 100 interchange project 2. Tree trimming and removal from November snowstorm 3. Construction of Well No. 17 4. Emergency dispatching program adopted by Hennepin County 4. Redistricting The Council received a staff report which listed deadlines for fulfilling the procedures to establish new ward and precinct boundaries. The City Clerk noted that since the wards are nearly equal in terms of population, it may be appropriate to change only precinct boundaries in Ward 3. These precinct lines would need to be changed to conform to state legislative district boundaries. Councilman Meland noted that precincts do not need to be equal in pop- ulation. Rather, they are defined in terms of the availability of polling places. Councilman Meland moved and Councilman Hanks seconded that ward boundaries not be altered. The motion passed 5-0. Councilman Meland moved and Councilman Martin seconded to authorize staff to present recommended precinct changes to Council and to draft an ord- inance specifying those changes which would he ready for second reading on May 17, 1982. The motion passed 5-0. 5. Solid Waste Management Study The Council had received a draft report from Pope-Reid Associates , Inc. and a staff report (M & C No. 82-10) relating to recycling and other solid waste alternatives . -86- City Council study session March 22, 1982 The City Manager explained three goals of a recycling program: 1 . to change residents' behavior; 2. to make the system convenient; 3. to lessen the increase in disposal costs by reducing the volume of unseparated solid waste collected. Councilman Hanks asked why waste incineration/heat recovery systems are successful in Europe and not as numerous in the United States. Bob Reid, president of Pope-Reid Associates, Inc. responded that Europe has a higher density of population and urban development, thus providing for multiple customers of heat energy. . Hennepin County lacks the type of development which provides suitable customers. Landfilling is also more costly in Europe than the United States. Councilman Martin questioned whether recycling is a public purpose worthy of City involvement. Assuming such involvement is warranted, he proposed an alternative recycling system. All residents would be charged for containers to be provided by the City. Thus all residents would pay the start-up and on-going costs of the recycling program. Persons wishing to participate in the program would take recyclables to the MSD Recycle facility, save cash receipts and be reimbursed on a matching basis by the City the following January. Those who did not participate would be penalized by initially paying for containers and not taking advantage of MSD Recycle and City payments . Councilman Martin compared his proposal to the NSP home energy audit program. Mayor Mc4uaid noted that some people are unable to reach the MSD Recycle facility. • Councilman Hanks did not believe that people would recycle under Council - man Martin's plan. He said other incentives like charging per can col- lected were more effective. There was general discussion about what types of organizations could be contracted to collect recyclable materials. Mayor McQuaid believed recycling is both needed and possible. Councilman Hanks wondered why the City could not require curbside collection of all refuse. Councilman Hanks moved and Councilman Martin seconded, that staff be directed to develop a pilot source separation recycling program and that staff try to find a local non-profit organization to pick up recyclables. The motion passed 5-0. 6. Snowplowing_ Alternatives Councilman Martin moved that the present system of snowplowing be maintained except that the tagging and towing procedure begin 24 hours earlier than at present. The motion died for lack of a second. -87- City Council study session March 22 , 1982 In response to an inquiry by Councilman Hanks , the Street Superintendent explained the present snowplowing practice. Councilman Hanks did not want to inconvenience residents in the future due to a response to unusual conditions this past winter. The Street Superintendent mentioned that one of the major problems City Maintenance forces are having to face is the increasing number of cars per dwelling. Mayor McQuaid commented that people are more upset about snowbirds than snowplowing procedures. Councilman Hanks suggested an "odd-even" parking system and that vehicles be towed without a tag having first been issued. The City Manager noted that some sort of posting would then be required. Councilman Martin stated he would not support towing without the issuance of tags. He believed that a tag gave fair warning and resulted in a lesser number of towed vehicles. Councilman Hanks recalled that the Community Relations Commission (CRC) used to perform neighborhood survey functions. He suggested that the CRC conduct a survey looking at reactions to (1 ) the present system with modifications, and (2) an "odd-even" system during snow emergencies. Councilman Martin noted that these items were among those discussed at the last CRC meeting. He said there were diverse opinions aired at that time. Councilman Hanks believed the Council needed more community comments to make a sound decision. Councilman Hanks moved and Councilman Meland seconded that the Council ask the CRC to reconsider the snowplowing issue; that the Street Super- intendent present his operations and procedures to the CRC; and that each CRC member randomly survey 15 to 20 people about their preferences for and reactions to certain plows. The motion passed 5-0. • Councilman Strohl requested that traffic safety and emergency medical safety issues be discussed during the CRC's study. 7. St. Louis Park Emeryenc�r Program; Tom Johnston and Sue Nelson of the St. Request for_CDI3G Funding,_ Louis Park Emergency Program (STEP) were present to answer questions from the Council regarding STEP' s request for $12,000 in Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds to administer the Home Chore program. Councilman Martin suggested that user fees he established for the Home Chore program and that the fees be deferred and collectible with either the sale of Property or settlement of estate. He commented that CDBG funds 1 could be used to begin the program and eventually use the City General fund to pay deferrals. -88- f•larcn LL, IVoL • Mayor McQuaid said the administration of such a program needed to be explored. Councilman Hanks said he had problems with the federal eligibility guide- lines. He believed the effort should be directed more to low-income residents than to moderate-income residents. Councilman Meland questioned the return to the community for its ex- penditure of CDBG funds. Councilman Martin noted that eligibility re- quirements from HUD to use CDBG funds would be very cumbersome and probably reduce the effectiveness of the Home Chore program. Councilman Martin felt that Council action was inappropriate until the Council had more information from staff, Hennepin County and STEP. • 8. Chemical Dependency Program Councilman Hanks noted that the School District had cut funding for its chemical dependency worker. He believed that the service provided by this worker is important to the community. The question then becomes whether efforts should be made to keep the service within the School District or some outside agency like Relate. • Councilman Hanks suggested that the City and the School District make a trade-off. The City would provide monies from the Cable TV fund to pay for the cable television coordinator position in the school system, thus freeing up money in the School District's budget in order to retain the chemical dependency worker's position. Councilman Hanks moved and Councilman Meland seconded that staff be directed to pursue this possibility of a trade-off using Cable TV funds with the School District. The motion passed 509. 9. Resolution on Nuclear kms Freeze Councilman Meland said he was placing the resolution, which was modeled after the resolution adopted by the Minnesota Legislature, on the April 5 agenda. He wished to discuss with the Council whether this item was appropriate for Council action. 10. Executive Session The Council and City Manager retired • to an executive sessions. The City Manager related settlement terms offered by Cardinal Glass Co. Councilman Meland moved and Councilman Hanks seconded that the City Man- ager be authorized to accept the offer by Cardinal Glass Company subject to Council 's final approval . 11 . Adjournment The Council returned to its study session business. Councilman Martin moved, seconded by Councilman Hanks, to adjourn the study session at 9:48 p.m. The motion passed 5-0. Mayor J 4 , RecordSe - rai9, rd:2 cretary