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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council - 01/02/2001 APPROVED MINUTES EDEN PitRIE CITY COUNCIL TUESDAY,JANUARY 2,2001 7:00 PM, CITY CENTER Council Chamber 8080 Mitchell Road CITY COUNCIL: Mayor Jean Harris, Councilmembers Sherry Butcher,Ronald Case,Jan Mosman, and Nancy Tyra-Lukens CITY COUNCIL STAFF: City Manager Chris Enger, Parks & Recreation Services Director Bob Lambert, Public Safety Director Jim Clark, Public Works Services Director Eugene Dietz, Community Development and Financial Services Director Don Uram, Management Services Director Natalie Swaggert, City Attorney Roger Pauly and Council Recorder Peggy Rasmussen I. ROLL CALL/CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER Mayor Harris called the meeting to order at 7:08 p.m. H. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE III. COUNCIL FORUM INVITATION Mayor Harris said Council Forum is held the first and third Tuesdays of the month from 6:30 to 6:55 p.m. in Heritage Room II. This will be scheduled time following City Council Workshops and immediately preceding regular City Council Meetings. It is important, if you wish to visit with the City Council and Service Area Directors at this time, that you notify the City Manager's office by noon of the meeting date with your request. IV. SWEARING IN OF COUNCILMEMBERS SHERRY BUTCHER AND JAN MOSMAN Councilmembers Sherry Butcher and Jan Mosman were sworn in by City Attorney Roger Pauly. V. PROCLAMATION DESIGNATING JANUARY FOR THE RECOGNITION OF DR.MARTIN LUTHER KING,JR., Mayor Harris read the proclamation designating January 2001 as a month to celebrate diversity, and asking all residents to join the City in recognizing and celebrating Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s dream. MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Mosman, to adopt the proclamation as read. Motion carried 5-0. CITY COUNCIL MINUTES January 2,2001 Page 2 Harry Moran, Chair of the Human Rights and Diversity Commission, spoke about the Commission's sponsorship of a human rights award and youth scholarship presented annually to Eden Prairie residents for their contributions to fostering human rights and diversity in Eden Prairie. The Commission is seeking candidates for three categories — youth, business, and non-profit. There will be a separate solicitation of applicants for each category,beginning in January. VI. PRESENTATION OF THE NEW ENVIRONMENTAL LEARNING CENTER VIDEO,"WATER WISDOM" The new video produced for the Environmental Learning Center (ELC) was previewed. "Water Wisdom" was produced by Hamlin University's Center for Global Environmental Education. It will be shown at the ELC and on local cable access channels. Mayor Harris recognized the time and efforts of Hamlin University, as well as the actors in the video, who are students in the Eden Prairie School District. ADC Telecommunications donated many of the props used. VH. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND OTHER ITEMS OF BUSINESS A report by City Attorney was added, under XVI. H. Report of City Attorney. Mayor Harris moved Item 1., Workshop Topics, from XVI.B. Reports of City Manager to XVI.A. Reports of Councilmembers. Enger said Item 2 under Reports of Councilmembers was removed. MOTION: Mosman moved, seconded by Butcher, to approve the agenda as published and amended. Motion carried 5-0. VIH. MINUTES A. CITY COUNCIL MEETING HELD TUESDAY,DECEMBER 19,2000 Tyra-Lukens deleted the third paragraph under her report on the Southwest Metro Transit Commission on page 5. Case made two corrections on page 9 in the first paragraph. The first sentence should read " . . . he couldn't recall if the HPC recommended prioritizing renovations . . ." Case deleted the last sentence in the paragraph. Case made a correction on page 10 in the sixth paragraph, which should read "Case requested that staff bring Council the cost associated with operating the free-skating rink and how many are using this rink." Tyra-Lukens said, based on communications received on the ice rink issue at Prairie View Elementary School, there is some confusion by the public about where the request for removal of the rinks came from — the City or the School District. Lambert replied the request came from the School District. The City would like to leave the rinks at Prairie View, but has an agreement with the School Board regarding the hockey rink, because half of the rink is on school CITY COUNCIL MINUTES January 2,2001 Page 3 property. The agreement states if either party requests removal of the rink, the other party has to comply. The City has the option to keep the free-skating rink and warming house. MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Butcher, to approve the minutes of the City Council meeting held Tuesday, December 19, 2000, as published and amended. Motion carried 