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1988-08-01 CC Minutes CITY OF ALBERTVILLE . POBOX 131 ALBERTVILLE, MINNESOTA 55301 PHONE (612) 497-3384 (~IL MINIJI'ES AOOUST 1, 1988 The regular meeting of the Albertv:tlle City Council was called to order by Mayor Loretta Roden Members present Included Bob Braun, fun Cornel:tus, funatus Vetsch and Gary Schwenzfe:ter Others present Included Maureen . Andrews, Bob M:tller, Bob Sullentrop, Ken Lmdsay and Lorie V:tllareal The agenda for the evening r S meeting was reviewed by the Counc:tl fun Cornehus made a mot:ton and Gary Schwenzfe:ter seconded it to approve the . agenda All were in favor and the motion carried The Counc:tl reviewed the mmutes of the July 18th Counc:tl meetmg and the July 22nd Spec:tal meetmg Hearing no questions, a motion was made by funatus Vetsch and seconded by fun Cornelius to approve the minutes of July 18, 1988 All were In favor and the motion carried A motion was then made by fun Cornehus and seconded by Bob Braun to approve the mmutes of the special meeting held on July 22nd All were in favor and the motion carried Mr fun Ze:trke of Gruys, Johnson and Assoc:tates was present to rev:tew with the Counc:tl the fIndings of the 1987 Aud:t t Report Mr Zeirke went through several schedules with the Counc:tl pointmg out some maJor POInts, explaining some of changes that have occurred as the result of SOlOO standard accountmg gt.l:tdelIne regulations He then went through the management letter POIntmg out some of the firms findmgs There was some hm:tted d:tsCU6sion after wh:tch the Counc:tl made a motion to accept the 1987 Aud:t t The motion was made by funatus Vetsch and seconded by Gary Schwenzfeier All were in favor and the mot:ton carried . Make our City Your CIty We Inylte Home Industry BUSlne5S . . . Ed Hackeruweller was present to request a varl.anCe to allow a second ground Sl.gll to allow for local advertisUlg The Council was info:nned that the Conoco Corporatl.on will not allow Ed to attach to thel.r ex1.6tUlg 60 foot Sl.gll any local advertl.sing (Letter regardUlg th1.6 matter l.6 attached to the desk copy of the mInUtes ) The sign beUlg requested is a two faced, four panel Slg11, 20 feet high by 12 feet wide, on a 9x.12x9 foot pole The height can be varl.ed It will be used to advertl.se gas prl.ce6 to the local traffic Through the course of dl.6CU6sl.on Bob Ml.ller pointed out that two variances are actually needed One variance will be for two grot.md signs instead of one (one beUlg a pylon sign) The second variance will be because the ground Sl.gllB will exceed the JDaXl.IWII'I of 203 square feet stated under the current sign ordinance After some dl.sCU6sl.on, it was decl.ded that the dunensl.ons of the sign and a site plan should be obtained before any variances can be granted Gary Schwenzfel.er made a motion to continue this l.ssue at the next meeting fun . Cornelius seconded the motion All were m favor and the motl.on carried Jolm Darkenwald and George Yankoupe updated the Council and asked for thel.r support for the apartment wildUlgs they are planning to have constructed in Westwind The wl.lder they are interested m having specl.ahzes m apartment wildmgs and has wilt such in St Cloud, fuffalo and Elk Rl.ver Also, the Super 8 Motel m Rogers was wl.l t by this partl.cular wl.lder The apartments being considered would be of a good quaIl. ty brick and cedar exterl.or '!'hey explained that two 30 wut wildUlgs would be wl.lt under a Phaoe I schedule and the other two 30 unl. t wildings at some time in the future Jolm~rge, Inc asked that the Council consl.der a variance which would allow them to Wl.ld the apartments Wl. th a two for one ratl.O of garages to apartments They info:nned the Council that by reqUl.rmg one garage for each unit that the proJect becomes too cost prohl.bl. tl. ve ~ and would not be wilt The developers did agree that there was not a problem Wl. th requirmg two parking places per unit PAGE 2 . . . At this tl.lDe Maureen pointed out that there was a letter m the packet from Dav1d L1cht, of Northwest Associated Consultants, Inc regardmg the issue of garages The letter explained that . a city typically exceeds 1 to jurisd1ct10n based upon public health, safety and general welfare to require a garage This interpretation comes from Department of Housing and Urban Development standards and opinion, and as a consequence, poses problems for cities especaally when price Developers pursue