05-12-1997 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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#10 March 27, 1997 'Sex shop’ moratorium passed in Shorewood By Greg Borchard the night of the I lOscars, racy subjects of V—^sex, liquor, and high speed snowmobiling received cool treatment at Shorewood’s City Council meeting. A handful of participants attended, brav ing an unusually heavy Spring snow. The Council moved unani mously to adopt an ordinance which initiates a one year mora torium on the introduction of adult establishments to city commercial zones. Mayor Tom Dahiberg suggest ed the Council should pay atten tion to First Amendment issues. City Attorney John B. Dean cited existing legislation passed by the Minnesota Congtess granti ng Shorewood "legal authority to adopt the morato'ium pur suant to the state statute." Councilmembers agreed on the necessity of the moratorium to prevent troubles which other communities have encountered in regulating the industry. Councilmember John Garfunkel summarized, "The moratorium will be easy. Regulation, the final product, won't." The Council also decided unanimously not to grant an on site alcohol beverage license to applicant Vladimir Velikson who has made plans for a restaurant in the Waterford Shopping Center. City Councilmember Jennifer McCarty cited the Planned Unit Development (PUD) charter already on the books restricting such buildings. "We made a covenant to the people of that neighborhood. It’s our responsi bility to keep that promise," McCarty stated. Councilmembers heard con tinued discussion on the status of snowmobiling pursuant to the Board's last meeting. Richard Young, Chief of Police for the South Lake/Tonka Police Force, addressed some of the ongoing concerns of townspeo ple and snowmobilers. Councilmember Kristi Stover exhorted the police chief to remember, "We had asked you to fight [snowmobile related] crime to the max of your possi bility." Young stated that the majority of last year's com plaints appear to have come from "four or five people." As established by previous jgreements from the Council, members will wait till the end of the snowmobile season to address specific concerns. The Council also entertained offers for regulatory assistance from Jim Daniels, representative of the Lake Minnetonka Communications Commission Advisory Board. Daniels requested that the Commission be given a more direct role in working with the Council on matters related to new federal legislation. He noted the increased ability of local governments to regulate the programming of cable televi sion pursuant to last year’s pas sage of The Telecommunications Act. Daniels encouraged board members to use their bargaining power along with other local councils. "The 14 cities in the lake region have ver)' little clout . by themselves," Daniels claimed. He added, "The strength is in their numbers." This commission is always hands on and up front. They could be breaking new ground," Daniels claimed. The Council agreed to formalize relations with the Commission and will honor the request for an adviso ry role. In other matters, the Council approved a modified budget presented by City Engineer Larry Brown for the purchase of two city dump trucks. According to Brown, the cost of purchasing the trucks would not be as high as initially antici pated, bringing the cost to an estimated total of $97,000. The meeting was closed with a brief discussion of how the rising rates of taxes applied to Shorewood's property values.