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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council - 01/18/2022 - Workshop APPROVED MINUTES CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP & OPEN PODIUM TUESDAY, JANUARY 18, 2022 CITY CENTER 5:00 – 6:25 PM, HERITAGE ROOMS 6:30 – 7:00 PM, COUNCIL CHAMBER CITY COUNCIL: Mayor Ron Case, Council Members Kathy Nelson, Mark Freiberg, PG Narayanan, and Lisa Toomey CITY STAFF: City Manager Rick Getschow, Police Chief Matt Sackett, Fire Chief Scott Gerber, Public Works Director Robert Ellis, Community Development Director Julie Klima, Parks and Recreation Director Jay Lotthammer, Administrative Services/HR Director Alecia Rose, Communications Manager Joyce Lorenz, Acting City Attorney Joshua Dorothy, and Recorder Nicole Tingley Workshop - Heritage Rooms I and II (5:30) I. COMMISSION WORK PLANS Mayor Case was absent. All other Council Members were present. A. FLYING CLOUD AIRPORT ADVISORY COMMISSION Gerber introduced Dan Dorson, Chair of the Flying Cloud Airport Advisory Commission (FCAAC) and Andy Kleinfehn, Vice-Chair. Dorson provided an overview of their presentation noting he would be covering the following: Commission Goals, Definitions, Airport Operational Summary, Noise Complaint Summary, Recent and Upcoming Focal Points, Commission Airport Tour, and Goals for 2022. Dorson stated that the FCAAC advises the City Council on matters affecting operations of the Flying Cloud Airport. The FCAAC monitors changes to laws, rules, and regulations and monitor the final agreement with the Metropolitan Airport Commission (MAC). They also continue to work with the City and MAC to reduce nighttime noise and improve the appearance of the airport. Dorson shared the definitions of the following four Federal Aviation Administration terms: • Local Operations: an airplane operating locally- both taking off and landing at the same airport • Itinerant Operations: the opposite of local operations • Instrument Flight Rules (IFR): rules that allow a pilot to fly in the clouds or at high altitudes City Council Workshop Minutes January 18, 2022 Page 2 • Visual Flight Rules (VFR): rules for pilots operating aircrafts seeing the ground. Dorson provided a summary of the airport’s 2021 Operations. Total airport increased by around six percent total from 2020 to 2021. Local VFR have gone down by around eight percent. Itinerant VFR flights have increased by 11 percent. Itinerant IFR flights have increase by 43 percent. This shows a recovery of business aviation from the pandemic. Overall, there is a growing use of the airport by jet and turboprop aircrafts. Flying Cloud Airport is the third busiest towered airport in Minnesota and surrounding states. Narayanan asked if Itinerant IFR flights cause the most noise. Dorson answered it depends on whether the concern is jet noise or propeller noise. There is more PG- Is Itinerant IFR flights cause most noise. It depends on whether the concern is jet noise or propeller noise. Jet noise is usually on the ends of the runway and propeller noise is usually on the sides of the runway. Dorson summarized noise complaints for 2021. Complaints decreased roughly a third from 2020 to 2021. Approximately the same number of households filed complaints. Nighttime complaints reduced over the last year. Dorson displayed a graph showing the number of complaints and number of households filing complaints. Nelson stated that the City Council has received more noise complaints. She asked why there was so much increase in noise complaints in 2020. Dorson replied that people were working from home and people had more time for flight training. Toomey asked if the airport had two runways. Dorson answered it had 3 runways. Toomey followed up by asking if switching to take-off from the short runway would make a difference for noise. Dorson stated the short runway is for propeller planes and which runway used is dependent on wind. Dorson showed a map of where the complaints came from in relation to the airport. More complaints originate from the end of the runways. Flight paths cannot be moved safely. Gerber added that MAC has educated flight instructors that not all of their touch and go’s have to be at Eden Prairie and that has made a difference. Dorson continued by discussing their focus points the first being reducing nighttime operations. Rather than going to pilot organizations and users about reducing complaints in general, they decided to focus on nighttime and remind them about voluntary restrictions. At the same time remind residents that law enforcement accounts for a lot of night use. City Council Workshop Minutes January 18, 2022 Page 3 Nelson asked if Lifelink is still using the more western airports. Gerber stated that Flying Cloud Airport is not the primary airport for Lifelink 3. Dorson covered their second focus point Vocational Opportunities. It was the topic of their January 2022 meeting. It is about looking beyond flight training. At the meeting, Dr. Swanson, the Superintendent of the Eden Prairie school district expressed desire for education-workplace partnerships. Finally, Flywise, an aircraft mechanic training center will be opening later this year. Nelson asked if the mechanic training will bring more noise or will in be mostly inside hangers. Dorson