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11-03-10 Council and Planning Commission November 3, 2010 A regular meeting of the Scandia City Council was held on the above date. Mayor Dennis Seefeldt called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Following the Pledge of Allegiance, City Administrator Anne Hurlburt administered the Oath of Office to Chris Ness, who was appointed to the open council seat at a Special City Council meeting on October 27, 2010. Roll call was taken. The following council members were present: Connie Amos, Pete Crum, Chris Ness, Dolores Peterson, Mayor Dennis Seefeldt. Staff present: City Administrator Anne Hurlburt, City Attorney Dave Hebert, Building/Code Enforcement Official Steve Thorp and Deputy Clerk Brenda Eklund. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA Ness, second by Peterson, moved to approve the agenda as presented. The motion carried 5-0. PUBLIC HEARING: CERTIFICATION OF UNPAID CHARGES FOR THE 201 SEWER SYSTEM FOR COLLECTION WITH PROPERTY TAXES (RESOLUTION NO. 11-02- 10-01) A public hearing was held for the purpose of allowing property owners with unpaid charges to the 201 Community Sewage Treatment System the opportunity to object to the certification of unpaid charges to 2011 property taxes. This is done in accordance with Ordinance No. 108. Mayor Seefeldt opened the public hearing. There were no comments and the hearing was closed. Council member Ness inquired if the property owners would receive an additional notice before the charges are certified to the County for collection with taxes. Administrator Hurlburt explained that no, in accordance with the ordinance, property owners were notified of the hearing on October 19 and reminded that they have an additional ten days after the hearing to pay the delinquent amount before the assessment roll is sent to the County. Peterson, seconded by Amos, moved to adopt Resolution 11-03-10-01, Certifying Unpaid Charges for 201 Community Sewage Treatment for Collection with Property Taxes. The motion passed unanimously. PUBLIC HEARING: DRAFT ORDINANCE NO. 12X, ESTABLISHING FEES FOR PLANNING AND ZONING APPLICATIONS AND REPEALING ORDINANCE NO. 95 Council reviewed a draft ordinance which would establish fees for various planning and zoning applications. It is necessary to update existing Ordinance No. 95 to be consistent with some of the different application types and procedures contained in the updated Development Code. City Administrator Hurlburt reviewed the fee schedule and explained that the current fees were retained as much as possible, and the council may consider adjusting them if appropriate. For applications requiring a public hearing, the separate deposit for a parcel search charge was eliminated. The escrow will be increased a comparable amount to simplify billing back the actual charge against the escrow deposit. For projects requiring more than one type of review, language was added clarifying that the applicant must pay the cumulative total of all application fees and November 3, 2010 Scandia City Council Page 2 of 6 escrows. The Zoning Administrator would be given authority to modify the escrow requirement for multiple applications if appropriate. Mayor Seefeldt opened the public hearing. There were no comments and the hearing was closed. City Administrator Hurlburt recommended that the council delay action on the ordinance until after adoption of the Development Code. PLANNING COMMISSION VACANCY Council discussed an appointment to the Planning Commission to fill the vacancy created by the appointment of Chris Ness to the City Council. The appointment would fill the remainder of Ness’s term, which expires on February 1, 2015. Steve Philippi was the council’s second-choice candidate interviewed for the Council vacancy, and is interested in an appointment to the Planning Commission. Staff was directed to contact other candidates interviewed in the past year for their interest in serving on city committees. Zach Howell was interviewed for the Planning Commission in January 2010. Peterson, second by Crum, moved to appoint Steve Philippi to the open vacancy on the Planning Commission. Council member Amos stated that consideration should also be given to Zach Howell, who would be a good candidate for the Planning Commission. Amos asked if an application and interview process should be conducted for this vacancy. Administrator Hurlburt advised that a five-member Commission should be established soon so that a quorum of members is available for future meetings. A term will be expiring on February 1, 2011 and the council could advertise for applicants in January. There are also vacancies on the Park and Recreation and Capital Improvement committees. Council member Crum stated that Mr. Philippi’s architectural and engineering background make him an excellent candidate, and suggested that Mr. Howell’s application be kept on file for a future opening. Peterson and Seefeldt agreed that Mr. Philippi would be a great asset to the Planning Commission. Mayor Seefeldt called for a vote on the Peterson/Crum motion. The motion carried 4-1, with Amos opposed. DISPOSAL OF SURPLUS FIRE RESCUE VEHICLE At the October 19 meeting, the Council authorized staff to dispose of the old fire rescue truck through the use of IQBid.com, an on-line auction site. IQBid informed