2022.06.21 Work Session Packet
4141 Douglas Drive North • Crystal, Minnesota 55422-1696
Tel: (763) 531-1000 • Fax: (763) 531-1188 • www.crystalmn.gov
Posted: June 17, 2022
City Council Work Session Agenda
Tuesday, June 21, 2022 at 6 p.m.
Council Chambers/Zoom
Pursuant to due call and notice given in the manner prescribed by Section 3.01 of the City
Charter, the work session of the Crystal City Council was held on Tuesday, June 21, 2022 at
_____ p.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 4141 Douglas Dr. N., Crystal, Minnesota. If the
agenda items are not completed in time for the regular City Council meeting at 7 p.m., the work
session will be continued and resumed immediately following the Economic Development
Authority meeting. The public may attend the meeting via Zoom by connecting to it through
one of the methods identified on the City Council Meeting Schedule for Tuesday, June 21, 2022.
I. Attendance
Council members Staff
____ Parsons ____ Norris ____ Sutter
____ Adams ____ Therres ____ Serres
____ Banks ____ Gilchrist
____ Budziszewski ____ Elholm
____ Cummings ____ Larson
____ Kiser ____ Ray
____ LaRoche ____ Revering
II. Agenda
The purpose of the work session is to discuss the following agenda items:
1. Update from Three Rivers Park District on the Canadian Pacific Rail Regional Trail
master planning project.
2. Electric vehicle charging station options.
3. 6:45 p.m. - commission applicant interview.
4. City manager monthly check-in.
5. Constituent issues update.
6. New business. *
7. Announcements. *
III. Adjournment
The work session adjourned at ______ p.m.
* Denotes no supporting information included in the packet.
Auxiliary aids are available upon request to individuals with disabilities by calling the city clerk at
(763) 531-1145 at least 96 hours in advance. TTY users may call Minnesota Relay at 711 or 1-800-627-3529.
4141 Douglas Drive North • Crystal, Minnesota 55422-1696
Tel: (763) 531-1000 • Fax: (763) 531-1188 • www.crystalmn.gov
Memorandum
DATE: June 16, 2022
TO: Mayor and City Council
Anne Norris, City Manager
FROM: John Elholm, Recreation Director
SUBJECT: CP Rail Regional Trail Update
Three Rivers Park District has begun planning for the CP Rail Regional Trail; a future paved, non-
motorized trail that will eventually go from Becker Park in Crystal to the Minnesota River in
Bloomington. This new regional trail will connect to the Crystal Lake Regional Trail and Bassett
Creek Regional Trail in Crystal; along with several other regional trails to the south. While originally
intended to follow the CP Rail Corridor, current planning efforts are reviewing trail options within ½
mile of the corridor.
The current planning focus is the section through Crystal, New Hope and Golden Valley – to
connect Becker Park in Crystal to the Luce Line Regional Trail in Golden Valley. Three Rivers Park
District staff attended community events this spring to build awareness of the project and collect
input on preferred destinations. They also met with city staff, the park and recreation commission
and the planning commission to review potential route alternatives. Additional public input on the
regional trail plan will take place over the summer.
Staff from Three Rivers Park District will present information at the work session; including planning
efforts to date, initial route options being considered and next steps in the planning process.
CP Rail Regional Trail: Golden Valley/New Hope/Crystal
Luce Line RT to Crystal Lake RT Segment (Segments E and F)
May/June 2022 Update
Three Rivers Park District Co-Project Managers
Kelly Grissman, Director of Planning
Kelly.Grissman@threeriversparks.org
Danny McCullough, Regional Trail System Manager
Danny.McCullough@threeriversparks.org
Brief Project Summary
The CP Rail Regional Trail is envisioned as a north-south multi-use, non-motorized recreational corridor spanning from
the Minnesota Valley State Trail in Bloomington to Crystal Lake Regional Trail in Crystal at Becker Park. The regional trail
will be planned in segments to allow for thoughtful community engagement and detailed route analysis. This phase will
focus on Segments E and F through Golden Valley, New Hope and Crystal between the Luce Line and Crystal Lake
Regional Trails.
