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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMIN 03.27.2012 CC-RMinutes of the Meeting of the Governing Body of the City of Georgetown, Texas Tuesday, March 27, 2012 The City Council of the City of Georgetown, Texas, met in Regular Session on the above date with Mayor George Garver presiding. Council Present: Council Absent: Patty Eason, Danny Meigs, Bill Sattler, Pat All Council Present. Berryman, Tommy Gonzalez, Rachael Jonrowe, Troy Hellmann Staff Present: Paul E. Brandenburg, City Manager; Bridget Chapman, Acting City Attorney; Jessica Brettle, City Secretary; Laurie Brewer, Deputy City Manager; Skye Masson, Legal Assistant, Robert Fite, Fire Chief, Eric Lashley, Library Director; Elizabeth Cook, Director of Community Development; Micki Rundell, Chief Financial Officer; Kimberly Garrett, Director of Community Services; Cari Miller, Tourism Director Minutes Policy Development/Review Workshop - Call to order at 03:00 PM A Presentation from the Arts and Culture Board and possible direction to staff regarding the establishment of a pilot art center in Old Firehouse # 1 -- Eric Lashley, Library Director Gonzalez, Berryman absent. Lashley introduced himself and spoke about the ribbon cutting for the new City bookmobile With a PowerPoint presentation, he spoke about a proposal for the establishment of a pilot art center in Old Firehouse #1. He said the Arts and Culture Board began researching the idea at about the time the City started looking at forming the bond committee for the public safety facility. He spoke about the committee and its members. He said the old firehouse provides an opportunity to do a pilot program for a local arts center. He introduced Gary Wang, the architect, who will be presenting concepts for the Council. He asked Council to think about if an Arts Center would be good for Georgetown and if it would help Georgetown become a community of excellence He said they are proud the Chamber of Commerce endorsed this project. He spoke about an arts alliance that was recently formed. He spoke about how an arts center can bring tourists to downtown. He spoke about how the City has become an arts and culture destination. He said the Palace Theatre and the Georgetown Symphony have done great things in the community. He spoke about how Georgetown has the volunteer base to make this successful. He said, at the end of the presentation, staff would like to get direction from Council on how to move forward. He spoke about doing the pilot arts center for one year. He noted they are trying to provide space for galleries and instruction for the arts. He said they looked at surrounding communities and their arts centers. He spoke about their mission and said it is for the community to view, promote, appreciate and purchase art. He said there are two documents that call for the City to establish arts and culture venues and he described those for the Council, including the 2030 Plan and the Downtown Master Plan. He said they are looking at the success of the Palace Theatre and how they are doing things. He said they are also looking at the library as a model. He added there are more volunteers than staff at the library. He said they looked at other communities around the community and throughout the Country. He spoke about the Round Rock arts center and how it is a model for Georgetown because Georgetown would be starting out new. He described the proposed programs and activities for the arts center. He said the primary objective is to provide gallery, instructional/workshop, meeting and gift shop space for the community. He said they hope to increase Georgetown residents visitation to the downtown district. He City Council Meeting Minutes/ Page 1 of 5 Pages said the City needs to learn how to run an arts center first by doing a pilot program before doing it He spoke about how the fire station can serve as a pilot program where staff can learn from their mistakes. He spoke about Firehouse Subs going into the bays and how it opens up opportunities for that corner of the square. He spoke about getting clean, public restrooms on the square. He listed possibilities for income programs for the Council. He spoke about the proposed opening hours. He said they needs a minimum of eight volunteers a day to run the center. He spoke about the different phases of the project and the proposed timeline if the project moves forward. Speaker, Gary Wang, presented the Council with specific architectural components and concepts for the new arts center. He said they have been meeting and discussing this project with many people in the community. He noted the question was how to breathe new life into the building and make it a destination for people in and outside of Georgetown. He said they have tried to collect the thoughts and ideas from the various groups and process them in a complete vision in the concept. Wang showed Council current photos of the property and showed Council the existing plan of the building. He said the goal would be to bring