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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council - 11/17/2020 - Workshop APPROVED MINUTES CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP & OPEN PODIUM TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 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 Workshop - Heritage Rooms I and II (5:30) I. ORGANICS COLLECTION (5:30-6:10) Jennifer Hassebroek, Sustainability Coordinator, provided an overview of the upcoming organics recycling program in preparation for the Hennepin County Ordinance requirements. Starting January 2022, Hennepin County will require haulers to collect organics year round on a weekly basis for residential households who have their own collection container. Cities can require haulers to provide the service or contract for organized citywide collection. There will be annual reporting requirements, including on communication methods to make sure haulers are doing adequate outreach. Case inquired what it means to offer organics collection to each resident and if those who sign up for collection are the only ones paying. Hassebroek stated all Edina residents pay for the service but can choose to opt out of participating in organics recycling. Edina has an organized collection and residents pay the City. Narayanan inquired if the City bills the residents. Hassebroek replied yes. Case inquired if the cost could be added as a separate item on the quarterly water bill. Hassebroek responded yes. Hassebroek provided some background considerations. In 2018 the Council approved the Solid Waste Management Plan which included community outreach. One of the high priorities identified in the plan was the implementation of an organics recycling program. Feedback from the haulers who participated in the Solid Waste Management Plan process were there was no consensus on how haulers wanted to collect organics, whether by a bin or bag. They also noted a need for a transfer station and for composting facility capacity. The Plan recommended amending code to require haulers to provide the services and outlining options for either opt-in or opt-out process. The recommendation was for all residents to pay for the service. The amount of residents who participate will impact the Select Committee on Recycling and the Environment (SCORE) funds the City receives. Currently fifty percent of the funds are allocated to curbside recycling and 50 percent is allocated to traditional recycling programs. This year the City received about $98,000 in grant funding for City Council Workshop Minutes November 17, 2020 Page 2 traditional recycling programs. The same formula will be used to determine funding for organics recycling. There is a $25 funding cap per participating household. Case inquired if the City would receive $25 per household if all residents were charged regardless of their decision to opt-in or opt-out. Hassebroek responded the funds would likely be maximized. Narayanan inquired if the resident would have to pay for the program if the hauler charged less than $25 for organics collection. Hassebroek responded there is some capacity to use the grant dollars for organics recycling services. Currently the SCORE grant funding is utilized for the Drop-off Day event and as an annual rebate to residents on their utility bill. Aho noted the funds are not guaranteed. $25 is the maximum amount the City could receive per year per household, but it may be less. Getschow noted the grant dollars are collected annually and are utilized towards education, events offered, and rebates. Hassebroek stated the total could be about $98,000 depending on the current population. Hassebroek stated implementation of curbside residential organics recycling is identified as regulatory action in the Climate Action Plan. As an example, Edina’s current estimated collection rate is 100 tons per month of organics recycled instead of landfilled or burned for energy. This is nearly 1,000 metric tons of Carbon dioxide reduced per year or 6.6 percent reduction in overall citywide emissions related to waste. Aho inquired about the process for recycling organics. Hassebroek responded after organics are collected they sit outside and are mixed with other ingredients based on a ratio to help it decompose. They are regularly mixed until it turns into soil. Case inquired if the haulers have enough facilities to bring organics collection and the capacity for the tonnage. Hassebroek stated this is a concern of the haulers. There are currently two end processors in the metro for organics. Aho inquired if there is a concern about pests and critters due to organics collection. Hassebroek mentioned this is part of the reason for a required weekly collection. Narayanan inquired if collection is also required for businesses. Hassebroek responded the ordinance requires collection for single family households, fourplexes, and multifamily homes where residents have their own containers. Hassebroek stated in preparation for the upcoming requirements, Staff met with current haulers to discuss their plans for collection and to get feedback on the requirements. In regards to collection method, two haulers noted they plan to use compostable bags, two haulers noted they plan to use carts specifically for organics, and one hauler noted preference for a single larger dumpster for qualifying multifamily properties in lieu of individual carts. The larger dumpster may not meet Hennepin County requirements. Some haulers noted they were interested in the potential to mix organics with yard waste. One hauler is doing a pilot program with Carver County to mix organics and yard waste. Haulers are seeing a 10 to 15 percent participation rate in communities with an opt in where users paying for services. In opt out communities where everyone pays, there is a 30 to 40 percent participation rate. Case inquired how cities are handling the second scenario where there haulers are receiving a lot more money but only providing services to 30 to 40 percent of residents. Hassebroek replied she is uncertain how cities are handling the extra funding to haulers. Getschow inquired if this is similar to the recycling participation. Hassebroek stated nearly all residents participate in traditional recycling, but organics participation widely varies. Freiberg inquired if residents have the option to opt out of traditional recycling. Hassebroek responded there is City Council Workshop Minutes November 17, 2020 Page 3 not an option to opt out. Getschow added all residents get a cart in Minneapolis and some may choose not to participate. Freiberg inquired about Edina’s structure. Hassebroek replied all residents pay, but they can opt out of collection. Hassebroek stated Staff asked haulers for their feedback on the processing capacity of organics. All of the haulers commented on the limited capacity of transfer stations and end processors. Another concern is the allowed contamination ratio decreasing, causing more complete loads to be rejected and to go to the landfill. Case stated for many there is confusion about the types of items that can be recycled for organics. Hassebroek responded it is also current concern of haulers and many are asking for increased education around organics recycling. Aho noted there needs to more consistent labeling from the manufacturers. Hassebroek