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City Council Minutes 03-23-2009Council Minutes: March 23, 2009 MINUTES REGULAR MEETING - MONTICELLO CITY COUNCIL Monday March 23, 2009 - 7 p.m. Members Present: Clint Herbst, Tom Perrault, Glen Posusta, Brian Stumpf and Susie Wojchouski Members Absent: None 1. Call to Order and Pledge of Allegiance. Mayor Herbst called the meeting to order at 7 p.m. and declared a quorum present. The Pledge of Allegiance was said. 2A. Approve minutes of March 9, 2009 Budget Workshop SUSIE WOJCHOUSKI MOVED TO APPROVE THE MINUTES OF THE MARCH 9, 2009 BUDGET WORKSHOP. TOM PERRAULT SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. 2B. Approve minutes of March 9, 2009 Regular Meeting. GLEN POSUSTA MOVED TO APPROVE THE MINUTES OF THE MARCH 9, 2009 REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING. TOM PERRAULT SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. 3. Consideration of adding items to the agenda. An item relating to additional engineering services for the expanded scope of the City's fiber optic network project was added to the agenda as item #14A. Clint Herbst noted that the street sweeper was in use on Saturday and questioned why that was the case. Brian Stumpf explained that it was Wright County and not the City that was out sweeping streets. 4. Citizen comments, petitions, requests and concerns. Al Nystrom, 303 4th Street East, spoke to the Council about being allowed to use his four wheeler on city streets. Heather Courtney Haynes from Catholic Charities spoke supporting Mr. Nystrom's request. The four wheeler is street legal and is a registered vehicle under the State of Minnesota. Brian Stumpf asked Joel Jamnik, legal counsel, if the City could act on requests like this on a case by case basis. Joel Jamnik responded that the City would need to adopt some type of ordinance that would allow the Council to set conditions and issue permits for the use of this type of vehicle on city streets. Other communities have ordinances where the hours of use are specified and specific routes are identified. Brian Stumpf asked if the state regulated the use of four wheelers on state roads and overpasses. Joel Jamnik indicated there are two steps required; one is to prepare the ordinance which outlines the Council Minutes: March 23, 2009 conditions of use and the second is the issuance of a permit once the ordinance is in place. Clint Herbst suggested that this matter be referred to the City Attorney for handling and he informed Al Nystrom that preparing and adopting the ordinance covering this matter would take a little time. The Council asked Mr. Nystrom if he had a driver's license and had completed a drivers training course. Dan Lemm, 113 Cameron Avenue spoke on this item noting that the situation is impacted by ADA regulations. He suggested that the City, if they approve a permit, require that the operator submit proof of insurance coverage and submit test results of training on operation of the vehicle. 5. Consent Agenda: A. Consideration of ratifying hires and departures MCC and Parks. Recommendation: Ratify the hires and departures as identified. B. Consideration of approving a three year contract for fireworks for RiverFest celebration. Recommendation: Award athree-year contract for the fireworks display for Riverfest based on the lowest responsible bidder. C. Consideration of entering into an agreement with a telecommunication company for the purpose of obtaining reliable access to a fiber transmission line. Recommendation: Approve entering into a contract with TBD providing access to a fiber optic transmission line. D. Consideration to adopt a resolution ordering abatement of hazardous building. Recommendation: Adopt a resolution ordering abatement of a hazardous building, based on a finding that the building is unfit for human occupancy and contains conditions which constitute a health, safety and fire hazard to the residents of Monticello. E. Consideration to authorize funding for a required archeological study at the Bertram Chain of Lakes. Recommendation: Authorize funding of one-half of the cost of the required archeological study at Bertram Chain of Lakes with the cost not to exceed $3,900. All items on the consent agenda were removed for discussion except #SC which was tabled. 