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HomeMy WebLinkAboutConservation Commission - 11/18/2008 APPROVED MINUTES CONSERVATION COMMISSION TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2008 7:00 PM, CITY CENTER Prairie Room 8080 Mitchell Road COMMISSION MEMBERS: Eapen Chacko (Chair), Ray Daniels, Laura Jester, Sean Katof, Geneva MacMillan, Jan Mosman STAFF: Leslie A. Stovring, Staff Liaison Angela Perschnick, Recording Secretary STUDENT REPRESENTATIVES: Vallari Ajgaonkar, Alexandra (Alex) Baumhardt, Michael (Paco) Caughill I. CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL Chair Chacko called the meeting to order at 7:07 PM. All Commission members were present. II. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Several items were added to the agenda. These additions are reflected in the minutes, and they include the Local Water Management Plan Update, the Change a Light Campaign, two Budget Proposals, and the upcoming CERTS conference. MOTION: MacMillan moved, seconded by Mosman, to approve the agenda as amended. Motion carried 6-0. III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. Commission Meeting held October 14, 2008 MOTION: Mosman moved, seconded by MacMillan, to approve the minutes of the October 14, 2008 meeting as published. Motion carried 6-0. IV. REPORTS FROM STAFF A. Local Water Management Plan Update The full and updated version of Local Water Management Plan will be presented to the Conservation Commission for review starting in February or March 2009. Stovring handed out the draft Stormwater Utility Budget for 2008 — 2012 for review and discussion. Stream bank stabilization projects are the focus of the current budget. Included in the budget are educational measures, stormwater management and water quality improvement projects. The current goal is to keep the budget under $1.2 million per year, but that may increase or decrease depending on budget needs in the future. Conservation Commission November 18, 2008 Page 2 A question was asked about the storm water utility fee, and Stovring explained they are evaluating the current rate structure to correlate with percent impervious surface on individual lots. It looks like much of the increases will be on residential customers as they are currently underpaying when looked at in this way. Right now there is a surplus of approximately $1 million in the stormwater utility fee budget and the goal is to spend down this money over time. Chacko noted Lower Riley Creek is a big spending area in the budget. Stovring responded this is due to unstable creek banks in an area that is listed as impaired for turbidity of sediments. Another measure the city is evaluating is incorporating infiltration requirements citywide, similar to what Nine Mile Creek Watershed District is requiring. This would help inflow into creeks also. Stovring plans to take this budget to the City Council for their first December meeting. She requested feedback be given to her before that time. It was clarified that this budget is a stop gap that she was required to complete, but the full budget process and review will take place next year. Daniels asked and Stovring confirmed the Budget Advisory Commission (BAC) will see the budget in detail. Stovring stated they will, but that the BAC encouraged the City to increase storm water utility fees as they saw the program as underfunded. The storm water utility fund is separate from other items in the budget, and money not spent carries over for the future in this fund. Even though there is currently a surplus of $1 million, many projects are sitting out there to do in the future. The storm water utility fees would need to be increased so these projects could be completed and the fund could remain solvent. Stovring would like to keep some surplus in the fund to be available in case a catastrophe happened such as flooding and emergency repairs are needed. Mosman said it looks like there is money in the education fund if the Conservation Commission wants to do some programs. Stovring clarified this is a dedicated fund, so the money is only available for programs related to storm water, ground water, and water conservation. Recycling also has money available for programs. Stovring said some meetings could be scheduled in March or April for Commission members to be a part of the full Local Water Management Plan Update process for the budget. B. Commission Charter Draft—Discussion Stovring distributed two drafts to the Commissioners as requested by Scott Neal. One was a version drafted by Chacko and the other was the staff-drafted version of the charter discussed at the previous meeting. Chacko stated that he had met with Scott Neal prior to drafting a possible new charter in order to discuss their views on how the Conservation Commission's charter might Conservation Commission November 18, 2008 Page 3 be revised. Chacko then drafted a revised charter to incorporate inputs garnered while working with the Commission members and City staff. Chacko stated that felt the draft proposal should reflect the feelings of the Commissioners as a group. He stated that if City staff felt additional modifications were warranted, those could be handled during the City Council review process. He felt that there had been a misunderstanding about the process of producing a new draft of the Commission's charter and was unsure why staff prepared a draft revision. Jester asked about the timing for the revised charter, and Stovring clarified there is no requirement for the timing of when it needs to be completed. She was