Jane McWilliams, LWV Observer
Mayor pro tem Kris Vohs conducted the meetings in the absence of Mayor Mary Rossing.
Special Meeting
Concession License Approval: During the brief special meeting, the council approved a concessions license for the Northfield Soccer Association which has scheduled a tournament June 26-27 and would like to provide concessions.
Work Session
Update and direction/Storm water Ordinance and Expanded Discharge Requirements:
As required by state and national regulations (NPDES), the city must develop a program to bring the surface water discharged into the Cannon River back to the 1984 levels, the year the river was designated a Wild and Scenic River by the state. Staff has been meeting weekly with a stakeholder group, the Technical Steering Committee, and consultants Barr Engineering, to develop a new storm water ordinance. The TSC is comprised of individuals with specific credentials to guide the technical aspects of the ordinance. The draft language was presented to the Advisory Group, comprised of representatives of the city’s boards and commissions, of surrounding jurisdictions, local builders and developers, and at 2 community meetings. (For complete information about the process and to see relevant documents: http://www.ci.northfield.mn.us/assets/p/projects/Stormwater_Ord_2010/index.html )
Following a very informative presentation about protection of Spring Creek (for which a separate policy document has been created: http://www.ci.northfield.mn.us/assets/p/projects/Stormwater_Ord_2010/files/RiceCrk_Policy_20100607.pdf ) by Dan Petrek of Barr Engineering, the council reviewed and commented on a list of policy questions. (See meeting packet for these: ( http://www.ci.northfield.mn.us/assets/p/Packet169.pdf )
Based on the council’s comments at this meeting, there will be a second draft prepared in late June, a community meeting on July 12, and the final draft presented to the council on July 20. Following a council hearing on August 12, adoption by the council on September 7, the ordinance will become effective on October 6, 2010.
City Funds and Their Financial Status Overview: Finance Director Kathleen McBride noted that the presentation and discussion at this meeting was an important educational piece about the city’s finances, intended to provide an overview of the types of funds and to show details on the specific funds – including their financial status. This information will be helpful in creating policies, conducting budget deliberations, capital spending decisions, and longer-range financial planning. She distributed a 9-page report on the status of funds as of 12-31-09, showing the purpose, balances, comments and notes about each, and recommending future areas for planning and policy formation. (This document is not yet posted with the meeting packet, but, according to McBride, should be by the end of the week.)
The council discussed again the question of forming a finance advisory committee, and how its work should be defined. McBride said she prefers that the work be very focused and that it be for longer-range view, not for the 2011 budget. City Administrator Joel Walinski said Mayor Rossing is looking for names of people who are interested. She will bring a list of recommendations to the council to the July 13 work session.
Streetscape Task Force Recommendations:
Dan Bergeson, a member of the group charged with developing recommendations for improvements for the downtown area, sat with the council as they reviewed a list of recommended projects to be funded by the city’s Master Development Fund. The list had a total estimated cost of $1,111,350. (The fund is money from tax increment financing receipts which are realized within a certain district when new development increases the tax base, and thus the tax revenues. There is a sunset for this program, and in the case of this district, the fund expires in 2013.)
The council commented on the list, focusing on the proposed purchase of property to be set aside for parking as part of the future library project. Berguson said that the property owners are willing to sell and the city could hold it until a final decision is made. Councilor Jim Pokorney said he thought the council needed to discuss and make the decision on the parking issue. Councilor Jon Denison disagreed with the proposed list and recommended that the city decertify the TIF districts for financial reasons. The tax increment, rather than set aside for master development funds, could be used for other purposes. Councilor Rhonda Pownell said the city is in a different place than when the task force and TIF district were created. Some of the funds could be used for the safety center, and the city should view the downtown area more broadly than Division Street. Saying “no decertification” Councilor Buckheit said 2013 isn’t so far away and that it would be shortsighted to decertify for short-term reasons. Councilor Erica Zweifel disagreed with Denison, and although parking is a top priority, she agreed they needed to talk more about decertification before looking seriously at the list.
There was no clear direction on the rest of the list of relatively less expensive items. Walinski said the council must take up the decertification issue before moving forward on the task force recommendations.
Vohs adjourned the work session at 10:26 p.m.
Comments
De-certification of the Downtown TIF district would be robbing the people whose dollars they are. I don't care what the stresses the council faces on budget, it is shortsighted to take the almost 600K that comes each year from the DT TIF district to cure a problem that is not being addressed in a meaningful way by the budget cuts to this point.
May I draw this parallel? It's like saying we can't afford the medicine for the ill baby because we have to buy a house with another bedroom now that we have another child... OK, that wasn't the best, but I think you get what I mean.
A meaningless short term 'fix'....throwing away legitimate revenues that are diminished by the decertification as the other taxing entities would then have to receive their share... so, IMO, a blatant lack of support for the Downtown , which is the most Marketable, quality-of-life feature of Northfield which MIGHT have the capacity to draw business investors here.
Very Shortsighted.
And one councilor said we had to de-certify to return the tax$$ to "our constituents", the School District and the County. What is he talking about? Since when are the School District and the County the "constituents" of the NF City Council... pure nonsense!