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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council - 09/18/2018 APPROVED MINUTES EDEN PRAIRIE CITY COUNCIL MEETING TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2018 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, Public Works Director Robert Ellis, Community Development Director Janet Jeremiah, Parks and Recreation Director Jay Lotthammer, City Attorney Maggie Neuville, and Council Recorder Jan Curielli I. CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER Acting Mayor Case called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Mayor Tyra-Lukens and Council Member Butcher Wickstrom were absent. II. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE III. OPEN PODIUM INVITATION IV. PROCLAMATIONS/PRESENTATIONS Acting Mayor Case said the next item will be a special presentation by the Eden Prairie Lions Club in honor of retiring Police Chief Jim DeMann. Mike Gust, Lions Club Historian, presented the Fellowship Award to Chief DeMann. Mr. Gust said the award is given to honor a member of the community who is a humanitarian and who has served to improve the quality of life in the community. Chief DeMann responded it has been a privilege and an honor to serve the City of Eden Prairie. A. GREEN STEP CITIES AWARDS by Diana McKeown of Great Plains Institute Case noted the City of Eden Prairie has been environmentally aware for many decades and most recently has participated in the Minnesota Green Step Cities program for the past seven years. Diana McKeown of Great Plains Institute presented the 2017 and 2018 Step 5 awards and a certification signed by the Executive Director of the League of Minnesota Cities to the Council Members. She noted Eden Prairie has been one of the leading cities every year since the program began in 2010. Step 5 is the highest level and Eden Prairie is one of only ten or fewer cities in the State to achieve level. CITY COUNCIL MINUTES September 18, 2018 Page 2 Case commented it is a great statement for the City Council members over the years and for staff that we have received so many top awards and recognition. V. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND OTHER ITEMS OF BUSINESS Case added Items XIV.A.1. and A.2. MOTION: Nelson moved, seconded by Aho, to approve the agenda as amended. Motion carried 3-0. VI. MINUTES A. COUNCIL WORKSHOP AND CITY COUNCIL MEETING HELD TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2018 MOTION: Aho moved, seconded by Nelson, to approve the minutes of the City Council workshop and the minutes of the City Council meeting held Tuesday, September 4, 2018, as published. Motion carried 3-0. VII. REPORTS OF ADVISORY BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS VIII. CONSENT CALENDAR A. CLERK'S LICENSE LIST B. CODE AMENDMENT—CHAPTER 11 TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT (TOD)/TOWN CENTER (TC) by City of Eden Prairie. Second Reading of Ordinance 18-2018 to amend City Code Chapter 11 for consistency between TOD and TC Zoning Districts; Resolution 2018-104 approving Summary Ordinance (Ordinance No. 18- 2018 to Amend City Code Chapter 11, Resolution No. 2018-104) C. ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 2018-105 ACCEPTING ADVERTISING ITEMS AND AUTHORIZING DISPOSAL AS PROMOTIONAL ITEMS D. DECLARE OBSOLETE COMPUTER EQUIPMENT AS SURPLUS E. ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 2018-106 DECLARING COSTS TO BE ASSESSED AND ORDERING PREPARATION OF SPECIAL ASSESSMENT ROLL AND SETTING HEARING DATE F. ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 2018-107 APPROVING PUBLIC WORKS JOINT POWERS MUTUAL AID AGREEMENT G. APPROVE MASTER AGREEMENT FOR CONTRACT SERVICES WITH PARROTT CONTRACTING, INC. FOR WATER AND SEWER UTILITY LEAK REPAIRS CITY COUNCIL MINUTES September 18, 2018 Page 3 H. APPROVE MASTER AGREEMENT FOR CONTRACT SERVICES WITH VALLEY RICH COMPANY, INC. FOR WATER AND SEWER UTILITY LEAK REPAIRS I. APPROVE AMENDMENTS TO EDEN PRAIRIE FIRE RELIEF ASSOCIATION BYLAWS MOTION: Aho moved, seconded by Nelson, to approve Items A-I on the Consent Calendar. Case noted the Council Members are approving an important amendment to the Fire Relief Bylaws (Item VILL). The amendment has been thoroughly studied and vetted for many years. It has been passed by the legislature before and now has been signed into law. The amendment provides the flexibility to incentivize retirements. VOTE ON THE MOTION: Motion carried 3-0. IX. PUBLIC HEARINGS/MEETINGS X. PAYMENT OF CLAIMS MOTION: Nelson moved, seconded by Aho, to approve the payment of claims as submitted. Motion was approved on a roll call vote, with Aho, Nelson, and Case voting "aye." XI. ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS XII. PETITIONS, REQUESTS,AND COMMUNICATIONS XIII. APPOINTMENTS XIV. REPORTS A. REPORTS OF COUNCIL MEMBERS 1. Washout on Bike Trail Near Chanhassen Border—Acting Mayor Case Case said there has been a washout on the regional bike trail as it enters into Chanhassen from Eden Prairie. Ellis explained the part referred to is outside of Eden Prairie. Hennepin Rail Authority is the owner of the trail, and they have secured some funding from FEMA but are waiting to restore the trail until the spring or summer of 2019. Case asked if that information is available on our website. Lotthammer replied the information is on the Three Rivers Website,but we could also put a link to that information on the City's website., CITY COUNCIL MINUTES September 18, 2018 Page 4 2. Pedestrian Crossing Across Anderson Lakes Parkway from Homeward Hills Road—Acting Mayor Case Case said several residents have talked to him about the lack of a safe pedestrian crossing across Anderson Lakes Parkway from Homeward Hills Road to the school property. There is a tunnel located to the west about 100 feet from the intersection,but people from the eastern side of Homeward Hills try to cross the street anyway. In a bigger context, we have had discussions about being conscious of entry access into the Eden Prairie Center from areas to the south, and Preserve Boulevard is a major conduit to the mall. He would like to know if there are long term plans for the intersection because he thought a pedestrian crossing across Anderson Lakes Parkway might make sense as part of that planning. Ellis said the underpass is about 350 feet to the west of Homeward Hills Road and provides the safest alternative for crossing the road. Kids living in the neighborhoods along Preserve Boulevard have a signal light. He said staff has been out there this week observing the Anderson Lakes Parkway/Homeward Hills Road intersection and failed to see any children crossing Anderson Lakes Parkway during that time. He would be hesitant to recommend a marked crosswalk,but staff could reach out to the School District to get their perspective. The School District does have crossing guards at other schools in the City. Ellis said there is nothing included in the 10-year Capital Improvement Plan, but staff has discussed a few ideas, including the possibility of a round-about. There was also a question raised at the last Council meeting regarding traffic on Waterford Road, so this area might warrant further study. He also understood at some point in the past the School District made a decision to bus children south of Anderson Lakes Parkway. Nelson noted she lived in that area at one time, and there were crossing guards at Waterford before they started bussing the kids south of Anderson Lakes Parkway. B. REPORT OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR C. REPORT OF PARKS AND RECREATION DIRECTOR 1. Staring Lake Park Building Concept Plan and Agreement with DSO Architecture for Building Construction Plans and Specifications Getschow said this item requests authorization of a professional services agreement for design plans for the Staring Lake Park building. Lotthammer said we previously contracted for concept planning for the project, and this is the next step needed to move forward with plans and specifications CITY COUNCIL MINUTES September 18, 2018 Page 5 that could be put out for bid. He gave a PowerPoint presentation reviewing the concepts for the building. He noted the parking lot is in very bad condition,but we held off on repairs because of the increased traffic through there by the contractors for the pickleball court project. The Staring Lake Park building serves the community in multiple seasons. The enhanced playground equipment and the new pickleball and tennis courts have increased the need for rest room facilities. The existing building is old and beyond its useful life. He reviewed the plans for the building and the timeline for the project. He said, if approved, staff would finish preparing the plans and specifications this year, would send the project out for bids in January and February 2019, and would begin construction in April 2019 with occupancy in November 2019. Nelson asked if the meeting room for 80 people is big enough. Lotthammer replied we have other facilities and meeting rooms throughout the system, and these plans actually push the capacity of the site. He believed the planned building fits into our system very well. Aho said he rented the building this summer for an event, and it is quite tired and out of date. He was pleased to see we are looking at making a change. MOTION: Nelson moved, seconded by Aho, to authorize entering into a Professional Services Agreement with DSO Architecture for Staring Lake Park building design plans and specifications. Motion carried 3-0. D. REPORT