Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council - 04/07/1987 APPROVED MINUTES EDEN PRAIRIE CITY COUNCIL TUESDAY , APRIL 7, 1987 7: 30 PM, CITY HALL COUNCIL CHAMBERS 7600 Executive Drive i COUNCIL MEMBERS: Mayor Gary Peterson, Richard Anderson, George Bentley, Jean Harris, and Patricia Pidcock y CITY COUNCIL STAFF : City Manager Carl J . Jullie, Assistant to the City Manager Craig Dawson, City Attorney Roger Pauly, Finance Director John D . Frane , Director of Planning Chris Enger, Director of Community Services Robert Lambert Director of Public Works Eugene A . Dietz, and Recording Secretary Jan F Nelson n PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE ROLL CALL: All members were present . 4 I . APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND OTHER ITEMS OF BUSINESS The following items were added to the Agenda: X . A . 1 . Pidcock - Re rt on Southwest Corridor Coalition; X . A . 2 . Pidcock - Policy for Councilmen er expensts . MOTION: Harris moved, seconded by Bentley, to approve the Agenda and Other Items of Business as amended and published . Motion carried unanimously . II . MINUTES A . Special City Council meeting held Tuesday, March 10, 1987 The following changes were made to the Minutes: page 1 , paragraph five , sentence 1 -- change "development . " to "development once development is initiated or completed . •• , and page 3 , paragraph 1 , sentence 1 -- change "river corridor" to creek corridor" . MOTION: Bentley moved, seconded by Harris, to approve the Minutes of the Special City Council meeting held March 10 , 1987, as amended and published . Motion carried unanimously . B . City Council Meeting held Tuesday, March 17, 1987 i City Council Minutes -2- April 7, 1987 MOTION: Bentley moved , seconded by Anderson, to approve the Minutes of the regular City Council meeting held March 17 , 1987 , as published . Motion carried unanimously . III . CONSENT CALENDAR A . Clerk ' s License List B . Final Plat Approval for Bluestein Hills 2nd Addition Location: Southeast of Bennett Place and Northwest of Meade Lane . (Resolution No . 87-65 ) C . Final Plat Approval for Bluffs West 6th Addition Location: East of Homeward Hills Road and North of Riverview Road . (Resolution No . 87-77 ) D . Receive Feasibility Report for SunnybTook Road Street and Utility Improvements and Set Public Hearin for iyia�r�s �2 ! , �987, I .0 . -109 Resolution No . 7-7 E. Final Plat for Prairie Acres (Southwest Corner of CSAH 1 and Bennett Place ) Resolution No . 7-79 F. Receive 10 g Petition for Sanitary Sewer and Watermain Utility Improvements for Shams Oak Ride and Authorize Preparation of Plans and Srecifiica ons, I .C.52-119 Resolution No . 8779f) G. Final Plat for Carmel 6th Addition Location: Fallbrook Road and North of Driftwood Road -. (Resolution No . 87-82 ) H . WILLIAMS MINI-STORAGE, by Bob Williams . 2nd Reading of Ordinance - 7, Rezoning from Rural to I-2 Park. Approval of Addendum to Developer' s Agreement for William' s Mini- Storage ; and Adoption of Resolution #87-84, Authorizing Summary of Ordinance #11-87 and Ordering Publication of Said Summary. Rezoning from Rural to I-2 Park for 0.5 acres . Location: East of Highway #169, south of Anderson Lakes Parkway . (Ordinance #11-87, Rezoning; Resolution #87-84, Authorizing Summary and Publication) I . Resolution No . 8-( -8 . Proclaiming April 10 L 1987 as Child Care Provider Da..y in Eden Prairie J . Request from James L. Cardinal for Council to recommend his reappointment b the Hennepin Couh & Boarda ommissioners to the Ri ey, rgatory, Creek watershed goaRo Managers - MOTION: Bentley moved, seconded by Anderson, to approve Items A - J on the Consent Calendar . Motion carried unanimously. r City Council Minutes -3- April 7. 1987 IV . PUBLIC HEARINGS A . INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF MINNESOTA . Request for Compre- hensive Guide Plan Amendment from Medium Density Resi- dential and Public Open Space to Elementary/Secondary School on 55. 6 acres; Zoning District Change from Rural to Public on 55 .6 acres ; and Preliminary Plat of 55 .6 acres into one lot for construction of a private school . The request also includes a change of the City Code, Chap- ter 11 , Section 11 .35, entitled "Public District, " Sub- division 2 , to allow private schools as a permitted use and private schools with boarding as a permitted use , and requiring park dedication of such uses . Location: North of Bryant Lake , west of Rowland Road, east of Beach Road and I-494. (Ordinance #12-87, Chapter 11 Ordinance Change ; Resolution #87-60 , Comprehensive Guide Plan Amendment ; Ordinance #10-87, Rezoning; Resolution #87-61 , Preliminary Plat ) Continued Public Hearing from March 17. 1987 City Manager Jullie noted this item was continued from the March 17, 1987 meeting as there were several issues unresolved at that meeting. He said a draft of the Develop- er' s Agreement was prepared and forwarded to the proponents last week . He thought a reasonable consensus had been reached on several of the items as a result of a meeting on Monday to discuss the terms of the agreement . Planning Director Enger noted that normally a Developer' s Agreement is drafted after the First Reading of the Zoning Ordinance ; however, because of the number of issues out- standing and the requirement that the Comprehensive Guide Plan change be reviewed by the Metropolitan Council, Staff prepared the Developer' s Agreement to make sure there is no misunderstanding if the Council approves the Guide Plan and Zoning changes . Enger highlighted the major items addressed in the draft Developer's Agreement. He noted that the Planning Com- mission was concerned about the possible conflict of future development phases with a significant tree stand on the property . The method chosen to address this concern was to restrict the size of the zoning area to approximately 39 acres, all of which is outside of the floodplain and outside of the major treed areas on the site . The 39 .5 acres would encompass the proposed Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the International School . He said the 39.5 acres will be rezoned to Public and the Comprehensive Guide Plan will be changed to Elementary/Secondary Education= the balance of the 55 acres will be Public Open Space on the Comprehen- sive Guide Plan and zoned as Rural . y City Council Minutes -4- April 7. 