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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council - 10/05/2004 - Workshop APPROVED MINUTES EDEN PRAIRIE CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOW/FORUM TUESDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2004 CITY CENTER 5:00—6:25 PM, HERITAGE ROOM II 6:30—7:00 PM, COUNCIL CHAMBER CITY COUNCIL: Mayor Nancy Tyra-Lukens, Councilmembers Sherry Butcher,Ron Case, Jan Mosman, and Philip Young CITY STAFF: City Manager Scott Neal, Police Chief Dan Carlson, Fire Chief George Esbensen,Public Works Director Eugene Dietz, Parks and Recreation Director Bob Lambert, Community Development Director Janet Jeremiah, Communications Manager Pat Brink, Assistant to the City Manager Michael Barone, City Attorney Ric Rosow, and Recorder Lorene McWaters Heritage Room H Mayor Tyra-Lukens was not in attendance. Councilmember Case served as Acting Mayor. I. MARY HILL SMITH—METROPOLITAN COUNCIL Mary Hill Smith is the Met Council's Third District Representative. The Third District currently includes Eden Prairie. Hill Smith distributed a packet of information, including the 2030 Regional Development Framework. She explained the Council's Framework is organized around four main policies: ■ Accommodating growth in a flexible, connected and efficient manner ■ Slowing the growth of traffic congestion and improving mobility ■ Encouraging expanded choices in housing locations and types, including multi-modal housing ■ Working to conserve,protect and enhance the environment Smith noted that communities have until October 22 to submit comments on the plan to the Met Council. Final approval of the plan is expected in December. Smith also said that changes to comp plans will not be required to follow the 2030 framework until after 2008. Councilmember Butcher asked Smith for an update on the transportation plan, and LRT and the North Star Corridor in particular. Smith said the governor supports the North Star Corridor and has managed to obtain enough money($20 million)to keep it in play; however, the legislature will have to appropriate more money for the project to move forward. The overall plan calls for the corridor to run from downtown Minneapolis to Big Lake, and possibly St. Cloud, Council Workshop Minutes October 5, 2004 Page 2 Smith said the southwest corridor LRT is strictly a local issue at this point. She noted there is a great deal of flexibility built into the Met Council transportation plan, which calls for"transit ways,"which can consist of a variety of transportation combinations of busses and/or rapid transit. Butcher said it appears that the Flying Cloud Airport expansion seems to be hold. She asked Smith if she has any additional information about the airport. Smith said she knows nothing more,but that Northwest Airlines would like to see any additional funds go toward MSP. They have requested that users of regional airport pay more so that MAC can devote more funds to MSP. Councilmember Case said that he realizes that Smith is not an elected official,but he said he would like to stress that a majority of the City Councilmembers are concerned about expansion of Flying Cloud Airport and would like the personality of this airport to remain the same, and do not want to see it become a jetport. Councilmember Young said he was not aware that the Met Council played a role with airports, and asked Smith to expand on this. Smith said that years ago the MAC entered into an agreement with Eden Prairie. This agreement was eventually ruled unenforceable since the Met Council is legal the authority for airports. The Met Council sets guidelines for runway lengths, etc. Councilmember Mosman asked about the status of the proposed"greenbelt"that was part of the proposed Met Council"Blueprint" a couple of years ago. Smith noted that the current Met Council rejected the Blueprint, and instead developed the current 2030 Framework. She said current policy is to encourage slow growth in contiguous areas, except in"rural growth centers." She said this type of growth allows for the most efficient placement of sewer systems. Case asked if there will be incentives to encourage communities to increase densities. Smith said there is not much funding available for incentives; however the Met Council is working to educate communities about the advantages of densifying in areas with existing infrastructure. Smith also noted that Baby Boomers are expressing interest in these denser types of development. Communications Manager Pat Brink said it is his understanding that by law the LRT trail that runs to Eden Prairie cannot be considered for use as a busway. Smith said legislation barring this was passed,but if the law needs to be changed it will be changed. She noted that Hennepin County owns that land, so it is not a Met Council issue. Case said it makes sense to run any transit way to the Southwest Station,which would keep it mostly off the LRT trail. Case suggested that Senior Planner Scott Kipp review the aviation portion of the Met Council report before the October 22 deadline for comments. Council Workshop Minutes October 5, 2004 Page 3 City Manager Neal asked Smith about her position on geographic expansion of the Met Council. Smith said she thinks expansion makes sense,but it would be very difficult to accomplish at this time. She said infra-agency agreements with some surrounding counties could be helpful with transportation and environmental issues becoming ever more important. Council Chamber II. OPEN FORUM A. JODY RUSSELL—VOTER REGISTRATION Ms. Russell said she is an Eden Prairie resident with a deep idealism about democracy. She said her