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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2007/09/10 - ADMIN - Agenda Packets - City Council - Study SessionCity Council Study Session September 10, 2007 6:30 p.m. Westwood Nature Center 6:00 p.m. Council Gathering, Westwood Nature Center Discussion Items 1. 6:30 p.m. Future Agenda Planning 2. 6:35 p.m. Wireless Update 3. 7:20 p.m. W. 36th Street Streetscape Planning 4. 8:05 p.m. Facilities Update 5. 8:50 p.m. Council and EDA Salaries Written Reports 6. Update Agenda Template 9:35 p.m. Adjourn Auxiliary aids for individuals with disabilities are available upon request. To make arrangements, please call the Administrative Services Department at (952) 924-2525 (TDD (952) 924-2518) at least 96 hours in advance of meeting. St. Louis Park City Council Study Session Discussion Item: 091007 - 1 - Future Study Session Agenda Page 1 1. Future Study Session Agenda Planning Administrative Services PURPOSE OF DISCUSSION: To assist the City Council and the City Manager in setting the next study session agenda. BACKGROUND: At each study session, approximately five minutes are set aside to discuss the next study session agenda. For this purpose, attached please find the tentative agenda and proposed discussion items for a proposed special study session on September 17 (prior to the regular Council meeting) and the regularly scheduled study session on September 24. Attachment: Future Study Session Agenda Planning Prepared by: Marcia Honold, Management Assistant Approved by: Tom Harmening, City Manager St. Louis Park City Council Study Session Discussion Item: 091007 - 1 - Future Study Session Agenda Page 2 Future Study Session Agenda Planning Tentative Discussion Items Monday, September 17, 2007 – 6:30 p.m. Special Study Session A. Marketing & Branding Report – Information Resources (45 minutes) Staff will discuss the messaging direction that resulted from the marketing and branding analysis undertaken thus far and discuss next steps with the Council. Monday, September 24, 2007 – 6:30 p.m. A. Future Study Session Agenda Planning – Administrative Services (5 minutes) B. Duke Redevelopment Contract Update – Community Development (60 minutes) Community Development will update Council about the Duke Redevelopment Contract. Does the Council agree with the financial terms of the contract? C. Highway 100 Project Update – Public Works (45 minutes) Council will receive an update on the TH 100 Traffic Study and discuss next steps for this project. D. Solid Waste Services and RFP Process – Public Works (45 minutes) Public Works will present the solid waste survey results, optional new services and will discuss next steps for the RFP process. E. Traffic Signal Project Update – Beltline Blvd @ SW LRT Trail CP 2007-2700 – Public Works (30 minutes) Council directed staff to explore installation of a traffic signal at Beltline Blvd and SW LRT Trail. There have been several project changes since staff last presented this to Council. Given the changes in funding and project timelines with the County, does the Council still want to proceed with the signal installation? Reports: • August Financial Reports – Finance • Wireless Update – Information Resources 9:35 p.m. End of Meeting St. Louis Park City Council Study Session Discussion Item: 091007 - 2 - Wireless Project Update Page 1 2. Wireless Project Update Information Resources PURPOSE OF DISCUSSION: Staff desires to meet with Council to provide a current status report regarding the wireless project. A written update was provided at Council’s August 27 study session. ARINC, the city’s contractor to build the wireless network, continued its focus to get the wireless network to the point of subscriber usability during the month of August and continues that work this month. More importantly, ARINC plans to have representatives in attendance at this Council study session. That will be important for at least a few reasons: First, so ARINC can present both its commitment and solid plan to complete this project citywide such that service is available to subscribers by the end of November 2007. Second, so City Council can ask questions of ARINC and express its concerns to ARINC from a Council and communitywide perspective. Third, to set project progress expectations. Representatives of Unplugged Cities, the partner responsible for managing the network ARINC is building, will also be present at this meeting. What follows is staff’s perspective of recent project background, an update on ARINC’s progress to date, the current status, and next steps. BACKGROUND: On May 7, 2007, Council directed continuation of the wireless project after considering wi-fi pole aesthetic and location concerns and revised criteria related to these concerns. The project had been put on hold in early April to provide time to address these resident concerns. Council directed that pole location and appearance criteria outlined by staff be used for the project and especially emphasized the criterion that performance not be compromised. ARINC staff was present at a Council study session where this direction was discussed, and these approved criteria were then communicated to ARINC for moving forward. Adherence to these Council criteria resulted in several pole location moves as part of Phase 1 of this project in the northeast quadrant of the city. Throughout the process of moves, changes, and additions of poles, ARINC contractors indicated one pole location suggested by the City that may be problematic in terms of linking or coverage. City