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01-22-24 CC Reg Mtg MinutesCITY OF SHOREWOOD CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING MONDAY, JANUARY 22, 2024 MINUTES 1. CONVENE CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING 5755 COUNTRY CLUB ROAD COUNCIL CHAMBERS 7:00 P.M. Mayor Labadie called the meeting to order at 7:00 P.M. A. Pledge of Allegiance B. Roll Call Present. Mayor Labadie; Councilmembers Callies, Maddy, Sanschagrin, and Zerby; City Attorney Shepherd; City Administrator Nevinski; City Clerk/HR Director Thone; Planning Director Darling; Director of Public Works Morreim; City Engineer Budde, and Communications Coordinator Wilson (via Zoom) Absent: None C. Review Agenda Sanschagrin moved, Maddy seconded, approving the agenda as presented. Motion passed. 2. CONSENT AGENDA Mayor Labadie reviewed the items on the Consent Agenda. Councilmember Sanschagrin asked to remove item D. for separate discussion. Mayor Labadie stated that they will move this to become item 8.13. on the agenda. Callies moved, Maddy seconded, Approving the Motions Contained on the Consent Agenda and Adopting the Resolutions Therein. A. City Council Work Session Minutes of January 8, 2024 B. City Council Regular Meeting Minutes of January 8, 2024 C. Approval of the Verified Claims List moved to item 8.13. on the agenda) E. Authorize Safe Routes to School Grant; Galpin Lake Road to Oak Street, Adopting RESOLUTION NO.24-005, "A Resolution Authorizing Pursuit of the Safe Routes to School Infrastructure Grant." CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 22, 2024 Page 2 of 20 Motion passed. 3. MATTERS FROM THE FLOOR Mayor Labadie outlined the protocol and expectations during Matters from the Floor. Dave Kowalski, 25635 Maple View Court, explained that he had lived in Shorewood for 13 years and expressed his appreciation to the Council for their service to the community. He stated that he felt there were still a lot of important unanswered questions about the Eureka Road project that feels need to be answered by the Council through the use of impartial specialists who do not stand to benefit from the choices the Council makes. He stated that he would like them to consider the City's finances and debt ceiling; if there will eventually be need for curbs and gutters on Eureka Road why they wouldn't have soft ones versus hard ones and be able to keep the road at its current width; questions related to the wetlands/marsh areas. He explained that because of all these questions that have yet to be answered, he would like to see the choice by made for the mill and overlay option so it gets the road fixed at a reasonable price and then they can work on getting some of these other questions answered. David Veerthaller, 25755 Maple View Court, stated that he had spoken with Stacy Lijewski from Wetland Conservation at the DNR who told him that she and a hydrologist would be happy to participate in a technical evaluation. He stated that he was at the last meeting and expressed concern for the wetlands and noted that his home is surrounded by three of the marshes. He explained that the holding pond at the start of Maple View Court that is almost full but the marshes are down about four feet even though the ones along Highway 7 appear to be full. He stated that he feels that there is something going on with the marshes around Maple View Court and those on the Ruffernach property which are also dry. He stated that he also encouraged the City to move forward with a mill and overlay project but if it moves past that, he feels that the need to have an understanding of what is happening with the marshes before moving forward. Kristin Kowalski, 25635 Maple View Court, stated that she had shared comments during Matters from the Floor at the last meeting related to Eureka Road project. She stated that it was noted at that meeting that the vote on that project is scheduled to take place at the February 26, 2024 City Council meeting and while there will be a quorum there will be one Councilmember who will be absent. She noted that given the public attention that this project has generated and the volume of comments regarding the proposed construction options, she would support a delay of the vote to allow for all the Council to be present for the vote. She stated that in the meeting minutes from the January 8, 2024 meeting, Chris Jocelyn had made some comments and provided a copy of a petition with signatures to City staff. She stated that she did not see a copy of that document included in the meeting minutes and asked where that document is recorded and available to be seen for the public record. She thanked the Council for adding the report from staff regarding the conflict of interest concerns to the agenda tonight. She asked that the Council address the following questions during their discussion: Is it common practice to consolidate engineering services into an agreement like this and not separate out the element that is in some sort of lone staff capacity versus consulting services?; Who has the City designated as their liaison to act as the City's representative from Section 2, Paragraph E of the full agreement?; What is the City Attorney's point of view on the limitation of liability outlined in Section 4, Paragraph C.2. of the full agreement?; Whether the comments and questions on the website are to be responded to by the City Engineer or Bolton & Menk by virtue of the contracting agreement? CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 22, 2024 Page 3 of 20 Mayor Labadie noted that she was unsure that all of Ms. Kowalski's questions would be able to be addressed tonight, but asked that if they are not answered during the meeting that staff answer them as they had done for the questions raised at the last meeting. She stated that she believed the issue of voting on this without the full Council will be discussed tonight and apologized for inadvertently setting a date when they could not all be present. She explained that the rushed date of February 26, 2024 was entirely her responsibility because she had asked staff without consulting the Council first. She assured everyone that choosing that date was not an attempt to take away a vote from anyone on the Council. Barry Brown, 6050 Burlwood Court, explained that this was the fifth time he has been before the Council speaking on buckthorn in Freeman Park and the health effects of large scale foliage spraying. He stated that over the past month, he has been in touch with researchers at the DNR, Mississippi Valley Conservatory, Professor Mike Schuster at the University of Minnesota who has six -hundred buckthorn study plots in one -hundred locations around the Twin Cities, Laura VanRiper, DNR who is the individual who authored the brochure referenced in the proposal from Public Works to the Council. He explained that those discussions led him to discover that the main ingredient in Garlan 3 and Garlan 4 causes severe birth defects in rats at relatively low levels of exposure with the most common adverse effect in the kidneys for all species tested. He stated that another product that the City is considering is glyphosate which was studied by the U.S. Department of Health and in data gathered from humans and animals they found it causes respiratory issues, gastrointestinal issues, neurological, reproductive, and cancer. He referenced the Garlan 3 and Garlan 4 material data safety sheets have a warning label on them of `danger' and has an acute toxicity to fish and aquatic organisms. He noted that with two -hundred thirty micrograms, it can kill bees within forty-eight hours which is essentially one-third of one single grain of salt. He read aloud information from the Minnesota