City Council Workshop

Blaine City Hall City of Blaine 10801 Town Sq Dr NE Blaine MN 55449 Anoka County, Minnesota Minutes City Council Workshop While this is a public meeting where interested persons are welcome to attend, it is a work session for City Council and staff to discuss issues before them. It is not for the purpose of receiving public input. Members of the public can join the Zoom webinar at https://blainemn.zoom.us/j/94488660195 Questions? Email - communications@BlaineMN.gov Monday, May 17, 2021 Council Chambers and due to the COVID-19 pandemic, city meetings will also be held as virtual meetings Meeting will take place immediately following the closed session NOTICE OF WORKSHOP MEETING 1 Call to Order The meeting was called to order by Mayor Sanders at 7:12PM. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic this hybrid meeting was held both virtually and in person. 2 Roll Call Quorum Present. ALSO PRESENT: City Manager Michelle Wolfe; Community Development Director Erik Thorvig; City Planner Lori Johnson; Public Works Director Jon Haukaas; Police Chief/Safety Services Manager Brian Podany; Finance Director Joe Huss; City Engineer Dan Schluender; City Attorney Chris Nelson; Communications Manager Ben Hayle; Director of Administration Cassandra Tabor; Captain Dan Pelkey; and City Clerk Catherine Sorensen. Present: 7 - Councilmember Robertson, Councilmember Paul, Councilmember Hovland, Massoglia, Smith, Sanders, and Councilmember Jeppson 3 New Business 3-1 Anoka County Assessor Update City Clerk Sorensen stated Anoka County Assessor Alex Guggenberger was in attendance to provide a recap from the Open Book meetings held for property owners to appeal their 2021 assessed values. As a City of Blaine Page 1 City Council Workshop Minutes May 17, 2021 reminder, the change to Open Book format was a result of a training requirement of current Special Board of Review members that had not yet been met by the deadline outlined in Statute. Staff will work to ensure members have met the training requirement for reinstatement of the Board for 2022. Mr. Guggenberger reviewed the assessor report with the council. He described the assessment timeline, how market value was defined and how mass appraisals were conducted for like groups of properties. He reviewed assessment statistics and commented on the appeal process. He discussed the recently held Open Book meeting and noted Blaine has the largest parcel count in Anoka County. He reported the county appraises 20% of the city each year. He explained call volumes were down this year from concerned property owners. He indicated the largest property of concern in Blaine was the Northtown Mall. Year over year sales were reviewed with the council and it was noted the city of Blaine has a strong housing market. Mayor Sanders thanked Mr. Guggenberger for his presentation. Mayor Sanders recessed the workshop meeting at 7:23PM. Mayor Sanders reconvened the workshop meeting at 8:58PM. Informational: no action required 15 Minute Discussion 3-2 3M Open Hospitality Discussion Community Development Director Thorvig stated this year’s 3M Open will be held July 19-25. Practice rounds occur Monday-Wednesday with the tournament rounds occurring Thursday-Sunday. The tournament has indicated they will be allowed a capacity of 10,000 fans per day with the potential of additional fans depending on direction from the State of Minnesota as COVID restrictions are being reduced. Tournament staff indicated that 10,000 fans per day approaches the number of fans that attended the tournament in 2019. It was noted there will not be a concert this year. Mr. Thorvig reported as a tournament partner, Blaine is afforded the opportunity of a hospitality venue to host guests. Details are still being discussed about what the venue may look like. It is likely the city will have the option of a covered, open air space or an indoor/outdoor space similar to what was available in 2019. Once more details are provided by the tournament, city staff, along with consultation from the city council, will City of Blaine Page 2 City Council Workshop Minutes May 17, 2021 decide what space best suits our needs and is consistent with the city’s COVID protocols. Nonetheless, we anticipate up to 40 guests per day for the hospitality venue. In the past, invitations have been focused on real estate developers/brokers, prospective businesses, existing Blaine businesses and other key stakeholders in the community. The venue provides an excellent opportunity for networking, introductions and marketing of Blaine. The city council is asked to attend as their schedule allows Thursday-Sunday. Mr. Thorvig explained in addition to the hospitality venue, the city has a four-person team for the Wednesday pro-am event. This was offered by the tournament due to limited hospitality opportunities in 2020. A pro-am event is where a foursome plays with a professional on the course during the practice round. One or two spots would be available for city staff/elected officials and the remaining spots would be for guests. This is an extremely unique opportunity to invite high-level individuals from a business, etc. Staff is requesting direction from the city council on who to invite to play. For example, CEO/VP level executives from a major real estate development company or large company not located in Blaine, representatives from a grocer or other retailer/entertainment user we’re trying to attract to Blaine, representatives from a high-profile Blaine business, etc. These guests would be invited to the hospitality space afterwards to meet other staff/city councilmembers. Mayor Sanders stated the practice round of golf is a unique experience and he was pleased that 10,000 fans would be allowed on a daily basis Thursday through Sunday. He anticipated the council would have to further discuss the strategy as to who would be invited to the practice round of golf. Councilmember Jeppson commented one option to consider would be to invite and partner with the minor league baseball team that was interested in coming into Blaine. She indicated this would be a great amenity for the community. Mayor Sanders stated this was a great option for the council to consider. Mr. Thorvig reported the baseball group has met with staff and the NSC. He explained their plan was quite exciting for the 105th and Nassau corridor. Councilmember Jeppson highly encouraged the council to consider making an invitation to this group because this entity would change the culture in the community, which would be a huge benefit. Councilmember Hovland explained another thought would be to invite City of Blaine Page 3 City Council Workshop Minutes May 17, 2021 representatives from several banks in the community because they heavily invest in the community. Councilmember Robertson supported Councilmember Jeppson’s suggestion and suggested the bank representatives be invited as well. Councilmember Massoglia stated it would be important for the mayor to share Blaine’s story with whoever is invited. Councilmember Robertson requested staff provide the council with a virtual rendering of how the baseball park would fit into the 105th corridor. Mr. Thorvig stated he could do this and noted staff would be creating new handouts and banners for the hospitality tent. Councilmember Paul stated now would be a good time for the council to consider the traffic at 105th and Radisson Road. In addition, he wanted to see the streets kept clean in this area to make the area attractive for visitors. Mayor Sanders thanked staff for the presentation and encouraged councilmembers to shoot specific ideas to staff this week. Councilmember Hovland left the meeting at 9:17PM. Discussed 15 Minute Discussion 3-3 Critical Incident and Civil Unrest Response Attachments: Presentation Safety Services Manager/Police Chief Podany stated in public safety a critical incident can happen at any time and when they do can have dire impacts on everyone involved in the incident and for the community at large. At times, substantial periods of civil unrest can result from a critical incident as well as the aftermath of a critical incident. An overview of the critical incident procedures, processes, and roles of all involved was presented to the council. This included potential investigative entities as well as an overview of applicable laws and regulations. The role of the Post Board was described, along with the Department of Justice. Police Chief Podany commented further on the role elected officials, the city manager, and the police chief will have during critical incidents. Mayor Sanders thanked Chief Podany for his detailed presentation and for making the council aware of the plans that were in place should the city face a critical incident. City of Blaine Page 4 City Council Workshop Minutes May 17, 2021 Informational: no action required 30 Minute Discussion ADJOURN The Workshop was adjourned at 9:49PM. City of Blaine Page 5