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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10-03-06Minutes of the October 3, 2006 Council meeting held October 3, 2006 at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers of the Municipal Building. There were present: Charles L. Wade, Mayor Council: Jeffrey S. Worrell, Dan Talbert, Jr., Lane R. Penn, Joel B. Burchett, Jr., David L. Clark, Larry Clevinger, II Staff: John J. Hawley, Town Manager David N. Quesenberry, Asst. To the Town Manager Sherry Boyd, Finance Director John White, Economic Development Director Dave Hart, Parks and Facilities Gary W. Roche, Police Chief A. K. Anderson Patricia Cruise, Clerk of Council Randolph D. Eley, Jr., Town Attorney Others: Darle Hite Lee Rice Dan Coltrane Sheldon Matzie Pat Matzie Dave Andrasko Tracy Harriman Robert Bopp Edna Isbill Bob Dills Judy Peterson Dennis Beavers Oliver Samples Betty Montgomery Carol Wade Jennifer White Pam Whitesell Judy Ison Anastasia Anderson, Press Paul Dellinger, Press Mayor Wade called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Councilman Penn led the Pledge of Allegiance and Councilman Burchett gave the Invocation. Following roll call, Mayor Wade announced the Employee of the Month for September, 2006, Acting Lieutenant A. K. Anderson. He read a press release aloud and congratulated Mr. Anderson. He noted that in addition to this honor, Mr. Anderson would receive and additional paid day off from the Town and be considered for the Employee of the Year award in December. Councilman Penn moved to modify the agenda to address item 13a before item 11c. The motion was seconded by Councilman Talbert and carried on the following recorded vote: Jeffrey S. Worrell - Aye Joel B. Burchett, Jr. - Aye Dan Talbert, Jr. - Aye David L. Clark - Aye Lane R. Penn - Aye Larry Clevinger, II - Aye The next item on the agenda was Public Hearings. The first Hearing was a request to rezone Lowmoor to R-4. Mr. Quesenberry summarized the reasons for the Town’s request to rezone Lowmoor to R-4. He advised that the Planning Commission reviewed the request and recommended that the area be rezoned to R-4 Residential District. At 7:04 p.m., Mayor Wade opened the Public Hearing. There being no comments, the Hearing was closed. Councilman Worrell moved to direct the Town Attorney to prepare an Ordinance rezoning Lowmoor to R-4, Residential District. The motion was seconded by Councilman Penn and carried on the following recorded vote: Jeffrey S. Worrell - Aye Joel B. Burchett, Jr. - Aye Dan Talbert, Jr. - Aye David L. Clark - Aye Lane R. Penn - Aye Larry Clevinger, II - Aye The next Public Hearing was called to consider a request from the Town to rezone the R-5 Residential District located on the north side of First Street, NE to B-3 Central Business District. Mr. Quesenberry explained the reasons for the Town’s request to rezone the area to B-3 Central Business District. He added that the Planning Commission reviewed the request and recommended that the area by rezoned to B-3 Central Business District. At 7:15 p.m., Mayor Wade opened the Public Hearing. Darle Hite, Lee E. Rice and Dan Coltrane addressed Council asking that the area be rezoned I-2, Industrial District as it had been before the most recent change. John White, Economic Development Director, addressed Council supporting that the area be rezoned to B-3. Following discussion, Councilman Penn moved to direct the Town Attorney to prepare an Ordinance rezoning the R-5 Residential District located on the north side of First Street, NE to B-3, Central Business District. The motion was seconded by Councilman Talbert and carried on the following recorded vote: Jeffrey S. Worrell - Aye Joel B. Burchett, Jr. - Aye Dan Talbert, Jr. - Aye David L. Clark - Aye Lane R. Penn - Aye Larry Clevinger, II - Aye The next item on the agenda was right-of-way closing near 1114 Camper Street. Mr. Quesenberry advised that a citizen at 1114 Camper Street had requested that a portion of a right-of-way be closed. They felt that if the Walgreen Pharmacy was built, there would be no need for the right-of-way. He noted that at the moment, the Walgreen project was on hold pending some engineering information. Mayor Wade opened the Public Hearing at 7:28 p.m. There being no comments, the hearing was closed. Mr. Hawley advised Council that during recent research of the original subdivision map, a discrepancy was discovered. It appeared that the property might still be in the original owners name. The Town Attorney was