Department of Health regarding triclopyr and its potential health effects and from Governor Walz related to pesticide usage. He also referenced information from the Minnesota Conservation Volunteer magazine and Professor Mike Schuster related to repeated cutting of the buckthorn. He acknowledged that these scientific reports all have counter findings which is common with scientific findings, but he feels with all of these findings he doesn't understand why any reasonable person would take the risk for such a large scale foliar project of thirty acres, which is right behind his home. He urged the Council to provide clear direction to residents and staff on this issue. There was a round of applause. Mayor Labadie asked that people refrain from cheering or applauding because the City Council meeting is a regular business meeting and those actions are not appropriate in that setting because they can disrupt the meeting and have the tendency to inhibit free speech of others who may have opposing viewpoints. Steve Klimowicz 26135 Shorewood Oaks Drive stated that he also has concerns regarding the use of chemicals in Freeman Park and believes many residents have concerns about the ongoing maintenance. He stated that he believes there are concerns about the use of hazardous chemicals and their effect on humans or pets who may be using the park. He stated that along with Mr. Brown, he continues to oppose the use of chemicals for the initial removal of the buckthorn, but also for the ongoing maintenance in years to come in order to keep it suppressed. He explained that he would much prefer the use of natural means by exhausting the plants through repeated cutting or goats. He stated that there was a resident in Shorewood Oaks that was not available to attend, but had sent a letter to Mayor Labadie and asked that he read it aloud CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 22, 2024 Page 4 of 20 so it can be included in the record. He read aloud the letter written by Don Aslesen, 26055 Shorewood Oaks Drive asking the Council not to use chemicals in this process. Mayor Labadie noted that she had received the letter late last night and had forwarded it onto City staff. She stated that there is one individual on-line who has indicated a desire to address the Council. Alan Yelsey, 26335 Peach Circle (via Zoom), stated that he had communicated his concerns about systemic pesticides for about six years and all of the information he has gathered had already been submitted to the City Council and City staff. He stated that it appears as though despite receiving this information they have ignored it and explained that he was here to ask the Council for a compromise and not go forward with their intended use of systemic pesticides during the cutting that will begin next week. He read aloud the terminology and language found on the label of the chemicals the City was planning to use and explained that it would be an environmental hazard that is clearly listed on the label. He stated that the City should not be using it in any of the areas in Freeman Park where it is intended because it is a hazardous, toxic chemical that breaks down into other hazardous and toxic chemicals. He stated that the label says it should not be used and he feels that the City will most likely be sued if they choose to use it and there are now about sixty people who are neighbors that will be submitting a petition to the City asking them not to move forward with their plans. He noted that he feels that there are plenty of alternatives and supports the comments made by all the previous speakers. He stated that he wished the Council was listening to the residents so they did not have to try to convince the Council to listen to them or become a battle. He stated that what the Council is planning to do is not supported by the residents and is not correct for both Eureka Road and Freeman Park. He listed off what he sees as alternative treatment options including cutting, putting bags over them, use sheep, leave some areas with buckthorn. He stated that they have also not identified what they plan to do in the future when the leaves grow back and noted that the use of Garlan 3 is just as bad as Garlan 4. He explained that he was very unhappy that the residents have to keep fighting to stop the Council from putting poison into the land where it will permeate the groundwater, water tables, drinking water, and wells. John Francis Healy, 26040 Shorewood Oaks Drive, explained that he wanted to support all the speakers who had gone before him. He stated that he served in the Navy and has seen fellow sailors be taken over by chemicals that were used. He noted that there are pets, children, and adults that need to be considered in this decision. He stated that he did not understand that the residents are having to convince the Council not to use a chemical that will kill people and pollinators. He asked why the Council was so determined to take this action. David Vierthaler, 25755 Maple View Court, thanked the Council for allowing him to speak on buckthorn and explained that he felt he was a bit unique in this area. He stated that he owns three acres on Maple View Court and has lived there for about six years and has been hand pulling buckthorn for that entire time. He has asked the City what they will do in the marshes nearby and have had zero response despite using the on-line request form. He stated that he had also asked the City what they will do with the purple loosestrife that is in front of his house and explained that he has even submitted pictures to the City and has heard nothing back on what they are planning. He explained that he did not feel the City had taken any positive action, but he has pulled the buckthorn by hand. He noted that he also has three beehives on his property that are registered and within his first two years having them here, he lost two hives. He explained that both hives were confirmed by the Bee Lab at the University to have been lost by pesticides. He stated that he firmly agreed with the statements that had already been made that the City should not be using CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 22, 2024 Page 5 of 20 chemicals and should use alternate means which he understands may be more manual intensive, but they work just as well. He invited the Council to come take a look at his property. 4. REPORTS AND PRESENTATIONS 5. PARKS A. Report by Commissioner Wenner on January 9, 2024 Park Commission meeting Parks Commissioner Wenner gave an overview of the discussion and actions taken at the January 9, 2024 Park Commission meeting, as reflected in the meeting minutes. B. Integrated Pest Management Update Public Works Director Morreim explained that he had also given this update to the Parks Commission at their last meeting as well. He stated that over the last year the City had reinstituted a fair amount of things that deal with the IPM portion of the work plan. He noted that the draft work plan was discussed at the Council retreat in 2023, an open house was held in April where they got feedback and the final work plan was approved in late April. He briefly outlined the staff goals and explained that, in general, they are looking to utilize more caution level or advisory level chemicals, chemicals with a signal word `danger' would be prohibited, and chemicals with a signal word of `warning' may be used in a moderate targeted manner. He reviewed the plans for athletic field maintenance, Manor Park Pond, Freeman Park buckthorn removal, general weed abatement, and Emerald Ash Borer. He reviewed that plans for communication including posting signs, information on the website, and noted that he also encouraged people to give him a