May 6, 2019 Council Minutes
CITY OF SPRING PARK
CITY COUNCIL MINUTES
MAY 6, 2019 – 7:00 PM
SPRING PARK CITY HALL
1. CALL TO ORDER - The meeting was called to order by Mayor Rockvam at 7:01 p.m.
Council Members Present: Jerome P. Rockvam, Mayor; Gary Hughes; Pamela Horton; Catherine Kane Palen; and Megan Pavot
Staff Present: Dan Tolsma, City Administrator; Mike Kuno, City Engineer; Correy Farniok, Orono Police Chief; and Theresa Schyma, City Clerk
2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE – Mayor Rockvam led the audience in the Pledge of Allegiance.
3. ADOPT MEETING AGENDA
Council Member Hughes asked that Item #13a be corrected to reflect that there is not an LMCD work session on May 8.
M/Hughes, S/Horton to adopt the meeting agenda as amended.
Motion carried 5-0.
4. ADOPT CONSENT AGENDA
a. City Council Work Session Meeting Minutes from April 15, 2019
b. Regular City Council Meeting Minutes from April 15, 2019
c. LMCD Port of Call Certification
d. Resolution 19-11 Adoption of the 2018 Hennepin County All-Hazard Mitigation Plan
RESOLUTION NO. 19-11
ADOPTION OF THE 2018
HENNEPIN COUNTY ALL-HAZARD MITIGATION PLAN
This resolution appears as Resolution No. 19-11.
e. Special Event Application Nos. 19-05 through 19-08 and Temporary On-Sale Liquor Licenses for Back Channel Brewery for events on May 29, June 26, July 31, and August 28
M/Pavot, S/Kane Palen to adopt the Consent Agenda.
Motion carried 5-0.
5. PUBLIC FORUM – None.
6. PRESENTATIONS & GUEST SPEAKERS
a. Correy Farniok – Orono Chief of Police
Police Chief Farniok provided a summary of the 2018 annual report. He discussed many areas that the department had focused on in the previous year including the prescription drug take-back program, mental health calls, community engagement including working with a community service dog named Xerxes, DARE education at local schools, and the drug task force. He also announced the bike patrol would be returning to the area in 2019 with help from the Crime Prevention Coalition who assisted in getting electric power assist bikes.
Mayor Rockvam asked Chief Farniok to discuss how the current police contract is structured and what was involved in the process when the original contract was being prepared.
Chief Farniok responded that the Orono Police Department did not go out for bid but instead was contacted by other small cities in the area who were inquiring about potentially partnering with the City of Orono for police services. He discussed the history of the contract, the multiple discussions that occurred with City Administrators and Councils of all cities they contract with for police services, the formula involved when figuring pricing, how staffing levels impact increases, and the “out clause” in the current contract. He further stated that of all the contract cities, Spring Park has the best police response time.
Mayor Rockvam stated that politics can play a role when deciding on contractors and asked what would happen if the City decided to go elsewhere for police services.
Chief Farniok responded that once the current five year contract has been fulfilled there is a one year “out clause” if the City wanted to go with another option for police services. He added that he would prefer a longer “out clause” because it can impact staffing and unemployment costs for the police department but the current contract was negotiated to one year.
Mayor Rockvam stated that the City of Spring Park receives great service from the Orono Police Department including fantastic response times.
Chief Farniok asked the residents of Spring Park to provide feedback as to how the police department can continuously improve their services.
Council Member Hughes discussed the vacation house check program that the Orono Police Department offer and spoke highly of the service that was provided.
The City Council thanked Chief Farniok for providing an update and for the great service received throughout the year.
7. PUBLIC HEARINGS – None.
8. PETITIONS, REQUESTS, & APPLICATIONS – None.
9. ORDINANCES & RESOLUTIONS – None.
10. REPORTS OF OFFICERS AND COMMITTEES
a. Mayor & Council
Mayor Rockvam discussed handicapped accessibility at the rear entrance to City Hall.
Council Members Kane Palen and Pavot responded that staff have been working on a solution to the issue but there have been delays because it is a smaller project for a contractor so it has been difficult finding someone to take on a project of that size.
City Administrator Tolsma agreed and stated that the contractor that staff have been working with has been unable to submit a proposal for the project so staff are looking at finding a new approach including finding another project in the City to combine it with so that more contractors would be interested.
Mayor Rockvam stated that there are many infrastructure projects currently being considered in the City and believes it is a good idea to start televising work sessions.
