Loading...
City Council Minutes 08-09-1993MINUTES REGULAR MEETING - MONTICELLO CITY COUNCIL Monday, August 9, 1993 - 7 p.m. Members Present: Ken Maus, Shirley Anderson, Brad Fyle, Clint Herbst, Patty Olsen Members Absent: None 2. Consideration of approval of minutes of the regular meeting held July 26, 1993. After discussion, a motion was made by Clint Herbst and seconded by Brad Fyle to approve the minutes of the regular meeting held July 26, 1993. Motion carried unanimously. 3. Citizens comments/petitions, requests, and complaints. Robert Barthel of 725 West Third Street, requested that Council grant a two-week extension to the maximum time period that vehicles are allowed to be stored outside without being in operating condition. He mentioned that he is restoring the vehicles, and he needs additional time to get them in operating order. After discussion, a motion was made by Clint Herbst and seconded by Brad Fyle to grant Robert Barthel a two-week extension as requested. Motion carried unanimously. 4. Consideration of a conditional use request to allow commercial storage contained entirely within a building in a B-3 (highway business) zone. Applicant, Glen Posusta. Assistant Administrator O'Neill informed Council that Glen Posusta requests that the City grant a conditional use permit which would allow development of a commercial storage facility in a B-3 Zone. The property is located on the south side of Dundas at the intersection of Dundas and Cedar Street. O'Neill reported that Posusta has acquired additional property to the east of the original site which has allowed him to shift the facility site to the east, which has allowed the future extension of Cedar Street to be aligned at a position approximately 250 ft east of Highway 25. This is the best alignment possible. After discussion, a motion was made by Brad Fyle and seconded by Clint Herbst to approve the conditional use permit allowing commercial storage based on the finding that commercial storage is allowed as a conditional use Page 1 Council Minutes - 8/9/93 in the B-3 zone. The mini -storage facility at this location is consistent with the comprehensive plan. Approval of the conditional use permit is contingent on the following: 1. The development must meet city standards with regard to paving, curbing, and landscaping and signage. Due to the fact that the road serving the site is an unimproved dirt road, installation of site paving and curbing may be delayed two years or when Dundas Road is paved, whichever occurs sooner. A performance bond in the amount equal to the cost of the curbing and paving is required to guarantee completion of the drive and parking areas. 2. A grading and drainage plan must be prepared by the developer and reviewed and approved by the City Engineer. 3. The developer/owner must provide the City with a roadway easement as proposed on the approved site plan at a cost not to exceed the market value as negotiated by Rick Wolfsteller, Ken Maus, and Brad Fyle. In addition, the developer/owner must demonstrate that he has clear title to the property conveyed to the City for roadway purposes. 4. No outside storage or parking of vehicles is allowed under the conditional use permit. Motion carried unanimously. 5. Consideration of a conditional use request which would allow open and outdoor storage as an accessory use in an I-1 zone, and consideration of a conditional use request allowing a reduction in the parking lot design requirements. Applicant, Standard Iron Location is Lots 7 and 8, Oakwood Industrial Park. Assistant Administrator O'Neill reported that Standard Iron of New Hope requests two conditional use permits: One would allow open and outdoor storage as an accessory use, and the other would allow a reduction in the parking and drive aisle design standards. The area proposed for outside storage is located behind the proposed 32,000 sq ft warehouse and a two- story, 20,000 sq ft office building. The total area included in outside storage amounts to 67,600 sq ft, or 1.55 acres. The area proposed for outside storage will be screened in the front by the office building and the warehouse building on the sides by an opaque cyclone fence. The storage area will also be surfaced to control dust. Page 2 Council Minutes - 8/9/93 O'Neill went on to review the request for the drive aisle design conditional use permit. O'Neill noted that the Standard Iron development is well suited to the provision that allows a reduction in the parking lot design standards, as some of the drive/storage areas are utilized by Standard Iron vehicles only on an intermittent basis. Drive areas used infrequently are used in conjunction with outside storage. These areas will also be screened and surfaced to control dust. All of the driveway and parking areas used by employees and by Standard Iron clients will be developed in accordance with the ordinance. After discussion, a motion was made by Clint Herbst and seconded by Brad Fyle to approve a conditional use permit allowing outside storage in an I-1 zone under the condition that the site plan meets the requirements as noted by ordinance. Motion carried unanimously. A motion was made by Clint Herbst and seconded by Patty Olsen to approve a conditional use permit allowing a reduction in the parking lot and drive aisle design standards under the condition that the site plan meets the requirements as noted by ordinance. Motion carried unanimously. 