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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1988/07/18 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Regular 4b MINUTES CITY COUNCIL MEETING ST. LOUIS PARK, MINNESOTA July 18, 1988 1. Call to Order The meeting was called to order by Mayor Lyle Hanks at 7:30 p.m. 2. Presentations None. 3. Roll call The following members were present at roll call : Bruce Battaglia Larry Mitchell Thomas Duffy David Strand Allen Friedman Lyle Hanks Also present were the Acting City Manager, City Attorney, Director of Public Works and Director of Planning. 4. Approval of minutes It was moved by Councilmember Battaglia, seconded by Councilmember Duffy, to approve the minutes of the July 4111 5, 1988 City Council meeting. The motion passed 5-0-1 (Councilmember Strand abstained) . It was moved by Councilmember Strand, seconded by Councilmember Duffy, to approve the minutes of the July 11 , 1988 study session. The motion passed 4-0-2 (Councilmembers Friedman and Mitchell abstained) . 5. Approval of agenda It was moved by Councilmember Duffy, seconded by Councilmember Battaglia to approve the agenda for July 18, 1988. The motion passed 6-0. It was moved by Councilmember Battaglia, seconded by Councilmember Mitchell , to approve the agenda for July 18, 1988 with the following addition: lld. 40-hr. work week in Fire Department. The motion passed 6-0. PUBLIC HEARINGS 6a. Westinghouse addition Preliminary plat 411/ There being no one wishing to speak, the Mayor declared the hearing closed with the right of Council to thereafter reopen and continue it at a future date. -142- City Council meeting minutes July 18, 1988 It was moved by Councilmember Duffy, seconded by Councilmember Strand, to approve the preliminary plat. Ir The motion passed 6-0. 6b. Anderburg Lund Registered land survey at 6999-7000 Oxford St. There being no one wishing to speak, the Mayor closed the hearing with the right of Council to thereafter reopen and continue it at a future date. It was moved by Councilmember Strand, seconded by Councilmember Duffy, to approve the preliminary registered land survey. The motion passed 6-0. 6c. Anderburg Lund Special permit: Building addition Resolution 88-81 at 6999-7000 Oxford St. There being no one present wish-ing to speak, the Mayor declared the hearing closed with the right of Council to thereafter reopen and continue it at a future date. It was moved by Councilmember Duffy, seconded by Councilmember Battaglia, to waive reading and adopt Resolution No. 88-81 entitled "A resolution II granting special permit under Section 14-123.100(2) of the St. Louis Park ordinance code relating to zoning to permit construction of a building addition in a floodplain for property zoned I-1 industrial district and F-2 floodplain district located at 6999-7000 Oxford St." The Acting City Manager said a building permit would not be issued until such time as the final registered land survey is approved. The motion passed 5-0-1 (Councilmember Mitchell abstained) . 6d. Zoning change I-1 to PUD at Hwy. 100/Hwy. 7 There being no one wishing to speak, the Mayor declared the hearing closed with the right of Council to thereafter reopen and continue it at a future date. Councilmember Battaglia again expressed his concern about a residential development being right next to an industrial operation, McGarvey Coffee. He wondered if, because of the different pollution ordinances governing these two divergent neighbors, was the City opening itself up to problems in the future. The Acting City Manager said that was the subject of the agreement that III was developed with McGravey at the time Council reviewed this request at the last meeting. The City Attorney stated that an agreement had been worked out by attorneys for both parties resulting in an agreement re notice to potential purchasers or tenants of the uses next door in return for an agreed upon, useful life for the McGarvey facility. He said the -143 - City Council meeting minutes July 18, 1988 4111 agreement attempted to balance both parties' interests in pursuing this development while being consistent with City code requirements which is something the City could look at in the future. There being no one further wishing to speak, the Mayor closed the hearing with the right of Council to thereafter reopen and continue it at a future date. It was moved by Councilmember Strand, seconded by Councilmember Duffy, to waive first reading, set second reading for August 1 , 1988 and authorize summary publication. The motion passed 5-0-1 (Councilmember Mitchell abstained) . 