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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2013 10-28 City Council Workshop Packet AGENDA MAPLEWOOD CITY COUNCIL MANAGER WORKSHOP 5:00 P.M. Monday, October 28, 2013 City Hall, Council Chambers A. CALL TO ORDER B. ROLL CALL C. APPROVAL OF AGENDA D. UNFINISHED BUSINESS None E. NEW BUSINESS 1. Commission Interviews a. Environmental & Natural Resources Commission b. Planning Commission 2. Discussion on Administrative Enforcement Process 3. Update on Progress Toward 2012-2014 City Council Goals 4. Discussion on 2014 Budget Options and Use of 2.0 % Levy Increase F. ADJOURNMENT THIS PAGE IS INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK E1 MEMORANDUM TO: City Council FROM: Charles Ahl, City Manager Sarah Burlingame, Senior Administrative Assistant DATE: October 22, 2013 SUBJECT: Commission Interview a. Planning Commission b. Environmental & Natural Resources Commission Introduction/Background The City Council will be conducting interviews of candidates for the Planning Commission and the Environmental & Natural Resources Commission. The Planning Commission has 2 openings, one due to a resignation and one to fill a term that expires at the end of the year. The Environmental & Natural Resources Commission has one opening due to a term ending in September. Staff has advertised for these positions and received 5 applications. The Council will conduct 4 interviews during this Work Session. One of the Candidates, Rick Brandon, was interviewed for the Parks & Recreation Commission on October 14. He has expressed interested in serving on the Planning Commission. Since Mr. Brandon was interviewed so recently, City Manager Ahl does not see it as necessary for him to re-interview. Mr. Brandon’s application is attached for the Council to consider for the Planning Commission. Budget Impact None Recommendation Staff recommends that the Council interview the candidates as indicated in the schedule below. The suggested questions will be submitted under separate cover to the Council. During the interview process, Council Members should fill out their ballots. Once the Interviews have concluded, Council Members should submit their ballots to staff, which will be tallied and the results will be brought back to the Council during the following regular meeting with recommendations for appointment. Time Candidate 5:00 Question Selection 5:05 Donn Lindstrom, Planning Commission 5:20 Deborah Fideldy, ENRC 5:35 Jessica Forsberg, ENRC 5:50 Yaya Diatta, Planning Commission Workshop Packet Page Number 1 of 21 Attachments 1. Candidate Applications in order of interview schedule E1 Workshop Packet Page Number 2 of 21 E1, Attachment 1 Workshop Packet Page Number 3 of 21 E1, Attachment 1 Workshop Packet Page Number 4 of 21 E1, Attachment 1 Workshop Packet Page Number 5 of 21 E1, Attachment 1 Workshop Packet Page Number 6 of 21 E1, Attachment 1 Workshop Packet Page Number 7 of 21 E1, Attachment 1 Workshop Packet Page Number 8 of 21 E1, Attachment 1 Workshop Packet Page Number 9 of 21 E2 MEMORANDUM TO: Charles Ahl, City Manager FROM: Karen Guilfoile, Director Citizen Services DATE: October 23, 2013 SUBJECT: Discussion on Administrative Enforcement Process Introduction The city has a Code Enforcement Division which is housed within the Community Development Department. Code Enforcement responds to numerous issues such as vehicles parking on unapproved areas, fencing, long grass/weeds, junk and debris, exterior storage, exterior property maintenance, commercial vehicles, home occupations, equipment noise, lighting, signs and code related information requests. In addition to the Code Enforcement Division, other departments respond to code violations related to their areas of responsibility, as well. This includes Building Inspections, Health Division, Public Works, and the Police Department. Background The Citizen Services Department issues twenty-six types of permits and business licenses. It is the responsibility of the department to ensure that all requirements of the city code are followed as part of the application process and the necessary paperwork is obtained from the applicant. Aside from general information, this may include: State required licenses, training certificates, proof of liability insurance, workers’ compensation, lease agreements, etc. When a business license application is received, it is not processed until all of the required information is submitted by the applicant. Code enforcement issues pertaining to business licenses generally occur during the renewal process when license holders do not provide completed information, required certification or updated insurance information. We find ourselves telephoning, sending letters, and extending grace periods in attempt to obtain missing information; when these attempts fail, a face-to-face visit is usually made by the Police Chief and