6. Consideration of a request for an extension to a conditional use permit. Applicant, David Hornig. Assistant Administrator O'Neill explained that Dave Hornig, President of Hornig Companies, requests that the City consider granting an extension to the conditional use permit issued on August 10, 1992, which would allow development of a multi -family complex located across from Kmart on 7th Street. Hornig needs an extension to his conditional use permit because he will not complete the project within one year of obtaining his original permit. In conjunction with this request for the extension of the conditional use permit, Hornig has provided an updated site plan which reveals no substantial changes to the original plan in terms of site density, setback, landscaping, parking, etc. In summary, overall the site plan meets or exceeds site standards that were approved with the original conditional use permit. After discussion, a motion was made by Shirley Anderson and seconded by Patty Olsen to approve the request for an extension to the conditional use permit for the development proposed by David Hornig. Motion carried unanimously. Page 3 Council Minutes - 8/9/93 7. Consideration of a variance request which would allow construction of an accessory building with the floor area in excess of 1,000 sg ft, and a variance request to allow an accessory building to be built with metal siding wider than 12 inches and a roof covering material not consistent with the building structures in the area. Applicant, Randy Ruff. Location is 611 Elm Street. Assistant Administrator O'Neill reported that Randy Ruff requests permission to build a 26,000 sq ft accessory structure that exceeds the maximum square footage allowed by 1,600 sq ft. He also requests that this building be allowed to be constructed with metal siding. The structure that Ruff proposes to build will be for storage of items accessory to a residential use, which includes storage of boats, recreation vehicles, etc. The storage building will not be used in conjunction with the Ruff Auto enterprise. City Attorney, Paul Weingarden, noted that in this situation, the variance request does not meet the minimum criteria for allowing variances in that there is not a unique situation or hardship involved. Randy Ruff showed a video tape presentation of the general area and stated that the building should be allowed to be constructed because it is consistent with the neighborhood. Assistant Administrator O'Neill suggested that as an alternative to granting the variance, City Council may wish to add a provision within the PZM zoning regulations that would allow construction of accessory buildings that exceed 1,000 sq ft if certain conditions or criteria can be met. Such conditions could relate to the size of the property on which the building is proposed to be located and the setback from neighboring residential uses. An ordinance amendment could be devised that would allow the Ruff request without opening the door to similar accessory structures in other PZM zoning districts. After discussion, a motion was made by Brad Fyle and seconded by Patty Olsen to deny the variance request based on the finding that there's no hardship or unique situation that would warrant granting of the variance. To grant the variance would impair the intent of the ordinance and, thereby, set a precedent that would enable development of similar structures in other PZM/residential zones. Voting in favor: Brad Fyle, Patty Olsen, Ken Maus, Shirley Anderson. Opposed: Clint Herbst. It was the consensus of the Council to direct staff' to prepare a potential zoning ordinance amendment that would allow construction of an accessory structure to a residential use of a size in excess of 1,000 sq ft in the PZM zone under certain circumstances. Page 4 Council Minutes - 8/9/93 8. Consideration of adopting a development agreement for the Oak Ridge residential subdivision. Assistant Administrator O'Neill requested that Council review the method by which the Oak Ridge development is being financed and determine what level of financial guarantee the City needs to assure that the project is completed on a timely basis. O'Neill noted that the Oak Ridge project will be constructed privately with no financial outlay from the City as opposed to other recent residential subdivision improvement projects which have been financed entirely by the City. Under projects funded by the City, the City installs all public improvements and spreads the cost evenly against all the lots as an assessment. The risk to the City is mitigated under the public improvement process by the developer providing the City with a letter of credit in the amount of 40% of the cost to complete the project. The City can draw on the letter of credit if the lots do not sell and assessments are not paid. Under the Oak Ridge finance plan, the developer, not the City, is responsible for installing and paying for all improvements. If the project goes