5-0. IX. CONSENT CALENDAR A. CLERK'S LICENSE LIST B. RESOLUTION NO. 2001-01 AUTHORIZING CITY OFFICIALS TO TRANSACT BANKING BUSINESS C. RESOLUTION NO. 2001-02 DESIGNATING DEPOSITORIES D. RESOLUTION NO. 2001-03 AUTHORIZING USE OF FACSIMELE SIGNATURES BY PUBLIC OFFICIALS E. RESOLUTION NO. 2001-04 AUTHORIZING THE TREASURER OR DEPUTY TREASURER TO INVEST CITY OF EDEN PRAIRIE FUNDS F. RESOLUTION NO. 2001-05 AUTHORIZING THE TREASURER OR DEPUTY TREASURER TO MAKE ELECTRONIC FUND TRANSFERS FOR CITY OF EDEN PRAIRIE G. RESOLUTION NO. 2001-06 AUTHORIZING PAYMENT OF CERTAIN CLAIMS BY FINANCE DEPARTMENT WITHOUT PRIOR COUNCIL APPROVAL H. RESOLUTION NO. 2001-07 APPOINTING COMMISSIONERS TO THE EDEN PRAIRIE HOUSING AND REDEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY I. RESOLUTION NO. 2001-08 ESTABLISHING MEETING DATES AND TIMES FOR CITY BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS FOR 2001 J. RESOLUTION NO. 2001-09 DESIGNATING THE OFFICIAL CITY NEWSPAPER K. APPROVE CONTRACT WITH WIRTHLIN WORLDWIDE FOR 2001 COMMUNITY SURVEY MOTION: Tyra-Lukens moved, seconded by Case, to approve Items A-K on the Consent Calendar. Tyra-Lukens questioned Item I. with regard to the Heritage Preservation Commission (HPQ meeting at the Cummins Grill House on occasion. She asked how that was to be CITY COUNCIL MINUTES January 2,2001 Page 4 handled. Enger replied the HPC was to indicate what dates it would like to meet at the Cummins Grill House, and to date the City has not received that schedule. Tyra-Lukens asked if the schedule as written is adopted, would that preclude the Commission from meeting there? Enger said the City would have to give the public notice if the meetings are not held at the City Center. He asked Pauly what process he would suggest for giving this public notice. Pauly said the process requires posting of a notice and sending of notices to persons and newspapers that require notice of special meetings. Mosman said the HPC meeting for December was canceled so the schedule was not set up. She has talked to the new HPC Chair,Lori Peterson-Benneke,who said John Gertz is planning to set up a year-long schedule to be submitted to the Council. Motion carried 5-0. X. PUBLIC HEARINGS/MEETINGS M. PAYMENT OF CLAIMS MOTION: Tyra-Lukens moved, seconded by Case, to approve the Payment of Claims as submitted. Motion was approved on a roll call vote,with Butcher, Case,Mosman, Tyra-Lukens and Harris voting"aye." XII. ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS XHI. PETITIONS,REQUESTS AND COMMUNICATIONS XIV. REPORTS OF ADVISORY BOARDS & COMMISSIONS XV. APPOINTMENTS A. RESOLUTION NO. 2001-10 DESIGNATING THE OFFICIAL MEETING DATES, TIME AND PLACE FOR THE CITY OF EDEN PRAHUE CITY COUNCIL IN 2001 AND APPOINTING ACTING MAYOR MOTION: Butcher moved, seconded by Mosman, to adopt Resolution No. 2000-10 designating the official meeting dates, time and place for the City of Eden Prairie Council in 2001. Motion carried 5-0. MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Butcher,to appoint Councilmember Nancy Tyra-Lukens the Acting Mayor. Motion carried 5-0. B. RESOLUTION NO. 2001-11 DESIGNATING THE DIRECTOR AND ALTERNATE DIRECTOR TO THE SUBURBAN RATE AUTHORITY FOR 2001 MOTION: Tyra-Lukens moved, seconded by Butcher, to approve Resolution No. 2001-11 designating Councilmember Ron Case the Director and Mayor Jean CITY COUNCIL MU*it ES January 2,2001 Page 5 Harris as the Alternate Director to the Suburban Rate Authority. Motion carried 5-0. C. APPOINTMENT OF MAYOR JEAN HARRIS AS DELEGATE AND COUNCILMEMBERS AS ALTERNATES TO THE ASSOCIATION OF METROPOLITAN MUNICIPALITIES MOTION: Tyra-Lukens moved, seconded by Butcher, to appoint Mayor Jean Harris as Delegate and Councilmembers as alternates to the Association of Metropolitan Municipalities. Motion carried 5-0. D. APPOINTMENT OF MAYOR JEAN HARRIS AS DELEGATE AND COUNCILMEMBERS AS ALTERNATES TO THE NATIONAL LEAGUE OF CITIES MOTION: Tyra-Lukens moved, seconded by Case, to appoint Mayor Jean Harris as delegate and Councihnembers as alternates to the National League of Cities. Motion carried 5-0. E. APPOINTMENT OF MAYOR JEAN HARRIS TO THE MUNICIPAL LEGISLATIVE COMMISSION MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Mosman, to appoint Mayor Jean Harris to the Municipal Legislative Commission. Motion carried 5-0. F. APPOINTMENT OF COUNCILMEMBER TO THE SOUTHWEST CORRIDOR COALITION MOTION: Tyra-Lukens moved, seconded by Case, to appoint Councilmember Jan Mosman to the Southwest Corridor Coalition. Motion carried 5-0. G. APPOINTMENT OF COUNCILMEMBER TO THE COMMUNITY RESOURCE CENTER ADVISORY COUNCIL MOTION: Mosman moved, seconded by Case, to appoint Councilmember Sherry Butcher to the Community Resource Center Advisory Council. Motion carried 5-0. H. APPOINTMENT OF COUNCILMEMBER TO THE SUBURBAN TRANSIT ASSOCIATION Councilmember Nancy Tyra-Lukens agreed to serve on the Suburban Transit