planning to present the Conservation Commission's work plan to the City Council in December, and it would be logical to present a revised charter at that time if it were ready. Ideally having the charter revised by February 2009 would be good, as that is when the City starts looking for new members. Mosman stated she liked the definition in Chacko's version of the revised charter. If the Commission cannot have the roles and responsibilities sections included in the revised charter, she thinks they need to be added in somewhere. Chacko noted that the idea of having roles and responsibilities had been discussed with Mr. Neal, and Chacko felt that it was a useful suggestion. In addition, Chacko noted that the charter of the Flying Cloud Airport Advisory Commission has a specific section on roles and responsibilities. Stovring said the Commission could add roles and responsibilities to the charter. Chacko mentioned Dietz was concerned that the Conservation Commission was taking on a lot of work. Chacko thought the idea of clarifying the charter with roles and responsibilities would help address this. Mosman asked if the Commission can add the roles and responsibilities sections to the draft staff-written charter that currently contains 10 items. It was suggested that the roles and responsibilities could be written in as separate numbered items or put into the introductory paragraph in the form of just one or two sentences. Chacko said he thought there was a December deadline for the revised charter. Stovring stated that was a suggestion, as an end of the year report, but the commission could take additional time to get it done right. Daniels stated he likes the professionalism of the roles and responsibilities parts, and he would like to see them included in their description. Mosman agreed but thought the Commission may have trouble getting the addition of these sections approved. Stovring suggested they could try to move their presentation to the second City Council meeting in December or January. Mosman asked if she is allowed to email Chacko directly one on one with questions if needed, and Stovring confirmed she can do that as long as it isn't a group discussion. Stovring commented that Scott Neal is also concerned that they may have too much in the revised charter. Stovring asked him what he would recommend taking out, and he did not have specific suggestions at that time. Conservation Commission November 18, 2008 Page 4 Jester recalled the group decided they would like for the charter to be a broad statement, and the specific work plan would vary each year as it covered some of the areas described in the charter. Stovring agreed this is what she recalls too. Stovring said it would be ideal to take the Work Plan and the charter changes to the City Council at the same time. Mosman asked if they could put off presenting the Work Plan until the charter revision process was complete, and then they could be presented at the same time. Stovring agreed the Commission could decide to do that. Mosman noted that January City Council meetings are often very light, and that might be a good time to talk to the Council about these topics. C. 2009 Work Plan—Discussion Jester asked if the Conservation Commission should have goals to present or if they should have an advisory piece for the City Council meeting. It was mentioned commercial recycling is something the Commission could work on. Stovring noted some of the older buildings do not have space for recycling bins, so they are not able to meet a recycling requirement if one were enacted, so grandfathering language would be required but it is doable. Student representative Baumhardt mentioned she is involved with a project at the high school related to composting. They are developing a plan for businesses to engage in recycling efforts and composting in particular. They are planning to pilot it with Dunn Bros. and present it to the businesses in the community if it goes well. Mosman said the high school composting project could be used to make an example for the City, and ideally they could make a presentation at Dunn Bros. before the school year ends (maybe on a Saturday morning) about the project. As an alternative, information could be presented in an article in the newspaper. Chacko said a green building code would be a difficult undertaking for the City to take on by themselves and that there are efforts being conducted at the State and County levels to develop codes. In addition several groups were developing standards that might be different from that of the US Green Building Council, such as "LEED.". Stovring suggested maybe another city has done this could come in and talk to the Commission. It was decided it might be controversial to try to include a green building code right away, but they could try to encourage businesses to meet a minimum standard. It was clarified no other city commissions are currently involved in developing building codes. Jester noted the city code for driveways is not environmentally friendly because it specifies asphalt or concrete must be used (thereby eliminating permeable pavement). Stovring stated she believes that Planning is already addressing this issue in a code revision they are working on. Conservation Commission November 18, 2008 Page 5 Daniels said it would be good to have an educational speaker on the topic of global warming. He wondered if the Environmental Times could be sent out more than two times per year. Stovring noted they try to limit the number of inserts as other groups use water bill stuffers