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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12/12/1985 - Regular Minutes City Council MINUTES REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1985 7:00 P.M. COUNCIL MEMBERS PRESENT: COUNCIL MEMBERS ABSENT: STAFF PRESENT: STUDENT GOVT. LIAISON: VISITORS PRESENT: Mayor Halter, Councilmen Bond, Tongco, Boughton, Brown, McIlhaney, Runnels None City Manager Cole, Assistant City Man- ager VanDever, Director of Capital Im- provements Ash, City Engineer Pullen, City Attorney Locke, City Secretary Jones, Director of Public Services Miller, Assistant Director of Planning Callaway, Director of Planning Mayo, Purchasing Agent McCartney, Personnel Director Dickson, Zoning Official Kee, Planning Technician Volk, Council Coordinator Jones Mike Hachtman See guest register. The meeting was called to order with Councilman McIlhaney absent. Agenda Item No. 1 - Signing of a proclamation designating the week of December 15-21, 1985 as "National Drunk and Drugged Driv- ing Awareness Week" in College Station, Texas. Mayor Halter signed a proclamation designating the week of Decem- ber 15-21, 1985 as "National Drunk and Drugged Driving Awareness Week" in College Station, Texas. Mr. Kirk Brown, President of M.A.D.D., and several members of the organization were present to accept the proclamation. Agenda Item No. 2 - Approval of the minutes of the Workshop City Council Meeting, November 13, 1985, the Regular City Council Meeting, November 14, 1985 and the Special City Council Meeting, November 20, 1985. Councilman Brown moved approval of the minutes of the Workshop City Council Meeting, November 13, 1985, the Regular City Council Meeting, November 14, 1985 and the Special City Council Meeting, November 20, 1985. Councilman Boughton seconded the motion which was approved unani- mously, 6-0, with Councilman McIlhaney absent. REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1985 PAGE 2 A~enda Item No. 3 - A public hearin~ to consider an ordinance amendin~ and superceding Ordinance No. 850~ the Zoning Ordinance~ and all amendments thereto~ as well as all other ordinances in conflict with this ordinance; providing a revision and updating of the zonin~ re~ulations~ including but not limited to site plan review~ parkin~ requirements~ landscapin~ si~n re~ulations~ amendment procedures~ the Zonin~ Board of Adjustment~ and en- forcement and penalty provisions~ all in accordance with a com- prehensive plan for the development of this city~ and in accor- dance with the provision of the Articles 1011a-j.~ V.A.C.S. (85-804) Councilman McIlhaney arrived at the meeting. Mayor Halter opened the public hearing. Mr. Jim Gardner, 1216 N. Ridgefield, spoke in favor of the pro- posed ordinance. He stated his opinion that the proposed ordi- nance is more comprehensive and addresses many more areas than the current ordinance. He stated that the addition of graphics to the ordinance is very beneficial. He listed several sugges- tions for the Council's consideration as follows: (1) home occu- pations should be limited to the principle structure rather than accessory buildings; (2) nonconforming structures partially de- molished by fire or other acts of God should not be permitted to be rehabilitated as a nonconforming structure; and, (3) the note dealing with the Council action regarding the allowance of cer- tain uses in the M-1 zone permitting development of a hotel should not be included in the proposed ordinance. A~enda Item No. 4 - Consideration of the above ordinance. Mayor Halter suggested that the Council provide direction to the staff with regard to the proposed ordinance. Councilman Brown stated his opinion that the Hilton's complaint concerning the ability to fly promotional flags needs to be ad- dressed in the ordinance. Mayor Halter stated that he did not have any objections to allow- ing businesses to fly flags, but suggested that limitations should be placed on the height and number of flagpoles and the size of the flag. Zoning Official Kee stated that a limitation of sixty feet is placed on flagpoles located in residential ar- eas. REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1985 PAGE 3 Mayor Halter suggested that the limits set for flagpole height should be in the range of thirty to sixty feet, the number of flagpoles limited to three and the size of the flag should be limited to approximately fifteen square feet. The Council concurred with Mayor Halter's suggestions. Councilman Tongco stated that the Planning and Zoning Commission discussed the possibility of increasing the number of children allowed per residential household for child care to a maximum of six before requiring a conditional use permit. She further stat- ed that more than six children per household would not be al- lowed. She pointed out that the Planning and Zoning Commission requested that the Council consider the proposal for inclusion in the Zoning Ordinance. Mayor Halter stated that he would be aqreeable to the proposal. He stated his preference that the Council should not have to con- sider matters relating to child care service in the home because it is a very emotional issue. Councilman Tongco stated that the Planning