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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2017/08/14 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Study SessionOfSt. Louis Park OFFICIAL MINUTES M I N N E S O T A CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION ST. LOUIS PARK, MINNESOTA AUGUST 14, 2017 The meeting convened at 5:33 p.m Councilmembers present: Mayor Jake Spano (arrived at 6:20 p.m.) Tim Brausen, Steve Hallfin, Gregg Lindberg, Anne Mavity, Thom Miller, and Susan Sanger. Staff present: City Manager (Mr. Harmening), Director of Operations and Recreation (Ms. Walsh), Director of Engineering (Ms. Heiser), Director of Inspections (Mr. Hoffman), Chief Information Officer (Mr. Pines), Deputy City Manager/Human Resources Director (Ms. Deno), Police Chief, (Mr. Harcey), Fire Chief (Mr. Koering), Chief Financial Officer (Mr. Simon), Community Development Director (Ms. Barton), Communications & Marketing Manager (Ms. Larson), and Recording Secretary (Ms. Pappas). Guest: Lt. Paul Barnes and Sergeant Jon Parker, St. Louis Park Police Department; Tiffany Hoffman, Elizabeth Griffin, Amy Burns, Charlie Goldstrom. 1. Future Study Session Agenda Planning — September, 2017 Mr. Harmening presented the proposed Study Session agenda for September, 2017. Councilmember Brausen asked if the Placia Site discussion might get pushed back. He noted that the Highway 169 Mobility Study Pack Meeting will take place on September 20, adding that the group is looking for direction from the city council on policy issues. Councilmember Mavity noted that related to the policing model discussion sessions, there will need to be a community listening session and community engagement involved in this process. Mr. Harmening stated that the community engagement process and how that will look needs to be further discussed with council before it is scheduled. Councilmember Sanger stated that the city has recently informed current candidates for city council seats that the individual contribution limit to municipal campaigns has been raised to $600, although the City Charter specifies a limit of $250. She stated that this interpretation is contrary to the legal opinion that the city received several years ago and that this new interpretation also raises much larger issues about municipal local control. She requested that the city obtain a second legal opinion and that the council discuss this matter at a study session in the near future. Mr. Harmening indicated that he would schedule this item for the meeting next week. 2. 2018 Budget Update Mr. Simon presented and noted that no formal action is needed at this time. The report is to assist with discussion regarding the 2018 budget in order to receive direction from the council for further conversation at the September 5 Special Study Session. He added that this will be in preparation for setting the 2018 preliminary property tax levy on September 18, 2017. Mr. Simon noted that the city manager and staff are currently analyzing submitted budgets for 2018. He added that staff would like direction from the council on any major changes, programs, or policies that should be evaluated during the preparation of the 2018 budget. Mr. Simon stated that the preliminary levy proposed at this time is 5.35% - 5.5%. He asked the council to consider Study Session Minutes -2- August 14, 2017 this range, noting that it cannot be increased, but only be decreased, after the preliminary levy is set. Councilmember Mavity asked if the analysis presented on September 5 will note how the levy impacts the average homeowner. Mr. Simon stated yes, that would be included. Councilmember Miller stated there is $1 million in the general fund and $1 million in debt, and asked if Mr. Simon could explain this. Mr. Simon stated that most of this is wages and benefits for new recommended positions in addition to some expenditure and revenue changes. Mr. Simon also noted that the HRA levy, which the EDA approves each year, is based on the market rate established by state statute and our current interfund loan is estimated to be paid off in 2019 -2020. Councilmember Hallfin stated that he is looking forward to the Highway 7 and Louisiana interfund loan being paid off and asked if the HRA levy can be added back once it is paid off. Ms. Barton noted this levy can be used for further infrastructure, affordable housing, or staffing related to affordable housing, but not for capital improvements. Councilmember Sanger asked if the new staff positions being requested by department directors are still pending requests or if some have been approved. Mr. Harmening stated that all positions noted are still pending and some are identified in the report as recommended additions. He added that staff wants to be certain that council understands all position requests received from directors. Councilmember Sanger stated that she did not feel in the best position to tell Mr. Harmening what staff person is needed or not needed, adding she is looking for him to tell the council what is needed. Councilmember Sanger also noted the budget implications of having all sidewalks plowed by the city, which she stated is still a basic equity issue. She still believes the city should plow all sidewalks at taxpayer expense, but noted that she does understand there are some sidewalks that are too narrow to plow. She proposed more research on this issue by staff and asked about providing the use of the community service pilot project for these narrower sidewalks. She also asked about the financial implications. Councilmember Mavity stated she did not think there was agreement on the council to continue discussion on this issue and is not interested in further discussion on this topic at this time adding that the council needs to move forward. Councilmember Miller stated he would like to continue the conversation as it relates to the budget, noting this is the appropriate time to do so. He stated it is a policy and an equity issue, and he wants to call the conversation on it. Councilmember Brausen stated he is not hearing a great demand in Ward 4 on this issue and is not interested in committing resources to it. Councilmember Hallfin