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2018-03-20 Council MinutesCITY OF MENDOTA HEIGHTS DAKOTA COUNTY STATE OF MINNESOTA Minutes of the Regular Meeting Held Tuesday, March 20, 2018 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. Councilors Paper, Miller, and Petschel were also present. Councilor Duggan was absent. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Council, the audience, and staff recited the Pledge of Allegiance. AGENDA ADOPTION Mayor Garlock presented the agenda for adoption. Councilor Petschel moved adoption of the agenda. Mayor Garlock seconded the motion. Ayes: 4 Nays: 0 Absent: 1 CONSENT CALENDAR Mayor Garlock presented the consent calendar and explained the procedure for discussion and approval. Councilor Petschel moved approval of the consent calendar as presented and authorization for execution of any necessary documents. a. Approval of March 6, 2018 City Council Minutes b. Approval of Temporary On -Sale Liquor License for St. Thomas Academy, April 20-21, 2018 c. Award Bid for 2018 Street Sweeping d. Approval of Out of State Travel — Fire Department e. Approval of Training — Police Department f. Approval of Ordinance 520 — Water Availability Charge g. Approval of Part -Time Receptionist Hire h. Approve February 2018 Building Activity Report i. Approval of Claims List Councilor Miller seconded the motion. Ayes: 4 Nays: 0 Absent: 1 (Duggan) PUBLIC COMMENTS There were no public comments. PRESENTATIONS A) TOBACCO FREE ALLIANCE REGARDING FLAVORED TOBACCO City Administrator Mark McNeill introduced Ms. Mary Montagne, Health Promotions Supervisor for the Dakota County Public Health Department. Ms. Montagne began her presentation by sharing that Mendota Heights was one of the first cities in Dakota County to pass a policy for tobacco -free city parks. She has also worked on smoke-free hotels/motels, voluntary smoke-free homes and cars, and is currently working on smoke-free apartments. She continued by stating that tobacco is still the number one cause of death and disease in Minnesota and in America. Ms. Montagne shared results from the 2017 Minnesota Youth Tobacco Survey. She stated that tobacco kills more Minnesotans than alcohol, illegal drugs, homicides, suicides, car accidents, and aids all combined. It is a contributing factor for heart disease, stroke, and cancer. She stated that the main concern now is the increase in youth tobacco use, mainly caused by a huge increase in flavored tobacco products and non -cigarettes on the market. This puts a new generation of kids at risk for nicotine addiction and serious health harms that result from tobacco use. Youth cigarette use in Minnesota is at its highest point ever recorded. More than 1 in 4 high school students use tobacco products, and 1 in 5 Minnesota high school students use e -cigarettes. This is nearly a 50% increase since 2014. More than 10% of Minnesota high school students use cigars or cigarillos, which is nearly a 30% increase from 2014. Electronic cigarettes and these types of cigars are almost always flavored. Evidence suggests that youth who have tried e -cigarettes are twice as likely to start smoking later on as those who have never tried them. Nearly all e -cigarettes contain nicotine. Nicotine primes the brain for further addiction, not only to tobacco products. Preventing children from becoming addicted to nicotine is critical for reducing the harm caused by tobacco products. Students from Henry Sibley High School and members of ALMAS provided information on flavored tobacco products and encouraged the City Council to restrict the sale of flavored tobacco products. They shared images of flavored tobacco products and how they mimic popular candy wrappers and boxes. Flavored tobacco products include cigars, chewing tobacco, blunt wraps, electronic cigarettes, and shisha (the tobacco used in hookah). This is how the tobacco industry circumvents the 2009 ban of flavored cigarettes. Common flavors used are chocolate, pifla colada, apple, grape, berry, cotton candy, bubble gum, and menthol. Note: menthol is not one of the banned flavors for cigarettes. The 2009 ruling by the FDA ban does not prevent local communities from restricting the sale of flavored tobacco products within their jurisdiction. March 20, 2018 Mendota Heights City Council Page 2 of 6 Councilor Paper asked what ALMAS stands for and what they do. ALMAS stands for "Anglos and Latinos Motivated to Succeed" and they participate in community