and Zoning Commission also discussed regulations concerning satellite dishes and their location. She stated that it was suggested that all satellites dishes must be located in backyards, but with the possibility of locating them in the front yard if reception is below normal. She stated that the proposed ordinance delineates that the satel- lite dish must be enclosed in a six foot screen fence and the Commission suggested that the stipulation be deleted. After further discussion concerning satellite dishes, Councilman Bond asked how the criteria for satellite dishes was developed. Director of Planning Mayo stated that the staff researched simi- lar ordinances obtained from other cities and reviewed case law. Mayor Halter pointed out that the city received a petition ex- pressing objections to the location of satellite dishes in resi- dential neighborhoods, which stimulated the development of Sec- tion 8.18 addressing satellite dishes. Councilman Runnels asked if the proposed ordinance delineates any provisions for preventing individuals from blocking access to the sky and if not what remedy would someone have to address the problem. City Attorney Locke stated that the proposed ordinance does not include any provisions to address the problem. She not- ed that the only remedy would be to file a civil tort or tres- passing suit. REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1985 PAGE 4 Councilman McIlhaney noted that she attended a Zoning Workshop at the Texas Municipal League Conference at which the idea of remov- ing churches from under the conditional use was discussed. She suggested that the city consider the Hossibility of developing criteria based on what percentage of the project the church is doing; such as, the hours of oHeration and the size of the proj- ect, for determining certain setbacks and conditions for develop- ment of the property. Mayor Halter stated his opinion that the city should not try to regulate churches. He stated that churches are changing to in- corporate a more broadly based ministry, but it is not the posi- tion of government to define what activities are appropriate or inappropriate. Councilman McIlhaney stated that she would be interested in re- viewing different ways of addressing churches with regard to zon- ing. Councilman Tongco asked if the staff had any ideas for encourag- ing developers to save some of the large trees during property development. Zoning Official Kee pointed out that the current landscaping ordinance provides bonus points for maintaining trees on developed property. Councilman Tongco stated that this form of incentive has not proved to be very effective. Mayor Halter pointed out that many of the native trees are diffi- cult to save during develoHment. He noted that during construc- tion of the parking lot located in front of City Hall the city tried to set an example by attempting to save some of the trees, without much success. Councilman Tongco suggested that one possibility might be to al- low developers to take the required amount of greenery footage and instead of making them into strips, allow them to put it into large pieces of greenery. Director of Capital Improvements Ash stated that the option is delineated in the current landscaping ordinance and gave the Post Oak Mall development as an example. The Council concurred to reschedule further consideration of the proposed ordinance on a council meeting agenda in January, 1986. A~enda Item No. 5 - A public hearing to consider a Preliminary Resubdivision Plat of Lot 3 Block V University Park Section Two subdivision. (85-312) Director of Planning Mayo stated that the public hearing to eon- sider a Preliminary Resubdivision Plat of Lot 3 Block V Universi- ty Park Section Two was scheduled because the HroHerty was zo~- REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1985 PAGE 5 for residential use within the last five year period, but it is currently zoned C-1 General Commercial. He stated that the de- veloper intends to subdivide out a portion of the corner of the lot and has submitted a site plan. He recommended approval of the plat as shown. He further stated that the Planning and Zon- ing Commission voted (6-0) on 12/5/85 to recommend approval of the replat. Mayor Halter opened the public hearing. No one spoke. The public hearing was closed. Councilman Bond moved approval of the Preliminary Resubdivision Plat of Lot 3 Block V University Park Section Two subdivision (85-312). Councilman Boughton seconded the motion which was approved unani- mously, 7-0. Agenda Item No. 6 - CONSENT AGENDA: BIDS: Miscellaneous Metal Shelving (Bid ~86-23) Articulating Aerial Device Installed over Cab/Chassis (Bid 86-22) PLATS: Final Plat - F. M. Arnold Tract (85-222) Final Plat - Replat of Lot 2R Courtyard Apartments (85-225) Preliminary Plat - Devonshire Park (85-313) Revised Preliminary Plat - Belmont Place (85-314) Councilman Runnels requested that Bid No. 86-22 for the Articu- lating Aerial Device Installed over Cab/Chassis be removed from the consent agenda. Ail items not removed were approved by common consent. Councilman Runnels referred to the staff's recommendation to ap- propriate funds from salaries and questioned if the funds