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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2008/08/11 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Study Session `f! St. Louis Park OFFICIAL MINUTES MINNESOTA CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION August 11, 2008 The meeting convened at 6:35 p.m. Councilmembers present: Mayor Jeff Jacobs, C. Paul Carver (attended via phone), Loran Paprocki, and Sue Sanger. Council members absent:John Basill, Phil Finkelstein, and Paul Omodt. Staff present: Deputy City Manager/Human Resource Director (Ms. Gohman), Chief Information Officer (Mr. Pires), Director of Public Works (Mr. Rardin), Community Liaison (Ms. Olson), Utilities Superintendent (Mr. Anderson), Communications Coordinator (Mr. Zwilling), and Recording Secretary (Ms. Larrea). Guest: Tom Pavek (Elert &Associates). 1. Future Study Session Agenda Planning— August 18, 2008 and August 25, 2008 Ms. Gohman presented the staff report for the upcoming study sessions on August 18, 2008 and August 25, 2008. On August 18, 2008, the Council is to meet at the Municipal Services Center for a tour of the facility. Following the tour the Council will head to City Hall. Other discussions - items will include the communication tower height and updates on the fire stations. Ms. Gohman questioned the Council if they would like to discuss recreational fire banning at the upcoming study sessions. It was the consensus of the Council that this item has been discussed recently and it would not be necessary to discuss it at length again. 2. Telephone System Replacement Project Mr. Pires presented the staff report to the Council regarding the replacement of the existing phone systems. The existing phone system serves most major City buildings including City Hall, Police Station, Fire Stations, MSC, Utilities, Recreation Center, and Nature Center. Phone software capabilities have changed greatly since the phones were last replaced and there are many options available by updating the phones. The City has the option of being able to utilize a phone and computer system in ways that could make day-to-day tasks more efficient and user friendly. The purpose of the presentation is to get feedback and ideas on what the City is looking for in a new phone system. Mr. Pavek from Elert &Associates, the contracted consultant, presented their recommend approach to Council. He wanted them to know what Elert &Associates is planning on doing to update the phone system for the City. Their company plans on meeting with each individual department to find out what their individual needs and wants are. They will also be taking an inventory of the phones within the City to find out how many phones there are and their locations. Once the installation process is complete, they will meet with the departments to go over the new phone system and conduct user training. Study Session Minutes -2- August 11, 2008 Mr. Pavek continued to explain the different features that would be available with the new phone system. The new products available include Voice over IP, tying the computer into the phone system with Outlook dialing, screen pop-ups and the ability to send and receive faxes from your desk. Some other features that were available included conference bridge, caller ID for both outgoing and incoming calls, and the option to take your phone with you if you change desks or locations. These new features will allow the City to save both time and money, especially for on- going maintenance. Mr. Pavek continued his presentation showing the Council different models of phones that would be available for purchase. Another noted feature of the new phone system is the ability to track whether someone is on the phone. Next to their extension there would be a red light if they are on the phone, yellow light if they are not in the office and green light if they are available. Mr. Pavek explained that in his experience each city department is unique and it is important to get feedback from every area in order to meet needs. He also noted that when residents call into the City they do not necessarily know who it is that they need to reach and need assistance to reach the person or department they are looking for. Everything has to be designed and thought about so you don't end up in voicemail jail. He advised the Council to think of when they call into the City and what their experience is like. He also asked the Council if there were any phone system technologies that they have used or seen that they would be interested in exploring as an option for the City. Mr. Pires noted that the City is not only looking to replace the phone system but to enhance the quality of communications. He would like to look at how the City could review its business systems and implement more best practices that are appropriate to serving City customers. Major Jacobs noted that he would not like the City to have an automated phone system with hundreds of options to find what you want. He would like to see a phone system where there is an initial live contact. He was also in favor of getting input from the public. It is his hope that they will get something that is user friendly for the staff and residents. He also liked the idea