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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05-03-11There were presenT: Mayor Jettrey S. Worrell MlrluteS OT The I OWn COUnCII MeeTing held Moy 3, ZU I I aT /:UU p.m. In 7ne l.0Ur1C11 l.narn UerS oI ine MUnlClpal Building aT 42 First Street, N W. There were present: Mayor Jeffrey S. Worrell Council: Morgan P. Welker, H. M. Kidd, David L. Clark, Joel B. BurchetT, Jr. Robert A. Bopp, Joseph K. Goodman Staff: John J. Hawley, Town Manager Patricia Cruise, Clerk of Council David Quesenberry, Assistant To the Town Manager R. D. Warburton, Town Attorney Mike Hudson, Lieutenant Dave Hart, Parks and Facilities Bill Pedigo, Town Engineer Sherry Boyd, Finance Director John White, Economic Development Director Elizabeth Chitwood, Administrative Secretary Others: Jennifer White Patricia Weeks George Collins Jennifer Collins Clark Payne Amy Lewis Melinda Williams, Press Mayor Worrell called the meeting To order at 7:00 p.m. Amy Lewis John McNair Mike Williams, Press Councilman Goodman led the Pledge of Allegiance and Councilman Clark gave the invocation. Following roll call, Mayor Worrell welcomed the visitors to the meeting. The first item on the agenda was Presentations. Mayor Worrell read a Certificate of Appreciation from the New River Valley Agency on Aging for outstanding performance and continuing contributions to the Supplies For Seniors. He thanked Mrs. Tina King and the New River Valley Agency for the Certificate. The next item on the agenda was a Public Hearing. Mayor Worrell advised that the Public Hearing was a request for a six inch encroachment on Bowling Court. Mr. Hawley advised that the County was renovating the Maple Shade Plaza. This had necessitated new entrances on the building, resulting in the need to encroach six inches onto the Bowling Court right-of-way to accommodate two sets of steps for exits on the east side of the Maple Shade Plaza. Councilman Welker inquired if decreasing the right of way by six inches would impact the use of any of the property adjacent to Bowling Court now or in the future Mr. Hawley did not foresee any problem. Mayor Worrell opened the Public Hearing at 7:04 p.m. Shawn UtT, a member of Pulaski County staff advised that he was present to answer any questions that Council might have. He advised that there were two options available To the County if this request was not approved, however, he noted that they were fairly expensive. There being no further comments, the hearing was closed at 7:05 p.m. May 3, 201 1 /Page 1 of 6 Councilman Clark moved to direct start to prepare the appropriate paperwork to grant me six incn Fii'ayor" W o~re"lrconn~mecffnafYne rif~ti~f5'5151 r1~}1t'~fPd~r'25ffd`d L~f3tffYn'127ft?iEiCi fld'f3SJb`~fiR23i6(i ~ ~1i1,~ ~iti +'^^ request. r~ Councilman Clark moved to direct staff to prepare the appropriate paperwork to grant the six inch encroachment on Bowling Court as requested by the County. Councilman Goodman seconded the motion and it carried on the following recorded vote: Morgan P. Welker -Aye Joel B. Burchett, Jr. -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye Robert A. Bopp -Aye David L. Clark -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye The next item on the agenda was Public Comment period. Patricia Weeks addressed Council requesting that Council change the BPOL tax formula for professional small businesses. She felt the formula was unfair to professional small businesses. Mayor Worrell advised that several years ago Town Council exempted the first $50,000 from the BPOL tax as an economic development tool. Last year, Council rescinded that exemption. Mr. Hawley commented that Councilman Goodman had previously suggested that this topic be further discussed in budget sessions. He added that perhaps after reviewing the budget, something in between could be formulated for the professional small businesses. Councilman Kidd felt the BPOL for professional small businesses should be changed. Councilman Goodman reminded Council that in February, he had suggested a fixed fee of $30 for either less than $25,000 or less than $50,000. He added that his preference was $30 for less than $50,000. He felt that Council should review this suggestion during the ongoing budget sessions. Ms. Weeks interjected that she would like to see everyone have a flat fee, regardless of the profession. Councilman Kidd advised that he would like to review the subject during one of the upcoming budget sessions. Councilman Welker advised that he was leery of doing anything that would reduce the revenue. He added that when Council changed the formula last year, it was due to revenue problems. He stated that the choices in the state of Virginia on what you can tax are limited. He advised that he was willing to look at other ideas, but if there was nothing to replace the revenue or cut something out of the budget to make up for it, he was not in favor of the idea. He commented that he had sympathy for Ms. Weeks, but felt it was a cost of business. Ms. Weeks suggested that a way to increase revenue would be for Council to take a cut in pay. She advised that she had had to do just that. Following further discussion, it was decided to discuss the topic at an upcoming budget meeting and to notify Ms. Weeks when that meeting would be held so she could attend. The next comment was from John McNair. He addressed Council about their previous decision to discontinue late notices for water bills. He felt that Council should re-implement the late notices. Mayor Worrell responded that Council made that decision last year in an effort to cut costs for the Town. Councilman Welker suggested that Council re-implement the late notices and increase the reconnect fees to make up for the loss of revenue. Councilman Goodman inquired whether there was a way with the current billing system to separate the ' customers who are repeatedly delinquent from those who are occasionally delinquent? Mayor Worrell commented that he could not imagine a scenario where staff could send one customer a late notice without sending one to all the delinquent customers. May 3, 201 1 /Page 2 of 6 i 1. 