City Council Workshop

Blaine City Hall City of Blaine 10801 Town Sq Dr NE Blaine, MN 55449 Anoka County, Minnesota Minutes City Council Workshop Thursday, March 1, 2018 6:30 PM Cloverleaf Farm Room A NOTICE OF WORKSHOP MEETING 1 Call to Order The meeting was called to order by Mayor Ryan at 6:30 p.m. 2 Roll Call Quorum Present. ALSO PRESENT: City Manager Clark Arneson; Planning and Community Development Director Bryan Schafer; Public Works Director Jon Haukaas; Police Captain Dan Szykulski; Finance Director Joe Huss; Safety Services Manager/Assistant City Manager Bob Therres; City Engineer Jean Keely; City Attorney Patrick Sweeney; Communications Technician Roark Haver; Senior Engineering Technician Al Thorp; and City Clerk Catherine Sorensen. Present: 5 - Councilmember Hovland, Councilmember Garvais, Councilmember Jeppson, Mayor Ryan, and Councilmember Swanson Absent: 2 - Councilmember Clark, and Councilmember King 3 New Business 3-2 HUMAN TRAFFICKING PRESENTATION Police Captain Szykulski introduced Detective Schantzen from the Anoka County Sheriff’s Office who would be sharing a presentation on human trafficking in Anoka County. Detective Mike Schantzen thanked the Council for their time and provided a presentation on human trafficking. He explained sex trafficking had become modern day slavery as traffickers utilize force, fraud and coercion to lure victims into sexual exploitation. He described how Minnesota State Statute addresses prostitution and sex trafficking and explained Minnesota was one of 13 states with high incident rates of child prostitution. Detective Schantzen reported the average age of girls who are first trafficked was 11 to 14 years of age and stated conservative estimates based on a 2010 study are that each day over 200 women in Minnesota are sold for sex up to five times per day. He commented sex City of Blaine Page 1 City Council Workshop Minutes March 1, 2018 trafficking is occurring at hotels/motels, private residences, massage parlors and other public places and discussed several trafficking cases that went to trial in Anoka County. He explained Anoka County had two detectives working human trafficking both in a reactive and proactive manner. Councilmember Jeppson asked if the children being trafficked are being kidnapped. Detective Schantzen explained in most cases recruiting happens through social media and after some time the girls run away from home. Councilmember Hovland questioned how the County addressed individuals identified during trafficking cases who may not be United States citizens. Detective Schantzen explained he has not had victims deported in the cases he has worked but rather paperwork has been applied for to keep the victims in the country unless they request to be sent home. Councilmember Hovland inquired if human trafficking was on the rise due to cultural differences. Detective Schantzen was uncertain that this was the main cause. Councilmember Hovland asked if any formal education has been conducted in the schools regarding this topic. Detective Schantzen stated he was unaware of any formal education that has occurred. Mayor Ryan said he understood Anoka County and other metropolitan counties were working diligently to address this concern. Councilmember Garvais asked what the Council could do better to educate the school district on what was happening. Detective Schantzen stated the Anoka County Joint Law Enforcement Council (JLEC) could try and meet with school district stakeholders to encourage education of teachers and parents. Councilmember Hovland questioned if the County had any statistics as to where the victims come from. Detective Schantzen explained the vast majority of the victims come from broken homes where there is abuse, drinking and drug use going on. Councilmember Jeppson encouraged the County to approach the Metro North Chamber of Commerce, apartment owners, landlords and hotel owners in order to educate them further on this topic. Councilmember Hovland asked if more could be done at the State level. Detective Schantzen reported the Legislature was working to create State regulations for massage parlors but the State’s focus has been more on how to assist the victims. Mayor Ryan suggested the JLEC should discuss this topic further on how to better educate the public. City of Blaine Page 2 City Council Workshop Minutes March 1, 2018 The Council requested Detective Schantzen follow up with ways to help promote education on this topic through the JLEC, the Blaine Business Council, Metro North Chamber and schools. 3-1 LADDIE LAKE STUDY UPDATE Attachments: Laddie Lake Drainage Study Memo City Engineer Keely reported the City entered into an agreement with Coon Creek Watershed District (CCWD) to model the Laddie Lake drainage area to determine if there were specific areas where flooding would be of concern and what the possible solutions would be to address the flooding. It was noted CCWD has completed the Laddie Lake Drainage Study. The study shows that the existing trunk storm sewer line, which runs under 87th Avenue from Hastings Street to Laddie Lake, is at or slightly below capacity for the 10-year storm event (10% chance that a storm will be equaled or exceeded in any one year) using the current standards for precipitation and rainfall type. The model indicates there will be temporary localized flooding at some of the intersections along 87th Avenue during the 10-year event with durations ranging from two to one hundred minutes during the storm. Under typical rainfall amounts, there will be minimal to no flooding according to the study. At this time, the CCWD suggests regular inspections and maintenance of the storm sewer system to remove obstructions and keep the catch basin inlets free and clear of debris to maximize the capability of the system. CCWD is still working on a design for the outlet structure at Laddie Lake and staff will provide an update when a design is proposed. Councilmember Hovland asked if Laddie Lake was tested on a regular basis. Ms. Keely reported the lake was in good shape and has always been very shallow. She stated the City’s main concern with this waterway involved an individual blocking the outlet likely to raise the level of the lake. She reported staff was considering how to change the outlet structure to make it more resistant to tampering. Informational: no action required Other Business Public Services Manager/Assistant City Manager Therres provided the Council with an update on the Blaine Wetland Sanctuary (BWS.) Staff noted the restoration/tree removal needs to be completed before the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Conservation would release wetland credits. He reported 41.7 acres of area within the BWS were not yet restored of which approximately 17 acres required tree removal. These 17 acres of wetland credits had a value of $1.1 to $1.9 million. He explained these credits were planned to be sold to help finance and maintain the BWS and at this time road restrictions were preventing the City from completing any work. He said for this reason, the City would have to wait City of Blaine Page 3 City Council Workshop Minutes March 1, 2018 another year to realize the 17 acres in wetland credits. Councilmember Jeppson asked if this portion of the project was placed on hold would that mean the tree replantings and gate installation would be put on hold as well. City Manager Arneson stated this was staff’s recommendation. The Council directed staff to hold a neighborhood meeting in the fall to outline restoration plans and gate installation timeline and to update the City’s website with the current plan and provide this information to neighbors of the BWS. ADJOURN The Workshop was adjourned at 7:31 p.m. Adjourned City of Blaine Page 4