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2006-02-21 City Council MinutesPage No. 1 February 21, 2006 CITY OF MENDOTA HEIGHTS DAKOTA COUNTY STATE OF MINNESOTA Minutes of the Regular Meeting Held Tuesday, February 21, 2006 Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, the regular meeting of the City Council, City of Mendota Heights, Minnesota was held at 7:30 o'clock p.m. at City Hall, 1101 Victoria Curve, Mendota Heights, Minnesota. CALL TO ORDER Acting Mayor Vitelli called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. The following members were present: Acting Mayor Vitelli, Councilmembers Duggan and Schneeman. Mayor Huber and Councilmember Krebsbach had notified Council that they would be absent. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Ayes:3 Nays: 0 Council, the audience and staff recited the Pledge of Allegiance. Councilmember Duggan moved adoption of the revised agenda for the meeting. Councilmember Schneeman seconded the motion. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Councilmember Duggan moved approval of the minutes of the regular meeting held on February 21, 2006 as amended. Ayes: 3 Councilmember Schneeman seconded the motion. Nays: 0 CONSENT CALENDAR Councilmember Schneeman moved approval of the consent calendar for the meeting, revised to move items 6e, legal services, and 6g, sign permit for 2620 Pilot Knob Road, to the regular agenda, along with authorization for execution of any necessary documents contained therein. a. Acknowledgement of the February 14, 2006, Parks and Recreation Commission Minutes. b. Acknowledgement of the January 2006 Treasurer's Report. c. Authorization for issuance of a Temporary Liquor Permit for St. Thomas Academy. d. Acceptance of a staff recommendation to decline Pioneer Press preparation and distribution of a city anniversary insert and to reject a proposal for a "birthday card" insert in the Sun Current and Southwest Review. Page No. 2 February 21, 2006 e. Approval of Sign Permit for a sign face change for State Farm Insurance for 1285 Northland Drive. f. Approval of the list of contractor licenses dated February 21, 2006. g. Approval of List of Claims dated February 21, 2006 and totaling $256,272.16. Ayes: 3 Councilmember Duggan seconded the motion. Nays: 0 APPOINTMENT OF Council acknowledged a memo from Administrator Danielson CITY ATTORNEY regarding appointment of a legal services firm. Acting Mayor Vitelli informed the audience that last month received a recommendation from staff to request proposals from law firms to provide legal services for the city. Former City Attorney Dan Schleck, who did an outstanding job for the city, left his firm. Although Council respected Attorney Schleck, rather than retaining his new firm Council decided to seek RFPs. Several excellent proposals were received and Council interviewed four firms. It was the unanimous consensus to continue to retain the firm of Winthrop and Weinstine, which has represented the city very well for many years. Tonight Council will formalize that and Attorney Tamara Diehm will represent the city in legal matters from now on. When Council formalizes the agreement, the action should include that Winthrop and Weinstein had indicated they would fix the hourly fee for the city attorney and the monthly retainer amount for the next three years. Councilmember Schneeman stated that she is very pleased to have Attorney Diehm representing the city and also that several excellent firms applied. Councilmember Duggan stated that the city should send a letter of appreciation to Dan Schleck for his service to the city. Councilmember Duggan moved to appoint Winthrop and Weinstine as the city's legal representative, to direct the city administrator to work with Winthrop and Weinstine to prepare a contract, with the condition that the monthly retainer and hourly rate for the city attorney will be fixed for three years, and further moved to direct city staff to prepare a letter of appreciation for former City Attorney Dan Schleck. Councilmember Schneeman seconded the motion. Ayes: 3 Nays:0 Page No. 3 February 21, 2006 SIGN PERMIT Council acknowledged a memo from Assistant Hollister regarding an application from Archetype Signmakers for a permit to install signage changes on the sign fascia at 2520 Pilot Knob Road for Twin Cities Occupational Health and Rehabilitation. Councilmember Schneeman informed the applicant that Council is only approving the building sign this evening and that the applicant will need to make a separate application for a variance and sign permit for a free standing sign in the future. Councilmember Duggan moved to authorize the code enforcement officer to issue the sign permit for the building signage contingent upon compliance with all applicable codes. Ayes: 3 Councilmember