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City Council Minutes 02-25-1985MINUTES REGULAR MEETING - MONTICELLO CITY COUNCIL February 25, 1985 - 7:30 P.M. Members Present: Mayor Arve Grimsmo, Fran Fair, Bill Fair, Jack Maxwell, Dan Blonigen. 1. Call to Order. 2. Approval of Minutes. Motion was made by Fran Fair, seconded by Blonigen, and unanimously carried to approve the minutes of the regular meeting held February 11, 1985. 4. Consideration of Softball Field Development. At the last Council meeting, the City Council requested that the Public Works Director present additional cost information for the development of all three softball fields at the NSP Park during 1985. Public Works Director, John Simola, reviewed with the Council the detailed cost for renovating the two existing fields and the construction of a new third field. The total cost for the improvements was estimated at $25,120.00 with the majority of the work being contracted out. It was also estimated that the City maintenance cost for the softball fields in 1985 would total $3,480.00, making the total expenditures for 1985 approximately $28,600.00. Mr. Simola noted that an approximate $3,330.00 would be needed in 1986 for the addition of bleachers for the new field and improvements to the parking lot facility. Council members noted that the Softball Association would be expected to work with the City staff in arriving at an agreement as to what charges each team would be expected to pay annually to the City for use of the fields and maintenance in the near future. It has been estimated that the annual per team contribution would be between $200.00 and $300.00 annually to help defray the cost of the proposed improvements and maintenance. A motion was made by Bill Fair, seconded by Jack Maxwell, and unanimously carried to authorize the expenditure of approximately $28,600.00 in 1985 for the upgrading of the two existing softball fields and the development of a new third softball field including sprinklers and a new well. If the Softball Association can generate enough new interest from additional teams in the coming years, the Council would then consider additional improvements that might include restroom and concession stand facilities along with possible lighting of one field. Council Minutes - 2/25/85 5. Consideration of a Preliminary Plat - Applicant, Construction 5. At the January 14, 1985, Council meeting, Construction 5, Inc., filed a petition requesting that the City vacate Sixth Street near the Rand Mansion. At that time, the City requested that the developer consider replatting his entire property into a new subdivision that would provide for a new roadway alignment for Lauring Lane, and at the same time the City would consider vacating all of the current undeveloped streets within their property. A preliminary plat was presented to the Planning Commission, which approved the subdivision request contingent upon minor details being corrected by the developer. It was noted that if the preliminary plat is approved, the City will be working with its tax increment consultant, Holmes & Graven, and with the City Engineer to discuss the making of public improvements throughout the entire area. Because of the topography of the land, the construction of public improvements such as sewer, water, and streets may be extremely costly; and it may be beneficial to create a Tax Increment District surrounding this property to help defray some of the high cost of the public improvements. Motion was made by Bill Fair, seconded by Blonigen, and unanimously carried to approve the preliminary plat for Construction 5 as presented provided the comments by the City Engineer and City Planner are incorporated into the final plat. 6. Clarification of Previous Motion Relating to Requirements to Reserve On -Sale Intoxicating Liquor License - Applicant, Stuart Hoglund. At the last Council meeting, a motion was made and passed to allow Mr. Stuart Hoglund to pay only the 4th Quarter pro rata fee of the annual liquor license, which would expire July 1, 1985. As part of the State requirements for issuing an on -sale liquor license, Mr. Hoglund, before being actually granted a liquor license by the Liquor Control Commissioner, must submit a surety bond and dramshop insurance. Mr. Hoglund requested that the insurance requirements be postponed until he was actually able to use the license at his new motel, but he would pay the 4th Quarter fee. It was noted that if Mr. Hoglund wanted a guaranteed license to be in effect, the City has no choice but to require that all insurance forms be properly submitted to the Liquor Control Division. It was the consensus of the Council that the previous action requiring the last quarter's fee plus all other insurance requirements stand as passed and notify Mr. Hoglund that the insurance requirements must be met per State Statutes. The City will forward the application to the State as soon as the items are provided by Mr. Hoglund. -2- Council Minutes - 2/25/85 7. Consideration of a Conditional Use Request to Allow an Apartment Building to be Constructed in Excess of 12 Units - Applicant, Metcalf & Larson. Mr. Jim Metcalf and Mr. Brad Larson, partners in the Metcalf & Larson Law Firm, are proposing to construct a 33 -unit subsidized low to moderate income apartment building in Lauring Hillside Addition. The apartment building would consist of 19 one -bedroom units and 12 two-bedroom units, with an additional 2 two-bedroom units for the handicapped. The proposed 33 -unit apartment building appears to meet all minimum requirements of the City Zoning Ordinance and was approved by the Planning Commission. Motion was made by Fran Fair, seconded by Maxwell, and unanimously carried to approve the conditional use request for the construction of a 33 -unit low and moderate income apartment building. 8. Consideration of Variance Request Appeal to Allow No Garages to be Constructed on a 33 -unit Apartment Building Site - Applicant, Metcalf & Larson. As discussed in the previous item, a conditional use permit was granted to Metcalf & Larson to build a 33 -unit subsidized low and moderate income apartment building. The developers requested a variance from the City Ordinances which require at least one enclosed garage structure per two units and requested that no garages be required for this project. The variance request was denied by the Planning Commission at their last meeting, and the developers appealed to the City Council for their consideration. Mr. Jim Metcalf explained to the Council that the financing for this apartment project would be coming from Farmers Home Administration, and he noted that Farmers Home does not consider garages a necessity and will not finance construction of garages. In addition, Mr. Metcalf noted that an adjacent housing development owned by Reinert Construction was not required to construct one garage unit for every two units, as that project has 48 total units