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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1996/03/18 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Regular MINUTES CITY COUNCIL MEETING '; ST. LOUIS PARK CITY COUNCIL March 18, 1996 1. Call to order Mayor Dorfinan called the meeting to order at 7 30 p m 2 Presentations None 3. Roll call Councilmembers present at roll call were Jeff Jacobs, George Haun, Sue Sanger, Ron Latz, Robert Young, Jim Brimeyer Also present were the City Manager(Mr Meyer), Deputy City Manager(Ms Kutzler), City Attorney(Ms Pace), Economic Development Coordinator(Mr Anderson), Director of Public Works (Mr. Rardin); Planning Coordinator(Ms Jeremiah), Housing Coordinator (Ms Quarfot), Personnel Officer (Mr Wysopal) and Director of Inspections (Mr Petersen) 4 Approval of minutes March 4, 1996 City Council meeting There were no corrections/additions and the minutes were approved March 11, 1996 study session Top of page 3, first line, change the last word to "discontinued" Minutes approved as corrected 5 Approval of agenda It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Haun, to approve the consent agenda for March 18, 1996. The motion passed 7-0 It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Haun, to approve the agenda for March 18, 1996 The motion passed 7-0. PUBLIC HEARINGS 6a Community Development Block Grant - Proposed expenditures for 1996 Resolution 96-37 I 45 City Council meeting minutes March 18, 1996 Mayor Dorfman noted the City received an allocation from the Federal Housing and Urban Development Department, which goes through Hennepin County, and this year's allocation is $289,217 Mr Meyer said the City had put out a Request for Proposals for the CDBG funding and this year, unlike previous years, some specific criteria were established Those critera were that program funds were to be used for the purposes of private home rehabilitation, multi-family rehabilitation that improves the quality of the structure or improves the quality of life of the residents, and thirdly, improvements to the City's Recreation Center such as removal of architectural barriers The purpose of the public hearing this evening was to receive input on staff's recommendations The following individuals addressed Council Linda Trummer, Meadowbrook Collaborative, 4115 Meadowbrook Lane (had requested $18,565 to expand their youth programming to include 7-12th graders), Mike Favor, Youth Program Coordinator, Meadowbrook Collaborative and two of the students, Joe and Nita Miller, Susan Johnson, 3844 France Ave , Carol Sutherland, 4104 Utica Ave , Deborah Weinblatt, 3024 Oregon Ave So , Peggy Bankert, 7324 W 14th St , Laurie Possin, 1628 Elliot Ave So , Mary Hoaglund, 1405 Jersey Ave So (seek continuted funding for day care through GMDCA), Sharon Johnson, Executive Director of Community Action for Suburban Hennepin (seeking funding to extend its Home Ownership Counseling Program to include homeowners who may need to do some upgrading or minor rehab and also funds for tenant organizing at Meadowbrook), Yvette Quarfot, Housing Coordinator for the City, spoke on behalf of Trails, Training and Resources to Attain Individual Long-term Success, geared for Section 8 public housing clients who are interested in becoming economically self-sufficient, and for the Inspections Department rehab program which assists low-income homeowners who do not have the resources to rehab their homes Denn Evans, Manager, Meadowbrook Manor Apartments, expressed his concern about the application from Community Action for Suburban Hennepin (CASH), in that it targets Meadowbrook to possibly set up a tenants' union to work with the management Mr Evans felt that the efforts of Linda Trummer and the City could be undermined by the formation of an adversarial tenants' group and could also duplicate the efforts already in place 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 Mayor Dorfman said the Council faced a dilemma every year with so many deserving agencies seeking funds and the funding limited She wanted to clarify that none of the proposals before Council offer day care at Meadowbrook which had been implied Councilmember Jacobs wondered if there was a way to phase in some of the suggested cuts, particularly Greater Minneapolis Day Care which has been funded for the six years he has been on the Council and now is cut out entirely 46 City Council meeting minutes , II March 18, 1996 Mr. Meyer said that all agencies funded last year were informed that the Council was going to develop targeting criteria for this year Also CDBG is a Federal program intended to be more bricks and mortar than anything The City is limited to 20% of the funds being used for public services Councilmember Young said 20% for day care would be $53,000 and pretty much everything would be taken for public service if the process were to be changed and $45,000 given for day care Mr Meyer