Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council - 09/19/2006 APPROVED MINUTES EDEN PRAIRIE CITY COUNCIL MEETING TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 2006 7:00 PM, CITY CENTER Council Chamber 8080 Mitchell Road CITY COUNCIL: Mayor Nancy Tyra-Lukens, Councilmembers Brad Aho, Sherry Butcher, Ron Case, and Philip Young CITY STAFF: City Manager Scott Neal, Parks & Recreation Director Bob Lambert, City Engineer Alan Gray, City Planner Michael Franzen, Community Development Director Janet Jeremiah, City Attorney Ric Rosow and Council Recorder Deb Sweeney I. ROLL CALL/CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER Tyra-Lukens called the meeting to order at 7:02 p.m. II. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE III. COUNCIL FORUM INVITATION IV. PROCLAMATIONS /PRESENTATIONS A. WELCOME ABC STUDENTS The students of ABC were welcomed by the City Council and introduced themselves. Gardner Gay, Executive Director of ABC Foundation-Eden Prairie, thanked Councilmembers for their ongoing support of the students and invited the community to join in two fundraisers: a 5K run September 23rd at the Purgatory Creek Recreation Area, and the annual Gala Dinner on October 26d'. Gay said he hoped to make the program available to boys in the next one to two years. B. REPORT ON THE CITY RESPONSE TO THE SENIOR ISSUES TASK FORCE RECOMMENDATIONS Neil postponed this item due to Staff illness. V. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND OTHER ITEMS OF BUSINESS Neal struck Item VII.H. (Public Hearing for TIF district) from the consent calendar. Lambert said he would discuss a name change for the Purgatory Creek Recreation Area but would not be recommending action. CITY COUNCIL MINUTES September 19, 2006 Page 2 MOTION: Aho moved, seconded by Young, to approve the agenda as published as amended. Motion carried 5-0. VI. MINUTES A. COUNCIL WORKSHOP HELD TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2006 MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Young, to approve the Council Workshop minutes as published. Motion carried 5-0. B. CITY COUNCIL MEETING HELD TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2006 MOTION: Butcher moved, seconded by Case, to approve the City Council minutes as published. Motion carried 5-0. VII. CONSENT CALENDAR A. CLERK'S LICENSE LIST B. KLUGE RESIDENCE by Richard and Kelsey Kluge. Second Reading of the Ordinance for Zoning District Change from Rural to R1-22 on 1.98 acres. Location: 7260 Willow Creek Road. (Ordinance No. 22-2006 for Zoning District Change) C. SOUTHWEST METRO TRANSIT BUS GARAGE ADDITION by Southwest Metro Transit Commission. Second Reading of the Ordinance for Planned Unit Development District Review with waivers and Zoning District Amendment with in the I-2 Zoning District on 10.1 acres, Resolution for Site Plan Review on 10.1 acres. Location: 14405 62nd Street West. (Ordinance No. 23-2006 for PUD-15- 2006 District Review with waivers and Zoning District Amendment, Resolution No. 2006-114 for Site Plan Review) D. WOODLAND 2ND ADDITION by Tom Robertson. Approval of the Development Agreement. Location: 6983 Woodland Drive E. ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 2006-115 DECLARING COSTS TO BE ASSESSED AND ORDERING PREPARATION OF SPECIAL ASSESSMENT HEARING ROLLS AND SETTING HEARING DATE F. APPROVE ENCROACHMENT AGREEMENTS WITH MAGELLAN PIPELINE COMPANY, LP G. AWARD CONTRACT FOR RECONSTRUCTION OF LIFT STATION NO. 2 TO ENGINEERING AND CONSTRUCTION INNOVATIONS, I.C. 05-5649 CITY COUNCIL MINUTES September 19, 2006 Page 3 H. ADOPT RESOLUTION CALLING FOR A PUBLIC HEARING ON NOVEMBER 14, 2006, TO CONSIDER ESTABLISHING A NEW TAX INCREMENT FINANCING REDEVELOPMENT DISTRICT (SOLOMON'S TOWN CENTER PHASE I) (REMOVED FROM CONSENT CALENDAR) I. APPROVE BID FROM CUSTOM MANUFACTURING FOR EIGHT NATURE TRAIL BRIDGES FOR THE LOWER PURGATORY CREEK AND RILEY CREEK PROJECTS J. AWARD CONTRACT FOR REPLACEMENT OF ELECTRONIC INFORMATION SIGNS AT CITY CENTER TO AIM ELECTRONICS Neal removed Item H. MOTION: Butcher moved, seconded by Aho, to approve Items A-G and I-J on the Consent Calendar. Motion carried 5-0. VIII. PUBLIC HEARINGS/MEETINGS A. PRAIRIE ESTATES 2Nn ADDITION by Prairie Estates of Eden Prairie, LLC. Request for Planned Unit Development Concept Review on 2.33 acres, Planned Unit Development District Review with waivers on 2.33 acres, Zoning District Change from Rural to R1-13.5 on 2.33 acres, and Preliminary Plat of 2.33 acres into four lots and road right-of-way. Location: Duck Lake Road and 62nd Street West. (Resolution No. 2006-116 for PUD Concept Review, Ordinance for PUD District Review with waivers and Zoning District Change; Resolution No. 2006-117 for Preliminary Plat) Neal said this is a four lot single-family development. The existing house will remain on its own lot. A PUD waiver is required for a front yard setback of 14 feet for this house. The waiver may have merit since the property owner plans on remaining at this site for the new future and the house will ultimately be removed upon a future subdivision of the lot. The Planning Commission voted 8-0 to recommend approval of the project at its August 28, 2006 meeting based upon the recommendations of the Staff Report, which included modifying the grading plan not to exceed 3:1 slopes, and to incorporate infiltration