work, volunteering, and helping out with events. Community is important to them. There are approximately 50 members at Henry Sibley High School and they meet three times per week. Councilor Paper noted that until he met with Mr. Hansen he never knew about flavored tobacco products. Councilor Miller noted that he was a student of Mr. Hansen's and he encouraged students to get involved with the ALMAS group. Bringing this concern to the Council is paramount, and the next step is deciding if the Council should do something. Councilor Petschel commended all of the students for their presentation and the work they put into it and for being so well spoken. She recommended that the Council hold a workshop on this topic. The Council would keep the student group in the loop on what the city is able to accomplish. Councilor Petschel explained that there is a bi-partisan attempt in the legislature to raise the smoking age to 21. She suggested that would be a wonderful thing for these students to get involved with. Students have very powerful voices these days. Mayor Garlock echoed the comments made by the Councilors and asked City Administrator Mark McNeill to get this topic on a workshop agenda as soon as possible. The Council decided to discuss this at an upcoming work session. B) ISD 197 SCHOOL REFERENDUM PRESENTATION City Administrator Mark McNeill introduced Superintendent of Schools Peter Olson -Skoog to present on the upcoming May 8th Bond referendum for ISD 197. Mr. Olson -Skoog noted the passing of this Bond referendum is supported by the community as the work would impact the academics, arts, athletics programs, along with the community. The referendum would ask the voters to support the building bonds for school additions, renovations, and repairs. This is the result of an 18 month study conducted by a facilities task force. More specifically, the bond proceeds would be used for updating building and mechanical maintenance, modernize outdated classroom and educational spaces, improve the fine arts and athletics spaces, and address school parking lot safety and handicap accessibility. The average age of the school buildings is 50 years and there are thousands of non -school day events that take place in them. Approximately 42% of the funds being requested are for `behind -the -scene' repairs such as pointing of brick, improving the lighting, plumbing, boilers, and mechanicals, and additions or renovations to all of the buildings and in all of the areas of academics, fine arts, and athletics. March 20, 2018 Mendota Heights City Council Page 3 of 6 More specific projects include altering the kindergarten classrooms and adding bathrooms, parking lots, cafeteria and gyms — to have both in a facility rather than using the gym area as a cafeteria, enhance the music and science areas, invest in a swimming pool to minimize transportation costs, turf field and track — currently using Matson Field at Heritage Middle School, and multi-purpose athletic space addition. Total school property taxes, payable in 2017, on a home with an estimated market value of $200,000, on average is $742/year. ISD 197 rates 3rd from the bottom out of the 40 metro area school districts in terms of the amount of school property taxes. There are many reasons why residents move to Mendota Heights, one of which is the excellent school system, but also because of the low taxes. The polling sites open on May 8th at 7:00 a.m. and close at 8:00 p.m. Polling locations are Friendly Hills, Pilot Knob, Heritage, Henry Sibley, and St. Stephen's Church. Additional voting infofination can be found at www.mnvotes.org or at the school district's website at www.isd197.org/about/bond. Councilor Petschel asked what the total amount of the proposed referendum is. Mr. Olson -Skoog replied that the amount is $117 million. Councilor Paper asked how many people were reached with the school's survey and how was it completed. Mr. Olson -Skoog replied that they did a representative survey until the company completing the survey got to +/-5% confidence in the vote. That is typically 500 — 600 residents that they call on a random sampling. No action was taken by the Council. PUBLIC HEARINGS No items scheduled. NEW AND UNFINISHED BUSINESS A) CONTRACT FOR MAINTENANCE REPAIRS AT ROGERS LAKE SKATE PARK Public Works Director Ryan Ruzek explained that in 2003, the City converted the tennis court at Rogers Lake Park into the skate park facility by adding some on -grade ramps and other