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Agenda HOPKINS CITY COUNCIL . FINAL AGENDA DECEMBER 19,2000 7:30 p.m. THIS FINAL AGENDA IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE UNTIL THE START OF THE CITY COUNCIL MEETING Schedule: 7:15 pm - Special HRA Meeting 7:30 pm - City Council meeting Work session at conclusion of City Council meeting I. CALL TO ORDER !!. OPEN AGENDA - PUBLIC COMMENTS/CONCERNS (Public must fill out a Speaker Request Form. Three minute limit for each person) III. REPORTS - COMMITTEES/COMMISSIONS ! 1. IV. CONSENT AGENDA . 1. Minutes of November 28, 2000 work session 2. Minutes of December 5, 2000 regular City Council meeting 3. Minutes of December 5, 2000 work session 4. Minutes of December 12, 2000 work session 5. Minutes of Budget and Tax Levy Hearing, December 11, 2000 6. Miscellaneous license applications Vote: Brausen Jensen Hesch Johnson Maxwell V. PRESENTATION 1. Hopkins Human Rights Award, Jim Genellie VI. NEW BUSINESS 1. Accept Lot 500-600 feasibility report, order public hearing, (CR2000-200) - Stadler Vote: Brausen Jensen Hesch Johnson Maxwell . QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? CALL THE RAZZLE LINE - 939-1421 (The Razzle Line is the City of Hopkins voice message system) -- 2. Accept feasibility report, order public hearing, 2001 street improvement project, (CR2000-203) - Gessele . Vote: Brausen Jensen Hesch Johnson Maxwell 3, Adoption of 2001 budget and 2000/2001 tax levy (CR2000-204) - Yager Vote: Brausen Jensen Hesch Johnson Maxwell 4. Approve 2001 meeting calendar, (CR2000-199) - Mielke Vote: Brausen Jensen Hesch Johnson Maxwell 5. Approve liquor license renewal for Northern Lights Food, (CR2000-205) _ Obermaier Vote: Brausen Jensen Hesch Johnson Maxwell G. Approve charitable gambling premises permit for the Raspberry Festival, (CR2000-20G) - Obermaier . Vote: Brausen Jensen Hesch Johnson Maxwell 7. Approve nomination of Fran Hesch to the Hennepin County Community Health Services Advisory Committee, Memo - Steve Mielke Vote: Brausen Jensen Hesch Johnson Maxwell VII. ADJOURNMENT . QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? CALL THE RAZZLE LINE - 939-1421 (The Razzle Line is the City of Hopkins voice message system) I MINUTES . CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION - NOVEMBER 28~ 2000 A work session of the Hopkins City Council was held at 6:00 p.m. on November 28, 2000, at the City Hall. Present were Mayor Maxwell and Council members Brausen, Hesch, Jensen and Johnson. Zoning and Planning Commission members present were Ross Bartz, Maura Swenson, John Szuba, Eric Randolph, Maureen Allen, Jay Thompson and Bruce Rowan. City personnel present were City Manager Mielke, Finance Director Yager, Public Works Director Stadler, City Attorney Jerre Miller, Building official Rick Davidson, City Planner Nancy Anderson, Housing inspector Elizabeth Page and Community Development Director Kerrigan. Also present were Gary Brown of RLK and his associates. Joint CouncillZ&P Meeting: Vehicle/storage Ordinance Nancy Anderson showed photos of various sites, noting that at present all sites were in compliance with ordinances. The definition of "junk vehicle" was discussed. Maura Swenson and Ross Bartz said community appearance was important. Fran Hesch said she hoped a balance could be found between cleaning up bad sites due to negligence without penalizing people who have multiple vehicles, etc. Karen Jensen said she was worried about defining "nuisance. " She later noted she had received a number of calls from concerned RV owners after the Highlights article. Rick Brausen said he felt an extended public information program would help, adding limiting numbers of cars, etc. could cause people to not want to live in Hopkins. Diane Johnson suggested the photos shown be sent to those parties, asking what they . would do if the suggested ordinance changes were enacted. Steve Mielke suggested Z&P could take one topic per month at their meetings, spreading the whole process over 6 months, starting in January. Discussion centered on order of topics. Jay Thompson suggested starting with number of vehicles; Mayor Maxwell agreed. Fran Hesch thought easier topics should start; Bruce Rowan agreed. Maura Swenson suggested number of cars might be connected to ground cover area. Maureen Allen suggested apartment managers be contacted for input; Diane Johnson concurred. Mayor Maxwell noted the inspection people need to be involved throughout the process so they can feel comfortable with enforcement. Jim Kerrigan noted that Z&P does not need to create ordinance measures for every topic; the staff suggestions are just that, suggestions, not mandates. Mr. Mielke explained the concept of the City Court to the Commission members, noting the officers were