ST. CLOUD AREA PLANNING ORGANIZATION
EXECUTIVE BOARD MINUTES
May 12, 2016
The St. Cloud Area Planning Organization’s Executive Board was held on Thursday, May 12, 2016, at 6:00 p.m. at the Waite Park City Hall Council Chambers. Chair Mayor Rick Schultz presided with the following Members present:
Mayor Rick SchultzCity of St. Joseph
Mayor Dave KleisCity of St. Cloud
Councilmember Jeff GoergerCity of St. Cloud
Mayor Brad GundersonCity of Sauk Rapids
Mayor Rick MillerCity of Waite Park
Mayor Bob KrollCity of St. Augusta
Commissioner Felix SchmeisingSherburne County
Commissioner Ewald PetersenSherburne County
Commissioner A. Jake BauerlyBenton County
Commissioner Mark BromenschenkelStearns County
Township Chair John KrehbielLeSauk Township
Also Present:Tom CruikshankMetro Bus
Dorothy SweetSt. Cloud APO
Joseph MuellerSt. Cloud APO
APPROVAL OF AGENDA:
St. Cloud City Councilmember Jeff Goerger motioned to approve the agenda, and Sauk Rapids Mayor Brad Gunderson seconded the motion. Motion carried.
TAC’S RECOMMENDATION FOR ADDITIONAL 2017 FEDERAL SURFACE TRANSPORTATION PROGRAM (STP) FORMULA FUNDS:
Joseph Mueller, Multi-modal Planner and GIS Specialist at the APO, provided the background information on this funding recommendation. These additional Surface Transportation Program Formula Funds became available for FY 2017. At the May 5, 2016 TAC meeting, the members unanimously agreed to distribute the funds to the two 2017 projects. Just prior to the Executive Board Meeting, Mr. Mueller received a minor revision to the funding amounts from MnDOT staff, Mr. Steve Voss. The Funding Distribution for the APO is $207,148. Sartell will receive 56.82% or $117,701 and St. Joseph will receive 43.18% or $89,447. Stearns County Commissioner Mark Bromenschenkel motioned to approve TAC’s recommended distribution of the additional STP Formula Funds with the revisions from MnDOT and LeSauk Township Chair John Krehbiel seconded the motion. Motion carried.
METRO BUS STIP AMENDMENTS:
Mr. Tom Cruikshank, Metro Bus, presented information for the Metro Bus’s request for an Amendment to the 2016-2021 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP). Project TRS-0048-16in the 2016 TIP is being amended to add one additional replacement bus to the project description. The new descriptionshould read, “ST CLOUD METRO BUS PURCHASE 3 SMALL CNG BUSES.” The new estimated cost for the project is $600,000.MnDOT Office of Transit has agreed to provide additional federal Surface Transportation Program (STP) in the amount of $212,400 to supplement the $267,600 currently programmed so the project can be eligible for 80% federal funds. Metro Bus will provide 20% local match in the amount of $120,000. Metro Bus’s need for an additional replacement bus is due to its aging paratransit fleet.
A new 2016 TIP Project, TRF-0048-16J, is for two (2) expansion paratransit buses, for a total of $400,000. This request was originally intended to be funded through state funds. MnDOT Office of Transit has informed Metro Bus that it is their intention to use $320,000 in federal Section 5310 funds for this purchase, thus it needs to be added to the 2016 STIP request.
St. Cloud Mayor Dave Kleis motioned to approve the two amendments as requested by MetroBus, and Mr. Goerger seconded the motion. Motion carried. It was noted that this would not be a change in APO dollars.
TRF-0048-16G The Metro Bus would like to take advantage of an opportunity to purchase a property adjacent to the Metro Bus’s Operation Center, which just became available. Metro Bus is trying to work through the process of title, assessment, etc. so that they can then negotiate the purchase of this property. In order to negotiate the purchase,the STIP amendment needs approval. The amendment involves delaying a CNG canopy for the fueling station until a future time and using those funds to purchase this adjacent property instead. The total cost in the STIP ($200,000) remains the same.
Mayor Kleis motioned to approve the STIP amendment to allow Metro Bus to go forward with purchasing the property, and Mr. Goerger seconded the motion. Motion carried.
BICYCLE LEVEL OF SERVICE (BLOS) REPORT:
Mr. Mueller briefly reviewed the BLOS report. No comments were received during the Public Comment period. The report is considered to be an Advisory Report for the local jurisdictions and is not binding. If any members or their jurisdictions are interested in improving bike infrastructure, the APO will be happy to speak with you. Mayor Schultz motioned to approve the Advisory BLOS Report, and Commissioner Bromenschenkel seconded the motion. Motion carried.
PERSONNEL COMMITTEE UPDATE:
Mayor Schultz updated everyone on the Executive Director search. Three candidates were interviewed. One candidate was unanimously selected (Brian Gibson) and given a preliminary offer dependent upon background check and Board approval. Mr. Gibson asked for a few days to consider the offer.
The candidate has excellent credentials and background history. The Personnel Committee has recommended offering him $102,000 starting salary. The candidate did comment that if he accepted the position, he would like 8 weeks before starting, giving him sufficient time to finish up projects at the Oahu MPO in Hawaii and moving to the states. Mayor Schultz felt we could probably negotiate to move up the start time somewhat, and requested permission for approval to offer Mr. Gibson the position. Relocation expenses were raised by board members. After some discussion, it was decided to offer him the same amount for relocation expenses that was offered to Ms. Stenson and Mr. Hubbard, which was $750, should he request this. Mayor Kleis expressed concern about the fact that two top employeesof the five at the APO have just left and that we should deal with those issues. Other board members expressed concern about the salary and the appearance of discrimination and some uncertainty with the organization. Commissioner Schmiesing felt that the Board made a mistake by not following the HR study recommendations last year. Waite Park Mayor Rick Miller motioned to approve the offer, starting salary, and relocation funds up to Ms. Stenson and Mr. Hubbard’s amount. Mayor Brad Gunderson seconded the motion. Motion carried with one opposed. After the meeting, Ms. Sweet was directed to start the background check process for Mr. Gibson.
Several members expressed their concern about not knowing what intentions the City of St. Cloud had regarding the APO. Mayor Kleis responded that St. Cloud is not pulling out of the APO, but felt that St. Cloud, as well as all jurisdictions, should routinely look at the APO organizational structure and consider what is best for their jurisdiction.
ADJOURNMENT:
CommisionerBromenschenkel motioned to adjourn the meeting at 6:43 p.m., and St. Augusta Mayor Bob Kroll.