1987 a Enger said the School hired a traffic consultant to work with the issue of access to the Crosstown Highway at Beach x Road . The consultants suggested moving the School 's access to Beach Road a couple of hundred feet to the west ; as a result, there will be no additional right-of-way required from International School , and the County can proceed with the construction of the intersection with no cost to the School . He said Staff concurs with that suggestion. He said agreement had been reached on the width of the private road through the campus whereby the road will be 32 feet wide for about 200 feet at the entrance , narrow to 28 feet for approximately 900 feet , and then widen to 32 feet to provide turning movements at the separate parking facilities . Regarding emergency vehicle access, Enger said International School has agreed to work with Hennepin County Park Reserve to obtain an emergency vehicle easement out to Rowland Road on the east . He said the School has agreed to maintain the 20-foot wide road and that the road will be constructed so that it will handle heavier emergency vehicle traffic . Enger said that International School has applied for and does require zoning of both Phase I and Phase 2 development ; however, specific details for construction have been worked out for Phase 1 only. Therefore the recommendation is for the School to consent to a review by the City that is identical to rezoning when Phase 2 is ready, even though zoning of Phase 2 is included in this agreement . Enger said there is a covenant in the agreement that pre- cludes exterior lighting of the athletic facilities and limits lighting in the parking areas to 20-foot high down- case lights . There is no reference to architectural design in the agreement . Enger said there has been no resolution of the amount or the payment of cash park fees, nor has there been resolu- tion of the parkland acquisition by Hennepin County and the Met Council . He said they have received a letter from the Met Council that indicates they have placed this item within their 90-day review process for the Comprehensive Guide Plan change . In the past the City Council has handled this either by waiting until the Met Council has completed their review or by acting contingent on the Met Council signing off on the Comprehensive Guide Plan change . Peterson noted that 90 days for approval by the Met Council would be almost fatal to the project and asked what pro- ponent could do if the City Council gives approval con- tingent to the Met Council approval . City Attorney Pauly City Council Minutes -5- April 7. 1987 y said that rezoning could not be effected until Met Council approval is obtained ; however, consideration could be given to a grading permit prior to the rezoning. City Manager Jullie said he had suggested at the meeting on Monday that a $30, 000 cash park fee would be approp- riate under the circumstances . He said they also dis- cussed the availability of the School ' s playfield facilities for use by the general public . Bentley asked why there were no comments relative to archi- tectural design in the Developer' s Agreement . Enger replied that , while the Planning Commission recommended that the architecture of the School be modified to have a more residential character, the architecture did not seem to be an issue with the Council at the last meeting. Bentley then asked if we don' t normally reference some essence of architectural design in the Developer' s Agree- ment . Enger said there is a full set of exterior archi- tectural elevations included as an exhibit . Referring to the Staff memo of March 24, 1987 regarding zoning for private schools in other communities, Anderson noted that several cities have used a temporary use per- C mit rather than a public use for private schools . He asked if it would be possible to use the temporary use ?. permit until we have time to really settle on something. Pauly said we have tended to not adopt a system of special or conditional use except for interim use permits in the Major Center Area, as such a system takes away some of the control the City may exercise over development . Pauly noted that , in this instance, some performance standards were added to the Code amendment and it is limited to a specific area so that it will not presently apply to all of the public areas in the City . Harris asked for further information on the two issues on which agreement has not been reached . Director of Community Services Lambert said the question of park fees or dedication seems to be the only unresolved issue at this point . Referring to his memo of April 1 , 1987. Lambert said three or four questions must be answered in resolving this issue; the primary question being whether this is a subdivision and , if so, does it trigger the requirement of paying park fees or dedicating parkland . Pauly said this issue is purely one of definition, and the State statute defines subdivision as a division of land into two or more parcels of tract-lot land or area under common ownership. He said Uhis situation would seem i City Council Minutes -6- April 7. 1987 to fit that definition as there are three parcels of land under one ownership and two of the three are being sold . He said another element is that it looks as if a portion of this property will be sold to the Hennepin County Park Reserve , and that would constitute a sub- division . He said the question of the amount of dedica- tion depends on the answer to the question of what park needs are reasonably generated as a result of this devel- opment . Jim Steilen, attorney for proponent , said there have been on-going discussions with the Park Reserve District . In a discussion with Park Board Chairman David Latvaaho late this afternoon, he reviewed what he thought was their agreement and Latvaaho authorized Steilen to say that he is in agreement on the following issues: the International School will convey fee title to the floodplain knoll which includes the cartway to the Park Board for park purposes; and the School will convey an easement to the Park Board. for a triangular piece of property adjacent to Nine-Mile Creek for the development of a trail system. Steilen said discussion continues as to the cost and purchase price of the property to be conveyed to the Park Board; however, they have agreed to continue negotiations for 30 days and if they are unable to reach a mutually- satisfactory price at that time, they have consented to condemnation to determine a fair market value . Steilen said various agreements have been made as to fencing, shrub-screening, and use of the cartway . He said they have agreed to utility easements