call if they had any questions. Councilmember Sanschagrin stated that, given all the information the Council had received tonight about the Garlan products, he would like the Council to discuss not using it as part of the buckthorn removal. He stated that when the Council had discussed this a few months and asked a lot of questions about the Garlan products, he was comfortable because he was told that it disintegrated or broke down into harmless elements, but given the information on the warning labels of the product, regarding not using it in wetlands or high water tables, he thinks the City should think long and hard before they allow its use in Freeman Park. Councilmember Zerby asked if Pathfinder was the same as Garlan 4. Public Works Director Morreim answered that it was essentially the same product. Councilmember Callies stated that she believes the Council has thought about it long and hard and would disagree with the notion that they had not. She stated that she appreciated the comments and input from residents. She noted that she also believed that there need to be a distinction made between broadcast spraying of the product, which is not what the City was going to do and instead would be dobbing it in area two. She stated that the gentleman who shared that he has been pulling the buckthorn for the last five years would suggest to her that this method was not really working all that well. CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 22, 2024 Page 6 of 20 David Vierthaler, from the audience, interrupted and stated that he disagreed and clarified that he was pulling three acres of land by himself and it is working perfectly. He stated that Councilmember Callies assumption is wrong. Councilmember Callies that she did not want to have a back and forth dialogue about this item but thinks they can revisit this and noted that she was getting to the point where she thinks that the City should just let the buckthorn be there. She explained that she felt it was getting ridiculous and there were not people before the Council talking about how they want the fields to be maintained and her understanding was that the reason the City was doing this was because there have been an interest from people who use the fields for sports and other activities and to have the trails maintained well and be able to effectively use them for those activities, which require some maintenance of the buckthorn. She reiterated that perhaps the City should take a step back and let the athletic fields go. Mayor Labadie asked Public Works Director Morreim to outlined the different phases and what efforts were slated to begin this week. Public Works Director Morreim stated that starting this week, area two will be the initial starting point and then they will move to areas one and three. He explained that there will not be any treatments in areas one and three this week and noted that it was originally going to be spot treatments but he had directed them not to do any in areas one and three. He reviewed other details from the proposal for the treatment plans. Councilmember Callies stated that the City has gotten the information from Prairie Restorations, the brochures from the DNR, and the information shared by the Integrated Pest Management who spoke to the Council who talked about the concern of invasive species like buckthorn. She stated that it is referred to as an invasive species because it takes away the native species and eliminates the growth of productive Minnesota plants which is something that should also have serious consideration. She noted that she felt it would be short-sighted to not do anything and would take back her earlier statement. She shared that she was frustrated by the fact that the Council does not seem to have people who are expressing their concern on the other side of this issue. Councilmember Sanschagrin stated that he feels clear that the City does want to manage and eliminate the invasive species, but feels there are other techniques that could be considered, such as exhausting the plant. He stated that there are even volunteers who are ready to help with that work and noted that Minnetonka organizes volunteer groups to take care of buckthorn and would like Shorewood to consider a similar approach rather than using chemicals. Councilmember Callies stated that she did not think that it was accurate to say that Minnetonka used no chemicals at all and believes that they are used in addition to volunteers. Mayor Labadie stated that she thinks there are several steps to removal of buckthorn and the Council had not yet taken a vote and given staff direction on exactly how they want to do it. She explained that she did not believe that conversation was on the table tonight and is one that will need to be noticed before it is on the agenda. She stated that she would request that the individuals who spoke that were citing materials from various experts that they provide links or hard copies to those so the Council can review that information before they discuss that phase of the project. She reminded the Council that the phase of the project that is on the table tonight CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 22, 2024 Page 7 of 20 the Council has already voted and approved moving forward with this phase. She asked if, for this phase, the City was still following DNR best practices recommendations. Public Works Director Morreim stated that it is an option that DNR has communicated as an effective treatment for buckthorn. Mayor Labadie agreed with the earlier statements by the Council that they have been discussed this during many meetings and have also had numerous experts appear, in person providing reports. She explained that what was voted on is to go ahead with this next phase later this week that follows Minnesota DNR best practice guidelines, and was also who the City received grant money from to proceed. She asked City Administrator Nevinski and Public Works Director Morreim if she had said anything incorrectly. Public Works Director Morreim stated that she had not said anything incorrectly. City Administrator Nevinski stated that, to his knowledge, she had not said anything incorrectly. Mayor Labadie reiterated that she wanted the public to understand that there are several steps to irradicating the buckthorn in Freeman Park and believes that may of the concerns raised tonight were related to a foliar spray which is not what is happening later this week. She asked if the Council had any other questions related to the report prepared by Public Works Director Morreim. Councilmember Zerby asked when spraying would be part of the treatment plans. Public Works Director Morreim stated that it was recommended that if the City does the spraying that it be done in the fall. Councilmember Zerby stated that he would like to have this back on a future agenda before that time, so they can have the discussion about the spray application. Mayor Labadie noted that she felt that the whole Council would like that. She stated that she agreed that it needed to come back before the Council because that was not what was already voted on. Councilmember Sanschagrin stated that he felt the City needed to do more due diligence because Mr. Yelsey was correct that the actual label does say it should not be used in areas where there is a high water table and to him, that means that the City should not use it because they are using it in a manner that is contrary to the label. Mayor Labadie stated that needs to be discussed before the next step. Councilmember Sanschagrin stated that he believes the usage includes the dobbing and thinks that is also prohibited from being used in areas where there is a high water table. Mayor Labadie