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11-12-24 CC Reg Mtg MinutesCITY OF SHOREWOOD CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING MONDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2024 MINUTES 1. CONVENE CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING 5755 COUNTRY CLUB ROAD COUNCIL CHAMBERS 7:00 P.M. Mayor Pro -Tern Callies called the meeting to order at 7:06 P.M. A. Pledge of Allegiance B. Roll Call Present. 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; Park and Recreation Manager Czech; Finance Director Schmuck, and, City Engineer Budde Absent: Mayor Labadie C. Review Agenda Sanschagrin moved, Zerby seconded, approving the agenda as presented. Motion passed. 2. CONSENT AGENDA Mayor Pro -Tern Callies reviewed the items on the Consent Agenda. Councilmember Zerby asked about the lawn mower purchase and asked if staff saw that this may be a potential cost savings in terms of using outside contractors for buckthorn. Public Works Director Morreim stated that the equipment will be able to remove smaller buckthorn and noted in the areas that they have already removed in, they anticipate having to do additional removals once or twice a year. He stated that staff sees being able to utilize this equipment as a significant efficiency and noted that Sentence to Serve was currently out there doing the work two to three times per week. He explained that the work they have done has been very good, but staff believed that this equipment will speed up the process quite a bit and will be able to be used in other parks in areas that they have identified as also needing some buckthorn removed. Councilmember Zerby asked if they would also be able to use this equipment in the pond/drainage pond areas. Public Works Director Morreim stated that the track feature will allow them to access more sloped areas and explained that they were able to demo the equipment a few weeks ago in Freeman Park and it was impressive. CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES NOVEMBER 12, 2024 Page 2 of 11 Zerby moved, Maddy seconded, Approving the Motions Contained on the Consent Agenda and Adopting the Resolutions Therein. A. City Council Work Session Minutes of October 28, 2024 B. City Council Regular Meeting Minutes of October 28, 2024 C. Approval of the Verified Claims List D. Quote for Lawn Mower Purchase E. Shorewood Community & Event Center Restroom Fixture Replacement F. Shorewood Community & Event Center Furnace Replacement Motionpassed. K FROM • • 4. REPORTS AND PRESENTATIONS PREEMIJI-111 M. 6. PLANNING A. Variance to place a shed within the setback from the OHWL Location: 5840 Ridge Road Applicant: Jeffrey and Maggie Seybold Planning Director Darling gave an overview of the after -the -fact variance request to place a shed within the setback from the OHWL. She reviewed the existing conditions and the discussion that took place at the Planning Commission. She noted that following the Planning Commission meeting, staff had received an additional letter of support from a neighbor. She stated that this letter and the joint letter of support from other neighbors was included in the packet. Councilmember Sanschagrin had asked if there had been a citation issued in this instance or if there had been a complaint. Planning Director Darling stated that a complaint had been received and noted that no citation had been issued. Mayor Pro-Tem Callies asked if the applicants would like to briefly address the Council. Jeffrey Seybold stated that while this issue may seem trivial to the management of the City, but it would make a significant difference for his family. He noted that they have lived in Shorewood since 2018 and explained that after moving in they recognized the need to have a safe and reasonable access to lake accessories during summer and winter. He explained that they had designed a structure that would conform with the accessory structure requirements in the City, with the exception of the setback requirements for lakefront property. He stated that the Planning Commission had voted three to one to deny their request, but noted that this topic was raised at CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES NOVEMBER 12, 2024 Page 3 of 11 10:45 p.m. after the Planning Commission had already had a prolonged deliberations on two subdivision requests. He stated that the Planning Commission had voted to approve the two subdivision requests, which created flag -shaped lots that are against City code. He stated that he felt that the Planning Commission had difficulty understanding the uniqueness of their property and also the concept that their petition met the requirements for a variance request. He stated that he felt that they did meet the necessary steps for consideration of their variance request. He explained that given the unique topography of their lot on the east ridge on Christmas Lake, there is no option to place any accessory structures near the lakefront and outside of the seventy -five- foot setback. He noted that the DNR publicly acknowledged the reasonable need for property owners to be able to have a water accessory storage structure near the waterfront. He stated that Planning Director Darling admitted that the current City code regarding water accessory structures was established many years ago and was more stringent than the recommendations provided by the DNR. He reviewed other nearby communities that recognize that water accessory structures may fall inside the setbacks. He explained that there had already been an accessory structure on their property that was directly on the lakefront, but it had been taken down about twenty years ago. He gave an overview of some of the discussions from the September Planning Commission meeting. He stated that he felt it was clear from the pictures he has presented to the City as well the testimony from the neighbors that their shed, in its current location, does