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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMIN 06.13.2000 CC-RThe City Council of the City of Georgetown, Texas, met in Regular Session on the above date with Mayor presiding. L#ouncil Present: • r Ferd Tonn, Lee Bain, Susan Hoyt, Clark ;'Charles "Noss" Burson Lyda, Llorente Navarrette, Sam Pfiester George Russell, Assistant City Manager; Cathy Riedel, Assistant City Attorney; Sandra Lee, City Secretary; Micki Rundell, Acting Finance Director; Ed Barry, Chief of Development Services; Tom Yantis, Director of Informational Services; Verna Browning, Director of Community Services; Anthony Lincoln, Fire Chief; Pablo Holguin, Director of Employee and Organizational Services; Terry Jones, Purchasing Director; Paul Pausewang, Service Center Superintendent; David Munk, Development Engineer; Kathy Ragsdale, Utility Office Director; Judy Fabry, Library Services Staff Assistant; Kevin Stofle, Police Lieutenant, James Babcock, Development Technician W lT an Called to order at 5:36 p.m. Internal Service Fund -- Terry Jones, Micki Rundell and Tom Yantis Rundell explained the purpose for and benefits of using the Internal Service Funds Program. Paul Pausewang described the Vehicle Service Fund, explaining the preventive maintenance program and the replacement schedule of vehicles. He noted that the City is able to work at a much higher ratio of mechanics to vehicles because of the Fund. Terry Jones explained the Facilities Internal Service Fund, saying that it includes the regularly scheduled maintenance of buildings, equipment, and landscaping. Tom Yantis explained the Information Resources Internal Service Fund. He noted the replacement cycles of the various pieces of equipment, including the personal computers used by staff. Discussion of options and possibilities for Fire Services billing -- Anthony Lincoln Lincoln noted that as the population has increased, so have the calls for service. He asked Council to determine if citizens should be billed for services and asked Council to determine which services should be billed. He told Council that the City of Cedar Park has been billing for 2 1/2 years, noting that Cedar Park charges $300 for a first response call. Navarrette asked for information about the billing company to be used. Russell noted that there are several companies that perform this service and the company to be used has not yet been determined until Council decides whether to begin billing. Navarrette asked for a break -down of the types of calls that are being handled by the other fire departments. He asked to find out whether the police departments responded on the same calls, and wanted to know the outcome of the calls. He said he is concerned that the citizens will not call the Fire Department because they don't want to be charged. It was noted that the fees collected would be dedicated to fire services. Pfiester asked Lincoln for City Council Meeting Minutes/June 13, 2000 Page 1 of 7 Pages an estimate of the cost of six extra firemen. Lincoln replied that it would cost just a little over $200,000 and confirmed that the estimated revenue from the proposed billing would be approximately $189,000. 6:25 p.m. -- Recessed for Executive Session C Sec.551.071 consultation with attorney D Sec.551.072 deliberation on real property Grace Church - Report of Facilities Subcommittee on Acquisition of Property to be Used for City Facilities E Sec.551.074 personnel matters - Clarification of City Manager Bonus Regular Session F Action from Executive Session Motion by Lyda, second by Navarrette to authorize the City Manager to increase the Council Legal Contingency Fund by $60,000 to allow payment of legal fees directly associated with an open records request by the Austin American Statesman . Bain noted that this money is needed to pay for attorney fees for the hastened trial preparation regarding City of Georgetown vs. Cornyn, because as a result of the intervention of the Austin American Statesman, the trial date was set with less than 24 hours notice. Approved 6-0. (Burson absent) Motion by Lyda, second by Bain to authorize the City Manager to negotiate the acquisition of property to be used for City facilities. Approved 6-0, G Comments from Mayor regarding the following items: - Presentation to Councilmember Ferd Tonn Mayor Kersch presented a plaque of appreciation to Councilmember Tonn for his dedicated years of service as Mayor Pro Tem. - Announcement regarding next Town Hall Meeting Mayor Kersch announced that a Town Hall Meeting will be held on July 6, at a time to be announced, at the Community Center in San Gabriel Park, and asked Bain to explain. Bain noted that the meeting would be to inform and enlist citizenry for a committee to review the perceived need for transportation improvements, possible park expansion, library expansion/renovation, and funding methods for those projects. H Comments from Staff regarding the following items: - Report on the recent sanitary sewer overflow and recommendations from staff -- William Adams Adams gave a report of the wastewater overflow that occurred at the San Gabriel Wastewater Treatment Plant on June 1. He said the estimated amount of wastewater that entered the river as a result of the overflow was approximately 26,000 gallons. He noted that one operator was testing the back-up generators at two wastewater plants, and that the alarm dialer was disengaged. He said the