9-12-11_City_Council_Meeting_Minutes.doc - Sauk Rapids

							                                     REGULAR MEETING
                                 SAUK RAPIDS CITY COUNCIL
                           FIRE DEPARTMENT, 408 N BENTON DRIVE
                                   Monday, September 12, 2011
                                            6:00 PM
                                          MINUTES
6:00 PM
1.      Call to Order and Pledge of Allegiance
Acting Mayor Gunderson called the meeting to order at 6:00p.m. Members present: Paul Weber, Jared
Gapinski, and Bill Bard. Members absent: Dave Saunders. Others present: Ross Olson, City
Administrator, Adam Ripple, City Attorney, Todd Schultz, Community Development Director, Perry
Beise, Police Chief, Jon Halter, City Engineer, John Henz, Utilities Director, Jack Kahlhamer, Finance
Director, and Dana Furman, Administrative Services Coordinator.
2.      Additions or Changes to the Agenda
Ross Olson requested to pull agenda item 11-B at the request of the Acting Mayor due to the absence of
the Mayor and City Engineer. Item 11-B will be brought back to the Council for consideration on
September 26th. Olson also requested to add 2nd Street temporary closure update as agenda item 12-B.
3.      Approve the Agenda
Motion: Moved by Councilperson Weber and seconded by Councilperson Bard to approve the Agenda as
amended. Motion carried unanimously.
4.      Approve Minutes
        A. 8-22-11 Regular City Council Meeting Minutes
Motion: Moved by Councilperson Gapinski and seconded by Councilperson Weber to approve the 8-22-
11 Regular City Council Meeting Minutes. Motion carried unanimously.
        B. 9-1-11 Special City Council Meeting Minutes
Motion: Moved by Councilperson Bard and seconded by Councilperson Weber to approve the 9-1-11
Special City Council Meeting Minutes. Motion carried unanimously.
5.      Receive and File
        A. 7-5-2011 Regular HRA Meeting Minutes
Motion: Moved by Councilperson Gapinski and seconded by Councilperson Weber to receive and file
the 7-5-2011 Regular HRA Meeting Minutes. Motion carried unanimously.

6.       Mayor’s Communications
      September Student Mayor of the Month, Sarah Barker
Acting Mayor Gunderson introduced the September Student Mayor of the Month, Sarah Barker. Barker
is a senior at Sauk Rapids-Rice High School. She is the daughter of Allan and Joan Barker. Upon
graduation, Barker plans to major in English with hopes of becoming a high school teacher and author.
Outside of school, Barker enjoys reading, writing, volunteering, piano, and biking. Acting Mayor
Gunderson congratulated Barker on becoming the September Student Mayor.

7.      Featured Business: Sauk Rapids Herald—Rollie Doroff, owner of Sauk Rapids Herald,
informed the Council that the Sauk Rapids Herald has the honor of being the oldest business in Sauk
Rapids. Doroff noted that the Sauk Rapids Herald is also the oldest weekly newspaper in the State of
MN. The Herald has been in existence for 150 years. Doroff explained that besides publishing the
weekly newspaper, the Sauk Rapids Herald also does commercial printing. The newspaper is primarily
electronic. Doroff stated that the Sauk Rapids Herald greatly appreciates the City continuing to publish
its minutes and official notices in the Sauk Rapids Herald.

Ross Olson noted that the City is very proud of the Sauk Rapids Herald and the rich history that it has
within the area.

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Councilperson Weber said that it is an asset for the City to have its own paper. He complimented
Doroff’s son, Steve, for keeping up with all of the sporting accomplishments of the Sauk Rapids-Rice
School District’s students.

8.     Audience Items/Visitors
       Total Time Limit 10 Minutes for Items NOT on the Agenda
A student from the Sauk Rapids-Rice School District questioned how the City is impacted by the State of
Minnesota’s budget cuts.

Ross Olson explained the trickledown effect that the State’s budget crisis has on local government. He
reviewed Local Government Aid funding for the student.