me. This occurrence is most problematic with the renewal of Food Establishment and Intoxicating Liquor licenses, where license holders frequently return their renewal applications with incomplete information. Not only has this process become burdensome, it could potentially lead to a liability. If the city does not receive the required information to renew a license before its expiration, the business runs the risk of lapse of licensure while continuing to operate. Currently there are procedures in place in the code that authorizes the city council to suspend or revoke licenses for various infractions. However, if the license renewal process requires specific documentation to be included with the renewal, and it is not submitted by the license Workshop Packet Page Number 10 of 21 E2 expiration date, the business no longer has a valid license until a complete renewal application is received. When processing licensing, city staff will continue to work diligently with license holders to obtain the required documentation using the current methods of communication however, grace periods will cease to be given. If the documentation is not received by the expiration date of the previous license period, staff will draft a letter informing the business that they are operating without a license and given specific details as to what is required to come into compliance and the time that the required information is to be received by. The letter, referred to as Delivered by Personal Service will be delivered by a uniformed police officer. If the license holder does not comply by the specified time, a Cease and Desist letter will be hand delivered by a uniformed police officer informing the business that they are no longer permitted to operate due to not being properly licensed. This administrative policy is being implemented to protect city liability and to ensure that city staff is doing our due diligence to protect the health and safety of our citizens and those from surrounding communities that visit our licensed establishments. Budget Impact Aside from staff time to administer, there is no budget impact. Recommendation This report is for informational purposes and requires no action by the city council. Workshop Packet Page Number 11 of 21 E3 MEMORANDUM TO: City Council FROM: Charles Ahl, City Manager DATE: October 22, 2013 SUBJECT: Report on Progress on City Council Goals A. Public Safety B. Economic Development C. Financial Stability/Sustainability D. Parks and Recreation E. Consolidation of Services/Shared Services Introduction/Background In March 2012, the City Council and staff met for a one-day session to discuss and establish goals for the City and operations for 2012 – 2014. A follow-up retreat to this goal session was held in a one-day session on March 6, 2013, at which point the Council unanimously received a report on progress for these goals, reviewed departmental priorities and reaffirmed the goals for the remainder of 2013. This agenda item is intended to continue a discussion on these goals, including updates on the progress related to each item. No action is anticipated as part of this item. Summary of Goals and Progress [Goals are listed in Ranked Order] A. Public Safety a. Goal specifics: Complete the plan for rebuilding and relocating fire stations, from five to three, including securing the 3M site. Develop and commit to a plan for meeting the space needs of the police department. i. Fire Chief Lukin reports that the 3M site where the new station will be located has been donated to the city of Maplewood by 3M and the final paperwork for the land transaction is in process. Plans are well underway and drawings and designs have been completed for the new station, which will be called Fire Station Number 1. We have met with all commissions regarding the design and layout of the new fire station with approvals from all. Our goal is to have the station open and operational by November 1, 2014. Meetings are currently taking place to start the designing and layout for the other two stations. The Maplewood Police Department will be adding a South Police Substation into the Facility to expand service. ii. Police Chief Schnell and IT Director Fowlds reports that significant progress has been and continues to be made with regard to public safety facility upgrades, enhancements, and expansion. The police department facility upgrade and expansion is fully underway. Excellent intra-City Workshop Packet Page Number 12 of 21 E3 collaborations are being developed and refined in a number of areas, including: Efforts by the police, fire and IT departments to explore options for increased integration of data management systems, including paperless operations. Additionally, the fire and police departments are continuing to plan for a South Maplewood Police Substation, which will be co-located in the new fire department facility near the 3M