mortgage financmg which may mvolve the federal government" It was suggested that that 1f garage spaces are des1red by the City, that a density bonus of a reduction of 200 to 250 square feet of lot area per unit be offered m exchange for prov1dmg garage space Th1S incentive many tlJDeB produces enclosed parkmg in what 1S seen as legi t1.Illate procedural approach The letter further pomts out that in the event that the enclosed parkmg 1S used to meet the requirement for parking (2 spaces for each un1 t) that 1. t IlUBt be done "fee free", that is no space can be rented ind1 v1dually, b..1t rather Irl1st be included in the rental price of the unit Th1S reasoning for . this is that "1 t avoids having spaces rented only during the wmter months and experiencing a parkmg shortage durmg the balance of the year wh1ch typ1cally results in on-street parking" Maureen also explained that it is helpful to provide adequate spacmg so that in the event that demand u)(hcates the need for add 1 t10nal garages that they can be constructed without encroachmg on open space and setbacks The Developers pomted out that outside electr1.cal outlets would be provided for the occupants who do not wish to have a garage I t was quest1.oned how mch they expected rent to nm for a b..1ilding of th1S type The Developers stated that rents will range from $425 to $575 per month, rot w111 depend on the market of the Albertville area John and George requested from the Council that a pub11c hearmg be set Gary Schwenzfe1er made a mot1on to set a public hearmg for August 25th at 8 t20 p m lhnatus Vetsch seconded this mot1on All were in favor and the mot10n carried George pomted out that they would have the plans at the next joint meetmg of the Council and the Plarming Commission on Thursday, August 11th PAGE 3 . . . Mr Ro1l1e Schm1dt was present to discuss with the Council the damaged curb in Barthel Manor--2nd Addition The damaged curb had been brought to the attention of the contractor lbffalo B1 tumlnous and then to the sub contractor, Roll1e Schnl1dt and 1 t was agreed that the flIlal hft of blacktop would not be mstalled until the problem was corrected The minutes should note that the C1 ty plans to press charges against the vandals who damaged the curb The purpose of Mr Schm1dt 's appearance was to discuss W1 th the Council what he would like to do to correct the damage He explamed that he would like to use an epoxy to fill in over the writing He went on to explam the process that he would use to make the correction The epoxy mues up and paints on and drys to a little lighter finish which w111 blend in through the brushing of the epoxy Mr Schmidt pointed out that this is the same process used to repair retaining walls It was pomted out that the work on the curb is still on warranty so there will be no charge to the C1 ty The cost of doing the epoxy would be minimal (approxllDately $125) compared to removing and then replacing which . would cost $1,f2B2! It would not be feasible to rip out and replace The minutes should note that Meyer-Rohlin believes that the epoxy process 1S an acceptable solut10n Mr Schmidt was requested to give Meyer-Rohlm an estllDate on the repa1rB so that it can be subll1 tted to the Courts for rest 1 tut10n p.trposes Charges have been pressed against the gu1l ty party and more than hkely restitution w1ll be m order Hearmg no other CODDents, Don Comel1us made a mot10n to approve the method for correctmg the damaged curbs and Gary Schwenzfe1er seconded it All were in favor and the motion carried The Council d1scus6es the last Jomt Power's meetlIlg The Council was mformed by Gary Schwenzfeier and Don Comel1us that the Joint Power's Board had accepted Resolut10n #3 which states Resolution #3 This l'P..60Iut10n clar1f1es the mtent of the Operating and Authorization Agreement with regards to how excess funds can be spent The intent of this resolution is to assure PAGE 4 . . . that in the event that any of the four comnm1ties need to expand their trunk hne system, 1t w111 be the individual COIIII'lmities responB1bil1ty to finance the expansion Again this resolut1on reiterates the requirement that the bond holder needs to be notified of any expansion to the princ1pal system The mmutes should note that the increase went mto effect as of August 1st, 1988 ~nth each of the four conm.mit1es having approved the resolution The capping of the wells in St Michael and Albertville was d1scussed next The