Association. This appointment is made by the Southwest Metro Transit Association and did not require action by the City Council. I. APPOINTMENT OF COUNCH MEMBER TO THE SOUTHWEST CABLE TV COMMISSION CITY COUNCIL MINUTES January 2,2001 Page 6 MOTION: Tyra-Lukens moved, seconded by Butcher, to appoint Councilmember Ron Case to the Southwest Cable TV Commission. Motion carried 5-0. J. APPOINTMENT OF COUNCILMEMBER TO THE EDEN PRAIRIE, FOUNDATION MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Mosman, to appoint Councilmember Nancy Tyra-Lukens to the Eden Prairie Foundation. Motion carried 5-0. K. APPOINTMENT OF COUNCILMEMBER TO THE I-494 CORRIDOR COMMISSION MOTION: Butcher moved, seconded by Case, to appoint Councilmember Jan Mosman to the I-494 Corridor Commission. Motion carried 5-0. L. APPOINTMENT OF COUNCILMEMBER TO THE SOUTH HENNEPIN REGIONAL PLANNING AGENCY ADVISORY COUNCIL MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Tyra-Lukens, to appoint Councilmember Sherry Butcher to the South Hennepin Regional Planning Agency Advisory Council. Motion carried 5-0. M. APPOINTMENT OF COUNCILMEMBER TO THE HENNEPIN COUNTY EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES COUNCIL Councilmember Nancy Tyra-Lukens has agreed to serve on the Hennepin County Emergency Medical Services Council. No action was required by the City Council. N. APPOINTMENT OF COUNCILMEMBER TO THE HENNEPIN COUNTY COMMUNITY HEALTH SERVICES ADVISORY COUNCIL Councilmember Nancy Tyra-Lukens agreed to serve on the Hennepin County Community Health Services Advisory Council. No action was required by the City Council. O. APPOINTMENT OF COUNCILMEMBER AS THE EDEN PRAIRIE, REPRESENTATIVE TO THE SOUTHWEST METRO TRANSIT COMMISSION (3-YEAR TERM) MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Butcher,to appoint Councilmember Nancy Tyra-Lukens as the Eden Prairie Representative to the Southwest Metro Transit Commission. Motion carried 5-0. XVI. REPORTS OF OFFICERS A. REPORTS OF COUNCILMEMBERS CITY COUNCIL MINUTES January 2,2001 Page 7 1. Mayor Jean Harris - Appointment of Mayor and CouncUmember to perform the Annual Review of the Cily Manager MOTION: Butcher moved, seconded by Tyra-Lukens, to appoint Mayor Jean Harris and Councilmember Ron Case to perform the Annual Review of the City Manager. Motion carried 5-0. 2. Workshop Topics Mayor Harris said it is critical for Councilmembers to recognize the importance of the responsibilities in which they are engaged and with which they are charged as policy-makers of a highly complex and diverse $50 million public service organization. It is also important that Council restate the foundations of past successes in order to continue to build upon them to secure the future. The City Council is a policy, legislative and decision-making body. It should: (1) work strategically with the management team on City staff; (2) respect and support the City Manager's role in administering City operations and managing the highly professional staff; (3) maximize use of the City's boards and commissions in the decision- making process; (4) continue to use the City's strategic initiatives to guide its actions and decisions; (5) develop and nurture strategic partnerships in the larger community which are mutually beneficial and which commit Council to optimize opportunities and critically use resources; (6) prudently invest in programs, facilities and infrastructure, in order to protect the City's internal resources and preserve its heritage. The Mayor said over the past year the Council identified a number of areas which would further define and refine the City's positions and initiatives. Following are Workshop topics she would like to see discussed in 2001: (1) Eden Prairie was the largest recipient of venture capital in the last quarter of 2000 and has dominated awards for fast-growing high tech companies for the past two years. The City Council needs to know more about these companies and how the City can help them as they mature. Therefore, Mayor Harris proposed establishment of a business advisory council or roundtable to identify issues and concerns of businesses in the community, how to make the City even more receptive to business, and even to assist in economic development ideas. (2) Regarding the City's historic homes, Mayor Harris proposed expanding the focus of the CIP to include a task force composed of CITY COUNCIL MINUTES January 2,2001 Page 8 representation from the City Council,the Planning Board,the Heritage Preservation Commission and citizens at large, who would return with recommendations to the Council as to how best to ensure a balance of all these needs and protection of these historic structures. The staff and Council should recommend how this group would be established in the first quarter of 2001, following receipt of results from the Community Survey integrated with information from the Community