City Council - 04/13/2004 - Workshop APPROVED MINUTES
EDEN PRAIRIE CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP/FORUM
TUESDAY,APRIL 13, 2004 CITY CENTER
5:00—6:25 PM,HERITAGE ROOM II
6:30—7:00 PM, COUNCIL CHAMBER
CITY COUNCIL:
Mayor Nancy Tyra-Lukens, Councilmembers Sherry Butcher,Ron Case, Jan Mosman, and
Philip Yotulg
CITY STAFF:
City Manager Scott Neal, Human Resources Manager Karen Kurt, City Attorney Ric Rosow
Heritage Room H
I. CLOSED SESSION (begins promptly at 5:00 p.m.)
A. POTENTIAL LITIGATION
B. CITY MANAGER'S PERFORMANCE REVIEW
Council Chamber
II. OPEN FORUM
A. GEOFFREY FERSTER
Mr. Ferster, 8056 Timberlake Drive, said he wanted to address "governance and
transparency"in relation to the upcoming referendum. He noted that the City's
strategic plan calls for fiscal responsibility and states that the City is responsible
for informing citizens of its actions. Mr. Ferster asked Council who will manage
the new and upgraded facilities in the event the referendum passes. He also said it
is not clear how much residents will be expected to pay in user fees, except that
Bob Lambert has said$6 to $7 will probably be the fee for a single swim session.
Ferster said he did a"back of the envelope" calculation based on increases from
successful parks and school referendums, "shifts for the state's decisions," and
"taxable market value"that shows property taxes could increase by up to $500.
He said this increase could have"equity impact issues"on people with fixed or
low incomes.
Ferster said he feels there is no analysis that says "we use what we have," and
cited Round Lake Park tennis courts as an example. He said most facilities are
not"stretched"outside of certain peak periods. He said the survey conducted by
the City this spring indicates only 51% favor an outdoor aquatic center and only
60 percent support Community Center improvements.
Lambert said there is no deal pending to have anyone except City staff manage
existing or proposed facilities. He said revenues from pool user fees are expected
to exceed operating costs,but not by enough to pay off any bonds. In particular,
the fitness center,play area, ice rinks, and aquatic center are all expected to cover
their own costs. The gymnasium and teen center are not expected to completely
cover their own costs.
Mr. Ferster said he would provide the City Manager with written copy of the
notes he used for this presentation.
III. OPEN PODIUM
No one requested to speak at Open Podium.
IV. ADJOURNMENT