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November 2012 |
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VICTORIA FORGED A NEW ROAD HWY 5 MARKETING PLAN SUCCESSFUL At its first October meeting, Council looked at the Hwy 5 Marketing Plan which was begun in 2011, one year prior to the now completed Hwy 5 construction project. The report was prepared by Holly Kreft and Cara Geheren, the city's Community Development Director and City Engineer, respectively. Said Holly, "This is a report for city council and also future staff. We learned early on there wasn't a marketing plan out there. Hopefully others can use this. There's also a page on lessons learned. Said Councilmember Kim Roden, "We could sell this. Consultants get a lot of money for things like this." Said Councilmember Tom Strigel, "It is incredibly valuable information." Said Councilmember Jim Crowley, "We tend to learn things in times of need. This should be an ongoing process to continue bringing people to Victoria." Said Councilmember Tom O'Connor, "This was a full blown communications strategy." Said Mayor Mary Thun, "We should use this process to communicate how the city is doing on the new Public Works Building and City Offices." Administrator Don Uram, who had just returned from a City Managers Conference in Phoenix, said the conference was a great opportunity for him to explain the good work that Victoria does. Council had established a budget of $20,000 to promote Victoria during the Hwy 5 project. It was reported that overall the marketing plan was under budget.
SOUTH LAKE VIRGINIA SHORES PARK READY FOR IMPROVEMENTS IN 2013 "We're getting our park back," stated City Engineer Cara Geheren on Monday, October 29th. "They're getting ready to turn the park back over to us." Cara reviewed that the Metropolitan Council began using the city's park property just north of Highway 7 along Smithtown Road in 2007 for the staging area and storage of their equipment as they began the regional tunnel sewer construction project. Park and Recreation Director Ann Mahnke said the Metroplitan Council has been paying fees to the City of Victoria for their use of the city park property and that it amounted to approximately $371,000. In regard to the design of the park plus necessary documentaion, solicitation of construction bids, and providing some assistance with construction administration, Cara reported the City of Victoria solicited proposals from five different firms. The Park and Recreation Committee and City Staff recommended accepting the low bid of $19,151 from WSB, a consulting engineering firm with offices in Minneapolis, St. Cloud, and St. Paul. This will be paid with funds collected from the Met Council. In general, the park will consist of tennis courts, playground area, one-half basketball court, picnic shelter, landscaping, fencing, and parking lot. Ann estimated that cost of the project will be around $200,000. As Councilmember Tom O'Connor stated, "There were a wide variety of uses proopsed for this site. A majority of residents approved this." Mayor Mary Thun commented on a city-owned lot in the vicinity. "It's a nice piece of land," she said. "Should we sell it? maybe staff should take a look at that." Ann Mahnke mentioned that she had looked at incorporating the city lot into South Lake Virginia Shores Park but that it wasn't a good fit. For one thing, she said, the neighbors don't want any of the trees disturbed.
PLANNING COMMISSION AND CITY COUNCIL UPDATING VICTORIA CITY ORDINANCES It's been nearly 40 years since the Victoria zoning ordinance has been updated in its entirety. As city staff reported, "The ordinance has not been updated in its entirety since adopted in 1975." It was also related to being in compliance with the 2030 Comprehensive Plan. The Victoria Planning Commission has been working on the updating process for some time, the last three to four years, and they met with Victoria City Councilmembers on Monday evening, October 29th, to review their work and recommendations. Current members of the Planning Commission are Todd Triethart, Grant Peterson, Jeff Loeschen, James Donadio, and Michelle Siegert. City Councilmember Tom Strigel is the council liaison to the Planning Commission.
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