[00:00] Mary Supple: All right, well, good evening, everyone. It is May 28th at 7:00 p.m., and I'm calling to order the City Council meeting of the City of Richfield. If you are able, please stand and join us for the Pledge of Allegiance. [00:15] All: I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. [00:30] Mary Supple: Thank you. Next, we'll move on to the Open Forum. You can call into the Open Forum by dialing 1-415-655-0001. The meeting ID is 2634 242 5959, and the password is one-two-three-four. Um, if you are here to speak in person, you may also speak. Um, whether you're online or in person, you should please identify yourself and state your address, and you have three minutes to address us. Is there anybody who wishes to speak that's online? Doesn't look like it. All right, is there anyone in the audience who wishes to speak? All right, we have one person. Thank you. [01:10] Rod Sather: Good evening. I'm Rod Sather. I live at 6321 Thomas Avenue South in Richfield, and I'd just like to say thank you to the City Council and city staff for working on the, um, Airbnbs and, uh, VRBOs, short-term rentals, to bring the City of Richfield in line with neighboring communities. Uh, I appreciate your efforts and, uh, I want to thank you for moving this forward. Thank you. [01:35] Mary Supple: Thank you. Is there anyone else who wishes to speak? All right, seeing that there's no one else here or online, we'll move on from the Open Forum. Um, next we will go to the approval of the minutes of the City Council meeting of May 14th, 2024. [01:50] Council Member: So moved. [01:51] Council Member: Second. [01:52] Mary Supple: It's been moved and seconded. Is there any comments or questions? Hearing none, all in favor please say aye. [01:58] All: Aye. [01:59] Mary Supple: All opposed? We have approved the minutes. Next, we'll move on to the approval of the agenda. [02:04] Council Member Wayan: I move approval. [02:05] Council Member: Second. [02:06] Mary Supple: It's been moved and seconded to approve the agenda. Any comments, questions, or changes? All in favor of approving the agenda, please say aye. [02:14] All: Aye. [02:15] Mary Supple: All opposed? We've approved the agenda. Our next item of business is a proclamation from the City of Richfield celebrating Pride Month that was forwarded to us by the Human Rights Commission. So I would ask Human Rights Commissioner Mara Glupa to meet me at the podium. Oh, we had a very well-attended work session, so. All right, this is a Proclamation of the City of Richfield: "Whereas, Pride Month is a positive stance against discrimination and violence toward individuals who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual (LGBTQIA+) and celebrates sexual and gender identities; and whereas, the Richfield City Council and staff identified celebrating diversity and being equitable as core values, recognizing that our diverse culture is one of our greatest strengths and assets; and whereas, the month of June was chosen for Pride Month to commemorate the Stonewall Riots, which occurred in June 1969 and became a catalyst for the LGBTQIA+ movement; and whereas, the LGBTQIA+ people have made and continue to make great and lasting contributions to the City of Richfield and to the greater community; and whereas, while the LGBTQIA+ civil rights movement has achieved great progress, some states are reversing that progress and there remains a great deal more to be had; and whereas, the Richfield Human Rights Commission supported this proclamation at its May 7th, 2024, meeting and recommended the Richfield City Council do the same. And now, therefore, I, Mary Supple, Mayor of Richfield, on behalf of the Richfield City Council, do hereby proclaim the month of June 2024 as Pride Month in the City of Richfield and call on the people of Richfield to observe this month with appropriate programs, activities, ceremonies, and continue to honor the contributions of LGBTQIA+ residents throughout the year." Proclaimed this 28th day of May, 2024. Thank you. [04:15] Mara Glupa: Thank you, Mary. [04:16] Mary Supple: Thank you. Would you like to say a couple words? [04:18] Mara Glupa: Well, just that since I moved to Richfield in, uh, 2015, it's been a pleasant surprise how welcoming the city has been. I had no idea what the community was like when I first moved here. I was just looking for a place that I felt was safe for someone like me, and it turned out that the whole community was pretty good. And that's—that's something I would like to recognize and be thankful for. So thank you so much. [04:45] Mary Supple: All right, thank you. Is there any other comments or questions anybody would like to add? Um, Council Member Wayan? [04:54] Council Member Wayan: I'll just briefly say, Mara, thank you. Um, thank you for being part of helping to make Richfield and our state more welcoming. Um, that—that is not a—a passive state of being; that's something we actively have to keep striving for. And I know that you've made that, um, some of your life's work and really appreciate that. So thank you. [05:15] Mary Supple: Yes, thank you. Anybody else? All right, thank you so much. Our next item of business is the Consent Calendar, and I will turn it over to City Manager Rodriguez. [05:25] Katie Rodriguez: Thank you, Mayor. The Consent Calendar contains several separate items which are acted upon by the City Council in one motion. Once the Consent Calendar has been approved, the individual items and recommended actions have also been approved. No