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Council Meeting Minutes January 26, 1988 I tion that no adequate replacement housing was available on the market at the time of the displacement. LeFevel'e continued that the amounts allowed and paid so far have totalled $15,000. With regard to litigation expenses, it is true the regulations provide for a payment of attorney's fees; Gunn did not point out, however, that the state law also requires a payment of attorney's fees in inverse condemnations; and they provide for payment of those attorney1s fees which are available under the Federal Uniform Relocation Regulations. LeFevers stated a deci- sion has been made by the District Court as to the amount of en- titlement of attorney's fees for the inverse condemnation action. LeFevere believes attorney's fees have been paid and it has been properly adjudicated by the District Court in Ramsey County. Re- garding the interest, LeFevere stated he has been unable to find entitlement in the regulations for the payment of interest, nor has he been able to find any precedence for payment of interest on relocation benefits. I Benke summarized that LeFeverefeels the city has already paid the amount of money it ;s obligated to pay under the terms of both state and federal regulations. LeFevere stated he was not aware of any legal precedent that establishes that the applicant is entitled to any more, and found nothing in the regulations that entitles the applicant to any more than has already been paid. Benke stated the action needed to be considered tonight is a simple decision to confirm or overrule the City Manager's decision; LeFevere confirmed and stated the procedural resolution adopted by the City Council in 1986 requires the City Council to notify the applicant of its decision, in writing stating the rea- sons for the City Council's decision. Whatever decision is made, it would be by direction to staff to prepare a resolution effect- uating the decision so that it could be approved or modified by the City Council at the next council meeting and then be served on the applicant. I In response to Benke1s request, LeFevere reviewed Gunn's comments regarding extraordinary delays. LeFevere stated, not attributing fault to anyone, when a city acquires property certain relocation counselling, benefits, and payments are to be made in a very short period of time (in some cases they are made prior to the displace- ment). The regulations contemplate a process for a normal condem- nation; in this case it was some years after the displacement that the City Council was judged by the court to have displaced a person by taking the home. Whatever the fault or cause of the delay, it has resulted in a claim for interest, for which the reg- ulations do not provide (ordinarily it wouldn't even be an issue because payments would have been made within a short period of time). Because this is an unusual situation, we have some extra- ordinary claims that are being made because of the long period of time over which this dispute has gone. Beyond that, LeFevere commented that, in the materials submitted by Oswalt, there are quite a number of complaints about things the Page 13