6. Consideration of items removed from the consent agenda for discussion. #SA Ratify hires and departures: Susie Wojchouski asked if the park employees listed were snow plow operators and was informed by staff that the employees were skating rink attendants. Clint Herbst suggested with the hours of ice time the City is purchasing from the ice arena the City needs to look at how many hours the outdoor rinks should be manned. SUSIE WOJCHOUSKI MOVED TO RATIFY THE HIRES AND DEPARTURES FOR THE MCC AND PARKS DEPARTMENT AS IDENTIFIED. GLEN POSUSTA SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. 2 Council Minutes: March 23, 2009 #SB Contract for Riverfest fireworks: At this meeting the Council received updated information on the third quote for the fireworks display. Finance Director, Tom Kelly provided background information on the quotes received from Melrose Pyrotechnics Inc., Kuhn Fireworks and RES Specialty Pyrotechnics. The Council reviewed the quotes for price and number of shells in the display. GLEN POSUSTA MOVED TO AWARD A THREE YEAR CONTRACT FOR THE FIREWORKS DISPLAY FOR RIVERFEST TO KUHN FIREWORKS. Brian Stumpf asked about the vendor carrying workers compensation insurance and noted that Kuhn Fireworks had not submitted proof of workers compensation insurance. Clint Herbst asked if Kuhn Fireworks were going to increase the display amount in the third year. GLEN POSUSTA AMENDED HIS MOTION TO AWARD A THREE YEAR CONTRACT FOR THE FIRWORKS DISPLAY TO KUHN FIREWORKS WITH THE CONDITION THAT APPROPRIATE INSURANCE COVERAGE BE SUBMITTED. MOTION FAILED FOR LACK OF A SECOND. BRIAN STUMPF MOVED TO AWARD A THREE YEAR CONTRACT TO RES SPECIALTY PYROTECHNICS FOR THE FIREWORKS DISPLAY FOR RIVERFEST CONTINGENT UPON RECEIVING A WRITEN CONTRACT. TOM PERRAULT SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. #SCAgreement with a telecommunications company for the purpose of obtaining reliable access to a fiber transmission line. Staff requested that this item be tabled. SUSIE WOJCHOUSKI MOVED TO TABLE ITEM #SC, ENTERING INTO AN AGREEMENT WITH A TELECOMMUNICATION COMPANY FOR THE PURPOSE OF OBTAINING RELIABLE ACCESS TO A FIBER TRANSMISSION LINE. TOM PERRAULT SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. #SD Resolution ordering abatement of hazardous building: Brian Stumpf asked what this means as far as the basis for the removal of the structure if it is not repaired and who would pay the cost for removal. Joel Jamnik said the demolition cost maybe difficult for the City to recover if the matter goes that far. The intent of the action is to get the structure repaired. Brian Stumpf questioned the extensive repair needed to bring the structure up to livable conditions. He also asked about the legality of the City entering onto property that is not owned by the individual. Joel Jamnik explained the legal procedure. Upon notification by the City the owner has 20 days to respond. The City is then authorized to get an order from the court to enter onto the property to do the abatement. Joel Jamnik said nothing the City is doing by taking this step precludes the owner from taking any action. Richard Wyngard, 9127 State Highway 25, unit 740 spoke. He stated he would like the opportunity to repair the structure if it is possible. He asked what the time frame would be for him to fix up the structure. Clint Herbst said if the owner was actively working on the repairing the structure the City would be flexible in allowing adequate repair time. Mr. Council Minutes: March 23, 2009 Wyngard asked if the City had any assistance programs in place for this type of work. Megan Barnett, Economic Development Director, stated although the City does not have any programs in place there maybe some opportunities through Wright County Community Action or perhaps some state programs. It was suggested that Mr. Wyngard contact Megan Barnett and she would assist him in researching possible assistance programs. Mr. Wyngard asked when he would be allowed back on the property to start work. Glen Posusta asked what precipitated the Building Department to go out to this structure. Gary Anderson said the City received a call from the Wright County Human Services representative asking for his opinion on the condition of the structure. A representative from the Wright County Environmental Health Department was present at the inspection. Glen Posusta asked if the property was in this condition when it was purchased. The owner stated he has pictures of the mobile home when it was sold and there were holes in the ceiling and floor at that