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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06-01-2015 Work SessionCOLUMBIA b HEIGHTS 590 4oth Avenue NE, Columbia Heights, MN 55421-3878 (763)7o6 -3600 TDD (763) 7o6 -3692 Visit our website at: www.ci.columbia- heights.mn.us NOTICE OF WORKSESSIO Meeting of: Date of Meeting: Time of Meeting: Location of Meeting: Mayor Gary L. Peterson Councilmembers Robert A. Williams Bruce Nawrocki Donna Schmitt John Murzyn Cite Manager Walter R. Fehst Columbia Heights City Council Monday June 1, 2015 7:00 PM (Following the EDA Meeting) City Hall, Conference Room 1 1. Potential Changes to Interim Use Permit Requirements 2. Administrative Fines for Zoning Violations 3. Plan for Existing City Library Building 4. Solar Power for City Buildings 5. LaBelle Park Project: Change Order No. 1 6. Update on Grants (verbal report by Hansen) • Library — MWMO ($600,000) • MNDOT — HSIP for Central Avenue Lighting ($891,000) • RCWD — Silver Lake Boat Landing Pond Recon ($53,000) The City of Columbia Heights does not discriminate on the basis of disability in the admission or access to, or treatinent or employment in, its services, programs, or activities. Upon request, accommodation will be provided to allow individuals with disabilities to participate in all City of Columbia Heights' services, programs, and activities. Auxiliary aids for handicapped persons are available upon request when the request is made at least 96 hours in advance. Please call the City Clerk at 763 - 706 -3611 to snake arrangements. (TDD /706 -3692 for deaf or hearing impaired only). Worksession 06 -01 -2015 COLUMBIA HEIGHTS CITY COUNCIL LETTER Item No. 1 Meeting of June 1, 2015 AGENDA SECTION: Work Session ORIGINATING DEPARTMENT: CITY MANAGER'S NO: Community Development APPROVAL ITEM: Interim Use Permit Revisions BY: Joe Hogeboom, CD Director BY: DATE: May 27, 2015 BACKGROUND: The Zoning Code currently allows "interim uses" in certain zoning districts through the issuance of an Interim Use Pen-nit. Interim Use Permits are administered by the Planning and Zoning Commission. The Zoning Code currently defines and allows the following interim uses: • Outdoor Christmas Tree Sales (permitted in Commercial Districts) • Outdoor Agricultural /Produce Sales (permitted in Commercial Districts) • Fireworks Tents (permitted in Commercial Districts) • Greenhouses (permitted in Residential and Commercial Districts) In recent years, there has been an increase in the amount of temporary festivals and events throughout the City. Examples include the recent Fire and Ice Plunge at Silver Lake, the upcoming Ecuadorian Festival at the Columbia Heights Shopping Center, 4"' of July parking lot festivities along Central Avenue and outdoor tents to accommodate Ramadan dining at numerous restaurants. The Zoning Code does not address these events. However, it is important that the Fire Department, the Building Official and the Associate Planner review site plans and proposals for the events to help identify safety and zoning concerns. Requiring festivals, as well as certain temporary sale events, to obtain an Interim Use Permit through the Planning and Zoning Commission is often unpractical, as the applicant would have to apply for the pen-nit at least one month in advance of the event. Often staff, and even the applicants themselves, are unaware of specific details of temporary events that far in advance of the event itself. Other events that are larger in scale, and occur on a regular yearly basis, qualify for Conditional Use Permits, which only need to be applied for one time unless the size and scope of the event were to change. This is currently how Ace Hardware's outdoor garden sales are administered. RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends expanding the scope and definition of Interim Use Permits to include festivals and large outdoor gatherings and tents, and allowing approval of Interim Use Permits to be granted administratively. This recommendation would require several amendments to the Zoning Code and would need to be brought before the Planning and Zoning Commission, as well as the City Council, for approval. Staff seeks further direction in pursuing this matter. COUNCIL ACTION: Worksession 06 -01 -2015 COLUMBIA HEIGHTS CITY COUNCIL LETTER Item No. 2 Meeting of June 1, 2015 AGENDA SECTION: Work Session ORIGINATING DEPARTMENT: CITY MANAGER'S NO: Community Development APPROVAL ITEM: Administrative Fines for Zoning Violations BY: Joe Hogeboom, CD Director BY: DATE: May 27, 2015 BACKGROUND: Currently, if Zoning Code violations occur, and a property owner chooses not to remedy the situation, there are two options for enforcement. The first option would be to issue a citation to the property owner or to the person responsible for the violation. This is often difficult to do, as a state issued driver's license or identification card is needed to issue the citation. Often, there is no person physically present at a site, so the issuance of a citation becomes impractical. The second method of enforcement for a zoning violation is to pursue legal action against the property owner. This method is very expensive for the City, and can take a long time to implement, and therefore does not result in the correction of the original violation in a timely manner. Minnesota state statute currently allows a third option for zoning enforcement, which involves the issuance of administrative fines. Establishment of an administrative fine system enables staff to issue fines to individuals responsible for zoning violations and grants the City Council the ability to serve as an administrative hearing board, should a fine be challenged. According to research conducted by the League of Minnesota Cities, cities that use an administrative enforcement procedure experience a lower cost of enforcement and quicker resolutions to problems. Municipalities are required to set the fine amount at $60 per infraction. Cities do have the ability to charge multiple fines over a period of time if a problem is not addressed. RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends creating a system that allows administrative fines to be issued for zoning violations. Creation of the system would require two considerations of an ordinance by the City Council. Staff seeks further direction in pursuing this option. COUNCIL ACTION: Worksession CITY COUNCIL LETTER o6 -o1 -2015 Meeting of: June 8, 2015 Item No. 3 AGENDA SECTION: NO: . Consent, Number ORIGINATING DEPT.: Public Works BY: Kevin Hansen DATE: May 29,2015 ITEM: Existing City Library Building Background: In the current project schedule, the new Library is anticipated to be operational by June of 2016. This will leave the exisitng building as a City asset with an undefined use. Discussions in the past 3 years during the Library project have varied with various suggestions on what to do with the existing Library once it is vacated. These have ranged from selling the building, re -using the building as a public use, leasing the building, demolishing the building and selling the land, or repurposing the building for another public or private use. Staff is at this point is not recommending any direction on the future of the existing library building. In order to determine a direction for what may be the best interest of the City for a use of the existing building, staff recommends the following: • Conduct a market analysis of the building to establish both potential end uses and a value of the building for resale potential. • Conduct a condition analysis of the structure and equipment in the building to establish potential future costs if the City retains ownership of the building. Having these two pieces of information would then provide the basis for a future discussion on what is in the best interest of the City of Columbia Heights for the existing Library building. Recommendation: Direct staff to prepare: 1. A market analysis for the exisitng library building at 820 40th Street; 2. A condition analysis of the existing facility. City Manager Approved By: Worksession CITY COUNCIL LETTER 06 -01 -2015 Item No. 4 Meeting of: June 8, 203.5 AGENDA SECTION: NO: . Consent, Number ORIGINATING DEPT.: Public Works BY: Kevin Hansen DATE: May 29,2015 ITEM: Solar Power for City Buildings Background: In the Facilities Maintenance Department, the Supervisor has been looking at ways to reduce costs in the operations of our buildings. Some recent examples are the lighting changeouts to LED in our liquor stores, integrating an energy management system for cooler controls at Top Valu 1 & 2; coordinating the recomissioning efforts at the Public Safety Building so that the complex geo- thermal system works as it should — summarized on the attached sheet. Recently, he has been investigating solar power for City buildings. Several cities, counties and schools have either installed solar power or are investigating the addition of solar power in recent years. In Minnesota this is largely due to both Federal Tax Credits or State Programs providing