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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council - 01/21/2020 - Workshop APPROVED MINUTES CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP & OPEN PODIUM TUESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2020 CITY CENTER 5:00 – 6:25 PM, HERITAGE ROOMS 6:30 – 7:00 PM, COUNCIL CHAMBER CITY COUNCIL: Mayor Ron Case, Council Members Brad Aho, Kathy Nelson, Mark Freiberg, and PG Narayanan CITY STAFF: City Manager Rick Getschow, Police Chief Greg Weber, Fire Chief Scott Gerber, Public Works Director Robert Ellis, Community Development Director Janet Jeremiah, Parks and Recreation Director Jay Lotthammer, Administrative Services/HR Director Alecia Rose, Communications Manager Joyce Lorenz, City Attorney Maggie Neuville, and Recorder Katie O’Connor CITY STAFF: Workshop - Heritage Rooms I and II (5:30) I. COMMISSION WORK PLANS A. CONSERVATION COMMISSION Acting Mayor Aho called the workshop to order. Absent from the workshop was Mayor Case. Anna Anderson, Conservation Commission Chair, presented their 2019 accomplishments. In 2019, the Commission staffed the Chamber of Commerce Home and Garden Expo, the Arbor Day Green Fair, and the Minnesota State Fair Eco Experience booths. At the booths there were discussions of energy and water use reduction, Home Energy Squad, smart irrigation, energy efficient ice arenas, and hybrid electric utility trucks. The Commission also participated in the City Park Clean Up Day. Commission Members provided input and support for the Climate Action Plan, a workshop with students, Sustainable Eden Prairie Awards, Energy Action Plan, and participation in the Metro-wide Environmental Commission Meeting. They participated in opportunities to learn such as researching Climate Action Plans, touring the water treatment plant, and holding a joint meeting with Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission. The Commission continues to maintain many partnerships, and would like to consider ways to continue partnering with previous Sustainable Eden Prairie Awardees. Anderson provided an overview of 2020 goals. The Commission plans to continue with current events, with the addition of Schooner Days parade, 4th of July Celebration, and City-wide Open House, and focus on zero-waste or reduced-waste. The Commission worked on providing educational materials for a kiosk at the Eden Prairie Center for temporarily display. They will continue to contribute to support City Council Workshop Minutes January 21, 2020 Page 2 Sustainable Eden Prairie, the Solid Waste Management Plan, and the Climate Action Plan. Their priority is to learn more by taking tours of Fire Station 2, Eden Gardens, Elim Shores, and People Reaching Out to People (PROP’s) food waste reduction. They also plan to hold joint meetings with other Commissions, check in with Sustainable Eden Prairie Award winners, and encourage partnerships. Freiberg inquired what the difference is from cities that are considered ahead of Eden Prairie’s initiatives. Anderson responded there is more participation with subcommittees and volunteers. Some cities move forward more quickly and are quick to adapt new procedures. Aho added the Council would support the Commission utilizing volunteers if they have a specific project. Narayanan encouraged the Commission to consider what goals they could achieve if they utilize volunteers. He inquired if there are any aspects the City is lacking in conservation. Anderson commented the Climate Action Plan was one of the major topics of interest for Commission Members. Nelson commented other topics of interest are organics management and providing education about lake shore maintenance. Aho inquired if the Commission has met with the watershed district. Anderson stated members of the Commission have met with them but not formally at a Commission meeting. B. FLYING CLOUD AIRPORT ADVISORY COMMISSION Keith Tschohl, Flying Cloud Airport Advisory Commission Chair, and Bob Barker, Vice Chair, presented an overview of the Commission’s 2019 accomplishments and 2020 goals. In attendance was Blaine Peterson, Metropolitan Airports Commission (MAC) Airport Manager, and Jennifer Lewis, MAC representative from the stakeholder engagement office. Last year the Commission advised on operational changes at the airport, including activity related to the 2019 Final Four tournament. The Commission received updates on Ordinance 97 violations, and they continue to engage with constituent groups who attend Commission meetings. Commission Members attended open house events at the new airport viewing area. In 2019, specific Commission goals were to look at the development in law changes and regulations regarding drones. Mobile and web-based applications are now an available option to obtain authorization through Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability (LAANC). Airspace of about four nautical miles, centered over the airport, requires authorization. There is a possibility of seeking authorization for fixed sites. Nelson stated she assumes this is more of an issue for the larger groups and frequent users. Tschohl responded hobby groups are very familiar with the law. Aho added this allows hobbyists such as real estate agents to photograph properties or to do their job more easily. Freiberg inquired about Amazon