time. Glen Posusta questioned why the owner did not go after the seller to get these deficiencies corrected. Gary Anderson replied that it was a foreclosed home and sold as is. Brian Stumpf asked if adopting a resolution ordering the abatement would tie the City into removing the structure if it gets to that point. Joel Jamnik said the matter would come back before the Council before the City would take any action to remove or repair. CLINT HERBST MOVED TO ADOPT A RESOLUTION ORDERING ABATEMENT OF HAZARDOUS BUILDING BASED ON A FINDING THAT THE BUILDING IS UNFIT FOR HUMAN OCCUPANCY AND CONTAINS CONDITIONS WHICH CONSTITUTE A HEALTH, SAFETY AND FIRE HAZARD TO THE RESIDENTS OF MONTICELLO. BRIAN STUMPF SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. #SE Authorize funding for archeological study at the Bertram Chain of Lakes: Brian Stumpf asked when the City went through the grant process for the $1,000,000 if there was any mention in the application that the City would be required to expend monies to have an archeological study done. Clint Herbst said it is state law. Brian Stumpf said he did not have a problem with doing the study but he wanted some assurance that the City knew up front that this was required. Brian Stumpf didn't think he heard anything during Council consideration of this about this survey being required. He said based on the agenda item this archeological survey is a requirement of the LCCMR and it bothered him that this cost was not made known in the beginning of the grant process. Brian Stumpf asked about the $7,800 bid submitted saying he was amazed at the cost difference between the bids which ranged from $7,800 to $83,000. Staff did check the references provided by the low bidder and found them to be satisfactory. Susie Wojchouski asked if anyone from Monticello was actually present at the bid opening which was conducted by Wright County. BRIAN STUMPF MOVED TO AUTHORIZE FUNDING FOR ONE-HALF OF THE COST OF THE REQUIRED ARCHEOLOGICAL STUDY FOR THE BERTRAM CHAIN OF LAKES NOT TO EXCEED $3,900. GLEN POSUSTA SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Tom Perrault pointed out that at this time the City only owns a portion of the property but the survey covers all the property. Susie Wojchouski asked what happens if there are archeological sites on land the City does not own. 4 Council Minutes: March 23, 2009 7. Public Hearing for Municipal Consent of Mn/DOT's staff approved layout for the I-94 Bride Replacement Proiect. City Engineer, Bruce Westby gave a presentation on the proposed MnDOT layout for the I-94 twin bridge replacement project. The City was notified that a municipal consent hearing was required because of the acquisition of the right-of--way for this project. The City's approval is necessary so MnDOT can move forward with this project. Any conditions the City would have on the layout would be submitted to MnDOT who would respond to the issues. If MnDOT does not approve the conditions, the matter would be referred to a third party for resolution of the conditions. Bruce Westby noted it was a MnDOT project and the City would not incur any costs for construction. MnDOT will be reconstructing one mile of eastbound and westbound I-94 including the replacement of the bridges. As a result of this construction westbound I-94 will be moved a little bit to the north and west. The westbound bridge will be relocated slightly but the eastbound bridge will remain in the same location. Bruce Westby explained the reason for the bridge relocation was that in order to reconstruct the bridge MnDOT would have to use this option or build a temporary bridge. This is the least costly option. Bruce Westby noted that .4 miles of East Broadway will be reconstructed as well. Glen Posusta asked if MnDOT was considering opening up the eastbound ramp for a portion of the project and the old westbound ramp as well. Both will be opened up because the off ramp on CSAH 18 will be going through construction. Brian Stumpf felt the eastbound lane from CSAH 75 to the freeway should be left open. MnDOT has certain access specification guidelines and when the CSAH 18 interchange was constructed the City agreed that these ramps would be closed off. Terry Humbert from MnDOT was present at the meeting to answer questions relating to the layout. Clint Herbst stated there is serious traffic on CSAH 18 and TH 25 and he wondered if the City could show that keeping the old