Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2024/05/28 - ADMIN - Minutes - City Council - Study SessionOfficial minutes City council study session St. Louis Park, Minnesota May 28, 2024 The meeting convened at 6:30 p.m. Council members present: Mayor Nadia Mohamed, Paul Baudhuin, Tim Brausen, Sue Budd, Yolanda Farris, Lynette Dumalag, Margaret Rog Council members absent: none Staff present: City manager (Ms. Keller), engineering director (Ms. Heiser), engineering services manager (Mr. Elkin), water resources manager (Mr. Francis), sustainability manager (Ms. Ziring) Discussion items 1. Stormwater 101 Mr. Elkin presented the staff report. The council discussed how the Minnehaha Watershed District is involved in the city’s stormwater and noted procedures used by city staff, such as sandbagging, if flooding occurs in the city. Mr. Elkin stated Minnehaha Creek has their own stormwater modeling program, which results in more accurate delineation of flood areas than the ones produced by FEMA . Council Member Rog asked what the process is for residents to get discounts on flood insurance. Mr. Elkin described how a policy can be acquired through the person’s home mortgage insurance company. He said FEMA’s maps are not very accurate, and city stormwater modeling technology has also helped identify floodplain areas within the city. Council Member Rog asked if these tools have helped the city predict where flooding may occur. Mr. Elkin confirmed that they have, and added buildings such as Risor are built within the requirements of the watershed district. Council Member Budd asked where contaminated soil goes. Ms. Heiser stated, if the contamination is high, it goes into the landfill. Council Member Dumalag asked about the staff’s work with Knollwood Mall. Mr. Elkin stated a large sub-surface detention system and a stormwater structure were built underground. Mr. Elkin demonstrated what has changed from 1937 to today within the city’s stormwater system and surfaces. Council Member Budd asked where the city stormwater plan can be found. Mr. Elkin shared that this information can be located on the city website’s stormwater web page. Council Member Rog asked if the city is considering using pervious pavement in dry basins. Ms. Heiser stated pervious pavers are being used around the city in parking lots. Keystone Park is a dry basin where water can collect, and the parking adjacent is pervious pavers. DocuSign Envelope ID: 2C29650E-FB8B-4B2D-A66C-C84A7D213F9A Study session minutes -2- May 28, 2024 Council Member Rog asked about the Lake Forest area and noted she had heard it was filled in to build homes and asked if there was any background information on this area. Mr. Elkin stated he is not aware of any specific projects where fill was brought in, but noted there is a lot of disruption that would have happened in areas that have railroads. Council Member Rog referred to a map in the presentation and how in 1873, land was taken from native Americans. She noted white people came and stole that land, parsed it up, and put their names on it and she asked the council to reflect on this context. Council Member Rog noted the legislation around the Clean Water Act. Mr. Elkin stated the Environmental Protection Agency still has control, and there is still a state law that guides this. Council Member Dumalag asked what purpose water testing is performed to accomplish. Mr. Elkin described how an excavation or clean-out for a new development requires the city to take ground water samples and this is a state requirement as well. He noted a private lab tests the ground water samples. 2. Environmental Stewardship system kick-off Ms. Ziring presented the staff report. Council Member Brausen asked if the Climate Investment Fund is adequately funded at $800,000. Ms. Ziring confirmed that it is, and noted the overall budget is $180,000 per year with $100,000 invested in incentives annually. Council Member Baudhuin asked if the sustainability division has a relationship with the school district. Ms. Ziring stated they do try to discuss issues with the facilities manager, and the district is aware of the programs. She added that the school district does not necessarily have the staff to administer many programs. Council Member Rog asked how the determination is made for placement of Idle-Free SLP parking signs and whether residents can request them. Ms. Ziring stated that guidelines are in place for distribution. She added staff’s goal is to distribute these signs specifically to multi- family and commercial property owners. Council Member Budd asked whether federal funding affects the Electrify Everything program. Ms. Ziring stated no, they were two separate programs. The program funded by federal dollars is closed. Council Member Rog asked if incentive program information is given to residents when they apply for building permits. Ms. Ziring stated yes, and noted it is available to anyone applying for a permit. She added they also use the city’s permit database to reach out to builders about electric, solar, and other programs. Council Member Baudhuin asked why police cars are allowed to idle while parked. Ms. Ziring clarified that this is required for the function of onboard computer equipment in police vehicles. DocuSign Envelope ID: 2C29650E-FB8B-4B2D-A66C-C84A7D213F9A Study session minutes -3- May 28, 2024 Council Member Budd