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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCouncil Workshop Minutes 02.24.2015 MINUTES COUNCIL WORKSHOP FEBRUARY 24, 2015 6:30 P.M. COUNCIL CHAMBERS A Council Workshop was held in the Council Chambers and called to order by Mayor Mark Mace at 6:30 p.m. on February 24, 2015. COUNCIL MEMBERS PRESENT: x Emelie Eaton Doug Poehls x Bruce McGee _x_Richard Herr Chuck Dickerson _x_ Scot Stokes x Tom Nelson x Bill Mountsier OTHERS PRESENT: Heidi Jensen, CAO Monica Plecker, Planning Director Tim Reiter, Utilities Superintendent Chad Hanson, Great West Engineering Public Input (three-minute limit) General items • Appointment: o Laurel Urban Renewal Agency: Linda Frickel as an Advisory Member for a term ending December 31, 2015 The appointment will be on the March 3'd council agenda. Executive Review • Ordinance—Downtown Overlay District Monica stated that the Planning Board spent months reviewing the Downtown Overlay District and the Laurel Urban Renewal Agency brought the idea prior to that. Monica explained that an overlay district is basically a zoning district that overlays on top of existing zoning and has additional requirements to those already there. The Entryway Zoning District is an example of a current overlay district in the City of Laurel. There are specific requirements related to landscaping, signage, etc., that go above and beyond what the code currently does without the overlay district. The intent of the Downtown Overlay District is to promote a physical landscape to make the District an attractive place to live and work, to encourage creativity in design and quality site planning, to promote development patterns in coordination with the goals and objectives of the City's Growth Management Plan, and to provide consistency to land uses and design that will protect the investment of property owners in the District. Council Workshop Minutes of February 24,2015 The District boundaries are described in section 17.25.020, with the red boundary being the Tax Increment Finance District boundary and the light blue section being the portion to which these regulations apply. The lightly shaded part is the Downtown Overlay District, which is everything north of the overpass that is in the TIF District, minus two residential lots to which the regulations would not be applicable. Monica explained that the requirements will be reviewed when plans are submitted in the building permit process. Section 17.25.030 talks about the application and approval process, which is the same for the building permit process. Section 17.25.040 addresses nonconforming uses. There will be a lot of nonconforming properties at first when the regulations go into effect. The same language is used elsewhere in the code regarding nonconforming uses. If a substantial remodel of a property is greater than 50 percent of the assessed value, the building would have to meet the new requirements. The threshold is 50 percent of the current assessed value. Section 17.25.050 provided defmitions for: Architectural Design Elements; Build-to Zone; Expression Line; Façade; Front Façade; Lot Line, Front; and Lot Line, Side. Architectural Design Elements, or expression line, basically breaks up the front façade by having something protruding or indented. The Build-to Zone defines an area in which the locations of building fronts can vary within a specified range. Laurel has 100 percent lot coverage in the downtown, If someone does not wish to build to 100 percent, they need to build to the street to keep with the façade going down the street, as that is what having 100 percent lot coverage tries to achieve. Monica explained the Building Design Requirements for finish materials that are durable, maintainable, natural looking materials indigenous to the area, such as brick, fluted block, colored textured block, glass, stucco, and stone. Metal buildings are allowed but all front facades must be fmished with at least 25 percent masonry. Laurel's downtown has a lot of great brick buildings, and the Planning Board and LURA feel like that is an identifying feature within the Downtown District. Any sort of roof top mechanical equipment needs to be screened. Expression lines are needed to break up the building. On front street-facing façade in a downtown, a blank wall with no entry points and no windows is not very welcoming. An entry door and some transparency requirements are needed on the front façade of a building. If that does not work for a business, the variance process is available to deviate from the regulations. Regarding Site Design Requirements, a building needs to be built to the street if it is not using utilizing 100 percent lot coverage. The additional space would either be behind the building or to the side. If a business chooses to have off-street parking, which is not a requirement of the business district, it should be located in the rear. If a business has off-street parking in the rear, there should be landscape islands in the parking rows. Landscape Requirements apply to any site development where the building and parking area does not occupy 100 percent of the parcel. Landscaping should include a mix of plants, shrubs, sod and trees, with at least half of the trees at least 2.5 inch in caliper size. Landscaping cannot interfere with the clear vision requirements. 