across the property to the extent necessary, and subject to their approval of the alignment . He said they agreed that the School can use the floodplain for a science laboratory and can con- struct a floating trail/bridge to connect School property to the knoll . Steilen said the one area in which they have not reached agreement is the extent to which the property conveyed to the Park Board will be subject to restrictive covenants . He said the school had asked that the property not be built upon . The staffs of the respective parties will meet to determine what possibly might be built by the Park District at any time in the future and if such construc- tion would be permissible to the School . If a First Reading was given tonight and approval of the Developer 's Agreement was given, Bentley asked if any portion of the Developer ' s Agreement could be left contin- gent upon finalization at Second Reading, in particular rS6 1 City Council Minutes -7- April 7, 1987 the final arrangements regarding cash park fees . Pauly said he thought it would be possible ; however, he cautioned that if the proposal were to be denied , it would be much stronger for the City to do so on the basis of a Guide Plan change than to approve it conditionally on achieving some park dedication . Bentley said the problem is that leaves us with the choice of hammering out an agreement tonight , continuing the entire matter, or recommending denial . He said that doesn' t leave us the option of allowing negotiations to be completed . Tracy Whitehead , representing proponent, said there had been a lot of interaction within this process and that +` a there are two issues outstanding. She said the question of park fees is still an issue and, after discussing this with the owners , they are willing to allow the facilities to be used for special purposes and -they also would be willing to pay $15, 000 to the City for park purposes . f Regarding the issue of Met Council approval, Whitehead --aid the lawyer and one of the staff people for the Met Council said this is something that Steve Keefe can decide ..- to take off the 90-day track . She -said their feeling was that if the Park Reserve District and the International School could agree on a process by which the land could be conveyed , they would not stand in the way and would recom- mend the fast approval . j Mark Johnson of the City Attorney ' s office , reviewed the latest revisions of the Developer ' s Agreement: the removal of reference to dedication of right-of-way for Highway 62; deletion of references to construction and design of the intersection for Hightway 62 ; deletion of construction access ; and addition of a complete description of the emergency vehicle access on page two . Referring to Exhibit C of the agreement, Bentley said Items 3 and 4 appear to be the critical items as to how we proceed . He noted that he was disappointed that there had not been resolution on the issue of park fees and dedication before this meeting. Peterson asked Pauly to review the rationale of tying the charging of cash park fees to the subdivision process . Pauly said the hi stor ical reason was that subdivision requires streets , utilities and public services; and it was then appropriate to require dedication as that repre- sents a more intensive use . He said the proposed use also must result in a need for additional park facilities . City Council Minutes -8- April 7, 1987 Bentley asked for a clarification of Item 4 on Exhibit C . .Pauly said that is a boiler-plate provision in the event of land dedication rather than cash park fees . Pauly noted that the City does have an agreement with the Met Council committing to use its best efforts to acquire land in lieu of cash park fees and then being in a posi- tion to sell that to the Hennepin County Park Reserve District . A discussion followed regarding land dedica- tion or cash park fees as it related to the City' s agree- ment with the Met Council . Bentley said he didn't find any language in the Developer 's Agreement that requires a land dedication. Pauly said that was correct because the agreement was drafted with the idea that it would be cash nark fees in lieu of dedi- cation. Bentley then asked Pauly if the intent of the discussion with the Met Council attorneys was that the land dedica- tion would become a moot point if there were an acceptable cash park fee resolution from our perspective , or are they insistent on the land dedication . Pauly said the Met Council attorneys did not indicate whether they felt the City would be using it ' s best efforts under those circum- stances . For discussion purposes Bentley suggested that: the cash park fee be made at $15, 000 ; an amendment to the Developer's Agreement to allow public use of facilities be worked out with the understanding that such an agreement represents equivalent value to cash park fees ; that those two items x be accepted in lieu of dedication; and then the issue of that property purchase is something left to the attorneys . Pidcock said she was under the impression they .had donated land to the Park Board . Peterson said they are negotiating a sale , and if negotiations fail , they will accept con- demnation proceedings . Referring to Mr. Lambert ' s memo of April 1st, Pidcock said she thought the definition of subdividing involved a lot of new owners and , in this case, we are talking about one owner. She said she thought this was different from a regular subdivision where pieces are being handed to a lot of new owners . Pauly said it is different from normal in terms of degree ; however, the technical definition suggests the possibility of only two owners after the subdivision is completed, as is the case here . Bentley noted that a subdivision does not require two or more owners , as in the case of an owner who subdivides into one lot and an outlot . City Council Minutes -9- April 7, 1987 Harris asked if there is ever an occasion where the finding of need supersedes subdivision. Pauly said the question of subdivision must be answered affirmatively before the question of need is considered . b Harris asked if it was possible that the use of facilities } might be offered during the summer or at other times when the School is closed . Ms. Whitehead said the owners are w very concerned about who uses them, how it is used . and the liability issues, so it would not be possible to use it except on an "asked-for and agreed-upon basis" . Pidcock asked Lambert to elaborate on the survey that indicates private