The regional trail corridor was originally centered along the CP Rail line; however, this is not feasible for most of the
corridor. Alternative routes will be identified and studied during the master planning process to determine which option
best balances feasibility, cost, private property impacts, and safety.
Initial Community Engagement: Awareness Building and Destination Preference Summary (May/June)
Three Rivers staff attended a few community events that drew participants from all three communities to ask about
where people want to walk, bike or visit and to start building awareness of the master planning work. A summary of this
engagement is below.
Event Background Feedback Summary
Paso a Paso
April 30 @ Cooper High School in New
Hope
Event was attended primarily by Spanish
speaking community members as part of
the Step To It Challenge Kick-Off
• Generally people seemed excited about a new paved, off-road trail
• About 180 people visited the Three Rivers table; however, few
participated in the mapping activity due to familiarity with the
project location as they were from an adjacent community and
language barrier (instructions and icons were translated to Spanish
but other map components like streets/park names were not).
Bike Rodeo
May 5 @ Golden Valley City Hall
Event was attended primarily for youth
ages 3-10 and their families to encourage
and support safe youth bicycling
• Parks and Community Centers, specifically Bassett Creek Park are
popular, desired destinations. Schools and visiting friends and
family were also desired popular, destinations.
• About 65 people stopped by the project table. Of those that
actively engaged: about half were under 10 years old and about a
third were 35-59 years old.
Vehicle Fair
June 4 @ the Crystal Community Center
Event was attended primarily by families
with young children from Crystal and
surrounding cities
• Access to other parks and trails were the most desired destinations.
• One family commented on the desire to not place the trail on any
main roads such as Douglas or Winnetka due to traffic volumes and
crossings to go east and west.
• In total 25 comments, with over half coming from people 18-34
years old.
Preliminary Route Review/Approval for Public Engagement (May/June)
The project team comprised of Golden Valley, New Hope, Crystal, and Three Rivers staff as well as Toole, the project
consultant, have identified three general routes (separate hand out) for preliminary review and for approval to proceed
with public engagement. These routes were identified based on existing bike/trail/sidewalk plans, connectivity to
parks/school/local destination, potential impact on adjacent properties, anticipated feasibility and project team input.
This information will be shared and discussed at the commission and council meetings listed on the following page.
City Meetings/Groups
Golden Valley Open Space and Recreation Commission: May 23
City Council: June 14 (City staff will share the project information)
New Hope Citizen Advisory Commission: June 14
City Council: June 20
Crystal Park and Recreation Commission: June 13
City Council: June 21
Tentative Community Engagement Plan: Route Review (July/August)
Three Rivers is preparing a community engagement plan to gather input from the general public, existing regional trail
users, adjacent property owners/residents and targeted community groups (youth/seniors, BIPOC, persons from
households with an annual income of $50,000, Hispanic/Latino, and new residents (refugees/immigrants) through July
and August. The offerings outlined in the draft working engagement plan are still being confirmed and will be modified
to ensure participation from all identified groups. All dates/times/events are subject to change.
Interested parties are encouraged to visit the project website (CP Rail Regional Trail Master Plan | Let's Talk Three Rivers
(letstalkthreerivers.org)) to view the most current listing of upcoming engagement offerings, to learn more about the
master planning efforts, and to provide comments online. Interested parties may request a private phone conference or
virtual meeting with Three Rivers staff by emailing cprailregionaltrailmasterplan@threeriversparks.org.
