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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council - 01/20/2015 APPROVED MINUTES EDEN PRAIRIE CITY COUNCIL MEETING TUESDAY,JANUARY 20, 2015 7:00 PM, CITY CENTER Council Chamber 8080 Mitchell Road CITY COUNCIL: Mayor Nancy Tyra-Lukens, Council Members Brad Aho, Sherry Butcher Wickstrom, Ron Case, and Kathy Nelson CITY STAFF: City Manager Rick Getschow, City Engineer Rodney Rue, Community Development Director Janet Jeremiah, Parks and Recreation Director Jay Lotthammer, City Attorney Ric Rosow, and Council Recorder Jan Curielli I. CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER Mayor Tyra-Lukens called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM. All Council Members were present. II. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE III. COUNCIL FORUM INVITATION IV. PROCLAMATIONS/PRESENTATIONS A. DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING,JR., PROCLAMATION & ANNOUNCEMENT OF HUMAN RIGHTS AWARD PROCESS Sandra Filardo, Chair of the Human Rights and Diversity Commission, announced the opening of nominations for the Human Rights awards. She reviewed the goals of the award. She said the Human Rights and Diversity Commission will select the winners in April. Mayor Tyra-Lukens read a proclamation proclaiming 2015 as a year to celebrate human rights and diversity and asking residents to join the City of Eden Prairie in recognizing and celebrating Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s dream. Tyra-Lukens gave recognition to a presentation this morning of the French Legion of Honor award to Eden Prairie resident, William "Bud" Schwartz, for his service during World War II. B. DONATIONS 1. Donation of Artist's Drafting Table to Art Center(Resolution No. 2015-181 CITY COUNCIL MINUTES January 20, 2015 Page 2 Lotthammer said donations to the City need to be accepted by resolution. He said an anonymous donor has given an artist's drafting table to the Art Center. MOTION: Nelson moved, seconded by Case, to adopt Resolution No. 2015-18 accepting the donation of an Artist Drafting Table valued at$115 to be use by the Eden Prairie Art Center. Motion carried 5-0. 2. Lioness Club Donation to Theater and Band (Resolution 2015-19) Lotthammer said this is a donation of$1,000 for the purchase of a trailer to support Eden Prairie's theater and band. He noted this is one of three donations from the Lioness Club and thanked them for their generosity. MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Butcher Wickstrom, to adopt Resolution No. 2015-19 accepting the donation in the amount of$1,000 from the Eden Prairie Lioness Club for the purchase of a 6'xl2'trailer to support the Eden Prairie Community Band and the Eden Prairie Players theater programs. Motion carried 5-0. 3. Lioness Club Donation to the Outdoor Center (Resolution No. 2015-20) MOTION: Butcher Wickstrom moved, seconded by Aho, to adopt Resolution No. 2015-20 accepting the donation in the amount of$1,027 from the Eden Prairie Lioness Club for the purchase of Lake Study Equipment for the Staring Lake Outdoor Center. Motion carried 5-0. 4. Lioness Club Donation to the Senior Center (Resolution No. 2015-21) MOTION: Aho moved, seconded by Nelson, to adopt Resolution No. 2015-21 accepting the donation in the amount of$600 from the Eden Prairie Lioness Club for the purchase of a wood lathe for the Eden Prairie Senior Center Woodshop. Motion carried 5-0. 5. Lions Club Donation to the Outdoor Center (Resolution No. 2015-22) Lotthammer said this is a donation of$200 from the Eden Prairie Lions Club for Outdoor Center programs. MOTION: Nelson moved, seconded by Butcher Wickstrom, to adopt Resolution No. 2015-22 accepting the donation of$200 from the Eden Prairie Lions Club for Outdoor Center programs. Motion carried 5-0. 6. State Farm Donation to Senior Center(Resolution No. 2015-23) Lotthammer said for several years State Farm Companies has matched the CITY COUNCIL MINUTES January 20, 2015 Page 3 amount of volunteer hours given to the Senior Center by their employee, Gordon Williams. Mr. Williams has requested the $500 donation be used towards the annual Senior Center volunteer recognition lunch in April. MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Butcher Wickstrom, to adopt Resolution No. 2015-23 accepting the donation in the amount of$500 from State Farm Companies Foundation on behalf of Gordon Williams for his volunteer service at the Eden Prairie Senior Center to be used toward the 2015 Senior Center volunteer recognition event. Motion carried 5-0. V. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND OTHER ITEMS OF BUSINESS MOTION: Aho moved, seconded by Butcher Wickstrom, to approve the agenda as published. Motion carried 5-0. VI. MINUTES A. COUNCIL WORKSHOP HELD TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2015 MOTION: Butcher Wickstrom moved, seconded by Case, to approve the minutes of the Council workshop held Tuesday, January 6, 2015, as published. Motion carried 4-0-1, with Nelson abstaining. B. CITY COUNCIL MEETING HELD TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2015 MOTION: Nelson moved, seconded by Butcher Wickstrom, to approve the minutes of the City Council meeting held Tuesday, January 6, 2015, as published. Motion carried 5- 0. VII. REPORTS OF ADVISORY BOARDS & COMMISSIONS VIII. CONSENT CALENDAR A. CLERK'S LICENSE LIST B. APPROVE MASTER FUNDING AGREEMENT WITH METROPOLITAN COUNCIL FOR SOUTHWEST LIGHT RAIL TRANSIT PROJECT C. RECEIVE 2014 PAY EQUITY REPORT AND APPROVE SUBMITTAL OF THE REPORT TO THE STATE D. APPROVE RENEWAL OF TOWING SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH MATT'S AUTO SERVICE E. APPROVE CONSTRUCTION AGREEMENT WITH ARVIG ENTERPRISES FOR AN ALTERNATE FIBER OPTIC ROUTE TO GOLDEN VALLEY/LOGIS CITY COUNCIL MINUTES January 20, 2015 Page 4 MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Aho, to approve Items A-E of the Consent Calendar. Motion carried 5-0. IX. PUBLIC HEARINGS/MEETINGS A. RESOLUTION APPROVING MODIFIED TAX INCREMENT FINANCING PLAN FOR DISTRICT NO. 16 AND FOURTH AMENDMENT TO PROJECT MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT (LINCOLN PARC APARTMENTS) Getschow said this public hearing should be continued to the February 17, 2015, meeting as some of the pieces needed for the plan and agreement have not yet been completed. MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Butcher Wickstrom, to continue the public hearing to the February 16, 2015, meeting of the City Council. Motion carried 5-0. B. RESOLUTION NO. 2015-24 APPROVING MODIFIED TAX INCREMENT FINANCING PLAN FOR DISTRICT NO. 17 AND SECOND AMENDMENT TO PROJECT MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT (ROLLING HILLS SENIOR HOUSING/THE COLONY) Getschow said official notice of this public hearing was published in the January 8, 2015, Eden Prairie News. Tax Increment Financing (TIF) District No. 17 was established in 2001 in order to provide 115 affordable housing units to seniors living at The Colony at Eden Prairie (formerly known as Rolling Hills Senior Housing) for a term of 10 years from the date of the first year of full tax increment. The City, the HRA, and the developer, SE Rolling Hills, LLC, have agreed to extend the term of the affordable units through the year 2028, or 25 years from when the first tax increment was collected from the district, which is the maximum allowed by statute. The Colony is a 142 unitibed facility for the care of the elderly consisting of independent living units, assisted care units, and Alzheimer's/dementia care beds located on Prairie Center Drive just south of Eden Prairie Center. The project is part of TIF District No. 17 created in 2001 to help subsidize 20% of the total units for tenants with incomes below 50% of the median income for the metro area, and 60% of the total units for tenants with incomes below 110% of the median income for the metro area. Tyra-Lukens asked if the affordable units would become market rate at the end of the 25 years. Getschow said that is a possibility but would not necessarily happen. Nelson asked if this uses up part of our ability to do TIF financing. Rosow said it does not. There are limits on bonding but there is not a limit with regard to TIF. Nelson said she would like to approve this; however, she would like to get credit from the Met Council for keeping the number of established units. Jeremiah responded we get credit every year for these units and would lose the credit if we did not extend the TIF. CITY COUNCIL MINUTES January 20, 2015 Page 5 There were no comments from the audience. MOTION: Butcher Wickstrom moved, seconded by Nelson, to close the public hearing and to adopt Resolution No. 2015-24 approving Modified Tax Increment Financing Plan, District No. 17 and Second Amendment to the Project Management Agreement. Motion carried 5-0. C. O'REILLY AUTO PARTS STORE by C.M Architectures, P.A. Request for Planned Unit Development Concept Review on .83 acres; Planned Unit Development District Review with waivers on .83 acres; Zoning District Review in the C-Com Zoning District on .83 acres and Site Plan Review on .83 acres. Location: 8868 Aztec Dr. (Resolution 2015-25 for PUD Concept Review; Ordinance for PUD District Review with waivers and Zoning District Review in the C-Com Zoning District) Getschow said official notice of this public hearing was published in the January 8, 2015, Eden Prairie News and was sent to 32 property owners. The project is a new 7,343 square foot retail auto parts store building. The design is compatible with the mix of single family residential, commercial and office uses within the immediate area. The following PUD waivers are proposed: 1. Parking from 37 spaces to 33 parking spaces. 