not infringe on the natural views from the lake or cause encroachment. He stated that they feel that their structure preserves the lakefront environmentally and aesthetically by providing a secure location to store and protect their accessories rather than just being strewn about the Lakeshore. He stated that while their desire for a water -based accessory structure was most likely common for a lakefront property, their property does present a unique circumstance because of the ridge. He explained that the ridge along the east shore of Christmas Lake is the highest lakefront elevation in the entire City. He stated that their portion of the ridge also contained a bluff which complicated access to the waterfront as well as building compliance with City code. He listed off various other factors that he felt created a unique scenario for their property and their situation. He noted that the Planning Commission agreed that the City should re-evaluate what Planning Commissioner Huskins had referred to as a `crummy code that needed to be changed'. He reviewed portions of the September 17, 2024, Planning Commission meeting minutes that he felt accurately portrayed the overall tenor of the meeting. He stated that he felt it was clear that the Planning Commission, despite their vote, understood the reasonable nature of their variance request and asked the City Council to vote in favor of their request. Councilmember Zerby noted that he had been the Council Liaison at the September 17, 2024 Planning Commission meeting. He stated that he has visited many residents along Ridge Road and felt that this was a unique portion of the City because the bluff makes it very challenging to be able to have safe access to the lake. He stated that many of the residents have installed funiculars in order to gain access to the lakefront. He explained that to him it is a matter of safety for the residents to be able to keep equipment down by the lake rather than trying to bring it up and down. He stated that the applicant has shown pictures of other properties along the lake that are similar in nature. He stated that he felt that the City code needed to be changed and did not see a reason to deny this variance request because this is a unique situation. Councilmember Sanschagrin stated that was exactly what he had been thinking as well, especially surrounding the safety issue. He stated that he was concerned about the City putting something into place that would reduce the safety of a property and reviewed the reasons that he felt the City should approve the variance request. CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES NOVEMBER 12, 2024 Page 4 of 11 Councilmember Maddy asked staff if they felt that the City needed to change its code and whether they felt it was completely outdated. He asked how many sheds were located within the restricted setback on the lake. Planning Director Darling stated that there are quite a few sheds on Christmas Lake as well as other lakes that are down by the shoreline and noted that they were all added prior to 1986 when the City adopted the Shoreland regulations. She stated that this is the same model ordinance that was adopted in 1986 and noted that there was a lot of community discussion at the time on this topic. She stated that the City chose, at the time, not to adopt the portion of the model ordinance that would allow for water -oriented accessory buildings. She stated that she would not characterize it as an out-of-date ordinance, but the City had elected not to have all the allowances that were included within the model ordinance. She agreed that the City's ordinances were not the same as other communities, but noted that they did not need to be because it is supposed to reflect how the City wants to see development occur. Councilmember Maddy stated that it sounds like Planning Director Darling was doing exactly what was chosen in the 1980s. Planning Director Darling explained that her task was to enforce the ordinance, as it was written. Councilmember Maddy stated the Council could determined that the City Council in the 1980s was wrong and that the City should start allowing more building next to the shoreline. Mayor Pro -Tern Callies stated that she did not believe that was the Council's task for tonight. She stated that she felt the comments shared by Councilmembers Zerby and Sanschagrin were more in line with the suggestion to change the code rather than why this variance should be granted because everyone on Ridge Road is in a similar position. She stated that if you look at all of Ridge Road, the Seybold's property is not that distinct. She noted that if the City were to consider revising the code, there would be substantial public input on that decision and felt it was possible that there may be a lot of support for having it be consistent with the DNR regulations. She reiterated that she felt most of the comments were more in support of why the City should not have these regulations and not about how this property is so unique that the variance should be granted. Councilmember Zerby stated that he felt that some of the comments being shared were essentially that the City has ordinances and they should stand by them. He stated that the City has a variance process for when the ordinance does not fit and he felt that this neighborhood, with the steep bluff, is one of those areas that are different and does not fit. He explained that he would not want this shed to be located on flat land by Lake Minnetonka because it would obstruct views, but, in this case, the views are at the top of the bluff. He reiterated that he felt that this situation was unique because of the character of the neighborhood with the bluff along this portion of the lake and the code just does not work. Mayor Pro-Tem Callies stated that Councilmember Zerby was referring to many properties and not this particular property as being unique. She stated that she