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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10-09-2023 City Council Minutes MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING October 9,2023 6:00 o'clock p.m. ROLL CALL The Orono City Council met on the above-mentioned date with the following members present: Mayor Dennis Walsh, CityCo uncil Members Matt Johnson,ohnson,Alisa Benson,Richard Crosby III, and Maria Veach. Representing Staff were City Attorney Soren Mattick, City Administrator/Engineer Adam Edwards, Finance Director Ron Olson,Community Development Director Laura Oakden,City Planner Natalie Nye,Fire Chief James Van Eyll and Park Superintendent Josh Lemons. Mayor Walsh called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m., followed by the Pledge of Allegiance and a moment of silence for the victims of the fighting in Israel. APPROVAL OF AGENDA The agenda was approved by consensus. CONSENT AGENDA 1. CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES OF SEPTEMBER 25, 2023 2. COUNCIL WORK SESSION MINUTES OF SEPTEMBER 25,2023 3. CLAIMS/BILLS 4. APPRVAL OF INTERFUND LOAN TRANSFERS 5. APPROVAL OF NON-WAIVER OF TORT LIMITS—RESOLUTION NO. 7405 6. APPROVAL OF RENTAL LICENSE 7. APPROVAL OF NEXT WORK SESSION AGENDA 8. APPROVAL OF MN DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY GRANT-RESOLUTION NO. 7406 9. AUTHORIZATION TO HIRE PART TIME FIRE FIGHTERS This item was removed from the consent agenda. 10. AUTHORIZATION TO HIRE PAID-ON-CALL FIRE FIGHTERS This item was removed from the consent agenda. 11. LA23-000047,ERICA HWAY,2245 FRENCH LAKE ROAD,VARIANCES— RESOLUTION NO. 7407 12. LA23-000048, SHARRATT DESIGN,3548 IVY PLACE,LOT AREA,LOT WIDTH,AND HARDCOVER VARIANCES—RESOLUTION NO. 7408 13. LA23-000052,REVIS STEPHENSON,3760 WATERTOWN ROAD,VARIANCE— RESOLUTION NO. 7409 Page 1 of 10 MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING October 9,2023 6:00 o'clock p.m. 14. LA23-000026,ESKUCHE DESIGN O/B/O DEAN& HEIDI MARTINSON,2605 NORTH SHORE DRIVE,VARIANCES,RESOLUTION NO. 7410 16. LA23-000049, STONEWOOD O/B/O MICHAEL GORMAN,3001 CASCO POINT ROAD, AVERAGE LAKESHORE SETBACK VARIANCE—RESOLUTION NO.7411 Crosby moved,Johnson seconded,to approve the Consent Agenda with items 9 and 10 removed and Items 14 and 16 added.VOTE: Ayes 5,Nays 0. COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT REPORT 14. LA23-000026,ESKUCHE DESIGN O/B/O DEAN&HEIDI MARTINSON,2605 NORTH SHORE DRIVE,VARIANCES,RESOLUTION NO. 7410 This item was adopted as part of the consent agenda. 15. LA23-000046,REBECCA HOLZEM,3407 EAST LAKE STREET,VARIANCE City Planner Nye presented a summary of the request. She said the applicant is requesting variances to average lakeshore setback and hard cover setback to construct a new,280 square foot deck on the property.The property is substandard in size and width and is located a few lots away from Stubbs Bay but is considered a lake lot due to the OHWL(Ordinary High Water Level)being present on the property. There is an existing home that is within the 75-foot setback and was approved in 2005 with variances through Resolution 5222.There is currently no outdoor living space on the property.The proposed deck would be located within the 75-foot setback,within the average lakeshore setback and brings the overall hardcover on the site from 27 percent to 35 percent.The original approval of variances for the home (Resolution 5222)specifically states that a deck was forgone from the design of the home in order to minimize the hardcover request.It went on to say that future hardcover increases would likely not be supported. The applicant has listed the extremely small lot size and lack of outdoor space as practical difficulties. Sept. 18, 2023,the Planning Commission held a public hearing.A member of the public spoke in favor of the request. The Commission reviewed the application and noted the proposed project is not out of character for the neighborhood and believed the property had practical difficulties due to the small lot size and unique placement near the lake. The Planning Commission discussed the size of the deck and questioned if the size was necessary and referenced the original 2005 approval. The Commission on a split vote recommended approval of the application as applied by a vote of 4 to 2. Staff recommends denial of the application as applied. The homeowner has reasonable use of the property with a single-family home. Staff recognizes the practical difficulties of the substandard site,but staff does not believe the requested deck size is necessary,especially without any other reduction of