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2017-05-16 Council MinutesCITY OF MENDOTA HEIGHTS DAKOTA COUNTY STATE OF MINNESOTA Minutes of the Regular Meeting Held Tuesday, May 16, 2017 Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, the regular meeting of the City Council, City of Mendota Heights, Minnesota was held at 7:00 p.m. at City Hall, 1101 Victoria Curve, Mendota Heights, Minnesota. CALL TO ORDER Mayor Garlock called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Councilmembers Duggan, Miller, Petschel, and Paper were also present. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Council, the audience, and staff recited the Pledge of Allegiance. AGENDA ADOPTION Mayor Garlock presented the agenda for adoption. Councilmember Petschel moved adoption of the agenda. Councilmember Paper seconded the motion. Ayes: 5 Nays: 0 CONSENT CALENDAR Mayor Garlock presented the consent calendar and explained the procedure for discussion and approval. Councilmember Petschel moved approval of the consent calendar as presented and authorization for execution of any necessary documents contained therein, pulling item � Approve Resolution 2017-38, Regarding Support for Local Decision Making Authority. a. Approve May 2, 2017 City Council Minutes b. Approve May 8, 2017 Council Work Session Minutes c. Approve May 9, 2017 Joint Council/Park-Rec Commission Work Session Minutes d. Approve Sub-Contract Agreement for Back-Up Building Inspections Services e. Approve Temporary On-Sale Liquor License for Beth Jacob Congregation £ Approve Resolution 2017-38, Regarding Support for Local Decision Making Authority g. Approve Administrative Interim Use Permit — 750 South Plaza Drive h. Acknowledge Building Activity Report for Apri12017 i. Acknowledge Apri12017 Fire Synopsis j. Approve Apri12017 Treasurer's Report k. Approve Claims List Councilmember Duggan seconded the motion. Ayes: 5 Nays: 0 PULLED CONSENT AGENDA ITEM F) APPROVE RESOLUTION 2017-38, REGARDING SUPPORT FOR LOCAL DECISION MAKING AUTHORITY City Administrator Mark McNeill explained that this resolution was recommended by the League of Minnesota Cities, and that organization has asked all cities to consider it. This year, the Legislature has heard about two dozen bills which if enacted, would pre-empt local decision-making authority. The bills relate to a variety of issues including cities setting local minimum wages, setting personnel regulations, designation a sanctuary city status, and sprinkler restrictions in buildings. The League of Minnesota Cities' position is that cities should continue to have the ability to decide these issues for themselves. Councilmember Duggan noted that he would support this resolution with a word changed in the last line as follows: ". .. opposes legislation that removes the ability €e� of local elected officials to respond to the needs of their businesses and constituents." Councilmember Petschel moved to adopt RESOLUTION 2017-38, SUPPORTING LOCAL DECISION-MAKING AUTHORITY with the recommended word change. Councilmember Duggan seconded the motion. Ayes: 5 Nays: 0 PUBLIC COMMENTS Ms. Barb Nelson, 730 South Plaza Drive, spoke to the Council about the trail redevelopment occurring in front of Parkview Plaza Apartments. She is concerned about nature being disturbed when the large trees are being removed. She questioned why the area which was cleared for the trail needed to be so wide? She felt that much natural habitat was destroyed. Public Works Director Ryan Ruzek stated that the trail was being constructed with the Highway 110 project, and is controlled by the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT). The trail is proposed as part of the County greenway system, connecting Lebanon Hills and the Big River Regional Trail. He shared a map showing the removal plans. The existing trail that borders the parking lot of the Parkview Plaza is proposed to be removed. The new trail is going to be moving slightly to the north. A new trail would be constructed within the old MnDOT right-of-way, adjacent to the Dodge Nature Center. The contract calls for a replanting of 100 trees, 60 shrubs, 64 perennials, and the seeding of five acres in native pollinator-friendly planting mix. The County is going to concentrate their replanting efforts to the areas near South Plaza Drive. tllay 16, 2017 Mendota Heights Ctty Council Page 2 of 8 Ms. Jane Spalding, 730 South Plaza Drive, expressed her desire for a community garden area to be included in the plans. She also mentioned that the University of Minnesota's Horticultural Department has young people that might be interested in doing a project in this area. Councilmember Petschel encouraged Ms. Spalding to meet with Mendota Heights' master gardeners who have been working on projects at the Plaza, Pilot Knob Road, City Hall, and other areas around Mendota Heights. Councilmember Duggan expressed his appreciation to Ms. Spalding and Ms. Nelson for coming to the meeting to speak on this. It is people like them that make Mendota Heights that much better. He understands that the project caused a huge upheaval of the natural setting, but it will be nice when it is