City Council

ANDOVER CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP MEETING – JUNE 25, 2024 MINUTES The Workshop Meeting of the Andover City Council was called to order by Mayor Bukkila, June 25, 2024, 6:00 p.m., at the Andover City Hall, 1685 Crosstown Boulevard NW, Andover, Minnesota. Councilmembers present: Jamie Barthel, Ted Butler, Rick Engelhardt, and Randy Nelson Councilmember absent: None Also present: City Administrator, Jim Dickinson Community Development Director, Joe Janish Director of Public Works/City Engineer, David Berkowitz City Attorney, Scott Baumgartner Parks and Streets Operations Manager, Jason Baumunk Park & Recreation Commission Chair, Tracy Strombeck Park & Recreation Commissioners: Kristin Lackie Bruckner Johnson Chuck Naughton Asst. Recreational Facilities Manager, Chad Stancer Facility Coordinator, Sean Larson Finance Manager, Lee Brezinka Others ACTION ITEM: CONSIDER COMPREHENSIVE PLAN AMENDMENT - SEWER STAGING MAP Community Development Director Janish reviewed the staff report in regard to the Comprehensive Plan Amendment for the sewer staging map. He shared the Planning and Zoning Commission’s support of this change. Motion by Barthel, Seconded by Nelson, to adopt Resolution No. R062-24, amending the City of Andover sewer staging plan map designations of PID# 23-32-24-11-0009, 23-32-24-11-0010, 23-32-24-11-0007, 23-32-24-11-0021, 23-32-24-11-0020, 23-32-24-11-0019, 23-32-24-11-0002, and 23-32-24-13-0078 to 2020-2025 (yellow) from 2031-2035 (green). Motion carried unanimously. JOINT MEETING WITH PARK & RECREATION COMMISSION Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes – June 25, 2024 Page 2 a. Discuss 2025-2029 Park Playground Replacement Plan Parks and Streets Operations Manager Baumunk reviewed the staff report concerning the 2025- 2029 playground replacement plan. He shared they are focusing on replacing three parks a year which keeps them on track. Mayor Bukkila stated the main thing she was looking for with this was to make sure they were on target with the 15-year replacement schedule. Councilmember Nelson asked if GameTime will match up to $200,000 for next year. Mr. Baumunk explained they will match whatever the City puts in. He noted this is a first-come-first- serve grant that opens soon. He shared last year the Council gave them authorization to apply, and they hope to get the same authorization this year. Councilmember Engelhardt asked if they are looking at other grants than just the one with GameTime. Mr. Baumunk said he has not looked into any others, but he can. Councilmember Nelson shared he and his wife walk by the Woodland Estates Park and he wanted to thank the Parks Staff for moving so quickly on this playground project. He said the park looked great from the outside but did have some problems with rust. Mr. Baumunk explained the playground inspectors are looking for rust when they do their inspections. Councilmember Nelson asked about the fall zone for these parks and what the chips are made of. Mr. Baumunk said they are tamarack chips which are more water resistant, so they do not rot like a normal woodchip. He added they are shredded and help with shock absorption making them a better fall protection than a wood chip. Councilmember Nelson noted this year’s parks have not been replaced in 19 years. Mr. Baumunk explained they are trying to get all the parks on the 15-year replacement plan; however, there are still a few that are a little older that still need to be replaced. Councilmember Butler asked the Park and Recreation Commissioners if they were all feeling good about the path, they are currently on with the playground replacements. The Commissioners said yes. A Commissioner added it would be great if the City could put in more mini parks throughout the City. b. Discuss 2025-2029 Trail Capital Improvement Plan Mr. Baumunk reviewed the staff report in regard to the 2025-2029 Trail Capital Improvement Plan. He noted there has not been much change to this plan from the last time it was reviewed as they are lacking funding. Mayor Bukkila said none of this is budgeted and there is no funding, so the timeline is likely not Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes – June 25, 2024 Page 3 realistic. Mr. Baumunk explained the assigned years are really just placeholders so they can put this in their planning software to track costs. City Administrator Dickinson added since these items are a part of a plan, if a grant opportunity comes up then they can apply for it. Councilmember Barthel shared he thought they removed Segment 3 as it would not lead anywhere. Mayor Bukkila said this was kept in for the small segment on Hidden Creek North to the corner of Bunker Lake Boulevard and Crosstown. She explained there are utilities in this area so it could be costly. Director of Public Works/City Engineer Berkowitz noted there was discussion of removing this segment; however, they left it in and just moved it to later in the plan. Mayor Bukkila asked if anyone is in favor of keeping this project on the list. The Council was in agreement with removing Segment 3 from the plan. Mayor Bukkila asked if there would be any consideration to include the smaller section on Hidden Creek North