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3-17-15CCOOMMMMUUNNIITTYY SSEERRVVIICCEESS CCOOMMMMIISSSSIIOONN AAGGEENNDDAA Tuesday, March 17, 2015 7:00 pm Regular Meeting Richfield Municipal Center (Heredia Room), 6700 Portland Ave PPLLEEAASSEE NNOOTTEE MMEEEETTIINNGG LLOOCCAATTIIOONN CCHHAANNGGEE Commission Members Staff Liaisons Reed Bornholdt (Chair), Crystal Brakke, Joannette Cintron de Nunez, Dan Edgerton, Carolyn Engeldinger, Arthur Felgate, Tracy Hollenback, Teresa Kruse, Michele Thompson (Vice Chair) Jim Topitzhofer (Staff Liaison) John Evans (Secretary) Rick Jabs (Planning Com) Edwina Garcia (City Council) 1. Approval of Minutes/Agenda  Regular Meeting: February 17, 2015  Agenda: March 17, 2015 2. Public Comment  Resident comment and items not printed on agenda 3. Staff Reports  Recreation Services (Topitzhofer)  Garfield Park Play Equipment Replacement  Portland Avenue Sidewalk Art  Taft Fishery Improvements  Home and Garden Expo – Thank you, Reed, Crystal & Carolyn  Egg Scramble – March 28  FOWL Dinner - April 24 4. Action Items  None 5. Discussion Items  Organized Garbage Collection (Topitzhofer) 6. Committee Reports  Transportation Commission (Felgate/Edgerton)  Band Shell Taskforce (Bornholdt)  FOWL Board (vacant)  Planning Commission (Engeldinger)  Arts Commission (Thompson) 7. Next Meeting Tuesday, April 21, 7:00 pm Richfield Municipal Center (Bartholomew Room) 8. Adjournment February 17, 2015 REGULAR COMMUNITY SERVICES COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING Tuesday, February 17, 2015 Richfield Community Center (7000 Nicollet Ave) PRESENT CSC: Reed Bornholdt, Joannette Cintron de Nunez, Dan Edgerton, Carolyn Engeldinger, Arthur Felgate, Ken Severson, Michele Thompson, Crystal Brakke STAFF: Jim Topitzhofer, John Evans ABSENT CSC: Tracy Hollenback, Teresa Kruse COUNCIL: Edwina Garcia PLAN COM: Tom Rublein Call to Order/Approval of Minutes & Agenda Bornholdt called the meeting to order at 7:25 pm. Edgerton moved, seconded by Thompson, to approve the minutes of the regular January meeting (1/20/15). Approved, ayes all. Thompson moved, seconded by Brakke, to approve this evening’s agenda. Approved, ayes all. New Members The group welcomed Art Felgate and Ken Severson. Staff Reports Recreation Services Topitzhofer reported on the following: Ice Fishing Event at Taft Park: Good weather, good turnout. 200+ people. Home and Garden Expo: Saturday, February 21, 9:00 am to 3:00 pm, Richfield High School. Action Items Election of Chair & Vice Chair Bornholdt invited nominations for Chair and Vice Chair. Edgerton nominated Bornholdt, seconded by Engeldinger. Bornholdt elected, ayes all. Edgerton nominated Thompson, seconded by Severson. Thompson elected Vice Chair, ayes all. Liaison Appointments Volunteers: Arts Commission (Thompson), Transportation Commission (Felgate), Friends of Wood Lake (Severson), Planning Commission (Engeldinger). New Meeting Location Bornholdt informed the group that the Municipal Center will be the new meeting location for the Community Services Commission. 66th Street Intersections Bill Klingbeil, Kimley-Horn, outlined the plans for the reconstruction of 66th Street, spotlighting the roundabouts. He said that notes from the last meeting included questions about pedestrians at roundabouts. He said that the use of the new rapid-flashing light signage, triggered by pedestrians, have been very effective. Severson said that these are in use on American Boulevard west of Lyndale Avenue. Bornholdt asked about how long they flash for users of walkers or slower pedestrians. Severson said that, with some roundabouts, the center islands necessitate only crossing half of the street at a time. Klingbeil said that the time they flash can be adjusted to flash for longer in areas where there might be an older population. Klingbeil showed a video in which cars and pedestrians interact in a roundabout. Felgate asked for some numbers that compare roundabouts to traditional intersections. Klingbeil said that fatal crashes are reduced by 98%, serious crashes by 75%, and a significant reduction in all crashes. He said that roundabouts reduce delay at all times, not just rush hours. Brakke asked about the process of educating the public about roundabouts. Klingbeil said that Washington County started an initiative called Roundabout University and setup at events and outside of stores, explaining how to drive through roundabouts, so communities definitely try to spread the word. Severson suggested approaching some of the senior housing facilities and doing some of those public education efforts. Thompson moved, seconded by Cintron de Nunez, to recommend Council approval of the roundabouts plan, with the stipulation that there by a public-education process along with the project. Approved, ayes all. Garfield Park Play Equipment Replacement RFP Topitzhofer said that the equipment preferences of the Garfield Park neighborhood, determined at the neighborhood meeting prior to the CSC meeting, will be incorporated into a request for proposals and sent out to the main playground vendors that serve the area (he mentioned a correction where the wrong park was mentioned). He said that those proposals will be scored by a selection committee that consists of Recreation