Approved Minutes 1-15-1997 SUMMARY MINUTES OF THE SAINT PAUL CITY COUNCIL
Wednesday, January 15, 1997 - 3:30 PM
CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS, 3RD FLOOR
City Hall and Court House
15 West Kellogg Boulevard
Council President Thune called the meeting to order at 3:42 p.m.
Present - 7 - Blakey, Bostrom, Harris, Mauer, Megard, Rettman, Thune
Absent - 0
CONSENT AGENDA
Gerry Strathman requested Item 1 be laid over for two weeks.
Council President Thune requested Item 15 be laid over to February 5 for a public hearing.
Councilmember Megard requested Item #14 be removed for discussion.
Councilmember Harris moved approval of the Consent Agenda as amended.
Roll Call: Yeas - 7 Nays - 0
FOR ACTION
1. Approval of minutes of December 11, 1996.
Laid over to January 29 Yeas - 7 Nays - 0
2. Claims of Pamela Anger, Eric Boehlke, Milford Brewer Family, Anna Doepner, Joseph Frankel,
Jennifer Gessell, David Hanners, Maureen Heisuk, Linda Kostroski, Lori Leirdahl, Eileen Mackey,
Rosalind Olson (for Eugene Johnson), David Plucinak, Charles Rosenbloom, Maria Schilling,
Steven Shimer, Tom Simerson-Waccfred, Matthew Solheid, and Ivar Sorensen.
Referred to Risk/Employee Benefit Management Division
3. Interrogatories to Third Party Defendant City of Saint Paul in the matter of Metzdorf vs. Twin Cities
and Western Railroad.
Referred to the City Attorney's Office
4. Defendants Soo Line Railroad Company's and Twin Cities &Western's memorandum in support of
their motion to amend answer to assert a counterclaim against plaintiff Cindy Smythe, add third party
defendants Gaughan Land, Inc. and City of Saint Paul, and amend the scheduling order.
Referred to the City Attorney's Office
5. Letter from the Office of License, Inspections and Environmental Protection announcing a hearing
before the City Council on January 22, 1997, to consider the appeal of Jason Patalonis to a decision
of the Heritage Preservation Commission denying approval of the installation of sliding glass doors
at the rear of the building at 506 Portland Avenue.
January 15, 1996, City Council Summary Minutes Page 2
6. Letter from the Office of the City Attorney announcing a rescheduled hearing before the City
Council on February 5, 1997, to consider the report of the Administrative Law Judge concerning
licenses held by Mary P. Fasching, dba M.F. Automotive, 1728 Selby Avenue.
7. Letters from Saint Paul Public Health declaring 784 Fourth Street East, 1042 Lawson Avenue East,
1747 Marshall Avenue, and 786 Randolph Avenue as "nuisance properties" and setting date of City
Council hearings for January 22, 1997. (Legislative hearings were held January 7, 1997)
8. Letters from Saint Paul Public Health declaring 438 Baker Street West, 787 Buffalo Street, 393
Sherburne Avenue, and 670 Sims Avenue as "nuisance properties" and setting date of Legislative
Hearings for January 21, 1997, and City Council Hearings for February 5, 1997.
9. Communication from Saint Paul Animal Control dated January 6, 1997, announcing a request from
the University of Minnesota Research Lab for unclaimed dogs and cats.
10. Administrative Orders:
D001104 Implementing a budget transfer in the Mayor's Office to release a portion of the
authority from the Mayor's Contingency and provide the budget for the Children's
Initiative.
D001105 Extending the contract completion date from November 1, 1994 to December 1, 1996,
for the Hazelwood-McClean Sewer and Paving project.
D001106 Addition of$14,457.00 to the contract for Saint Paul Civic Center Expansion, CP-4
Building Construction.
D001107 Addition of$10,471.25 to the contract for Soil Remedial Investigations.