finished. Mr. Roger Bredahl, 730 South Plaza Drive, noted that he sees deer, turkeys, and others wildlife from his window. His concern is the possible expansion of the current construction. He asked if they would be installing a bridge over the small creek. Mr. Ruzek responded that there would be a culvert installed for the creek to flow through. Mayor Garlock stated that he went to the site and viewed the construction and spoke with the contractor. The contractor stated that they were cutting down what was called for in the contract. PRESENTATIONS No items scheduled. PUBLIC HEARING No items scheduled. NEW AND UNFINISHED BUSINESS A) RESOLUTION 2017-36 ACCEPT BIDS & AWARD CONTRACT FOR 2017 SANITARY SEWER REHABILITATION PROJECT Public Works Director Ryan Ruzek presented six bids that were received for the 2017 Sanitary Sewer Rehabilitation Project. The engineer's estimate on this project was $275,000. The low bid submitted was from Insituform Technologies in the amount of $430,728. Staff proposes to line the largest diameter and deepest section of the interceptor. This portion runs through the parking lot at the Plaza site. The added costs are due to the very extensive bypass pumping system which is needed. Staff recommended to award the proj ect to the lowest bidder, Insituform Technologies. They also recommended to delete a proposed 600 feet of the sewer lining pipe to reduce the project's cost to May 16, 2017Mendota Heiglzts City Council Page 3 of 8 correspond to the available budget. He said that the City currently budgets $110,000 a year for sewer lining maintenance. He said that there had also been a culvert failure in the Somerset Country Club. A new outlet structure was installed on the pond upstream from that culvert; however, the existing metal pipe has had water leakage, and the necessary water levels have been difficult to maintain. Staff wants get that pipe lined in order to restore the pond to its normal water level. Councilmember Duggan questioned the engineer's estimate on this project. Mr. Ruzek replied that the larger diameter pipes have not been lined; therefore, staff does not have the necessary budgeting history to accurately estimate a unit price for this. Councilmember Duggan asked what the benefits are with this project. Mr. Ruzek stated that the sewer lining should be a structural liner — like a brand new pipe and is estimated to last 100 years. The City's interceptor lines were installed in the mid-to-late 1960's. Councilmember Miller asked what issues would be expected if the Somerset Country Club work was delayed. Mr. Ruzek stated that this is the third time he has bid that portion of the project. Due to the high bids received, the project was not completed. He said that other options are more expensive, and that the current pond level makes the work easier to perform. Councilmember Duggan asked for confirmation that this project would not impact the golf course and its operations. Mr. Ruzek replied that the installation of the lining is relatively excavation free and should not impact the golf course. Councilmember Petschel asked what kind of disruption would be expected at the parking lot at the Plaza? Mr. Ruzek replied that there would be a pre-construction meeting with the contractor, and that they may be able to line through two sections and not have to excavate at every manhole. Councilmember Petschel asked who does monitoring of the bypass system? Mr. Ruzek replied that would be the responsibility of the contractor, and that they would have a specialty bi-pass pumping subcontractor and the subcontractor would be responsible for keeping the system operational. Mr. Ruzek noted that Insituform Technologies has done a number of projects for the City in the past. They completed the 2015 interceptor lining as well. Councilmember Petschel asked how this would affect the City financially. Mr. Ruzek replied that this project will be within the budgeted amount because it is two years worth of work. He said the culvert repair at Somerset Country Club wi11 be paid for out of the stormwater utility fund. Councilmember Petschel asked for an update on the stormwater utility fund and what other major projects are coming up, and that she would like to have a plan for this work. Mr. Ruzek replied that a discussion of this can take place at the goal setting session or a future Council Work Session. May 16, 2017 Rlendota Heiglzts City Council Page 4 of 8 Councilmember Duggan moved to adopt RESOLUTION 2017-36 ACCEPTING BIDS AND AWARDING CONTRACT FOR THE 2017 SANITARY SEWER REHABILITATION PROJECT (PROJECT #201705). Councilmember Petschel seconded the motion. Councilmember Paper asked for a description of Inflow and Infiltration, how deep the excavation would be to get to the interceptor line, and how many days it is anticipated from the day they start excavation to completion? Mr. Ruzek responded to those questions. Councilmember Paper also asked if there would be any benefit to include the 600 feet that is being recommended for deletion? Mr. Ruzek replied that he had originally included that 600 feet to take advantage of the construction work on Highway 110; however, the City did not