are available because positions have not been filled. Purchasing Agent McCartney replied affirmatively. Councilman Brown requested that in the future the bid sheets should indicate to suppliers that the city will consider demon- strators. He stated that he had received several complaints from suppliers who were unaware of this stipulation. Purchasing Agent McCartney stated that in the future such information will be in- cluded on the bid sheets. REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1985 PAGE 6 Councilman Runnels moved approval of Bid No. 86-22 for the Arti- culating Aerial Device Installed over Cab/Chassis as recommended by staff. Councilman Brown seconded the motion which was apDroved unani- mously, 7-0. A~enda Item No. 8 - Consideration of a request for funding for the Brazos Prenatal Clinic. Ms. Anne Hazen, representative for the Brazos Prenatal Clinic, provided a brief summary of the events that resulted in the es- tablishment of the Brazos Prenatal Clinic. She stated that the clinic was opened on December 2, 1985. She noted that the space currently occupied by the Clinic, including the utilities for one year, was donated by St. Joseph's Hospital. She further stated that Brazos County has committed to pay the salary and benefits for the nurse practitioner. She stated that funding requests are being made to the City of Bryan in the amount of $30,000.00 and the City of College Station in the amount of $20,158.00. She listed several other sources of funds that have been obtained. Councilman Bond asked how the doctors in the community interact with the Clinic. Ms. Hazen stated that fourteen out of the sev- enteen local doctors who deliver babies are offering their time free of charge to the clinic. Councilman Runnels asked if the Board of Directors is anticipat- ing asking for the same amount of funding for the next year. Ms. Hazen replied negatively and stated that hoDefully the County will have assumed the responsibility of prenatal care by that time. She stated that Brazos County is the only county of its size and financial resources in the state that does not have a prenatal clinic. Councilman Runnels expressed concern that if this request for funding is approved it will result in a flood of funding requests that are just as worthy. Mayor Halter asked what amount of funding Brazos County has agreed to for next year. Ms. Hazen stated that Brazos County has appropriated $30,500.00 for next year to cover the salary and benefits for the nurse practitioner and approximately $5,000.00 for the remainder of this year. Ms. Hazen pointed out that many of the items listed represent one time purchases of equipment. Several Councilmembers offered to donate pieces of their excess equipment. REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1985 PAGE 7 Mayor Halter suggested that consideration of the request be re- scheduled on the Special Meeting Aqenda for Wednesday, December 18, 1985, in order to provide the staff with an opportunity to investigate possible sources of funding. The Council expressed a favorable sentiment toward the request considering the availability of funds and concurred to reschedule consideration of the matter on the Special Meeting Agenda for Wednesday, December 18, 1985. Councilman Bond expressed concern that the city must continually fund projects that are the responsibility of the County. Agenda Item No. 9 - Consideration of award of contract for the Lincoln Street Extension~ C.I.P. ~G-81-81-16 Director of Capital Improvements Ash presented the item. He stated that the project will involve the construction of the ex- tension of Lincoln Street from Ashburn Street eastward to Spring- loop at University Drive. He recommended that the contract be awarded to Downing Brothers, the low bidder, in the amount of $316,145.05. Councilman Bond asked if the bid submitted by Downing Brothers is within the estimate for the project. Director of Capital Im- provements Ash replied affirmatively. Councilman Brown noted that the funding for this project was au- thorized in the 1981 bond issue and questioned why the project was not constructed previously. Mayor Halter replied that the project was not constructed at an earlier date because of politi- cal reasons. Assistant City Manager VanDever presented a brief explanation of the status of the funding for this project. He stated that the 1981 bond issue authorized an original amount of $305,000.00 which was issued. He noted that to date there have been right- of-way expenditures totaling $58,000.00, engineering costs at $42,000.00 and additional engineering costs estimated at approxi- mately $10,000.00 before the project is completed. He stated that after the above expenditures the fund balance is $195,000. He recommended that the additional $121,000.00 required to fund the project be appropriated from the $495,000.00 originally ear- marked for Welsh Street, which was deleted from the program. Councilman Boughton moved to award the contract for the Lincoln Street Extension C.I.P. 9G-81-81-16 to Downing Brothers, the low bidder, in the amount of $316,145.05 as recommended by city staff. REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1985 PAGE 8 Councilman Brown seconded