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HomeMy WebLinkAbout082415 CC MinThe City of West University Place A Neighborhood City CITY COUNCIL Susan Sample, Mayor Bob Kelly, Mayor Pro Tern Burt Ballanfant, Councilmember Brennan Reilly, Councilmember Mardi Turner, 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 meeting /workshop and regular meeting on Monday, August 24, 2015, in the Municipal Building, 3800 University, West University Place, Texas beginning at 5:30 p.m. SPECIAL MEETINGIWORKSHOP Agenda Items were as follows: Call to Order. Mayor Sample called the special meeting to order at 5:30 p.m. in the Council Conference Room. Council and Staff in attendance were: Mayor Pro Tern Kelly, Councilmembers Ballanfant, Reilly and Turner, City Manager Ross, City Secretary Lenz, City Attorney Petrov, Assistant City Manager Peifer and Police Chief Walker. 1. Executive Session Notice is hereby given that the City Council will convene into executive session in accordance with the following provisions of Chapter 551 of the Texas Government Code. Mayor Sample recessed the Special Meeting/Workshop at 5:30 p.m. and convened the closed Executive Session to deliberate regarding the city manager search and discuss compensation for the Interim City Manager per Section 551.074 of the Texas Government Code. 2. Close Executive Session and Reconvene Special Meeting Matters related to any desired action resulting from discussions held in closed executive session. At 6:31p.m., Mayor Sample closed the Executive Session and reconvened the Special Meeting/Workshop and the following action was taken: Councilmember Reilly moved to increase the annual salary of the Interim City Manager to $170,000 in recognition of his new duties, which is a little less than 15 percent increase from his current compensation, effective August 10, 2015. Councilmember Turner seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Sample, Kelly, Ballanfant, Reilly, Turner Noes: None Absent: None City Council Minutes, August 24, 2015 Councilmember Reilly moved to authorize staff to solicit Request for Proposals from search firms to handle the process of finding candidates to fill the city manager's position. Councilmember Turner seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Sample, Kelly, Ballanfant, Reilly, Turner Noes: None Absent: None At this time, due to time constraints, Mayor Sample asked for a motion to recess the Special Meeting in order to call the Regular Meeting to order. Mayor Pro Tern Kelly seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Sample, Kelly, Ballanfant, Reilly, Turner Noes: None Absent: None At 6:32 p.m., Mayor Pro Tern Sample called the Regular Meeting to order. Boy Scouts Carter Johnstone and Andrew Tan with Troop 266 led the Pledge of Allegiance. In order to complete business of the Special Meeting, Councilmember Turner moved to recess the Regular Meeting to reconvene the Special Meeting. Mayor Pro Tern Kelly seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Sample, Kelly, Ballanfant, Reilly, Turner Noes: None Absent: None Mayor Pro Tern Kelly moved to reconvene the Special Meeting. Councilmember Reilly seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Sample, Kelly, Ballanfant, Reilly, Turner Noes: None Absent: None 3. Employee Benefits Matters related to employee group benefits (medical, dental, vision, life /AD &D and disability). Human Resources Director Standorf and Mr. Bob Treacy, Gallagher Benefits Consultants, presented this item. Mr. Treacy stated that the benefits package for the period of October 1, 2015 through September, 2016 is robust from the standpoint of what the City provides. He said the plan includes dental, life insurance, disability insurance and vision, which is what most solid cities provide. Mr. Gallagher summarized past and recent events regarding the City's benefits package: • About 8 years ago, a statue in the Local Government Code was discovered and it allows cities to house benefits plans in a contract under an Employee Benefits Tax Trust, which saves the City a portion of the State Premium Tax of about 1.7 percent on its health plan, which is about $20,000 annually for West U. 2of10 City Council Minutes, August 24, 2015 • In an effort to stabilize rate increases, in 2012, the City looked at and entered into an Inter - local Agreement with the Cities of Friendswood, Webster and Dickinson, which is known as the FWD Inter - local. • The objectives of the Inter -local were and still remain, pooling together to form a larger risk group, thus spreading the risk and stabilizing premium costs either together through the Inter -local or tethered together as a direct contract with a group /block of business with the same carrier. • The increase on the Inter -local Agreement has been an average of 4 percent over the course of 9 renewal periods. • When the City joined the Inter -local in 2012, the City received an 11 percent reduction in premiums and saved approximately $250,000 on its group premiums. In 2013/2014 renewal provided for a 3 percent increase and a 5 percent increase in 2014/2015. • Over the course of the past 12 -16 months of the claims cycle, there were some big claims in the group and the Inter -local faced a 39.4% increase, so West U solicited Request for Proposals (RFP) for direct contracts instead of group contracts with the FWD Inter - local. • Blue Cross /Blue Shield of Texas (BCBSTX) provided a proposal to write direct contracts for all four