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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council - 08/17/2010 APPROVED MINUTES EDEN PRAIRIE CITY COUNCIL MEETING TUESDAY,AUGUST 17, 2010 7:00 PM, CITY CENTER Council Chamber 8080 Mitchell Road CITY COUNCIL: Mayor Phil Young, Council Members Brad Aho, Ron Case, Jon Duckstad and Kathy Nelson CITY STAFF: City Manager Scott Neal, Parks & Recreation Director Jay Lotthammer, Public Works Director Gene Dietz, Community Development Director Janet Jeremiah, City Attorney Rick Rosow and Council Recorder Jan Curielli I. ROLL CALL/CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER Mayor Young called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM. All Council Members were present. II. COLOR GUARD/PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE III. OPEN PODIUM INVITATION IV. PROCLAMATIONS /PRESENTATIONS A. THREE RIVERS PARK DISTRICT UPDATE Cris Gears, Larry Blackstad, and Rosemary Franzese, representing Three Rivers Park District, gave a PowerPoint presentation and overview of recent activities in the park system. They are currently working on a draft vision plan that will be shared with the cities when it is completed. V. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND OTHER ITEMS OF BUSINESS Duckstad added Items XIV.A.1. and XIV.A.2. Case added Item XIV.A.3. Neal added Item XIV.B.2. MOTION: Nelson moved, seconded by Aho, to approve the agenda as amended. Motion carried 5-0. VI. MINUTES A. COUNCIL WORKSHOP HELD TUESDAY,JULY 20, 2010 MOTION: Duckstad moved, seconded by Nelson, to approve the minutes of the City Council workshop held Tuesday, July 20, 2010, as published. Motion carried 5-0. B. CITY COUNCIL MEETING HELD TUESDAY,JULY 20, 2010 CITY COUNCIL MINUTES August 17, 2010 Page 2 MOTION: Aho moved, seconded by Nelson, to approve the minutes of the City Council meeting held Tuesday, July 20, 2010, as published. Motion carried 5-0. VII. REPORTS OF ADVISORY BOARDS & COMMISSIONS A. PLANNING COMMISSION UPDATE Kevin Schultz, Vice Chair of the Planning Commission gave a PowerPoint presentation reviewing the duties and responsibilities of the commission and giving an update on their activities during the year. Nelson noted Mr. Schultz mentioned the commission is beginning discussion on rain water gardens and permeable pavers and asked if they will bring something on that to a City Council workshop. Schultz said they are in the initial phase and will meet with the Conservation Commission to develop a joint recommendation to the Council. VIII. CONSENT CALENDAR A. CLERK'S LICENSE LIST B. THE RIDGE AT RILEY CREEK 3'ADDITION by A.J. Rouse, LLC Second Reading of Ordinance 14-2010-PUD-4-2010 for Planned Unit Development District Review and Zoning District Amendment within the R1-13.5 Zoning District on 3.4 acres. Location: 9820 Sky Lane. (Ordinance No. 14-2010- PUD-4-2010 for PUD District Review and Zoning District Amendment) C. LICENSE AGREEMENT AMENDMENT TELECOMMUNICATIONS TOWER by Clearwire. Location: 8950 Eden Prairie Road. D. APPROVE PROFESSIONAL SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH SEH, INC., FOR PHASE 2 I&I REMOVAL PROJECT E. ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 2010-54 APPROVING PLAT NAME CHANGE TO GRACE CHURCH SECOND ADDITION F. APPROVE CHANGE ORDER #1 REQUEST FOR STUDY AREAS 1 AND 2 EROSION STABILIZATION PROJECT G. ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 2010-55 DECLARING ABANDONED PROPERTY H. ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 2010-56 AUTHORIZING EXECUTION OF THE 2010 CDBG SUBRECIPIENT AGREEMENTS I. AWARD CONTRACT FOR MILLER PARK SCOREBOARDS TO AIM ELECTRONICS CITY COUNCIL MINUTES August 17, 2010 Page 3 J. AUTHORIZE WINTER LRT TRAIL USE AGREEMENT WITH THREE RIVERS PARK DISTRICT K. LICENSE AGREEMENT AMENDMENT TELECOMMUNICATIONS TOWER by AT & T. Location: 13708 Holly Road Duckstad asked that Item D be removed for separate discussion. MOTION: Duckstad moved, seconded by Case, to approve Items A-C and E-K on the Consent Calendar. Motion carried 5-0. Duckstad said Item D is the approval of a professional services agreement with SEH, Inc. for the Phase 2 I&I removal project. He asked if bids were obtained for the work since the amount of the contract approaches $300,000. Dietz said the City can select the consultant because it is a professional service contract; however, SEH, Inc. has been the consultant on this project for several years now. He said we chose to use another consultant for the home inspection phase of the project because their bid was lower than that of SEH. This agreement is to do smoke testing to determine what is leaking in the sewer system. He noted there are not many consultants who can do this kind of work. Duckstad asked if there is any part of this work that City employees could do in- house. Dietz said staff could learn to do the work, but our staffing levels at this time would not permit it. The consultant has a crew of four people, and the City does not have that many employees available during construction season. MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Nelson, to approve the professional services agreement with SEH, Inc., for the Phase 2 I&I removal project. Motion carried 5- 0. IX. PUBLIC HEARINGS/MEETINGS X. PAYMENT OF CLAIMS MOTION: Duckstad moved, seconded by Aho, to approve the payment of claims as submitted. Motion was approved on a roll call vote, with Aho, Case, Duckstad, Nelson and Young voting "aye." XI. ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS A. ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 2010-57 TO CONTINUE PARTICIPATION IN THE LOCAL HOUSING INCENTIVES ACCOUNT PROGRAM UNDER THE METROPOLITAN LIVABLE COMMUNITIES ACT Neal said participation in the voluntary Metropolitan Livable Communities Act Local Housing Incentives Account(LCA LHIA) provides the City with the opportunity to compete for grants and loans to support activities that help the City meet its affordable and life cycle housing goals, clean up polluted sites, and support CITY COUNCIL MINUTES August 17, 2010 Page 4 demonstration projects linking jobs, housing and transit. The City previously elected to be a participant and has been approved for grants. He said on July 2, 2010, the City Council received copies of a letter from the Metropolitan Council dated June 25, 2010 regarding our continued participation in the Livable Communities Local Housing Incentives Account. The letter outlined the City's goals for affordable and life-cycle housing from 2011 through 2020. Based upon our projected employment and household growth over the next decade (as adopted in our latest Comprehensive Plan), the Metropolitan Council has established Eden Prairie's affordable housing goal range as 1,198 to 1,843 units and our life-cycle housing goal range as 1,840 to 3,500 units over the next decade. The Metropolitan Council is asking the City to pass a resolution incorporating these goals and provide a copy to the Metropolitan Council no later than September 1, 2010. Neal said on July 20, 2010, the City Council heard a report from the Community Development Director regarding this matter. While the goals are very aggressive and dependent upon a rebound in development activity, there are no serious consequences if the City does not meet the goals. However, there could be serious ramifications from discontinuing participation in the LCA LHIA program. Jeremiah said if we do not elect to participate in this we could possibly lose the grant for about$850,000 to Presbyterian Homes. She noted these are very aggressive goals. Duckstad asked if all the possible consequences were mentioned if we do not elect to participate. Jeremiah said in addition to possibly losing the grant already approved we would not be able to apply for any future grants. She said there might be a perception that Eden Prairie was not doing its fair share in the metropolitan area. Duckstad asked if passing the resolution would mean we would commit to the guideline that has been set out. Jeremiah said that was correct. Nelson asked if she was correct to assume that, when the Presbyterian Homes project is built, it will take us a long way towards meeting these goals. Jeremiah said that project is anticipated to have at least a 20% affordable housing component, and they are also talking to them about increasing the percentage above 20%. The Presbyterian Homes project would help accommodate seniors in particular,but there is also a work force component to the plan. Duckstad asked about the amount of the grant to Presbyterian Homes and if it would be distributed directly to them. Jeremiah said the grant is for$848,300, and it would be distributed to the City for road work and storm water improvements related to that development. The grant would be awarded only if the development goes through. We would work with the developer on how those improvements would be done and would then reimburse them by the grant. MOTION: Aho moved, seconded by Case, to adopt Resolution 2010-57 electing to continue participating in the Local Housing Incentives Account Program under the Metropolitan Livable Communities Act for calendar years 2011 through 2020. Motion carried 5-0. CITY COUNCIL MINUTES August 17, 2010 Page 5 B. APPROVE FIRST READING OF THE ORDINANCE AMENDING SECTION 9.71 OF THE CITY CODE RELATING TO MAINTENANCE OF VEGETATION Neal said City Code Section 9.71 was adopted in 2002 to allow the use of native plantings to encourage water conservation and habitat enhancement. This amendment is the result of a request by the