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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2012-03-07 PACKET 04.A.i.REQUEST OF CITY COUNCIL ACTION COUNCIL AGENDA MEETING ITEM # DATE 3/7/12 PREPARED BY Public Works Les Burshten ORIGINATING DEPARTMENT STAFF AUTHOR COUNCIL ACTION REQUEST Accept and place on file the minutes of the September 12, 2011 Meeting of the Public Works Commission. STAFF RECOMMENDATION Approve the September 12, 2011 minutes of the Public Works Commission. BUDGET IMPLICATION $ $ BUDGETED AMOUNT ACTUAL AMOUNT FUNDING SOURCE ADVISORY COMMISSION ACTION DATE ❑ PLANNING ❑ PUBLIC SAFETY ® PUBLIC WORKS 2/13/12 ❑ PARKS AND RECREATION ❑ HUMAN SERVICES /RIGHTS ❑ ECONOMIC DEV. AUTHORITY El T X11 I � � � � I � I • � Gl » Z � i � / � � � � ] � il L: L� SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS ❑ MEMO /LETTER: ❑ RESOLUTION: ❑ ORDINANCE: ❑ ENGINEERING RECOMMENDATION: ❑ LEGAL RECOMMENDATION: ® OTHER: Approved minutes of the September 12, 2011 Public Works Commission Meeting ADMINISTRATORS COMMENTS Administrator e /A ella Date COUNCIL ACTION TAKEN: ❑ APPROVED ❑ DENIED ❑ OTHER ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ® ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS ❑ MEMO /LETTER: ❑ RESOLUTION: ❑ ORDINANCE: ❑ ENGINEERING RECOMMENDATION: ❑ LEGAL RECOMMENDATION: ® OTHER: Approved minutes of the September 12, 2011 Public Works Commission Meeting ADMINISTRATORS COMMENTS Administrator e /A ella Date COUNCIL ACTION TAKEN: ❑ APPROVED ❑ DENIED ❑ OTHER • • 1:111, • VA N ' XM 8 • • L •- i Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, a meeting of the Public Works Commission of Cottage Grove was duly held at Cottage Grove Public Works, 8635 West Point Douglas Road, Cottage Grove, Minnesota on Monday, September 12, 2011 at 7:00 p.m. 1. CALL TO ORDER Commission Chair Ken Boyden called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. 2. ROLL CALL Members Present: Ken Boyden, Alex Chernyaev, Michael Edman, Gary Kjellberg, Jeff Rolling, Excused: Jason Field Absent Bill Royce Staff Present: Les Burshten, Public Works Director Craig Woolery, Director of Public Safety Harry Taylor, Public Works Supervisor Jennifer Levitt, City Engineer Kevin Zittel, Streetlight Department Also Present: Council Member Derrick Lehrke 3. APPROVE MINUTES Upon a motion by Jeff Rolling, seconded by Michael Edman, the August 8, 2011 minutes were unanimously approved. 4. ADDITIONAL AGENDA ITEMS None Public Works Commission September 12, 2011 — Page 2 5. NEW BUSINESS A. Update on Crime Watch Program — Craig Woolery, Director of Public Safety City Engineer Jennifer Levitt indicated at the PWC meeting in August, the topic of traffic control signs was discussed, specifically Crime Watch signs posted on Indian Boulevard between Jamaica Avenue and County Road 19. Questions began to surface as to how applicable these types of signs are and how the Crime Neighborhood Watch program works. Essentially, staff had to deviate from the Sign Policy which states crime watch signs would not be posted, Chief Woolery was invited to tonight's meeting to give an overview on how the Crime Watch Program works. Director of Public Safety, Craig Woolery stated the City of Cottage Grove, along with many other cities, has sponsored a Neighborhood Watch Program. When he was first asked on how to rate the effectiveness of the program, he responded that much of what law enforcement does is by deterrent. Simply the effect of a marked squad going down the street keeps drivers slowing down. The perception of safety is also very important for people. Efforts are also made to get neighbors involved and get to know one another with the Neighborhood Watch Program. To qualify as a Neighborhood Watch Block, at least 50% of the neighbors should be active participants in the program. The block club should meet a minimum of twice a year. An officer or trained representative of the Cottage Grove Police Department will be present at one of the yearly meetings to provide training in different areas. Woolery went on to state there are currently 61 block captains. Officer Gail Griffith is our Public Affairs Officer and monitors all the block captains. The captains are emailed updates on pertinent information for their particular neighborhood. They are also informed of any crime activity in their area such as thefts from autos. It's a good program because residents feel it's important, however, we can't quantify it with a value or statistics on deterred crimes. Commission Member Jeff Rolling inquired if the debate is about whether or not signs should be posted? Are the signs paid for by the neighborhood? Woolery responded signs are purchased by a non - profit organization, (Crime Prevention Advisory Board) which does fundraising. He added this board