stated Staff asked haulers about their preference for an opt in versus opt out plan. Two of the haulers preferred an opt in system where only users pay. Two haulers preferred a version of an opt out plan where all pay. One of those haulers preferred an all pay weighted scale or drive by fee for the whole community. The other preferred a subscription service similar to yard waste and the ability to start with only food waste. In regards to cost, the estimated range provided by haulers is $70 to $240 a year. Not all haulers provided estimates. Some haulers stated their collection would require an additional truck. Case inquired if there are cities who contract with one hauler to do organics collection for the entire city. Hassebroek replied yes. Narayanan stated it seems there would be not be a preference by residents for a specific hauler as the program is new. Aho noted there may be feedback on seeing additional trucks or more traffic through the neighborhoods. Getschow added there may be preference from residents to utilize their hauler. Hassebroek stated the ordinance goes into effect January 1, 2022. Freiberg inquired what the ideal lead up time would be for the haulers. Hassebroek replied six months to plan routes. Case inquired if the haulers are retrofitting their trucks to collect both refuse and organi cs. Hassebroek replied yes. Two of the haulers are currently using one truck for pick up. Edina’s organics collection began in June and there is about thirty percent participation. The cost is $61.20 per year per household collected by the City and organized with the haulers. There is an opt out option. Plymouth, Brooklyn Park, and Brooklyn Center have an opt in plan and only users pay the hauler provided system. Service method and billing rate are set by hauler. Minnetonka is undecided at this point. Case noted there seems to be a third option to opt out but utilize individual haulers. Freiberg asked what the collection method is for Minneapolis. Getschow responded residents are charged on their utilities bill. Most cities have organized recycling and went forward with creating organized organics collection. Nelson added she prefers the opt out option but the option to choose the hauler. Hassebroek stated staff recommendations are to require haulers to provide service as part of licensure. The City would implement a phased opt-in approach to begin with for those who want to participate. These participants would pay their hauler directly for the service. Case inquired what the start date would be. Hassebroek stated the hope is to begin earlier than January 1, 2022. Ellis added there is a concern about the available infrastructure and the City Council Workshop Minutes November 17, 2020 Page 4 contamination of product from incorrect organics collection. The next two years the City would work towards an all pay system and wait for the system to mature a little. Hennepin County has stated some of these concerns as well. Some residents may have some frustration over seeing a $60 charge initially. Hassebroek added there will be a focus on education. Narayanan stated it might be beneficial to consider incentives for opting in. Hassebroek stated some cities have offered a small kitchen container for compostable items. Nelson stated she is on board with starting with an opt in with the long term plan to opt out. Case added he likes the idea of utilizing some of the SCORE grant funds to get containers and provide them to the first handful of people who opt in. Nelson added an opt in may work better this year for families impacted by COVID-19 and the economy. Aho added if it is required initially there may be a lot of non-compliance with contaminating the organics. Case stated he agrees, and it may be best to consider only starting with food for organics recycling. II. MILLER PARK INDOOR COURT FACILITY (6:10-6:30) Lotthammer stated current amenities at Miller Park include a play structure, three soccer fields, one basketball court and two tennis courts. In between the basketball and tennis courts there used to be a plaza, but trees in between courts do not do very well. The current courts need a full reconstruction, and this would amount to about $250,000. This park has a lot of parking to utilize. If indoor courts were located on this site there could potentially be two tennis courts and three pickleball courts. The rationale for climate control courts is partially due to the growth of the sports. Indoor tennis in other communities is doing really well. Aho stated he thought tennis was declining as a sport. Lotthammer stated not for the last several years. Courts are in continuous use in Eden Prairie and are often full. Lotthammer stated the Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission (PRNRC) has been working on the Parks and Recreation Strategic Plan, and the indoor courts are part of the plan. The PRNRC has been looking at how to make projects sustainable with long-term benefits and creating health and wellness opportunities. There have been discussions about how the amenities can be offered to all members of the community. These courts allow people to be out of the sun, if sun exposure is a concern, and the weather elements year round. With high usage of the Community Center gym for pickleball, these courts could potentially free up the Community Center gym for other usages. The courts would provide an opportunity for those who cannot afford a membership at an indoor tennis facility or upscale gym. This facility could also have the ability to house other racket sports such as badminton. Lotthammer stated this project would be funded by cash park fees, potential grants, and fundraising opportunities. Construction for these facilities is estimated at $2.8 million. The building itself would be minimally staffed, and the facilities would be accessed by a unique code. The building could incorporate solar, in-court heating, geothermal, and light-emitting diode (LED). Geothermal could allow the doors to be open with good weather. Narayanan inquired how access and payment would work. Lotthammer stated the facilities could utilize an online system for reservations and it would produce a secure password to access the facilities. Otherwise it could have a card reader system. Narayanan inquired if there are requests for more racketball facilities. Lotthammer responded there are two City Council Workshop Minutes November 17, 2020 Page 5 racquetball courts at the Community Center. The racquetball courts are fairly popular but there is not a need for more facilities at this time. Case stated he likes the idea but would also like to see trending data on sports and facilities usage over the last ten years. Lotthammer added tennis is often played by people of all ages and many different ethnicities. There has recently been an uptick in adult tennis lessons, and tennis has been well-received during the pandemic. Much of the data has been collected from associations. Nelson added she would like to see the data as well. She would like input from the police department on security concerns. Lotthammer noted there have been discussions about cameras or staffing an attendant. The timeline would include more discussions on design in 2021, looking at cost estimates, and intent to build in 2023. Open Podium - Council Chamber (6:30) III. OPEN PODIUM IV. ADJOURNMENT