staff, Public Works staff, and volunteers of the CSC. He said that the winning proposal will then be brought to the CSC to consider recommending approval to the Council on April 27. He said that, other than the equipment preferences, he could see the merit of some shrubbery for the one woman in particular whose yard lines up directly with the equipment. Volunteers for the scoring committee from the CSC: Brakke and Edgerton. Severson said that, although the neighborhood was averse to having tables, he thought that it would be a welcomed amenity for parents and grandparents visiting the play equipment with their kids. Engeldinger asked about the neighbor’s preference for no trees; if a larger tree was planted, it wouldn’t get trampled. Topitzhofer said that the west side of that park would be a good place for some shade trees that might have sight lines underneath the canopy. DRAFT MINUTES UNTIL APPROVED BY THE CSC. February 17, 2015 Discussion Items Capital Improvement Budget Topitzhofer presented the latest draft, with a couple of small changes from last year. He said that the mandatory conversion to a different kind of Freon at the Arena will take up most of the capital budget for 2017-2020. Brakke asked if there is any chance that more money could be allocated from the liquor store proceeds to parks and recreation. Topitzhofer said that, in recent years, they have saved liquor proceeds to make improvements to some of the liquor stores. Edgerton said that this might be a good time to approach Council about allocating more funds for parks and recreation, since the mandatory Arena improvements will take most of the budget in 2017-2020. Edgerton said that, when you look at the list of projects that are being planned, all of the items are about improving existing facilities, but none of them address the City’s master plan. He said that the CSC’s mission is to advocate for the items in that master plan. Severson asked why the rink conversion item has a check under outside funding. Topitzhofer said that there is legislation through Mighty Ducks funding through the State to alleviate the cost, but it’s a very small drop in the bucket. Topitzhofer said that the group could consider the possibility of a bond referendum for larger improvements and new construction. Severson said that he wouldn’t anticipate great support for such a referendum. Edgerton asked if maybe the referendum could be proposed for just the Arena conversion costs. Felgate asked if the Arena has that much importance in the community since it occupies 90% of the capital budget. Brakke said that it’s probably non-negotiable, and may just be a matter of how it’s funded. Topitzhofer said that a bond referendum would usually be preceded by a community survey. Severson mentioned that the Arena conversion plan is just a three-year item. Brakke asked if the group could revisit the master park plan at an upcoming meeting. Topitzhofer said that it was updated in 2008 and will be due for revision in 2016. Edgerton moved, seconded by Thompson, to recommend Council approval of the capital improvement plan, with the additional recommendation that the amount of liquor store proceeds allocated to parks and recreation improvements by increased, since 1) the current funds only address repairs and improvements to existing facilities, money is only currently covering existing items, 2) no master park plan items are being addressed in the current plan through 2020, and 3) the amount allocated to parks and recreation items has been flat, or even decreased, for many years. Approved, ayes all. Edgerton moved, seconded by Thompson, to request that alternative sources of funding to the capital improvement budget be identified for the cost of converting the Freon system on rink #2, which will require funding just a few years after the three-year funding of the conversion of rink #1 is complete in 2020. Approved, ayes all. Committee Reports Transportation Commission: Severson provided the report. Band Shell Taskforce: Bornholdt and Topitzhofer provided the report. Friends of Wood Lake: Brakke provided the report. Planning Commission: Engeldinger provided the report. Arts Commission: Thompson provided the report. Next Meeting/Other/Adjournment Regular March Meeting Tuesday, March 17, 7:00 pm, Richfield Municipal Center (6700 Portland Ave). Commission Member Orientation Tuesday, February 18, Municipal Center Adjournment Brakke moved, seconded by Edgerton, to adjourn. Meeting adjourned by consensus at 9:19 pm. RICHFIELD COMMUNITY SERVICES COMMISSION EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Meeting Date: March 17, 2015 Agenda Item Organized Garbage Collection Agenda Section Discussion Items Attachments None Contact Jim Topitzhofer Recommended Action None, Discussion Only The Richfield City Council recently conducted their annual goal setting session. One of the goals the Council established for this year is to continue exploring organized garbage collection. The Council mentioned that the League of Women Voters Richfield studied the topic of organized garbage collection and conducted a public forum in March, 2013. After considering the subject for over a year, the League of Women Voters Richfield passed a motion last year to recommend the