members of the Council were informed that the State Department of Health had order that the wells be capped since they were no longer be1Dg used by the system The Counc1l was informed that Don Klaers, City Clerk in St M1chael had stopped the work being done to cap the abandoned wells because it was h1s . opm1on that the C1ty of St Michael still owned and should be able to take the p..unps out of the well because they were the1r rightful property It was pointed out that the wells have not been used in 10 years, which has hkely resulted m the p..unps rusting out I t was questioned what the C1 ty of St M1chael would want with the old p..unps Gary and Don informed the Council that an excellent b1d had been received for d01Dg the capping and that the Board had gone ahead with the approval of the contact The Council was informed that the well lme w111 be cut 2 - 4 feet below ground level, filled with concrete, and then capped off As a vote of assurance Don Cornelius made a mot1on stating that Albertv11le agrees to allow the wells to be capped and any eX1sting PJDlP6 to be removed Bob Braun seconded th1S motion All were in favor and the motion carried The Cou.nc11 was informed that when the contractors were raising manholes they have found several shut off valves to be broken The quest10n has arisen as to who is responsible to pay for the repa1rs, the C1ty or Joint Power's? They have to be repaired because we are doing street work at the present t1.Jl1e PAGE 5 The City could ask Joint Power's to pay the repal.r cost The poll.CY 1.6 such that each City be treated equal It was pomted out that we are the . owners - they are the tenants, so who has the respoJl6l.bl.lity of repal.ring the break. It was pomted out that the City has had only two water main brP...aks in the last 20 years and that l. t would be to our advantage to not stl.r anything up The Councl.I stated that the work should be done at the Cl. ty' s expense The mmutes should note that Gary and Don will bring this issue up with the Joint Power's Board for d1.6CU6sl.on pn-poses only The Council next heard from the Maintenance Department The Cl. ty has recel.ved a re5ponse from furllngton Northern concemrng the drainage ditch by t..he ral.lroad tracks They will be out next week to look at the dl.tch Ken explamed to the Council that the drarnage ditch along Barthel Industrl.al Drl. ve and the freeway had been looked at by hl.DlSelf and a representative from MN;oor and it appears that there is 6 to 8 mches of dl.rt and silt m the ditch and culvert which is causing the water not to flow through the culvert Ken informed the Council that Meyer-Rohlin had staked the dral.nage area m a couple of different spots rot it appears to be a little h:Lgh in the center and has tall grass growing m it as well In an effort to get the water . flowing again Ken requested that he be allowed to clean the dl. tch out while it l.S dry The State has agreed to clean out the 25 to 3f2I feet of thel.r rJ..ght-of-way so the City would only be responsible for the area that l.S m our rl.ght-of-way Ken stated that if the Council agreed to clean this dral.nage ditch out that he would not be able to use the tractor because of the rough terram He stated that he could probably get Denn1.6 Fehn to bring in a roller m order to work the area Ken informed the Council that th1.6 is the fl.rst tl.D1e m 14 years that that area has been mowed down The Q:)uncl.l told Ken to go ahead and do what has to be done Ken updated the Q:)uncil on the woodchuck problem Pol.son is being Plt down m the holes and fll.e6 are now being found in and around the holes No woodchucks have been found dead rot we can only assume that they are dyrng PAGE 6 . . . . The Counc1l next was updated on the hiring of the new maintenance employee MIke Rutkowski was hired for the poei tion and will be here until next November Mike was interviewed by both Ken and Don CUt of approximately twenty appl1cants, four were qualified and three out of th06e four sa1.d No Ken CODIDented that Mike 16 dol.ng fine so far Perm1.SS10n was requested by Ken to b..ty a uaed toolbox for the pickup for $20 00 The toolbox will replace the ex16ting box and will lock The Council granted permission for the IUl'Chase of the toollx>x Ken is also asking to IUl'Chase a 3/8 mch electrical drill He has been uaing his own and doean-t want to wear it out any more than it is A cordless dr1ll from D J -s w1ll cost $45-$50 and one with a cord