City Council

REGULAR ANDOVER CITY COUNCIL MEETING – OCTOBER 6, 2020 MINUTES The Regular Bi-Monthly Meeting of the Andover City Council was called to order by Mayor Julie Trude, October 6, 2020, 7:00 p.m., at the Andover City Hall, 1685 Crosstown Boulevard NW, Andover, Minnesota. Councilmembers present: Valerie Holthus, Sheri Bukkila, Jamie Barthel (via Zoom), and Ted Butler Councilmember absent: None Also present: City Administrator, Jim Dickinson City Attorney, Scott Baumgartner Others PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE RESIDENT FORUM No one appeared before the Council. AGENDA APPROVAL Motion by Bukkila, Seconded by Butler, to approve the Agenda as presented. Motion taken by roll call: Mayor Trude: aye Councilmember Butler: aye Councilmember Holthus: aye Councilmember Bukkila: aye Councilmember Barthel: aye Motion carried unanimously. APPROVAL OF MINUTES September 15, 2020 Workshop Meeting; September 15, 2020 Regular Meeting; September 22, 2020 Workshop Meeting Motion by Bukkila, Seconded by Holthus, to approve the September 15, 2020 Workshop Meeting minutes, September 15, 2020 Regular Meeting minutes, and the September 22, 2020 Workshop Meeting minutes as presented. Motion taken by roll call: Regular Andover City Council Meeting Minutes – October 6, 2020 Page 2 Mayor Trude: aye Councilmember Butler: aye Councilmember Holthus: aye Councilmember Bukkila: aye Councilmember Barthel: aye Motion carried unanimously. CONSENT ITEMS Item 2 Approve Payment of Claims Item 3 Receive Assessment Roll/Order Public Hearing/20-2/2020 Street Reconstruction (See Resolution R075-20) Item 4 Accept Contribution/Richard & Marilyn Johnson/Fire Department/General Expenditures (See Resolution R076-20) Item 5 Accept Park and Recreation Commissioner Resignation Item 6 Appoint Election Judges for the General Election (See Resolution R077-20) Item 7 Approve Declaration of Encroachment Easement, Conditions & Covenants/16886 Xeon St. NW Item 8 Approve Recruitment and Advertising for a Building Inspector Motion by Holthus, Seconded by Barthel, to approve the Consent Agenda as read. Motion taken by roll call: Mayor Trude: aye Councilmember Butler: aye Councilmember Holthus: aye Councilmember Bukkila: aye Councilmember Barthel: aye Motion carried unanimously. DECLARE COSTS/ORDER ASSESSMENT ROLL/SCHEDULE PUBLIC HEARING/2020 DELINQUENT UTILITY SERVICE CHARGES, MOWING FEES, TREE REMOVAL, FALSE ALARM FINES, AND MISC. ABATEMENT FEES COLLECTION City Administrator Dickinson stated City Code 10-3-3D, City Code 10-1-9F, and City Code 8-5-3D provide for the collection by assessment of unpaid sewer, water, storm sewer, street lighting service charges, mowing fees, tree removal, false alarm fines and miscellaneous abatement fees as directed by State Statute 429. Mr. Dickinson stated the total delinquent fees as of September 28, 2020 are $288,527.71. He said the City provided written notification to property owners and stated a Public Hearing will be held at the first Council meeting in November. Mr. Dickinson explained any outstanding balances as of November 5, 2020 are charged a 15% administrative fee and carry an 8% interest rate when certified to Anoka County for collection with the 2021 taxes. Regular Andover City Council Meeting Minutes – October 6, 2020 Page 3 Mayor Trude stated Council often gets the question about why residents are charged $8 per quarter for stormwater management. Mr. Dickinson explained that Stormwater Management Fee deals with drainage within the community. He said all properties are charged the fee including government and non-property tax paying properties in order to spread out the cost of managing stormwater. Motion by Holthus, Seconded by Bukkila, to approve Resolution No. R078-20 declaring cost, directing preparation of Assessment Roll, and scheduling a Public Hearing on November 4, 2020 for the certification of delinquent utility services, mowing fees, tree removal, false alarm fines and miscellaneous abatement fees. Motion taken by roll call: Mayor Trude: aye Councilmember Holthus: aye Councilmember Butler: aye Councilmember Barthel: aye Councilmember Bukkila: aye Motion carried unanimously. COVID 19 UPDATE City Administrator Dickinson updated the Council on the primary changes to the COVID-19 response since the last meeting. He stated the City is waiting on the Governor’s decision to extend or modify the Executive Order subject to expire October 12, 2020. Mr. Dickinson stated the City is currently working on the CARES dollars most of which has been used for small business grants. He stated the EDA approved allocating the remaining funds of $829,650 to Andover small businesses. He stated the City allocated a total of $1,802,484 to the COVID small business grant program. Mr. Dickinson stated the impact to the City work force has ebbed and flowed with staff returning to work and some leaving due to COVID. 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 Activities) – Mr. Dickinson stated Andover has 103 new homes this year, double the projected budget numbers. Mr. Dickinson said the Parade of Homes is going well and Andover has 7 models by 7 different builders in 5 developments. He stated the value of the homes range from $360,000 to $600,000. Mr. Dickinson updated the Council on City construction projects including the Public Works building, the Veterans Memorial, and the Community Center. Mr. Dickinson announced Council will be holding a Public Hearing on the Capital Improvement Plan and the 2020 mill and overlay project at the October 20th meeting. Mayor Trude asked what the average home value was for the new 103 homes and how it Regular Andover City Council Meeting Minutes – October 6, 2020 Page 4 increased the tax base. Mr. Dickinson replied the average home value is $420,000 - $450,000 and will increase the residential tax base by around $40 million by the end of the year. Councilmember Butler said the Community Center Grand Opening was a successful event put on by staff. He asked Mr. Dickinson to verify that the Sports Complex and walking track is open for use. Mr. Dickinson stated the Community Center is open for business and the walking track is open and free for Andover residents. Mayor Trude asked if the meeting rooms are available at the Community Center. Mr. Dickinson stated the meeting rooms are open and will be used frequently by City staff for meetings during the day and they are working on opening them up for the public. MAYOR/COUNCIL INPUT (Community Center Activity) Mayor Trude said she attended the Grand Opening of the Community Center and saw many people using the