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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1999/08/09 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Study Session litRTCITY OF SLOUIS OFFICIAL MINUTES . K CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION August 9, 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 Public Works (Mr Rardin), Director of Parks and Recreation (Ms Walsh), City Assessor(Mr Stepnick), City Planner (Ms Erickson), and City Clerk (Ms Larsen) 1. Transit Study Brian Lamb described the modified grid He stated that it served the same function as the "circulator" which had been previously discussed by Council Councilmember Brimeyer asked if the circulator would also connect to downtown Mr Lamb said that it would Councilmember Sanger expressed her concern that all areas of St Louis Park are not connected to the circulator Jim Lasher stated that it could not reach a quarter mile distance in all areas He talked briefly about estimated ridership, route productivity (passenger/revenue an hour), and estimated overall productivity Councilmember Sanger asked if the figure is based on current ridership or the estimated in the future Mr Lasher stated that it was based on estimated future ridership Councilmember Sanger asked what the criteria are for that figure Mr Lasher responded that the criteria was parking, the population and employment density, and the percent of population under eighteen and over sixty-five He stated that to determine the level of service, they needed to find out the productivity and the need for transit services Discussion moved on to how more frequent connections have a higher cost It was stated that the public hearing process could go smoothly for some of the routes but may not for some of the others Councilmember Santa felt that Route 17 is highly used and that reducing the frequency that it runs would cause problems Mr Lasher explained several alternatives Councilmember Sanger felt there should not be transfers and Councilmember Brimeyer disagreed He stated that transfers need to happen if the grid system is set up Councilmember Latz felt that council should consider what good for what people at what cost This plan offered more options and equal speed and he felt that some transfers would be acceptable Study Session Minutes -2- August 9, 1999 Councilmember Sanger believed that kids should be able to get to the Rec Center after school from any point in the city with no transfers She felt that people should not be expected to arrange their schedules around bus stops and hours Councilmember Latz stated that people do learn to plan and felt the plan as presented was reasonable Mayor Jacobs believed this is a better system and would not be willing to look at additional cost for dial-a-ride He felt this is more convenient for more people He stated that not having to look for parking is just one of the ways that makes the transit way more convenient Councilmember Santa said she sees enhanced connections through transit centers She also pointed out that when transfers are missed, it can be problematic Mr Lasher stated that the transit way would increase service reliability Councilmember Brimeyer reminded the group that two goals were brought up in the beginning of this study The first was to get people to places of employment and other institutions He stated that this could be achieved through the grid system The second was to efficiently get people to transfer points He pointed out the north and south connector system could accomplish this He asked how users can be reassured that when using the transit system, the ride will be completed in a reasonable amount of time and they can transfer to their destination points Mr Meyer asked if the plan provides adequate time for transfers Mr Lasher replied that all points allow some time for transfers but all major routes offer multiple options Mr Lamb spoke about funding strategies He stated that they are still meeting with the Cities of Hopkins and Minnetonka He felt that a draft service plan would be available in mid-September, with a final plan coming October 1 He stated that he would like approval from the Council to go to the public He stated that his goal was to get community input and have a public hearing by the end of the year Mr Lamb also indicated that the structure would be in place in 2000 He said that"right-size vehicles" would be used Mr Lamb asked Council if money should be sought from the grant fund to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide emissions or if a letter should be submitted to the Legislature asking for assistance Mr Meyer inquired about the funding requests and what the process would be after the grant application and request to the Legislature He stated that he would prefer to move towards a greater frequency in routes if the money is available now Councilmember Latz felt that they should move forward now Councilmember Brimeyer explained transit choice versus transit dependent Mr Lamb stated that transit dependent individuals may patronize more St Louis Park businesses if transit connections change Study Session Minutes -3- August 9, 1999 Mr Meyer questioned the route reliability of the plan He asked if the structure would be changed so often that it would loose its reliability Mr Lamb replied that the community makes the decision on the route, not Metro Transit Met Council Chair Mr Mondale will be submitting a funding proposal for the transit way to be included in a bonding request to the Governor 2. Vacant Lot at 2712 Vernon Ave S Mr Stepnick gave the history of the lot