General Public (2 per city)
City Community Event
Golden Valley Farmers Market (July 10)
Music in the Park/Ice Cream Social (July 11)
New Hope New Hope Summer Theatre Off-Broadway Musical Theatre - Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor
Dreamcoat (Fri or Sat between July 21-August 6)
Farmers Market (Any July/Aug Sat except July 16)
Crystal Crystal Farmers Market (Aug. 2)
Crystal Frolics (July 28-31 – exact date/time TBD)
Existing Regional Trail Users (min. 1 per city)
Bassett Creek Regional Trail Pop Up Northwoods Park in New Hope (Aug. 17)
Valley Place Park in Crystal (Aug. 5)
Luce Line Regional Trail Pop Up Near Winnetka in Golden Valley (July 11)
Near Douglas in Golden Valley (July 13)
Adjacent Property Owners/Residents (variety of times/locations/dates/mechanisms)
Crystal Summer Park Neighborhood Meeting Crystal Highlands Park (July 6)
Virtual Lunch Hour Open House Zoom Mtg (tent. July 20)
Evening Virtual Open House Zoom Mtg (tent. July 20)
In-Person Open House In Person Mtg (tent. July 27)
Small neighborhood block meetings Upon request and in partnership with a ‘neighborhood champion’.
Neighborhood champion would be responsible to coordinate
meeting date/time/location/invite with neighbors.
Private Phone Conference or Virtual Meeting Upon request
Targeted Community Groups (min. 2 community events and/or listening session per targeted community group, prefer
to draw from entire project area when feasible. Engagement opportunities listed below are not yet confirmed and will
change.)
Youth Events
Penny Carnival (July 29)
Wet and Wild Fun Day Valley Place Park (Aug. 5)
Crystal Soccer Camp (July 18-22 – exact date/time TBD)
Golden Valley Little League/Girls Softball/Soccer (TBD)
Listening Sessions
Three Rivers Explorer Camp at Bassett Creek Park in Crystal (Week of Aug 22)
Bike Rangers in Golden Valley (July 11, 18 or 25)
Seniors Events
Bingo and Food Truck Friday at New Hope City Hall (Aug 12)
Listening Sessions
Pedal Pushers in Golden Valley (TBD)
Crystal Park/Event Volunteers Discussion (TBD)
BIPOC Events
Crystal Summer Park Neighborhood Meeting @ Broadway Park (Aug 3)
New Hope Farmers Market (Any Sat in July/Aug except July 16)
Becker Park Pop Up in Partnership with Three Rivers Disc Golf (July 17) or separately
Listening Sessions
TBD
Households with annual
income under $50,000
Events
Prism Food Shelf Pop Up (TBD)
Becker Park Pop Up in Partnership with Three Rivers Disc Golf (July 17) or separately
Low Income/Affordable Housing Pop Up (Location/Date TBD)
Listening Sessions
New Hope Police Dep. Community Engagement (TBD)
Hispanic/Latino Events
Music in the Park: Salsa del Soul (Golden Valley on July 18 or New Hope on Aug. 10)
North Lions Park Pop Up in Crystal (TBD)
Crystal Soccer Camp (July 18-22 – exact date/time TBD)
New Residents Events
New Hope Farmers Market (Any Sat in July/Aug except July 16)
Listening Sessions
African Career, Education, & Resources Inc. (ACER) Bike Event (July/TBD)
Engagement findings will be posted on the Let’s Talk website and shared with decision makers upon completion.
City Support Requested (Ongoing)
Three Rivers is requesting city/project team support on the following:
- Assist with sharing project information via typical city communication channels
- Attend virtual and in-person open houses
- Help coordinate Three Rivers participation at city led events/programs
- Keep local commissioners and council members informed of engagement opportunities and initial feedback
CP Rail Regional Trail Master Plan-Crystal-New Hope-Golden Valley
CP Rail Regional Trail Master Plan
CRYSTAL
•Currently focusing on Segments E and F –between Luce
Line and Crystal Lake Regional Trails
•Likely a year long process –with several check-ins and
opportunities to provide project guidance along the way
•The process will need to look at alternative routes
outside of the CP Rail corridor
•City Park Commission and City Council will be asked to
approve routes for consideration.