6e. Site plan modifications 3600-3630 Decatur Ave. So. Resolution 88-82 There being no one wishing to speak, the Mayor closed the hearing with the right of Council to thereafter reopen and continue it at a future date. It was moved by Councilmember Friedman, seconded by Councilmember Battaglia, to waive reading and adopt Resolution 88-82 entitled "A resolution rescinding Resolution 87-26 adopted on March 15, 1987 and granting special permit 4111 under Section 14-124. 101 (2) of the St. Louis Park ordinance code relating to zoning to allow a senior citizen apartment building containing 155 units for property zoned PUD, planned unit development, at 3630 Decatur Ave. So." The motion passed 6-0. 5f. Vacation of Joppa Ave. Diamond Hill Center Partnership 6g. Preliminary plat The Acting City Manager said some questions had arisen as to the preliminary plat, title work not completed and the question of an encroachment and its relationship to the vacation. She recommended that Council proceed with the hearing on the vacation although continuing action to a subsequent meeting and the preliminary plat can be approved if found satisfactory contingent upon title work and further exploration of the encroachment issue. It was moved by Councilomember Strand, seconded by Councilmember Battaglia, to approve the preliminary plat and continue the hearing on the vacation to August 1 , 1988. The motion passed 6-0. 6h. Kayo Oil Variance in front yard setback at 5600 W. Lake St. J1/ Bob Rhodes, project engineer for the request, explained briefly what was proposed for the facility; i .e. a full service canopy for the facility. Councilmember Friedman was not clear on what this proposed canopy was -144- City Council meeting minutes July 18, 1988 acutlly going to look like from the drawing before Council . There was not a picture available which clearly showed what the proposed canopy would look like. Understanding that the canopy was going to extend from the roof of the existing building to over the pumps, Councilmember Friedman asked if this was acceptable if setbacks were met. The City Planner said this was permissible under City ordinance. In answer to questions from Councilmembers Friedman and Strand and the difficulty of envisioning the proposed canopy, the City Planner said if the variance request were approved, Kayo would be applying for a special permit which would go through the Planning Commission with accompanying rendering. There being no one further wishing to speak, the Mayor declared the hearing closed subject to the action of the Council to reopen it at any future time. It was moved by Councilmember Friedman to defer action until Council could receive better information on what the canopy is going to look like. Mayor Hanks asked if he were moving to continue the hearing until a, rendering were available. Councilmember Friedman said that was correct. The motion died for lack of a second. 1111 It was moved by Councilmember Strand, seconded by Councilmember Friedman, to authorize preparation of a resolution of denial with findings. Councilmember Battaglia thought if the canopy were not allowed to cover the pumps it would be esthetically less desirable and he could not support the motion. The motion passed 5-1 (Councilmember Battaglia opposed) . 6i . Variance: 4806 Old Cedar Lake Rd. Resolution 88-83 Neil Anderson spoke to the request for variance. Neighbor Charles Larson, 4812 Old Cedar Lake Rd. , said he had no opposition to the variance. There being no one further wishing to speak, the Mayor closed the hearing with the right of Council to reopen and continue it at a future date. It was moved by Councilmember Friedman, seconded by Councilmember Duffy, to waive reading and adopt Resolution 88-83 entitled "A resolution granting variance in side yard from Section 14-133(5) of the ordinance code relating to zoning to permit the construction of a porch and garage having a side yard setback of 2 feet instead of the required 6 feet in the R-2, single 1110 family residence district at 4806 Old Cedar Lake Rd." -145- City Council meeting minutes July 18, 1988 4111 The motion passed 6-0. Councilmember Duffy noted that a detached garage could be constructed on the property without a variance. Because they are choosing to attach the garage via a porch, a variance is needed. Mayor Hanks also noted that a portion of this lot had been deeded to the lot next door in order to provide its being a buildable lot prior to the present owners' occupancy. 