to the list. She shared she often sees children in this area coming from the ballpark. Councilmember Barthel asked if the County would pay for this. Mr. Berkowitz said no; however, they could potentially be incorporated into their project. The Council was in agreement to add this section of Hidden Creek North to the plan. Mr. Berkowitz asked if they wanted this to continue from Yukon Street to Hidden Creek North Park. He explained the County is working on a design for a sidewalk section from Crosstown to Yukon Street. Councilmember Barthel asked if they were also removing Station Parkway from the list. Mayor Bukkila said yes. Mayor Bukkila asked the Park and Recreation Commissioners to let the Council know if they receive any feedback from the community on this. Park and Recreation Chair Strombeck shared her concern with the trail segment from Verdin street to 161st Avenue that it would take a lot of money to construct and would bump people out onto 161st which is not a safe area to travel on as a pedestrian. Mayor Bukkila shared in conversations with the County Board, when they redo all of their County roads, there will be trail segments with every redo. She noted these trail projects may not be Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes – June 25, 2024 Page 4 completed in the years they are currently assigned, but rather when there are County projects that they can tie these projects to. Mr. Berkowitz explained they have identified a trail on the southside of Crosstown Boulevard from Xeon Street to Prairie Road which was in the plan to be built sooner rather than later; however, since they could not get easements, it was moved down the list. He stated they have acquired the easements to put in the sewer and water and are now dealing with BNSF. He shared they had previously discussed that if this cost gets too expensive and they are required to rebuild the railroad crossing then they likely will not be able to complete this trail. He said they are working with BNSF to see if they can install something other than the cross arms. Councilmember Barthel noted from Crosstown Boulevard to Yukon Street they will be putting in a five-foot sidewalk. He asked if they have to have a special piece of equipment for this as regular sidewalks are eight feet. Mr. Baumunk explained some of the sidewalk plow machines would be able to fit in this tighter area. c. Discuss the 2025-2029 CIP for Trail Reconstruction Improvements to Parks Mr. Baumunk reviewed the staff report concerning the 2025-2029 CIP for trail reconstruction improvements. He explained there is nothing firm in the plan as of right now. Councilmember Nelson noted the funding source for these projects say it will come from the road and bridge fund. Mr. Dickinson explained if a trail is in the right-of-way along a road, then they can utilize road and bridge funds; however, if it is a replacement within a park, then they use general or road and bridge funds. Mayor Bukkila said it is good that they have this plan out there as a reminder even though they do not have the funding. Mr. Berkowitz added they can look to get grants from the DNR for these projects. d. Discuss the 2025-2029 CIP for Parks Mr. Baumunk reviewed the staff report concerning the 2025-2029 CIP for parks. He shared this is a majority of what the Park and Recreation Commission has been working on this year and trying to find where best to use the park dedication funds. He started by discussing the items in the 2025 CIP. Mayor Bukkila asked if they have to go into the municipal water supply for the irrigation for the Park at Fields of Winslow Cove or if there is a way to do a well option. Mr. Berkowitz stated there is a service line provided to this. He explained the issue with putting in a well is that it could cost anywhere from $20,000 to $30,000. He noted it is hard to compare the prices between the two options. He added they would not use very much water at this park so the water bill would not be excessive. Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes – June 25, 2024 Page 5 Mr. Baumunk showed on a map where the irrigation system would be needed, which is a very small area. He added they likely would not benefit from a well given that it is such a small area. Mayor Bukkila asked how they are choosing which parks to irrigate. She said it currently seems random. Mr. Baumunk explained if they do not irrigate this park, they will likely get lots of requests to have it irrigated. Mayor Bukkila noted every neighborhood asks for irrigation and they cannot always say yes. Mr. Baumunk explained he has not been a part of a park that has not been irrigated since he started with the City. He said he can go through the inventory and figure out which parks have irrigation and which ones do not to see if there is a system for how they should determine this. Mayor Bukkila stated in the past, Councils had decided which parks got irrigation systems based on the neighborhoods or the value of the homes. She said she does not like this method and would like to come up with something that would benefit the whole City. Councilmember Barthel suggested they come up with a plan where parks over a set acreage get irrigation systems, and