Forum. (3) On February 6, Lyle Wray, Executive Director of the Citizens League, will talk to the Council and staff about E-Government at a Workshop. He has given a number of seminars around the country and internationally on E-Government. After that the Council would want to look broadly at the direction it wants to go to and what investment is needed to achieve the purposes the City has identified. Mayor Harris asked other Councilmembers for their suggestions of Workshop topics. Butcher listed: (1) Encourage active involvement of citizens to participate in government. She would like to strengthen the role of the City's commissions and generate interest in proactive participation. She asked citizens to serve on citizen task forces, commissions and boards, and announced that there will be an Open House on January 16 from 5-7 p.m. for those interested in being citizen advisors to the City. (2) Proactively attract businesses,particularly high-tech businesses, to the City. A healthy business sector will help achieve a strong future for Eden Prairie. (3) Accommodate future workers with quality housing and varied housing options that fit well into the neighborhoods. Case listed: (1) A detailed discussion on how to increase citizen interest and involvement in local government. They need to open up the Open Forum,perhaps try town hall meetings twice a year. Councilmembers should go out on field trips. If discussing senior issues, they could tour the Senior Center, senior cooperative buildings, etc. If discussing parks or historic sites, Council could go to look at open spaces or tour the three historic houses. Schedule meetings in different quadrants of the City at schools, churches or park facilities to discuss immediate neighborhood issues. (2) Create several task forces: an E-Government Task Force to look into E-Government possibilities, a Park Historical Facilities Capital Improvement Plan Task Force as recommended by Mayor Harris, and a Youth Athletics Task Force to find out what is needed by youth in the next five to ten years, what that would cost and possible ways to fund it. CITY COUNCIL NIMtMS January 2,2001 Page 9 (3) Establish a performance-based budget. When people look back on the legacy of this Council, the budget document will tell most about the Council. Tyra-Lukens listed: (1) Establish a performance-based budget, which would give the Council information on how much each program costs. (2) Renew focus on internal government,making it as optimal as possible. Even though the City has a Web site, she believed the City is not as high tech as it could be. A paperless Council packet could save money. Mosman listed: (1) Connect with residents before and during controversial projects. This might require an additional staff person to be a resident/ neighborhood liaison. She recommended Council get out into the community to hold meetings with interested groups about projects being proposed, such as roads, housing or trails, or to discuss various topics, such as wetlands or safety. Invite local businesses to be an advisory presence in promoting economic development in the City, and set up a committee for regular feedback or meetings. (2) Prioritize preservation of the City's cultural heritage. Develop an action plan to determine where the historical sites fit into serving the community. (3) Preserve water quality. Look at water quality and storm run-off with some sense of importance and innovative ideas. (4) Fully address the Community Center/Water Park/Youth Center issue. Focus on the Community Center in the larger recreational study. Look at it intensely to consider either upgrades, additions and new uses (like a youth center) or weigh it in the balance for replacement. (5) Move to get information and education on the airport expansion issue. There is much citizen concern about the Flying Cloud Airport expansion, and it has not been obvious to residents that the City has been addressing these concerns. This issue is sensitive and is at a critical point in time. The Council needs to hear from the City's legal counsel and other useful sources as to what the City's options are. Mosman said she would like to make a motion on holding a special meeting to address the airport expansion issue. MOTION: Mosman moved, seconded by Case, to direct the City Attorney to return to the Council at an executive session as soon as possible (possibly on a Saturday) with a plan of action listing alternatives and options for pursuing any and all legal remedies necessary to protect the interests of the City of Eden Prairie and its citizens in the face of MAC's intended expansion of Flying Cloud Airport. Additionally, we should invite to our workshop following the closed session the Flying Cloud Airport Advisory Commission, City staff who have been working CITY COUNCIL MINUTES January 2,2001 Page 10 on the airport issue including staff who can