appointed a week ago. General Consensus: The fourth item in the "junk vehicle" definition should be omitted. The Commission would like to take one topic per meeting, working over a period of time; no consensus was reached on order of topics at this time. Contacting people whose property was photographed, apartment managers, etc. should be done as their topics come up. Mr. Mielke will provide Commission members with information on City Court. Parking Lot 500/600 and A venue Feasibility Report Director Stadler said the goal was to get a project business owners and property owners would accept. He noted cost figures ($245,000 for 10th and 11 tl1 A venues and $224,000 for . Lots 500 and 600) were "worst scenario" figures. A meeting with business people is scheduled for December 6, after which the proposal will be redrafted. Then it will be brought back to Council. I Mr. Brown of RLK stressed he feels roof drainage improvements are very important as the present drainage causes dangerous icy conditions. He recommends installing conduit . during the street improvement so future ornamental lighting could be done much more easily and cheaply. "Blind parking" on 10lh is hazardous; only everyone's awareness and caution has prevented accidents; 33 feet is needed from the back of parked vehicles to the other side of the street for safety. The business conununity was very much against closing off 10th; parallel parking on both sides is acceptable. Pedestrian traffic is heavy on 11th, but very little comes from Tate's. He recommends no parking between the two entrances to lot 500 for safety reasons. Diagonal parking near the hardware store will probably stay. He then explained the possible assessment methods, noting a special district would have to be asked for by the business community. The 70/30 split cap would require the city to pay an extra $20 per running foot; later he noted the cap was originally to protect single-family dwelling owners and the Council could choose to not implement it. Mr. Mielke stressed that whatever formula is adopted will, in effect, set the formula for the future. The one shown is based on the assumption that parking lot assessments should be figured the same as street assessments. Discussion raised some issues: how many employees of US Bank will change to the bank lot; will the moving of the library entrance have an effect on pedestrian patterns [Diane Johnson]; could parking between lot 500 entran<..:es be "compact only" [Fran Hesch]; could buses be: stacked in the alley for the theatre [Karen Jensen]; other funding sources. General Consensus: Figures on US Bank parking should be obtained if possible. Parking on 11 th requires more analysis. Computation of "per year cost" should be done for the business community, with copies to the Council. The economic development funds would be better spent on East End redevelopment. Council should be informed about the results of the . December 6 meeting with the business community. Budget Discussion Finance Director Yager said the required publication will show taxes as 7.3 % instead of the actual 6% because state law requires excluding state funds. There was discussion of having an ad showing actual figures. There were no changes in the budget from previous work sessions. Ms. Yager pointed out the layout for the finance department, saying she will be finalizing the budget with that detail for all departments as she is entering the hudget for consideration of an award. Mr. Mielke noted the only organization that has expressed displeasure about their funding is the Senior Community Services who want their counseling services funded; the person responsible for that budget feels the money is better spent elsewhere. The budget hearing will be December 11; if a Council member has a question, it should be given to Ms. Yager by the 71h. There was general discussion of the Depot finances. General Consensus: No ad will be run for actual figures. $1500 shall be fronted to get grant writing started for the Depot. Mr. Mielke shall immediately send out a letter to the partners asking for a meeting on December lIar 12, stressing that in January Anthony will have to be let go if something is not done about funding immediately. Visioning Process City Manager Mielke brought up three issues: mission statement; vision statement; . action planning. There was general discussion. General Consensus: The mission statement needs only one change: "citizens" should be changed to "community" so the central phrase reads "Partnering with Community to . . Enhance the Quality of Life. Everyone liked the idea of getting the logo form made more . aesthetically attractive. Further details to be decided are how to get the new fonn created [Diane Johnson suggested a contest; Mr. Mielke suggested involving