stated he appreciated this information related to the budget but noted it has been discussed many times and he is not in favor of it. He noted a neighbor recently expressed appreciation that the city was looking into other solutions for this issue. Councilmember Mavity stated she likes the idea of a senior chores service partnering with the city for seniors or disabled folks. Study Session Minutes -3- August 14, 2017 Councilmember Sanger stated that if the council believes the chores service is the answer, she would be happy to connect them with a person who is on the waiting list for this service. She added that there are so few volunteers and so many on the waiting list, she hopes the city can get a commitment from the service to do the shoveling. Mayor Pro Tem Lindberg stated this is not something he wants to invest time or money on, and the majority is more interested in the pilot program on shoveling. He added the general direction by most of the council is to not continue discussion on city wide sidewalk snowplowing at this time. Councilmember Miller asked about two positions that were listed as needed by staff - Operations and Facility Recreation Supervisor and Management Assistant. He noted that these positions represent large dollar amounts. Mr. Harmening stated the Management Assistant was a staff position that was cut back in 2009, when across all departments several staff members were cut through attrition or layoffs. He noted that this position will be a help to him and Ms. Deno in running a very busy department. He added the council is very forward thinking and staff needs people to help with this very time- consuming work. Ms. Deno added help is needed to research items and special projects for council that call for in-depth work. Additionally, there is upcoming work on the climate action plan. Mr. Harmening stated that the city can also utilize the Operations and Facility Recreation Supervisor to promote facilities, including all areas of the Rec Center, and to bring in more revenue by broadening the use of these facilities. He added that the newly remodeled nature center will also need more promotion. Ms. Walsh added that the city gets many calls about connecting people to programs, and we want to provide this support with this new position. To meet with customer demands and service needs for special events for all recreation programs more staff support is needed. Also, Jason West will need a large amount of time handling responsibilities of the upcoming rebuild of Westwood Nature Center, and staff support is needed to handle some of his current responsibilities of the pool, programs and customer service. Councilmember Miller also noted that he appreciated the addition of a race equity position in the budget. Councilmember Mavity asked why there was not more information in the budget on goals around race equity and building this up through staff and departments. Mr. Harmening stated that each department is working on it with their action plans that are in place. Ms. Deno added that the action plans are operational and based on action requested by council. These action plans will be reported to council at the upcoming study session in September. Mayor Spano pointed out that the Race Equity Coordinator position has strong outreach and community engagement. fIe added that he wants to be sure this person plays a role in policy suggestion, also. Councilmember Brausen appreciated the budget analysis and areas where cost savings were noted. He lilted the information on property tax refunds, the idea behind multi -family rental programs, and seed grants for affordable housing. Study Session Minutes -4- August 14, 2017 Councilmember Mavity agreed Councilmernber Sanger stated she did not see pay raises for councilmembers next year. Ms. Deno stated that is already in place in the budget. Councilmember Sanger asked, if the council moves forward with ranked choice voting if there are considerations in the budget for it. Ms. Deno stated yes, noting an election intern is also included in the budget. If a consultant were hired, there would be funding through the budget under professional services. Councilmember Sanger asked Mr. Pires about the search engine on the city's new website, noting it still does not seem to be working. She asked if there needs to be money in the budget to address this. Mr. Pires stated that the money is already in the budget, and the issue will be addressed this year. Mayor Spano also noted that the school district is looking at their taxing authority and when setting the levy, the council will need to consider what implications this may have on property owners in 2018. Mr. Harmening stated there will be a presentation to the council by the school board next week Council asked staff to look at a 5.8% percent levy change for 2018 also. 3. St. Louis Park Policing Model/Critical Incident Planning (Session 1 of 4) Mr. Harmening stated that this would be the first of four sessions with the council, Chief Harcey, and police staff. Additional sessions will cover policy and procedures, critical incidents, and council response to a critical incident. These will be informational meetings with the council, where questions can be asked. Tonight's presentation will be on the St. Louis Park Policing model, as well as procedural justice; police officer hiring standards; and officer training standards. He noted that tonight's presentation will also be posted on the city website for all to view. Chief Harcey, Sergeant Barnes, and Lt. Parker all presented. Chief Harcey explained that the St. Louis Park Police Department has built community trust through Community Oriented Policing. Chief Harcey stated that the police force in St. Louis Park is here to serve the public and is committed to preventing crime and disorder. He stated that the force works closely in collaboration with the city and its residents, and they use ethics, integrity, and legitimacy in policing. Chief Harcey stated that the police force has gone through Procedural Justice training on building trust with the community, by treating all citizens with respect and dignity, providing a citizens voice in the process, providing transparent