said the package allocated $33,000 for public services Councilmember Sanger said she'd like to see the Council go even further in the future targeting CDBG money for a small number of programs that perhaps could do a greater amount of good if focused To the extent the City continues to fragment both the number of programs and the focus to day care to housing and so on, we'll not be able to accomplish a great deal on any one of them She was comfortable this year the focus remaining on housing programs Councilmember Latz asked how many groups that received funding last year were apprised they did not fit the criteria this year Mr Wysopal responded some three other agencies had inquired by phone relative to this year's CDBG program Although they were not told they could not apply, they were told of the criteria and the difficulties involved in their meeting that criteria _ It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Sanger, to adopt Resolution 96-37 entitled "Resolution approving projected use of funds for 1996 Urban Hennepin County Community Development Block Grant Program and authorizing signature of sub-recipient agreement with Hennepin County and any third party agreements" The motion passed 7-0 6b Preliminary PUD -Ryan Companies (Honeywell site) Resolution 96-38 Ms Jeremiah gave an update on this project to date The new resolution before Council has been revised to include some conditions that were initially going to be left for final approval of the development agreement, however, after discussion with the City Attorney it was determined it was advisable to address the conditions now rather than let them wait to a later date 47 City Council meeting minutes March 18, 1996 She said the purpose of the new conditions is to protect the City in the event the project does not go forward The major problem staff is concerned about is that the City could wind up with a commercial, platted property and the individual platted lots could potentially be sold off and developed in a piecemeal fashion Also financial assurances are addressed in the conditions as well as more specifically the required off-site improvements,mainly roadway improvements)to the surrounding area The conditions also address timing of construction events as well as payment of City costs incurred in reviewing the proposal, final building materials and colors She briefly touched on other areas of the agreement that remain to be resolved Gary Berscheid, 1604 Blackstone, expressed his concerns about traffic flow when Cedar Lake Rd is reconstructed this Summer Mr McHale said the road through the development does not exit on to Cedar Lake Rd He was also concerned about signage and recent articles on retail success in the metropolitan area The following individuals addressed Council Amy VanPlenten, 8300 Cedar Lake Rd. (concerned about truck traffic on Cedar Lake Rd ), Vicki Haubeger, 2140 Ridge Dr (inquired about tax generation on the property), Harry Gallaher, representing potential tenant Office Depot (asked about right of way and need for future roadway improvements and would this be in the Development Agreement; and why was that not part of the preliminary plat approval, also signage may be of concern down the road); Roxanne Flaudee, 2110 Ridge Dr (concerned about tenant mix) Bill McHale, Ryan Construction, addressed the issues that the previous speakers brought up There being no one further wishing to speak, the Mayor closed the public hearing with the right of Council to thereafter reopen and continue it at a future date With regard to the unresolved issues, Mr Meyer said staff was suggesting the additional conditions can be negotiated with the developer between now and final plat approval Councilmember Sanger had a number of concerns How will trucks get onto the site Mr McHale said they would be building the entire truck route,just the road in front of Phase II will not be completed at this point Relative to the"sea of parking", not adequately broken up by landscaping, what progress has been made on improving the design of the parking lot Ms Jeremiah said there was a condition in the resolution that the developer does need to address the parking lot design Councilmember Sanger was concerned that the public had not been sufficiently notified as to the proposed new conditions so they would have a chance to comment and that it was inappropriate for the Council to receive this information at the last minute 48 City Council meeting minutes March 18, 1996 Councilmember Latz said delays have been caused by Council almost as many times as by the developer He felt that of the 10 recent proposed changes, 7 have been met and 3 remained unresolved this evening He felt if the project was going to die or not die, it ought to die of its failure to be economically viable not because of some exterior color selection. He felt it was in the City's best interests to take care of off-site improvements A fire