parks under that size do not. Councilmember Butler added part of this discussion is also around the availability of the water supply. Mayor Bukkila said she would like there to be consistency with which parks get irrigation and it should not come down to just supplying it to those neighborhoods that complain about a lack of irrigation. Councilmember Butler suggested the Park and Recreation Commission work on a plan for this. Mr. Baumunk explained if they do not irrigate this park then there will likely be many residents who are unhappy and will let the City know this. Mayor Bukkila said that people will complain about a lack of irrigation in every park. Councilmember Butler shared when he was on the Park and Recreation Commission, they undertook an effort to irrigate parks and the focus was on athletic fields. He noted when playgrounds come up for repair or replacement, they can look at these parks and see if there are other things in the CIP for this particular park that they could work on in conjunction with the playground improvements. Mr. Baumunk said he can take a look at this. Chair Strombeck agreed there should be some kind of system in place. She noted it may not be the Park and Recreation Commissions role to give the Council a list of the parks that need irrigation the most as Council will be making the final decision. Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes – June 25, 2024 Page 6 Mayor Bukkila stated Mr. Baumunk will need to take an inventory of all of the parks that do and do not have irrigation, then the Park and Recreation Commission can review to determine if there are any common threads between the parks that do have irrigation and then suggest changes to the Council. Chair Strombeck said the Council will have to determine what they want for the parks systems in the City. Councilmember Barthel shared he assumes that Maple View Park, which is near his house, is not irrigated as it is surrounded by woods so there would be no point in irrigating it. Councilmember Butler said they will also have to take use of the park into consideration, not just the size of the park. Mayor Bukkila said she is not a fan of doing the pickleball complex in 2025. She asked if they want to continue to have this in the CIP. Councilmember Nelson said he does not think they should keep it in the CIP at this time. Councilmember Barthel agreed. Councilmember Butler said he would like to keep it in the CIP. Councilmember Engelhardt shared it would be good to go through it more. Councilmember Butler said if they are going to remove this from the CIP then they should have some reasoning behind it for the Park and Recreation Commission and the residents. Mayor Bukkila explained some of the reasons are not wanting to create more maintenance and funding sources. She noted even though these things would be coming from a dedication fund directly to parks, it is a large note that the City is not prepared to sustain. She said the City is already struggling and if they add more to the infrastructure it could fail. Councilmember Butler asked what the annual maintenance costs would be for the pickleball facility versus some of the other projects in the CIP. Mr. Baumunk stated they would have to resurface the courts every ten years, which would cost around $50,000 every time. Mayor Bukkila said this could create future double-digit tax increases for residents. Councilmember Barthel explained two of the current Councilmembers were on the Council when the Community Center expansion happened. He said at that time the pickleballers came in asking for more indoor pickleball courts. He stated after the Community Center expansion, these pickleballers came back asking for outdoor courts, when they were just given indoor courts. He said he is not supporting this project as they have already built pickleball courts at the Community Center. Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes – June 25, 2024 Page 7 Mayor Bukkila added if the facility is already in need of streams of revenue, then why would they need to create an outdoor space that would pull more people outside of the facility to a free venue. She said they would be spending money on this project to take people away from the Community Center that they already paid to expand. Councilmember Butler shared he does not think an outdoor pickleball facility would take away any substantial revenue from the Community Center as people will look outside the City for more pickleball courts if they are not available in the City. He explained this is something that people in the community have been asking for year after year. Mayor Bukkila noted in the future when the City is more financially able, then they can reconsider the pickleball courts. She added there are substantial needs for other infrastructures in the City and if they prioritize this to the top of the list, she is not sure of the message it would send to residents. Councilmember Nelson stated the number one financial priority should be taking care of the roads. He added he is open to the pickleball facility down the road when it would make more financial sense. Councilmember Butler explained what they spend park dedication funds on has zero effect on road