October 1, 2012 Council Meeting
1. CALL TO ORDER – Mayor Reinhardt called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m.
2. ROLL CALL – Stone, Williamson, Hughes, Widmer, Reinhardt
3. INTRODUCTIONS – Mayor Reinhardt introduced the council and staff to the viewing public. Administrator Tolsma, Clerk Lewin, Council Elect Bren, Attorney Beck, various members of the Rockvam family.
4. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
5. ADOPT AGENDA – Reinhardt said there is a presentation under item 10 and the group being recognized will be a little late so it will be worked into the agenda once they arrive. Williamson makes a motion and Hughes seconds to adopt the agenda. All votes ayes, motion carries.
6. ADOPT CONSENT AGENDA – Hughes makes a motion and Widmer seconds to adopt the consent agenda. All votes ayes, motion carries.
a. City Council Meeting Minutes from September 17, 2012
b. City Council Work Session Minutes from September 24, 2012
7. PUBLIC FORUM – No one.
8. PRESENTATIONS AND & GUEST SPEAKERS - None
9. PETITIONS, REQUESTS & APPLICATIONS – None.
10. ORDINANCES & RESOLUTIONS
a. Resolution 12-21: Rockvam Boat Yard 50 Year Recognition – 7:45 p.m. Reinhardt said it’s an honor to have such a long-term business in Spring Park. She said it’s an interesting history and it has done so much for the City of Spring Park. Reinhardt goes through a picture slide show. She described Rockvam Boatyards as a business that has evolved from canoe sales to dry stacking storage which defines the business today. Reinhardt said Rockvam has been inducted into the Marina Hall of Fame, recognized as a distinguished alumni from Orono Scools, was awarded the Lake Minnetonka Chamber business of the year, received the Clean Marina award, and Jerry Rockvam was past Mayor of Spring Park for 37 years. She said it is the city’s pleasure to celebrate along with Jerry and Joyce 51 years of doing business. Hughes makes a motion and Widmer seconds the official resolution. Reinhardt said Rockvam’s business is adaptable to the times and they now offer the boat club, boat repair and have the cleanest and sharpest marina on Lake Minnetonka.
Jerry Rockvam said Spring Park has changed. He said when he got out of the Navy he and Joyce were looking for a place and they found property next to Spring Park hardware. He said the building was in place but it had no electricity or water and had a dirt floor. Rockvam said the times have gone by fast and they accumulated other properties as they became available. Rockvam said the dry stack storage was started in the 1960’s but in 1980’s the concept was easier to move forward. He said they have hired a lot of kids and they’ve been exceptional kids. He said their two daughters have also worked for them while in school and they continue to do so. Rockvam said he has a lot of memories and for 45 years he was involved with the city government. He said one of the highlights was when Bob Naegle, Sr. proposed a new restaurant on property that was tax delinquent and mosquito infested. He said it was very controversial and the council was packed with the public. Rockvam said the options were to rezone or the developer could go door-to-door and get 50% signatures and that’s the way it went. He said there was opposition from Orono residents. Jerry said he was the tie breaker in that development and he said it has been a very good endeavor. Rockvam said the city has been very good to Rockvam Boatyards. He and his family appreciate the award and look forward to getting another award in another 50 years.
11. REPORTS OF OFFICERS & COMMITTEES
a. Mayor and Council – Reinhardt reminds the council and the public of the community awareness for illegal heroin use to be held at the Gillespie Center in Mound on November 1st. Hughes said for the LMCD the summer is winding down and reports are coming in. He has a slide show with statistics. He said the boat storage inventory taken since 1971 is now taken in even years only. Code enforcement will be done on the odd years. Hughes said there are three objectives, the total number of watercraft stored, historical data and trends. He said the documents are available for review on the LMCD website. Hughes said he represents the city on the LMCD and serves on the safety committee with the Water Patrol. A summary has been provided through September. He said three new boats have been purchased. Hughes said an ongoing item is bow fishing and the LMCD is interested in having one set of rules for the lake.
