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HomeMy WebLinkAbout08-20-191 Minutes of the Pulaski Town Council Work Session held at 5:00 p.m. Tuesday, August 20, 2019 at the Town of Pulaski Senior Center at 106 North Washington Avenue. In attendance were: Mayor: David L. Clark, presiding Councilmen Present: G. Tyler Clontz; Brooks R. Dawson; Gregory C. East; Joseph K. Goodman, Lane R. Penn; James A. Radcliffe Administration: Shawn M. Utt, Town Manager Nichole L. Hair, Deputy Town Manager Legal Counsel Spencer A. Rygas, Town Attorney Press: Melinda Williams, Southwest Times Staff: Chief Robbie Kiser, P.F.D. Rebecca Leeper, Finance Director Bill Pedigo, Town Engineer David Quesenberry, Clerk of Council Chief Gary Roche, P.F.D. Others Present: Earle Shumate Tom Sproul Dr. John B. White 1. Call to Order. The meeting was called to order at 5:00 p.m. by Mayor Clark. 2. Roll Call. Following the call to order, the roll was taken. Present were: Mayor Clark, Mr. Clontz, Mr. East, Mr. Dawson, Mr. Goodman, Mr. Penn, and Mr. Radcliffe. With all members of Council in attendance, a quorum was present for the conduct of business. 3. Modification of the Agenda. Mayor Clark requested a motion from Council to modify the agenda to add one item to the Closed Session under Va. Code 2.2-3711 (A) 5, discussion concerning a prospective business or industry or the expansion of a business or industry where no previous announcement has been made of the businesses' or industry's interest in locating or expanding its facilities in the community concerning "Project Apex". Mr. Goodman moved to modify the agenda as proposed. The motion was seconded by Mr. Clontz and approved on the following roll call vote: Lane R. Penn -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye Brooks R. Dawson -Aye G. Tyler Clontz -Aye Gregory C. East -Aye James A. Radcliffe -Aye 4. Guests and Visitors. Mayor Clark thanked those present for attending the meeting and noted both staff and guests were present to assist with items on the agenda. Page 1 of 8/August 20, 2019 5. Consent Agenda. a. July 16, 2019, Council Work Session Minutes. Mayor Clark moved on to the Consent Agenda and called for a motion to approve the minutes of the July 16, 2019 Council work session. Mr. Penn moved to approve the minutes. His motion was seconded by Mr. Dawson and approved by a unanimous voice vote of Council. 6. Public Hearings. There were no public hearings scheduled for this meeting. 7. Presentations. a. Public Safety Building, Hughes & Associates and Draper Aden Associates Following approval of the Consent Agenda, Council received a report from Earle Shumate of Hughes and Associates and Tom Sproul of Draper Aden Associates concerning possible sites for the proposed public safety building. Mr. Shumate began the presentation by telling Council that the idea of the public safety building was to house both police and fire apparatus and to allow the sharing of public areas such as reception lobby, exercise rooms, and other similar areas, while maintaining their separate identities. Four sites were analyzed by the study which were: the Lee Jeans building; the Hylton property; Pulaski Middle School; and Washington Avenue between 4th and 5th Street, N.W. (Rutherford property). Each site was evaluated according to three criteria, the first of which was location. Location was then broken down into: response time for first responders; location in or out of the flood plain with a primary access that did not go through a floodplain; and finally access for citizens and first responders to the facility regardless of weather conditions. The second criteria was infrastructure availability such as water, gas, and telecommunications. The final criteria was constructability which dealt with adapting the site or the building to police and fire operations. After Mr. Shumate's comments, Mr. Sproul then reviewed his findings on each site focusing upon available infrastructure and developable area of the site. Regarding the Lee Jeans site, Mr. Sproul reported that from an infrastructure perspective, the access to the site consisted of four entrances and three roads, which provided the opportunity to serve the different functions of a public safety building without extra improvements. There was a lot of existing building and utilities on location, as well as a large amount of impervious surfaces on site. From a storm water perspective, he said it would be relatively easy to meet DEQ regulations perhaps by returning some of the impervious areas to grass, which would save on pond infrastructure costs. The location was relatively flat which offered enough opportunity for access to and movement around the site, which Mr. Sproul felt was one its most beneficial characteristics. Concerning the building, Mr. Shumate said the building was sound and could be adapted for use. He said the roof might have to be raised to get more height for Fire Department vehicles at the far end of the structure, but that it could be done. Mr. Radcliffe asked if the square footage of the building would meet the Town's needs in addition to future growth. Mr. Sproul replied that the building more than met the needs and that portions of it might have to be removed. Mr. Shumate added that with respect to fire and rescue services, it was