hardcover on the site. Rebecca Holzem,3407 East Lake St.,the applicant,said when she originally purchased the property in 1996 there was a small cabin with a small garage. She worked with the City and met all of the side-lot setbacks.It states that she had foregone a deck but said she had foregone a deck at that time. She said she had stated she would hope to add a deck eventually but apparently that was not recorded at the time. She is currently re-siding this house and wanted to work with the contractor at the same time to add a deck. She said she is the only person on her side of the street without a deck or patio.The average square footage of her neighbor's decks is over 300 square feet. She did not think she is being greedy in asking for that size deck because there needs to be space for furniture,table and chairs and a grill.Her house is Page 2 of 10 MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING October 9,2023 6:00 o'clock p.m. small and it is difficult to entertain without an outdoor living space. She pointed out the original approval in question was nearly 20 years ago and things have changed. It was more of a financial consideration to hold off on the deck then. She said she was just trying to build a house that was livable. Veach asked about a deck reconfiguration. Holzem said that would not work because of a lower level patio door. She said the Planning Commission wanted her to talk to the Lake Minnehaha Watershed District. She did and was told she did not require permits because her request would be not detrimental to the creek. She said a neighbor was given a variance to build a garage that is closer to the creek than her deck would be.A neighboring lot is larger but has 48 percent hardcover. She said she is trying to be honest and do this the right way. Walsh stated it's always tough when people decide to build a house and want to maximize the house and don't put in a deck and then later owners ask where is the deck.However,this is an extremely small lot. Johnson said the issue for him is not so much lakeshore setback but that the lot is already over the hardcover limit. Walsh said that is a problem in the community in that very small lots end up with higher hardcover.On the other hand,the City wants homes to be functional and to have enjoyable outdoor living space.He asked if there were other hardscapes she could eliminate on the property. Johnson said she could get a credit for replacing her front walk with a pervious surface. Holzem said she has a single-car garage but a double driveway to eliminate street parking. She asked if they are saying she should tear up her driveway and front walk. She said the stair off the deck is needed because she has no second exit in case of fire. She said she would be willing to remove four feet on the west end of the deck so it would end up being a 16-foot by 14-foot deck. Veach said she believes middle ground is where the solution lies and she would support a slightly smaller deck. It was pointed out there is a path with stepping stones and that is adding to the hardcover.Nye said that could be looked at. The stone walk in the front is only 53 square feet,Nye said. Benson said she is agreement with Johnson in not wanting to add to the hardcover. Veach said she is confused by the amount of hardcover allowed a neighboring property. Nye said it was a replacement of a dilapidated garage but that goes way back. Walsh agrees there is a middle ground but houses need to be liveable.He said if she could remove the stone walk around the side and reduce the deck to 16-feet by 14-feet that would be a compromise. The driveway and front walk is needed,he said. Crosby moved,Veach seconded,to ask staff to bring a resolution for approval of LA23-000046, 3407 East Lake Street,Variance with the stone walk removed and a 16-foot by 14-foot deck. VOTE: Ayes 4,Nays 1 (Johnson). Page 3 of 10 MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING October 9,2023 6:00 o'clock p.m. 16. LA23-000049, STONEWOOD O/B/O MICHAEL GORMAN,3001 CASCO POINT ROAD, AVERAGE LAKESHORE SETBACK VARIANCE—RESOLUTION NO.7411 This item was adopted as part of the consent agenda. Community Development Director Oakden reported to the Council on permit revenue to date.Revenue is above projections,and above 2022 by about$75,000 and they are very busy with permits.Her office issued 130 permits last month which is on par with what they have done the last few Septembers. Staff is working on next week's Planning Commission meeting agenda.They are trying to wrap up end of summer permits before winter. FINANCE DIRECTOR REPORT Finance