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MIN CC 07/06/2010City Council Meetings of July 2010 Book "V" MINUTES FROM THE HUNTSVILLE CITY COUNCIL MEETING HELD ON THE a DAY OF JULY 2010, IN THE CITY HALL, LOCATED AT 1212 AVENUE M IN THE CITY OF HUNTSVILLE, COUNTY OF WALKER, TEXAS AT 6PM. The Council met in a regular session with the following: • COUNCILMEMBERS PRESENT: J. Turner, Mac Woodward, Jack Wagamon, Dalene Zander, Melissa Templeton, Lanny Ray, Wayne Barrett, Tom Cole COUNCILMEMBERS ABSENT: Charles Forbus OFFICERS PRESENT: Bill Baine, City Manager; Leonard Schneider, City Attorney, Lee Woodward, City Secretary REGULAR SESSION' [6:OOPM] 1. CALL TO ORDER Mayor Turner called the meeting to order at 6:OOpm. 2. PLEDGES OF ALLEGIANCE 3. INVOCATION Councilmember Barrett gave the invocation. 4. PROCLAMATION The Mayor presented a proclamation in honor of the Greater Zion Marching Drill Team. 5. PUBLIC COMMENT Tarek Maalouf spoke about why he chose to offer a donation to the City, and the policy for Council email responses to citizens. Jake Fuqua thanked the Council for their work, and discussed traffic volume issues on Avenue O. • 6. CONSENT AGENDA (Approval of Consent Agenda authorizes the City Manager to implement each item in accordance with staff recommendations. An item may be removed from the Consent Agenda and added to the Statutory Agenda for full discussion by request of a member of Council.) a. Approve the minutes of the City Council meeting held on the le of June 2010. [Lee Woodward, City Secretary] b. Ratify proposal from Ken Davis and Assoc. for preparation of the City of Huntsville Annual Audit. [Mayor Turner] c. Approve Ordinance 2010.39a to amend the traffic schedule for No Parking signs on Nottingham, reading. [Aron Kulhavy, Director of Public Works] d. Ratify membership in National Joint Powers Alliance, NJPA, for nationals cooperative purchasing. [Billie Smith, Procurement Manager] T. STATUTORY AGENDA a. Presentation, discussion and possible action to approve the TIRZ 2009 Annual Report for filing and submission. [Winston Duke, Finance Director] Councilmember Barrett made a nation to approve Councilmember Woodward seconded the motion The motion passed unanimously. b. Presentation, discussion and possible action to authorize the City Manager to approve the purchase of the Incods Tyler Technologies Public Safety Software/Hardware in the amount of $145,000. [Chris Vazquez, IT Manager] • Councilmember Zander made a motion to approve Councilmember Templeton seconded the motion Chris Vasquez, IT Manager, explained the research the IT Department had done to select a "best fir option to respond to the disconnect with the Walker County disbatch, and also provided a cost reduction. In response to questions from Councilmember Templeton, Mr. Vasquez discussed additional possible capabilities for the City Council Meetings of July 2010 Book "V" software. • Councilmember Barrett said he did not recall this situation arising when he was still serving on the Public Safety Communications Board, commended the staff for the work they did in response, and suggested the City be aware of similar issues coming up. Director of Public Safety Kevin Lunsford confirmed that this technology was the choice of the Police Department as well. The Mayor asked that Mr. Vasquez update the Council at a later date on how well the software was working. The motion oassed unanimously. c. Presentation, discussion and possible action to authorize the City Manager to issue a Letter of Intent, apply for, accept N awarded, and implement the TIGER it Grant for approximately $4.5 million. [Sherry McKibben, Community Development Specialist] Councilmember Templeton n e a motion tg approve. Councilmember Woodward seconded the motion Dr. Sherry McKibben, Community Services Coordinator, stated that this was an incremental improvement for the 1- 4511-fighway 75 North interchange. The motion passed unanimously. d. Presentation, discussion and possible action to approve Ordinance 2010 -41, CenterPoint Energy Cost of Services Agreement (COSA),1" reading. [Leonard Schneider, City Attorney] Councilmember Woodward made a motion to approve Councilmember Zander seconded the nation Leonard Schneider, City Attorney, confirmed that the Lawton Law Firm had recommended the Ordinance be approved. 8. MAYORICITY COUNCIL AND CITY MANAGER REPORT • a. Presentatfon, discussion and possible action to discuss placement of items on Consent or Statutory Agenda, and in Mayor /City Council and City Manager Report [Mayor Turner] The Mayor suggested that Consent Agenda items be in budget, happen repetitively, and are under $50,000, and other items be on the Statutory Agenda, and that they be "staff-originated" items, that "Council- originated" items be under the Mayor /City Council/City Manager section. He said the Consent Agenda is to lump routine items together, and Statutory Agenda was for items needing discussion. The Mayor made a motion to change the Rules of Procedure to state the above. Councilmember Ray seconded the motion. Councilmember Woodward said the point was to consolidate items, and that he supported the motion. The City