improvements or any street projects. Mayor Bukkila agreed; however, she stated this project would have an effect on the ongoing maintenance and staff. Councilmember Barthel explained if they had no pickleball courts currently in the City then he would be in support of this project; however, they currently have 12 indoor courts in the City. Chair Strombeck said she is all for a pickleball facility if it can stay around $200,000. She shared a friend of hers built a very professional court at her cabin for $30,000. She noted if they did six courts it would come in under $200,000. She suggested looking elsewhere for quotes. Mr. Berkowitz explained they have a public bid law that the City has to follow. Mr. Baumunk reviewed the items in the 2026 CIP. Mayor Bukkila asked if they had a grant for the projects at Kelsey Round Lake Park. Mr. Baumunk said no. Mayor Bukkila shared she thinks they need to push this project out. Commissioner Lackie asked how long the Council recommends they hold the funds that they have available. She shared she understands the priorities of making sure they complete the roads. She said they have some money for this project so she wants to know how long they will wait on this project for the appearance of prioritizing the roads. Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes – June 25, 2024 Page 8 Councilmember Butler explained they are likely eroding their purchasing power with these dollars over time. He said he does not think pushing projects out just for the appearance that they are prioritizing the roads is a good idea. Mayor Bukkila stated the roads cater to a greater population of the City. Councilmember Barthel said the idea is not to spend no money for parks, but rather how they are spending the money. He explained a $500,000 pickleball court has a different look to the residents than $65,000 for a basketball court. Chair Strombeck shared she is hesitant to not spend any money just for the appearance of priorities. She said if they do not spend the money, someone else could. Mr. Baumunk explained regarding Kelsey Park they have discussed not making this a large, reservable shelter like they did at Pine Hills Park, but rather just making it a basic shelter with a few tables and bathrooms. Mayor Bukkila said when she looks at the price tag of this project of $230,000, she sees that this project would be for the whole City to use, rather than the $500,000 for a unique population of pickleballers. Commissioner Johnson shared they did have big discussions of what this project would mean for maintenance and upkeep for the future. He said this is how they came up with the $230,000 cost for the project. Mayor Bukkila asked if the Council is okay with this project. Councilmember Nelson stated everyone in the City would be able to use this park. He said he would lean towards moving forward with this project as he believes it will be well utilized. Councilmember Engelhardt said this will be used by a lot of people, so he supports keeping it in the plan. Councilmember Barthel stated he is in favor of this as well. Councilmember Butler said he is also supportive of this. Mayor Bukkila asked if there is a way to get the skate park equipment now then do a reconfiguration in 2026. Mr. Baumunk explained the expansion needs a lot of planning to go into it before they would be able to get the new equipment. Mr. Baumunk noted they have discussed reaching out to the schools to get some students involved in the design of this. Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes – June 25, 2024 Page 9 Councilmember Butler said he is supportive of this; however, they need to be thinking about what the whole City can use versus a small portion of the population. Chair Strombeck shared she thought that they upgrade the Sunshine Park parking lot lights within the last few years. She asked staff if they could figure out when this was done. Mr. Berkowitz explained the project in the CIP for 2026 is not for the main parking lot, which did just have the lights replaced. He said the west and south lots do not currently have lights. Commissioner Lackie asked if the lights will just be for the parking lot or also the skatepark. Mayor Bukkila stated any lighting in the skate park would have to be a large fixture and was concerned kids would incorporate it into their skating. Commissioner Johnson recommended having a parking lot fixture that would point in the direction of the skate park rather than a whole fixture in the actual skate park. Mayor Bukkila added they need to talk to the residents who live across the street from the skate park. Mr. Baumunk asked if there are any ideas that the Council would like added to these park improvements. Councilmember Butler asked if Prairie Knoll Park will be revisited in the future. Councilmember Barthel asked if they are looking at turfing this. Mr. Baumunk said no; however, they are hoping to do some kind of building in this area. He added he uses Prairie Knoll Park and having the north lot paved is awesome. Mayor Bukkila shared the neighbor who lives on the southside of Prairie Knoll Park has made a request for a fence across this area to keep balls from flying into his yard. Mr. Baumunk said this fence