HomeMy WebLinkAbout1998/11/23 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Study Session CITY OF Item #4c
ST. Louts OFFICIAL MINUTES
PARK CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION
November 23, 1998
The meeting convened at 7 02 p m.
Present at the meeting were Councilmembers Chris Nelson, Ron Latz, JeffJacobs, Jim
Brimeyer, Sue Sanger, Robert Young and Mayor Gail Dornan.
Staff present: City Manager(Mr Meyer); Director of Community Development (Mr.
Harmening), Economic Development Coordinator(Mr. Anderson), Director of Parks and
Recreation(Ms Walsh); Recreation Coordinator(Ms Buskey), and City Clerk(Ms. Larsen)
1. Aquatic Park Season Report
Ms. Walsh and Ms. Buskey presented a summary of the 1998 pool season and a list of
recommendations for 1999 to council for their review and comment. Councilmembers
reviewed the income/expense report and asked that staff create a more detailed budget
reflecting a breakout of costs between the pool and other Rec Center operations. Ms. Walsh
indicated that a more comprehensive budget would indeed be prepared, but that in order to
prepare such a budget, a full year of operations would need to be completed
Councilmember Brimeyer felt the pool should pay its own way much like the water and sewer
fund.
Councilmember Sanger asked if broken tiles would be repaired prior to opening of the 1999
season Ms Walsh said that all work was expected to be completed by May 15th.
Mayor Dorfman suggested that staff continue to monitor the nature of citizen comments and
complaints and tailor programs and services to give the public what they want. She was
pleased with efforts to include citizen groups to participate in activities and asked that staff do
even more to include various groups in programs and activities.
2. Wolfe Park Amphitheater
Council viewed a sketch of the proposed layout of the amphitheater. Various aspects of the
plan were discussed such as canopy, options for cabling, storage space, acoustics and
programming ideas
Councilmember Sanger stated that she was disappointed in the programming ideas which had
been presented in the report and hoped that more thought would go into programming prior
to finalizing a design plan.
Ms. Walsh told council that the Friends of the Arts was currently working on their list of
programming ideas and that list would also be presented to Council.
Mayor Dorfman said that when first presented to Council the budget and scale of the
amphitheater were both very out of proportion This plan looked much better in terms of
both scale and budget.
Councilmember Nelson suggested that an acoustics expert be consulted before final design
was settled.
Ms. Walsh stated that the design would be reviewed by experts and that even if features were
not added during initial construction, necessary infrastructure would be incorporated to allow
for amenities to be added in future phases She also indicated that staff would be bringing
back programming options and design and bid specs to a future Council meeting
Councilmember Nelson felt the Showmobile should still be utilized for events at other
locations. Ms. Walsh pointed out that the Showmobile is aging and restoration would be very
costly. Councilmember Nelson suggested approaching Rotary to see if they would be
interested in upgrading the unit
Mr. Meyer noted that Hennepin Parks is supporting paving the Hutchinson Spur trail
Hennepin Parks had also expressed interest in doing more projects in inner ring cities
3. Home Renewal Program Purchases
Joanna Brownstein and Tom Harmening informed Council about options being considered for
dealing with properties at 3401 and 3405 Rhode Island Ave South The City is considering
purchasing both lots, cooperating in a Habitat for Humanity project on the existing home and
using the other lot as a Home Renewal project
Councilmember Sanger questioned why we are stepping in to help this family
Ms Brownstein and Mr Harmening stated the reason for stepping in was that it appeared the
properties could be sold without the City's assisstance They both viewed the deal presented
as an opportunity to deal with a property which had long been a source of consternation for
the neighborhood.
Councilmember Brimeyer said that development of homes on this property would be an
increase in the tax base and could provide an available lot for one of the homes currently
located in the Park Commons redevelopment area
Mr Meyer said that though this seemed slightly messy, all deals in the home renewal program
could potentially be just as messy. Prior to this program being in place, staff did not have the
tools necessary to deal with these kinds of properties
Mr Harmening requested Council's authorization to use proceeds from the Housing
Rehabilitation Fund for the acquisition of the property This money would then be returned
to the Housing Rehab fund when the deal was complete.
Mr. Harmening also informed council that a home renewal was being considered at 2808
Georgia Ave S
4. Residential Yardwaste Disposal
Mike Rardin and Mike Roth asked Council to evaluate a set of goals they had created for the
City's residential yardwaste collection program and to consider different options to fulfill
these goals
Councilmember Jacobs asked if the public should be surveyed about yardwaste Discussion
ensued as to the effectiveness of a survey at this time Councilmember Nelson suggested that
Councilmembers continue to solicit feedback at neighborhood meetings and other public
gatherings
Councilmember Sanger was disappointed that the mandated biobag program would not go
into effect as planned She felt that when decisions were made the City had bargained on the
premise that Waste Management would try to affect a change in public behavior. She also
indicated that garbage costs were premised on the use of the biobags
Councilmember Nelson pointed out various environmental aspects associated with the
program and stated that he felt the program as designed actually contributed to those
environmental problems
Mr. Meyer said that an article will be appearing in the Park Perspective informing the public
that the program would not be mandated in the spring of 1999 as previously stated.
Mayor Dorfman suggested that no changes be made at this time and that staff conduct
research on available options for dealing with yard waste.
Councilmember Brimeyer suggested that a Task Force be established or focus groups be
questioned to get more information about public opinion. He also felt that shared goals
should be developed with the community before new programs to deal with yard waste are
put into effect.
5. Preliminary Tax Increment Financing Request for Redevelopment of Property at
3565 Wooddale Avenue
II
Dave Anderson presented an overview of a proposal by Marcus Corporation for the
redevelopment of the former DA Lubricant site. The project would involve the DA Lubricant
site as well as adjacent city land as a corporate headquarters facility for SELA services.
Tom Harmening informed Council that the site had been considered by Metro Transit as a
prime location for a high speed bus line transit stop It is also being viewed as an LRT stop.
Councilmember Latz asked why the current owner was not dealing with environmental
remediation of the site. He also questioned why the price of the property was so high.
Mark Senn, representing SELA, said that the current owner already has an offer to buy the
building in its current condition at the asking price
Councilmember Nelson said he felt the percentage of public dollars was too high on this
package and the recapture period too long. He also felt financing without undergoing
remediation of the site would be too difficult for any buyer He suggested the MPCA be
called out to investigate. He wanted to be sure the responsible parties pay for any
remediation that must occur He also opposed the use of the property for a high speed bus
line.
Councilmember Sanger said that though she wanted local companies to stay in St. Louis Park,
she was not comfortable with the environmental issues or the financial package presented.
Councilmember Brimeyer questioned the size of the TIF district and wondered if there was
potential for other redevelopment in the area
Mr Harmening said that he did not feel there were enough staff resources in Community
Development to undertake a major study similar to that done in Park Commons or the
Highway 7 and Louisiana Ave district Mr Anderson said there was a lot of interest in the
area from local developers.
Councilmember Latz asked if the numbers could be adjusted to be more favorable to the City.
Mr. Anderson said that one option would be for the city to donate the adjacent land to the
project
Mr Meyer asked about the nature of the jobs to be performed at the proposed SELA
headquarters Mr Anderson said that about a quarter was sales and support with the largest
employee groups being dispatched out to the job sites
Mayor Dorfman said that though she would like to keep jobs in St Louis Park, she was not
ready to move forward.
Councilmember Brimeyer was opposed to a"piecemeal" approach. Councilmember Latz
I agreed.
Gail Dornan informed the developer that it was clear council was not interested in
supporting this project.
The meeting adjourned at 9.06 p m.
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