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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1996/04/01 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Regular MINUTES CITY COUNCIL MEETING I ST. LOUIS PARK,MINNESOTA IApril 1, 1996 1. Call to order Mayor Dorfman called the meeting to order at 7:35 p.m. 2. Presentations Mayor Dorfman read a proclamation which was presented to Suesan Lea Pace, City Attorney, who is leaving service with the City. Her accomplishments were acknowledged by members of the City Council. An Excellence in Financial Reporting award was read and presented to the City's Finance Department 3. Roll call The following Councilmembers were present: Jeff Jacobs, Sue Sanger, Ron Latz,Robert Young and Tim Brimeyer. Also present were the Deputy City Manager(Ms. Kutzler); City Attorney(Suesan Pace);Director of Community Development(Mr. Harmening);Economic Development Coordinator(Mr. Anderson); Director of Public Works(Mr. Rardin);Director of Parks and Recreation(Mr. Gears) and Fire Chief(Bob Gill). 4. Approval of minutes March 18, 1996 Council meeting-Minutes approved as presented March 25, 1996 Council study session-Minutes approved as presented 5. Approval of agenda It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Sanger, to approve the consent agenda for April 1, 1996. The motion passed 6-0. It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Sanger, to approve the agenda for April 1, 1996. The motion passed 6-0. I 57 City Council meeting minutes April 1, 1996 PUBLIC HEARINGS 6a. Application of Jewish Community Center for a temporary license to sell intoxicating liquor on May 11 at 4330 Cedar Lake Rd. 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 Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Latz, to approve the temporary one-day license. The motion passed 6-0. PE n TIONS,REQUESTS, COMMUNICATIONS , None. RESOLUTIONS AND ORDINANCES 8a. Resolution declaring vacancy in Ward 2 Council seat Resolution 96-47 Councilmember George Haun has notified the Mayor that May 1, 1996 will be his last day as Second Ward Councilmember. It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Sanger, to adopt Resolution 96-47 entitled"A resolution dedatmg Council vacancy in Ward II, setting date for special election; and authorizing interim appointment. The motion passed 6-0. 8b. Victoria Homes Townhouse proposal Resolution 96-48 It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Latz, to adopt Resolution 96-48 entitled"Resolution modifying Redevelopment Project No. 1, establishing the Victoria Ponds Redevelopment Tax Increment Financing District and approving and adopting the redevelopment plan and tax increment financing plan related thereto." The motion passed 6-0 I 58 City Council meeting minutes April 1, 1996 REPORTS FROM OFFICERS, BOARDS, COMMITTEES 9a Traffic Study No 514 Traffic controls at W 33rd St/Hampshire Ave Sarah Bjelde, 3252 Hampshire Ave So , addressed Council to express her concerns about children accessing the park and the driving speed of students leaving the high school. She said a traffic count was done in June during the day which was not a reflection of how busy this intersection can be She thought it a good idea to go to a neighborhood meeting to receive input. Councilmember Latz felt it a good idea to hold a meeting so the neighborhood could come together to discuss the issue. It was moved by Councilmember Latz, seconded by Councilmember Sanger, to accept the staff report and direct staff to conduct a neighborhood meeting. Councilmember Jacobs thought it would be good to hold a traffic study when school is in session. He offered that as a friendly amendment to the motion. Councilmember Brimeyer felt Council's approach in these matters was somewhat unfair to the residents He said these issues can sometimes get emotional (referring to accidents, to harming children) He would like to see a logical way to make a rational decision so people can understand it and get their needs met. He referred to a City Attorney's opinion which stated if warrants are strictly relied upon to put in traffic controls, a City's liability could be higher ..it must be combined with social, economic and political reasons and policy issues. He felt the City does not have the policy issues against which criteria can be established. He felt the three points made by Ms. Bjelde were excellent to support this. (1) it is a park, (2) it is a high traffic volume area when school is in session, and (3) there is the question of access to the park. When decisions are made he would like to see the quantifiable data and the policy issues as well as political reasons in order to make a rational decision. Mayor Dorfman felt this would be an appropriate topic for a study session. Councilmember Sanger said this is the second or third time she could recall issues coming up about stop signs where the issue of need is tied to either a park or school where there are time or seasonal constraints She wondered if a way couldn't be found when considering stop signs that those time/seasonal constraints couldn't be build in right at the beginning In answer to a question from Councilmember Young, Mr Rardin said the Minnesota Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices provides guidelines based on vehicle use of the road and not really pedestrian or children. The accidents it refers to are traffic vehicle accidents and not necessarily pedestrian. The motion passed 6-0 59 City Council meeting minutes April 1, 1996 9b Traffic Study No 512 Traffic controls at W 29th/Quebec Ave Councilmember Latz felt neighborhood input would be a good idea before making a decision whether to put in a second stop sign or remove the existing stop sign It was moved by Councilmember Latz, seconded by Councilmember Sanger, to direct staff to hold a neighborhood