6j. Minnesota Cellular Telephone Special permit Tim Keane, representing the applicant, addressed Council stating that as Council had requested at the July 5 meeting, a neighborhood meeting to discuss the tower was held at City Hall . Councilmember Friedman said it was his understanding this item would not come back to Council until such time as the technical data relative to the tower was available. !__-- Mr. Keane said the Planning staff had said an appearance before Council even without that information would be appropriate. 411/ It was moved by Councilmember Friedman, seconded by Councilmember Mitchell , to continue the matter to August 15, 1988. The motion passed 6-0. 6k. Amendment to Comprehensive Plan Amendment to Comprehensive Resolution 88-84 Plan - Smith property John Schomburg, attorney for the applicant, said it was his understanding a new resolution had been prepared. He said they objected to the use of W. 27th St. as access to the easterly portion of the property. He knew of no authority requiring a landowner to acquire additional private property in order to proceed with development of his property. He said when the Smiths purchased the property, there was access via Texas and Virginia. He said leaving the R-B zoning is not supported by the Planning Commission' s land use report and he did not believe would be supported by any credible testimony which might follow. He felt any amendment to the Comprehensive Plan should provide, at a minimum, for B-3 zoning on that easterly tip of land. He alluded to the resolution he had drafted which was before Council which was what the developer would like to see happen incorporating the developer ' s PUD proposal as an alternative. In answer to a question from Councilmember Mitchell , Mr. Schomburg said this had not been discussed with the City Attorney. He had met with staff. John Weir, 8921 Club Rd. , addressed Council stating he had a petition re the proposed project. Out of the 120 petitioners, all were against high density development on the western end of the property. They signed the petition for medium density as the lesser of two evils. Many of -146- City Council meeting minutes July 18, 1988 signers wondered about the City purchasing the property and turning Ilr it into a park. David Murray, 2512 Virginia Ave. addressed Council to say he thought this was settled on March 7, 1988 with the rezoning of the western part of the property. He said if the issue were indeed not resolved, he hoped the neighborhood would be alerted and invited to attend any meetings. Arlis Grossman said that as early as December 1981 , she had urged the rezoning of the property consistent with the Comprehensive Plan. She viewed tonight' s action merely housekeeping since the amendment to the Comprehensive Plan was adopted on March 7. She was concerned that the residents in attendance at that meeting had been assured that the zoning was to be changed to R-3 and that it was important that the Comprehensive Plan now be amended to reflect that rezoning. There being no one further wishing to speak, the Mayor closed the hearing with the right of Council to thereafter reopen and continue it at a future date. With regard to access via W. 27th St. , Councilmember Strand asked if this requirement is an appropriate requirement to containment within the Comprehensive Plan. The Acting City Manager said that historically this access was tied to the fact an industrial area was planned with Texas and Virginia Ave. offering access to the residential area planned on the property. 1111 Councilmember Strand asked if it would not make sense for the sentence to read: The subject property shall be accessible via W. 27th St. . . . rather than tying access to the property owner. As a point of clarification, Councilmember Strand asked if the subject property was the 1 .5 acres or 1 .5 plus 4.3. The City Planner said 5.8 was correct. Councilmember Strand, referring to the footnote re the eastern portion of the property, would it be appropriate for the Council to go through a rezoning process on the eastern 1 .5 acres. The City Attorney said the Comprehensive Plan is only a guide to future rezoning. He said Council was aware of a major project underway relative to the zoning of the entire City. He said the Council could look at rezoning of that eastern tip at its sole discretion. Councilmember Strand asked if it was the intent of the zoning study to address errors in zoning and try to correct them. The City Planner said that was correct. He said the footnote was intended as information only, not to be incorporated in the resolution. Councilmember Strand asked if the resolution before Council brought the Comprehensive Plan into compliance with the zoning. The City Planner