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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-03-12Minutes of the Town Council meeting held April 3, 2012 at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers of the Municipal Building: There were present: Mayor: Jeffrey S. Worrell Council: Morgan P. Welker, H. M. Kidd, David L. Clark, Robert A. Bopp, Joseph K. Goodman Greg C. East Staff: John J. Hawley, Town Manager Dave Quesenberry, Asst. to the Town Manager Patricia Cruise, Clerk of Council David Warburton, Town Attorney John White, Economic Development Director Ervin Barr, Lieutenant Police Department Sherry Boyd, Finance Director Others: Rod Layman Kenneth Myers Roger Frye Dr. C. R. Conner Peter Ash John Kellis Andrea L. Kellis Sunshine Cope Stacy Cope Paul Cassel Bill Warden James A. Radcliffe Betty T. Quesenberry J. R. Schrader Shawn Utt Larry Clevinger, II Robert Glenn Melinda Williams, Press Mike Williams, Press Mayor Worrell called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Councilman Goodman led the Pledge of Allegiance and Councilman Bopp gave the Invocation. Following roll call, Mayor Worrell requested the presentation of the 2011 Planning Commission Annual Report. Mr. Quesenberry presented the report. Mr. Hawley added that two members of the Planning Commission, Mrs. Kathleen Kirk and Mr. Tim Clontz had submitted their resignations and the two positions needed to be filled. Councilman Clark moved to accept the 2011 Planning Commission report. Councilman Goodman seconded the motion and carried on the following recorded vote: Morgan P. Welker -Aye Robert A. Bopp -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye David L. Clark -Aye Gregory C. East -Aye The next item on the agenda was Public Hearings. The first hearing was in regard to a request to close a right of way on Camper Street. Mr. Hawley advised that Mr. Stacy Cope had presented a request to close an undeveloped street right of way between 1124 and 1128 Camper Street. He explained that the right of way was left over from the original plan of development for the Sunset Hills subdivision. Page 1 of 7/April 3, 2012 Mayor Worrell opened the Hearing at 7:05 p.m. Rod Layman addressed Council and passed out paperwork that he labeled Exhibit B. He advised that on Exhibit B there were at least three color coded former entranceways into the property. He noted that only the center entranceway was currently viable to the rear of the property. He added that the Family Worship Center had future plans to build a sanctuary able to hold approximately six hundred people near the center entranceway at the rear of the property. The Church felt it needed a rear exit from the Church. They requested that the request to close the undeveloped right of way between 1124 Camper and 1128 be denied so that if the new sanctuary was built, they could access through the rear of the property. Paul Cassell addressed Council on behalf of his brother in law Stacy Cope. Mr. Cassell advised that the original plans for the neighborhood called for the entire area to be residential and for Camper Street to be a dead end. Subsequently, the Church bought their property and now wanted to have Church traffic run through the rear of their lot and through the residential neighborhood. He expressed concern for the number of vehicles that would go through the residential neighborhood and the safety of the children in the neighborhood. He opined that the Church already had good access to Memorial Drive and did not need rear access. Additionally, he pointed out that Stacy Cope had just that day received the response from the Church and the remainder of the community had not been informed. He suggested that before Council made a decision, they give the remainder of the community the opportunity to submit their comments. The next speaker was John Kellis. He advised that he lived next door to Mr. Cope and that he was against the church using the neighborhood to access the church. He did not feel the street could handle the number of vehicles referred to in the request. Mrs. Andrea Kellis also addressed Council. She advised that the Church did not maintain the property they currently own and opined they would not maintain this property either. She felt this was a quality of life issue and did not feel the street could handle the number of vehicles referred to in the request. Next, Stacy Cope addressed Council. He advised he had maintained this right of way since he bought his lot in the neighborhood (approximately nine years). He expressed concern for the amount of vehicles that could travel through a neighborhood street that had only been built for neighborhood traffic. He expressed concern for the children who play on those streets. He noted that he had just received the letter from the Church that day and that there had been no time to notify the neighborhood families. He asked that Council send a letter explaining the situation to all of the houses in the neighborhood and allow them to comment before making a decision. Mr. C. R. Connor, Senior Pastor at Family Worship Center, addressed Council advising that the only egress the