City Council Minutes 09-27-2004 SpecialMINUTES
SPECIAL MEETING - MONTICELLO CITY COUNCIL
Monday September 27, 2004
5:30 p.m.
STRATEGIC PLANNING SESSION
Mayor: Bruce Thielen
Council Members: Roger Carlson, Glen Posusta, Robbie Smith and Brian Stumpf
1. Call to Order
Mayor Thielen called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m.
2. Presentation by Springsted Inc., discussion of visioning/planning proposal and directing
staff to coordinate development of a work plan and cost proposal for comprehensive
visioning and associated land use, infrastructure and organizational planning process.
Bruce Thielen explained the purpose of the meeting which is to outline a process for doing
strategic planning for the City. Also attending the meeting were Bill Joynes and Sharon
Klumpp from Springsted and Mike Moriarity and other representatives from Heritage
Development.
With the annexation agreement in place, the City is facing certain development pressure and
the Mayor felt the City needed to look at doing some long term planning. The components of
the strategic planning would include update of comprehensive land use plan and
comprehensive utility and transportation plans; goal setting and human resources.
Bill Joynes explained the process they would utilize to put in to place a visioning statement and
a strategic planning process.
Representatives from Heritage Development were present to let the Council know of their
proposed development in Monticello encompassing 800 acres. They presented a preliminary
layout of the proposed development and gave some background information about their
company and the areas they have been developing in. There was some discussion on the
proposed development. The developers thought the City was getting a good value by doing
comprehensive planning for a large area. Bruce Thielen felt that the potential for this kind of
development illustrates the need for the City to do some long term planning.
Bruce Thielen stated this is an example of the development pressure the City is experiencing.
He felt it was important for the City to do planning now to prevent future problems. He felt
that the rapid growth and potential developments could be overwhelming for staff unless they
have plans in place to help them deal with the growth. Bill Joynes said the City could react to
the development as it occurs or be proactive. In going through development you have to know
what the impact of that development will be. What is going to be the impact on transportation,
Council Minutes Special meeting - 9/27/04
utilities, park system and staffing needed to handle the demands created by growth. The
planning process will also give the City an opportunity to see what happens if certain factors
occur. The annexation agreement created a real pressure for development and because
Monticello is in a prime growth area there was already a pressure for development. Now
before development takes place is a good time for the City to look at what they want the City to
be like in 5-10 years.
Bill Joynes stated that part of the process is getting community input. In the proposal
presented they include a community survey of what residents want to see. These decisions will
generate the projects and the City will then need to prioritize them.
Part of the dilemma staff faces without having the planning documents in place is that there is a
development push from all sides. Does this development pattern continue or should the City
focus on development in one area. It was noted that most of the development in the City has
been occurring in increments of 40-80 acres. Is this the size they want to continue with or can
800 acre developments be handled.
Glen Posusta questioned why the developers weren't paying for the cost of the studies. If the
infrastructure is needed for the development the developers should be picking up the cost. Bret
Weiss explained the comprehensive studies were to help the City do long range planning. The
individual studies necessary for planning utilities and streets for a development are costs that
are picked up developers.
Bruce Thielen stated the long term planning would involve input from the Township as well as
residents of the City. Robbie Smith stated he like the idea that the process included input from
the community overall. It was suggested that maybe in the planning process, if Springsted
was selected to this study, they could meet with developers and business owners without the
Council or staff present to delve into the issue of whether the City was difficult for developers
and business owners to work with. Bill Joynes said that it was difficult for communities to try
to stop growth from taking place so the best they can do is hope to manage it. Roger Carlson
stated that when the planning process was done in 1997 this information was kind of thrown at
staff without direction or resources for implementing it.
Springsted will put together a work plan, a time frame for completing it and an estimated cost
for the project. The Council can then decide which items to pursue. Rick Wolfsteller asked
about getting community input and if there is a portion of the study that needs to get done first.
It was felt that the City needed a land use plan and infrastructure information so that there are
specific items to talk about and prioritize.
Glen Posusta asked about the capacity that remained at the wastewater treatment plan. John
Simola stated that at the present rate of growth they would anticipate an upgrade would be
needed in 8 years. If the growth explodes, it could be sooner. Bret Weiss said when the
original annexation area of 11,500 acres was looked it was proposed that it could be serviced
by the existing plant with expansions but he cautioned that it all depends on how the land
2
Council Minutes Special meeting - 9/27/04
develops. John Simola stated that one issue would be whether the City would be allowed
another discharge point on the Mississippi or if they would have to discharge to a body of water
that discharged to the river. He added the more people the City adds, the more refined the
treatment process has to be in order to meet the discharge requirements of their permit.
Bill Joynes indicated they would have a proposal for the October 11, 2004 meeting. A
workshop on the strategic planning process was scheduled for 5:30 p.m. on October 11, 2004.
3. Adjourn
The workshop was closed at 6:30 p.m.
Recording Secretary `