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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCouncil Workshop Minutes 01.11.2011 MINUTES COUNCIL WORKSHOP JANUARY 11, 2011 6:30 P.M. COUNCIL CHAMBERS A Council Workshop was held in the Council Chambers and called to order by Mayor Ken Olson at 6:30 p.m. on January 11, 2011. COUNCIL MEMBERS PRESENT: Emelie Eaton _x_ Doug Poehls _x_ Kate Hart Mark Mace _x Chuck Rodgers _x_ Chuck Dickerson _x Tom Nelson _x Norm Stamper OTHERS PRESENT: Sam Painter James Caniglia Kurt Markegard Rick Musson Shirley Ewan Jan Faught Public Input (three - minute limit): Citizens may address the Council regarding any item of City business not on the agenda. The duration for an individual speaking under Public Input is limited to three minutes. While all comments are welcome, the Council will not take action on any item not on the agenda. There was no public input. General items • Appointments: o Laurel Police Reserves: Daniel Shreffler, Anthony Tabadisto, Aleesha Chaney, Zechariah Roth, Christopher Baldwin, Tom Becker, Michael Colvin Chief Musson presented a list of seven applicants for the Laurel Police Reserves. Officer Langve, the coordinator for the Police Reserves, recently submitted the list to Chief Musson following the application and selection process. The appointments will be on the January 18 council agenda and the applicants will attend the meeting. Ambulance Department: • EMS / Ambulance Proposal Ambulance Director Jan Faught introduced Randy Hafer and Nash Emrich from High Plains Architects to speak about the proposed addition to the present FAP building. Randy Hafer stated that the proposed addition is for the ambulance service. Randy explained a drawing, which outlined the existing building. The proposed addition extends from the east wall of the current building 50 feet to the east. The 50 -foot dimension was determined as the minimum dimension that would fit on the lot and also allow three 12 -foot doors needed to pull ambulances in and out of the building without sheering off the mirrors. The current 10 -foot doors are not wide enough. The 50 -foot dimension takes the building to within about five feet of the property line adjacent to the park. The front of the addition was held back a little from the front of the existing Council Workshop Minutes of January 11, 2011 building in order to park vehicles outside without blocking the sidewalk. Randy described the basic parameters to form the building. The back of the building lines up with the back of the fire hall. Two storage rooms would replace the current storage sheds on the site. Three ambulance bays on the south side would be directly accessible to the street. The building includes one office for the ambulance director and one office for the crew, two full- service restrooms with showers, and a large training room that will be available to all city departments. A small break room next to the training room would provide a small kitchenette with a stove, refrigerator and sink. There is a secure store room for the ambulance to store supplies and medications under lock and key. There will be two store rooms in the back. One store room is for general ambulance storage and is accessible from inside the building. Another larger store room is for the fire department and will be accessed from the outside. If there is a need for additional office space in the future, one or both store rooms could be converted to habitable office space and accessed with inside doors. The architects spent a lot of time with the fire, ambulance and police people to get the smallest practical footprint. This solid plan has good utility and some flexibility. The addition was designed to be compatible with the existing building and to be very cost effective. Some sustainability features will be incorporated to allow economical operation of the building. These features include high levels of insulation, radiant floor heat, windows for light and ventilation in the occupied spaces, some skylights to enhance the ventilation, and the future possibility of using photovoltaics to generate electricity and/or solar thermal panels for hot water. The technology is simple and the energy generated is free. Grants and rebates are available from utility companies. There was discussion regarding motion sensor and photo cell lighting in the building, the location of the mechanical space, the small size of the boiler needed for the building, the location of the laundry, hose storage and mop basin areas, the location of the emergency generator, and the utilities currently located in the area. The current gas meter on the side of the building will be relocated on the north wall. The new building will tie in to the water and sewer lines that come through the fire hall. An electrical panel on the east wall might need to be relocated. Chuck Rodgers asked regarding the existing gas lines. Randy stated that the gas meter will be moved but the building can go over the existing lines. Chuck stated that he was told fifteen years ago that the gas line would have to be rerouted. Randy stated that there should not be a problem with the gas line. There was further discussion regarding the foundation system that was proposed years ago, the current foundation system, and the possibility of having to abandon a piece of pipe and run it overhead. Power will be extended from the FAP building, as it would not add a lot of electrical load to the building. The exhaust extraction system will be an extension of the existing system, which has the capacity for three additional vehicles. Mayor Olson asked clerk/treasurer Shirley Ewan to speak on the financing of the building. Shirley stated that department heads are willing to give up $153,000 out of the General Fund in the current budget for this project. The