Loading...
City Council Minutes 08-03-1981MINUTES REGULAR MEETING - MONTICELLO CITY COUNCIL August 3, 1981 - 7:30 P.M. Members Present: Arve Grimsmo, Fran Fair, Ken Maus, Dan Blonigen. Members Absent: Phil White. 1. Consideration of an Ordinance Amendment to Allow a Day Care/Nursery School within in an I-1 Zone and a Conditional Use Request by Pam Lindberg/United Methodist Church. Mrs. Pam Lindberg requested that the city amend it's ordinances to allow a day care/nursery school as a conditional use within an in- dustrial zone. The reason for the request was that Mrs. Lindberg proposed to open a nursery school in the lower level of the educa- tional unit of the Methodist Church located on Lots 8, 9, and 10, Block 19, property which is currently zoned light industrial. A day care or nursery school is currently not allowed as a condi- tional use except within a residential zoned area,and as a result the property in question would either have to be rezoned or an amendment would have to be added to the industrial zoning,whereby this use could be allowed as a conditional use. Mr. John Uban of Howard Dahlgren & Associates, consulting planner, prepared a written report which indicated that a day care or nursery school could be allowed as a conditional use within an I-1 zone con- tingent upon strict conditions being applied to such a use. Mr. Uban indicated that it is becoming more customary to allow nursery schools within industrial and commercial zones since many times larger indus- tries are now providing day care centers as a convenience for their employees. Factors to be considered in allowing a day care center within an industrial zone would be such items as general noise levels, the amount of truck or train traffic in the area, the type of indus- trial businesses currently located in the area, and whether danger- ous materials are produced or present, and whether the area in ques- tion has a particularly high fire potential. At the public hearing held by the Planning Commission, it was recom- mended that the ordinances be amended to allow a day care or nursery school within an I-1 zone provided the conditions recommended by the city planner are made part of the ordinance and that any open space used as playground areas for a day care center be completely fenced in. Mrs. Pam Lindberg indicated that they would be willing to fence in the entire parking lot area that will be used at the Methodist Church for a playground for the children if their request for a conditional use was granted. In addition, Mrs. Lindberg noted that their present plans call for utilizing the Methodist Church site for possibly only one to three years and then finding a better suited area for the Pump- kin Patch nursery school. - 1 - Council Minutes - 8/3/81 A motion was made by Fair, seconded by Blonigen and unanimously carried to adopt an ordinance amendment that would allow a day care and nursery center within an I-1 zone as a conditional use with the conditions recommended by the city planner along with the existing requirements of a day care center as indicated in the present city ordinances. In addition, the motion included the granting of a conditional use permit to Pam Lindberg for the Pumpkin Patch day care center at the Methodist Church property provided all conditions are met and the entire playground area is fenced in. (See Ordinance Amendment 8-3-81 #105). 2. Consideration of a Conditional Use Permit for a PUD - Jack Kornovich. Mr. Jack Kornovich requested a conditional use permit for a Planned Unit Development to be located on a parcel of land located between Cty Road 39 and the railroad tracks lying between Kampa Estates and Northern States Power Company's maintenance building. The proposed Planned Unit Development would be a residential develop- ment consisting of four -12 unit apartment buildings and four -6 unit garage buildings. The request at this meeting was that the approval be granted on this conditional use permit request for the general concept stage of this development and that prior to any development occurring, additional approval of the council would be required on a stage by stage basis. It was noted that all the yard and open areas including the roads and parking lots would be owned in common by the Townhouse Association which would be responsible for maintenance and upkeep of the buildings and grounds. At the public hearing held by the Planning Commission on the Planned Unit Development, concerns were expressed by some of the property owners in the Kampa Estates Development lying directly west of the proposed development site, regarding the possible.traffic hazards, etc., that may occur from this development having their access from Kampa Circle, rather than having their own access onto County Road 39. It was also pointed out by Quintin Lanners, developer of the Kampa Estates Development, that at the time Kampa Estates was platted and served with street improvements, etc., the owner of the property, now being proposed for the Planned Unit Development, indicated that they would provide their own access onto County Road 39 and would not use Kampa Circle as an access point. Mr. Kornovich indicated to the council that he would be willing to change his plan realigning his access unto County Road 39, rather than using Kampa Circle. Motion was then made by Ken Maus, seconded by Blonigen and unanimously carried to approve the request for a conditional use permit for a resi- dential Planned Unit Development general concept stage contingent upon a covenant being placed against the property indicating that they would use County Road 39 as an access point and not Kampa Circle. - 2 - Council Minutes - 8/3/81 3. Consideration of a Subdivision of Property - Quintin Lanners/Charles Soucy. Mr. Quintin Lanners recently purchased the north portion of the Way- side Inn property from Mr. Charles Soucy and requested approval to subdivide that portion of the property he purchased into four build- able residential lots. Lot 1 of the proposed subdivision would consist of 20,000 square feet and Lots 3, 4, and 5 would be each 12,400 square feet. Only Lots 1, 3, 4, and 5 would be owned by Mr. Lanners with the remaining Lot 2 to be owned by Mr. Soucy as the present site of the Wayside Inn. As