w1ll cost $35 There was some discussion oonceming gol.ng over the dollar amount allowed m the b..tdget It - s fine now b..tt will need to be watched in the future The prrchase of the electric drill with the cord for $35 was authorized by the Counc1l Ken mformed the Counc1l that he will be speakl.llg at the Minnesota . Wastewater Operator - s Assoc1.ation meetmg on August 4th at 10 30 a m He will be showing the growth of the City of Albertville from before 1970, from 1970 to 1980, and from 1980 to the present Thore has helped W1 th the maps and the presentation should be quite impressive The issue of "abandoned vehicles" (Junk cars) was d1sCU6sed next Maureen told the Council that Minnesota Statutes state that an abandoned vehicle is one wh1ch has been on a Plblic right of way 48 hours or longer or on private property for the same amount of t1JDe without the penussion of the property owner If it-s on the owners property it can not be deemed abandoned unless it does not operate, b..tt in that case should be stored in an enclosed area A letter prepared will be sent to the effected property owners (copy attached to Desk Copy of Mmutes) through. Certif1.ed Ma1.l A request was made to the Council to move the dump truck to Loren - shouse while the swi tch1.ng in the new rescue/equipnent van is done The new van 16 at Loren-s house now There appeared to be no problem with the request The problem with fire hydrants within the City was disCU6sed next It appears that a number of the hydrants are si ttUlg too low after construct1.on proJects are fmished In reviewing the hydrants it appears that there are PAGE 7 nine cr1 t1cal fu'e hydrants that need to be ra1Sed as SOO11 as p:>Bs1ble There .are some others that may need to be raised so that we don' t have problems in . the winter The City has 6 or 7 surplus extensions on hand More extensions have been ordered at $150 a piece The d1scussion resulted in the fact that Ken should get the criticals done soon I t was also pointed out that if an owner raises his lot, the hydrant rwst be raised also Owners should conform W1 th what the City has set forth in ordinance Di6CUBsion concernmg the Park Board minutes mcluded the fact that the minutes contained a CODJDeIlt that Ken was not maintammg the park very well Also J people rentmg the park .are complaining that 1 t 16 being left in better cornU tion than they fOlmd it Ken pointed out that he is doing the maintenance upkeep at the park He COIl'IOOllted that the paintmg is done and that the bathrooms are being cleaned on a regular bas1S He also OOIIIDellted that too many keys are out and too many people are in and out makrng messes Also, the Jaycees are not being . responsible on softball nights and the concession stand is being left a mess I t was discussed that the Jaycees should police the area thoroughly after using The Jaycees should be sent a letter signed by the Park Board stating . that either they clean up after usmg the shelter and the concession stand area or the City will keep the damage deposit J or. they will be charged if the City has to hire someone to clean up after them People have been asking about what is gomg to be done about developing the park on 51st Street It was suggested that people should go to the Park Board with their questions about park development The Counc1l was informed that the Savi tsk1 easements had been approved b..tt that we were wa1 ting for Andy' s wife to get back so that she can s~ the necessary documents Until such t1tne the C1ty w1ll hold on making the payment for the land p.u-chase The Council was also informed that the City Administrator, Engineer and Attorney had met with Don Savitski and had worked out an agreement regarding the necessary easement on his land. The Council was informed that in exchange PAGE 8 . for the easement the City would blacktop a same area along hl.s fence and would restore any areas that were disturbed durrng construction Maureen prepared a . Memo of Understanchng and is waiting for Don to brl.llg in the signed easements No actl.on was taken on these matters The Council was reminded that the informational meeting on County Ditch #9 would be held August 2nd at 8 eI2l p m at the Albertville elementary school A pay request for Latour Construction m the amount of $139.eI2l7 90 was presented by Bob Sullentrop for the work completed through. a week ago last Friday A motl.on was made by Bob Brmm and seconded by Donatus Vetsch to approve