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2007-11-19 CC Minutes Special ~ A.l~~!!~Jl~ ALBERTVILLE CITY COUNCIL November 19, 2007 COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE MINUTES Albertville City Hall 9:47 PM PRESENT: Mayor Ron Klecker, Council members John Vetsch, LeRoy Berning, Dan Wagner, and Tom Fay, City Attorney Mike Couri, and City Administrator Kruse ABSENT: none Mayor Klecker re-convened the regular Albertville City Council meeting to order at 9:40 p.m. following a short recess for the purpose to conduct performance reviews of the City Administrator and City Attorney. Minutes of the Committee of the Whole of the Albertville City Council, November 19,2007. The Council convened the committee ofthe whole at 9:47 p.m. The first item on the agenda was a performance review of City Administrator Larry Kruse. City Attorney Couri advised the committee that the meeting must remain closed unless Mr. Kruse requested that it be open. Mr. Kruse requested that the meeting remain open. Attached is a 2007 summary of activities and goals City Administrator Kruse shared with the City Council, which they chose to use as a guide for City Administrator Kruse's review. Following this information, City Attorney Couri summarized the Council's comments. M:\Public Data\City Council\Council Minutes\2007 Minutes\M 11-19-07 Final Continuation Minutes.doc City of Albertville Committee of the Whole Minutes November 19, 2007 Page20f11 ~ ~~~r.t'!.iJL€ Date: November 1,2007 To: Mayor and City Council From: Larry R. Kruse, City Administrator Re: Annual Review Dear Mayor and City Council, The following is a little synopsis of 2007 that might assist you as you reflect on my past performance this year. I believe my success is measured by the performance ofthe collective Albertville team. More and more, I realize how interconnected we are in our activities and my success depends you and mytearnmates. For the most part, 2007 has been a challenging and good year. Following my report is an evaluation form for you to complete for my review following Monday night's Council meeting. To start on a personal level, I completed my Masters of Business Management Degree from St. Scholastica in 2007. This is something I have been working on for several years and feel really good to have successfully finished the program. This program has in recent years been the cornerstone of my professional development. 1) NEW CITY HALL A significant accomplishment was completion of City Hall and the orderly transition to the new building. A high level of customer service was maintained throughout the relocation. Advanced planning to electronically scan most of the Building Department files in advance of the move worked very well. Coinciding with the move, we implemented point of sale which allows the City to accept credit cards and direct payment from bank accounts. Implementation of the voice over IP phone system and use of new technology went quite well. Implementation of our City Hall rental protocols was successful and pretty well accepted. 2) COMMUNITY COMMUNICATION I consider our communication to the public about average this year. Our City newsletter and website are meeting the basic needs of our residents; however, there is much improvement yet to be accomplished. Development of the newsletter, website and other mailings is a group effort from all Departments with City Clerk Miller leading the charge. These communication M:\Public Data\City Council\Council Minutes\2007 Minutes\M 11-19-07 Final Continuation Minutes.doc City of Albertville Committee of the Whole Minutes November 19, 2007 Page 3 of 11 efforts are squeezed into busy work schedules and can at times get delayed or pushed back as other matters are pressing. We have been doing pretty well submitting bi-weekly articles to the newspaper. Bi-weekly assignments are carried out by various departments to make sure the paper has something from Albertville. 3) COUNCIL COMMUNICATION I have been working with Mayor Klecker to try and provide the Council clear, concise information, with options and choices to make your jobs easier. Implementation of the "Committee of the Whole" is new, which provides the Council and staff an opportunity to discuss and work through issues, many of which can then be on future consent agendas. This effort has helped all of our staff to better think through and anticipate the questions and needs of the Council. I realize getting familiar with new ways can be a challenge. I appreciate your patience as we work together to learn what works for the Council as a whole. 