Margaret A. Cargill Foundation at 6875 Rowland Road to allow native plantings to extend from the adjoining wetland and wooded areas along their lot to the edge of the right-of-way. The proposed change would allow the landscaping to blend into these areas. In addition, the Foundation is developing the site with the intent of achieving LEED Certification through the U.S. Green Building Council. The native landscaping would be designed to meet the goals of the Foundation for water efficient grounds through the use of native landscaping. This ordinance amendment would only allow native landscape areas in unique situations where there is a generous right-of-way. In addition, all plans must be designed to specific standards by a registered landscape architect. He said staff believes the proposed modification to the ordinance is good for this particular commercial/office redevelopment site, but it does not have a wide application across the City. Nelson asked if there are any downsides over time for other situations. Dietz thought there are not,based on the fact that in a typical residential neighborhood there is a 14 foot boulevard between the right of way and the curb. This ordinance requires that something like this can be done only in a situation where the boulevard is at least 25 feet, so there are only certain locations that have this excess right of way. Nelson asked if that would be true in the case where the street is not in the middle of the right of way. Dietz said it would be very rare that it would be located far enough to obtain the 25 feet. Case said he understood the specificity of this situation and asked if the Conservation Commission has been directed to look into this for other areas such as residential sites. He said there are a lot of really nice native plantings, and a lot of areas have allowed native vegetation to grow to the right of way. He said he would like to continue to nudge the Conservation Commission to take advantage of ideas like this so that people could have options to pursue this. Dietz said we budget a certain amount of money each year to give rebates to homeowners who might want to do a rain water garden, so we are encouraging people to do that sort of thing. MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Aho, to approve first reading of the ordinance amending Section 9.71 of the City Code relating to maintenance of vegetation. Motion carried 5-0. C. APPROVE SECOND READING OF ORDINANCE NO. 15-2010 AMENDING SECTION 9.71 OF THE CITY CODE RELATING TO MAINTENANCE OF VEGETATION AND ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 2010-58 APPROVING SUMMARY ORDINANCE FOR PUBLICATION CITY COUNCIL MINUTES August 17, 2010 Page 6 Neal said this second reading is being requested this evening to accommodate the fall planting schedule. It will require a unanimous vote of Council to adopt the motion since approval for second reading will be given at the same meeting as the first reading. Duckstad asked if we would normally have second reading at another meeting where residents would have a chance to come in and comment on it. Rosow said normally the second reading would occur at a second meeting. Duckstad asked if this issue has been one that people were calling about. Neal said we have not received much external feedback from the community, and it has not been widely discussed. He thought we may actually receive additional requests from other areas to widen the scope. Duckstad asked what would be the harm if we waited to have second reading at the next meeting. Neal said they are requesting the item be accelerated because second reading of the ordinance change tonight will allow them to accommodate the fall planting season. The project is under construction, and they want to get this in place so they can begin to plant the native grasses and other landscaping features. Nelson thought there was no reason to wait since there has been limited input from residents on the item. She said she wanted to encourage the Foundation in their LEED certification process. MOTION: Aho moved, seconded by Nelson, to approve second reading of Ordinance No.15-2010 amending City Code Section 9.71 relating to maintenance of vegetation and to adopt Resolution No. 2010-58 approving summary ordinance for publication. Motion carried 5-0. XII. PETITIONS, REQUESTS AND COMMUNICATIONS A. RESOLUTION NO. 2010-59 DECLARING LAKEWEST HOLDINGS, LLC, IN DEFAULT OF THE BANEBERRY HOLLOW DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT AND TERMINATING LAND ALTERATION PERMIT#06-17 Neal said this item is for City Council to acknowledge Lakewest Holdings, LLC is in default of the Baneberry Hollow Development Agreement and terminating Land Alteration Permit#06-17. On June 20, 2006, Lakewest Holdings, LLC and the City entered