alarm dialer will no longer be disengaged during exercising of the back-up generators. He said the spill posed no danger to the City's drinking water supply, and measures were taken that avoided any damage to the river. He said in the future there would be more than one operator when exercising the back-up generators. He distributed copies of a letter from Jim Briggs to the Executive Director of Operations Maintenance International. Pfiester asked about our responsibility if the amount of spill was 50,000 gallons. Adams noted that at that amount, the public is notified as well as the media. Navarrette asked when the report was expected back from the Texas Natural Resources Conservation Commission and Adams replied that the report is expected by July 1. Mayor welcomed the audience and outlined the Council Meeting procedures. Citizens Wishing to Address the Council and Responses from Councilmembers and/or Staff, if appropriate - Gerry Anderson re. welfare of the City, Dove Springs Treatment Plant, appeal to Mayor to take action. Anderson complained that he was not given the opportunity to question the previous speaker about the sanitary sewer spill. He spoke of OMI having dumped 500,000 gallons of water into the City Council Meeting Minutes/June 13, 2000 Page 2 of 7 Pages river without permission from the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission. He said he wanted to find out from the previous speaker if the water that was dumped was chlorinated. He complained about the fact that there was only one man on duty at the time of the spill. He said he submitted 10 questions at the last Council Meeting and has not yet received a response. He expressed concern about the condition of the Dove Springs Treatment Plant. - Keith Peshak re. police "speedo" spoofing, mobile portable telephone jamming, Nicholas Tesla "Free power through the air without wires" water meter reading system. Peshak did not appear before Council. Statutory Consent Agenda J Consideration of approval of the minutes for the Emergency Council Meeting on May 8, 2000, the Special Session of May 10 and 11, 2000, the Special Session of May 165 2000, the Regular Council Meeting of May 23, 2000, and the Special Session of May 30, 2000 -- Sandra Lee Kersch asked that the following corrections be made to the minutes: On the Minutes of May 10 and 11, Page 2, 5th paragraph, change the word "raised" to "at issue;" on the May 23 Minutes, Page 5, change "complete her term" to "continue;" on May 23, Item JJ, remove the word "combined" and add "each, as would Austin" after the word "vote;" on May 23, Page 6, change the word "obligation" to "occupancy." Bain noted that he did attend the May 8 Council Meeting. Kersch asked that Bain's list of suggested budget priorities from the Budget Ranking Meeting be provided to the Council. K Consideration of approval of a payment to Williamson County for the City's portion of the annual maintenance and operation of the 800 MHz radio system in the amount of $40,627.04 -- Terry Jones and Micki Rundell L Consideration of authorization to spend up to $18,000 to purchase professional training services from New Horizons Training Center to assist with training on the Microsoft Office Suite (Access, Word, Excel, and Power Point) -- Tom Yantis M Consideration of a local agreement between the District Attorney and City of Georgetown Police Department regarding distribution of forfeited contraband -- Cathy Riedel and Marianne Banks N Consideration of a resolution acknowledging receipt of an Amended Petition to Establish the Cimarron Hills Public Improvement District, authorizing publication of notice and a public hearing, and authorizing a feasibility report -- Marianne Banks Motion to approve by Tonn, second by Navarrette to approve the Consent Agenda with the corrections to the minutes. Approved 6-0. O Consideration of report from 1999/2000 Teen Court attorneys on the benefits of the Teen Court Program -- Verna Browning Teen Court Coordinator Patricia Rinehart gave a report on the results of the year. She introduced Stephanie Olafson and Ron Mendoza who shared their experiences as Teen Court attorneys. They commended the supervision and direction of Municipal Judge Randy Stump. P Review and possible action on developing an ordinance relating to Council Meeting procedures and speaker sign-up policies -- MaryEllen Kersch Kersch made some additions to the proposed Council Meeting Brochure, regarding citizens wishing to address the Council, such as a request for "specific" information about which the person wishes to speak, also asked to add that audible cell phones and pagers be turned off. Navarrette asked that the print be made larger. It was discussed that the brochure could be provided on much larger paper with the registration form provided as an insert. Delia Green, 1901 Vine Street, read from page 20 of the Texas Open Meetings Act Made Easy from the workshop held in Georgetown on October 15, 1999, saying that rules adopted by the Council concerning citizens addressing the Council must be consistent with state constitution and apply equally to all members of the public. She accused the Council of being unfair. She said the citizens have no idea what will be posted on the agenda, so the item they sign up to speak about may already be included in the agenda. Kersch explained that the current procedure has been adopted by the Council in order to comply with the City Council Meeting