Noted as on file in the City Clerk's Office
11. Resolution - 96-1538 - Ordering repair of a hazardous retaining wall on privately held property at
586 Wheelock Parkway West. (Legislative Hearing Officer recommends adopting the resolution
authorizing a substantial abatement process) (Laid over from January 8)
Tim Marx, City Attorney, stated the property owner has not complied with the conditions of the
previous resolution; therefore, December 18 should be deleted from Paragraph 1 and it should
read "15 days of the final adoption of this resolution." Councilmember Rettman stated the
insurance binder submitted does not meet the requirements of the resolution and it should be
included in the paperwork.
Councilmember Rettman moved approval as amended.
Adopted as amended Yeas - 7 Nays - 0
12. Resolution - 97-22 - Accepting the Disparity Study Report and directing staff to prepare an analysis
for a future policy discussion by the City Council.
Adopted Yeas - 7 Nays -0
13. Resolution - 97-23 -Requesting an extension of time to complete work being done on a building at
800 Buffalo Street
Adopted Yeas -7 Nays - 0
January 15, 1996, City Council Summary Minutes Page 3
14. (Discussed after consent agenda)
15. Resolution - 97-25 - Authorizing the City of Saint Paul to apply to the Department of Trade and
Economic Development for funding the Ecolab project.
Laid over to February 5 (Public Hearing) Yeas - 7 Nays - 0
14. Resolution - 97-24 - Authorizing the proper City officials to accept a grant from the Metropolitan
Council and establishing a budget for Como Park improvements.
Councilmember Megard moved to add the following resolve: and be it finally resolved that the Saint
Paul Division of Parks is required to initiate a design process for the parking improvements called
for in this grant that involves community participation, and that the design of the parking
improvements is subject to review by the Parks Commission and approval of the Saint Paul City
Council. Councilmember Rettman accepted the amendment as friendly.
Councilmember Rettman moved approval as amended.
Adopted as amended Yeas - 7 Nays - 0
ORDINANCES
16. Second Reading - 97-11 - An ordinance finalizing City Council action approving the petition of
John Rodrigue to rezone property at 484 and 486 Larpenteur Avenue from OS-1 to R-3. (Public
hearing held November 27, 1996)
Laid over to January 22 for third reading
POLICY SESSION
17. Snow Plowing and Abandoned Vehicles.
I) Introduction by Mark Shields, Deputy Mayor
Mark Shields commended the Public Works drivers for their work. He said he has gone out on the
snowplows with some of the drivers and they do not have an easy job.
H) Snow Plowing
A) Policies and Procedures by Stacy Becker, Director of Public Works, accompanied by Gary
Erichson, Street Maintenance
Stacy Becker commended Tom Eggum who has a long history of improving snow plowing and it
was under Mr. Eggum's leadership that the City went from the 44 hour plowing system to the 20
hour system.
(Stacy Becker distributed an outline of snow emergencies procedures and some policy choices. Also
passed out was a comparison of what surrounding areas do.)
January 15, 1996, City Council Summary Minutes Page 4
Stacy Becker stated Saint Paul budgets for four snow emergencies a year. The City plows when
there is four inches of snow accumulated. Last year there were seven snow emergencies. Saint Paul
has about 900 miles of streets that need to be cleared of snow. There needs to be 75 drivers per shift-
-night and day--and about 75 pieces of plowing equipment to accomplish a snow emergency. Sixty
to seventy-five people are required to issue tickets. This adds up to 200 people that are required to
accomplish snow emergencies. Many are temporary workers for the City or people who have been
laid off for the winter so there is quite a mobilization effort for each snow emergency.
Ms. Becker said the number one factor that leads to untimeliness of snow emergencies is parked cars.
Whenever there is a complaint about the quality of snow plowing, it is usually due to cars parked on
streets. The plow equipment is large and cannot get through some streets because of the cars. There
are 2,000 to 4,500 vehicles tagged during each snow emergency,. There has been success with
increasing the fine to $40 and there has been better compliance with each snow emergency.
Only Saint Paul and Minneapolis declare snow emergencies, Ms. Becker stated. The suburbs have
parking regulations that go into effect when it starts to snow or snow reaches a certain threshold.