the pay request for Latour Construction m the aJOOUIlt of $139.eI2l7 90 All were in favor and the motion carried Bob updated the Council on the constructl.on work bel.llg done Latour is almost done Wl. th Westwind All that is left Wl. th the mterceptor 1.6 the force main and the valve manhole The work on Brmm's addition will be started later th1.S week. Over layment on the street maintenance W1.ll start on' Wednesday and Thursday with 56th and 57th Streets Hackeruweller's :unprovement will be done at the same t1lDe . The curbs on both sides of 57th and Main and the curb m front of the Valerius house need to be repaired This is a relatively small section to repa1.r and will cost about $10 a foot It was suggested to ask Ro1l1.e Schmidt to repa1.r these curbs also A l1.mited 3 2 beer license was requested for the Ll.on's Pig Roast coming up on August 28th Don Cornelius made a motl.on to approve the limited 3 2 beer l1.cenBe for the Lion's PJ.g Roast pending payment Gary Schwenzfeier seconded the motion All were in favor and the motion carried The income racei ved and the bills to be paid were rev1.ewed by the Counc 1. 1 Income from Franklin Oltdoor Advertisrng was questioned Franklin had missed several SJ.gll6 when making the earlier payment to the City Income from Wright Title Guarantee was also questioned Th1.S income 1.S for special assessments The check for Gold Cross Leasing was quest1.oned as to what it was for The Counc1.l was told that the check was for the p.;trchase of the new PAGE 9 . rescue/equ1J;:ment van Hearing no other questions or c.:xmnents. fun Cornelius made a motion to approve the bills Bob Braun seconded the motion All were in . favor and checks 8901 through. 8934 were paid The list of Election Judges for the Primary was included in the Council packet The f1rst trainrng session will be held 'IUesday. August 9th at 7 30 p m at the Albertville City Hall A motion was made by Bob Braun and seconded by fun Cornelius to approve the list of Election Judges A letter from Mont1cello regarding the new dog catcher was included in the packet to read Some questions concerning the letter have been raised regarding whether or not there will be continued pick up of animals in the City of Albertv111e There probably will be no changes rot Maureen w111 find out The matter was tabled until the next meeting The Counc11 next discussed the i.Bsue of extending Lor1e' s POS1 tion on the MEED 18 month contract. which i.B currently being used m the Maintenance Department The Counc11 was informed that Lorie' s 6 months would be completed on August 8th and that Maureen was requestl.llg that she be extended as soon as . possible There was some d1sCU6sion and some concern regarding whether or not there needed to be two people in the office Maureen stated that she mvl. tes the . Councl.I or anyone who thinks that there is not enough work to do to come m for a few days to see what actually gets done She asked that the Council be supportive of the work done and stand up to anyone questioning this issue There was also some discussion regarding the amount of time that it takes to get ready for meetings and do the day-to-day activit1es that it takes to operate the C1ty It was pointed out that W1thout support staff help l.t wl.ll be almost 1mposs1ble to keep up with the develo:pnent that is takmg place m the C1ty of Albertville I t was agreed that the office would be covered from 8 02J a m until 5 02J p m Wl. th staff taking staggered lunches The only time that thl.S would be different 1S m the event that there was only one person m the office After some addl. tional discussion the Council agreed to extend Lorl.e' s POSi t10n A mot1on was made by Don Cornelius and seconded by Bob Braun All PAGE 10 . were in favor and motion carried. There was some d:1scussion regarding a raise for Lorie When asked how . JDJ.Ch she would like the Council was informed that in order for her to stay on she would need about $6 f20/hour (a $2. f20 an hour ra16e) Lorie expressed her concerns to the Council on the fact that she can not maintain a family on the $4 f20 After scme additional discussion it was agreed to table this matter unt:1l the next meeting and Maureen would look at the Admm:1stration wdget to see if there are enough funds to cover this ra16e An article on the research facility planned for 1-94 was included m the packet for the Cowlcil to read '!he two lane strip paralleling the Interstate will be going