Schneeman seconded the motion. Nays: 0 PUBLIC COMMENTS Mr. Matt Geiser was present to inform Council and the audience that the Mendota Elementary School PTA will be sponsoring a community silent auction fund raiser event for the school at the Bluffs of Mendota on March 10 at 7:30. TOBACCO FREE PARKS Council acknowledged a memo from Assistant Hollister regarding POLICY a presentation by St. Thomas Academy and Visitation School students with regard to establishing a tobacco free parks policy. Mr. Michael Coyne, Chemical Health Coordinator for St. Thomas Academy, gave a brief introduction, stating that the CHOOSE members at both schools have been working on this project for about a year. St. Thomas Academy CHOOSE members Peter Balke, Andrew Johnson, Zach Brown and Jonathon Engles, and Visitation School CHOOSE members Michelle Joseph, Monica Rosene and Gabriella (last name not given) described CHOOSE as a group of students who choose a chemical free lifestyle and whose goal is to promote a chemical free lifestyle to others. All of the schools in Mendota Heights have policies that their grounds be tobacco free and CHOOSE believes it is important to promote that message city wide and to provide healthy activities. It is also important for adults to step forward as positive adult role models.. The students feel that adopting the smoke free parks policy will help change the community norm. There are 73 cities in Minnesota that have adopted policies very similar to what the students propose. The students went around the community looking for support and received 17 letters supporting their efforts. CHOOSE will provide all of the signs the city needs and will put them up in the parks. Page No. 4 February 21, 2006 Councilmember Duggan thanked the students for their presentation J and for bringing their concern to Council. Council is not always aware of what happens in the parks and appreciates the students coming forward to better the community. He stated that he has challenges with asthma and understands the students' concerns from a personal standpoint. He appreciates having a tobacco free policy rather than an ordinance at this time. The policy would put the onus on the community and it is worth putting it to the test for two years. The students can come back if they do not feel it is working and suggest that an ordinance be adopted. Councilmember Schneeman stated that she is happy the students have come to Council. She has lost very close relatives to lung cancer from smoking and she is a nurse. She totally supports the request. She also feels that the students should eventually go to the county for support for a county policy. Ms. Marina McManus, Director of Public Health for Anoka County, stated that she worked with Anoka County parks and the county commissioners to pass the second county -wide tobacco free parks policy in the state. She hopes that Dakota County will follow suit. Because it is a policy, the county is not dealing with issues relating to whether it is a crime needing enforcement. As a policy, it is about community policing and social conditioning and individuals feeling compelled to follow the signs. Change is made in some areas one community at a time and she hopes Mendota Heights will be one of those communities. She quotes from a University of Minnesota study that surveyed 1,500 respondents on what their support might be for tobacco free parks. Dr. Tony Ferrara stated that he and his family have used the parks and trails in Mendota Heights for 18 years. He has practiced medicine for 25 years. Just being outside does not make smoking safe. He sees the tragedies of cigarette smoking on a daily basis and is proud that Henry Sibley and District 197 have a no smoking policy on all of their property and facilities. Dr. Steve McDonald stated that he is a dentist and has seen the effects of what nicotine can do to teeth and gums and bone structure and firmly supports the adoption of a policy. Councilmember Duggan moved to adopt a smoke free parks policy and to direct staff to send a letter to Dakota County recommending that it adopt a smoke free zone in all of the parks in Dakota County. Councilmember Schneeman seconded the motion. Page No. 5 February 21, 2006 Acting Mayor Vitelli stated that the item on this evening's agenda is a presentation. He asked City Attorney Diehm if she recommends that Council make adoption of a policy a formal agenda item on the next agenda or if it is appropriate to adopt a policy this evening. Attorney Diehm responded that normally it is preferable to have something on the agenda as an action item and it may be beneficial to have the full Council present to act on the matter. Councilmember Duggan stated that he is comfortable with putting the item on the next agenda as an action item. Council has shown