schools use a considerable number of public facilities . Lambert said Staff had contacted cities where various private schools are located and had asked if the schools were using city facilities for their programs . He said about 50% of the schools use facilities such as tennis courts, soccer fields and softball fields . Pidcock then asked what was meant by a "very brief" survey . Lambert said it was done by telephone only . Pidcock asked if the cities were con- tacted rather than the schools themselves. Lambert said that was correct . MOTION: Bentley moved , seconded by Pidcock , to amend the draft Developer' s Agreement to include under Item 3 of Exhibit C that: 1 . Proponent will pay a $15, 000 cash park fee; and 2 . An amendment will be added to the Developer' s Agreement which will allow public use of the International School facilities . Peterson noted that this motion means the Council con- siders this a subdivision, so he thought it was important to discuss the compensating value in return to the City, such as the value in use of the athletic facilities, and also why the fee is set at $15,000 . r Pidcock said she thought it was a tremendous attribute to have such a school in our City, that the green space around the school was a benefit , and that the school will not need as many parks as other developments would . Peterson said he agreed they would not need as many faci- lities in the beginning stages of development but that would change as they approach the maximum of 1400 students . Y� City Council Minutes -10- April 7, 1987 Anderson said it will start out as an elementary school so the demands will not be as great ; however, the needs for students at the secondary level will become much greater. Bentley said the rationale for his motion was a $15, 000 cash park fee and an arbitrary value of $24,000 for use of their facilities by the public . Pidcock asked how many secondary students will be attend- ing the school . Ms . Whitehead said it ultimately will be 450-550 students . Pidcock then asked how much use that number of students would require of public facili- ties . Anderson said the athletic teams would probably use public facilities . Ms . Whitehead said she did not see athletics being a major portion of the International School ' s program. Harris said she thought this school is going to be a very real benefit to the community; however, she did be- lieve that this is a subdivision. She said she has been grappling with what this means in terms of future use and has a great difficulty putting a dollar value on this . Harris asked Lambert what he would see as a reasonable resolution of this . Lambert reaV5,000 rided that he would be more comfortable coming down to if there were a more liberal definition from the developer regarding public use of their facilities . Lambert said he had difficulty putting a value on the use of the facilities "for special occasions . " Peterson said without a more. specific and generous response to that question he would have to say he was against the motion because he could not see compensating value back to the City. Anderson said one of the main concerns is Liability and asked if it would be possible to arrange for the City 's liability insurance to cover public use of the school ' s facilities and also for the City to help with maintenance . Lambert said that had been discussed briefly but that City liability coverage does not meet their requirements, and he didn' t know if we could get as much as they require . Peterson asked if it is possible to indemnify International School so that they are not liable whenever the property is being used for City-sponsored functions. Pauly said 8 it would be possible to indemnify the School but we might be taking on additional risk that would be unac- ceptable . I City Council Minutes _11 - April 7, 1987 Ms . Whitehead said they would agree to continue to allow the community to use their facilities for special events to be scheduled through Mr. Lambert and to pay $1 5 , 000 in park fees now and another $1 S , 000 in f ive years . Jullie said Staff believes that is a very reason- able proposal at this point . AMENDMENT TO THE MOTION: Bentley moved , seconded by Pidcock, to amend Item 1 of his motion to read : 1 . Proponent will pay a $30, 000 cash park fee ; $15 , 000 of which will be paid at this time and $15 , 000 to be paid in five years . Anderson said he -thought both parties have come a long way and proponent has many different things they are giving in addition to the $30, 000 in cash park fees, including such things as the acreage to the Park Reserve District as well as opening the corridor from Beach Road to Rowland Road . VOTE ON THE AMENDMENT : Motion carried unanimously. VOTE ON THE MOTION AS AMENDED: Motion carried unanimously. There were no comments from the audience . MOTION: Pidcock moved, seconded by Harris , to close the Public Hearing and to give 1st Reading of Ordinance No . 12-87 amending Chapter 11 of the City Code , subject to approval by the Metropolitan Council of the amendment to the Comprehensive Guide Plan including as it relates to park and open space use of the subject property and subject to the execution and delivery of a Developer ' s Agreement . Anderson asked if our rezoning this to public puts us in any difficulty with future schools who might ask for the. same type of rezoning. Pauly said the proposed ordinance was revised to limit use of the public di.stric•c for school purposes to this parcel only. Anderson said he wanted to make sure there were no legal entanglements for us on this question . VOTE ON THE MOTION: Motion carried unanimously. MOTION: Pidcock moved , seconded by Harris, to adapt Resolution No . 87-601 approving the Comprehensive Guide Plan Amendment, subject to approval by the Metropolitan Council of the amendment to the Comprehensive Guide Plan including as it relates to park and open space use of the subject property . Motion carried unanimously. City Council Minutes -12- April 7. 1987 7 MOTION: Pidcock moved, seconded by Harris, to give 1st Reading of Ordinance No . 10-87 for Rezoning, subject to approval by the Metropolitan Council of the amendment to the Comprehensive Guide Plan including as it relates to park and open space use of the subject property and subject to the execution and delivery of a Developer' s Agreement . Motion carried unanimously . MOTION: Pidcock moved, seconded by Bentley, to adopt Resolution No . 