CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING MINUTES June 16, 2014 5:30pm ...

CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING MINUTES June 16, 2014 5:30pm 1) Call to Order Hunt called the meeting to order at 5:30pm. In attendance: Mayor Anne Hunt, Council members Mark Vanderlinde, Arlene Donahue, Bob Christians and Tyler Abens; Interim City Administrator Mike Barone, Finance Director Brian Grimm, Community Development Director David Abel, Director of Public Safety Paul Falls, Associate Planner Nick Olson, City Clerk Terri Haarstad and City Engineer Paul Hornsby (WSB & Associates) 2) Loring Drive Retaining Wall Discussion Hornsby provided an update regarding issues with the reconstruction of the Loring Drive Retaining Wall. This included a contractor request for a change in the wall plans at an additional cost of $28,000 and failure to submit shop drawings that meet the plans and specs presented in the bid documents. Hornsby asked the City Council for direction. Discussion included:  Who was responsible for creating the plans and specs?  What WSB was paid for (handling the public bidding process)?  Whether or not the contractor request for tiering is a better idea than what was originally proposed  The history of the retaining wall and whether or not it is still under warranty (no)  Issues with consistency regarding standards/quality with the use of boulders in retaining walls  Terms of the city’s contract with WSB regarding design  The fact that the contractor does have an engineer hired to design this; his engineer did not have the full engineering design standards. This has been corrected.  Adjusted timeframe  How bids are advertised and whether contractors look in the newspaper for bidding opportunities (Hornsby clarified that most public project bidders are members of Quest CBN and do look in newspapers and professional publications for projects open for bid.)  How the City reaches contractors and solicits bids  Whether or not the City should put together a bidders list for specific types of projects  Pros and cons of sticking with the original project plans and of going with the contractor’s request for major design changes. Hornsby recommended the City Council require the contractor to adhere to the original bid proposal or direct staff to prepare a change order for the request for design changes He also recommended the City Council consider liability in terms of landscaping on the eight foot high section. Additionally, in light of communication issues associated with engineering staff transitions, Hornsby offered to handle this project under the engineering retainer in lieu of the special contract to handle sign services. By unanimous consent, the City Council directed the City Engineer to contact the contractor and request a cost estimate to tier the center portion of the boulder wall and authorized staff to approve changes if the change order is 20% or less of the original bid. If the change order is expected to cost more than that, a special meeting will be called for the City Council to discuss it.

3) Gillespie Park Update Abel explained that staff contacted house movers recommended by Council members. Auldi informed staff that the structures on the Gillespie property are not viable for moving. By unanimous consent, the City Council directed staff to contact the police and fire departments to discuss the possibility of using the structures for training prior to demolition. 4) Pavement Management Plan Hornsby presented the staff report as found on the City Council Special Meeting Packet dated June 16, 2014. Discussion:  Prioritization of Enchanted Island roads since they are underwater and greatly deteriorating right now  The possibility of partnering with the Met Council when they work on a solution for the inflow and infiltration problem  Timing and balancing of public improvement projects  Whether or not the age and condition of utility infrastructure was considered in the prioritization of roadways  Consideration of this plan during the budget process  A recommendation that Gary Peters attend the road committee meetings  Who determines whether or not a guard rail is installed on a roadway? 5) Format for Persons to be Heard Barone explained that Mayor Hunt requested that this be discussed. Hunt clarified that she would like the Council to consider recommendations made by St. Bonifacius Mayor Rick Weible at the last Minnetrista City Council meeting to incorporate public comment throughout the meeting. Discussion included:  Whether or not the Council should wave or indicate in some other way when there are 30 seconds left so that the speaker has some warning that it is time to wrap up their comments.  Whether or not the Persons to be Heard portion of the agenda should be moved to the end.  Whether or not people could be encouraged to sign up or provide comments ahead of time.  The history of past practices regarding Persons to be Heard By unanimous consent the council directed staff to research how other cities handle citizen input and bring it back for discussion at a future work session. 6) Adjourn Hunt adjourned the meeting at 6:48pm Respectfully Submitted,

Terri Haarstad City Clerk