lane between the internal roadway and Cedar Lake Rd was not problematic to him. The order of construction did not seem a problem as he didn't believe Ryan was going to let Arby's be the lone occupant as had been suggested He was inclined to go along with Ryan's position on the last 3 changes It was moved by Councilmember Latz, seconded by Councilmember Jacobs, to adopt Resolution 86-38 entitled "A resolution approving a preliminary Planned Unit Development (PUD) under Section 14 6-7 of the St Louis Park Ordinance Code relating to zoning for property zoned C-2, General Commercial District, located at 1625 Zarthan Ave" with the agreed upon changes for items 1-7 Councilmember Young proposed a friendly amendment to make a change on 3e on page 4 dealing with the sidewalk on Zarthan Ave He wanted to see a sidewalk constructed on Zarthan Ave as that was a part of the recent Visioning process, to get sidewalks constructed throughout the City This was amenable to Councilmember Latz Councilmember Jacobs recalled that somewhere along the way residents of the Blackstone neighborhood were against that although he was in agreement with Councilmember Young Councilmember Sanger said the neighborhood was opposed to a sidewalk on the residential or West side of the street Ms Jeremiah said all the perimeter sidewalks would be assessed, not the internal sidewalks To clarify the motion, Ms Jeremiah believed Councilmember Latz wanted the staff compromises on those conditions to be entered into the record as revisions to the resolution except for the last 3 items on which there was no staff compromise agreed to and on those 3 items go with Ryan's position (#3,4 and 7) Mr McHale noted on condition 1 (5g) a letter of credit for 125% of the on and off-site improvements Ryan did not think this appropriate They were proposing a performance bond so as not to tie up their cash on the site work but would ask the City that this cover on-site work and not include the City's off-site work Ms Pace said part of the rationale for requiring the Letter of Credit, in addition to the payment and performance bond, was because Ryan does not own the property currently So the special 111 assessments Ryan has consented to have not actually been consented to by the property owner 49 City Council meeting minutes March 18, 1996 Mr McHale said prior to work commencing they will own the property as papers will be signed at the closing when the development agreement is signed. Councilmember Sanger said she was disappointed the City was going ahead with this project The City was asked to take on faith how the project is going to work With so much similar retail very nearby, she was concerned the largest commercial failure was going to occur in St. Louis Park and that the City would end up with a white elephant Ms. Pace raised a concern about easements on the property that won't be recorded presumably to first date of construction that could put the City in a compromised position if there were liens against any of the improvements She suggested finding a way to protect the easements that was mutually agreeable to the City and Ryan Councilmember Haun spoke about perception and reality, the Park Nicollet project having become very successful, overcoming much tougher environmental and traffic problems than the Ryan project He had faith and encouraged others to have faith that this project will work • Councilmember Haun called the question which passed 6-1 (Councilmember Sanger opposed) The motion made by Councilmember Latz, seconded by Councilmember Jacobs, passed 6-1 (Councilmember Sanger opposed) 6c Creation of Victoria Ponds Tax Increment Financing district Mr Anderson gave a general overview of this item Staff was requesting continuance of the public hearing to April 1 at which time the redevelopment agreement will be given to Council Allan Grey, a former resident of this neighborhood at 2626 Burd Place spoke Suggestions he had concerned the best way to use the Tax Increment Financing proposal Other improvements he suggested were to reconstruct the existing railroad bridge over Virginia Ave , make permanent street improvements from Virginia Ave south to 28th St , put a traffic signal at Virginia and Cedar Lake Rd He suggested the developer apply for petro dollars for site cleanup Also seek cooperation from the Burlington Northern for site cleanup Dick Currey, the developer, was present He introduced John Baxter, the individual who did the site studies He said at this point in time the petro fund people will only reimburse what the PCA requires to happen on a site relative to cleanup Mr Currey said asking the railroad to come in would probably take forever 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 50 City Council meeting minutes March 18, 1996 It was moved by Councilmember Latz, seconded by Councilmember Jacobs, to defer action to April 1, 1996 Councilmember Sanger asked if there were any further word on