communication and through impartial and unbiased decision making. Sergeant Barnes discussed hiring standards and recruitment practices in the police force. He noted that in Minnesota, it is required that a police officer have either a 2- or 4 -year college degree. Police training is completed in two college semesters, and then post licensing examinations are required. Sergeant Barnes noted that several areas of learning are required, including core competencies, foundational knowledge, performance of peace officer duties and tasks, tools, techniques, and tactics. He explained that St. Louis Park recruitment efforts are Study Session Minutes -5- August 14, 2017 traditional and involve recruiting community service officers, interns, and Pathways to Policing participants. Sergeant Barnes also noted that St. Louis Park works to hire the right person and then to train them to the city's standards and culture. Interviewing is conducted by police peers and a community member. Very thorough background checks are conducted on all candidates. Character and fit are considered carefully with each candidate. Additionally, he noted that physical and psychological examinations are conducted on each candidate before final hiring. Lt. Parker, who works in field training, explained how Police Training Officers are selected and trained. Councilmember Miller asked Lt. Parker to explain some of the training he has been through and how that has helped him in various situations. Lt. Parker stated there is a lot of training, but added that everything is based on the culture. The St. Louis Park Police Department has a culture of service, including treating everyone fairly and equitably. This helps the force in all of their dealings. He added that they try to understand the situation before they make assumptions, and they work collaboratively with neighbors and counterparts. He stated that they work to ensure the safety of suspects and the safety of officers. Councilmember Sanger complimented the force, stating they clearly are doing a great job both on hiring and training. She added that as a compliment to the St. Louis Park Police, in her 23 years on the council, she has only had one complaint regarding the bias of a police officer, and that situation was ultimately resolved. Councilmember Mavity also noted the service culture of the force, and added that she very much appreciates the fact that the police treat suspects as human beings first. She stated that these are the values of our community that we want to bring forward. They need to be articulated and captured on our website as part of our community values. Councilmember Mavity also asked about the city neighborhood meetings and what the police may have learned from them. Chief Harcey stated that the police educated the neighborhood groups on what to do in certain situations, and they also received information from residents on what is going on in their neighborhoods and how the police can help. He added that they still need to find a way to reach residents who are not already part of the police community, adding that they will try to do more of an open house approach next year, to reach more folks and a different audience. Chief Harcey stated the force is also working on facilitating community engagement meetings so residents can get to know the police. Additionally, getting into the schools to reach kids and parents is very important. Councilmember Hallfin asked about the police SWAT teams, militarization of police forces, and what St. Louis Park's police philosophy is on these. Chief Harcey stated that officers do have military style rifles in their cars, adding that officers need to have the correct equipment. He added that they do also share some resources with the SWAT consortium. Mayor Spano asked how members of the community are engaged in the hiring process in relation to diversifying our city work force. Chief Harcey stated that these community members typically are from the Police Advisory Commission, Human Rights Commission and the Multicultural Advisory Committee or neighborhood leaders. Mayor Spano asked if there were opportunities for other residents to participate. Chief Harcey stated yes, adding that the police have utilized commissioners in recent years since they have an interest in serving the city. Mayor Spano also Study Session Minutes -6- August 14, 2017 stated his concerns on the hiring standards related to people who may have financial issues, noting that this does not mean they cannot serve well as a police officer. He asked if the force can look further into this in order to not lose good candidates. Mayor Spano asked if the police have any training on the ethical implications of the use of force. Sergeant Barnes stated that police officers are trained to respect people and to be stewards of the profession. I -Ie stated that if they routinely use force, they will not have legitimacy in the community. He added that there is nothing to gain from using more force than is necessary. He added this is a topic that is fully discussed with the officers. Mayor Spano asked if they teach about the ethics of force or if that is more a cultural part of the community. Chief Harcey stated that it is taught as part of POST course work curriculum, and it is also discussed in training. Councilmember Sanger asked if they would discuss the impacts on police professionalism when they must deal with a person who does not speak English. Chief Harcey stated that they have interpreters and also utilize family members when possible. He noted that it can be challenging, but they can overcome it. Councilmember Mavity asked what the most challenging part of the training is. Chief Harcey stated that getting the right people as trainers, structuring of the training, and devoting enough time to training scenarios can be challenging. Councilmember Brausen stated he appreciates the focus on the community oriented model and doing outreach. He added that he hopes the force will keep doing the neighborhood meetings in the future, noting this is a good opportunity for the community to engage with police officers. Councilmember Miller asked what the city and council can do, aside from compensation, to