basins. The plans have been revised accordingly. Case asked if it was a condition that the house be removed eventually and how sale of the property would affect the agreement. Jeremiah said the variance would remain in place until the lot is subdivided. CITY COUNCIL MINUTES September 19, 2006 Page 4 MOTION: Young moved, seconded by Case, to close the Public Hearing; adopt Resolution No. 2006-116 for Planned Unit Development Concept Review on 2.33 acres; approve 1 st Reading of the Ordinance for Planned Unit Development District Review with waivers, and Zoning District Change from Rural to R1-13.5 on 2.33 acres; adopt Resolution No. 2006-117 for Preliminary Plat on 2.33 acres into four lots and road right-of-way; and direct Staff to prepare a Development Agreement incorporating Staff and Commission recommendations. Motion carried 5-0. IX. PAYMENT OF CLAIMS MOTION: Young moved, seconded by Case, to approve Payment of Claims as submitted. The motion carried on a roll call vote with Aho, Butcher, Case, Young and Tyra-Lukens voting "aye." X. ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS XI. PETITIONS, REQUESTS AND COMMUNICATIONS XII. REPORTS OF ADVISORY BOARDS & COMMISSIONS XIII. APPOINTMENTS XIV. REPORTS OF OFFICERS A. REPORTS OF COUNCILMEMBERS B. REPORT OF CITY MANAGER 1. Prosecuting Attorney Services Neal noted discussion of alternatives for providing City prosecution services had begun during the budget discussion last year. Council directed Neal to look at two possibilities: evaluating the feasibility of hiring City Staff to handle prosecution, and issuing an RFP to service providers. Neal said he looked at other cities that use in-house attorneys, including Bloomington, Minnetonka, and Coon Rapids, all of which employ Staff for both civil and prosecution services. Elk River contracts its civil services and uses Staff for prosecution, the same arrangement proposed under this alternative. Neal's analysis based on those four cities was that Eden Prairie would need to hire 2.5 FTE to provide in-house prosecution services. Given that Elk River is less than half the size of Eden Prairie, Neal felt that was a reliable number. City prosecutors would be Grade 5 CITY COUNCIL MINUTES September 19, 2006 Page 5 employees. Personnel costs,plus a small operating budget(even less than Elk River's) would yield a $220,625 budget. Office space and equipment are not included in this figure. To address the contract option, Neal said he examined past prosecution patterns to get an idea of service levels, number of transactions, and number of court appearances in order to inform the RFP. Seven firms responded to the RFP and three were interviewed: a small firm, Gregerson Rosow; a medium firm, Rondoni & Schneider; and a large firm, Campbell Knutson. Two interview teams evaluated the candidates using a ratings system with comments. One team was composed of five public safety officers,both civil and sworn. The other consisted of two Councilmembers and three City Staff. Neal debriefed both teams after the interviews. Neal said both teams showed a clear preference for Gregerson Rosow. The City's cost to contract with Rosow to provide both civil and prosecution services is right in the market with comparable cities. Costs this year are also running 7% lower than last year. Satisfaction surveys have found police officers are very satisfied with the current prosecution services provided by Gregerson Rosow, which impacts how they do their jobs. The 2007 budget has $240,000 allocated for prosecution services, which would be sufficient. At$120,000, the potential savings for switching vendors are not negligible,but the City is receiving outstanding service from Gregerson Rosow and has a long relationship with them. Neal said he had shared his recommendation with all three firms, but all the players know Council confirmation is required. Butcher said she had been one of the two Councilmembers on the interview team. She supported Neal's recommendation to appoint Gregerson Rosow as the City's official criminal prosecutor for the next three years. There is no compelling reason to change, as service has been excellent—in fact, both competing firms agreed the current prosecutor was exceptional. Cities similar in size and complexity have the same budget as Eden Prairie. Prosecution is a public safety issue, and the quality of Eden Prairie's prosecution is broadly praised by police officers, Hennepin County Corrections, and Cornerstone, a community agency that responds to domestic violence. There is no reason to exchange excellence for the unknown. Young questioned the validity of the city-by-city comparison chart. The Council voted to reduce the budget for legal services by $125,000 in December. The actual cost for legal services (vs. the budgeted cost) was closer to $500,000. Neal said the understatement of costs vs. the budget CITY COUNCIL MINUTES September 19, 2006 Page 6 was incurred only in 2006. The full budget amount was restored in the 2007 budget used in the chart. Young clarified he was only addressing prosecution services. Civil services will remain with Gregerson Rosow as their institutional knowledge gained in long service to the City has inherent value. But contrast,prosecution services are a commodity. Felonies are prosecuted by Hennepin County attorneys, so the City prosecutor only handles