staff accepted that possibility for that one pole. With the direction to re-start work, ARINC was requested to supply new service availability dates. ARINC provided the following dates: • Phase 1 (northeast): July 21 • Phase 2 (southeast): August 21 • Phase 3 (northwest): September 21 • Phase 4 (southwest): October 14 St. Louis Park City Council Study Session Discussion Item: 091007 - 2 - Wireless Project Update Page 2 This resulted in an anticipated 7 week delay for service availability in Phase 1 and an overall 6 week project delay. Staff and the City Council were hoping for a shorter period of time, but also wished to provide ARINC adequate time to complete this project in a timely and professional manner. In addition, since the City requested this project delay, staff felt it especially appropriate to provide ARINC time to complete redesign in the “First Mile” (subsection of Phase 1) to incorporate Council pole criteria approved on May 7 and address pole relocations from the original design in the redesign. Movement of one pole can affect other poles due to their need to connect. PROGRESS TO DATE: Since the August 27 update to Council, ARINC has continued work in Phase 1 of this project. As of this writing, ARINC has several areas within Phase 1 to complete. Phase 1 and the overall project are behind schedule. In the last month, ARINC has stepped up its level of personnel and activity to attempt to catch up for time lost earlier in the project. However, the July 21 Phase 1 service availability date was missed as ARINC continued its work to build the network, and incorporate pole location changes into its overall re-design. ARINC has continued to build the network in Phase 1 – adding radio locations, shoring up signal connections and strength, and working to ensure coverage. Still, there remains much Phase 1 work – primarily coverage in Lake Forest and some other smaller areas to the south – to complete. All this work is designed to meet speed and coverage requirements of the contract. As a part of this project up to nine miles of fiber optic needs to be installed to compliment the twelve miles of fiber that already exists. About 80% of this fiber installation has been completed. Meantime, Unplugged Cities has staffed the ParkWiFi store at scheduled times and completed the sign up and instruction process with over 200 new subscribers in Phase 1. The most recent equipment distribution dates were August 27 – September 6. Many subscribers where there currently is coverage were able to start using the network the week of August 27. In addition, Unplugged Cities will make several home visits to pilot subscribers to help them transition to the citywide system. Staff feels transitioning more of the pilot subscribers and marketing the service in earnest is beneficial only when we have more coverage and confidence in the areas with coverage. Residents, businesses, the City Council, and the community as a whole have been very patient as ARINC has been working on this network. However, feedback to staff indicates on- going delays are causing growing disappointment and diminishing enthusiasm regarding this service. CURRENT STATUS: First and foremost, it continues to be City staff’s belief that the wireless technology can work. Yes, there are always technical challenges; however, it is primarily a matter of execution and effective design with the appropriate equipment components. Nationally, we see increasing reports of “free” wi-fi services based primarily on advertising models waning. We see major players such as EarthLink retreating from these ad-based models. It is staff’s belief that “free to the consumer” business models are very risky; that is a major reason we chose to pursue a retail model. Second, because we chose a retail model, the business model success of ParkWiFi is critically dependent on the service being available to generate revenues to offset costs. We are currently St. Louis Park City Council Study Session Discussion Item: 091007 - 2 - Wireless Project Update Page 3 losing revenues in at least two ways – delayed revenue streams due to project delays and lost revenue streams because some people decided they could not wait any longer and needed to get broadband from another provider. Staff is concerned about lost market share in the short term and long term. Combined with some change order cost increases, the ability to generate revenues and manage costs becomes a greater challenge – one that could impact the business model of costs being offset by revenues over 5 years. Of course, the business model does not incorporate public safety and public service benefits. It is difficult to estimate the actual impact to the retail model, but here are some possibilities: • A five percent reduction in subscriber households represents a projected loss of $692,000 in gross revenues over the 5 year life of the project. • Adding subscribers to the network prior before the network is stable and has complete coverage increases the probability of lost market share due to performance issues and word- of-mouth sharing of a poor experience. • Delays in allowing subscribers to use ParkWiFi increases the potential of lost market share as consumers seek other solutions and competitors offer alternatives. • The WiFi technology being deployed is not getting any younger, thus delays in the project result in a shorter net lifetime of the technology -- the time that the City has to recover the investment. Third, to reiterate the above, ARINC provided a revised Phase 4 completion date of October 14 after