4) INTER-GOVERNMENTAL COOPERATION It seems we are making some progress building a better relationship with Wright County. The County Commissioners have also been trying to make an effort; however they have been primarily focused on the new jail. At the staff level, we work well with the Highway Department, Information Systems (IT) Department, County Auditor, Recorder and Sheriffs Department. In 2007 we had our first season of contracting with Wright County for salt and sand. It was good to hear our employees say "those County workers aren't too bad after all." There appears to be a cooperative spirit to develop the relationship. Our relationship with Otsego has improved and I believe the majority of both City Councils would agree with that statement. I believe our relationship with St. Michael has digressed this past year over the Main Street! Albert Villas Pond issue. Hopefully, time will heal some of these wounds. 5) COMMUNITY BEAUTIFICATION AND ORDINANCE ENFORCEMENT Staff has made it a priority to try and keep up on long grass, weeds, junk cars, signs and other zoning issues. These projects are a team effort with everyone participating in identifying problems, writing letters, and following up on compliance. Even on weekends, our staff is picking up signs in the right-of-way. 6) EMPLOYEE RECRUITMENT, EVALUATION, TRAINING AND ADVANCEMENT I am very proud that all of our employees have grown and become much more proficient at their job duties. Each and every one of our employees is growing and getting better all the time. Although our investment in training and education is quite small, I believe it is paying dividends. I thank the City Council for your support in encouraging their increased professionalism M:\Public Data\City Council\Council Minutes\2007 Minutes\M 11-19-07 Final Continuation Minutes.doc City of Albertville Committee of the Whole Minutes November 19,2007 Page 4 of 11 7) UTILITY OPERATIONS Our water, sewer and stormsewer operations have improved significantly over the past couple years. The Office staff work very closely with John Middendorf and his crew. Installation of remote reading units has continued, although at a slower pace due to the fact that we were short one employee this past year. You can be assured that staff is monitoring bi-monthly payments and turning accounts off when needed. Our staff is friendly, accommodating and yet firm in making sure payments are timely. I often see interdepartmental cooperation, whereby the Building Official, Public Works, Fire Department, and Utilities are all working together to problem solve and get things done. 8) PUBLIC WORKS OPERATIONS Public Works Supervisor Guimont and his crew have really done a good job this year. As you may know, we were short summer help throughout the year. Besides their normal duties, the crew did a great job of mowing lots, cleaning up old silt fences, removing junk and garbage, while keeping up on all of their other duties. On weekends when they are on call, they pick up signs in the right-of-way. Thanks to the Council for purchasing the new snow plow truck, mower and other equipment making our crews much more efficient and productive. The looks of the parks and ball fields is a good testament to their pride and ownership in the facilities. The Public Works crew has been very helpful setting up tables , and chairs for meetings and other maintenance duties. 9) CITY FINANCES The City is financially healthy and strong. Our debt has been structured well and our staff is on top of project management and collection of receivables. We continue to run a very lean operation while managing a significant amount of growth and development. Finance Director Lannes and her department continue to grow professionally. Her recent absence on maternity leave makes us all appreciate her more then ever. Her computer and technology abilities are a valuable resource. She has done a good job of training her staff so they can act independently when she is not here. This was well tested during Tina's absence. Albeit Building Department revenues are down, staffhas been vigilant in curbing expenses where possible. 10) CITY CLERK AND CODIFICATION OF THE ORDINANCE City Clerk Bridget Miller has met and exceeded my expectations this past year. Her dedication and desire to master the requirements of the Clerk's position has been very evident. Bridget has been instrumental in maintaining the Codified City Code. Although this was actually adopted in 2005, she has continually worked to improve and update the City code. More and more people are seeking Bridget out as a source of information. 11) BUILDING AND ZONING DEPARTMENT Building Official Sutherland has been instrumental in promoting interdepartmental review for some time now. Often it is easier for a department to focus on their own work and ignore M:\Public Data\City Council\Council Minutes\2007 Minutes\M 11-19-07 Final Continuation Minutes.doc City of Albertville Committee of the Whole Minutes November 19,2007 Page 5 of 11 other problems. Jon's holistic view is important to the City. Jon has many years of good experience and is an important part of making our team better. Jon's involvement assisting the Fire Department with their pilot Fire Inspection Program is a good example of his sincere interest to make the City of Albertville a more professional organization. 