into a Development Agreement for The Baneberry Hollow project. The city is holding a surety bond for the purpose of securing performance of the developer's obligations. Work required under the Development Agreement and Land Alteration Permit#06-17 is not completed. The city has initiated proceedings with a claim against the bond. Rosow said as part of this process it is appropriate to ask if the developer is present at the meeting as the developer should have an opportunity to address the termination of the permit. He said notice was provided that this was occurring tonight. No representative of the developer addressed the Council. CITY COUNCIL MINUTES August 17, 2010 Page 7 MOTION: Nelson moved, seconded by Case, to adopt Resolution No. 2010-59 declaring Lakewest Holdings, LLC in default of the Baneberry Hollow Development Agreement and terminating Land Alteration Permit#06-17. Motion carried 5-0. XIII. APPOINTMENTS A. APPOINTMENT TO THE SOUTHWEST LRT COMMUNITY WORKS PROJECT STEERING COMMITTEE Neal said Hennepin County has established the Southwest Light Rail Transit(SW LRT) Community Works Project to formalize and expand early collaborations across jurisdictions within the SW LRT corridor. A Steering Committee is being assembled to direct the SW LRT Community Works Project and liaison with the SW LRT Corridor Management Committee. Hennepin County invites the City of Eden Prairie to appoint one elected official and an alternate to this Committee. Neal said the first meeting of the SW LRT CWP Steering Committee will be held on Wednesday, September 8, 2010 at 8:00 AM in the Council Chambers at the St. Louis Park City Hall. Duckstad asked why they have waited so long to bring this to our attention. Neal said we received our notification on July 22 which was just after the last City Council meeting. Duckstad asked if there has been any discussion suggesting someone who would serve. Neal said Council Member Nelson has expressed an interest in serving, and she has served on other SW LRT committees. Nelson said she is very interested in continuing with this. Duckstad asked if we have a suggestion for an alternate. Neal said Ms Jeremiah will attend most of the meetings anyway. MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Duckstad, to appoint Council Member Nelson to the Southwest LRT Community Works Project Steering Committee and Janet Jeremiah as an alternate member of the Southwest LRT Community Works Project Steering Committee. Motion carried 5-0. XIV. REPORTS A. REPORTS OF COUNCIL MEMBERS 1. City Manager— Council Member Duckstad Duckstad asked if the Council has the duty to discuss an alternate plan in case the City Manager is hired for a position with another municipality. He thought we should ask Mr. Neal to set up a special meeting to discuss this matter. CITY COUNCIL MINUTES August 17, 2010 Page 8 Case said it feels a little premature because the only information we know publicly at this point is that Mr. Neal has been declared a finalist for a position. He said he assumed Mr. Neal would give us a certain amount of time before he left. We have been in a position before where we would appoint an interim City Manager as we develop the process. Duckstad asked if Council Member Case had information that the City Manager would provide some time to take care of this situation. Case suggested we ask Mr. Neal. Neal said, while he respected Council Member Duckstad's point,he thought it is premature. He has not made a decision on the matter, and he has an employment agreement with the City of Eden Prairie that requires either a 45 or 60-day notice. Duckstad said he was not trying to raise an embarrassing question to the City Manager,but he believes the City has some right to know what we are doing. The Council has an obligation to make sure the City is run properly. Nelson said she was still in the hope that this will not come up, and she thought it is premature, especially given the 60-day notice. She said we have talked about making some general changes to the car allowance in the contract and about meeting to discuss some overall changes we want to make. She thought this seemed to be an appropriate time to do that given our discussion several months ago. She thought it should be something that would apply to any circumstances for whoever was in the position. Aho said he was in favor of doing a review as Council Member Nelson suggested. We have looked at making changes to the contract and at the same time we could look at how we would handle this if there were a vacancy in the City Manager's position. He didn't think we need to take any action tonight,but he thought it would be a good idea to review the policies and procedures we have in place. Case agreed with Council Member Aho and noted under normal