going to have to research the issue. Mayor Wade moved on to Public Comment period. He advised that the Town had received a letter from the Pulaski Theatre Board for the Town's donation. He read a letter of congratulations from the Virginia Municipal League for winning the VML 2006 Achievement Awards competition in the category for localities with populations between 5,000 and 10,000. He congratulated members of staff Mrs. Barbi Tate and David Quesenberry for preparing the award entry. Additionally, the Mayor advised that there was an article in the newspaper regarding a pioneer blanket dedicated to the Wilderness Road project, created by Mr. Bob Harman's textile museum. He showed one of the blankets to Council. The next item on the agenda was the Consent Agenda. Councilman Penn moved to adopt the Consent Agenda consisting of the minutes of September 5, 2006, seconded by Councilman Clevinger and carried on voice vote. Mayor Wade moved on to Project Updates. Mr. Hawley advised that as a result of Council's efforts to alleviate blight in the Town, staff had begun research on rental inspections and a Rental Inspection Committee had been formed. Staff had included in the packet a copy of the Code of Virginia regarding rental inspections for Council’s review. He advised that staff needed direction from Council as to what other issues Council wanted reviewed. He added that the Rental Inspection Committee planned to hold its first meeting on October 5. Mayor Wade asked Police Chief Roche to present an update on an experiment called Broken Window. Chief Roche advised that a research project had focused on how long it took neglected property to get damaged and once it was damaged, how the process accelerated. The result showed that once you have deterioration of the property, the process accelerates and affects all of the property around it and the neighborhood soon follows with an increase in the crime rate. Mayor Wade added that two things happened in every Town or City in Virginia that had a strong property maintenance ordinance. After a period of time, the nuisance abatement had gone down and crime had decreased. He thought that staff should look at what the state will permit the Town to do and include that in the Town code. He added that rental property inspection and registration was only one part of property maintenance, that staff should include whatever the state allows in creating or modifying the Town code. Mayor Wade moved on to Remote read water meters. Mr. Hawley advised that Public Works had been working with the supplier toward getting the meters installed. The software will have to be installed before the system will run and then staff will require training. The next item on the agenda was the Maple Shade property. Mr. Hawley advised that the County had been looking for space in the downtown area. The Space Committee for the County and the Town had been negotiating for the County to purchase the Maple Shade Shopping Center. The County offered $600,000 to purchase the Shopping Center. The Town would retain a 1/2 acre lot to construct a Museum/Fine Arts Center complex in the near future. The County also agreed to share parking jointly between the Town and County for the parking lot. The County has agreed to honor all of the current leases at the Maple Shade Shopping Center. If Council chooses to accept the offer, a Public Hearing would be scheduled regarding disposal of the property and it would require a super majority vote of Council. Mayor Wade advised that he had some comments for consideration during these discussions. The first was that the Maple Shade property was used as a match for the Museum complex and it was hoped that the 1/2 acre lot retained by the Town next to the Maple Shade Shopping Center could be used for that match. Mr. Hawley advised that he had already spoken with VDOT and determined that the value of the out parcel could be used as a match, however, the Town would be responsible for a 20% match to all construction costs for the Museum/Fine Arts Center. Mayor Wade continued that should Council decide to sell the Maple Shade after holding the Public Hearing, then the proceeds be put into CD's and set off bounds for at least two years. He felt that two years should be ample time for the Museum group to gather the funding to build the building on the out parcel. He suggested that if that was not accomplished by that time, that the Council should stop the project. Additionally, he felt that a legal document should be drafted articulating