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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council Minutes 08.01.1989Minutes of the City Council of Laurel August 1, 1989 A regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Laurel~ Montana, was held in the Council Chambers and called to order by President of the Council, Chuck Dickerson at 7:00 p.m., on August I~ 1989. COUNCIL MEMBERS PRESENT: Ron Marshall Donna Kilpatrick Chuck Rodgers L.D. Collins Chuck Dickerson Bob Graham Bruce Teeters Norman Orr COUNCIL MEMBERS ABSENT: None INVOCATION: Invocation was given by Alderman Collins. MINUTES: Motion by Alderman Marshall to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of July 18, 1989, as presented, seconded by Alderman Collins. Motion carried 8--0. CORRESPONDENCE: Received a letter from the Laurel Museum, Inc. regarding the sharing of office space with the Laurel Chamber of Commerce. Received a "Special Sessions Bulletin" from the Montana League of Cities and Towns. Received a request from Glenn M. Hicks to change a city ordinance that would allow pigeons to be kept in the city limits for falconry purposes. CITY CLERK & CITY TREASURER'S FINANCIAL STATEMENTS: The City Clerk and City Treasurer's financial statements for the month of June were presented. Motion by Alderwoman Kilpatrick that the City Clerk and City Treasurer's financial statements for the month of June, 1989, be approved, seconded by Alderman Orr. Motion carried 8--0. LOADING/UNLOADING ZONE: ORDINANCE NO. 950 (second reading) AMENDING SECTION 10.24.140, OF THE LAUREL MUNICIPAL CODE, TO INCREASE TIME ALLOWED FOR LOADING AND UNLOADING PASSENGERS IN PASSENGER LOADING ZONE, AND PROVIDING FOR SPECIFICATION OF SUCH ZONES IN THE CITY. Public Hearing: Dennis Brennan stated he took the Council's suggestion back to the men he represents and they felt the loading area in the current parking lot would not work because of the snow conditions and the van would not be visible to the men from their rooms. It was suggested by the council that BN has equipment to keep the parking lot clean if they decided to go that route, but Dennis stated that BN has no equipment in Laurel anymore since Rail Link took over. The question was asked and Dennis responded by saying that if they cannot get the loading zone in front of the crew quarters then he is satisfied with the current proposal of having a 20' zone adjacent to and east of the crosswalk at the intersection of Main Street and Colorado Avenue. Alan Crowe, Police Chief, stated he has a problem with designated loading and unloading zones which are taken out of street area. His feeling is that BN has the property for off street parking, which many businesses in Laurel do not have, and the property has a perfect drive around. He realizes there are a lot of cars parked in this area but Page2 Minutes of the City Council of Laurel Council Meeting of August 1, 1989 he would guess that many of these cars have been there for years without being moved. Bob Graham stated that he would like to see BN as a company take care of the problem but if they will not he is concerned about the safety of the men being picked up and dropped off every day and the issue of liability, should someone ever get hit. John Cooper, a Trainman from Sheridan, Wyoming stated they are asking this for safety and convenience reasons. They have had some close calls and they do not want to see anyone get hurt. It was stated that both John and Dennis are part of a union safety committee that meets with BN officials and it was at one of these meetings that this idea came up so BN officials are aware of the problem. It was stated that a turn around would require at least two parking spaces worth of area as opposed to the one space for the zone as proposed. Bruce Teeters stated that if we grant them the zone, he feels there will be other businesses requesting the same thing and as it is, there is limited parking space in the downtown area now. Joe Bradley stated, the fact that this would set a precedence is of some concern but the council could distinguish this one on some grounds from other request that you might get. This zone would be available for anyone to use and it may benefit businesses in that vicinity. L.D. Collins spoke in favor of the zone. He said we need to look at it as a passenger loading/unloading zone which the ordinance addresses and realize it is not a freight zone. Motion by Alderman Collins to close the public hearing, by Alderwoman Kilpatrick. Motion carried 8--0. seconded