Director Olson said the City has been working on collecting unpaid utility bills and has collected nearly$20,000 with a little more than$100,00 outstanding.He pointed out it is the first meeting for remote recording and broadcasting with no one in the back room running the IT for the meeting. PARKS REPORT 17. EVENTS SPONSORSHIP PROGRAM Parks Director Lemons reported that the Parks Department runs a number of events but has not had a formalized method to accept and recognize sponsorships and donations.The City is looking at setting up an Events Sponsorship Program. The City cannot solicit for donations. That would be up to Parks Commission members and it would be active on the City website. Walsh asked about a vehicle to make the donations tax deductible,pointing out the City has the Orono Legacy 501c3 which could be a way to make donations tax deductible. Lemons said many of the donations they receive are in-kind like hot dogs and cookies and they want to find a way to recognize that type of donation too.He looked at some other communities for ideas for this program. He added it is also not specific to Parks but could be for Police or Fire or any other City activity. City Administrator Edwards said this program would be separate from any other program in the City. Benson asked if the program had been discussed in the Parks Commission meeting. She said she finds it helpful when new initiatives go through that process and are documented. Crosby moved,Benson seconded,to approve the Events Sponsorship Program.VOTE: Ayes 5, Nays 0. Lemons said they are getting close to end-of-season for golf and parks. The golf course had a very strong year with increases in play and revenue about$40,000 above last year. The new junior league was very successful and they plan to continue to grow that program,he said.Annual maintenance is being performed at Lurton and there will be some trail projects this fall. There will be irrigation blow-outs and putting the golf course to bed. They have also contracted with Hennepin County Corrections"Sentenced to Serve"to provide some services for 21 days for things like removing buckthorn.Fall is the best time to Page 4 of 10 MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING October 9,2023 6:00 o'clock p.m. remove buckthorn so the focus has been on that and not yet other invasive species. Some of that could be accomplished with an Adopt-A-Park Program. FIRE REPORT 9. AUTHORIZATION TO HIRE PART TIME-FIRE FIGHTERS Chief Van Eyll recommended three individuals, Shea Chwialkowski,Nate Weber and Kayla Kennedy,to be hired as part-time fire fighters assigned to weekday duty crews effective Oct 10,2023 at the rate of$20 per hour.He said none of them are Long Lake Fire Fighters.He is proposed hiring now to manage administrative tasks,and work with vehicles and training.He said the City will also need to start ordering turn-out gear for each fire fighter. Benson asked to confirm that hiring part-time fire fighters is not in conflict with the injunction. Attorney Mattick said he had asked Paul Reuvers,who is representing the City on this issue,to discuss that. Attorney Reuvers said the order is specific as to recruiting. There is no prohibition on hiring. The City is able to hire people who come to the City on their own volition. Benson pointed out that Orono is planning on paying these individuals$20 per hour and Long Lake is paying less. She asked if that would be considered unfair recruiting. Erickson said Long Lake is using a different duty crew models and does not have part-time employees, so the roles are not comparable. Benson said she is not in favor of hiring part-time fire fighters because this venture is costing Orono residents considerably more than it would cost to have a contract with Long Lake and is exposing the City to risk because this program has not been tested by an outside third-party evaluation. Walsh said the City has its own experts and doesn't need to go to third parties. The City has decided to have a Fire Department and needs to fund and staff it.They would be paying the City of Long Lake the same but would be giving it away,he said. Crosby said the decision has been made to go ahead with Orono Fire since Orono is 87 percent of the current department and costs. Benson said it is a significant undertaking and none of the Council or Staff has that kind of expertise without outside review. Johnson moved,Crosby seconded,to approve the conditional job offers to Shea Chwialkowski, Nate Weber and Kayla Kennedy as part-time fire fighters at$20 per hour starting Oct 10,2023. VOTE: Ayes 4,Nays 1(Benson). 