the motion which was approved unani- mously, 7-0. Agenda Item No. 10 - Consideration of award of contract for C.I.P. Street and Drainage Structure Rehabilitation. Director of Capital Improvements Ash presented the item. He stated that the proposed contract represents a new concept. He referred to the section entitled "Streets" in the 1983 Bond Pro- gram which included $2,100,000.00 for street rebuilding, $125,000.00 for miscellaneous curb and gutter projects and $500,000.00 for intersection improvements at miscellaneous loca- tions. He stated that the staff has worked to develop a list of priority projects that need to be addressed over the next twelve month period, noting that some of them will have to be contracted out to the private sector. He stated that the proposed contract will allow the city to set a bid price for the next twelve months. He pointed out that this concept is used by larger cities and the District Maintenance Offices of the State Highway Department. Councilman Brown asked if a priority list of projects has been developed. Director of Capital Improvements Ash replied affirma- tively. Councilman Bond asked if the bids were considered as a whole or as line items. Director of Capital Improvements stated that the staff determined that it would be more beneficial to the city to have one contractor to deal with on all the different bid items and the contract was bid in that manner. Councilman McIlhaney asked if the contract delineates any time limitations for the contractor. City Engineer Pullen stated that the preparation of the areas needing improvements will be handled by the city's public works employees. He pointed out that the contract delineates that the contractor will be notified seventy- -two hours prior to the beginning of a job and failure to meet those schedules twice in a row constitutes a breach and loss of contract under the terms specified. He further stated that the staff and contractor will meet on a monthly basis to review the proposed projects scheduled for completion. City Manager Cole stated that the contractor will be responsible for responding to the priorities established by the city. City Engineer Pullen stated that about three years ago the staff con- ducted a street inventory which was utilized to determine what projects are priority. REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1985 PAGE 9 Councilman Brown stated his approval of the concept, but request- ed that the staff provide a list of projects and their respective locations and a matching of the prices quoted and the projects. City Engineer Pullen stated that he would prepare the informa- tion. Councilman Boughton moved approval of award of contract for C.I.P. Street and Drainage Structure Rehabilitation to Young Brothers, Inc., in the amount of $605,750.00. Councilman Tongco seconded the motion which was approved unani- mously, 7-0. Agenda Item No. 11 - Consideration of a request for oversized participation reimbursement to Robert Callaway Corporation for the installation of water improvements in Treehouse Village I. City Engineer Pullen presented the item. He stated that the twelve inch waterline was accepted by city staff on March 15, 1984. He explained that the oversized requirement was to supply water to future developments across Jones Butler Road to the west. He recommended that the oversized participation reimburse- ment request for the installation of water improvements in Tree- house Village I be authorized to Robert Callaway Corporation in the amount of $14,000.00. Councilman Bond asked how the staff determines that the $14,000 figure is reasonable. City Engineer Pullen explained that the oversized participation figures submitted are compared with costs of similar projects to determine that they are within a reason- able range of the unit price. Director of Capital Improvements Ash pointed out that the staff uses a periodical titled "Contrac- tor's Data Report," which lists all the major projects throughout this part of the state and a line item price for each of the bid items on the project, to make comparisons. Councilman Bond moved approval of a request for oversized parti- cipation reimbursement to Robert Callaway Corporation for the in- stallation of water improvements in Treehouse Village I in the amount of $14,000.00. Councilman McIlhaney seconded the motion which was approved unan- imously, 7-0. REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1985 PAGE 10 A~enda Item No. 12 - Consideration of an ordinance amendin~ Chap- ter 2~ Section 2.B(2)(a) of the Code of Ordinances of the City of College Stationr Te~as~ Kelatin~ to anima~ licensin~ procedures. City Attorney Locke presented the item. She stated that the pro- posed amendment was requested by the Brazos Animal Shelter in or- der to address a lack of agreement between Brazos County, the City of Bryan and the City of College Station on whether or not the licensing procedure would be mandatory or voluntary on the part of veterinarians. She pointed out that Kathy Ricker, Execu- tive Director of the Brazos Animal Shelter, indicated that the purpose of the ordinance is that the licensing procedure be made voluntary on the part of the veterinarian. Mayor Halter