work with voter registration is about service,not politics. Russell said she was so impressed with Mary Jo Sponselor, a Minnetonka woman who has devoted a year of her life to voter registration that she offered to help bring this initiative to Eden Prairie. Russell said she encountered her first hitch when she requested to set up a voter registration booth at the City's International Festival on July 31. Russell's request was denied because"political activity"is not allowed at these types of events. Russell reiterated that she does not view voter registration as political and she was later thrilled to hear that there was a voter registration booth at the event. Russell asked to come before Council after she and Sponselor began voter registration activities at other sites in Eden Prairie. Russell said at the first building they visited a third of the residents registered,but when they moved on to another senior citizens' building, the manager told them not to come and that the City agreed with this decision. Russell said she contacted the City Clerk's office and was told there are concerns about possible identity theft by individuals claiming to conduct voter registration. Russell said she did see an article in the newspaper about a phone scam,but still felt she should have been allowed to conduct voter registration at the building. Councilmember Butcher asked if there is a procedure for being certified to do voter registration. Russell said the Secretary of State issues guidelines for registering voters,but that there is no certification process. Case said what Russell is doing is laudable,but he pointed out the City does not have the resources to ensure everyone who says they want to conduct voter registration is trustworthy. City Manager Scott Neal said he spoke with the City Clerk about Russell's concerns. It is his understanding that the owner of the building called the City to ask if it was legal for outside individuals to conduct voter registration. The owner was told that it is legal,but she is not required to allow it. Council Workshop Minutes October 5, 2004 Page 4 Councilmember Mosman said while it is good for people to register, the City cannot be held responsible for checking credentials. Case said as a government entity, the City needs to remain neutral, and it sounds as if we are doing that. Butcher suggested Russell ask the Secretary of State's office to provide a letter of support for her to present when asking to enter buildings. Case pointed out that pre-registration is not required to vote in Minnesota, and many people take advantage of the right to register at the polls on Election Day B. JOE BERG—STOP SIGNS AT HAMES & EVENER WAY Mr. Berg said he has spoken with several staff members to get stop signs installed on Haines and Evener Way. He is concerned with traffic speeds on these two roads, which are heavily used as short cuts. He has asked the City to look at control or the appearance of control for speed on these roads. Mr. Berg said he has to cross the street to get to his mailbox and traffic often has to swerve to miss him. He took an informal survey that indicates cars are typically going between 35 and 45 miles per hour. Berg said he was told by the Traffic Engineer Randy Newton that stop signs can result in increased speeds and are "unwarranted"for his neighborhood. Berg said his request was also "pushed aside"by Public Works Director Gene Dietz. Berg asked what data the City has collected on traffic speeds on his street. He said the City appears to be basing their decision on volume and not speed. Mr. Berg said he works for another City, and in his experience just because someone is a PE it doesn't mean they are Karnack. Berg said he was further frustrated when he asked City Manager Scott Neal for assistance. He said Neal indicated that it does not matter that the engineers making the decisions don't live in the neighborhood in question. Councilmember Case said he knows traffic volumes are heavy before and after school on these roads near the high school. He suggested Dietz and Newton meet with the Police Department to further evaluate the issue, and report back to Council. He asked that Mr. Berg be kept informed. C. OFF-LEASH DOG AREA PROPONENTS Dr. Robert Skinner is a vet and runs a veterinary clinic in Eden Prairie. He was a member of a committee that studied the possibility of an off-leash dog park and recommended development of 20 acres of MAC property near Flying Cloud Airport for this purpose. The Parks and Recreation Commission chose not to accept these recommendations, and instead designated four outdoor hockey rinks for off season off-leash dog use as well as a 2.5 acre area. He said these areas are sufficient only for one or two people and dogs to use at a time. Council Workshop Minutes October 5, 2004 Page 5 Dr. Skinner said a well-designed off-leash area for dogs and their owners to legally, safely play would be a great asset to Eden Prairie. In his experience, well-exercised dogs cause far fewer problems than other dogs. He also pointed out that the dog park in Bloomington is so heavily used that it was just enlarged by 30 percent. Dr. Skinner sited an Oregon report that identifies dogs and their owners as a new user group of park and recreation facilities. Dr. Skinner asked that the City provide the same consideration to this group as it does other more established user groups, such as joggers and bikers. Councilmember Case suggested carrying this discussion over to the Council meeting for further discussion. It was agreed to add this item to the Council Agenda. III. OPEN PODIUM No one requested to speak at Open Podium. IV. ADJOURNMENT