10. AUTHORIZATION TO HIRE PAID-ON-CALL FIRE FIGHTERS Page 5 of 10 MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING October 9,2023 6:00 o'clock p.m. Chief Van Ey11 recommended hiring a list of fire fighters who would work as paid-on-call fire fighters for Station 2.He said the candidates are Jeff Krahl,Ryan Kanive,JB Seals,Justin Hinker,Mike Johnsrud, Ben Carlson and Tom Aldrich, all of whom have experience as a firefighter with another department. All have passed Firefighter 1 and 2 and are either EMT or EMR. He is recommending hiring at$16 per hour effective Oct. 10,2023 initially to perform administrative work with training starting in January. Benson asked the attorney to comment on this action as well related to the injunction. Attorney Reuvers reiterated his previous comments that the order is very specific and there is no prohibition on hiring. Benson asked if all the individuals were currently serving the City of Long Lake Fire. Van Eyll said as far as he knows they are Benson pointed out the pay would be$16 per hour when they are making 15.85 at Long Lake. She asked where the$16 per hour figure came from. Van Eyll said they did a compensation study with other cities and didn't want to be either the highest or the lowest in pay. These fire fighters are able to serve both Long Lake and Orono.Veach pointed out Long Lake currently has four or five fire fighters that serve more than one department in close proximity. Benson said she has the same concern on this agenda item as the previous one. Veach said she wanted to take a moment to thank these charter members of the Orono Fire Department. Johnson moved, Crosby seconded,to approve the conditional job offers to Jeff Krahl,Ryan Kanive, JB Seals,Justin Hinker,Mike Johnsrud,Ben Carlson and Tom Aldrich as paid-on-call fire fighters at$16 per hour starting Oct 10,2023.VOTE: Ayes 4,Nays 1 (Benson). 18. AUTHORIZATION TO HIRE PAID-ON-CALL FIRE FIGHTER Chief Van Eyll said this action is to hire a paid-on-call fire fighter for response at Station 2 who has gone through the same hiring process.Ben Veach has experience with another department and is a Fire Fighter 1 and 2,he said. Benson asked if Veach should recuse herself from the vote. Attorney Mattick said he had asked Veach to recuse herself from the vote and from participating in any discussion on this item due to a conflict of interest. The proposed hire is her husband and the matter involves employment. Benson said she wanted to state again her concerns about this issue adding it is an unfortunate situation where the optics of fire in the City and the optics of an appointment or a hire like this is not ideal for a City that is engaged in a lawsuit. Crosby moved,Johnson seconded,to approve a conditional job offer to Ben Veach as a paid-on-call fire fighter at$16 per hour starting October 10,2023.VOTE: Ayes 3,Nays 1(Benson).Veach abstained. Page 6 of 10 MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING October 9,2023 6:00 o'clock p.m. 19. AUTHORIZATION TO DIRECT STAFF TO BEGIN PROCESS FOR CREATING A FIRE RELIEF ASSOCIATION The purpose of this action item is to convene fire fighters for the purpose of establishing a Relief Association to oversee fire fighter pensions,Van Eyll said. Veach asked if she had a conflict of interest on this item. Attorney Mattick said there was no personal conflict because this is a Fire Department procedural action. Benson said she could not support this action for reasons stated earlier. Johnson moved,Crosby seconded,to direct staff to begin the process to create a Fire Relief Association.VOTE: Ayes 4,Nays 1 (Benson). Van Eyll said some additional interviews are in process. Johnson congratulated the Chief for bringing in the inaugural group of fire fighters in place.He called it an important step. CITY ATTORNEY REPORT Attorney Mattick had nothing to report at the time,noting there is a closed session at the end of the meeting. CITY ADMINISTRATOR/ENGINEER REPORT Edwards said on the engineering side most major construction projects are wrapping up. The Tonkawa force main was put into operation. At the new public works facility there is a lot of concrete going in including flooring in part of the facility and curbing of the parking lot. They are still on track for April project completion. COUNCIL COMMITTEE REPORTS 20. LONG LAKE FIRE ADVISORY BOARD Crosby apologized for missing the last Council meeting due to a funeral. He said he thought the last Advisory Board meeting had positive momentum for departments working together in the future. A lot of that has been dashed, he said,due to lack of communication