City Council

REGULAR ANDOVER CITY COUNCIL MEETING – FEBRUARY 3, 2015 MINUTES The Regular Bi-Monthly Meeting of the Andover City Council was called to order by Mayor Julie Trude, February 3, 2015, 7:00 p.m., at the Andover City Hall, 1685 Crosstown Boulevard NW, Andover, Minnesota. Councilmembers present: Mike Knight, Sheri Bukkila, Valerie Holthus and James Goodrich Councilmember absent: None Also present: City Administrator, Jim Dickinson Director of Public Works/City Engineer, David Berkowitz City Attorney, Scott Baumgartner Fire Chief, Jerry Streich Others PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE RESIDENT FORUM No one wished to address the Council. AGENDA APPROVAL Staff added Supplemental Item 13A (Approval for an Application for an Exempt Permit from the Rum River Chapter of the Minnesota Deer Hunters Association) for an event they will be hosting at the Courtyards of Andover. Councilmember Holthus asked to move Consent Item 11 (Approve Fire Department Restructure/Authorize Human Resources Recruitment of an Assistant Fire Chief) to discussion. Mayor Trude indicated this would be moved to discussion after Item 15. Motion by Holthus, Seconded by Bukkila, to approve the Agenda as amended above. Motion carried unanimously. APPROVAL OF MINUTES January 20, 2015, Regular Meeting: Correct as written. Regular Andover City Council Meeting Minutes – February 3, 2015 Page 2 Motion by Knight, Seconded by Goodrich, to approve the minutes as presented. Motion carried unanimously. January 21, 2015, Special Meeting: Correct as written. Motion by Bukkila, Seconded by Knight, to approve the minutes as presented. Motion carried 4- ayes, 0-nayes, 1-present (Holthus). January 22, 2015, Special Meeting: Correct as written. Motion by Bukkila, Seconded by Knight, to approve the minutes as presented. Motion carried unanimously. January 27, 2015, Workshop Meeting: Correct as amended. Councilmember Holthus requested a correction on page three, line 23, “legislature” should be replaced with “legislation”. City Administrator Dickinson indicated on page two, line 42, there should be an additional zero to make the number 500,000. Mayor Trude requested a correction on the same page, she would like staff to add a sentence regarding the total sum that was noted in the park dedication study for the Kelsey Round Lake that was discussed. Mayor Trude noted on page 11, when they were talking with the neighborhood about access on Bunker Lake Boulevard and Sycamore Street on line 22 to 23, after her comment, she would like the sentence to read “Mayor Trude did not think there would be a problem for the residents attending the meeting because there did not appear to be Council support for limiting access at Sycamore Street and Bunker Lake Boulevard. Mayor Trude requested to add a sentence at the very end of the discussion on that topic as well because staff indicated they were going to contact the residents that were involved. The sentence should read “Mr. Berkowitz stated he would send a letter to residents in the area about the decision and he reviewed the reasons. The Council indicated the engineering study about the increased traffic at Prairie Road and 139th Lane should be referenced as well as resident input.” Mr. Berkowitz noted that was correct and the letter went out indicating that. Councilmember Holthus stated on page 8, line 28-29, the sentence would read better if changed to “Mr. Dickinson stated one way he considers if they are doing their job…” Motion by Holthus, Seconded by Goodrich, to approve the minutes as amended above. Motion carried unanimously. Regular Andover City Council Meeting Minutes – February 3, 2015 Page 3 CONSENT ITEMS Item 2 Approve Payment of Claims Item 3 Approve Kelsey Round Lake Park Master Plan Task Force Members/15-11 Item 4 Approve Park Improvements/Hidden Creek East Park/15-13 Item 5 Approve Park Improvements/Timber Rivers Park/15-12 Item 6 Approve Carryover of Funds to 2016/Andover Lions Park/14-24 Item 7 Approve Revised Hockey-Broomball Tournament Application Form Item 8 Approve Revised Softball, Baseball, and Fast Pitch Tournament Application Form Item 9 Approve Revised Soccer, Lacrosse, and Football Tournament Application Form Item 10 Approve Commission Appointments Item 12 Approve Lease Agreement with New Cingular Wireless PCS, LLC/1717 Crosstown Blvd NW – City Water Tower (Tower 2) Item 13 Declare Surplus Equipment Item 13a Approve Application for an Exempt Permit/Rum River Chapter of the Minnesota Deer Hunters Association Motion by Goodrich, Seconded by Knight, approval of the Consent Agenda as read. Motion carried unanimously. NPDES (NATIONAL POLLUTANT DISCHARGE ELIMINATION SYSTEM) PRESENTATION & PUBLIC MEETING/15-1 Mr. Kameron Kytonen, Natural Resources Technician, gave a presentation on the NPDES (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System) focusing on alternative sustainable landscaping approaches. Mr. Kytonen reviewed the information with the Council. Councilmember Knight asked if they were enforcing the wetland buffer issue that has been referenced in the news. Mr. Berkowitz stated there is Legislation out there that will require a 50 foot minimum buffer and right now in Andover’s City Code, they require a sixteen and a half foot temporary buffer during construction to protect ponds and wetlands and right now they do not have a fifty foot buffer but if that changes in legislature, adjustments will need to be made to the City Code. Mayor Trude thanked Mr. Kytonen for the presentation and