Susan and Bobbie] and deciding how the new logo will be used. The vision statement should be changed to "Vision for the Community of Hopkins: Creating the spirit of unity." Copies should be sent out for comment. Both ofthese should come up for adoption in January. As to action planning, the Council would like to see Blaine's resolution on goals. Retreat planning should go forward. It should start with a celebration involving all the staff; topics at the retreat should include staff and Council roles; mutual respect; how attitudes to approaching the work for mutual goals differ/agree between staff and Council; the largest segment of time should be spent on working on the action plan. A prime question to be worked on is "What do we need from each other to reach our visioning goal?" Each department needs to see themselves involved in the action plan, and it needs to be changed accordingly. Getting feedback after the retreat is a necessity for the Council. Other Ms. Jensen asked if the clock in the tower could be fixed. Ms. Hesch passed on information about the Park Nicollet celebration for life planned for October 20, 2001. Ms. Johnson reported on the school referendum meetings, noting she does not think they will be ready for the next election. Mr. Mielke reported on Medica. Mr. Mondale conversed with him about money . available for planning mixed use "smart growth" that could probably come to Hopkins for the Medica/Excelsior redevelopment. It must incorporate business [Excelsior Blvd.], housing [Town Terrace was suggested by Mayor Maxwell], and industrial [Alliant Tech]. Hopkins is a prime candidate since it will be a hub for the southwest corridor of the high-speed bus system. Diane Johnson moved adjournment; Gene Maxwell seconded. Meeting adjourned at 10:35 p.m. Kasey Kester, Secretary COUNCIL MEMBERS: ATTEST: . Eugene J. Maxwell, Mayor . A regular meeting of the Hopkins City Council was held on December 5, 2000, in the Council Chambers of the Hopkins City Hall. Present were Mayor Maxwell and Council Members Jensen, and Johnson. Also, present were staff members Mielke, Genellie, Stadler, Kerrigan, Hartshorn, and City Attorney Jerre Miller. I. CALL TO ORDER Mayor Maxwell called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. II. OPEN AGENDA - PUBLIC COMMENTS AND CONCERNS Bruce Beattie, 38 - 18th Ave N, expressed a concern about traffic enforcement. Mr. Beattie said that on November 11, 2000, he was crossing a street and was nearly hit. He said the vehicle swerved from the right lane to the left lane around him. The vehicle was a city vehicle. Mayor Maxwell apologized and said that Mr. Stadler will identify the vehicle and that the Chief of Police will call him to discuss the situation. . III, REPORTS - COMMITTEES/COMMISSIONS 1. Zoning and Planning Commission Bruce Rowan, Zoning and Planning Commission, said that the Commission discussed the CUP for Alliant Tech. The only issue that came up at the public hearing was the fence; most of the neighbors did not want the fence erected. Medica presented conceptual plans to the Commission for comment. The Commission discussed the increase to the yearly and quarterly rates for parking permits and felt that the rates should be increased by ten percent. Mr. Rowan said that more needs to be done to increase revenues soon or the parking fund will be used up. IV. CONSENT AGENDA 1. Minutes of November 21, 2000 Regular City Council Meeting 2. Ratify Prior Month's Disbursements 3. Approve Liquor License Renewals (CR2000-199) 4. Approve Final Payment, Sidewalk Repair (CR2000-1981 Council Member Johnson moved and Council Member Jensen seconded a motion to approve the Consent Agenda. A poll of the vote was as follows: Council Member . Jensen, aye; Council Member Johnson, aye; Mayor Maxwell, aye. The motion carried unanimously. December 5, 2000 City Council Meeting Minutes Page 1 V. NEW BUS1NESS . 1 . CUP for Parking in Residential Neighborhood, Alliant Tech Systems (2000- 197) Jim Kerrigan said that a special use permit was approved for parking areas used by Alliant Techsystems in 1963. The special use was granted for one year. No records of a renewal were found. AlIiant Tech is selling the building and parking areas. The City Attorney has reviewed the history of the parking area and determined that Alliant Tech should apply for a CUP to allow the use of existing parking. The use will comply with the conditions of the Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Ordinances. The Zoning and Planning Commission recommended approval. Mr. Kerrigan said that at the Zoning and Planning Commission, neighbors said that they were not in favor of erecting a fence and that if in the future, there was a problem, the neighbors could request that a fence be erected. A landscaping plan will be submitted