CP Rail Regional Trail Master PlanExample of Regional Trail Amenities
Typical Rest Stop
Wayfinding and Fix-it Bike Repair Stations
B
A
C
B
CP RAIL REGIONAL TRAIL MASTER PLAN: Trail Route Review - SEGMENT E / SEGMENT FDouglas Drive NorthDouglas Drive North36th Avenue North36th Avenue North
42nd Avenue North42nd Avenue North
Medicine Lake RoadMedicine Lake Road
Winnetka Avenue NorthWinnetka Avenue North81
81
CRYSTALCRYSTAL
NEW HOPENEW HOPE
GOLDEN VALLEYGOLDEN VALLEY
Future Trail Underpass
(TH 55 at Perpich)
Bassett
Creek Park
Isaacson
Park
New Hope
Ice Arena
Crystal
Community
Center
YMCA
A
A
B C
C
C
A B
CP RAIL REGIONAL TRAIL MASTER PLAN: Trail Route Review - SEGMENT E / SEGMENT FDouglas Drive NorthDouglas Drive North36th Avenue North36th Avenue North
42nd Avenue North42nd Avenue North
Medicine Lake RoadMedicine Lake Road
CRYSTALCRYSTAL
NEW HOPENEW HOPE
GOLDEN VALLEYGOLDEN VALLEYWinnetka Avenue NorthWinnetka Avenue North81
81
Future Trail Underpass
(TH 55 at Perpich)
Bassett
Creek Park
Isaacson
Park
New Hope
Ice Arena Crystal
Community
Center
YMCA
A
A
A
A
CP RAIL REGIONAL TRAIL MASTER PLAN: Trail Route Review - SEGMENT E / SEGMENT FDouglas Drive NorthDouglas Drive North36th Avenue North36th Avenue North
42nd Avenue North42nd Avenue North
Medicine Lake RoadMedicine Lake RoadWinnetka Avenue NorthWinnetka Avenue North81
81
CRYSTALCRYSTAL
NEW HOPENEW HOPE
GOLDEN VALLEYGOLDEN VALLEY
Crystal
Community
Center
Bassett
Creek Park
Future Trail Underpass
(TH 55 at Perpich)
Isaacson
Park
YMCA
New Hope
Ice Arena
B
B
B
B
CP RAIL REGIONAL TRAIL MASTER PLAN: Trail Route Review - SEGMENT E / SEGMENT FDouglas Drive NorthDouglas Drive North36th Avenue North36th Avenue North
42nd Avenue North42nd Avenue North
Medicine Lake RoadMedicine Lake RoadWinnetka Avenue NorthWinnetka Avenue North81
81
CRYSTALCRYSTAL
NEW HOPENEW HOPE
GOLDEN VALLEYGOLDEN VALLEY
Bassett
Creek Park
Isaacson
Park
New Hope
Ice Arena
Crystal
Community
Center
YMCA
Future Trail Underpass
(TH 55 at Perpich)
C
C
C
CP Rail Regional Trail Master PlanEngagement Plan
General:
•Project website with
interactive map
•Online “quick” survey
•Virtual/ In person meetings
with residents directly along
route
•Pop -up engagement and
attendance at community
events
•Direct mailings/newsletters
•Listening sessions/activities
with underrepresented groups
Events for Crystal Residents:
•Bike Rodeo (May 5)
•Vehicle Fair (June 4)
•Farmers Market (Aug 2)
•Crystal Frolics (July 30)
CP Rail Regional Trail Master Plan-CrystalProcess and Schedule
Project Phase Timeframe Park and Rec
Commission Check-in
City Council Check-in
Kick Off Jan-April 2022
Route Identification April-June 2022 Help identify
routes/destinations
Approve routes for
study/engagement
Route Assessment/Public
Engagement
June-July 2022 No official check-in, but will be kept informed of
opportunities/public sentiment
Route Review/Approval Aug-Sept 2022 Will return with summary of engagement and
preferred route
30-day Comment Period Fall 2022 N/A
Master Plan Adoption Winter 2022-23 Resolution of Support will be requested
CP Rail Regional Trail Master Plan
QUESTIONS?