delivery and how commercial permits are handled. Tschohl responded the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) published an article about the desire to expand of the law. The hobbyists could become frustrated over commercial traffic and less availability for their use. City Council Workshop Minutes January 21, 2020 Page 3 Narayanan inquired how this information is provided to residents. Tschohl commented the City website provides links to MAC and should also include links to the FAA. Barker stated due to changes in regulations, it would be best to provide those links. Nelson inquired if the Commission could research which parks allow hobby flying. Aho agreed signage would be helpful. Lotthammer stated City Code does not allow hobby flying in parks. Tschohl stated the Commission met with airport staff and fixed based operators. In 2020, the Commission goals will remain largely the same with the addition of engaging MAC as they develop the Reliever Airport Visioning Study and monitor developments in federal noise regulations and measurement methods. The Commission tentatively will tour Flying Cloud Airport in April. Nelson stated a continuous reminder to MAC would be helpful about the noise levels and not increasing the length of airport runways. Narayanan inquired if there is a more scientific way for MAC to collect noise data with greater accuracy. Tschohl stated the challenge would be noise standards are typically determined over long-term average. Another challenge for accurately measuring noise levels is all the surrounding noise. Tschohl stated operations increased in 2019, primarily due to flight training operations. Local visual flight rules (VFR) flights increased, itinerant VFR flights increased, instrument flight rules (IFR) operations increased, and it was the first year there were over 100,000 operations since 2011. Flying Cloud is the second busiest towered airport in Minnesota. Fixed base operator (FBO) fuel flowage increased by three percent. There was a 26 percent increase in noise complaints, but the geographic distribution is essentially the same as previous years. Aho inquired about safety concerns or changes. Tschohl stated in terms of incidents, the airport discussed cameras at the ends of runways or a jog in the taxiways. Barker stated these would be solutions to prevent wrong runway use. Peterson noted there was one incident of someone who had entered the runway by accident. There is still some education that can still be done to prevent this. C. HERITAGE PRESERVATION COMMISSION Steve Olson, Heritage Preservation Commission Chair, presented an overview of the Commission’s 2019 accomplishments and 2020 goals. In 2019, they were awarded the Certified Local Government Scholarship in the amount of $432 for attendance to the annual preservation conference. They were unsuccessful in securing the State Cultural Heritage grant for Cummins-Phipps-Grill upper-level renovations. Street sign sales totaled $4,983, and those funds may be used towards future preservation projects such as the Flying Red Horse. In 2019, the Heritage Preservation Award was awarded to Kathie Case. True Friends is looking into window replacement at Glen Lake Children’s Camp, and the Certificate of Appropriateness (COA) will ensure those changes will be historically compatible. Commission Member Thorp worked City Council Workshop Minutes January 21, 2020 Page 4 towards completing the local heritage preservation designation of the Yorkville and Bloomington Road. A resource management plan will be created to maintain it. A subcommittee worked on designing interpretive panels for the new ground storage reservoir. Recently, the Commission reprinted the Daniel Hoisington Eden Prairie Heritage book. In 2019, the Commission worked on enhancing their page on the City website, they staffed events such as Fall Harvest Celebration and Peoplefest!, and they took photo inventory of old service station at 7960 Eden Prairie Road. In 2020 the Commission plans to collaborate on work for the upstairs of Cummins-Phipps- Grill House, complete the preservation and vegetation plan for historic Yorkville and Bloomington Road, and continue vetting solutions for the Flying Red Horse. Narayanan inquired if it is possible to ask for bonding funds for Cummins-Phipps- Grill House. Getschow commented it is unlikely to prove regional significance for funding. Nelson inquired if the Flying Red House has been considered for public art by the light rail stations. Getschow stated the Eden Prairie Mall, parks, and light rail stations have been considered. Jeremiah added Eden Road has also been considered and is still being pursued. Olson stated in 2020 they will continue designing interpretive panels, collaborating with the Historical Society and City’s staff to present oral histories on the City website, and coordinating the Heritage Preservation Award. Narayanan inquired if the Historical Society planned to do oral histories from different groups. Lindahl, Heritage Preservation Commission liaison, stated the project was started about five years ago, and there was a total of 20 interviews. The interviews are still being transcribed, and the audio is being adjusted. Nelson noted it would be interesting to feature Molly Koivumaki as well. Open Podium - Council Chamber (6:30) II. OPEN PODIUM III. ADJOURNMENT