b. City Administrator
i. West Arm East/West Arm Drive Drainage Agreement – Tolsma said the council discussed this at the work session and the consensus is that everyone is in favor of this. Jerry Rockvam, president of the association, said they thought this looked good and everything is in place. The intent is for this to be done this fall. The agreement is hopefully a document that can go forward as things change in the future. Stone makes a motion to approve and Widmer seconds. All votes ayes, motion carries.
ii. Snow Removal Agreement – Tolsma said it’s the same agreement in place for the past three seasons. He said the attached Exhibit A relates to unit prices for the equipment. He said the first year there is a $5/hr increase for certain equipment, the second year no increases and the third year $5/hr for all equipment used. He said this is hard to predict. He said the fuel surcharge is new and will be based upon fuel pricing over $4.50 per gallon. Hughes makes a motion and Widmer seconds to approve the agreement. Reinhardt said the city is very pleased with the job Beniek has provided the city these past years. All votes ayes, motion carries.
iii. Three Rivers Park District Parking Lot Agreement – Reinhardt said this plan has been before the council for several years and she feels it’s been agreed upon several times. Tolsma said there was an extensive draft period where agreements were traded among staff and the park district and it is in final version. He said one thing that came up today was on the western most parking bay on the plans is a smaller tree that will be grubbed. In earlier discussions the tree would be replaced. The thought is to show this on the agreement and where it says clear and grub it will be stated replaced at a location determined by the city. Williamson said he thinks he’s lost track after all of these changes. He said he thought this was going to be done on the east end for the access. Tolsma said the access trail will be made ADA available. Williamson said there has been some investment by the city with the picnic table and the bike rack. Williamson said it’s relevant to him because of the access and he wants to make sure it’s done correctly in the first place. Tolsma said the on ramp to the trail will be in the same place but the connection to the trail will be towards the east to manage the grade. Hughes said regarding the signage, he wonders if this has been applied for through the Planning Commission. Tolsma said it’s just parking signage that will be placed. Williamson moves acceptance with Three Rivers and Hughes seconds. All votes ayes, motion carries.
iv. Hennepin County Assessment Services Agreement – Tolsma said the county said take it or leave it, so to say. He said they were receptive to changes but it would be our resources that would be used to make the changes and they might not be accepted. He said in another conversation there was the same outcome. Tolsma said it’s the same language used in all of the other cities and they would appreciate if it’s adopted in it’s present form. Williamson said at the last time they discussed this there was almost an open invitation to redo this agreement and the city attorney had a chance to look this over. Beck said it’s important to note that clearly this is not something she had drafted. She said they should know the issues before they agree to this. She said it’s a fine agreement if nothing goes wrong and, nothing has gone wrong so far. She said if the council is interested in going to the county with half of the stronger issues she has pointed out, that’s an option. She said it will take 1-3 hours of her time. She said if all the cities would negotiate as a group, there might be some room for change. Stone asked how long this agreement has been renewed. No one really knows how far this goes back. Williamson said Beck has identified some substantive items. He said there is a wide open clause regarding costs to exceed $15,000 and the county can asses the costs. He said there is liability to the cities but the county doesn’t seem to have much liability in this. He said the county has the power to say take it or leave it. If you leave it, it can be privatized or brought in house but it still has to be coordinated with the county and it has to meet county standards and ultimately the state. He said however he doesn’t see a practical alternative. Reinhardt said she is concerned to pursue changes as the county will most likely not alter their stand. Hughes wonders at the next work shop if Beck’s work could be shared with other communities and start a ground swell for in four years when the term of the agreement is up. Reinhardt suggest this be put on the calendar for 2015 to maybe start this. Williamson said if this system changes, it probably won’t be a group of cities. He said it would be a matter for the state legislature. Williamson makes a motion and Widmer seconds to accept the HC agreement. All votes ayes, motion carries.