campus. Taking advantage of this unique opportunity to better meet with needs of south Maplewood residents and businesses without significant additional expenditure represents a wise investment that we believe will pay real and received public safety dividends for years to come. B. Economic Development a. Goal specifics: Make a concerted effort to define and develop a plan (through the EDA) that will ensure new economic development in the city with a particular focus on re-development. Commit to re-development (including housing) for the City through prioritizing and updating the Master Plan. Determine staffing needs for this effort with adequate resources. Work with BEDC. b. This goal is undergoing a major revision in approach since July 2013. Assistant City Manager Melinda Coleman has been hired to implement new policies and attract new development and departmental changes. This hiring and confirmation of duties will be a major start to meet the staffing needs for this continued effort. Much of the effort has been on examining the Gladstone area and exploring the Master Plan and related issues. A new grant application has been submitted to the Metropolitan Council earlier this year and recent indications are that a purchase agreement has been signed for the Maplewood Bowl property and a developer is proposing a $20+ million investment into the area with additional investments to follow. The major economic development focus of 2013, prior to Coleman’s arrival was led by a team of current City Manager Ahl and Finance Manager Bauman working with our partners at Springsted and Briggs-Morgan to develop the necessary Tax Increment Financing package to retain 700+ jobs on the 3M Campus that will include a new $150-million plus research and development facility. c. Assistant City Manager Melinda Coleman reports that additional efforts for economic development in 2013 and 2014 will be to develop the necessary plan. Staff will work with the BEDC during the next 4-8 months on the sale of fire stations; marketing of additional City parcels, expansion of development in Gladstone and a renewed focus on the Rush Line Corridor Transit plan. C. Financial Stability/Sustainability a. Goal Specifics: Continue to provide quality, efficient services to our citizens while equalizing expenditures and revenues every year. Make budgeting decisions that comport with the principals of sustainability. b. Finance Manager Gayle Bauman reports that City staff made presentations to Council this past year regarding a long range plan for Debt Management. The plan to apply new LGA funds to short term initiatives or specific projects and not use it for operations demonstrates the City’s efforts toward maintaining stability/sustainability. Based on recent history, reliance on the State LGA funds Workshop Packet Page Number 13 of 21 E3 for operational support does not speak to sustainability. Staff is also working to put together an Infrastructure Replacement Policy to facilitate the financial planning necessary to accommodate the timely replacement of assets. This would be another area where LGA funds could be directed to jump start the program. The Council and Department Heads are updated monthly on the status of the City’s General Fund, which is the main operating fund for the City. Having up-to- date information available assists greatly with the decision making process. The City’s General Fund balance is being maintained at 40% of general fund revenues, which is well within the guidelines provided by the State Auditor and helps the City maintain its high bond rating. D. Parks and Recreation a. Goal Specifics: Continue to determine how to resolve the Community Center’s funding and programming issues. Explore a possible joint venture with neighboring communities and a referendum on a sustainable Parks system. Develop a comprehensive plan about our parks. b. Parks and Recreation Director Dewey Konewko reports that: i. MCC staff is working very closely with the Finance Director implementing a 5 – 7 year sustainable budget plan with the goal of eliminating the negative cash balance in the Community Center Operations Fund. Staff is also working on an asset management plan for the MCC that will be presented to council for further review and discussion when complete. The asset management plan will assist staff in preparing the Capital Improvement Plan and will look out over the next five to ten years so we can better understand and plan for future improvements to the facility. Staff continues to look at opportunities to reduce expenditures as well as increasing revenue streams at the MCC. ii. With council approval, the Park System Task Force was created to assist staff in the development of a comprehensive Master Plan for the City’s parks, trails, and open spaces. The Park System Task Force works very closely with the Park Commission and ultimately the City Council. One of the