08-24-2020 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING Thursday, August 13, 2020 6:00 o’clock p.m. _____________________________________________________________________________________ Page 6 of 8 Johnson clarified that it would be input from surveyors and developers rather than a wish-list. Walsh said he thinks it is good to have some set standards so they at least set the table and it doesn’t impact the Council later when there are no standards and people can put in whatever they want, for example a six foot driveway. Crosby said the Council may have something in the draft that is not reasonable and the surveyors and developers could come back with input. Walsh said sometimes “they don’t know what they don’t know” until the Council run into things and they can only read so much verbiage until the reality hits when subdivisions actually start coming through. He said the Development Review Committee (DRC) has done a good job looking at those things with construction people and developers in those meetings to see what has worked and what has not. He said perhaps it makes sense for the Council to make tweaks and changes, as sometimes you don’t know until issues pop up in front of the Council. Printup noted the Council had a crack at starting the cleanup process and next week when the Code Review Committee looks at it they will have a heads up. Barnhart said he’d send the draft to the Council immediately and then send it to the surveyors that have done work in the City over the last year. He also agreed to send it to the Code Review Committee. Crosby moved, Seals seconded to table consideration LA19-000065 – City of Orono Text Amendment Related to Subdivisions. VOTE: Ayes 5, Nays 0. MAYOR/COUNCIL REPORT Printup shared that Corn Days the weekend before wasn’t quite the same, but he still got some roasted corn and was able to support them. He said it was a drive-through event, noting it was a good fundraiser. He also thanked the Orono Police Department for hosting a very important Firearms Safety Class and said it was test day and tomorrow the class will finish up. Crosby said the previous Friday night he attended a ride-along with Officer Sturm from the Orono Police Department, noting he thinks very highly of Officer Sturm and believes he is one of the best officers the City has. He said Officer Sturm is good with the public and in working with the partners in the Fire Department he was always a pleasure. Crosby said years ago his dog ran away and he was tracking the dog through the muck in the woods and finally found the dog. Officer Sturm was on the hunt with them and pulled up to give them a ride home, even though the dog was a mess, noting he’d had worse in the car before. Crosby noted the ride-along was not dull, they started with a home break-in which was very exciting to see full reds and sirens to the other side of town, and that the Orono Police Department worked with other law enforcements agencies (Minnetrista and Hennepin County). The second call was a medical call in Minnetrista and that it was a tough call and his prayers go out to the young man and his family. There were some other minor traffic stops and he was really impressed with the way the Officers handled themselves. He said he didn’t want to miss anyone and noted Steve Sturm, Will Carstens, Fred Vargas, Larry Cable and Jane Szczepanik and said it was a great night, he gave props to the Chief, saying they have a great police department and that the citizens should be very proud.