as planned, there is no assessment against any of the lots, and the developer shoulders all the risk associated with selling the lots on a timely basis. Under this program, there is less long-term financial risk to the City; however, there is less control over the project at the front end and a greater risk associated with guaranteeing timely and proper completion of utilities. O'Neill noted that under the plan in the development agreement proposed, the developer will pay all City expenses associated with review of the plat and with review of engineering and inspection of utilities. Payment will be an estimated amount and will occur prior to City signatures being placed on the plat. Therefore, all City expenses are covered under the development agreement. O'Neill requested that Council consider to what extent it will require financial guarantees assuring the City that the project will be completed in accordance with the plans. Some cities require a letter of credit in the amount of 100% to 125% of the total project cost in order to assure the City that the project will be completed. Other cities have been re-evaluating this requirement due to the financial burden the requirement places on developers. O'Neill asked Council to review the entire context on which this development is being proposed to determine the potential risk associated with the project, consider issues of precedent, and then make a decision as to what level of financial guarantee the City needs to assure that the project is completed. Page 5 Council Minutes - 8/9/93 Tony Emmerich reported that since the S & L crisis, banks have become more and more restrictive on issuing letters of credit. He noted that in order to provide a letter of credit, he needs to tie up twice the amount of money he needs to actually complete the project. Tom Holthaus was concerned about the City establishing a letter of credit in an amount less than 100% of project costs. He was concerned that if the project did not move forward or failed, this problem would set a precedent that would negatively impact other developers. Paul Weingarden mentioned that the development agreement should be enhanced to include a hold harmless agreement and additional insurance provisions that would name the City. Tony Emmerich indicated he had no problem with modifications proposed. Council discussed the letter of credit requirement. After discussion, a motion was made by Brad Fyle and seconded by Clint Herbst to approve the basic concepts of the development agreement and include a requirement that the developer provide a letter of credit in the amount of 25% of the utility costs prior to construction, and the development agreement be modified as necessary as defined by the City Attorney. Motion carried unanimously. At this point in the meeting, Shirley Anderson left the meeting due to illness. 9. Consideration of approval of final plat of the Oak Ridge residential grnhdivic,inn. After discussion, a motion was made by Patty Olsen and seconded by Brad Fyle to approve the final plat, recording of City signatures on the plat contingent on the developer signing the development agreement, providing associated financial guarantees, and pending final approval of construction plans by County Engineer and County Surveyor. City Council must rezone the property from the planned unit development to R-1, single family. Motion carried unanimously with Shirley Anderson absent. 10. Consideration of rezoning area encompassed by Oak Ridge subdivision from R -PUD to R-1 uses. O'Neill reported that the original Meadow Oak design called for development of a planned unit development in the area now encompassed by the Oak Ridge subdivision. The original development had a much higher housing density, which would have produced significantly more storm water run-off and associated problems. The Planning Commission has reviewed the rezoning request in conjunction with the Oak Ridge plat and made a Page 6 Council Minutes - 8/9/93 recommendation to approve the rezoning as proposed based on the finding that the Oak Ridge subdivision design and density is consistent with the original planned unit development. As with the original Meadow Oak PUD, the Oak Ridge plan proposes an off-street trail system that will link the Oak Ridge area to the proposed park and trail system originally envisioned under the original PUD concept. After discussion, a motion was made by Brad Fyle and seconded by Patty Olsen to approve rezoning the Oak Ridge residential subdivision from R - PUD to R-1 based on the finding that the zoning designation and associated plat are consistent with the original PUD design and consistent with the character of the area, and said rezoning is also consistent with the comprehensive plan for the city. Motion carried unanimously with Shirley Anderson absent. SEE ORDINANCE AMENDMENT NO. 240. 