part of the subdivision request, Mr. Lanners requested that the city waive all the subdivision requirements such as street development which are not necessary, along with other requirements such as soil surveys and park dedication fees. It was noted that a final plat would be sub- mitted for approval that would indicate a new block and lot numbers as with any subdivision, but the request was for the elimination of unnec- essary items relating to soil surveys and other requirements. It was noted that although Lots 3, 4, and 5 meet the minimum lot width requirements at the front of the lot abutting the street, they do not quite meet the lot width at the set back line which is required to be 80 feet. According to the preliminary sketch plan presented, the mini- mum dimension at the set back line is somewhere between 78.75 feet and 80 feet, being approximately 14 feet short of the required 80 foot width requirement. As a result of the approximately 14 foot variance for each lot, Mr. Lanners indicated that he would be willing to stipulate as a covenant that no variance request for side yard set back variances, etc., would be asked for if approved. Mr. Lanners indicated that construction financing for one of the proposed homes on the newly created lots would expire on September 1, 1981, and if the subdivision was approved, the final plat would be prepared as soon as possible. A motion was made by Maus, seconded by Fair and unanimously carried to approve the preliminary subdivision plan as presented with the approxi- mate 14 foot width variances for Lots 3, 4, and 5, and the waiving of the subdivision requirements of the city ordinances with the exception that the park dedication be provided in cash based on market values. In addi- tion4if the final plat is submitted and approved by the city engineer, a building permit could be issued by the city for one of the lots. (NOTE: Fran Fair was not present for the remainder of the meeting). - 3 - Council Minutes - 8/3/81 4. Consideration of a Resolution Calling for the Sale of General Obli- gation Improvement Bonds of 1981. Mr. King Forness of Springsted, Inc., the city's bonding consultants, submitted to the council their recommendations for the sale of bonds totaling $490,000.00 to finance the 1981-1 and 1981-2 Improvement Projects. The 1981-1 Improvement Project consisted of sewer, water, storm sewer, and street paving for a portion of the Meadows Subdivision and River Street from County Road 75 west approximately 1200 feet. The 1981-2 Improvement Project consisted of storm sewer and street construc- tion work along Cedar Street from Lauring Lane to the north right-of-way of Burlington Northern railroad tracks. The total construction cost for the 1981-1 and 1981-2 Improvement Pro- jects is estimated to be $437,256.00 with an estimated 22 percent in- direct cost. In addition to this amount, the bonding consultants rec- ommended that an additional contingency amount along with cost of issu- ance amounts be added to this figure making the total bond issue $490,000. Motion was made by Maus, and seconded by Blonigen and unanimously carried to adopt the resolution authorizing the sale of general obligation im- provement bonds for the 81-1 and 81-2 Improvement Projects setting the date of the sale for September 14, 1981. (See Resolution 1981427). 5. Consideration of a Resolution Amending the Commercial Development Reve- nue Bonds for the Medical Facilities Company Project. At a previous council meeting held April 27, 1981, a resolution was adopted granting preliminary approval for the issuance of 1.4 million in commerical development revenue bonds for the Medical Facilities Company to develop a medical clinic adjacent to the hospital. The developers of the medical clinic now requested that the council amend the preliminary approval by allowing the partnership to sell the bonds as a public offering to enable the project to proceed since at the present time, it is not economically feasible for the developers to find an institutional investor. The previously approved resolution indicated that the commercial development revenue bonds were to be issued and sold to an institutional investor rather than as a public offering. Legal counsel for the developers has indicated that the underwriting firm of Juran & Moody has made a commitment indicating that they will be offering for public sale the bonds for this project. City Attorney, Gary Pringle, has reviewed the proposed amended resolution and has indicated that there are no problems in approving the ammended resolution. Motion was made by Maus, seconded by Blonigen and unanimously carried to adopt a resolution amending the preliminary approval for the issuance of industrial development revenue bonds for the Medical Facilities Company. (See Resolution 1981-#28). - 4 - Council Minutes - 8/3/81 6. Consideration of Awarding the Contract on the 1981-1 Seal Coating Improvement Project. Bids for the seal coating project were received on Friday, July 24, 1981, with six bids received ranging in price from a low of $16,596.40 at .289 a square yard to a high of $25,428.67 or .4428 a square yard. An alternate was also bid, whereby the city would be responsible for sweeping the streets after the seal coating project was completed and those bids ranged from a low of $15,505.29 to a high of $23,705.80. The bids as indicated were based on seal coating approximately 57,427 square yards of street surface. Public Works Director, John Simola, reviewed with the council the bids received and recommended that the low bidder, Allied Blacktopping, be awarded the contract for seal coating. A representative from Allied Blacktopping was at the meeting and indicated that they plan on start- ing the seal coating project on Monday, August 10, 1981. It was noted by Mr. Simola that the 1981 budget allowed up to $28,200.00 for seal coating streets and it was his recommendation that additional areas be seal coated considering the very favorable bid received from Allied Blacktopping. The representative from Allied Blacktopping Company indicated that they would be willing to do any additional quantities at their bid price of .289 a square yard. A motion was made by Blonigen, seconded by Maus and unanimously carried to award the contract on the 1981-1 Seal Coating Project to Allied Black - topping at the bid amount of .289 a square yard and to increase the quantity amounts of seal coating up to the budgeted amount of $28,200.00. 