assure the force continues to recruit and retain the best officers. Chief Harcey stated that the city has been very good at helping the force be innovative in the hiring process. I -Ie added that they have been able to offer competitive wages and tuition reimbursement, along with original ideas such as Pathways to Policing. Ongoing support from city leaders and having the trust of city elected officials has also been a great encouragement. Mayor Spano asked about training related to warrior mentality and if the city analyzes the various training programs the police force is sent to. Chief Harcey stated yes, they evaluate each training program and typically look for courses that teach how to de-escalate situations. Mayor Spano stated he is excited about the Pathways to Policing program and hopes it will continue. Councilmember Mavity stated this session was very helpful, and she is looking forward to the rest of the sessions. She added that she does want to listen to community concerns and have a community conversation, as well. She noted that it is important to reflect on community feedback but is not sure what process could be used to collect the feedback. Mr. Harmening asked also what format a connnunity conversation on this topic would take and what success would look like. Councilmember Mavity stated that the goal is that it would be a listening session. She was not sure how it would be facilitated - maybe the global cafe model. However, she added that we need to listen to our community and not just talk at them. Study Session Minutes -7- August 14, 2017 Councilmember Brausen recommended that this be revisited at the end of the four sessions and then get feedback and recommendations. Councilmember Sanger added that another model that could be used is a panel discussion with police officers and questions from the audience at the end, similar to one conducted a few years back with Somali Americans living within the city. She noted that this model was very useful and informative. Councilmember Miller stated the importance of one-on-one meetings with the police and that personal connections can make a difference, also. Chief Harcey agreed, adding that the force has found this to be very valuable and has had a number of these one-on-one meetings. Mr. Harmening noted that later this week, several of the commissions, schools, industry, and police will be gathering to discuss working together and the commonalities between these groups. He stated that he will ask this group what model would be most helpful and useful for back and forth communication between the police force and the community. 4. Fastpitch Softball Facility Update Ms. Walsh presented the update. She noted that at this time the school district was able to commit to a field configuration with one fenced and two unfenced fields at the Middle School site. The St. Louis Park Fastpitch Association has indicated that they would like at least 2 fenced fields at one location. She added that Aquila Park Option 1B (included in the staff report) would be the most cost-effective way to get an additional fastpitch field and continue to provide a tournament option for the association. As a backup, staff has been working with the consultant to explore the cost and impacts of this possibility. This option involves taking one adult softball field at Aquila and converting it into a designated fastpitch field. Ms. Walsh pointed out that with Option IA, the entire site would need to be re -graded for an additional $2 million. With Option IB, a partial re -grade to field 41 and field #4 would be done. Councilmember Miller stated that he did not want to revisit this issue and that the council should get this done now, re -grading the fields and getting this property set up for the future. Councilmember Sanger stated that for clarity, she would like a list of what all of the options and the associated costs are now with the fields. She added that she does not feel equipped to make a good decision tonight, especially since there are no cost comparisons on the grading estimates. She inquired if the girls' fastpitch teams could play on temporary fenced fields. Councilmember Mavity stated that the council needs more information to guide a decision. She asked if Aquila field is the preference now, and if Dakota field is no longer part of the discussion. Ms. Burns stated that from the Fastpitch Association's perspective, Aquila is the field preference now. Councilmember Brausen added that he would like to hear from the Park and Recreation Advisory Commission on it. He added that this is a big investment of our community resources, and with 100-150 participants, plus hosting tournaments, it seems that the city is building it for other communities, who come to play here for tournaments. The cost comes to about $4,600 per player, and he is not sure the city has the resources for it. He stated he would like to explore further options on this issue. Study Session Minutes -8- August 14, 2017 Councilmember Mavity noted that this is long-term investment and the city would not be investing the same amount year after year. Councilmember Lindberg added that council needs to make sure they know the goal and then make recommendations to staff. He stated community participation is essential in making this type of infrastructure investment, adding that the council needs to look at the impacts of this project at Aquila as it relates to the adjacent neighborhood. Ms. Walsh stated she will bring back revised cost estimates to the council for Option IB and revised numbers for the flip with a half pinwheel and re -grade of the entire site. She further noted that she will get a recommendation from the Park and Recreation Advisory Commission before coming back to council. Communications/Meeting Check -In (Verbal) Mr. Harmening suggested January 18 and 19, 2018, as council retreat dates. Councilmember Hallfin stated that be and Councilmembers Sanger and Mavity attended the Fringe Festival play last week, featuring a former St. Louis Park councilmember. The meeting adjourned at 9:30 p.m. Written Reports provided and documented for recording purposes only: 5. Submission of Job Creation Fund Application