ramps open would significantly alleviate traffic would MnDOT consider leaving the ramps open. Terry Humbert thought that would be unlikely since the Federal Highway Administration only wants to allow so many accesses to the interstate and wants to keep freeway access for interstate traffic and not local traffic. Terry Humbert said MnDOT is going to have a 12' auxiliary lane and 6' shoulder going across the bridge. Eventually there will be three lanes and the auxiliary lane going east bound. Susie Wojchouski asked about changing the labeling of the exit into Monticello. She noted it is identified as 194 and people confuse it with I-94. Terry Humbert said it is not likely that it would be changed because they are based on reference markers. Terry Humbert said it is the City's option to push to have the old ramps left open but he did feel it would be difficult to get approval from MnDOT. Terry Humbert said his recommendation would be that the ramps be closed. Glen Posusta said the off ramp was a cleaner way to get to I-94 than using CSAH 18. Terry Humbert said in the two years since the interchange was built the number of crashes has been fairly light. Brian Stumpf questioned the data on the accidents noting that there have been several crashes on I-94 between exits #194 and #195. There was 5 Council Minutes: March 23, 2009 some discussion on the crash data. Tom Perrault thought MnDOT had indicated that the eastbound entrance ramp area was needed for ponding. Terry Humbert said MnDOT was not looking at ponding but he thought perhaps the City was. Bruce Westby said that this area would not be turned back to the City because at some future point the state would need it. Bruce Westby brought up some other items relating to the project one of which is the placement of a cable guardrail along the shoulder of eastbound I-94 by Freeway Fields. MnDOT will be doing a mill and overlay treatment on the old ramp before turning it back to the City. The City will be installing a tree buffer between westbound I-94 and the River Mill development. Clint Herbst asked Terry Humbert what the state's position is on noise walls and who pays for them if they are installed. Terry Humbert responded when MnDOT does a project where they add lanes or change alignment, they would look at putting a wall in. They would do a noise study to see if the noise thresholds are above the standards. MnDOT would calculate the cost of the wall for the number of people benefited to see if it is feasible. Terry Humbert said when the roadway goes to six lanes the noise wall will automatically be part of the study. Bruce Westby also brought up the grading for the North Frontage Road. Initially the project limits extended out into the River Mill area. Since that time the project limits have been pulled in so the rough grading is no longer part of the project. Brian Stumpf felt someone should go to bat for the City to keep the eastbound ramp to I-94 open. Bruce Westby asked if it would help the Council if this item is brought back at the next meeting. Susie Wojchouski suggested that the City approve the layout and have someone on staff work on the proposal to keep the ramp open. Terry Humbert said if they have to wait three weeks that would delay the letting and possibly finishing construction in 2010. Clint Herbst asked if a three week period was enough time to get anything done on an effort to keep the ramp open. Terry Humbert said the City would have to meet with the Federal Highway Administration and get consultants on board to do the study. Terry Humbert thought it would take 6-12 months to go through the process. He noted that it would take some modeling work and added that the state had recently gotten an estimate for modeling work which he thought run $70,000-$100,000. Shibani Bisson noted that the City may have some of this data available from when they did the interchange. Shibani Bisson asked if it would be best to approve the layout and deal with the off ramps as a separate issue. Terry Humbert said he anticipates the pavement will be removed after MnDOT is done using the roadway as a temporary ramp which would be some time in the fall of 2010. Mayor Herbst opened the municipal consent public hearing. Dan Lemm, 113 Cameron Avenue spoke on the new arrangement and questioned whether truck and semi traffic would every use it. He believes truck traffic would go to TH 25 and then go to the freeway. He also asked if