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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2017-03-09 Council MinutesCITY OF CORCORAN City Council Meeting Minutes March 9, 2017 - 7:00pm The Corcoran City Council met on March 9, 2017 at City Hall in Corcoran, Minnesota. Present were Mayor Thomas, Councilor Keefe, Councilor Dejewski, Councilor Keefe, and Councilor LaFave. Also present were City Administrator Martens, City Clerk /Administrative Services Coordinator Beise, and Director of Public Safety Gottschalk. 1. Call to Order / Roll Call Mayor Thomas called the meeting to order at 7 :00 pm. 2. Pledge of Allegiance Mayor Thomas invited all in attendance to rise and join in the Pledge of Allegiance. 3. Agenda Approval City Administrator Martens noted an additional claim was presented. MOTION: made by Keefe, seconded by Dejewski to approve the agenda as amended. Voting Aye: Thomas, Bottema, Dejewski, Keefe, and LaFave (Motion carried 5:0) 4. Presentations No presentations were heard. 5. Open Forum Dorothy Theis, 9530 Cain Road, addressed the Council, suggesting the Council look at Medina's public participation practices. Ken Kluck, 21800 County Road 50, address the Council regarding the upcoming Corcoran Lions Chevy dinner on April 21, 2017. Mr. Kluck noted tickets are available and that there will be a blood drive at City Hall hosted by the Corcoran Lions June 27th 6. Consent Agenda a. Draft Minutes of the February 23, 2017 Council Meeting b. Draft Minutes of the February 27th and 28th City .Council Work Sessions c. Mama G's Optional 2AM Liquor License Renewal d. Temporary Liquor License — Hamel Rodeo e. Charitable Gambling Permit — Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation f. Authorization to Bid /Quote 2017 Road Materials MOTION: made by Dejewski, seconded by LaFave to approve the consent agenda as presented. Voting Aye: Thomas, Bottema, Dejewski, Keefe, and LaFave (Motion carried 5:0) 7. Claims as Presented a. Escrow Claims (Fund #500) MOTION: made by Keefe, seconded by LaFave to approve escrow claims as presented. Voting Aye: Thomas, Bottema, Dejewski, Keefe, and LaFave (Motion carried 5:0) b. All Other Financial Claims MOTION: made by LaFave, seconded by Keefe to approve all other claims as presented. Voting Aye: Thomas, Bottema, Dejewski, Keefe, and LaFave (Motion carried 5:0) 8. Staff Reports I Memos/Commissions a. Commissioner Representatives Mayor Thomas noted Planning Commissioner Russell was in attendance and Parks and Trail Commissioner Robran would be in attendance. b. City Council Goal Setting Session City Administrator Martens presented the report noting the proposed priorities and that staff is preparing a work plan to be presented and adopted at a future Council meeting. 9. Planning Business a. MN Solar Appeal of Financial Guarantee Requirements Michael Krause, Minnesota Solar, addressed the Council and asked that Council reconsider the bond amount for decommissioning process. Mr. Krause noted the decommissioning requirements for other cities, the cost estimates for decommissioning didn't include the salvage value of the materials, and the required performance bond would be $25,000 annually which significantly lowers the margins for the project. Council inquired about Minnesota Solar's company structure and contract terms with Xcel energy. Mr. Krause noted the parent companies has been in business for 15 years with Minnesota Solar being founded three years ago and the lease for 25 years was based on the legislation allowing community solar gardens. Council inquired the decommissioning requirements between the property owner and Minnesota Solar. Mr. Krause noted that in many cities, the bond is held by the property owner to ensure decommissioning, however in Corcoran the City would hold the bond per ordinance. City Administrator Martens noted he contacted developers who provided significantly different costs for performance bonds. Council discussed the option of placing the amount of the performance bond into a sinking fund. Council inquired about the salvage cost. Mr. Krause noted the salvage amount was based on raw materials rather than a secondary market for solar panels. Council discussed risk, decommissioning costs, a sinking fund option, and decommissioning with hazardous materials. Council inquired about the costs of projects and the potential for less subsidizes. Mr. Krause noted the industry has reached a tipping point with lower costs to do projects and subsidizes being lessened-. Council discussed the low margins, the uncertainty at the end of twenty-five years, and directing or not directing staff to look into a sinking fund. MOTION: made by LaFave, seconded by Keefe to make no changes to Resolution 2016-95. Voting Aye: Bottema, Keefe, and LaFave Nay: Thomas and Dejewski (Motion carried 3:2) b. Draft Survey Questions for 2040 Comprehensive Plan Update Process City Administrator Martens presented the report noting the timeline for the survey. Council provided suggestions for the survey. Suggestions included prioritization, adding an amenities question, adding a question about which schools kids are attending, and adding questions related to kids sports. Council discussed whether having options provide too much feedback. Council discussed adding additional options for questions. Per consensus, staff was directed to utilize feedback and create a draft survey which Council would provide feedback on prior to the survey being distributed via email. 