87-61 , approving the Preliminary Plat of International School of Minnesota, subject to approval by the Metropolitan Council of the amendment to the Com- prehensive Guide Plan including as it relates to park and open space use of the subject property and further subject to the final adoption of Ordinances 10-87 and 12-87 . Motion carried unanimously . Pauly said it would be appropriate to ask proponent if they are in agreement with what has been proposed . Mr. Steilen said , while they were in agreement with the concepts and discussion at the meeting yesterday, he would like to have an opportunity to review the draft agreement . Pauly then asked if they do agree to the substance of the provisions contained in the agreement and discussed here tonight . Steilen said they do . MOTION: Pidcock moved, seconded by Bentley, to approve the Developer' s Agreement in the revised form presented in the meeting and discussed by the City Attorney, together with the amendments and changes discussed with regard to the cash park fees and use of the School facilities by the City for special events . Motion carried unanimously . B . AMENDMENT OF CHAPTER 11 . CITY CODE . Amending City Code Chapter 11 , Entitled Land Use Regulation (Zoning) . and Readoption of City Code Chapter 11 in its Entirety as Amended Herein, 1 ) by Renumbering Several Paragraphs Under Definitions = 2 ) by Including Definition for a Maxi- mum Base Area Ratio ; 3) by Changing Special Requirements for Filing and Recording of Legal Descriptions and Zoning District Changes ; 4) by Including a Column Designating Maximum Base Area Ratio ; $ ) by Amending Mechanical Equip- ment Screening Standards ; 6 ) by Including; Provisions for Required Landscaping in Residential Districts= 7) by Changing Provisions Relating to Off-street Parking Space Requirements for Office Use and Amending Exterior Material Design Standards to Omit Factory Fabricated and Finished Metal Framed Panel Construction; 10) by Adding Golf Courses as Permitted Uses in Rural Districts Exclusively; {{ 11 ) by Providing for a Maximum Square Footage Requirement F for Supporting Commercial Sales and Services to Office City Counci?. Minutes -13- April 7, 1987 Users within Large Office Structures ; 12 ) by Adding a Requirement Limiting the Square Footage Maximums for Neighborhood Commercial Services and Community Commercial Services ; 13 ) by Providing for a Maximum Percentage of Gross Building Area That Supporting Minor Commercial Uses Can Occupy in Industrial Districts; 14) by Adding a Requirement to Specify "End Land Use" After Land Altera- tion Occurs and Identify Zoning of Property After Land Alteration Occurs Under Section Entitled Mining Operation and Iand Alteration Regulations; 15 ) by Providing for a Maximum Size of Name Plates as Permitted Under Home Occupation Code ; 16 ) by Renumbering Several Paragraphs Under Subdivision 2. Entitled Sign Permits; 17 ) by Adding a Definition for Sign Base ; 18 ) by Adding Area Identifica- tion Regulation Criteria Under Subdivision 3 Entitled General Provisions; 19) by Adding Sign Base Criteria Under Residential Districts; 21 ) by Amending That Portion of the Commercial Sign Ordinance by Consolidating Per- mitted Commercial Sign Criteria Under One Heading for All Commercial Districts ; 22) by Deleting Paragraph D of Subdivision Four of Section Entitled Sign Permits; 23 ) by Amending That Portion of the Office Sign Ordinance by Including Provisions for Wall Signs fox- Each Elevation j and Including Sign Base Criteria; 24) by Adding Sign Base ` . Criteria to Industrial Districts; 25 ) by Adding Sign Base Criteria to Public Districts; 26 ) by Relettering Para- graphs under Section Entitled Sign Permits ; 27) by Adopting Zoning Map Entitled "Zoning Map of the City of Eden Prairie, " dated January, 1987; and 28) Readoption of City Code Chapter 11 in its Entirety as Amended Herein. (Ordinance #9-87 ) Continued Public Hearing from March 17, 1987 City Manager Jull ie noted that this item was continued from the March 17th meeting in order to prepare the additional information contained in the Staff memo of March 31 , 1987 . En er said both the entire City Code and the official zoning map are available here tonight for review by the Council . q Regarding Section 2, Bentley asked why this definition of maximum "base area,, ratio is being included . Planning Director Enger said in several of our zoning districts there is a Floor-Area-Ratio allowed for a single-story building and a higher F .A .R . for a multiple story building. He said this revision is proposed in order to put the way in which the ordinance has been administered into legally- defensible terms within the ordinance . City Council ":!inutes -14- April 7. 1987 Bentley asked if the wording in Section 11 remains relative to permitting those uses in a large structure only . Enger said it does . Regarding Section 12 , Bentley asked what effect this would have had on the Normandale Tennis Club proposal if it had been in effect at that time . Enger said it would not have had an effect , and the same size building would have been allowed . Enger noted that the square foot maximums were chosen to make the zoning code con- sistent with the categories in the Comprehensive Guide Plan . Bentley then asked why Sections 23 and 24 regarding sign base criteria were included . Enger said there is no maximum square footage in the Office District currently and Staff felt that we could end up with a fairly exces- sive size sign if there was no cap on the maximum size . This would put a cap of 1`0 square feet on the sign size . There were no comments from the audience . MOTION: Harris moved , seconded by Bentley, to close the Public Hearing and to give ?irst Reading of Ordinance No . 9-87 . Motion carried unanimously. V . PAYMENT OF CLAIMS NOS . 33615_73_3Z90 and Nos . 23815 - 340,21 Regarding Item 33618 to Ken Lewis & Assoc . , Pidcock asked if this item was for the appraisal of the lot for the CDBG housing program . Jullie said that was correct . She then asked about Item 33626 to the Suburban Rate Authority. Jullie said that amount is for our membership dues for this organization which acts as a kind of consumer' s advocate for the City regarding utilities . Regarding Item 33649 to Intl . Union of operating Eng. , Harris asked what this amount for union dues represents . Jullie said this represents withholding amounts . Pidcock asked what the legal services were for in Item 33917 to L. Lehman & Associates . Jullie said that is actually for consulting services on the landfill issue . MOTION: Anderson moved , seconded by Bentley, to approve the Payment of Claims Nos . 