preferred to have two means of access to the building that are remotely located in case of an accident in front of the building or another impediment to leaving. This site he said had multiple entrances in place. The Hylton property was reviewed next. Mr. Sproul said that it had the most total land area (25 acres) but not a lot of it was useable because of steep slopes throughout it. There was also no obvious location to place a building of the size and scope needed. A significant amount of grading and roads would be required to have a pull-through fire bay. This site he concluded had the most area but also had very little actual usable area without significant costs for grading and road construction work. Page 2 of 8/August 20, 2019 The next property reviewed was the Pulaski Middle School. Mr. Sproul said the middle school site had decent infrastructure with a flat area at the top of the hill. The biggest concern was the steep grade of Peppers Ferry Road which was questionable in winter. The other access routes from a transportation perspective were smaller roads that did not have the pavement section for frequent heavy truck traffic. Some work had been done on determining the widening and strengthening needed for these roads. The flat area would have new construction which would result in storm water costs in the southwest portion of the site. Mr. Utt asked if the review accounted for renovations to the middle school for the police. Mr. Shumate said it did. The reason that new fire bays were proposed was because of the height and construction of the building was not suitable. If the school were chosen, Mr. Shumate ventured that part of the school would be demolished to combine the bays with the building. Mr. Radcliffe said, in comparing the Lee Jeans building to the middle school, he thought there would be a lot more design required for the middle school than the Lee Jeans building as far as the space needed. Mr. Shumate said he was correct and added it was because the school was built for corridors and classrooms while modern Police departments required more open spaces and areas for open office plans. The structure of the school was not easily adaptable as was the structure of a warehouse for a 40 ft. by 40 ft. bay. With respect to the Washington Avenue and 5th St. site, Mr. Sproul said that it was a smaller site that was more centrally located. The grade of the property was not favorable for a drive-through fire bay since 5th Street was one story above the alley. He noted the site had significant limitations because of its size which affected building costs. Mr. Shumate added that to insure adequate parking for staff, a parking deck would have to be added. Mr. Sproul summarized his finding and stated that the former Lee Jeans building provided the most opportunities with respect to location, access, utilities, cheap storm water management, removal of demolition costs and asphalt repair. Mr. Radcliffe asked if there could be an indoor firing range at the Lee Jeans facility. After a short discussion, Mr. Shumate said that the back of the Lee Jeans building was six to eight feet below the parking lot, which could lend itself to at least a safety backstop. Mr. Goodman asked about the change in response times by the Police Department and the Fire Department moving to the outskirts of the Town. He wondered about the Police Department's having slower response times as well as the effect on insurance rates regarding the Fire Department being further away. Mr. Utt replied that after talking with Chief Roche, he felt police response times would not change because they were in the field already. The Fire Department he added might be looked at more closely. Mr. Goodman said he still wanted to see the data as well as reach out to insurance companies. Mr. Utt said that most fire insurance is rated more on the presence of fire hydrants and water availability, but staff could reach out and check that. In conclusion of their report, Mr. Shumate reviewed a schedule of construction costs which did not include acquisition costs for the property. Total construction costs for the four locations were estimated as follows: Lee Jeans- $9.38 million; Hylton Property -$14.22 million; Pulaski Middle School -$11.2 million; Washington Ave. --5th Street -$14.2 million. Mr. Dawson asked if utilities were included in the costs. Mr. Sproul said their estimates included some "placeholders" for the Hylton site utilities, but the other sites already had utilities available. Some cost was allowed for the movement of utilities. Mr. Dawson then asked if the cost estimates were for a finalized "move in" building and were the interiors inspected. Mr. Shumate replied the construction costs were based on $310 per sq. ft. for new construction and about half that for renovation. The goal Page 3 of 8/August 20, 2019 was to make the structure a 50-75 year build with minimal maintenance, which for a renovation would require replacing as much as could be afforded upfront to avoid later costs. Mr. East said it would be interesting to keep the middle school site in mind because it would be empty soon and was in a prestigious location in the Town. Mr. Goodman said that was one of his concerns since a building with industrial potential was being taken as opposed to a building that would be likely to sit unoccupied and derelict and which if lost, would have a significant community impact. Mr. East added that saving a prominent building in the Town and turning it into something out of the ordinary was an opportunity the Town would not have again. There being no further discussion, Council next considered updates on the Train Station roof and the Filter Plant. 