c. City Engineer - nothing.
d. City Attorney - nothing.
e. Utility Superintendent – Tolsma said Goman is trying to get some feedback from the council regarding the curb and gutter for the soon to be changed parking lot in front of city hall. Tolsma said Goman thought they could get some good pricing but it looks like it’s coming in at fairly standard prices. Tolsma said it’s not budgeted so it would be coming from the PIR fund. Tolsma said there will be some curb and gutter installed because of the project. Hughes wondered if this is a raised curb. Tolsma said it would be like what’s currently on the east side of the lot. Reinhardt said when the plan initially came forward and doing the entire city lot, the Watershed asked for contributing funds. She said the feeling was this was a Watershed/Park District project. She said while it would look nice, she is concerned about drainage and puddling issues.
12. UPCOMING MEETINGS & TRAINING
a. October 10, 2012 – Administration Committee – 11:00 AM
b. October 10, 2012 – Planning Commission – 7:00 PM
c. October 10, 2012 – LMCD – 7:00 PM
d. October 11, 2012 – Police Commission – 10:00 AM
Reinhardt said the volunteer appreciation dinner is on October 11th and she requests rsvp’s be called in no later than Friday.
e. October 15, 2012 – Council Meeting – 7:30 PM
f. October 16, 2012 – LMCC – 5:00 PM
Reinhardt said the Post Office will be having an informational meeting on October 17 in relation to the comments received on the recently mailed survey.
13. UNFINISHED BUSINESS
14. NEW BUSINESS & COMMUNICATION
a. Bills & Payroll – Stone makes a motion and Williamson seconds to approve the claims. All votes ayes, motion carries.
15. MISCELLANEOUS (Information Only)
a. Star Tribune LED Streetlight Article – Reinhardt said this is a very timely article considering the city is looking at replacing some street lights.
b. MCWD AIS Task Force Meeting Invitation
16. ADJOURNMENT – Stone makes a motion and Widmer seconds to adjourn the meeting at 8:32 p.m. All votes ayes, motion carries.
2. ROLL CALL – Stone, Williamson, Hughes, Widmer, Reinhardt
3. INTRODUCTIONS – Mayor Reinhardt introduced the council and staff to the viewing public. Administrator Tolsma, Clerk Lewin, Council Elect Bren, Attorney Beck, various members of the Rockvam family.
4. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
5. ADOPT AGENDA – Reinhardt said there is a presentation under item 10 and the group being recognized will be a little late so it will be worked into the agenda once they arrive. Williamson makes a motion and Hughes seconds to adopt the agenda. All votes ayes, motion carries.
6. ADOPT CONSENT AGENDA – Hughes makes a motion and Widmer seconds to adopt the consent agenda. All votes ayes, motion carries.
a. City Council Meeting Minutes from September 17, 2012
b. City Council Work Session Minutes from September 24, 2012
7. PUBLIC FORUM – No one.
8. PRESENTATIONS AND & GUEST SPEAKERS - None
9. PETITIONS, REQUESTS & APPLICATIONS – None.
10. ORDINANCES & RESOLUTIONS
a. Resolution 12-21: Rockvam Boat Yard 50 Year Recognition – 7:45 p.m. Reinhardt said it’s an honor to have such a long-term business in Spring Park. She said it’s an interesting history and it has done so much for the City of Spring Park. Reinhardt goes through a picture slide show. She described Rockvam Boatyards as a business that has evolved from canoe sales to dry stacking storage which defines the business today. Reinhardt said Rockvam has been inducted into the Marina Hall of Fame, recognized as a distinguished alumni from Orono Scools, was awarded the Lake Minnetonka Chamber business of the year, received the Clean Marina award, and Jerry Rockvam was past Mayor of Spring Park for 37 years. She said it is the city’s pleasure to celebrate along with Jerry and Joyce 51 years of doing business. Hughes makes a motion and Widmer seconds the official resolution. Reinhardt said Rockvam’s business is adaptable to the times and they now offer the boat club, boat repair and have the cleanest and sharpest marina on Lake Minnetonka.
