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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2003/02/10 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Study Session CITY OF ST. LOUIS OFFICIAL MINUTES PARK CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION February 10, 2003 The meeting convened at 7:15 p m Present at the meeting were Councilmembers Jim Bnmeyer, Paul Omodt, Sue Santa, Sally Velick, and Mayor Pro-tem Susan Sanger. Mayor Jeff Jacobs arrived at 8.00 p m Staff present. City Manager(Mr Meyer), Director of Public Works (Mr. Rardin), Director of Community Development (Mr Harmening), Housing Supervisor(Ms. Schnitker), Housing Coordinator (Ms Larsen), Director of Inspections (Mr. Hoffman), Environmental Health Official (Mr. Camilon), and City Clerk (Ms Reichert). 1. CenterPoint/Minnegasco Franchise Agreement Mr Rardin gave a brief review of the franchise agreement and stated that staff has not identified any problems with the agreement. He added that staff felt it necessary to have a ten year agreement rather than a twenty year agreement due to the rapid changes in the utility business. Council agreed that it was a good proposal and directed staff to bnng the agreement forward according to the schedule outlined. Mr. Rardin also stated that CenterPoint Energy Minnegasco is aware that the city could impose franchise fees in the future. 2. France Avenue Turnback Mr. Rardin summanzed the offer made by Hennepin County to sell a portion of France Avenue back to the city. He stated that it was the same proposal they have made the last several times except they are offering a better buy back price. Councilmember Sanger inquired how well sharing a portion of the road with Minneapolis will work Mr Rardin replied that in most cases staff experience has been good though he added that it is helpful that it is only a small portion of road that would be shared. Mr Rardin reported that Minneapolis has already accepted the turnback and he will work on an agreement with Minneapolis. Councilmember Sanger was concerned about requests for traffic control and the level of expectation for the city to do so. Mr. Rardin replied that MSA rules apply. Few traffic calming devices are allowed and any signals would be the city's responsibility. He stated that he would look into other options Councilmember Santa inquired if the city can resolve the existing traffic-flow problems. Mr. Meyer commented that not all the streets can easily turn left off of France Avenue during rush hour. Mr. Rardin stated that he would come back to Council with more information as well as a consent agreement with Minneapolis Councilmember Bnmeyer it should be viewed from a maintenance, plowing, and traffic control point of view to determine whether they should agree to the turn back Study Session Minutes -2- February 10, 2003 3. Update on Property Maintenance Inspection Programs Mr. Camilon and Mr. Hoffman gave an update to the council about progress make since changes in the program occurred. They reported that the results were very successful. Mr. Hoffman stated that the 2003 edition of the IPMC (International Property Maintenance Code) should be adopted this year along with any needed amendments. Mr. CamiIon felt that the IPMC was a good tool for all property maintenance inspection programs He outlined the program components for time of sale inspections, nuisance complaints, multi-family apartment inspections, and residential property maintenance inspections. The single family rental program was discussed Mr. Hoffman stated that he would look for better tools for dealing with orders and posting. 4. Special Service District—Excelsior and Grand Mr. Harmenng explained that the Park Commons site is unique in terms of how maintenance to the area will be provided. He reported that TOLD is required by the development agreement to participate in Special Service District 3 as well as a district for internal streets in the Park Commons project. He stated that if the special service district process was used, it would cause a very heavy cost burden to the ground floor retailers as the statutes do not recognize vertical mixed-use buildings. Staff's proposal would have the developer and the city enter into a contract that assigns the responsibility of the maintenance work to the developer as owner of the building. If the maintenance work is not done, the contract allows the city to do the work and assess the cost to the developer. Councilmember Sanger inquired what would happen if the proposed contract does not work as intended. Mr. Harmening replied that the first recourse would be to abate and assess the cost. The city could also go ahead and create the Special Service District. Another option would be to find TOLD in default and withhold TIF payments. Council agreed staff should develop the contract and bring it back to Council for formal approval. 5. 2003 Community Development Block Grant Funds Ms. Schnitker reported that staff still supports the `sticks and bricks' approach of using CDBG funds to support capital hard cost activities Councilmember Sanger inquired if there are waiting lists for the programs. Ms. Larsen confirmed that they do have waiting lists and assured Council that staff is working as hard as possible to get through the list. She added that it would be difficult to do more than they are at the moment. Council agreed that the programs offered are very good and they would like to continue with them. Councilmember Sanger inquired if Blackstone Pilot Program could be re-opened with the leftover funds. Mr. Harmening replied that it could. Ms. Larsen stated that they could continue working on the established program components. Study Session Minutes -3- February 10, 2003 Mr. Meyer felt the organization is working well on housing issues, stating that there is good cooperation between all departments involved Council directed staff to move forward with the proposed allocations and to set the public hearing for the March 3rd meeting. 6. Solid Waste Councilmember Bnmeyer brought forward a concept to the council which he believed would provide incentives for service by the contractor. He felt that if there are problems with service, that the burden of proof should fall on the contractor He suggested allowing customers to opt out of the city's plan and find their own contractor. Mayor Jacobs expressed concern that such a program would be difficult to administer. Councilmember Sanger felt that the city should not be dealing with complaints on a daily basis. She suggested hiring a third party to deal with complaints. Councilmember Bnmeyer stated that there is no way that service can be perfect. Mayor Jacobs felt that the city should hold privately contracted haulers to certain standards as a condition of licensing. Councilmember Santa commented that the haulers are not always at fault and that she has been hearing good things as well. Councilmember Bnmeyer felt that quality is what the city is looking for and that any contract provision for an opt out option should be targeted twoard ensuring good quality service. Another possibility would be penalizing the contractor each time a customer opts out. He added that the opt out option would be a relief for those customers who were overly upset with their service. Council directed staff to discuss the option with potential contractors and look for similar models that may exist in other municipalities. 7. Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 10 10 p.m ��! • ' A C e9 Clerk May i r