Council’s May 7 decision to move forward with the project. That delay was caused by the City’s decision to apply new pole appearance and location criteria. October 14 generally equates the delay caused by the City action added to original final project completion date of August 31. November 30 adds yet another 6 weeks to the October 14 completion date. Two other points about November 30 are important: (a) this assumes ARINC is able to organize the resources necessary to complete the project by that time, and (b) in any event, startup dates in each of the phases have been pushed back, causing the delayed or lost revenue discussed above. Fourth, it appears that parts of Phase 1 may well ultimately require some re-design to work optimally. This could include the repositioning of some poles. At the very least, it appears additional poles and radios will probably be necessary. On-going communications with existing and potential Phase 1 subscribers will be necessary. Fifth, the City needs to communicate with the rest of the community – Phases 2, 3, and 4. Assuming November 30 is final project completion date for the rest of the community, we will need dates from ARINC for completion of each phase to inform potential subscribers. Obviously, such an effort will require ARINC to employ multiple crews working in different phases simultaneously. This concentrated loading of subscribers also places additional strain on UPC resources to support folks. People who completed signup starting on August 27 have been informed about service availability and quality as of the time they completed sign up and received instructions. Phase 1 availability and quality of service should continue to improve through the end of September, and there will also be interruptions. Because of this, people who complete Phase 1 sign-up will not be charged for service through the end of September. Rather, we will ask them to help us optimize the service by providing feedback. For some very patient subscribers this is acceptable; for others, even though they were informed when they signed up, it is not. St. Louis Park City Council Study Session Discussion Item: 091007 - 2 - Wireless Project Update Page 4 NEXT STEPS: City staff continues to work with ARINC staff to succeed in its building of the wireless network. City staff is providing additional information and equipment, and facilitating ARINC’s access to assets as possible. Unplugged Cities has also continued to volunteer significant staff time to assist ARINC. ARINC continues to express its commitment to successfully completing this project understanding its importance to the city, its residents and businesses, Unplugged Cities and its staff, and ARINC and its partners. ARINC has indicated it will apply the resources necessary to complete this project. That includes additional overall staff, more specific technical leadership, and modified project management. Some of these changes have occurred. Most importantly, ARINC is committing to complete this project in a manner that allows Phase 4 (final phase) subscribers the ability to use this network by the end of November 2007. It is City staff’s view that ARINC is currently making many good faith efforts to fulfill this commitment; however, the next and vital step is the follow-through to realize this goal. Follow-through is at the core of the current phase. Much time has been lost with the impacts noted above. ARINC is currently preparing a project plan, with resources and timelines, to meet the November 30, 2007 completion date. A major purpose of ARINC’s appearance at this Council meeting is to share this project plan and provide the assurance that successful follow- through will occur. This project plan going forward will require a minimum of pole location changes, similar to the few we are currently considering in Phase 2 using Council criteria. City and UPC staff have been and remain available to support ARINC in its now “round-the- clock” effort to complete this project. City staff will work with ARINC to deal with weekend work and respect for upcoming religious holidays. City staff believes success is possible assuming ARINC’s effective execution of a solid design using the right technologies, and enhanced project management. City staff also believes providing service to the entire City by no later than November 30 is absolutely essential for this project to continue and be successful under the retail model established. Prepared by: Clint Pires, Chief Information Officer Approved by: Tom Harmening, City Manager St. Louis Park City Council Study Session Discussion Item: 091007 - 3 - West 36th Street Streetscape Planning Page 1 3. West 36th Street Streetscape Planning Community Development PURPOSE OF DISCUSSION: City staff and SRF (streetscape consultant) will present the ideas for the streetscape and public art locations along W 36th St. between Hwy 100 and Wooddale Ave. It is requested the City Council review the plans and provide feedback such that planning for the streetscape adjacent to Hoigaard Village can proceed. Specific public art fixtures for this block will be brought back to the Council for review at a future date. BACKGROUND: Over the past year and one half city staff has been working with SRF to create a plan for new streetscape elements along W. 36th Street, including lights, benches, bollards and sidewalks. At the same time, the city has been undertaking a process for adding public art into the area. As the first building in Hoigaard’s Village is being finalized, the developer has asked that we provide