2 Council Workshop Minutes of February 24, 2015 This District also addresses signage. The City of Laurel has a sign code in LMC 15.40 and will soon be moved into the zoning chapter of the Laurel Municipal Code. Monica spoke regarding corner project signs and projecting signs, which LURA and the Planning Board want to see in the Downtown District. Illumination needs to be internal to prevent light spillage. A corner projecting sign cannot go above the roofline. Electronic message boards are not permitted in this District. Monica stated that the goal was to make these functional and require small changes that would not be a hardship to property owners or deter them from investing in the District or repairing buildings in the District. The Planning Board already held a public hearing and the council will also hold a public hearing. The Planning Board unanimously recommended approval of the Downtown Overlay District. The council will soon be presented with an ordinance for a second district located south of the underpass and Southeast 4th Street and South First Avenue. The Planning Board has a public hearing scheduled on that at the meeting on March 5th. There was a brief discussion regarding how the regulations apply to established businesses, nonconforming uses, and landscaping requirements for established businesses. • Discussion— Permits for new intake location and pipeline Heidi stated that Chad Hanson attended the meeting to update the council regarding the 2011 Yellowstone River flooding event and the permits required for the intake location and pipeline. Chad distributed copies of the Joint Application for Proposed Work in Montana's Streams, Wetlands, Floodplains, and Other Water Bodies. Chad stated that Great West has been working with FEMA and city staff. The process has been lengthy and the preliminary design phase is done. The joint application permit is need in order to do any work around the river. It gives an idea of the proposed alignment of the pipeline from the new intake. It is preliminary, but the permitting process needs to start. FEMA approved the Project Worksheet, or PW, for the full design and construction. FEMA wants Great West to get to the 60 percent design phase and then they will reevaluate the PW and adjust their cost estimates. Great West will then finalize design and FEMA will again readjust it based on cost estimates. The next step would be to go to construction. Chad stated that a lot of details still need to be worked out, as far as where they will be crossing the highway and a few minor things. Great West plans to have the 60 percent design phase completed by May 1St. If everything moves forward, construction should begin this fall. Mayor Mace asked how the legislature would affect this. Chad stated that there is the question of the 25 percent match. FEMA has approved the money, which is 75 percent, and the State should match 25 percent. The State matched every other event in 2011. It was included in House Bill 5 in a somewhat nebulous manner. Heidi stated that the 25 percent match is the biggest spot on the radar at this point. Staff has done everything possible to obtain the funding and to track it down. She has gone to the Governor's office twice and has had direct contact with his office. She has contact with Senator McCarthy in Billings, who is sponsoring a bill to move forward in House Bill 5. As far as she knows, it is still in House Bill 5. She left a message with Senator McCarthy today and she is trying to make sure that it does not get split into some bill and deviate from House Bill 5's original intent, which was to not make earmarks 3 Council Workshop Minutes of February 24,2015 and to not go with pet projects. This is an emergency project that has been going on for a long time and the 25 percent is owed to this community. Heidi will continue to follow it and to demonstrate to the legislature how imperative this project is to the City of Laurel and its residents. Mayor Mace stated that the council and the public should know that. He encouraged people to write to the Governor's Office regarding the city's need for the funding. Chad mentioned that Vince Ricci, the local representative, requested information from Kurt Markegard. Vince is in Helena pushing for the city now, too. Heidi and Kurt have done a great job of staying in touch with the local representatives. Chad also encouraged people to contact the legislators to make sure that House Bill 5 stays intact. • Resolution—Local 316 union contract Heidi explained that the Local 316 contract is with the Public Works Union. Negotiations began quite some time ago and went through three different mediation processes with the State and ended up with this final contract. The contract is for three years and goes through 2017. The wage increases for the next three years are $.80 for 2014-2015, $.34 for 2015-2016 and $.34 for 2016-2017. There will be an adjustment of court clerk pay to $1.20 between the wages. The word "public" was added to section 2.4 on page 31 of the contract. Longevity was raised from$7.50 to $7.75 per month for each year of service and the cap of 28 years was removed. The DEQ Training language was changed on page 33. Addendum F is for a negotiated item that the city will pay a $500 Flex contribution to each union employee during 2015-2016 and 2016-2017. The flex account will be managed by the city, so any receipts or withdrawals from that will go directly through the payroll clerk. • Council Issues: o Swimming pool(Scot Stokes) Scot asked regarding the pool and the cost of the new pump for the pool. Heidi asked Tim Reiter, Utilities Superintendent, to speak about the pool. Tim stated that replacing the pump and one ladder would allow the city to open the pool this year. He expects to receive one more quote from Stevens Brothers Mechanical. Heidi explained that the money that will be used for the pump and the ladder was budgeted into the pool to provide some amenities to the area around the pool. Our goal this year was to actually provide some sort of amenity, such as seating or shade, to improve the area around the pool. That money will be used to replace one ladder and the pump. She stated that the pool is in dire need of a paint job, which is very expensive. Tim agreed that the pool needs a paint job and it is very expensive. Pool paint is a very special epoxy paint that costs around $169/gallon. The cost for just the paint would be$8,500 to $12,000. Since the pool has gone so long without a proper paint job, it now needs to be sandblasted, the old paint removed, the cement resealed, reprimed and repainted. If it were sandblasted now, there are several soft areas that need major work. The cement is starting to soften up and to weep pretty badly. Some sections will need to be chiseled out and replaced. This is just patching and the pool is in bad shape. The bad spots can be painted in order to patch it up and get through the season, but it is definitely a band aid. 4 Council Workshop Minutes of February 24,2015 There was further discussion regarding using the new