of knowing if someone is available at their phone or in the office. Councilmember Sanger noted that her only complaint with the current phone system is that if you call after 4:30 p.m. you cannot access a directory to find peoples' extensions. She would like to have an after hours directory where callers would be able to find direct dials. She has also had experience with phone systems that are used to access emails and did not care for it at all. The system was unable to open attachments and had trouble reading the email in its entirety. Councilmember Sanger felt that the new phone system needs to be accommodating for staff that do not work in the building or that do not have a computer. There needs to be some type of remote access that is employee friendly. She also inquired if there was a program available that would call residents with news such as a possible snow emergency. Mr. Pires answered that St. Louis Park Schools does have such a system and the City would be exploring this option in this process. Study Session Minutes -3- August 11, 2008 Mr. Pavek said that this is an available option. He feels that this type of emergency call system must be managed so it is not over used, but it is a wonderful way of informing residents. Councilmember Carver felt that the City was in need of a new speakerphone in the conference room. He continued that he felt it was important for the City to make a serious investment in the phone system and in a cost effective way that is beneficial to the public. He has found that the Internet phone has been very cost effective in his experiences. He also noted that he would like to make sure that the promised bells and whistles work on location before they commit to purchasing. Councilmember Paprocki liked the ideas but questioned if some of the new programs would really be used. He noted that most residents aren't going to care what kind of phone system you have as long as there is a person on the other line. He feels that teleconferencing, reviewing documents online, etc. are all programs that could be added at a later date. Ms. Gohman stated that she felt the staff had enough feedback to move forward and asked if there was anything else that needed to be added. Mr. Pires added that the Council had asked staff to work with the school system to see if there was any way to save money by updating both systems in a way that they can work together. The study will include consideration of the school's phone system in the current study to determine possibilities. 3. Update of Water Monitoring Report (Verbal) Mr. Rardin presented the staff report to the Council regarding new standards for water monitoring and the filtration improvements that have begun on the water treatment plants. There is an old plant in the City with a sand and gravel filter where contaminant levels exceed current standards. He indicated this plant is scheduled for a filter upgrade in 2012, but staff would like to upgrade the plant for radium removal now, stating that it isn't a huge cost and it should solve the current radium contamination problem. They would like to spend whatever money is necessary to ensure that residents are drinking clean and safe water. Councilmember Sanger questioned if it will satisfy the Minnesota Department of Health. Mr. Rardin said that these upgrades have been used before in our city and have been successful. Mr. Zwilling noted that a public notice will be going out. They are going to put out a half page ad in the Sun Sailor to explain the situation and make sure the community is aware about what is going on. There are 30 to 40 other communities that have dealt with this in the past. Ms. Gohman noted that on the press release there will be the Department of Health phone number and Engineer Scott Anderson's phone number. The City will want to get people to the Department of Health website to get more information. Study Session Minutes -4- August 11, 2008 4. Vision St. Louis Park Strategic Direction/ Focus Area Update Community Liaison Ms. Olson presented the staff report to the Council. She wanted to get feedback regarding the report on diversity categories on the diversity lens. Councilmember Paprocki noted that he felt that there is a great diversity of kids in the school. He was interested in looking into translating the school calendar into Spanish. He also inquired as to what is the diversity of kids that are taking part in the programs. Councilmember Sanger asked for clarification in regards to the term "who we are". Ms. Olson responded that this is from the diversity action team and is the same as with the diversity lens. She continued to explain that we "St. Louis Park" are all of these things. These are inclusive terms. The new neighbor packets are for everyone. She explained that it is not an "us and a them" kind of thing. St. Louis Park is made up of many different people but "we" are all St. Louis Park. This can be with demographics. This can be what you want it to be. Ms. Olson continued that "we" also includes youth. Ms. Gohman noted that this was meant to me a check and balance on how the program is going. Councilmember Paprocki noted that these types of programs have been going on for a long time but it is always going out rather then