Some suburbs simply tell people they cannot park on the street. However. In Saint Paul, on-street
parking is critical and there has to be time to notify people of a snow emergency.
Saint Paul and Minneapolis plow when there is four inches of snow. The surrounding suburbs plow
when there are 2 to 2-1/2 inches. Ms. Becker stated each snow emergency costs the City$200,000 to
$225,000. There is some revenue from the snow tags. If the City plowed at three inches, there
would be on average an extra four snow emergencies. If it was lowered to two inches, there would
be an extra six to seven snow emergencies.
Councilmember Harris asked about the plows when there is not a snow emergency. Stacy Becker
responded each winter Public Works lays off approximately 50 people who come back to plow
during snow emergencies. A lot of the costs are for people who are kept on through the winter. The
bulk of the work is in the continuing sanding and salting operations throughout the winter. Also, the
main arterials are plowed at 1-1 inch threshold. Gary Erichson added that the drivers are redoing the
streets where there were a lot of parked vehicles. During the winter months, 55 people are on all
shifts.
B) Report on Complaints by Fred Owusu, Director of Citizen Service Office
Materials were passed out to the Councilmembers showing complaints received by the Citizen
Service Office related to snow plowing. Mr. Owusu used the overhead projector and reviewed some
of the complaints. He said most complaints are about how the plowing was done.
Councilmember Megard stated she is impressed with the response from Public Works to complaints
forwarded. The system has been working better this year than it ever has, and she said there is better
communication between her Office, Citizen Service Office, and Public Works.
Council President Thune asked if some citizens are called back to see if their complaint was taken
care of. Fred Owusu responded that his office does some call backs, but people typically call only
when things are wrong. Mr. Thune suggested calling back if there is something more serious than a
January 15, 1996, City Council Summary Minutes Page 5
general complaint and Councilmember Megard concurred. Councilmember Harris suggested calling
back 10% or 50 calls.
Stacy Becker stated the last snow emergency was unusual. Instead of responding to complaints,
Public Works just redid the east-west routes.
Councilmember Bostrom suggested that the Public Works Department call people back. Citizens
could get a better explanation of what is going on. Otherwise. a third party is involved. Fred Owusu
responded that his office is better set up to take calls.
C) Discussion of Options for Change and Public Works' Recommendation by Stacy Becker, Director
of Public Works
Stacy Becker suggested the following: 1) Plowing at less than four inches to keep the streets cleaner,
but it would cost more. 2) The City could look at different parking restrictions and bans. 3) Snow
emergencies could be declared earlier. 4) There are different parking needs through the City. The
parking restriction could be tailored to those needs. The primary concern would be if it leads to
inequitable service and that is why this suggestion has not be taken up in the past. 5) Arterials are
cleared before the snow emergency. This list could be expanded to include schools and other areas.
6) It is not profitable to tow 4,000 to 5,000 cars. The biggest expense is the time to tow the car to the
impound lot. If the time can be reduced, it would be one way to get more capacity in the system
without the tow company investing in more trucks. 7) If more businesses will let people park in their
lots, that would help. However, if the City takes responsibility for this, there is a liability issue. It
would be more convenient to work through the neighborhood groups.
Councilmember Megard asked what other cities do. Gary Erichson responded a few years ago, a
study was done. Canada spends more money, but the practices are different. Some cities do not
clear residential streets and some spend millions on snow removal. Ms. Megard asked what Saint
Paul's budget is for snow removal. Stacy Becker responded that the entire winter operation is $3.4
million which includes sanding and salting. Four snow emergencies are budgeted at approximately
$800,000. Ms. Megard stated she read in the paper that Duluth budgets $2 million for snow removal.
Mr. Erichson stated sometimes terms gets mixed up; snow removal could mean plowing.