33615 - 33790 and Nos . 33815 - 34031 . Roll call vote: Anderson, Bentley, Harris, Pidcock and Peterson voted "aye , VI . ORDINANCES & RESOLUTIONS A . 1st Reading of Ordinance No . 12-87, Repealin&Section 2 .12, Entitled "Development Co: the City Code City Council Minutes -15- April 7, 1987 MOTION: Bentley moved , seconded by Anderson, to give 1st Reading of Ordinance No . 13-87, repealing Section 2 .12, Entitled "Development Commission" , of the City Code . Motion carried unanimously . V I I . PETITIONS , REQUESTS & COMMUNICATIONS A . Request for Wine License by Beijing City Manager Jullie noted that the Council had asked that liquor-type license requests be considered as a separate item from the regular Clerk ' s License List . Peterson asked if this is a license for wine only. Jullie said it is. Bentley said his concern was not necessarily for beer and wine licenses, but rather for liquor licenses . A discussion followed regarding the Council' s request to consider this sort of request separately. MOTION= Pidcock moved, seconded by Harris, to approve the request by the owners of the Beijing Restaurant for an on-sale wine license . Motion carried unanimously . B . Request from Howard Peterson to appeal decision of the Board o Adjustments & Appeals iance Request City Manager Jullie referred to the Staff Report of April 1 , 1987 relative to this request . Howard Peterson, 7021 Duck Lake Road, said the basis for his request is outlined in the letter he forwarded to the Council . He said he is a neighborhood resident as well as a member of the Riley-Purgatory Watershed District . He said he believes there is no basis for making Lot 1O into a buildable lot because it is a flooded lot . Jullie noted that at this point the Council would be deciding whether or not to consider reviewing this; if the Council chooses to consider review, it would be scheduled at a future meeting. Mayor Peterson asked about Mr . Peterson' s questioning of Variance Request #86-11 . Planning Director Enger said 3 the current request for variance deals with the side yard setback, while any reference regarding front yard setback and shoreland has lapsed . He said the only thing the Council may consider is the 10-foot side yard setback rather than the regular 15-foot setback. 1 City Council Minutes -16- April 7, 1987 Bentley asked what the side yard setback is on the adjacent house . Jim Touve, 1440 Sumter Ave . No . , Golden Valley, said the proposed house on that lot would have a setback in excess of 15 feet . Harris asked Peterson where his home was in relationship A to the proposed building. Mr. Peterson said it is south- east of the site . Harris then asked him what his interest ' was in this item. Mr . Peterson said it was from a personal standpoint and from the Watershed ' s standpoint and that, under the circumstances, it does represent substantial deviations which do not lead to a good building site . He k said he was concerned that we may be putting ourselves in the position of setting a precedent . k Bentley said he appreciated his bringing this to the C ouncil ' s attention. He said the Board of Appeals has reviewed this request and he didn't think this situation has a significant 41rapact ; t ieiefore he diddn' t sec. any r^c^e vii why we should do a review of the Board ' s decision. MOTION: Bentley moved, seconded by Harris, to deny the request from Howard Peterson to appeal a decision of the Board of Adjustments and Appeals . Motion carried unani- mously. C . Request from Leslie Davis, Earth Protector, regarding the Environmental Defense Fund MOTION: Anderson moved , seconded by Bentley, to approve the request of Leslie Davis to speak to the City Council regarding a report from the Environmental Defense Fund . Motion carried unanimously . Leslie Davis, of Earth Protector, called attention to the findings of the Environmental Defense Fund on the environmental hazards of ash from incineration of muni- cipal solid waste dated March 19, 1987 . He said the evidence is increasing that ash from garbage incinerators is more toxic than previously thought . In view of the proposed incinerator for Hennepin County and the con- comitant need to dispose of the ash from that facility, he wanted to be sure that Eden Prairie was aware of the problems with such waste material . He said it has been determined there is a good deal of dioxin in ash . He referred to recent information from the Center for Biology of Natural Systems in New York regarding a study of an intensive recycling system for urban household d wastes . He urged that Eden Prairie seriously consider '1 implementing similar garbage-management policies for the � City . City Council Minutes -17- April 7, 1987 Peterson thanked Mr . Davis for supporting our community and for supporting the citizens around the landfill in their concerns over that facility . Anderson said approximately a year ago we ran a study about the feasibility of starting a collection process . He said Mr. Jullie ' s goals for this year include finding a better means of disposing of garbage in the City, and he hoped we would be able to come up with a better solu- tion. Susan Varmaloff said she understood that two months ago the City promised to have a plan to present to their group and she was concerned that they haven ' t received anything yet . Peterson said that is being reviewed and is not being ignored . VIII . REPORTS-- %_O nz A nir_L T S.ORY There were no reports . IX . APPOINTMENTS There were none . X . REPORTS OF OFFICERS, BOARDS & COMMISSIONS A . Reports of Council Members 1 . Pidcock - Report on Southwest Corridor Coalition Pidcock said the Southwest Corridor Coalition are attempting to invite the governor to Hazeltine during the morning hours when the traffic is bad . She said they will get the actual time at short notice and she asked everyone to try to attend this event in order to make the governor aware of the bad conditions on Highway 5 . 2 . Pidcock - Policy for Councilmember Expenses Pidcock referred to an article in a recent issue of the Minnetonka Sailor and said she would like to develop a policy of reimbursement to Council members for seminars or conventions they attend in order to avoid such an article being written about Eden Prairie . Harris asked if the City already has policies that address the reimbursement of actual cost . City Manager Jullie said it does, and the Councilmember who incurs such a cost would fill out a claim and a s a City Council Minutes -18- April 7. 