M/Rockvam, S/Hughes to approve televising City Council work sessions in the future.
Motion carried 5-0.
Council Member Hughes provided an update from the most recent LMCD Board Meeting.
b. City Staff – None.
c. Contract Staff
i. Award 2019 Shoreline Drive ADA Improvement Project
City Engineer Kuno provided a brief summary of the 2019 Shoreline Drive ADA Improvement Project and discussed the bid process. He further detailed the proposal from Sambatek for construction services relating to the project. He added that the project could potentially start by the end of May with completion by July so that the County overlay project could begin immediately after.
Mayor Rockvam asked about funding options for this project.
City Administrator Tolsma responded that a refunding resolution has already been approved by City Council. He added that other options exist including paying for the project out of reserves or adding it to a future bond that is combined with other projects.
City Administrator Tolsma stated that a project of this size could definitely be paid using reserves. However it is more of a philosophical question for the Council – is this the type of project that current and future residents should pay for or is this the type of improvement that only current residents should pay for? He stated that it is a Council decision and to help in the decision-making process the City’s bond consultant will be providing some advice and information to the Council at a future work session.
Council Member Kane Palen discussed the work ahead on major infrastructure improvements and suggested having more than one work session per month for this summer.
Mayor Rockvam stated that the Council should see the feasibility study, decide the direction the Council would like to take, and then discuss options with the City’s financial advisors. He added that special work sessions can be added when infrastructure projects are ready for more frequent discussions. He stated that the City is still in the early stages of these projects so adding more work sessions right now seems premature.
Mayor Rockvam asked City Engineer Kuno what would be ready for the next work session including if a cost analysis would be ready for the Council.
City Engineer Kuno responded that the next work session will have a proposal for a feasibility report which is the next required step before the project can move forward. He added that he can provide a high-level cost analysis but that he believes the best way to provide a more accurate cost analysis is to bring contractors out to the site to discuss options since it is a very difficult area in terms of access for construction. His intention is to include the cost analysis as part of the feasibility report.
City Administrator Tolsma discussed how feasibility reports and pre-engineering work has typically been considered a capital cost. He added that he did not believe the costs will rise to the level where it will create a hardship for the City.
Mayor Rockvam and Council Member Kane Palen asked City Engineer Kuno for a timetable so that the Council knows how often they will have to meet to keep this project on schedule.
City Engineer Kuno responded that the feasibility report will take approximately two months to complete. He further discussed other considerations that will impact the timeline including whether or not the City is granted PFA funding.
Council Member Horton asked if the contractor for the 2019 ADA Ramp Improvements Project could potentially add-on the small project of handicapped accessibility at City Hall when their work is complete on Shoreline Drive.
City Engineer Kuno responded that he would ask the contractor about their interest in working on the City Hall project when they are in town for the Shoreline Drive project.
M/Pavot, S/Kane Palen to approve the bid tabulation and award of contract to Create Construction LLC for the 2019 ADA Ramp Improvements Project for $271,594.00.
Mayor Rockvam called for a roll call vote.
Motion carried 5-0. (Pavot, Hughes, Horton, Kane Palen, Rockvam – ayes)
M/Horton, S/Pavot to approve the proposal from Sambatek for construction services relating to the 2019 ADA Ramp Improvements Project for an amount not to exceed $58,800.00.
Mayor Rockvam called for a roll call vote.
Motion carried 5-0. (Pavot, Hughes, Horton, Kane Palen, Rockvam – ayes)
11. NEW BUSINESS & COMMUNICATIONS – None.
12. CLAIMS FOR PAYMENT
a. May 6, 2019 Claims
M/Horton, S/Kane Palen to approve all claims for payment.
Motion carried 5-0.
13. UPCOMING MEETINGS & TRAINING
a. May 8 – LMCD Work Session at 6:00 PM with Regular Meeting at 7:00 PM
b. May 8 – Planning Commission Meeting – 6:00 PM
c. May 14 – Fire Commission Meeting – 11:00 AM
d. May 20 – City Council Work Session – 6:00 PM
e. May 20 – Regular City Council Meeting – 7:00 PM
14. MISCELLANEOUS (INFORMATION ONLY)
a. Mound Fire Department March Report
15. ADJOURNMENT
M/Pavot, S/Horton to adjourn the City Council Meeting at 8:07 p.m.
The meeting was adjourned by unanimous consent.
Date Approved: May 20, 2019
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Dan Tolsma, City Administrator
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Theresa Schyma, City Clerk