7. Consideration of Improvements to NSP's Ball Park Facilities. The purpose of this item was to consider a request made by the Monticello Slow Pitch Softball League for improvements to the facilities at the NSP's ball park which is leased to the city by NSP. John Sandberg, a member of the softball league and speaking for the members present, requested that the city consider authorizing an estimated $6,000.00 in improvements consisting of black dirt and sod for the outfield areas of the ball diamonds. Mr. Sandberg noted that the fields are in terrible shape and that it has been a number of years since the softball league has asked for any assistance from the city in regard to improvements at the field. He noted that the softball associ- ation members have installed water to the ball diamonds and have built bleachers at their own expense and now request some assistance in pre- paring the outfields to a more suitable condition. Mr. Sandberg indicated that the city previously had asked the league back in approximately 1972, to move from the 4th Street ball park to a different location and as a result the lease was negotiated with NSP Company for the present site. According to Mr. Sandberg, other comn munities have municipal ball parks and fields that are supported by the city and he felt that the request for assistance in providing an adequate field by sodding the area is justified. - 5 - Council Minutes - 8/3/81 Council discussion concerning this matter indicated that budgets for this amount of money are set a year in advance and funds may not be available for this type of improvement. In addition, it was pointed out by council members present that authorization of possibly any amount of money for improvements to the ball park, which is basically used by the softball association, may lead to other requests of a similar nature by other organizations such as the hockey association, etc. The councilmen noted for example, that the hockey associa- tion does not receive any support from the city other than providing the use of 4th Street park for their skating rink, etc. The lights and the rink and yearly upkeep is maintained by the association without funds from the city. John Simola, Public Works Director, noted that the city does not currently have have any black dirt available that could be used at the ball park and as a result,if the city provided the black dirt, it would have to be purchased elsewhere. A suggestion was made to the softball association that only one field each year be improved with dirt, etc., and that in order to cut costs the association should consider seeding the grass rather than sodding, as it may become difficult to keep both softball fields watered if sod was placed on them. After further discussion, it was the concensus of the council that this item be tabled until the next council meeting to enable the softball association to obtain more information as to exact quantities and estimated cost of improving the ball park facilities,and to enable the council to study whether money would be available in 1981 for any im- provements and whether the city will even consider the funding in future years. 8. Consideration of Approving Issuance of Set -Up License to Monticello Rod � r'nn C'lnh_ The Monticello Rod & Gun Club has recently applied for the issuance of a set-up license at their establishment for steak fries and other events. According to the Liquor Control Commissioner's office, the Monticello Rod & Gun Club would qualify for a set-up license and if the events that are held there do provide set-ups, a license would be necessary. In addition, State Statutes require that a set-up license be issued on an annual basis, and could not be issued for only a temporary period of time. As a result a motion was made by Blonigen, seconded by Maus and unani- mously carried to approve the issuance of a set-up license for the Monticello Rod & Gun Club at an annual fee of $200.00 to expire July 1, 1982. M:= Council Minutes - 8/3/81 9. Approval of Minutes and Bills. A motion was made by Maus, seconded by Blonigen and unanimously carried to approve the minutes of the July 13, 1981 Council Meeting and the bills for the month of July as presented. (See exhibit 8/3/81 #1) 10. Discussion on Commuter Parking Lot and Dust Control along Minnesota gtrPPt_ In regard to a previous council's request, John Simola, Public Works Director, informed the council that Bridgewater Telephone Company could install a pay phone in the Commuter Parking Lot at an annual cost of $144.00 per year for the rental of the pedestal upon which the telephone would rest plus an additional charge of $12.00 per month for the phone. Mr. Simola noted that the city would receive a credit against the $12.00 monthly charge of 10� per local phone call made. As a result the minimum cost to the city for the phone would be $144.00 a year with the maximum cost being $288.00 a year if the phone is never used. A motion was made by Blonigen, seconded by Maus and unanimously carried to approve authorizing an installation of a phone at the Commuter Parking Lot. Mr. Simola also obtained cost estimates on placing a shelter in the Commuter Parking Lot. Prices have been quoted by firms that have supplied these shelters along the Nicollet Mall in Minneapolis and are estimated to cost approximately $3,000.00. No decision was made on installing a shelter at the present time as the possibility exits for construction of our own shelter and possibly budgeting for such an item in 1982. Public Works Director, John Simola, also noted that he is still ob- taining information regarding possible ways of controling dust along Minnesota Street. He noted that although oil can still be used and is allowed by the PCA, the Waste Management Board calls oil a hazardous waste, and his recommendation would be that the city not apply an oil base to the road to control dust. Mr. Simola will again report to the council after researching other alternatives available. Meeting adjourned. Rick Wolfstelle Assistant Admi strator - 7 -