appreciated that every year there is a new topic presented to the public and the City Council. Mayor Trude asked if there will be a bare root tree sale this year. Mr. Kytonen stated for the past nine to ten years they have had a bare root tree sale at a reduced rate. He noted they may not hold one this year because he believed sales with the past sales the area is saturated but this program will likely continue in 2016 because it has been such a success in the past. Regular Andover City Council Meeting Minutes – February 3, 2015 Page 4 HOLD PUBLIC HEARING/ORDER PLANS & SPECIFICATION/15-2/2015 STREET OVERLAYS Mr. Berkowitz explained this is a public hearing for the proposed 2015 street overlay program. It is the first of its kind for Andover where we are using a new method to prolong the life of the roadway in order to maintain our infrastructure at a reasonable level. Mr. Berkowitz reviewed the information with the City Council. Councilmember Holthus indicated in the agenda this item states it will take the place of a street reconstruction project at approximately every four years. She wondered how long this new material will approximately last. Mr. Berkowitz stated it is anticipated to extend the life of the pavement by fifteen to twenty years. He stated the area they evaluated was constructed between twenty-two and twenty-seven years ago and is still in relatively good shape and by overlaying the street, it will add to the structure an additional fifteen to twenty years for a reasonable cost. Mr. Berkowitz stated if they were to go in and do a full reconstruction, the assessment would be two thousand dollars or higher depending on if it is in an urban or rural area. Motion by Bukkila, Seconded by Knight, to open the public hearing. Motion carried unanimously. Mr. Randy Chumley, 14358 Bluebird Street, wondered what the cost was a few years ago when tar chips were laid down on their road and what did that do for the road. Mr. Berkowitz stated he did not have the cost with him but it is a maintenance procedure they also do and usually do that process every eight to nine years which helps extend the life of the road, along with crack filling. Mr. Chumley stated he has not found any potholes in his entire neighborhood there are cracks but that is all. He thought they should fix roads that need fixing. He wondered who came up with the decision to fix this road. Mr. Berkowitz stated for the age of the road, it is in great shape and makes it a perfect candidate to extend it another fifteen years. If there were potholes on the road they would be looking at a full reconstruct of the road. He stated this is another method used to prolong the life of the road and this method would not be used on a road with potholes or alligator cracking. Mayor Trude stated the City has a very sophisticated process that staff goes through in evaluating roads needing reconstruction and maintenance. She stated the Engineering Staff was trying to think of a way to extend the life of the roads which would be cost effective to the homeowners in the City. Councilmember Goodrich stated they would not be doing their due diligence if they did not try to find the lowest cost to fix the infrastructure in the City and he appreciated the residents’ patience. Regular Andover City Council Meeting Minutes – February 3, 2015 Page 5 Mr. Chris Lofgren, 14378 Bluebird Street, asked regarding the few pictures that were shown they were around catch basins and he wondered if that was the only issues that were seen. Mr. Berkowitz stated the only photos he had were of the catch basin area but will be sure to get more for the assessment hearing. The milling will be done six to eight inches from the curb because if they end up paving they will end up going an inch and a half over the curb which they can’t do so they mill that off and add a little more to the crown so it will be a thicker pavement section which adds more structure and will add more life to the road. Mr. Lofgren asked how the City decides they will do this to the road because his concern is if this is one of the better roads in the City, why not wait another year or two to do this. Mr. Berkowitz stated if they wait the road could deteriorate more and then a full width mill may need to be done. The criteria they look at is twenty plus years, which these roads are between twenty- two and twenty-seven years and then decide which of those roads are structurally sound in order to do the overlay. They will fill in the cracks and sealcoat to prolong the life of that road as long as possible. Mr. Lofgren asked if the estimate includes the possibility of doing more to the catch basin areas. Mr. Berkowitz stated they include a contingency for things like that. Their inspectors are on site most of the time and are on top of issues that might arise during construction. Councilmember Bukkila asked if the overlay was done once would the road still be structurally viable to do a second overlay or would it need to go to the full reconstruct. Mr. Berkowitz indicated it would depend on the structure. If the road is still in good shape, they would most likely not overlay it again, they would continue to seal coat it and crack seal it to the point of alligator cracking and eventual replacement. Mr. Kirk Nelson, 1369 141st Lane NW, stated nothing has been brought up about the concrete work along the catch basins. Mr. Berkowitz stated they will bid this job two ways, the first will be a base bid which will consist of concrete work around the