incentives for solar power. A large push is being made in both 2015 and 2o16 as the solar programs are either being reduced or eliminated at the end of 2016. Three programs are available for adding solar power to our City Buildings: • Made in Minnesota • Rooftop Solar • Solar Gardens Made in Minnesota is a state lottery based system providing rebates for equipment made in Minnesota. The program is for smaller systems up to 4oKW. Staff applied for this program and the liquor store at 4950 Central Avenue was selected by the State. Rooftop Solar is a new program started in 2015 for larger systems from 1ooKW to 1,000KW utilizing Xcel Energy capacity credits and demand charges. In both of the programs above, there are no upfront costs to the City. A 3rd party investor purchases and installs the systems and operates them within a specific timeframe: 10 years for MIM, and 15 or 20 years for the Rooftop program. The City enters into a Power Purchase Agreement with the 3 r party for the program timeframe, projected with a modest annual cost savings. At the end of the term, the ownership of the panels is turned over to the City along with the full energy benefits.. If the City is interested in the benefits of solar power the next step would be to conduct a detailed engineering report which would review the rood structure; finalize the size of the system at each building; design the electrical tie -in at each building; detail the project scope and costs; create a Power Purchase Agreement and finalize the guaranteed savings under the programs. Attached is a powerpoint presentation that staff will review in detail at the June 15Y meeting. Recommendation: Authorization to prepare an Engineering Report that would analyze the feasibility of adding solar power at: Top Valu 1, the Public Safety Building, Public Works, and the new Library. Attachment: Solar presentation (ppt) City Manager Approved By: Public Safety Re- commissioning building Reprogram building automation This reduced electric usage by $25,000 a year Top Valu 1 and 2 Energy Management System ECM fan motors, anti -sweat controls, building automation control LED lighting retrofits Height Liquor ECM fan motors, anti -sweat controls, LED lights Murzyn Hall Reprogram building automation controls LED light in main hall Actual and Proiected vearlv savings Public Safety: $22,000 - 25,000 Top Value 1 & 2: $32,000 Heights Liquor: $2500 Murzyn Hall $3000 Slide 1 Slide 2 Slide 3 Slide 4 Three Options to Install & get the benefit of Solar Made in Minnesota program - started Jan 1, 2014 Rooftop Solar program - started Jan 1, 2015 Solar Garden program - started Ian 1, 2015 Bene0ts Next Steps Made in Minnesota . lottery Based (1 out of 5 applications selected) State of Minnesota Rebates far MIM panels 4950 Central was selected 3r° Party Ownership - No cost to the City Power Purchase Agreement - Panels are leased from owner (10 years) City owns after term Made In Minnesota Owner insures and maintains the panels After 10 years city gets full benefit of energy produced by the panels and owns and maintains the panels Program already used by Rogers, Champlin, Woodbury, Oakdale, Maplewood, Crystal, Red Wing and other cities Slide 5 Slide 6 Slide 7 Slide 8 How does the process work" Based an a 30OKW system s aneb sit on Clay of Electnayfmm panels gels used in the budding — Monthly Xcel elecfdc hill goes down $34,400iyear Xcel reduces monthly bdl by anelher $18,500 a yearfer Capacity Credit Xcel reduces Demand Charges on monthly bills by $yW . y.., City pays owner of panels Power Purchost Agreemenl Rata of $46.750 a yen' City has net b—At of $7,050 n year Roonop Based -new th -s year (1,1 15) Pablic Solely Public Works, boraw (flat roofs) System size behveen 100 kY! and 1,IN10 kW per Z metes {bmldmg} Uses %cel Energy Capacity Credits 3rd Puny ownership Noupt— lcosttothe City Power Purchase Agreamwnl- POneis nre leased ' horn awn. (20 years) City owns offer specified lam -20 or 15 yews owner insures and malMamv the panels ? paeed Beta un wy ced b+ pa nets How does the process work" Based an a 30OKW system s aneb sit on Clay of Electnayfmm panels gels used in the budding — Monthly Xcel elecfdc hill goes down $34,400iyear Xcel reduces monthly bdl by anelher $18,500 a yearfer Capacity Credit Xcel reduces Demand Charges on monthly bills by $yW . y.., City pays owner of panels Power Purchost Agreemenl Rata of $46.750 a yen' City has net b—At of $7,050 n year Slide 9 Solar GC.aens -new fhayear (1, i/151 Off t,•e s,taryarden m an oat's, nr c•,n,y 1 