Church had was on to Memorial Drive. He expressed concern for what would happen if there was an emergency on Memorial Drive. He advised that the Church only wanted egress through the back of their property. Sunshine Cope spoke to Council expressing concern for the amount of traffic that would be generated through a residential neighborhood and for the safety of the children in the neighborhood. J. R. Schrader addressed Council expressing concern for the speeding traffic in the area. Kenneth Myers addressed Council commenting that if the church expanded, it would have to have access legally. Mayor Worrell closed the Public Hearing at 7:46 p.m. Extensive discussion ensued regarding the current zoning of the property, the expectations of the homeowners who bought homes on Camper, and changes the Church could make that could result in a lot of traffic in the neighborhood without having to be reviewed first by the Planning Commission. Page 2 of 7/April 3, 2012 Councilman Goodman moved to table "Closing of right of way on Camper Street". Councilman Bopp seconded the motion and carried on the following recorded vote: Morgan P. Welker - No Robert A. Bopp -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye David L. Clark -Aye Gregory C. East -Aye Mayor Worrell moved on to the second Public Hearing on Zoning Amendment Request To Allow Two Family Dwellings in R-2. Mr. Hawley advised of a request from Mr. Peter Ash for a zoning amendment to permit two-family dwellings in the R-2 Residential District. Currently, R-2 Residential districts only permitted single-family detached residences. Following review, the Planning Commission had recommended the Town permit two family detached residences as a Special Exception. Mayor Worrell opened the Public Hearing at 8:03 p.m. Peter Ash addressed Council advising that he lived at 339 North Jefferson. He explained that the property in question in the 4`h Street/Randolph Avenue area was in excess of 2,000 square feet and opined that it would make a perfect two family home. At 8:05 p.m., there being no further comments from the public, Mayor Worrell closed the Public Hearing. Mr. Warburton reminded Council that the request was to permit two-family dwellings in the R-2 Residential District, not just this particular home. Mr. Hawley interjected that according to research, two family dwellings were allowed in the R-2 Residential District prior to 2003. Councilman Clark moved to follow the Planning Commission's recommendation and allow two family dwellings in the R- 2Residential District and not amend the Ordinance. Councilman Bopp seconded the motion. Following discussion, Councilman Clark withdrew his motion and Councilman Bopp withdrew his second. Mr. Warburton clarified that the request was not specific to Fourth Street and Randolph Avenue. The request was to amend the R-2 zone to allow two-family dwellings by matter of right ortwo-family dwellings by special exception, the latter of which must go through the Planning Commission for recommendation to Council. Councilman Welker moved to adopt the recommendation of the Planning Commission and allow two-family units in the R-2 zone as a special exception. Councilman Clark seconded the motion and carried on the following recorded vote: Morgan P. Welker -Aye Robert A. Bopp -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye David L. Clark -Aye Gregory C. East -Aye The next item on the agenda was the Consent Agenda. Councilman Kidd moved to adopt the minutes of the March 6, 2012 Council meeting as written, seconded by Councilman Goodman and carried on voice vote. Mayor Worrell moved on to Project Updates. Page 3 of 7/April 3, 2012 Regarding the Dora Highway project, Mr. Hawley advised that waterline installation and intersection construction was in progress on Stuart Avenue and Baskerville Street; Town crews were working on site prep at 600 Dora for the April handover of the site to the contractor; the Town Attorney had received the construction contracts on 813 Stuart Avenue and rehab had begun; the Project Rehab Specialist was scheduling a review of the work write up for 830 Jackson Avenue with the homeowner and later with the oversight board before going out to bid. Next, Mr. Hawley advised that in the tornado area, 224 Cliff Street, which was a Town CDBG house, was ready to go out to bid; the next round of demolitions in the area were being prepared; Town crews were hauling backfill dirt for homes on Maple Street and topsoil into the tornado area to assist with Erosion and Sediment issues. Additionally, Mr. Hawley advised that the property at 909 Martin had been transferred to Mr. Ward and the Town was ready to assist with digging footers there. Mayor Worrell interjected that the Town was hosting an event at Calfee Park on April 7 to celebrate the tornado recovery efforts. He invited everyone to attend. Mr. White advised that Town staff visited the C&O Museum Heritage Center in Clifton Forge and reviewed the displays and manner of presentation(s) used in the exhibits. He noted that the Southbound Model Railroaders had submitted a proposed bid for the relocation of the Brockmeyer train set to