catch basins and the paving and then they will bid an alternate where they will have joints in the curb repaired, and will replace the bad areas of concrete. At this point there are no plans to remove the curb but priced into the feasibility report is money to fix the joints. Councilmember Goodrich asked if most of the cement has been inspected. Mr. Berkowitz stated they have inspected the joints and have anticipated what the costs will be in the feasibility report. Motion by Bukkila, Seconded by Goodrich, to close the public hearing. Motion carried unanimously. Motion by Bukkila, Seconded by Knight, to approve resolution R014-15, ordering the improvement of Project 15-2, Street Overlays and directing prep of final plans and specs. Motion carried unanimously. Regular Andover City Council Meeting Minutes – February 3, 2015 Page 6 APPROVE FIRE DEPARTMENT RESTRUCTURE/AUTHORIZE HUMAN RESOURCES RECRUITMENT OF AN ASSISTANT FIRE CHIEF Mr. Dickinson stated the request before the Council is a request to restructure the Fire Department and authorize the Human Resources Department to start the recruitment of a new position replacing the Administrative Assistant position. Mr. Dickinson recapped the staff report with the Council. Councilmember Knight asked for a definition of emergency management. Fire Chief Streich explained to the Council what an emergency manager does in the community. Mr. Dickinson stated they have done a good job in the past with emergency management in the City. Emergency management is not just about being ready for a disaster, it is educating the public on how to protect themselves during an emergency and that is where he would like them to become more active in the community, coordinate volunteers so when there is an emergency people that want to help will be there to help. Mayor Trude stated as a Councilmember that has been involved for fourteen years, going back to 2000-2001 the previous Fire Chief was asking for additional staffing and he came back every other year asking for a second Fire Marshall to do the safety inspections for businesses and schools and other duties. She stated they are at the point where people are retiring and they need to fill the gap and it is harder to fill the positions with their daytime population going outside of the City to work. She stated they have not really provided more than the physical tools for the Fire Department. She saw this as adequately staffing an important department in the City. Fire Chief Streich stated they are going to eliminate a position of a data entry person and introduce a new skill set and in the ten months he has been in Andover they identified a number of organizational concerns and a long term concern for the organization is recruitment and retention of staff. He stated the community has changed over the years and he was aware of Chief Winkel’s requests over the past years and he discussed with staff about changing the position where various duties can be shared. He believed this is the right thing to do for the community and while it does cost a little more, the primary function of this position will be training, which is typically hired out. He thought it was time to get some backup in the department. Councilmember Holthus thanked Fire Chief Streich for her department tour. She stated Fire Chief Streich indicated to her that the number of medical calls responded to will be drastically reduced because central communication will determine what calls they respond to so the proposal to reduce the amount of responses to medical calls will reduce service to the Andover residents and they have come to expect that medically trained professionals will come to them when they need it and with this new procedure they will get a Sheriff’s Deputy which will only Regular Andover City Council Meeting Minutes – February 3, 2015 Page 7 have basic first aid or CPR training. She felt like the reduced calls will reduce the costs that the department has to endure but if the money saved on not answering all of the medical calls is going to hire an Assistant Fire Chief are they saving money on the backs of the residents and cutting their services. She is not sure if that reduction is an appropriate one and it will reduce the service to the residents so much and was that really appropriate to have that procedure. Mayor Trude thought that was a policy change decided by the Council, not staff or the Fire Chief. Mr. Dickinson stated that decision was made in October 2014 to direct the transition to take place in January 2015 and to be tied in with the implementation of the new records management. Mayor Trude stated the Council made a decision that the Fire Department would go out if their response could make a difference but if their response to a call would not make a difference then there would not be a benefit to the resident. Councilmember Holthus wondered who makes the decision if the call is legitimate or not and she is not sure if saving money on reduced calls is in the best interest of the community. Mayor Trude reviewed some of the calls the Fire Department has had in the past that were unnecessary. Fire Chief Streich indicated the calls reviewed were correct and some of the calls the Fire Department did not need to respond. He stated the operational changes are not to get rid of the critical calls, such as heart attaches, strokes, and other calls where the Fire Department can make an impact. It is the incidents that they go on that they cannot make an impact so the question is