has also essentially paid for the Canine Program. The signs are one thing that they wanted to keep. Like anything, the signs have to be monitored, just like the McGruff houses. Files must be kept current, background checks must be made. We want to avoid displaying old signs that don't have any meaning. Public Works Commission September 12, 2011 — Page 3 Public Works Director Les Burshten added the reason this sign issue came up is because these particular signs fall outside our Sign Ordinance. From a staff level (Public Safety and Public Works), both support keeping these signs. Woolery added the block captains do call for replacements should the signs become damaged and /or worn out. Commission Member Mike Edman inquired, if you can't quantify how the Neighborhood Watch signs work, how do we know they're effective in deterring crime? Woolery replied that if one evaluates overall crime reports over the past few years, our City's policing has been outstanding and crime rates have dropped, however, our record system is not capable of quantifying actual effectiveness of the Crime Watch Program. Edman also commented on the policy of 50% of the neighborhood being active participants. What would a non -block captain's participation in the program involve? Woolery responded the neighborhoods hold at least two crime prevention meetings per year and the year culminates with the "Night to Unite" in early August. He added there will be a new emergency notification system coming on board soon. The CodeRED Emergency Notification System is an expedient communication service allowing the City of Cottage Grove Public Safety Department to notify citizens of an emergency situation. The service is web - driven and citizens will be notified via their home phone, cell phone or business phone, or via computer email, FaceBook and Twitter). To receive CodeRED, you can register your home, cell phone or business phone number in the CodeRED database. Council Member Derrick Lehrke commented that Washington County will pick up some of the charges for emergency notifications transmitted. Woolery added that in the past a "Dial Logic" method was used in notifying citizens of an emergency. The calls were made in alphabetical order which didn't work out the best. At this time Levitt suggested as long as the Police Chief was in attendance this evening, perhaps there can be a discussion on what can be done about speeding in particular neighborhoods. This topic has been discussed in past commission meetings and found that most often, residents feel installing a stop sign will take care of the problem. Woolery suggested it's best to call dispatch so there is an electronic record of the problem. He went on to state that speeding is a misdemeanor offense and must be witnessed by the officer which means they are not going to see that car flying down your street. They must not only have a vehicle description but a description of the driver to take action. Woolery added that generally police try to work on the driving behavior through education or citation, not through a speed limit or stop sign. Speeding is one of the top complaints received by the Public Safety Department. Chief Woolery was thanked for attending tonight's meeting. Public Works Commission September 12, 2011 — Page 4 B. Street Light Wiring Demo, Repair and Discussion Public Works Director Les Burshten reported the City manages approximately 2,600 plus streetlights in town and there's another approximately 280 streetlights that are maintained and owned by Xcel Energy. The City takes pride in repairing streetlights quickly and efficiently, however, there can be some difficult -to- resolve repair issues during the winter months. Problems during the colder months include underground fault problems, a broken line or a cut in the wire allowing water to leak into the wiring. Kevin Zittel of the Public Works Utilities Department, Streetlight Division, is in attendance tonight to discuss these sorts of issues. Kevin's presentation began with some illustrations of feed points which are the power source from Xcel Energy. Each feed point controls approximately 20 -30 streetlights. Other types of feed points were shown (those in the roundabout, and those for decorative streetlights). The City has, in the past, explored the possibility of purchasing the streetlights owned by Xcel Energy, however, this process would be too cost - prohibitive, partly because everything would have be rewired. It should also be noted that residents who have Xcel streetlights in their neighborhood are charged for them and actually pay a small percentage more than residents who have the City -owned streetlights. Zittel added that if a resident calls in a streetlight repair on an Xcel Energy -owned light, the City does follow through