Discussion revolved around the pnce of the lot and the final consensus was to move forward with the sale 3. Sidewalks and Trails Mr Rardin presented the Council with a large book of comments received on the trails and sidewalks plan Councilmember Latz said that as with many issues that come before council, the citizens against the plan were very vocal, but those in support of the plan tended to be less visible He did not feel that the comments presented were actually indicative of what the true thoughts of the community were Councilmember Sanger reviewed the outcome of a meeting held with some Fern Hill residents the week before III Mayor Jacobs felt comments received indicated distinct areas of the plan that should be reviewed and possibly modified Mr Meyer stated that pockets of sentiment were specific to certain areas of town He also said there was not an overwhelming opposition from residents as a whole and changes should be made as specific problems occurred He suggested creating an amended concept Mayor Jacobs agreed Councilmember Young inquired about different areas of the Phasing plan Mr Meyer stated that Phase I includes trails and City sidewalks It would not include any assessments Phase II discussion was limited so far but it would happen as Phase I was underway Councilmember Young stated that reportedly the public had been told the City would maintain the sidewalks He said he could not find any Council decision to that effect Mayor Jacobs replied that the plan is in the proposal phase and no Council action has been taken yet Councilmember Brimeyer recalled that council had discussed maintenance of"city" trails and sidewalks He felt that adopting a trail and sidewalk plan is a tough decision and Council will need to decide if they should go forward with Phase I as originally planned Councilmember Sanger felt that neighborhoods should be treated as individuals, sidewalks should be maintained, and the next steps should be identified She did not want to raise public expectations, and inquired on how they were to specify additional steps with cost Study Session Minutes -4- August 9, 1999 Mr Meyer replied that the structure should be looked at first and then the specific issues He suggested that action should not be taken by Council dunng the next meeting He also suggested that the report be accepted by council and that council should give staff direction to continue with the study incorporating changes deemed appropriate based on public comments already received Councilmember Nelson said he would like more neighborhood meetings before the master plan would be adopted It was suggested that the following areas be added to the plan behind the bank on 40th St , a trail from twin lake behind Benilde, 26th St to France, 16th St to Hampshire Ave , 16th St between Hwy 169 and Ford Rd , 418` Street between Natchez and Utica, and Shelard would also like a sidewalk Councilmember Brimeyer suggested that sidewalks and trails needed the most should be completed first, and the others can be incorporated into the following Phases Councilmember Young stated that in the original plan the sidewalk widths were too large and suggested that some of them should be narrowed down Mr Rardin suggested being cautious, that capital is a small amount and the on-going costs are what will add up 4. Gambling Councilmember Nelson stated that he did not favor gambling and did not want the city to allow gambling at all He stated that if charitable gambling is allowed, it shouldn't be anyone's business where the money goes He felt if the business wants to have charitable gambling in its facility, it is up to that business to arrange for a charitable organization to come in and the City should not be telling people where to spend their charitable dollars Councilmember Young stated that if the city continues to allow gambling, the money should be left in the local area Councilmember Latz agreed with the staff recommendations that January 1, 2000 is a reasonable time for the ordinance change to go into effect Councilmember Brimeyer made several points on the administrative costs, the trade area, and minimizing the opportunity for abuse The question was raised if the ordinance would cause any legislative problems Councilmember Sanger asked to review the state reporting forms It was then discussed that more information should be obtained from the attorney regarding financial reporting requirements 5. Parking on Louisiana Ave, South of Cedar Lake Road Council discussed limiting the parking to off-street only Councilmember Nelson stated that everyone felt the parking situation is a problem that needs to be corrected Staff was directed to present the issue with more information at a future study session Study Session Minutes -5- August 9, 1999 - 6. Communications On the topic of undergrounding utilities, Councilmember Young felt that with new developments the utilities should be underground However, he felt that utility lines are still a safety issue Mayor Jacobs said that digging is also dangerous and there are dangers &f utility lines are under or above ground He stated that he did not want to retroactively underground utility lines It was mentioned that the Zoning Ordinance will be looked at to see what needs to be undergrounded to comply with the code The Community Development department along with the Planning Commission will be holding a seminar on planning issues in the near future Mr Meyer stated that he will be on a Task Force to study the 35W corridor 6. Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 10 08 p m 7 / d. c2r11Ald /1 /_---- C y Clerk ayei