Park Fund will contribute $5,000. The ambulance has a $30,000 transfer into the CIP Fund for a future ambulance that Jan chose to put towards the building if the 2 Council Workshop Minutes of January 11, 2011 council permits it. Another $8,000 in the CIP for defibrillators would go towards the building. Since this will also help the fire department, it has given up $30,000 out of the capital outlay. The FAP building maintenance fund will contribute $10,000. Since a new CAO will not be hired until next fiscal year, another $50,000 is available for the building. Water and sewer funds were used to purchase the land from Yellowstone Bank, and $20,000 had been budgeted for land out of the CIP Fund. The total funds available for a down payment is $153,000, leaving approximately $208,000 left to finance. The public works director has agreed to allow the General Fund to borrow $208,000 from the Solid Waste Fund. Public works would delay building a new transfer station until the solid waste funds are replaced. Annual payments for ten years at 3.75 percent would be about $29,000. Shirley explained that the ambulance proposes to pay for this by increasing the rates in the rate structure. The rates will be increased for Medicare and Medicaid purposes along with the mileage charges. The projected additional revenue is about $30,000, which would provide the repayment to the Solid Waste Fund. Other options include borrowing from a bank or from Intercap, which means the city would pay interest to a private company or another government agency. Intercap's current interest rate is 1.95 percent. Shirley stated that, if the council agreed, it would be best for the city to finance the project. There was discussion regarding the timeframe for the project. Mayor Olson stated that the design needs to be finalized first. Then a budget amendment resolution would be prepared for the council's consideration to approve the funding in the line item for the project. He expects the project to begin in the spring or early summer for completion by early fall. There was further discussion regarding a 90 -day or 120 -day construction period, the possibility of utilizing photovoltaics in the future, the plan to use green technology in the building, and the city's plan to go out to bid for a general contractor that would hire the subcontractors for the project. Public Works Department: • Update on Wastewater Project Kurt Markegard stated that the city will be required in 2013 to meet new effluent limits discharging into the Yellowstone River from the wastewater treatment plant. The Phase 2A1 project addressed some issues and Phase 2A2 reviewed alternatives to meet the permit limits. The best alternative is to use activated sludge in order to operate only one series of treatments instead of two. Great West Engineering is partnering with Black & Veech to help design this project. The city and the engineers are reviewing the budget numbers and the best course of action for the City of Laurel. A PowerPoint presentation will be given to provide information regarding the project at the January 25 council workshop. • Laurel Lift Station Alternatives Kurt stated that there has been an odor problem since the Elm Lift Station was installed, which stemmed from the 1978 installation of the Village Lift Station. The flow from the Village Lift Station is creating anaerobic conditions by the time it gets into Laurel, because the waste stream sits in the lines for a long period of time. The anaerobic condition produces a byproduct of H2S or hydrogen sulfide. The buildup of hydrogen sulfide causes a pungent odor once it gets to the Elm Lift Station. Great West Engineering is reviewing the alternatives to reduce the smell. Mayor Olson and Kurt will meet with Great West soon to determine the final course of action to deal with the odors from the Elm Lift Station. • Waterline across the bridge 3 Council Workshop Minutes of January 11, 2011 Kurt explained that the 4 -inch PVC waterline froze a couple years ago, the heat tape failed, and the pipe across the bridge ruptured in multiple locations. The following spring, a 3 -inch pipe was pulled through the 4 -inch pipe at a cost of about $800 for the pipe and $2,500 to pull it through and the water was back on at Riverside Park for a minimal amount of cost. Since then, the city has been running some water in the cold seasons to keep the pipe from freezing. The cost of running the water during cold seasons is about $1,000 per year. It would cost $8 to $10 a day for heat tape to keep the line thawed, so the costs are about the same. The city received an $800,000 loan for the water system improvements project. Since the projects came in under the engineer's estimate, $177,000 is still available and could be used for this project. COP Construction submitted a change order for replacement of the waterline. The city completed the permitting process through the Department of Transportation, the Army Corps of Engineers, and Fish and Game. The engineers and the city understood that there was a short timeline for construction because MDT has restrictions about disturbing nesting birds. However, it was recently learned that construction could proceed at any time, as long as nests underneath the bridge are not disturbed. Federal migratory rules must be followed for all migratory species, including sparrows, nesting swallows, eagles, etc. Kurt stated that the council needs to consider if the $131,792 change order for replacement of the waterline should go forward. The new line would be an insulated 4 -inch HDP (high density poly) line with slip joints so it can expand and contract. An air vent at the center would allow the air to get out of the high point. The cost of the pipe would be $55,000 and the cost to install it is $24,000. The remainder of