Loading...
HomeMy Public PortalAbout09/21/93 CCM150 MINUTES The City Council of Medina, Minnesota met in regular session on September 21, 1993 at 7:30 p.m. in the City Hall Council Chambers. Present: Councilmembers John Ferris, Ann Thies, Philip Zietlow and Mayor Anne Theis. Absent: Councilmember James Johnson. Also Present: Police Chief Rick Rabenort, Public Works Director Jim Dillman, City Engineer Shawn Gustafson, City Attorney Ron Batty and Clerk -Treasurer Jeff Karlson. 1. ADDITIONS TO AGENDA Moved by Thies, seconded by Zietlow, to approve the addition of the following agenda items: 1. Approval of plans and specifications for Medina Road 2. Appraisals of Hyberg and Finazzo properties 3. Consideration of Park Commission recommendations 4. Establish special meeting for budget discussion 5. Consideration of a resident's request to serve on the Lake Minnetonka Cable Commission Motion carried unanimously. 2. CONSENT AGENDA Moved by Thies, seconded by Zietlow, to approve the consent agenda as follows: 1. Approval for city auditors Kern, DeWenter, Viere to begin auditing the City's financial statements for the year ending December 31, 1993. 2. Resolution No. 93-63, "Resolution Granting Final Approval for Walnut Bay" Motion carried unanimously. 3. BID SPECIFICATIONS FOR FRONT-END LOADER Moved by Zietlow, seconded by Thies, to adopt Resolution No. 93-64, "Resolution Approving Bid Specifications for Front -End Loader and Authorizing Advertisement for Bids." Ayes: Ferris, Thies, Zietlow and Mayor Theis. Nays: None. Resolution No. 93-64 adopted on a 4-aye and 0-nay vote. 4. SUBURBAN HENNEPIN REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT - C.U.P. Moved by Ferris, seconded by Mayor Theis, to adopt Resolution No. 93-65, "Resolution Granting Conditional Use Permit to Suburban Hennepin Regional Park District for Ranger Public Safety Center at Baker Park Reserve," contingent upon a receipt of a copy of the letter to Elizabeth Tillotson which was a condition for approval. Ayes: Ferris, Thies, Zietlow and Mayor Theis. Nays: None. Resolution No. 93-65 adopted on a 4-aye and 0-nay vote. 151 5. MINUTES Moved by Thies, seconded by Mayor Theis, to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of September 7, 1993 as submitted. Motion carried unanimously. 6. LONG LAKE CONTRACT FOR FIRE PROTECTION The council reviewed a revised "Agreement and Contract for Fire Protection" in which the City of Long Lake would provide fire protection for the southwest section of Medina for a three-year period beginning January 1, 1994. Councilmember Zietlow said Medina's share of Long Lake's 1994 fire department budget of $121,000 would be $9,518 based on 1993 market values. Zietlow said Long Lake's budget would be reviewed every year and the maximum increase would be four percent. Councilmember Ferris said he favored a one-year contract in case the city wished to use an alternative approach for fire protection which would provide better equipment and could be a cost savings. Zietlow said Long Lake might want to increase Medina's share if Medina asked for a one-year contract instead of a three-year contract. He added that a one-year deal would give the city time to evaluate the fire protection of the city and to consider other options. Moved by Ferris, seconded by Mayor Theis, to enter into a one-year contract for fire protection with the City of Long Lake and request that Long Lake respond to Medina's request for a one-year contract with the option of going to a three-year contract the following year if Medina wished to continue receiving fire protection from Long Lake. Ayes: Ferris, Thies and Mayor Theis. Nays: Zietlow. Motion carried on a 3-1 vote. 7. CONTRACT FOR ASSESSING SERVICES City Assessors Ann Risch and Rolf Erickson were present to discuss the 1994 "Contract for Assessing Services." Ann Risch said that after discussing the proposed change of the contract date from July 1 to June 30, she and Erickson decided they preferred to keep the September 1 to August 31 time period because it coincided with the contract dates they had with other cities and with their employees. Risch said if the September 1 date was kept, it would be possible to postpone approval of the actual contract amount until after the council had approved the city's budget. Rolf Erickson said the new contract amount of $26,472 reflected a 3.5% increase for new properties and a 2% increase for additional work that would be required because of new legislation. Erickson said there was no increase for the cost of doing business. 152 Moved by Thies, seconded by Zietlow, to approve the "Contract for Assessing Services" in the amount of $26,472, from September 1, 1993 to August 31, 1994. Motion carried unanimously. 8. TRI-CITY AGREEMENT Moved by Mayor Theis, seconded by Zietlow, to table discussion on the Tri-City Agreement until the next meeting on October 5, 1993. Motion carried unanimously. 9. C.C.&M PARTNERSHIP - CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT C.C.