8. Public Operations a. Train Station Roof Update. Mr. Pedigo reported he had received a more reasonable price for the roof and was working to keep the carpentry and repair work separate, since the roofing contractor wanted no part of replacing wood. He had made contact with Debusk Originals who still had the molding cutters to cut the type of wood needed for the underlay. Mr. Debusk also said he might be able to repair the "tail ends" of the rafters by splicing some of them together in a historic fashion. Mr. Pedigo added that he was working with him to get a price estimate. He hoped by the end of the Marketplace, possibly by late fall or early winter, repairs could begin. He cautioned that there was timing involved in the removal of the roof, removal of the "hidden" gutter, and replacement of the underlayment including beams and rafters that need to be replaced. Mr. Goodman asked if any word had been received from the insurance to which Mr. Utt said that no report had been received. Mr. Goodman then ventured the cost of repairs would be $150,000 to $200,000. Mr. Pedigo responded it would be at least that. Mr. Pedigo then gave Council an update on the Filter Plant. b. Filter Plant Update. Mr. Pedigo said he had a meeting scheduled the next morning with the consultant, CHA, to go over their new design. CHA had decided to go with a Leopold Filter insert because they did not feel comfortable with the inserts that the Town had now. From all accounts he added, the price was favorable. Mr. Utt said there was no final report from the insurance carrier, but he suggested that if the claim was denied he felt it was a matter that would be pushed. Mr. Goodman suggested investigating a bond instead of doing a general loan in case the Town had to pay for all three things (Filter Plant, Train Station, fire truck) out of pocket. Mr. Pedigo added that the filter that failed was different and that the remaining three filters had the inserts in them. Sometime in the future, the Town would need to budget replacement of the other filters. Mr. Goodman said that was part of his thinking about a bond that, depending on the debt service, all the filters should be done. Following discussion, Council moved on to receive financial updates on the tax sale and the ladder truck. 9. Finance a. Tax Sale Update Mrs. Leeper reported the Town tax sale was held on July 2611, with Sands Andersen performing the sale. Referring to the attachment in the packet, Mrs. Leeper said that most properties did not sell for enough to cover the taxes, however two properties did. Total bids for the sale was $97,000. Page 4 of 8/August 20, 2019 According to state code, after the attorney's fees are applied, the taxes are divided up according to the percentages owed to the County and the Town. The certification hearing for the sale was scheduled for Thursday (August 22) with the Town tentatively accepting the sale. While the sales did not get enough to cover the taxes Mrs. Leeper said, the property was sold to someone with the potential to do something with it and get it back on the tax rolls with an owner who will at least pay the taxes. Mrs. Leeper did not have information as to whether or not the County had accepted the sale. If not, the process was voided and the properties resold. She cautioned that the second sale normally did not bring as much and hoped the County would accept the results of the sale. Mr. Radcliffe asked what the STNP property was. Mr. Utt replied it was the former Magnox property which was purchased in its entirety. Mrs. Leeper said it brought more at the sale than she expected. Mr. East asked what the property would be used for. Mr. Utt replied that Mr. Hagan wanted to build some structures on the east side, demolish some structures and use the west side to store fill dirt. Mr. Utt said the breakdown of the available money was nothing that the Town could control but was governed by the state code. He noted that in talking to the attorney that there would be another sale in January. Mrs. Leeper said another positive thing was the Town was not paying the attorney's fees which came from the proceeds of the sale. Mayor Clark said the biggest thing for him was that these properties had set for years going steadily downhill, but now someone owned them that had some kind of plan for them. Mrs. Leeper said two of the properties sold for more than what was owed in taxes, so the owner will get a check for the difference. Mr. Goodman observed that even though the tax sale did not bring as much money as was hoped, i got a property back on the tax rolls as a positive contributor to the neighborhood which was worth it. Mrs. Leeper noted that some of the properties sold were significant eyesores. Discussion having concluded, Council then received a ladder truck update. b. Ladder Truck Update Mr. Utt referred to the information in the packet from Davenport regarding a bond instead of a