07-25-2023 Work SessionCITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES
Richfield, Minnesota
City Council Work Session
July 25, 2023
CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Supple called the work session to order at 7:00 p.m. in the Bartholomew Room.
Council Members
Present:
Mary Supple, Mayor; Simon Trautmann; Sean Hayford Oleary; Ben Whalen;
and Sharon Christensen
Staff Present: Katie Rodriguez, City Manager; Dustin Leslie, City Clerk; Matt Hardegger,
Transportation Engineer; Joe Powers, City Engineer; Kristin Asher, Public
Works Director; Jay Henthorne, Police Chief; Jennifer Anderson, Health
Administrator; Brittany Bartlett, Equity Coordinator; Chris Swanson,
Management Analyst; and Mary Tietjen, City Attorney.
ITEM #1
DISCUSS STATUS OF TWO REQUESTS SUBMITTED BY STAFF TO MINNESOTA
MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET FOR POTENTIAL INCLUSION IN A 2024 BONDING
BILL
City Manager Rodriguez introduced the new Equity Coordinator, Brittany Bartlett, to Council
and she gave a brief overview of her background.
Director Asher presented the report to Council and recommended they pick either the Nicollet
Avenue reconstruction project or the 73rd Street pedestrian bridge project for a bonding bill request.
Transportation Engineer Hardegger gave the presentation with an overview of both projects.
He recommended Council Members choose the Nicollet Avenue project due to several factors
including: regionality, timing, funding eligibility considerations, ownership, and staff time.
Council Members and staff discussed construction projects over the past ten years on Nicollet
Avenue and how this request would differ from those.
Council Member Whalen stated that while the staff recommendation made sense, he wanted
to know if it would make sense to push Penn Avenue as a future bonding construction project. Staff
spoke about financial considerations for choosing Nicollet or Penn and stated Penn would likely not
get a match from Hennepin County due to it being eligible for federal funding.
City Manager Rodriguez spoke about the importance of Hennepin County matching bonding
funds and the need to fix many streets soon while having a small tax base.
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Council Member Hayford Oleary stated that if the Nicollet Avenue project was chosen as the
recommendation, it was still important to make the 73rd pedestrian bridge a priority as it was in bad
shape and ADA non-compliant. Council Member Trautmann agreed and spoke about personal
difficulties using the bridge.
Council Member Trautmann spoke about Penn Avenue being in bad shape and needing
improvements. He asked staff if there were any ways for Council to leverage funding for its
reconstruction. City Manager Rodriguez stated she would reach out to Commissioner Goettel
regarding Penn Avenue.
Director Asher stated she would continue to solicit resources for the 73rd Ave Pedestrian
bridge. Council Member Hayford Oleary asked staff to also make the north part of Portland Avenue a
priority.
Mayor Supple stated the city should be strategic with bonding requests and was supportive of
the staff’s recommendation of Nicollet Avenue. The rest of the Council agreed with the
recommendation.
ITEM #2
DISCUSSION OF AN ORDINANCE REGULATING CANNABIS USE WITHIN
PUBLIC PROPERTY AND PUBLIC PLACES
Police Chief Henthorne gave the presentation and asked Council for guidance in regulating
cannabis in public spaces. He showed a draft ordinance and asked for feedback.
Council Member Whalen asked about private locations being included in the public place
definition. Police Chief Henthorne gave the example of not allowing people to smoke cannabis in the
parking lots of businesses. City Attorney Tietjen noted the Council could craft the definition however
they wanted.
Council Member Hayford Oleary suggested mirroring prohibition of cannabis smoking where
tobacco smoking is already prohibited. He further stated that he was in favor of restricting smoking
cannabis in public spaces but not the consumption of edibles.
City Attorney Tietjen spoke about public nuisances and how those laws could apply with
cannabis consumption. She stated the smoking of cannabis would have to be a nuisance to multiple
people for it to qualify.
Council Member Whalen agreed with Council Member Hayford Oleary that prohibition of
smoking cannabis in public places should mirror tobacco prohibition and that edibles should not be
restricted. He also asked Henthorne if public inebriation laws could apply to cannabis. Police Chief
Henthorne stated yes but there was not currently an effective way of testing for cannabis consumption
in the field.
Mayor Supple agreed with treating cannabis smoking the same as tobacco and stated there
was consensus on restricting smoking in public parks but not edibles.
Council Member Hayford Oleary asked questions about what constituted a public nuisance in
relation to neighbor complaints. City Attorney Tietjen stated multiple neighbors would have to
complain for it to be considered a public nuisance.
Mayor Supple asked about multi-family housing units and if smoking would be allowed there
with the possibility of hallway smoking creating unwanted smells. Health Administrator Anderson
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stated property owners and managers set the rules until 2025 when smoking in multi-family homes
will be restricted.
The meeting was wrapped up with a general discussion about timelines regarding cannabis
moving forward.
ADJOURNMENT
Mayor Supple adjourned the work session at 6:57 pm
Date Approved: August 8, 2023
Mary B. Supple
Council Member
Dustin Leslie Katie Rodriguez
City Clerk City Manager