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HomeMy WebLinkAbout011110R CC Min0 The City A Neighborhood City CITY COUNCIL Bob Kelly, Mayor Bob Fry. Councilmember George Boehme, Council member Steven Segal, Councilmember Chuck Guffey, Councilmember STAFF Michael Ross, City Manager Alan Petrov, City Attorney Thelma Lenz, City Secretary CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES The City Council of the City of West University Place, Texas, met in a special workshop and regular session Monday, January 11, 2010, in the Municipal Building, 3800 University Boulevard, West University Place, Texas beginning at 5:00 p.m. SPECIAL WORKSHOP Agenda items were as follows: CALL TO ORDER Mayor Kelly called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m. Also in attendance were: Mayor Pro Tem Fry, Councilmembers Boehme, Segal and Guffey, City Manager Ross, Deputy City Secretary Schultz, City Attorney Petrov, Assistant City Manager/Public Works Director Peifer, and the City's Commercial Real Estate Broker Marshall Clinkscales. 1. Real Estate Matters related to 1.0874 acres on Westpark, between Wakeforest Street and Dincans Street. . Discussion on real estate matters was held in closed executive session in accordance with Section 551.072 in Chapter 551 of the Texas Government Code (discussion about the value or transfer of real property and other real estate matters). At 5:02 p.m., Mayor Kelly closed the open meeting and convened into executive session. Due to a conflict of interest, Councilmember Segal abstained from discussion of this item and left the room. At 5:30 p.m., Mayor Pro Tem Fry moved to close the executive session and reconvene into open session. Councilmember Boehme seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Kelly, Fry, Boehme, Guffey Noes: None Absent: Segal No action taken. Councilmember Segal returned to the room. of West University Place 2. Tennis Policy Matters related to a proposed policy relating to the City's Tennis Courts. City Council Minutes, January 11, 2010 Parks and Recreation Director O'Connor presented and said staff was directed by the city manager to investigate tennis courts use and compliance. He said staff is seeking direction from Council to expand the ordinance to include new regulations and to revise the offense for violation of those regulations, to develop a policy for tennis instruction, and to develop new tennis rules and requirements. Mr. O'Connor stated that currently there is no real policy in place because before now there were really no complaints about tennis. He said the complaints began when the courts at Colonial Park were taken out of service, which resulted in uncovering a lot of things that staff was not aware of, specifically rogue instructors teaching on municipal property for personal gain. To summarize, City Manager Ross said staff is proposing direction and authorization from Council to draft policies and procedures for the tennis courts and a Class C misdemeanor ordinance, which will make it a municipal fine to be enforced by Parks staff or the Police Department. As directed by Council, staff will draft an ordinance to create a law that City staff can enforce with a Class C misdemeanor fine. 3. Fee Schedule Matters related to the City's Fee Schedule including review of proposed changes. This item was taken out of order and discussed before Agenda Item #2 Assistant City Manager/Public Works Director Peifer and Parks and Recreation Director O'Connor presented this item. Mr. Peifer spoke regarding the changes to Public Works related fees. He said the Public Works changes include Development Services/Building fees and General Services special collection fees. He said the fees, which have not been adjusted in several years, have been compared to similar fees within the market and, if approved, will allow us to cover the cost of services and maintain market parody. He also noted that one change/deletion was necessary due to the recent passage of state legislation prohibiting the collection of a plumbing contractor's registration fee. Mr. Peifer confirmed that these changes are strictly to recover costs and not to produce revenue. Mr. O'Connor spoke regarding changes to Parks and Recreation fees. He said a recreational fee subcommittee was appointed by the Parks and Recreation Board to study the existing proposed fees for the new recreational facilities. He said the committee consisted of a total of five citizens, who held a total of seven meetings and did a thorough job of marketing and soliciting input from the citizens. He said the final draft of the recommendation was presented at the January 6, 2010 Parks Board meeting and that after Board discussion and comments from residents present at that meeting, the Board voted unanimously to bring the proposal to Council for review and approval. Mr. O'Connor then introduced Kevin Boyle, Chair of the subcommittee. Mr. Boyle said the subcommittee was charged with determining the fee proposal for the new facilities that would be easy to understand and administer and that would be fair to the residents and taxpayers. He said in order to accomplish their goals, they had the three C's approach, which were comparing our facilities with other similar facilities; looking at the cost of operating and maintaining the facilities; and using common sense. Mr. Boyle said with this approach in mind, they came up with the proposed fee schedule and the delineation between the individual resident rates and individual non-resident rates. 