circumstances we would not know that Mr. Neal has considered other employment. He said we have been through this kind of thing before and we know how to do it. We have transitioned well in the past. Duckstad said he wanted to set up a meeting so we can discuss it. He asked the City Manager to contact the Council Members to discuss a date and time. Young asked Mr. Neal if he knew when a final decision would be made. Neal said they will make a final decision in one week. Young thought we should make sure we are ready with the information we need to go forward at the next meeting if the position will be vacant. CITY COUNCIL MINUTES August 17, 2010 Page 9 2. Budget Workshop— Council Member Duckstad Duckstad said the City Manager and staff presented a complete and helpful workshop on our budget this evening. What came out of that was the fact that currently there is a proposed budget calling for an increase over last year. He said the workshop took so long that Council Members were not asked if they had any guidance or direction to staff. He said he would be in favor of proposing that the City Manager and staff consider another zero budget for 2011. We made our budget for 2010 last year but eliminated 2011 from it, and now we have to come to grips with meeting the target. He said the economy has not improved, and his view is that we have a lot of citizens in the community on fixed incomes who cannot stand a tax increase during this period. Case said it wouldn't hurt to know the alternatives, at least as a baseline. Aho said he would like to see what it would mean to our level of service if we did another year of zero increase. Nelson thought it wouldn't hurt to take a look at it; however, she didn't want just numbers. She would also like to see alternatives and information on what would be taken out. Young noted we will establish the maximum levy in September and said his preference would be a zero increase budget. 2. Night to Unite— Council Member Case Case said he wanted to acknowledge and thank staff for their involvement in the Night to Unite event. He said the police, firefighters and City staff volunteered their time and were amazing ambassadors of the City. It was an incredibly successful evening that showcased our staff and our equipment. 3. Meeting Pay Policy— Council Member Aho Aho said he reviewed the meeting pay policy, and it appears there is some vagueness and ambiguity in the language and definitions. He would like the Council to perform a careful review of this policy and improve it to make it more concise and consistent. He proposed we have staff review our policy and compare it to other cities in the metropolitan area to see how other cities handle this matter. After staff has reviewed this, he would like to see the results in a workshop session so we can discuss making changes to the policy. He would like to see it take place this year so any changes could take effect for next year. Case said he completely agreed and thought clarity is badly needed. He said the policy was set up in an effort to recognize that some Council Members were spending an inordinate amount of time representing the City because CITY COUNCIL MINUTES August 17, 2010 Page 10 they were able to do that during the day time. If we do decide to change it, he thought it would have to be done prior to the election on November 8. Nelson agreed that this needs to be looked at, and she would like to add a discussion about whether we should continue meeting pay at all. Duckstad said he would favor an improvement or eliminating it altogether, but would like to review the situation. B. REPORT OF CITY MANAGER 1. Employee Announcements Neal said Tim Christensen, the intern who has been working in his office this summer, will be leaving soon to return to school. He said Wes Dunsmore and Lt. Tracy Luke are retiring. He noted we lost an important member of our staff this weekend when Donna Rowland passed away. She was a very versatile employee and will be missed very much. 1. MAC Commercial Development Protocol Neal said at the July 20 Council meeting, the Council approved three lease agreements between the City and the Metropolitan Airports Commission (MAC) for the future expansion of Flying Cloud Fields and the continued operation of the Pioneer Trail garden plots. Those leases were executed by MAC the day before the Council approved them. The MAC executed four agreements: the three lease agreements and a development Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The content of the development MOU was intended to be MAC's statement to us about how they planned to do non-aeronautical development on their excess property around the airport. MAC staff believes this MOU is an integral part of the lease agreement negotiation. In other words, they