with only 9 garages. It was noted by the Council during its discussion that the type of financing used to construct apartment buildings should not always dictate whether or not garages are required and felt that the Ordinance requirement for garages helps eliminate blight by providing storage facilities that are needed at apartment sites. It was also felt by the Council that the requirement of garages would not be a hindrance to a developer in that there are normally waiting lists at other projects for renting of garages. -3- Council Minutes - 2/25/85 As a result, motion was made by Blonigen, seconded by Fran Fair, and unanimously carried to deny the variance request to allow no garages to be constructed on the 33 -unit apartment building site. 9. Consideration of Conditional Use Request to Allow an Additional Number of Vehicles to be Placed on an Outdoor Sales Lot - Applicant, Monticello Auto Sales. Dr. McCarty, operator of Monticello Auto Sales, requested a conditional use to allow him to increase the number of vehicles currently parked on his outdoor sales lot on the former Dino's Other World property from the present 10 to a maximum of 20. The current site has sufficient room for the 20 vehicles requested, and the request was previously approved by the Planning Commission. It was noted that if the additional 10 vehicles are allowed at the site, 20 would be the maximum allowed at any time of the week and that all sales activity must take place at his commercial business establishment downtown and no sales can be conducted at his residence. Motion was made by Blonigen, seconded by Bill Fair, and unanimously carried to grant a conditional use permit allowing an extra 10 vehicles to be placed at his outdoor sales lot for a maximum of 20. 10. Consideration of Conditional Use Request to Allow Outdoor Sales, Service, and Outdoor Storage in a B-3 Zone - Applicant, Samuel Properties. Mr. Sam Peraro requested a conditional use permit to build a 40' x 60' retail business building that would accommodate a rental equipment business in Sandberg South Subdivision along Highway 25. The conditional use permit is necessary, as this project is proposing a 30' x 40' screened in storage area. The site plan as submitted meets all other City requirements and was approved by the Planning Commission at their last meeting. Motion was made by Fran Fair, seconded by Maxwell, and unanimously carried to approve the conditional use request to allow outdoor sales, service, and outdoor storage in Sandberg South Addition. 11. Consideration of Senior Citizen Director Attending National Conference on Aging. Senior Citizen Center Director, Karen Hanson, requested permission to attend the National Conference on Aging in San Francisco, California, April 21 through April 24, 1985. The projected cost for Karen to attend this conference was estimated at $875.00, which was budgeted for in 1985. -4- Council Minutes - 2/25/85 It was noted that the last national conference the Senior Citizen Center Director attended was in 1980, and past Council policy has been to allow the Director to attend national conferences on an irregular basis upon Council approval. Motion was made by Maxwell, seconded by Blonigen, and unanimously carried to approve and authorize Karen Hanson to attend the National Conference on Aging in San Francisco April 21 through April 24. 12. Consideration of Sale of City Truck. As part of the recent purchase of a new dump truck, the low bidder, Hoglund Bus Company, allowed a guaranteed trade-in value of $3,000.00 for the City's 1972 Chevrolet dump truck. The City also advertised for sale the truck for the past two weeks and opened bids on Wednesday, February 20, 1985. The high bid at that sale was from Fred Bonk of Buffalo, Minnesota, in the amount of $4,850.00; and it was recommended by the Public Works Director that the vehicle be sold to Mr. Bonk for this amount. Motion was made by Blonigen, seconded by Bill Fair, and unanimously carried to award the sale of the 1972 Chevrolet truck and snow plow to Mr. Fred Bonk in the amount of $4,850.00. 13. Consideration of a Resolution Allowing Municipal Employees to Enroll in a Deferred Compensation Program. In addition to PERA, public employees are allowed to enroll in various programs that allow one to defer part of their annual compensation. During the past few weeks, the City employees have heard presentations from two deferred compensation programs and have expressed interest in taking advantage of a deferred compensation program. In order to initiate a deferred compensation program, the City Council must adopt a resolution allowing for a payroll deduction and ordering that it be paid into an approved deferred compensation plan. City Administrator explained to the Council that the actual resolution authorizing a deferred compensation program for the employees was not available for this meeting but would be presented at the next scheduled Council meeting for their action. It was the consensus of the Council to place this item on the next Council meeting for their consideration. 14. Fire Hall Committee Progress Report. The Council was updated on the progress of the Fire Hall Building -5- Council Minutes - 2/25/85 Committee, which has met three times since January 15. A number of major decisions have been made in regards to the design of the new Fire Hall, but the Fire Department representative on the Committee raised concerns that members of the public were becoming openly critical as to some of the decisions made by the Planning Committee. Some of the major design features agreed upon to date for the Fire Hall are that the building apparatus room will be constructed of concrete block, with the remainder of the building being a wood frame construction. The wood frame construction was recommended by the architect primarily because it would be more energy efficient. According to the Fire Department representative on the Building Committee, the public's main concern has been in this area of wood construction rather than the entire building being constructed of block. The purpose of this informational item was to get a direction from the Council as to whether they will be accepting the Building Committee's recommendations, or if they will be overriding any decision made by the Building Committee. After reviewing the progress of the Building Committee, it was the general consensus of the Council that they would be going along with the Building Committee's recommendations, which at this time appear to be a block construction for the main apparatus room and the balance of the building being wood frame construction with cedar siding. Plans and specifications should be available at the end of March by the architect. 15. Consideration of Bills for the Month of February. Motion was made by Blonigen, seconded by Maxwell, and unanimously carried to approve the bills for the month of February as presented. UV Rick Wolfste er Assistant Administrator afl