2 City Council Minutes, January 11, 2010 Mayor Kelly asked Mr. Boyle to discuss some of the issues surrounding the uses and rates for residents versus non-residents and how and why the subcommittee came up with this proposal being. Mr. O'Connor addressed Mayor Kelly's concerns and said that staff has learned from other cities that due to there being a maximum number of people that can use facilities at one time, it is their recommendation to have the facilities available to residents only during the first year of operation to assess what the residents use would be before opening it up to nonresidents. Mayor Kelly asked why is the recommendation only for Colonial Park and not for the Recreation Center. Mr. O'Connor responded that all the adult and youth programs currently being offered at the Community Building were offered prior to Hurricane Ike at the former Recreation Center, the former YMCA facility, and Colonial Park. He said all those programs will all transitioning to the new Recreation Center and without non-resident participation, 80 percent of our programs would not meet minimum registration. Regarding the matter of non-resident memberships to the fitness portion of the facility, which is the indoor pool, the cardio studio, the racquetball court, and the weight room, Mr. O'Connor said that staff was operating under the same standard they operated at Colonial, which was open to residents and non-residents and the non-resident fee was 50 percent greater than the resident fee. Councilmember Segal said it seems logical to say that we are going to open this Recreation Facility to residents only, except for specialty programs. Mr. O'Connor said it makes sense for staff to look at this suggestion for two or three months and open it up to nonresidents if we're not reaching the maximum attendees. Councilmember Boehme confirmed that we would not be charging members $75 a month during the months that Colonial Park is not open. During discussion regarding fees, Mr. Boyle said the recommended fees are a starting point and are not being set to be in place for the next 20 years. Councilmember Boehme stated that this is a Municipal facility and is not meant to be competitive in pricing with the YMCA and other private entities. He said he thinks some of the fees are too high. Mayor Kelly asked Mr. Boyle about the rationale concerning the seniors' fees. Mr. Boyle said the subcommittee heard a lot of discussion and input concerning the seniors' fees, but they do not have a recommendation as the subcommittee feels those fees should be determined and set by Council. When asked what has been done in the past for seniors' fees, Mr. O'Connor stated that any resident of West University Place age 65 and older had free use of the Colonial Pool, weight room, cardio studio, and racquetball court. Councilmember Segal stated that a large majority of seniors don't participate in anything. In response to his request for the number of senior residents that received senior passes in the past, Mr. O'Connor stated that 39 passes were issued in 2007, 43 passes in 2008, and 36 passes in 2009. In response to Mayor Kelly's question as to other benefits for seniors, Mr. O'Connor responded that there is the Senior Center at the Community Building, the Senior Services division of the Parks and Recreation Department, leisure programs and activities, transportation and social services. He said there are no fees for the transportation and social services; nor are there any for the leisure programs and activities, though staff does try and recoup the costs of the instructors for some of the programs. City Council Minutes, January 11, 2010 Councilmember Segal pointed out that it is easy to allow for the same activities for seniors for the Recreation Center and not necessarily Colonial Park. Mr. O'Connor said it is staff's intention to continue the efforts of getting our seniors involved in using the new amenities. Councilmember Segal confirmed that as proposed senior memberships would only be required for lap swimming and weights. Mayor Kelly said if we decided to continue the policy of no fees for residents over 65, he believes that the financial number will be minimal. City Manager Ross said this is something we can keep track of and report back to Council. Councilmember Guffey said he has been swimming free for five years and he enjoys it, but doesn't think it is right. He said he thinks seniors should pay some fee and suggested a nominal $50 or $75 a year