9. Public Hearings
NONE

10.    Consent Agenda
    A. Approve Resolution Changing First Precinct Polling Place
    B. Authorize the Execution of Coleman Contracts--Pulled
    C. Approve 2011 Plumbing Contractor Licenses
Motion: Moved by Councilperson Bard and seconded by Councilperson Gapinski to approve agenda
items10A and 10C. Motion carried unanimously.

10-B. Authorize the Execution of Coleman Contracts
Todd Schultz noted that he pulled this item for discussion; because he just wants to be clear that what the
Council is executing tonight is three separate contracts. He explained that there is a separate contract with
Coleman for the State’s money as well as the City’s money.
Motion: Moved by Councilperson Gapinski and seconded by Councilperson Weber to authorize the
execution of Coleman Contracts. Motion carried unanimously.

11.      Regular Agenda
A. Government Center Phase II Alternates
Preston Euerle, RA Morton, noted that at the September 1st Special City Council Meeting the Council
approved the “time sensitive” Phase II bids for the new Government Center. Euerle said that the
Council’s subcommittee had reviewed the bids and recommended to the City Council approval of the bids
to be considered. He explained that tonight the Council is being asked to consider the remaining bids as
well as the remaining Phase II alternates. The total project budget is $6.3million. He discussed some
remaining allowances that are fairly minor to the project, bollards, additional ADA accessibility devices,
refuse screening extras, a display case, signage allowance, flag pole allowance, and projection screen
allowance. He noted that the Committee also identified additional allowance for canopy signage.

Councilperson Weber questioned the bollards and whether or not these were decorative in nature. Euerle
said that these bollards are in place for maintenance protection.

 Euerle presented the remaining bid packages with approvals including any applicable conditions. He also
reviewed the remaining alternates. Euerle noted that the Sub-Committee met on September 6th to review
the alternates and developed the following recommendations:

Reject:
    Alternate 2 (this alternate eliminated the Community Room partition)
    Alternate 8 (this alternate eliminated the Granite wall treatments in the main lobby)

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Accept:
    Alternate 7 (this alternate changed the materials for the main lobby’s acoustical ceiling)
    Alternate 10 (this alternate approved the main lobby’s wave ceiling)
    Alternate M1 (this alternate approved the water softener)
    Alternate M2 (this alternate provided modulating heat control/this does change the Council’s last
       approval for this bid package only. If this alternate is accepted it will change the apparent lowest
       bidder.

Councilperson Gapinski noted some key points from the memo provided by Design Tree regarding
Alternate M2, modulating gas heat. He questioned if individuals will be able to control the temperatures
at their desktop. Euerle said that there will be a thermostat per zone. Councilperson Gapinski questioned
why the modulating feature would be needed if all the zones will be set the same. Councilperson
Gapinski suggested that the modulating feature, if needed, be added to the remaining rooftop units if there
is significant savings.

Tom Peck, Hagemeister & Mack Architects, noted that one of the zones that may not require a
modulating feature may be the garage and the other may be the Council Chambers. He stated that the
modulating feature may not be needed in all zones, which is why it is not being recommended for all
units.

Murray Mack, Hagemeister & Mack Architects, explained the challenges that occur if you have one
single unit versus zones when it comes to the rooftop heating units. Mack noted that there was a big
discrepancy between the two bids, so he suggested that a change order is requested.

Councilperson Gapinski questioned if there was a need to make a decision on the rooftop units tonight in
terms of the modulating gas heat option. Euerle said that he would not want to take too much more time
in deciding on Alternate M2. Councilperson Gapinski noted that he just wants to ensure that things are
being done right.

Mack reviewed the ceiling element options for the City Council. He recommended that the City go with
the wave ceiling in the entry as he does feel it is well worth the $19,000 in that first impressions are so
important. Mack stated that once the ceiling goes in there wouldn’t be a real opportunity down the road
to change it.

Councilperson Bard asked if the ceiling element is something that absolutely had to be decided on
tonight. Mack said that he didn’t feel that the wave ceiling was a critical element at this point in the
project as far as time is concerned. Councilperson Bard suggested sending the ceiling element back to the
Committee for further discussion/review.