would there be more risk than benefit. The decision that was made was not about money, it was about risk versus benefit and providing the best balance for the paid on call Fire Fighter. Councilmember Holthus asked if there will be any layoffs because of the procedural change. Fire Chief Streich indicated there would not. Councilmember Bukkila stated as far as Deputy Sheriffs and working with fire there are three levels of training, first responder, EMT, and paramedic. Usually the Sheriff is the first to respond because they are already in their cars and if the deputy can resolve the situation by themselves it is over, if they need fire they can call them out but this alleviates an automatic dispatch. It is not anything that will jeopardize any life saving measures. Mr. Dickinson stated one of the things from risk management is looking at the response. At any given call they have seven to nine people going to the fire station to respond to a call, then leaving the fire station with lights and sirens with up to a million dollars of equipment down the road, then impacting the traveling public. Looking at the risk of all of that happening when it really does not have to because they are not going to add value to a scene is what he looks at. Councilmember Holthus stated the reason why she asked this be moved from the consent agenda to discussion is because she has had some people come and ask her about this. She felt it was important to examine this further because she was not on the Council at that time and she wanted to make sure the public does not have any of their emergency services reduced, especially when it is necessary. Regular Andover City Council Meeting Minutes – February 3, 2015 Page 8 Fire Chief Streich stated he felt comfortable with the new response plan they have and putting anyone at risk is something he focuses on every day and he did not want to change a response plan that will put people at risk of being hurt or losing their life. Mayor Trude stated after the policy change she had someone dear to her have an incident in their home and the fire truck came and evaluated the situation and the ambulance came and the person was transported. It was not an urgent situation but the person was uncomfortable. She thought when they expect that help to be there, it should be but they should not supplement the staff of some of the other service providers in town. Councilmember Goodrich asked for clarification on this item because he thought Item 11 was a separate issue than the response policy changes. It was indicated that was correct. Councilmember Goodrich asked if with the addition of an Assistant Fire Chief would they have an additional person on a full time basis able to respond to calls, which they did not have before. Fire Chief Streich indicated that is correct. Motion by Bukkila, Seconded by Knight, to approve Fire Department restructure and authorize Human Resources recruitment of an Assistant Fire Chief. Motion carried 4-ayes, 1 nay (Holthus). SCHEDULE LOCAL BOARD OF APPEAL & EQUALIZATION MEETING Mr. Dickinson requested the Council schedule a Local Board of Appeal & Equalization Meeting to discuss topics as detailed in the staff report. Motion by Bukkila, Seconded by Holthus, to schedule the Local Board of Appeal & Equalization Meeting on Monday, April 27, 2015, at 7:00 p.m. Motion carried unanimously. ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT City Staff updated the Council on the administration and city department activities, legislative updates, updates on development/CIP projects, and meeting reminders/community events. MAYOR/COUNCIL INPUT (Commission Appointments) Mayor Trude recognized they spent a couple of nights interviewing Commission candidates and they had very excellent and well qualified candidates. She reviewed the appointments to the Commissions and thanked them for their service and dedication to the community. (Conferences Attended) Mayor Trude stated Councilmembers Holthus and Goodrich spent two days learning how to be elected officials at the League of Minnesota Cities conference. She stated she attended a conference for experienced officials and talked about public engagement. Regular Andover City Council Meeting Minutes – February 3, 2015 Page 9 (Kelsey Round Lake Park Task Force) Mayor Trude stated the Council set up a task force to review a task list for a Master Plan for Kelsey Round Lake Park and at some point they will involve the users and hear what the public wants. (QCTV Meeting) Mayor Trude stated she will be attending a QCTV meeting with Mr. Dickinson and with Comcast because Comcast will be making a lot of important changes. They are divesting themselves of the entire infrastructure they own in the metropolitan market. She stated she is not very happy with the proposal before them and it will come back to the Council at the next meeting for approval. Mr. Dickinson thought it would be the first meeting in March to try to schedule the approval deadline. (National City Ranking) Mayor Trude stated Nerd Wallet gave them an amazing ranking among small cities in the United States. Mr. Dickinson stated it was small cities with a population over twenty thousand. He stated they ranked around eleven hundred cities throughout the United States with a population over twenty thousand meeting basic criteria and Andover ranked thirty-four. (Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast) Mayor Trude noted she received an email from Youth First asking the Council to come to the Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast on Friday, March 13, 2015 at 7:15 a.m. (Anoka County Fire Protection Council Meeting) Councilmember Bukkila stated they recently held the first meeting of the full joint Anoka County Fire Protection Council and asked Chief Streich to discuss the purpose of the group. Chief Streich stated the Anoka County Fire Protection Council has been together since the 1970’s where Fire Chiefs get together to discuss issues. Since the new Public Safety Data System and the need for the fire records management system to have a formal agreement with the Joint Law Enforcement Council, they had to formalize into a legal entity in order to have a memorandum of understanding for it. Fifteen Chiefs along with fifteen elected officials making decisions on the good of the fire service in Anoka County. (Fire Fighters Academy) Chief Streich updated the Council the progress with the Fire Fighters Academy and what the academy consisted of. He noted he is actively recruiting for the next class. ADJOURNMENT Motion by Bukkila, Seconded by Holthus, to adjourn. Motion carried unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 9:01 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Sue Osbeck, Recording Secretary Regular Andover City Council Meeting Minutes – February 3, 2015 Page 10 REGULAR ANDOVER CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES – FEBRUARY 3, 2015 TABLE OF CONTENTS PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE..........................................................................................................1 RESIDENT FORUM.......................................................................................................................1 AGENDA APPROVAL.................................................................................................................. 1 APPROVAL OF MINUTES........................................................................................................... 1 CONSENT ITEMS..........................................................................................................................3 Approve Payment of Claims........................................................................................................3 Approve Kelsey Round Lake Park Master Plan Task Force Members/15-11.............................3 Approve Park Improvements/Hidden Creek East Park/15-13.....................................................3 Approve Carryover of Funds to 2016/Andover Lions Park/14-24.............................................. 3 Approve Revised Hockey-Broomball Tournament Application Form....................................... 3 Approve Revised Softball, Baseball, and Fast Pitch Tournament Application Form................. 3 Approve Revised Soccer, Lacrosse, and Football Tournament Application Form..................... 3 Approve Commission Appointments.......................................................................................... 3 Approve Lease Agreement with New Cingular Wireless PCS, LLC/1717 Crosstown Blvd NW – City Water Tower (Tower 2)............................................................................................ 3 Declare Surplus Equipment......................................................................................................... 3 Approve Application for an Exempt Permit/ Rum River Chapter of the Minnesota Deer Hunters Association.............................................................................................................3 NPDES (NATIONAL POLLUTANT DISCHARGE ELIMINATION SYSTEM) PRESENTATION & PUBLIC MEETING/15-1........................................................................ 3 HOLD PUBLIC HEARING/ORDER PLANS & SPECIFICATION/15-2/2015 STREET OVERLAYS (R014-15)..............................................................................................................4 APPROVE FIRE DEPARTMENT RESTRUCTURE/AUTHORIZE HUMAN RESOURCES RECRUITMENT OF AN ASSISTANT FIRE CHIEF...............................................................6 SCHEDULE LOCAL BOARD OF APPEAL & EQUALIZATION MEETING........................... 8 ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT.................................................................................................... 8 MAYOR/COUNCIL INPUT...........................................................................................................8 Commission Appointments......................................................................................................... 8 Conferences Attended..................................................................................................................8 Kelsey Round Lake Park Task Force.......................................................................................... 9 QCTV Meeting............................................................................................................................ 9 National City Ranking................................................................................................................. 9 Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast............................................................................................................ 9 Anoka County Fire Protection Council Meeting......................................................................... 9 Fire Fighters Academy................................................................................................................ 9