misdemeanors, for example, speeding tickets. A great many attorneys can competently perform this work. Butcher noted many domestic violence incidents are prosecuted as misdemeanors. Young reiterated there is no inherent value in keeping the same prosecuting attorney. Dividing the current prosecution contract with Gregerson Rosow ($250,000)by the hourly rate ($130/hr) yields about 2000 hours. Young said that equals one in-house lawyer, not 2.5. A 1/3 secretarial position would be a typical level of administrative support. If the City chose to contract the position, there are two bids that are substantially lower, both from firms qualified to do the work. Unless there is a good reason to choose otherwise, the City should go with the low bid. Aho said there were some differences in the services provided by each form, and agreed Gregerson Rosow was a known quantity. However, the differences were not very marked. Even if the City stays with Gregerson Rosow, there is no guarantee the City will keep the same attorney. Many firms offered multiple attorneys to handle the caseload. Aho recommended going with the low bid of$120,000 for one year and then re-evaluating. Case said he respected Staff's depth of experience on this issue. The key issue is not cost savings but public safety. Case said he learned in conversation with another City's attorney that Eden Prairie's prosecutor prosecutes more cases than average. This validates police as they do their jobs and leads to more arrests. With residents concerned about traffic safety,potential gang activities, and vandalism, now is not the time to gamble. The police department is saying they need this, and the majority of both committees agreed to go with Gregerson Rosow. For an average 15 cents per month per household, the savings is not worth the risk. Young noted the competing firms also do a lot of municipal work. He asked if any of their references expressed dissatisfaction with them. Neal said no firm received an interview unless it was qualified, but past performance is the best predictor of future performance. Gregerson Rosow has demonstrated excellence. Aho said all the firms are qualified and would do roughly the same work. The City would stipulate the level of CITY COUNCIL MINUTES September 19, 2006 Page 7 service and set parameters as to what to prosecute. The City has a responsibility to be competitive in how it pays for services. Case said prosecuting DUIs, domestic violence, petty crime, vandalism, and traffic violations is very important to Eden Prairie's quality of life. Butcher said other firms might be competent but not rise to the same level. The current prosecutor is active in family violence nonprofits and takes pride in serving "her city" of Eden Prairie. Tyra-Lukens said the process of looking at insourcing or bidding out prosecution services seemed odd from the beginning. The logical place to trim the budget is to look at areas of dissatisfaction or outliers on cost. Neither applies to the City's prosecution services. Several comparable cities spend more, and so do some smaller cities. The costs are well within the realm of reason. The current firm has also prosecuted low-level crime well, which is important to creating a sense of community safety. There is no reason to leave the known for the unknown. MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Butcher, to appoint Gregerson, Rosow, Johnson & Nilan to serve as the City's official criminal prosecutor for a term of three years, beginning January 1, 2007, and ending January 31, 2009. Motion carried 3-2 with Butcher, Case, and Tyra-Lukens in favor and Aho and Young opposed. C. REPORT OF THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR D. REPORT OF PARKS AND RECREATION DIRECTOR 1. Guidelines for Community Use of Park and Recreation Rental Facilities Lambert said the Parks Commission proposes changing City policy for Parks facility rentals. The key issue is that the City Parks system is increasingly being used for fundraisers (walks and runs). Organizations from outside town have one of their employees who is a resident reserve the facilities, then bring in hundreds or thousands of people for an event. The demand is such that the Purgatory Creek Recreation Area trail could be booked every weekend day during good weather, and Staring Lake and Round Lake are also in demand. Minneapolis faced similar problem along its chain of lakes, and limited walks/runs around them to two per month to respond to resident complaints. Eden Prairie taxpayers support the parks and should have reasonable opportunities to use them. The new policy limits the number of walks/runs at PCRA, Round Lake, and Staring Lake to two per month. In CITY COUNCIL MINUTES September 19, 2006 Page 8 addition, the organization itself must be Eden Prairie based. Eden Prairie non-profits will get two weeks lead time to reserve facilities before reservations are opened to residents and businesses. The Parks Commission approved the policy 7-0. Tyra-Lukens asked if the number of walks is a problem now, or an anticipated problem. Lambert characterized it as a building problem. There have been several large groups during the past two years and there are already many calls in for next year(the City is not yet taking reservations for 2007). The new policy will mean 2-3 large organizations can no longer hold