08-23-1999 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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ORONO CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES FOR AUGUST 23, 1999 • ROLL The Council met on the above - mentioned date with the following members present: Mayor Gabriel Jabbour, Council Members Charles Kelley, Richard Flint, Bob Sansevere, and Barbara Peterson. Representing Staff were City Administrator Ron Moorse, City Attorney Tom Barrett, Senior Planning Coordinator Michael Gaffron, City Engineer Tom Kellogg, Zoning Administrator/Planner Paul Weinberger and Recorder Lanette Wolf. Mayor Jabbour called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. ( #1) CONSENT AGENDA Items 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 12, and 13 were added to the Consent Agenda. Sansevere moved, Kelley seconded, a motion to approve the Consent Agenda as amended. VOTE: Ayes 5, Nays 0. PRESENTATION BY MARK ENGEBRETSON REGARDING ORONO ICE ARENA OPERATIONS Mark Engebretson, representing the Orono Ice Arena Board, stated that the Orono Ice Arena Association provides an annual report to the School District regarding the operation of the ice arena. He said the Ice Arena Board would like to provide the Orono City Council with an • annual report. The rink is owned by a Minnesota non - profit corporation called Orono Ice Arena, Inc. It is a separate corporation from the youth hockey program. The non - profit corporation owns and operates the rink. He told the Council that the Ice Arena Board consists of five members and the City is entitled to appoint a board member, which the City has not yet done. He urged the Council to exercise its right to have a representative on the Ice Arena Board. 0 Engebretson said the rink has been paid for with private donations. The total project cost will be approximately $3,000,000 and they still need to raise approximately $450,000. On June 1 they kicked off a $475,000 campaign and they have raised $25,000 against it. Engebretson said the rink is successful from an operating standpoint. They are able to use some excess operating funds to keep improving the rink. Engebretson reported that there is an issue with the landscaping. He apologized on behalf of the rink for the state of the landscaping. He said the rink is located on a difficult site because it has a variety of topography. It is also a difficult site legally because there is a city - owned ditch on the Old Crystal Bay right -of -way, there is an official wetland on the site, and a detention pond where they are not sure if they can cut the vegetation. He stated that their landscape engineers recommended planting a prairie mix of wildflowers, but it has not been successful and it looks like weeds. They have also had some trees die in the area where the dehumidification units are located. He asked if it would be appropriate for the Council to Page 1