12) HUMAN RESOURCES We updated out Personnel Policy this past year. Performance evaluations are in the process of being done in November. City personnel and fire department members were trained in sexual harassment, respectful workplace and National Incident Management System (NIMS). 13) ANIMAL CONTROL In 2007, we had some problems with dangerous dogs and we were quite unhappy with Monticello animal control. For a long time we had a difficult time even setting up a meeting to discuss it. Finally, we were able to meet and work out a number of issues. Today, things are going much better. 14) CAPITAL PROJECTS Major projects include the CSAH 19 South Project, 520d Street, Winter Park, Albert Villas Storm water Pond, and Phil Morris Lift Station. Lachman Avenue and the City Hall South Parking lot are to be completed yet this fall. The Albert Villas Pond and CSAH 19 were controversial when dealing with assessments, but the rest ofthe project went very smoothly. Once again there is a team effort from beginning to end and everyone should feel good how smoothly these projects went. The City completed the acquisitions ofthe Knecht! right-of-way, Lachman Avenue right-of- way and the railroad property this year. All three have been ongoing for some time and were big challenges. 15) CONSULTANTS WORKING RELATIONSHIP In 2007, our staff and consultants worked together very well. I hope the Council noticed that work product being brought forward has been very professional, complete and accurate. I believe the clear expectations of presenting recommendations and information in advance has been evident and helpful. In 2007, all of our consultants have started some regular office hours whereby staffhas an opportunity to work through issues and get their undivided attention. These regular hours are not an additional cost, as these were hours already paid for with them doing work back at their offices. 16) ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTIREDEVELOPMENT I would classify 2007 as a slower year for economic development. The Development of the . five lots in the Industrial Park is a positive step in being prepared for next year. Fraser Steel's planned expansion is probably the most notable development project that will create some new goodjobs. Winkelman's Downtown Redevelopment project was slowed by the M:\Public Data\City Council\Council Minutes\2007 Minutes\M 11-19-07 Final Continuation Minutes.doc City of Albertville Committee of the Whole Minutes November 19,2007 Page 6 of 11 economy and hopefully it will go forward next year. A significant amount of time was spent on downtown parking issues involving the railroad property. 2008 Goals (List, and narrate. Provide target dates for accomplishing various tasks and list how you measure your success.) 1) Host a goal setting session/retreat to set Council goals. 2) 1-94 Interchange: Continue lobbying for funds, acquisition of the remaining right-of- way and possibly pursue some final design. 3) Arena Land: Pursue acquisition of the Barthel property for a second ice sheet. 4) Transportation Improvements: Seek Wright County and Otsego participation to schedule and fund a CSAH 19 north project in 2010. . 5) Economic Development: Promote sale of our Industrial Lots. 6) Human Resources a. Professional Development and Training: Continue to mentor and work with all employees to promote and grow skills and professionalism. b. Update job descriptions. c. Continued training on sexual harassment and employee safety. 7) Lease 5975 Main Building. 8) Update the website; continue the bi-monthly newsletter and submitting articles to the newspaper. 9) Complete the Comprehensive Financial Audit Report. 10) Host Brown Bag Lunch or other forum End of City Administrator Kruse's submittal and the following are the Council's comments: NEW CITY HALL Larry - Council to be commended for taking the long-term approach and working with the public. LeRoy - Went well, but don't fill it up to soon. Keep working on efficiencies; keep City Hall rental affordable and accessible to the public; could see better, more professional signs inside City Hall that would direct people where they need to go within the facility. John - Wants groups that fit into the community to able to use the City Hall. Mayor - Good cooperative effort in building City Hall and it is well used by the public. COMMUNITY COMMUNICATIONS Larry - Could improve here. Weare getting articles in the newspaper. M:\Public Data\City Counci1\Council Minutes\2007 Minutes\M 11-19-07 Final Continuation Minutes.doc City of Albertville Committee of the Whole Minutes November 19,2007 Page 7 of 11 LeRoy - Good newsletter, could use more "do's and don'ts" to public; could be used more for economic development to get more businesses in the city. Tom - Publication every other month is fine but could use more often if we have news of interest to the public. LeRoy - Could publish more often with events going on and articles from other community groups. Larry - That would require a large City staff effort and bleeds over into issues covered by the local newspaper. Mayor - Likes the newsletter and