for approval at a later date. Council Member Johnson said that the present landscaping is bad, that there are a lot of dead trees and weeds along Monroe, and that the orange lot in particular is poorly maintained. Council Members Johnson and Jensen concurred that the lots should be refurbished. The possibility of a change in use and the effect it would have on the parking . situation was discussed Dick Chowen, Alliant Tech treasurer, and Dave Carlin representing CSM, came forward to answer questions. Condition two of Resolution 2000-87 was discussed with Mr. Mielke suggesting that it by changed to read a "majority" of owners. Condition three of the same resolution was discussed. Changes were discussed to add.. .remain "and maintained in a neat and presentable manner". The Council discussed the type of fence or barrier that could be erected. Mr. Kerrigan said that that is defined in the Zoning Ordinance. Mr. Mielke reviewed the changes to the resolution mentioning the above changes to conditions two and three and adding a fourth condition stating that the use of the building must be in conformance with the existing parking unless additional off street parking is added as per zoning requirements. Council Member Johnson moved and Council Member Jensen seconded a motion to . adopt Resolution 2000-87 as amended, approving a conditional use permit to permit parking on the north side of 2nd St NE. A poll of the vote was as follows: Council December 5, 2000 City Council Meeting Minutes Page 2 -- -- ---.--- - - ----- , . Member Jensen, aye; Council Member Johnson, aye; Mayor Maxwell, aye. The motion carried unanimously. 2. Approve Parking Permit Rate Increase (CR2000-1 96) Jim Hartshorn said that parking permit rates have not been increased for three years. Increasing the rates of the yearly and quarterly permit would help pay increased costs of printing and maintenance. The recommended increase is to raise the yearly permit from $110 to $120 and the quarterly from $32 to $35. The cost of the monthly and daily permits would remain the same. In answer to Mayor Maxwell's question, Mr. Hartshorn responded that the public would be notified by information placed in the Sun Sailor, Hopkins Highlights, and H BCA newsletter, Council Member Jensen moved and Council Member Johnson seconded a motion to approve a ten percent yearly and quarterly parking permit rate increase for 2001. A poll of the vote was as follows: Council Member Jensen, aye; Council Member Johnson, aye; Mayor Maxwell, aye. The motion carried unanimously. VI. ADJOURNMENT . There being no further business, Council Member Jensen moved and Council Member Johnson seconded a motion to adjourn the meeting. The meeting was adjourned by unanimous consent at 8:20 p.m. Respectively Submitted, Terry Obermaier, City Clerk COUNCIL MEMBERS . ATTEST: Eugene J. Maxwell, Mayor December 5, 2000 City Council Meeting Minutes Page 3 Work Session Minutes December 5, 2000 I A City Council work session was held on Tuesday, December 5, 2000 in the Council Chambers after the regular City Council meeting. The meeting was called to order by Mayor Maxwelj at 8:30 p.m. Present were Mayor Maxwell, Council members Johnson and Jensen. Absent were Council members Brausen and Hesch. Staff member present was City Manager Steve Mielke. Mayor Maxwell inquired as to whether there were any items of discussion. Upon hearing none, a motion was made by Jensen, seconded by Johnson, to adjourn the meeting. The motion was approved unanimously. The meeting was adjourned at 8:32 pm. ATTEST: CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS: Mayor , , , . MINUTES CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION - DECEl\1BER 12, 2000 A work session of the Hopkins City Council was held at 6:30 p.m. on December 12, 2000, at the City Hall. P88 resent were Mayor Maxwell and Council members Brausen, Hesch and Johnson. City personnel present were City Manager Mielke, Community Development Director Kerrigan and Public Housing Manager Karen Skepper. Also present were Craig Christensen and John Kohler of Semper. Walgreens/Hopkins House Project Mr. Kerrigan said Semper wants off-site assessments to be spread over 10 years; staff would favor this as a way to clean up the site and get something done with Hopkins House. Mr. Christensen said Semper has a verbal agreement with Hopkins House for the purchase price and has renegotiated with Walgreens. Major factors in having to come to the city at all were the unexpected expense of extensive water drainage work and having to clear 17 feet of underground debris from the site and then refill. Mr. Mielke added the water drainage work involves the city's system and would actually lessen the load on the city system. Semper estimates the assessment amount at $100-120,000. Mr. Kerrigan