their events here. Tyra-Lukens asked how "Eden Prairie based" would be defined—would a local chapter of a national organization like Rotary count? Lambert said the organization needs an Eden Prairie address. Case expressed concern about seeming unwelcoming to nonprofits that residents may support. Lambert said all the walks are for good causes,but it is a question of preserving access for residents. If the number of walks is not controlled,residents won't be able to use their trails on Saturday mornings. Case noted there is also wear and tear. Lambert said the more important issue is people using the parks system without any kind of permission at all. Camps, clinics,private lesson providers, and busses of kids from YMCAs or churches all have been found dominating City parks facilities without a permit or reservation. For example, Staff recently noticed an athletic camp of more than 80 kids using the Staring Lake fields with no permit. Groups are charging participants and getting use of the facilities for free. Other cities are also struggling with this problem, as these uses do not violate any ordinance. Lambert said he has asked the City Attorney to draft an ordinance to allow action when people are dominating parks facilities without a permit. Young asked if the new reservation policy would mean a recreational running club could not organize an event. Lambert said yes. Young said that would be terrible. He asked for another example of how groups would be impacted. Lambert said a cancer group out of Minneapolis has done a walk/run for three years that would not be permitted under the new policy. Tyra-Lukens affirmed the policy and asked for clarification on what would be allowed. Could a local group like the Key Club at the high school do a walk for diabetes? Lambert said yes, and for Key Club to recruit participants widely would also be fine. To have a Minneapolis organization come in and make money that goes back to Minneapolis would not. CITY COUNCIL MINUTES September 19, 2006 Page 9 MOTION: Butcher moved, seconded by Aho, to approve the policy titled "Guidelines for Community Use of Park and Recreation Rental Facilities." Motion carried 5-0. 2. Proposed Name Chance for the Purgatory Creek Recreation Area Lambert said the Veterans Memorial Task Force had requested a name change from Purgatory Creek Recreational Area to Memorial Park. The Purgatory Creek Recreation Area name came from the initial park design in 1981, which included a golf course and other amenities deserving of the "recreation" label. As the park design adapted to the 1991 wetlands act, these elements were dropped, and the park no longer fits its name. Neither Staff nor the Commission had strong feelings about the name. The Parks Commission approved the name change at their September 11, 2006 meeting. Lambert said he had given additional consideration to the matter and recommended postponing action. Resident Jeff Strate pointed out the memorials are a small part of the whole area, which is more of a wetland/conservation area. People also often ask the name of the lake, which is nameless. Lambert recommended referring the matter of the name back to Parks and collecting input from the Arts and Culture and Heritage Preservation Commissions to see if the name could be linked to the history of the area. The new sign for the park has been put on hold and can remain on hold for a year at no additional cost. Case supported slowing the process. The idea of a memorial park has an appealing small-town feel. Perhaps the preserve/conservation elements of the park could also be incorporated in the name. Butcher looked forward to seeing a list of names and supported having the Heritage Preservation Committee examine place names. Tyra-Lukens said the name "Purgatory" is sometimes perceived poorly. Council agreed to postpone action. 3. Request to Fence Riley Lake Park Playsround Lambert said the issue of a fenced playground had come up during community meetings prior to the referendum. Special needs parents spoke of not feeling comfortable taking their kids to the park due to safety concerns. Parents with multiple children, in-home day cares, or "runners" also supported the petition. Miller Park was the first choice to look at,but the bike/trike track around the park would interfere with fence placement. Parks proposes to put a black vinyl chain link fence (about 42" in height) around the Riley Lake playground, with two access gates along paths and a wider maintenance gate, at a cost of$5,000 or less. Lambert said he CITY COUNCIL MINUTES September 19, 2006 Page 10 would not support making fenced playgrounds a City standard,but fencing one community park seems reasonable. The Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission supported this recommendation at their September 11 meeting. Tyra-Lukens recommended posting a sign on the fence to prohibit dogs. MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Aho, to approve the petition request for fencing the playground at Riley Lake Park in 2007. Motion carried 5-0. E. REPORT OF PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR F. REPORT OF POLICE CHIEF G. REPORT OF FIRE CHIEF H. REPORT OF CITY ATTORNEY XV. OTHER BUSINESS XVI. ADJOURNMENT MOTION: Butcher moved, seconded by Young, to adjourn the meeting. Motion carried 5-0. The meeting adjourned at 8:22 p.m.