felt that the City should continue with the enforcement action, take some steps to revisit this code, and make sure that they get public discussion on it to see what people want to see. Councilmember Maddy stated that would be kicking the can down the road. He noted that Christmas Lake is a gem and felt that the City should treasure the elevation change. CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES NOVEMBER 12, 2024 Page 5 of 11 Mayor Pro-Tem Callies stated that this discussion should involve a public hearing and members of the Council have frequently mentioned wanting to involve the public and that would be an opportunity for that rather than just granting a variance in this individual case. Councilmember Zerby stated that he would argue that there has already been public comment and noted that it was included in the packet. He stated that there was a public hearing at the Planning Commission meeting and there were no residents that were opposed to this request. He stated that he also did not believe that the City can go around crafting ordinances to make them fit every condition because there will always be some exceptions. Councilmember Maddy stated that if the City allows this then he felt that everyone else would want to put a shed down by the water. Councilmember Zerby stated that was not a reason to deny a variance request. Councilmember Maddy stated that he would disagree and explained that he felt that it was a reason to deny a variance request. Councilmember Zerby stated that the City cannot say `if we do this, everyone is going to do it' because each one has to be considered as a unique situation. Mayor Pro-Tem Callies stated that one of the criteria for granting the variance is not whether or not the neighbors were in favor of it and reminded the Council that there was at least one individual who made a complaint about this structure. Councilmember Sanschagrin stated that he spent a lot of time reviewing the information on this request and felt that he was able to come to the conclusion that he could support the request and outlined each point of his analysis. He stated that the steep bluff was not created by the applicant and can understand why they looked around and saw other structures on the lakefront so they would not have understood that the shed was actually prohibited. Mayor Pro-Tem Callies stated that many times the property owners rely on the people installing the shed to know these things and do not dig into them. She stated that she had no problems with the property owner in this case because they were just following the contractor, but felt that the City needed to look at the bigger picture. She agreed that the Seybold's had not created the bluff, but the whole Ridge Road area is a unique property and she felt the City needed to have regulations that are appropriate. She noted that if the City grants the variance and the code is later changed, that would essentially make the point mute. She stated that if they grant the variance and then there was discussion about amending the code and they decided not to amend it, then this would be a permanent variance for something that the Council and the public decided should not be changed. Councilmember Sanschagrin stated that the Council should be talking about just this instance of the variance request for this specific property. Mayor Pro-Tem Callies stated that she felt that he was going back and forth in talking about this property, but also talking about the whole unique area of Ridge Road. CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES NOVEMBER 12, 2024 Page 6 of 11 Councilmember Maddy noted that by the letter of the law, he would say `no', but noted that he thinks there are probably at least three members of the Council that question why the City was so restrictive. Councilmember Sanschagrin explained that generally, he was against granting variances, but in this instance, especially from the safety perspective, he was on board with this request. Councilmember Maddy stated that he was not worried about safety in this situation and noted that everyone who bought property here knew that there was a steep slope. He stated that he felt that the Council should disregard the safety argument because he did not think it was valid. Councilmember Sanschagrin stated that he disagreed and felt that safety was a very valid argument. Councilmember Maddy asked if it would be his fault if someone fell off their bluff on property that they purchased. Councilmember Sanschagrin explained that the Council has the opportunity to allow a structure that would help reduce the chances of someone falling off the bluff and asked why the City would not err on the side of enhancing the safety of a property. Councilmember Maddy explained that he would take responsibility over his own property and would blame anyone else for what happened on it. Councilmember Sanschagrin stated that he did not feel that they were talking about blaming anyone else and was just talking about the placement of a shed. Mayor Pro-Tem Callies brought the discussion back to this particular property and noted that this request did not comply with the ordinance that everybody appeared to be saying did not seem to really match the circumstances of Ridge Road and Christmas Lake. Councilmember Maddy stated that it seemed like they would just be granting the variance because they did not like what the previous Council had written into the law. Mayor Pro-Tem Callies agreed but noted that it was written almost fifty years ago. Councilmember Maddy asked if the Council should grant the variance and then direct Planning Director Darling to take another look at the Christmas Lake regulations. He stated that the Council needed to be fair to everyone and cannot just give this to one person. Councilmember Zerby stated that he heard that anything built before 1986 was `grandfathered' in. He stated that if he were the Seybold's