said it did. 1110 The City Attorney said his office concurred. He asked if it were not true that there was nothing in City ordinances prohibiting access to the industrial portion through the 28th, Texas, Virginia. -147- City Council meeting minutes July 18, 1988 4111 The City Planner said that was true. Mayor Hanks asked why there was reference in the resolution on obtaining access on W. 27th. The Acting City Manager said that as access to the property has been discussed, that that was something that was going to be reviewed when there is a proposal submitted to the planning process. She did not think access had to be specified in the resolution, and that access would most definitely be addressed when a proposal is before Council . Councilmember Strand saw Council embarking on a three-step process: (1 ) adoption of the resolution before Council ; (2) consider whether the eastern tip zoning should be changed; and (3) if Council so agrees on rezoning of the eastern tip, then amend the Comprehensive Plan again to bring the eastern tip into compliance. It was moved by Councilmember Strand, seconded by Councilmember Mitchell , to waive reading and adopt Resolution 88-84 entitled "A resolution approving an amendment to the Comprehensive Plan 1980 to the Year 2000 for the City of St. Louis Park under Minnesota Statutes 462.351 to 462.364 with the following change as he previously brought up, i .e. , The subject property shall be accessible via W. 27th St. 4111 Councilmember Strand encouraged the developer or the Council to reconsider the possibility of changing the zoning on the eastern tip to bring it into compliance and to be developed as a single parcel . The motion passed 5-1 (Mayor Hanks opposed) . 61 . Smith appeal to Official Map There being no one wishing to speak, the Mayor closed the hearing with the right of Council to reopen and continue it to a future date. The City Attorney presented the background on this item. In January 1988 the Inspections department denied a building permit requested by Mr. Smith. Among the grounds given for denial was the Official Map. He pointed out that in the intervening months since January, additional issues have been raised which may have been grounds for denial of the , building permit before the Council would have to discuss the Official Map issue. He defined the options before Council : ( 1 ) grant the appeal of the Official Map and allow a building permit to be issued subject to resolution of all other building code and zoning issues which have been raised; (2) deny the Official Map appeal strictly based on the grounds of the Official Map; or (3) send the matter back to staff for review in the light of the many issues raised in the January 1988 letter. He wanted it to be clear to Council that the Official Map matter might not even be considered by Council as others grounds for denial might 4111 be found in the interim. Also in light of the recent action on the Comprehensive Plan amendment, the City has proposed two placements of the trail which conforms with the zoning and may eliminate any Official Map appeal . It was moved by Councilmember Battaglia, seconded by Councilmember -148- City Council meeting minutes July 18, 1988 Duffy to defer the matter to staff. Ilr In answer to a question from Councilmember Strand, the City Attorney felt staff had two options: (1 ) deny the building pemit on grounds other than the Official Map; (2) staff to point out to the property owner that there were two locations available for the trail . Staff would not have the authority to move the trail without Council action. The Mayor pointed out the correct motion would be to continue the public hearing to August 1 , 1988. This was agreeable to the maker of the motion and the second. The motion passed 6-0. PETITIONS, REQUESTS, COMMUNICATIONS 7a. W. 38th St. traffic study Mayor Hanks asked the Public Works Director to explain -the current status of the W. 38th traffic study. The Director did so and explained the experiment being carried out in the 38th St./Monterey neighborhood. The study is being made in an effort to address traffic concerns that will be generated from the On the Avenue project and the project at Excelsior and France Ave. Between 15 and 20 residents of the area addressed Council with their support or criticism for the experiment. Many in the audience approved of the experiment stating they saw a definite improvement in the traffic situation; many found the experiment to cause vexing and frustrating situations in getting through the neighborhood. Safety concerns were expressed as well as a desire for increased