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2015-01-05 City Council MinutesA&crtvi j je *- �.fta ALBERTVILLE CITY COUNCIL Monday, January 5, 2015 APPROVED MINUTES ALBERTVILLE CITY HALL 1. CALL TO ORDER - PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Mayor Hendrickson called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. 2. ROLL CALL 7:00 PM Present: Mayor Hendrickson and Council members Hudson, Olson, Sorensen, and Vetsch Absent: None Others Present: City Administrator -PWD Adam Nafstad, City Attorney Mike Couri, City Planner Al Brixius, City Clerk Kimberly Olson, Finance Director Tina Lannes, and Water /Wastewater Supervisor John Middendorf 3. RECOGNITIONS — PRESENTATIONS — INTRODUCTIONS A. Oath of Office: Mayor Hendrickson and Council members Hudson and Olson Clerk Olson administered the oath of office to Mayor Hendrickson and Council members Hudson and Olson. 4. PUBLIC FORUM — (time reserved 5 minutes) 5. AMENDMENTS TO THE AGENDA 6. CONSENT AGENDA All items under the Consent Agenda are considered to be routine by the City staff and will be enacted by one motion. In the event an item is pulled, it will be discussed in the order it is listed on the Consent agenda following the approval of the remaining Consent items. These items will be approved by a separate motion. A. Approve the December 15, 2014 regular City Council meeting minutes as presented B. Authorize the Monday, January 5, 2015 payment of claims as presented, except bills specifically pulled which are passed by separate motion. The claims listing has been provided to City Council as a separate document and is available for public view at City Hall upon request Page 1 7. PUBLIC HEARINGS — None 8. DEPARTMENT BUSINESS A. City Council 1). Committee Updates (STMA Ice Arena, Planning, JPWB, Parks, Fire Board, etc.) There were no updates. 2). Interviews for Planning Commission Update Hendrickson updated the Council on the interviews that occurred prior to the meeting. The Personnel Committee interviewed four candidates for the two vacancies on the commission. The Personnel Committee recommended appointing Ron Klecker to a term with one year remaining and Jeremy Dominick to a full three year term. Since there is also a vacancy on the Parks Committee, they inquired of the two remaining candidates of their interest to possibly serve on the Parks Committee. Both indicated their interest and Hendrickson stated the Personnel Committee suggested appointing Brad Cedergren to the Parks Committee. Council discussed the structure of the Parks Committee and Couri stated they had removed that section from the City Code many years ago, but it may be worth defining the Parks Committee structure in the current Code. Brixius stated the item on tonight's agenda is specific to the Planning Commission and if Council is supportive of the recommendations, staff will bring a formal resolution to the next meeting. Vetsch indicated his interest to open the Parks Committee vacancy to others in the community. After further discussion of the City Council, the Council directed staff to advertise the Parks Committee vacancy due to the fact that the only vacancy advertised was specific to the Planning Commission. 3). Firefighter Recognition Policy Vetsch inquired if there is a written policy followed when a member of the Fire Department retires. Nafstad stated he believes there is no formal policy, but understands general practice has been to give a retiring member with at least twenty years of service a party and a plaque. Nafstad reported the Fire Chief did not recall anyone receiving a plaque with less than twenty years of service. Olson inquired if there is a policy for City employees. Lannes stated there is not and City funds cannot be used for a party. Sorensen stated firefighters are presented with years of service pins and plaques, but that is a different issue. Hendrickson stated a written policy for retirements could be discussed by the Membership if desired. B. Public Works/Engineering 1). Utilities Department Report Page 2 City Council Meeting Minutes Regular Meeting of January 5, 2015 Middendorf reported on the activity of the department for the year and as yet there have been no water main breaks. He also updated the Council on the progress and success of the meter reading program C. Finance 1). Enterprise Budgets Lannes reviewed the enterprise budgets. She stated that the wastewater fund is projected to have a negative balance, but is getting to where it needs to be. She stated the water fund is similarly going in the right direction as well. Lannes stated the stormwater fund does not have a dollar a year increase on the monthly base fee such as the water and wastewater funds do. However, she did not recommend increasing the stormwater fund given some assessments will be dropping off and the fund is improving. Lannes stated there are two more years of the dollar increase on the monthly base fees for sewer and water and that should be re- evaluated when those are finished. Lannes stated that the water fund is difficult to predict as residents have become more conservative with their water consumption and they also cannot predict when they will experience a rainy season. Nafstad stated the City's financial consultant has recommended a water rate study, but with the annual rate increases the City has felt it is best to wait. D. City Clerk 1). Set 2015 Fee Schedule Clerk Olson reported there have been no changes to the Joint Powers Water Board fees or to the fees for room rentals. She stated they standardized