having people come in. He noted that until the City has minority groups going to majority events, the programs are not effective. He wants unity, but he questioned how you get the minority groups to come in. Councilmember Sanger questioned what type of outreach is being done to get these groups to come in. Councilmember Paprocki added that the City might not be doing any events or programs that minority groups are interested in. Major Jacobs questioned how the City breaks down the barriers like time, transportation, and money. He also questioned how you get these groups to sports associations and school associations when there is not a lot of tradition of this time of involvement. Councilmember Paprocki noted that the language barrier is huge. He continued that food is a great way to bring people together. He would like to have a program at City Hall and have people accepting their neighbors. Councilmember Sanger noted that there is also an issue with seniors and people that don't come out of their house. She questioned if the language interpreter line gets much use. Ms. Gohman responded that it is being used and she would be able to get percentage numbers together for the Council. Ms. Olson continued that staff is looking at key things such as the interpreter line for new neighbor packets. Study Session Minutes -5- August 11, 2008 Ms. Olson noted that she felt like she was hearing what the Council was saying about where they would like to go on these issues. She felt that the Council would like her to get the awareness out and look at how the City could include more people in their business. Councilmember Sanger noted that there was an aspect of diversity not being touched on. She would like to make sure that the City is using a diversity of contractors. Ms. Gohman noted that there are some federal provisions when selecting contractors. Councilmember Carver felt that everything that was discussed was consistent with his feelings. 5. Vision St. Louis Park Strategic Direction/ Focus Area Update Ms. Olson presented a focus area update for the neighborhood aspect. She noted that she began by looking at other communities that have known strong neighborhoods. One difference in the neighborhoods she was looking at had 10,000 people making up a neighborhood. She also talked to the St. Louis Park neighborhood leaders. From her research she felt the key word was having a sustainable neighborhood association. She felt that having a sustainable neighborhood association means having good leadership and being able to transfer that leadership. Councilmember Paprocki agrees with the sustainability of the neighborhood association. He felt that the ideas on how to set up a neighborhood were very good. He thinks neighborhoods need something that is easy and doesn't take up a lot of time. Major Jacobs felt that it is important for neighborhood leaders to train their own replacements because there is no way that one person can do it all and at some point they will burn out. Ms. Olson noted that she sends out news and updates to a variety of neighborhoods with information that is timely. She feels that it is important that if a neighborhood contacts her and wants information on inspectors, as an example, that she get them the information that they need. She also thinks that it is important to let the neighborhoods know that there are people that will come to their meetings. Councilmember Sanger questioned what statistics were available regarding grant money. If there has been a cut back of events now that the City has had to cut back on the grant money that is available. Ms. Olson responded that in 2007 the City received grant requests below the budget. She also noted that some neighborhoods are doing fundraisers on their own. They do book clubs or sponsor babysitters to go through babysitter clinics. There are events when the money is crucial. There are also many things that neighborhoods can do that don't cost any money. Councilmember Sanger questioned if neighborhoods are having trouble getting the mailers out because of the cost of postage. Ms. Olson responded that neighborhoods are given the option of using the City's bulk postage permit. Some neighborhoods utilize block captains to distribute flyers and newsletters which eliminates postage on mailings. Study Session Minutes -6- August 11, 2008 Mayor Jacobs inquired as to how much the neighborhoods are doing by email. Ms. Olson responded that there is some concern that not all residents have computers. The staff is looking into what items may be emailed. She also noted that some neighborhoods have neighborhood websites, it just depends on the neighborhood. Ms. Olson noted that the staff is still looking at street painting, is trying to get the word out, and hoping to condense the report. They are also working with Friends of the Arts. How long a project takes depends on how long it takes to come up with a design and get it approved. Staff will continue to work on the items discussed. 6. Communications (Verbal) The meeting adjourned at 8:05 p.m. Written Reports provided and documented for recording purposes only: 1. West End Office Redevelopment Project 2. PNMC Holdings Redevelopment Contract Update Nancy Stroth, ity Clerk Jeff Jacobs ayor