staff that they were no longer interested in listing the vehicle due to its low value. Staff has contacted Do-bid.com, another on-line auction service. They have experience selling fire trucks and are willing to list the truck. Maximum marketing costs will not exceed $100. Peterson, second by Ness, moved to November 3, 2010 Scandia City Council Page 3 of 6 approve using the on-line auction site Do-bid.com to dispose of the old Fire Rescue Truck 5179. The motion carried 5-0. The council recessed at 7:17 p.m. The Planning Commission meeting was called to order at 7:30 p.m. The following were present: Vice-Chair Christine Maefsky, Commissioners Tom Krinke, Susan Rodsjo, Steve Philippi and Peter Schwarz. Staff present: City Planner Sherri Buss, TKDA. PUBLIC HEARING (CONTINUED FROM OCTOBER 5, 2010): DRAFT ORDINANCE NO. 122, AN AMENDMENT TO THE SCANDIA DEVELOPMENT CODE CHAPTER 1 ADMINISTRATION AND CHAPTER 2 – ZONING On October 5, the Planning Commission opened the public hearing on the proposed ordinance which will update the first two chapters of the Development Code. State law requires that the city’s codes and ordinances relating to the development of land be made consistent with the Comprehensive Plan, which was approved for adoption in March 2009. City Planner Sherri Buss reviewed the changes made based on citizen comments and staff recommendations. The Planning Commission and City Council received a redlined version of the draft ordinance showing the changes and edits which were agreed upon. Commissioner Maefsky opened the continued public hearing for comments. Commissioner Maefsky addressed the change made in Chapter 2, Section 2.5 (uses in Agricultural Preserves District). At the last meeting, it was the consensus to remove Commercial Horse Training Facility (10 or fewer horses) as an allowed use because it is not consistent with state law. Maefsky objected to the removal and cited a recent tax law which she felt interpreted a commercial horse operation to be a legitimate use in agricultural preserves land. City Attorney Hebert countered that the tax law was meant to allow ag property used for the raising of horses not to be taxed as commercial land. Hebert explained that uses in ag preserves must follow the statute, and a commercial horse operation is not permissible. Commissioner Maefsky moved to return Commercial Horse Training Facility as an allowed use in the Agricultural Preserves District. Commissioner Krinke commented that this has potential to cause trouble in the future and should be left off the list of allowable uses. Action on the motion failed for lack of a second. The next issue addressed was a request from Gary Gillespie, 20290 Olinda Trail, regarding an exception in the current code to the requirement for lot frontage on a public road, Section 3.3 (2) (C). This was proposed to be left out of the updated code as it is in conflict with other standards. Making exceptions to the road frontage standard and allowing what may become permanent November 3, 2010 Scandia City Council Page 4 of 6 private roads seemed to violate some of the basic requirements of the new code. It was originally added to deal with one past instance of a land-locked parcel. Mr. Gillespie commented that the exception should remain in order to deal with other landlocked parcels such as his. They own a 50-acre parcel that they wish to split into two parcels, and this exception would allow for a shared driveway between the two properties. It would not be financially feasible to require a public street. Mr. Gillespie strongly urged the Commission to reconsider, as there are other properties in Scandia that would benefit from this. Commissioner Krinke asked for City Attorney Hebert’s opinion on what could be done to help Mr. Gillespie with this hardship. Hebert advised that the exception could be included in the code update. A minor subdivision would still be required for the purpose of subdividing the land. A complete application would need to be reviewed before stating that a parcel having no public road frontage is allowed. Certain conditions would need to be met. The Commissioners suggested that the process should begin with a sketch review and site visit. Krinke, second by Rodsjo, moved to retain the current code language found in Section 3.3 (2) (C), Minimum Frontage on a Public Road. The motion carried 5-0. A written comment was received from Joseph Beitler, 13531 Oakhill Road, concerning regulations for home occupations. Planner Buss reviewed language that could be added to the final draft if appropriate. Mr. Beitler addressed the Commission with a request that standards for home occupations be changed to allow up to one employee, and especially non-family members, to be part of a home occupation. He would also like to allow for screening, either by natural cover or man-made structure, of outdoor storage. Mr. Beitler noted that he works with large pieces of granite that are difficult to store inside. Commissioner Maefsky asked for any final public comments. There were none, and the hearing was closed. Commissioners discussed the screening and outdoor storage issue raised by Mr. Beitler. Consensus was that it would be difficult to define a personal storage space area, especially with Scandia’s wide variety of lot sizes. Screening is not a guarantee that materials will not