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2020-10-27 CC Meeting MinutesMOUND CITY COUNCIL MINUTES October 27, 2020 The City Council of the City of Mound, Hennepin County, Minnesota, met in regular session on Tuesday, October 27, 2020 at 7:00 p.m. in the Westonka Schools Performing Arts Center in Minnetrista. Members present: Mayor Ray Salazar; Council members Phil Velsor, Jeff Bergquist, Paula Larson, and Sherrie Pugh Members absent: None Others present: City Manager Eric Hoversten, Fin Dir/Clerk/Treasurer Catherine Pausche, City Engineer Brian Simmons, Deb Taylor, Susan Narvatil, Ben Zeckmeister, Seth Aurness, Der Marq, Kelsey Chase, Alan Krantz, Pat Thoreson, Ben Brandt, Antoine King Consent agenda: All items listed under the Consent Agenda are considered to be routine in nature by the Council. There will be no separate discussion on these items unless a Councilmember or citizen so requests, in which event it will be removed from the Consent Agenda and considered in normal sequence. 1. Open meeting Mayor Salazar called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. 2. Pledge of Allegiance 3. Approve agenda MOTION by Bergquist, seconded by Pugh, to approve the agenda. All voted in favor Motion carried. 4. Consent agenda MOTION by Velsor, seconded by Larson, to approve the consent agenda. Upon roll call vote, all voted in favor. Motion carried. A. Approve payment of claims in the amount of $282,019.79 B. Approve minutes: 10-13-20 regular meeting. C. RESOLUTION NO. 20-106: RESOLUTION REQUESTING STUDY AND IMPROVEMENT OF TRAFFIC SAFETY AT HENNEPIN COUNTY ROADS 44 AND 110 INTERSECTION IN MOUND D. RESOLUTION NO. 20-107: RESOLUTION APPROVING VARIANCE FOR PROPERTY AT 3325 WARNER LANE PLANNING CASE NO. 20-18, PID NO. 25-117-24-21-0126 E. RESOLUTION NO. 20-108: RESOLUTION AMENDING RESOLUTION NO. 20-50 RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE GRANTING OF REGULATORY FLEXIBILITY TO LOCAL BUSINESSES Mound City Council Minutes — October 27, 2020 F. Approve Pay Request #1 in the amount of $193,741.46 to Northwest Asphalt for the 2020 Surfside Parking Lot Improvements Project; PW -20-01 5. Comments and su estions from citizens resent on an item not on the a enda. Mayor Salazar introduced 11 -year-old Mica whom wrote him a letter regarding concerns for the skate park. Mica stated the things he likes about the skate park, including jumping on the ramps and seeing his friends; things he thinks could be improved, including graffiti removal, more garbage receptacles and banning inappropriate language crowding certain areas. Mica suggested increased a police presence, no litter signs and/or more trash bins. Mica said he appreciates the steps the city has already taken to make the park better and says he is looking to forward to returning to the skate park when the weather gets better. Hoversten said staff met with the Orono Police Department and some parents last fall to hear concerns which led to resurfacing the half pipe, repairing the drinking fountain and mister, adding a little asphalt to bridge the park to the pavilion to reduce muck and upgrading security cameras thanks to funding from the Mound Crime Prevention Fund. Hoversten said he hopes that will provide the deterrence the city has experienced elsewhere when the word gets out areas are under surveillance and rules are enforced. Hoversten said he appreciates the parents' involvement and the city partnerships it encourages. 6. Susan Navratil of the Gillespie Center and Senior Community Services providing an update on Center 2020 activities and 2021 priorities Susan Navratil, Vice President of the Gillespie Board of Directors (BOD), and Deb Taylor, CEO of Senior Community Services (SCS) and acting President of Gillespie Board spoke on behalf of the Gillespie Center (GC) Board. Taylor walked through a Power Point highlighting the increase of population over the age of 65, noting SCS has been providing services to seniors in the area since the 1970s and they continue to contract with the GC for senior programming, including indoor/outdoor chore services based on ability to pay, snow removal, lawn mowing, handy man services, and Medicare A&B partners program. Taylor said the social worker Sara Roberts has continued services via phone and ZOOM noting the call volume is up because people are struggling to keep their loved ones at home during COVID19. Taylor said SCS now uses CARENEXTION that allows people to coordinate services for both scheduling and managing costs. Taylor said the Gillespie moved to virtual programming leveraging MNSeniorCenters.org programming during COVID19 and will eventually have live programs via ZOOM. Navratil said she joined the board last November, noting the BOD runs the center with contracted staff, including Mindy Anderson's contract via SCS and two 1099 employees for bookkeeping and events. Navratil noted the mission is to provide people of all ages connection to their community including seniors, their families and school age children. Navratil said the center is open weekdays during the day and they are looking at programming for weekends and evenings, noting in 2019/2020 the center hosted Santa's workshop, preregistration for Polar Plunge, and the Community Blood Drive prior to the pandemic. Navratil said many events were cancelled due to COVID, including