have official permission from MnDOT to run the bypass line through the storm sewer culvert. Ayes: 5 Nays: 0 B) RESOLUTION 2017-37 ACCEPT BIDS AND AWARD CONTRACT FOR MENDOTA HEIGHTS ROAD AND KENSINGTON STREET IMPROVEMENTS Public Works Director Ryan Ruzek introduced Mr. Chad Davison, Consulting Planner from Stantec. Mr. Davison explained that bids on this project were opened on May lOth. He said that the engineer's estimate was $2,100,000, and that the low bid was received from Valley Paving, Inc. in the amount of $1,650,939. Councilmember Petschel asked why there was such a large difference between the estimate and the bids? Mr. Davison replied that the directional drilling was probably the area with the most significant savings on the project. In the end, it came down to the competitiveness of the bids. Councilmember Petschel asked for an example of a project that Valley Paving has done within the City. Mr. Ruzek replied that Valley Paving completed the Victoria Road South and Lemay Lake Road proj ects. Councilmember Petschel noted that she was glad to see McNamara Contracting Inc. had bid on this project. She asked how they compared with Valley Paving. Mr. Ruzek stated that the City has had more associations with McNamara and they seemed to have had a better track record as fax as being accommodating to the residents. He noted that a previous issues with Valley Paving was that they had left work on the Vitoria Road project for a couple of weeks on the Victoria Road project. Councilmember Petschel said the residents had gone without water, power, and had not been properly notified. She said that there is only a$13,000 difference between Valley Paving and McNamara Contracting Inc. Mr. Ruzek noted that a number of the surrounding communities have moved to a value- based bidding system, and that is something this City could consider in the future. Councilmember Paper mentioned that he and Mr. Ruzek had discussed specific timeframes for the Kensington neighborhood project, to have it completed by mid-August before the soccer season. He asked if that deadline had been made part of the contract. Mr. Ruzek replied that they currently have a R1ay 16, 2017 Rlendota Heiglats City Coicncil Page 5 of 8 completion date of Mendota Heights Road ahead of Kensington. The paving is scheduled to be down on Mendota Heights Road by September lst. Kensington was delayed to October lst. The Kensington area would be fine for parking although it may be a gravel surface. Mr. Ruzek noted that, per his conversation with Recreation Program Coordinator Sloan Wallgren, the soccer program is from mid- August to October lst. He further said that they could delay the paving until after the soccer season. Councilmember Paper asked if these are two separate projects, and why not run them simultaneously. Mr. Ruzek said that they were originally run as two feasibility projects, but they were combined into one project. Councilmember Paper asked what the benefit would be to the City to have these as one project instead of the original two. Mr. Ruzek replied that it was really due to the economy of scale; the contractors mobilize in the area and both projects are in close proximity to each other; and they can share resources. Mr. Ruzek stated that after the contract has been awarded, the next step would be to have a preconstruction meeting with the contractor, then staff would have a better idea of the timing details of the project. Mr. Davison noted that they do have a specified date to have a portion of the road at gravellevel. Once the asphalt is removed, the contractor has to have the base level bituminous restored within 30 — 60 days. Councilmember Duggan asked City Attorney Tom Lehmann what the impact would be if the Council awarded the bid to McNamara Contracting Inc. instead of the lowest bidder, Valley Paving Inc? Attorney Lehmann replied that the law requires that the City take the lowest responsible bidder; it does not necessarily have to be the lowest bid. He said that the courts give cities some discretion in interpreting what that term `responsible bidder' means. Court cases have determined that some of the criteria that would be looked at would be financial responsibility, integrity, skill, likelihood of performing faithfully, satisfactory work, and promptness. If the City were to go with a company that is not the lowest bidder, he said that it would want to make sure to clarify the criteria of the Council's choice. Councilmember Duggan moved to accept the bid from McNamara Contracting Inc. as the most responsible bidder because of their promptness and their past success record within the City of Mendota Heights, and because of the poor responsiveness of Valley Paving on previous projects. Councilmember Petschel seconded the motion. City Administrator Mark McNeill asked if McNamara Contracting Inc. was awarded the contract, if there would be any concerns about their availability. Mr. Ruzek replied that technically the City can hold bids for 60 days, and the City would have the right to enter into a contract with them. Councilmember Duggan asked if the motion could include the timeframe requirements as discussed. Mr. Ruzek