out the existing masonry walls and the wood on the ceilings. He said they would allow the art to be showcased on the masonry walls with the help of a gypsum wall. He continued to review the proposed plan for the center. He showed Council a rendering of the art space and what it would like if you were inside of a building He reminded Council that these plans are preliminary. He said there is an opportunity here to make the outdoor space a place that people would want to inhabit. He said they have met with people involved in the Historic and Architectural Review Commission and the Texas Historical Commission regarding options for the outdoor space. Wang provided Council with a proposal for the exterior of the building. He spoke about adding a structure that would serve as a bench in front of a courtyard. He provided Council with a sketch of a simple signage element that would allocate the courtyard and make it seem like part of the building. He continued to show Council the different concepts that were studied and explored. Mayor asked and Lashley said both staircases currently on the structure must stay, as they are historical elements. Lashley asked that Brewer speak about the proposed budget for the project Brewer sad staff has been working on some of the numbers for the month. She said, just for the initial phase, it would be around $150,000. She said the signage would be about $25,000. She said they are looking to fund this from some of the City's dedicated funding sources. She said one of those sources would be the downtown tax increment reinvestment zone as well as funds from the sale of some of the downtown properties. She said there are maintenance issues that staff has been speaking to Finance about. Jonrowe asked and Brewer said the expansion of the sidewalk in front of the building is not included in this project Brewer said the number is for the interior renovations only. Jonrowe said she went to the meeting and saw so many people who supported this project. She said she sees this as part of the whole puzzle of downtown. She noted the arts is a vital part of that puzzle, especially if it can be done along with partnerships with non -profits. Berryman thanked staff and said it looks promising and encouraging. She noted the City needs activity on the square. Sattler congratulated the group and said it was a good presentation. Sattler asked and Brewer said they can certainly have maintenance costs ironed out before the next meeting. Lashley said the building can be available for public use as well. Meigs congratulated staff and noted he looks forward to how this will work out Hellmann said he like the combination of new with the old. He asked if there have been any efforts to raise money. Lashley said they cannot raise money until there is support of the City and the project is "green lighted." Lashley said, once they know this is a done deal, the money will be a lot easier to get Hellmann said he understands the concerns about ownership. He said he likes the idea of event rentals in the space. He noted it looks great. Eason said she has been involved with dreaming of this kind of thing since even before the plans for the revitalization of downtown. She said her dream is to not have only an arts center but an arts and entertainment district. She said this is a perfect example of why City Council would want to keep control of this type of building of a historic nature She said the involvement of non -profits is essential in terms of the organizing of volunteers and coordinating of activities. She said non -profits are able to organize and recruit volunteers and keep it running as they do at the Georgetown library. Eason asked and Lashley said the library has over 120 volunteers who work different hours. Eason continued to speak about the importance of the hard work, passion and dedication of local volunteers. Eason said Wang's visions are perfect and added she appreciates his work on this project so far. Mayor asked and Lashley said they would love to come back in April for final approval. Motion by Eason, second by Jonrowe to proceed in planning and come back to Council at a future date. Approved 6-0 (Gonzalez absent) B Workshop discussion on Chapter 12.24 "Events and Celebrations" Ordinance and process -- Skye Masson, Legal Assistant; Robert Fite, Fire Chief and Laurie Brewer, Deputy City Manager Gonzalez arrived at the dais. City Council Meeting Minutes/ Page 2 of 5 Pages With a PowerPoint Presentation, Brewer spoke about the Special Events Ordinance and changes and updates to the Ordinance. She said the purpose of the Special Events Ordinance is to define what a special event is and added it also provides a process to plan for the circumstances that come along with special events. She said the Ordinance helps to balance the use of City space for public events with the demand on code enforcement, public safety and parks. She said they want to make sure the health, safety and welfare of the event attendees and volunteers are maintained. She said the key components are