reminded Councilmember Sanschagrin that the Council had already approved the select dobbing that is planned for later this week. Public Works Director Morreim clarified that the reason for treating area two is that it is not a more wet land type area and was also the reason for utilizing the dobbing method. CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 22, 2024 Page 8 of 20 Mr. Brown spoke from the audience and stated that area two is a wet land area because it is where the beaver pond and frogs are located. He stated that he plans to keep speaking up about this and does not feel the City has their facts right. Mayor Labadie stated that it was the job of the mayor to maintain order within the meeting and asked him to follow the procedural rules and not speak from the audience. She explained that at this moment, this is a Council discussion and not an open public hearing. She stated that the residents in the audience and the Council are all `neighbors' because they live in the same City and was simply asking that they respect the rules of the proceeding. She stated that going back to the agenda, this item was an update on the IPM report and asked the Council if they had any questions on that update. Councilmember Maddy asked what the City's `long game' was for Manor Pond and noted that it seems as though it has been a decades long problem that will not be a problem unless the City poison's it, which means that it is still a problem. He reiterated his question that he would like to know what the long term solution was for Manor Pond. Public Works Director Morreim stated that he believed that originally, when the treatment started, the thought was that because there was a nearby playground, even though nobody was swimming in the pond, it was something that because they were near it they wanted a more desirable look. He explained that the treatment had started but had been posted the last two years and restarting it was just getting it back to a point where it is more desirable in looks and with its odor. Councilmember Maddy asked, related to buckthorn, how much material would be applied later this week, for example would they daub the chemical on six or seven stumps. He asked if the City told them to hold off on use of Garlan for now, how much will that change what Prairie Restorations were planning to do. Public Works Director Morreim stated that it would just mean maintaining later more. Councilmember Maddy stated that if they want to stop that, the City could just pay more later for ground mowing. He stated that must admit that ground mowing can also be a problem because if the buckthorn is choking out the natives, mowing will do the same. He stated that he was not sure if it was something worth discussing and changing their minds at the last minute or not. He stated that the fact that they are arguing over this is, to him, a good sign, because it is one of the better practices and is just dobbing and nothing else. He stated that he believes he saw a few Councilmembers seem to express the opinion that they felt holding off on the Garlan would be fine. Councilmember Callies explained that she was not sure it would be worthwhile to proceed if they were not going to do the job well. She stated that she thinks the warnings listed on labels, generally, have to do with sitting in the ground and broadcast spreading or drinking the materials which are not things that are being proposed in this case. She stated that this chemical would be applied by a professional and noted that the Council had not just come up with this method on their own because this was within the DNR materials. She asked if the suggestion was to ignore the accepted practices. Councilmember Sanschagrin stated that when the experts were here, the Council had asked them about what happened with the Garlan and how it broke down and he did not feel that individual was able to answer the question. He reiterated that there are other techniques available that can CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 22, 2024 Page 9 of 20 be used in terms of exhausting the plant, for example the technique used by the Friends of the Mississippi that cut the plant higher up and get rid of all the green matter and have it exhausted that way through multiple maintenance. He reminded the Council that there are people who have volunteered to assist in this.effort. Councilmember Callies asked if he had a list of the individuals who had volunteered to conduct these maintenance activities. Mayor Labadie stated that if there are volunteers that want to help, she is happy to have them, but the City had an open to the public, volunteer painting event for the hockey rink at Cathcart Park three years ago and there were only three community members who came. She explained that the rest of those involved were Councilmembers. Commissioners, employes of the company that provided the paint, and City staff. She stated that she would love it if people would help with a community project, but in her experience, very few people will actually follow through. Councilmember Callies stated that the Council has already made a decision on this and asked City Attorney Shepherd what the Council would need to do to reverse that decision. Mayor Labadie asked if the Council alters the method that they have already voted on if they lose the DNR grant money. City Administrator Nevinski stated that the Council is kind of spinning their wheels at this point on this issue and believes that Councilmember Maddy raised a good question. He stated that he did not think if the City backs away from the dobbing that it will significantly impact the contract. He stated that it would give the City some more time to do some research and look at other options or methods of control and irradicate the buckthorn. He stated that they do have an obligation to accomplish that mission because they are spending DNR money as well as City money. He stated that it is possible that some of the other methods may be more costly than dobbing which needs to be considered at budget time. Mayor Labadie reiterated her question about whether this change to withdraw the dobbing would lose the DNR grant funding. City Administrator Nevinski stated that he did not believe that they would lose the grant funding. Public Works Director Morreim stated that he also did not believe it meant that they would lose the grant funding. Councilmember Zerby stated that he was in favor of not using any herbicide in Freeman Park at this time. He stated that the Council has heard a lot of concern about this chemical process that needs to be addressed. He explained that he is in support of trying to take care of this the mechanical way, but noted that the technique mentioned by Councilmember Sanschagrin to exhaust the plant with cutting is still an experiment, which was why he had voted for this alternative treatment, but reiterated that he was willing to see how this approach may work instead. City Attorney Shepherd stated that if the Council is planning to move forward without doing the dobbing he would suggest that the Council have a motion so it is clear and then staff can act accordingly. CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 22, 2024 Page 10 of 20 Mayor Labadie asked if there would be a problem with this motion since the City had not noticed the public about it ahead of time. City Attorney Shepherd stated that they would not because the issue of discussing the IPM plan was noticed and this action would be part of that discussion. Zerby moved, Sanschagrin seconded, to remove the statement in #3 of the IPM workplan to include using Pathfinder for buckthorn treatment at Freeman Park, and that there be no herbicide treatment at all, at this point. Councilmember Callies asked if the intent of the motion was for no herbicide treatment anywhere, including the athletic fields or if it was just directed at herbicides for buckthorn removal and explained that she felt they were two different things. Councilmember Maddy stated that he believed that they were just referring to the dobbing planned by Prairie Restoration for buckthorn removal. Councilmember Zerby confirmed that had been his intent. Councilmember Maddy stated that he feels that approach may end up costing the City more money in the future and wanted confirmation that the motion was just directed towards the Prairie Restoration contract. All in favor. Motion passed. Mayor Labadie directed staff to make sure to contact Prairie Restorations about this change. 