Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2000/01/10 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Study Session CITY OF OFFICIAL MINUTES ST. LOUIS CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION PARK January 10, 2000 The meeting convened at 7 00 p m Present at the meeting were Councilmembers Jim Brimeyer, Ron Latz, Chris Nelson, Susan Sanger, Sue Santa, and Mayor Jeff Jacobs Staff present City Manager (Mr Meyer), Director of Community Development (Mr Harmening), Planning Manager (Ms Jeremiah), City Planner (Ms Peterson), and City Clerk (Ms Larsen) 1. Executive Session Motion was made by Councilmember Santa, seconded by Councilmember Brimeyer to move to executive session to discuss pending litigation on the Christianson Garage Motion passed unanimously Present at the discussion were Councilmembers Sue Sanger, Sue Santa, James Brimeyer, Chris Nelson, Ron Latz and Mayor Jeff Jacobs Also present were the City Manager (Mr Meyer), Director of Inspections (Mr Hoffman), City Clerk (Ms Larsen) and City Attorney (Mr Scott) Motion was made by Councilmember Santa, seconded by Councilmember Brimeyer to reconvene the study session at 7 55 p m Motion passed unanimously 2. Zoning Standards - Restaurants with Liquor Ms Peterson asked Council what they felt was an appropriate process to handle restaurants with liquor in the C2 district She informed Council how the non-conformities are addressed with different development tools such as PUD, CUP, special permits, etc She then discussed how non-conformities could be addressed in multi-tenant buildings The Council discussed how to best address non-conformities They considered how to determine which are negotiable or could be done partially and which would need to be done in whole Councilmember Sanger stated that she would like to retain the CUP process The Council was in agreement with that idea Councilmember Sanger felt that Council should maintain control over what non-conformities should be reduced or eliminated She stated that she would like clear definitions of what must come into compliance Ms Jeremiah replied that staff would like to see some leeway left so that the property owner does not see their investment in the property as a start of redevelopment Councilmember Santa was concerned why the non-conformities that needed correction by a specific date have not yet been corrected Councilmember Latz felt the Planning Commission's decision was correct and would like to retain the CUP process He did not want the property owner to hold off on making improvements because they have an inability to pay to bring non-conformities into compliance Mr Nelson stated that he wants Texa Tonka to improve with its current use and not necessarily in redevelopment Mayor Jacobs agreed and asked staff to develop a proposed approach He emphasized that discretion will always have to be exercised Study Session Minutes -2- January 10, 2000 Councilmember Brimeyer wanted to be sure that the language applies to a future policy and not just one particular case Mayor Jacobs stated that the item should be brought back to the next regular meeting for a vote 3. Park Commons East Staff stated that they would like to review with the Council matters associated with the performance and progress of Avalon Bay on the Park Commons East project They reported that the City has made good progress on public aspects of the project, but confidence in the developer had eroded Staff asked Council to direct them to hold a meeting with Avalon Bay and to bring suggestions back Mayor Jacobs inquired as to why the retail developer had pulled out of the project Mr Harmening replied that their schedule was busy and they were not comfortable being first in the ground on such a project Councilmember Sanger wondered if staff knew whether discussions about this project had taken place on a senior staff level at Avalon Bay and if the senior staff was committed to this project Mr Harmening replied that he felt the City should require Avalon Bay to take the following steps • Identify its retail development partner and require the partner to be involved in all discussions and negotiations with the City, • present an acceptable pro forma to the City relating to the most recent development concept, and • provide evidence which gives the City confidence that a private development project will occur in 2000 which has a retail component associated with it Councilmember Brimeyer stated that changing developers is expensive and felt it would not be the best option He suggested that perhaps the City should find a retail developer Mr Meyer replied that another lead developer may be commercial and Avalon Bay may stay in as the residential developer Councilmember Latz felt that the city should be considering other developers to put together the retail package of the project Ms Jeremiah stated that the City must be careful about complying with the predevelopment