and had bought the property and looked down the hill and saw all the little buildings at the base, the thought would be reasonable that they could do the same thing. He stated that now the City was saying, well, if you are new, you cannot have that or have the safety factor. He noted that he did feel that there was safety involved in this situation and gave the example of trying to carry an inflated water toy up and down the hill on a funicular, which he felt was ridiculous. He stated that he felt that the City needed to take a look at the code and make sure it meets these circumstances. Councilmember Maddy noted that the point of the zoning code was for a fifty-year outlook. CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES NOVEMBER 12, 2024 Page 7 of 11 Councilmember Zerby explained that what he sees in the zoning code was essentially what he referred to as a 2D approach because it does not look at things in a 3D format, which was really true in this situation because of the bluff and it did not take into account the elevations. Mayor Pro-Tem Callies stated that it appears as though the Council was saying that they felt the code should be revisited. Councilmember Sanschagrin stated that he thinks the point Councilmember Zerby made about 2D versus 3D was key, because this was a 3D issue, not a 2D issue. He noted that he felt that this gave the uniqueness argument that he felt was enough to justify the variance. Mayor Pro-Tem Callies stated that she felt that reasoning was a bit of a stretch. She noted that sight lines also refer to looking from the lake to the shore. She stated that it does appear that the code does not fit the circumstances of this particular area of the City. Councilmember Maddy stated that he felt the Council was all in favor of the request, but the question was what the next step would be. He stated that if the Council says that perhaps the zoning code was not quite accurate, specifically for Christmas Lake, then it should be revisited and noted that he felt that was what the Planning Commission was looking to do. Mayor Pro-Tem Callies stated that there is a concept that if a city was consistently granting variances for the same thing, then the code should be changed. She stated that in this situation the City has not really been granting variances, because the structures were already pre-existing. Councilmember Zerby stated that felt that the Planning Commission was on the right path. Councilmember Maddy stated that was the way he was also leaning. Planning Director Darling explained that staff had not prepared a resolution to approve the request, so the Council could make a motion to continue the item to the next meeting in order to allow staff time to prepare a resolution. Zerby moved, Sanschagrin seconded, to Direct Staff to Prepare a Resolution Approving a Variance to Allow a Shed to be placed within the Setback from the OHWL for the Property Located at 5840 Ridge Road, and continue this item to the next meeting. Motion passed. Callies moved, Sanschagrin seconded, to Direct Staff to Revisit and Study the Code Related to the Setback Requirements from the OHWL, specifically on Christmas Lake in the Ridge/BluffRidge/Bluff area. Motion passed. 7. ENGINEERING/PUBLIC WORKS A. 26125 Birch Bluff Encroachment Agreement CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES NOVEMBER 12, 2024 Page 8 of 11 City Engineer Budde reviewed the request and background information regarding the connection of 26125 Birch Bluff Road to an existing shared private driveway within the unimproved 3rd Street right-of-way. Councilmember Sanschagrin asked if there had been discussions with all the neighbors that are using the driveway. City Engineer Budde stated that they have a signed document from the neighbors stating that they are aware of this request and were okay with this property connecting to the driveway. He noted that it was silent on any maintenance responsibilities and just acknowledged that they can connect to it. Councilmember Maddy asked if the City had maintenance responsibilities in this situation. City Engineer Budde explained that the City has not had any maintenance responsibilities on this roadway. He stated that it was paved by the private property owners getting together on their own to have it done. Councilmember Zerby asked why this was coming to the Council from Engineering and Public Works instead of Planning. City Engineer Budde explained that this fell under the right-of-way portion of City code which is administered more by Public Works and Engineering, than the Planning Department. He noted that this lot was platted in 1995 and was used as the staging area for the Birch Bluff project and now there is a proposal for the development of a single home. Councilmember Sanschagrin pointed out a few typographical errors within the resolution that depict the wrong address number. Maddy moved, Sanschagrin seconded, Adopting RESOLUTION NO.24-092, "A Resolution Approving an Encroachment Agreement with Property at 26125 Birch Bluff Road", with the necessary changes to the address number within the resolution, as discussed. Motion passed. 8. GENERAL/NEW BUSINESS A. Public Hearing — Certification of Assessment for Unpaid Charges Finance Director Schmuck explained that the City reviews unpaid utility charges on an annual basis and outlined the process of having those charges assessed against the properties. Councilmember Zerby asked how many accounts were listed in the staff report. Finance Director Schmuck stated that she believed it was one hundred twelve properties. She noted that throughout this process, the City has sent out letters giving them notification ahead of time. She explained that the City had sent out about four -hundred twenty-six letters regarding delinquent utilities and some of those had made their payments, so the ones listed were the remaining accounts that had not made payment. CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES NOVEMBER 12, 2024 Page 9 of 11 Councilmember Maddy asked if they could assume that these people knew that they were on this list. Finance Director Schmuck stated that they had all received a specific letter that indicated that this would be on tonight's agenda for this action if they did not bring their account current. Mayor Pro-Tem Callies opened the public hearing at 8:03 p.m. There being no public comment, she closed the public hearing. Sanschagrin moved, Maddy seconded, Adopting RESOLUTION NO. 24-093, "A Resolution Certifying Unpaid Charges on the 2025 Hennepin County Property Tax Rolls." Motion passed. 