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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2000/01/24 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Study Session CITY OF OFFICIAL MINUTES PARK ST. LOUIS CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION January 24, 2000 The meeting convened at 7 08 p m Present at the meeting were Councilmembers Jim Brimeyer, Ron Latz, Chris Nelson, Susan Sanger, and Mayor Jeff Jacobs Staff present City Manager (Mr Meyer), Deputy City Manager (Mr Pires), Director of Community Development (Mr Harmening), Planning Manager (Ms Jeremiah), Economic Development Coordinator (Mr Kleve), Finance Director(Ms McGann), Public Works Director (Mr Rardin), Supt Of Engineering (Mr Moore), Zoning Administrator (Mr Moore), Director of Inspections (Mr Hoffman), and City Clerk (Ms Larsen) 1. MSP Real Estate—Final TIF Application; Mill City Plywood Site Council met with staff and real estate developers to review the final TIF application for the project Specific issues raised were the project economics and amount of TIF assistance, local contribution requirement and grant requirements, public improvements and sale of city land, the planning approval process and proposed future steps in moving this project along Mr Kleve informed council that a $1 6 grant had been received from DTED and that the project was coming together very nicely Councilmember Latz asked about plans for water retention and if drainage would be addressed as part of the project Mr Kleve stated that the project complied with all requirements Mr Harmening stated that staff had learned that there is no need to remove parcels from existing TIF districts to create the new district The proposed district would be entirely new It is also possible to add other parcels to this district to make future development easier Councilmember Sanger questions the sale price for the city land and asked how that price had been determined Mr Kleve stated that the land was priced at market rate plus a premium to meet the local contribution requirements of the project He also stated that public improvements being paid for by the developer included stop light, trail, turning lanes and others Councilmember Nelson asked if the project was designed as senior housing only A representative of the development said that the project was designed as market rate housing and not designed strictly for seniors Mr Meyer pointed out that this developer had a very good reputation for providing low and moderate income housing and did not feel that creation of market rate housing on this site was inappropriate Councilmember Brimeyer stated that he did not mind extending the TIF payback period beyond the 16 years proposed He felt the project was very good and deserved public support Mayor Jacobs echoed that support Councilmember Sanger asked if the project fails, would the city land be returned to the city Mr Harming said that the land transfer would be done as a coinciding land conveyance Staff indicated that the issue would come back for Council approval at the February 7, 2000 meeting Study Session Minutes -2- January 24, 2000 2. Louisiana Avenue Traffic Congestion At the request of the council, staff had researched traffic congestion and on-street parking on Louisiana Avenue between Minnetonka Boulevard and West 27th Street Several residents of the area were in attendance at the meeting Council was presented with traffic volumes and accident history and informed of options for easing that congestion Mr Moore suggested that if council wanted to move forward, more study would need to be done at a greater cost Mr Meyer indicated that the long term cost of improvements would need to be looked at relative to the capital planning program He Also stated that not MSA funding would not be available until 2002 Councilmember Sanger said that residents needed on-street parking and would find it a hardship were that parking to be removed Mayor Jacobs suggested the project be done in phases with each phase evaluated to determine impacts Councilmember Nelson was unwilling to say that parking would continue and felt that more study needed to be done He stated that this was the only north/south connection between highways 169 and 100 and that he felt the city should recognize that fact Council discussed details of parking, post office drops, possible light changes, possible parking restrictions and decided that a professional traffic study should be done to assess impacts of possible solutions discussed at the meeting III Mr Rardin agreed to come back to council with more information and a recommendation based on a professional traffic study 4. Variance Issues—Reapplying, Fees, and Notices Community Development Department staff met with council to review the existing language in the code which permits an applicant to reapply for the same variance six months after denial Staff also raised the concern about the ability to apply for any number of variances under the same application with no additional fees Staff suggested that the fee for each additional variance should be $50 rather than the unlimited number of variances currently allowed with one fee Council discussed public notice requirements such as cost of mailing, extending the mailing distance signs on the property and use of the city web site Council directed staff to move forward with the proposed changes to the ordinance code 3. Legislative Update Present at the meeting were Steve Kelley, District 44 Senator and Betty Folliard, State Senate Representative from District 44A Representative Jim Rhodes joined the meeting by conference phone The purpose of the meeting was to stimulate discussion on topics of interest to St Louis Park 's councilmembers and state legislators and to hear an update on the upcoming legislative session Study Session Minutes -3- January 24, 2000 Council and representatives discussed levy limits, railroads, railroad crossings, transit funding and other issues Rep Folliard agreed that the City should not shoulder the entire fiscal responsibility for the cost of ongoing remediation at the Reilly site and offered to work with the MPCA and design legislation that would ease the city's responsibility Rep Rhodes offered to design legislation that would fund the extension of a noise wall on Hwy 100 Senator Kelley gave council an overview of his proposed legislation to further regulate the telecommunications industry by removing local franchise control and transferring that control to the state He did not feel that government should create arrangements that favor one form of technology over another He also felt that the regulatory structure should be simple and at one level He felt that if MN plays a leadership role in moving this model forward, there would be benefits to the state Councilmembers were concerned about the lack of local control and also expressed concern that money promised to cities would be taken away in the future Senator Kelley felt that the proposed legislation would keep regulation in the quality of service and consumer protection at a level where cities could participate Rep Rhodes asked what the chances of the bill being passed in the current legislative session were Senator Kelley was optimistic about the bill's chances and stated that he is open to other ideas and suggestions from his constituents 5. Issuing permits for Fences and Parking Lots Staff suggested to council that there is a greater chance for fences and parking lots to be installed and constructed out of compliance with the city's zoning requirements since a permit is not required Staff also suggested that the opportunity for education at that level would improve citizen understanding of code requirements Council agreed and asked staff to present a proposal for changes to the ordinance 6. Communications Mr Harmening presented an update on the status of condemnation and acquisition at the Rottland/CSM site and also gave an update on the same-sub ect at the Louisiana Court site i CotY Clerk Ma Y•r %'