the cost is for removing the existing pipe, replacing pipe hangers, and installing the bridge pipe ends in both sides. Kurt stated the need for direction from the council as to spending the money to replace the waterline across the bridge. He also stated that the utility needs to do many things, including replacement of 4 -inch cast iron waterlines in the city. Doug asked if the running water causes any problems in Riverside Park. Kurt and Mayor Olson toured the park recently and found that the water does not cause any problems. The water is being dispersed into the ground and is essentially providing winter irrigation. The payback for spending $1,000 a year for the water versus $131,000 for the waterline replacement is 131 years. If the line is replaced, it will also cost $1,000 a year to run the heat tape. Norm, Chuck Dickerson, and Doug stated that the $131,000 should be used for replacement of cast iron waterlines in the city at this time instead of the waterline across the bridge Tom mentioned that Mark Mace previously stated that the project should go forward. He asked if there would be another opportunity to fund replacement of the waterline across the bridge. Kurt explained that it could be included in another water project, it could be financed in the capital outlay program, or another pipe could be pulled through the existing pipe if it freezes again. The city could request another change order and use the remaining loan funds for replacement of cast iron waterlines. There was discussion regarding the water supply, fire protection and fire hydrants in Riverside Park. Kurt stated that the 3 -inch line provides more than adequate supply for the park, but the 4 -inch line does not meet the standards for fire flow protection. A new fire hydrant with a 6 -inch line was recently installed on the corner at the water treatment plant and could be utilized for Riverside Park as a shuttle through a tender truck. 4 Council Workshop Minutes of January 11, 2011 There was further discussion regarding the use of the remaining $177,000. Kurt stated that the recent project for replacement of four blocks of waterline cost $268,000. The city would need to determine which lines need replacement and then go through the bidding process. Executive Review: • Council retreat Mayor Olson has contacted the Local Government Center in Bozeman regarding possible dates for the council retreat. Discussion topics should be submitted to Mayor Olson. • Council e-mail Mayor Olson asked regarding the council's interest in having e-mail accounts through the city for city business. There was discussion regarding proposed city e-mail addresses for council members and the need to keep the address the same for future council members. Suggested email addresses include Ward4A@,laurel.mt.gov and Ward4B@,laurel.mt.gov. Council members would receive information on how to access the e-mail account on their own computers. Mayor Olson will contact Technical Edge Consulting about this. Review of draft council agenda for January 18, 2011 • Ordinance No. 010 -05: An ordinance amending Section 10.52.020 of the Laurel Municipal Code titled "Reserved parking at city hall — Parking by non -city employees prohibited" to create three reserved parking spaces adjacent to the Fire, Ambulance and Police (FAP) building for EMS employees located at Chapter 10 of the Laurel Municipal Code. (First reading —12/21 /2010; PH — 01/04/2011; Second reading — 01/18/2011) Mayor Olson stated that the ordinance reflects one parking space in an area on the north side of the FAP complex. Since he was informed that it would be best for the ambulance to have two spaces on that side, he suggested that the council could amend the ordinance to reflect two parking spaces on the north side and two spaces on the west side. There was discussion, as the ordinance had originally provided for four parking spaces and was changed to three parking spaces. Mayor Olson explained that the code enforcement officer had been concerned about line of sight issues. However, if the car on the farthest east side parks all the way forward to match up where the ambulance exits, it would allow for two spots and the line of sight would be clear. Ordinance does not stipulate there is no parking right next to an exit in a residential or commercial area, but drivers need to be cognizant when backing out. If the parking spaces are done in that manner, there would be room for two spaces. • Public Hearing: Intent to adopt an official Schedule of Fees and Charges. The public hearing will be on the January 18 council agenda. Attendance at the January 18, 2011 council meeting All council members present will attend. Announcements 5 Council Workshop Minutes of January 11, 2011 Chuck Dickerson requested information at the next council workshop about the plans for the sheds that will be replaced when the ambulance building is built. Mayor Olson expressed appreciation for James Caniglia's service as the city planner for the City of Laurel. His efficiency and enthusiasm were evident as he worked on the Bus Transit Program, the Energy Grant, the Historic Preservation District, and assisted the Laurel Urban Renewal Agency. Mayor Olson wished him well as he starts his new position in Red Lodge. James Caniglia thanked the council and Mayor Olson for allowing him to serve the City of Laurel. He has greatly enjoyed his time here and will miss it a lot. He stated that it was a hard decision to leave and Red Lodge is about the only place within hundreds of miles that could have pried him away. The council workshop adjourned at 7:39 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Cindy Allen Council Secretary NOTE: This meeting is open to the public. This meeting is for information and discussion of the Council for the listed workshop agenda items. 6