charge. He said if we charge them the $300 a year fee, then there should be some kind of opt out for those that can't afford it. Mr. Boyle asked what will Council do for those residents that are handicapped and other residents that will not be able to afford the fees. City Manager Ross stated that there are no proposed fees for these residents at this time. Councilmember Boehme asked whether the Seniors Board has had an opportunity to review these fees. Mr. O'Connor said yes, they met on December 10 and the Seniors Board suggested at that time that staff look at the possibility of a fee based on years of residency. He said the difficulty for that, though, would be staff's ability to verify years of residency. Councilmember Boehme said his view is that this is not the proper forum to be changing the long- standing policy with regard to our pricing for seniors. He said the policy should be discussed on its own. He continued to say that many of things that will be provided will not be utilized by the seniors, such as the rock climbing wall, the slides, etc. He said we need to recognize that the seniors have lived in our community for a long time and he thinks the amount of revenue we get is insignificant and said we need to do whatever we can do to get their full participation. He said we want our seniors to use these facilities, which is why he's reluctant to change the policy. Mayor Pro Tern Fry said he likes the methodology used by the subcommittee. Councilmember Segal asked if there would be an opportunity for an open swim for teenagers, families, etc., on weekends. Mr. O'Connor said staff is looking at that. When asked by Councilmember Segal, Mr. O'Connor confirmed that the Recreation Center will not be rented out for private parties. He said that is the function of the Community Center and Scout House. Councilmember Segal asked what plans are there for the pool on weekdays and Saturdays and Sunday. Mr. O'Connor said there are nine different programs scheduled at this point for the weekends, but there are no plans at this point for the weekends. Councilmember Guffey said lap swimming and other programs won't take up all the lanes. City Manager Ross said there will be some pilot programs to see how the open swim works in this pool. City Council Minutes, January 11, 2010 Councilmember Segal said he is concerned how we will attract members during the winter without open swim. In response to Mayor Pro Tem Fry's question as to what staff needs from Council to move forward, Mr. O'Connor said they need a fee schedule by January 25. He said, however, staff has time on a decision for any special rates for the seniors, disabled residents, or any other group of people that Council might want to offer discounted or no rates. He said staff just needs basic rates at this time. Councilmember Boehme said it is very important that we do this right and that the pricing is such that we have absolutely robust participation from our citizens. Mayor Pro Tern moved to adjourn the Workshop at 6:30 p.m. Councilmember Guffey seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Kelly, Fry, Boehme, Segal, Guffey Noes: None Absent: None REGULAR MEETING (BEGINNING AT 6:30 P.M. IN THE COUNCIL CHAMBERS) Agenda items are as follows: Mayor Kelly called the meeting to order at 6:35 p.m. Also in attendance were: Mayor Pro Tem Fry, Councilmembers Boehme, Segal and Guffey, City Manager Ross, Deputy City Secretary Schultz, City Attorney Petrov, Assistant City Manager/Public Works Director Peifer, Finance Director Daugherty, Parks and Recreation Director O'Connor, General Services Superintendent Beach, and Police Chief Walker. Councilmember Guffey led the Pledge of Allegiance and Pledge to the Texas Flag. Deputy City Secretary Schultz confirmed that the Notice of the special meeting was duly posted in accordance with the Texas Government Code, Chapter 551. 4. Public Comments This is an opportunity for citizens to speak to Council relating to agenda and non-agenda items. If the topic the speaker wishes to address is on the agenda, the speaker can either speak at this time or defer his/her comments until such time the item is discussed. John Neighbors, 2809 Wroxton Road, spoke as a senior citizen of West U and as chairman of the Senior Services Board. He said two weeks ago the Seniors Board discussed the proposed fee schedule and the addendum of the possibility of rate adjustments for seniors, but was unable to reach a complete consensus. Mr. Neighbors said there are three important issues involved: (1) the ability to define who a senior is; (2) how many seniors that are currently in West and how many will there be in the future; (3) what activities do seniors use and how should they be funded; and (4) the basis for fee adjustments - should it be on a recovery basis or an ancillary basis or should it follow a philosophy of the City whereby seniors have been given a discount on certain activities. Mr. Neighbors said after the Parks Board meeting on January 14, they