City Council

REGULAR ANDOVER CITY COUNCIL MEETING – MAY 5, 2020 MINUTES The Regular Bi-Monthly Meeting of the Andover City Council was called to order by Mayor Julie Trude, May 5, 2020, 7:00 p.m., at the Andover City Hall, 1685 Crosstown Boulevard NW, Andover, Minnesota. Councilmembers present: Sheri Bukkila, Valerie Holthus, Jamie Barthel, and Ted Butler Councilmember absent: None Also present: City Administrator, Jim Dickinson City Attorney, Scott Baumgartner Assistant Public Works Director, Todd Haas Others PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE RESIDENT FORUM No one appeared before the Council. AGENDA APPROVAL Motion by Holthus, Seconded by Barthel, to approve the Agenda as presented. Motion carried unanimously. APPROVAL OF MINUTES April 21, 2020 Regular Meeting Motion by Bukkila, Seconded by Barthel, to approve the April 21, 2020 Regular meeting minutes as presented. Motion carried unanimously. CONSENT ITEMS Item 2 Approve Payment of Claims Item 3 Approve ADA Transition Plan/19-17 Motion by Holthus, Seconded by Butler, to approve of the Consent Agenda as read. Motion carried unanimously. Regular Andover City Council Meeting Minutes – May 5, 2020 Page 2 CONSIDER CONCEPT PLANS/PARK AND RECREATION COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION/20-18/PRAIRIE KNOLL PARK Assistant Public Works Director Haas presented the concept plans for Prairie Knoll Park. Mr. Haas explained there are issues in the neighborhood about parking on the street which led to Council giving direction to have a consultant investigate options for improving parking and the overall park layout. Mr. Haas presented three concept plans. Mr. Haas stated Concept 1 moved the field to allow for more parking with a cost of $573,903. Mr. Haas stated Concept 2 includes more amenities including a pickleball court and expansion of the building for a cost of $1,032,000. Mr. Haas explained Concept 3 is from 2014 and was not implemented when the park was built, that comes with a cost of $185,000. Mr. Haas stated the Park Commission would like to move forward with Concept 3 and target construction in 2020. Mr. Haas explained that lighting is not included in Concept 3 and would be an additional expense. Mayor Trude stated she has driven by the park at night and it is very dark. She would like to see the lighting installed at the same time as the parking lot. Councilmember Bukkila asked if it was enough to light the parking lot or if there should be lights along the path if people are walking from the south field. Mr. Haas replied there is an existing light on the trail. Councilmember Bukkila asked staff to evaluate the lighting on the path to ensure people feel safe walking to their vehicle parked in the north lot. Councilmember Barthel stated he agrees staff should evaluate the lighting for safety. Councilmember Barthel pointed out this item was budgeted for 2021 and that the Park and Recreation Commission was asking that it be moved to 2020. Councilmember Butler stated the parking lot needs to be well lit for people to use the north lot. He referred to Sunshine Park and that it is a good model for lighting a park. Councilmember Holthus pointed out there would be $15,000 remaining in the budget from the construction estimate and asked if it would be enough to light the lot. City Administrator Dickinson stated it probably would not be enough, but the City may get favorable pricing. He expects the lighting to cost around $25,000-$30,000. Mr. Dickinson stated the dollars are in the bank to cover the improvement, but lighting is currently not budgeted. He stated the parking lot and the lights would be bid as two separate projects. Motion by Butler, Seconded by Barthel, to approve Concept 3, seek lighting proposal and move the project to the current fiscal year. Motion carried unanimously. EMERGENCY RESPONSE UPDATE (COVID-19) City Administrator Dickinson gave an update on the Emergency Response to COVID-19. He explained the changes to the City policy include how public access to buildings have changed. He stated no one other than staff is allowed in secure areas and meetings are virtual or with Regular Andover City Council Meeting Minutes – May 5, 2020 Page 3 social distancing in the Council Chambers. Mr. Dickinson stated all external activities are postponed through May 18th and will be reevaluated at that time. He explained the City is focusing on providing basic services and if they cannot provide those services, staff will need to seek additional direction from the Council. On behalf of the Council, Mayor Trude thanked Mr. Dickinson and City staff for their efforts in making Council and the public feel comfortable and carry on business. Mayor Trude stated there are links on the website for more information about COVID-19, businesses that are open, and businesses currently closed. SCHEDULE MAY EDA MEETING Councilmember Bukkila asked if there are agenda items that need to be addressed or is this a meeting to swear two members in. Mr. Dickinson stated the meeting is intended to discuss an economic development strategy, goals, and a corresponding action plan. Motion by Bukkila, Seconded by Barthel, to schedule an EDA meeting on May 19, 2020 at 6:00 p.m. Motion carried unanimously. SCHEDULE MAY WORKSHOP MEETING Mayor Trude asked if this is a workshop that could be conducted by Zoom. Mr. Dickinson stated the agenda items for the May Workshop include floodplain studies, pedestrian crossing studies, and the Veterans Memorial project. Mr. Dickinson stated the meeting would be run by Community Development and Engineering Department. Councilmember Butler asked if the meeting could be conducted on May 19th after the regular Council meeting. Mayor Trude suggested having staff attend remotely. Council reached consensus to hold the workshop after the May 19th Regular meeting. 