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HomeMy WebLinkAbout[08a.4] Annual Reports - Administration ADMINISTRATION Annual Report 2015 This page intentionally left blank 1 CITY COUNCIL Mayor Rick Schultz Term Expires: January 2017 Councilor & Acting Mayor Dale Wick Term Expires: January 2019 Councilor Matt Killam Term Expires: January 2019 Councilor Bob Loso Term Expires: January 2017 Councilor Renee Symanietz Term Expires: January 2017 The City Council conducted its business on the first and third Thursday of each month at 6:00 PM in the City Council Chambers at City Hall. At the first meeting each year, the City Council ratifies the Mayors appointments to the various committees and positions. For 2015 the major committee appointments included: Planning Commission – Rick Schultz, Steve Olson Economic Development Authority – Dale Wick, Rick Schultz Park Board – Matt Killam CITY ADMINISTRATION The City Administration administers city government within the guidelines of MN State Statute and city policies as established by the City Council. The City Administrator serves as the chief administrative officer for the City and reports to the Mayor and City Council. In addition, the administrator is responsible for managing the overall operation of all city departments to include: Administration, Police, Public Works, and Fire in addition to the consulting planning, legal, and engineering. The Administrator is responsible for providing overall direction and guidance for the City including, presenting the annual budget, human resource management, policy and ordinance management, collaborating with other agencies and organizations, managing the City Council Agendas, and coordinating strategic planning and visioning for the City of St. Joseph. The following tables summarize some of the activity completed by administration. The tasks completed by administration are wide ranging and include variety as well as complexity. Number of City Council Meeting Packets Compiled Year City Council Regular City Council Special Committee/ Meeting’s Meetings Board Meetings 2013 24 9 30 2014 16 7 43 2015 21 7 39 Resolutions/Ordinance Amendments Ordinance Year Resolutions Amendments 2013 63 24 2014 24 7 2015 37 3 State Demographer Census Data Year Population Households 2013 6787 1875 2014 6805 1881 2015 NA NA 2 Administrative Citations Renting w/out Year Weed Cutting License Parking Pad Other 2013 107 4 39 - 2014 101 3 58 - 2015 30 3 - - Facility Reservations Year Millstream Park Centennial Park Fire Hall Wobegon 2013 37 34 42 2 2014 32 30 46 1 2015 35 27 43 4 Licensing Type 2013 2014 2015 Liquor, Intoxicating On Sale 8 8 11 Liquor, Malt 3 3 3 Liquor Off Sale 6 6 8 Special Sunday 8 8 7 Wine, on sale 2 2 2 Strong Beer - 2 Amusement 7 7 7 Cigarette 7 7 7 Peddler 1 2 2 Dog 308 309 296 Gambling 12 5 7 Rental Housing 149 143 150 Rental Housing, Interim Use Permit 17 15 19 Permitting Type 2013 2014 2015 Compost 529 535 548 Kegs 39 27 22 Excavation 18 61 35 Watering 3 4 1 Building Permit, total number 262 279 289 Building Permit, inspections (total) 699 856 905 Building Permit, Valuation Increase $4,814,618.21 $4,861,212.70 $10,003,064.16 3 FINANCIAL ADMINISTRATION The Finance Department is responsible for the following support services: accounts payable; accounts receivable; payroll; cash receipting; project accounting; implementation of financial controls; budget preparation; capital improvement planning; grant administration; cash and investment management; utility billing; utility rate analysis; audit and comprehensive annual financial report; special assessments; asset management, mandated state and federal reporting; debt monitoring. Bond Rating Standards & Poor’s affirmed the City’s bond rating of A+. The rating were based on the following factors: 1) very strong budgetary flexibility, with fiscal 2013 audited reserves at 65% of the general fund expenditures; 2) very strong liquidity providing very strong cash levels to cover both debt service and expenditures; and 3) strong management conditions with good financial management policies and practices. Bond Activity The City issued General Obligation Bonds, Series 2015A in the amount of $ 760,000. The bonds were issued $ 595,000 to fund the overlay and reclaim for the 2015 Street Improvement project and issued $ 165,000 to fund the acquisition of capital equipment. The City also issued Tax Abatement Bonds, Series 2015B in the amount of $ 1,840,000. The bonds were issued to purchase property for a future community center. Utility Billing Over 1,800 utility accounts are billed bi-monthly for the City’s utility services to include: water, sanitary sewer, storm water, refuse and street light utility. Residents have the opportunity to pay their bills via