HomeMy WebLinkAbout2023-08-2 City Council Meeting (minutes)
CITY OF COTTAGE GROVE Equal Opportunity Employer 2897 -458-Fax 651 2800 -458-651 gov.mnwww.cottagegrove Cottage Grove, Minnesota 55016 12800 Ravine Parkway
MINUTES
COTTAGE GROVE CITY COUNCIL August 2, 2023
COUNCIL CHAMBER
12800 RAVINE PARKWAY SOUTH
REGULAR MEETING - 7:00 P.M
COUNCIL CHAMBER
IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF MINNESOTA STATE STATUTE 13D.02, COUNCIL MEMBERS DAVE
THIEDE & TONY KHAMBATA WILL APPEAR REMOTELY VIA INTERACTIVE TECHNOLOGY FROM THE FOLLOWING PUBLIC
LOCATIONS: Dave Thiede-Lobby of Hampton Inn & Suites, Albany at Albany Mall, 2628 Dawson Road, Albany, Georgia, 31717
Tony Khambata-Brainerd Public Library, 416 South 5th Street, Brainerd, Minnesota, 56401
1. CALL TO ORDER
The City Council of the City of Cottage Grove, Washington County, Minnesota, held a
regular meeting on August 2, 2023, at Cottage Grove City Hall, 12800 Ravine Parkway.
Mayor Bailey called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
The audience, staff, and City Council Members stood and recited the Pledge of
Allegiance.
3. ROLL CALL
City Clerk Tammy Anderson called the roll: Mayor Bailey - Here; Council Member
Dennis - Here; Council Member Khambata - Here; Council Member Olsen - Here;
Council Member Thiede - Here.
Also present: Jennifer Levitt, City Administrator; Amanda Johnson, Assistant City
Attorney-LeVander, Gillen & Miller, PA; Tammy Anderson, City Clerk; Gretchen Larson,
Economic Development Director; Zac Dockter, Parks and Rec Director; Pete Koerner,
Public Safety Director; Brenda Malinowski, Finance Director; Lee Mann, Principal
Engineer, Stantec; Amanda Meyer, City Engineer; Emily Schmitz, Community
Development Director.
4. OPEN FORUM
Mayor Bailey opened the Open Forum. As no one wished to address the Council, Mayor
Bailey closed the Open Forum.
5. ADOPTION OF AGENDA
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August 2, 2023
Page 2
Council Member Dennis made a motion to approve the agenda; second by Council
Member Olsen. Clerk Anderson called the roll: Council Member Khambata-Aye, Council
Member Dennis-Aye, Council Member Thiede-Aye, Council Member Olsen-Aye, Mayor
Bailey-Aye. Motion carried: 5-0.
6. PRESENTATIONS - None.
7. CONSENT AGENDA
A. Approve the July 12, 2023 City Council Special Meeting minutes.
B. Approve the July 19, 2023, City Council Closed Meeting minutes.
C. Accept and place on file the minutes of the June 26, 2023, Planning
Commission Meeting.
D. Approve the single occasion Gambling Permit application for the Cottage
Grove Area Chamber of Commerce on November 1, 2023, at 8617 West
Point Douglas Road South, beginning at 1:30 p.m.
E. Approve the issuance of rental licenses to the properties listed in the
attached table.
F. Receive the 2022 Cottage Grove Convention and Visitors Bureau Annual
Report.
G. Adopt Resolution 2023-105 amending Resolution 2021-160 establishing
the City of Cottage Grove Convention and Visitors Bureau.
H. Authorize staff to apply for a Minnesota DNR Conservation Partners
Legacy grant for Cottage Grove Trailway Corridor native habitat
restoration up to $215,000.
I. Adopt Resolution 2023-103 approving the final payment in the amount of
$34,962.90 to Pember Companies, Inc. for the Oakwood Park
Improvements Project.
J. Approve the Service Agreement with Collins Electrical for streetlighting
work and emergency repair response.
K. Approve the following with minor modifications by the City Attorney: 1) The
Permanent Sanitary Sewer Easement by and between Dodge Nature
Center, The Preserve of Cottage Grove, and the City of Cottage Grove. 2)
The Permanent Easement and Private Sanitary Service Maintenance
Agreement for Sanitary Sewer Line by and between Dodge Nature Center,
The Preserve of Cottage Grove, and the City of Cottage Grove.