what the Town's responsibility for the Museum would be and including a time line. That the Town's responsibility would be to provide the utilities for the building, share the telephone costs, provide the insurance for the building, but not the contents and to provide routine maintenance on the building. Councilman Worrell commented that he did not think the legal document needed to be tied to the sale of the Maple Shade property, other than retaining an out parcel for the Museum. Mayor Wade agreed, however, he did think that a time limit should be imposed when the Council discusses the creation of the new Museum. Councilman Burchett asked whether the out parcel would adequately cover the match? Mr. Hawley replied no. He advised that if the price of the building was $850,000, and the Town performed site work and included the $156,000 for the plans, the Town would have to supply $200,000 cash match for the project. Which was why the Mayor was suggesting reserving a certain percentage of the funds received for the sale of the Maple Shade property to gather interest, and then using those funds as the match for the project. From the public, Betty Montgomery addressed Council. She commented that the Town has so many empty buildings and empty parking lots, why couldn't the County use one of those buildings or strip malls. She felt that there were wonderful plans in place for moving the Museum and the Fine Arts Center to the Maple Shade mall. She asked that Council consider using some of the existing buildings for the Museum and Fine Arts Center, rather than building a new building. Councilman Clevinger asked whether the plans call for the out parcel being owned by the Town or being an option? Mayor Wade replied that the Town would own the out parcel. He added that he felt that it was important to preserve part of our heritage and transportation and the arts have been very prominent in the area and in some form, the Museum was needed. The only question was location. Judy Peterson, from MTM, asked if the County purchases the Maple Shade and forces MTM to move, would they reimburse MTM partially for the build out costs that they invested in the building? Mayor Wade responded that there was enough available space in the building for their needs. Mr. Hawley advised that his comments with the County have indicated for him to continue pursuing leases, so he felt that they probably had no intent to move anyone out in the near future. He advised that he would discuss that with the County and inform MTM. Mayor Wade moved on to the report from Bob Dills, the Museum Consultant. Mr. Dills addressed Council and reviewed his impressions of the Museum and the Fine Arts Center and the possibilities for the combination of the two groups. He opined that the railroad train set up needed to be the focus of the Museum. He opined that if the Town builds a new Museum, that the Train Station should become a visitors center. He reviewed what he considered to be the strengths and weaknesses of the project. He reviewed the points of his contract and work that he had accomplished and delivered a business plan. Mayor Wade asked what was required for accreditation of the Museum. Mr. Dills advised that accreditation is a lengthy process involving cataloging, storing, maintaining, inventorying, climate control, staff credentials and more. There being no further comments, Mr. Dills left the Council Chambers. Mr. Hawley advised that Mr. Dills had advised in his proposal that he would like to extend his contract another six months, was asking for a $2,000 retainer and $1,000 per month after that. Mr. Hawley added that although he had not reviewed all of the documents from Mr. Dills, it appeared that he had fulfilled and exceeded the requirements of the initial contract. Mr. Hawley felt that Council could extend the contract on the condition that the documentation is appropriate and well done and professional. From the Public, Betty Montgomery commented that after hearing Mr. Dills comments, she would like to withdraw her request for Council to reconsider their decision to sell the Maple Shade. She wanted a new building. Councilman Worrell moved to extend Mr. Dills contract subject to his documentation being satisfactory. The motion was seconded by Councilman Talbert and carried on the following recorded vote: Jeffrey S. Worrell - Aye Joel B. Burchett, Jr. - Aye Dan Talbert, Jr. - Aye David L. Clark - Aye Lane R. Penn - Aye Larry Clevinger, II - Aye The next item on the agenda was a report on the DMV "Stops" program. Mrs. Boyd, the Finance Director advised that the Finance Department had mailed 582 letters to delinquent personal property taxpayers with last names beginning with the letter "A" through "C". Staff would continue progressing through the remaining delinquent personal property taxpayers. She advised that once all of the taxpayers were legally notified and time conditions met, then stops would be placed at DMV on the remaining delinquent personal property taxpayers allowing no license renewal until their taxes are paid in full. Mayor Wade moved on to Old Business. The first item was vicious/dangerous dogs discussion. Mr. Hawley advised that Councilman Penn had asked staff to review information regarding adopting a proposed vicious dog ordinance. He advised that the Town Attorney and the Police Chief felt that there was no reason to adopt an Ordinance that parallels the state, and that in fact, it could potentially cause trouble for the Town. The Town Attorney elaborated on the subject. Mayor Wade moved on to the Kiwanis Park list. Mr. Hawley advised that a representative of the Kiwanis Club addressed Council in June asking for a list of projects that the Club could do at Kiwanis Park on Dora Highway. Informal discussions had been held, but no formal list had been presented. He advised that Dave Hart, the Parks and Facilities Director prepared a list and forwarded it to the Kiwanis Club. A copy of the list was included in the Council packet for review. Councilman Burchett pointed out that several of the trees in the park needed trimming. Mr. Hart advised that he would check the trees at the park. The next item on the agenda was the sign ordinance. Mr. Hawley advised that he previously sent a memo to Council advising that temporary signs are appearing all over Town. Temporary signs are not covered in the Town code. He asked if Council wished to amend the Code to define temporary signs. Mayor Wade commented that the Planning Commission reviewed this issue because of complaints concerning a proliferation of real estate signs. They recommended that there be no signs on the right of way. The temporary signs are now proliferating and it does invite clutter. He opined that if you're going to permit signs on the right of way for some people, you have to allow them for everyone, and that includes real estate signs. From the public, Carol Wade commented that the problem has expanded to include riding mowers with signs on them. Councilman Talbert added that employees are carrying signs or advertisements. Councilman Burchett commented that his response to Mr. Hawley's memo was that as long as they were neat and were not a safety hazard, he didn't have a problem with them. He felt that we could ask the owners of the signs to maintain the grass around the signs to improve that appearance. Mayor Wade commented that the ordinance should be enforced. Councilman Worrell agreed with the Mayor, commenting that if anyone can post the signs, then everyone should be allowed to post the signs. He felt that it had gotten out of hand. His only concern was that some of the signs were expensive and at least one of the signs had been put up after being granted permission by the Town. Mr. Hawley commented that the signs just appear. They don't call. They just put them up. He added that what he's hearing from Council is to send letters to all the businesses in Town notifying them that there can be no signs on the right-of-way. Mayor Wade responded in the affirmative. The next item on the agenda was Ordinance 2006-29, Closing of an undeveloped alley between South Washington Avenue and Lexington Avenue. Mr. Hawley advised that staff contacted Mrs. Goodwin, who requested the closing, that under the state code, they would be responsible for the advertising cost of the legal ad for the alley closing. They responded that they were willing to pay that cost. Councilman Worrell moved to remove from the table, the issue of the request to close an undeveloped alley between South Washington Avenue and Lexington Avenue. The motion was seconded by Councilman Talbert and carried on the following recorded vote: Jeffrey S. Worrell - Aye Joel B. Burchett, Jr. - Aye Dan Talbert, Jr. - Aye David L. Clark - Aye Lane R. Penn - Aye Larry Clevinger, II - Aye Councilman Worrell moved to adopt Ordinance 2006-29, Closing Of An Undeveloped Alley Between South Washington Avenue and Lexington Avenue. The motion was seconded by Councilman Talbert and carried on the following recorded vote: Jeffrey S. Worrell - Aye