&M Partnership applied for a conditional use permit for the property at 300 T.H. 55. The proposed uses included an office for Cates Construction Co., an "auto flea market," and an occasional flea market held by the Hamel Lions Club. The council tabled the application at the September 7, 1993 meeting. City Attorney Ron Batty said he reviewed the 21 uses allowed by conditional use permit in the urban commercial district and concluded that neither the auto flea market nor the regular flea market was a use which could be allowed by conditional use permit. Batty said the ordinance intended to exclude highway oriented businesses from an urban commercial district. Batty said the council could consider the following options: 1. Grant the conditional use permit for the construction company office and deny the other segments of the application; 2. Consider an amendment to the zoning ordinance allowing one or both of the denied uses as conditional uses in this district; or 3. Consider rezoning the property to requested uses are allowed. Moved by Thies, seconded by Mayor Theis, to a resolution granting a conditional Construction Co. for a company office. Motion carried unanimously. Moved by Ferris, seconded by Zietlow, to deny C.C.&M Partnership's request for a conditional use permit for a flea market on the basis that it is not a permitted use in an urban commercial district. Motion carried unanimously. Moved by Zietlow, seconded by Ferris, to direct staff to research the background information of the conditional use permit granted to the Medina Ballroom in order for the Hamel Lions Club to conduct a flea market in the parking lot. Motion carried unanimously. a district in which all direct staff to prepare use permit to Cates 153 10. DAVID RASKOB - REPLAT Moved by Thies, seconded by Zietlow, to direct staff to prepare a resolution granting final approval of a replat of Lots 9 and 10, Block 10, Independence Beach, subject to the abstract work being completed. Motion carried unanimously. 11. LORETTO TOWING - UPDATE OF CUP COMPLIANCE In a memo to the city council, Zoning Administrator Loren Kohnen informed the council that they should consider establishing a hearing date for revocation of the conditional use permit granted to Loretto Towing. Kohnen pointed out that Loretto Towing appeared to be ignoring the conditions set forth in the CUP, particularly the number of vehicles kept outside overnight. In a letter written to Ron Converse of Loretto Towing, Kohnen said that during a two month period the number of vehicles parked outside overnight was over the eight permitted every night except two. Converse's attorney, Dick Schieffer, said he researched the background information of the conditional use permit and could not find a reason given for the limitation on outside parking. Schieffer pointed out two reasons for the number of vehicles parked outside exceeding the limit: (1) customers not picking up their vehicles or dropping them off after hours; (2) the difficulty of getting the cars in and out of the enclosed parking area during the warmer months when there was a lot of rain as there was this year. Schieffer said he would like to see the matter tabled until he and Ron Converse had an opportunity to work on a solution to the problem with city staff and come back to the council with a recommendation. Moved by Zietlow, seconded by Ferris, to table further discussion of Loretto Towing's conditional use permit until October 5, 1993. Motion carried unanimously. 12. MEDINA ROAD IMPROVEMENT PROJECT Project Engineer Shawn Gustafson said the plans and specifications for the Medina Road Improvement Project between Hunter Drive and Tamarack Drive were ready to be approved. Gustafson said the city could open bids as early as October 15, 1993 and award the bid at the October 19 meeting. He added that the initial paving could be done in the fall if the weather was favorable and the final paving would be done in the spring. Moved by Thies, seconded by Zietlow, to adopt Resolution No. 93-66, "Resolution Approving Plans and Specifications and Ordering Advertisement for Bids for Medina Road Improvement." Ayes: Ferris, Thies, Zietlow and Mayor Theis. Nays: None. Resolution No. 93-66 adopted on 4-aye and 0-nay vote. 154 13. PARK COMMISSION RECOMMENDATIONS At its May 19, 1993 meeting, the Park Commission recommended that the Park Fund contribute 25%, amounting to $5,500, toward the cost of a new public works truck costing $22,000. The commission concluded that the truck would be used for maintenance of the parks 25% of the time. The Park Commission also agreed with Public Works Director Jim Dillman that $6,000 be budgeted from the Park Fund for the purchase of a snow blower. City Attorney Batty questioned whether the city could use Park Fund money for anything that did not directly improve the parks such as playground equipment, recreational facilities, trails or the acquisition of park land. Batty said he should research the status of the law pertaining to park fund expenditures. Councilmember Ferris said the council had a responsibility to use the Park Fund money for the purpose in which it was intended. Mayor Theis directed Ron Batty to find out what restrictions may apply to the use of park funds according to Minnesota Statutes. 