agreement She suggested that an incremental development plan may be the best option Councilmember Nelson stated that since he was ward Councilmember, he would like to be involved in the discussions Councilmember Sanger stated that other retail developers should be researched but staff must be careful to comply with the current agreement Councilmember Brimeyer agreed Councilmember Santa felt that a discussion with parties that have been involved since the beginning of the project should be held to determine if the project is still feasible Study Session Minutes -3- January 10, 2000 111 Councilmember Sanger expressed her concern about relaying information to the community and asked how the city could best respond to the public Mr Meyer replied that the best answer would be the truth, which he felt would be to state that the City has done very well in moving this project along Council directed staff to proceed with the proposed actions included in the staff report and to see that Avalon Bay follows the indicated steps State Representative Jim Rhodes asked for ideas concerning the Park Commons project that could be incorporated into a bill to benefit the project Mr Meyer replied that transit is an important issue 4. Railroad Phase 2 Agreement and General Update Mr Meyer gave a brief update He recommended that Council discuss the possibility of organizing a task force on this issue He stated that public input was needed and suggested that representatives from the neighborhoods and railroads be present as they will be affected Councilmember Brimeyer felt that the task force would be a good idea Councilmember Sanger suggested that the Blackstone and Cedarhurst neighborhoods be included in the task force Councilmember Nelson added that he would also like the Brooklawn and Brookside neighborhoods included Councilmember Sanger questioned involving a representative from Minneapolis Mr Koppy replied that Minneapolis was identified as one of the impacted parties Mr Meyer felt it would also help communication with Minneapolis Councilmember Nelson felt that the Metropolitan Council on transit should be involved as well The Council agreed Council then discussed composition of the task force Mr Meyer stated that Council should take action to form the task force at a meeting in the near future and asked them to consider any changes to the composition that group 5. Off-Leash Dog Area Council determined that the issue needed further study and directed staff to research the proposal for the off leash dog park in a nearby area of Minneapolis and to determine whether St Louis Park residents might be able to use those areas 6. Oak Park Village Plan The Council discussed the pro and cons of the transfer of land from the Economic Development Authority to the City and the best cost for that transaction It was suggested that a task force be appointed with the direction to create a mixed use facility Councilmember Brimeyer felt the request for proposals should be expanded to be a coordinated effort to make park improvements citywide Mr Meyer stated that community needs and the scope of the project have to be clearly identified prior to forming a task force Councilmember Sanger stated that the perspective of the entire community needs to looked at Mr Meyer stated that he was concerned with the size and length of the project Councilmember Santa suggested that since the Hwy 7 and Louisiana corner is now a development area, the redevelopment of Oak Park Village be planned in conjunction with the other development Councilmember Brimeyer suggested that staff put out requests for proposals on a park redevelopment study and project Study Session Minutes -4- January 10, 2000 7. Public Art The item was brought forward by Councilmember Brimeyer Councilmember Brimeyer stated that while in attendance at the National League of Cities conference in Los Angeles, they went on a tour of public art in the city He mentioned that the development money for such a project was calculated as a percentage of the cost of development projects He suggested that this project be assigned to a staff member and asked Mr Meyer to determine who that would be 8. France Ave Turnback Councilmember Sanger stated that she had been absent at the last meeting where the issue was last discussed but said that she is opposed unless the traffic calming devices are in place The Council discussed possible changes in the future Councilmember Brimeyer suggested the topic be brought up in the next study session with the legislators in attendance 9. Communications Council considered possible dates for a staff/council retreat Councilmember Latz asked about details of FEMA reimbursement amounts Mr Meyer informed council that a verbal agreement had been reached on the purchase of additional properties at Louisiana Courts 10. Adjournment The meeting was adjourned at 9 45 p m 0 ,ck--"L---?---_ / Ciy yo Clerk Ma ;O r (32-- /