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03-22-21 CC Reg Mtg MinutesCITY OF SHOREWOOD CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING MONDAY, MARCH 22, 2021 MINUTES 1. CONVENE CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING Mayor Labadie called the meeting to order at 7:00 P.M. 5755 COUNTRY CLUB ROAD COUNCIL CHAMBERS 7:00 P.M. Oath of Office Nathaniel Gorham, Council Member A. Roll Call Present. Mayor Labadie; Councilmembers Johnson (arrived at 7:04), Siakel, Callies, and Gorham; City Attorney Keane; City Administrator Lerud; City Clerk/HR Director Thone; Finance Director Rigdon; Planning Director Darling; Director of Public Works Brown; and, City Engineer Budde Absent: None B. Review Agenda Mayor Labadie asked to make an amendment to the agenda for item 2F and insert the name, Ken Huskins. Callies moved, Gorham seconded, approving the agenda as amended. Roll Call Vote: Johnson, Siakel, Callies, Gorham, Labadie voted Aye. Motion passed. 2. CONSENT AGENDA Mayor Labadie reviewed the items on the Consent Agenda. Johnson moved, Gorham seconded, Approving the Motions Contained on the Consent Agenda and Adopting the Resolutions Therein. A. City Council Work Session Minutes of March 8, 2021 B. City Council Regular Meeting Minutes of March 8, 2021 C. Approval of the Verified Claims List D. Approve Regular Appointment of Lucy DeHaan — Shorewood Community Center Attendant E. Approve Regular Appointment of Tim Kosek to Light Equipment Operator — Utilities Position, Public Works CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES MARCH 22, 2021 Page 2 of 9 F. Planning Commission Appointment — Ken Huskins, Adopting RESOLUTION NO. 21-027, "A Resolution Making an Appointment to the Shorewood Planning Commission." Roll Call Vote: Johnson, Siakel, Callies, Gorham, Labadie voted Aye. Motion passed. 3. MATTERS FROM THE FLOOR Greg Larson stated that he was here as a spokesperson for a number of Shorewood residents who believe the City needs to protect the last remaining publicly owned greenspace in town. They are requesting that the City rezone the woods that lie on the north side of the trail and at the end of Wedgewood Drive from its current R-2A and make it a permanently protected green -space. He noted that there is a letter included in the Council packet that provides what he feels are compelling reasons why the Council should consider this action. He referred to various historical figures that have taken steps to protect various areas from being developed, such as the Boundary Waters and the National Parks. He stated that the community is strongly behind this effort and does not think there is really any opposition to this rezoning. Mayor Labadie asked about the petition and how it was generated. She noted that she sees many names on the petition that are not Shorewood residents but from the surrounding areas. Mr. Larson explained that the petition was generated when the Council was considering using the woods as a stormwater pond. He stated that the petition was on-line and was not limited to just Shorewood residents. He stated that he believes that it shows the areas around the trail and the parklands are community land which means more than just Shorewood have tremendous interest in saving the remaining green space. There was a consensus of the Council to place this item on a future agenda. Councilmember Johnson stated that as part of that discussion, he would like to have a discussion about all City owned properties, including the original intent for the properties as well as future intent. Mayor Labadie asked that during the discussion, this property be separated out from the rest because she is concern that the discussion may be bogged down if they are all included together. She asked that this be put on a future agenda and asked staff to prepare a report that includes how the land was acquired, its zoning, and if the statement in the petition that this land was marked as green space in 2017 is accurate. She noted that she would also like to have a discussion on R-2A zoning versus green space. She thanked Mr. Larson for bring this issue to the Council. 4. PUBLIC HEARING - NONE 5. REPORTS AND PRESENTATIONS - NONE 6. PARKS A. Report by Commissioner Schmid on March 9, 2021 Park Commission Meeting CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES MARCH 22, 2021 Page 3 of 9 Commissioner Schmid was not in attendance at the meeting, so Planning Director Darling gave an overview of the March 9, 2021 Park Commission meeting. Mayor Labadie asked when the grand opening celebration will be held for Badger Park. Planning Director Darling stated that it will be Wednesday, June 16, 2021 from 6:00 — 8:00 p.m. B. Contract to Remove Invasive Plants at Badger Park Planning Director Darling explained that last fall staff noticed that the new bituminous trail in Badger Park was beginning to split and heave in several spots on the east side of the lacrosse field. The pavement is still under warranty and staff is going to meet with the contractor this week to discuss completion of the repairs. She explained that they believe the problem is that some of the invasive species are starting to send out root sections under the trail which seems to be causing the majority of the trail damage. Staff has requested estimates to remove the woody invasive species such as buckthorn and willows that are putting pressure on the trail as well as re-establishing turf in these areas. The low bid was from Mangold Horticulture and staff recommends acceptance