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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2020/12/14 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Study Session Official minutes City council study session St. Louis Park, Minnesota Dec. 14, 2020 The meeting convened at 6:30 p.m. Councilmembers present: Mayor Jake Spano, Tim Brausen, Lynette Dumalag, Rachel Harris, Larry Kraft, and Margaret Rog Councilmembers absent: Nadia Mohamed Staff present: City Manager (Mr. Harmening), Economic Development Coordinator (Mr. Hunt), City Attorney (Mr. Mattick), Deputy City Manager/Human Resources Director (Ms. Deno), Principal Planner (Ms. McMonigal), Director of Community Development (Ms. Barton), Planning and Zoning Supervisor (Mr. Walther), Housing Supervisor/Deputy Community Development Director (Ms. Schnitker), Senior Planner (Ms. Monson), Senior Management Analyst (Ms. Solano), and Recording Secretary (Ms. Pappas) Guests: Brent Rogers, Greg Anderson, Natine James, Ana Nelson, Trisha Sieh, David Stahl, Jamie Perron, Mark Laverty – Saturday Properties/Anderson Companies 1. City attorney discussion: council operations overview Mr. Mattick reviewed the city charter with the council. He noted it is the city’s constitution and instructs the council how to govern and what tasks the city manager and council are responsible for. He explained that conflict of interest is a provision of the charter and noted various times when cautions arise related to conflict of interest . He also explained gift law and cautions related to that. Mr. Mattick stated gifts from constituents to councilmembers or from others are prohibited, including coffee, treats, or any item that is a thing of value that may tend to influence the discharge of a councilmember’s duties. Mayor Spano asked if at a community gathering coffee was provided to all, would councilmembers not be able to partake. Mr. Mattick stated that would not be a violation of the gift law. He added raffles also are not prohibited for councilmembers. However, pointed out the council’s or Mayor’s position must not be the reason for being included in a raffle. Councilmember Rog noted the language of the charter had been discussed in the past and noted it should be updated to be gender neutral. Mr. Mattick stated the charter commission is responsible for making amendments such as this. Mr. Mattick also discussed the state statute on open meeting law, pointing out that city business must be conducted in public. He noted if a majority of 4 members are together, it needs to meet the open meeting law requirements, or it will be a violation. Any form of communication of 4 members or more could lead to a violation of the open meeting law. Mr. Mattick stated when replying to emails, councilmembers should never reply to all and should always copy the city manager on all emails to other council members. DocuSign Envelope ID: 95DDE69B-D84D-45FA-843D-F184A5D6CDE8 Study session minutes -2- Dec. 14, 2020 Mayor Spano asked when the council needs to know information in a timely manner , perhaps on a weekend, and if the city manager is not available if it is acceptable to share information with the whole council. Likewise, Councilmember Rog asked a similar question about sending an email to the whole council to explain something, while asking them not to reply to all. Mr. Mattick stated this would be acceptable; however, if the rest of the council wanted to share their opinion also, there would be concern about a discussion going on in advance of an actual vote and that would be a violation. Mr. Mattick added with planning and zoning items, the council must be careful not to pre-judge a project before an applicant has presented it, or there might be an accusation of pre -judging. He added the council can send thoughts, but it would be concerning if all 7 councilmembers did that before the council meeting where the application was being presented. Mr. Mattick pointed out again that all emails sent to the councilmembers, the city manager, or staff, become public data and are discoverable. Mr. Mattick referenced the Data Practices Act and explained any and all documents possessed are public, with exceptions being either personnel files or some police reports. He added a s elected officials, if councilmembers exchange text messages or emails with constituents, the law says it is a private conversation, and councilmembers are not obligated to share it. However, if a councilmember forwards the email or text to city staff or another councilmember, then it is completely public. Councilmember Dumalag asked if it is recommended to tell the constituent if an email will be forwarded to staff and that it will be part of public record. Mr. Mattick stated that depends on the correspondence, and if it is sensitive info, then just sen d the city manager a new email about the situation, and do not forward it, so the details can stay out of the public record . He added councilmembers can ask the constituent if they can forward the email as a courtesy, but they don’t have to. Mr. Harmening discussed the council minutes and stated both staff and council spend much time reviewing minutes. He stated the city’s minutes far exceed state statute, and that typical minutes usually just state the facts including what was discussed and the motion and actions taken. He stated staff can provide examples of what is done in other neighboring communities. Mr. Mattick added state law says the requirements for minutes are the bare minimum, to include a document in writing, not only a video. He stated the minutes can be simple and detail on discussions are not necessary. Councilmember Kraft asked what the purpose of meeting minutes is. Mr. Mattick stated minutes are required by law and are the official record of the action taken at council meetings but the depth of information that is included in the minutes is at the council’s discretion. DocuSign Envelope ID: 95DDE69B-D84D-45FA-843D-F184A5D6CDE8 Study session minutes -3- Dec. 14, 