Manager said his concern was that budgeted items under $50,000 go to the Finance Committee for review, not the agenda, and asked that they consult with the City Attorney before voting it into. The Mayor withdrew his motion. The Mayor said it would not increase the items coming to Council, but would provide a codification. Winston Duke, Director of Finance, said he did not have a concern, but that they might need to discuss bid items. The Mayor and Councilmember Ray reinstated the motion and the second. Mr. Schneider read the City Ordinance and said he did not think the motion would affect which items came to the agenda. Councilmember Barrett asked if the intent was to move budget amendments to the Statutory Agenda, as they were technically not in budget. The Mayor said his interpretation was that budget amendments were repetitive, and would thereby be on the Consent Agenda, as long as the budget change was neutral. The motion passed unanimous) b. Presentation, discussion and possible action to discuss water policy issues. [Standing item on first agenda of each month.] [Mayor Tumor] • The Mayor recalled the Council had decided to address water policy issues at the first meeting of each month. The Mayor suggested the Council review the packet and discuss this again at the first meeting in August. Councilmember Woodward said he was not concerned about water in relation to the City's growth, that it would take much longer study, but the immediate need was water quality, and short -term needs and well capacity. Councilmember Wagamon said he needed information about pumps and other infrastructure to be qualified in some manner other than simply age. The Mayor encouraged the Council to submit to the City Manager a written City Council Meetings of July 2010 Book "V" request for information they would like to receive. c. Presentation, discussion and possible action to approve First Amendment to 1976 Raw Water Supply • Contract with Trinity River Authority (TRA), 1" reading. [Councilmember Woodward] Councilmember Woodward said this amendment clarifies and confirms the assurance of the availability of raw water past 2020, as in the contracts. Councilmember Ray asked why the item wasn't on the Statutory Agenda section. Councilmember Ray said a future contract was illusory, as @ was dependent upon the ability of the City to forge a later agreement with TRA. Mr. Schneider said TRA would not explicitly bind themselves, nor could the Council, but rather that the City had a first right 9 both parties agree to the terms. Councilmember Woodward confirmed he did not contact the TRA attorney or conduct negotiations. Councilmember Wagamon asked of the value of a first option, if it would not be in TRA's interest to raise rates in 2020, as there is no price or terms negotiated at this time. Mr. Schneider said the amendment did say it was subject to the prevailing rate charged other customers at the time, but that he could see no way to determine the cost that far into the future. d. Presentation, discussion and possible action to discuss policy for the receipt of gifts to the City, and the possibility of anonymous donations and gifts, and list of proposed projects from Dr. McKibben. [Mayor Turner] Mr. Baine said he had asked Dr. McKibben to compile a non - prioritized list of staff or citizen requests. The Mayor stated donations were a policy issue. Councilmember Woodward said he supported this generally, but was concerned about donations with conditions. Councilmember Ray said it seemed rather harsh. Councilmember Cole said he thought everything should be in public view. The Mayor said he felt there needed to balance and transparency. Councilmember Wagamon • mentioned the possibility of someone making a donation and later being awarded a contract, even if all was aboveboard, and that he felt there should be a public record of all donations. Councilmember Barrett said he had concerns about some aspects of the motion, and that perhaps they should ask the staff to develop a policy proposal for the Council to review. Mr. Baine reminded the Council that the City is keeping a log of donations to the Library, some of which are anonymous. He said he thought it might not be appropriate for suppliers to be donors, but that communities used to come together to do things for the City. Councilmember Barrett said perhaps he changed his mind, and that he did not recall a time when Council had been asked to approve a donation. He said that if there was no law preventing the donation, perhaps the City did rat need a policy. The Mayor offered an amendment to the motion that it apply to donations exceeding $10000 There was no second to the motion. Councilmember Cole reminded the Council they could not accept personal gifts in excess of $50.00, and that he felt $10,000 was too high a standard. Councilmember Ray said he agreed with both Councilmembers Cole and Barrett, but would like to hear from citizens on the issue. Councilmember Woodward made a motion to table. Mr. Schneider said he had spoken with Texas Municipal League (TML) and that the main issue was the appearance of impropriety. Councilmember Zander seconded the motion