has already been installed and this resident called Mr. Berkowitz to thank him for this. Chair Strombeck said if they were to dedicate park land to any sports facility, she wants the Council to think about the precedent this would set going forward. Council consensus was reached to move forward with the discussed changes to the playground replacement plan, trail improvement plan, trails CIP, and parks CIP. The meeting recessed at 7:22 p.m. The meeting reconvened at 7:27 p.m. DISCUSS PROVIDING WATER TO ANOKA COUNTY DOG PARK Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes – June 25, 2024 Page 10 Mr. Berkowitz reviewed the staff report in regard to the request to provide water to the Anoka County Dog Park. He asked if there was interest in including this in the 2025-2029 CIP. Mayor Bukkila noted this is a lower cost than what she remembers the project proposal being. Councilmember Butler said the past proposal contained more than just water being run to the park. Mr. Berkowitz added this past project cost included paving the trail in this area, so it was a much bigger project. Mayor Bukkila said she thought just the water portion of this project was still more than the current cost. Councilmember Butler shared he uses this dog park, and he gets asked about this project a lot. He said this is the only dog park in the area that does not have a water supply on site. He noted he thinks they have gotten a good deal in partnering with Anoka County and Coon Rapids with this project. He asked if they were to do a well in this area if they could also improve the vegetation in this area. Mayor Bukkila explained if they could get both a water supply and better vegetation for a reasonable cost then she would be supportive. She added the County has this as an agenda item for their July Parks meetings. Mr. Berkowitz noted in their CIP they have a contribution to replacing the fence in this area. He said this would be an additional add to this project. He asked if there is support to contribute $10,000 to $15,000 towards the water supply. Mayor Bukkila said she is open to the conversation. Councilmember Nelson shared he also uses the dog park and whenever he takes his dog there he brings his own water, which is what a lot of people who use this park do. He said he was surprised to see how large the cost estimate was for this. Councilmember Engelhardt added if they have a water supply then this would put this park on par with some of the other dog parks in the area. Councilmember Barthel said he does not support this. Councilmember Butler said he is supportive of this as he believes it would be a good thing for this park. He added he would also like to see this done in such a manner that they could also support irrigation in the park. Mayor Bukkila added she would like to see a water test done in this area. Council consensus was reached to direct staff to let the County know they are interested in Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes – June 25, 2024 Page 11 providing water to this park at this time. MAY 2024 COMMUNITY CENTER UPDATE Mr. Dickinson reviewed the staff report concerning the May Community Center update. He noted not a whole lot has changed since last month and things are still going well. Assistant Recreational Facilities Manager Stancer reviewed a presentation with the Council in regard to turning the upstairs meeting rooms into golf simulators. Mayor Bukkila asked how often the simulator software needs to be updated or changed. Mr. Stancer said it would depend on how quickly the technology is advancing. He noted the software will update regularly, and the hardware would likely need to be updated every 10 years or so. Councilmember Butler asked about the warranty and support of this equipment. Mr. Stancer said he does not know the warranty of the equipment; however, a representative from the company lives locally and would be able to help if there are any technical issues. Councilmember Butler asked how they will manage the logistics of booking the rooms and who would be able to use them. Mr. Stancer explained they will not allow anyone under the age of 16 use the facility without a parent or guardian actively being in the room with them. He added they will be adding security cameras in these rooms so that they can be monitoring the users at the front desk. Mayor Bukkila asked if the security cameras are included in these cost estimates. Mr. Stancer said yes. Mr. Stancer explained these rooms would be available with key fob access. He added they would be able to utilize the existing scheduling software for this so there would not be any additional costs associated with scheduling the room. He noted they would one day like to be able to allow people to book ‘tee times’ online. Councilmember Nelson asked if the only local competition for a golf simulator is at Bunker Hills. Facility Coordinator Larson shared there is also a facility that opened in Blaine that is also a bar and restaurant. Councilmember Nelson asked what they would be charging for these rooms. Mr. Larson said they are still trying to determine this; however, the average cost would be around $35 an hour. He added a lot of similar facilities charge less during the day and more during peak times like evenings and weekends. Mr. Stancer explained in the beginning they may not be able to book as many tee times as they will have to train users how to use the simulators. He reviewed the other possible uses for these rooms and the simulators with additional software packages. Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes – June 25, 2024 Page 12 Mayor Bukkila asked how many companies there are that offer this kind of software and equipment. Mr. Stancer said there are a lot of companies that they contacted. Councilmember Nelson asked if Green Pro is the company that has a local representative. He noted this company has a better price. Mr. Stancer said yes and added the representative is willing to donate the install to the City. Councilmember Nelson shared he likes the idea that this facility will end up paying for itself. Mr. Stancer said in the worst case scenario they think it will take about 2 years to pay back. Mayor Bukkila suggested they set up one of these rooms as a golf simulator and let this room generate enough revenue to pay for the second room rather than going all in on both rooms right away. Mr. Dickinson said it would be cheaper to do both rooms at the same time. He noted if they do only one room to begin with then it would keep financial exposure risks lower. Mr. Dickinson explained there are other rooms where they can accommodate meetings. Mr. Larson added if the golf simulator space was available, it could still be used as a meeting space and would also be a better meeting space than what is currently available. Councilmember Nelson asked about the cost difference between only one simulator versus two. Mr. Stancer said it would be around a $20,000 savings if they did both at the same time. Mr. Larson explained if they were to only start with one simulator and do the second one at a later date, there may be a slightly higher install cost as the representative is willing to donate the install for this and may not donate twice. Mayor Bukkila said she does not want to see the large investment up front and would like to see a smaller investment up front that they could build upon when they start generating revenue. Councilmember Nelson said he is on board with this. Councilmember Barthel added he is also on board with this. Councilmember Butler said he can be supportive of doing at least one simulator; however, he would like some additional clarity around the difference between one versus two simulators. Councilmember Engelhardt asked if there is a way to start with one simulator but do the room modifications for both rooms at the same time. Mr. Stancer said this would cost around $80,000 just for the room modifications. Councilmember Butler asked how many people a simulator could accommodate. Mr. Larson said with the golf software they would likely limit it to six users at a time. Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes – June 25, 2024 Page 13 Councilmember Engelhardt asked if the simulator is not busy if they would be able to set this up to offer long drive competitions or something to bring people in. Mr. Larson said they could do this. Council consensus was reached to direct staff to bring this forward for formal approval at an upcoming Council meeting to turn one of the meeting rooms into a golf simulator. DISCUSS/REVIEW CITY STRATEGIC PLAN IMPLEMENTATION/2025 BUDGET Mr. Dickinson reviewed the staff report in regard to the Strategic Plan implementation. He discussed public safety efforts that are a part of the Strategic Plan. He shared at this time they are looking at a 5.14% increase in the Sheriff's Office contract for 2025. He discussed the public safety aid money that they have been given from the State. Councilmember Barthel said this increase was always around 3% when he started on the Council. He asked if they see this being around 5% to 6% every year moving forward. Mr. Dickinson said he hopes not. He shared they will likely be looking at a standard cost of living increase in coming years which should be around 3% to 4%. Mr. Dickinson discussed the school resource officers (SRO) and how this cost has increased because the school district funding isn’t keeping up and the City is making up for this increase. Mayor Bukkila asked why the City is making up for the increase with the SROs rather than the schools. Mr. Dickinson explained this has been a challenge with all of the communities. He noted it would take other communities to step up as well and join with Andover for something to change. He said this has not been a topic of discussion between cities; however, now that the cities are having to make up so much of these contracts it likely will become a bigger topic. Mr. Dickinson asked if staff has Council’s support in pursuing more contribution from the schools for the SROs. The Council said yes. Mr. Dickinson explained the City benefits greatly from having the SROs in the schools as they stop a lot of crime outside of the schools. Mayor Bukkila said this can be a slippery slope if they negotiate for too much as well. Mr. Dickinson suggested they set a target that says what percentage the schools should have to fund. He shared if they do too big of an increase the schools would likely fight back. He asked what percentage they want to set this at. He suggested not letting it drop below 50%. Mayor Bukkila shared she thinks it should be higher. Mr. Dickinson stated they can do some more analysis of other communities; however, he thinks they should go below 50%. He discussed potential youth programming opportunities. Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes – June 25, 2024 Page 14 Councilmember Butler asked if they are looking at around $75,000 a year to run some intervention programming. Mr. Dickinson said the $75,000 would be start-up costs and then Youth First and the YMCA would be looking to see if they could get outside donations to fund the program. Councilmember Barthel asked Mr. Dickinson if he wanted to put him in touch with the Kopp Family Foundation out of Bloomington who gives lots of donations to youth programs. Mr. Dickinson said yes. Mayor Bukkila asked how much of a contribution they would be looking for. Mr. Dickinson said he would look at using half of the funding towards this and reserving the other half for other items. Mayor Bukkila said she would like to know more about this before she has the City hand over money for it. She asked if this one-time public safety funding can be used for fire expenses. Mr. Dickinson said no as fire has many other options for funding via grants, whereas the after-school program does not. Mayor Bukkila reiterated she would like to see more information on the after-school programming before making a decision. Councilmember Nelson agreed as they will need to find funding after the initial start-up costs to keep the program going. Mr. Dickinson shared Youth First received a $150,000 grant to start youth programming within their system. He noted a majority of this will be used to start up this program. Councilmember Butler said he is generally supportive of the idea of using these funds for youth programming; however, he agrees with Mayor Bukkila he would like more information on how the funds will be utilized for this program. Mayor Bukkila shared that she is protective of dollars going towards programs for youth as these programs require active engagement. Mr. Dickinson explained Youth First had a strategic planning meeting last week and they discussed focusing on technological impacts on children and to help youth make good decisions. Council consensus was reached to direct staff to bring back more information on the ideas for youth programming. a. Discuss City Transportation System Funding Mr. Dickinson reviewed the staff report in regard to the roads. Finance Manager Brezinka reviewed the funding available as well as possible funding options for the road projects. Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes – June 25, 2024 Page 15 Mayor Bukkila stated if they are going to extend this plan out from a five-year plan to an eight- year plan then she needs to know what this will do to Mr. Baumunk’s plan to get the roads done. Councilmember Butler added they need to know the sustainability of this model. Mr. Berkowitz said if the Council is interested in this new plan, then they can do the outlay for the next five years to determine where things are at, then they can see what falls outside of the $50,000,000 to see the impact. Councilmember Butler asked if this would be fully funded by bonding supported by the levy. Mr. Dickinson said yes. Councilmember Butler asked if they are using bonding to make sure that this funding stays directed towards roads. Mr. Dickinson said yes, as you receive the funds, and the commitment mitigates state impose levy restrictions. Councilmember Butler said if they did implement franchise fees, they could tie them to these road projects and they would go away after the set date. He noted by choosing not to use franchise fees they are not allowing a future Council to make the decision of whether or not they want the franchise fees to continue. Mayor Bukkila asked if they are lengthening this to an eight-year plan at $52,000,000 if they think this is the number of projects staff can handle during this time. Mr. Dickinson explained they did this to keep it within the levy and bonding guidelines. Mr. Berkowitz asked if there is interest in increasing the assessment rate. Mayor Bukkila said she is more focused on a levy increase since it has to be addressed. Councilmember Barthel asked what happens if they need to go out for a large public safety bond in coming years. Mr. Dickinson said the interest rate may be a little higher, but they would still have the capacity to bond. Mayor Bukkila asked how long this will go on as they cannot sustain 25% indebtedness in perpetuity. Mr. Dickinson stated as other debt items fall off, they would be able to sustain this. Mayor Bukkila asked if there will be an end to this or if they are just digging themselves into a hole. Mr. Brezinka said it depends on if around $7,000,000 annually is enough to continue to do these projects. Mr. Berkowitz explained they can look at what this looks like by adding three years to the plan. He said they will still need to prioritize the reconstructions and work to preserve the roads that are heading for failure. Councilmember Butler mentioned franchise fees