Minutes/June 13, 2000 Page 3 of 7 Pages Bill Masterson, 1501 Laurel, told Council he had two goals as a member of the Economic Development Task Force one to open it up to the citizens, and the other that the City not subsidize "for-profit" business. Tonn asked Connor if the Task Force is still considering a Town Hall Meeting. Connor said the report was not attempting to "lock in" a prescribed procedure but to advise to the Council that proposed policies be presented to the public for approval. Bain reiterated that if changes needed to be made after a vote was taken, it would be difficult for the Council to make changes without going back to the voters. Motion by Lyda, second by Pfiester to approve the following recommendations of the Economic Development Task Force: the recommendations for General Policy, Organization, and Operation; the Final Organization Recommendations; and the Recommended Sequential Implementation Plan and Timeline, (tabs 5, 6 & 7 of the report), and the amendments to those recommendations as are reflected in the minutes of the May 30 meeting with the exception of the third Collier amendment and with the exception of the amendment by Brashear, the vote, deleting Item 10 from the timeline. In lieu of the Brashear amendment, ask that the Economic Development Task Force come back with a recommendation to the Council as to the an acceptable method of ensuring public approval and direct the City Manager to estabisih the economic development division and begin the implementation of the organizational structure and the Council commit to appointing the members of the Economic Development Commission at the June 27 Council Meeting Bain questioned if asking the Task Force for a recommendation on how to gauge public approval would be a "binding" decision or if the Council would have the authority to still hold an election or not. Lyda said he put that in the motion in order to "buy some time" while deciding whether an election could be held on the issue. Hoyt said she cannot support the motion without a vote by the public. Pfiester said he also has reservations about asking for a vote too early in the process. Bain said the two main things that he sees need public opinion are the vision and the goals, but Council needs to remember that the Task Force strongly recommends that a public vote be taken. Tonn said not to rule out voting by making the motion to the effect that a vote could be done. It was determined that the vote was not ruled out at this point in his motion. Navarrette asked about the "revolving door" and the "five-year" issue. Lyda said he thought that could be handled with the City's ethics policy. Navarrette said this was the first time he had seen work force training brought to the table. He said if the process doesn't work, the public will inform the Council as they have in the past. Jim Brown, 117 Randolph Road, asked about the chart and whether it does away with the advisory board of the CVB. Connor explained that it was not the Task Force recommendation that the Advisory Board be done away with. Kersch said this will send out the word that Georgetown is "pro growth." Second by Pfiester. Hoyt noted that she is opposed because the motion did not require a vote. Approved 5-1 (Hoyt opposed) 9:45 p.m. -- recess 9:55 p.m. -- resumed Open Session S Second reading of an ordinance providing for the annexation into the City of 20.188 acres in the Joseph Fish Survey, to be known as Georgetown Village Planned Unit Development, Section Three -B, located along Shell Road, Village Commons Boulevard, Greenside Lane and Hickory Lane -- Clyde von Rosenberg and Ed Barry von Rosenberg read only the caption of the ordinance on second reading. Motion by Tonn, second by Bain to adopt Ordinance No. 2000-32. Approved 6-0. T Sun City Georgetown 1. Second reading of an ordinance providing for the annexation into the City of 37.934 acres in the Burrel Eaves Survey, to be known as The Planned Unit Development of Sun City Georgetown, Phase 4-C, Neighborhood Twenty -Four -C located on Texas Drive -- Clyde von Rosenberg and Ed Barry von Rosenberg read only the caption of the ordinance on second reading. Motion by Tonn, second by Bain to adopt Ordinance No. 2000-33. Approved 6-0. 2. Second reading of an ordinance rezoning from A, Agricultural to RP, Residential Planned or any more City Council Meeting Minutes/June 13, 2000 Page 5 of 7 Pages Attorney General's opinion. Gerry Anderson, 1551 C.R. 104, noted that the Williamson County Commissioner's Court does not use the same rules and citizen restraints. He accused the Mayor of using special interpretation to keep citizens from being able to speak against the management of the city and the city staff. He said he feels the sign-up rules are restrictive to people who work from 8:00 to 5:00. Kersch noted that citizens can call or e-mail the City Secretary. Navarrette noted that it is difficult for working people to access City Hall during the day, but they can contact their Councilmember and can contact the City Secretary by telephone. It was suggested that these procedures be adopted as policy rather than an ordinance so it can be easily reveiwed and revised. Kersch noted that the procedures would be included in the meeting brochure. Hoyt suggested supplying copies of the meeting video tapes to the Library so they can be viewed by citizens. Q Consideration of an update report on the status of the 2000/01 budget process -- Micki