L. 1) Adopt Ordinance No. 1070, enacting City Code Title 1, Chapter 5,
Section 11 regarding Electric Franchise Fee. 2) Adopt Ordinance No.
1069, enacting City Code Title 1, Chapter 5, Section 10 regarding Gas
Franchise Fee.
M. 1) Adopt Ordinance No. 1071, Northern States Power Company Gas
Franchise Ordinance. 2) Adopt Ordinance No. 1072, Northern States
Power Company Electric Franchise Ordinance.
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August 2, 2023
Page 3
N. Adopt Ordinance No. 1073, CenterPoint Energy Gas Franchise
Ordinance.
None of the Council Members wished to pull any items for further comment and/or
discussion.
Council Member Olsen made a motion to approve the Consent Agenda; second by
Council Member Thiede. Clerk Anderson called the roll: Council Member Khambata-
Aye, Council Member Dennis-Aye, Council Member Thiede-Aye, Council Member
Olsen-Aye, Mayor Bailey-Aye. Motion carried: 5-0.
8. APPROVE DISBURSEMENTS
A. Approve payments for the period of 7-19-2023 through 7-28-2023 in the
amount of $2,680,394.12.
Motion by Council Member Dennis to approve disbursements; second by Council
Member Olsen. Clerk Anderson called the roll: Council Member Khambata-Aye, Council
Member Dennis-Aye, Council Member Thiede-Aye, Council Member Olsen-Aye, Mayor
Bailey-Aye. Motion carried: 5-0.
9. PUBLIC HEARINGS - None.
10. BID AWARDS
A. Low Zone Water Treatment Plant Project - Bid Award
Staff Recommendation: Adopt Resolution 2023-104 awarding the Low
Zone Treatment Plant Project Base Bid and Alternate 1 to Rice Lake
Construction Group, in the total amount of $39,078,155.00.
Lee Mann, Principal Engineer for Stantec, stated bids were received on Thursday, July
13, for the Low Zone Water Treatment Plan, which will be located at the northeast
corner of Ideal Avenue South and 110th Street South; this project also includes the
construction of Well 13. He displayed the Site Plan to show the exact location of the
plant, in relation to the roads, and the features of the plant from a high-level view.
Engineer Mann stated we received two bids, one from Rice Lake Construction Group for
$38,182,800, and the other from Market & Johnson, Inc. for $38,717,563.88. There was
also an Alternate 1 for SCADA Remote Site Upgrades in the amount of $895,355. The
Engineer’s estimates are shown on the screen in relation to the bids. Rice Lake
Construction Group had the lower Base Bid in the amount of $38,182,800.
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August 2, 2023
Page 4
Funding Breakdown for the Base Bid and SCADA Remote Site Upgrades:
$37,408,783 - Water Treatment Plant/Well 13, Paid by the 3M Settlement Funds
$ 774,017 - City Responsible Costs, Paid by Area & Utility Funds
$ 895,355 - SCADA Remote Site Upgrades, Paid by Water & Sewer Utility Funds
$39,078,155 - Total Cost
Engineer Mann stated another important point is the 3M Settlement Fund Construction
Grant for this project was finally executed yesterday in the amount of $42,127,000,
which includes construction, engineering, and other miscellaneous costs, so that’s all
set to go.
Mayor Bailey asked Engineer Mann to explain for the public what SCADA means.
Engineer Mann stated SCADA stands for Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition.
Basically, that’s the system that helps the City run all of the wells, in this case, the
treatment plant will also be on the SCADA system. It includes towers, lift stations, and
booster stations; it’s the computer system that gives the alarms and in some cases
actually controls when those facilities get turned on and off.
Mayor Bailey stated our current system is older, so we’re basically upgrading
everything. Engineer Mann stated that’s correct, and the new system will be a big step
forward into meeting the State and Federal cyber security standards and requirements.
Motion by Council Member Olsen to Adopt Resolution 2023-104 awarding the Base Bid
Low Zone Water Treatment Plant Project and Alternate 1, SCADA Remote Site
Upgrades, to Rice Lake Construction Group, in the amount of $39,078,155.00; second
by Council Member Khambata. Clerk Anderson called the roll: Council Member
Khambata-Aye, Council Member Dennis-Aye, Council Member Thiede-Aye, Council
Member Olsen-Aye, Mayor Bailey-Aye. Motion carried: 5-0.