Jerry Rockvam said Spring Park has changed. He said when he got out of the Navy he and Joyce were looking for a place and they found property next to Spring Park hardware. He said the building was in place but it had no electricity or water and had a dirt floor. Rockvam said the times have gone by fast and they accumulated other properties as they became available. Rockvam said the dry stack storage was started in the 1960’s but in 1980’s the concept was easier to move forward. He said they have hired a lot of kids and they’ve been exceptional kids. He said their two daughters have also worked for them while in school and they continue to do so. Rockvam said he has a lot of memories and for 45 years he was involved with the city government. He said one of the highlights was when Bob Naegle, Sr. proposed a new restaurant on property that was tax delinquent and mosquito infested. He said it was very controversial and the council was packed with the public. Rockvam said the options were to rezone or the developer could go door-to-door and get 50% signatures and that’s the way it went. He said there was opposition from Orono residents. Jerry said he was the tie breaker in that development and he said it has been a very good endeavor. Rockvam said the city has been very good to Rockvam Boatyards. He and his family appreciate the award and look forward to getting another award in another 50 years.
11. REPORTS OF OFFICERS & COMMITTEES
a. Mayor and Council – Reinhardt reminds the council and the public of the community awareness for illegal heroin use to be held at the Gillespie Center in Mound on November 1st. Hughes said for the LMCD the summer is winding down and reports are coming in. He has a slide show with statistics. He said the boat storage inventory taken since 1971 is now taken in even years only. Code enforcement will be done on the odd years. Hughes said there are three objectives, the total number of watercraft stored, historical data and trends. He said the documents are available for review on the LMCD website. Hughes said he represents the city on the LMCD and serves on the safety committee with the Water Patrol. A summary has been provided through September. He said three new boats have been purchased. Hughes said an ongoing item is bow fishing and the LMCD is interested in having one set of rules for the lake.
b. City Administrator
i. West Arm East/West Arm Drive Drainage Agreement – Tolsma said the council discussed this at the work session and the consensus is that everyone is in favor of this. Jerry Rockvam, president of the association, said they thought this looked good and everything is in place. The intent is for this to be done this fall. The agreement is hopefully a document that can go forward as things change in the future. Stone makes a motion to approve and Widmer seconds. All votes ayes, motion carries.
ii. Snow Removal Agreement – Tolsma said it’s the same agreement in place for the past three seasons. He said the attached Exhibit A relates to unit prices for the equipment. He said the first year there is a $5/hr increase for certain equipment, the second year no increases and the third year $5/hr for all equipment used. He said this is hard to predict. He said the fuel surcharge is new and will be based upon fuel pricing over $4.50 per gallon. Hughes makes a motion and Widmer seconds to approve the agreement. Reinhardt said the city is very pleased with the job Beniek has provided the city these past years. All votes ayes, motion carries.
iii. Three Rivers Park District Parking Lot Agreement – Reinhardt said this plan has been before the council for several years and she feels it’s been agreed upon several times. Tolsma said there was an extensive draft period where agreements were traded among staff and the park district and it is in final version. He said one thing that came up today was on the western most parking bay on the plans is a smaller tree that will be grubbed. In earlier discussions the tree would be replaced. The thought is to show this on the agreement and where it says clear and grub it will be stated replaced at a location determined by the city. Williamson said he thinks he’s lost track after all of these changes. He said he thought this was going to be done on the east end for the access. Tolsma said the access trail will be made ADA available. Williamson said there has been some investment by the city with the picnic table and the bike rack. Williamson said it’s relevant to him because of the access and he wants to make sure it’s done correctly in the first place. Tolsma said the on ramp to the trail will be in the same place but the connection to the trail will be towards the east to manage the grade. Hughes said regarding the signage, he wonders if this has been applied for through the Planning Commission. Tolsma said it’s just parking signage that will be placed. Williamson moves acceptance with Three Rivers and Hughes seconds. All votes ayes, motion carries.
