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HomeMy WebLinkAbout07-17-12Minutes of the Town Council meeting held July 17, 2012 at 5:00 p.m. at the Train Station, 20 South Washington Street, Pulaski, Virginia. Present were: Jeffrey S. Worrell, Mayor Council: Heather L. Steele, Gregory C. East, David L. Clark, H. M. Kidd, Joseph K. Goodman, , James A. Radcliffe Staff: John Hawley, Town Manager Patricia Cruise, Clerk of Council David Quesenberry, Asst. to the Town Manager David Warburton, Town Attorney Sherry Boyd, Finance Director Bill Pedigo, Town Engineer Gary Roche, Police Chief Tony Meredith, Police Captain Bill Webb, Fire Chief John White, Economic Development Director Debbie Bivens, Computer Tech Brandon Hamblin, Fire Lieutenant Others: Nick Glenn Melissa Phipps Shawn Utt Janet Jonas Clark Payne Sandy Payne Melinda Williams, Press Mike Williams, Press Mayor Worrell called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m. Following roll call, Mayor Worrell advised of a request to modify the agenda with the addition under Public ' Operations of item 8i, discussion of Greater Pulaski Alliance Farmer's Market. Councilman Clark moved to add an item to the agenda under Public Operations, Item 8i, discussion of Greater Pulaski Alliance Farmer's Market. Councilman Goodman seconded the motion and carried on the following recorded vote: Heather L. Steele -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye Gregory C. East -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye David L. Clark -Aye James A. Radcliffe -Aye Mayor Worrell welcomed the visitors to the meeting. Councilman Clark moved to adopt the minutes of the June 19 and June 26, 2012 Council meeting as written. Councilman Goodman seconded the motion and carried on voice vote. Mayor Worrell introduced Fire Lieutenant Brandon W. Hamblin as the Employee of the Month for July 2012. He read a press release aloud and presented Lieutenant Hamblin with the award. He advised that in addition to receiving this award, Brandon would receive an extra paid day off from work and be eligible for the Employee of the Year award at the end of the year. Next, Mayor Worrell took time to express his thanks to the Town employees: the Fire Department, the Police Department and Public Works for their work during the recent severe weather. He noted that their response was outstanding and their work was exemplary. ' The next item on the agenda was In-Service for Freedom of Information Act, Open Meeting Law and Couhcil protocol. July 17, 2012/Page 1 of 6 Meeting Law and Council protocol. Mr. Warburton provided an overview to Council of the current law on the Freedom of Information Act, Open Meeting Law and Council protocol. ' Mayor Worrell moved on to Public Operations. The first item was short term goal for Pulaski Furniture. Mr. White provided an update on the upgrading of the area around Pulaski Furniture. He noted that he had spoken to Mr. Schwartz about the encroachment over North Madison Avenue and relayed that it had to be removed. Mr. Schwartz was trying to determine whether the structure had electrical conduit passing through it. Mr. White added that there were adjacent properties that needed to be addressed as well. Councilman East noted that he had noticed damage on the Route 11 side of Pulaski Furniture from rock throwing. Mr. White advised that he would discuss the issue with Mr. Schwartz. Councilman East suggested that a meeting be held with Mr. Schwartz to show some photos demonstrating how much improvement could be made to the property with a minimum of effort. Mr. White advised that he would set the meeting up. The next short term goal was in relation to the Route 11 corridor. Mr. Pedigo advised that he met with the architect for the County regarding the landscape plan for the Maple Shade area. He added that supplies had been ordered for the crosswalk and work was continuing on the sign inventory/wayfinding signage. He noted that the Train set had been moved to the Museum and painting of the interior was ongoing and nearing completion. Mayor Worrell inquired into the progress on the Fine Arts Center's Rutherford building? Mr. Hawley advised that he would contact Mrs. Ison for an update. Councilman Goodman inquired into the proposed bike lanes to extend to the top of the mountain and the bike track. Mr. Pedigo advised that Mr. Hart was researching that topic Mr. Hawley added that staff was consulting with the local bikers. It appeared that the bikers felt more comfortable with a different route to that area rather than Route 11. The next short term goal update was in regard to volunteers. Chief Webb advised that work continued on organizing the volunteer group including setting up the organizational structure of the Committee, changing the meeting time to 5:30 every other Wednesday to better accommodate and promote participation and also composing a list of prospective volunteers. He added that volunteerism flyers were being mailed with the July utility bills. Councilman East agreed with Chief Webb's summary especially regarding the need to set up the organizational structure of the