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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2000/07/17 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Regular CITY OF OFFICIAL MINUTES ST LOUIS CITY COUNCIL MEETING PARK ST. LOUIS PARK,MINNESOTA July 17, 2000 • 1. Call to Order Mayor Jacobs called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. 2. Presentations—Parktacular Recognition Mayor Jacobs presented appreciation awards to persons who worked to make the 2000 Parktacular celebration a success. Persons receiving awards were Betty Danielson, Jackie Jones, Mary Kennedy, Gene Laue, Greg Lindberg, Chuck Olstrom, Kathy Wicker, Mark Jones, Louis Ryg, Julie Haberman, Dale Antonson, Rick Person,Duffy Larson-Abramson, Brad Lindberg, Cheryl Swenson, Louise Krsyika, Meg Tilletson. 3. Roll Call The following Councilmembers were present at roll call: Jim Brimeyer, Ron Latz, Chns Nelson, Sue Sanger, Sue Santa, Robert Young, and Mayor Jeff Jacobs. Also present were the City Manager(Mr. Meyer); City Attorney (Mr. Foli); Director of Public Works (Mr. Rardin); Superintendent of Engineering (Mr. Moore); Planning Manager (Ms. Jeremiah); Planning Coordinator (Ms Erickson); and Recording Secretary (Ms. Olson). 4. Approval of Minutes a. City Council Minutes of July 5,2000 The minutes were approved as presented with the following corrections: Page 4, Second to last paragraph "I would propose a problem" should be "pose a problem" also add to the paragraph that Mr. Latz opposed making the buildings senior only and supported requiring a tot lot. Page 4, Fourth Line should say "assess the cost of relocation or encasement" rather than "encroachment". Page 5, half way down page starting"Councilmember Sanger stated she was in favor of" should be Councilmember Santa. Page 3 4th paragraph, second sentence ending with word"obtrusive" should be "intrusive", where it says "he questioned" should be "he recommended the need for five foot sidewalks rather than 6 feet". Page 5, 4th from bottom from Councilmember Young, "developers who may have paid too much for property" rather than "developers who have a hardship". 5. Approval of Agendas a. Consent Agenda. Council Meeting Minutes -2- July 17, 2000 Councilmember Latz asked that item 8g be removed from the consent agenda and placed on the regular agenda. Councilmember Nelson moved approval of the consent agenda, seconded by Councilmember Santa. The motion passed 7-0. , b. Agenda Mr. Pires asked that items 8a and 8c be removed from the agenda. He also asked that an emergency ordinance be added regarding the Recreation Center Condenser Emergency replacement. It was moved by Councilmember Sanger, seconded by Councilmember Santa, to approve the agenda as amended. The motion passed 7-0. c. Resolutions and Ordinances By consent, Council waived reading of resolutions and ordinances. 6. Public Hearings 6a. Application for Taxicab Company License Gold Star Taxi and Transportation Service. Bnan Hoffman, Director of Inspections presented a staff report. Mayor Jacobs opened the public hearing. There being no one wishing to speak, the public hearing was closed. It was moved by Councilmember Latz, seconded by Councilmember Santa to approve the license. The motion passed 7-0. 6b. Application for Transfer of Taxicab Company License—Airline Taxicab Brian Hoffman, Director of Inspections presented a staff report. Mayor Jacobs opened the public hearing. There being no one wishing to speak, the public heanng was closed. It was moved by Councilmember Latz, seconded by Councilmember Santa to approve the license. The motion passed 7-0. 6c. Comprehensive Plan Text Amendment To Chapter I,Transportation Case No. 00-38-CP. Resolution No. 00-085 Judie Erickson, Planning Coordinator, presented a staff report. Mayor Jacobs opened the public hearing. There being no one wishing to speak, the public hearing was closed. Councilmember Nelson asked about the significance of the move of Excelsior Blvd from page I- 15 to I-26. Ms. Erickson responded that it was moved because the comprehensive plan text did not acknowledge recent changes to the configuration of Excelsior Blvd. The area had been moved from the "immediate deficiencies" section to the section designated for"future definciency". Councilmember Sanger pointed out that on pages I-18 and I-19 in the section addressing highway 100 between 36th street and Cedar Lake Road, in paragraph number 2 language refers to "study the feasibility of eliminating the grade separated railroad crossing over highway 100". She suggested that language should state that it would need to be rebuilt because rail traffic is Council Meeting Minutes -3- July 17, 2000 currently going over that bndge and until a new rail route is developed for eastward rail traffic, it needs to continue to go over that bndge. She felt another bullet point should be added to paragraph 2 to say that the current railroad service into Minneapolis needs to continue. Also on page 19 add "railroads" to that list. Councilmember Sanger moved approval of Resolution No. 00-085 approving a text amendment to the Comprehensive Plan 2000-2020 with amendments suggested by herself. Motion seconded by Councilmember Nelson. Motion passed 7-0. 