the March WeCAN breakfast, weddings, etc. Mound City Council Minutes — October 27, 2020 Navratil said pre -pandemic, the monthly Wednesday lunch country jam attracted 100s of seniors, including many from neighboring communities. Clubs include singers, book club, card club, quilters, and garden club, among many others. Navratil noted the innovation and creativity employed to reopen safely after COVID-19, noting the focus remained on staying connected with volunteers handwriting cards, creation of Sunny the dog videos and a drive -up bakery. The newsletters had ideas for what to do at home. Navratil said some in-person activities resumed in July that could accommodate social distancing and other events were reimagined to take place virtually. Navratil noted the Holiday Boutique, one of the main fundraisers, will take place this season under safe conditions and thanked the volunteers whom make everything happen, including the high school students that help with set up and take down. Navratil also thanked the city for their active participation with the center. Salazar congratulated the center on their accomplishments in learning to adapt and overcome all of the challenges presented by COVID. 7. Ben Brandt Mound LMCD Board of Directors Representative, providing an update on LMCD 2020 activities and 2021 priorities Ben Brandt said he is here to give the annual update noting LMCD is the governing body for Lake Minnetonka above the 929.4 waterline and has 14 member cities. Brandt said the 2021 Budget is $595K, a 3.75% increase and the city levies will increase 1.76% based on increases to Taxable Market Value. Brandt said Mound paid $23,620 in 2020 and will pay $24,147 in 2021, noting 7 other cities pay more than Mound even though Mound has the 2nd most shoreline behind Orono. Brandt clarified the distinction between actual wake restrictions and conversations on the topic. Brandt said wake restrictions are put in place during times of high water vs ordinary water levels. Brandt said the lake is currently at 928.5 so the Gray's Bay Dam is closed for a couple weeks. Brandt said high water at 930 or above sea level risks damage to shoreline and appurtenances so after 8 consecutive days at 930 or above, a wake restriction of 5 mph is in place from shoreline out to 600 feet. Brandt said a conversation took place about some bays not having the width to create any area that wasn't restricted, such as Harrison Bay that would be 75% restricted and North Arm at 82%. Brandt said some in the public misinterpreted the conversation thinking it was going to be across the entire lake. Brandt said nothing was never decided but noted the LMCD is open to hearing if the city would like to make it the whole bay in those instances. Brandt noted Hennepin County Water Patrol looks for the egregious offenders so no wake is difficult to enforce. Brandt noted 17 bays are naturally the entire bay because they are so narrow. Brandt said there are also conversations about wake surfacing boats impacting shoreline and small non -motorized watercart users, noting LMCD is pushing for educational approach with DNR's "Own Your Wake" campaign. Brandt said it focuses on how to wake surf responsibly and how to be aware of others and potential impacts. Brandt noted the YOUTUBE video Responsible Wake Surfacing. Brandt said LMCD is helping to fund a U of M St. Anthony Falls campus multi -phased scientific study to analyze the impact of wakes at the surface and underneath, including how long it takes to dissipate, potential damage, and the impact of wind on waves vs. boats. Mound City Council Minutes — October 27, 2020 Brandt said some residents are requesting to place "No Wake" buoys in front of their property and since it is hard to set a precedent, the LMCD is focusing on educational outreach. Brant said a potential conclusion is to increase the buffer from 300 feet from shore during ordinary levels to something more like 400 to 500. Brandt summarized AIS control efforts, including a 2 -year moratorium on harvesting, although private harvesting continued. Brandt said the LMCD will not harvest for at least another two years, noting they are not seeing any adverse effects although the weather conditions have been favorable. Brandt said the master plan is a work in progress and the goal is to cooperate with the DNR and LMA to bring experts together to develop best practices in controlling AIS, including studying chemical treatments. Brandt said there was 66,000 launches in 2020, the 4th largest and busiest in MN. Brandt said the Water Patrol responded to a couple drownings and one boat fire and it was felt that traffic was up due to COVID-19 restrictions and fantastic weather. Brandt noted the LMCD is looking at code changes for winter regulations, including deicing and creating the best management practices for more consistent enforcement with regard to fence line, lighting, etc. to protect walkers and snowmobilers. Brandt noted the website, LMCD.org, has been updated with much more information. Salazar asked about the harvesting moratorium. Brandt said there was not enough proof that it was effective, but noted it was always designed to harvest only thick mat, navigational channels or safety hazards and was never intended to service shoreline properties. Brandt said with the pause, the LMCD