the fee for Mobile Food Units to a one -time annual fee of $75 rather than a per day fee. The remaining changes were fees regarding Building Permits. It was the recommendation of the City's Building Official to raise the flat fee permits of $25 to $50. Nafstad clarified this was changed to cover the cost of a single inspection and to also align similarly to fees charged in surrounding communities. Nafstad stated they added fees for existing mechanical and plumbing commercial permits to the schedule and it should be changed to read as a valuation based fee, minimum being $125. Nafstad stated that a processing fee of $35 to verify gas fitter contractor licensing, bonding, etc. was also added. This is driven by the MN Department of Labor and Industry. He reported this would be an annual one -time fee. He stated they also added a $5 contractor verification fee and this would only be charged if the contractor does not provide the documentation at the time of permit application and staff is required to obtain their information. Vetsch stated that some residents do not pull building permits and an increase in fees could cause more to not pull building permits. Vetsch had concerns about increased fees affecting local businesses. Page 3 City Council Meeting Minutes Regular Meeting of January 5, 2015 Hendrickson stated she would like to see costs covered and Nafstad stated they are currently not being covered and even with the increase, costs will not be covered by fees. Vetsch stated that this is a service the City should provide. Hudson stated that if the cost isn't being covered by fees, the balance of the cost goes to the general taxpayer to cover the cost of insuring that inspections are done. He stated that it appears they are sliding the cost ratio to more of a 50 -50 percentage. Council discussed the process of weed elimination and the complaint policy. Couri stated there are specific species of noxious weeds the City can eliminate by spraying; however, dandelions are not considered a noxious weed. He did not recommend the use and spraying of chemicals to eliminate dandelions on residential and commercial property. Council discussed the special meeting fee. Nafstad clarified that could apply to both the Planning Commission and City Council. Lannes stated the special meeting fee has generally been waived by the City Council. Sorensen was supportive of the fee changes, so long as they are in line with surrounding communities. Hudson inquired if there would be any consequences if the fees were not changed. Nafstad replied there would not be, but the fees would help the Building Official implement and improve the permit process. Nafstad clarified permits and inspections would still occur just as they have. Motioned by Sorensen, seconded by Hendrickson, to approve Resolution No. 2015 -001 entitled a Resolution Setting 2015 Fees. Ayes: Hendrickson, Hudson, Olson, Sorensen, and Vetsch. Nays: None. Absent. None. MOTIONDECLARED CARRIED. E. Planning /Zoning —None F. Building — None G. Legal —None H. Administration 1). Board and Committee Appointments Nafstad reported he had minor amendments to the resolution before Council. He added Vetsch as an alternate for the Beyond the Yellow Ribbon Committee, changed the alternate for FYCC from Hudson to Hendrickson, added Hudson to the Planning Commission with Olson as an alternate, changed the alternate for the Public Safety Committee from previous Council member Wagner to Hudson, and added Vetsch to the STMA Ice Arena Board and removed Olson. Council discussed the frequency and timing of the board and committee meetings and their available schedules. Page 4 City Council Meeting Minutes Regular Meeting of January 5, 2015 Motioned by Hendrickson, seconded by Hudson, to approve Resolution 2015 -002 with minor changes appointing City Council members to various boards and committees for 2015. Ayes: Hendrickson, Hudson, Olson, Sorensen, and Vetsch. Nays: None. Absent: None. MOTIONDECLARED CARRIED. 2). City Administrator's Update Nafstad reported there is a Wright County Forum regarding the dangers of addiction on January 22, 2015. Nafstad stated Larkin Hoffman will be pursuing a height variance for the Steve Nelson billboard located at 11200 60th Street NE. Brixius stated they needed to look at all options for the site and if they do pursue the variance, they will need to demonstrate the reasons for the variance. He also had concerns if a building will be built on the site. He suggested Larkin Hoffman and Steve Nelson meet with staff for a pre - application meeting. Brixius stated the need for a variance must be proven to be unique to the site. 9. ANNOUNCEMENTS AND /OR UPCOMING MEETINGS January 12 January 13 January 19 January 20 January 26 February 2 February 9 February 10 February 16 February 17 February 23 10. ADJOURNMENT STMA Ice Arena Board, 6:00 p.m. Planning Commission, 7:00 p.m. - CANCELLED Martin Luther King Jr. Day, City Offices Closed City Council, 7:00 p.m. Joint Powers Water Board, 6:30 p.m. Parks Committee, 8:00 p.m. City Council, 7:00 p.m. STMA Ice Arena Board, 6:00 p.m. Planning Commission, 7:00 p.m. Presidents' Day, City Offices Closed City Council, 7:00 p.m. Joint Powers Water Board, 6:30 p.m. Parks Committee, 8:00 p.m. Motioned by Vetsch, seconded by Hendrickson, to adjourn the meeting at 8:26 p.m. Ayes: Hendrickson, Hudson, Olson, Sorensen, and Vetsch. Nays: None. Absent: None. MOTION DECLARED CARRIED. Resp ctfully submitted, Kimber A. Olson, City Clerk City Council Meeting Minutes Page 5 Regular Meeting of January 5, 2015