police surveillance of people making illegal turns in and out of the neighborhood. Dean Dubbe, a member of the study task force, acknowledging the inconvenience and frustration felt by many of the neighborhood residents, urged that the study be continued. Without sufficient data to study, it would be impossible for the neighborhood's concerns re future traffic solutions to be addressed. - Councilmember Duffy said Council had as a goal to convince traffic to travel northeast to France and Excelsior Blvd. and not through the neighbor- hood. He challenged anyone in the audience or listening on tv to come up with a plan to make that possible. He felt it was critical that the experiments go forward so data can be gathered. Councilmember Battaglia acknowledged the disruption to the neighborhood but felt it essential a solution be found. Councilmember Strand said he had received more calls on this matter than any other. He was disturbed by the fact that in what he considers to 1110 be one of the most desirable neighborhoods in the City, neighbors are yelling at each other and generally not getting along any more. Protecting the integrity of all the neighborhoods in the City was important to him. He questioned when the traffic problem was to be addressed: now or in two years? He did feel it was inappropriate to discontinue the experiments. -149- City Council meeting minutes July 18, 1988 4111 Councilmembers Duffy and Strand disavowed any knowledge of the petition that was circulated bearing their names. Mayor Hanks felt it of optimum importance to get the County to get the new signal in at 38th & Monterey. He felt the information received from the current experiments was not going to answer the question of what happens when that light is installed. It was moved by Councilmember Strand, seconded by Councilmember Duffy, to proceed with the experiments. The motion passed 5-1 (Mayor Hanks opposed) . RESOLUTIONS AND ORDINANCES 8a. Sale of Colorado property 3704-3706 Colorado It was moved by Councilmember Friedman, seconded by Councilmember Duffy, to waive first reading, set second for August 1 and authorize summary publication. The motion passed 6-0. 4111 8b. Renaming County Rd. 18 It was moved by Councilmember and a portion of Hwy. 7 Friedman, seconded by Councilmem- ber Battaglia to waive first reading, set second reading for August 1 and authorize summary publication. The motion passed 6-0. 8c. Light rail transit Resolution supporting light Resolution 88-85 rail transit It was moved by Councilmember Friedman, seconded by Councilmember Mitchell , to waive reading and adopt Resolution 88-85 entitled "Resolution in support of light rail transit." The motion passed 6-0. 8d. Tax forfeited property 6321 W. 37th St. Councilmember Friedman asked what guarantee there was that the City would get this property back. The City Attorney said that in this circumstance, the City had right of first refusal in a private sale. It was moved by Councilmember Friedman, seconded by Councilmember Mitchell 4111 to waive reading and adopt Resolution 88-86 entitled "Resolution authorizing reconveyance of tax forfeited lands" and Resolution 88-87 entitled "Resolution -150- City Council meeting minutes July 18, 1988 authorizing application for conveyance of tax forfeit lands." The motion passed 6-0. 1111 REPORTS FROM OFFICERS, BOARDS, COMMITTEES 9a. PER Extension of sanitary sewer to serve 7815/7825 Wayzata Blvd. By consent, motion to approve and set public hearing for August 15, 1988. 9b. Community residential facilities The Acting City Manager said this report followed Council discussions earlier this spring re community residential facilities and particularly a house run by Catholic Charities. This report attempted to give a brief overview and report of how other communities are treating this issue. It was moved by Councilmember Mitchell , seconded by Councilmember Friedman, to direct staff to continue its study and whether or not a special use permit situation can be introduced and that the information be relayed to the organization previously investigated. The motion passed 6-0. 