2020 Mayor Spano stated the city’s minutes seem to have become a transcript of the meeting . He stated he wants to maintain the spirit of accuracy but does not want to spend time in council meetings rewriting a full paragraph. He stated he is interested in having audio or video for study sessions and go to a simpler written form of minutes. Councilmember Harris asked for more detailed conversations, while the minutes can capture the actions, could a link be imbedded in the minutes to the audio or video. Ms. Solano stated staff will investigate this and report back to council, adding she is not sure on retention of links. She did note that current meeting videos are time stamped. Councilmember Kraft asked if the minutes are for the public to review now and in the future. He noted he uses the minutes to look at the history of issues and has gone back several years to see how things originated. He asked again who the audience is and what is the purpose of the minutes. Councilmember Kraft noted if the minutes are for the public on the history of an issue then he thinks the study session minutes should be video recorded as well as the council meeting minutes. Mayor Spano agreed. He stated the minutes should be a clearer accounting of the actual conversation and the recording would assist here. Councilmember Rog asked what is the problem that needs to be solved, and if spending too much time going over the minutes in the meetings is the issue. Mayor Spano stated the primary issue is the minutes are not a written transcript, which is very different, and processing is more expensive. He added if the minutes are a transcription, then they can just be video, or audio recorded with a time stamp in the minutes directing peop le to the audio or video. Councilmember Brausen stated the minutes are a written record that could be taken into court if there were challenges. He added he is fine with the minutes being a spare record, noting what was discussed and voted on. Councilmember Brausen stated recordings are beneficial and he would also like to have the study sessions recorded for the public. Councilmember Rog stated she is not opposed to this change; however, she felt it would be onerous to time stamp everything that’s discussed. She added it feels like the culture of the city is to build on previous council discussions and staff takes direction from detailed minutes to inform current and future actions or decisions. She noted it would be a change to not reference previous minutes. Mr. Harmening stated the city has been doing detailed minutes for several years and will use them to help understand the council’s sentiment or what was discussed. He added, however, over time the minutes have become more and more detailed and edits are more and more significant, and the concern is there is pressure on the council to review minutes and determine if they are correct or not. DocuSign Envelope ID: 95DDE69B-D84D-45FA-843D-F184A5D6CDE8 Study session minutes -4- Dec. 14, 2020 Councilmember Brausen suggested the council table this discussion, continue with the current practice, and discuss this again in the future. Mayor Spano agreed adding the order of the agenda at council meeting s should also be updated with having the consent agenda after the pledge . He noted the Duluth city council presents rules for behavior at each council meeting and this is something he is in interested in bringing to the St. Louis Park city council meetings as well. Councilmember Brausen added he would like to include a video of the consent agenda as well. 2. Redevelopment proposal for SWLRT Wooddale Station Site Mr. Hunt presented the report. He noted that the plans Saturday Properties and Anderson Companies present this evening are preliminary and many elements and details have yet to be worked out. The council will be asked if they generally support Saturday Properties’ redevelopment proposal for the Wooddale Station Site and if it wishes to enter into a preliminary development agreement with this development team. The development team of Brent Rogers, Greg Anderson, Natine James, Ana Nelson, Trisha Sieh, David Stahl, Jamie Perron, and John Laverty, all of Saturday Properties/Anderson Companies, presented the details of their plan to the council. Councilmember Dumalag asked about the March 31, 2021 date. Mr. Hunt explained this is an estimate of when the preliminary development agreement would terminate. He added the more formal purchase and redevelopment agreement takes 9 – 12 months to put it together. Mr. Hunt stated the preliminary agreement provides that the EDA and developer will work cooperatively together towards a mutually acceptable redevelopment plan for the site and allowed the developers access to the site and have negotiation rights with the EDA. Such an agreement would culminate with a purchase and redevelopment contract later. Councilmember Harris asked for clarification on the purchase price for the site referenced at $3 million. Mr. Hunt stated the developers offered $3 million for the EDA’s property and will negotiate with the owner of the adjacent property. Councilmember Harris stated staff was unanimous on their approval of the project and asked what they are most excited about. Mr. Hunt stated the addition of the adjacent property is a game changer here and opens the site to a much more flexible, comfortable and less dense development with considerable retail, as well as good traffic flow and convenient parking. Councilmember Harris asked if the businesses in the nearby strip mall will be offered space in the new site. Mr. Laverty stated there will be time during construction to work with these businesses to help find space nearby. He added their intention is to move as many of these businesses as they can, into the retail space of the new development. Councilmember Harris asked if the developers are aware of the window transparency requirements in the city code, and how they plan to navigate it. Mr. Stahl stated this will be a DocuSign