Regional Trail Example –likely similar to
Bassett Creek Regional Trail
Memorandum
DATE: June 21, 2022
TO: City Council
FROM: Mark Ray, PE, Director of Public Works
SUBJECT: Electric vehicle charging stations continued discussion
Summary
At the May 3, 2022 City Council Work session, the Council discussed the potential for electric vehicle
charging stations on city property. The Council indicated that they are interested in learning more about
electric vehicle charging stations and directed staff to gather data on what other cities are doing.
Attached to this memo are two surveys with information.
Fundamentally, there are two basic options for electric vehicle charging stations. Option 1 is the City
owns the electric vehicle charging stations and would be responsible for installation, operation, and
maintenance costs. Option 2 is that the City permits a private vendor to install, own, and operate the
charging stations at City facilities.
Due to the bids for the various parking lot projects being rejected a few weeks ago with construction
being pushed to next year, there is no urgency to decide.
Equity considerations
If the City were to own, operate and maintain the electric vehicle charging stations, then City taxpayers
would be subsiding, primarily the capital cost, owners of electric vehicles. Alternatively, if the City
permits a private vendor to install the charging stations at City facilities, then the City could generate a
very small amount of revenue that could be dedicated to something, such as parks.
Attachments
1)Drive Electric Minnesota survey (https://driveelectricmn.org/)
2)City of Crystal informal neighboring city survey
Council Discussion
1)Is the Council still interested in pursuing electric vehicle charging stations? Yes or No
2)If yes, is the preference permitting a 3rd party vendor via an agreement or City owned?
3)If yes, would the Council like a future work session with some short presentations from potential
vendors?
Recommended Action
No formal actions are needed. Direction on the questions about is desired.
City Charger Charging Access Charging Fee Charger Ownership Charger Vendor
Apple Valley L2 Public + Fleet per kWh City owned & operated ChargePoint
Bloomington L2 Public Access No Fee City owned & operated ChargePoint
Eagan L2 Public + Fleet No Fee City owned ChargePoint
Eden Prairie L2,L1 Public Access,Fleet Only No Fee,Hourly Rate City owned & operated ChargePoint,Tesla
Edina L2 Public + Fleet,Fleet Only
Elk River L2,DCFC Public + Fleet per kWh Third party owned & operated ChargePoint
Falcon Heights
Faribault L2,DCFC Public Access,Public + Fleet per kWh ZEF Energy
Fridley L1,L2 Public + Fleet Limited Time No Fee City owned ChargePoint
Golden Valley L2 Public + Fleet Hourly Rate City owned ChargePoint
Grand Marais L2,DCFC Public Access Hourly Rate,Hookup Fee City owned & operated ZEF Energy
Hackensack
Hutchinson DCFC,L1 Public + Fleet per kWh City owned & operated ChargePoint
Inver Grove Heights
Lake City L2,DCFC Public Access Hookup Fee City owned & operated ZEF Energy
Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe L2,DCFC Public Access
Marine on St. Croix
Minnetonka
Oakdale
Red Lake
Red Wing DCFC Public Access No Fee City owned & operated Other
Rochester L2 Public Access,Fleet Only No Fee City owned & operated
Saint Paul Public Access
Savage L2 Public Access per kWh City owned ChargePoint
Shakopee L2 Public + Fleet City owned & operated State Contract
Shoreview L2 Public Access Limited Time No Fee Leased by city ChargePoint
Shorewood
St. Louis Park L2 Public Access,Fleet Only No Fee City owned & operated ChargePoint
Victoria
White Bear Lake
Winona L2 Public Access Flat Rate
Woodbury L2 Fleet Only
City
Do you have any EV charging
stations in your City on City
property?
Public or
Privately Owned Other details
Minnetonka
Yes, 3 locations with multiple
charges at the city hall campus
(being installed right now).