2. Front yard setback for the recycling and trash enclosure to 10 feet along Aztec Drive. City Code requires 35 feet. 3. Landscape planting islands to 4.4 percent in the parking area. City Code requires 5 percent landscaping in the parking areas. Getschow noted a benefit of granting the waivers includes enhanced architectural details in the building design and extensive use of native prairie grasses and perennials along the site perimeter and building base which are not required by code, but enhance and improve the site overall. Ben Ptacek, representing C.M. Architectures, reviewed the location and site plans for the project. He noted it is currently a 0.83 acre vacant lot. They held a neighborhood meeting in the fall and received feedback from neighbors about the orientation of the building with the front facing Flying Cloud Drive. The landscape plan includes a rain garden and a bike rack. Butcher Wickstrom asked how this building will differ from their other stores. Mr. Ptacek said it will not be the same. They worked with the planning staff to change the building because Eden Prairie preferred something different. Butcher Wickstrom asked if it will be more of an upgraded look. Mr. Ptacek said it will be an upgrade to their upgraded version. Tyra-Lukens asked if any of the vegetation currently on the property will remain. Mr. Ptacek said they will follow the requirements for any significant trees they remove. There are six or seven significant trees of which only two will be removed. Tyra- CITY COUNCIL MINUTES January 20, 2015 Page 6 Lukens asked about the size of the arborvitae that are planned to provide screening from Aztec Drive. Mr. Ptacek said they will grow to six feet. Tyra-Lukens asked if they will be planted close enough to form a wall. Mr. Ptacek said they will be spaced to provide a hedge to screen the trash area. Tyra-Lukens said they requested a waiver for the landscaping planting island. After looking at the parking plan for the site, it was hard for her to believe they would need 30 parking spots. She would like to see proof of parking and have more landscaping instead. She asked Mr. Ptacek what their experience is with their stores needing 33 parking spots. Mr. Ptacek said they put in 33 to get closer to the required number. Jeremiah said there is a possibility to do proof of parking. There was some concern that employees would park off site and impact other properties. Rosow said there is flexibility for swapping variances. The project could be approved subject to the condition there be no waivers on landscaping but to bring back a waiver for proof of parking. Case noted the property was once owned by Northrup King and asked if an environmental review has been done. Mr. Ptacek said they determined there was no wetland on the property. Case asked if staff would become involved if something is found there as construction gets underway. Jeremiah understood at that point they would need to stop work and the appropriate State agency would come in to inventory and evaluate. If there is financing involved in the project, they would normally have to do a Phase 1 and Phase 2 environmental study before construction was started. Case asked how the project handles stormwater runoff. Jeremiah said there is a rain garden on the south side of the property that accommodates most of the site. Rodney Rue, City Engineer, said Aztec Drive is accommodated somewhat with a storm sewer to pick up the sites; however, today development needs to provide infiltration in addition to storm sewers. The proponent has put a rain garden on the south for roof drainage and an underground system on the north side for the parking lot. There are also some catch basins at the entrance to the property to pick up parking lot drainage. Case commented it looks like it takes care of its own water runoff but he was concerned that attention was paid to potential leakage in the parking lots. Rosow asked if the proponent has obtained a Phase 1 environmental review. Mr. Ptacek said they have a Phase 1 review. Rosow asked if O'Reilly has closed on the purchase. Mr. Ptacek said they have not yet because they wanted to get the variances approved first. Rosow asked if they are financing the property through a mortgage because it would be unlikely they would be able to proceed if there were environmental issues. The bank would want to see the Phase 1 environmental survey if they are giving a loan. Butcher Wickstrom asked if they would accept return of used oil. Mr. Ptacek said they do not provide that service and do not provide any servicing at the facility. CITY COUNCIL MINUTES January 20, 2015 Page 7 There were no comments from the audience. MOTION: Aho moved, seconded by Butcher Wickstrom, to close the public hearing; to adopt Resolution