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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1999/06/28 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Study Session CITY OF ST. LOUIS OFFICIAL MINUTES PARK CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION 11 June 28, 1999 The meeting convened at 7.00 p.m Present at the meeting were Councilmembers Jim Brimeyer, Ron Latz, Chris Nelson, Susan Sanger, Sue Santa, Robert Young, and Mayor Jeff Jacobs Staff present City Manager(Mr Meyer), Director of Community Development (Mr Harmening), Economic Development Coordinator(Mr Anderson), and City Clerk(Ms Larsen) 1. CSM Development Proposal Mr Anderson introduced the preliminary application for TIF assistance at 5901 Wayzata Boulevard for a proposed hotel and residential redevelopment project Dave Darland of CSM was present and indicated to council the amounts of money the developer felt was needed to complete the project and also discussed payback of funds Mr Harmening informed council of current zoning of the property in the comprehensive plan and discussed issues regarding park dedication He indicated that this was a preliminary discussion only If Council expressed interest a public process would be undertaken by the developer Councilmember Nelson asked Councilmember Sanger to comment on the project from her perspective as Ward I Councilmember She expressed support of the project and also indicated that she felt there was widespread support in the neighborhood as well Councilmember Brimeyer asked if tax increment financing was really needed He felt the project was great but was hesitant to provide public dollars to support it Councilmember Nelson said there was no need because the site is not polluted and does not face any other adversity Councilmember Sanger stated that she felt that this project would assist in meeting goals of housing in the neighborhood Councilmember Ron Latz arrived at the meeting Mr Harmening stated that this proposal rids the neighborhood of non-conforming use and creates move-up housing, both identified as goals of the city Councilmember Young felt that the higher and better use of property was a good goal He then compared it with the Park Commons project Councilmember Santa asked how the"but for" test works Councilmember Sanger replied that the term applied to projects that could not be done"but for" the use of public dollars Those public dollars could create a level playing field allowing projects that would otherwise not be completed to move forward Councilmember Nelson felt that if a project meets public goals, it then becomes justifiable to use public money He did, however, feel that the payback time would be too long Mr Anderson stated that a more precise analysis could be brought forward if Council wanted to continue as a partner in financing the project Study Session Minutes -2- June 28, 1999 Dave Carland, Vice President of Development at CSM Corp , stated that this particular project should not be considered to be corporate welfare but rather should be considered a land buy-down He went on the state that when land is cleared and ready to go it becomes profitable If the land is not, development cannot take place He stated that in order for the housing and park components to work, the industrial building needed to be built Mayor Jacobs stated that he liked the project and would like it to move forward but felt he needed more information. He felt that the TIF amount and the preliminary plans should be looked at and brought forward to Council in more concrete form Councilmember Sanger asked if the sale price of housing could be higher She said that the higher sale money would provide for faster pay back Councilmember Brimeyer also compared this project to Park Commons He stated that if TIF meets that vision it also meets this one He suggested that the developer and staff return to Council will different numbers that may be more palatable Councilmember Nelson stated that the City is in a good position because of the low percentage of property tied up in TIF districts He stated that he is not opposed to this project because an increase in assessed value is good He was uncomfortable with the amount of money from public assistance and asked that the proposal be redesigned to include a faster payback Councilmember Sanger asked if the residents present in the chambers were in support of the timing being considered Dave Carland stated that the preferred timeline is soon but it is not urgent Mayor Jacobs asked if the project would be done in phases or all at once The developer respondedI/ that they would prefer quick development, but were flexible Mr Harmening said if Council is supportive of the idea, a public meeting will be held He spoke briefly about the rezoning, platting process, and Park and ROW dedication that will take place He suggested that the entire process may take several months He estimated a possible project start in spring Councilmember Brimeyer asked if there was a willing buyer and seller Mr. Harmening stated the developer must handle the project details He also said that the concerns about the implications on staff time have been relieved The developer stated that the Nagle billboard would be terminated He also stated that public improvement of the frontage road could be accomplished Mr Harmening pointed out that the NSP property also needs to be acquired and Jim Rhodes has expressed willingness to negotiate Councilmember Latz said he did not want to subsidize billboard acquisition with tax increment financing Mayor Jacobs suggested that these questions be considered at a future study session Mr Meyer suggested that the three key ideas to focus on were the real value of the project, the percent of interest, and how realistic the return on the investment is Councilmember Latz asked if a comparable project using the percent of tax increment financing has been done in St Louis Park Study Session Minutes -3- June 28, 1999 Mr Anderson stated that staff would do that research and present along with business points at a future study session 2. MSP Real Estate Update Mr Anderson introduced Milo Pinkerton and Mike Woods with MSP Real Estate Also present was Steve Johnson from Peer Environmental He stated that they were interested in tax increment financing for construction of housing on the former Mill City Plywood site Questions were raised about qualified costs It was determined that the site probably qualifies as"blighted" Mr Pinkerton stated that the Department of Trade and Economic Development would not require removal of all soils,just six or seven feet He also stated that the project would consist of mostly upscale rental housing Councilmember Young asked about the loss of tax increment on the Oak park village site Questions were raised about the increment from the Mill City site and potential loss of revenue to the City Mr Harmening also pointed out that this project would require a significant amount of staff resources If Council wanted to move forward with the project, staff must be increased to handle the project Councilmember Sanger stated that she was generally