structures that were purchased. The equipment is now nearing 15 years in age with little maintenance completed at the facility. The skating surface is the original tennis court surface that was constructed in the mid -1970's. Three requests for quotes were sent to companies that are known to do this type of work. One quote was received back from Action Sports of Minnesota, Inc. They proposed replacing a number of the boards, a lot of the metal on the ramps and grinding surfaces, skim patching some of the surface cracks and grinding down any high areas, replacing any worn or rotted surface boards and support boards. March 20, 2018 Mendota Heights City Council Page 4 of 6 Staff requested the Council award the contract to Action Sports of MN, Inc. in the not -to -exceed amount of $10,000. Mayor Garlock asked if some of the equipment is currently unsafe. Mr. Ruzek replied that staff has not received any direct calls from park users on the condition of the equipment; however, the inspection by the contractor stated there was. Councilor Miller, in reference to the maintenance work, asked if most of the work needed is due to heavy use, or wear and tear, or intentional acts. Mr. Ruzek replied that most of the repairs are due to the use of the equipment. The park is being used heavily although wood being out in the weather conditions does shorten its lifespan. He has not received any vandalism repair requests. Councilor Paper asked if the contractor would address a rail slide or curb slide. Mr. Ruzek replied that there are rails specifically for that purpose and it is his understanding that all of the equipment would be brought back up to its original standards. Councilor Paper, in reference to the $1,500 contingency for unforeseen conditions, asked what those unforeseen conditions could be. Mr. Ruzek replied that it may be just overhead costs. Councilor Paper asked if the trees along the fence could be cut back to have a better view of the skate park from Wagon Wheel. Mr. Ruzek stated that staff could take care of that. Mayor Garlock moved to authorize staff to issue a purchase order to Action Sports of MN, Inc. in the amount of $10,000 for repairs at the Rogers Lake Skate Park. Councilor Petschel seconded the motion. Ayes: 4 Nays: 0 Absent: 1 B) SET MEETING DATE FOR JOINT CITY COUNCIL AND PARKS -RECREATION COMMISSION WORK SESSION City Administrator Mark McNeill explained that the Parks and Recreation Commission held a workshop meeting on March 1St, where they looked at a number of capital projects that are going to be needed or that are desired for the Parks and Recreation Department. The Commission also discussed natural resources. The Commission requested a joint meeting with the City Council to discuss the projects. Staff recommended a meeting date be set for Wednesday, May 9, at 5:30 p.m. The Council concurred. The Council also discussed holding a Council Work Session to discuss Flavored Tobacco sales. The Council set the date for this work session for Tuesday, April 3, at 5:30 pm. COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS City Administrator Mark McNeill had no community announcements. March 20, 2018 Mendota Heights City Council Page 5 of 6 COUNCIL COMMENTS Councilor Petschel noted of a news piece on KSTP regarding Mr. Mark Wesley, a long-time science teacher at St. Thomas Academy who was honored as being the National Space Teacher of the Year. Mayor Garlock gave a special thank -you to a long-time supporter of the Mendota Heights 5K and Special Olympics, Mr. Bob Brackey, who is always very generous. He had made an additional contribution of $2,000 for Special Olympics and a 55 -inch television for the 2018 5K. Councilor Miller echoed Mayor Garlock's comments. He also stated he was pleased that the Council would be having a joint meeting with the Parks and Recreation Commission, in part to address the city's natural resources needs. Councilor Paper expressed his appreciation to ALMAS for their presentation on flavored tobacco and to Mr. Peter Olson -Skoog for sharing the information on the bond referendum. He wished good luck to two local high schools at the State Basketball Tournament — Minnehaha Academy and St. Thomas Academy. ADJOURN Mayor Garlock moved to adjourn. Councilor Paper seconded the motion. Ayes: 4 Nays: 0 Absent: 1 Mayor Garlock adjourned the meeting at 7:55 p.m. 1/1„,,j20.) 4C_ Neil Garlock Mayor ATTES : Lorri Smith City Clerk March 20, 2018 Mendota Heights City Council Page 6 of 6