the website (41 users), automatic withdraw (160 users) and the balance of accounts are paid through the mail or use of the City payment drop box. The City has a high collection rate, collecting over 98% of the utility accounts without going through a certification process. Grants In 2015 the City had received funding through the following grant programs: 1) Safe and Sober, a program designed to add additional patrol on high traffic weekends. The grant funding is a cooperative effort with the area law enforcement agencies; and 2) In 2014 the City received DEED Housing Rehab funding to allow residents in a designated area to apply for funding for rehab. The grant amount awarded was $ 600,000 with approximately 75% of the funding exhausted. The grant is due to expire December 31, 2016. Tax Classifications Property Classification 2014 Assessment Payable 2015 2014 Assessment Payable 2015 Residential $ 239,167,900 Commercial $ 60,144,800 Tax Exempt $ 164,048,700 $ 169,207,000 Other $ 8,797,600 Total $ 472,153,000 $ 486,714,900 4 Donations The City of St. Joseph is fortunate to have generous service clubs and residents who made donations for various projects during 2015. The total value of donations in 2015 equaled: $40,823.08. The following is a summary of donations: Donor Purpose Donation Anonymous Fire Department $1,325.00 St. Joseph Lions Fire Dept. Chairs/Tables $1,000.00 C&L Excavating Movie in the Park $400.00 Central MN Credit Union Movie in the Park $400.00 St. Joseph Lions Club Movie in the Park $400.00 GM Drilling Movie in the Park $400.00 Sentry Bank Movie in the Park $400.00 CMS Auto Body Movie in the Park $400.00 Astech Corporation Movie in the Park $400.00 Brenny Transportation Movie in the Park $400.00 Borgert Products Movie in the Park $400.00 Russell Eyecare & Associates Movie in the Park $400.00 Omann Insurance Agency Movie in the Park $400.00 MN Home Improvement Movie in the Park $400.00 Mosquito Squad of St. Cloud Movie in the Park $400.00 Anonymous Aquatics Brochure $110.00 GearBox Aquatics Brochure $340.00 St. Joseph Lions Warming House $181.27 St. Joseph Lions Footgolf $200.00 St. Joseph Jaycees Footgolf $200.00 Brenny Transportation Footgolf $200.00 Central MN Credit Union Footgolf $200.00 Scherer Trucking Footgolf $200.00 McDonalds Footgolf $200.00 Scheels Footgolf $150.00 Anonymous Disc Golf $164.22 Anonymous Archery Range $410.81 Anonymous Millstream Camping $741.78 College of St. Benedicts Annual Donation $20,000 Sisters of the Order of St. Benedict Fire Department $10,000 2015 TOTAL $40,823.08 BUILDING CODES The Building Official is responsible for administering the MN State Building Code and the primary services include: building permit administration and plan review; building code enforcement and inspections; mechanical and plumbing enforcement and inspections; rental housing licensing and inspections and sign enforcement. All building permit applications are reviewed for zoning compliance. The table below is a summary of building permit activity. 5 Building Permit Type (excludes Plumbing & Mechanical 2013 2014 2015 permits) Residential Dwelling Multi Family New Construction - - - New Single Family – Detached 2 - - New Single Family – Attached 4 6 7 Remodel/Addition 15 17 18 Residential Accessory Accessory Building 6 8 9 Deck 11 11 14 Other 90 110 165 Total Residential – Number of Permit 128 149 213 Total Residential Market Value Increase $2,049,308.81 $2,039,966.80 Commercial/Industrial New Construction 3 - 2 Accessory Structure 1 - - Addition 3 - 3 Sign (permanent) 3 2 6 Other 33 35 64 Total Commercial/Industrial – Number of Permit 43 37 75 Total Commercial/Industrial Market Value Increase $2,488,414.40 $2,753,487.00 Housing Programs In 2014 the City Council set aside $ 50,000 to be used as a single family housing incentive to help offset the water and sewer access fee. The incentive included waiving $ 5,000 of the water/sewer access fee to the first 10 single family building permits with a program end date of November 2014. In 2014 one building permit was issued with the incentive and in 2015 four more were issued. The remaining credits will carry forward to 2016. The City Council partnered with the Central MN Housing Partnership to seek federal funding which would allow the Housing Partnership to purchase and improve the affordable housing on Baker Street East. In the grant application the City agreed to waive the building permit fee and reduce the rental inspection fees for a three year period. The City and Housing Partnership were awarded funding for the project in 2015. PLANNING COMMISSION Steve Olson Term Expires: January 2018 Matt Johnson Term Expires: January 2018 Gina Dullinger Term Expires: January 2018 Chad Hausmann Term Expires: January 2016 