Call Meeting to Order

The meeting was called to order at 1:32 p.m.

Members Present

Mayor Paul Skrede, Public Works Supervisor Jerry Hudlow, John Menzel, Teresa Pendleton, Police Chief Cory Johnson, City Administrator Dana Young

Members Absent

Jon Monson

Also in Attendance

Nick McAndrews and Daniel Klauer from Holy Family School were also in attendance to monitor the meeting for a school assignment.

Lighting at Thorpe Park

Dana Young stated that Bonne St. James, 18390 Minnetonka Blvd, intended to be at today’s meeting to complain about the new lights at Thorpe Park but was unable to attend due to an illness. He stated that Ms. St. James has complained that the lighting is too bright and has given her migraines and their brightness has prevented her from observing the night sky. He added that Ms. St. James has fewer objections now that the light fixtures have been replaced with high sodium bulbs but she would still like the lights placed on a timer so that the lights would automatically shut off at 10:00 p.m.

Paul Skrede stated that the Committee made the decision last year to install lighting at Thorpe Park to enhance the safety of park patrons and to allow better visibility for the police to monitor the park. He stated that he would certainly be willing to continue to evaluate the effectiveness of the lights but would want the lights to continue to be used.

Winter Vacation Policy for Public Works

The Committee reviewed the following draft of a proposed Winter Vacation Policy for public works employees:

WINTER VACATION LEAVE POLICY FOR PUBLIC WORK EMPLOYEES

1. Introduction

The City of Deephaven believes that the safety of the public is greatly enhanced by clearing city streets on a timely basis. In order to accomplish this task, it is important that the City utilize all members of its public works department in the most efficient manner possible by ensuring their availability during the snow plowing season.

2. Scheduling of Vacation Leave

The Public Works Union Contract and Chapter 3 of the Deephaven City Code both grant the Public Works Supervisor the authority to grant and schedule vacation leave to the employees of the Public Work Department. The Supervisor shall not schedule more than one Public Works Employee at one time to be on vacation leave during the snow plowing season unless prior approval is granted by the City Council.

3. Snow Plowing Season

The snow plowing season shall be defined as between December 1^st and April 1^st.

Motion by Paul Skrede to recommend approval of the Winter Vacation Policy for Public Works Employees. Seconded by Jerry Hudlow. Motion carried 6-0.

Further discussion was held regarding the recent snowfalls on December 22^nd and December 25^th. Jerry Hudlow stated that both Dave Svoboda and Officer Ben Nordell had helped the City crew with plowing for about four hours each on December 22^nd when both John Menzel and Doug Lawver were on vacation. Paul Skrede recommended that both individuals should be sent a letter thanking them for their efforts.

Teresa Pendleton stated that she had received a number of complaints last week regarding the clearing of the streets. Discussion was held regarding a complaint from Mike Helmer on the lack of sand and salt at the Vine Hill Road & Hwy. 7 intersection on December 22^nd. Jerry Hudlow reported that Randy Clay had been called out by the Police that evening and had sanded a number of city streets but not this intersection.

Paul Skrede stated that it might be helpful if staff would publish the City’s snow plowing policy in the Newsletter so that residents had a much better idea on when and under what circumstances the crew plows streets, trails and ice rinks.

Further discussion was held on the maintenance of the ice rinks and on a recent incident when a resident requested that the crew water the Village Hall ice rink. Paul Skrede stated that it should be the sole discretion of the public works department to decide when to apply water to the rinks and the decision should not be based upon the request of a resident.

The Safety Committee adjourned on a motion by Dana Young, seconded by Teresa Pendleton. Motion carried 6-0.

Bridge Repair Update

Dana Young stated that Hennepin County Engineer Bernie Johns has been contacted regarding two outstanding items concerning the County’s repair of the City Bridges:

Northome Bridge - the guardrail at Northome Bridge had been installed to hold the riprap for slope protection instead of using grout.

Vine Hill Bridge - the east ends of both pier caps were suppose to be repaired by sandblasting the rebar, and forming and pouring concrete over the rebar.

He stated that Bernie Johns had noted that the work had not been completed at Vine Hill Bridge and would inspect the bridge.

2008 Project Schedule

The Committee reviewed the following 2008 Project Schedule:

Item	Budget
Hill Park Improvements	3,000
Paddle Tennis Park	50,000
City Hall Memorial Park	5,000
City Hall Sign Landscaping	3,500
(2) Emergency Sirens	40,000
Radar Read Water Meters	24,500
Sewer TV & Rodding	37,500
Honeysuckle / Fairhomes	75,000
St. Louis Bay Dock	35,000

Paul Skrede requested that staff contact Minnetonka Portable Dredging to get a better idea on when they might be starting the St. Louis Bay dock addition. He stated that it would also be helpful to inform them that the City begins aerating the docks on March 15^th so that the contractor could schedule the dock installation accordingly.

Adjournment

Motion to adjourn by Paul Skrede, seconded by Jerry Hudlow. Motion carried 5-0. The meeting adjourned at 2:32 p.m. The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Public Works & Safety Committee will be held on Wednesday, February 6, 2008.