are planning a Workshop, which will be composed of himself, Stan McCandless, Russ Schultz, Tim O'Connor, and Toby Brooks. He said they feel that these staff and committee members could resolve some of the issues that are being discussed and that they may be able to make a recommendation to Council that City Council Minutes, January 11, 2010 reflects the City and the aspects of the issue. Hi basis that is fair for the City, fair for the seniors program better than planned. said he hopes that we can resolve the issue on a and one that will make the Parks and Recreation Carolyn Sacchi, 3768 Rice Boulevard, spoke to say that she is a 40-year resident and a member of the Good Neighbor Team. In regards to the proposed fee assessment for all users, she asked why do seniors have to pay full fees during this period of economic recession, reduced fixed incomes, and no cost of living adjustments. She asked council to please spare the resident seniors the full fee assessment for use of the new pool and recreational facilities. Diane Wells, 3816 University Boulevard, spoke to say she and her husband have been residents for almost 30 years and said she is a deep water exerciser. She requested that Council continue the City's present policy of allowing senior citizens to swim for free. She said encouraging the seniors to use the facilities will be beneficial for the seniors and the City. Kathy Sweeney, 3822 University Boulevard, spoke to say that she is concerned about the amount that she and her sister would be required to pay, which is a tremendous amount of money. She said her sister is currently going through aqua therapy so having the pool available to them would be beneficial. She asked Council to please vote in favor of seniors to allow them the privilege to swim. Linda Driskill, 3837 Coleridge, spoke to say that she and her husband are in favor of helping those that are economically disadvantaged. She said for those that can pay, as she can, she sees no reason why they should be entitled to a discount. She asked Council to make a more equitable policy across the board and suggested a policy that allows people to apply for financial relief rather than give them a discount because of how old they are. Frank Griffin, 2807 Plumb Street, spoke to encourage Council to consider an approach for residents and taxpayers to have precedence over nonresidents. Alicia Drewes, 6112 Fordham, exhibited papers showing her daughter's disability for housing. The intent was to show that a resident could produce documentation showing they are disabled so that may receive a discount on the Parks and Recreation fees. Due to the number of people present to hear discussion on the fee schedule, Mayor Kelly moved Agenda Item #7 relating to the fee schedule out of order for review and discussion at this time. See Agenda Item #7 for discussion and/or action. 5. City Center Redevelopment Committee Matters related to the redevelopment of the Town Center, including discussion regarding the appointment of members to an Ad Hoc Committee. City Manager Ross presented and stated that staff received 40-45 applicants that have indicated their desire to serve on the City Center Redevelopment Ad Hoc Subcommittee. He.requested Council to provide direction on how it would like to proceed with interviews. Mayor Pro Tern Fry suggested that Council choose a Chair for the subcommittee in order for that person to be able to have input in selecting the committee members. Councilmember Guffey suggested having a Chairman and couple of Councilmembers review the applications and reduce the number of applicants down to 20 people. 6 City Council Minutes, January 11, 2010 Councilmember Boehme suggested having a total of 7 members on the committee. All other councilmembers agreed that 7 is a good number. Council decided to hold an executive session after the regular meeting to discuss members of the Ad Hoc Committee and possibly select a chairman. 6. Consent Agenda All Consent Agenda items listed are considered to be routine by the City Council and will be enacted by one motion. There will be no separate discussion of these items unless a Council member requests in which event the item will be removed from the Consent Agenda and considered in its normal sequence on the agenda. A. City Council Minutes Approve City Council meeting minutes of December 14, 2009. B. Bio Solids Bid Award Matters related to awarding contract for hauling and disposal of Bio-Solids (sludge) from Wastewater Treatment Plant. C. Resolution Imposing Section 33.11 of Texas Tax Code Matters related to a resolution requiring Section 33.11 of the Texas Tax Code, which imposes an early additional penalty for collection cost for taxes imposed on personal property. Mayor Pro Tem Fry moved to approve the Consent Agenda as presented. Councilmember Guffey seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Kelly, Fry, Boehme, Guffey, Segal Noes: None Absent: None 7. Fee Schedule Matters related to the City's Fee Schedule including