Motion by Alderman Graham that Ordinance No. 950 (second reading) be passed and adopted, seconded by Alderman Marshall. A roll call vote was taken and Aldermen Teeters, Rodgers, Orr and Dickerson voted, "NO." Alderwoman Kilpatrick, and Aldermen Collins, Marshall and Graham voted, "YES." Since there is a tie vote, the Mayor will cast his vote and break the tie at the August 15th council meeting. EXEMPT MOBILE HOMES FROM PAYING MOVING PERMIT FEE: ORDINANCE NO. 951 (second reading) AMENDING SECTION 11.20.020 OF THE LAUREL MUNICIPAL CODE TO EXEMPT MOBILE HOMES FROM PAYING A MOVING PERMIT FEE Public Hearing: no comments from the audience. Motion by Alderman Collins to close the public hearing, seconded by Alderman Orr. Motion carried 8--0. Motion by Alderman Rodgers that Ordinance No. 961 (second reading} be passed and adopted, seconded by Alderman Orr. A roll call vote was taken and all aldermen voted, "YES." Motion carried 8--0. RESOLUTION REGARDING CABLE TV: This item will be postponed until the next council meeting on August 15th. Joe Bradley stated he did not have the resolution ready for the meeting and stated that there is no problem with it. Joe said he and the Mayor have gathered a lot of information since this renewal came up and with the change of laws, he feels the city cannot treat Cable TV any different than other utility companies. Page3 Minutes of the City Council of Laurel Council Meeting of August 1, 1989 PUBLIC HEARING ON THE PRELIMINARY BUDGET AND TAX RESOLUTIONS: This being the time and place advertised, a public hearing was hold. There were no comments from the audience. Motion by Alderman Collins to close the public hearing~ seconded by Alderwoman Kilpatrick. Motion carried 8--0. There will be a special council meeting on August 7, 1989 at 7:00 p.m. to adept the final budget and tax resolutions. Also, a special meeting will be held immediately after the first meeting to approve the July claims. There will be a Budget/Finance Committee meeting at 4:30 p.m. on August 7th to review the claims. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE - USE OF MUSEUM FOR OFFICE SPACE: Kent Harris stated that Laurel Museum~ Inc. is in favor of sharing office space with the Chamber of Commerce. This will allow the museum to operate for longer hours with no additional manpower and the utility costs for their space can be shared by both parties. Bob Graham stated that the museum continues to grow and he questioned what will happen to the Chamber when the museum needs more space. Kent said the museum will always need an administrative area and they will not be competing with the chamber but rather sharing this space and he feels this will enhance the area for both. Milt Nester, representing the Chamber of Commerce stated the Chamber employs a secretary for five hours a day, five days a week. Her hours are from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. and the Chamber can guarantee that she be in the building a portion of those hours, based on what works out the best with the Museum. Milt said they will continue to hold their meetings at various restaurants during the lunch hour as they have in the past. Chuck Dickerson stated that the Chamber is going into the building with the same restrictions and requirements that the museum has and their lease is based on the renewal of the museum's lease. Milt also stated that if the museum's lease should end at some point, the Chamber would be responsible for finding a new office space and it would not be the responsibility of the city. Kent Harris suggested that the Chamber sublet from the museum so the museum retains control. Joe stated that there are many ways to write up the lease but the concern for tonight is to vote on whether or not to allow the Chamber in the building. If this passes Joe will then write a lease that is satisfactory to both parties. It was questioned and Milt stated that they would relinquish use of the office in the log cabin building and they would no longer share the cost of utilities with the Men's Club. Donna Kilpatrick stated that she is opposed to the Chamber in the building because she feels it is unfair to the taxpayers to have to subsidize the Chamber of Commerce. She said some may say that about where they currently are but that building is owned by the railroad and the city only leases it. It was questioned and Joe Bradley responded by saying the museum's lease does not allow them to sublease. If the council approves this~ Joe will ~mend the museum's lease to allow it. Joe