Rundell Rundell gave a report on the progress of the budget process, saying a "funds available" number will be determined by the end of the week. She said budget packets will be available to the Council on July 12. Lyda asked that Council be provided a copy of the revenue projections and funds available amount as soon as it is developed. He asked about the effective tax rate. She responded that at this point they will go with 7/8 of one cent below the rollback rate. She said a preliminary report shows a proposed tax rate at a little over 31 cents. Lyda asked the amount of the funds available that is attributable to any increase in the effective rate. Rundell responded that at this point it would be a little over 2%. She said these figures will be part of the report to Council at the next Council Meeting. R Economic Development 1. Consideration of a report and recommendations from the Economic Development Task Force -- Lee Bain, Susan Hoyt, and Clark Lyda Bill Connor noted he has been involved in economic development in Georgetown because he wanted to see jobs created locally so that young people who grow up in Georgetown are able to find a job and stay. He thanked all of the members of the Task Force, particularly Co -Chair Don Collier, and thanked Sandra Lee for staff support. He said the report of recommendations is provided in three general categories: (1) Issues and Recommendations concerning General Policy, Organization and Operation; (2) Final Organizational Recommendations, and (3) Recommended Sequential Implementation Plan and Timeline. He encouraged Council to follow the timeline. Kersch thanked Connor and the Task Force for developing a good plan. Pfiester asked for explanation about the suggestion of industrial recruitment being public/private. Connor suggested it could work either way. Navarrette thanked Connor and the Task Force. Bain said he appreciates the efforts of all the members of the Task Force and also thanked all of the people who have been involved over many years in economic development for Georgetown. He said he hopes an "umbrella" organization can work on all kinds of economic development and get the public more involved in the process of determining what kind of economic development is wanted. 2. Consideration of approval and adoption of recommendations of the Economic Development Task Force; consideration of establishing an Economic Development Division of the City of Georgetown and direction to staff regarding implementation of same; and consideration of establishing a process and timetable for appointment of members to the Economic Development Commission -- Clark Lyda Lyda said the process will take seven or eight months. He suggested adopting the recommendations of the Task Force and coming back to the next meeting with appointments. Hoyt said she supports the plan but would prefer to use a local, non-profit firm, and believes it should go before the voters. Bain reiterated the Task Force discussion and vote on that issue. He said he thinks it may happen anyway, but he doesn't think the Commission should be limited to that criteria. He said he is concerned about the public vote. He thinks the vote should be on general policy and vision and not on specific operational procedure. Kersch suggested research be done to determine if the issue could be legally brought to the people for a vote. Lyda said he thinks the plan should be a "living plan" that changes as the community changes and said the pian should not be rigid or unresponsive to the public. He said he is hesitant about submitting the plan as a binding or non-binding referendum. Lyda said if the Commission is doing the right thing, a vote might be "anti -climatic." Hoyt disagreed and said she felt a public vote was necessary. Navarrette said he is impressed with the report and is eager to experience the new process. City Council Meeting Minutes/June 13, 2000 Page 4 of 7 Pages restrictive district of 37.934 acres in the Burrei Eaves Survey, to be known as The Planned Unit Development of Sun City Georgetown, Phase 4-C, Neighborhood Twenty -Four -C located on Texas Drive -- David Munk and Ed Barry Munk read only the caption of the ordinance on second reading. Motion by Tonn, second by Bain to adopt Ordinance No. 2000-34. Approved 6-0. U Consideration of authorization to spend up to $30,000 to purchase the technology consulting services from Salvaggio and Associates to assist with: development and release of system requirements; vendor response evaluation; and contract negotiations for an integrated Human Resources, Financial and Utility Billing/GIS computer system -- Tom Yantis Yantis noted that this item had been on the agenda on May 9, but was pulled. He said the City is now negotiating with the current vendor, Incode, to modify their package to include a response to the City's requirements. He said their Human Resources program is not completely developed. He said he is now asking Council to spend a lesser amount to determine if the Incode response will meet the City's requirements. He said he expects the fee to actually be lower than $30,000. Bain asked what would happen if Incode doesn't meet the City's requirements. Yantis said, at this point, it would be considerably less expensive to go with the current vendor. Bain confirmed that if Incode is not able to meet the City's requirements, the Council will be asked to approve money to have Salvaggio find another vendor. Hoyt asked and