outcomes of the Park Master Plan is to identify options for future funding, which will include a city-wide referendum for improvements/enhancements to Maplewood’s parks, trails, and open spaces. The Parks Department continues to work directly with neighboring communities to ensure that we deliver services in a cost efficient manner and seek out ways to collaborate on new programming opportunities. E. Consolidation of Services/Shared Services a. Goal Specifics: All departments will work collaboratively with other cities in an effort to provide more cost-effective services where possible. Consolidate or share city services where it makes sense from a sustainability standpoint. b. City Manager Ahl has compiled a list of dozens of joint efforts that are new and existing over the past few years. This list includes: Workshop Packet Page Number 14 of 21 E3 i. Finance: Utility Billing with multiple area Cities; Ambulance Billing private ii. IT Dept: Metro-Inet is a regional partnership of agencies saving funds for internet and phone service; N. St Paul provides joint fiber optics; St. Paul provides RMS and CAD software; Ramsey County provides GIS service and Ramsey/Washington Suburban Cable Commission for CATV iii. Public Works: Roseville and Lake Elmo for engineering services; Ramsey County for signal maintenance and striping; Oakdale for crack sealing; St. Paul for street light maintenance, water service, billing services; Maplewood provides service to N. St Paul and Oakdale for street signs; numerous agreements with border cities for shared utility and street maintenance. iv. Parks and Recreation: East Twins Babe Ruth, NESA Soccer, MAA for recreation service; ISD #622 and #623 for facilities; Kokoro for Volleyball facilities; Mahtomedi and N. St. Paul for beach service; Ashland for theater; ISD #622 for job training and aquatic programs; Tartan Ice Arena. v. Police: Ramsey County for drug enforcement; St. Paul PD for records and mobile sharing; Ramsey County for dispatch, SWAT, traffic grants; BCA for internet crimes. vi. Fire: Ramsey County for dispatch and CAD; East Metro Training facility; Fire Auto Aid in area; Ramsey County Fire and Arson Investigation and Emergency Operations coordination; Equipment share with Oakdale F. Other Areas: a. Council Directed Staff Priorities for 2013: i. Communication 1. Since July 2013, Karen Guilfoile has been re-assigned to a new role as Director of Communication. This was the Council Members’ top priority for the staff in 2013 and was called the Theme of the Day. It has been re-titled to “Tell Our Story” 2. Director of Communications Karen Guilfoile reports that a. At your direction, I have focused on communication and what has become our coined phrase “Telling Our Story” every opportunity that we can find to do so. We have begun to take a different approach in writing articles for the Maplewood Monthly so that they not only inform the public but also tell the story of what it takes to get things done in the city. b. In May of this year we introduced “Business Highlights” in the Monthly interviewing owner/managers writing articles with accompanying pictures giving our businesses an opportunity to tell their story. This has been well received. c. We have begun to utilize our opportunities at GTN in a broader way by inviting GTN staff to record different events Workshop Packet Page Number 15 of 21 E3 so that we can incorporate visuals in our monthly broadcasts i.e. 3M groundbreaking and the Highway 36 ribbon cutting and grand opening event. In addition, we are working with GTN staff to record on-site happenings that will be incorporated into a new “newsy” type of program that we are working on. Clips from these programs will also be incorporated into 30 – 60 second clips that will then be posted on the website to keep our residents up to speed. d. In the past we have used the Clear Channel billboards as requested by varying departments. In the spirit of increased communication, we are attempting to have two rotations of city related news or events on the boards consistently. The MCC Electronic Board will continue to be used to promote and notify the public of city events. Budget Impact None Recommended Action The City Council should actively participate in the discussion and staff comments on the overall goal. Areas of progress should be noted, as well as areas where additional emphasis is needed should also be addressed. No action is anticipated on this item. Staff anticipates calling for a new Staff Council Retreat in early 2014 Attachments 1. 