feels the city needs to keep control and only grant them permission to sublease to the group they are requesting at this time. Motion by Alderman Graham to allow the Chamber of Commerce to share the museum building with Laurel Museum, Inc. and to direct the City Attorney to draw up lease changes, seconded by Alderman Rodgers. There being a division of the house a roll call vote was taken. Aldermen Teeters~ Rodgers, Dickerson and Graham voted~ "YES" and Fage 4 Minutes of the City Council of Laurel Council Meeting of August 1, 1989 Alderwoman Kilpatrick and Aldermen Collins, Orr' and Marshall voted, "NO." Motion tied 4--4. The Mayor will break the tie vote at the August 15th council meeting. COMMITTEE REPORTS: --Budget/Finance Committee minutes of July 18, 1989 were presented and reviewed. Motion by Alderwoman Kilpatrick Committee minutes of July 18, 1989, Alderman Orr. Motion carried 8--0. to enter the Budget/Finance into the record, seconded by --City Council Committee of the Whole minutes of July 18, 1989 were presented. Motion by Alderman Graham to enter the City Council Committee of the Whole minutes of July 18, 1989, into the record, seconded by Alderman Marshall. Motion carried 8--0. Bob Graham stated that due to circumstances, Laurel will not have an officer trained for the DARE program which is to start this fall, so we will need to use a county officer. This is not eliminating the Laurel officer but rather delaying the use of him until he gets training. --Park Committee minutes of July 26, 1989 were presented and reviewed. Bob Strand stated that the tennis tournament was a success last year but he did want to comment that the tennis courts are in terrible condition. He feels Laurel got sold a bill of goods when they had the courts resurfaced last year because they are in as bad of shape now as they were a week before they were redone. In regard to the tournament, it would require a court closure and he will start the first match at 4:00 p.m. on Friday and continue until it is finished on Sunday. It will start at 8:00 a.m. each day and run until dark. Bob is asking the City Maintenance department to have the courts in good condition for the tournament. He stated there are weeds growing in cracks throughout the courts and he has spoke with Jim Flisrand a couple of times about putting a weed sterilizer on it that is environmentally safe and yet, nothing has been done. He feels there is no excuse that this has not been done. He stated Laurel's courts are in bad shape compared to other towns and they are even becoming borderline to play on so he is asking the city to maintain what we do have left! Motion by Alderman Collins to close the tennis courts for a tournament on August 25th, 26th, and 27th, seconded by Alderman Graham. Motion carried 8--0. There will be a Park Committee meeting on August 10th at 5:30 p.m. Motion by Alderman Graham to enter the Park Committee minutes of July 26, 1989, into the record, seconded by Alderman Orr. Motion carried 8--0. --Public Utilities Committee minutes of June 12, 1989 were presented. The city ran a camera down the sewer line and found that the problem is with ~r. Hazen's line and not the city's portion. Bob Graham said Mr. Hazen is undecided as to whether he will pursue the city's insurance to cover this. Mr. Hazen feels that the city should have run a camera down the line the first time it backed up in his basement and we would have found where the problem was and he could have fixed it. Instead, he was flooded two more times and he went to the expense to replace his line and the problem still existed. Pages Minutes of the City Council of Laurel Council Meeting of August 1, 1989 Dave Michael reported that there is Hazen's line because the contractor he and fixed the problem. no longer a problem with Mr. hired the first time can back Bob said Mr. Hazen is concerned that if two other blockages south of him plug up, his basement will flood again. He is hoping the city will take some action to encourage the other families to fix their lines so it will alleviate the problem. Motion by Alderman Collins to enter the verbatim Public Utilities Committee minutes of June 12, 1989, into the record, seconded by Alderman Orr. Motion carried 8--0. --Street and Alley Committee minutes of July 19, 1989 were presented and reviewed. Motion by Alderman Collins to enter the Street and Alley Committee minutes of July 19, 1989, into the record, seconded by Alderman Rodgers. Motion carried 8--0. -Street and Alley Committee minutes of July 27, 1989 