address the financial implications, representatives from the Lower Minnesota Watershed District, and members of the citizen group,Zero Expansion. Discussion followed. Butcher asked if the invitation to the different groups was to give them information or to listen to them. Mosman replied it is to give them information after the Council has received advice from legal counsel. Mayor Harris said it would be a meeting to share information, but no decisions would be made. The difficulty is in knowing what the expectations are for a solution following that meeting, especially in light of the fact the Council would not be able to share information from the closed session. She didn't want to raise expectations that something would happen immediately. Tyra-Lukens said the goal would be to make a decision as soon as possible thereafter. Case said he favored the motion because he needed to be educated about this issue and at some point perhaps the public is due a response from the City. Butcher said it didn't seem reasonable to have only one viewpoint presented and not have others expressed. It should be an open process rather than just invited groups. Mayor Harris responded if they were going to invite groups it should be advertised and have it in Council Chambers. She agreed it should be an open process. Case said he would concur with that. Those groups mentioned in the motion seem to be the most critically involved at this juncture. He would want the chair of the Flying Cloud Advisory Commission to attend also. Mosman said she would favor a two-part session, but on the same day. Mayor Harris said she would like to hear from legal counsel last. The City should plan to have one to two hours of presentation and then move to a closed session afterward. Mosman accepted this as a friendly amendment to her motion. The closed session would be preceded by presentations from the various groups. Case concurred. Case said if there are any other pertinent groups, they could be invited at discretion of the staff. Enger replied he would rather have all the groups named and not leave it to staffs discretion. He said this would be published as a public hearing and a special invitation would be sent to the groups listed in the motion. He asked if additional groups should be CITY COUNCIL MINUTES January 2,2001 Page 11 listed. Mayor Harris said the Chamber of Commerce should be included. Enger asked if the Flying Cloud Business Association should also be included and was told it should be. Tyra-Lukens said the City has made it clear it is opposed to the expansion of Flying Cloud Airport. If the Flying Cloud Business Association is invited, they may try to sell their point of view to the public. Mayor Harris said all sides have to be heard. Mosman and Case accepted inclusion of the Flying Cloud Business Association and the Chamber of Commerce in the motion. Enger said he would set this as a public hearing and have a notice published to that effect, and would invite those groups mentioned. The presentation by the Flying Cloud Advisory Commission would be the main part of the public hearing, followed by public comments, then Council would adjourn to a closed session to hear from the City Attorney and discuss information from the meeting. Ground rules will be established to set the amount of time for each group to speak. The amended motion reads as follows: MOTION: Mosman moved, seconded by Case, to direct the City Attorney to return to the Council at an executive session as soon as possible (possibly on a Saturday) with a plan of action listing alternatives and options for pursuing any and all legal remedies necessary to protect the interests of the City of Eden Prairie and its citizens in the face of MAC's intended expansion of Flying Cloud Airport. Additionally, the closed session would be preceded by a public hearing, to which would be invited the Flying Cloud Airport Advisory Commission, City staff who have been working on the airport issue including staff who can address the financial implications, representatives from the Lower Minnesota Watershed District, members of the citizen group Zero Expansion, the Chamber of Commerce and the Flying Cloud Business Association. Motion carried 5-0. The date of Saturday, February 10, from 9 a.m. to 12 noon, was selected for the public hearing. Mayor Harris said she proposed a planning retreat to be held during the first quarter of the year, in order to prioritize the work for the year. That would have to be on a Saturday, sometime before April 1, from 9 a.m. to 12 noon. She asked staff to look at possible dates. B. REPORT OF CITY MANAGER C. REPORT OF PARKS AND RECREATION SERVICES DIRECTOR D. REPORT OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT AND FINANCIAL SERVICES DIRECTOR CITY COUNCIL MINUTES January 2,2001 Page 12 E. REPORT OF PUBLIC WORKS SERVICES DIRECTOR F. REPORT OF PUBLIC SAFETY SERVICES