Councilmember Megard stated she copies her colleagues on some of the letters she receives from
residents. Some good suggestions received from renters are: 1) More outreach should be done to
students and colleges in the City. There are probably 10,000 new residents in Ward 4 annually
because it is a college area and the renters are the ones with a lot of cars on the streets. 2) The police
department should be helping with enforcement. 3) There could be colored bulbs to use for
notification of a snow emergency.
Councilmember Blakey stated he has received complaints about ruts in the roads. Stacy Becker
responded the best thing is to prevent them in the first place. Gary Erichson stated on January 4
Public Works did a demonstration to see what they could shave off the ruts. The ruts were not
affected much; the surface skimmed off a little bit. The widening attempt obliterated driveways,
sidewalks, side streets. Sanding had to be shut down to clean up the mess made in that
demonstration. The best option for the ruts is to sand and salt more and heavier, he said.
January 15, 1996, City Council Summary Minutes Page 6
Councilmember Bostrom said the concept of using colored lights brought up by Councilmember
Megard is worth looking into.
Councilmember Bostrom stated the towing issue bothers everyone. He suggested towing vehicles
around the corner rather than to an impound lot. It was noted that this had been doing at one time
but there was a problem with liability so it was discontinued. Mr. Bostrom further suggested the
City look at issuing a sticker so if a car is parked in a snow emergency area, the sticker would give
the City permission to tow the car around the corner and the owner would release any liability. Mr.
Bostrom said people have also told him of being pleased with the work Public Works does.
Councilmember Harris stated the problem is parked cars. Mr. Harris suggested the following: 1)
District Councils should be more involved in communicating snow emergencies. 2) Information
should be put in the fall Residence Guide to remind people of the rules of snow emergencies. 3)
The siren idea should be looked into. 4) The threshold should be lowered. There were smaller
snowfalls a few weeks ago. None were enough to merit a snow emergency so the snow accumulated.
Councilmember Mauer stated there are areas in Saint Paul that have adequate off-street parking. In
Ward 7, almost all of the Highwood Hills area has adequate off-street parking as well as several
areas in Battle Creek. Those areas should be declared "snow ban areas" so whenever it snows, the
owners in these areas should park off the street. Mr. Mauer said he would like to do some research
and look at designating 8 to 12 areas as "snow ban areas" so those areas are immediately plowed.
Councilmember Rettman suggested the following: 1) The block clubs want to get involved with
tagging vehicles and other things. The neighbors know whose cars they are. Some of the block
clubs in Ms. Rettman's ward would like to do a pilot test to see if this works. 2) Businesses may
allow cars to be parked in their lots during snow emergencies. 3)When the weather starts warming
up, the City should do a better job of getting the drains unplugged. People could be encouraged to
adopt the drains just as the Fire Department has encouraged people to keep the fire hydrants clear. 4)
There needs to be scrolling on the TV channels. Council President Thune stated he called Channels
4, 5, and 11 during the last snow emergency. Channels 4 and 5 said they would check on it, but
Channel 11 started doing it.
Council President Thune suggested the following: 1) The Council should meet with the CEOs of the
television stations to convince them this should be a policy. Every channel describes the snow
emergencies in different ways. Stacy Becker stated Public Works has faxed the channels about the
procedure. The media does not feel this is an important issue. Mr. Thune stated he checked with
Continental Cablevision a few years ago and was told there was a piece of electronic equipment they
needed to buy. 2) Concentrated areas that draw many people such as schools, Civic Center, and
hospitals should be pre-emergency routes. 3) Involving block clubs and District Councils is a good
idea. There may be specific plans that could be put in place. 4) Snow emergencies could be declared
earlier. There may not be enough snow to plow at 6:00 p.m., but people could be notified by 6:00
p.m. about the snow emergency for the next morning. Waiting for the 10:00 p.m. news is too late.