Acting Mayor Gunderson said that as part of the Building Committee, he felt that the wave ceiling
element was too pricy.

Councilperson Weber said that he would be in favor of moving forward with the wave ceiling for the
prices listed. He said that he agrees with spending the money for the wave feature or waiting on this as it
adds to the total look of the building.


Olson noted that Kahlhamer’s budget, that shows the overall project under budget, includes the more
expensive wave option for the ceiling.


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Mack suggested letting the ceiling feature ride for a while to see where the contingencies are at, especially
if the lowest bidder is willing to hold the bid for the time being.

Councilperson Gapinski said that he would like to wait and see in terms of the wave ceiling as there is
time to discuss this. He agreed that the wave element would look very nice, but he said that he is all
about saving money as well. Councilperson Gapinski stated that he did not feel comfortable awarding the
bid on based on the alternate.

Euerle noted that he did not think that stipulations could be added at this point.

Councilperson Gapinski asked further questions about the modulating zones. Peck said that without the
documents with him or the Engineer from Design Tree who created the memo it is hard for him to explain
the modulating element any further.

Olson said that staff can do its due diligence to find out the benefits of having the modulating element
added to the remaining units and see if the price quoted would be the same for all units.

Motion: Moved by Acting Mayor Gunderson to approve bids as committee recommended. Motion failed
due to the lack of a second.

Motion: Moved by Councilperson Weber and seconded by Councilperson Bard to reject Alternates 2 and
8 and accept Alternates M1, and M2, and delay decisions on 7 and 10. Motion carried with 3
Councilpersons (Weber, Bard, and Gapinski) voting in favor of the motion and 1 Councilperson
(Gunderson) voting against the motion.

Euerle read for the Council the list of apparent low bidders for the remaining Phase II bids, which
included the following bid sections: 6B,7D, 9A, 9B, 9C, 9D, 10A, 10B, 10C (reject/rebid allowance),
12A,23A, and 32A.

Motion: Moved by Councilperson Gapinski and seconded by Councilperson Weber to approve the
remaining Phase II bids as presented by RA Mortion. Motion carried with 3 Councilpersons (Gapinski,
Bard, and Weber) voting in favor of the motion and 1 Councilperson (Gunderson) voting against the
motion.

B. Benton Drive Improvements

C. Baseball Lighting and Batter’s Eye
Jack Kahlhamer noted that back on July 11th, the Council approved the proposed ½ cent improvements to
both baseball and softball field fencing with City funding coming from the new sales tax option. He said
that these improvements include: replacing the back stops on fields 3 and 4 of the softball complex.
Replacement of 700’ the outfield fence, including cap, and replacing the existing batting tunnel on the
baseball field. Kahlhamer stated that earlier the Baseball Association recommended a batter’s eye. The
½ Cent Sales Tax Committee rejected funding a standalone batter’s eye. Kahlhamer explained that the
Baseball Association along with staff has since came up with a plan for a batter’s eye to be incorporated
in the outfield fence. He stated that as of last week, the ½ Cent Committee is split on incorporating the
batter’s eye into the new outfield fence. The batter’s eye adds roughly $20,000 for the batter’s eye.

Councilperson Bard asked if the batter’s eye could be added at a later date and if the fencing could be
done now in preparation for the batter’s eye to be installed in the future. Kahlhamer said that it is his
understanding that it is critical that all of the planning and specs be decided now in terms of the fence

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installation. Councilperson Bard said that it appears to him that the City could get by with putting in two
sections of fencing instead of four, in terms of height.

Councilperson Gapinski questioned if this is the high school competition field in question and if so
whether or not there was any donation from the school district to cover the expenses. Ross Olson noted
that this request came from the Baseball Association who has been a driving force in improving the
baseball fields. Olson stated that there is no dedication of funds from the high school for these
improvements.