The motion passed unanimously, 5-3 Coundirri mbers Templeton Wagamon and Cole votino against e. Presentation, discussion and possible action to approve donation of $6000 by Tarek Maalouf for 50' flag pole, flags, and lighting at City Hall. [Councilmember Woodward] Councilmember Woodward said Mr. Maalouf had responded to a request of the City, and that he was owed a • decision in response to his generosity. Councilmember Woodward made a motion to accent the donation and acknowledge the gift through agreement between Mr. Maalouf and Mr. Baine Councilmember Ray seconded the motion City Council Meetings of July 2010 Book °V" Councilmember Cole said the Council should thank Mr. Maalouf and keep the flagpole already at City Hall. He • said he believe Mr. Maalouf had a business that was regulated by the City, and that to accept the gift would give the appearance of impropriety. Councilmember Zander asked Dr. McKibben how the flagpole item came up. Mr. Baine said he had asked for it because the flagpole was short, and that he felt it was inappropriate for the flags to drag the bushes when at half - mast. Mr. Baine said he also wanted to plant a tree in its place for energy conservation, and wanted the flagpole where it could be seen. Councilmember Zander confirmed the proposed flagpole would be placed by the City Hall sign. Councilmember Ray said he would like a new flagpole for visibility and correct placement of the flags. Councilmember Ray made an amendment provided however, there were absolutely no conditions precendent or subsequent to the donation Councilmember Woodward said he hoped the Council did not go through this thrashing the next time the City made a request and a citizen responded to it. Councilmember Barrett confirmed the City had already received the gift, and asked Mr. Schneider if there was any law preventing its acceptance. Mr, Schneider said there was not, as there were no conditions. Councilmamber Barrett said he could never recall the Council being asked to approve a donation, and was reluctant to take a superfluous action, as they had previously approved projects, not received donations. The Mayor said the Council was trying to clean up the procedure. The Mayor seconded the amendment. Dr. McKibben confirmed for Councilmember Cole that there were no conditions made with the gift. The amendment passed unanimously. Councilmember Ray asked why the Council was dealing with this item, that it was perplexing to be doing this • donation differently. Councilmember Templeton said she also had concerns as to why they were dealing with this, that all donations should be accepted provided there were no conditions, that it would be up to the City Manager. Mr. Schneider pointed out that land is often given to a city with the condition it be a park, with ownership reverting if the land was no longer used in that matter. Councilmember Templeton said they could exclude certain situations. Councilmember Cole made a motion to table the item until a policy was resolved There was no second for the motion. Councilmember Barrett asked if the City had to return the donation if the motion failed, as it had already been accepted. Mr. Schneider advised that the City give the money back if the motion failed. Councilmember Wagamon mentioned Councilmember Ray's recall of the donation for the Bruce Brothers Huntsville Regional Airport and that the discussion centered around details. Councilmember Cole said the City was not without precedent for returning gifts. The motion passed 7 -1 Councilmember Cole voting against. f. Discussion of tax rate for FY201 Oil 1 budget [ Councllmember Wagamon] Councilmember Wagamon said he wanted to notify the public about the proposed budget, saying there was no Cost of Living Increase for employees, open positions kept open, and no tax increase. He encouraged the public to become involved and contact their Councilpersons. g. Presentation, discussion and possible action regarding performance agreement and development agreement with Ravenwood Limited, including, but not limited to, requested expansion of the TIRZ and ownership interests of Ravenwood Limited (originally discussed on May 4, 2010). [ Councilmember Ray] Councilmember Ray recounted his first experiences with the Ravenwood project describing it as "shrouded in • smoke and mirrors." He showed several letters and documents from the Secretary of State's office concerning the ownership of Ravenwood Limited and associated companies. He said the public had a right to see the K -1 forms for these entities. Councilmember Ray made a motion to direct staff to take whatever measures necessary to obtain the information odoinaliv requested by Mr, Leeoer. Councilmember Cole seconded the motion Councilmember Woodward said he suspected some of these may be set up as real estate investment trusts City Council Meetings of July 2010 Book "V" Councilmember Wagamon said that several years ago he was contacted by a local developer, who told him that Ravenwood would involve the same entities who had served on other failed economic development projects. He said he hadn't seen anything in writing to show him these rumors were