11. Consideration of construction of pond outlet for the Briar Oakes development. John Simola reported that the ultimate storm sewer design for Briar Oakes includes interconnection of the three ponds located in that subdivision, including an outlet from the northeast pond to the large Meadow Oak pond. During the first phase of Briar Oakes, the southeast pond and northeast pond were interconnected. The interconnection of the third pond and the outlet for the northeast pond to the Meadow Oak pond would be completed with phase I1 of Briar Oakes. These ponds, in addition to handling the water from Briar Oakes, will also take in a portion of the storm water from the 4th Addition of Meadow Oak, Lots C and D owned by the City, a portion of township property, and a portion of the new Oak Ridge development. Simola reported that elevations of the water in the long northeast pond remain somewhat stable although high. The pond has not yet overflowed; however, it has come very close on occasion. Should the northeast pond overflow, most of the water would travel northward, and some of it will find its way onto private property. Since the pond appeared to stable itself before overflowing, we were not concerned with the issue. It was recently determined, however, that the pond would not overflow, as there was an outlet from the southeast pond in Briar Oakes to the Oak Ridge plat to ditch 33. The outlet, which consisted of a man-made drainage swale, is proposed to be filled with the Oak Ridge development. This is not of significance in our overall design of our storm sewer system since all of the studies in the past did not account for water leaving the Briar Oakes ponds through the Oak Ridge development area. It will, however, now cause the long pond in Briar Oakes to overflow, and it may be prudent to install the storm sewer outlet from the long pond to the Meadow Oak pond at this time. This is a relatively small project consisting of a couple hundred feet Page 7 Council Minutes - 8/9/93 of 12 -inch diameter concrete pipe, a manhole, and flared -end sections and some riprap. The total cost of the project, using prices from the contractor doing the Oak Ridge work, would be $7,874. Adding this to OSM's cost of $2,000 to prepare the engineering drawings brings us to a total of $9,874. Brad Fyle was concerned about the cost of the engineering associated with the project and that $2,000 is a high price as a percentage of a $7,874 project. Bret Weiss noted that it is difficult to mobilize a crew and complete a plan sheet for less than $2,000 and that engineering fees as a percent of a total project tend to be higher when the projects are small. After discussion, a motion was made by Clint Herbst and seconded by Ken Maus to call for a public hearing on August 23 on development of a pond outlet for the Briar Oakes subdivision. Voting in favor: Clint Herbst, Ken Maus, Patty Olsen. Opposed: Brad Fyle. Absent: Shirley Anderson. Fyle mentioned that he was not opposed to the project, only to the engineering fee. 12. Review of six-month financial statement for liquor store. In his memo to Council, Wolfsteller reported that sales for the first six months were down slightly over last ,year's same period by approximately 1.5%, or $10,000. Although the sales are slightly lower, the gross profit is higher than last year by over $9,500, resulting in a gross profit of $164,163 for the first six months. Council reviewed the operation of the liquor store with Joe Hartman. No action was taken, with Shirley Anderson absent. Clint Herbst indicated that in his view, Joe is doing a good job. 13. Consideration of final payment to Astech Corporation for Sealcoat Proiect SC93-1. John Simola reported that the 1993 Sealcoat project has been completed. The sealcoating of 67,220 sq yds of city streets was performed by Astech Corporation at a cost of $34,618. He went on to report that we had a couple of problems this year with the Sealcoat project. One problem was that the oil content used to stick the rock to the street surface was slightly less than specified. We have a concern that there's a possibility that stripping of the aggregate or rock could occur in the future, possibly over the winter months during snowplowing operations. In addition, it rained approximately seven hours after the completion of the Sealcoat project. A small amount of oil washed Page 8 Council Minutes - 8/9/93 off the streets and stained the curb and gutter. Astech has hired a subcontractor out of the Twin Cities to clean the curbs with high pressure hot water and soap. This appears to be removing a good portion of the staining. After discussion, a motion was made by Clint Herbst and seconded by Brad Fyle to authorize final payment to Astech Corporation in the amount of $34,618.30 contingent upon completion of the cleanup of the curb as best as can be done by high pressure spray washing and with the City receiving an additional written one-year warranty extending the warranty through the 1994-1995 winter. Motion carried unanimously with Shirley Anderson absent. 