11.....1 ~.....~. l.... L1L~.1 L..l. .-~:.-~.. .. _i _.._i_.__ ~~ _i_ ~ , ~i Councilman Burchett inquired whether there was a system in place with our current phone system or email whereby an automated call could go out to the delinquent customers? Mr. Hawley was not aware of that feature in our current phone system. He noted that staff could look into the system for next year perhaps. Following discussion, the consensus was for Council to discuss this issue further during the upcoming budget sessions. The next item on the agenda was the Consent Agenda. Councilman Welker moved to adopt the Consent Agenda consisting of the April 5, 201 1 Council minutes as written. Councilman Clark seconded the motion and carried on voice vote. Mayor Worrell moved on to Project Updates. The first item was tornado recovery efforts. Mr. Hawley provided an update of the status of the tornado recovery efforts. He noted that more information had been included in the packet regarding the CDBG grant potential for the southwest recovery area. Mayor Worrell commented that there were new issues that pop up almost every day that had not occurred to anyone. He added that we deal with them as they come up. Councilman Clark interjected that the tornado Finance Committee was concentrating on helping the most needy first. He added that this would be a growing and evolving committee as time goes on. Councilman Goodman advised that all of the citizens in the tornado area needed to turn in their "Needs Assessment" forms if they have not done so. The Committee was using the information from that form to prioritize expenditures for the citizens. , The next update was in regard to the Museum. Mr. Hawley advised of the receipt of an email from VDOT advising of the need for the submittal of a new EQ-21 form. He added that the form had already been sent. He noted that at this point, we were four months behind schedule. Councilman Goodman inquired whether the Mayor or staff had been in contact with the Brockmeyer family To ensure that they were still willing to donate the Train set? Mayor Worrell responded that nothing had changed with the Brockmeyer family. Regarding the sewer pump stations update, Mr. Hawley provided an update on the pump station project. He noted that staff was still waiting for confirmation from all the agencies involved that the project could be started. The next update was on the Dora Highway CDBG project. Mr. Hawley advised That a copy of the Housing Oversight Board minutes from April 14, 201 1 had been included in the packet. He added that staff would be proceeding with the next round of rehab closings using the new grant format that Council approved on 4-19-1 1. Mayor Worrell moved on to Old Business and Reconnect fees for water bills. He reminded Council of the discussions already held on the issue. He noted that Mr. Collins, Mr. Pifer and Mr. Geiss were against the policy ' as it required landlords to pay any delinquent water bills if the renters did not. They had requested that Ordinance 2009-1 1 be changed. He opened the subject for Council discussion. May 3, 201 1 /Page 3 of 6 rns. ooya uireriecrea rnar currency me aeposir ree is tau ror water ana sewer ana y3a ror the garbage portion. i.~'1Sf ic`iif rS2S?F~t~reasf;'tarrtec~t~>rsi ~"?life{ ir2R~~1~ii ~cE2S~jec r~$ f 0(3Y~t?Cir1f S~E1`l~e ~f25rfi?f~~'fLhafif'~37SY~CU'7fry deposit for rental properties only. Ms. Boyd interjected that currently the deposit fee is $80 for water and sewer and $36 for the garbage portion. Those deposit fees are credited against the final bill. She inquired whether Councilman Goodman was suggesting increasing the deposit fee to $180 for water and sewer deposits? ' Councilman Goodman inquired whether that was feasible and could it be applied to rental property only? Ms. Boyd advised that since the new Ordinance had been enacted, there had only been ten times that the landlords have had to pay this fee. Councilman Welker thought the Ordinance should be left alone. He noted that the application for water and sewer service for rental property stated that the landlord has to sign each rental application form stating that they understand that if the renter doesn't pay the bill, the landlord would be responsible for the $100 deposit. Councilman Burchett commented that several landlords told him that they feel that it is an undue burden on tenants to increase the deposit fees. He advised that he suggested to the landlords that they increase their rent to offset the possibility of the fee needing to be paid by them. He inquired whether the $100 fee was the true cost of reinstalling a meter? Mr. Hawley advised that if it occurred after hours, that probably was a true cost because of the overtime due the staff. Councilman Kidd inquired whether the new meters had the capability of lock out? Mr. Pedigo responded no, they have to be done