1987 would be eligible for reimbursement. A discussion ensued as to whether an actual policy regarding reimbursement of expenses had been adopted . Pidcock said she thought there should be something in writing. Harris said she thought the policies in place for Staff should be the same policies to govern Council reimbursement . B . Report of City Manager 1 . Municipal Cemeteries Referring to the Staff memo of April 2, 1987 regarding the proposed acquisition of Pleasant Hills Cemetery, City Manager Jullie said this subject has come to our attention over the last several months . He said Stu Fox had discussed the operation with representa- tives and wrote the memo of December 18, 1986 to Bob Lambert regarding this subject . Bentley said that he understood the official request was that we acquire Pleasant Hills Cemetery and that, while there is no official. request from Eden Prairie Cemetery, we expect to receive one at some point . Jullie said that was correct . Peterson said he felt that a cemetery is one of the components of a City; therefore , it may be a reasonable request that we assume this responsibility as an additional service to the residents . Harris said she was in favor of pursuing this but was not sure what the charges to residents would be . Peterson said the charges would be the usual costs connected with burial, but there would be no adminis- trative costs to residents . Anderson said the maintenance of the cemeteries has become a difficult burden placed on residents of the community and he thought we should investigate assuming responsibilities for the cemeteries . i i Stu Fox said Pleasant Hills has passed a resolution for the City to acquire it, if we desire to do so . He said the Rogers, representing Eden Prairie Cemetery, are here to find out how the City feels about acquisi- tion of a cemetery. Nancy Nicklay, 16011 hake Shore Drive , representing Eden Prairie Cemetery, said they are interested in City Council Minutes -19- April 7, 1987 Y what is going on in other cemeteries . She said that their polls indicate the families with burial plats in Eden Prairie Cemetery do not wish to have the faci- lity taken over by the City . MOTION: Bentley moved , seconded by Anderson, to accept the proposal for transfer of ownership from Pleasant Hills Cemetery and to direct the City Attorney to conclude all the necessary transfer arrangements . x Pidcock said she would like to see the City Attorney give some further information on this and investigate the ramifications before we formally acquire this facility. She said she would also like to see if there are some churches that might be interested in taking over the facility. Anderson asked Pauly if he saw any problems with this action. Pauly s- air1 he had not reviewed this from -a legal perspectives however, he would expect to come back to the Council if he discovered any problems . Peterson asked if the motion to accept the proposal for transfer of ownership was the correct wording } at this time . Anderson said he would prefer to see action pending the results of the City Attorney' s investigation . AMENDMENT TO THE MOTION: Bentley moved, seconded by Anderson, to add the phrase "pending the results of the City Attorney' s review of all necessary transfer arrangements . " Harris asked whether the amendment included the suggestion to inve stiaget alternative solutions such as a church taking over responsibility for the cemetery. Bentley said it did not . VOTE ON THE AMENDMENT: Motion carried with Pidcock opposed .. 1 VOTE ON THE MOTION AS AMENDED: Motion carried with 4 Pidcock opposed . Pidcock said she opposed the motion because she would like to see some alternative actions looked into before we just accept ownership. Jim Brown, representing the Pleasant Hills Cemetery, said they have tried alternatives and that the churches have transient populations and are not interested in running a cemetery. He said the interest on the City Council Minutes -20- April 7, 1987 endowment fund for the cemetery has more than paid for the upkeep of the lots . He said the average age of their Board of Directors is 75 , and they haven 't u been able to get people to take over their jobs . Harry Rogers, representing the Eden Prairie Cemetery, said their cemetery operates like the Pleasant Hills Cemetery but , after contacting 50 of the families with burials there, most of the families did not want the City to take over the job there . 2 . Proposal for Strategic Planning Process Referring to the Staff memo of April 2, 1987 regarding the Strategic Planning process, City Manager Jullie said they now have a recommendation for retaining a consultant and getting involved in the process . He said they are recommending that the proposal submitted by Barbara t iiroi-ig'r2 the Government Training Service be accepted . He said the estimated cost is very close to the budgetary allocation. MOTION: Anderson moved, seconded by Harris, to adopt the Staff recommendation regarding they Strategic Planning process . Motion carried unanimously. A discussion followed .regarding the dates,,scheduled for the meetings on the Strategic Planning process . Peterson asked that Ms . Swaggert be congratulated for the progress made on this issue . 3 . Procedures for City Purchases Bentley said he appreciated the memo of April 2, 1987 laying out the procedures for City purchases . He said one of the problems that has arisen in the past occurs with the process by which consultants are selected . He said he would like to see a very speci- fic process by which a consultant is to be selected in addition to the procedures listed in the memo . He said there is a perception that the consultant may have a view that precludes some potential bidders . Pidcock said she thought it was a very good outline, but she would like to see some effort made to be sure that taxpayers in Eden Prairie are given the opportunity to bid on jobs in the City. Peterson asked if she meant to do something more proactive to get them to bid on projects . Pidcock said she was not sure how the process works, but she was suggesting City Council Minutes -21- April 7, 1987 �0. y we make sure our business people know when the City has jobs available and that they have an opportunity to bid on them. C . Report of City Attornt There was no report . D . Report of Director of Planning There was no report . E . Report of Director of Community Services A' 1 . Park Bond Referendum Referring to his memo of Marc n 30, 1987, Director of { Community Services Lambert said the issue tonight is