believe their Commission's approval of the lease agreements is contingent upon the City Council's acceptance and approval of this MOU. City staff and legal counsel do not agree with that. We believe we are entitled to Flying Cloud ball fields lease agreements based on the 2002 Final Agreement. We do not believe it is appropriate for MAC to make this development MOU a new condition of their approval of leases that they agreed to negotiate in the 2002 Final Agreement. Rosow said in 2002 the City entered into two agreements with MAC. One was a final agreement related to operations at the airport that replaced Ordinance 51 with a new ordinance. At the same time the parties entered into a MOU concerning cooperative solutions to infrastructures, right of way, easements and park needs. One of the provisions in the MOU dealt with the Flying Cloud ball field expansion. The agreement stated the City desired to expand the utilization of MAC-owned property west of the existing ball fields to Spring Road, and to increase the acreage used for the ball fields from approximately 31 acres to approximately 56 acres. The CITY COUNCIL MINUTES August 17, 2010 Page 11 existing lease for the Flying Cloud ball fields was to be converted to a three-year renewable lease to provide for long term utilization of the MAC property for compatible recreational purposes. The City would use the expansion area solely for ball fields and associated uses. The cost to the City to lease the facilities was subject to negotiation. Rosow said in connection with the current negotiations we have been working with a lease whereby we would have a three-year renewable lease and the expansion area would be 26.3 acres. The property will be used for soccer and ball field uses. We have submitted the design to the MAC for their review. He said the document is fairly consistent with what is in the MOU and what was presented to the City Council at the meeting we had. He advised the Council at the last meeting there would be some changes regarding indemnification obligations and clarification of the term of the rent. He said we got some objections from MAC with respect to the rent, and they don't care for the limitation on liability. That is where we are with the lease agreement. He said Mr. Neal and he have communicated our desire to sit down with them to explore the issues. They were very disappointed we did not bring the MOU regarding development to the Council. With respect to the specific issues of the MOU regarding development, it assumes the City does not have regulatory authority with respect to the MAC's development of this property. The MAC wants to extend to the City a process whereby the City can participate but not in a formal regulatory position. He said that pushes the issue whether the City has zoning authority over the airport. Under Federal law the City does not have authority to impose regulations that would affect aircraft operations. Federal law, however, does not preempt all City regulations, including zoning regulations that do not affect airport operations. Under State law, the Attorney General rendered their opinion in 1992 that MAC would be deemed exempt from local zoning ordinances with respect to the expansion. They acknowledged in their opinion there was to be a balancing of the interests being affected that would look at the function and nature of the land use and the effect on local interests. Rosow said we have consistently believed there is an area of regulation that is appropriate and proper for the City, an area that is not defined with specificity. He said the MOU says that under all circumstances the City does not have that authority,but MAC is willing to engage the City in constructive discussions of how that development might take place. Aho thought it would be in the best interests of the residents of Eden Prairie that we continue to negotiate this point. He said it would not be in our best interests to give away our zoning authority over non-aeronautical uses of MAC property. He said he would encourage staff to continue to negotiate the points. CITY COUNCIL MINUTES August 17, 2010 Page 12 Nelson agreed and thought some things are probably more appropriate than others because there are neighborhoods close by. We do try to maintain certain standards for commercial development in Eden Prairie, and she would hate to give that up. She didn't know why they would not be willing to meet our normal considerations. She thought we can probably come to some conclusions but we're not there yet. Rosow said the MOU presented by the MAC does state they would incorporate the City's design standards in addition to their own construction guidelines. Nelson said those are good beginnings, and she thought there is room to get agreement for everyone in