2016-03-28 EC Minutes GOLDEN VALLEY ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION
Regular Meeting, Minutes
March 28, 2016
Commissioners Present: Lynn Gitelis, Dawn Hill, Tracy Anderson, Tonia Galonska,
Larry Johnson and Jim Stremel
Council Member Present: Larry Fonnest
Staff Present: Eric Eckman, Public Works Specialist and Claire Huisman,
Administrative Assistant
Absent: Commissioner Debra Yahle
Call to Order
Lynn Gitelis called the meeting to order at 6:30 pm.
Approval of Rectular and Joint Commission Meetina Minutes
MOVED by Stremel, SECONDED by Hill, and the motion carried unanimously to
approve the minutes of the January 25, 2016 regular meeting and the February 29,
2016 joint commission meeting.
Comprehensive Plan Update
Chair Gitelis reiterated that the EC's focus on the Comprehensive Plan will be the new
Resilience Plan Element along with the Water Resources chapter.
GreenStep Cities
MOVED by Hill, SECONDED by Galonska and the motion carried unanimously to
approve as presented the Resolution authorizing the City of Golden Valley to participate
in the MN GreenSteps Cities Program. The first best practice the Commission will work
on is Resilience and Climate Adaptation, followed by Water, Energy, and/or possibly
others as may be directed by Council.
MPCA Grant for Resilience Plannina in Comprehensive Plan
MOVED by Hill, SECONDED by Stremel and the motion carried unanimously to
support the City in applying for the MPCA Resilience Planning Grant. The maximum
grant amount is $15,000 with a matching funds requirement of 25%. The grant funds
would allow a third party to help lead and facilitate City staff through the Resilience
Planning process.
MN GreenCorps Pro�ram
MOVED by Johnson, SECONDED by Stremel and the motion carried unanimously to
support the City in its participation in the 2016-2017 GreenCorps Program and to
authorize staff to draft a letter of support to be signed by Chair Gitelis and presented to
the Council.
This program would provide a GreenCorps member to help City staff and the
Environmental Commission with Resilience Planning, GreenSteps Cities actions, Home
Energy squad promotion, B3 Benchmarking efforts and community outreach for natural
resource initiatives.
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Minutes of the Environmental Commission
March 28, 2016
Page 2 of 2
Environmental Commission Annual Report and Work Plan
MOVED by Anderson, SECONDED by Galonska and the motion carried unanimously
to approve the EC Annual Report and Work Plan as amended. Changes included:
under "Accomplishments," adding Participation in Bottineau Station Area Planning
Committee;
under "Recommendations for 2016 Work Plan Priorities," making the Comprehensive
Plan Update as #1 and the GreenSteps Cities Program as#2; adding additional
verbiage to the GreenSteps Cities item "c" to include "water & energy"; adding Blue Line
LRT Review and Comment on FEIS as #3; making Natural Resources Plan
Implementation #4.
2016 Environmental State of the Citv
MOVED by Stremel, SECONDED by Hill and the motion carried unanimously to
approve the 2016 Environmental State of the City Report.
Proqram/Proiect Updates
Eric Eckman presented Energy Updates on the Cities consumption data using the MN
B3 Benchmarking program. The report looked at the last ten years of electricity
consumption of city buildings; CO2 emissions of city buildings and traffic signal
electricity consumption. He also provided a short summary on the 2015 Recycling
Program. The complete program/project update is on file.
Council member Fonnest conveyed his enthusiasm in Golden Valley's involvement in
the GreenSteps Cities and commended the EC members for their time and efforts in
this program. He stated he would talk with the Council on getting items of interest to the
Environmental Commission in a timely manner for their involvement and
recommendation.
Adiourn
MOVED by Hill, SECONDED by Stremel, and the motion carried to adjourn the
meeting at 8:12 pm.
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Claire Huisman
Administrative Assistant
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