Minutes - Council - 06/28/2016 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Strommen noted that in the work session it was discussed that this is common place in the marketplace and therefore she can support this item. Councilmember Riley stated that this further exemplifies why the City should not be involved in the owning and leasing of land, although he acknowledged that the City owns this land for a specific purpose. He noted that this item deals specifically with the policy and not the contract in the next agenda item. Mayor Strommen stated that there is some inconsistency in the use of the terms tenant and lessee and believed that should be clarified. Councilmember Riley stated that in these instances the tenant would be the lessee but agreed that language should be cleared up as he would not want to see a lessee subletting the space. Motion carried. Voting Yes: Mayor Strommen, Councilmembers Williams, Shryock, Johns, and Riley. Voting No: Councilmember Kuzma. Absent: Councilmember LeTourneau. 7.07: Request for Temporary Reduction in Rent for a City Owned Property Located at 6701 Highway 10 Asst. City Administrator/Economic Development Manager Brama reviewed the staff report and recommendation to approve a six-month temporary reduction in rent rates for the Lease Agreement between the City of Ramsey and Northern Light Church for use of 6701 U.S. Highway 10 (three months at 50% of base rent and three months at 75% of base rent). He noted that the staff recommendation was based off the assumption that the Council would approve the amended policy as was done in the previous agenda item. Mayor Strommen stated that being a good tenant and community partner is not a part of the policy and therefore will not weigh into this decision. Councilmember Riley stated that the City is attempting to be fair and market driven and therefore is attempting to act as a for -profit landlord. He stated that being a good tenant is a reason to consider this request as other landlords would make that consideration. He noted that the City has done this in other instances and therefore there is not favoritism occurring. He stated that this is being limited as recommended by the private financial manager that the City works with and believed that those factors are important when making this consideration. Mayor Strommen stated that being a tenant in good standing should perhaps be a part of the policy as that is an item that should be considered when making a decision of this nature. Councilmember Kuzma asked if Premier Realty has agreed to the same discount in their commissions. Asst. City Administrator/Economic Development Manager Brama stated that the commission is an upfront payment that is made at the time of the lease and therefore that has not been renegotiated. Councilmember Kuzma stated that he would oppose this request for similar reasons as he opposed the policy in the previous agenda item. City Council / June 28, 2016 Page 7 of 10