further Council action on these items is necessary. On tonight's Consent Calendar: Item A, consider the approval of the first reading of an ordinance amending Section 925.2 relating to the regulation of vacant buildings. Item B, consider adoption of a resolution accepting a Safe Routes to School infrastructure grant from the Minnesota Department of Transportation. Item C, consider the adoption of a resolution authorizing a Cooperative Construction Agreement Number 1055963 between the City of Richfield and the State of Minnesota Department of Transportation for construction of the Highway 62 noise wall project between Xerxes Avenue and Penn Avenue. Item D, consider the Joint Powers Agreement to enable Richfield to provide an alternative response for selective 911 calls in a manner that most effectively and efficiently supports and protects the physical, mental, and behavioral health of individuals in the cities of Richfield and Edina. And I submit these items for your consideration as part of the Consent Calendar. [06:40] Mary Supple: Thank you. Do we have a motion? [06:42] Council Member: So moved. [06:43] Council Member: Second. [06:44] Mary Supple: It's been moved and seconded. Are there any comments or questions? All right, Council Member Wayan. [06:48] Council Member Wayan: Uh, thank you, Mayor. I would just lift up Item D, um, relating to an alternative response model. Um, I'm ex—we just had a work session if folks are interested, um, in the fuller, uh, description of what this will be. The conversation that we just had about it, would encourage folks to listen to the recording, uh, once that is posted. Um, but the—the short summary is just that this will be a new—a new way to provide better service to residents with, um, often mental health and behavioral health needs, uh, who have an urgent situation but may not need, uh, an ambulance or police officer, which have been the traditional responses we've had. And so, um, trying to better align our responses with the needs of residents, and I'm really excited about this and appreciated the conversation earlier. Thank you. [07:40] Mary Supple: Any other comments or questions? Council Member Hayford Oleary. [07:43] Sean Hayford Oleary: I just want to express my excitement about the noise wall project moving forward. Um, we have a Transportation Commission member who every single meeting asks for an update on that noise wall. He lives in one of the streets that's affected by it. Um, and particularly, you know, usually we only get these noise walls when the highway is being expanded. So being able to get it through the standalone program and still only putting in 10 to 20% with our [share] is a—is a big win for Richfield. It's the sort of thing that it would have been great if this was the—the policy in the '60s to get these, but um, we've been waiting around for a very long time and I know it's a very welcome addition to that neighborhood. Thank you. [08:25] Mary Supple: Any other comments or questions? Council Member Troutman. [08:29] Council Member Troutman: Hey, thank you, Mayor. I just wanted to add, uh, briefly to—to what, uh—uh, Council Member Wayan shared. Um, it was—it was really helpful to hear about just how proactive, uh, our—our police and fire have—have been in recognizing that this is an opportunity. I just want to lift up not just for our law enforcement, but for our firefighters who a lot of times, you know, have—have really critical resources in our trucks and, um, the infrastructure to fight fires, but we—we use those to respond to mental health calls sometimes, a lot—a lot of times, a growing number of times. So it really is, um, forward-thinking and important, and we're not the first in the state to do this, but really I just want to recognize the leadership, uh, that our fire and public safety have demonstrated by getting our city more tools to help folks in—in all manner of distress. So I'm looking forward to supporting this. Thank you. [09:20] Mary Supple: I'm not seeing any other comments or questions, so all in favor of approving the Consent Calendar, please say aye. [09:26] All: Aye. [09:27] Mary Supple: All opposed? We have approved the Consent Calendar. We'll next move on to the City Manager's report. [09:34] Katie Rodriguez: Thank you, Mayor. Nothing to report tonight. [09:37] Mary Supple: All right, then we will go on to claims and payroll. [09:40] Council Member Troutman: I would move claims and payroll. [09:42] Council Member: Second. [09:43] Mary Supple: It's been moved and seconded to approve claims and payroll. Are there any questions or comments? I did think it was really interesting seeing all the ARPA money being put to use and the trees being taken down and different various things, so it was—I know it's kind of like an accounting thing, but it—you get to see the city programs taking place and going on, so that was really good. So all in favor of approving claims and payroll, please say aye. [10:07] All: Aye. [10:08] Mary Supple: All opposed? We have approved claims and payroll. Next, we'll move on to the "Hats Off to Hometown Hits." Council Member Troutman. [10:17] Council Member Troutman: Thank you, Mayor. Uh, I just wanted to—to recognize our—all—all the leaders on the board of our Honoring All Veterans Memorial. Um, we had about—and everybody who came out to—to support the event—we had about 300 people that came out, and, um, they made the decision to—to come under the picnic, uh, canopy, and everything was—was beautiful. The sky was sunny, uh, at 