of their bid. Councilmember Gorham stated that the Mangold Horticulture bid only has one visit for weed control and the other has three visits. He noted that they recommend five to eight visits for weed control. He asked if there was a potential to come back to Council for a change order that will cover more week control. Planning Director Darling explained that if additional sprays or maintenance is needed, those are small items that staff can approve without Council authorization. Councilmember Johnson stated that it appears from the quote that each weeding visit is $95. Councilmember Gorham stated that it seems like a no-brainer to go ahead and add more weed control visits although he understands with it being such a low cost it is easy for staff to approve it without coming to Council. He stated that he does not want this to be a failure because the City did not include enough weed control. Planning Director Darling stated that the Council could make a motion that additional weed control be included. Siakel moved, Gorham seconded, Adopting RESOLUTION NO. 21-028, "A Resolution Accepting a Quote and Authorizing a Service Agreement to Remove Invasive Woody Vegetation in Badger Park." Roll Call Vote: Johnson, Siakel, Callies, Gorham, and Labadie voted Aye. Motion passed. 7. PLANNING A. Report by Commissioner Riedel on March 2, 2021 Planning Commission Meeting Commissioner Riedel gave an overview of the March 2, 2021 Planning Commission meeting as reflected in the minutes. B. Lot Line Adjustment Location: 24680 Smithtown Road and 5675 Christopher Road Applicant: Foster/Dietz/Molatky CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES MARCH 22, 2021 Page 4 of 9 Planning Director Darling explained that the property owners are jointly requesting a lot line adjustment in order to transfer a portion of property from the Smithtown Road parcel to the Christopher Road parcel. Staff and the Planning Commission recommend approval. Callies moved, Siakel seconded, Adopting RESOLUTION NO. 21-029, "A Resolution Approving a Lot Line Adjustment for Properties at 24680 Smithtown Road and 5675 Christopher Road." Roll Call Vote: Johnson, Siakel, Callies, Gorham, and Labadie voted Aye. Motion passed. C. Variance to side yard setbacks Location: 25360 Birch Bluff Road Applicant: Cyclone Construction Planning Director Darling explained that this property is located at the boundary with Tonka Bay with Crescent Beach to the east. She explained that the application is to demolish the existing home and detached garage and construct a new home. She stated that they have requested variances to allow the home to be setback ten feet from the west property line and maintain the current setback of 1.2 feet from the east property line which would make the combined sideyard setback 11.2 feet where 30 feet is required. The attached garage will be 30.1 feet from the east property line where 35 is required. She stated that this has changed a bit from what was presented to the Planning Commission because the applicant was able to update their survey to reduce the size of the garage and clear it from the easements. She stated that after review, staff recommended approval based on the configuration of the narrow lot and its location within the Shoreland District. Mitigating the reduced setback is the location of the fire lane to the east of the property because it is 33 feet wide and is unlikely to be used for structures which maintains the appearance of openness. She reviewed some of the unique conditions that staff is recommending to be included. She stated that the Planning Commission, on a split vote, recommended approval of the variance, and the condition that the boat house/shed be removed. She reviewed some of the questions that she had received regarding this application. She noted that she found that there have been at least nine instances where the City has required removal of non -conforming accessory buildings and structures on lakefront lots. Councilmember Siakel asked if all nine of the properties Darling found had come to the City and asked for a variance or some type of special consideration. Siakel noted that she does not remember many of the projects that were presented on the list. Planning Director Darling stated that not all of them had requested a variance or conditional use permit, some were removed with building permits. She gave a run-down of details of the instances she had found where non- conforming structures were required to be removed. Councilmember Gorham stated that he feels some of the instances listed are an apples to oranges comparison. Councilmember Callies stated that she agrees with the recommendations regarding the variances, but would like to have a deeper discussion regarding the boat house. She stated that she did not think the property owner was claiming that it was historic and that statement was made by another individual at the meeting. She stated that the city code does not require that non -conforming structures be removed for a variance. She stated that as Commissioner Riedel stated, if the property owner was not doing anything on his property, the owner could reconstruct CITY • SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES MARCH 22, 2021 Page 5 of 9 this non -conforming shed completely. She reiterated that removal of non -conforming structur is not actually a requirement in the City code. She stated that she feels this would be complete up to the Council's discretion for consideration of whether to add it as a condition or