14. Consideration of calling a public hearing to review an amendment to the city ordinance which would establish a storm sewer utility fee system and call for a special meeting for August 16, at 4:30 p.m. Assistant Administrator O'Neill reported that in the next few weeks, the City will likely be ordering completion of the Hart Boulevard trunk storm sewer project ($148,000). In the next few years, it is likely that the City will complete the trunk storm sewer system linking the Meadow Oak area to the Mississippi River ($250,000 est.). Other major trunk storm water improvements serving the Chelsea corridor area will also be needed in the not -too -distant future. The present system for paying for trunk storm sewer improvements is limited to a combination of assessments against benefiting properties and ad valorem taxation. For most projects, demonstrating benefit is difficult; therefore, trunk storm sewer assessments are not likely to pay more than 20% to 40% of the storm sewer cost. City staff requests that Council consider establishing a third type of revenue source which can be used for financing storm sewer improvements and for funding ongoing maintenance of storm sewer systems. The funding system proposed is a storm sewer utility fee that is designed to collect revenue from individual properties based on the level of storm water run-off produced by individual properties. The level of run-off and associated fee is calculated based on the type of land use and the size of the property. After discussion, a motion was made by Clint Herbst and seconded by Patty Olsen to call for a public hearing to review an amendment to the city ordinance which would establish a storm sewer utility fee system and call for a special meeting for August 19, 1993, at 4:30 p.m. Motion carried unanimously with Shirley Anderson absent. Page 9 Council Minutes - 8/9/93 15. Consideration of a resolution calling for a public hearing on the Hart Boulevard storm sewer improvement. Assistant Administrator O'Neill reported that on August 23 the City Council will be considering ordering the Hart Boulevard storm sewer project. In order to be in position to assess a portion of the cost to complete the project against benefiting properties, the City will need to conduct a public hearing on the improvement project prior to ordering the work. After discussion, a motion was made by Brad Fyle and seconded by Patty Olsen to adopt a resolution calling for a public hearing on the Hart Boulevard storm sewer improvement project. Motion carried unanimously with Shirley Anderson absent. SEE RESOLUTION 93-26. 16. Consideration of purchasing two additional bleachers for the baseball complex. John Simola informed Council that as part of the 1992 budget, $3,600 was included in the park fund for purchasing additional bleachers at the NSP ballfield complex. The public works department obtained prices in August of 1992 and brought these before City Council. The lowest price was $3,380. At that time, some members of the City Council questioned whether support was continuing from the Softball Association for paying for field maintenance. Consequently, the purchase of the bleachers was tabled until such time that the City Council could review the financial commitment from the Softball Association. Simola went on to note that there is a definite need for two additional bleachers at the ballfields. Currently, because of the shortage of the bleachers, spectators are using picnic tables as bleachers. These picnic tables are not designed to take the load. In addition, during the Pee Wee Reese and Sandy Cofax baseball tournaments, the entire parking lot was full. There were hundreds of people in the ballfield complex, and the shortage of bleachers was quite evident at that time. Clint Herbst indicated that the Softball and Baseball Associations should be contributing toward the cost of the bleachers through revenue generated by the various tournaments that are conducted at the site. He mentioned that he would prefer that the Baseball or Softball Association come forward with the request before the City Council should consider it. General discussion regarding the cost to maintain the ballfields ensued. John Simola reported that the City spends about $4,000 to $5,000 per year on the park facility through mowing of the fields and garbage collection. Page 10 Council Minutes - 8/9/93 Ken Maus recommended that Council take no action on the matter rather than to deny the request. It became the consensus of Council to take no action on the matter until a formal request comes from the Softball and Baseball Associations or until the matter is brought forward by the Parks Commission within an overall plan for funding improvements and - maintenance of the facility. The plan is to include involvement by the various organizations that use and derive revenue from the use of the park. Shirley Anderson was absent. Assistant Administrator O'Neill mentioned that he would bring the matter to the Parks Commission for further review. 17. Other matters. A. John Simola reported that he had received a petition from various property owners in the business district requesting improvements to alleyways. Simola went on to request that the City Council call for a public hearing on the improvements to be scheduled for August 23, 1993. After discussion, a motion was made by Clint Herbst and seconded by Brad Fyle to call for a public hearing on improvements to alleyways located on Blocks 34, 35, and 52, in the city of Monticello. Motion carried unanimously with Shirley Anderson absent. There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned. J Neill Assistant Administrator. Page 11