the project included straightening the curve on the ramp because that discourages truck traffic from using this route. No one else spoke on the layout and Mayor Herbst closed the public hearing. Clint Herbst said he liked the idea of investigating the ramp situation but he didn't' think the City should be holding up MnDOT's project. Bruce Westby suggested making it part of the motion to explore this option and to get an idea of the cost. 6 Council Minutes: March 23, 2009 BRIAN STUMPF MOVED TO APPROVE MNDOT'S FINAL LAYOUT FOR THE I-94 TWIN BRIDGE REPLACEMENT PROJECT AND ADOPT CITY RESOLUTION NO.2009-13 WITH STAFF GIVEN DIRECTION TO BRING BACK INFORMATION AND COST STUDIES NECESSARY FOR LEAVING OPEN THE EASTBOUND ENTRANCE TO I-94 FROM CSAH 75. GLEN POSUSTA SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. 11. Consideration to approve a request for a conditional use permit to allow outdoor sales and service at River city Extreme for an outdoor volleyball area, zoned B-4, Regional Business. Applicant: River City Extreme. At this time because there was a number of people present to address the item, the Mayor moved agenda item #11, a conditional use permit to allow an outdoor volleyball area for the River City Extreme property, up on the agenda. Consulting Planner, Steve Grittman explained the request for a conditional use permit and the findings of the Planning Commission. River City Extreme is proposing an outdoor area for volleyball use which would be located at the southwest corner of the building. The volleyball season is expected to run from spring through early fall. The area will be fenced in and a building permit will be required for any fence in excess of six feet in height. All access to the enclosed area will be from inside the building. No food or beverages will be served in the outside area. The hours of operation will be from noon to 10 p.m. Steve Grittman noted one of the primary concerns of the residents would be the noise generated by the activity and for that reason the Planning Commission imposed the condition that the applicant would be coming back in November for a review. He stated this is an allowable use in the B-3 and B-4 zoning districts. Brian Stumpf asked if there was anything in the ordinance that would allow anything more than contained in Exhibit Z. Steve Grittman said no. Brian Stumpf said he hoped River City Extreme would do everything on their part to work out any issues that may arise with neighboring residents. BRIAN STUMPF MOVED TO APPROVE THE REQUEST FOR A CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT FOR OPEN AND OUTDOOR SALES AND SERVICE BASED ON A FINDING THAT THE SUBJECT USE IS CONSISTENT WITH THE INTENT OF THE B-4 DISTRICT AND AS NOTED IN THE FINDINGS OF FACT AND THAT CONDITIONS OF APPROVAL HAVE BEEN MET SUBJECT TO THE FOLLOWING: 1) ALL OUTDOOR SERVICE ACTIVITY WILL OCCUR WITHIN AN ENCLOSED (FENCED) AREA. 2) THE HOURS OF OPERATION SHALL BE LIMITED TO NOON (12:00 PM) TO 10:00 P.M WITH A GENERAL END TO ACTIVITIES AROUND 9:30 AND LIGHTS OUT BY 10:00 P.M. 3) UPON CONSTRUCTION OF PHASE II OF THE PRINCIPAL BUILDING THE VOLLEYBALL COURT USE SHALL NO LONGER BE PERMITTED. 4) ANY ADDITIONAL LIGHTING OR SIGNAGE TO ACCOMMODATE THE VOLLEYBALL USE SHALL REQUIRE AN AMENDMENT TO THE CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT. ALTERNATIVE HOURS SHOULD BE CONSIDERED IF THE CURRENT/NATURAL LIGHT PROVES TO BE ADEQUATE. 5) A BUILDING PERMIT SHALL BE REQUIRED FOR ANY FENCE IN EXCESS OF SIX FEET IN 7 Council Minutes: March 23, 2009 HEIGHT. 6) THE APPLICANT IS TO COMPLY WITH THE STATED LIMITATIONS ON ACCESS AND UTDOOR SALES AND SERVICE AS SPECIFIED WITHIN THE STAFF REPORT OF 3/10/09. 7) APPLICANT IS TO COMPLY WITH THE CITY'S CODES RELATED TO NOISE. 8) THE CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT IS TO BE REVIEWED BY THE CITY FOR COMPLIANCE IN NOVEMBER, 2009. GLEN POSUSTA SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY WITH TOM PERRAULT VOTING 1N OPPOSITION. Tom Perrault expressed concern about the noise generated by this use. Susie Wojchouski noted the comments received from a resident about the number of days of operation. Mark Parnell one of the owners of River City Extreme explained that the volleyball court would be open six days a week with Monday through Friday being used for league activity. The hours of operation for Monday through Friday would be from 4:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. 