regulating outdoor gatherings on public property, regulate parades, runs, and walks on city streets and right of way and defining first amendment events. She said the reason they are asking to update the Ordinance is there is confusion as to what is defined as a special event She noted staff was defining events in different ways at different times. She said there is also a lack of clear guidance to the applicant and noted there is an increasing number of events as well. She said there are timing requests and organizations and people wanting to reserve of dates ahead of time. She said the current Ordinance also lacks flexibility in creating administrative rules. Brewer, said the current ordinance was originally prepared to address some of the changes in the laws for freedom of speech events. She said the new Ordinance defines special events as "only when being held upon or blocking city owned property." She said this would include closing a public street, blocking or restricting city owned property, blocking or restricting access to City parks, the sale of food and merchandise on city owned property or erecting a tent on city property. She said a special event would also include installing a band stage or portable toilet She listed what they are exempting from this ordinance including events conducted entirely on the property of churches and schools, property owned by the City that is subject to a contract or lease agreement as long as it is a permitted use and funeral processions. She said they also exempted events for National Night Out, first amendment activity held entirely on sidewalks, in public parks or on private property and events held by another governmental agency, provided the entity has the event completely covered. She said the new Ordinance would extend the planning time to no more than 365 days before the event or at least thirty days before the event. She said the ordinance also adds a process for a late application with a fee. She said the assistant city manager (ACM) signs off on all special event permits. She said it allows administrative rules be set by ACM as well. She continued to described the special events process changes including information up front in a brochure with written, clear and concise information on this new special events policy. She spoke about the implementation of a calendar where people can reserve their dates. Brewer spoke about cost recovery and said they are proposing to have an estimate for the event planner on how much they would have to reimburse the City for code for the use of police officers. She said if alcohol is being sold or served and closing of major intersections is occurring, the police department would prefer that it be the City's officers manning the event. She spoke about charging for streets barricades, utility energization on the square, fire inspection fees and emergency management team. She spoke about the events the City covers the costs for and how those are called the "City sponsored events." She said major events must meet some of the following, including attracting tourists and visitors from outside the city, utilize city property, directly bringing sales tax to the community or directly contributing hotel/motel tax to the City. She said some of the major events encourage the promotion of the City's historical, natural, arts or cultural assets. She said each of those events are required to be designation as a special event by the City Council. She said the current special events are the Red Poppy Festival, The Sertoma 4th of July Celebration, County Sherift's Posse Rodeo Parade, The Christmas Stroll, the Festival of the Arts, Up the Chisholm Trail and the Georgetown Grand Criterion Race. She said, on minor events, the application fees are waived by the City Manager. She said minor events have included in the past the Texas Mission of Mercy, Project Graduation and Arbor Day. She showed Council the estimated City costs for a 5k run. She said tonight, on the agenda, there is the Ordinance for Council review and consideration. She spoke about the next steps in this process. Hellmann asked and Brewer said this Ordinance is just clarifying the process and reducing the amount of work on our City staff. Meigs asked and Brewer said temporary signs such as banners are included in the UDC. She said they want to have a handout and clear guidance on where to put the signs and how to take them down She noted they are definitely wanting to look at that the next time the UDC revisions go around Sattler asked and Brewer said the administrative rules will be cleared by the Assistant City Manager and be available on the website to review. Berryman said there are small neighborhood events that don't raise much money and does not require any police and she mentioned the Berry Creek Fun Run. Brewer said staff is looking at the Berry Creek fun run and added that is an event that the police are looking at to reduce funds. Berryman asked about first amendment activity. She noted there have been some events in other cities where people showed