Committee. He inquired whether any progress had been made scheduling a ' guest speaker from Wytheville to address the Committee? July 17, 2012/Page 2 of 6 following Wednesday's meecmg. Chief Webb advised that there had been scheduling conflicts, however, he would try to arrange this for the following Wednesday's meeting. Mayor Worrell moved on to RFP/SQ -redevelopment plan. ' Mr. Hawley advised that the plan had been advertised as required and had received some responses. Mr. White added that apre-proposal tour of the area had been held with two firms. He felt the tours went well. The next item on the agenda was Gatewood cabins. Mr. Hawley advised that staff had gathered some preliminary ideas regarding cabins at Gatewood. He reviewed some of the information gathered. He emphasized that many issues needed to be considered and incorporated into a business plan that would include marketing/advertising, booking arrangements, 24 hour emergency repair, housekeeping and seasonal or full year booking. Councilman Goodman commented that perhaps upgrading should be completed on the existing Gatewood facilities before taking on more expense and maintenance. Mr. Hawley replied that upgrading of the bath house was in the Capital Improvements Plan and the timing could be moved up if Council directed. Discussion ensued including whether to add swimming to the area, prices and options for the cabins, pre-fab buildings versus stick built and whether the Park Service would allow access to the adjoining land for more trails. The consensus of Council was for staff to continue to develop some options, research prices, types of cabins and costs to build them. ' Mayor Worrell moved on to Peak Creek Committee. Mr. Hawley advised that the Town previously had a Flood Mitigation Committee to help reduce the premiums for the Flood Insurance program. The Committee had also worked with the Planning District Commission regarding the hazard Mitigation Plan. He added that based on the previous action of Council to determine ownership and budgeting money for access, a previous member of that Committee had suggested it may be time to organize a group that could develop plans for the creek. It had been suggested that perhaps this Committee could also be included in the Volunteer Committee being formed. Councilman Goodman inquired into the status of cleaning out the Creek? Councilman Radcliffe advised that the inmates had begun clearing the Creek. It was planned to continue as inmates were available. Councilman East suggested that perhaps the inmates could also be used to clean up the skate park and other areas on a re-occurring schedule. He felt that would take some of the pressure off of the Parks and Facilities department. Mr. Hawley suggested that he discuss this with Councilman Radcliffe and Bill Pedigo who were working together. Councilman Goodman asked about possibly developing a park of some form near the holding pond area by the' Honeywell property and Peek Creek / Sproules Run. Mr. White opined that if the walking trail could be extended to that area, a lovely park could be constructed. July 17, 2012/Page 3 of 6 The next item on the agenda was the Museum. Mr. White advised that the painting in the large room of the Museum was almost complete and ready for the installation of the train set. He commented that volunteers were needed to complete the other rooms and finish work and to clean the 4000 to 5000 individual pieces of the train set that need to be carefully cleaned and dusted before installation. Mayor Worrell moved on to the Department of Historic Resources Programmatic agreement. Mr. Hawley advised that the Department of Historic Resources had determined that any building in the tornado area and also in the Historic District that had to be removed and replaced makes a significant impact on the Historic District. For these properties, the Town will have to provide mitigation efforts to offset the removal of the houses. He summarized the steps that Town must take and advised that he needed authorization from Council to execute the agreement. Councilman Clark moved to authorize the Town Manager to execute the Department of Historic Resources Programmatic agreement. The motion was seconded by Councilman Kidd and carried on the following recorded vote: Heather L. Steele -Aye Gregory C. East -Aye David L. Clark -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye James A. Radcliffe -Aye The next item on the agenda was Greater Pulaski Alliance Farmer's Market. Councilman East advised that there had been a number of discussions regarding the Farmer's Market and their relationship with GPA. He opined that the GPA, with all due respect to those who were hanging in and 'trying to hold it together, was somewhat a defunct organization and not working as it was originally intended. As a result, he felt the Farmers' Market was feeling the impact of that. He stated that he'd spoken with some vendors of the Farmer's Market. He proposed that the management of the Farmer's Market be shifted to the Pulaski County Chamber of Commerce for their oversight if they were interested in doing