11. REGULAR AGENDA - None.
12. COUNCIL COMMENTS AND REQUESTS
Council Member Thiede stated, sadly, he missed Night to Unite last night. He heard it
was fantastic, as usual; hopefully, next year he won’t be traveling.
Council Member Olsen noted as Council Member Thiede commented, last night was
Night to Unite across the country. In Cottage Grove, we had an unbelievable time, it
was so much fun. He had a chance to visit several parties, along with Mayor Bailey, in
the afternoon at some of our retirement communities. Of course, there were
neighborhood parties last night; he believed we had close to 60 parties in the City,
which is a few more than we had last year. He thanked those residents who actually
hosted parties at their homes. It really is important to bring our neighbors together to
interact with our Public Safety personnel and essentially get to know your neighbors and
build safe neighborhoods that way. There was also an effort to collect some school
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August 2, 2023
Page 5
supplies for distribution to Friends in Need Food Shelf for back to school, which is right
around the corner; many City personnel today picked up all the donated school supplies
and delivered those to Friends in Need. He also thanked the City staff members who
put time, energy, and effort into coordinating all the visits last night; that is a
monumental task. He would be remiss if he didn’t mention Charlene Raymond of our
Public Safety Department, Dan Schoen, our Community Engagement Officer, and
Chelsea Flores, who coordinated all of the Fire responses, as Mike Dandl is on
vacation. There were a number of other City staff members in our General Government
division who also had a hand in making this a success.
Council Member Olsen also congratulated the River Oaks Golf Course for another
wonderful Public Safety Golf Tournament. He played in the tournament this past
weekend with Mayor Bailey, Commissioner Bigham, and Sergeant McCormick from our
Police Department. We had a lot of fun, the weather was perfect, and River Oaks did a
great job hosting; even with some of the construction taking place on the course with
our irrigation system, it was in really good shape and it was easy to get around the one
hole on which they were working. We had a wonderful turnout, and all of those funds go
to support the Public Safety Board and our Cottage Grove Public Safety team.
Council Member Olsen congratulated his friend and colleague, Council Member Steve
Dennis, for 20 years of serving the community with excellence as a business owner,
along with his brother, John, his son, Greg, his wife, Kathy, and John’s wife, Wendy, at
Dennis Brothers Liquors. They really have done a marvelous job over the last 20 years
of truly being a source of pride for the City of Cottage Grove. He asked Council Member
Dennis if it was the largest craft beer selection; Council Member Dennis stated they
were very fortunate to have customer reviews on one of the largest beer-related
websites being listed for many years as the top-rated craft beer store in Minnesota.
Council Member Olsen stated all you had to do was walk in the store: The service was
outstanding, it was a beautiful store, and Steve and his family were always very, very
generous to many of the nonprofits here in town, including the Cottage Grove Lions
Club. Steve has been our partner for various events for several years and always
treated us right. The business will be sorely missed, but it’s certainly understandable
that at some point somebody needs an opportunity to rest for a minute; after 20 years,
you certainly earned it. He thanked Council Member Dennis for all he’s done for the
community as a business owner, we sure appreciate it. Council Member Dennis
thanked Council Member Olsen.
Mayor Bailey stated last week we had the opportunity to do a ribbon cutting and
welcome Jersey Mike’s into town. There’s another ribbon cutting this Friday, at noon, at
Home Choice, 6990 80th Street South, located next to Ace Hardware. Stop in and
check out the new businesses. Pizza Ranch is now hiring, and have an opening date
set for September 18.
Mayor Bailey stated before our next Council Meeting, there are plans for another
Movies in the Park at Highlands Park, on Friday, August 11; the movie will be Super
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August 2, 2023
Page 6
Pets. They’ve been worried about the rain the last couple weeks, and have had to
postpone it, so, a movie will now be shown in September.
13. WORKSHOPS - OPEN TO PUBLIC - None.
14. WORKSHOPS - CLOSED TO PUBLIC - None.
15. ADJOURNMENT
Motion by Council Member Olsen, second by Council Member Dennis, to adjourn the
meeting at 7:15 p.m. Clerk Anderson called the roll: Council Member Khambata-Aye,
Council Member Dennis-Aye, Council Member Thiede-Aye, Council Member Olsen-
Aye, Mayor Bailey-Aye. Motion carried: 5-0.
Minutes prepared by Judy Graf and reviewed by Tamara Anderson, City Clerk.