not true. • Councilmember Barrett asked if the Council was asking the City Attorney to do, and what recourse they had. Councilmember Ray said the development contract states the developer must comply with all reasonable requests from the City, and that there were other provisions in the Tax Code and criminal statutes. Councilmember Cole said it was another effort to increase transparency in transactions. The motion passed unanimously. Councilmember Ray said he would like to continue the second portion of the item until the first portion was completed. There was no discussion. h. Presentation, discussion and possible action regarding update of ongoing litigation against the Huntsvilte - Walker County Chamber of Commerce to recover misspent and misapplied Hotel Occupancy Funds, primarily to update the citizens and council as to what has occurred and is In the public record and or available to the public. [ Councilmember Ray] Councilmember Ray said he had received many questions on this item, and discussed Hotel Occupancy Tax funds (HOT), the state statute, and the litigation against the Huntsville-Walker County Chamber of Commerce. He said the suit has progressed slowly, perhaps due to the non - production of documents on behalf of the defendants, and recounted the action in the case to present, procedurally. He stated the Court said the case would be tried the first week of October. Councilmember Ray said there was a summary judgment fled on the Chambers countersuit. He recounted that the audit was only cursory, but that the lawsuit was a full ten -year review of all expenditures, and held to a very high level of fiduciary duty. He showed a copy of the Texas Pattern Jury Charge 1042, (Breach of Fiduciary Duty), and listed the items the jury could award. Councilmember Woodward said persons had asked him what the case had cost the City to date. Mr. Baine and Mr. Duke estimated $150,000 had been spent. Councilmember Ray said that was all recoverable and likely to be returned, based on other juries' verdicts. Councilmember Wagamon asked Mr. Schneider if he would characterize the documents released recently as • being forthcoming. Councilmember Wagamon asked about the amount of documents received. Councilmember Ray said he had viewed the volume at Mr. Rush's office, saying that three years of documents given the HOT Board was slightly more than four bankers boxes, but that the release of seven years was only one double bankers box. Councilmember Waganwn asked about testimony given in the depositions. Mr. Schneider said he would say the depositions speak for themselves and recommended the Council not state opinions. Mr. Schneider said he believed the Court would be ordering this to mediation soon. Councilmember Ray said he would be willing to share the documents he had found. 1. City Manager's Report 1. Hurricane preparations. Mr. Baine encouraged citizens to be prepared for hurricane season, especially keeping up on prescription drugs. 2. Recycling pilot update. Carol Reed, Director of Public Utilities, presented a PowerPoint on the Curbside Recycling Pilot Program in Elkins Lake. The Mayor thanked Ms. Reed, and said it seemed to be a success. 3. H -GAC recommendations on recycling grants, and thanks to Councilmember Templeton for her presentation. Mr. Baine thanked Councilmember Templeton for the importance of her presentation at H-GAC, and she thanked Dr. McKibben, Esther Herklotz and Charlotte Meadows for their preparation of the presentation. Mr. Baine congratulated the overall Lose for Life winners, and commended the directors for their support of their staffs. 9. PUBLIC COMMENT • John Cromer spoke about the ConsenVStatutory Agenda question, saying perhaps it was more confusing now, and that maybe the Council would revisit it in the future. He also spoke on the plan for the TIGER grant and traffic on Highway 75 North. Tarek Maalouf asked if the Council could respond to questions in Public Comment. Councilmember Wagamon City Council Meetings of July 2010 Book "V" pointed out that comments are to be directed to the Mayor, not individual Councilmembers. Mr. Maalouf said he didn't • know why Councilmember Ray called him out. Mr. Maalouf said his website was not a place for attack, and that most Councilmembers had been praised on his site at some time. Mr. Maalouf asked the Council to clarify when they felt it was appropriate to use the fifth amendment. Mr. Maalouf said Councilmember Coles story about the City returning a gift was different because the City asked for his donation. 10. MEDIA INQUIRIES RELATED TO MATTERS ON THE AGENDA There were no media inquiries made. 11. ITEMS OF COMMUNITY INTEREST (Hear announcements concerning items of community interest from the Mayor, Councilmembers, and City staff for which no action will be discussed or taken.) The Mayor mentioned the imminent homecoming of the local National Guard Soldiers and described the commemorative coins cut for the event. He said the coins were also for sale for $20.00, and asked that citizens thank Soldiers when they see them. The Mayor mentioned the upcoming City's 175' birthday on Monday, July 1 e. 12. ADJOURNMENT r1 LJ 40