supportive of the project but was concerned that the parking to apartment ratio was inadequate Councilmember Santa stated that she was concerned with traffic Mr Harmening replied that the concern with the Walker and Louisiana Ave intersection came out of the Hwy 7 and Louisiana Ave study He suggested that improvements could include signals at the intersection Councilmember Nelson suggested that they refer to the traffic study Councilmember Latz suggested that Walker Ave be realigned for improvement Mayor Jacobs felt that any discussion about this site should be tied in with discussion about the future of the Oak Park Village site Councilmember Latz said he liked the project and that a realignment of Walker Ave would serve several purposes Councilmember Nelson asked if the City could proceed with the project prior to improving the infrastructure Councilmember Latz stated that he had spoken to the developer and they had said the project could be completed in stages It was decided that if Council pursues the realignment of Walker, staff would be able to complete that project It was also discussed that staff time and cost of the project should be looked at Councilmember Young does not want to discontinue the project because of staffing issues Mr Harmening agreed but said he did not want to promise what staff couldn't deliver Councilmember Nelson asked if it was possible to get a proposal from the public works department on the long-term level of service at the intersection Mr Meyer replied that he would pursue that with the public works staff Councilmember Sanger suggested that the discussion be deferred until more information is gathered from the public works department Study Session Minutes -4- June 28, 1999 Council was in consensus that the project was a good use of tax increment financing It was decided that more information should be brought back to a future meeting Councilmember Santa stated that she sees the project as good for the community Mr Meyer asked the Council if they felt the property price was too high Councilmember Nelson asked for clarification of the difference between tax increment financing and land write-down Mr Anderson stated that there would be pay back with tax increment financing The Council then discussed the taxable market value of the property 3. Dogs in Parks At a previous study session, Council had requested that discussion take place regarding dogs in city parks Several calls had been received by both staff and council requesting that dogs be allowed space for off-leash exercise areas Councilmember Sanger suggested that bags for clean-up should be made available in the parks and that the dog areas should be fenced off Councilmember Nelson expressed concern that the neighboring property owners to the park would be upset about the dogs and increased activity near their property Councilmember Young suggested that the Park and Recreation Commission be asked to determine where an off-leash dog park should be placed Councilmember Sanger felt that a couple of acres would be enough land for the dog park 11 Mayor Jacobs stated that the number of parks where dogs are allowed should be expanded and the rules for those parks must be enforced Mr Meyer suggested that the Police Department be consulted about their ability to enforce any changes proposed for the dog ordinance Ms Walsh stated that most people do seem to clean up after their pets Councilmember Nelson felt that some parks should remain free of dogs Councilmember Latz agreed Mr Meyer informed Council that an ordinance change concerning dogs in the parks would be brought forward for future discussion 4. Renaming of Hutchinson Spur Trail Councilmember Sanger stated that she would like to see the"Hutchinson Spur" portion of the Hennepin regional trial system named after Gloria Segal, a local politician and member of the community Councilmember Nelson agreed that she was a worthy recipient of that honor Mr. Meyer stated that staff was unclear as to what Hennepin County would allow in regard to renaming trails It was suggested that it could be confusing for trail users if sections of a larger system were renamed Councilmember Latz felt that Gloria Segal was a good legislator but suggested that perhaps they look at other possible recipients before making a final decision Study Session Minutes -5- June 28, 1999 Councilmember Brimeyer suggested that instead of naming the trail itself after community members, they could place benches, or other rest areas with appropriate signage along the trail to honor prominent community members It was also suggested that the issue be sent to the Park and Recreation Commission to determine standards for this type of recognition Councilmember Nelson felt that the Historical Society should be involved Ms Walsh then brought up the issue of locker rooms at the Rec Center She reported that she had met with both Benilde and the St Louis Park Schools to discuss the issue Ms Walsh then discussed the history of this issue and the difficulty for both groups to come to an understanding on the subject Mayor Jacobs raised several questions He asked if the City should put up the money for Benilde and the St Louis Park Schools, both of which will have $50,000 in expenditure Secondly, he asked whether the lockers should be open to public or private use The Council agreed that staff should pursue resolution of this issue 5. Council Salaries Councilmember Brimeyer suggested that the activities of the Council and Economic Development Authority be equalized Councilmember Sanger felt that the Council and EDA should not be separated Council compared other cities' salary information, concluding that for most cities, the EDA pay is set separately Councilmember Nelson felt the pay should be raised and indexed Councilmember Latz suggested the pay be kept under $10,000 and indexed, combining the Council and EDA Council then discussed the public perception of this issue They discussed the number of hours and meetings councilmembers were required to attend and the timing of any action to be taken Mr Meyer agreed to draft a proposal for increase of council salaries for future discussion 6. Safe Drinking Water Mr Rardin and Mr Anderson met with Council to inform them of implementation of various aspects of the 1996 amendments to the Federal Safe Drinking Water Act That act requires cities to issue consumer confidence reports which identify additional contaminants in drinking water Mr Anderson shared St Louis Park's brochure that was being distributed to the community 7. Communications Councilmember Brimeyer reported that the Dayton's Challenge Tournament recently held at the Minneapolis Golf Club had been a success and had raised significant charitable contributions Mr Meyer informed Council that a letter of apology from the Parktacular committee would be appearing in the St Louis Park Sun Sailor for comments made about a local business during the parade Study Session Mmutes -6- June 28, 1999 Council briefly discussed a process to evaluate the performance of the City Manager 8. Adjournment The meeting was adjourned at 10 14 p m l C y Clerk Mal:r ,