Envelope ID: 95DDE69B-D84D-45FA-843D-F184A5D6CDE8 Study session minutes -5- Dec. 14, 2020 placeholder of large areas of storefront and panels of opacity that have a feel of large glass. He stated they will work with staff to make sure the code is followed. Councilmember Rog commended the developers on acquiring the Standal property, adding she had concerns about businesses there and is glad the y will work to relocate them. She asked if they will include the city’s preference for family housing to have a range of sizes of studio, alcove, 1-, 2-, and 3-bedroom apartment units. Mr. Laverty stated 20% of the units will be affordable and studio through 3-bedroom will be spread throughout the building. He also noted 20% of all units are 2-bedrooms or larger. Councilmember Rog asked if car sharing will be part of the project later. Mr. Laverty stated this will be looked at as much as can be. Councilmember Rog asked if a new traffic study is based on this proposal. Ms. Monson stated there will be no new traffic study conducted as traffic will be directed to Yosemite. Councilmember Rog noted people across the way have had concerns about traffic there, so staff will want to make sure traffic calculations are as close as they can be . Councilmember Rog stated a goal of the city is to provide affordable commercial space. She asked if the developers have plans to include commercial space and to invite BIPOC business owners there. She also asked if they have a strategy to make businesses affordable there . Mr. Rogers stated they are very early in the process but noted how their group underwrote low rents in various other projects including Nolan Mains in Edina, where they built out retail and created a low barrier for entry to the boutique retail suites. He stated these strategies can be included at this project as well. Councilmember Brausen stated he likes the development proposal, the public space, and feel of it. He added the affordability is great at 20% and stated if the developers can go higher, please do so. He is happy to see the use of solar and sustainability efforts. He added he would like to give up parking for more affordable units and is glad to hear there is race equity and inclusion work involved as well. He stated Places public art is a helpful contact and since the federal government removed all funding out of the project, they should work with Places and Ms. McMonigal on staff. Councilmember Kraft stated this is an exciting project and asked if the adj acent property was already owned by the developers. Mr. Laverty stated they have been in contact with the owners and are working to advance these conversations. Councilmember Kraft asked what the developers biggest concerns are. Mr. Rogers stated they will try to identify early on what the risks are and mitigate them . He stated this type of project is complicated, expensive, and has many moving parts, so it will take a solid partnership to finish it and a commitment from the city with TIF financing, supported by future taxes and grant funding, all while being subject to market conditions. Councilmember Kraft added he appreciates their commitment to net zero energy usage, noting it is challenging but is where it needs to be . He added he also appreciates eliminating concrete, DocuSign Envelope ID: 95DDE69B-D84D-45FA-843D-F184A5D6CDE8 Study session minutes -6- Dec. 14, 2020 aluminum, and steel, and asked what that will mean. Mr. Anderson noted code states the parking product in the lower level must be concrete, and then up from there, more wood products will be used. Councilmember Kraft asked if there are 40 stalls at grade for the retail parking and if the pool is above grade. Mr. Anderson answered yes and added the pool is above the parking. Councilmember Kraft noted the future proof of parking being 20% EV ready and how long it would be before there is greater support of EV. Mr. Laverty stated it would come down to transformers adding it is demand driven. He explained that when demand grows, it won’t be hard to change over to EV. Councilmember Kraft asked staff about bikes and peds at 36th Street, noting it has not been consistent with the concept for that site. He asked if the city has plans to address 36th Street over time. Mr. Walther stated over time, bike accommodations will be expanded on 36th Street, and lighting, street-scaping, and art have already made the area more pedestrian-friendly. He added currently there is limited transit service on 36 th Street, but when LRT comes more pedestrian and bike traffic could develop. Councilmember Dumalag asked with the affordable units planned, and the developers not going after bonding, what is the obligation to keep these affordable. Mr. Laverty stated there will be funding through the city and money from the proceeds of the sale of property, plus a 25 - year TIF district. Councilmember Dumalag asked what the developers’ typical occupancy is for their mixed income properties. Ms. Perron stated the Southsider project in Minneapolis is 80% AMI and occupied at 95%, adding that overall occupancy on mixed income properties has been good . She also noted a Richfield property at 20% affordable and Nolan Mains at 10 % affordable, adding that all are occupied. Councilmember Dumalag asked about minority and women-owned programs and if the developers are creating this or are ready to go. Mr. Anderson stated they have had this program for 15-20 years, and it has been very successful. Councilmember Dumalag asked about affordable commercial spaces, and what the developers’ assumptions are for retail space. Mr. Laverty stated their rents are heavily discounted with a built-in allowance. He added they will explore making this affordable for various users . Councilmember Dumalag asked if the pool is an amenity for residents only . Mr. Laverty stated yes and noted it is elevated one level. Councilmember Dumalag stated the developers mentioned the plaza will be inclusive, yet here is an amenity that is not for all, as folks move off