8. Public Hearing: Establishment of Business Subsidy Criteria. Economic Development Director, Megan Barnett explained the purpose of the public hearing on the Business Subsidy Criteria. A joint workshop of the EDA and City Council was held on February 11, 2009 to review the Business Subsidy Criteria. A public hearing must be held on the criteria and approval of the same must be given by both the EDA and City Council. Mayor Herbst opened the public hearing. There was no one present who spoke for or against the establishment of the Business Subsidy Criteria. Mayor Herbst then closed the public hearing. BRIAN STUMPF MOVED TO APPROVE RESOLUTION N0.2009-14 ADOPTING A BUSINESS SUBSIDY CRITERIA. GLEN POSUSTA SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. 9. Consideration of adopting an ordinance amending Title 7, Chapter 1, Public Nuisances. D.J. Hennessey and Gary Anderson of the Building Department presented information on the proposed amendment. Wright County is offering to provide prosecution for nuisance type violations. The City's nuisance ordinance was reviewed and changes were made to clarify and adjust to the prosecution procedures of the County. D.J. Hennessey explained what items were added. He said the current procedure for nuisance violations is time consuming. Under the new process an inspection is made and after the appropriate response time has lapsed a follow up inspection is conducted and if the property is still in non-compliance a request for criminal prosecution is sent to the Sheriffls Department who will issue a citation for the violation. Glen Posusta said he didn't have a problem voting for this but he wanted to make staff aware that this is not a black and white issue. There are gray areas and the staff should have some flexibility. It was noted the ordinance was amended to dovetail with the County prosecuting process. SUSIE WOJCHOUSKI MOVED TO APPROVE ADOPTION OF THE ORDINANCE AMENDMENTS TO TITLE 7, CHAPTER 1 "PUBLIC NUISCANCE". 8 Council Minutes: March 23, 2009 Tom Perrault commented he was fine with the streamlined ordinance but there were substantial changes and he wondered why it didn't go before the Planning Commission. Joel Jamnik said the ordinance amendment did not require Planning Commission action since it was a police matter. It was clarified that 7-1-4 deals with violations that misdemeanors and Section 7-1-2 deals with violations that petty misdemeanors. BRIAN STUMPF SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED WITH TOM PERRAULT VOTING IN OPPOSITION. 10. Consideration of approving amendment to Business Subsidy as related to TIF/GMEF/Small cities. These documents are currently in place but the EDA and staff have revised the documents clarifying certain areas and making the document more user friendly. The revised documents follow all applicable state and federal regulations. GLEN POSUSTA MOVED TO APPROVE THE AMENDED BUSINESS SUBSIDY CRITERIA RELATING TO MONTICELLO SMALL CITIES ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SET ASIDE FUND. SUSIE WOJCHOUSKI SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. SUSIE WOJCHOULSKI MOVED TO APPROVE THE AMENDED BUSNESS SUBSIDY CRITERIA RELATING TO TAX INCREMENT FINANCING. TOM PERRAULT SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. SUSIE WOJCHOUSKI MOVED TO APPROVE THE AMENDED BUSINESS SUBSIDY CRITERIA RELATING TO GREATER MONTICELLO ENTRERPRISE FUND. BRIAN STUMPF SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Susie Wojchouski asked if the TIF District study is done yet. Megan Barnett says it will be ready for the Apri18, 2009 EDA meeting. 11. Consideration to approve a request for a conditional use permit to allow outdoor sales and service at River city Extreme for an outdoor volleyball area, zoned B-4, Regional Business. Applicant: River City Extreme. Moved up on the agenda. 