so, while the GPA is revamped. Following extensive discussion, it was decided that the Town Manager, the Mayor and Councilman East meet with the Chamber of Commerce representative to discuss the Farmer's Market. Mayor Worrell moved on to Finance. The first item was the 2012-14 CIP budget. Mr. Hawley explained that per Council's request, staff had been working on the CIP and a summary sheet prepared for each project. He summarized the calendar for discussion of each phase of the budget. Extensive discussion ensued regarding buying new, used, leased, and fleet vehicles as well as the need for a shelter for the trolley and police vehicles. No direction was given to staff. Regarding other budget items, Councilman East suggested that Council look by department at a reduction in overall budget in expenditures. Provide a report showing a 5%, 10% and 15% budget reductions and how each item would impact services. It was noted that this was not to include personnel reductions. He added that the intent was to start the process of thinking creatively, and better utilizing staff etc. July 17, 2012/Page 4 of 6 ~,,,,..,.,~..,.,., r_.,...~,.,~., ~„~oo,~ ar,~ ~n~i~~~iPrr innkina at services that overlap with other departments and also Councilman Goodman agreed and included looking at services that overlap with other departments and also the County that could possibly be combined. Following extensive discussion, Councilman East moved to direct staff to develop a 5%, 10%, 15% department line or overall budget reduction plan for fiscal year 2013/2014. Councilman Goodman seconded the motion and carried on the following recorded vote: Heather L. Steele -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye Gregory C. East -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye David L. Clark -Aye James A. Radcliffe -Aye Mr. Hawley asked for a time frame? Following discussion, it was decided that a preliminary draft form could be reviewed in 45 days. The next item on the agenda was VML Magazine ad. Mr. Hawley advised of the receipt of a letter offering an opportunity to advertise in the Virginia Municipal League Annual Conference October 2012 issue. The cost varied according the size of the ad. Following discussion, it was the consensus not to advertise this year. Mayor Worrell moved on to Legislative issues. The first item was Ordinance 2012-07, Special Exception for 210 4~" Street, NW. Mayor Worrell advised that this Ordinance completed action of Council. Councilman Clark moved to adopt Ordinance 2012-07, Approving a Special Exception at 210 Fourth Street, NW. Councilman Kidd seconded the motion and carried on the following recorded vote: Heather L. Steele -Aye Gregory C. East -Aye David L. Clark -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye James A. Radcliffe -Aye Mayor Worrell advised that Ordinance 2012-08, Approving a Special Exception at 85, 87, and 89 West Main Street completed action of Council. Councilman Kidd moved to adopt Ordinance 2012-08 as written. Councilman Clark seconded the motion and carried on the following recorded vote: Heather L. Steele -Aye Gregory C. East -Aye David L. Clark -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye James A. Radcliffe -Aye Mayor Worrell advised that Ordinance 2012-09, Closing an Undeveloped Portion of An Alley Between 122 Lake Street and 132 Lake Street completed action of Council. Councilman Clark moved to adopt Ordinance 2012-09, seconded by Councilman East and carried on the following recorded vote: July 17, 2012/Page 5 of 6 ' ~ •-•'• ~ rose n n. t;ooaman -Aye David L. Clark -Ave i~..,e~ a o..a_~:~_ ~.._ Heather L. Steele -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye Gregory C. East -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye David L. Clark -Aye James A. Radcliffe -Aye ' At 6:50 p.m., Mayor Worrell called for a ten minute recess. At 7:00 p.m., Mayor Worrell reconvened the meeting. Councilman Clark moved to enter Closed Session under Virginia Code 2.2-3711 (A-1, Interviews, Appointments, Personnel - 2 items. Councilman Goodman seconded the motion and carried on the following recorded vote: Heather L. Steele -Aye Gregory C. East -Aye David L. Clark -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye James A. Radcliffe -Aye At 7:43 p.m., Council returned from Closed Session and adopted the Certification Resolution on motion by Councilman Clark, seconded by Councilman Goodman and carried on the following recorded vote: Heather L. Steele -Aye Gregory C. East -Aye David L. Clark -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye James A. Radcliffe -Aye Councilman Clark moved to direct the Mayor to execute the Retainer Agreement with the Town Attorney. The motion was seconded by Councilman Kidd and carried on the following recorded vote: Heather L. Steele -Aye H. M. Kidd -Aye Gregory C. East -Aye Joseph K. Goodman -Aye David L. Clark -Aye James A. Radcliffe -Aye At 7:45 p.m., there being no further business, the meeting adjourned on motion by Councilman Goodman, seconded by Councilman Kidd and carried. ~~Zyi!~~ Approved. Jeffrey S. Worrell, Mayor July 17, 2012/Page 6 of 6