9. STAFF AND COUNCIL REPORTS AND DISCUSSION A. Staff Park and Recreation Manager Czech stated that with the approval of the purchase of the furnace that took place earlier in the meeting, means that they will be getting heating in the rest of the SCEC. He stated that they would also be scheduling the restroom enhancements at the end of next week. He noted that the City has gotten agreements out to all of the athletic associations and noted that the feedback he has received so far has been positive. He explained that they were also planning to bring forward a field use policy to a future agenda. Public Works Director Morreim stated that they have about a week or two left of street sweeping. He stated that if conditions allow when they are done, they will go back to the streets that were done first, in order to pick up additional debris that may be there. He stated that they were continuing to work on the lead service inventory and noted that at this time they do not know of any lead services in the City, but there are still about three hundred that are currently unknown. Councilmember Zerby asked if there was a way for residents to know more precisely when their street will be swept. He shared examples of his street where there are certain cars that are perpetually parked on the street and the sweeper just has to sweep around them. Public Works Director Morreim stated that they do not publish a schedule. He stated that people are welcome to call the City and they can come back out and resweep quickly if the cars can be moved. He reiterated that they would try to go back and do most of the earlier streets depending on the weather conditions. Councilmember Zerby noted that last year Public Works Director Morreim talked about using less salt and asked if there were any additional plans for this year. Public Works Director Morreim stated that they would continue along the same lines as last year. He noted that last year they calibrated their equipment for the first time ever, so they were able to know how much they are putting out. He stated that they will also continue to use liquids and noted that the biggest thing is getting the operators to understand that they can use less material and still provide a fairly high level of service. CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES NOVEMBER 12, 2024 Page 10 of 11 City Clerk/HR Director Thone stated that she wanted to express her appreciation to everybody who made the election a success. She noted that it was a lot of work to conduct five elections in one year and stated that the staff has been amazing. She stated that the City had gotten a really good response for the Warming House and Community Center Attendants positions and interviews would begin next week. She noted that the job postings will be open until the end of the month. Councilmember Maddy stated that the City had over fifty percent of the voting take place prior to election day and also wanted to thank City Clerk/HR Director Thone and her team for their work. Planning Director Darling stated that the last deer management hunt will take place this coming weekend. She explained that they had not had much success at the second hunt, so the total, so far, is still just twelve deer. City Administrator Nevinski stated that the City was still in the process of transitioning from Warner Connect to Arvig and noted that it seemed to be going well so far. He stated that he has also been working on new orientation materials for the new Councilmembers and noted that he would also be sending it out to the existing Council as well. Councilmember Zerby asked if there were any updates on the new fiber optic company that is running through the City. City Administrator Nevinski explained that MetroNet is the company and believes that there is a meeting with them in the next week or so to get a construction update. He stated that he would plan to report back to the Council following the meeting. B. Mayor and City Council Mayor Sanschagrin stated that he had a meeting on Thursday with the Lake Minnetonka Communications Commission. Councilmember Maddy gave an update on fire service meetings with Mound. He noted that the Excelsior Fire District has been doing some training on extraction from car accidents. He expressed his appreciation to the Public Works Department for flipping some of the cars over for the training exercises. Councilmember Zerby noted that he had gotten some questions about the cars and explained that people had expressed concerns that there had been a horrific accident on Highway 7. He asked if there had been any communication with the public on those vehicles and their reasons for being there and stated that, in general, he would encourage more communication for the next training exercises. Councilmember Maddy stated that they could possibly put up a sign that makes it clear it was for training purposes. He stated that he would pass along those concerns to EFD Chief Mackey. Mayor Pro-Tem Callies stated that she attended the Pumpkin Drop a few weeks ago which was well attended. 10. ADJOURN CITY OF SHOREWOOD REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES NOVEMBER 12,2024 Page 11 of 11 Maddy moved, Sanschagrin seconded, Adjourning the City Council Regular Meeting of November 12, 2024, at 8:15 P.M.