its support this evening and it is not necessary for the students and parents to attend the meeting if they do not wish to. Councilmember Schneeman withdrew her second to the motion. Councilmember Duggan withdrew the motion. Councilmember Duggan moved to continue the item to the next meeting as an action item. Ayes: 3 Councilmember Schneeman seconded the motion. Nays: 0 CELL TOWER REQUEST Council acknowledged a memo from Administrator Danielson regarding a request from T- Mobile Communications to locate two communications towers on city property (City Hall and Wentworth Park). Mr. Steve Carlson, from Carlson & Harrington Commercial Real Estate Services, was present to represent T- Mobile. Acting Mayor Vitelli informed the audience that the city has received a proposal from T- Mobile to raise an existing cell tower on the City Hall property. He has been told that there is a weak signal in this area and the T- Mobile proposal may benefit police and fire as well at T- Mobile. Councilmember Duggan asked Mr. Carlson if the two proposals are contingent on one another. Mr. Carlson responded that they are not. T- Mobile is making two separate proposals. T- Mobile provides coverage in Mendota Heights, but there are areas west of 1-3 5E, north of T.H. 110 and south of T.H. 13 where there is difficulty in providing adequate coverage for Mendota Heights customers, especially in buildings. He showed a map depicting what the coverage would be if T- Mobile rebuilds the tower at City Hall and a map depicting the coverage if a tower is also built at Wentworth Park. The existing police tower Page No. 6 February 21, 2006 would be removed and replaced with a 100 foot monopole structure. T- Mobile would remount the city's equipment on the pole. A height variance would be required. The height could be lowered to 75 feet and no variance would be required, but if another carrier comes along and has the same issues, the question would be whether they could co- locate on the structure or have to find another location. T- Mobile is proposing to build a co- locate structure to provide space for the city, T- Mobile and its competitors. T- Mobile would pay for the cost of development and design it and would work with the city on the design and on a lease. T- Mobile would lease area for its tower and equipment and would lease enough space to allow for another carrier's equipment as well. There are different business structures that can be put together to meet the city's desires. Councilmember Duggan asked about the antenna structure at the top of the tower. He also asked how much higher the proposed tower would be than the existing tower. Mr. Carlson responded that the photo that is in Council's packet shows a crow's nest structure. T- Mobile's crews can stand in the nest to work on the antenna. Projects Coordinator Guy Kullander stated that the current tower is about 40 feet tall. Responding to a question from Councilmember Duggan about locating the antenna on Henry Sibley High School, Mr. Carlson stated that the school does not provide very good coverage. Also, the school district is trying to cancel the antennas that are there right now. They are not taking any new installations. Also responding to Councilmember Duggan, the proposed tower at Wentworth Park would be 75 feet tall. Councilmember Duggan noted that the lease rates proposed in Mr. Carlson's letter are quite a bit lower than what the city now receives. He did not agree with Mr. Carlson's rationale. He stated that he would be looking closer at the agreements the city now has. At the end of 20 years, the lease rate would be $1,065 per month, which is half of what the city currently receives from the other carriers. He understands Mr. Carlson's rationale that T- Mobile is building the tower. Mr. Carlson responded that T- Mobile is willing to negotiate. Rental rates are typically higher on water towers because the city had the capitol expense for the structure. Page No. 7 February 21, 2006 Responding to a question from Acting Mayor Vitelli, Mr. Carlson stated that the cost for the tower is around $100,000 to $150,000. The equipment cost can range from $250,000 to $200,000. T- Mobile is looking at a $250,000 to $350,000 total cost. Acting Mayor Vitelli asked what the financial proposal is to the city if a competitor wants to mount an antenna on the tower. Mr. Carlson responded that he would propose that T- Mobile lease the tower space to the carrier and the city lease the land to them. Every time a competitor locates on the tower, both the city and T- Mobile would be leasing to them. Every carrier's equipment is a bit different. T- Mobile's equipment cabinets typically have a 12 by 15 foot footprint. T- Mobile can either put a fence around the equipment or put cedar fencing around it and can add shrubbery