Daryl Schaefer Term Expires: January 2017 Rick Schultz Council Liaison 6 The Planning Commission conducted its business on the first Monday of each month at 6:00 PM in the City Council Chambers at City Hall and is an advisory commission appointed by the City Council. The primary role of the Planning Commission is to hear requests and provide recommendations to the City Council on land use matters to include: variances, special/conditional use permits, ordinance amendments, rezoning, plats and/or subdivisions and development requests. The Planning Commission is also charged with planning for the future and developing and managing the Comprehensive Plan for the City. 2015 Highlights In 2015 the Planning Commission conducted 7 meetings, including one joint session with the City Council, Park Board and Economic Development Authority. The following is a summary of Planning Commission activities: Variance The Planning Commission conducted two (2) hearings for Variance, one for Jasmine Plat reducing the wetland setback to 20 feet and one for Kwik Trip reducing the required setback for signs and allowed a reduction in the greenspace adjacent to CSAH 75. The Council subsequently accepted the recommendation of the Planning Commission and issued the variances as requested. Special Use The Planning Commission considered one (1) request for special use. Kwik Trip submitted the special use request along with the variance and preliminary/final plat approval. The request allowed for a convenience store with fuel and carwash in the B-2 Highway 75 Business District. The Council subsequently accepted the recommendation of the Planning Commission and issued the Special Use Permit as requested. Interim Use The Planning Commission conducted four (4) public hearings for Interim Use. Two permits requested were for owner-occupied rentals and two requests were for non-owner occupied rentals. Three of the four requests were approved by the City Council following Planning Commission recommendation for approval. One non-owner occupied rental request was tabled until May 1, 2016, allowing staff and the Police Department to address the concerns raised by the property owner. The permits expire in 2016 and can be renewed for an additional year and after the second year the property can no longer serve as a non-owner occupied rental. Preliminary/Final Plat The Planning Commission considered two requests for Preliminary and Final Plat approval. The first entitled Jasmine Plat is located in the Northland Heights Addition and consists of ten (10) residential lots. The development allows for the connection of Jasmine Lane and will provide a secondary ingress/egress for residents in the Northland Heights addition. 7 The second request for Preliminary and Final Plat approval was submitted by Kwik Trip to construct a convenience store providing fuel, carwash services, and groceries. The plat was developed due to difficulty in determining the exact location of property boundaries. Both the Jasmine and Kwik Trip Preliminary/Final Plats were recommended for approval by the Planning Commission and subsequently approved by the City Council. Ordinance Amendments In 2015 the St. Joseph Code of Ordinances was renumbered to allow for additional ordinances to be added. During 2015, Ordinance 201 was amended to state that Council packets will made available at least two days prior to City Council meetings. Ordinance 701 was amended to include a provision regulation the operation of a brew/taproom. Lastly, Ordinance 1013 Refuse Hauler was created to regulate Commercial Refuse Haulers within the City. JOINT PLANNING BOARD Rick Schultz City Planning Commission Jeff Janssen Township Supervisor Steve Olson City Planning Commission Jerome Salzer Township Supervisor Gina Dullinger City Planning Commission Brenda Stanger Township Supervisor Bob Loso City Council Mark Thompson Township Planning Judy Weyrens Administrator to Board Mark Bromenschenkl Stearns County Com. In 2010 the City and Township of St. Joseph and Stearns County executed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) streamlining the development process in the Orderly Annexation Area. The MOU creates a Joint Planning Board which has exclusive authority over land use and zoning issues in the OA area. The Board consists of the following: City Representation – One member of the City Council and three from the Planning Commission; Township Representation – One member for the Township Board and three members from the Planning Commission; Stearns County Representation – District County Commission (ex-officio, non-voting). The Joint Planning Board conducts its business the second Monday each month, as needed, at 7:00 PM in the St. Joseph City Hall. In 2015 the Joint Planning