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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-24-03 WSCOUNCIL WORK SESSION MINUTES MONDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2003, S:OOPM MARION CONFERENCE ROOM In attendance: Mayor Robert Johnson and Council Members Laurie Rieb, Mark Bellows, David Luick, and Wendy Wulff. Also in attendance: City Administrator Robert A. Erickson, Assistant to City Administrator Brian Anderson, Planning Director Daryl Morey, Planning Commission Chair Lowell Miller Stolte, and Director of Operations and Maintenance Don Volk. Item No. 1 Review of the Townhouse Performance Standards and the Zoning Ordinance Update Phase 2 Mr. Morey stated that when the City Council approved the Zoning Ordinance Update in 2000 they directed the Planning Commission and staff to review the Zoning Ordinance after two years and come back with recommended changes. Phase I of the recommended changes was approved earlier this year and work is being finalized on Phase II changes, which deal predominately with townhouse performance standards. . The Phase II changes being recommended to date have been addressed in the planning consultant's memo and draft redlined ordinance amendments that were included in the City Council's packet materials. Mr. Morey stated that there is a projected inventory of over 2,200 dwelling units, which consist of single-family, townhouse, and apartment units, that will likely be platted and developed in the next two years. This equates to a year and one half supply of single- family homes and athree-year supply of townhouses. Adding the number of units in plats that have been approved but not yet been built raises the inventory to a two-year supply of single-family homes and 4-5 year supply of townhouses. Single-family construction is generally .keeping pace with demand while the townhouse supply is higher than the current demand. The Planning Commission and Planning Director are recommending that the City Council extend the current residential plat moratorium an additional four months to April 21, 2004 to allow adequate time for work to be completed on Phase II of the Zoning Ordinance Update. Council Member Wulff recommended that the moratorium extension exclude single family plats in the RST-2, RM-1, RM-2, RH-1, and RH-2 Districts in recognition of the current market demand for single-family. Mr. Morey then explained that MUSA Expansion Area A is identified in the 1998 Comprehensive Plan Update as being brought into the MUSA for development in the year 2005. The 1998 Comprehensive Plan Update estimates 2,238 acres in MUSA Expansion Area A, almost all of which is zoned for residential land uses. This represents an average of 447 acres of development each year in the five years between the 2005 and 2010 MUSA expansions. Mr. Morey then recommended that MUSA Expansion Area A be delayed for development until the end of 2005, or on December 31St Mayor Johnson inquired as to how soon the Council would need to act. Mr. Erickson stated that it wouldn't have to be done immediately. Mr. Erickson advised the Council to receive the Comprehensive Sewer Plan update regarding MUSA Expansion Area A to ensure the City can provide infrastructure to all of MUSA Expansion Area A before making their decision. Council Member Wulff inquired about updating the City's Strategic Plan in the process to aid in the decision. Mr. Erickson informed Council that would be a tremendous undertaking with staff's current workload. It was then agreed to have the Strategic Growth Management Plan be revised prior to the City's next Comprehensive Plan revision in 2008. Planning Commission Chair Lowell Miller Stolte updated the Council on the Planning Commissions activities and stated that the townhouse performance standards continue to be their primary focus. The Planning Commission has. met with several townhouse developers to address their issues and develop recommendations to the Council regarding those issues. The Mayor asked if any of the builders have been overly concerned about the proposed changes. Mr. Stolte stated that not all of the townhouse developers agree with all of the recommendations, which creates a balancing act between affordability and quality development. Mr. Morey stated that the remaining issue to be addressed, as requested by several of the townhouse developers, is guest parking. Council Member Wulff brought forward the need to correct NAC's memo dated Nov 20, 2003, which incorrectly proposes allowing mini-storage in the O-R District. Mr. Morey acknowledged the error and indicated it should read C-W. • Mr. Erickson stated that several communities are currently facing problems with the exteriors of their townhouses. It appears that the exteriors have outlived their useful life and their associations don't have the funds to replace the exterior materials. In addition, if Lakeville approves the new standards, these townhouses will be more marketable than those in other communities because of their quality construction. Mayor Johnson agreed that quality will add value and longevity to the townhouses. Direction: Council directed staff to forward an ordinance extending the residential plat moratorium to April 21, 2004 with the single-family provision suggested by Council Member Wulff. Council further directed staff to review the feasibility of providing gravity sanitary sewer to all of the area within MUSA Expansion Area A as part of the Comprehensive Sanitary Sewer Plan Update. Item No. 2 Review of Draft Speed Hump Policy Mr. Volk stated he had received many phone calls from residents who perceive the traffic on their street unsafe for their children and themselves. He assured Council that instances where staff identifies unsafe traffic conditions are immediately addressed with corrective measures such as alternative signs or striping. On a similar note, the Speed Hump Policy should be considered as a tool to improve the safety of a roadway. Mr. Volk proceeded by outlining the major issues in the proposed policy and stated he • .utilized both national and local criteria for the consideration of speed humps in this draft policy. He cautioned the Council not to consider the installation of speed humps on the City's collector road system as it may redirect traffic to a local street that was not designed to handle the volume of traffic. Page 2 of 5 Mayor Johnson asked how easy it is to evaluate such conditions. Mr. Volk stated that it was not easy to evaluate and that a traffic consultant would .need to be retained to evaluate traffic patterns. The Mayor also asked the Council if they feel a traffic consultant should be hired at the expense of the petitioner before any speed humps could be approved, thereby enabling the City to obtain a professional study without accruing the additional expenses. The Council agreed. Mr. Volk stated that the Fire Department, Police Department, and ALF Ambulance would prefer not to have speed humps as it reduces their response time. Mayor Johnson stated speed humps also create a snow plowing nuisance which the City roads. In addition, an encumbrance may have to be filed on the property title informing the homeowner of the responsibility for removal of the speed hump(s). Mr. Erickson asked Mr. Volk to research other suburban cities as to what speed bump policies they have initiated along with the resident's responses to the polices. Direction: Council directed staff to: 1) Survey other cities as discussed. 