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. (Administrative Staff Report) Mr. Dickinson reminded Council of the Board of Review meeting on Monday, May 11th with the option of reconvening on May 19th. Mayor Trude recommended residents take a thorough look at their property tax statement since the County has updated their computer software and there are possibilities of errors. Mayor asked if the County would be present. Mr. Dickinson stated two County staff would be present and the meeting is not cablecast. Mr. Dickinson stated there are 33 new home permits so far this year. He updated the Council on development and construction projects in the City. Mr. Dickinson stated staff is working on the budget and audit. The Planning and Zoning Commission is working on 3 code amendment items and will be using email and Zoom for public comments. Regular Andover City Council Meeting Minutes – May 5, 2020 Page 4 MAYOR/COUNCIL INPUT (National Guard Flyover) Mayor Trude announced the National Guard flyover for healthcare workers is May 6th around 11:15 a.m. (Summer Festivals) Mayor Trude stated there is a lot of buzz around festivals and many held in June and July are now cancelled. (Employee Safety) Mayor Trude stated businesses have put up plexiglass barriers and are requiring masks for employee safety. (Parks and Trails) Mayor Trude noticed many people are using trails and asked if the City is moving forward with playground installations. Mr. Haas stated Hidden Creek North Park is installed and waiting for woodchips. He stated Strootman Park will be installed by Public Works staff. He informed Council that all the park and trail projects are moving forward. Councilmember Holthus asked if playgrounds will be opening. Mr. Dickinson explained Andover is following what most other cities are doing and taking the precaution of keeping playgrounds closed. He stated as the weather gets warmer, the playgrounds may open with signage that states the playgrounds are not sanitized and the public can use them at their own risk. Mayor Trude said she talked to the League of Minnesota Cities and found out many cities have signs on playgrounds without fences because the barriers have become a safety hazard. ADJOURNMENT Motion by Holthus, Seconded by Barthel, to adjourn. Motion carried unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 7:45 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Shari Kunza, Recording Secretary TimeSaver Off Site Secretarial, Inc. Regular Andover City Council Meeting Minutes – May 5, 2020 Page 5 REGULAR ANDOVER CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES – MAY 5, 2020 TABLE OF CONTENTS PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE..........................................................................................................1 RESIDENT FORUM.......................................................................................................................1 AGENDA APPROVAL.................................................................................................................. 1 APPROVAL OF MINUTES........................................................................................................... 1 CONSENT ITEMS..........................................................................................................................1 Item 2 Approve Payment of Claims.............................................................................................1 Item 3 Approve ADA Transition Plan/19-17...............................................................................1 CONSIDER CONCEPT PLANS/PARK AND RECREATION COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION/20-18/PRAIRIE KNOLL PARK...............................................2 EMERGENCY RESPONSE UPDATE (COVID-19)..................................................................... 2 SCHEDULE MAY EDA MEETING..............................................................................................3 SCHEDULE MAY WORKSHOP MEETING................................................................................3 ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT.................................................................................................... 3 (Administrative Staff Report).......................................................................................................... 3 (National Guard Flyover)................................................................................................................ 4 (Summer Festivals)..........................................................................................................................4 (Employee Safety)........................................................................................................................... 4 (Parks and Trails) ............................................................................................................................ 4 ADJOURNMENT........................................................................................................................... 4