the museum for $33,500 plus motel rooms. Preliminary work had begun on the train set. He added that the Museum building itself was progressing and it was hoped to begin moving the train set the weekend of May 19, but he emphasized that completion of the set up would take several months. Mayor Worrell moved onto Old Business. The first item was status of Richard Allen property on West Main Street. Mr. Hawley summarized the steps taken to contact Mr. Allen regarding the bills for stabilization and then demolition of his building on West Main Street after it collapsed. He advised that a lien had been placed on the property after numerous attempts to contact Mr. Allen failed. Mr. Warburton provided options to proceed to Council. Following extensive discussion, the consensus of Council was for the Town Manager to try to reach Mr. Allen and negotiate with him up to and including donating the property to the Town in exchange for the lien against the property and Mr. Allen paying the past due taxes. The next item on the agenda was Pulaski Area Transit fares. Mr. Hawley reviewed the process to set the Pulaski Area Transit fares. He noted that the setting of fares is up to Council. Mr. Welker opined that the rate should be increased to one dollar. Councilman East commented that it was not his intent to raise fares for the elderly and the handicapped. However, he felt that the remainder of the transit riders, at this time approximately 70% of the population, should pay an increase in fares. Councilman Goodman advised that he felt more comfortable just raising the fares for the 70% population. Mayor Worrell felt that two sets of fares would be an administrative nightmare. Page 4 of 7/April 3, 2012 Following more discussion, Councilman Welker moved to direct staff to advertise a public hearing to raise the fares for Pulaski Area Transit to $1.00. Councilman East seconded the motion. Councilman East then inquired whether an amount had to be established for the Public Hearing? Mr. Warburton advised that he did not think they had to include a rate amount when making the motion, however, a rate of $1.00 had already been included in the motion. Councilman Goodman clarified that the motion was to increase the rate for everyone? Councilman Welker responded in the affirmative, advising that he agreed with the Mayor that it would be a nightmare to try to enforce two separate fares. The motion then failed on the following recorded vote: Morgan P. Welker -Aye Robert A. Bopp - No H. M. Kidd - No Joseph K. Goodman - No David L. Clark - No Gregory C. East - No The next item on the agenda was debt refinancing. Mayor Worrell advised that the adoption of the Resolution would complete action of Council. Councilman Clark moved to adopt Resolution 2012-05, Authorizing the Issuance of a General Obligation Refunding Bond of the Town of Pulaski, in a Principal Amount not to exceed $3,950,000, and Providing for the Form, Details and Payment thereof and the Refunding of Certain Prior Indebtedness of the Town and Authorizing Certain Related Action as written. Councilman Kidd seconded the motion and carried on the following recorded vote: Morgan P. Welker -Aye Robert A. Bopp -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye David L. Clark -Aye Gregory C. East -Aye The next item on the agenda was Heartwood Day. Mr. Hawley advised that staff proposed Friday, April 20, 2012 as our "Heartwood Community Day". It was felt that participation would be just as great on a Friday as on a Saturday and would cut down on staff compensation time and achieve the same goal. He reviewed the types of groups who would be invited to participate and advised that emphasis would be put on highlighting the Town's physical assets. He added that the Chamber had been invited to assist with the activities for the day. Councilman Welker commented that he thought Council's direction had been to hold this event on a Saturday to take advantage of weekend travelers. Following discussion, the consensus was to try to schedule Heartwood Community Day on a Saturday. At 8:47 p.m., Mayor Worrell called for a recess At 8:55 p.m., Council returned from the recess and the Mayor reconvened the meeting. The first item for discussion was New Business. Page 5 of 7/April 3, 2012 Mr. Hawley advised that it was suggested that Town Council request that the New River Valley Planning District Commission include in their 2012-13 work plan a retail feasibility study for the Exit 94 area using the Anderson and Associates PER for sewer and data developed by Tischler Bise. It was felt that this would help identify potential retailers if the study showed possibilities in this area. Following discussion, Councilman Clark moved to request that the New River Valley Planning District Commission include in their 2012-13 work plan a retail feasibility study for the Exit 94 area using the Anderson and Associates PER for sewer and data developed by Tischler Bise. The motion was seconded by Councilman Welker and carried on the following recorded vote: Morgan P. Welker -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye David L. Clark -Aye Robert A. Bopp -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye Gregory C. East -Aye Mayor Worrell moved on to the 12/13 General Fund budget discussion. He advised that the Town Manager was going to provide an overview of the budget and suggested that Council review the information in the packet and be prepared to discuss the budget the following Tuesday at the scheduled Budget Work Session. 