City consider organized garbage collection. The group recently attended the Richfield Home and Garden Expo to distribute a petition supporting organized collection. As a result, the Council is now assigning the Community Services Commission the task to study the item further and develop recommendations. The Commission has also discussed the issue of garbage collection in the past few years. Richfield has an open garbage collection system which means that residents choose from a number of haulers resulting in additional trips from multiple haulers on any given street during collection days. A new law was introduced in 2013 by Richfield's State Representative Linda Slocum and was written to simplify the process for adopting organized solid waste collection. Below is a summary of the new law: Simplified Process Adopted for Organized Solid Waste Collection The new law replaces the 180-day process for adopting organized collection with a 60-day negotiation period. (Published May 13, 2013) League-supported legislation that simplifies the process for adopting organized solid waste collection became law effective May 8. The new law (Chapter 45) eliminates the cumbersome 180-day process for adopting organized collection, and replaces it with a 60-day negotiation period between a city and its licensed collectors. The new process is designed to give the current collectors the first chance to develop a proposal for organized collection. If the 60-day negotiation period ends without an agreement, a city can continue the process by adopting a resolution to form a committee to study organized collection and make recommendations. Cities that have already organized collection are exempt from the new law. Their current organized collection methods continue to govern. Steps for organizing collection The steps for adopting organized solid waste collection under the new law are as follows: Notice to public and licensed collectors. Before forming a committee to study organized collection, a city with more than one licensed collector must notify the public and its licensed collectors that it is considering organizing collection. The new law does not specify how notice should be provided. The League recommends providing both published notice and individual mailed notice to each licensed collector. Sixty-day negotiation period. After a city provides notice of its intent to consider organizing collection, it must provide a 60-day negotiation period that is exclusive between the city and its licensed collectors. A city is not required to reach an agreement during this period. The purpose of the negotiation period is to allow licensed collectors to develop a proposal in which they, as members of an organization of collectors, collect solid waste from designated sections of the city. The proposal must addresses specific issues set out in the new law. If an agreement is reached with a city’s licensed collectors, it must be effective for three to seven years. The city must provide public notice and hold at least one public hearing before implementing the agreement. Organized collection cannot begin until at least six months after the effective date of the city’s decision to implement organized collection. Committee formation. If a city does not reach an agreement with its licensed collectors during the negotiation period, it can form—by resolution—an “organized collection options committee” to study various methods of organizing collection and issue a report. The city council appoints the committee members, and the committee is subject to the Open Meeting Law. The committee must examine different methods of organizing collection (two of which are specified in the law); establish a list of criteria for evaluating the different methods of collection; collect information from other cities and towns with organized collection; and seek input at a minimum from the city council, the local official responsible for solid waste issues, licensed solid waste and recycling collectors, and city residents. Public notice, public hearing, and implementation. A city must provide public notice and hold at least one public hearing before deciding to implement organized collection. Organized collection cannot begin until at least six months after the effective date of the city’s decision to implement organized collection. A motion was made by the Community Services Commission on May 21, 2013 to recommend approval of the preparation and submission of a request for proposal to the existing solid waste collectors for the purpose of meeting the City’s solid-waste collection goals and did not pass. After disputing the vote on May 21 because of abstaining votes, the Commission passed a motion on September 17, 2013 to raise the issue of organized garbage collection again at the next meeting. On October 5, 2015, a motion was again made to recommend approval of the preparation and submission of a request for proposal to the existing solid waste collectors for the purpose of meeting the City’s solid-waste collection goals and the motion did not pass. More information will be provided at the meeting to explain the past activity of the City on this matter and to reacquaint the Commission, especially new members. No action is requested at this time.