12. Consideration to enter into a listing agreement for the city owned industrial land with Nelson Realty. Megan Barnett explained this item came forward from discussions at the Marketing Committee and IEDC. It was the opinion of these bodies that the City should take steps to market the City's industrial property. Staff was directed to contact commercial brokers to see what interest there was in marketing the property. Four commercial brokers were contacted but only one, Nelson Realty, expressed any interest in a listing agreement. The listing agreement was brought to the Marketing Committee and was reviewed by the EDA on March 11, 2009. The EDA added a transaction fee to the listing agreement. This would be used when the City, for 9 Council Minutes: March 23, 2009 whatever reason, chooses to cut down the sale price in order to attract a big buyer. Staff is asking for direction on listing city owned land. The Council discussed the firms contacted and Clint Herbst asked how these firms are represented in other area communities and how they would bring business into Monticello. Andy Larson from Nelson Realty explained they are marketing a 40 acre tract adjacent to the City's industrial park. Clint Herbst felt the City should be getting rid of much of the property the City currently owns. Megan Barnett said that is the ultimate goal but they want to get the marketing of the industrial land in place first. Wayne Elam of Vantage Point Realty also spoke stating they represent property in Monticello as well as throughout Wright County and cited the Annandale Industrial Park as an example. He added the Annandale Industrial Park is the only industrial land they represent. Wayne Elam felt it was important that when someone comes to the City looking at land it is important that the City is represented by a firm with an extensive network. Susie Wojchouski asked if Wayne Elam was part of the Marketing Committee. He responded he is but had only attended one meeting thus far. Wayne Elam is also a member of the IEDC. Clint Herbst felt a group from the Council should be talking to the individual brokers. Megan Barnett felt the lowest price is a factor to consider but knowledge of the area, their network and who they are associated with in Monticello are also considerations. Lynn Dahl Fleming, 113 Locust Street who is a member of the Marketing Committee and chair of the IEDC felt there was a conflict of interest in the proposal submitted by Wayne Elam. She stated Wayne Elam did sit in on the Marketing Committee meeting and did review the Nelson agreement. She finds it unethical on Elam's part to submit a proposal since he had reviewed the Nelson proposal. She felt it was poor judgment on the part of City staff to include this submittal from Elam in the agenda packet. She requested that Council deny consideration of Wayne Elam's proposal. In response to Ms. Flemings remarks Clint Herbst stated that staff should include any correspondence addressed to Council in their agenda packets. John Chadwick 11430 Zion Circle, Bloomington stated he is the owner of the 40 acre parcel referenced by Andy Larson. He felt it is good to provide some competition to those who are bringing people out to look at property and he supports the City in their efforts. Brian Stumpf asked if Vantage Point was contacted to submit a proposal. Megan Barnett responded that when Vantage Point was contacted they had indicated they were not interested. BRIAN STUMPF MOVED TO ENTER 1NT0 A LISTING AGREEMENT WITH NELSON REALTY. SUSIE WOJCHOUSKI SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Clint Herbst felt Nelson Realty did a lot work to get an agreement to the Council for consideration. Glen Posusta said advertising the land for $1 /square foot would discourage people who sell based on commission. Megan Barnett said some brokers don't like to sell land by committee and many of the larger brokers favor the metro area and are not interested in this area. Glen Posusta asked how long the listing agreement ran and was informed it was a one year agreement which could be cancelled with 30 days notice. 10 Council Minutes: March 23, 2009 Glen Posusta asked about throwing other city owned land into the mix. Megan Barnett responded that before they can do that staff needs to know what sites the Council will actively support marketing. She suggested that the City prepare an RFP for marketing the sites. Brian Stumpf asked for a list of all City owned property that is available for sale. Susie Wojchouski commented that she had requested such a list several months ago but has not received anything. 