Councilperson Weber said that former Mayor Mark Campbell brought up this idea regarding addressing
the batter’s eye at this point, which Councilperson Weber agreed was a good idea. He stated however that
he will not be voting in favor of the motion because of the price associated as well as the fact that he does
not feel that the City fully finished the live batter’s eye as it is his understanding that taller trees were
supposed to have been used. John Henz noted that he was not a part of the batter’s eye project, but he did
think that the trees were supposed to originally be taller than what was used.

Olson noted that the City Council did approve the fence including the cap. He explained that this effort is
to add the batter’s eye component with the fence that was already approved.

Kahlahmer advised the Council that the ½ Cent Sales Tax Committee is also split on the lighting for the
field. He noted that two preliminary estimates of $200,000 for the baseball field lighting have been given.
Because the estimated amount for the project is over $100,000, sealed bids are required.

Motion: Moved by Councilperson Bard and seconded by Councilperson Weber to deny the batter’s eye
proposal and authorize soliciting bids for baseball lighting.

Discussion: Councilperson Weber said he also struggles with the lights because of the estimated cost. He
stated that this is a beautiful baseball field with a lot of baseball teams utilizing these fields, so he does
agree that lights are needed.

Councilperson Gapinski said that he does not agree with going along with the batter’s eye at this point.
He noted that the lights are a lot of money and he doesn’t feel that the ½ cent sales tax pool is an endless
pot of money.

Acting Mayor Gunderson said that he is in favor of the batter’s eye and the lights.

Motion carried with 3 Councilmembers (Bard, Gapinski, and Weber) voting in favor of the motion
and 1 Councilperson (Gunderson) voting against the motion.

12.     Other Staff Items
A. Drainage Issue At 1717 Prairie View Lane Update
Jon Halter noted that at the August 22nd Council meeting, the Council heard from John and Paula
Lambaere regarding a drainage issue at their home at 1717 Prairie View Lane. Halter stated that the
Council asked the Public Works Committee to research this issue and report back to the Council. Staff
also had received correspondence from another resident, Julie Scott at 1408 Rosewood Lane, regarding a
similar drainage issue. Halter stated that the Public Works Committee met to review both drainage issues
on August 31st.

Halter advised the Council that following the last City Council meeting, SEH performed some field
survey work at 1717 Prairie View Lane. A list of five potential recommendations to improve the drainage
issues that the Lambaere’s are experiencing. Halter said that after significant discussion by the

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committee, it was decided that the committee’s recommendation to the Council would be that the City
does not participate in any improvements to the property. He explained that this recommendation was
mostly based on the conclusion that this is a private grading issue, and not an issue with the public
drainage system.

Halter said that regarding the property at 1408 Rosewood Lane, the Committee essentially came to the
same conclusion that this is a private grading issue and not an issue with the public drainage system.
Halter said that the Committee is recommending that the City does not participate in any improvements to
the property at 1408 Rosewood Lane.

B. 2nd Street Closure
Ross Olson reminded the public that 2nd street will be closed due to the water and sewer hook-up as it
relates to the new Government Center project. The temporary road closure will begin on Tuesday,
September 13th following the morning rush hour. Olson said that this roadway will be opened to local
traffic, but through traffic will be rerouted. A map of the detour was presented. Olson explained that the
road closure will be in effect until Friday, September, 16th.

Councilperson Bard asked if a four-way stop will be put in to aid in the detour. Staff stated that a four-
way stop will be put in and that MTC and the school district was notified about this temporary road
closure. Councilperson Bard questioned how residents will access the post office. Olson said that people
needing to access the post office will need to follow the detour signs.

13.  Other Council Items and Communications
NONE

14.     Approve List of Bills and Claims
Motion: Moved by Councilperson Gapinski and seconded by Councilperson Bard to approve the List of
Bills and Claims. Motion carried unanimously.

15.    Adjournment
Motion: Moved by Councilperson Bard and seconded by Councilperson Weber to adjourn the meeting.
Motion carried unanimously.

Acting Mayor Gunderson adjourned the meeting at 7:45pm.

Respectfully Submitted,


Dana Furman
Administrative Services Coordinator




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