iv. Hennepin County Assessment Services Agreement – Tolsma said the county said take it or leave it, so to say. He said they were receptive to changes but it would be our resources that would be used to make the changes and they might not be accepted. He said in another conversation there was the same outcome. Tolsma said it’s the same language used in all of the other cities and they would appreciate if it’s adopted in it’s present form. Williamson said at the last time they discussed this there was almost an open invitation to redo this agreement and the city attorney had a chance to look this over. Beck said it’s important to note that clearly this is not something she had drafted. She said they should know the issues before they agree to this. She said it’s a fine agreement if nothing goes wrong and, nothing has gone wrong so far. She said if the council is interested in going to the county with half of the stronger issues she has pointed out, that’s an option. She said it will take 1-3 hours of her time. She said if all the cities would negotiate as a group, there might be some room for change. Stone asked how long this agreement has been renewed. No one really knows how far this goes back. Williamson said Beck has identified some substantive items. He said there is a wide open clause regarding costs to exceed $15,000 and the county can asses the costs. He said there is liability to the cities but the county doesn’t seem to have much liability in this. He said the county has the power to say take it or leave it. If you leave it, it can be privatized or brought in house but it still has to be coordinated with the county and it has to meet county standards and ultimately the state. He said however he doesn’t see a practical alternative. Reinhardt said she is concerned to pursue changes as the county will most likely not alter their stand. Hughes wonders at the next work shop if Beck’s work could be shared with other communities and start a ground swell for in four years when the term of the agreement is up. Reinhardt suggest this be put on the calendar for 2015 to maybe start this. Williamson said if this system changes, it probably won’t be a group of cities. He said it would be a matter for the state legislature. Williamson makes a motion and Widmer seconds to accept the HC agreement. All votes ayes, motion carries.
c. City Engineer - nothing.
d. City Attorney - nothing.
e. Utility Superintendent – Tolsma said Goman is trying to get some feedback from the council regarding the curb and gutter for the soon to be changed parking lot in front of city hall. Tolsma said Goman thought they could get some good pricing but it looks like it’s coming in at fairly standard prices. Tolsma said it’s not budgeted so it would be coming from the PIR fund. Tolsma said there will be some curb and gutter installed because of the project. Hughes wondered if this is a raised curb. Tolsma said it would be like what’s currently on the east side of the lot. Reinhardt said when the plan initially came forward and doing the entire city lot, the Watershed asked for contributing funds. She said the feeling was this was a Watershed/Park District project. She said while it would look nice, she is concerned about drainage and puddling issues.
12. UPCOMING MEETINGS & TRAINING
a. October 10, 2012 – Administration Committee – 11:00 AM
b. October 10, 2012 – Planning Commission – 7:00 PM
c. October 10, 2012 – LMCD – 7:00 PM
d. October 11, 2012 – Police Commission – 10:00 AM
Reinhardt said the volunteer appreciation dinner is on October 11th and she requests rsvp’s be called in no later than Friday.
e. October 15, 2012 – Council Meeting – 7:30 PM
f. October 16, 2012 – LMCC – 5:00 PM
Reinhardt said the Post Office will be having an informational meeting on October 17 in relation to the comments received on the recently mailed survey.
13. UNFINISHED BUSINESS
14. NEW BUSINESS & COMMUNICATION
a. Bills & Payroll – Stone makes a motion and Williamson seconds to approve the claims. All votes ayes, motion carries.
15. MISCELLANEOUS (Information Only)
a. Star Tribune LED Streetlight Article – Reinhardt said this is a very timely article considering the city is looking at replacing some street lights.
b. MCWD AIS Task Force Meeting Invitation
16. ADJOURNMENT – Stone makes a motion and Widmer seconds to adjourn the meeting at 8:32 p.m. All votes ayes, motion carries.