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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1995/08/21 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Regular ,Irl MINUTES CITY COUNCIL MEETING ST. LOUIS PARK, MINNESOTA August 21, 1995 1 Call to order Mayor Hanks called the meeting to order at 7 30 p m 2. Presentations Carrie Hughes, Westwood Nature Center, introduced the Junior Naturalists who received Certificates of Appreciation from Mayor Hanks Mayor Hanks awarded plaques to two former City employees. Gloria Morris for 30 years of service and Firefighter Phil Minell for 20 Ken Vraa, President of the Minnesota Recreation and Parks Association, made a presentation to the City for its Oak Hill Park Northern Lights Winter Wonderland. He also presented to the City a 1111 framed poster extolling the reasons and values of why parks and recreation are important to communities Charles Brown, Director of the Hennepin County Library, Eileen Hanson, Senior Librarian in St Louis Park and Loren Dillard, Vice-president of the Hennepin County Library Board spoke to the Council to tell them about the library and the various activities ongoing. 3 Roll call The following Councilmembers were present at roll call Jeff Jacobs, George Haun, Sue Sanger, Ron Latz, Robert Young and Gail Dorfman Mayor Hanks welcomed Sue Sanger to her first official Council meeting as Ward 1 Councilmember Also present were the City Manager(Mr Meyer); Deputy City Attorney(Ms Pace); Director of Community Development (Mr Harmening), Director of Public Works (Mr Rardin), Director of Parks and Recreation (Mr Gears) and Planning Coordinator (Ms Erickson) 4 Approval of minutes It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Dorfman, to approve the minutes of the August 7, 1995 meeting The motion passed 6-0-1 (Councilmember Sanger abstained) 140 City Council meeting minutes August 21, 1995 It was moved by Councilmember Haun, seconded by Councilmember Jacobs, to approve the minutes of the August 14, 1995 study session The motion passed 6-0-1 (Councilmember Young abstained) 5 Approval of agenda It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Haun, to approve the consent agenda for August 21 The motion passed 7-0 It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Dorfman, to approve the consent agenda for August 21 The motion passed 7-0 PUBLIC HEARINGS 6a. Request of General Growth for a continued special permit for Knollwood Mall Resolution 95-1041? Alan Young, Manager of Knollwood Mall, was present He thanked Council and staff for their efforts in this matter Mr Hannening referenced the last page of the proposed resolution before Council and bnefly described the amendments as they differed from the onginal resolution in the packet He said staff is initiating an amendment to the Zoning Ordinance which will modify the way in which parking is calculated for malls with enclosed common areas. Currently parking requirements cover the total building, in this case, the change will require parking for the gross leasable area. Mayor Hanks asked if the 2 proposed restaurants would have full liquor licenses and that everyone understood they would have to apply for same to the City Council Mr Young said it was his understanding one was beer/wine and one full liquor and that they were aware license application must be made to the City Council The following residents of the neighborhood bordering Knollwood spoke to express their concerns about restaurants permitted to serve liquor. Grant and Michele Johnson, 3532 Zinran; Diane Slice, 3529 Zinran, Rolf Peterson, 3536 Zinran In answer to a question from Councilmember Latz, Mr Young said it is their anticipation, because of the location of the proposed restaurants on the Hwy 7 side of the mall, that parking will be provided on that side of the mall 141 City Council meeting minutes August 21, 1995 ii Mr. Harmening said the resolution to be adopted indicates that Knollwood cannot lease any additional space which increases the parking demand above and beyond what was approved in 1991 To that end, they may have to leave space unleased until the new ordinance becomes effective Councilmember Latz asked where the restaurant entrances would be Mr Young said one would use the main mall entrance next to Kohl's, the other would have both an in-mall and independent outside entrance Councilmember Latz asked how Knollwood expected the restaurants to help the mall as a commercial entity in St Louis Park. Mr Young said that in a 1993 survey they conducted, 20% of the respondents indicated they wanted a sit-down restaurant at Knollwood Mall As centers have changed including Knollwood, they find they are becoming more and more family oriented and they need to find a way to compete, on an entertainment level, to keep people at Knollwood longer and make the shopping experience more complete Mayor Hanks noted that the Oriental restaurant in the mall now serves beer and wine Councilmember Latz said he was sensitive to the neighborhood concerns about liquor being served at Knollwood and asked Mr Young about security Mr Young responded the mall uses a contract security service as well as a consulting service who analyzes the daily log that is kept on secunty incidents Security staffing levels are adjusted depending upon the incident levels. The lighting system on the neighborhood side of the mall has been enhanced to better accommodate establishments that are open later in the evening. As