not, Councilmember Gorham stated that he does not want to make this discussion about the validi of getting rid of non -conforming structures, because he thinks that is a good genera stated that the applicant has gotten himself into the variance process and, by hook or by croo ww Z W a W • Mayor Labadie stated that she has difficulty with the boathouse but has no problem with the oth aspects of this request. She stated that if the City is reading the exact black letter of the ordinanc strictly as written, because of the fact the house will be torn down and there will not be a princip residence there, the boathouse should come down. She stated that Councilmember Calli raises a good point that this is not going to •- vacant lot in perpetuity because a new house be going up almost as soon as the existing home is taken down. She stated that she has a ha 6-ga�ivH-i"tt-41�r"f .R• it not being a vacant lot. Siakel moved, Callies seconded, Adopting RESOLUTION NO. 21-030, "A Resolution Approving Variances to Side -Yard Setbacks for Property Located at 25360 Birch Bluff Road", and the provision that the boathouse does not need to be removed." CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES MARCH 22, 2021 Page 6 of 9 Mike Melnychuk thanked both the Planning Commission and the Council for taking the time to review their request. He stated that he appreciates the dialogue he was able to have with the Council surrounding this issue. Roll Call Vote: Johnson, Siakel, Callies, Gorham voted Aye. Labadie voted Nay. Motion passed. D. Authorize Purchase of Building Permit Software Planning Director Darling explained that staff would like to enter into an agreement iWorQ for building and zoning permit management. She reviewed some of the advantages to using this cloud -based software to manage the building and code enforcement process. She reviewed the annual cost and noted that the first -year cost will be higher as it includes the set-up costs. Mayor Labadie noted that the Council had seen a presentation about this software at the work session meeting. Councilmember Siakel stated that she has no problem with this request and feels that it will help staff take the next step in organization and having it readily available on site will make things easier for everyone involved. Mayor Labadie stated that she was impressed with the presentation and feels this will help the City's efficiency. Councilmember Gorham stated that it appears to be well reviewed and he feels it will fit the City. He stated that documenting inspections is a big thing and may even end up paying for itself because of the amount of record keeping the City has. Councilmember Johnson stated that he is looking forward to seeing some reports out of the system especially for the building permits that have been hanging around for numerous years. Johnson moved, Siakel seconded, Adopting RESOLUTION NO. 21-031, "A Resolution Accepting a Quote and Authorizing Execution of a Service Agreement with iWorQ." Roll Call Vote: Johnson, Siakel, Callies, Gorham, Labadie voted Aye. Motion passed. 8. ENGINEERING/PUBLIC WORKS A. Accept Bids and Award Contract for the Mary Lake Stormwater Outlet, City Project 19-09 City Engineer Budde gave background for the new Councilmembers. He explained that Mary Lake does not have a natural outlet so the City has researched many options and determined that a new pipe outlet from the north end of the lake to Studor Pond would be the best solution. He reviewed what construction work will be necessary in order for this to take place. The City opened seven bids in September and the low bidder was G.F. Jedlicki which came in slightly below the estimate. He noted that the City has received approval from both the Minnehaha Creek Watershed District and the City of Excelsior. He noted that one of the conditions was to get approval from the homeowner next to Studor Pond. He noted that he had also included a change order to change the substantial completion to September 30, 2021 with final completion by October 31, 2021. He noted that G.F. Jedlicki has been very flexible with the City and are not increasing their pricing from last year. CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES MARCH 22, 2021 Page 7 of 9 Councilmember Gorham commended G.F. Jedlicki for their cooperation with the City and explained that it is very rare for a contractor to extend that long and be so patient. He stated that it is a very good thing for the City. Councilmember Siakel stated that this project has been going on for a long time and expressed her appreciation to City Engineer Budde because this has been a complicated neighborhood. She stated that she just wanted to make sure he knew that he has done a good job. Public Works Director Brown noted that there are a number of agreements that have been involved with this project and City Engineer Budde has been working night and day to try to get them in place. He stated that everything has been agreed to conceptually and noted that at the next meeting, they will bring all of those agreements to the Council in order to take care of a bit of housekeeping to formalize the agreements. Councilmember Johnson stated that he would like to commend Public Works Director Brown and his staff for the emergency measures that were put into place over the last few years to ensure that homeowners and structures were not impacted. Johnson moved, Siakel seconded, Adopting RESOLUTION NO. 21-032, "A Resolution to Accept Bids and Award Contract and Approve Change Order #1 for the Mary Lake Outlet Project, City Project 19-09". Roll Call Vote: Johnson, Siakel, Callies, Gorham, Labadie voted Aye. Motion passed. 