explained that if the Council wants to move ahead, the city attorney says off-site work would have to be bid out as a public improvement project in order to use assessments. Semper needs the assessment process so . they can pass the cost on to Walgreens, who has agreed to the additional cost. Mr. Kohler added the owner of the strip mall would upgrade his property by $300,000 if the project goes ahead. General Consensus: Noone on the Council wants to go ahead with the assessment plan. Later in the meeting the Council agreed they would like more discussion on this corner at a later session. Miscellaneous Public Housing Issues Ms. Skepper wished to update the Council on three issues. First, she had received oral agreement that the HRA financial statement audit deadline would be moved to coincide with the city audit, since it qualifies as a blended component with the city. She is awaiting written confirmation. Without it, HRA would have to pay $5,000 for a special audit rather than their $1,000 share of the city audit. Second, Hopkins Village Apartments is limiting their new rentals to elderly only, even though she understands they have not received official approval of the designation. This may have an impact on Dow Towers. She will continue marketing to seniors in an effort to keep the mixed population at Dow. Third, the current update to the Public Housing Authority Plan will be presented at a public hearing prior to the December 19 HRA meeting. One planned change mandated by the federal government is allowing pets in public housing (restricted to 1 cat, 1 dog, 2 caged birds, OR 1 aquarium, with a 20 pound size limit for a pet; $300 security deposit for pet damage; $5 . monthly fee for environment work charge). The second is putting a resident on the HRA Board of Commissioners. This had been posted last year, with no one wanting the position. Differences between Minnesota law and federal requirements have been ironed out; a resident . member could be limited to voting on only public housing matters. She suggested that if a resident member is selected, public housing matters be put on the agenda on a quarterly basis, with arrangements for monthly payment of bills on an automatic basis. Issues the Council needs to decide include needed qualifications, length of term, method of selection, voting parameters. She noted she would not favor separating housing from EDA as that would cause housing to lose its blended component status for audits, 5 volunteers would need to be found instead of only one; and it would take 6-12 months to establish the new board. Ms. Hesch said it seemed the most logical approach would be to add one volunteer for housing issues only, which would be made part of a quarterly meeting. Ms. Skepper said that would also be her recommendation. Mayor Maxwell added an interview should be part of the process. General Consensus: Ms. Hesch's and Mayor Maxwell's suggestions met general approval. The general idea will be presented at the public hearing. Specific qualifications and approval process steps will be decided in January or February. HRA bylaws will need to be changed to allow for the quarterly public housing issues meeting, etc. Ms. Hesch then asked for information about the crime-free designation. Ms. Skepper said she would very much like to get that designation; one major hurdle is that it would require replacing all door peepholes so there would be 180 degree vision. This cost Ramsgate $8,000. Mr. Mielke suggested this might be a project for donations. Work for disabled residents has to take priority on government funds. She is not certain what other items would need to be . changed as the person in charge of inspections will not come out unless she feels the criteria could be met in a short period of time. She added the drug-free clause has been part of the leases and has been a major tool for screening and eviction. General Consensus: Council would like a report on what would be needed to get a crime-free designation. East eBD Redevelopment Project Mr. Kerrigan reported that he has been working with Mr. Koss; a purchase agreement has been given to him for consideration, but no commitments have been made. Kanduth has stated he would sell for $218,000. Lommens are willing to sell. Luthers are not interested in selling; a letter from Chase Company, who manages Luther real estate, indicates they would like to be the developer. Beard is interested and has done a project on a similar site. TlF monies are $1.6 million, and end April 2001. Mr. Mielke said if costs are over that, possible funding is the Economic Development Fund or creating a new TIP district. There is also a possibility" living conununities" funds could be procured. General Consensus: Koss is the key; if he will sell, staff should