up and squatted and added it was costly to try to extricate them. She said this Ordinance does not provide the City with protection. Masson said the special events Ordinance would not protect the City in that type of situation. She noted the City would have to deal with campers with parks regulations She noted the City needs to be sure to enforce without regard to first amendment rights. She said the City does not want to use this process to restrict anyone from speaking out. Gonzalez asked and Brewer spoke about how staff would define a minor event Brewer said staff is looking to revise a group of Ordinances for clarification such as the Parks Ordinance and Film Ordinance. Fite said this is a best practices ordinance and added they reviewed and researched dozens of cities City Council Meeting Minutes/ Page 3 of 5 Pages to figure out what works best. He said they think this is what is best for Georgetown. He publicly thanked Brewer and Masson for their hard work. Mayor spoke about the traffic issues in the City and if there is language in the Ordinance to address traffic during special events. Brewer said there is no language now but noted Austin Avenue is never closed unless it is a City sponsored event. She spoke about where the traffic is diverted if Austin Avenue is closed. Fite said staff now has a preliminary application process where the applicant gives staff their concept. Fite noted, under that process, staff will be able to provide the applicant with a way to steer them away from closing down Austin Avenue. C Discussion and possible direction on Multi -Family Housing in the community -- Paul E. Brandenburg, City Manager Brandenburg said a memo was sent out to the City Council about housing in the community. He said the key is to talk about what Council wants the community to look like in terms of percentage of single family and multifamily housing. He spoke about what kind of impact multi -family housing will have on the community. He said there are three things that should be discussed and he reviewed those for the Council. He said these include the impact on public safety and the impact on the school district. He spoke about the importance of being steadfast with what percentage number the City wants and added those development ratios are important.He said the second thing that Council should discuss is compliance and modernization in viewing multifamily housing in the community. He said the third issue to discuss is a planning process and review of this topic. He spoke about what kind of impact multi -family housing will have on water and wastewater. Gonzalez said he would be interested to find out what would be a good ratio for Georgetown He said he would like to see cities of similar sizes and what would be best for Georgetown. He noted he would like to see more research about this prior to developing a process to address the issue. Jonrowe agreed and said this is an issue that needs to be examined more in depth and added she would like to receive feedback from people who are experts in this area. She said she would like to look at the different types of multi -family housing as well. Berryman said Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) has a threshold for low income affordable housing and noted Georgetown is at three times the threshold. She said there is too much burden on the tax payers when there is too much multFfamily in a community. She noted, in the past, there have been a healthy numbers of homes in the $250,000 to $500,000 range and they have carried the majority of taxes. She said of those rooftops, there is an excess of forty percent that are frozen. She noted Georgetown is in a unique situation. She said the City needs to get economic development going and needs to spend less time focusing on social services and start growing in a healthy way. She spoke about the school's free and reduced lunches. Sattler said looking at percentages is a good thing and added it is important to look at the impact it has on public services. Meigs said it is important to encourage single family and, if there is anything we can do to encourage single family, we should do that. He said it will have an impact on schools and the infrastructure and noted it is a timely discussion. Hellmann said it is always good to have a consensus and added he thinks more research needs to be done. He spoke about the possibility of putting together a task force of concerned citizens. He said it is a complex issue and monitoring and tracking it may be good. Hellmann noted he would support going forward with research and try coming together to reach a conclusion on what the ratio should be Eason said this is an issue that has long been debated. She said this goes back to the 2030 plan. She said it is a huge task and said the Council needs professionals to assist in this issue. Eason agreed with Jonrowe regarding the different types of multi -family housing that can range from expensive condos to low income housing. She noted she thinks it is timely and is something that needs to have