6. PLANNING A. Report by Commissioner Gorham on January 2, 2024 Planning Commission meeting Public Works Commissioner Gorham reviewed the discussion and recommendations from the January 2, 2024 Planning Commission meeting as reflected in the meeting minutes. B. Review CUP for T Mobile Antenna Location: 24283 Smithtown Road Applicant: SMJ International, LLC Planning Director Darling reviewed the CUP request for a T Mobile Antenna at 24283 Smithtown Road by SMJ International, LLC to add a microwave dish and supporting equipment to an existing triangular array. She stated that the Planning Commission had unanimously recommended approval, subject to the five conditions outlined in the staff report. She noted that no one from the public spoke on this item or submitted any letters on this request. Councilmember Maddy asked if Planning Director Darling could confirm that this equipment would be about the size of a shoebox. Planning Director Darling stated that was correct and noted that it was about 12 x 12 square. CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 22, 2024 Page 11 of 20 Councilmember Sanschagrin asked if the City had received any complaints from anyone in the area about the antenna. Planning Director Darling stated that she had never received any complaints about the antenna. Zerby moved, Maddy seconded, Adopting RESOLUTION NO. 24-006, "A Resolution Approving a Conditional Use Permit for an Antenna Installation and Related Equipment on an Existing Monopole at 24283 Smithtown Road." Motion passed. C. Variance to Expand a Non -conforming House Location: 5995 Glencoe Road Applicant: Ben and Kelly Vanderheyden Planning Director Darling reviewed the variance requests to expand a non -conforming house at 5995 Glencoe Road. She shared history of the property, the plans from the applicant, and the original recommendation from staff that the applicants eliminate the cantilever on the north side of the home as well as reduce or eliminate the front porch. She stated that the Planning Commission recommended approval with a vote of 2-1 for the variance requests, subject to the conditions outlined in the staff report. She explained that the City had received two letters in support of the application and one person from the public spoke at the public meeting and indicated support as long as it did not hamper her ability to develop in the future. Councilmember Maddy asked for clarification that the property to the south at 6065 Glencoe Road has zoning rights to build probably three houses in that parcel and the owner was concerned that this request may inhibit her future development plans. He stated that he got the feeling at the Planning Commission meeting that this would not affect those future plans. Planning Director Darling confirmed that this should not have any effect on her ability to develop that property, but as the property develops and the road is continued, the addition will be more noticeable. Councilmember Sanschagrin asked what Planning Director Darling's biggest concern had been with this request. Planning Director Darling explained that her biggest concern was having a portion of living area that close to the north property line and moving forward from the house going that close to the street. She noted that she feels it will be a departure from the rest of the homes in the area which are set back a bit further. Councilmember Sanschagrin asked if that concern was mitigated a bit because the home was at the end of the street. Planning Director Darling noted that the home is at the end of the street now but would not be in the future. Councilmember Callies asked for details on the current location of the home. CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 22, 2024 Page 12 of 20 Planning Director Darling explained that with the new porch, it would be nine feet in one portion and there is a six foot covered porch area. Councilmember Sanschagrin asked if anyone in the area had expressed concerns about their plans. Councilmember Zerby noted that there had been two letters in support but did not think they had given their addresses. Planning Director Darling confirmed that the two letters were from neighbors that were close to this property. Ben Vanderheyden, 5995 Glencoe Road, stated that the neighbor to his north is Jeff Colby at 5985 Glencoe Road who had e-mailed a letter and stated that he had no concerns with the cantilever that would move things closer to his home. He explained that the other letter was from James Loffler at 5980 Glencoe Road which is across the street. Councilmember Zerby stated that he sees staff recommendation for approval as well as from the Planning Commission. He stated that he thinks this will be a nice addition to the neighborhood and the request is within reason and noted that he thinks it is almost better that it will be more forward because of the church property. Councilmember Maddy stated that if you just read the packet that talks about a two foot setback it seems crazy, but then there are letters of support from the neighbors, so with everyone in support he would also support granting this variance request. Mayor Labadie stated that she had the same thoughts when she had initially read the packet and noted that a variance for one property does not necessarily set a precedent for other properties because they are considered on an individual basis in a case by case manner. She stated that she thinks this request makes sense and will make things more aesthetic and livable. Councilmember Callies explained that she agreed, in general, but would say that discussing neighbors that agree or do not agree with a request, that can be difficult because they could get into a situation where it meetings zoning code but the neighbors do not like it, and it would not be an appropriate decision for the Council to make just because the neighbors did not like it. Councilmember Maddy stated that he agreed and noted that nobody wants to get their neighbor mad at them by not supporting a project. Councilmember Callies asked the applicant if they could make changes without the cantilever. Mr. Vanderheyden explained that the original plans that were submitted shows the dining table between the island and the dry bar which is not where it is located because it just leaves one foot of space. He stated that they put their table in the northeast corner by the window and explained that they feel the cantilever is something that is essential to the project because it will dramatically improve the functionality of the space because the home does not have a designated dining area. He stated that they felt this was the only way to get a mud room and a dining area in a tasteful manner without having to redesign what they had already renovated. CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 22, 2024 Page 13 of 20 Zerby moved, Labadie seconded, Adopting RESOLUTION NO. 24-007, "A Resolution Approving Variances to Front and Side -Yard Setbacks for Property Located at 5995 Glencoe Road." Motion passed. 