set aside a reserve amount in case a private company needed to be hired to supplement. Brandt said Seton Channel and Black Lake are among the more problematic areas. Velsor said their bay used to be a gathering point for weeds and the amounts have been less the last two years. Brandt said last year was the first in 25 that harvesting wasn't done, but the questions have only been to ask if it will be done or not and not so much an opinion on whether it should be done. Brandt said there are naturally occurring conditions that contribute, including wind direction, and rain fall levels which create more run-off. Brandt noted the LMCD is currently not funding any chemical treatments on lake. 8. City Engineer Brian Simmons requesting discussion and action on a Resolution orderin preparation of report on Shoreline Drive pedestrian safety improvement stud Simmons noted the packet included a proposal for a study to address safety concerns regarding pedestrian and vehicular traffic and the multiple crossings for the Dakota Regional Trail. Simmons said multi -agency meetings have led us to conclude the city has to take the lead in studying the issues and potential alternatives, including doing nothing, overpass (cost prohibitive), signalization and/or pavement narrowing to reduce pedestrian area to cross. Simmons noted a push button flashing light is less effective due to width and site lines. Salazar asked some points of clarification on how the crossings would be consolidated. Simmons said the two crossings have two different sets of rules as one is pedestrian and one is a trail crossing, as well as the S curve, medians and changes from 2 lanes to 4 lanes. Simmons said you can reduce speed by reducing pavement width and the study will analyze road curvature and improving site lines as the buildings provide obstacles. Simmons said there Mound City Council Minutes — October 27, 2020 is potential to provide an island in the middle to improve pedestrian safety. Hoversten said bicycle compliance will be compelled by barriers/bollards, signage and the lack of alternatives. Hoversten noted site lines and queuing/sequencing with the other lights will also be considered/analyzed. Simmons said the not to exceed is $12,689 based on estimated staff hours. Simmons broke it down noting the estimated 92 hours to develop report which will be billed at actual cost. Larson said she call the City Manager with questions and concerns as she sees it day in and day out and sees how the trail users ignore the signs. Larson wants a solid barricade noting channelization has lots of alternatives and will be critical. Larson said everyone loves the trail and we just want it to be safer. Salazar noted the city is taking the lead because the county has not shown urgency up until now. MOTION by Pugh, seconded by Bergquist, to adopt the following resolution. All voted in favor. Motion carried. RESOLUTION NO. 20-109: RESOLUTION ORDERING PREPARATION OF REPORT ON SHORELINE DRIVE PEDESTRIAN SAFETY IMPROVEMENT STUDY 9. Mayor Salazar providinit an update to Council on recent Development Committee, Staff, and Private Interest discussion of Lost Lake Channel Improvements Initiative Salazar said the Development Committee consists of Velsor and himself and they met with staff, Bolton & Menk and the DNR to discuss a high level overview of a concept plan for Lost Lake. Salazar said the group is analyzing improvements to make Lost Lake more user friendly, noting there are many options to enhance the channel and harbor area, both economically and environmentally. Salazar noted Senator Osmek is excited about the potential to find state funding to help finance. Velsor said initially it was very exciting and was basically a ring on the western sign of Lost Lake but then feedback from the DNR seemed liked it would be a no-go, but Velsor thinks anything that will enhance the properties along that side is beneficial. Salazar reiterated the recent conversation was to enhance, clean-up and widen the channel. Pugh noted State Representative Morrison is a strong environmentalist and would likely support this endeavor. 10. Information/Miscellaneous A. Comments/reports from Council members/City Manager: Hoversten noted the November 24 City Council will take place in the Council Chambers and the December 8 final meeting will be back at the Westonka PAC. Hoversten said the city is seeking commission applicants and the deadline is November 9'h. Hoversten said 35% of voters already voted and direct balloting is currently happening at city hall where voters put the absentee ballot directly into ballot counter. Hoversten said there are no intermediate results provided before election day when polls are open 7 am to 8 pm so be sure to make a plan. Pugh said she attended the quarterly Suburban Rate Authority, noting the membership rate is the same but they are hiring a consultant to give advice and direction to the municipalities for alternative energy use. Mound City Council Minutes — October 27, 2020 B. Reports: Fire Department — September 2020 Engineering — September YTD C. Minutes: DCC — January 16, 2020 D. Correspondence: LMCD — 2021 City Appointments 12. Adiourn MOTION by Velsor, seconded by Larson, to adjourn at 8:54 p.m. All voted in favor. Motion carried. Mayor Raymond J. Salazar Attest: Catherine Pausche, Clerk