also. She also mentioned that the Life on the Prairie newsletter does not have a lot of extra space,but it could be considered for future articles. Mosman stated the library may be willing to give the Commission a spot for a display. An event like the one held at St. Andrew could take place also. It was mentioned the University of Minnesota co-sponsors an event with the high school related to this topic. While a discussion on global warming could be good, there is a concern that they could be preaching to the choir. Jester liked the idea of a Q&A session, and that would give an opportunity to educate people on a big scale. Relating to the St. Andrew presentation, if a Q&A format is used, maybe they will not be preaching to the choir if they can find a way to run two events simultaneously. They could use a concurrent format such as the science fair or the Yard & Garden expo (like what was done two years ago). Daniels said the only way to get people who are not that interested to attend is to make it more focused on economics: how an individual can save money and help the environment too. Chacko said you avoid preaching to the choir by instead giving people a reason to believe in what you are saying. After they have heard it several times, it has a better chance of sinking in and making a difference. Baumhardt mentioned there is an economic forum tomorrow at the high school. The Commission discussed planning a joint meeting with either the Parks or Planning Commissions. Parks & Recreation meets on Mondays. Stovring stated the park and open space plan is their work plan. Jester wondered about the timing for meeting with Parks (if there would be a season that would be better than others for a joint meeting based on what they will be discussing). Stovring mentioned the Planning Commission may be working on the Oak Creek development plan (that part of Hennepin Village that includes Prospect Road) in the spring, so that might be a good time to meet with this commission. Jester reported the Commission's 41h of July event at Round Lake was a waste of time last year. Daniels said they need to look for a better location in the future at the event. Sunbonnet Days would have been a reasonably good event if it was not cold and rainy. Mosman noted more volunteers are around for 4h' of July, and they could better utilize them at that time. Student representative Ajgaonkar noted high school students are available to volunteer at the 4h' of July event, and some would like to meet community service goals by their efforts there. Daniels said they need to be in a high traffic area in the future at this event such as between the Democrats and Republicans. Stovring will update the work plan and send it out for review. Daniels noted sustainability is not currently included in the work plan. Conservation Commission November 18, 2008 Page 6 V. REPORTS FROM CHAIR A. 20-40-15 Article—Eden Prairie News Chacko noted the Eden Prairie News article on 20-40-15 is based on an interview with a McKinstry employee who helped with the project. Chacko was disappointed that the work of the Conservation Commission and of the City staff was not mentioned in the article. He wrote a letter to give the background of the initiative, and he noted a lot of people were involved (volunteers on the Commission, City Staff, etc.). He circulated an e-mail from Paul Sticha thanking him for reflecting the important role of the City staff and the Conservation Commission in developing 80% of the ideas even before McKinstry had been hired. Chacko noted it would be good to find better way s to communicate what the Commission does for the City. Daniels said there is an identification problem with the newspaper. He submitted an article unrelated to the Conservation Commission, and in the byline, someone from the paper added a note that he is on the Conservation Commission. Chacko stated that the same was done with his editorial. It was suggested that commissioners could write a note in the future with an article submission requesting they not include their commission position. VI. OLD BUSINESS A. Chance a Light Campaisn Chacko asked about signing on for the 2009 Change-a-Light Campaign. Katof discovered the web-based tracking and pledging online had reached the limits of its effectiveness. He was not in favor of doing this project again. He felt that the significant price decreases for compact fluorescents and the initial campaign had served to generate awareness and a significant amount of changeover in the type of bulbs used in homes. It was decided not to take this on in the new Work Plan. VII. NEW BUSINESS A. America Recycles Day—November 15, 2009 This event already took place for 2008, but Stovring thought the Commission could do something related to it next year. Chacko agreed that would be good. Stovring explained the County used to have a huge event each year early on, and attendance for the event has dwindled over time. B. Eden Prairie School District K-12 Science Fair—January 10, 2009 The Conservation Commission can have a booth at the Science Fair on the main level with everyone. The group is interested in doing this, and Daniels said he has plenty of materials and can prepare the display board. Conservation Commission November 18, 2008 Page 7 C. Community Center Recycling Program Employees at the Community Center will start recycling now. They are required to have recycling bins available at the Community Center. D. St. Louis Park—Recycling Program St. Louis Park received a grant from Hennepin County to use for recycling efforts. They have many