7. ENGINEERING/PUBLIC WORKS A. Authorizing Preparation of Final Plans for 2024 Mill & Overlay and Smithtown Drainage Improvement, City Project 24-01 City Engineer Budde outlined the request for the preparation of final plans for the 2024 Mill and Overlay and Smithtown Drainage Improvement projects. He explained that the mill and overlay projects are proposed to be: Boulder Circle; Church Road; Murray Street; Murray Court; Bracketts Road; Lilac Lane; Spruce Hill Court; Oak View Court; Maple Street; Chestnut Court; and Whitney Circle. He noted that it will be paired with looking at drainage along various areas of Smithtown road. He reviewed details of the overall project budget which includes construction costs and administration. Councilmember Sanschagrin asked how the potential variables described by City Engineer Budde would impact the budget amounts and asked for the worst case scenario. City Engineer Budde explained that the worst case scenario is that there are more things than they anticipate and end up over budget which could potentially mean cutting some streets out of the project. He noted that if that needed to happen, staff has identified which streets that would be which are Chestnut Court and Whitney Circle. He stated that if the culvert work for the Smithtown Drainage improvements end up costing more than budgeted, they will probably have to cut out an intersection or two and then roll it into a future project. Councilmember Sanschagrin stated that some of this work is in response to complaints the City had received about people driving over the corners of curbs. City Engineer Budde agreed and gave the example of this happening at Howard's Point Road. Councilmember Maddy stated that a lot of the work along Smithtown is relatively newly installed drainage infrastructure. He asked if the City had done something wrong ten years ago when this was initially done or if it was just normal upkeep of the drainage infrastructure. City Engineer Budde stated that the one he is aware of at Ayrshire and Smithtown Road there are some pedestrian improvements there that are usually a big puddle of water and believes that things could have been done better in the past to help avoid that. He stated that there are very subtle grades throughout the area, so he is not sure if it was a design issue or a construction issue, but it does end up being the sag/low point of Smithtown Road. He clarified that he was not around at the time this work was completed but assured the Council they would try to find a solution to this problem. Callies moved, Sanschagrin seconded, Adopting RESOLUTION NO.24-008, "A Resolution to Prepare Final Plans and Specifications for 2024 Mill and Overlay and Smithtown Road Drainage Improvements, City Project 24-01." CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 22, 2024 Page 14 of 20 Motion passed. 8. GENERAL/NEW BUSINESS A. Approve Park/Recreation Director Recruitment City Clerk/HR Director Thone stated that at the January 8, 2024 meeting, the Council asked staff to consider changes to the job description, possibly the title, as well as the recruitment plan. She reviewed the differences between the title and duties between a Director and a Manager. She noted that history of this position within Shorewood, current directors at the City and their responsibilities, and past recruitment efforts. She noted that during the last recruitment process they found many candidates were drawn to the `Director' title so they felt it was very beneficial to the recruitment process and also ended up with a highly talented candidate pool. She briefly reviewed the job descriptions and salary ranges she had gotten for the Park/Recreation Manager and Park/Recreation Director positions at local metro cities. She reminded the Council that the City had just completed a compensation study where the Park and Recreation Director position was identified as one that needed to be reclassified and reviewed some of things considered in the study and the results. Councilmember Zerby explained that he is still a bit stuck on the Manager versus Director issue and noted that when he thinks of a director, he thinks of a much larger enterprise than the community center is currently. He stated that the job description begins with the primary objectives of providing leadership which makes it feel like it is more of a high level position and less one where the expectation is that they will roll up their sleeves and get their hands dirty. He suggested that they remove the words `leadership' and `in' which should fix that part. He noted that the budgets for this position are smaller than most of the other directors in the City. He stated that he does not care what they actually call the position and appreciated most the changes that have been made and are well laid out. Councilmember Callies stated that to her, as they were describing the duties and tasks, it looked like they would fit better as more of a Manager and not a Director. She stated that this position supervises a lot of part-time employees and staff and not other Managers which seems to be one of the critical differences when you look at a description of what a Director does as outlined on the first page of the report. She asked if this position, if it was changed to a Manager would still report to City Administrator Nevinski, but could also see the Planning Director Position changed into something like a Community Development Director and then the Park and Recreation Manager could report to that position. She asked who had done the budgeting and strategic planning prior to hiring former Park and Recreation Director Crossfield. Planning Director Darling stated that former Park and Recreation Director Grout had taken care of those duties. Councilmember Callies asked if the title for her position had been Director. City Clerk/HR Director Thone stated that her title was Park and Recreation Director/Community Center Director. Councilmember Callies stated that she would agree that the City got qualified candidates the last time this position was advertised but felt that they would also get qualified candidates if it were advertised as a Manager position. She expressed concern that if the City calls this position CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 22, 2024 Page 15 of 20 Director that they are over describing the position and then the candidate will not be happy in the position because it really is not that sophisticated of a role. Mayor Labadie stated that she agreed with the comments that have already been made related to the descriptions and the actual job. She stated that she agreed that it would be more appropriate in the Manager category. Councilmember Callies asked City Administrator Nevinski his opinion on having a Manager rather than a Director reporting to him. City Administrator Nevinski stated that he did not think the title was really that important in terms of reporting. He stated that does think the Council has discussed some interesting ideas, for example shifting in other departments and change that structure, but feels that will need some additional conversations about the possibilities of adding more support staff if they are considering adding more duties to the Directors with the potential shift as suggested in moving this position under one of the other Department Heads. He noted that the simplest and easiest thing to do right now would be to change the title to Manager and keep the reporting structure and hierarchy as it currently is. Councilmember Callies clarified that her comment was not meant to suggest that the City reorganize the whole City structure tomorrow, but wanted them to