anticipated activity primarily inside hangers and classroom instruction. The third focus point is Appearance Improvements. Dorson stated that he has asked the student commissioners to identify possible changes. In May, the commission will tour the airport specifically about appearance improvements. In 2022, the FCAAC goals are nighttime operations that is increasing awareness and reducing noise as well as improving appearance. This may include coming to the City Council with proposals. Toomey asked if there are many violations of Ordinance 97. Dorson stated it fluctuates by quarter. There were five at the last meeting, all of which were first-time non-repeater offenders. Toomey inquired if MAC is receptive to changing the appearance of the airport. Dorson stated they are and have plans to replace some of their signage. Dorson stated that they will also encourage tenants to make improvements. Nelson commented that there have been improvements over the last 10 years. Nelson thanked the FCAAC for all their work. B. HUMAN RIGHTS AND DIVERSITY COMMISSION Megan Yerks, Housing & Community Services Coordinator, introduced Human Rights and Diversity Commission (HRDC) member John Urbanski and Student Commission Hina Kazama. Kazama stated that there are currently nine adults and six students serving on the commission. Kazama shared the 2021 highlights of the HRDC. Event partnerships are a large component, and the commission is continually trying to create new partnerships. In 2021 they held the first Martin Luther King Words in Action Contest. The commission also presented the Eden Prairie Human Rights awards. They were able to City Council Workshop Minutes January 18, 2022 Page 4 resume the Stop the Trafficking 5K with a hybrid approach, more in-person PeopleFest! events were able to be held, and they partnered with Chain Reaction Theatre and Immanuel Lutheran to host a performance about white privilege. Urbanski complimented the student commissioners and their participation. Urbanski stated that another 2021 highlight of HRDC was the Eden Prairie Race Equity Report. He thanked the Council for their support and stated Commission is looking forward to working on implementation. In 2021 HRDC was not able to have community organizations come and present at their meetings as usual. However, they were still able to gain insight into the community through the Race Equity Report interviews and focus groups. Urbanski stated that the primary 2022 goal is to begin implementing the Race Equity Report. They will be working in subcommittees to do this. The other goals include promoting inclusivity by creating spaces for members of the community to connect, increasing listening avenues, enlisting community organizations and individuals to promote the City’s Manifesto. In 2022, they are launching a new initiative designed to recognize culturally significant holidays and heritage and history months. They will be working with community members to create social media posts. They will continue their collaborative community events. Their One Eden Prairie subcommittee will be working on this effort. Narayanan asked if there has been any biased crime reported. Yerks stated that she has received calls with concerns about incidents, but none where the victim has asked to come to the full commission. She has had a few referrals from the police department. Narayanan asked if the statistics are tracked on that. Yerks answered that she does not track. The police do track on their end. It was clarified that the standards are high for it to be a crime in terms of the law. Yerks added that she will often refer people to the State Office of Human Rights because they have the investigative department that handles those types of concerns with private businesses when it does not reach the level of law enforcement. Antidotally, she has received more calls, but does not know if it is because it is happening more or because of awareness of her. Narayanan suggested starting to track. Nelson added it would be interesting to know if concerns are coming from one community or multiple communities and other characteristics like gender. Nelson thanked the commission for helping them take the steps forward that they want to take. City Council Workshop Minutes January 18, 2022 Page 5 Narayanan stated that he is impressed with the commission and student participation. They have done a lot of work and he appreciates it. Urbanski thanked the City Council and Staff for their support. C. PARKS, RECREATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION Lotthammer introduced Patrice Erickson, Chair of the Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission (PRNRC). Erickson stated that the Commission has the same goals as the City: to promote wellbeing and safety, to provide high quality proficient services, to preserve and beautify the environment, to create a sense of community, and to execute innovative and sustainable practices. She stated she appreciates the staff and they have done a great job with pivoting. She added that commission is great and she likes having the students there and they have gotten more involved. Erickson provided an overview of 2021 by quarter. In quarter one the commission received staff overview of the deer management plan, received a progress update