Jane McWilliams, LWV Observer
All councilors were present.
Performance review: The council met in closed session at 6:00 to conduct the city administrator’s performance review. At the beginning of the regular meeting, Mayor Mary Rossing summarized the conclusions of the evaluation. City Administrator Joel Walinski has met or exceeded the council’s expectations, and has shown solid leadership and management. He has become involved in the community. The council said he needed additional work: on public relations; on providing for concise information to the council in a timely fashion. They asked him to bring a plan for professional training for himself to the council for approval. There was no written report distributed at the time of the report.
Google broadband opportunity: The council approved seven items on the consent agenda. Of interest is approval of expression to Google, Inc. of the city’s interest in being involved in building a fiber network. Google is planning to build and test high-speed broadband networks a small number of locations in the US. According to their web site, Google will offer the service “at a competitive price” to at least between 50,000 and 500,000 people. Interested communities are invited to submit information through a form provided by the company. A short explanatory video is available at: http://www.google.com/appserve/fiberrfi
According to Melissa Reeder, the city’s IT Director, this is a continuation of the council’s direction to explore opportunities in the development of high speed broadband network in the Northfield.
Waterford Township: The administration asked for direction from the council on how to proceed with the Waterford Township discussions. One issue is the disparity between the legal opinions of the city’s and the township’s attorneys on the validity of the “joint resolution for orderly annexation,” the 1980 agreement between the two jurisdictions. Community Development Director Brian O’Connell recommended that they find a time when “the council and township supervisors can talk about where they’ve been and where they should go.” Rossing asked whether the council should come with a council position, or whether it should be open-ended. O’Connell said it would be wise to review the history of the agreement, the advice of Chris Hood, City Attorney, and develop some “ideas about what the city wants to accomplish prior to the meeting with the township.”
Walinski said that he planned for the council to have a discussion on next week’s work session, which would allow for an April meeting with the township board. Asked by Councilor Rhonda Pownell whether the staff could meet with the township board instead, O’Connell said that the relationship is between the elected officials, and ‘it changes the dynamics when elected officials meet together rather than staff and elected officials.” Councilor Erica Zweifel asked who would facilitate the discussion, and Rossing replied that she would do so. The council approved a motion to invite the Waterford Township Supervisors to a city council work session to discuss the annexation relations between the two groups. This meant they would take no further action on a resolution dissolving the annexation agreement on which they had deferred action at their January 19, 2010 meeting.
Architectural services committee: The council appointed Pownell and Zweifel to the architectural selection group which will screen and interview candidates for doing the design and construction of the police and fire facilities. Other members of the group: Steven Schmidt, Schmidt Construction; Brian Erickson; the city Public Works Operation Engineer; Mark Taylor, Chief of Police; Walinski; Steve Spehn, Carleton Director of Facilities and Capital Planning. The closing date for proposal submissions is March 10, 2010.
Fourth Street enhancement: Several advisory groups had reviewed the design for amenities between Division and Washington Streets as part of the 4th Street reconstruction. The Streetscape Task Force had agreed on a design which was then taken to the Historic Preservation Commission for their review, because part of the area is included in the Historic Preservation District. That group removed some of the elements in the design which they deemed not historical, and problematic in other ways. (For drawings and more detail on the elements: http://www.ci.northfield.mn.us/assets/p/Packet161.pdf, scroll down to # 12. ) The council approved the design recommended by the HPC: small planters along 4th street curb line, hanging baskets on decorative light poles, but no “bump-outs or large-scale planters” as recommended by the Task Force. Streetscape funds would be used for purchase of planters, light poles and brackets. Walinski noted that there is no funding for plantings in the hanging baskets or planters. Currently the city plants the baskets downtown, but this will be “on our list when we talk about budget reductions,” Walinski warned.
Northwest utilities extension: There was no action requested or taken on the whether Northfield should take advantage of two federal funding opportunities. According to city staff, each source could be appropriate for extending public utilities to the eastern boundary of the Sorum property in the newly annexed Northwest Territory west of the hospital. (To see map: http://www.ci.northfield.mn.us/assets/p/Packet161.pdf, Item 13.) Staff reports that this would significantly “increase the attractiveness of this area of this area for economic development” and would fit in with the timing of the master development process. The city has received quotes for engineering design of the utilities from the existing location of the hospital to the Sorum property. The design cost (estimated at $65,000) will likely be covered by the water and wastewater enterprise funds. Even if the city receives no federal funding, the design would be good for a number of years, according to City Engineer Katy Gehler. In public comments, Don McGee wondered how we would know where to put the utilities until the EDA planning process is completed. Gehler said they would run along North Avenue. Councilor Betsey Buckheit and Zweifel were concerned about how this fits into planning and how the city would match funds from the government, if required.
Rate Search investigation: The firm Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ceresi has conducted a forensic investigation to determine whether the losses the city experienced as a result the city’s audit firm HLB Tauges Redpath’s failure to detect mismanagement of the city’s funds invested by Rate Search might be recaptured through litigation. RKM&C concluded that there would be difficulty in building a case, partially because the city couldn’t provide documentation that Redpath had been notified of any problems with Ratesearch. Rossing stated that “this is the last chapter in a very unfortunate story.”
EPA initiative: At the suggestion of Zeifel, the council discussed participating in the US Environmental Protection Agency’s initiative to address climate change and clean energy. She said it is free and we can participate any way we want. It could be an important part in marketing the city. She has some students researching whether there are federal resources to assist the city toward becoming even more “green.”
Council goals: Staff distributed the preliminary results of the tally the council created of the results of their goal setting retreat. Councilor Jim Pokorney, along with Buckheit and Walinski will refine the charts and report at the March 16 council meeting.
Announcements: Walinski reported that although there is some improvement in the state’s budget estimates, the city must anticipate cutting $740,000 this year. He explained that he had asked department heads to come up with 8 to 10% cuts, and he anticipates there will be internal changes in the organization in order to get things done. He will report to the council in late March or early April.
Rossing displayed a handful of communications she has received from a number of citizens “thanking us for our service. Remember – there is a whole community that wants us to do well.”
The meeting adjourned at 9:30 p.m.