14. LAKE MINNETONKA CABLE COMMISSIONER OPENING Mayor Theis said she received a letter from a new Medina resident -- Linda Deal --in which she expressed an interest in serving on the Lake Minnetonka Cable Commission. 15. ESTABLISHMENT OF BUDGET MEETING The council established a special budget meeting for Tuesday, October 26, 1993 at 7:00 p.m. to consider the 1994 budget. 16. APPRAISALS OF FINAZZO AND HYBERG PROPERTIES City Attorney Batty obtained quotes from three appraisers for an updated appraisal on the Hyberg and Finazzo properties. Batty said he had worked with all three in the past and each was reputable. Batty said there was a trade off between time and money. Batty said if there were no time constraints, he would recommend Brad Bjorkland who quoted a low bid of $2,400 for both parcels. The other two bids were $5,000 and $4,300. Moved by Ferris, seconded by Mayor Theis, to authorize City Attorney Ron Batty to contact Brad Bjorkland to have him update the appraisals of the Hyberg and Finazzo properties at a cost of $2,400. Motion carried unanimously. 17. PUBLIC WORKS - STORAGE BIN FOR SALT SAND Public Works Director Dillman asked for authorization to build a retaining wall for the storage of up to 200 tons of salt sand during the winter. Dillman said the city would purchase salt sand from the City of Orono and return any excess in the spring. Dillman estimated that the storage bin would cost $1,500. 155 Moved by Ferris, seconded by Thies, to approve the construction of a storage bin at a cost of $1,500. Motion carried unanimously. 18. 5-YEAR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN Clerk -Treasurer Karlson distributed a report which projected the cash amounts of certain funds one to fifteen years ahead based on anticipated revenues and expenditures. Karlson said the General Fund should show a cash balance of over two million dollars at the end of 1993, of which over $600,000 would be unreserved. Karlson included a reduction of $254,000 in the General Fund for anticipated capital expenditures in 1993 and 1994. The council reviewed a list of projected capital improvements and capital expenditures that staff deemed would be necessary in the next five years. The council also discussed the addition of a garage onto city hall. The council agreed that road improvements were a priority. 19. SQUAD CAR PURCHASE Councilmember Zietlow recommended that the city re-establish a replacement program for the squad cars whereby a new squad car would be purchased evey year. Moved by Ferris, seconded by Zietlow, to authorize the purchase of a new squad car for the police department. Motion carried unanimously. 20. REPLACEMENT OF UNDERGROUND FUEL TANKS Public Works Director Jim Dillman said there were two underground fuel tanks that should be replaced at a cost of $55,000. Dillman said the existing diesel tank also supplied fuel for the furnance in the shop. Dillman said as of October 1, 1993, the city would be allowed to use only low sulfur diesel fuel that would cost an additional 5 to 10 cents per gallon. Councilmember Zietlow asked why the city would want to install an underground fuel oil tank if there was a cost savings by putting in a naturual gas heating unit. Dillman said the city could spend money on a new heating system which used natural gas at a cost of $15,000, but he could not say whether the city would save any money in the long run. Dillman added that there was also the issue of accessibility to fuel during off -daylight hours. The council agreed that the existing heating system for the shop should not be replaced. Moved by Thies, seconded by Zietlow, to approve the removal of the old underground storage tanks and the installation of two 6,000 gallon storage tanks according to EPA standards and specifications. Motion carried unanimously. 156 21. PAYMENT OF BILLS Moved by Ferris, seconded by Mayor Theis, to approve payment of Order Check Numbers 12371-12417 for $138,598.67 and Payroll Check Numbers 13543-13563 for $16,010.37. Motion carried unanimously. 22. MEDINA MORNINGSIDE STORM SEWER DITCH Public Works Director Dillman said the storm sewer ditch at Medina Morningside was eroding and needed to be filled in and rip rapped to prevent the ditch from washing out. Dillman said it would cost between $3,000 to $8,000 to correct the problem. He added that the only access to the ditch was through Fred Keller's property. Moved by Zietlow, seconded by Ferris, to approve the cost of filling in and rip rapping the Medina Morningside storm sewer ditch; and to direct Public Works Director Dillman to obtain permission from Fred Keller to go across his property as needed in order to complete the project. Motion carried unanimously. 23. ADJOURNMENT Moved by Thies, seconded by Mayor Theis, to adjourn the meeting at 10:36 p.m. Motion carried unimously. Anne E. Theis, Mayor ATTEST: September 21, 1993