2012-2014 Council Goals Workshop Packet Page Number 16 of 21 2012- 2014 GOALS Ranked in 2012 (for two years) #1 – Public Safety Complete the plan for rebuilding and relocating fire stations, from five to three, including securing the 3M site. Develop and commit to a plan for meeting the space needs of the Police Department. #1 – Economic Development (tie for first) Make a concerted effort to define and develop a plan (through the EDA) that will ensure new economic development in the City with a particular focus on re-development. Commit to a redevelopment (including housing) for the City through prioritizing and updating the master plan. Determine staffing needs for this effort with adequate resources. Work with BEDC. #3 – Financial Stability/Sustainability Continue to provide quality, efficient services to our citizens while equalizing expenditures and revenues every year. Make budgeting decisions that comport with the principals of sustainability. #4 – Parks and Recreation Continue to determine how to resolve the Community Center’s funding and programming issues. Explore a possible joint venture with neighboring communities and a referendum on a sustainable Parks system. Develop a comprehensive plan about our parks. #5 – Consolidation of Services/Shared Services All departments will work collaborative with other cities to in an effort to provide more cost- effective services where possible. Consolidate or share city services where is makes sense from a sustainability standpoint (Good Government). E3, Attachment 1 Workshop Packet Page Number 17 of 21 MEMORANDUM TO: R. Charles Ahl, City Manager FROM: Gayle Bauman, Finance Director DATE: October 22, 2013 SUBJECT: Discussion on 2014 Budget Options and Use of 2.0% Levy Increase Introduction Per state law, the final property tax levy and budget for 2014 will be adopted at a public hearing scheduled for December 9, 2013 at 7:00 p.m. Staff is working to prepare the final budget document and is seeking direction from Council on what to include regarding the 2014 tax levy. The Council was provided with a proposed Operating Budget for 2014 prior to the September 9th meeting. That document included projections for the General Fund for the remainder of 2013. Staff now has financial information for the first 9 months of the year and would like to update the Council on where the city is at and discuss the 2014 levy. Background At the September 9th council meeting, a total proposed tax levy of $18,898,970 was approved which is 2.0% ($370,570) more than the 2013 levy. At the workshop earlier that evening, staff provided council with options regarding a levy increase which included the possible funding of a south police substation, accelerating the Lakewood/Sterling area streets project, economic development, Community Center upgrades and park improvements. Council expressed interest in the south police substation, accelerating the street project and parks funding. Additional information is now available regarding the legislative session, the General Fund fund balance and these capital project options. Legislative Actions and Debt Service This past session, changes were made to the Local Government Aid (LGA) program which allocated LGA funding to the City of Maplewood for the first time since 2002. The City is currently set to receive $530,709 in 2014. At the same time, the legislature also imposed levy limits with the intent to offset any levy increases with the additional LGA. In a report presented to the Council at the June 10th workshop, the analysis of City debt indicated that a majority of the new revenue from LGA should be used to hold down the levy increase by applying the new LGA funds to debt service for at least the next 5 years. Based on recent history, staff would not advocate utilizing the new LGA for operations. Changes have been made in how we operate since the State cut our MVHC funds in 2008-2011, where we lost almost $1.95 million dollars, and the City would have a difficult time finding more cuts in operations if the State were ever to unallocate LGA funding. Applying these LGA funds to debt service does hold down our levy increase without jeopardizing our operations budget. E4 Workshop Packet Page Number 18 of 21 General Fund Update Based on an analysis of financial information for the first 9 months of the year, it appears the City may have approximately $380,000 more than needed at year end to meet its 40% fund balance requirement. This is mainly due to vacancies in positions, not having any unforeseen occurrences that call for capital outlay and departments holding the line on spending. The final amount of this overage is dependent on what happens during the remainder of the year. The funds will be available for use only if we do not need them to cover expenses through the rest of the year and they are not expected to occur again next year. Because of this, they should not be used for continuing operations as this would not be consistent with our goal of financial sustainability. This $380,000 could be used to offset the 2.0% tax levy increase currently under consideration by Council. Budget Options and Levy Increase Fire Station #1 – One issue the City has been struggling with is the funding of the new Fire Station at the 3M site. Staff