were presented and reviewed. There was discussion regarding Thomae Lumber using Main Street which is a State highway, for loading and unloading materials. A complaint was received from a citizen who was involved in a near accident when the forklift came out from behind the truck. Jim Flisrand checked with the State and it is against the law for anyone to block a state highway. It was stated this came up for discussion two years ago and Joe said that after talking with Paul Thomae the council took the attitude to just ignore it rather than to place another hardship on a businessman. The city sent Paul some recommendations regarding what he could do to reduce his liability factors and he has followed these suggestions. More discussion followed regarding the liability factor should someone get hurt there. It was stated the liability falls on the driver of the truck but Joe said that if something would happen, the city would no doubt be sued. Motion by Alderman Graham to have Joe Bradley write a letter to indicate there shall be no loading or unloading of anything which would block the state highway, seconded by Alderman Collins. Motion carried 8--0. Motion by Alderman Collins to enter the Street and Alley Committee minutes of July 27, 1989, into the record, seconded by Alderman Marshall. Motion carried 8--0. COMMENTS FROM THE AUDIENCE: Bob Graham requested permission to leave the State from August 7th to the 20th. Motion by Alderwoman Kilpatrick to grant Bob Graham permission to leave the State from August 7th to the 20th, seconded by Alderman Collins. Motion carried 8--0. Glenn Hicks, 1026 6th Avenue, stated he is a falconer and he wonld like to see the city ordinance changed to allow pigeons within the city limits. He would like to keep approximately six pairs in a confined area of his yard. Chuck Dickerson explained this would require an ordinance change which would be done by having the first reading on the August 15th meeting and the second reading would be at the September 5th meeting which would also be the public hearing. A final vote would then decide if it passes or not. Page 6 Minutes of the City Council of Laurel Council Meeting of August 1, 1989 Glenn stated that he moved to Laurel from Park City and he has had problems all along. His neighbors called the police and stated his falcons were chasing children and at this time his falcons were still in Park City and had not even been brought to Laurel. The neighbors also called the Fish and Game three times and they came and checked things out and everything was alright and in order. Now he has four pigeons in a 8' x 12' coop where they do not bother anyone and they called on him again. Glenn stated there is no noise or smell with the birds. In response to a question he stated he uses falcons to hunt with rather than guns. He is also regulated by state and federal agencies regarding the number of falcons he can have and also the breed allowed. Motion by Alderman Orr to have Joe Bradley draw up an which would allow pigeons for falconry purposes, seconded by Collins. Motion carried 8--0. ordinance Alderman Chuck Dickerson reminded everyone of the special council meeting to be held August 7th at 7:00 p.m. The Chief Joseph statue will be dedicated on Saturday, August 5th at 2:00 p.m. Bruce Teeters questioned whether Joe Bradley drafted a letter to the City of Livingston. Joe said he put a call into Livingston and he has gathered information but he has not had a chance to discuss it with the Mayor or Jim Flisrand. Donna Kilpatrick stated she had a request for a multifamily garage sale in Thomson Park on August 19th and 20th. Motion ~LAlderman Graham to approve the use of Thomson Park for a multifamily garage sale on August 19th and 20th upon purchase of a city business license, seconded by Alderwoman Kilpatrick. Motion defeated 6--2 with all aldermen voting, "NO," except Alderwoman Kilpatrick and Alderman Graham who voted, "YES." L.D. Collins stated he received a call from a .lan who wants to sell his luggage trailer and he would like to set it on the street but the police told him he cannot do this. Yet, every time he pulls out onto the state highway he has to look around a large horse trailer that has been there for months. There being no further business to come before the Council at time, the meeting was adjourned at 8:30 p.m. Donald L. Hackmann, City Clerk this Approved by The Mayor and passed by the City Council of the City of Laurel, Montana, this 16th day of August, 1989. ATTEST: Donald L.~ Hackmann, City Clerk