around it to soften the look. Councilmember Schneeman stated that the cabinets are not attractive and T- Mobile will have to really have to work on making the equipment more attractive, especially at Wentworth Park. Acting Mayor Vitelli stated that T- Mobile is proposing $800 per - month for the tower next to City Hall. Apparently that is for rental of the land. He asked how many competitors may be interested in locating on the pole and how much clutter there would be. Mr. Carlson responded that there are four major companies in this area. None of the equipment on the gro9und would be shared. Acting Mayor Vitelli asked Police Chief Aschenbrener what the benefit of the City Hall tower would be to public safety. Chief Aschenbrener responded that he had been hoping that he could work with Nextel when they came in and that he has met with Mr. Carlson. There are serious gaps in coverage because Mendota Heights has difficult terrain and there are challenges with the flight path of aircraft. He would want the city to reserve space on any tower the city allows to go up, and the higher the tower the better. The area below the bluffline creates some huge problems for mobile communications. He does not believe the 800 MHz people will be interested in a site on a cell tower. The police department is using cell phones as part of its communications plan and is working on consolidating all communication services under one umbrella. Getting a space on a tower that is two or two and one half times Page No. 8 February 21, 2006 higher would be very helpful whether it be for cellular or for 700 MHz as well. Acting Mayor Vitelli stated that he can see cell phone service from the tower but is confused about 800 MHz. Chief Aschenbrener responded that the city would reserve vertical space on the tower on which the city would be able to hang antennas. Space would be reserved based on engineering of the tower. He would want to lock space down for exclusive use by government. Mr. Carlson stated that T- Mobile would provide the space on the tower free of charge but would ask for some idea of what type of equipment T- Mobile would need and what height the city would need and would reserve that space. Acting Mayor Vitelli stated that the city might also look at what the cost of the space on the tower would be. Councilmember Schneeman stated that she is interested and thinks it is something Council needs to do. She would like to see staff work more on this issue. Acting Mayor Vitelli asked if it is likely that there would be room to accommodate other cell phone providers. Projects Manager Kullander responded that based on the size of the enclosures at the water tower, a couple of enclosures could fit below the slope on the west side of City Hall. Mr. Larry Craighead stated that he is very interested in the issue. People are using multiple cell phones and cell phone use is still in a growth period. It is important to have three or more locations in the city to provide for the usage. He feels all of the towers should be available to all providers and that Council should think up front what the future city residents' needs will be. Four locations would be good for the whole city. All companies should have equal rights and the city should solicit all of the companies now and have a joint proposal. The city also needs to think about Wi -Fi now. Mr. Ron Berfelz stated that he lives near Wentworth Park and is wondering if there is a constant strobe on the tower. He stated that Wentworth Park is a very low area and asked if the towers project line of sight. Page No. 9 February 21, 2006 Mr. Carlson responded that there is no strobe on the tower. It is line of sight technology and Wentworth Park is going down into a valley. It is not the best choice in location. The largest property owner in the area is Somerset Golf Course but they are not interested in working with T- Mobile. He looked at the Somerset Elementary bell tower, but working with that would be extremely difficult and it is not tall. He feels that Wentworth Park is the best parcel he can come up with. Towers under 200 feet typically do not require any lighting unless it is under an air flight strip. He bound by the FAA requirements and will do an airspace safety study. Chief Aschenbrener stated that if Dakota County enters a consortium for Wi Fi, he would like to have an opportunity even from that location to provide coverage. It appeared from the recent telecommunications workshop that the county will be providing some type of presentations for local governments to consider banding together to provide these services to government and then to the residents. Responding to a question from Acting Mayor Vitelli, Assistant Hollister stated that Council's authority over these proposals is that the city is the landlord and