wants to see it at regular intervals - can use it for employee recognition. Leroy - Should also use it to inform the public of new businesses locating in town. COUNCIL COMMUNICATIONS Larry thought the Committee of the Whole meetings offer better discussion opportunities. Dan stated that the Committee of the Whole meetings are a good idea. Tom thought that the meetings are still too long with the Committee ofthe Whole. Mayor - He should shorten discussions at meetings. LeRoy - Doesn't like new agenda and packet wants more detail in packet, particularly elevations and plat detail and maps. RCA's generate more paper than is needed. The old packets had more detail. The Council should have information ahead of time rather than presented at the meeting. LeRoy believes there are too many supplements at Council meeting in addition to the mailed agenda and too many items on consent that should be discussed. Johnny - More discussion is good as it catches mistakes and keeps everyone honest and open. The time a meeting takes is necessary to make good decisions. Mayor - Wants more frequent updates and information about new businesses and developments in the City so he is not surprised byhearing it on the street first. LeRoy - Consultant updates seem to be more timely than when they first started appearing on the agenda. Johnny - Would also like to be informed of issues as they arise (floods, Lachman cost overruns, etc.). M:\Public Data\City Council\Council Minutes\2007 Minutes\M 11-19-07 Final Continuation Minutes.doc City of Albertville Committee of the Whole Minutes November 19, 2007 Page 8 of 11 INTERGOVERNMENTAL COOPERATION Larry - County, cities and school are just beginning to work together. Things are getting better with Otsego. It was a tough year for relations with St. Michael due to Main Avenue (Street) and Albert Villas pond issues. Larry has pulled back from St. Michael as a result of these issues. LeRoy - Very important that we have somebody at Wright County Board meetings and transportation committee meetings to monitor and advocate on transportation issues. County Board needs to know our needs on roads. COMMUNITY BEAUTIFICATION AND ORDINANCE ENFORCEMENT Larry - Staff policy is to address ordinance violations as we get complaints. -Good progress on signs -Good results on general Ordinance enforcement. -Try to head off problems before they get too big. Mayor - Grass cutting is good; LaBeaux Station could be better. The Mayor doesn't like the fact that City employees are in the lawn care business, but there may not be an alternative at this time. Commercial properties should get more ordinance enforcement attention. LeRoy - Timeliness of some of the stuff is not right. For example, Geez Bar was issued a stop work order when we were negotiating with them on other things- we should use a less formal approach (talk to the owner in person before we cite them for a violation). Johnny - Agrees with Leroy's concerns. Emolovee Recruitment Larry - Employees are doing a great job- employees are growing in their jobs. LeRoy - Need to get more creative and flexible with our employees in anticipation oftighter budgets in the future given the impact of the housing downturn. UTILITY OPERATIONS Larry - Sean VoId's absence had to be worked around and created some problems in public works. Utility billing and shut off coordination works well with office staff and field crews. PUBLIC WORKS Larry - Public Works does a good job even with personnel shortage - good equipment helps. CITY FINANCES Larry - Finance Director helps a lot. Many goals for the future in finance areas and Finance Director is working toward these goals. M:\Public Data\City Council\Council Minutes\2007 Minutes\M 11-19-07 Final Continuation Minutes.doc City of Albertville Committee of the Whole Minutes November 19,2007 Page 9 of 11 LeRoy - Larry should take the lead in cutting the budget where it can be cut. Economy is tough for businesses in Albertville and the City should be in tune with this. CITY CLERK/CODIFICATION Larry - Clerk's position has gotten stronger. BUILDING AND ZONING Larry - Better interdepartmental cooperation; excellent management of department in a down year. Tom - What are building departments priorities? Plan review? Inspections? Code enforcement? Tom thinks plan review and inspection should be first, code enforcement should be secondary. LeRoy - Need more concise presentations from building department at City Council meetings. HUMAN RESOURCES Larry - Need to update job descriptions. LeRoy - Wants better fire department job descriptions and better administrative procedures and more background on why fire department personnel decisions and recommendations are made. More fire department oversight would be good. Johnny - Fire department need to be more accountable to City Council. LeRoy - Wants three fire chief candidates with recommendations from fire department. LeRoy - Wants Larry to take a more active roll in working with and organizing the fire department personnel. Larry - Fire department is well run with few complaints from anyone. Mayor - Fire department has a good reputation and does well in the community. Animal Control Not much happening here. Capital Projects Larry - Good progress this year. M:\Public Data\City Council\Council Minutes\2007 Minutes\M 11-19-07 Final Continuation Minutes.doc City of Albertville Committee of the Whole Minutes November 19, 2007 Page 10 of 11 CONSULTANTS Larry - Works well to have consultants with office hours at City Hall during the week. Good coordination between consultants and staff. Johnny - Didn't like the communication on Lachman soils and cost overrun issue. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT Larry - Not able to devote a lot of time to this given the projects that occurred this year- not aggressive enough on industrial, but pretty responsive on commercial. LeRoy - We should be more active- St. Michael is getting new buildings and jobs- are we marketing effectively to get these businesses? OVERALL Mayor appreciates the help Larry gives to him. Mayor doesn't want to assign a specific rating, would prefer to talk through issues as occurred at this meeting. . John - Things are going well. Wanted Larry to take a firmer stand on Main Street/St. Michael issue. Johnny wants the City to treat its residents and businesses fairly- doesn't want to take advantage of anyone. CITY ATTORNEY MIKE COURI'S PERFORMANCE REVIEW 11:00 pm. to 11:35 pm. With the following minutes recorded by City Administrator Kruse. The City Council expressed their appreciation for City Attorney Couri's services stating that he is the longest tenured consultant having been with the City for sixteen (16) years. Council member Berning complimented Couri stating that he appreciates his expertise and especially the way he presents and responds to the residents and developers at public hearings. Council member Wagner stated he appreciates Mike's short concise answers to his many questions and that he finds Mike to be a wealth of good advice and information. Council member Fay and Vetsch said that they agreed with the previous comments. Mayor Klecker also agreed with those positive comments stating Mike does a good job responding to legal issues at Council meetings and overall providing good legal advice. More specifically, Mayor Klecker complimented all the consultants and the City Administrator for bearing the brunt of dealing with questions at some more challenging assessment hearings. Council member Berning would like less paperwork handed out at a meeting. The substitutes provided at meetings when Mike cannot attend are not as good nor as knowledgeable as Mike. City Attorney Couri said he too appreciates the long term relationship with the Albertville Council and that many cities do not operate as smoothly as Albertville. Couri gave credit to the M:\Public Data\City Council\Council Minutes\2007 Minutes\M 11-19-07 Final Continuation Minutes.doc City of Albertville Committee of the Whole Minutes November 19,2007 Page 11 of 11 City Council for giving staff clear direction on the Council's expectations for development. This allows staff to meet with Developers and give some pretty directed advice on what will be successful. Couri stated that Albertville is very busy and that he has found it very helpful to have regular office hours at City Hall each Thursday. These regular hours give him a chance to network with staff/consultants; work through issues, and have access to records. At first he was hesitant when the idea was first suggested by City Administrator Kruse, but now looks forward to the opportunity each week to focus on Albertville's legal work. The Council mentioned that in Mike's absence, his replacements don't appear to be up to speed on issues. Couri apologized, stating that when Albertville's meetings get shifted from Monday Holidays to Tuesday, he has other commitments that take him away. City Attorney Couri stated that he tries to review the agenda items prior to the meeting and that Kyle and others do not get to spend much time on Albertville's legal work, thus it is a little difficult for them to jump in. Mike said that is something he will work on to delegate some more duties and do his best to review legal matters with them prior to attending meetings. City Administrator Kruse stated he too appreciates Mike hard work and professionalism. Kruse felt that Mike's regular office hours was helpful to staff and very productive for Mike and other consultants. Kruse thanked City Attorney Couri for his efforts to submit work product for council packets in a timely manner for Council packets. Further, Kruse said that all of the staff and consultants have work very well together, which is driven by the Council's high expectations. MOTION BY Council member Berning, seconded by Council member Wagner to adjourn the City Council meeting at 11 :35 p.m. Motion carried unanimously. V)~ ;j(~~ Ron Klecker, Mayor M:\Public Data\City Council\Council Minutes\2007 Minutes\M 11-19-07 Final Continuation Minutes.doc