straight bank loan. An RFP for a bond was in the packet which was due the following week. Mr. Utt said he hoped to have everything ready to hold a public hearing on September 3rd The cost of the truck was $250,000 which was reduced to $240,000 because of the $10,000 repair to the generator. Mr. Utt added that there had been conversations on adding more for equipment, which made the price no more than $270,000. Since the Town was dealing with a general obligation bond, a public hearing was required. Mr. Utt requested that Council schedule the public hearing for September 3 I to satisfy the bond counsel. By the public hearing, Mr. Utt ventured that Davenport would have all of the bank proposals returned and would have a recommendation regarding a bank for a ten year loan. He said that local and regional banks had been in contact with him concerning the bond issue. Mr. East returned to the filter plant issue and asked if there were four filters and were they all of the same design. Mr. Pedigo responded that the filter that failed was added in the 1960's and was made differently and, he thought, was not as structurally sound. If the filter inserts were failing or were of a bad design, he was concerned about the others. Mr. East asked how long those had been in service. Mr. Pedigo replied about eight years. Mr. Goodman said if there was a design flaw in the inserts, it was unknown how much longer they would last. Mr. Pedigo agreed adding that if the inserts broke away from the concrete, it could be an issue. Mr. East ventured that could be learned from an inspection which would not be in time to do anything. Page 5 of 8/August 20, 2019 Mr. Goodman said there was money in the reserves that the Town could use for the fire truck. Would it be better, he asked, to take more time on a bond to determine what additional things needed to be done at the same time. Mr. Utt responded on the water side, there was the Brookmont project at 1 % interest. Conversations were held with the Health Department on a loan expansion, $200,000 for the filter repair, which they were be willing to do. Mr. Goodman asked if the amount could be $800,000 to which Mr. Utt replied that the revolving loan fund was available for up to a 21 % grant. He added that the engineering firm for the Brookmont project and the emergency filter plant initiative were the same firm. Mr. Goodman felt that the train station and fire truck were the two items to be considered for issuing debt. He thought that if $200,000 was borrowed for the train station, would it not be better to borrow $500,000 all at once or do two separate loans for those issues? Mr. Utt said he could ask about the interest rates, but thought they were based on the Town's credit rating. Mayor Clark said that he understood that the fire truck would be financed from reserves until such time as the Town received the bond proceeds. Mr. Goodman said that was correct and saw this as a way to keep moving forward with the Town of Blacksburg. Essentially he said, the Town would assign itself a loan from reserves, then use the bond proceeds to pay itself back. Given the discussion, Mayor Clark observed that the process would be slowed down on both the public hearing and the bond and asked if that was detrimental in some fashion. There was a short discussion using reserves to pay Blacksburg and how to pay the reserves back. Mr. Utt said he could contact Davenport and find out what the options were and contact Blacksburg as well. Mr. Dawson asked if there were any consideration instead of increasing debt just using reserves to address the problem. Mr. Utt replied that so much time was spent in building up reserves, that given this large of an issue, he would prefer not to use them. Mr. East asked at what percentage were reserves. Mr. Utt said the last audit showed reserves were at 18%. Mr. Utt gathered that Council did not want to have a public hearing on September 3rd until they heard from the financial advisors. He added there would be bond costs and he did not know if there would be much difference with one large bond as compared to two smaller ones. Mayor Clark observed that the exact extent of the costs, regarding the insurance claims, were not yet known. Mr. Goodman said that fortunately the reserves were built up to a point where the Town could loan itself funds until it learned how much money was needed to correct the situation. Mr. East agreed. With discussion having concluded, Council next considered two requests to set public hearing dates for two Planning Commission cases. 