review of proposed changes and consideration of an ordinance on the first of two readings. Parks and Recreation O'Connor presented this item Mr. O'Connor said staff is hoping to move forward this evening with the fee schedule as submitted by the Parks and Recreation Fee Subcommittee. He noted that regarding the fees related to the Tennis Courts, two sets of fees were omitted from the schedule. He said one fee would be the resident walk- in reservation fee, which is currently $3 (proposed to increase to $4) and the non-resident walk-in fee for a court reservation, which is currently $6 (proposed to increase to $8). Mr. O'Connor asked that Council consider these fees on first reading, with exception to whatever is to be determined for senior discounts or any other specific resident user discounts. Mayor Kelly confirmed that this is also the recommendation of the Parks Board and the Parks and Recreation Fee Subcommittee. Mayor Pro Tern Fry moved to approve the proposed fee schedule on the first reading. Councilmember Guffey seconded the motion. City Council Minutes, January 11, 2010 Councilmember Boehme stated that he believes that this is something that does not need to be rushed. He said he appreciates what the subcommittee has done, but thinks that maybe Council didn't send them the right message, because he thinks these fees are too high for residents and probably not high enough for non-residents. He suggested sending this back to the committee with clearer direction in order to come up with fees that will sustain the test of time. He said rushing is not necessary and is probably a mistake. Councilmember Segal said he thought it was decided that we were not going to have non-resident membership in either place until we saw what happened. He said if that is the case, he wants this vote to reflect this and not the schedule, which has non-residents fees. Councilmember Boehme said it was his understanding that we were to have non-resident participation at the Recreation Center, but not at Colonial Park. Mr. O'Connor said Councilmember Boehme's understanding was correct prior to the Workshop, but it was his understanding after the Workshop that Council is wanting a certain time whereby memberships for both facilities are only available to residents of West University Place. He said then at that point if it is determined that we have the space and can accommodate additional memberships, we will open it up to non-residents. Councilmember Boehme said as it relates to the matter before us, he thinks that the cost recovery strategy that the committee took was too aggressive and that the focus should be having robust participation from our citizenry and his concern is that this does not do that. Mayor Kelly asked Mr. Boyle, the Fee Subcommittee Chair, if it was the committee's philosophy to get complete cost recovery and be competitive and charge the same fees as the YMCA and other private entities. Mr. Boyle responded no, 100 percent cost recovery was not the philosophy whatsoever. He said they were looking at comparable facilities, but not trying to compete. He said a point was made that this is revenue and there are costs associated with this facility. In response to Mayor Kelly's question as to the amount of cost recovery, Mr. Boyle said it was 85 percent for the Recreational Facility and about 50 percent for Colonial Park. Mr. Boyle said one thing that gets lost when trying to compare to prior facilities is that the new facilities are quite enhanced, and so it is not realistic to think you can get more for less. In response to Mayor Kelly's question to Mr. O'Connor as to whether he felt that this was being rushed, Mr. O'Connor stated that he doesn't think so due to the time put in by the Fee Subcommittee and the questions raised and addressed as a result of the meetings. He said also we are two months from when the subcommittee was selected and 90 days from opening day. Councilmember Boehme reiterated that this does not need to be rushed. As requested by Councilmember Boehme, Mr. Boyle reviewed the cost comparisons between our facility and the YMCA. He said there is a $100 joining fee for the YMCA and there is no joining or initiation fee for the West U facilities; an individual cost at the YMCA at the Stella Link facility is $55 per month and we're proposing $30 at our facilities for residents; two adults and one child is $80 at the YMCA, which would be equivalent to a family rate at our facility for a cost of $50. Councilmember Segal said you're comparing apples and oranges because the fee at the YMCA includes a number of classes wrapped up in one fee. City Council Minutes, January 11, 2010 Councilmember Boehme said he wants the record to show that our taxpayers have already paid one hell of a burden by approving these bonds. Again, for clarification, Mr. Segal asked what the status of the motion is with respect to the nonresident fees at the Recreation Center. He asked if we were postponing all nonresident membership at the