the zoning authority. It appears that both the towers would both require conditional use permits and the tower at City Hall may require a variance. It is possible that in order to accommodate T- Mobile and other companies, Council may wish to revise the cell tower ordinance to encourage the antennas in certain locations. Staff may recommend that Mr. Carlson apply for an amendment to the cell tower ordinance as well as the conditional use permits and variance. Administrator Danielson stated that at first Council tried to protect the city from cell towers and now staff gets calls from residents complaining about the coverage in the city. In order to give the residents the coverage they need, he feels the city needs to continue discussions with T- Mobile. Acting Mayor Vitelli stated that his first reaction to the tower was negative but it is needed. Councilmember Duggan stated that two years ago he suggested forming a technology committee. He would welcome having a quarterly meeting of a group that studies these issues, especially in light of the possibility of the school district not allowing antennas on the Sibley roof. Page No. 10 February 21, 2006 Acting Mayor Vitelli asked staff to make sure in the agreement that the tower is open to co- location. Mr. Carlson stated that he struggled with what to propose at Wentworth Park. The proposed tower is not the most conducive tower for co- location because of its height. It is more of an aesthetic issue. Councilmember Duggan suggested asking for two proposals — the 75 foot tower and a 100 foot tower that would permit collocation for four vendors at the least. Council gave Mr. Carlson and staff direction to discuss the following requirements: co- location, handling the two towers as separate proposals; making sure it is clear about city use of the tower; and, making sure aesthetics are discussed. Acting Mayor Vitelli stated that Xcel Energy has stated it is best not to paint the poles and that galvanized are more aesthetic than painted ones as proposed by T- Mobile. Councilmember Duggan stated that he would support galvanized, unpainted towers. Mr. Craighead suggested that the city invite the other companies in before doing anything with T- Mobile. There may be other locations —three or more - that would work better than Wentworth Park and serve all the customers. Councilmember Duggan suggested sending a letter to the school district to ask their intentions regarding cellular antennas on Henry Sibley High School. Based on their response, Council may want to invite other companies in. If they are not losing space on the high school, he does not see the need to invite them in. Acting Mayor Vitelli stated that T- Mobile must be willing to agree to support any of the city's legal costs if the city needs its attorney to help with the negotiations for putting together a rental agreement. Mr. Carlson stated that he could prepare an agreement using the agreement for the water tower lease as a template and would be open to covering legal costs within reason. Acting Mayor Vitelli directed staff to try to get input on whether the $800 per month is reasonable. Page No. 11 February 21, 2006 Councilmember Duggan stated that, since T- Mobile is designating city space on the tower free of charge, the city needs to also ask what the value of use of the tower is. Councilmember Schneeman moved to authorize moving ahead with the proposal with the following key points: co- location, handling the two towers as separate proposals; making sure it is clear about city use of the tower; agreement from T- Mobile that it will cover reasonable city legal fees; that staff determine the value of the cost of current service; a determination on whether $800 per month is a reasonable fee; and, making sure aesthetics are discussed. Ayes: 3 Councilmember Duggan seconded the motion. Nays: 0 FIFTY YEAR CELEBRATION Council acknowledged a memo from Operations & Projects UPDTE Coordinator Kullander regarding the status of planning efforts for the 50'h Anniversary/Park Celebration. Mr. Kullander presented a summary of planning efforts since the50th Anniversary Committee was formed. Coordination and planning is weak at this time. Volunteers have not come forward to take the lead on the events and prepare detailed plans for what is required. It is difficult to determine a budget for each of the events or what is needed for them. He recommended that city staff take that famction on. They would prepare a basic plan for each event and a guideline for volunteers to pick up on and work with on the day of the event. Acting Mayor Vitelli stated that he had expected a financial report and a report on the activities that are planned and who is assigned to be in charge of them. It is very important that Council understand that if there is a line