walking track. She explained that the walking track has a rubberized surface and a view of the ice below. Mayor Trude stated the ice will come out in the spring and be replaced with turf for spring sports. Mayor Trude announced there are two spacious meeting rooms on the second level and two areas for training. She stated the cost of the sports complex was approximately $7.5 million with the upper level all public spaces with free use. She stated the main level consists of a large community room with counter and sink, is open to the patio, and has monitors for presentations. She stated the gyms floors have been replaced. She said the field house has a separate entrance for events. Mayor Trude said she had a tour of the YMCA and the teen center. She reported the Y will be doing programming for Oak View Middle School students on Mondays when there is no in-class learning scheduled. Mayor Trude stated the senior spaces have been freshened up and the Y also has two gyms with a curtain. She said the kids’ space will hold 200 kids (non-COVID capacity). Mayor Trude reported the Y has laid out the fitness area for social distancing. She said the whole building looks new and fresh. Mayor Trude said a face mask is required at the Community Center and the Y. Councilmember Bukkila said it was nice to have the craft show at the Grand Opening. (EDA Update) Mayor Trude said the EDA approved the final allocation of CARES dollars to Andover small businesses. She said the Council loves and supports their local businesses and she encouraged residents to shop local. Mayor Trude reported the EDA purchased a property on Bunker Lake Boulevard between Crosstown Boulevard and Crosstown Drive. She said some of the properties will be coming down and replaced with townhomes. (Election Information) Councilmember Butler announced Election Day voting will occur as usual and precautions have been put in place to ensure everyone can vote safely. He said in- person absentee voting is available at City Hall and encourages people to vote during regular business hours and the Saturday before Election Day from 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Mayor Trude said people can drop off their absentee ballot at City Hall. She explained if residents drop off a ballot for someone else, they will need to complete an additional form. Councilmember Butler said people can go to MNVotes.org to track their ballot. Regular Andover City Council Meeting Minutes – October 6, 2020 Page 5 Councilmember Bukkila stated if a resident has requested an absentee ballot and has not sent it in, they can still vote in person and it will cancel out their request. (Night to Unite) Councilmember Bukkila stated tonight was Night to Unite and she apologized that the Council did not reschedule their meeting to attend neighborhood meetings. ADJOURNMENT Motion by Bukkila, Seconded by Butler, to adjourn. Motion carried unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 7:31 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Shari Kunza, Recording Secretary TimeSaver Off Site Secretarial, Inc. Regular Andover City Council Meeting Minutes – October 6, 2020 Page 6 REGULAR ANDOVER CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES – OCTOBER 6, 2020 TABLE OF CONTENTS PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE..........................................................................................................1 RESIDENT FORUM.......................................................................................................................1 AGENDA APPROVAL.................................................................................................................. 1 APPROVAL OF MINUTES........................................................................................................... 1 CONSENT ITEMS..........................................................................................................................2 Item 2 Approve Payment of Claims.............................................................................................2 Item 3 Receive Assessment Roll/Order Public Hearing/20-2/2020 Street Reconstruction (R075- 20)..................................................................................................................................... 2 Item 4 Accept Contribution/Richard & Marilyn Johnson/Fire Department/General Expenditures (R076-20)....................................................................................................2 Item 5 Accept Park and Recreation Commissioner Resignation................................................. 2 Item 6 Appoint Election Judges for the General Election (R077-20)..........................................2 Item 7 Approve Declaration of Encroachment Easement, Conditions & Covenants/16886 Xeon St. NW.............................................................................................................................. 2 Item 8 Approve Recruitment and Advertising for a Building Inspector......................................2 DECLARE COSTS/ORDER ASSESSMENT ROLL/SCHEDULE PUBLIC HEARING/2020 DELINQUENT UTILITY SERVICE CHARGES, MOWING FEES, TREE REMOVAL, FALSE ALARM FINES, AND MISC. ABATEMENT FEES COLLECTION (R078-20)................................................................................................2 COVID 19 UPDATE.......................................................................................................................3 ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT.................................................................................................... 3 (Administrative Staff Activities)..................................................................................................... 3 MAYOR/COUNCIL INPUT...........................................................................................................4 (Community Center Activity)..........................................................................................................4 (EDA Update) ............................................................................................................................ 4 (Election Information)..................................................................................................................... 4 (Night to Unite) ............................................................................................................................ 5 ADJOURNMENT........................................................................................................................... 5