13. Consideration of approving additional landscape screening for the WWTP. Public Works Director, Bob Paschke submitted a drawing showing additional landscaping around the wastewater treatment facility. The Council discussed whether there was a need for additional plantings. Glen Posusta stated that every building is required to have multiple trees around the property and that should include City owned facilities. Bob Paschke said based on Section 3-2 of the ordinance the landscaping at the wastewater treatment facility meets or exceeds the landscaping requirements. Clint Herbst stated that on previous occasions the Council had talked about the planting requirements of the ordinance and felt that it was overkill. The cost of the additional plantings was also questioned and Bob Paschke suggested that maybe the City could transplant some existing trees to the site which would reduce the cost. Clint Herbst suggested that the Public Works Department consider establishing a nursery possibly on the property proposed for a future Public Works Building. BRIAN STUMPF MOVED TO DELAY THE ADDITIONAL LANDSCAPE SCREENING FOR THE WASTEWATER TREATMENT FACILITY AT THIS TIME. SUSIE WOJCHOUSKI SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED WITH GLEN POSUSTA VOTING IN OPPOSITION. 14A. Consideration of extended engineering services? Don Patten explained the added agenda item. As part of the grant application for stimulus funding the City is being asked to approve a contract for additional services from Spectrum to prepare information for an expanded area fiber optics project. The City also wants to bring back the 2008 fiber optics project for 2009 construction. Updating this project would be a substantial portion of the cost. The work Spectrum is being asked to perform was included in the agenda packet. Brian Stumpf asked if the expanded scope of the project would mean more in the way of stimulus funds. Don Patten said the City would be making a request for the initial project and the expanded project. He felt it was important to submit both and not just one or the other. Don Patten said he also recommends that the City include a drop at each address. Brian Stumpf felt the City should stick with their original plan to use for the grant application for stimulus funds. With the expanded project area he felt the perception would be that the City was overstepping their bounds. Council indicated that they were uncomfortable acting on this since they only received the information tonight and did not have adequate time to review it. It was explained that the proposed work would include cost estimates for the expanded area for a 2009 construction project. Don Patten said the work requested has to be done in order to submit the application for stimulus funds. The extra cost of $16,000 was to prepare and update all documents needed for submittal for stimulus funding. Clint Herbst felt that it would look 11 Council Minutes: March 23, 2009 better for funding purposes if the City was reaching out to serve more people. Don Patten stated the City has met with the Wright County IT Department and expect their endorsement of the project. CLINT HERBST MOVED TO APPROVE THE TASK ORDER SUBMITTED BY SPECTRUM ENGINEERING FOR ENGINEERING AND DESIGN SERVICES IN THE AMOUNT OF $16,536 PLUS TRAVEL EXPENSES AND 1N ADDITION AUTHORIZE THE USE OF RESERVES TO COVER DESIGN COSTS TO BE REIMBURSED WITH INTEREST FROM BOND PROCEEDS OR STIMULUS GRANT FUNDING. Don Patten said the City would need construction numbers for the stimulus application whether the fiber optic project is the 2008 project or the 2009 project. Clint Herbst emphasized that to get everything that is needed for the stimulus funding application this work has to be done in order to make this a "shovel ready" project. Don Patten said Monticello was 1 of 4 projects that was truly shovel ready. He felt it is important that the project submittal shows true construction numbers. Clint Herbst reiterated his view that the bigger the scope of the project the better the chance of getting funding. The Council indicated that they were not comfortable with expanding the scope of the project. CLINT HERBST AMENDED HIS MOTION TO LIMIT THE BOUNDARY SCOPE OF THE PROJECT TO THAT OUTLINED IN THE 2008 PROJECT. BRIAN STUMPF SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Don Patten clarified that in the stimulus funding request the City was not asking for funding a project that was beyond the city limits of Monticello. The Council indicated that was the case. 14. Approve payment of bills for March. BRIAN STUMPF MOVED TO APPROVE PAYMENT OF THE BILLS. TOM PERRAULT SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. 15. Adiourn TOM PERRAULT MOVED TO ADJOURN AT 9:55 P.M. CUNT HERBST SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. 1..~~., ,~ _. Recording Secretary ,j 12