1 Mr. Hawley advised that the state budget had not been approved yet, therefore, the Town could not totally balance the budget at this time. He provided an overview of the draft budget included in the packet. He explained the status of the possible changes being mandated by the state that would affect balancing the Town budget. He provided some options that could be utilized if necessary to balance the budget such as increasing the building permit fees, the return check fees, the utility reconnect fees and the real estate tax. He pointed out that while it was not known at this point whether a real estate tax increase would be necessary, it needed to be advertised in a timely manner in case it was needed. He pointed out that Council could always decrease the amount advertised if they wanted, but could not increase the amount once it was advertised. He suggested that Council authorize staff to advertise a Public Hearing for a four cent real estate tax increase in case it was needed. Mayor Worrell inquired whether the Town Manager had a preference for how to fund the Economic Development department, whether it be out of the General Fund or out of the UDAG fund? Mr. Hawley advised that if the UDAG fund was depleted this year to fund the Economic Development department, then each year the General Fund was going to have to fund $25,001 to pay dues and debt service to Commerce Park. He thought that the department could be partly funded by the UDAG fund and partly by the General Fund for the next year. He felt this would provide an extra year for recovery in the tornado area, the Dora Highway area and in the economy. Ms. Boyd pointed out that there were enough UDAG funds to cover the Economic Development department for approximately ten months, including the three months left in the current budget year. Therefore, the Economic Development department could not be funded for a full year out of the UDAG fund. Mr. Hawley responded that staff would make the funding stretch for twelve months if that's what Council wanted. Mr. Hawley inquired whether Council wished staff to advertise a four cent per $100.00 increase to the Real Estate tax in case it was needed to balance the budget? Mayor Worrell felt the four cent increase to the Real Estate tax should be advertised as it left options open if they were needed. Councilman Clark opined the increase should be advertised in case the funding was needed. Page 6 of 7/April 3, 2012 Councilman Goodman inquired whether holding the Public Hearing on April 17, 2012 meant that Council would have to make a decision regarding the potential tax increase on that date? Mr. Hawley advised that the decision could be made at a later date if Council wished. Councilman East inquired whether the advertising decision could be postponed to ensure that every effort was made to balance the budget without a tax increase? Mr. Hawley responded that was up to Council. He stated that staff would not use the possible tax increase as a crutcfi to work lesson reducing the budget. Mayor Worrell commented that he would not wish to eliminate any potential option to balance the budget. Councilman Clark commented that he would rather advertise the potential tax increase now and then be able to come later and not use that option, than be without the option. Councilman Welker noted that even with a four cent increase, the budget would not be balanced as it was provided in the packet. He added that "we didn't ask for the state to start monkeying around with VRS. We didn't ask for these things. These were handed to us". He added that "it seems that the state wants to pass it on down as far as they can and let somebody else deal with it" and "we're stuck" taking the heat and making the decisions "because the folks in Richmond don't have the courage to do it". He hoped people understood that. Councilman East commented that "it sounds like everybody is driven to really work hard at what we're doing and make a tax increase a last resort and that's really where I'm at". Following more discussion, Councilman Clark moved to direct staff to advertise a Public Hearing to be held April 3, 2012 fora 4 cent rate increase to the Real Estate tax. Councilman Welker seconded the motion and carried on the following recorded vote: Morgan P. Welker -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye David L. Clark -Aye Robert A. Bopp -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye Gregory C. East -Aye General discussion ensued regarding potential avenues for staff to explore that might provide more income for the Town. There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 9:40 p.m. on motion by Councilman Goodman, seconded by Councilman Clark and carried on voice vote. Approved: Je orrell, Mayor Page 7 of 7/April 3, 2012