proceed. Ms. Hesch suggested RFQ's ask for suggestions for both partial and whole development. Staff should look into how the city-owned property south of the alley could be incorporated. Other Ms. Hesch presented a letter and photo from a resident complaining about tree planting. . Mr. Mielke will have staff prepare a letter in response. -- -- -- -- -- - -- ---- . . Ms. Hesch suggested all Zoning/Planning Commission members get the "nuisance reactions" information. Mayor Maxwell also suggested adding the Blaine document. Mayor Maxwell said he had received a call from a citizen who wants to be heard about a senior discount on water bills, etc. Mr. Mielke commented most cities have now phased such discounts out, although they were fairly common years ago. Mr. Mielke said he has started the process for a planning meeting for the Northeast community. Zoning/Planning will be involved; it will use a format much like the focus group process. Mayor Maxwell brought up the recurring problems with Tremont and Park Plaza, and suggested it become a session subject. Ms. Johnson said the clock in the tower still needs to be fixed. It was agreed by those present that if the clock can't be fixed, it should be taken out and just let the chimes ring. Rick Brausen moved adjournment; Fran Hesch seconded. Meeting adjourned at 9:55 p.m. Kasey Kester, Secretary COUNCIL MEMBERS: . ATTEST: Eugene J. Maxwell, Mayor . . 2001 Budget and Tax Levy Hearing December 11, 2000 A budget hearing was held on Monday, December 11, 2000 in the Council Chambers at Hopkins City Hall. Present were Mayor Maxwell and Council members Rick Brausen, Fran Hesch, Karen Jensen, and Diane Johnson. Also present were staff members Steve Mielke, City Manager, and Lori Yager, Director of Finance. The meeting was called to order at 6:30 p.m. by Mayor Maxwell. Finance Director Lori Yager presented the 2001 budget and tax levy recommendations. In her presentation she indicated that the proposed budget provided for a continuation of all programs and services. The general fund budget is proposed at a balanced figure of $7 I 740,084. This is an increase of 4.33 percent over the year 2000 budget, and provides for a tax levy increase of 6 percent. Yager indicated that an average value home of $124,000 will pay $483 annually for the city portion of property taxes, equaling $40.25 per month. The city . portion of the taxes will represent approximately 28 percent of the total tax bill. Yager went on to describe the cost of each of the general fund budget areas. Mayor Maxwell opened the public hearing at 6:50 p.m. Tom Green, 14 Hawthorne Road, indicated to the Council his concern over an article in the Star Tribune that showed Hopkins ranked 17th highest in total property tax payments, and inquired as to why they are so high in comparison to others. Various Council members responded to Mr. Green, indicating that Hopkins tends to provide a higher level of service, and that business and demographic differences between Hopkins and the other communities tended to skew the results. It was also mentioned that the ranking alone does not offer a fair comparison of cities, based upon other factors that weigh-in on tax rates and property values. There being no additional input for the public hearing, City Manager Mielke indicated that the Council needed to determine whether or not to continue the hearing to the predetermined date of December 18, or to close the hearing and move toward adoption on December 19. After discussion a motion was made by Hesch, seconded by Jensen, to close the public hearing. The motion was passed unanimously. A motion was made by Hesch, seconded by Johnson to adjourn. Motion passed unanimously. The meeting was adjourned at 725 p.m. . . Miscellaneous License Applications License # DBA Hopkins Locatioll Lic Type 00101 Edward D Jones & Co the City of Hopkins Solicitor U()162 Armor Waste Systems the City of Hopkins Refuse Collector Each Refuse Vehicle 00163 Metro Disposallnc the City of Hopkins Refuse Vehicle Refuse Collector 01000 Valley Park Condos 920 - 9th Avenue South Swimming Pool - Outdoor 01030 Hopkins House Hotel 1501 Highway Seven Hotel, Motel, Lodging per Unit Mechanical Amusement Device - First Mechanical Amusement Device - ea Addi . Swimming Pool - Indoor Billiard Table Swimming Pool- Special Purpose 0/031 Pawn America 168 Blake Rd N Pawnshop 01032 Hopkins Cinema 6 1118 Mainstreet Food Establishment L 1 Movie Theatre. ea Additional Auditorium Movie Theatre - Over 700 01033 SS Billiards 732 - 11 th Avenue S Billiard Table - ea Additional Table Mechanical Amusement Device - ea Addi Billiard Table - First Table U]034 Back Door Tobacco 813 Mainstreet Tobacco Sales 01035 Main Street Repair 501 Mainstreet Gasoline Station - First Pump . Thursday, December 14. 2000 Palte / of 8