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Home My WebLink AboutMIN 10.22.2007 CC-WThe City Council of the City of Georgetown, Texas, met in Regular Session on the above date with Mayor Gary Nelon presiding. Council Present: Council sent: Patty Eason, Gabe Sansing, Bill Sattler, Pat Keith Brainard Berryman, Farley Snell, Ben Oliver _ _ Staff Present: Paul Brandenburg, City Manager; Tom Yantis, Assistant City Manager; Jim Briggs, Assistant City Manager for Utility Operations; Patricia E. Carls, City Attorney; Sandra D. Lee, City Secretary; David Morgan, Police Chief; Kevin Stofle, Assistant Police Chief; Clay Shell, Assistant Fire Chief; Terry Jones, Support Services Construction Manager; Cathy Leloux, Municipal Court Administrator; Ed Anderson, Warrant Officer; Mark Thomas, Economic Development Director; Jordan Maddox, Planner 11; Keith Hutchinson, Public Information Officer; Glenn Dishong, Water Services Director; Micki Rundell, Director of Finance and Administration; Bobby Ray, Planning Director; Elizabeth Cook, Principal Planner '• i' - s;r '- Tis s• t a • •- 1t Mayor Nelon announced that Item B would be brought forward. B Discussion and possible direction to staff regarding the proposed Rivery Park Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone -- Tom Yantis, Assistant City Manager Yantis introduced Dan Clark with the development team for LedgeStone Development. He noted all of the attributes that brought this project to Georgetown. He listed the following people as members of the Summit Team: Dan Clark, with LedgeStone Group (Developer); Will Furrer, with IF Marketing and Advertising (Image); Brent Hammond with Austin Civil Engineering; Stu Alderman with Alderman Paccone Bishop Architects; CF Jordan Construction (Contractor); FT Woods Construction (Site Prep); Philip Wanke and Tim Bargainer with BWM Group (Landscaping); and Marlene McMichael with McMichael and Company (Coordination). Philip Wanke explained the vision of the project, "to create a corporate and event destination unparalleled in Georgetown for its sophistication and beauty..." With a slide presentation, he described the proposed park improvements. Marlene McMichael spoke to Council about partnering with the City to initiate a Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ), and highlighted the details of the TIRZ. She said according to Dr. Ray Perryman, the total expenditures are expected to exceed $322 million. She said the ongoing operations are expected to produce $202.8 million in annual output and 2,805 permanent jobs, and the economic impact of the project will be local spending to exceed $340 million per year. Clark displayed a statement from Dr. Ray Perryman, saying The Summit "would offer residents notable economic opportunites and has the potential to generate millions of dollars in tax revenue." Yantis explained the TIRZ logistics, proposed revenue, improvements, and schedule of required presentations. He noted that Council had received a packet of preliminary information regarding the project. He said Council direction is needed as to whether to proceed with the TIRZ creation. He said this would be the first attempt to encourage the County to participate in a TIRZ project, saying because their tax rate is higher, they will receive more revenue from the TIRZ than the City will receive. There were questions from the Council, and it was confirmed that there is a risk to the City, an exposure of $25,000,000. McMichael confirmed that the park improvements would be completed first, then the conference center and parking garage. There were further questions from the Council regarding profit-making on a public facilitiy. City Council Meeting Minutes/October 22, 2007 Page 1 of 2 Pages Clark said the conference k ar is not a profit-making entitiy, saying "it's eiti -i community asset or it's not," saying there could be higher and best uses for that land. Yantis said the direction being sought from Council at this time is to proceed with the creation of the zone, so staff can create an ordinance for Council's approval. He said the ordinance will be specific as to which improvements and how much will be included in the total to be considered in the Zone. Motion by Snell, second by Sansing to instruct staff to proceed with the creation of the TIRZ and proceed through the process. Snell warned that he might, in the future, move to take the conference center off the list. Berryman said she didn't want to send a signal that the Council is not in favor of the conference center. Approved 6-0. (Brainard absent) Yantis said they will present to the County and GISD in November; a Public Hearing will be held on the same night as the first reading on November 27; and the second reading will be in December. A Needs Assessment for Police, Fire Administration, and Municipal Court -- Terry Jones, Support Services Manager and Micki Rundell, Director of Finance and Administration Hal Sargent and Gina Irwin from Brinkley Sargent Architects gave a slide presentation on the options for accomodating space needs for Police, Fire Administration, and Municipal Court. (A chart of the six options with budget comparisons is attached to these minutes.) There were questions about whether the County would agree to allow the City to use their property for surface parking. Some Councilmembers gave their opinions of the proposed options. There was consensus that the "green building system" should be used. 5:40 p.m. -- recessed to Executive Session 5:54 p.m. -- resumed Open Session C Discussion and possible direction to staff regarding requests to consider the creation of Municipal Utility Districts for the Water Oak and Oaks at San Gabriel projects -- Tom Yantis, Assistant City Manager Yantis explained that the reason for this presentation is that following the City signing the development agreements, it was determined by the Attorney General's Office that the Public Improvement District (PID) may no longer be a viable financing method. He noted that staff has had discussions as to what viable alternatives are available. With a slide presentation and handout, Yantis gave a brief history of each agreement. He said one is based on the other, and both were done to faclitate a conservation subdivision design on both sites. He said both agreements allowed the developer to receive reimbursement for site improvements because of the conservation subdivision concept. He said at this point, the City is working with the developers to replace the PID. He listed other reimbursement tools and whether they were suitable for these two projects. He said it is staff's opinion that the Municipal Utility District (MUD) is the most viable at this stage. He outlined each agreement for the Council. He noted, on the Water Oak Agreement, that another issue has arisen involving increased developer cost over the developer's estimated cost of the South San Gabriel Interceptor (SSGI) in the approximate amount of $5,000,000. It was noted that the City Council may dissolve an In -City MUD at any time but must take on any outstanding debt obligations. He listed the staff recommendations on each project. There were questions from the Council. Motion by Snell, second by Eason to direct staff to proceed. Sansing said he has an issue with the $2.5 million fee to the developer to oversize the lines. Motion by Sansing, second by Berryman to amend the previous motion to remove the $2.5 million fee. Vote on the motion to amend: Tied: 3-3 (Snell, Oliver, and Eason opposed). Mayor Nelon voted to break the tie and leave in the $2.5 million fee. Motion to amend was defeated 4-3. Vote on the original motion: Approved 6-0. (Brainard absent) 6:32 p.m. -- recessed to Executive Session 6:47 p.m. -- returned to Open Session and adjourned MEHMMENUM Ap Aroved °r Attest,?2 j . Fir` -� ✓� ,r t ..,.'a+.' ,` �'��: ��,, d' �' E' 10ayor,` s ary Nelon City Secretary Sandra Lee City Council Meeting Minutes/October 22, 2007 Page 2 of 2 Pages