10. Unfinished Business No unfinished business was presented. 11. New Business a. Public Interaction at Council Meetings Mayor Thomas noted that the City's current public participation system has been brought up as a concern by residents. City Administrator Martens presented the report noting the current opportunities for participation and options for improving the process. Council discussed the perception of the current participation system, processes in surrounding communities, how to handle documents received, limiting multiple speakers on the same topic, informing those commenting know that there feedback is received without creating a dialogue and providing an additional opportunity to residents to comment. Per consensus, staff was directed to create a comment card and bring it back at a future meeting. Council asked staff to note the change in an upcoming newsletter. Council discussed the number of speakers and adding to the comment card. City Administrator Martens noted a policy would need to be created and that staff envisions bringing back a policy at the March 23rd meeting with implementation in April. b. Press Box Funding Request — Snyder Field City Administrator Martens presented the report noting that Kevin Dale with the Corcoran Athletic Association has presented a proposal for a press box at Snyder Field with a future possibility of storage underneath. City Administrator Martens noted that $3,000.00 had been raised in donations for the project and they are seeking match of the $3,000.00. MOTION: made by Bottema seconded by Keefe to allocate $3,000.00 from the Park Dedication Fund towards the proposed press box project. Voting Aye: Thomas, Bottema, Dejewski, Keefe, and LaFave (Motion carried 5:0) c. Council Liaison Schedule to Commission Meetings City Administrator Martens presented the report noting options for liaison schedule options. Council discussed staggering the schedule. Council discussed staggering and upcoming meetings. Per consensus, Council was directed to stagger the schedule. Council discussed attending the Elm Creek Watershed district. City Administrator Martens noted he would send out a notification before the Elm Creek Watershed Commission Agenda for members to attend. d. Equipment Purchase — Bobcat Loaders City Administrator Martens presented the report noting the annual cost to buy and trade in annually is cheaper than maintaining the equipment for a typical five year life span. MOTION: made by Bottema seconded by Dejewski to approve the purchase and trade of Bobcat Loaders as recommended. Voting Aye: Thomas, Bottema, Dejewski, Keefe, and LaFave (Motion carried 5:0) e. Job Offer— Public Works Maintenance Operator City Administrator Martens presented the report noting hiring process, required equipment test and the selected candidate's background. MOTION: made by LaFave seconded by Dejewski to approve the conditional offer with Dave Kottke as presented. Voting Aye: Thomas, Bottema, Dejewski, Keefe, and LaFave (Motion carried 5:0) f. City Council Work Sessions City Administrator Martens presented the report noting that the possible topics for work sessions with the addition of the mission, vision, and values discussion. Council discussed noting items need additional context and current time constraints. Council inquired about having a representative from the Metropolitan Council speak at a meeting. City Administrator Martens noted he could reach out to Metropolitan Council Representative Rodriguez to speak at a meeting. Council discussed hosting work sessions on an ad hoc basis. 12.2017 Council Schedule City Administrator Martens reviewed the upcoming schedule. Mayor Thomas asked Planning Commissioners to discuss the Planning Commission and Parks and Trails meetings. Ms. Russell noted that the solar project had been tabled. Parks and Trails Commissioner Robran did not have an update. City Administrator Martens noted the March Parks and Trails Commission meeting was cancelled. 13. Council Liaison Calendar The Council liaison calendar was not reviewed, but was available in the Council Packet. 14. Adjournment MOTION: made by Bottema, seconded by Keefe to adjourn. Voting Aye: Thomas, Bottema, Dejewski, Keefe, and LaFave (Motion carried 5:0) Meeting adjourned at 8:39pm. J lica Beise —City Clerk/Administrative Services Coordinator