DIRECTOR G. REPORT OF MANAGEMENT SERVICES DIRECTOR H. REPORT OF CITY ATTORNEY 1. Metricom's Request for Wireless Transmission Aereement Mayor Harris said that prior to the Council Meeting, the Council Forum heard from a vendor on use of facilities for wireless transmission. Pauly said this matter involved a request by Metricom for a right-of-way permit and facility-use agreement with the City of Eden Prairie,which was developed by the company as a type of generic agreement, for the right to attach radios on certain City facilities for the transmission of data. Pauly said his office received this agreement and he and City staff reviewed it. They identified a number of issues, which they took up with Metricom's representatives and their legal counsel. They resolved all but four issues as of August 2000. Pauly communicated those issues to Metricom's attorneys. Three of those issues were unacceptable to Metricom and they could not sign the agreement with those issues outstanding. He had not heard anything fiuther from them until that evening's Council Forum, when Mr. Thompson spoke. Following are the issues that have not been resolved: (1) Use of the term "exclusive" in the definition of municipal facilities. Pauly said this is important because the compensation to be received by the City is based in part on the number of radios installed on City facilities. The company proposes to compensate the City at a rate of $60 per year for each radio installed on a City facility. It's anticipated there would be several hundred radios installed. The problem involving use of the word "exclusive" is that most radios would be installed on City light poles. These poles were provided to the City by Xcel Energy Company and when the rates were developed for obtaining lighting at intersections and other places where they are needed, the rate incorporates some money to cover the capital cost of installing the poles. The issue of who has the rights to revenues derived from use of those poles has not been resolved. The poles are not the property of the City but Pauly believed this is similar to a rental agreement. Pauly suggested setting that issue aside until a determination is made whether the City has the right to compensation for use of the poles versus Xcel Energy's rights to the use of those poles. CITY COUNCIL MINUTES January 2,2001 Page 13 (2) The City has requested the agreement include that the company is subject to the City's ordinances with regard to these matters. For example, there is a City Code regarding antennas on towers owned by the City. Metricom has indicated it does not want to be subject to those ordinances because it creates an administrative burden for them to be aware of the codes of each city they have agreements with. However, the City could adopt this agreement as an ordinance such as is done in the case of a franchise, one could make these provisions specific to this agreement and which would supersede other parts of the City code. (3) Limitation of the City's costs and expenses incurred in connection with entering into this agreement and administering any review of the placing of these radios. Because of the requests to place antennas on towers and poles, the City adopted a policy to require payment to cover the costs associated with staff time and consultants' time in connection with those matters. In this instance probably there would not be a cost for radio engineering consultation, as in the case of placing antennas on City towers where there are other City telecommunication facilities. Metricom's position is they will pay no more than $1,000 for all those costs. Minnesota Telecommunications Right of Way Statute allows a city to recover its actual costs incurred with administering its right of way. To the extent those costs would exceed $1,000 it would be permitted under the State Statute. Pauly asked if the City wished to enter into the contract without resolving those issue. Case asked if we know of any other companies that might offer wireless Internet communications. Pauly replied he was not aware of any other companies that are. Case said his concern is whether there are other companies providing this service and if other companies may not want to come to Eden Prairie if the City makes it more difficult to obtain agreements than other cities have. He didn't want to do anything that would impact the City's future in this regard. The other cities represented at the SRA have a comfort level with Metricom's standard agreement. He said that he also didn't want to do anything that would restrict an amenity the residents want to have. Pauly said he didn't know what other cities have done regarding the issue of exclusiveness and use of Xcel Energy's poles. The alternative would be to deal with Xcel and tell them they should not charge as much for the energy used if they are being compensated by Microcom. Case