OF PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR 1. Approval of Layout,Appraisal Values and Easement Acquisition for Duck Lake Road Improvements (Resolution No. 2018-108) Getschow said the Duck Lake Road improvements are included in the City's Capital Improvement Plan, and the City Council previously authorized a final design contract for the project. This action approves the design layout for the project, adopts a resolution approving the appraisal values for the properties to be acquired, and authorizes the City Attorney and City Engineer to acquire the properties needed for the Project. Rod Rue, City Engineer, gave a PowerPoint reviewing the layout for the project. He said they are proposing to build a trail on the west side of the road and a sidewalk on the east side. The area through Duck Lake is a restricted area, and there has been a lot of discussion about having the pedestrian and bike trail through that area. The section of roadway through that area is very narrow with water on both sides of the road. Rue said staff held a neighborhood meeting in 2017 to gather information. There were concerns expressed about the safety of kids crossing to the school, and traffic backups that occur in and out of the school property. Staff brought the proposed layout to residents in April this year, and the plan received good CITY COUNCIL MINUTES September 18, 2018 Page 6 support from the neighborhood. Rue said the culvert that goes under the road is very small. The road is very near the water level, so water can go over the road quite easily. They are proposing to build a larger culvert to equalize the two sides and reduce flooding on the west side. Case asked about the crosswalk on the north side of South Shore Lane. Rue said it will be a marked crosswalk with no trail facility. Ellis said there are no ramps or sidewalks on the east side. Case asked if the crosswalk should be placed on the other side. Rue said they are proposing to surcharge the area between the lakes by adding material over a period of three months in summer 2019 after school is out. The final surcharge would go over the entire road and would need to be there at least six months. Then in 2020 they would remove the surcharge and build the rest of the project. Case asked if we will cover some wetlands with the trail. Rue responded there will be about 20 acres of wetland mitigation required. Case asked if we still have some land to the west to use for mitigation purposes. Rue replied we do have that land; however, the amount used for this project would come out of the Federal bank. He reviewed the types of wetland impacted by the project. He noted there is an impact to some homes in the area that are low relative to the lake level. Staff is proposing a drain the system that has a culvert at the end of the lake. That would provide a balancing of the water level from the lakes and will mean water won't come over the road as much. Case asked if we have an easement in that area. Rue replied we do have a drainage and utility easement, and staff will work with the property owners to get right of entry. Rue said the construction of the project will cost a little less than $2,000,000, and the total including the engineering, right-of-way costs and soil testing will be about$2,700,000. Most of the cost would come from State aid. He reviewed the easements needed for the project, and noted one requirement would be to acquire permanent easements from the properties we have identified that we need for right-of-way. There also is a requirement for an easement from the School District. Aho said there is a property at the southwest corner of the intersection of Duck Lake Trail and Duck Lake Road where there is not a very large distance between the garage and Duck Lake Road. That resident has concerns that if we widen the road there and put a trail across the driveway he will be left with no place to park vehicles. He asked if he would be able to park on the trail running across his driveway. Rue said staff could look at making some adjustments. Aho said there is a City sidewalk on the other side of the street at that point and the CITY COUNCIL MINUTES September 18, 2018 Page 7 resident asked if we really need to add a trail on the west side of the road. Rue replied staff would like to see some continuity there and would like to have some type of facilities on both sides of the road. A trail is used by bikes and pedestrians while a sidewalk is just for pedestrians. Aho suggested staff look at that corner a little more and work with the property owner to find a solution because he could understand the property owner's concern that he will have no parking area at all. Rue said staff could look at making an adjustment. Aho said a trail built on the west