be seen. The standards in place for exterior storage should apply to home occupations. Commissioners then discussed allowing outside employment to a home occupation. Staff revised language to Chapter 2, Section 4.10 (1) to read: “No person other than the residents of the premises and no more than one employee not residing on the premises, shall be engaged in such home occupation.” Commissioners Maefsky and Rodsjo stated that one additional employee is not unreasonable, and would be in favor of allowing this. November 3, 2010 Scandia City Council Page 5 of 6 Commissioner Schwarz didn’t see the necessity of adding language to the code to allow for an additional employee – one additional helper just happens. An issue is only raised if there is a complaint. To allow for one employee could grow to a point that a business is created, leading to problems. Commissioner Krinke was in agreement with this. Maefsky, second by Rodsjo, moved to adopt language to Chapter 2, Section 4.10 (1) to read: “No person other than the residents of the premises and no more than one employee not residing on the premises, shall be engaged in such home occupation.”. The motion carried 3-2, with Krinke and Schwarz opposed. Krinke, second by Schwarz, moved to leave the language in Chapter 2, Section 4.10 (7) as is, prohibiting outdoor storage for home occupations. The motion carried 5-0. Commissioner Rodsjo noted that cement fiberboard should be added to the list of approved building materials in Section 3.14 (1)(C) 4. Consensus was to include cement fiberboard as an approved building material. The Planning Commission recommended to the City Council adoption of Ordinance No. 122, Adopting a New Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 of the Development Code, with amendments. These amendments include approving an exception to minimum road frontage on a public road, allowing one employee of a home occupation, and adding cement fiberboard material as an approved building material. Peterson, second by Ness, moved to accept the recommendation of the Planning Commission to adopt Ordinance No. 122, with amendments, and to adopt the new Zoning Map. The motion carried 5-0. Peterson, second by Amos, moved to adopt Resolution No. 11-03-10-02, Approving Summary Publication of Ordinance No. 122, City of Scandia Development Code Chapter 1 (Administration) and Chapter 2 (Zoning Regulations). The motion carried 5-0. Council took action on the ordinance regarding fees for planning and zoning applications. Peterson, second by Ness, moved to adopt Ordinance No. 123, Establishing Fees for Planning and Zoning Applications and Repealing Ordinance No. 95. The motion carried 5-0. PUBLIC HEARING: COMPREHENSIVE PLAN AMENDMENT. CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM UPDATE, 2011-2015 The Capital Improvement Program (CIP) is typically updated annually, before the City Council adopts the budget in December. City Administrator Hurlburt presented a draft CIP as prepared based on input from the Capital Improvements Committee and from direction received from the City Council during their August budget meetings. November 3, 2010 Scandia City Council Page 6 of 6 A major change recommended is that replacement of the1997 Ford 8000 Dump Truck with Plow (PW-006) be moved up from 2012 to 2011. Recent mechanical failures have raised concern that the current truck is not reliable. It was determined that a tandem-axle dump truck with plow would be the most advantageous replacement. It would carry almost double the load of sand and gravel, useful in both summer and winter months. Commissioner Maefsky opened the hearing for public comments. There were no comments and the hearing was closed. Commissioner Rodsjo suggested that a municipal parking lot in the Village Center should be added to the list of pending projects. The recent additions of new businesses has made public parking difficult. Council member Ness asked if it would be cost effective to do more in-house road projects. Administrator Hurlburt stated that some projects are just out of the scope of the public works department to take on, but there may be opportunities in the future. Mayor Seefeldt suggested that looking into joint-power agreements with neighboring cities could be a possibility. The Planning Commission recommended that the Council adopt Resolution 11-03-10-03, Amending the 2008-2030 Scandia Comprehensive Plan to adopt a revised CIP for 2011-2015. The CIP includes the addition of a municipal parking lot as a pending project. The Council deferred to take action on the Commission’s recommendation until after the November 9 budget work session. Mayor Seefeldt suggested that the municipal parking lot be referred to the Capital Improvements Committee to consider as a future project. CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR PLANNING COMMISISON APPOINTMENTS Ness, second by Peterson, moved to accept the recommendation of the Planning Commission to appoint Maefsky as Chair for the remainder of former Chair Ness’s term, which expires on February 1, 2011 and to appoint Krinke to serve as the Planning Commission Vice Chair. The motion carried 5-0. Ness, second by Peterson, moved to adjourn the meeting. The motion carried 5-0. The meeting adjourned at 9:27 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Brenda Eklund Deputy Clerk