9d. 3100 block of Quebec The Director of Public Works1111 Resolution 88-88 said the property would be held as is or low land wetland Mayor Hanks asked what if someone wanted to put fill on lots 11 and 12. The Director said they had approached the property owner of 11 and 12 with the same type of discussion about potential land purchase. If they wanted to build, the City could offer a swap of 9 and 10 for 11 and 12. In answer to a question from Councilmember Friedman, the Director said this was precipitated by the 1986 stormwater management plan devised by City staff. Staff's analysis indicated the need for stormwater storage in that area. Mr. Stobbe explained how he can to own the lots and of his interest in selling them as they are not buildable. It was moved by Councilmember Mitchell , seconded by Councilmember Duffy, to waive reading and adopt Resolution 88-88 entitled "Resolution authorizing purchase of two lots at 3138 and 3142 Quebec Ave. for drainage purposes." The motion passed 6-0. 9e. PER Sidewalk and trail improvements By consent, motion to approve the preliminary engineering report and set a public hearing for August 15, 1988. -151- • City Council meeting minutes July 15, 1988 4111 9f. BOZA minutes By consent, minutes ordered filed. UNFINISHED BUSINESS 10a. Boards and Commissions No business NEW BUSINESS lla. Rotary Club gambling By consent, the Rotary Club's application for a gambling license to conduct bingo at the KC hall was approved. lib. Holy Family gambling By consent, Holy Family Church's application to conduct a raffle and bingo during its fall festival was approved. llc. RAP Amendment to Contract No. 1866 with STS for consulting services related to implementation of the Remedial Action Plan 4111 By consent, motion to authorize an amendment to the contract with STS Consultants increasing the contract amount for soils exploration/analysis from $70,091 to $76,256.50. lld. 40-hr. work week: Fire department Councilmember Friedman had a number of questions re this proposal . He asked how the study was generated. The Acting City Manager said staff had received a request during fire negotiations to consider a 53-hour work week as opposed to the current 56 hour. There are a number of communities who have implemented such a plan. Whether it would work in St. Louis Park would have to be thoroughly researched. Councilmember Duffy remembered the matter had been discussed during budget time and the feeling of Council was to check into it, to determine what economic effect it would have and if it was worth it. Councilmember Friedman felt the report left a number of unanswered questions. He felt one of the things Council had to take a look at is fire service going to be improved by looking at this proposal . He didn't find anything in the report that had relevance to improved fire service. He would hope that Council would discuss it in more depth before getting locked in to a rather dramatic change in policy. Relative to the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Acting City Manager said 4111 some elements of the Act, such as scheduling the hours that could be worked, was changed. That led to a recommendation that the City take a look at this concept. Requests from firefighters about a 53-hour work week enter into this, too. She said a trend has been evolving over the past 2-3 years which suggests changes being made in the scheduling area. -152- City Council meeting minutes July 18, 1988 Councilmember Friedman felt if a closer look was going to be given to this proposal , some of the people directly affected should be brought 1111 into it, not just administrative/supervisory staff. He said what should be avoided is people directly involved getting all kinds of second hand information. He felt there was a "we-they" concept that often developed when matters of this sort arose and expressed his concern that a greater schism was being built into the community than anyone would want. He did not think it jeopardizes the work relationship to ask for input from people directly involved in this sort of proposed policy change. MISCELLANEOUS 12a. Claims None. 12b. Communications from Mayor Mayor Hanks referred to a letter from Jerry Oldani , executive search consultant, reporting as of July 15 all semi-finalist City Manager candidates had been interviewed and he would be narrowing it down to 5-6 candidates. He will be communicating that to the Mayor. Candidate interviews will be held Aug. 8, 9, and 10. Also would anyone attending the National League of Cities conference Dec. 3-7 in Boston let staff know. 12c. Communications from Acting City Manager None. CLAIMS, APPROPRIATIONS, CONTRACT PAYMENTS 13a. Verified claims By consent, the list of verified claims prepared by the Director of Finance dated July 18, 1988 in the amount of $266,018.27 for vendor claims and $29,586.90 for payroll claims be approved and that the Acting City Manager and City Treasurer be authorized to issue checks in the appropriate amounts. 14. Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 11 :00 p.m. w SIJ Lyl/ Hanks Mayor vrdin R . eJ g ecretary -153-