explained the licensing procedure as delineated in the ordinance. He pointed out that there has been a great deal of cooperation from the veterinarians with regard to this pro- gram. City Manager Cole noted that the revenues of the Brazos Animal Shelter are up approximately 1000 percent over last year. Councilman Brown moved approval of Ordinance No. 1625 amending Chapter 2, Section 2.B(2)(a) of the Code of Ordinances of the City of College Station, Texas, relating to animal licensing pro- cedures. Councilman Boughton seconded the motion which was approved unani- mously, 7-0. A~enda Item No. 13 - Consideration of a resolution authorizin~ the Mayor to execute an agreement with the Brazos Valley Communi- ty Action %~ency. City Attorney Locke presented the item. She stated that the Brazos Valley Community Action Agency submitted a proposal delin- eating an agreement between themselves and the City of College Station authorizing them to distribute food obtained from the Federal Food Assistance Program. She pointed out that the con- tract is open and allows the city to use the services of the BVCAA as long as those services are desired without any expendi- ture of funds. Councilman McIlhaney moved approval of Resolution No. 12-12-85-13 authorizing the Mayor to execute an agreement with the Brazos Valley Community Action Agency. Councilman Tongco seconded the motion which was approved unani- mously, 7-0. REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1985 PAGE 11 Agenda Item No. 14 - Consideration of an ordinance amending the City of College Station Policy Manualr the City of College Sta- tion Police Department Policy Manualr and the City of Colle~ Station Fire Department Policy Manual by adding a section on emergency action. City Attorney Locke presented the item. She stated that the pro- posed ordinance allows the city to take advantage of the city's sovereign immunity in the area of emergency response by making an exemption to the Tort Claims Act. She explained that the city originally has sovereign immunity for actions, but the Tort Claims Act takes away some of its sovereign immunity. Councilman Bond moved approval of Ordinance No. 1626 amending the City of College Station Policy Manual, the City of College Sta- tion Police Department Policy Manual, and the City of College Station Fire Department Policy Manual by adding a section on emergency action. Councilman Boughton seconded the motion which was approved unani- mously, 7-0. A~enda Item No. 15 - Hear Visitors. Mr. Jim Gardner, 1216 N. Ridgefield, addressed the subject of Re- call as prescribed in the City Charter. He referred to Section 112. concerning Recall Petitions and stated his opinion that the requirements relating to the number of registered voters is not a good indicator of the voting patterns in this community. He stated that the current figure of forty percent of the registered voters is excessive. Mayor Halter agreed that the forty percent requirement might be a little unreasonable, but stated his opinion that the requirement should be substantial enough so that the recall procedure is not considered a trivial act. He noted that the Texas Municipal League has a publication listing the different requirements for recall for cities in Texas and stated that he would review it. He thanked Mr. Gardner for bringing the matter to the Council's attention and stated that an amendment could possibly be included on the ballot in the April election. Mr. Gardner suggested that the Council might consider appointing a study group to review the Charter to determine if there are any other amendments that might be needed. Councilman Brown presented petitions with an additional 1221 names of citizens requesting that the State Highway Department construct the Emerald Forest Overpass in an expedient manner. REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING THURSDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1985 PAGE 12 Mayor Halter stated that he had talked with Mr. Bob Lanier, Chairman of the State Highway Commission, who indicated that he would prefer to meet with representatives in this community to discuss the matter. Mayor Halter suggested that he and Councilman Brown write a letter to Mr. Lanier to set up a meeting, which should be coordinated with the City of Bryan. The Council concurred. A~enda Item No. 16 - Closed session to discuss pendin~ litigation [6252-17(2)(e)] and personnel [6252-17(2) (g)] . ae Personnel [6252-17(2)(g)]. 1. Discussion of Citizen Committee Appointments. 2. Discussion of appointment of administrative personnel. The Council moved to closed session and later reopened to the public. A~enda Item No. 17 - Action on closed session. Councilman Tongco moved to appoint Robert Gilmore as an alternate to the Zoning Board of Adjustment with the term to expire in April, 1986. Councilman Brown seconded the motion which was approved unani- mously, 7-0. Agenda Item No. 18 - Adjourn. Mayor Halter adjourned the meeting at 11:00 P.M. Dian' jone ,~ity Secretary APPROV ~ G~r~H~i~,~ M~yor GUEST REGISTER City Council Meet/rig ~ 12, 1985 7:00 p.m. i 19. 21 20. 3. 21. 23. 24. 7. 25. 8. 26. 9. 27. 10. 28. 11. 29. 12. 30. 13. 31. 14. 32. 15. 33. 16. 34. 17. 35. 005463