04-13-10 CM Minutes
Council/Manager Meeting Minutes
April 13, 2010
Present: Mayor Loomis and Council Members Freiberg, Pentel, and Scanlon, City
Manager Tom Burt, Public Works Director Jeannine Clancy, City Engineer Jeff Oliver,
Police Chief Stacy Altonen, Director of Parks and Recreation Rick Jacobson, Director of
Planning and Development Mark Grimes, Director of Fire and Inspection Services Mark
Kuhnly, Intern Kevin Knase and Assistant City Manager Jeanne Andre. Council Member
Shaffer was absent.
The meeting began at 7:03 pm in the Council Conference Room.
2010 Pavement Management Strategies
Jeannine Clancy reported that roads listed in the staff memo will be overlaid in order of
priority in order to stay within the budget. Staff estimates indicated that all of the listed
projects can be completed within budget, but the project will be bid as alternates to allow
staff to delete roads if the bids are higher than the estimates. If any segment is not overlaid
in 2010, Public Works crews will do extensive patching to carry the road through another
season.
Watermain Rehabilitation Projects
Jeff Oliver explained that the City has experienced a high number of watermain breaks on
segments of Boone Avenue ( Hwy 55 to Plymouth Avenue) and Legend Drive (Golden
Valley Road to Bassett Creek Drive, including Legend Lane) due to corroded pipes
common in areas with organic and clay soils. Staff analyzed water main rehabilitation
options. In addition to higher traffic volumes on Boone Avenue, the project areas have
unique issues such as buried debris in Legend Drive and timber-pile construction on
Boone Avenue that make rehabilitation more difficult. Options considered were 1) pipe
replacement, which was rejected due to traffic disruption and cost; 2) pipe bursting, which
doesn't work with timber piles; and 3) in-place lining, which staff recommends. He noted
that there are a number of methods of in-place lining and staff wanted to educate the
Council on the options prior to Council consideration of these projects.
Dave Purkiss from NSF International attended the meeting to explain in-place lining
options and how NSF tests materials for water safety. He presented a PowerPoint
presentation and explained that the NSF/ANSJ 61 (National Sanitation Foundation /
American National Standards Institute) is the standard applied by 45 states, including
Minnesota, for testing all aspects of drinking water distribution systems. He reviewed the
certification process applied to review facilities, quality control, materials, and chemical
ingredients for water distribution systems. He explained that the materials are tested for
three varieties of water quality that best represent water in typical water distribution
systems. Lab results are equated to field conditions and normalized for anticipated
exposure levels. The United States EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) has identified
exposure levels for a selected set of chemicals, for which the Institute standard is set at
1/10th of the EPA standard. The Institute also tests for 600 chemicals not regulated by the
EPA. Jeff Oliver reported that the City inspectors also assure that the specified materials
are installed to the manufacturer's standards. SEH was selected to manage the proposed
projects based on its extensive experience with in-place lining of water pipes.
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April 13, 2010 - Page 2
Tom Burt indicated that this presentation is background for the City Council for its
upcoming consideration of the bids for the proposed in-place lining of the water pipes on
Boone Avenue and Legend Drive.
Social Host Ordinance
Stacy Altonen asked if the City Council would like to consider adopting a social host
ordinance, which holds the host responsible for knowingly providing a venue for underage
drinking. This violation would be independent from violations for providing liquor to persons
under age 21, although experience in other cities has shown that about 30-40 percent of
cases overlap, with violations in both areas. A number of other cities have adopted a social
host ordinance and have found it useful in curbing underage parties and drinking. The
Council supported bringing forward such an ordinance.
Third lair Skate Park Youth Cooperative Agreement
Rick Jacobson outlined the current cooperative agreement under which the City pays
$3000 to Third Lair Skate Park, which allows Golden Valley residents to use the exterior
facilities at Third Lair at no charge. The agreement was initially negotiated seven years ago
to provide a venue for skateboarders without the City having to create a skate park. In 2009
approximately 87 residents used the facility under this agreement. The City also has a
separate arrangement with Third Liar to offer skate board camps.
The Council directed staff to proceed with the program for 2010, but consider reducing the
contracted amount for 2011.
Proposed Ordinance Amendment - Section 4.05 - Restricting Exterior Use of Sheet
Metal Siding
Mark Grimes provided background on the issue, which the Council directed staff to study in
response to a citizen request to use corrugated metal to reside his home, which is currently
not permitted under Section 4.05. Kevin Knase reported that he reviewed ordinances from
other metropolitan cities and found that most prohibit corrugated metal siding. St. Louis
Park and Excelsior allow metal siding as an accent; in St. Louis Park it is limited to ten
percent. He noted that staff elected to follow the example of limited use of corrugated
metal, set as 25 percent of anyone side of the building, and requiring a factory-applied
finish, which is more durable.
The Council discussed the pros and cons of a percentage limit versus addressing the
quality of siding material used. After some discussion it was decided to approach the issue
in two stages. The first would be an ordinance removing the prohibition on corrugated metal
siding (but requiring a factory finish), which would allow the homeowner to proceed with his
project. The second stage would be a more nuanced ordinance that would establish a
standard to be met for all siding materials, without direct prohibition of any. The Council will
seek to proceed with the first phase in May.
Proposed Moratorium - Douglas Drive Corridor Study Area
The moratorium, which came out of discussions at the February Council Workshop, is
generally supported by the Council. Staff explained that the proposed moratorium area
matches the "Corporate Campus" area of the Douglas Drive Corridor Study completed last
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April 13, 2010 - Page 3
year. Under the moratorium the Council would study land use and road alignments as
suggested in the study and identify the advantages and disadvantages of the Council taking
further action on zoning or public improvements in this area, or maintaining the status of the
area as a planning study area.
Mark Grimes explained that the geographic area for the moratorium was selected to
correspond to the study area, but a public hearing is required, so area property owners may
have opinions on adopting a moratorium and the area to be covered. The Council directed
staff to proceed with the steps necessary to formally consider this moratorium.
Organizing Local Businesses
Linda Loomis noted that the request to work with local businesses to develop a local
organization also came out of the Council Workshop, so she recommended that the Council
take the initiative and have some of its members clarify the objectives of the initiative and
identify a process to achieve the Council's objectives. De De Scanlon indicated that she
would like be involved and Linda Loomis suggested she and Bob Shaffer are also likely to
participate. The group will report back to the full Council with recommendations on the
objectives and process for this initiative.
Commission Dinner
Council Members suggested Thursday, June 17, as the date for the Commission Dinner.
Judy Nally will reserve the room at Brookview and distribute a message to the commissions
to save the date.
The meeting adjourned at 8:25 pm.
Jeanne Andre
Assistant City Manager