2:00, and, uh, there—there are some people saying, "Why on earth would we—would we come under here on such a beautiful day?" And about 45 minutes later, it started to—to downpour. And, um, and Leslie Farum and, uh, and everybody who made those tough calls. Um, sometimes you make tough calls and you—you just don't know and you get it wrong; they made every tough call and they made it right, and it worked out perfectly. And, um, for everybody that supported all veterans, but especially, uh, veterans who've lost their lives, uh, and their families, uh, it was a great event. And so I'm really proud that Richfield has taken that on and as part of our city identity. Um, and, um, it was a great event. Thank you. [11:28] Mary Supple: Council Member Hayford Oleary. [11:30] Sean Hayford Oleary: No items tonight. Thank you. [11:32] Mary Supple: Council Member Christensen. [11:34] Sharon Christensen: Yes, I'd like to give a hats off to, uh, both, uh, the Richfield Dual Language School and Centennial Schools this past few weeks. Um, as a liaison to the Arts Commission, we had the—I had the opportunity of, uh, helping out with their carnival. And it was really fun kind of doing, uh, different projects, art projects with the kids. And these two schools that—they requested us to do was, um, marble painting. So that was kind of a—a new, interesting type of art project that we did with the kids. So it was a big hit. So thank you. [12:05] Mary Supple: Council Member Wayan. [12:06] Council Member Wayan: Thank you, Mayor. Um, one note from our Recreation Department and the Community Services Commission that we do now have, uh, three park buildings—um, let's see if I get these right—Jefferson, Madison, and Washington, I believe. Um, who—former warming houses that have been closed for several years, um, but are now, uh, emptied out of storage, any storage that was there, cleaned up, and are available for rent. Um, I know one of the things we've heard for many years is, um, a need for more community gathering spaces in Richfield. Um, and so they're not huge, but they are great for, um, small parties; they're very affordable. Uh, so would encourage folks, um, looking to host gatherings to check those out. Um, and then an update from the Sustainability Commission that's not quite live yet, but within the next couple weeks, um, a digital sustainability guide that they've been working on, um, for over a year now, um, that's quite comprehensive and will have some resources, ideas, questions for everything from electric bikes to, uh, composting to, um, rain gardens and rain barrels, uh, all—all sorts of things—um, like, uh, reducing your energy footprint, um, all sorts of resources, um, that are relevant and local and put together by Richfield residents. So, um, that'll be shared out soon on our website and social media, um, and certainly I know they've been talking about, um, making it available at some upcoming events. Thank you. [13:38] Mary Supple: I would like to do a hats off to the Public Works Department. They've been doing a lot of, um, engagement for the changes for the speed limit for Richfield, "Richfield Drives 25." They were out at the farmers market and they've been working to get the, um, make the signs that are going to be put up and get information out to the public. They'll also be at our State of the Community event on June 11th from 4:30 to, um, 6:30, and we're hoping that they're going to actually have lawn signs then. So if you want to put up a lawn sign in your yard to help with the information, that would be great. And we'd love you all to come out to that State of the Community event here at the Municipal, um, Center from 4:30 to 6:30 on June 11th. In addition, specifically from the Public Works Department, I wanted to give a shout-out to Matt Harder, who put together the proposal to try and get funding for design and planning for a pedestrian bridge across 73rd Street. So that's going forward, um, through the process, and we're hoping it'll get approved in Congress so that we can get some aid to help pay for that. So thank you to Matt. Um, this morning I was able to have lunch with a bunch of fourth graders at RDLS, and it was a lot of fun. So a shout-out to all the kids in the community. And finally, um, in addition to the Memorial Day event that Council Member Troutman mentioned, there were a group of, um, veterans who ride motorcycles that did kind of an honor roll, honor guard that took off from by the Richfield Ice Arena and went out to, um, Fort Snelling. So I wanted to thank all of the people that participated in the ride as well as the, um, police who escorted from Richfield and the Bloomington and Richfield Fire Departments that helped put the big flag up. So that was a great event, and I'm hoping next year we can get more people aware of it so we can have a crowd that can cheer them on as they head out from Richfield. So thank you to everyone that was involved in that. And then in a matter of housekeeping here—I'll send a follow-up email on this—but it looks like June 18th at 5:30 works the best for our closed session that we're going to have for purposes of staff evaluation. So is there anything else that we want to add? All right, thank you all. We stand adjourned. [15:45] Council Member: Okay, I move we adjourn. [15:46] Council Member: Second. [15:47] Mary Supple: It's been moved and seconded to adjourn. All in favor, please say aye. [15:49] All: Aye. [15:50] Mary Supple: All opposed? Okay, now we stand adjourned. Thank you.