Public
Xcel has a program that they pay the infrastructure to the locations
and pour the concrete pad at no cost to us. We then purchased the
charges that we will own and operate through Chargepoint. It’s all
app based and we set the fees, however there are annual charges
that come with using Chargepoint.
Brooklyn Center No NA
Edina Yes Public
We have public chargers at City Hall, 2 liquor stores and a parking
ramp. We are adding more this year.
The stations are accessible 24/7 – 365. Charging sessions are free
for the first 2 hours and 15 minutes. Time in excess of the free
amount is charged to the user at a rate of $6.00/hour. The fee
assists with self-regulation, discouraging excessive charging times,
including overnight charging. Upon initial activation of the City’s
first charging station, users were charging well beyond the 2 hour
free limit. In some cases, charging overnight. As soon as the City
activated the fee structure, excessive charging stopped almost
immediately.
We anticipate as use goes up, we will eventually need to remove the
2 free hrs. We don’t know when that will happen. We are trying to
build community wide use first. The other thing I’ll mention is that
while the amount of use past the 2 hour mark is limited, it does
cover the cost of the first 2 hours free that the City pays for in
electricity. Eventually this won’t be the case (we have four chargers
open to the public now, and are adding four more this summer), but
for now the 2 hours free is working and has been since we launched
in 2020. ChargePoint Chargers and Software – we tried greenlots
and are removing it this year. Keeps mal-functioning.
Robbinsdale No NA There are privately owned ones at HyVee.
Brooklyn Park No NA we are ordering at least 2 Ford Lighting ½ ton trucks.
New Hope No NA
St Louis Park Yes Public Free power. At City Hall, Rec Center, Nature Center. No tracking or
Plymouth Yes
Private - Carbon
Solution Group
About 115 charging spots in our parks and municipal areas free of
charge to us. No risk to us and there is a profit sharing component.
We put in $0. And for the spots they use they pay us a monthly rent
fee. Carbon solutions will be building out this year and next.
Maple Grove Yes Private - Blink
Blink to install and operate four electric vehicle charging stations at
transit center
Hopkins Yes
Not sure based
on website Parking ramp and lots
Golden Valley Yes Public
currently have two charging stations (ChargePoints with app) that
are city controlled. We’re starting to explore options for increasing
the amount of chargers in city parks and campuses, and haven’t
made any decisions yet
4141 Douglas Drive North • Crystal, Minnesota 55422-1696
Tel: (763) 531-1000 • Fax: (763) 531-1188 • www.crystalmn.gov
CITY MANAGER WORK PLAN
MONTHLY CHECK IN – JUNE 2022
Objective 1 – Strategic planning for continued implementation of Council
priorities:
o Thriving Business Community
▪ Open To Business assistance available
▪ Community Development staff a resource for local business
community
▪ Several businesses opening or expanding; Community
Development staff continuing to meet with developers regarding
redevelopment opportunities where vacant or underutilized
buildings are
o Strong Neighborhoods
▪ Code enforcement – on-going
▪ Continued implementation of Master Parks System Plan
improvements – grants for pickleball courts at Becker Park and
soccer field at FAIR, working in other park improvements
▪ Home improvement loans/rebates available through CEE- on-
going
o Sound fiscal policies and practices
▪ Long term financial planning on-going
▪ Work on 2023-2024 budget in progress
o Welcoming and inclusive community
▪ Council approved 1st reading of ordinance establishing inclusion
and diversity commission 6/7/22 – second reading on 6/21/22
Objective 2 – Work-life balance
o Connecting with neighboring city managers (met with new Robbinsdale
manager 6/16)
o Participate in metro and state professional organization to stay current
with trends – attended State conference May 4 - 6
o Continue participation in peer group to hone professional skills
(monthly meetings)
o Decision to retire 10/28/22 –work session to discuss options for
transition?
Objective 3 – Monitor difficult conversations regarding Council effectiveness
o Council had productive discussions regarding inclusion/diversity
commission