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07-26-05 Worksession CITY COUNCIL MINUTES Richfield, Minnesota Special Worksession July 26,2005 The meeting was called to order by Mayor Kirsch at 5:30 p.m. Members Present: Martin Kirsch, Mayor; Bill Kilian; Susan Rosenberg; Fred Wroge; and Sue Sandahl. Staff Present: Steven Devich, City Manager; Bruce Palmborg, Community Development Director; Mike Eastling, Public Works Director; Dan Scott, Public Safety Director; Betsy Osborn, Environmental Health Manager; Pam Dmytrenko, Assistant to the City Manager; Bryan Shirley, City Attorney; and Cheryl Krumholz, Recording Secretary. Item # I City Manager Devich stated the discussion regarding property maintenance and rental housing inspections was requested by Council Member Wroge. Council Member Wroge said he wanted a more pro-active approach to addressing property maintenance and rental inspections. He added that 99% of the phone calls he receives are related to property maintenance issues. People living outside Richfield are earning money off of our community through rental property so there should be added fees for them to do business in the City. Council Member Wroge stated Community Service Officers (CSOs) told him they would like their positions to be full-time instead of part-time and that they care about the community. He added the CSO positions used to be full-time. Council Member Wroge said he would like 75% of the maintenance issues resolved by City staff before a resident makes a phone call with a complaint rather than vice versa, as it currently is handled. The response timeframe should be shortened. Council Member Wroge stated he invited two long-time Richfield residents, Dave Ulmer and John Bjostad, to attend tonight's Worksession and address the City Council regarding their concerns on property maintenance. He added that he believes their concerns are common in the community. Dave Ulmer, 7425 Bloomington Avenue, talked about incidents where there is lack of enforcement by Police when vehicles are parked on City streets for months without moving, in disrepair, or with for sale signs in windows; all of which are against City code. Public Safety Director Scott apologized for the delay in correcting these violations and agreed they should have been noticed. He added that citizens are relied upon to contact the police to report Special Worksession Minutes -2- July 26, 2005 violations because the whole community needs to work together. Citizens know the problems in the community much better than Police. Public Safety Director Scott continued that when violations are located, they are addressed and, if they're not, it is a different issue that he will handle with staff. Council Member Wroge asked about Police only issuing tickets for speeding on the main streets and not checking on the side streets. Public Safety Director Scott explained that the police are patrolling side streets but because there is more traffic on the main streets, they generate more complaints. The Police are responding call-to-call. Council Member Wroge asked Mr. Ulmer to discuss the differences between Minneapolis and Richfield. Mr. Ulmer said he bought his house in Richfield a long time ago because of the nice neighborhood and community. He said you can tell which homes in Richfield have long-time residents and which ones are rental property. Public Safety Director Scott said when there are property maintenance violations, the City can enforce compliance. He reviewed the number of complaints (1400) received in 2004 and the response process. All violations were resolved except six, which went to court since the justice system permits protesting such issues. He added that he believes the department is doing a good job of handling violations. Public Safety Director Scott reviewed the estimated increased cost of making the current three CSOs full-time, which could result in a more pro-active approach to addressing property maintenance violations. John Bjostad, 7015 Harriet Avenue, talked about rental housing issues in his neighborhood, related to the number of people living in one home, lack of property maintenance and several vehicles. Situations like this don't help the neighborhood and could be a fire hazard if people are living in the basement if it is not in compliance with the Fire code. He said the issue may be cultural differences because they may not know how or want to do property maintenance. The owner of the property depends upon the renter to take care of the property. Mr. Bjostad added that Environmental Health was contacted in the spring regarding property maintenance at one home and it was addressed in a couple days. Mr. Bjostad also talked about a Section 8 home in his neighborhood that had property maintenance problems. Mr. Bjostad said he believes there is a general downgrading of property in the City and these examples are representative of more areas in Richfield. Mayor Kirsch agreed that violations were not fair to other neighbors. Council Member Rosenberg agreed there may be cultural differences and some people may not be familiar with the community standards. She added that Edwina Garcia, Richfield Community Council Resource Coordinator, is doing some translating for