No. 2015-25 for Planned Unit Development Concept Review on 0.83 acres; to approve 1 st reading of the ordinance for Planned Unit Development District Review with waivers, and Zoning District Review within the Community Commercial Zoning District on 0.83 acres; and to direct staff to prepare a Development Agreement incorporating staff and commission recommendations and the Council condition to eliminate the waiver for landscape planting islands and grant a waiver for parking through proof of parking. Butcher Wickstrom commented she thought this is a very appropriate business in this area and was very glad to see O'Reilly Auto Parts come in. VOTE ON THE MOTION: Motion carried 4-0-1, with Nelson abstaining. X. PAYMENT OF CLAIMS MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Butcher Wickstrom, to approve the payment of claims as submitted. Motion was approved on a roll call vote, with Aho, Butcher Wickstrom, Case, Nelson, and Tyra-Lukens voting "aye." XI. ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS XII. PETITIONS, REQUESTS AND COMMUNICATIONS XIII. APPOINTMENTS XIV. REPORTS A. REPORTS OF COUNCIL MEMBERS 1. Resolution No. 2015-26 Supporting Legislation to Increase or Remove Lump Sum Payout Cap for Fire Relief Association Retirees Getschow said Council Member Case brought up this issue because of his position on the Fire Relief Association Board. There are two possible pension programs for firefighters: one is a monthly-defined benefit payout, and the other is a lump-sum option. They are trying to encourage more use of the lump sum payout but they would need to change the cap of$10,000 that is set by the State legislature. This resolution would provide support of the City Council for an increase in the cap. Aaron Casper, Chair of the Fire Relief Association, said they had discussions about this issue at their board meetings as part of an effort to reduce the long term liability in the plan. Being able to make that lump sum distribution more of a CITY COUNCIL MINUTES January 20, 2015 Page 8 viable option would help them achieve that goal. The issue would have to go through the actuarial process if the cap is raised, would have to be approved by their membership, and would then come to the City Council for approval. They have had some presence at the State Auditor level and have some support from that office to bring this forward. If the Council passes the resolution of support, they would go ahead to have dialogue with the local legislators. Tyra-Lukens asked if the legislation would increase the cap for any community or just for Eden Prairie. Mr. Casper said he would make it inclusive, but Eden Prairie is the only one who is currently at the cap. Aho asked what the new cap would be. Mr. Casper was not sure but it would be well above $10,000. Actuarial factors would occur,but they don't know the amount. He noted at this time about 99% of our retiring firefighters are selecting the defined monthly benefit plan. They want to make the lump sum option more viable. Case said at this time the break-even point isn't an incentive for people to take the lump sum option. That means there are unknown liabilities for the plan because of considerations such as the survivor benefit options. They are also looking at having the lump sum as the default option for new firefighters coming on. MOTION: Nelson moved, seconded by Case, to adopt Resolution No. 2015-26 supporting the Eden Prairie Fire Relief Association's efforts to seek legislation that removes or increases the lump sum pension payout cap of$10,000 per year of service. Motion carried 5-0. B. REPORT OF CITY MANAGER C. REPORT OF THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR D. REPORT OF PARKS AND RECREATION DIRECTOR 1. City-wide Special Events Overview Lotthammer introduced Lindsey Danhauser, Art Center Supervisor, who gave a PowerPoint presentation of City-wide special events. Danhauser reviewed the events planned and noted they partner with service organizations in the City for many of the events. Most of the events are free or very affordable. Tyra-Lukens said it is great to see the numbers that participate in the events. Case asked if the presentation would be available on the website. Getschow said CITY COUNCIL MINUTES January 20, 2015 Page 9 the City calendar lists events by month and can be clicked on to get a page with details. Staff could look into having a summary like this available. Case said it was a powerful presentation and suggested it could be used as a marketing tool for realtors. E. REPORT OF PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR F. REPORT OF POLICE CHIEF G. REPORT OF FIRE CHIEF H. REPORT OF CITY ATTORNEY XV. OTHER BUSINESS XVI. ADJOURNMENT MOTION: Case moved, seconded by Nelson, to adjourn the meeting. Motion carried 5-0. Mayor Tyra-Lukens adjourned the meeting at 8:08 PM.