CC – 09-25-07 – Page 4

MINUTES

REGULAR SAINT MICHAEL CITY COUNCIL MEETING

September 25, 2007

Saint Michael Council Chambers 7:00 p.m.

Present: Mayor Jerry Zachman; Council Members Dean Eggert, Joe Hagerty, Kevin Kasel and Joe Marx; City Engineer Steven Bot; Community Development Director Marc Weigle; City Attorney David Lenhardt; City Administrator Robert Derus; and City Clerk Carol Beall. Mayor Zachman called the meeting to order, declaring a quorum present. The Pledge of Allegiance was said, and the Mayor welcomed those in the audience. Mayor Zachman acknowledged representatives of the St. Michael/Albertville Women of Today Kris Goodin and Kathy Hansen. Goodin read a Proclamation for Women of Today Week September 23 through 29, requesting the Mayor’s signature on the Proclamation, and pictures were taken.

Set Agenda. Council Members Eggert/Hagerty moved approval of the agenda, with all voting aye.

Citizen Input. Ken Lock, Rambling Creek Drive, addressed the Council saying he moved to town about six years ago. He was concerned about flooding in his back yard after a rainfall, and what happens to his swimming pool with water running over it. He has talked to his builder, the developer the engineer, and others, but without an acceptable solution. Lock brought a video tape to show the volume of water in the backyard. He spoke of some of the things that have been done, such as a drainage pipe through several backyards in the neighborhood, and also pipes and rock Lock put in his yard himself. Since these have not alleviated the problem, he asked the Council to consider what potential things could be done to fix the difficulty. Lock said as little as one inch of rain will cause a problem for him and throughout the neighborhood. Engineer Bot spoke of the original drainage plan and explained what has been done since then. He also said that walkout and lookout lots will have backyard swales. He also said the standards cover six inches of rain in 24 hours, not two inches in fifteen minutes, which is what happened last week. He said there have to be emergency overflows, and fortunately the water from the next development, Fall Creek, does stay in that development. Unfortunately, the homeowner’s play area, fence and pool add to the problem. Bot explained that serious concerns were expressed about the pool and the fence when a permit was requested; however, the City cannot tell a homeowner they cannot install a pool if it meets the setbacks, even though there may be concerns about how it might affect drainage, or other concerns. Bot said this was also the first lot built on at the bottom of the hill and then the building moved up from there. Council member Eggert said he had stopped by the lot and felt the pool should not have been installed where it was. The council members discussed, but had no solutions to offer at this time. Lock said for the record the fence is four inches above the top of the ground. He also said the video he brought shows what really happens. It was then agreed the City Engineer, Mayor and a Council member will meet at Mr. Lock’s lot on Friday morning to see if they can find any other solutions.

Consent Agenda. Council Members Kasel/Eggert moved approval of Consent Agenda Items a) through e), as listed below. All voted aye.

a)  Resolution #09-25-07-01 Approving Minutes of the September 11 Council Meeting and Work Session Minutes of September 18, 2007

b)  Resolution #09-25-07-02 Acknowledging Resignation of Firefighter John Steffens and Approving Promoting Dave Green to the Paid-on-call Status, effective September 12, 2007.

c)  Resolution #09-25-07-03 Approving Application to Conduct Excluded Bingo

d)  Resolution #09-25-07-04 Approving Final Pay Request No. 15 in the amount of $26,429.80 to Knife River Corp. for Frankfort Parkway (from CR 19 to MacIver Ave) Street Improvements

e)  Resolution #09-25-07-05 Approving Payment Request No. 2 in the amount of $163,989.06 to Burschville Construction, Inc. for the 2007 Roadway Improvement Project

Community Development Report

The agenda was amended to move the J&B Tax Abatement item ahead on the Community Development Report since Mike Altimari of J&B Group was present.

J&B Tax Abatement. Weigle reported in July the Council discussed providing tax abatement to J&B to assist with noise abatement costs related to the site. The Council was now provided with a spreadsheet from Ehlers showing the estimated taxes generated by the 96,000 square foot addition, based on a valuation of $4 million. It is estimated the additional local taxes generated will be roughly $23,000 per year, which is considerably less than the initial $40,000 estimate in July. Weigle referred to and reviewed the spreadsheet with the Council. He said staff felt it would be preferred to pay the subsidy off sooner, but it is ultimately up to the Council. A public hearing would be required and is proposed for the 23rd of October. Weigle said he would like to have more details before any public hearing. The Council discussed the length of time required for pay off depending on what figures might be approved. The second noise study would be after the current project is finished, so any additional costs as a result of that study are unknown at this time. Weigle also explained there would be an abatement agreement which would spell out exactly what things were included, and if an amount were included for phase two, that would not obligate the City. Weigle suggested two questions for the Council to consider (1) the overall budget amount and (2) how long they are comfortable with that being an abatement. Councilor Kasel suggested structuring the agreement to include the increments, but also the ability to accelerate it at the City’s discretion. Administrator Derus pointed out that the current J&B Tax Increment Financing District will be decertified this year, which would provide an additional $15,000 coming in starting the next year. There was discussion on potential costs and what would be feasible. Councilors Hagerty/Eggert moved to approve $200,000 as the budget amount for tax abatement subsidy. All voted aye. Council Members Kasel/Marx moved to set a public hearing October 23, 2007, at 7 p.m. to establish the tax abatement and award a business subsidy for J&B Group, to assist with noise abatement costs related to the site. All voted aye.