on the Riley Lake Play Area, and had a joint meeting with the Heritage Preservation Commission. The joint meeting included a presentation on the status of historical properties, a review of the Feldman Family Farm interpretive sign, a review of the Yorkville and Bloomington Road Preservation Plan, an overview of Staring Lake Park Interpretive signs and a status update on the Flying Red Horse. Toomey asked what the status of the Flying Red Horse is. Lotthammer answered that staff is meeting with a consultant this coming week to look at a design close to Davanni’s. An exact date for redoing it has not been established, but it is estimated to be March, April, or May. It was clarified that it cannot be on the LRT station itself, but the location will be close. Nararayan asked if it would be outside or enclosed. Lotthammer stated it would likely be enclosed for protection. Getschow shared that the first idea was to have it inside at the Eden Prairie Mall, but the mall was not receptive. Then the idea of having it outside at the LRT station formed. Additionally, in quarter one, Erickson stated the supervisors overviewed their programming areas and that they reviewed and commented on the sports trends report. In quarter two, the Commission reviewed the 2020 Annual Report, discussed the Quality of Life Survey Results, learned about the Bike Park concept, and reviewed plans for the senior center building improvements. Narayanan inquired how many people visit the senior center in a normal non-COVID year. Lotthammer responded City Council Workshop Minutes January 18, 2022 Page 6 that he would have to look back. The visits are close to a million at the community center, but it is more in the thousands at the senior center. Next, in quarter three, the commission received an LRT update and an overview progress of parks projects like the splash pad and Riley Park. Narayanan asked if there have been any dramatic changes at Riley Park because of the LRT. It was determined that Narayanan was thinking of Purgatory Creek because Riley Park is far west by the lake. Lotthammer stated that they are waiting for a sign and adding a little more lighting. Additionally, in quarter three, the commission discussed a potential ice rink partnership, participated in a master plan exercised, tour the parks, met with the Sustainability Commission and toured the maintenance building, and reviewed public art installations. Nelson commented that she really likes the art installations and they have been well done. They have added more than she thought they would. She has received a lot of nice comments. It is worth doing and continuing. It would be nice if an extra one or two could be added. Lotthammer noted that there are more to come, likely a couple per year. In quarter four, the commission reviewed plans of the Nesbitt Preserve Park Splash pad, heard a presentation on Community Center Operations, reviewed progress of the Riley Lake Play Area, and reviewed plans for the Round Lake Park Building. Toomey asked when that will be completed. Lotthammer stated they are looking to start in July after the 4th and have it completed towards fall. He noted he would be presenting more on the project at tonight’s City Council meeting. Finally, in quarter four, they reviewed progress on the pedestrian and bike master plan and learned about staff recruiting strategies and new staff. Narayanan asked what the status was of Miller Spring regarding a cover area. Lotthammer stated there is not a lot of room there. They have thought about the tree canopy serving as the protection. They have not completed detailed plans or specifications but would not want it to be something that stands out as it is natural and historic. Getschow added the Council reviewed a couple of options at a workshop. The multiple spicket concept was denied. Staff has put up signage and a fence. The other portion was a cover area which is going to be a challenge due to the small area. Narayanan stated that one of the main reasons people move and live in Eden Prairies is the parks. He suggested providing commissions to Park and Recreation employees. City Council Workshop Minutes January 18, 2022 Page 7 Toomey asked how the job fair on January 17th went. Jay responded the takeaway is they saw a lot of 14-year-olds looking for their first job and retirees who were interested in mowing lawns in the mornings. He hopes they were able to recruit future employees. Yerks stated the Housing and Community Services division shared information on the job fair on Whatsapp, with the Somali community, and with nonprofits. Nelson asked if they have had a greater number of parks employees looking like the children in the community. Lotthammer stated they excel at that with their younger seasonal staff. Nelson asked if the City is looking at updating the trails more often with more people utilizing them. Lotthammer replied that a few years ago the City started doubling the amount of trail maintenance. They now feel more comfortable and that it is a good pace. Nelson stated that she has received feedback that there needs to be more waste receptables on longer stretches of trails especially in the northern part of the City. They also need to be emptied more often. Open Podium - Council Chamber (6:30) II. OPEN PODIUM III. ADJOURNMENT