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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/25/1998URBAN AFFAIRS ADVISORY COMMITTEE MINUTES MARCH 25, 1998 1. CALL TO ORDER The meeting of the Urban Affairs Committee was called to order by Chairman John W. McKay at 7:00 p.m. Members Present: John W. McKay, Robin Curran, Shirley Doering, Sharon R. Schwartz and Pamela Sohlberg. Members Van Holston and Shelley J. Madore amved at 7:05 p.m. Members Absent: None Staff Present: Police Chief Roger Willow, Police Captain Terry Cook, Assistant City Attorney Sharon Hills and Assistam Planner Kathy Bodmer 2. APPROVAL OF MARCH 25, 1998 AGENDA MOTION: Pamela 5ohlberg moved, seconded by Shazon Schwartz to approve the agenda. The motion carried 7-0. 3. PAWNSHOPS AND PRECIOUS METAL DEALERS ORDINANCE a. Introduction to Issues -Law Enforcemerrt Concerns Police Chief Roger Willow provided background information regarduig the City's existing. Pawnshop and Precious Metal Dealers regulations in the City Code. The code currently requires. that pawnshops and precious metal dealers obtain licenses to operate in the City. In addition, these businesses. aze required to keep a written record of all pawn transactions that aze. made. The City currently has at least one precious metal dealer (jewelers who buy jewelry and precious metals from. customers) who is licensed by the City. There aze no pawnshops currently operating in the City. Chief Willow explained that the Police Department has a difficult time recovering stolen goods. Even though stolen items aze most often sold to pawnshops for cash, there aze many pawnshops in the Twin Cities Area. He explained that currently, in order to try to locate stolen goods, the Police Departrrrent must call various pawnshops in the metro azea to see whether the items have fumed up. Sometimes items. are sold immediately and sometimes they aze not. He said that because there are so many pawnshops in the area, and because record keeping is all done manually at this time, trying to locate stolen goods can be a very time-consumhig, labor-intensive and hit-0r-miss process. Chief Willow further explained that Minneapolis, St. Paul, and other metro communities are creating a shared database system, the Automated Pawn System (APS), which will track pawn transactions for all communities participating in the program. The Apple Valley Police Department would like the City to be a participating community in the system. The system will place all pawn transactions into an electronic database that law enforcement agencies can query to determine whether stolen goods have been received at a pawnshop in any of the participating communities. While revising the ordinance to update it for the APS system, the Police Departmenrt felt that the activities of the secondhand industry should also be reviewed. The Chief stated that secondhand dealers aze businesses Urban Affairs Committee Minutes March 25, 1998 Page 2 that buy used items from people, and then resell them to others. They do not sell items on a pledge like pawnshops do. Examples of these businesses include: Music-Go-Round, 2nd Wind Sports, Play it Again Sports, and It's About Tools. Chief Willow further stated that three businesses in Apple Valley buy used items that would be regulated by the ordinance including: It's About Games which buys used wmputer games, Apple Valley Video which buys used computer games and Half-Priced Books which buys used CD's. The Committee then viewed a video of a 60 Minutes broadcast that discussed the pawn industry in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The segment discussed law enforceme~ concerns that stolen goods are often sold at pawnbroker businesses. Following the video, Chief Willow provided actual cases where stolen goods from Apple Valley residerns and businesses were later found at a secondhand goods store in the area. The Chief stated that while most secondhand dealers are legitimate businesses that provide a service to the community; the Police Department is concerned that they can provide an easy an avenue for selling stolen goods. He noted that the secondhand industry is a rapidly growing industry throughout the country. He stated further that if these businesses purchase stolen goods, whether knowingly or unknowingly, they operate at an expense to the community. The Chief stated that the Police Departmem feels that secondhand dealers need to be properly regulated. b. Review Draft Ordinance Police Captain Terry Cook further discussed how the Automated Pawn System (APS) works Sharon Hills provided an overview of the amended Pawnshop and Precious Metal Dealer regulations. The ordinance reflects updated definitions and requirements from State statutes. Tn addition, the proposed ordinance would require pawnshops, precious metal dealers and secondhand dealers which buy certain types of used goods to provide daily electronic reports of all pawn transactions to the metro-wide APS system. The Cormnittce discussed the provisions of the new ordinance. Van Holston asked what the penalty would be for selling stolen goods. Sharon Hills stated that it depended on the value of the items stolen and the number of prior convictions an individual has. Shelley Madore stated that she had been robbed while living in another state and was told by the Police Department that little could be done to retrieve the stolen goods. She asked whether the Police Departrnent would really use the information to track stolen goods, especially inexpensive items like CD's. She stated she was concerned about the cost to a business of keeping track of all the transactions if the police wouldn't use the information. Terry Cook stated that the Police Department would use information to try to retrieve stolen goods, even CD's. Pam Sohlberg asked which cities aze on the APS system at this time. The following cities require pawnshops to be on the APS system: Minneapolis, St. Paul and Bloomington. Cities currently revising their ordinance to require secondhand dealers (in addition to pawnshops) to be on the APS include Minneapolis and St. Paul. The Chief noted that many other metropolitan communities want to revise their ordinances to be on the system too. Van Holston noted that if most of the other metro azea communities require that pawnshops and secondhand dealers provide electronic reports to the APS, and the City of Apple Valley does not, many of the pawnshops and secondhand dealers would locate in Apple Valley. Urban Affairs Committee Minutes Mazch 25, 1998 Page 3 John McKay asked whether judges support prosecution of individuals who try to sell stolen items. Shazon Hills confirmed that they do and that her office takes these cases seriously. Van Holston left the meeting at 8:10 p.m. Shazon Schwartz asked why coins aze exempted from being wnsidered a pawn transaction. Shazon Hills stated that State law specifically says cities cannot regulate the sale of coins. Shirley Doering asked why arrtiques are exempt. She noted that some. antique jewelry could be easily stolen and resold. Shazon Hills said that antique dealers aze not included in the ordinance, but that she would check into that issue. John McKay asked how the fees for the licenses were established. Chief Willow and Captain Cook explained that they were based on actual costs to do background checks, monitor the business' activities, and periodically check the records of the business. Shelley Madore asked why the City decided not to require thumb prirrts for those who are pawning items. Captain Cook explained that. good Urumb prints aze difficult to obtain. Instead, a picture ID and a photograph will be taken of the person making the pawn. The question was raised of the minimum age to pawn an item. Shazon Hills stated that a person needed to be at least 18 years. old. The Committee stated that they would like to discuss the ordinance further at their next meeting. They asked that staff review the highlights of the ordinance and then the Committee will ask more questions. The Committee stated that after the next meeting, they would be ready to hold a public hearing on the proposed ordinance. 4. FUTURE MEETING DATES The Committee decided that the next meeting will beheld on Wednesday, Apri122, at 7:00 p.m. in the barge Conference room in City Hall. A public hearing to receive public input on the ordinance is tentatively scheduled for Wednesday, May 27, 1998 at 7:00 p.m. in the City Council. Chambers. 5. ADJOURNMENT The meeting of the Urban Affairs Committee adjourned at 8:50 p.m.