Yantis responded that Incode could, at this point, still modify their program while it is in the design phase. Motion by Tonn, second by Navarrette to approve the authorization to spend up to $30,000.. Approved 6-0. Mayor asked if Council wished to continue the meeting this evening or come back tomorrow. It was determined that the meeting would continue this evening. V Consideration of appointment of a Council Subcommittee to meet with Development Services and the City Manager to prepare a request for proposal for professional services ("RFP") for preparation of a comprehensive update and revision of the City's development ordinances (zoning, subdivision, and sign), including the addition of a traditional neighborhood development ("TND") ordinance -- Clark Lyda, Councilmember Tonn asked Russell if this would be possible. Russell said he and Barry feel sure that staff can provide the RFP process. Lyda said he feels it is worthwhile to derive a draft proposal so Council can get an idea of the scope and cost. Barry said it would be possible to have discussion and prepare a rough outline. Navarrette volunteered to serve on the subcommittee, along with Pfiester, Bain and Lyda. There was discussion that the draft would need to be developed by the second meeting in July in order to be incorporated in the budget. Renee Hanson, 1252 Austin Avenue, said she would like for Council to hold a workshop when they present their draft RFP. Motion by Lyda, second by Pfiester to appoint a Council Subcommittee composed of Bain, Pfiester, Navarrette, and Lyda to meet with the Development Services staff and the City Manager to prepare a draft request for proposal for professional services for preparation of a comprehensive update and revision of the City's development ordinances including the addition of a traditional neighborhood ordinance. Approved 6-0, W Consideration of appointment of a Council Subcommittee on utilities and transportation issues -- Sam L. Pfiester and MaryEllen Kersch Kersch noted that Bain, Burson, Navarrette, Pfiester, and Lyda are interested in being on the Subcommittee. Pfiester explained that it is needed to look at where the growth is headed strategically. Motion by Pfiester, second by Lyda to appoint a Council Subcommitte composed of Bain, Burson, Navarrette, Pfiester, Lyda and Tonn to address issues and report back to Council. Approved 6-0. X Consideration of appointment of two City Council representatives to the CAPCO General Assembly -- MaryEllen Kersch Kersch recommended Hoyt and Pfiester. Motion by Bain, second by Tonn to approve the appointments. Approved 6-0. Y Consideration of scheduling time to consider and act on the following: (1) City Manager and City Attorney job descriptions, (2) roster and schedule of workshops with individual Boards and Commissions, and (3) Council governance policy -- MaryEllen Kersch City Council Meeting Minutes/June 13, 2000 Page 6 of 7 Pages Kersch suggested doing (1) and (3) above in one workshop on July 11. She suggested that Council look at the ICMA guidelines and her governance review summary. Regarding meeting with boards and commissions, Kersch suggested scheduling July through December for joint meetings with various boards, such as Planning and Zoning in July, Housing in August, Main Street in September, 4B in October, Youth in November. Kersch noted that the boards would be asked to contribute items of joint interest for posting the agendas. Z Discussion and clarification (and possible adoption of written policies) of procedures and authority for Council appointed boards and commissions -- MaryEllen Kersch Kersch said Council has the option of not handling this item this evening because it was added to the agenda after the deadline. She said it was prompted by several phone calls that she received. She noted that many of the boards do not have by-laws and requested that Council develop concise direction. Virginia Stubbs, 706 Austin Avenue, noted that she is a board chairman and needed to form a subcommittee. She said they have found it very difficult to meet the posting requirements. She asked for direction from Council regarding the procedures for keeping citizens informed. Renee Hanson, 1252 Austin Avenue, representing herself as a chair person, recommended that Council schedule a workshop with the chairs of all committees and subcommittees, that policy be written to provide guidelines, and that Council take into account the differences in the committees such as being a subcommittee of a committee or a subcommittee of the Council. She expressed the difficulty in getting subcommittee meetings posted and asked if it were state law that the subcommittee meetings are posted, or if it is Council policy that they be posted. Della Green, asked if there is a Council policy allowing appointments by every Councilmember. Kersch noted that there is a committee appointed to review the applications and make recommendations to the Council as a whole. Kersch noted that the Charter allows for the Mayor to recommend appointments and seek the Council's approval by vote. She said the committee assists the process. It was determined that there will be a meeting of the Council with the board chairs on Thursday, June 29, at 6:00 p.m. Motion to adjourn by Bain at 10:57 p.m. The meeting was adjourned at 10:57 PM. A roved Mayor MaryEllen Kersch City Council Meeting Minutes/June 13, 2000 Page 7 of 7 Pages Attest: A, rE aF City Secretary Sandra L ee