5) Council President Thune stated the removable blades dump the snow instead of piling snow in
the intersection and asked how many removable and fixed blades there are and how much it would
cost for additional removable blade trucks. Gary Erichson responded that more than 50% are non-
January 15, 1996, City Council Summary Minutes Page 7
fixed. Stacy Becker stated Public Works buys about ten a year, but she will check on that and get
back to the Council. 6) Smaller trucks would help to do some of the smaller streets. Gary Erichson
stated there are only two routes privately contracted out. Smaller vehicles are dispatched as best as
Public Works can. 7) There is trouble getting enough people to come in on the second phase of the
snow emergency. Gary Erichson responded Public Works has never failed to get a full complement.
Some people do double shifts. Stacy Becker added ticketing always goes short. They have tried to
work with neighborhood groups but when it comes to actually tagging, they do not want to do it
because it's cold, too late, etc. 8) The red or white signs announcing snow emergency routes should
be clearer. 9) There's a pre-winter sweep every year. Mr. Thune suggests towing the cars earlier,
selling them, and having a clear impound lot. 10) There should be a mailing to each household with
the snow emergency rules.
Council President Thune asked who is responsible for clearing the sidewalks leading to the curb.
Chuck Votel, Public Health, stated if it is an alleyway, the adjoining property owners are asked to do
their share. Public Health enforces crosswalks. 11) Mr. Thune suggested tagging more people for
not shoveling the crosswalks.
Councilmember Mauer asked if Public Works could help with clearing the crosswalks. Gary
Erichson responded Public Works has done that on a limited basis. Stacy Becker stated the Citizen
Service Office keeps a list of people who will help the elderly with shoveling.
12) Council President Thune stated the private operators should be able to clean the street in certain
circumstances. 13)When police squads see a snowbird, the vehicles should be towed. Gary
Erichson stated Public Works has met with the police, this problem was discussed, and an agreement
made. Both departments are doing some towing.
Councilmember Bostrom stated the impound lot is full sometimes. Fifty stolen vehicles were
recovered during the last snow emergency.
D) Notification - sirens
Council President Thune stated this is the easiest thing at the City's disposal right now for notifying
people there is a snow emergency. Snow situations are a true emergency; people are injured more in
snow and ice than any other hazard in the City, he said.
Councilmember Rettman stated she was at a meeting where everyone said they did not want the
sirens.
Tim Fuller, Fire Chief, stated the sirens are used to forewarn people about serious weather, to inform
people outside to get into shelter. Sirens are not designed to tell people who are already in shelter to
seek further shelter or to go outside. The Federal Emergency Management Agency, the State
Department of Emergency and Management, and Ramsey County Emergency Management have
asked that the sirens not be used to signal a snow emergency. No other cities in the nation use sirens
for snow emergencies. The 911 system gets calls when the sirens are tested on Wednesday even
though the sirens have been tested for over 20 years. The Fire Department has been advised to not
January 15, 1996, City Council Summary Minutes Page 8
test the sirens in the winter because of the components. Mr. Fuller asked that the siren option have
the least priority on the list.
Councilmember Megard says she has files from people bothered by noise and this is a livability
issue.
Councilmember Bostrom asked if the sirens ever been used in the winter. Tim Fuller responded he
did not know and would check. Mr. Bostrom stated he is not ready to dismiss this idea because one
of the problems is lack of notification.
Councilmember Blakey asked about problems the Fire Department has. Tim Fuller responded if the
streets get any narrower, there will be difficulties. There have not been any incidents where they
could not get through on any streets.
Council President Thune stated New Jersey uses sirens for school closings.
E) Discussion of Towing and Impound Lot Issues (Capacity, Satellite Lots) by Stacy Becker,
Director of Public Works; and William Finney, Chief of Police.
Chief Finney stated the City has owned one lot for over 25 years. It is about 3.7 acres and has the
capacity for 500 vehicles. The Police Department rents two other lots: one is 3.1 acres which holds
about 250 cars and a wintertime lot that was rented this year with an additional 4 acres and holds 400
vehicles. The Police Department is in the process of acquiring another lot. Currently, there is
capacity for about 1,150. Presently, there are over 1,200 cars impounded and about 330 "junkers"
will be disposed. Last year 973 vehicles were towed during snow emergencies. This year, 1,535 cars
have been towed. Most vehicles from a snow emergency are released within 48 hours; 70% are
retrieved by the owner.