is proposing that one-half (1/2) of the building permit fees and plan check fees for the new 3M R&D facility be allocated to the Fire Station project while the other half would remain in the General Fund to support operations. Based on current estimates, this would mean that about $500,000 of fees would be redirected to the Fire Station fund. This has already been factored into our re-estimate for 2013 and the 2014 budget for the General Fund and would not require using any of the $380,000. Police Sub-Station at Fire Station #1 – This was discussed at the September 9th workshop where Chief Schnell is open to considering assigning staff and resources to enhance police service in the southern leg of Maplewood. Updated cost estimates show that a one-time expense of $100,000 is needed to add these facilities with the potential need for an additional squad car in 2015. Staff is proposing to utilize $100,000 of the $380,000 from the General Fund to cover the facility costs and plans on factoring the squad purchase into the 2015 budget. Lakewood/Sterling Area Streets Project – There was a request from residents at a previous council meeting to move this project up from 2016 to 2015. Since that request, no formal petition has been received from residents in that area. Staff is recommending leaving the project in 2016 as noted in the most recent CIP Plan. If the Council does opt to move the project forward, staff would not recommend backfilling the project (no other projects could be moved up to fill the gap in 2016). The CIP Plan was put together with an emphasis on managing our debt. Any additional debt will put a further strain on this effort. If the project were to be moved up, the City could look at capitalizing the interest in a bond issue or borrowing the money internally from another city fund until the bonds are issued. None of the $380,000 is being proposed for this project. Economic Development – The EDA began levying for taxes in 2012. If additional funds are needed in this area, the levy for the EDA should be raised. Staff would not recommend transferring any of the City levy over to the EDA levy. Parks – The Parks System Task Force is currently working on a Park System Plan. In conjunction with this, staff has been gathering information on costs related to parks and has just presented this information to the Task Force. As shown in Attachment 1, approximately 15% of the annual tax levy ($2.6 million) has been allocated to parks and parks related programs over the past years. More information will be brought forward to the Council as the Task Force moves further into its process. Staff does not recommend transferring any of the $380,000 to parks at this time. It makes more sense to wait until the plan is completed to determine how much, if any, additional funding is needed and figure out a source of revenue at that time. E4 Workshop Packet Page Number 19 of 21 Fund Deficits – A high priority for the City is to reduce the deficits in the Community Center Operations Fund and the Ambulance Service Fund. These deficits are brought up during every audit and every bond rating call. We need to show continual progress on reducing and eventually eliminating these deficits. Staff’s recommendation would be to apply the balance of the overage in the General Fund to these two funds. This does help keep down the tax levy because both of these funds currently receive general tax levy dollars and one of the options to eliminate the deficits would be to raise the levy amounts. This also is one of the many factors that helps the City maintain its high bond rating. Budget Impact Staff is recommending that Council not proceed with the 2.0% levy increase for 2014. This 2.0% is approximately equal to the amount of money that is projected to be available in the General Fund at the end 2013, and thus, we should prepare the budget without this levy increase. A 0% levy increase is consistent with legislative intent. With the potential for $380,000 in General Fund dollars, staff is proposing that $100,000 be transferred to the Fire Station #1 budget to fund the south police substation and up to $280,000 be transferred into the Community Center Operations and Ambulance Service Funds to help alleviate deficit fund balances. In no event would one of these transfers be completed to bring the General Fund fund balance below 40% of operating revenues. Consideration for this proposal will be brought to Council at a future meeting. Recommendation It is recommended that the City Council discuss the information included in this report and give staff direction on what levy amount to include in the 2014 Budget Document to be presented at the December 9th public hearing. Attachments 1. Parks – Tax Levy Dollars P:\COUNCIL FILES\AGENDAS\2013\102 BUDGET PRIORITIES WORKSHOP.DOCX E4 Workshop Packet Page Number 20 of 21 E4, Attachment 1 Workshop Packet Page Number 21 of 21