Joel B. Burchett, Jr. - Aye Dan Talbert, Jr. - Aye David L. Clark - Aye Lane R. Penn - Aye Larry Clevinger, II - Aye Mayor Wade moved on to New Business. Mr. Hawley advised that a letter from the Virginia Department of Aging regarding appointing Town representatives to their Board. He advised that Pauline Mitchell and Betty Quesenberry had agreed to continue to serve on the Board as representative and alternate respectively. Staff needed a motion to reappoint the two citizens. Councilman Talbert moved to appoint Pauline Mitchell as Board representative an Betty Quesenberry as alternate to the Agency on Aging Board, seconded by Councilman Penn and carried on the following recorded vote: Jeffrey S. Worrell - Aye Joel B. Burchett, Jr. - Aye Dan Talbert, Jr. - Aye David L. Clark - Aye Lane R. Penn - Aye Larry Clevinger, II - Aye The next agenda item was Resolution 2006-21, Authorizing the Town Manager to execute an agreement amending the funding of the Ratcliffe Museum. The motion was seconded by Councilman Clevinger and carried on the following recorded vote: Jeffrey S. Worrell - Aye Joel B. Burchett, Jr. - Aye Dan Talbert, Jr. - Aye David L. Clark - Aye Lane R. Penn - Aye Larry Clevinger, II - Aye Mayor Wade moved on to Round Table Discussion. From the Public, Dennis Beavers addressed Council advising that he had been told at the last Council meeting that his land swap request would be addressed at this Council meeting. He added that he had just been told that it was not on the agenda. He expressed his dissatisfaction that he had not being notified that his case would not be addressed at this Council meeting, adding that he had traveled six hours from work to attend the meeting. Mr. Hawley advised that staff did not have information as to the acreage of the lot and therefore could not schedule a public hearing. He advised that he would try to schedule the public hearing for the October 24th meeting. However, the lot would have to be surveyed and that the Town would have to hire someone to survey the land and that might affect the scheduling of the meeting. Mayor Wade advised that all we can do is apologize to you. He asked staff whether they had contact information to notify Mr. Beavers when it would be scheduled. Mr. Hawley advised that he had the information. He added that Mr. Beavers asked whether the parking could be stopped at the location until the hearing? Mr. Hawley advised that he would call the neighbor and advise them not to park on the lot. Next, Councilman Penn advised that there seemed to be some confusion regarding the proposal for the auction. He added that although the job had not been awarded, one of the bidders had already advertised in the paper that he had the job. Could staff explain? Mr. Hawley advised that he was investigating the situation, but had no answers at that point. Moving on, Judy Ison expressed her thanks to the Town employees for the beautiful brick work on Main Street. At 8:40 p.m., Councilman Penn moved to enter Closed Session for two items under Virginia Code 2.2-3711 (A-7), Consultation with legal counsel regarding specific legal matters. The motion was seconded by Councilman Talbert and carried on the following recorded vote: Jeffrey S. Worrell - Aye Joel B. Burchett, Jr. - Aye Dan Talbert, Jr. - Aye David L. Clark - Aye Lane R. Penn - Aye Larry Clevinger, II - Aye At 8:55 p.m., Council returned from Closed Session and adopted the Certification Resolution on motion by Councilman Talbert, seconded by Councilman Penn and carried on the following recorded vote: Jeffrey S. Worrell - Aye Joel B. Burchett, Jr. - Aye Dan Talbert, Jr. - Aye David L. Clark - Aye Lane R. Penn - Aye Larry Clevinger, II - Aye Councilman Talbert moved to adopt Resolution 2006-22, Amending Resolution 2006-18, Authorizing a Short-Term Lease With Cavalier Supply. The motion was seconded by Councilman Penn and carried on the following recorded vote: Jeffrey S. Worrell - Aye Joel B. Burchett, Jr. - Aye Dan Talbert, Jr. - Aye David L. Clark - Aye Lane R. Penn - Aye Larry Clevinger, II - Aye Councilman Talbert moved to direct staff to prepare the paperwork for a month to month lease. The motion was seconded by Councilman Penn and carried on the following recorded vote: Jeffrey S. Worrell - Aye Joel B. Burchett, Jr. - Aye Dan Talbert, Jr. - Aye David L. Clark - Aye Lane R. Penn - Aye Larry Clevinger, II - Aye There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 9 p.m. on motion by Councilman Penn, seconded by Councilman Clark and carried on voice vote.