2) Seek a legal opinion regarding a requirement for an encumbrance being filed against the property title. 3) Amend the Draft Speed Hump Policy to include the items discussed in the work session. Item No. 3 Review of Proposed Amendments to Title 4, Ch. 2 Mixed Municipal Solid Waste & Recyclables of the Lakeville City Code Mr. Erickson talked about the proposed ordinance amendments to the Mixed Municipal Solid Waste & Recyclables Code. The described changes would allow waste disposal/recycling companies to serve Lakeville customers with a means to collect non- sorted recyclables on a bi-weekly basis. In addition, waste disposal/recycling companies can provide and own the recycling containers, which will help reduce City/County recycling bin expenses. Direction.- The Council was in favor of bringing proposed amendment changes to the December 1St City Council Meeting for approval Item No. 4 Update on Committee Vacancies Mr. Erickson informed the Council of the Advisory Committee vacancies as outlined in the council packet. He stated the positive influences of having a police officer serving as an ex-officio member of the Planning Commission. Mr. Erickson then asked the Mayor and City Council if they would like to continue having a police officer serving as an ex- officio member of the Planning Commission. The Mayor and Council Members stated they would continue having an ex-officio police officer present at the Planning Commission meetings. Page 3 of 5 . Mr. Erickson stated that a letter has been sent out to the Parks, Recreation, and Natural Resources Committee members inquiring if they were interested in being an alternate for the Black Dog Watershed Management Organization. Staff should receive responses later this week. Council Member Wulff asked. if the Parks, Recreation, and .Natural Resources Committee, which consists of seven committee member, has the appropriate number of members that was approved by Council last December. Mr. Erickson stated he believed that Council approved a reduction from nine to seven members, but would check the ordinance to confirm. Direction: Council authorized staff to advertise for the Advisory Committee vacancies including seeking a replacement officer for the ex-officio position on the Planning Commission. Staff will also check the ordinance to assure the Parks, Recreation, and Natural Resources Committee has the approved number of members. Item No. 5 Discussion of City Administrator Recruitment Process Mr. Erickson stated that he was comfortable with them pursuing the city administrator recruitment process absent his participation, but he would be available as a resource. Currently, the Twin .Cities Metropolitan Area has eleven openings for these positions, which is the highest it has ever been. Openings include cities such as Woodbury, • Plymouth, and St. Louis Park. Mr. Erickson recommended the Council interview the top four instate recruiting firms: Jim Brimeyer, Mark Sathe, Personal Decisions Inc. (PDI), and Springsted. Mr. Erickson suggested that seeking a firm that actually recruits instead of one that merely advertises, will pay dividends in this process. Mayor Johnson inquired about the length of time it takes to fill the position. Mr. Erickson stated it takes about six months to recruit and hire a new administrator. He therefore recommended interviewing the recruiting firms by early January. Direction: The Council agreed to interview all four recruiting firms in one evening during the week of January 5t", 2004. Item No. 6 Other Business 1) Mr. Erickson handed out five photos of the selected tree grates located in downtown Lakeville and stated several of them have heaved, thereby creating a lip that residents could trip over. He stated an elderly gentleman last week tripped over one of the grates and hurt himself. Mr. Erickson therefore recommended Council approval to remedy the tree grate problems. • Direction: Council directed staff to obtain cost estimates to remedy the tree-grate and paver modifications and provide recommendations regarding financing. Page 4 of 5 • 2) Mr. Erickson informed the Council that the Mayor received a letter from fSD 194 requesting a meeting regarding their fiber project. However, ISD 194 received the Mayors letter about the same time and responded by stating they understood the City's position and no longer saw a need for the meeting. Direction: No direction required. 3) Mr. Erickson distributed a draft response to the Council, written by Planning Consultant David Licht of NAC, in regards to the Metropolitan Framework 2030. Mr. Erickson stated that it was going to be presented at a December 3`d public hearing by Council Member Wulff and Mr. Licht. He then asked if other Council Members were interested in attending the public hearing. Council Member Rieb stated she would also attend. Mr. Luick stated that the Advisory Appreciation Dinner was that evening. Mr. Erickson then stated staff would check the times but did believe one of the public hearings is scheduled from 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. Direction: No Direction required. 4) Mr. Erickson informed the Council that former Lakeville Mayor Duane Zaun and CUBA Research Associate Barbara Lukerman were speakers at the October Stn Leadership Lakeville meeting. Mr. Zaun. and Ms. Lukerman spent many hours in • preparing their speeches and were never compensated for their outstanding efforts. Mr. Erickson recently found out that honorariums have been given to previous speakers for their support. Mr. Erickson then asked the Council if they felt inclined to give Mr. Zaun and Ms. Lukerman an honorarium, using the funds from Councils miscellaneous accounts. Direction: Council authorized staff to give both Mr. Zaun and Mrs. Lukerman a $250 honorarium. 5) Mr. Erickson then distributed an updated memo regarding the billboard license fees. It appears that three of the five companies have paid their annual license fee while the remaining two companies have until November 28t" to pay their fees. Direction: No direction needed. The meeting adjourned at 7:1 OPM Respectfully Submitted, / .__-- _. d~~ Brian J. A derson • Assistant to City Administrator Page 5 of 5