the train. Councilmember Dumalag asked if Saturday Properties and Anderson Companies had ever worked together before. The applicants responded they have not but will be forming a joint venture. Councilmember Dumalag also asked whether or not the agreements will be contingent upon acquisition of the adjoining site. The applicants responded yes. DocuSign Envelope ID: 95DDE69B-D84D-45FA-843D-F184A5D6CDE8 Study session minutes -7- Dec. 14, 2020 Mayor Spano asked what the city spent to acquire the properties the developer is now proposing to purchase. Mr. Hunt stated he would need to doublecheck and report back to council. Mayor Spano noted this council and the preceding council have been very aggressive about developing this site and thanked both councils and Mr. Harmening for their work here. Mayor Spano asked if the parking levels are such that they could be converted into living units if parking is not needed in the future. Mr. Stahl stated yes, this could be possible along the Yosemite side. Mayor Spano asked the developers to be bold and creative in their design, noting he has seen amazing structures with visual lightness, use of color, and natural materials within their portfolio. He added with the design right now, it is difficult to see how someone not living in that property interacts with the light rail, or how they get to it. He pointed out if someone were passing by, they would not know there is mass transit behind it, so it will be important for the design to present that. Mayor Spano stated this is a destination and when getting off the light rail, this will be the first thing seen, so it is important riders see a creative design, with color and light as a visual form of art, and physical lightness of structure. He stated right now the design structure feels very heavy and it does not stand out from other projects seen in the past. He wants to see it reflected here. He stated he appreciated seeing the woonerfs concept still included as well. It was the consensus of the council to move forward with the recommended development group, with the suggestions from council. Mr. Hunt stated the next step will be to bring a preliminary development agreement to council for approval. 3. Future study session agenda planning and prioritization Councilmember Rog requested a council discussion on housing set back at the February 8, 2021 meeting. Councilmember Harris asked for an update on STEP facilities and their relocation efforts. Councilmember Kraft noted the trees discussion on January 11, 2021. Mr. Harmening pointed out the discussion on funding for the climate action plan will be included along with a tree planting initiative in St. Louis Park. Councilmember Brausen added he would like to discuss tree planting and sees trees as a public resource even on private property. Mayor Spano noted the Westwood Hills Nature Center is waiting on the school district curriculum. Mr. Harmening added the curriculum could be added into the nature center programming and currently youth enrichment programs are being worked on at the nature center, with COVID restrictions. DocuSign Envelope ID: 95DDE69B-D84D-45FA-843D-F184A5D6CDE8 Study session minutes -8- Dec. 14, 2020 Councilmember Dumalag asked about youth on commissions and why the youth on planning commission cannot vote. Ms. Solano stated there are legal considerations that need to be reviewed further, as well as intended consequences. She also noted it is difficult to find a youth member to be on the planning commission and noted feedback she has received is that there is a large time commitment, and the information packets are very large. Councilmember Brausen noted the Palatia Place development and that while he is generally supportive here, he would want solar on top of the development. He is interested in a discussion about this in support of the CAP and affordable housing and would like the city to consider a subsidy or TIF assistance supporting the developer to put in solar if it is a possibility. Mr. Harmening pointed out the Solar Sundown program is for existing commercial, industrial, and residential. He pointed out leveraging the city’s position in redevelopment projects that solar is planned for could be part of the initial project. Mr. Harmening stated incenting developers to do this and use alternative sources of energy would go into funding the CAP. He stated this will tie into the January discussion. Councilmember Rog asked if the city compensates the director of Friends of the Arts (FOTA) for consulting work on public art projects. Ms. Solano stated yes and as they take on more projects for the city, this relationship will move to a different level, like the nature center which is important to the city. Mr. Harmening added the city is not spending more money but is hiring FOTA versus consultants to do this work. Councilmember Rog stressed the importance of comprehensive outreach to meet participation goals for the Solar Sundown program in the coming year. Councilmember Kraft agreed. He added he would like the council to think about climate-related investments and the benefit side versus cost side. He stated he is supportive of the Solar Sundown program and asked how to get folks signed up early in the year in order to get tax credits by the end of the year. Councilmember Kraft added if the city pushes the program and engages with the neighborhood associations, along with tree planting programs, this will help . The meeting adjourned at 9:48 p.m. Written Reports provided and documented for recor ding purposes only: 4 Minnetonka Boulevard properties redevelopment update 5. St. Louis Park Friends of the Arts (FOTA) annual report 6. Efficient Building Benchmarking ordinance – year one in review 7. Solar Sundown Program 8. Request to issue conduit debt to CB SLP Housing Limited Partnership ______________________________________ ______________________________________ Melissa Kennedy, city clerk Jake Spano, mayor DocuSign Envelope ID: 95DDE69B-D84D-45FA-843D-F184A5D6CDE8