out 80th Street Cbnstroction w:1ll begin in 1989 on the test center This will be an interesting project to p.tl'6ue further as developnent occurs Loren Kohnen, the City" s wilding inspector was present to COIIIllent on the Custom Canopy wilding site Two Stop Work orders have been issued as of right now If construction stops for 6 JOOnths, the permit is null and void A new . perm:1t, new specs, site plan. ete is necessary before oonstroction can be resumed Custom Canopy has received phone calls from Loren askl.Ilg that the area be . at least cleaned up in order to look better The mess is not a good image for the City A letter will be sent asking Custom Canopy to please COIl\Ply with what the wilding inspector is asking for The Cowlcil was informed that a canpany called First Coach Cbrporat:1on 16 interested in leasing the MAT Plqlerties wilding for the purpose of doina light assembly (van conversions) of Dodge Caravans to be used as equipnen.t vehicles for the undertaking industry as well as selling hearses and limousmes for funeral homes The firm had inquued whether or not they would be allowed to store limited number of veh:1cles outside in the event that they were short of storage in the wilding The Cowlc:1l was informed that in checking with David L:1cht, he has indicated that since the City"s Zoning Ordinance does not state anyth:mg about the sale of vehicles and/or outdoor storage of the same that the City should assume that :1 t is not allowable without a conditional use permit He has PAGE 11 . suggested if the City is interested in allowing this b..1siness to come to town that the owners should request a TEXT AMENll1ENT to the ordinance as well as . make application for a conditional use permit to operate the b..1siness m the City limits There was some di6CU6sion about what types of improvements the owners were planning to do to the l:uilding and it appears that they are looking at making office spaces in the front of the l:uilding and w111 use the rest of the l:uilding for storage In addition. they plan on upgradmg the parkmg lot with blacktop and will be providmg some screening around the property The Council in<hcated the1r interest and agreed to hold a Joint wblic hearmg w1th the Planning Coumission on August 25. 1988 to d1SCU6S and rule on the proposal pendmg the C1ty getting some plans for the area prior t..o the meeting No other action was taken A list of the l:ul.lding permits. numbers 13 through. 37. were reviewed by the Counc11 I t was pointed out that the Vogel permit had been red tagged because work was done W1 thout a permit fun Cornelius made a mot10n to approve . wildmg penn ts 13 through 37 pending payment Donatus Vetsch seconded this motion All were m favor and the motion carried A C01I'IDellt was made that with all the developnent going on m Albertv11le . that the fuildmg Inspector should be watching carefully for shortcuts The City would like to see only qual1ty work done in the construction going on The Council was informed that the Planning Coumission had approved the Carl Welter request for a lot sul:xhvision and that 1t needed final approval from the Counc11 Donatus Vetsch made a motion to approve the lot sub::liv1sion for the Car I Welter property fun Cornelius seconded the mot1on All were m favor and the motion carried The Council was :reminded that a jomt meeting W1 th the the Planning Coum1ssion to review Subdivision Regulations will be August 11th at 7 f20 p m at City Hall A member of the Council requested that a certif1cate of OCCUPanCY be reqU1red for new residences and for new b..1sinesses for every use Loren informed the Counc1l that the State wilding code currently requires this PAGE 12 . The Park fuard minutes were, unfortunately, quite unreadable They were read by Maureen for the Council's l:lenefl.t . The SherIff's report was mcluded in the Councl.l packet for the Councl.l's reVlew Loren asked to address the Councl.l regarding the lssue of growth that the City is currently experlencing He stated that the Admmlstrati ve staff has been helpful to hl.S PeOple and is sure that the other professlonal staff feels the same way He states that havl.llg someone aval.1able to take care of the thl.ngs that come up makes everyone's job a 11 ttle eaBler Hearrng no other ccmnents, a motion to adJourn was made by Gary Schwenzfeler and seconded by Ihn Cornelius to adJourn the meetl.ng All were in fav0r and the meetl.llg adJourned '--fYl~ ~ Q;~ . PAGE 13 .