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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPublic Services Minutes 1-31-22 Minutes City of Cottage Grove Public Services Commission Meeting January 31, 2022 Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, a Cottage Grove Public Services Commission Meeting was held on January 31, 2022. CALL TO ORDER Meeting called to order at 7:00 p.m. ROLL CALL Members Present: Steve Ingram Griffith, Kent Campbell, Robert Podoll, Jeff Dornsbach, Robert Kath, Ron Members Absent: Serpico, William Staff Present: Burfeind, Ryan – PE, Public Works Director/City Engineer Redenius, Rick – Fire Chief & Deputy of Public Safety Rinzel, Greg – Deputy Director of Public Safety & Police Captain Orloff, Gary – Street Supervisor Others Present: Justin Olsen, Councilmember Approval of Agenda Agenda - Approved - Motion by Campbell and seconded by Dornsbach Approval of Minutes September 20, 2021 - Motion by Kath and seconded by Dornsbach Open Forum None Presentations East Point Douglas Road Pedestrian Crossings and Safety – Jarad Juth, Graduate Engineer Juth explained that due to several recent requests for an improvement of pedestrian facilities along East Point Douglas Road between Hillside Trail and Jamaica Avenue, City staff have reviewed several options to enhance safety and accessibility in the corridor. Juth added currently there are no marked crosswalks along the 1.5 mile stretch between the all-way stop adjacent to the Speedway gas station on East Point Douglas Road and Jamaica Avenue. The south side of this segment has trails and pedestrian ramps. The north side has an intermitted sidewalk. The daily traffic is estimated at 6000 vehicles per day so there is a need for improved mobility of pedestrians in the area. Juth presented three options to the Commissioners. Sidewalk Connection at 8136 East Pt Douglas Road Crosswalk at 90th Street Sidewalk Installation from Hillside Trail to Inwood Avenue Ingram asked Juth what the cost would be for option one. Juth replied a permanent sidewalk with a pedestrian ramp would be approximately $14,000. Ingram asked in respect to option 2, adding a crosswalk at 90th Street, what is the estimated cost of the pedestrian beacon, how many do we have in town, and how effective are they. Burfeind responded there are solar pedestrian beacons in Cottage Grove at, 90th Street by Woodridge, 80th Street and Joliet, Hinton and 80th, Hinton and 70th, and Hinton and 80th. Rinzel added traffic is observant of the beacons and he is unaware of any accidents involving pedestrians at these locations. Ingram asked when the proposed reconstruction will begin on East Pt Douglas. Burfeind answered the reconstruction will begin in 2024-2025, starting with the southeast portion first and the west portion second. Ingram stated if the City is 2 to 3 years away from replacing this road, he would be in favor of the RFB and ADA ramps with sidewalk in front of the animal hospital. Ingram added temporary blacktop could be used in replacement of a sidewalk in front of the animal hospital until the reconstruction. Ingram also stated he wanted to see pedestrian crossings painted on the road. Griffith agreed with Ingram and stated from a money standpoint this option would be the most cost effective. Kath added he likes the first two options with Ingrams asphalt request. Kath stated he does not feel there should be sidewalks along both sides of East Point Douglas Rd citing how upset the homeowners would be if sidewalks were added to their front yards. The path on the other side of the road would be sufficient once safe crossing was added. Burfeind suggested staff review pedestrian patterns and choose busier intersecting streets to add crosswalks. Rinzel advised Hillside Trail should have a crosswalk and RFBB from a police standpoint. Ingram made a motion to add a temporary crosswalk connection at 8136 East Pt Douglas Road and grant City staff the authority to add crosswalks where needed. Kath seconded the motion. New Business None Old Business None Response to Previously Raised Commission Requests None Commission Comments and Requests None Staff Reports and Educational Material Utilities – Processing the 3M settlement which includes City Wells and 2 treatment plants, and neighborhood connection plans for PFAS’s in 2002. Extending water to Goodview neighborhood. Engineering - Looking at late 2022 early 2023 new construction plans which include the East Pt Douglas and Jamaica project. In Cottage Grove we are over 10” over average. Streets – Treating Salt in-house, plowed 22 times this winter to date, removing Blvd. tree’s, pothole patching and trimming trees, interviewing for forestry interns, sending out sweeping quotes, working on stormwater ponds. Burfeind added by treating our own salt the cost is $80 per ton instead of $140. It is a significant cost saving tor the City. Police – PD budgeted for a community engagement officer and Dan Schoen will be taking this position. A case management officer position was added to be more interactive with some of the residents that need extra attention. This position will be held by Pat Young. 2 officers from the patrol will move into investigations for 2 years. 2 officers have retired, and 2 new officers will be starting soon. Some of the thefts and theft call volumes have slowed down as those crimes have moved closer to the 94 corridors Fire – Personnel We have 3 people in the background process for PT We are currently down to 30 PT staff Calls for Service September – December 2021 EMS – 305 (Sept) 341 (Oct) 304 (Nov) 360 (Dec) = 1,310 calls Fire/Rescue – 67 (Sept) 21 (Oct) 49 (Nov) 64 (Dec) = 201 Other Items Ice rescue training on Feb 5th. We invited the MN DNR to come in early January for a 3-hour Wildland Fire Fighting class. They explained what equipment they have and how they can help us if we need their assistance. Six staff members completed their Fire Instructor 1 certification test and passed. They can now assist in teaching our staff. We have sent a two more staff members, 1 full-time and 1 part-time to the trainer course for Blue Card. This course is designed to teach each member of the department common fire nomenclature, how to give size up of an incident, and set up a command structure based on the scene activity. They can also complete a member’s certification through a scenario-based process. All officers and FT staff have gone through that process over the past several months. COVID and injuries have hit the fire division hard. We have two FT still out on injuries and have had numerous FT and PT staff out with COVID since Christmas. We will be coming into budget season soon, so we are preparing for the 2023 and 2024 budget process. Part of that process will be updating our vehicle replacement schedule. Council Comments Councilmember Olson briefed the Commission on items the Council has been working on. Olson explained to the Commission how important the Public Service Commissioners role will be in the future of Cottage Grove as it pertains to infrastructure management. One thing to look forward to this year is an upcoming all commission meeting/workshop to use the information to help staff and Council make decisions. Campbell asked about dog licenses. Rinzel explained staff is considering making licenses a lifetime application. Kath made a recommendation to look at the City ordinances and plan when they should be reviewed again. Set up a rotation. Olson welcomed the recommendation and stated the last time they were reviewed was 2009. Commission Comments None Adjournment – Motion to adjourn by Griffith and seconded by Campbell, Meeting adjourned at 8:06pm