and inform Xcel of the work that needs to be done. Commission Member Alex Cherynaev inquired how many different types of lamps are kept in stock for replacement? Zittel responded there are four different bulb wattages and five various light styles. There are three styles of streetlight poles in stock for knockdowns — the decorative, the concrete and the residential type. Council Member Derrick Lehrke questioned whether the poles are designed to "give" or break when struck by a vehicle. Zittel replied they are designed to do so, however, the footing is kept in place so wires are not ripped. Another challenging aspect of winter streetlight repairs is the fact that some of the wiring is not in conduit. Commission Member Edman asked if the City has considered solar powered lights. Zittel replied the solar lights are very expensive and can be a `nightmare' because of the battery usage. It could be problematic disposing of all the used batteries. Burshten stated the battery —type fixtures are used in rural areas when running electricity is too cost prohibitive. Public Works Commission September 12, 2011 — Page 5 Edman asked if conduit is added to the areas without it when lights are repaired. Taylor replied that each year funds are placed into the budget for street lighting upgrades which include conduit. At this time Kevin Zittel was thanked by the Commission for his presentation and attendance at tonight's meeting. 6. OLD BUSINESS None. 7. PUBLIC WORKS UPATE. Les Burshten reported the following: Y The Parks Department installed a new hockey rink at Hearthside Park this year and the project turned out very well 50 replacement boulevard trees were recently planted • 380 ash trees have been removed and another 3,300 trees treated (S &S Tree Service is removing them and Hoffman & McNamara is replacing them) i The Street Department has had a busy season of paving. A couple of the projects included paving the edges of 100 Street and applying a thin overlay of pavement to 65 Street. • The Storm Water Utility Department has been working on the Jenner Avenue Waterway. Les Wick continues performing traffic counts • The Street Department is also working on the redesigning of the fishing dock (located off Hardwood Avenue) to a floating dock. • Fleet Maintenance is finishing up their DOT inspections on the trucks which must be done on a yearly basis Y Four mowers are scheduled to be purchased next year so the Fleet Maintenance division is demo -ing 5 -foot and 6 -foot mowers from various manufacturers. New tires have been purchased for the John Deere loader The Water Department has pumped out and winterized the City Pool. 6 Hydrant flushing has been postponed but will begin the week of September 1 g th . Public Works Open House is scheduled for Thursday, September 15, 2011 from 3:00 to 7:00 pm. All commission members are invited to participate. 8. ENGINEER'S REPORT Ravine Parkway Project Jennifer Levitt reported the beams were set on the bridge on August 26th as part of the Ravine Parkway project. A couple lifts of asphalt have also been applied. Public Works Commission September 12, 2011 — Page 6 West Point Douglas Road Proiect The extension located near the Pine Coulee Area is coming along nicely. Pine Coulee Area Pavement Management Project Hopefully grass growing in this project area will improve. A public hearing for assessments will take place on October 5 and it is hoped those neighborhoods will have green grass before that date. 9. CITY COUNCIL UPDATE Council Member Derrick Lehrke reported the Council has adopted the levy for 2012 at a flat gross amount. The pool will be closed for good. The YMCA has been directed to move their equipment and it appears the splash pad at Highlands Park will be approved at the next Council meeting. The Public Safety /City Hall Building Project construction contract is scheduled to be awarded at the September 21, 2011 Council Meeting. Levitt added the City used a "best value" process in order to pick the contractor so it's not based solely on a dollar amount, however it did work out that the lowest bidder did win the project. Council Member Lehrke also reported that the City of Cottage Grove has been recognized as a "Beyond the Yellow Ribbon" City, something that has been worked on for the past year. He is requesting input from the PW Commission on the appropriate number of signs that will be posted throughout the City. 10. COMMISSION COMMENTS AND REQUESTS Commission Member Kjellberg inquired if the Woodridge Park Shelter would be rebuilt this year. Burshten responded that it's expected to be replaced shortly. 11. ADJOURNMENT Motion to adjourn was made by Gary Kjellberg, seconded by Michael Edman. Motion was unanimously carried. Meeting adjourned at 8:34 pm. Respectfully submitted, Patricia Storby