said this matter was brought up at the Suburban Rate Authority (SRA) meeting. Dietz said the SRA attorney thought this was a reasonable agreement in the context of other franchise-type agreements. The issues Pauly brought up were important. The City should get the money if it is entitled to it. The issue of how much the City is reimbursed CITY COUNCIL AU NUTES January 2,2001 Page 14 for its expenses is an important one. Other companies have had to pay the costs for placing antennas on City facilities. The City did not budget for this level of service and should be reimbursed. Mayor Harris said this isn't a matter of the dollars involved, but rather the City maintaining the integrity of the ordinance. Enger said Metricom's overall agreement works against the City's ability to negotiate an individual deal because Metricom is reluctant to make a different agreement with one city that it didn't make with another. The City is using the poles now for radio receivers and transmitters for the automatic water-reading system. He said the main concern is about how these poles are going to look with more than a Metricom installation on them and the City needs to have control over that. There was nothing onerous in the suggestions made by the City's legal staff. Tyra-Lukens asked Pauly if it is correct to say the City wants any company coming into the community to recognize the rules and regulations of the community. Pauly said that is correct. The Telecommunications Act does require all communities to make physical locations available so these types of facilities can be established. That is what the City's code does with regard to other wireless communications facilities. This, however, is different. This involves also use of City property itself. Xcel has been silent on the matter of exclusive use of the poles. Pauly said that issue can be laid aside until it is determined who should be paid, and then the money can flow wherever it is appropriate. Case said he would like to have Gene Dietz raise this matter at the annual meeting of the SRA on January 17. He would like input from that group about why they believe Metricom's agreement is acceptable. Enger suggested inviting the SRA's attorney to make a presentation to the Council. Dietz suggested writing to the attorney to get the answers. Max Thompson, representing Metricom as an employee, said the issues brought up have been made more difficult than they need to be. If Metricom brings a service to a community they try to find a way for their radios to not be a visual blight. They utilize existing structures and whoever owns the structure receives the rent. Whoever owns the poles has a right to the fee. Some research is needed into that. He said Jim Strommon, the attorney for SRA, worked on this agreement. More than 56 communities have signed agreements with the company. He knew that Xcel Energy said it did not make a different agreement with Eden Prairie than it had with other cities. In terms of the amount of charges the contract allows, Thompson said nationwide cities have been receiving about $9,000 a year. That should be more than enough to compensate Eden Prairie for its costs. Metricom doesn't want to pay consultants' fees; they want to limit their exposure to extra costs in that CITY COUNCIL NIINUTES January 2,2001 Page 15 way. As to the other issues, he would be willing to come back another time. He didn't need a decision that night. Thompson said he had looked at a plan of the City and there are not a lot of poles available in the newer areas. Only three percent of the City's poles would be impacted. They wouldn't have to use a light pole specifically; they could use a pole on City property. They can also move them if necessary. It only requires attachment of a radio to an existing pole that has power to it. Metricom is trying to include Eden Prairie in a new technology. It can map information about the City, such as trees, water systems, etc. The police can use the information also. If only two percent of residents subscribe to the service it can bring a lot of revenue to the City. Pauly pointed out regarding use of other City facilities, the City will be receiving an agreement with Sprint. Sprint will be building a tower for the City and paying$15,000 a year,beginning with the first year and after that the amount will increase 5 percent each year up to $30,000 for placing 12 antennas on a tower. That amount is consistent with what other companies have been paying for antennas on the City's other towers. Mayor Harris suggested continuing this conversation at a later date whenever Jim Strommon,the attorney for SRA,is available to speak to the Council on this matter. Any information Staff can give Council prior to that would be appreciated. XVII. OTHER BUSINESS XVIII.ADJOURNMENT MOTION: Butcher moved to adjourn the meeting. Mayor Harris adjourned the meeting at 9:10 p.m.