and Long Lake not fulfilling its obligations The Orono Fire Department is happening and moving ahead.He is concerned that as the City of Long Lake's biggest client Orono can't get the chief out here to have a conversation with the Council. That is not the future of a working relationship,he said.People are putting egos ahead of the job and that is unfortunate. Veach said again she thought it was a pretty successful meeting. She also went to the Long Lake meeting as she believes personal conversation is the best way to move forward. Their in-person conversations have been fruitful, she said.A request has been made to have another meeting. Page 7 of 10 MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING October 9,2023 6:00 o'clock p.m. Benson said she is confused why they discussed the Fire Department 2024 budget at a meeting where Crosby was not able to be present because of Veach and Crosby's deep involvement. She asked what would be the reason for another meeting. She said she was trying to understand if the participation of Chief Van Eyll to reduce budget costs to Orono is a condition for approving the fire budget. She asked to quantify what the City of Orono is looking for to approve the budget. Crosby said Orono is paying the majority of the Long Lakes Chiefs salary and he should come and talk to them and Orono needs to know what the savings would be if Van Eyll provides services. Veach said this is the reason for another meeting. She does not have conditional terms to approve the budget. If coming to a meeting with a pre-set idea,what's the point,she asked. She said she believes in personal discussions. Benson said her point was that there has to be a tangible and achievable goal going into another meeting to make it worthwhile. She also said it is important that cities not make disparaging remarks about other elected officials and staff of other cities. Crosby said they are here to represent Orono. He said Benson is quick to support a budget for Long Lake but for anything for the Orono Fire Department it is no,no,no. Johnson said he doesn't understand her urgency to approve the budget. They have until the end of the year to get the budget passed and keep talking and communicating,he said. PUBLIC COMMENTS Kim Carswell,261 Cygnet Place, said she will continue to comment on the City of Orono establishing its own Fire Department until the next election when three Council members will be up for a vote. She said she had four points. The Council has adamantly refused to listen to the citizens of Orono. The benefits of Orono building a Fire Department have not been clearly articulated.They are the bigger City and pay the larger portion. That is accepted. The response times cited without data were disputed by the Long Lake Fire Department with sound data.The costs seem to be more, so she asked what is the true benefit to the citizens of Orono?Mediation sessions did not yield anything as Orono did not go into them constructively as Walsh promised he would, she said,asking how can a City the size of Orono assume such a budget without significant risk? Helen Landgraver,2570 Thoroughbred Lane,said she was glad she came to this meeting because it was the first meeting where she could actually agree with Crosby. She called out each Council Member individually stating they were elected to represent the citizens of Orono.It is evident after many meetings and continued vocal opposition for forming an Orono Fire Department,most of the Council has not made a compelling case why an independent Orono Fire Department needs to exist. She said she would plead again and again for the Council to actually listen to what the citizenship is saying. She said she appreciates that Walsh seems to have an interest in people not talking over each other. She would like him to apply that standard across the entire Council. Page 8 of 10 MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING October 9,2023 6:00 o'clock p.m. Brad Erickson,Corcoran, said he and Crosby a few meeting ago had a kafuffle out in front and he almost got arrested. He said Crosby called him a Nazi from the dais here in Orono.He asked if the police present were going to arrest him for expressing his first amendment rights.He asked Crosby if that is what he was doing in Washington,D,C,on January 6. He said Crosby should not even be on the Council because according to the Constitution,anyone who takes part in an insurrection is unfit for office.According to Erickson,there is a town in Tennessee that has Proud Boys showing up to protect council members running for office.He asked if that is what