the Fire Department's review of the streets Mr Meyer said the Fire Department's report will be coming to the Council with the final plat approval The motion passed 7-0 PETITIONS, COMMUNICATIONS, REQUESTS 7a Variance request, 2631 Virginia Ave Mr Curry said there was no additional property to be had without tearing up the tenant's parking lot which obviously they were not going to do Mr Brimeyer felt it was most unfortunate that the previous owner promised to the City that land- scape screening would be made available between the 27 West and currently undeveloped parcel (Mr Curry's parcel) along the easterly line as part of the site design as might be required by the Zoning Ordinance Councilmember Jacobs asked if it would be worthwhile to research the records and determine if anything could be done to get the promised property to Mr Curry Mr Petersen gave a detailed answer as to how this whole situation had come about including the adoption of the new Zoning Ordinance with bufferyard requirements Ms Pace noted had Mr Smith built Phase II of the industrial project there would be cause to require him to honor what he had said in his letter previously quoted by Mr Meyer, however, this is an entirely separate project Councilmember Sanger asked if it were not true that should a bufferyard "F" be constructed, it would potentially be detrimental as far as the trees planted are concerned, secondly, would it be physically possible to reconfigure the site plan to allow a bufferyard"F" to be constructed. Ms Jeremiah responded part of the problem is the selection of the type of trees There is a narrow distance between trees to accommodate the bufferyard "F" She did believe there were alternatives -- using columnar shaped trees which would be able to survive in a narrower space She did not believe the developer had explored all the options To accommodate the"F" bufferyard, a major redesign of the project would be necessary 51 City Council meeting minutes March 18, 1996 Councilmember Brimeyer asked if the decision of the Board of Zoning could be upheld but bring back some sort of bufferyard"F" that meets staff approval -- some sort of design that accomplishes the same thing that would get the job done Ms Pace said by upholding BOZA, they are saying the variance will not be allowed, however, staff could bring back a proposal of reconfiguration of bufferyard "F". It was moved by Councilmember Brimeyer, seconded by Councilmember Sanger, to uphold the decision of the Board of Zoning Appeals There was some concern about whatever is planted truly buffering the project from the industrial site particularly during the winter months Mr. Currey said he and his landscape architect would be working with Ms Jeremiah to assure the right materials and number would be used The motion passed 7-0 RESOLUTIONS AND ORDINANCES 8a Minor amendment to special permit Target Knollwood Resolution 96-39 Ms Jeremiah said Target seeks to incorporate a new lighting scheme and revising the area outside of the main building entrance. There would have to be some minor revisions made to the plans to reduce the intensity of the lighting to meet the Ordinance and to provide curbed islands around the light poles Gary Newhouse, representative of Target, displayed some renderings describing their request It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Haun, to adopt Resolution 96-39 entitled"A resolution rescinding Resolution 95-110 adopted on September 5, 1995 and approving a minor amendment to a continued special use permit under Section 14 8-6 4(D) of the St. Louis Park Ordinance Code relating to zoning to allow modifications to the building entrance, front drive aisle and parking lot lighting at 8900 Hwy 7, 8906-50 Hwy 7 and 8800 Hwy 7 " The motion passed 7-0 8b HealthSystem MN - Amendment to original loan agreement Resolution 96-40 52 City Council meeting minutes March 18, 1996 It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Haun, to adopt Resolution 96-40 entitled "Resolution authorizing the execution and delivery of a first amendment to loan agreement and a first supplemental bond trust indenture and authorizing all other action to be taken with respect thereto " The motion passed 7-0 REPORTS FROM OFFICERS, BOARDS, COMMITTEES 9a. Public Works/Parks and Recreation management study It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Young, to accept the report and authorize staff to issue Requests for Proposal The motion passed 7-0 9b 1996 major equipment purchases Resolution 96-41 It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Young, to adopt Resolution 96-41 entitled "Resolution accepting report, approving specifications and authorizing advertisement for bids for 1996 major equipment purchases " The motion passed 7-0 9c City Engineer's report W 27th St/Louisiana Ave intersection Resolution 96-42 It was moved by Councilmember Brimeyer, seconded by Councilmember Latz, to adopt Resolution 