Wright-Hennepin – Lighting Maintenance Contract for O’Day Avenue NE. Community Development Director Weigle told the Council the City typically provides street lighting using two methods with Xcel Energy. The first option involves the City or developer paying for the up-front cost of the lights and installation, with Xcel agreeing for a monthly fee to cover all operation and maintenance costs. The other system is installed, owned and maintained by the city, with just the power being supplied by Xcel. Weigle said the CineMagic Theatre developer was required to install streetlights on O’Day Avenue as part of the theatre project. The developer received bids from Xcel and Wright-Hennepin, who has begun providing lighting maintenance service contracts in the past few years and has done a number of projects in Monticello. Weigle said the Wright Hennepin bid was considerably lower, and they installed lights identical to the theatre parking lot. The City’s policy is to pay for the maintenance of standard street lights, and typically any Xcel project gets wrapped into the previous agreements; however, the City has never had an agreement with Wright Hennepin. Engineer Bot and Weigle reviewed the proposed contract and found it to be comparable to Xcel. Therefore, staff recommended the Council approve the initial Lighting Maintenance Service Contract with Wright Hennepin Response for O’Day Avenue NE. The Council discussed the pros and cons of the contract and other considerations. Council Members Eggert/Kasel moved approval of the Maintenance Service Contract with Wright Hennepin Response, as presented, and authorized the Mayor to sign the contract. All voted aye.

16th Street Median and Boulevard Trees – Marx Creek Townhomes. Weigle reported Xcel Energy marked for removal approximately 40 trees along 16th Street early this summer. They are underneath the transmission lines and will soon be too large. He said that typically only ornamental and evergreen shrubs are permitted in those areas. Unfortunately, Maplewood Development did not adhere to Xcel’s tree planting guidelines. Weigle said the City negotiated with Xcel to delay removal of the trees until at least October 15 in order to work out a resolution with the developer and landowners, who are concerned about losing the trees and screening.

Weigle reported on a recent meeting with Mario Cochiarella of Maplewood Development, and they will be meeting again at the site with Xcel. The developer will likely relocate some of the trees within the area, or perhaps in the City’s nearby park; however, a replacement plan has not yet been submitted. Weigle suggested the trees are very nice and it would be a waste to see them cut down, so if Maplewood does not intend to move all of them, staff recommends the City use some of the non-Ash trees to replace trees that have recently died in visible park locations. He said he has spoken to Public Works, and the Park Supervisor had already built in some time for replacement of trees, so the City could probably rent the digger and do the work in house, which would decrease costs somewhat. Since this is more of a maintenance item, the expense would be a General Fund Park and Recreation expense—not a Park Fund expense. Weigle gave the Council an estimate of the cost, based on the number of non-Ash trees. There was further discussion on Xcel’s requirements under transmission lines and their approved planting list. It is hoped something can be worked out. An agreement with Maplewood and the Association would be drafted so that the City would not be held responsible for any ruts, or other such items. Apparently Cochiarella is willing to replant with ornamental and other shrubs, but a plan has not been received yet. It was the consensus of the Council to move forward as recommended, with an agreement in place.

EDA Report. The Council was furnished with the draft minutes from the September 19 EDA meeting. Weigle reported there was considerable discussion about the status of Town Center. Allina was unable to attend the meeting as planned, so will reschedule and plans to attend the October meeting. The EDA also discussed the RFP for Commercial/Industrial property. There were no properties that stood out as an excellent opportunity at this time, given the proposed prices, locations, utility availability, current market and stiff competition from nearby areas. The consensus of the EDA was that staff should send a letter to the proposers indicating the EDA appreciated the interest and effort put into the proposals, but that none were feasible at this time. The letter would also express that opportunities may come up in the near future, at which time they might be contacted.

GIS Software Purchase. Weigle said the Geographic Information System (GIS) software is currently used to create maps and print aerials for property owners. The City has one software license for ArcView 8.3 on his computer, which is 3-1/2 years old. While it works OK for simple projects, most of the new files for the County Records, City’s Land Use Plan, and Storm Water Management Plan require ArcView 9.2. The recommendation is to upgrade Weigle’s software for $600, and to add an additional license for Steve Koskela, who is proficient in CADD (engineering) for $1200. A key part of Koskela’s job description is to coordinate all of the City’s electronic mapping and files so that they can be more easily used and accessed by other staff. Council Members Hagerty/Kasel moved to approve upgrade of the GIS software on Weigle’s computer and to purchase an additional license with the upgraded software for the Engineering Department. All voted aye.

City Engineer Report

Engineer Bot followed up on the scheduled meeting on Rambling Creek Drive on Friday, indicating he could meet at 10 a.m. There was some further discussion on what appears to be a self-imposed problem with no obvious solution. It was again noted there is no cross-drainage from Fall Creek.

City Attorney Report

Attorney Lenhardt said staff brought to him a problem concerning Letters of Credit from Insignia Development, who has not finished a number of final items in about four different developments. Notification has been sent, and meetings held with no solution. A draw request against the Letters of Credit was made on August 2 with no payment at all, although the law requires they be honored within a reasonable time and in no event beyond seven business days. Lenhardt was proposing to write a letter pointing these things out and threatening litigation if payment is not received. He wanted to run it by the Council first, but it is important it be done as soon as possible. There was discussion on what and who is involved, which financial institutions may be acceptable for furnishing letters of credit in the future, and other considerations. The consensus of the Council was to have the attorney move forward with the letters as recommended.

City Administrator Report

Finance Offices at Frankfort Station. Administrator Derus referred to some of the issues he brought up at the last work session relating to difficulties for the Finance Department at Frankfort Station. He discussed with the Council two basic options to address the issue, including repairing and maintaining the facility as well as possible. Councilor Joe Marx did visit the building to get a handle on the repairs necessary. Engineer Bot said materials have been ordered to do some work as soon as possible on the roof problem. He explained some of the other problems that will be looked at after the roof repair, and then get to taking care of the windows.