keep it in mind for future planning purposes. Mayor Labadie clarified that her comment was just meant to support a change in title to Manager, but not change the duties or reporting structure at all. Councilmember Sanschagrin stated that he was also in support of changing the title for this position to Manager. Councilmember Zerby stated that he agreed and felt the job description was well laid out but reiterated his suggestion to remove the word `leadership' and `in' within the first sentence. Callies moved, Zerby seconded, to Approve the Park and Recreation Manager recruitment and the new job description and title. All in favor. Motion passed. B. Approval of Contract with Abdo Financial Services (formerly item 2.D. on the Consent Agenda) Councilmember Sanschagrin explained that he was not opposed to this contract but had wanted to make sure that the City is going in with their eyes wide open in terms of the importance of this role for the City's governance, the need to ensure that the City maintains auditor independence, and its budget implications. City Administrator Nevinski stated that this is obviously a very important position and former Finance Director Rigdon gave the City good, quality work and the City relied very heavily on him and he will be missed, but this space needs to be filled with someone that understands government accounting for a City like Shorewood. He stated that he believes bringing in a consultant, such as Abdo, in an interim capacity will be helpful and important. He explained that CITY OF SHOREW000REGWLAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARf22.2O24 Page 16 of 20 he would take over the management duties for this position such as authorizing payments to vendors. Henoted that he believed one ofthe concerns expressed isthat Abdo iSalso the Qb/'S auditor and noted that he had also asked about that early on in their discussions about how that would work. He explained that these are two separate entities so the people that dothe auditing work for one onnop8ny and the different people that would offer this service to the City work for a different company, although the overall ownership is the same. He stated that he had C3||ed around 8bit t0see ifthere was anybody else that offered this type ofservice and found that there really were not many options available. He explained that hewas hopeful that the interim needs will be short term and the City will be able to fill this role with 8 permanent staff member. He stated that staff was nsnornnneDdiDg 8pp[Ov8| of the COntnSCt with Abdo Financial Services, but noted a date within paragraph two that needed to be changed from K88rCh 31' 2022to September 30. 2024 in order to nn8tCh the proposal date. He noted that J88D McGann from Abdo was present on-line ifthe Council had additional questions. Councilmember Callies stated that she had similar questions as those raised by Councilmember SansCheghn regarding the issue of the separation of the two functions and companies and how iiisensured. Jean McGann, Abdo explained that as they look at 2023, that is work that was completed by Mr. Rigdon and City staff. She stated that as they move into 2024' one of their biggest dliDQS is that they do not want to make management decisions and feel it is important that those are handled by the City. She stated that asthey move forward with services, things such 88the approval Of invoices would need to be nl8n8g8d by City Administrator Nevinaki. She stated that the journal entries for doing the market analysis On investments would be prepared by Abdo, but would be approved by the City Administrator. She stated that all the work they would be doing would absolutely be reviewed and approved by City management and City staff would also be making all management decisions. City Administrator Nevnnki stated that this S8[n8 type Of arrangement does occur in Other communities and stated that Savage, Corcoran, Excelsior, and Olivia have all availed themselves bzthis same type 0farrangement inthe past. Councilmember Sanschagrinexmlained that he had previously worked for 8CPA firm and one Of the things that was drilled into their heads was that an auditor must be independent in fact and in appearance. He stated that he f88|S the 8pp8@nRnCe of separation of powers will be hard work to maintain and suggested that they will need to keep their eyes on this situation. He asked about the potential irnpeoL to the budge[ and asked if this service vvoU|d cost $10.000415,000 per month. City Administrator Nevinskiagreed that was the current amount that they were projecting 3Gthey are prepping for the audits so the nOSt may go up 8 bit but reiterated that Mr. RigdOn has left the City is a good position and feels that those costs should be able to minimized. Councilmember Sanschagrin asked what the plan would be for covering these additional costs. City Administrator N*vinsNstated that they have the ability to draw from reserves and also have the funds from the Finance Director salary that will be available without someone in that position. He explained that he is hopeful that any budget impact with be neutral or [DiOiDl3| in the end. CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 22, 2024 Page 17 of 20 Abdo Financial Services, with the date revised from March 31, 2022 to September 30, 2024. All in favor. Motion passed. 9. STAFF AND COUNCIL REPORTS A. Staff Communications/Website Update Communications Coordinator Wilson highlighted the City's communication efforts throughout 2023 for website analytics, email communications, social media, and the Shore Report. He noted that since his last presentation regarding the website update, the layout and colors have been approved and they are working on migrating content. He stated that there is a notice on the website to let people know that changes were being made and if they cannot find something to let City staff know. He explained that he expects the design concept to be approved by mid - February. Councilmember Zerby asked if the Council would have access to the website at the same time as City staff does. Communications Coordinator Wilson confirmed that the Council would also have access at the upcoming retreat. 2. Response to Sand/Salt Question Public Works Director Morreim gave a brief response to the question that was raised during Matters from the Floor at the January 8, 2024 City Council meeting. He explained that the City would be changing materials and primarily using salt with sand used in colder conditions when salt does not work as well. He noted that in the past the City was using a mixture of 60% sand and 40% salt so they were already using a fair amount of salt in the past. He explained that sand is really a temporary traction measure and does not really have any other benefits to the roadways. He reviewed the ways the City plans to focus on minimizing the use of salt and explained some of the new equipment that has been implemented and noted the use of liquid brine. He stated that this has been a fairly mild winter so, in general, they are using less materials overall. He explained that the City understands the important of fresh water and their overall plan is to use less salt. Councilmember Zerby stated that he felt this was very interesting information and felt like it was probably a good idea for the City to use the new salt treatments for the light dustings of snow that they have gotten. He asked if GPS could ever come into play similar to what farmers have started using to apply fertilizer in different parts of their field in different amounts based on the soil conditions. Public Works Director Morreim stated that there are product that do that, but cautioned that they are extremely expensive and he did not feel the