manually. Councilman Kidd inquired whether some of the meters could be manually locked out rather than removing the meter? ' Mr. Pedigo responded yes. Mr. Hawley pointed out that staff time was still involved in locking out a meter. Councilman Goodman inquired whether there were landlords who have not signed the current documents for their tenants? Ms. Boyd responded that she was sure there are. The form was only put in place two years ago. Councilman Goodman inquired whether staff could contact those owners who have not signed the currenl form? He felt this would stop any more surprises. Ms. Boyd advised that could be mailed with the water bill but that would go to the tenant. She added that it would be a huge undertaking to contact each landlord individually as properties sell, owners move etc. Councilman Goodman moved to direct staff to draft a document to be included in the next water bill that includes information regarding the water $25 and $100 disconnect fees and the schedule for late notices procedures regarding late payments. Councilman Clark seconded the motion. Councilman Welker inquired into the cost and staff time to prepare and add this flyer to every water bill? He asked if staff still had to stuff inserts by hand or whether the machine had been repaired? Ms. Boyd responded that the machine was currently broken, but that it was hoped to have it repaired very ,quickly. May 3, 201 11Page 4 of 6 H. M. Kidd -Aye Robert A. Bopp -Aye The motion then carried on the following recorded vote: Morgan P. Welker -Aye Joel B. Burchett, Jr. -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye Robert A. Bopp -Aye David L. Clark -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye Mayor Worrell moved on to New Business. The first item was Resolution 201 1-05, Appointment of Harold Lambert and Sam Gregory to the Pulaski Redevelopment and Housing Authority. Councilman Clark moved to adopt Resolution 201 1-05, Appointment of Harold Lambert and Sam Gregory to the Pulaski Redevelopment and Housing Authority. The motion was seconded by Councilman Goodman and carried on the following recorded vote: Morgan P. Welker -Aye Joel B. Burchett, Jr. -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye Robert A. Bopp -Aye David L. Clark -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye The next item was zoning questions related to the recovery area. Mr. Hawley advised that several questions had been received from the citizens asking if a "single-wide" manufactured home could be used to replace their destroyed residences in neighborhoods in the tornado recovery area. Under the current zoning regulations, these are only allowed in existing trailer parks; in the MH-1 District (which is not currently in use in the Town); and to replace units that were grandfathered-in, as a result of being on site and in use before the current zoning regulations were adopted. Additionally, in a storm related issue, currently if a structure on anon-conforming lot is destroyed by a natural or man-made disaster and lot requirements for area, width, depth, or setbacks cannot be met, it may be replaced on the site of the original structure. To get around these dilemmas, it may be necessary to amend the zoning regulations. He added that he was just advising Council that these issues may come before Council in the future. Following discussion, staff was directed to work on this zoning issue for further discussion Mayor Worrell moved on to rental inspections outside a district. Mr. Hawley advised that several complaints had been received by the Town concerning rental properties outside the existing rental inspection districts. A copy of the state code regarding this issue had been included in the packet for Council review. Following discussion, staff was directed to work on a report regarding procedures to bring individual rental properties that are outside the current districts, under the rental inspection program. At 8:18 p.m., Councilman Clark moved to enter into Closed Session under Virginia Code 2.2-371 1: (A-3), Two items for acquisition or use of real property for public purpose, or disposition of property. (A-6), Investment of public funds. The motion was seconded by Councilman Goodman and carried on the following recorded vote Morgan P. Welker -Aye Joel B. Burchett, Jr. -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye Robert A. Bopp -Aye David L. Clark -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye At 8:55 p.m., Council returned from Closed Session and adopted the Certification Resolution on motion by Councilman Clark, seconded by Councilman Kidd and carried on the following recorded vote: Morgan P. Welker -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye David L. Clark -Aye Joel B. Burchett, Jr. -Aye Robert A. Bopp -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye May 3, 201 1 /Page 5 of 6 rouowing recoraea vote: Councilman Clark moved to direct staff to prepare the proper paperwork to loan $20,000 to Coffee Buy The Book from the Rural Business Enterprise Grant. Councilman Kidd seconded the motion and carried on the following recorded vote: Morgan P. Welker -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye David L. Clark -Aye Joel B. Burchett, Jr. -Aye Robert A. Bopp -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye There being no further business, the meeting adjourned on motion by Councilman Clark, seconded by Councilman Welker and so carried. Approved: i~ .Worrell, Mayor May 3, 201 1 /Page 6 of 6