Recreation Center until we have some experience to go by. Mayor Pro Tern Fry said no, his motion is as presented. Mayor Kelly said that as a result of the Workshop, Mr. O'Connor made it clear that staff plans to postpone nonresident membership at both facilities. Mayor Kelly concluded the discussion by stating that that he doesn't believe in any way, shape or form this matter has been rushed and thinks that this matter has followed the normal procedure that the City of West University Place does through its Boards. He said a lot of time was put into this effort by the subcommittee and very competent staff. He commended all involve. At this time a vote was made to the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Kelly, Fry, Boehme, Guffey Noes: Segal Absent: None Note: At a later time, before the meeting adjourned, Councilmember Boehme publicly announced that he would like the record to reflect that even though he voted for the motion, his intent was to vote against it. 8. Recreation Center Emergency Back-Up Generator Matters related to the purchase and installation of an emergency backup generator for the West U Recreation Center. City Manager Ross presented and reported that staff received some good news regarding the existing generator serving City Hall. He said it was determined that this generator will be of adequate size to service the proposed public safety facility improvements, as well as the existing City Hall; so, therefore, it will not be necessary to purchase a larger generator for this location as was originally thought. Mr. Ross said staff is requesting Council to approve the same size generator, which is a 400 Kw generator to power the Recreation Center in order to provide housing for staff during emergency events. Mr. Ross said the funds will be available with the sale of the Public Safety Facilities improvements bonds in March of 2010 and the generator will be installed in March so the Public Safety Facility bond funding will be available without the need for a reimbursement resolution at this time. Councilmember Boehme moved to approve authorizing the City Manager to facilitate the purchase and installation of the emergency backup generator to serve the West U Recreation Center in the amount of $350,000. Councilmember Segal seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Kelly, Fry, Boehme, Guffey, Segal Noes: None City Council Minutes, January 11, 2010 Absent: None 9. Certificates of Obligation and General Oblioation Bonds Matters related to the market update, finance plan, and schedule of events for Certificates of Obligation and General Obligation Bonds; and approving a resolution authorizing publication of intention to issue Certificates of Obligation. Finance Director Daugherty presented and pointed out that the $1.6 million included for the meter read system is optional. In regards to the meter read system, Ms. Daugherty explained the City's current system, as well as three other methods, of reading meters. She explained that the method being proposed using Certificates of Obligations is fixed based where radio read equipment will be attached to our two water towers and will give 99.9 percent coverage in West U. She also explained that on a daily basis, the Utility Billing clerk can push a button at her desk and get a meter read by the minute, hourly, or as frequently as needed. In response to Mayor Kelly's question to Mr. Peifer as to how he feels about this method, Mr. Peifer said he thinks the City will see a higher degree of accuracy and more enhanced customer service. Mayor Pro Tem Fry asked staff to research Center Points program relating to the installation of Smart Readers and what they're doing, how they're doing it, and what they're using. He said he would hate to spend $1.6 million dollars when we could have piggy backed on what somebody else is doing. Councilmember Guffey said he can't see council approving $1.6 million with this little bit of information and no advanced notice. He said he thinks we need a workshop to get into these numbers in more detail. He said it is just not the time to spend another $1.6 million in bonds. Finance Director Daugherty provided a breakdown in costs, but Councilmember Segal said he thinks the fact that there is no Interlocal Agreement and no one else in the area is doing it, we shouldn't jump into it by ourselves. He said maybe if other cities become interested, maybe we can get together as a group and get a better deal. Councilmember Boehme said he is not sure we even need to workshop it. He said we need to let the marketplace catch up with the technology first, because as more and more cities do it the prices will come down. Ryan O'Hara, RBC Capital Markets, was present and spoke about the request for the City to issue $5,000,000 in Permanent Improvement Bonds for 2010, which is the final piece of the voter authorized Park Bonds from 2008, the $6.9 in Certificates of Obligation for the City Hall Public Safety expansion, and the $1.6 million for the reader meter program. He then presented a PowerPoint presentation. Mr. O'Hara the plan is to come back to Council on Monday, February 22, 2010, for approval on both the sale of the Bonds and the Certificates of Obligation and going to market on February, 18, 2010. He said, like last time, they will let residents know that they will have first priority in purchasing the Bonds. He said they look to close on March 23, 2010. Councilmember Boehme asked about the cost of issuance as a percentage. Mr. O'Hara said he can provide Ms. Daugherty with a detailed list for both the $6.9 million and the $5,000,000. 