Megowah City "bscnph- w; ai6 he 1 owner n-- no bond: 0ordee Nc coxt to Manihly b,71 credit fo, 1/3 cv. nenh o sieFe Slide 10 Slide 11 Ezplonng all three solar options Combining the three options provides the mazlmum benefit to the City Net cash benefit at almost $500 000 over 20 years Net cash benefit of aver $5,700 000 over 50 years M1M and R—fl p rnoaeJs became City owned panels Solar garden subscription continues Inde finitely All three options have 50 cost to the city , federal Investment Taz Credit goes from 30r= to 10% at the end of 2016 Slide 12 9 Slide 13 Slide 14 Slide 15 Slide 16 Engineering Study Finalize solar sizes Finalize solar production Design electrical tie -ins Finalize project scope and costs Finalize 3p party tax ownership, +investor details Review agreements and contracts for sources of risk FlnaRze guaranteed costs and savings Engineering Study $10.000 Cost No payment by City until Study is complete 1 of 3 things will result If panels don't pay for themselves with no cost to City - Study is Vold - No payment If panels pay for themselves -City decides to not move forward - Study Is billed If panels pay for themselves & City moves forward - Study is paid fnr ihro,.gh savings Opportunity to get solar installed in the City with no upfront cost to the iaxpayers (except for engineering study) The City nets a savings of $17,000 a year to have solar installed (Assumes all 4 buildings have solur) After the terms are complete the panels are turned over to the City Achieves progress towards Green Step Cities goals Demonstrates environmental stewardship in conjunction with fiscal stewardship Questions? i ire CITY COUNCIL LETTER Worksession o6 -01 -2015 Meeting of: June 8, 2015 Item No. 5 AGENDA SECTION: NO: . Consent, Number ORIGINATING DEPT.: Public Works BY: Kevin Hansen DATE: May 28,2015 ITEM: LaBelle Park Project: Change Order No.1 Background: In February the City Council awarded a contract in the amount of $378,954 for site improvement to LaBelle Park as detailed in the Master Plan: 1. Removal(s) of the boardwalk / vertical sheetpiling / patio overlook area 2. Providing slope restoration 3. Bituminous trails relocation and construction. 4. Two infiltration ponds serving the parking lots off of 41St and 42nd Avenues 5. A small picnic shelter and arbors replacing the basketball court 6. Overall site landscaping 7. Sidewalk and steps Due to the uncertainty in the bidding market at the time the plans were prepared, several add - alternates were included. While all of the alternates were awarded, the only improvement not included from the Master Plan was the lower overlook patio — as shown on the attached Master Plan document. Following the bid award, the Park and Recreation Commission requested staff to prepare a plan and obtain pricing to complete the lower overlook and bring it back to the Commission for consideration. Attached is a detailed plan for the lower overlook based on the Master Plan. It has a walking area, natural limestone bench seating, park benches, colored concrete and heavy landscaping both along the pond slope and in the center patio area — creating "color" drifts. Much of the pricing was already bid in Odesa's original bid. Pricing for ornamental fencing and Kasota limestone (product used in other parks) was provided. The Change Order amount for this work is $37487• The original project budget was $425,000 so the additional work can be added within the project budget. At their May 271h regular meeting, the Park and Recreation Commission unanimously approved a recommendation to the City Council to approve Change Order 1 in the amount of $37, 487 to Odesa II. Recommended Motion: Move to authorize Contract Change Order No. 1 for City Project No. 13o6 to Odesa II, LLC of Sauk Rapids, Minnesota in the amount of $37,487 for a new contract amount of $416,441. Attachment: Lower Overlook Plan City Manager Approved By: iE arc w o aw c A. LIOJV - uBld Inoft-1 ileJOA0 43 SIUBWBAoidwi BUS 31JEd 0110SE 43— �2 Iz 11 owu LaZ(Am wa j /�j .8. BOJV - UvId 6UIPEJE) NW 'SI46laH e!q-nloo jo Aj!3 x SJUBWGAoiduil ejjS MJBd 911GS8 o° duo 1 4oX:A3W )S -3 a Vj4o,X'A=jgljjU no^1Mo -Z lC WeiD-01126L404— SJ3eX B .9, BGJV - uBld adoospue-1 'I *Wow NW Isjt4BjqH e!qtunloo jo Allo to Bross SSM rn ... ....... Jdwl 841S )IJBd 8110ge 10 o o o o slie ;ap snoouelaosiy� �,...e .., �::.�,.�.we�w,�,_n „x •.,. � M ., ., NW 's4y6jeH elgwnloo jo A313 W _ s3u9w8nOjdwl 931S Aged 011898-1 ow oy xp Z O b Q I J W U O J U Z 4 Y c O U m N! 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