leases are not signed, Mr Young was not able to name the two proposed restaurants He said he would be available to anyone with a problem day or night and invited them to contact him in such event 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 Latz, seconded by Councilmember Jacobs, to adopt Resolution 95-104 entitled "A resolution rescinding Resolution 91-194 adopted on Oct. 21, 1991 and amending a continued special permit under Sections 14 8-6 4 and 14.5-5 3(D)(4) of the St. Louis Park Ordinance Code relating to zoning to allow changes in the approved site plan and addition of a restaurant with liquor for property located in a C-2 Commercial District at 8332 State Highway No 7" incorporating the changes as presented by staff this evening. The motion passed 7-0 142 City Council meeting minutes August 21, 1995 PETITIONS, REQUESTS, COMMUNICATIONS None RESOLUTIONS AND ORDINANCES 8a Second reading of ordinance. Amendment to Zoning Ordinance - Amendments to C-2 Zoning District Ordinance 95-2037 Councilmember Sanger referenced subsection 0, pg 4, which would require public plaza open space BE a minimum of 10% of the total ground floor building area, whereas in the Shopping Center section under the 0 District, shopping centers are required to have 12% of the entire site devoted to open space She asked for clarification. Mr Harmening responded that the Office District itself, in terms of office uses, is required to set aside 12% of the site area as open space That 12% provision was kept in place for shopping centers or retail types of uses to ensure consistency in the Office Zoning District The difference in this case is this is a Commercial C2 Zoning District and the open space provision was deemed to be less critical and the provision wasn't as great Councilmember Sanger's concern was that to the person on the street they're not going to be concerned whether a particular plot of land has a C2 designation. They will be more concerned about how the property impacts on the surrounding property. She felt it was a minimum amount of open space being required and she would prefer the same minimum as required in shopping centers in the 0 District. Mr. Harmening responded that one possible explanation he would offer as to the difference is the ordinance that staff has put together is very similar to zoning ordinances of other cities relative to commercial types of development. He didn't believe it was inconsistent with other cities and how they handle large scale commercial projects He noted that in the Honeywell preliminary site plan, landscaped buffer areas, the ponding basins and the plaza areas accounts for about 25% of the 41 acre site Perhaps it would be helpful for the ordinance to state that perhaps 12% of the site has to be in a non-impervious state, or public plaza type state That would provide at least a minimum standard in the ordinance above and beyond the 10% of gross building area To clarify a question from Mayor Hanks, Mr Harmening said the 12% standard in the Office District does not include setback areas and buffer areas It is basically a park or public plaza type of space, not a 40 foot setback that might be required between uses. In the Honeywell situation, 25% of the site, or roughly 10 acres, would be made up of open spaces as shown on the current site plan This is a difference from the Office District 143 I City Council meeting minutes August 21, 1995 Councilmember Dorfman asked if it were changed to not being 10% of the total ground floor building area but to 12% of the entire site, would setback requirements be changed, actually minimizing the total space to be landscaped and buffered Mr. Harmening responded he would not recommend that the 10% of gross building public plaza area be eliminated What he is suggesting is that there be some other minimum standard in the zoning district which says that regardless of that, 12% of the site needs to be green The ordinance as it's written does allow the Council, through the PUD process, to impose other additional requirements which it deems appropriate based upon the circumstances of the project. So, there are other leverages in the ordinance now which provide the Council means by which to negotiate the open space requirements in a project even if the 12% standard was not in place It was moved by Councilmember Haun, seconded by Councilmember Jacobs, to adopt Ordinance 95-2037 entitled "An ordinance amending City Code Section 14 5-3 2 Land Use Descriptions, 14- 5-5 3 "C-2" Commercial District, 14 6-7 2 Planned Unit Development (PUD) application, 14 6- 7 4 PUD modifications, and 14.6-7,5 PUD submission requirements and procedure to amend the shopping center description, prohibit shopping centers over 200,000 square feet as a use permitted with conditions in the"C-2" District, allow additional requirements for PUD projects, reference the "C-2" shopping center conditions in the PUD Ordinance and'include reimbursement for City costs in the PUD ordinance " The motion passed 7-0 8b Resolution authorizing application for Mighty Ducks funds Resolution 95-105 It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Haun, to adopt Resolution 95-105 entitled "Resolution authonzing filing of application and execution of agreement to construct a sports facility under the provisions of the State Capital Bonding Fund." Councilmember Haun said it was his understanding the City must apply even if there is no guarantee the project will go forward If the funding was awarded to the City, it would have to go through the usual process If no project is developed, funds would be released to some other government agency Mr Gears said the resolution authorizes the City to apply and that Councilmember Haun's comments were correct The motion passed 7-0 REPORTS FROM OFFICERS, BOARDS, COMMITTEES 144 City Council meeting minutes August 21, 1995 9a. Authorization to acquire right-of-way for the W 38th St/Excelsior Blvd/Monterey Dr traffic signal system either by purchase or eminent domain Resolution 95-106 It was moved by Councilmember Haun, seconded by Councilmember Dorfman, to adopt Resolution 95-106 entitled "Resolution authorizing the acquisition of certain properties by purchase or eminent domain." Councilmember Haun said he had talked to the property owners and it seems like the City is at a deadend. He believed this project to be for the good of the whole community, and would not like to see it not completed just because one or two property owners are opposed The motion passed 7-0 9b Minutes Human Rights Commission July 19 9c Minutes Parks & Recreation Commission July 12 9d. Minutes. Board of Zoning Appeals May 25 9e. Minutes: Planning Commission August 2 9f Minutes. Housing Authority July 11 9g. Minutes Neighborhood Revitalization Commission July 13 9h July financial report Items 9b-9h ordered filed by consent. UNFINISHED BUSINESS 10a. Boards and commissions The letter from Sue Sanger resigning from the Planning Commission was accepted and staff directed to send her an appropriate letter of thanks for her service on a motion by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Dorfman which passed 7-0 The following appointments were made on a motion by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Dorfman which passed 7-0 Chns McLinn to the Planning Commission, Tonia Wolfson to the Neighborhood Revitalization Commission; and Terry Reitan to the Human Rights Commission. 145 City Council meeting minutes August 21, 1995 I' 10b Halley Custom Homes Conditional Use Permit to fill To clarify what the fill permit is for, Mr Harmening said the Conditional Use Permit is being issued to allow filling on the two lots, not including Lot K Councilmember Sanger had concerns about the proposal, amongst which was that Council was being asked to adopt a resolution which would grant the fill permit prior to the decision of the Board of Water and Soil Resources to uphold or overturn the Watershed District's decision Also a number of contingencies have been placed on the fill permit and it would be her preference that any decision of the Council be delayed until after the conditions are satisfied including receipt of the decision from BWSR Board. It was moved by Councilmember Sanger, seconded by Councilmember Dorfman, to defer any decision until such time as the decision is rendered and the contingencies have been satisfied Mayor Hanks asked if an appeal had been filed with BWSR Ms. Pace said that on June 22 a citizen appealed the Watershed District's issuance of the permit. She said BWSR was scheduled to meet August 24 to hold a pre-heanng conference to establish a briefing schedule for the appeal. Councilmember Jacobs asked what the typical length of time is for an appeal and where does it go from BWSR Ms. Pace responded she did not have the information with her tonight. She assumed it could go next to District Court; however, it could be referred back to the Watershed Distnct as well Councilmember Dorfman asked if there was a landscape plan showing how many trees would be removed Mr Harmening said the developer is currently working with Ms. Erickson on a landscape plan. Individuals from the audience also spoke Fred Zieman, 4105 So Cedar Lake Rd., Susan Bay, 2145 Glenhurst Rd , Lynn Levine, 1941 Ewing Ave. So , Lynn Carper, 4010 Highway Rd. and Gary Wardell, 4510 Vallacher Ave Councilmember Dorfman said she received a call from Judy Kahn who filed the appeal She indicated the issues she raised in the petition were real issues, not delaying tactics Michael Halley felt the issue was whether the City wanted to own the lots, which was fine with him. He briefly reviewed what has transpired with the Watershed District and the City of Minneapolis It was his opinion that if the Council is not interested tonight in moving this 146 City Council meeting minutes August 21, 1995 forward indicates to him that the Council would prefer some sort of inverse condemnation on the lots. If this is the case, why isn't that said to him directly so that his client's time is not wasted Councilmember Young was confused -- it seemed to him it would be more than a two week delay as nobody seems to know much about the BWSR Board and its processes He felt it could be delayed for many months just by postponements The meeting on Thursday might not even happen. Ms Pace briefly described how the process works She said there was not a final decision because of the lack of information submitted to the administrative agency in a timely manner by the citizen group Councilmember Dorfman was hesitant to approve at this point because of the 14 conditions, some of which she felt were quite serious Councilmember Sanger asked Mr. Halley if the Council did, in fact, grant approval tonight of the resolution as written by staff, what action, if any, would he be intending to take in the near future with respect to the two lots prior to the issuance of the BWSR final determination. Mr Halley responded said their intention would be to finalize the landscape plan as well as erosion control, etc. It was his understanding that if the Council acts tonight in his favor, he still has to come back in two weeks for final approval. In fairness to him, he felt the City Attorney should be directed to look into the BWSR situation because if it is a delay tactic, he shouldn't be penalized and delayed any longer Councilmember Sanger asked if Council came on Sept 5, what action would he intend to take with respect to the property-- two weeks from now but before conclusion of the BWSR hearings. Mr Halley said he was not going to do anything without a permit Councilmember Jacobs asked is the permit the City would grant under those conditions still a permit which would allow the applicant to fill in the event the BWSR Board has not been finalized. Is it a good permit or is it not. Ms Pace said as she interpreted the addition from staff, he could not As she understood it, the City's CUP would be contingent upon BWSR reaching a decision with respect to the appeal, and only then could work begin under the permit. Only then would she assume the Watershed District's permit to be effective Councilmember Jacobs did not want the Council getting quagmired in the discussion whether the lawsuit between the parties is interposed for delay or whether the appeal to BWSR is interposed for delay -- he'd rather move it along so there can be finality and people don't have to keep 147 11 City Council meeting minutes August 21, 1995 1 ' coming back before Council He said the City is not involved in the appeal to the BSWR Board and he didn't want it to be Councilmember Young agreed and would add that for some two months Council was prepared for a vote, and then it was suggested the Council should see what the Watershed District does about extra water on the street and whether or not we'd get their letter This delayed it another two months. He wanted to vote it up or down tonight Councilmember Dorfman said this was not dissimilar to the Honeywell matter where there were delays and requests to get moving and ended up with a consensus and unanimous vote this evening She didn't think two weeks was going to make or break the development Councilmember Jacobs understood the motion had the potential of delaying action for more than two weeks He thought the motion was a deferral until an decision comes down from the BWSR Board. Councilmember Sanger said that was the intent of her original motion She did not believe that that proposal will delay the developer any more than the proposal that has been made by staff tonight -- either way, the developer is not going to be allowed to lawfully put any fill on that property until after the conclusion of the BSWR Board proceedings and affirm the Watershed District determination was correct Councilmember Haun said he thought he understood the motion as made by Councilmember Sanger but also heard Councilmember Dorfman allude to a two-week process. He said he would support two weeks, but he will not support something longer than that. Council will then know more about BWSR's deliberations as well as have the City Attorney's opinion as to what the Council should or should not do Councilmember Dorfman asked Councilmember Sanger if she would accept an amendment to her motion to defer the item for two weeks and bring back to the Council on Sept 5, 1995 where Council can get answers to the legal questions raised and look at that time at which conditions may or may not have been met. This was acceptable to Councilmember Sanger Ms Pace said there was an ordinance provision providing if legal work is over and above that which is extraordinary, the City can seek reimbursement from the developer She felt it only right to give Mr Halley fair warning if it is the Council's inclination to impose such reimbursement As an option, she would be agreeable to Mr Halley's attorney doing the research Mr. Halley said he would direct his attorney to do the legal research 148 City Council meeting minutes August 21, 1995Il Mayor Hanks was not aware of that ordinance provision asked that staff bring to the next Council meeting the rules and regulations for developers and attorney's fees. The motion passed 5-2 (Councilmember Young, Mayor Hanks opposed) NEW BUSINESS 11a. Selection of vendors. Playground equipment for Browndale, Carpenter and Pennsylvania Parks It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Young, to select Landscape Structures (Browndale and Carpenter Park) and Gametime Park and Playground Equipment (Pennsylvania Park) The motion passed 7-0 MISCELLANEOUS 12a. Damage claims James Pederson By consent, claim referred to City Clerk and City Manager 12b. Communications from the Mayor Mayor Hanks reminded all of Tuesday's Good Morning, St. Louis Park, at the Northwest Health Club. On Wednesday, there is a hearing on the Livability Act at Minnetonka City Hall. 12c. Communications from the City Manager Mr Meyer briefly described the items for the Aug. 28 study session agenda He asked Tom Harmening to introduce David Anderson, recently hired Economic Development Coordinator. CLAIMS, APPROPRIATIONS, CONTRACT PAYMENTS 13a Vendor claims By consent, claims approved and payment authorized in the following amounts Vendor claims. $2,442,240 80 and payroll claims $64,535 27 149 14. Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 9 45 p m 1// ‘(j //7142-4J for Lyle Hanks f l i-P\ ecording Secretary 150