and stated that he does not philosophically like Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes – June 25, 2024 Page 16 the idea of franchise fees; however, it would be an additional revenue source. He said if they did a franchise fee, he would like to be very transparent as to why they are needing to do it so that the residents will understand that it is not forever and is strictly going towards transportation expenses. Mayor Bukkila said she does not think they are to a point where they need to implement franchise fees. Councilmember Barthel said he would rather raise taxes than implement a franchise fee. Mayor Bukkila shared she is nervous that this plan does not have enough projects to get them caught up. She said she does not see this getting them out of the scenario they are currently in with the roads failing. Mr. Berkowitz said this plan is likely the best that they can do. Mr. Dickinson explained spreading these projects out helps for the future as all of the maintenance for these roads would also be more spread out rather than if they were all completed at once. He stated when the first Community Center bond falls off that will have a large impact. He added he would support a better diversification of the funding. He said they will have to utilize bonding to do this so they can lock it in for roads. Mayor Bukkila stated she is flexible with the levy amount with assessments and bonding. She asked if there is a way that they can increase the levy now to get ahead of the roads. She said she wants to be able to cover a lot of ground with this plan. Mr. Berkowitz shared they have discussed contracting some of this work out in order to get it done. He said this would cost them a little more; however, projects like the mill and overlays are pretty simple. He explained if they took $5,000,000 in mill and overlays, they could contract this out to a consultant to prepare the plans and possibly do the inspection if needed. Councilmember Barthel added they will still need to be careful with how many projects they do in a single year so they do not create another ‘bubble.’ Mr. Berkowitz asked if they could do two CIPs, one based on this plan and one based on a plan if they were to start with $2,000,000. The Council was in agreement that they would like to see both options for consideration. Mr. Dickinson asked if they would like to schedule another workshop meeting for July to get this done. The Council was in agreement to schedule a workshop meeting so they can get this taken care of. Mr. Dickinson suggested scheduling a workshop meeting for July 16th at 6:00 p.m., an hour meeting. Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes – June 25, 2024 Page 17 Council consensus was reached to direct staff to create an analysis of the effects of adding three additional years to this plan as well as continuing to look at funding sources for these road projects. OTHER TOPICS Mr. Janish reviewed some concepts for the Country Oaks North development on how to maximize the sewer and water capacity. He shared they do not currently have the capacity to continue to develop around this area with City water and sewer. He showed different concepts on a map with one and half acre options versus two and a half acre options. Mr. Dickinson added the concept parcel is in the process of being sold and they will likely see some plans coming forward in the future. Mayor Bukkila said she does not see anything unusual for her to support going with an alternative to the two-and-a-half-acre option. Councilmember Butler said he is open to looking at this. Scott Wold, SWold Construction, came forward and shared the development to the left of the discussed area is a development that they built a few years ago that backs up to the railroad tracks. He said the transition to larger lots makes sense in his opinion. Mr. Dickinson said the next step would be to get this to a full concept plan. Councilmember Barthel shared the bigger lots on the north and to the west of Country Oaks North act as buffers. He said no one in the surrounding neighborhoods know that these homes are on City water and sewer. He said he likes the transition; however, this on the other side, it is not a transition since these are on the other side of the tracks. He noted as soon as they agree to one to one and a half acre lots, they will have lots of other parcels that want the same and it will cause a chain reaction. He shared he thinks they need to stick to their standards on this. Mayor Bukkila asked for this to be brought back to the Council for further review closer to our standards. Mr. Dickinson shared he received an email from the Anoka County Election Integrity Team asking if the Council would like to receive a presentation from them. Councilmember Nelson said he would be interested in their presentation, the other Councilmembers were not interested in a workshop presentation but indicated resident forum is available. ADJOURNMENT Motion by Barthel, Seconded by Nelson, to adjourn. Motion carried unanimously. The workshop Andover City Council Workshop Meeting Minutes – June 25, 2024 Page 18 meeting adjourned at 9:19 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Ava Major, Recording Secretary