10 City Council Minutes, January 11, 2010 Councilmember Boehme asked whether the bonds would have a prepayment penalty. Mr. O'Hara said no and we would have a 10 years standard call provision. Councilmember Segal said the fact that we are going for the full $5,000,000 on the Parks means we're going to spend all the money, because at one point we said if we were going to come in under budget we wouldn't need that money. City Manager Ross said we are going to need every penny. Councilmember Segal said he thought we had a failsafe point on the police station funds, so that if we go out for bids and we don't like the bids received, we would wait. He said he didn't figure we would sell bonds before that happened. Mr. O'Hara said the dual tracking of both the bids and the Certificates of Obligation saves the City approximately $35,000 to $40,000, which is why he recommends combining them. City Manager Ross said we can delay the dates until we get hard bids, but the interest rate is good right now. Mayor Pro Tern Fry moved to approve the resolution directing publication of notice of intent to issue combination tax and revenue certificates of obligation and he publicly read the resolution as follows: WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of West University Place deems it advisable to give notice of intention to issue Combination Tax and Revenue Certificates of Obligation, in one or more series, in the total aggregate amount not to exceed $6,900,000.00 for paying all or a portion of the City's contractual obligations for the purpose of purchasing, constructing and replacing municipal facilities, water and sewer infrastructure, and emergency power generators and for paying legal, fiscal and engineering fees in connection with such project; and WHEREAS, it is hereby officially found and determined that the meeting at which this Resolution was passed, was open to the public and public notice of the time, place, and purpose of said meeting was given, all as required by Chapter 551, Texas Government Code. THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF WEST UNIVERSITY PLACE, TEXAS: That attached hereto as Exhibit "A" is a form of the Notice of Intention to issue Certificates of Obligation, the form and substance of which is hereby adopted and approved. That the City Secretary shall cause said notice to be published in substantially the form attached hereto, in a newspaper of general circulation in said City, and published in said City, on the same day in each of two consecutive weeks, the date of the first publication thereof to be at least 30 days prior to the time set for the issuance of such certificates of obligation as shown in said notice. That this Resolution shall become effective immediately upon adoption. Councilmember Guffey seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Kelly, Fry, Boehme, Segal, Guffey Noes: None Absent: None 11 City Council Minutes, January 11, 2010 10. Reports A. Matters related to the Texas Open Meetings Act. This item was on the agenda by the request of Councilmember Boehme and second by Councilmember Segal. Councilmember Boehme said the Open Meetings Act has served Texas very well, in his view, for 42 years; however, in December four Texas cities, along with 15 elected officials, filed a lawsuit stating that the Texas Open Meetings Act is unconstitutional because it prohibits a quorum of the City Council from communicating and it violates the first amendment rights of each plaintiff to be able to express himself or herself regarding political speech. Councilmember Boehme said he disagrees. He said in his view more transparency in government is good and that open government is one of the things necessary for a civilized democracy and asked that the City Council pass a resolution supporting the Texas Open Meetings Act. He read the following resolution: Be it resolved, the City of West University Place City Council hereby adopts this resolution in support of the Texas Open Meetings Act (TOMA). We support the retention of the possibility of criminal penalties for the most egregious violations of TOMA. We support the fundamental proposition contained in TOMA that elected officials should not participate in closed meetings to discuss and resolve public issues. We believe that TOMA is necessary to assure the citizens of Texas that the decisions of their elected officials are made in