Chief Finney stated there used to be a City ordinance that would allow the police to dispose of a
vehicle after 15 days. The state statute was changed so vehicles have to be held for 45 days. There
used to be a 24 hour street storage rule, wow there's a 48 hour street storage rule.
Councilmember Megard stated she talked to Senator Kelly who said he would be willing to sponsor
legislation that would shorten the holding times. Council President Thune stated this issue is already
in the legislative packet and suggested someone in administration check to see where this issue is in
the legislature.
Chief Finney stated the Police Department would like to tow ahead of the plow but are not able to do
so because of lack of space in the impound lot.
Councilmember Rettman asked whether Councilmember Bostrom's sticker idea would work and
what else the Council could do to help Chief Finney do his job better besides buying more land.
Chief Finney responded the towing company would have to be paid. Mr. Bostrom added there
would be a check off box on the tag so that when the owner pays the tag, the owner is automatically
assessed an additional fee. Stacy Becker stated in some areas there is no place to tow the car around
January 15, 1996, City Council Summary Minutes Page 9
the corner. Tim Marx stated there some legal issues that have to be addressed with some of the idea
presented.
Chief Finney stated he is intrigued with the idea of an odd-even parking system in Saint Paul in
terms of being able to plow half the street to make for clearing streets in a more timely manner. Junk
cars will be spotted quicker because they would be parked on the wrong side of the street.
Councilmember Megard stated Saint Anthony Park has one sided parking because they are narrow.
Stacy Becker responded this may not work in all neighborhoods. The present system is very
efficient. With changing the plow routes, there may be a lot of"dead heading" (retracing your steps
in order to get back to where you need to be). The City would have to look carefully at the
operational issues. Any change should be piloted first.
A) Policies and Procedures for Removing and Storing Vehicles by Chuck Votel, Director of
Housing Code Enforcement, Public Health
Chuck Votel spoke of removal of junk and abandoned vehicles from private property. Motor
vehicles have to be kept in operable condition, secured, currently licensed and parked on an approved
parking surface in a designated parking area. Last year, Public Health investigated over 4,000
complaints involving junk vehicles. A correction notice is issued to get the cars removed. Out of
those 4,000 inspections, only 228 orders to the impound lot were issued to remove vehicles and 61
citations were issued. The Legislature says that cars have to be kept 45 days. Vehicles are assessed
$120 per vehicle and $45 administrative costs. However, the City is losing $450 per vehicle in
storage costs. Mr. Votel asked the Council if the City should continue to assess this fee when the
vehicles have to be removed or if the actual costs should be assessed. It can cost up to $800 for some
of the cars. The majority are not recovered by the property owner.
Council President Thune requested some pros and cons from the Health Department on this issue.
Gerry Strathman, Legislative Hearing Officer, stated that when cars are auctioned, the property
owner is not credited with the money. There have been cases where cars were auctioned and
proceeds were received that exceeded the $120. People ask why they are being assessed when the
city made money selling the car.
Council President Thune suggested a policy analyst discuss this issue with Stacy Becker. Gerry
Strathman responded he would assign Kirby Pittman to work with Public Works on this issue.
Councilmember Rettman stated she intends to do a pilot in her area. Council President Thune
suggested sharing the pilot with the other Councilmembers as well.
January 15, 1996, City Council Summary Minutes Page 10
Councilmember Megard moved for suspension of the rules and approval of the following resolution:
Resolution - 97-26 - Authorizing and directing Library Services to apply for a$150,000 Library
Accessibility Grant from the State of Minnesota, to improve accessibility to the Saint Anthony Park
Branch Library.
Adopted Yeas - 7 Nays - 0
Councilmember Bostrom moved adjournment.
•_ ` , ED 1 6:32 ' A
I►avid .hune, I I.r President
ATTEST:
Minu - . 'proved by Council
Nancy Andes n
Assistant Council Secretary
rn