asked if we are making progress toward the goal of having 900 single- family households participate in the Climate Champions programs each year. Ms. Ziring stated the goal is 900 families each year over ten years. She noted when the climate goals were set, they were not tied to specific data sources so staff had to be creative about how to count the 900 and she advised the focus be on overall trends. Since 2017, the city has already cut down over 12% on greenhouse gas emissions, and noted consultants have looked at our results and their evaluation shows that city policies are having a positive effect. Council Member Budd asked about Regional Indicators and if they would be on the dashboard. Ms. Ziring stated yes, those indicators would be present. Council Member Budd asked about income qualifications and incentives. Ms. Ziring stated that qualifying criteria include factors of income, BIPOC identity, veteran status and disability status. Any of these criteria qualify an applicant for participation in the program. Council Member Budd asked about volunteer involvement in environmental programs within this system and whether that report will be brought forward. Ms. Ziring stated that the report on volunteer involvement will come before the council in July; staff from the departments that manage those volunteers is gathering data. Council Member Rog noted interest in pursuing the topic of gas-powered leaf blower use in St. Louis Park. Council Member Brausen also noted embodied carbon as another topic for further discussion. Council Member Rog thanked Ms. Ziring for the comprehensiveness of the report. 3. Efficient Building Benchmarking program administration. Ms. Ziring presented the staff report. She noted that the city has the option to allow the state to take over this program as early as January 1, 2025. The city council has the authority to rescind the ordinance and let the state handle the program. Council Member Baudhuin asked if the state is planning to send reports to municipalities to keep cities updated on this program. Ms. Ziring agreed that updates are desirable, but not guaranteed. Council Member Rog stated the Effective Building Benchmarking program seems to not have been as successful as other efforts. Ms. Ziring stated proponents of the program think it is good policy; however, they may not be aware of some of the issues involved in administering it. Council Member Budd stated that 80% compliance for this program shows that it is very successful; the city was on the leading edge on this work. She stated she is a proponent of retaining this program for another year, especially considering the first two years of its operation were during the COVID-19 pandemic. The first year of the state program only addresses buildings that are 100,000 square feet or more. DocuSign Envelope ID: 2C29650E-FB8B-4B2D-A66C-C84A7D213F9A Study session minutes -4- May 28, 2024 Ms. Ziring noted that if the state did take over building benchmarking, she would put the city program operating funds into the Electrify Everything program. Council Member Baudhuin asked if houses of worship are exempt from the building benchmarking program. Ms. Ziring stated that they are not exempt. Council Member Brausen asked if there is sufficient staff capacity for the Electrify Everything program. Ms. Ziring stated yes and noted the operating costs of running workshops are about $5,000 per event. Council Member Brausen stated he too would like to see the city’s program continue for one more year versus moving to the state-administered program in 2025. Council Member Baudhuin agreed with Council Member Brausen’s comments. Council Member Dumalag also agreed and stated staff should be mindful of both the state legislation and the city program. Council Member Rog stated she supports moving on and working with the state to take over this program now, while redirecting city funds to the electrification program. She stated when she looks at the results, they just do not warrant all of the work being done by city staff. Mayor Mohamed agreed with Council Member Rog’s recommendations to sunset the program, adding it does not warrant the 100 hours of staff time and there is a need for more electrification as well. Council Member Farris added that with 80% in compliance, the program is in a good position to pass to the state for oversight. Council Member Brausen added the data from the state will be helpful for the city, and noted he is interested in continuing this for only one more year. It was the consensus of the city council to sunset the Efficient Building Benchmarking program in one year. Ms. Ziring will return to the council with an ordinance amendment to sunset the program in December 2025. Written Reports Council Member Brausen stated he was pleased to read the tree canopy report. Council Member Budd added she was glad to read the stormwater report. 4. Hennepin Energy Recovery Center closure plan update 5. Setting a tree canopy goal 6. Annual Stormwater Pollution Prevention Program report DocuSign Envelope ID: 2C29650E-FB8B-4B2D-A66C-C84A7D213F9A Study session minutes -5- May 28, 2024 Communications/meeting check-in (verbal) The meeting adjourned at 8:55 p.m. ______________________________________ ______________________________________ Melissa Kennedy, city clerk Nadia Mohamed, mayor DocuSign Envelope ID: 2C29650E-FB8B-4B2D-A66C-C84A7D213F9A