10. Legislative a. Request for Public Hearing Dates for Zoning Cases 1. Request for Hearing Dates for a Special Exception Application (28 Dora Highway) 2. Request for Public Hearing Dates for a Rezoning Application (210 Randolph Ave.) Ms. Hair said the first request was for a special exception for property located at 28 Dora Highway to use the property as a boarding house. She requested that Town Council schedule public hearing dates for the Planning Commission on September 91h and the Town Council public hearing date on October 1St The second request was a rezoning for property located at 210 Randolph Avenue. The owner wanted to use the dwelling as a duplex which would require a rezoning from B-3 to R -O Residential Office. Staff requested that the Council set the Planning Commission public hearing date on September 9th and the Town Council public hearing date on October 1St Page 6 of 8/August 20, 2019 Mr. Goodman asked how "boarding house" was defined in zoning. Ms. Hair replied that she did not have the definition, but that the request was for up to six unrelated persons living in a home. Mr. Goodman then asked if the currently allowed number of persons was four to which Ms. Hair replied it was two. The zoning she explained was changed to head off any potential college students and things like that in residential districts. Currently two unrelated individuals in a dwelling was allowed. The request was for six persons which was based on the Fire Code and Building Code. Staff had met with the property owner regarding those aspects. Mayor Clark asked for a motion to set the two public hearings. Mr. Goodman moved to set the public hearings as proposed by the Zoning Administrator. Mr. East seconded the motion which was approved on the following roll call vote: Lane R. Penn -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye Brooks R. Dawson -Aye G. Tyler Clontz -Aye Gregory C. East -Aye James A. Radcliffe -Aye Council then moved on to the Roundtable Discussion. 11. Public Utilities No matters were on the agenda for review. 12. Safety There were no items listed on the agenda for discussion. 13. Human Resources There were no issues listed on the agenda for consideration. 14. Round Table Discussion Mayor Clark asked for comments from Council members. Mr. Goodman urged staff to keep doing what they are doing, because he was hearing good things. Mr. Radcliff said that when the time came for the professional building, that it be made a "crown jewel" since it was a one shot deal. He noted that a police officer had commented that five or six years ago there could not be a discussion since there was no money. Mr. Radcliffe said the comment was a good comment in that it showed things were headed in the right direction. He wanted to complement the employees and Mr. Pedigo concerning the water fountain, noting that he had received many comments and it was a beautiful sight. He urged staff to continue their efforts. Mayor Clark mentioned the article in the Southwest Times about the employees who worked on the fountain. Mr. Radcliffe asked if the employees painted the fountain. Mayor Clark said the employees sandblasted the fountain, put a special coating on it and painted it. Mr. Radcliffe felt the fountain would look pretty in the winter time with holiday lighting. Mr. Goodman asked if a heater would work for the fountain for the holidays. Mr. Pedigo said preparations for a heater had been made. Mr. Penn had no comment. Mr. Dawson asked if the landscaping that was bid out was completed and was Public Works still short on personnel. Mr. Utt replied that the landscaping was completed and three persons had been hired at Public Works leaving he thought five vacancies. Mr. East and Mr. Clontz had no comment. Page 7 of 8/August 20, 2019 1 1 After all comments were received, Council moved to the Closed Session. 15. Closed Session Mayor Clark requested a motion for Council to go into Closed Session for two items under Va. Code 2.2-3711 (A) 3, discussion or consideration of the acquisition of real property for a public purpose, or of the disposition of publicly held real property regarding a public safety building; and one item under Va. Code 2.2-3711 (A) 5, discussion concerning a prospective business or industry or the expansion of an existing business or industry where no previous announcement has been made concerning "Project Apex". Mr. Goodman moved to enter Closed Session for the two issues. The motion was seconded by Mr. Clontz and approved on the following roll call vote: Lane R. Penn -Aye Brooks R. Dawson -Aye Gregory C. East -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye G. Tyler Clontz -Aye James A. Radcliffe -Aye Council entered Closed Session at 6:02 p.m. and returned from Closed Session at 6:32 p.m. Mayor Clark asked for a certification motion that Council discussed only the two items for which Council went into Closed Session under Virginia Code 2.2-3711 (A) 3, discussion or consideration of the acquisition of real property for a public purpose, or of the disposition of publicly held real property, regarding a public safety building; and one item under Va. Code 2.2-3711 (A) 5, discussion concerning a prospective business or industry or the expansion of an existing business or industry where no previous announcement has been made concerning "Project Apex". Mr. Goodman moved to certify the closed session. The motion was seconded by Mr. Clontz and approved on the following roll call vote: Lane R. Penn -Aye Brooks R. Dawson -Aye Gregory C. East -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye G. Tyler Clontz -Aye James A. Radcliffe -Aye 16. Future Meetings and Adjournment Mayor Clark reminded Council of the next meeting on September 3 I at 7:00 p.m. and of the work session on September 17th at 5:00 p.m. There being no further business, Mr. Goodman moved to adjourn the meetin . His motion was seconded by Mr. Clontz and approved by unanimous voice vote of C i at 6:35 ­p.iK. ATTEST: David N. Quesenberry Clerk of Council Mayor Page 8 of 8/August 20, 2019 Clark M