different recycling bins available for different types of materials at their Council Chambers, and they also have a recycling center. MacMillan noted it would be good for Eden Prairie to encourage recycling the way St. Louis Park has. They are currently using a yellow bin for recycling at the parks in St. Louis Park to make sure no one mixes up the bins with the green Waste Management garbage bins that are often seen. Katof noted transparent recycling bins are the most idiot-proof. MacMillan asked if it is worthwhile to try to find out what other communities are doing related to recycling. Stovring replied it might be, but she knows that recycling at parks is a problem in other cities too. In St. Louis Park, they still have contamination issues even with using the yellow recycling bins. Mosman said it would be great to find out what St. Louis Park has learned by trial and error through this project. Maybe the Conservation Commission needs to stick with events for recycling for the next year or so. MacMillan volunteered to find out what she can about the St. Louis Park project. It was noted 75% contamination rates in recycling bins is common based on a small sample taken recently in Hennepin County. Mosman noted it is important to have recycling, garbage, and composting bins all together so people can more easily determine which items go where. It was noted people still often put items in the wrong container, but some contamination may be okay. Jester said she could write a letter to the Editor of the paper. E. Budget Proposal for Enemy Rebate Program MOTION: Daniels moved the Conservation Commission request $25,000 for a variety of energy rebate programs. Katof seconded the motion. Jester said the request would probably go better if specific plans are included for the money. Daniels said he would like to table the motion until next month's meeting. Stovring suggested they tie the request to the 20-40-15 program since the City Council has shown interest in this program recently and may be more willing to spend money on it. Chacko agreed with the idea of tying the request to the 20-40-15 initiative. Jester mentioned there are people who lease out solar products, and the City could possibly help fund some improvements for homes related to this. They could rent solar generators for City events too. Daniels moved to table the motion until next month's meeting, and Mosman seconded the motion. All voted in agreement with the motion to table the motion. Conservation Commission November 18, 2008 Page 8 F. Budget Proposal for Community Education on Conservation MOTION: Daniels moved the Conservation Commission request $3,000 for implementing community conservation educational programs. Jester seconded the motion. Daniels clarified the first motion relates to energy conservation only, and the second motion relates to education across the areas in the Commission's charter. Stovring noted there is some funding available for stormwater, water and recycling educational programs. It was recommended the group use a motion to have a fund for energy conservation efforts. Daniels stated that maybe prizes could be given as a way to attract people to educational events. Stovring noted they using city funds for prizes may not be feasible. Mosman noted companies could be asked to participate, and they could put forth the prizes. Stovring said the former Conservation Commission created the water education budget, and she will review information on how that was done. Daniels moved to table this motion until next month, and MacMillan seconded the motion. All attendees voted in agreement with tabling the motion until next month. Chacko suggested the Commission could propose using the $3,000 on a global warming event (and make the proposal for $3,000 specific to that event). Mosman said that developing a proposal for use during the Science Fair or Chamber of Commerce Expo would also be very concrete. Chacko stated he was not sure they could use money for the Chamber of Commerce Expo. VIII. INFORMATIONAL MATERIALS /HANDOUTS/COMMUNICATIONS A. Draft Conservation Commission Charters IX. UPCOMING EVENTS A. Night with the Watershed (Riley-Purgatory-Bluff Creek Watershed District) — Chanhassen Legion, 7 p.m. on December 2, 2008 This event is the end of the year wrap up on the work they have done in 2008. Riley includes most of the City of Eden Prairie. B. Chamber of Commerce Expo—March 21, 2009 at Grace Church The Chamber has stated that the City can use spaces for two speakers and six to eight booths for no charge. Stovring mentioned they have tentatively planned to use ArtStart for kids' craft projects in the upstairs area again but asked if anyone had any good suggestions for a replacement educational program. Jester asked if they would have a booth for recycling, and that will probably be part of the plan. Conservation Commission November 18, 2008 Page 9 C. Clean Enemy Resource Teams WERTS) Conference—February 10— 11, 2009 This is a conference on harnessing resources and promoting neighbors and groups of friends to save energy. There will be some breakout sessions included regarding accelerating residential efficiency and other topics, and Mosman plans to attend. The conference is in St. Cloud for two days. It costs $70, and that includes meals. X. NEXT MEETING A. December 9, 2008 Jester will miss the next meeting, but she said she would send her comments regarding the charter revisions to Chacko. XI. ADJOURNMENT MOTION: Daniels moved, seconded by Mosman, to adjourn. Motion carried 6-0. Chair Chacko adjourned the meeting at 9:04 PM.