6d. Public Hearing on Request of MJS-9229 LLC, a California Limited Liability Company, (Soomekh Oriental Rugs) To Amend Comprehensive Plan Land Use Designation For Property Located At 5925 State Highway 7 From Industrial To Commercial. Mr. Pires informed Council that the applicant had requested that the hearing be continued until September 5th. Mayor Jacobs opened the public hearing Councilmember Nelson moved continuance to the September 5th, 2000 meeting. Motion seconded by Councilmember Sanger. Motion passed 7-0. 7. Petitions, Requests, Communications - None 8. Resolutions and Ordinances 8b. First Reading of an Ordinance Relating to Nuisances: Declaring Unsafe and Excessive Exterior Firewood Storage a Public Nuisance; Amending City Code Section 11-102 Bnan Hoffman, Director of Inspections presented a staff report. Joseph Heck, 1805 Idaho Ave S stated that he had read the proposed ordinance and felt the - storage space would be grossly inadequate for his wood usage. His home is heated by wood and he burned 6 cords last year. He obtains all of the wood used at his home from storm damaged trees in SLP and works with the City Forester. The wood he uses would cost the City a substantial amount to dispose of and Mr. Heck feels he is doing the City a service. He has a background in forestry. He felt that limiting storage of wood, and/or requinng removal of wood from his property would be imposing undue hardship on his use. He works well with City inspection staff and has undergone numerous inspections of his wood. He has addressed all concerns expressed by the City Inspectors and has not received any citations or warnings regarding the use. He asked that Council at least consider reevaluating the amount of wood allowed on a property and also stated that Council should be encouraging alternative energy sources for home heating rather than discouraging innovation and conservation. Tom Spooner, 1806 Idaho Ave S stated that he has considered changing over to wood heat for his home. He was now reconsidenng that position and asked that council consider the financial impacts this ordinance may have on some SLP residents. Councilmember Sanger said that she had thought the ordinance would also encompass other kinds of outside storage. Mr Hoffman said that the nuisance ordinance addresses most types of trash, garbage, storage, etc., but because firewood is not a trash item the existing nuisance code would not apply. Council Meeting Minutes -4- July 17, 2000 Councilmember Young wanted to clanfy the size and asked how many cords could be accommodated the way the ordinance was wntten. Mr. Hoffman responded that the term"cord" was not what was commonly known as a "fireplace cord" and was indeed larger. Councilmember Young descnbed the wood piles existing on one property saying that the wood was not raised off the ground, was infested with rodents and carpenter ants. He felt the stockpile of wood was a nuisance, a fire hazard and a health and safety concern. Councilmember Young felt the proposed ordinance would regulate the negative aspects of wood storage and yet allow 99% of SLP residents enough storage for normal wood use. He also had concerns about the public taking wood from the City storage site. Councilmember Young moved approval of the first reading of an ordinance declaring unsafe and excessive exterior firewood storage a public nuisance; amending City Code section 11-102 and setting second reading for August 7, 2000. Councilmember Sanger seconded the motion. Councilmember Latz encouraged the use of efficient alternate source of heating. He asked if staff had spoken with the residents to find alternative resolutions to the perceived problems with wood storage. Mayor Jacobs expressed concern that he didn't understand exactly how much wood would need to be burned to heat a home. He had seen the pictures and felt the wood stored in that back yard was clearly inappropnate. Mr. Hoffman explained more fully how much area wood from a standard cord would cover. He also stated that problems with nesting only occur if the wood is not entirely used up each year. He suggested that wood in excess to that allowed by the proposed ordinance be stored in garage space or in an accessory structure. Councilmember Bnmeyer was not comfortable with the ordinance but didn't feel the ordinance adequately dealt with health and safety issues like rodents and fire safety and instead focused on aesthetics. He felt the end result should be appropriate to the problem. Councilmember Nelson felt that the ordinance forced turnover of the wood and did not focus on aesthetics of wood piles. Councilmember Sanger added that small lot sizes caused impact of large wood piles to be more keenly felt by neighbors. Councilmember Latz suggested that side bracing be required and also suggested that there may be other ways to address the issues. He felt that the proportion of yard taken up by wood is more of an issue than the actual size of the woodpile. Councilmember Latz asked that the issue be continued. Mayor Jacobs suggested that 2°d reading be set for later in August to allow staff additional time to come up with alternatives. Mr. Hoffman agreed that that would be possible. Councilmember Young commented that he