negotiations. Case said he thought we are dealing with honest people at MAC. He felt many of our residents perceive that the MAC organization sometimes doesn't behave honestly, and this situation illustrates that perception. We have had an understanding that the park land was part of the deal there and now we are being confronted by another condition at the eleventh hour. He thought that is bad faith on their part. We need to continue the negotiation process,but he thought we should make it clear we see the two issues as a dual track. We should be at the table,but it is not fair that we should ordain their process yet not have veto power. He would like to see us as a City Council send our staff back to the negotiation process with the clear view there is a dual track. Duckstad was in favor of following the City Attorney's advice. He thought the City Attorney gave a thorough legal analysis of the problem and his conclusion was correct. The law suggests commercial development for non- aeronautical purposes is something we should regulate. We have a duty to protect our citizens and have a zoning process that protects the interests of the citizens. Dennis Probst, representing MAC, said they have had very productive discussions with staff,but there is a clear misunderstanding about how these documents would be handled. He said MAC understood we had an agreement for all four pieces to come though as a package. They were surprised when the fourth document was not carried through. They are prepared to go back to the table but MAC believes they have fulfilled every commitment to the community. He said they would incorporate the City's development standards and would receive comment from the public and City staff. He said their General Counsel does not agree with the City Attorney about the interpretation of the statutes. If the four pieces will be separated, MAC will have to take the three lease agreements back for further action. Case thought we are not on the same page because the 2002 agreement on the extension of ball field land did not contain a condition that required approval of the commercial zoning process. He thought it is unfair to add it at this point in the process. CITY COUNCIL MINUTES August 17, 2010 Page 13 C. REPORT OF THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR D. REPORT OF PARKS AND RECREATION DIRECTOR E. REPORT OF PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR F. REPORT OF POLICE CHIEF G. REPORT OF FIRE CHIEF 1. Joint Agreement for Acquisition and Use of Firefis!htins! Equipment and Services Chief Esbensen said they are asking for approval to execute the amended joint and cooperative agreement. He said they have used the joint agreement to negotiate for our SCBA equipment. We are now extending the scope of the joint services agreement to other things related to the firefighting business. Aho asked if there is any opportunity to expand the agreement even further. Esbensen said anyone in the state can join it. Nelson said she applauded the idea of getting trucks and equipment that can be used across districts because that makes ultimate sense for emergency management. Duckstad asked if cooperation between the municipalities is widespread. Esbensen said southwest Hennepin County, Scott County and Carver County do a lot of mutual aid. It provides a much better service level to the citizens. MOTION: Aho moved, seconded by Nelson, to approve execution of the amended joint and cooperative agreement for the acquisition and use of firefighting equipment and services. Motion carried 5-0. 2. Policy on Special Assessment of Fire Protection System Installations Chief Esbensen said prior to the mid-1980's it was not clear what met the standards to have fire sprinkler systems installed. A number of commercial buildings that were built at that time don't have standard fire protection systems in them. We would like to encourage owners of those businesses to install such systems. They will get a break on their insurance rates and have a safer working environment if the systems are installed. Staff is proposing that businesses who are interested in making changes be able to petition the City for a special assessment. The businesses would go out for bids and secure a contract to install the system. The City would pay the invoice and then assess their property over 20 years for the work that was done. CITY COUNCIL MINUTES August 17, 2010 Page 14 MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Aho, to approve the policy on the Special Assessment of Fire Protection System installations. Motion carried 5-0. H. REPORT OF CITY ATTORNEY XV. OTHER BUSINESS XVI. ADJOURNMENT MOTION: Duckstad moved, seconded by Case, to adjourn the meeting. Motion carried 5-0. Mayor Young adjourned the meeting at 8:53 PM.