item for an activity that is planned, that there be one person's name who would be in charge of it. Mr. Kullander stated that many of the items have names and some do not. He was reluctant to only use staff people or people on the committee. He reviewed the budget, stating that most of the activities that have been proposed can be funded adequately. If the fireworks and the 50 state flags cost are eliminated, funding will be very close. If funding efforts are successful, they can be added back in. Acting Mayor Vitelli asked what income is confirmed at this time. Mr. Kullander responded that there is about $21,000 in actual income including the city's budgeted allocation. Page No. 12 February 21, 2006 Acting Mayor Vitelli asked what the best estimate on costs is if the fireworks and flags are eliminated. Councilmember Duggan stated that he does not object to eliminating the two items. If those items are eliminated, there will be more than sufficient money for the events. He also understands where Mr. Kullander is coming from on volunteers. It is a challenge to get volunteers in Mendota Heights, as most people would rather make a contribution. He will work with Co -Chair Spicer and the committee to get volunteers. There will be an article in the next city newsletter asking for volunteers. Acting Mayor Vitelli asked if the demands being placed on city staff are under control. He stated that he is concerned that there will be too much demand on city staff to fill in the holes where people did not show up and things need to be done. He does not want there to be a lot of staff frustration two weeks before and during the event nor does he want staff to be working too much on these things and not be able to do their normal resident support. Mr. Kullander stated that there will probably only be two or three staff people working on this. City staff working at the annual park celebration are three public works staff and four or five city staff people who do functions on that day. The difference is that instead of a four hour window, the events this year will begin at 9:00 in the morning and go on until 11:00 p.m. There will need to be additional people to fill in. The police department should be able to cover the event adequately. The city would need to look to Public Works to see if a couple more of them will help and he would ask for some or all of the part-time public works people to help. By the next Council meeting there should be a solid idea of what has been accomplished and what questions remain. Councilmember Duggan stated that he talked to someone from the Pioneer Press today and he told her that he had a strong sense that the eight page brochure would probably not get approved. The minimum they would do is two pages, and that cost to the city would be $1,050. The Pioneer Press would pay an equal amount through advertising. Councilmember Schneeman stated that she heard the Pioneer Press presentation at the committee meeting. She knows that Mayor Huber is totally against it. Her opinion on spending advertising in the newspaper is that it is a waste of money. She does not want to Page No. 13 February 21, 2006 have to ask Mendota Heights businesses to pay for adds because they have already been asked to contribute to the event. Acting Mayor Vitelli stated that he does not think money should be spent on advertising since the city prepares and distributes a newsletter to all the residents. INFILL WORKSHOP Council acknowledged a memo from Administrator Danielson recommending that Council conduct an infill workshop meeting from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. on March 21. Councilmember Schneeman felt that the time allotted would not be enough. Councilmember Duggan responded that he is not interested in continuing with the infill discussion and does not see any advantage to changing the current ordinance. Acting Mayor Vitelli suggested that the workshop tentatively be scheduled for 6:00 P.M. and if there is a strong feeling it will take longer, Council can change the time to 5:30 or start the regular Council meeting that evening at 8:00 p.m. COUNCIL COMMENTS Councilmember Duggan informed Council that the Do It Best hardware store is having an auction on February 23 at 9:30 A.M. and that he is sorry to see the store go out of business. Acting Mayor Vitelli informed the audience about that there will be an excellent presentation on the dangers of methamphetamines that will be given at Henry Sibley High School on March 6 from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. ADJOURN There being no further business to come before Council, Councilmember Schneeman moved that the meeting be adjourned. Councilmember Duggan seconded the motion. Ayes: 3 Nays: 0 TIME 077RN NTI. 9:36 p.m. Kath M. " ,City Clerk ( Jolin J. Huber, Mayor