Board met six (7) times. The following is a summary of activities: Rezoning All property within the Orderly Annexation Area (OAA) is zoned Urban Expansion (UE) and allows for one dwelling unit per 40 acres as the OAA is an area of transition. In 2015 the Joint Planning Board considered and denied one (1) request for rezoning. The request was to rezone a property from commercial to Urban Expansion. It was the Board’s findings that the residential use of the property could remain as such without having to rezone the property. Preliminary Plat The Joint Planning Board conducted one public hearing to consider approval of the Preliminary Plat entitled River Ridge Estates. The Preliminary Plat was approved contingent upon meeting the concerns brought forward 8 by Stearns County, as well as the Township and City Engineers. In December, the Joint Planning Board met to consider the Final Plat. Not all final documents had been submitted and outstanding items had not been resolved. The Board tabled discussion for thirty (30) days anticipating that all items will be resolved and final documents will be submitted for review in early 2016. Conditional/Interim Use The Joint Planning Board conducted two public hearings for conditional use. The first allowed a contractor yard in the Urban Expansion area. The second allowed the construction of approximately two (2) miles of new 115 kilovolt (kV) transmission lines in St. Joseph Township. FACILITY COMMITTEE In 2014 committee was established to review all the facility needs of the City and hired WSB as a consultant to facilitate the process. In 2015 WSB presented the final report to the City Council which indicated that the Community ranked the need for a community center as the first priority for building and public safety as second. In September 2015 the City purchased the former Colts Academy property for the community center. However, the City will not have full use of facility until at least June 2017. Since the first priority had been identified and a plan established, the City Council enlisted the assistance of the facility committee to revisit the plans designed for the Government Center. Since the property purchased by the City includes additional acreage, the Council requested the Committee determine if the building that was designed in 2013 could be placed on the Colts property. During 2015 and early 2016 the Facility Committee met six times and recommended the Council market the existing City facility and authorize the construction of a government center to house the police, administration and council. COMMUNICATIONS The City of St. Joseph’s means of communications with the residents are as follows: Website Residents of St. Joseph are able to use the City website www.cityofstjoseph.com as an informational and productive resource. The website is monitored and updated by City Staff, including information such as:  Agendas, Minutes, and meeting packets for the Council, Boards, and Commission  An “Upcoming Events” section which shows all upcoming meetings  Contact information for City Staff and members of the Council, Boards, and Commission  Updated City Ordinances  The bi-monthly Newsletter  Building permit activity reports 9  Updated budget and fee schedule information  City maps  Information about Parks within the City In addition, residents are able to access forms for their convenience. Such forms include; building permit applications, dog license applications, and park and fire hall reservation forms. The website also allows residents to pay their utility bills, compost permit fees, and dog license fees online. Residents can report any concerns they may have utilizing the “Report a Concern” function. The Administrator is notified once the concern has been submitted and takes the necessary action on a case by case basis. There were twenty-eight (28) concerns submitted in 2015. The types of concerns varied and all were acted upon by City Staff. Newsletter In the Know in St. Joseph, is the bi-monthly newsletter that is sent to residents with their utility bills. It can also be accessed on the homepage of the website. The newsletter provides any updates, holiday information, and reminders for the residents. A few businesses in St. Joseph have submitted their ads to appear in the newsletter as well. Cable Access Channel The cable access channel serves as an additional informational resource to residents of St. Joseph. The channel consists of informational slides that include contact information for City Council members and department heads, any upcoming events in the City, and any updates/reminders for that particular season. In additional all regular City Council and Planning Commission are broadcast live and repeated once each week. 10