direction on the desired streetscape and public art elements in order that the block between Xenwood and Webster can be substantially finished in the spring when the building opens. PROCESS: In August of 2006 the City Council reviewed several streetscape elements suggested for 36th Street. At that time, the process for public art had not begun. We placed the streetscape planning process on hold until the public art process caught up. An artist, Marjorie Pitz, was chosen to work on the art along the 36th Street corridor from Highway 100 to Wooddale Avenue. Marjorie has been working with the city and SRF to advance plans for the streetscape adjacent to the Hoigaard Village block. Attachments: Streetscape Plans and Block Front Streetscape Furnishings Prepared by: Meg McMonigal, Planning and Zoning Supervisor Reviewed by: Kevin Locke, Community Development Director Approved by: Tom Harmening, City Manager St. Louis Park City Council Study Session Discussion Item: 091007 - 3 - West 36th Street Streetscape Planning Page 2 Future Streetscape Plan Interim Streetscape Plan Hoigaard’s Block Front St. Louis Park City Council Study Session Discussion Item: 091007 - 3 - West 36th Street Streetscape Planning Page 3 Streetscape Furnishings St. Louis Park City Council Study Session Discussion Item: 091007 - 4 - Facilities Update Page 1 4. Facilities Update Inspections PURPOSE OF DISCUSSION: Staff will be presenting information for discussion on the status of the following possible facility projects: - City Hall elevator - City Hall exterior maintenance - City Hall/Police campus landscaping - Westwood Nature Center renewable energy - Fire Stations Prepared by: Brian Hoffman, Director of Inspections Approved by: Tom Harmening, City Manager St. Louis Park City Council Study Session Discussion Item: 091007 - 5 - Council and EDA Salaries Page 1 5 . Council and EDA Salaries Administrative Services PURPOSE OF DISCUSSION: Council requested information on current EDA and Council salaries. Information below is based on the last time Council and EDA took action which was October 2005. BACKGROUND: In 2005, Council and EDA reviewed salaries and set the following levels effective 1/1/06: Current Annual Amount Mayor $10,985 Council $7,165 EDA President $5,731 EDA Commissioner $4,299 How are Council salaries set? According to City Charter, City Council compensation is set by ordinance. This requires a public hearing along with a 1st and 2nd reading. If approved, the salary becomes effective on December 1, following the municipal election, and would be applied as a new rate on January 1. How are EDA salaries set? EDA salaries are set by resolution in accordance with MN State Statutes Section 469.097. Although they do not require the same process as setting Council salaries, they are typically adjusted at the same time as the Council salary is adjusted. When was the last time salaries were adjusted? Previously, Council has reviewed salaries and adjusted them consistent with the annual adjustment set for City employees. The last time the salaries for both Council and EDA were adjusted was in 2005, which made the above rates effective January 1, 2006. Prepared by: Nancy Gohman, Deputy City Manager Approved by: Tom Harmening, City Manager St. Louis Park City Council Study Session Written Report: 091007 - 6 - Updated Agenda Template Page 1 6. Updated Agenda Template Administrative Services PURPOSE OF REPORT: Staff desires to remind Council that we will be using a revised agenda template starting September 17 for all staff reports prepared for Council, Study Session and EDA meeting. A copy of the revised template is attached. BACKGROUND: Several months ago we talked to Council about upgrading our Council agenda template to make it more user friendly. Several examples were reviewed with Council and the decision was made to continue working on making the revisions. We needed to change the template because there are some macros embedded into the documents that have been causing many technical difficulties. This upgrade allows the opportunity to correct the technical difficulties we are experiencing and will have some added features to make items easier to follow. We also want to ensure smooth operation of the documents when viewed by the end user in our community. It is important that agenda items and attachments look and function properly for Council, staff and those who will be viewing the items. Finally, we want to make sure we are providing the Council with the critical information they need in a consistent and easy to use layout. Staff has been through training and technical upgrades have been made to our system to allow easier use and upgrade of our agenda. Starting September 17th, you will see the new format. At an upcoming study session this fall, we will meet with Council to discuss the option each of you will have regarding how you want your agenda materials delivered to you (electronically or paper). Attachment: Updated agenda template Prepared by: Nancy Gohman, Deputy City Manager/HR Director Approved by: Tom Harmening, City Manager St. Louis Park City Council Study Session Written Report: 091007 - 6 - Updated Agenda Template Page 2 Meeting Date: Agenda Item #: Regular Meeting Public Hearing Action Item Consent Item Resolution Ordinance Presentation Other: EDA Meeting Action Item Resolution Other: Study Session Discussion Item Written Report Other: TITLE: RECOMMENDED ACTION: POLICY CONSIDERATION: BACKGROUND: FINANCIAL OR BUDGET CONSIDERATION: VISION CONSIDERATION: Attachments: Prepared by: Reviewed by: Approved by: