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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1996/02/05 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Regular (2) MINUTES { !; ADMINISTRATIVE HEARING ST. LOUIS PARK, CITY COUNCIL it February 5, 1996 Appeal of denial of 1996 private inspector license- Steve Donahue (This hearing was recorded in its entirety but not transcribed) Mayor Dorfman called the hearing to order at 5 45 p m Present were Councilmembers Robert Young and Jeff Jacobs. Jim Brimeyer arrived shortly thereafter Also present was the City Manager(Mr Meyer), Director of Inspections (Mr Petersen), Inspections Housing Program Mgr (Mr Wigfield) and Steve Donahue Mayor Dorfman said Council would review the housing inspector license of Steve Donahue She said comments would be made by Mr Meyer and Mr Petersen followed by Mr Donahue's presentation and finally discussion by the Council. Mr Meyer said this was a hearing for the purpose of determining whether or not to sustain or overturn the City Manager's decision not to issue a private housing inspector license to Steve r Donahue for 1996 He stated this was an administrative hearing, not a judicial proceeding The file presented to Council was also presented to Mr Donahue and will be made part of the record The only issue for this hearing is the license itself, there are no other issues related to anything else regarding Mr Donahue that would be before the Council at this point in time Mr Petersen gave a brief overview of the matter before Council. The three areas of concern with Mr Donahue's performance were(1) failure to write adequate work orders, (2) failure to identify code violations on inspections he had done, and (3)to not maintain the level of skill and professionalism necessary to be a licensed private housing inspector Mr. Donahue addressed the Council. He asked that the facts be looked at, not the allegations A number of questions pertaining to specific inspections were asked by Councilmembers which Mr Donahue addressed He believed there was both a letter and a spirit of an ordinance As a privately licensed housing inspector, he said he was bound by duty and ordinance to perform his inspections to the guidelines only At the end of the hearing, Mayor Dorfman said two alternatives were before Council and that they would come before the full Council at the February 20 meeting based on the recommendation made this evening 1 Administrative hearing - Steve Donahue February 5, 1996 Councilmember Jacobs noted the two alternatives before Council were to (1) uphold the City Manager's decision to not issue a 1996 license, and (2) to overturn the City Manager's decision He wondered if there were other alternatives that might be fashioned for this case Mr Meyer explained he did know of any remedy that could be fashioned in light of the fact that there has not been a license issued for 1996 No action was taken to either suspend or revoke the 1995 license, it had expired by the time the December hearing had concluded He used the findings of that hearing to make a determination on the issuance of a 1996 license Councilmember Jacobs said there were two alternatives To uphold the decision to deny the 1996 license or to overturn the decision Is there any basis in the ordinance for the Council to consider something other than those two alternatives. On license denial, there must be some grounds for doing that Is there grounds for a suspension, for some other action other than uphold or overturn. Mr Meyer said Council could order the issuance of the 1996 license and then suspend it Councilmember Brimeyer said Council should uphold the denial for the 1996 license and give him the right to reapply for 1997 Mr Meyer suggested the Council might want to review with the City Attorney what the process is for reviewing a denial of a license application He noted that he had reviewed the procedure with the City Attorney to ensure that the procedure is appropriate and was advised the procedure as undertaken this evening was appropriate Councilmember Jacobs felt the Council should consult with the City Attorney He referenced a letter dated November 27, 1995 sent to Mr Donahue which stated his license was revoked and he could appeal that revocation if he so desired To move the process along and give notice to Mr. Donahue, Councilmember Brimeyer suggested that on February 20 the City Manager and City Manager be prepared to say to Council that it is a revocation of the 1995 license and a denial of the 1996 license and present findings of fact It was moved by Councilmember Brimeyer to prepare a resolution with findings, confirming the City Manager's decision and that either be to confirm the revocation and denial letting the City Attorney come up with satisfactory language. Councilmember Jacobs was not prepared to vote on the issue of revocation/suspension or denial tonight. He felt on February 20 Council would vote and direct staff and City Attorney to prepare a resolution -- either way --with findings and conclusions to come back on March 4 2 Administrative hearing February 5, 1996 Councilmember Young believed that the Council's charge is to decide whether the City Manager made the right decision or did not If the Council believes the facts justify his decision, we should support it, if Council believes the facts do not justify his decision, it should be overruled. He didn't see much else that was necessary for Council to do. Mayor Dorfman closed the hearing She said the item will be on the February 20 agenda In the interim, comment will be received from the City Attorney ,Y3 v 1 Recording Secretary I I 3