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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2022/05/04 - ADMIN - Agenda Packets - Environment & Sustainability Commission - Regular Environment & sustainability commission meeting May 4, 2022 6:30 p.m. All board members/commissioners will participate in this meeting at the Community Room, St. Louis Park City Hall, 5005 Minnetonka Blvd., St. Louis Park, MN 55416. Commission members and guests are urged to wear face coverings regardless of vaccination status. If you do not have a face covering, one can be provided at the meeting. If you are unable to wear a standard face covering, the city has face shields available for use upon request. Agenda 1. Call to order a. Roll call b. Introduction of Ellie Rabine, sustainability specialist 2. Approval of minutes (April 6, 2022) 3. Business a. Debrief Environment Commissions Conference b. Discuss moving July ESC meeting date from July 6 to July 13 4. Staff updates 5. Workgroup and/or project updates a. Year of Climate Action workgroup 6. City Council engagement 7. Environmental Justice and current events open discussion a. Tree programs and policies summary b. Active transportation letter to legislature c. Gas leaf blowers 8. Upcoming/proposed events 9. Adjournment Future meeting/event dates: • Arbor Day and Community Tree Planting Celebration: May 7, 2022 from 9 a.m. – noon at Texa-Tonka Park • State of the Community: May 15, 2022 from 1 – 4 p.m. at Dakota Park • June ESC meeting: June 1, 2022 • Ecotacular: June 18, 2022 If you need special accommodations or have questions about the meeting, please call Emily Ziring at 952-924-2191 or the administration department at 952-924-2525. Official minutes Environment & sustainability commission St. Louis Park, Minnesota 4/6/2022 1. Call to order – 6:30 p.m. 1a. Roll call Members present: Shaina Ashare, Ryan Griffin, Tatiana Giraldo, Holly Johnson, JD Moore, Dave Wilsey, Eric Zweber Members absent: Andrew Willette, Marisa Bayer, Paige Kane, Sasha Shahidi, Lillian Hertel Staff present: Annie Pottorff, Sustainability Specialist Guest presentation: University of Minnesota Humphrey School graduate student group 3. Approval of minutes – March 2, 2022 The minutes of March 2, 2022 were approved with one abstention. (Commissioner Johnson abstained.) 4. Business a. Presentation from University of Minnesota Humphrey School graduate students on in-boundary solar research project. The students discussed their research results, challenges and limitations. They identified 100 building owners total and found that four had already installed solar. They identified 26 buildings that had their roofs replaced within the 10 last years and could be good candidates for solar installation. They presented the four buildings that have already installed solar and the buildings that have replaced roofs in the last 10 years. They conducted cold-calling and email outreach and received 11 responses to a survey. They asked if the building owners were going to install solar, and if not, why not. They also sent surveys to both owners and tenants of local buildings. They found that most owners had little to no knowledge of city programs such as Solar Sundown, but were more aware of regional utility programs, such as Xcel Energy programs. They noted the St. Louis Park Public School District will install solar panels this summer and were not aware of the city programs but were aware of the Xcel programs. Additionally, a couple condo and apartment buildings were interested, but did not have knowledge of programs. Another was a church that was interested but was unsure if their roof could support the weight of the solar panels. Napa Auto Parts was also interested but did not have any information on solar programs. Many of the building representatives or franchise owners stated Environment & sustainability commission -2- April 6, 2022 they had to speak with their national headquarters for permission before installing solar. Some of the building representatives gave building owner contact information to the students. The students stated that reaching out to local businesses and larger local chains that have local corporate headquarters, such as Target, is preferable rather than approaching chains such as Home Depot with headquarters in Georgia. They added that when looking at condos, reaching out to the homeowner’s association is best. The students stated for next steps, their recommendation is for city staff to follow up with small and local businesses, which would have a better response rate as many own their buildings. Commissioner Zweber asked if they asked about the commercial PACE program. The students stated this information could be shared in follow-up outreach. Commissioner Ashare asked if the city has tools with cost estimates and programs that can be provided to building owners so the business owners do not have to do that work. Ms. Pottorff stated they have done something similar to this for folks who have recently pulled permits, staff has sent postcards with Solar Sundown information. Commissioner Ashare also suggested a flyer be sent, and possibly partnering with Xcel mailings as part of a marketing plan. Ms. Pottorff agreed and stated this is worth revisiting. Commissioner Griffin asked about the criteria the students used to choose the buildings. The students noted it was total power capacity from the solar analysis they conducted. Commissioner Zweber explained the commercial PACE program allows the homeowner to pay the cost of solar through their tax assessment, so it could be paid off after 7 years, as an example. The students noted one condo owner who was not interested at all, but added it might be helpful to present owners with cost-saving measures as well as ethical considerations for the environment when presenting solar programs. Ms. Pottorff stated she will update the ESC at the next meeting related to any other survey responses received. 