96-42 entitled "Resolution accepting the City Engineer's report, ordering Improvement Project 95-07, approving plans and specifications and authorizing advertisement for bids for Improvement No 95-07 The motion passed 7-0 9d City Engineer's report North/south frontage roads of T H 7 from Quebec to Texas Resolution 96-43 It was moved by Councilmember Latz, seconded by Councilmember Jacobs, to adopt Resolution 96-43 entitled "Resolution accepting the City Engineer's report, establishing Improvement Project 90-37, setting public hearing for April 15, 1996 and authorizing staff to sponsor a neighborhood meeting " 53 City Council meeting minutes March 18, 1996 The motion passed 7-0 9e City Engineer's report Watermain replacement at Shelard Pkwy and roadway/mill overlay Resolution 96-44 It was moved by Councilmember Young, seconded by Councilmember Jacobs, to adopt Resolution 96-44 entitled"Resolution accepting the City Engineer's report, ordering Improvement Project Nos 94-13 and 96-04, approving plans and specifications and authorizing advertisement for bids for Improvement Projects No 94-13 and 96-04" The motion passed 7-0 9f Renewal of Property/Liability Insurance Program thru LMCIT It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Latz, to approve the Property/Liability Insurance Program thru LMCIT The motion passed 7-0 9g Minutes Neighborhood Revitalization Commission February 14 9h February 1996 financial statement . 9i. Minutes Planning Commission March 6 By consent, receive items 9g-9i for filing UNFINISHED BUSINESS 10a. Boards and Commissions Mayor Dorfman noted Richard McGinley is resigning from the Housing Authority when his term expires June 30, 1996 Also Barbara Bearman is resigning from the Human Rights Commission. Councilmember Jacobs directed that letters of appreciation be sent to Mr McGinley and Ms Bearman It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Sanger, to make the following appointments Anthony Raiber - Cable TV Commission 54 City Council meeting minutes + March 18, 1996 II Ken Huiras - Cable TV Commission Bryan Leary - Police Civil Service Commission Tom Whitlock -Neighborhood Revitalization Commission Susan Bloyer- Board of Zoning Appeals Judith Cook - Human Rights Commission The motion passed 7-0 NEW BUSINESS 11 a Rise, Inc Application to conduct raffle at Minneapolis Golf Club It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Haun, to approve the license exemption and waive the 30-day waiting period The motion passed 7-0 11 b Change order No 6 Excelsior Blvd street: sidewalk, street lighting improvements with Hardrives Resolution 96-45 It was moved by Councilmember Haun, seconded by Councilmember Jacobs, to adopt Resolution 96-45 entitled"Resolution pertaining to Change Order No 6 for Project No 93-23, Contract No 3068 " The motion passed 7-0 MISCELLANEOUS 12a Damage claims Pearl Olson, Aldrich vs C W Meyer, Steve Frank By consent, claims referred to City Clerk and City Manager 12b Communications from the Mayor Mayor Dorfman reported that the Creekside Neighborhood held a meeting recently which was attended by many residents The Friends of the Arts Council is holding a two-day art festival at Lenox Community Center highlighting local talent 55 City Council meeting minutes March 18, 1996 The Fern Hill Neighborhood Assoc is holding its annual meeting on Thursday night at the Jones Harrison Building 12c Communications from the City Manager Mr Meyer reported on the activities at the Capitol, in particular the Omnibus Tax Bill and its impact on the City's property taxes As it stands now, the City has done one estimate, that based on the class rate reductions and based on the freeze -- all part of the Omnibus Tax Bill -- the City would realize about a $400,000 cut in the levy Concern is continued to be expressed to our legislators CLAIMS, APPROPRIATIONS, CONTRACT PAYMENTS a Verified claims By consent the list of vendor claims prepared by the Director of Finance, dated March 18, 1996 was approved and distribution authorized in the following amounts Vendor claims $301,760 18 and payroll claims $40,128 51 The meeting adjourned at 10 10 p m The Council recessed to the third floor conference room for a work session The Mayor advised the Council that the City Attorney, Suesan Pace, will be leaving the law firm of Popham, Haik before the first of April City Manager Meyer stated that he intended to meet with Ms Pace to work out an agreement with Popham, Haik for continuing to work on issues that require a continuity of counsel City Manager Meyer was asked by the Council to outline for the upcoming study session on March 25 the options that the City has for legal services including the possibilities for in-house counsel, contract counsel and parts of the legal work that can be separated from the core services Popham, Haik will continue to serve as City Attorney while options are explored Gail Dorfman, Ma or kecording Secretary 56