side of the lake will cover a lot more water than it would on the east side and asked if we could locate the trail on the east side. Rue replied staff chose the west side because the water is shallower there and would require less soil correction and fewer easements. Aho asked if we could keep it to the east side just before it gets to Peterborg Road and maybe cross over there. We could make the sidewalk into a trail and then continue it straight south just north of Peterborg. Case said there are a lot of properties that would be affected with any of the changes suggested. He thought it is generally best for the City to put a sidewalk on one side and a trail on the other side for major roads through the City. He understood that may not work for this project. He would like to see us concentrate on the west side because of the school, and the bike trail should go down the west side. In general,he would prefer to push pedestrians to the west side as a safer route to the school. Nelson thought it would be good to keep the trail towards the school,but we also have a property owner who will need some help. We need to do something so the homeowner can utilize his driveway. There are two streets going along that property, and there would be an impact to the owner's street address if the driveway were to be relocated to the other street. Rue replied staff can look at the situation a little more closely. This project is in the layout stage, so we can look at the impact to that property and to other properties to the west of Duck Lake Trail. Case asked about putting the sidewalk on the east side of the road at the south end near the railroad crossing. Rue replied the rationale was to get a facility on both sides of the road as we do for major collector roads. He noted maintaining a trail is a lot easier than maintaining a sidewalk, and a trail allows easier snow removal. Ellis said there are a small number of elementary students from south of Valley View Road who cross the railroad tracks, and we have a sidewalk on the east side that could take them up to the entrance to Prairie View where there is a crossing guard. In addition, he noted this is one of the few roads in Eden Prairie that has some connectivity, so this is one road where we have a chance to do a complete street plan and provide facilities for walkers, bikers and drivers. Case asked if this might be an opportunity to put a wooden boardwalk on the east side of the road. Ellis said there are other agencies that would want to weigh in on the impact of a boardwalk to the water. He thought our parks CITY COUNCIL MINUTES September 18, 2018 Page 8 facilities would tell us it is a very difficult facility to maintain in the winter. There are some additional costs for that as well. Rue noted staff did an alternative analysis and found a pedestrianiboardwalk facility would be quite expensive. Case asked what kind of detail can be left open so we can vote tonight but have flexibility going forward. Ellis replied we are looking at whether the Council likes the concept of the road dimensions and agrees with the facilities being proposed on both sides of the road. There is still an opportunity to tweak things if we can work with the property owner on the southwest quadrant. Those things are on the table and are flexible. Staff needs to know if the Council agrees with the layout of the sidewalk and trails so we can move forward with the property owners. Case said he has questions about the sidewalk on the southeast corner and the homeowner's parking issue but was fine with having a bike trail on the west side. Nelson said she would like to include in the motion that staff look very closely at the property where the homeowner is losing his driveway space. Ellis said he understood staff should work with the homeowner to establish a usable driveway which would mean parking for three or four vehicles. Aho asked that staff be directed to come to a reasonable resolution of the problem with the property owner. MOTION: Aho moved, seconded by Nelson, to approve the layout dated September 11, 2018 and to adopt Resolution No. 2018-108 approving the appraisal values for the property acquisitions for the Duck Lake Road Improvements, City Project Number I.C. 17-5983 (the"Project") and authorizing the City Attorney and City Engineer to acquire the properties for the Project by direct negotiation or condemnation. Motion carried 3-0. E. REPORT OF POLICE CHIEF Case thanked Police Chief DeMann for his service to the community. F. REPORT OF FIRE CHIEF G. REPORT OF CITY ATTORNEY XV. OTHER BUSINESS XVI. ADJOURNMENT MOTION: Aho moved, seconded by Nelson, to adjourn the meeting. Motion carried 3-0. Acting Mayor Case adjourned the meeting at 8:13 p.m. CITY COUNCIL MINUTES September 18, 2018 Page 9