meeting. Councilmember Jacobs said he was not opposed to a neighborhood meeting but his inclination would be to tell the neighborhood the Council would just as soon take the existing stop sign out. The motion passed 6-0 9c. Construction Manager Rec Center Renaissance Mr. Gears said staff was recommending execution of a contract with Kraus-Anderson Construction to provide construction management services for the Rec Center Renaissance project Councilmember Sanger asked if this proposal was a part of the original proposal. Mr. Gears said when the project was conceived, management of it was not identified After exploring various options for management --general contractor, owner's representative, a construction manager. The cost is basically the same, it remains whether the choice is to have a general contractor or hiring someone to work on the City's behalf which affords closer control. It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Young, to authorize execution of a contract with Kraus-Anderson. The motion passed 6-0 9d. City Attorney services Councilmember Brimeyer noted the report does not address what it is the organization is looking for in terms of legal services, either in-house or on a consultant basis Also the Charter provision wherein the City Attorney is appointed by the Council, the ordinance provides for the Attorney to be responsible to the City Manager He felt there was much that needed to be discussed before a decision is made Councilmember Sanger agreed and was not opposed to sending our RFQs earlier so long as it is identified to the recipients that the Council is undergoing a study 60 Councilmember Brimeyer asked what would the RFQ ask for Ms Kutzler responded staff's recommendation would be that if the Council appoints an evaluation committee, the draft RFQ would be submitted to that committee for review She said that could be provided to the Council at the April 8 study session. Councilmember Jacobs recalled from his service on the Charter Commission that the City Attorney is selected by the City Council and was shocked to see that the ordinance provision is inconsistent with the Charter. He'd like to see the RFQ expanded not only to include the core City Attorney services but other legal services as needed -- employment, labor law, personnel, etc He felt continuity in legal services was important From the report, he didn't see if in dealing with just core City Attorney services, that necessarily encompasses any of the specialty items How many RFQs would be sent out and for what sort of division of labor. Councilmember Sanger said the report does not address the option of an in-house City Attorney, the RFQ seemingly directed to outside law firms. She'd like to see this discussed at the study session on April 8. Mayor Dorfman felt the issues Council would like to address at the study session are the Charter/Ordinance inconsistency; some core vs. specialized legal services; private firm vs. in- house, and the nature of the search process. It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Brimeyer, to receive the report for filing and conduct additional discussion at the April 8 study session. The motion passed 6-0 9e. Minutes Board of Zoning Appeals. December 28 9f. Minutes Housing Authority. February 13 Items 9e, 9f ordered filed by consent UNFINISHED BUSINESS 10a. Boards and commissions No business NEW BUSINESS 11 a. Change Order No 2 -Northwest Asphalt (Ford Rd reconstruction) Resolution 96-49 III 61 City Council meeting minutes April 1, 1996 NEW BUSINESS 11a Change Order No 2 - Northwest Asphalt (Ford Rd reconstruction) Resolution 96-49 It was moved by Councilmember Young, seconded by Councilmember Jacobs, to adopt Resolution 96-49 entitled"Resolution pertaining to Change Order No 2 for Project No. 95-06, Contract No 4035 " The motion passed 6-0. 11 b. First meeting of Board of Equalization By consent, the first meeting was scheduled for Monday, April 15, 1996 at 7:15 p.m 11c. MN Youth Athletic Services- Request to sell pulltabs at Santorini's Resolution 96-50 It was moved by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Brimeyer, to adopt Resolution 96-50 entitled"A resolution of the St. Louis Park City Council approving issuance of a premises permit for lawful gambling: Minnesota Youth Athletic Services." Mr. Young had questions for the applicant who explained what MN Youth Athletic Services was. The motion passed 6-0. MISCELLANEOUS 12a. Damage claims MN Insurance(do Natalie Stovern) By consent, claim referred to City Clerk and City Manager 12b Communications from the Mayor Mayor Dorfman congratulated the Friends of the Art on their City-wide art fair highlighting many local talents She hoped it would be the first of many such art fairs The Fern Hill neighborhood held its annual meeting recently which was well attended. They discussed City issues of interest. I 62 City Council meeting minutes April 1, 1996 CLAIMS, APPROPRIATIONS, CONTRACT PAYMENTS 13a. Verified claims By consent, the claims approved and checks authorized to be distributed in the following amounts. Vendor claims: $752,420 54 and payroll claims $23,272.92 13b Cpntract payments- Partial 1. Hardrives, Inc: TH 25/Ottawa Ave./Belt Line Blvd. improvements. Amount: $8,918 60 2. Tolz, King, Duvall, Anderson& Assoc : Engineering services. Amount: $477.15 3. Northwest Asphalt: Ford Rd. reconstruction. Amount: $19,569.99 4. Ridgedale Electric. Lighting improvements. Amount$ 4,199 00 5. Judd Supply Co. Street lighting equipment/improvements. Amount: $94,559.17 6. Calgon Carbon Corp. Carbon charge out. Amount: $7,225.00 By consent, payments approved and payment authorized. 14• Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 8:35 on a motion by Councilmember Jacobs, seconded by Councilmember Latz which passed 6-0 Ii 1 /i a Ma or Gail Dorfman (ti I ‘ ,1A/V ecording Secretary 63