a group of qualified professionals to assist Mayor spoke about how schools need to be an important part of this discussion. Mayor spoke about mobility of people who live in multi -family housing units and how it affects the education of students in the community. Brandenburg said this has been good discussion and spoke about proceeding with the help of professionals and best practices. He spoke about the importance of addressing this issue. Jonrowe suggested breaking down the City into smaller quadrants when looking at this information She spoke about having the pros and cons of single family versus the different types of multi -family as well as the type of taxes generated. Berryman spoke about the fact that Paul and staff should be looking at this and not form a task force to discuss the issue. She noted the complexion of the City has changed since the 2030 plan was created. Berryman said the City is changing in its structure and complexion and the City needs to know how to proceed for the future Brandenburg said that is a good starting point. Brandenburg spoke about looking and shaping Georgetown into what the City and the Council envisions. Eason addressed why she brought up the 2030 plan and added this is why the City does not want to reinvent the wheel.She said a 2030 plan is about envisioning the future of Georgetown. Recessed to Executive Session under Sections 551.071, 551.072 and 551.086 -- 4:38 PM Returned to Open Session and adjourned -- 6:21 PM City Council Meeting Minutes/ Page 4 of 5 Pages Approved: Mayor George Garver City Council Meeting Minutes/ Page 5 of 5 Pages Adjournment The meeting was adjourned at 10:30 PM. Attest: City Secretary Jessica Brettle RESOLUTION NO. O 3'�D RP -L— A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF GEORGETOWN, TEXAS AUTHORIZING THE MAYOR TO SIGN THE ADVANCE FUNDING AGREEMENT WITH THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION RELATED TO THE NORTH AND SOUTH AUSTIN BRIDGES PROJECT. WHEREAS, the Texas Transportation Commission passed Minute Order Number 114335, authorizing the State to undertake and complete a highway improvement generally described as reconstruct the North and South Austin Avenue bridges from 2nd Street to Morrow Street, Georgetown, Texas called the "Project"; and, WHEREAS, for the Project the term reconstruct includes replacement, rehabilitation, preservation, protection, and/or anti-icing/deicing for bridges and tunnels on a public road; and WHEREAS, as part of the administration of the Project, the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, by resolution number 2014-11-4, awarded the City of Georgetown a total of $1,299,174 in Surface Transportation Program Metropolitan Mobility (STP -MM) for the Project; and WHEREAS, in order to determine which alternative best serves the interests of the citizens of Georgetown, the City supports a study of alternatives including the following (1) do nothing, (2) alternative alignment, (3) maintenance, (4) rehabilitation/preservation and/or (5) replacement through a public involvement process which is also a requirement of the National Environmentally Policy Act (NEPA); and WHEREAS, the STP -MM award by CAMPO, using the term reconstruct, may require the City of Georgetown to submit to CAMPO a Transportation Improvement Project (TIP) amendment in the Spring of 2017 based on the decision resulting from the range of alternatives undertaken by the City of Georgetown; and WHEREAS, TxDOT works with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and other federal agencies to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and uses the TxDOT environmental compliance process for state and local projects, where TxDOT is the state approval authority; WHEREAS, the Advance Funding Agreement between TxDOT and the City allocate funds including a City contribution of $142,000 for the environmental review and is required for TxDOT approval. Resolution No. ban a t to - 1. Page 1 of 2 Date Approved 3 a Z NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF GEORGETOWN TEXAS. SECTION ONE. The facts and recitations contained in the preamble of this resolution are hereby found and declared to be true and correct, and are incorporated by reference herein and expressly made a part hereof, as if copied verbatim. SECTION TWO. The City Council of the City of Georgetown finds it to be in the best interest of the citizens of Georgetown to enter in the Advance Funding Agreement with the Texas Department of Transportation related to the North and South Austin Avenue Bridges Project. SECTION THREE. The Mayor is hereby authorized to sign this Resolution and the Advance Funding Agreement and the City Secretary to attest thereto, on behalf of the City. SECTION FOUR. This Resolution shall become effective on the c oaday of na-t 2016. PASSED AND APPROVED on the as day of MU c,�. , 2016. ATTEST: CITY OF GEORGETOWN, TEXAS S By: —dA Shelley Nlin City Secre Dale Ross, Mayor . qzt�� APPROVED AS TO FORM: Charlie McNabb, City Attorney Resolution No.Oma l L e^ L. Page 2 of 2 Date Approved 3