to discuss the options available . At the Parks Com- mission meeting last night Paul Redpath urged the Commission to go right back with the same referendum as soon as possible . Lambert said Commission member Moe Cook believed we should wait a year and have some f one do a survey of those who voted to get input from t those who did vote in order to determine if it should be reconstructed . Lambert said Bub Bak-�r agreed with Cook, and the Commission ultimately voted 7-0 to hold a second referendum in early 1988 and to survey those who voted in the first referendum. Lambert said the Parks Commission did not support splitting the referendum into two questions as they believe the needs are very well justified and would like to see all the facilities constructed . He said they supported the priorities for buying parkland if there is no referendum. Lambert said there was a group of people present tonight from the Prairie East- nalghborhood Who--.also were at the Parks Commission meeting last night . He said they supported everything on the referendum except for the proposed parking lot in Prairie East Park . Peterson asked if they knew it was a concept plan . Lambert said he explained that it was a con- cept plan and that before any development is done , the neighbors are notified and the details are worked out at a Parks Commission meeting. Anderson said the needs do not go away and expressed concern that his analysis of the vote by precinct J J City Council Minutes -22- April 7 , 1987 } indicated that in at least three precincts where a neighborhood park was proposed, those precincts voted against the referendum . He was also concerned about adding a second sheet of ice because of what has happened to the revenues at the ice arena. Lambert said the use of the ice during the summer months is an unknown and it dropped last year, possibly because three other arenas opened up for summer ice . He said the random sample survey would probably indicate whether that was a major concern . A discussion of the needs for a second sheet of ice followed . Harris said she liked the idea of doing a random sam- ple of those who voted to determine what their con- cerns were . She said she had a concern with the proposed timing for the second referendum and would suggest late spring or early summer as a better time . Bentley said he was opposed to the idea of hiring a consultant as he didn' t think we are going to gain a great deal for the cost of such a survey . He said he thought it was a classic case of apathy and was con- cerned that some individuals in the community were disseminating grossly misleading information . He said he would like to have Mr. Jullie check with the City Attorney about the legality of people disseminating information without giving their names, as he believed there are ordinances that prohibit such actions. Bentley said he thought we should come back with a second referendum right away, and he was concerned that the Parks Commission voted 7-0 to delay the second referendum. He said he was also concerned about the state of affairs where residents do not become informed on an issue of significant importance and do not take the time to vote . Harris said it might not be necessary to hire a con- sultant for the survey, but the information obtained from a survey would be useful to determine the parti- cular items that were voted against or if the referen- dum needs to be repackaged . a MOTION: Harris moved, seconded by Pidcock, to do a random sampling of voters in the Park Bond Referendum to determine the issues upon which their decisions were made and to use that information as input for a subsequent referendum. City Council Minutes -23- April 7, 1987 Petersen asked if she was suggesting this be done by a consultant, in-house , or by an appointed commit- tee . Harris said perhaps it could be done in-house . A discussion followed regarding the possibility of performing the survey in-house . Lambert said a telephone survey would probably get more information but that would be difficult to do in-house . Anderson asked if a petition was required to run a referendum. Jullie said a petition isn't required but there are costs for a referendum, such as hiring election judges . Anderson then asked what the impact of such a petition would be . Jullie said it would only impact the Council as to the decision to hold another referendum or the timing of the referendum and would have no legal significance . Anderson said he was concerned about going against the Parks Commission recommendation as some of the community ' s hardest workers might feel slighted . He said he might be swayed if enough people showed him that they were in favor of coming right back on . the referendum. AMENDMENT TO THE MOTION: Harris moved, seconded by Pidcock, to amend the motion to direct Staff to determine the cost for such a study and return the information to the Council at the next meeting. Pidcock asked if the format used for the City Hall survey could be used for this one . Jullie said the City Hall Needs Committee did a survey, but they also retained a consultant . Peterson said he thought such a study is a good idea and that we could probably get an expert to give us advice for very little cost . Lambert said he thought the services of a consultant who could help structure the questions and give us the information on validity would not be very expensive . Anderson said he had a difficult time going through this amount of time, effort and expense for the small amount of the population who took time to vote . Peterson said those are basically the people who are f making the decisions for the community. Lambert commented that a review of those voting indicates the same people are voting each time . ' City Council Minutes -24- April 7, 1987 Bentley reiterated that he was not in favor of this and that he thinks we are giving too much validity to those who disseminated erroneous information. He said a decision should be based on its merits and not necessarily what a survey of the residents says. Peterson said he would tend to view the results of such a survey as advisory and not mandatory. VOTE ON THE AMENDMENT: Motion carried with Bentley and Anderson opposed . VOTE ON THE NOTION AS AMENDED: Motion carried with Bentley and Anderson opposed . R F. Report of Director of Public Works There was no report . XI . NEW BUSINESS There was none . XII . ADJOURNMENT 4_ MOTION: Bentley moved, seconded by Pidcock, to adjourn the meeting at 11 : 20 PM. Motion carried unanimously. 4 L Y