Richfield block captains regarding property maintenance. It is not fair to not tell residents of community standards but if they're told and then don't comply, that becomes another issue. There are very strict guidelines for Section 8 housing. Betsy Osborn, Environmental Health Manager, explained that City staff has the same concerns as residents regarding multiple, unrelated people living together in one house and that it appears to be an increasing problem. The current ordinance permits three unrelated individuals to live together but if they're all related, there is technically no violation. Ms. Osborn continued there is a Livable Communities Team, comprised of Public Safety and Community Development Department staff, that addresses housing issues and will be discussing the number of people residing in one home and property purchased by someone living outside Richfield. Special Worksession Minutes -3- July 26, 2005 There has been preliminary discussion to develop a packet of information distributed by Assessing staff and through the home inspection program to be given to the owner of rental property indicating the community standards and expectations. . Ms. Osborn said staff assumes honesty when residents provide information about the number of people living in the home and how they're related. Ms. Osborn added that the Fire code regarding living in the basement has changed and an egress window is no longer required. Public Safety Director Scott said a letter is sent to encourage the installation of an egress window but it is not required. Council Member Wroge said the CSOs need to be made full-time. Richfield is a fee oriented City so a $100 rental license fee should be considered and dedicated to interpretive letters and . paying for full-time CSOs so the City's approach on maintenance issue and inspections can be more pro-active. Council Member Kilian expressed support for Council Member Wroge's comments. He requested the City Manager prepare a plan to be more pro-active instead of compliance being driven by resident complaints. An additional ordinance may be necessary. Council Member Sandahl reported that when the City Hall Advisory Task Force applicants were interviewed and asked what they didn't like about Richfield, their response was the lack of property maintenance. She said it is a quality of life issue. She suggested the budget be reviewed for additional funding and fees be reassessed. City Manager Devich clarified that CSOs have not been full-time previously but that they had more hours than they do now. He said the proposed solution may not be a statement of the issues. The CSOs are not qualified to conduct rental inspections. If the rental inspection fee is increased, a service must be delivered. The City will need to hire more inspectors, which will cost more. The State would not agree to charge a rental license fee unless a service was delivered. Council Member Wroge disagreed that the City could not charge a non-homestead rental fee because it is a right of the City, not the State. Council Member Sandahl suggested a one-page sheet be created that lists the community property maintenance standards and have it translated and placed on the doorstep. Item # 2 City Manager Devich stated the Bereavement Leave Policy had been previously discussed by the City Council and City staff at a Worksession. The Council direction was to conduct a focus group with non-union City staff to obtain their feedback on eliminating the Bereavement Leave Policy and replacing it with an increased Personal Leave accrual rate and modifying the language of a qualifying event to be more inclusive. Pam Dmytrenko, Assistant to the City Manager, reported that the employee focus group unanimously indicated they did not want the Bereavement Leave Policy eliminated because it was a greatly valued and appreciated option available to them during a very personal, difficult time. City Manager Devich stated the original recommendation brought to the City Council by the Human Rights Commission was to modify the language of an allowable event to include domestic partner. He said staff preferred a language change, not a change in the hours. Council Member Kilian said it appears staff considers bereavement leave as an insurance policy not a guarantee. He said the language should be very open and not a check off list. City Manager Devich said he preferred some general measurement of use. Special Worksession Minutes -4- July 26, 2005 Council Member Wroge stated he takes issue with an outside group telling City administration what the employees want; that is the City Manager's responsibility. Council Member Rosenberg said the Human Rights Commission is not an outside group, they are an advisory group making a recommendation to the City Council to make the policy more inclusive. Council Member Sandahl agreed that the Human Rights Commission is a citizen group bringing ideas to the City Council. She said she had no problem with changing the language. City Manager Devich said he wants to avoid the granting Bereavement Leave on a case-by- case basis. He will return to the City Council with recommended language modifications for their review. Date Approved: August 9, 2005 c~~~ Recording Secretary