5. Staff updates • Multifamily housing workgroup (and staff) – shared and reviewed housing study survey and focus group questions • New sustainability specialist hired and starts Monday, April 11 • Electrify Cohort with other municipalities • Bi-weekly workgroup on climate action framework • Tree planting service and cost share programs • Green building policy for May city council study session • Earth Day presentation to 6th grade classes at the Westwood Hills Nature Center • Human Rights award nominations are due April 18 • Opportunity to serve on Hennepin County zero waste group Environment & sustainability commission -2- April 6, 2022 • Prepping Earth Week presentations and developing surveys for focus groups • Launched renewable energy challenge in St. Louis Park, and working with Partners in Energy on graphics and a post each week related to Windsource subscriptions 6. Workgroup updates • Year of Climate Action workgroup Ms. Pottorff noted the group met last week and discussed the climate ribbon tree and will invite the 6th grade class to fill out ribbons during the upcoming presentations at the Westwood Hills Nature Center. The workgroup brainstormed questions for filing out the ribbons to place on the tree. The tree may be displayed at the Rec Center during the summer months for families to view; signage is being worked on for the tree, along with question prompts and action to take. The group may work with Steel Toe Brewing to table and talk about climate action. Commissioner Giraldo added they will look at introducing a pledge to encourage people to take one action, while also repeating a message or commitments through the trivia wheel and keeping activities age appropriate. Commissioner Griffin added encouraging people to make their voices heard and to encourage others to think about climate action is important to include. Commissioner Ashare noted advertising with a yard sign showcasing solar panels might be helpful also. Ms. Pottorff agreed with signage ideas but noted in the past there was a concern with zoning staff about too many signs within the city. Commissioner Giraldo agreed sometimes there is too much information, which can be a barrier. Commissioner Wilsey stated comments about individual action were insightful but noted that the climate crisis will not be solved by doing small things. He stated it might be helpful if the community tells their public leaders what they wish they would do. Commissioner Griffin agreed, noting this is a system issue which needs to be addressed more as a community vs. as an individual. Commissioner Johnson recommended thinking about the workplace as an area to discuss sustainability actions and goals, including offering recycling and electric vehicle chargers. 7. Multifamily housing survey Commissioner Ashare stated she attended the racial equity focus group session with other commission representatives and noted the City of St. Louis Park is working on the scope of the new positions/roles for the race, equity and inclusion division. Ms. Pottorff added the city hired a consultant to look at the racial equity positions. Environment & sustainability commission -2- April 6, 2022 Ms. Pottorff noted the tenant survey related to energy and housing goes live tomorrow and the property owner focus groups will be taking place in the next few weeks. She read the survey questions to the commissioners. Ms. Pottorff stated the final report is due at the beginning of June, and the final report could be shared with commissioners by the beginning of July if not sooner. 8. City council engagement 9. Environmental Justice discussion Commissioner Ashare asked for the commission’s reactions to tree removal done as a result of the Connect the Park program. Commissioner Wilsey noted another op-ed was written today related to tree removal in the Sun Sailor. He stated there seems to be some type of subtle campaign being publicized now, as more and more articles have been coming out on this topic. He added this narrative needs to be addressed especially as it relates to heritage tree removal within the city. Commissioner Griffin stated tracking is a good way to measure tree removal and looking at satellite images can be helpful in seeing changes over time. Commissioner Ashare relayed comments from Commissioner Bayer stating she hopes tree removal would be minimized, and the goal of Connect the Park in supporting different forms of transportation is important. She asked that if trees are going to be taken down as part of Connect the Park, can that be discussed with the ESC. Commissioner Ashare stated the goal is not to stop the program, but this might be something the commission wants to take a position on and share ideas with an end goal in mind. Commissioner Zweber asked for direction from staff as to how they are addressing tree preservation. He stated that the city policy on tree preservation is not exempted for public lands and one to one tree replacement is part of the ordinance. He stated he would like to know what the rules are, how they are being enforced and how they can be improved, before making recommendations. Ms. Pottorff stated relevant staff could come to the next meeting or could answer a compiled email to address commissioners’ questions on this. Commissioner Ashare said the ESC would like to have an update from staff on the city’s tree program at next month’s meeting. Commissioner Zweber asked about the consultant that will be hired by the City of St. Louis Park to review the city’s commissions. Ms. Pottorff stated this will likely not affect the ESC. Commissioner Wilsey asked if the consultant was being hired to audit all the commissions. Ms. Pottorff stated beyond organizational items, there should be no big changes to the ESC. Environment & sustainability commission -2- April 6, 2022 10. Upcoming/proposed events Ms. Pottorff noted the city’s Arbor Day event is Saturday, May 7 from 8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m., and one more volunteer from the ESC is needed for that event. She also noted one person is needed for the State of the Community celebration at Dakota Park on May 15 from 12:30 – 4:30 p.m. She added 4 volunteers are needed for Ecotacular (part of Parktacular) on Saturday, June 18, in the afternoon and evening. She noted she will send out the Signup Genius again to the group. Future meeting/event dates: • 2022 Environment Commissions Conference: April 30, 2022, 10 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. in Minnetonka • May ESC meeting: May 4, 2022 • Arbor Day and Community Tree Planting Celebration: May 7, 2022, 9 a.m. – noon (volunteer hours: 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.) 11. Adjournment – 8:12 p.m. ______________________________________ ______________________________________ Emily Ziring, liaison Shaina Ashare, vice chair member