9. GENERALMEW BUSINESS - NONE 10. STAFF AND COUNCIL REPORTS A. Administrator and Staff 1. Redistricting Update City Clerk/HR Director Thone explained that there was a redistricting update and a tentative schedule included in the packet. She stated that redistricting happens when census data becomes available and noted that the information included in the packet was for informational purposes and she will continue to provide regular updates for the Council. Councilmember Johnson stated that one question he received after the last election was about the City having one precinct in which there are no voters and asked if there was anything the City could do to eliminate that precinct. City Clerk/HR Director Thone stated that there is nothing the City can do to eliminate that precinct because there has to be a precinct for all areas in the State whether or not there are voters there or not. Other Finance Director Rigdon noted that the City had its financial audit field study was completed last week which was done remotely. He stated that the City should have the results and a financial statement for the April 26, 2021 Council meeting. CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES MARCH 22, 2021 Page 8of9 City Engineer Budde stated that the tree removal contractor will be mobilized to the Glen/Amlee/Manitou area beginning on March 23, 2021 and the work will last about three to four weeks. Councilmember Johnson noted that City Engineer Budde held a Shorewood Oaks public meeting that he has heard from numerous neighbors that it was very well received. Mayor Labadie stated that she had attended that meeting and felt that City Engineer Budde did a really good job of presenting the information to the public in a way that was very easy to understand even for the individuals who were not engineers. B. Mayor and City Council Councilmember Callies asked about the City policy related to trees and gave the example of Xcel coming through and trimming trees that may be interfering with the lines. She asked if the City was involved in this process at all. She noted that when they trim the trees, they just leave the trimmed material on the private property. She stated that they are not small limbs that now the property owner has to do something which may even include hiring someone to get someone to come in and move the huge limbs. She stated that it does not seem right to her that they can just go through and leave all the debris as they cut. She noted that she realized that it was a safety issue to trim the trees near the lines but feels they should take care of their own debris. She asked if this was how it was supposed to work. Public Works Director Brown stated that it should not work that way. Xcel does come in and trim and pile up the brush and limbs and then another division comes through and disposes of the material if it is done as part of routine clearing. He noted that there is a second scenario where they come in an emergency situation, such as when there is a line down. In this situation, they will trim, leave the material and then, typically, he will get a phone call asking the City to remove the material. He stated that he would guess that at this point, they are leaving the material until weight restrictions come off the roadways so they can bring in their trucks. He stated that if there are issues and they do not show up in a timely manner, he asked that residents let him know and they will take care of it. Mayor Labadie stated that most years the City also receives complaints about the aesthetics after they come through because they truly just do a hack job. Public Works Director Brown noted that the City has spoken with Xcel many times about that issue and asked them to make it as aesthetically pleasing as possible, but they are trying to process a large volume of trees and do not always consider that a high priority. He recommended residents contact Xcel Energy if they had concerns or a complaint. Councilmember Johnson asked if Public Works Director Brown had any idea when spring weight restrictions would be lifted. Public Works Director Brown stated that he does not know a prediction and noted but explained that the State usually gives them a three-day notice. Mayor Labadie stated that on March 11, 2021, Representative Kelly Morrison sponsored bill HF- 241 on behalf of the City. She explained that the City was granted six minutes of testimony in front of the Capital Investment Committee which was a plea for funding for the proposed Galpin Lake trail area. She stated that they will share information as it becomes available. She CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES MARCH 22, 2021 Page 9 of 9 expressed her appreciation to Representative Morrison for looking out for the City of Shorewood and its pedestrians and bicyclists. She noted that on March 18, 2021, the League of Women Voter's for the South Tonka Area sponsored a Mayor's Forum/State of the City Address event. She stated that seven of the eight mayors invited attended and she felt it was very informative. She noted that the event will be posted on the City's website. 11. ADJOURN Labadie moved, Johnson seconded, Adjourning the City Council Regular Meeting of March 22, 2021, at 8:22 P.M. Roll Call Vote: Johnson, Siakel, Callies, Gorham, and Labadie voted Aye. Motion passed. ATTEST: p �- ® Je nifer Labadie, Mayor Sandie Thone, City C erk/HR Director