City would get their money's worth out of it. 3. Response to Conflict of Interest Claims CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 22, 2024 Page 18 of 20 City Administrator Nevinski explained that he and City Attorney Shepherd had collaborated on the response to the conflict of interest claims related to City Engineer Budde that were raised at the January 9, 2024 meeting. He stated that it is fairly common for cities to use consultant engineers and the cities that have engineers on staff tend to be larger cities. He explained that the City made a change from the prior consulting firm of WSB to Bolton & Menk in 2019 following the RFP process. He explained that the contract had been reviewed at the end of 2022 and renewed for another three year period. He explained that there are an estimated four -hundred fifty cities that utilize consulting engineer in a way that is similar to what Shorewood has been doing with eighty-four cities, who are mainly larger than Shorewood, have at least one engineer on staff. He noted that most cities that have staff engineers end up hiring consulting engineers to complete some of their work as well. He stated that believes that there is a question of how the City Engineer is accountable and where the checks and balances existed in the process. He gave a brief explanation, shared examples, and noted that ultimately, it is the Council's decision and the Council's authority to enter into contracts and expend funds. He noted that some of the concerns raised at the last meeting were specifically related to Eureka Road and assured the Council that no design was being done and what has been presented were just examples of some of the details and possibilities. Councilmember Zerby stated that the questions that he noticed in the email were related to things like the conflict of interest being the engineering firm that appears to have won construction bids. He stated that the City's engineers do not build the roads and the City bids them out and are required to choose the lowest responsible bidder. He clarified that Bolton & Menk has nothing to do with the construction and are supervising the process for the City. He noted that there was also a question of whether the City Engineer was paid by Bolton & Menk or the City. City Administrator Nevinski explained that the City Engineer is a consultant, so the City pays a consulting fee to Bolton & Menk, who then turns around and pays City Engineer Budde, who is not a City employee. Councilmember Zerby noted that the e-mail also made a statement about over engineering projects and he believes that is something that can be subjective about what is over engineered and what is not. He explained that when the City had hired Bolton & Menk they felt that they were a very reputable company and shared that one of the issues he personally had with WSB is that they did not really admit to their mistakes which resulted in the City essentially paying for the engineering twice. He stated that he had only been back on the Council for a few months, but believes the decision to make the change to Bolton & Menk has played out positively. Mayor Labadie stated that she was also on the Council when the City utilized WSB and would agree that the shift to Bolton & Menk has been a good shift for the City. She stated that she would agree with the examples given by Councilmember Zerby that there were mistakes made by WSB that ended up costing the City and they have not had that issue since working the Bolton & Menk. Councilmember Callies stated that to her, the use of the term over -engineering, she felt that any consultant's responsibility is to come up with options and then the client can choose. She stated that unless the City specifically tells them to give us the cheapest option and not bother with anything else, because she as a Councilmember wants to know what all the options and price points are so they can make informed choices. She stated that if something is in the CIP, that is a direction to the consultant. She noted that specific to the Eureka Road project, she would like to be present for the discussion and vote because it is significant and asked the Council to consider moving that to a meeting where the full Council will be present. CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 22, 2024 Page 19 of 20 Councilmember Zerby agreed that the Eureka Road topic should probably be extended to sometime in March. Mayor Labadie agreed that having the full Council present for that discussion is important and would have no opposition to moving that discussion to March. City Administrator Nevinski reviewed the possible meeting dates in March. There was consensus of the Council to schedule the discussion for Eureka Road for March 25, 2024. Mayor Labadie asked the residents that were still present to begin spreading the word to others about the plans to discuss Eureka Road on March 25, 2024 and noted that the City will also communicate it in the normal fashion. Other Public Works Director Morreim stated that they have just been doing general maintenance including tree trimming and working on park bathrooms. He stated that there was ice at Cathcart and Manor Parks, but has a feeling that the ice may be going away with the upcoming weather and encouraged residents to enjoy it while they can. He noted that this may be a very short season because he thinks that this may be the end of the ice for the year. Planning Director Darling stated that they had asked for Council authorization to submit a request for the capital budget bonding for the Mill Street Trail and Watermain project. She stated that the governor had submitted his 2024 strategic capital budget to the legislature on January 16, 2024 and Shorewood's project was included. She noted that they should hear by the end of May whether this project will receive bonding. City Clerk/HR Director Thone stated that early voting at City Hall began last Friday and they have had one voter thus far. She explained that this is an opportunity to claw back your ballot before direct balloting begins which is February 16, 2024. She explained that the City had been notified by the County late last week that it looked like there were enough candidates for the District 6 Commissioner race so they will have to hold a primary on April 30, 2024 for the May 14, 2024 election which means there will be five elections this year. City Administrator Nevinski stated that Arctic Fever was held February 19, 2024 which was a pivot from past years. He stated that there were about one -hundred people that showed up and felt it was a nice event and shared some of the various events and activities that took place. He expressed his appreciation to City staff and volunteers for devoting time to this event. He thanked sponsors of the event including: Minnesota Inboard; Boba Tonka Bubble Tea; Soda Sims Golf; Roots and Wings; New Horizon; Joey Nova's; Excelsior Brewing; Bolton & Menk; Mediacom; Arcus Events; and Excelsior Legion Post #259. B. Mayor and City Council Councilmember Maddy stated that he wanted to echo the thanks for City staff and the volunteers for their work on Arctic Fever. CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES JANUARY 22, 2024 Page 20 of 20 Councilmember Callies stated that she and her husband volunteered at Arctic Fever and found that the tater tot hotdish pizza was a big hit. Mayor Labadie expressed her appreciation to the City's ice rink attendants and noted that they are fully staffed even though this may be a short season. She stated that it is a great job for middle school/high school/college kids. 10. ADJOURN Maddy moved, Sanschagrin seconded, Adjourning the City Council Regular Meeting of January 22, 2024, at 9:53 P.M.