felt Council was digressing from core issues of fire safety and health issues. He moved to amend the motion to set second reading on a later date Councilmember Nelson did not wish to regulate wood for aesthetics Council Meeting Minutes -5- July 17, 2000 Councilmember Sanger felt the size allowed in the proposed ordinance was too large. Councilmember Latz felt there were other ways to address health and safety issues and he was not comfortable voting on the ordinance even at first reading. Mr. Pires suggested that the issue be brought to another study session on August 14th. Mayor Jacobs agreed. Mayor Jacobs clarified that the motion that had been made, seconded and amended was to approve the first reading of an ordinance declanng unsafe and excessive exterior firewood storage a public nuisance; amending City Code section 11-102 and setting second reading for August 21, 2000. Motion passed 6-1 (Councilmember Latz opposed). 8d. City Engineer's Report: Alley Paving—3200 block between Georgia Avenue and Hampshire Avenue—Project No. 00-20. Resolution No. 00-086 By consent, Council adopted Resolution No. 00-086 accepting the report, establishing Improvement Project No. 00-20, directing staff to sponsor an informational meeting with abutting property owners, and setting a Public Hearing and Assessment Hearing date of August 21, 2000. 8e City Engineer's Report: Storm Water Flood Area No. 2—Improvements at 9311 Franklin Avenue—Project No. 00-05. Resolution No. 00-087 By consent, council adopted Resolution No. 00-087 accepting the report, establishing Improvement Project No. 00-05, ordering Project No. 00-05, approving plans and specifications, and authorizing receipt of bids. 8f. Set Public Hearing for Benilde-St. Margaret's School and give preliminary approval to an Industrial Development Project. Resolution No. 00-088 By consent, Council adopted Resolution No. 00-088 calling for a Public Hearing on August 7, 2000 and giving preliminary approval to an Industnal Development Project. 8g. Second reading of Zoning Ordinance Map Amendments to change designations for parcels on the north side of West 13th Lane east of Texas Avenue from R2-Single Family Residential to R-3 Two-Family Residential Ordinance No. 2172-00 Councilmember Latz had asked that this item be removed from the consent agenda because he had voted against the motion at first reading and did not consent on second reading. Councilmember Young moved approved for Second reading of Ordinance No. 2172 Zoning Ordinance Map Amendments to change designations for parcels on the north side of West 13th Lane east of Texas Avenue from R2-Single Family Residential to R-3 Two-Family Residential for consistency with the Comprehensive Plan, adopt Ordinance, approve summary and authorize publication. Councilmember Sanger seconded. Motion passed 6-1 (Councilmember Latz opposed). Council Meeting Minutes -6- July 17, 2000 8h. Emergency Purchase of a Condenser at the Recreation Center Ordinance No. 2173-00 Mr. Pires stated that the evaporative condenser had failed two years earlier than planned and that it needed to be replaced immediately. Councilmember Nelson asked if the replacement would be freon free. Mr. Pires was unsure and , offered to have staff clarify that at a later date. Councilmember Nelson made a motion to approve an Emergency Ordinance and authorize the City Manager or designee to negotiate a design for the replacement of the evaporative condenser identified therein, and authorize publication. Councilmember Young seconded Councilmember Santa asked when the condenser would be replaced. Mr. Pires stated that replacement could not occur for 8 weeks. She expressed her concern that another failure could occur pnor to replacement. Mr. Pires stated that equipment monitonng has been stepped up and that if the leak grows the City may have to shut down the condenser earlier. Councilmember Latz questioned where funding would come from. Mr. Pires responded that the Park Improvement Fund would finance the replacement as it would have if replacement had occurred 2 years into the future as previously planned. Councilmember Sanger asked if the equipment was safe for users. Mr. Pires responded that there are no significant public safety issues for arena users. Motion passed unanimously to adopt Ordinance No. 2173 replacement of the evaporative condenser located at the Rrecreation Center without advertising for bids. 9. Reports from Officers,Boards, Committees *a. Housing Authority Minutes of June 14, 2000 *b. Investment Report *c. Financial Report *d. Vendor Claims Action: By consent, Council accepted reports for filing 10. Unfinished Business 10a. Board and Commission Appointments - None 11. New Business Ila. Approve lease extension with MnDOT for Webster Park . Resolution No.00-089 By consent, Council approved Resolution No. 00-089 lease extension with MnDOT for Webster Park. 12. Miscellaneous - None Council Meeting Minutes -7- July 17, 2000 13. Claims,Appropriation, Contract Payments -None 14. Communications >From the City Manager- None >From the Mayor- None 15. Adjournment It was moved by Councilmember Bnmeyer, seconded by Councilmember Santa, to adjourn the meeting at 8:37 p.m. The motion passed 7-0. C Clerk M yor