replied that those criteria were encompassed in the bids initially. Councilmember Petschel asked what consequences the City could face by not awarding this contract to the lowest bidder? Attorney Lehmann stated that the lowest bidder could sue the City if it did not follow May 16, 2017 Me�7dota Heights City Courzcil Page 6 of 8 the bidding requirements. The challenge may be that the City would have to make a determination as to whether to go forward with the project even though there is pending litigation. Councilmember Petschel asked, if this contract were awarded to Valley Paving, how could the City prevent what happened to residents on Victoria Road from happening on this project? Mr. Davison stated that he would be on site every other day, reviewing the project with the contractor. The inspector will log notices continually throughout this process to all of the residents. Stantec has a website so people can check online for updates. He said that the contractor has a tight schedule of when they have to get the road surface back to bituminous; if it cannot meet that schedule, there are liquidated damages that could be assessed to them, which is built into the contract. Councilmember Petschel asked if there would be any disruption to water or power during this project? Mr. Davison replied that there should not be any disruptions. The inspector from Stantec would be the one responsible for notifying the school and residents of any water or power outages, and the timing of those outages. Councilmember Petschel said that the notices should not be put on the resident's front doors — most people do not use their front doors. Councilmember Duggan asked what requirements or penalties the City could put into the contract so they would meet the concerns being addressed now. Mr. Ruzek replied that at this time the project specifications are the basis of the bid. To add additional restrictions to the contract would change the contractual specifications. Mayor Garlock noted that staff could strongly suggest to Valley Paving that the Council is aware of the problems which occurred during the last project, and that the Council does not expect that to happen again as it would affect any future proj ects they could potentially have within the City. Attorney Lehmann noted that liquidated damages are a powerful tool that the City could use in the event that Valley Paving does not comply with this contract. Most contractors understand the importance and the severity of what liquidated damages can do to their bottom line with regards to completion on time. He believed there was enough in this contract that would give them serious pause not to follow through on the bid requirements. Councilmember Duggan withdrew his previous motion. Councilmember Petschel, as the second, accepted the withdrawal of the motion. Councilmember Petschel moved to adopt RESOLUTION 2017-37 ACCEPTING BIDS AND AWARDING CONTRACT FOR THE MENDOTA HEIGHTS ROAD AND KENSIGNTON STREET IMPROVEMENTS to Valley Paving, Inc. as the lowest bidder, with the understanding that Stantec will be having very tight daily supervision of this project. Councilmember Duggan seconded the motion. For purposes of discussion, because of this particular contractar, Councilmember Petschel asked if the Council could get frequent updates on how the project is going from staff. Ayes: 5 Nays: 0 May 16, 2017 Mendota Heights City Cou�2cil Page 7 of 8 COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS City Administrator Mark McNeill stated that the City has been receiving complaints about garbage cans being improperly stored, by being visible from the street. He reminded residents that City Code does require garbage cans to be out of public view within 24 hours of the scheduled pickup. Enforcement of that requirement wi11 be taking place; most likely with warnings will be the first step. COUNCIL COMMENTS Councilmember Petschel noted that she and Administrator McNeill attended a social gathering in South St. Paul with School Board members and other City Council Members, and Administrators. This social event was started last year. It may be Mendota Heights' turn to host soon. Councilmember Miller noted that Syttende Mai is on May 17, the Norwegian Constitution Day and there would be celebrations. Councilmember Duggan noted that SK Walk/Run Event is the first Saturday in June. The name has officially been changed to "Officer Scott Patrick Memorial SK", and that it benefits the Special Olympics. He also wished the best of luck to all area graduates. Councilmember Duggan mentioned that a former city employee, Theresa Gangelhoff, is an accomplished baker and was on NBC's Today Show that morning for a cooking contest. He also said that School District 197 has a new superintendent, Peter Olson-Skog, who will begin his new role in July 2017. Councilmember Duggan encouraged everyone to get to know him. ADJOURN Councilmember Paper moved to adjourn. Councilmember Duggan seconded the motion. Ayes: 5 Nays: 0 Mayor Garlock adjourned the meeting at 8:10 p.m. �'�(��� , Neil Garlock Mayor ATTEST• Lorri Smith, City Clerk Alay 16, 2017 Alervdota Heights Ci ,ty Cou�acil Page 8 of 8