a public meeting, properly noticed and open to the public. Councilmember Soehme moved to approve adoption of the resolution. Councilmember Segal seconded the motion. Councilmember Segal offered an amendment to the motion to include the following: Be it further resolved, we believe that the basic tenet of every criminal law is that the behavior proscribed as criminal must be clearly enumerated and defined. Recent issues arising under TOMA, as interpreted by various officials, evidence confusion and important differences of opinion as to whether various actions are prohibited. Therefore, this Council further RESOLVES: That the prohibitions of TOMA should be clarified and enumerated. We call upon the State Legislature and the Attorney General to clarify the statue to enable the effective operation of local governments by duly elected officials. Councilmember Boehme seconded the amendment. Mayor Pro Tern Fry said that the Texas Open Meetings Act is law and we follow the law, so it has never occurred to him to do otherwise. He said if this goes to court and it changes as a result, then that becomes law and we will follow that, so he doesn't think this is necessary. Councilmember Guffey agreed with Mayor Pro Tem Fry. He said he has no objection to TOMA, but the criminal activities are intended for people who are criminals. He said people serving on city councils and boards are not criminals and should not be treated as such. He said he does not think we should be supporting it in this manner and feels that we should stay out of it, because we have no problem with operating under TOMA as it is. He said he hopes 12 City Council Minutes, January 11, 2010 that those people will be successful in getting some modifications made, but doesn't think West University's Place needs to be involved. Councilmember Segal said he is not concerned that the First Amendment right is at risk and said he has no problem living with TOMA, but if you read the paper, city councils and mayors are being indicted for all kinds of things, so a criminal statute for serious violations in office is not inappropriate. Councilmember Boehme provided background on the pending lawsuit by the four cities. He said the criminal penalties have been used as a tool to make sure TOMA is enforced. He said it has never been used punitively. He said the councilmembers in Alpine broke the law and they needed to be stopped. Councilmember Boehme said it would be a great move by the City to take this opportunity and stand up for open government. Mayor Kelly said when he first heard about the lawsuit, he concluded that this was not something that West U should get involved with because it seems to be a problem to a solution that we don't have, because we comply with TOMA. He said he does agree that there needs to be some clarification, but thinks that before we pass a resolution and we get out there in front, whether being for or against the litigation, we need to have some reason to do this. A vote was made on the motion by Councilmember Segal to approve the amendment to the resolution. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Kelly, Fry, Boehme, Segal, Guffey Noes: None Absent: None A vote was made to the original motion by Councilmember Boehme to approve the resolution as amended by Councilmember Segal. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Fry, Boehme, Segal Noes: Kelly, Guffey Absent: None 11. Executive Session (if necessary) Council reserves the right to at any time during the session convene in a closed session pursuant to Chapter 551 of the Texas Government Code, for reasons including but not limited to: Section 551.071 (consultation with legal counsel to seek or receive legal advice or consultation regarding pending or contemplated litigation); Section 551.072 (discussion about the value or transfer of real property and other real estate matters; Section 551.074 (personnel matters); 551.076 (deliberation about security devices); Section 551.087 (deliberation regarding economic development). At 8:18 p.m., Mayor Kelly closed the open meeting and convened into Executive Session per Section 551.074 of Chapter 551 of the Texas Government Code, Personnel Matters, to deliberate applications and appointments to the City Center Ad Hoc Committee. Convene into Open Session At 8:35 p.m., Mayor Kelly closed the Executive Session and convened into Open Session with the following action taken: 13 City Council Minutes, January 11, 2010 Mayor Pro Tern Fry made the motion to appoint Bruce Frankel as chairman of the City Center Ad Hoc Committee. Councilmember Guffey seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Kelly, Fry, Boehme, Segal, Guffey Noes: None Absent: None With no other business before Council, Councilmember Boehme moved to adjourn the regular meeting at 8:38 p.m. Councilmember Segal seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Kelly, Fry, Boehme, Segal, Guffey Noes: None Absent: None /EST OC PP r A. Lenz, City Secretary Date Approved: C) 14