they will come to in Orono,having the Proud Boys here to protect Crosby.He asked who is going to protect the public from Crosby stating he has gone off the tracks and needs to apologize and denounce that kind of stuff,take a step back. Ritche Anderson,3205 Crystal Bay Road, said it's interesting to be talking about the Fire Department now. The Mayor's predecessors got the first fire stations going and entered into a contract,he said. The contract has now come due.He said he was glad the Council pulled items 9 and 10 off the Consent agenda because this is a monumental night.He said it is important to have the backs of the folks who have signed up to be fire fighters because they have been under a lot pressure and it was not an easy decision. The Clydesdales have left the barn. This is going forward,he said.Anderson said he was making a commitment for$50,000 over the next five years to start the Relief Fund and presented the first check for$10,000. MAYOR/COUNCIL REPORT Veach thanked Anderson for his donation and thanked the new members of the Fire Department and the Chief. Benson was disappointed the two cities were unable to use time in mediation to come to an agreement. She said she would like to hear more about Orono's ISO or insurance rating as the risks here are significant and the plan has not been adequately shared with the residents.Insurance companies do not favor risk and Orono's ISO is undetermined, she said. Crosby also thanked Anderson for his love and commitment to Orono as well as his generosity. Indicating Chief Van Eyll,he said when you volunteer and you give back to your community and you get so much back, it's 10-fold.He said he is excited about the Orono Fire Department because they have a great leader and great personnel joining the department already. He said that will not close the door ever on working with the City of Long Lake. Johnson said there is a misconception that if Council Members have a different opinion from residents then they are not listening.He said he appreciates the regular attendees at Council meetings but doesn't always agree with them. They don't know who all he is talking to,he said.He talks to many,many residents of Orono,not just people who come to meetings each week. He takes his vote seriously and understands what his job is.He said he 100 percent believes in what they are doing with Orono Fire.It's not an easy or popular thing to do. It's difficult and expensive but the right thing for the futures He said' it's also important that people don't represent rumors as facts. He was part of the mediation,he said,and anyone who says they didn't go there in an honest effort to find a solution wasn't there.He said people should not say it if they don't know it. On the subject of data,he said they spent a lot of time studying data. If people want to understand more, ask more questions. Their data on response time was honest and based on nationally-recognized methodology,he said.He also thanked Anderson.Having some public Page 9 of 10 MINUTES OF THE ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING October 9,2023 6:00 o'clock p.m. and some elected officials against the fire fighters moving over to Orono is real and it puts a burden on them,he said. Walsh said he would echo everything Johnson said and won't repeat it. He said this is what vocal support looks like, indicating Anderson. He discussed the Orono Homecoming. Orono is undefeated with six wins. The last home game is this coming Friday night and it's senior night. It was the first ever homecoming parade with the Orono Fire Department.He said he participated with Temple Israel in a ribbon cutting for the redevelopment of Camp Teko,a camp on Lake Minnetonka in Orono that has been serving Jewish youth for 60 years.He said his heart goes out to the people of the Middle East. Coffee with the Mayor will be the third Wednesday instead of the second. 21. CLOSED SESSION Walsh moved, Crosby seconded,to enter into closed session at 8:08 p.m.,as permitted by the attorney-client privilege (section 13D.05,subdivision 3 (b))to discuss litigation strategy regarding the following lawsuits: •The City of Long Lake vs. City of Orono•Jay Nygard vs. City of Orono, Soren Mattick.VOTE: Ayes 4,Nays 0. (After a five minute break,the City Council was in closed session from 8:13 p.m. to 8:45 p.m.) Crosby moved,Walsh seconded,to reopen the Orono City Council meeting at 8:45 p.m. VOTE: Ayes 4,Nays 0. ADJOURNMENT Walsh moved, Crosby seconded,to adjourn the meeting at 8:45 p.m.VOTE: Ayes 5,Nays 0. ATTEST: Nol Dickhausen, Interim City Clerk Dennis Walsh,Mayor Page 10 of 10