pump in a new pool or splash park, the suggestion to look at using a liner for the pool instead of doing all the repairs, the money that was donated by Billie Riddle for a new pool, and the contract with the YMCA to run the pool. Heidi is working with the YMCA on a contract for the 2015 season and the contract will be presented to the council in late March or early April. Monna Rae Adickes, 102 8th Avenue, asked to speak to the council. Monna is part of the Friends of the Pool Committee. The committee spoke with Shawna Herzog, from the YMCA, last night. Shawna explained to the committee how the pricing is and what revenues the city gets from the pool. Monna stated that it sounds like the city gets pretty much nothing and that the YMCA gets all the revenue, which means then that there is no money to put back into the pool to make the repairs until a new pool is built. She asked if it is possible to get a copy of the contract with the YMCA to see if some revenue could be pulled in from the pool to help with these expenses. Heidi responded that she could request any of the information from the council secretary. She stated that the pool is not a money-making endeavor, with the revenue of $2.00/person that generates $4,000/year to the city. The pool is a city amenity and the city does incur an exceptional amount of cost to keep it running. Monna stated that maybe some money could be squeezed out of it to help with some of the expenses. The Friends of the Pool Committee foresees that it will be three years before there is a replacement facility, so the pool needs to stay open for three more years. o Update on 2011 Yellowstone River flooding event There was no further discussion. o Lease Agreements Heidi stated that she is still working on the lease agreements. She sent an email to the Little League Concession Board and the Dodgers and has had no contact with them for two weeks. The city is operating in extremely good faith with them and she has done everything she can to reach out. All of the contact information will be attached to the final lease agreement for the council's review. She hopes to have the leases on the March 10`h council workshop agenda. Emelie spoke regarding the comments made at last week's council meeting, as one individual said that 700 children were involved in the Little League program. She asked whether or not those were all Laurel children or if this program is open to children from other communities. Emelie suggested that it might be helpful for the organizations to present information regarding their programs to the council at a council workshop. Mayor Mace stated that staff will try to contact them. He stated that, when he was president of the Little League, there were participants from outside the Laurel area. If they paid the fee, they could sign up for the program at that time. Bruce made two comments. First, he shares Heidi's frustration with the leases. It seems like there is always some new discovery with every discussion about the leases. That happened at the last council meeting when there was discussion regarding the concession stand. It is challenging to get everybody 5 Council Workshop Minutes of February 24, 2015 on the same page, and he suggested scheduling a meeting for everyone to put information out in the open and to stop with the surprises. Secondly, Bruce asked the council to consider a "no lease, no use" policy in order to motivate people to come to the table and finalize the leases. He suggested that there is grounds for doing so for insurance issues, as well as it is a good way to do business. Bruce stated that the city wants the city's property used, as it is public property. However, the council is the steward of the city's property and if the requirement is to have a lease in place before it is used, the council should stand by that regardless of how hard people think that may be. Bill stated that it would give the administrative staff a lot of leverage. Heidi could inform the organizations that there would be no use of the property until a lease is finalized. Tom mentioned that he saw language somewhere regarding the inability for a group to utilize city property without a current lease. Heidi explained that the leases are scheduled on the March 10th council workshop agenda and the March 17th council agenda. The tryouts for the Dodgers starts on March 16th, so they would be operating for two days without a lease. The city has given them the cost breakdown and the amended leases and the organizations need to contact the city, whether or not they agree with the lease language. Legal counsel is aware of the situation, as he is included in all the emails. Heidi will ask legal counsel if there is some sort of authoritative stance the city can take with the lessees. There was discussion regarding the suggestion for a"no lease, no use"policy. Mayor Mace stated that the proper way is to have discussion at a council workshop and then proceed to a council meeting. Other items Bruce stated that a representative from NorthWestern Energy contacted him regarding setting up a light district. He forwarded the information to Mayor Mace, Heidi and the clerk/treasurer. With a signature from the city, NorthWestern Energy will send an engineer out to determine the costs to expand the light district. Mayor Mace asked how the residents feel about having a light district. Bruce has been approached by one person, who is willing to approach the residents once the costs have been determined. Tom asked if Mayor Mace had contacted the Local Government Center about the possibility of a winter meeting with the council. Mayor Mace had previously emailed the Local Government Center but will follow up with another email. Review of draft council agenda for March 3, 2015 There was no discussion. 6 Council Workshop Minutes of February 24,2015 Attendance at the March 3, 2015 council meeting Tom will not attend the meeting. Announcements Bruce mentioned that the Class C basketball tournaments will be held in the Laurel High School gymnasium on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The council workshop adjourned at 7:25 p.m. Respectfully submitted, l� (24"L 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. 7