entities, with each City receiving individual rates. • Awarding the contract for medical to BCBSTX will bring West U a possible 6% increase at current benefit levels and a 4% increase option with benefit level modifications. • Dental plan will remain with Guardian through the FWD Inter -local Agreement. • Life and disability insurances will remain with Sun Life. Mr. Treacy then opened the floor for questions In response to Mayor Sample's question as to how much an employee pays, HR Director Standorf responded that if an employee participates in the City's Wellness Program, an "employee only" will pay $16 a month of the premium. She said if an employee does not participate, he or she pays an additional fee of $90 this year and the fee will be re- calculated based on the premiums for the upcoming year. Ms. Standorf said for an employee /family, the employee's contribution is currently $27 a month, which is roughly 75 -80 percent of the premium. She said if a spouse is covered, but does not participate in the Wellness Program, the rate goes higher. In response to Councilmember Reilly's question as to whether there is a smoker surcharge component to the Wellness Program, Ms. Standorf responded that the City has not implemented that at this time, but has looked into it. To confirm staff's recommendation, Ms. Standorf stated currently the deductible is $750, with a 6 percent increase and what staff is recommending. She said the 4 percent increase, which is on the table for Council's consideration, has a $1,000 deductible. Councilmember Reilly asked if there is a downside to not being a part of the Inter -local with BCBSTX. Mr. Treacy responded that this year there was no possibility to consider it due to the 39.4 increase, but said the Inter -local can be brought back together at any time, although he doesn't think the group will ever get back together as a "one size fits all" like before. Mayor Pro Tem Kelly said in 2007 -2008, the City was headed towards a near disaster with its health plan and Mr. Treacy and his firm was brought on board to research the market to see what could be done. He said between Mr. Treacy and Ms. Standorf, an incredible plan was put together and it saved the health plan for employees. He thanked them both. 3of10 City Council Minutes, August 24, 2015 4. Adjourn Special Meeting Councilmember Turner moved to close the Special Meeting at 6:56 p.m. Mayor Pro Tem Kelly seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. 5. Ayes: Sample, Kelly, Ballanfant, Reilly, Turner Noes: None Absent: None Councilmember Ballanfant moved to reconvene the Regular Meeting at 6:56 p.m. Councilmember Turner seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Sample, Kelly, Ballanfant, Reilly, Turner Noes: None Absent: None Councilmember Turner moved to recess the Regular meeting. Mayor Pro Tem Kelly seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Sample, Kelly, Ballanfant, Reilly, Turner Noes: None Absent: None Mayor Pro Tem Kelly moved to convene the meeting of the Employee Benefits Trust at 6:58 p.m. Councilmember Ballanfant seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Sample, Kelly, Ballanfant, Reilly, Turner Noes: None Absent: None A separate agenda was posted for the Employee Benefits Trust and separate Minutes were prepared. See ETB Minutes for discussion /action. 6. Adjourn the Employee Benefits Trust Meeting and Reconvene the Regular Meeting At 7:00 p.m., Councilmember Turner moved to adjourn the meeting of the Employee Benefits Trust and reconvene the Regular Meeting. Mayor Pro Tem Kelly seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Sample, Kelly, Ballanfant, Reilly, Turner Noes: None Absent: None The Regular Meeting ensued. 7. Public Comments Joe Mitchell, 2826 Albans, spoke to ask that Council consider increasing the over 65 property tax exemption because in the last 8 years the taxable value has gone up 39 percent, but the exemption has remained the same. Alicia Drewes, 6112 Fordham, spoke to say that recently armed thugs broke into a home and stole jewelry in broad daylight from citizens located a short distance from the police station. She said 4of10 City Council Minutes, August 24, 2015 there have been a multitude of car burglaries that took place recently and her personal car has been vandalized. She said citizens feel unsafe and the responsibility of patrolling criminal activity lies with the Police Chief. Ms. Drewes said these events have shaken confidence of the citizens and the ability of Chief Walker to effectively lead the Police Department and brings into question his abilities and professionalism. She said in her personal experience with Chief Walker she's seen unnecessary use of aggression. She said the day after the burglary Chief Walker met with her instead of dealing with a serious crime where thugs with guns were breaking into someone's home. She said is this a priority of the Police Chief. Ms. Drewes said the focus has been on controlling seniors not on preventing uncivil armed criminals threatening citizen's homes and properties. 8. Transfer of Funds to Employee Benefits Trust Consider and action on authorizing the transfer of funds from the City of West University Place to the City of West University Place Employee Benefits Trust to pay for employee - related benefits. Recommended Action: Authorize the transfer of funds. Mayor Pro Tern Kelly moved to transfer funds. Councilmember Ballanfant seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Sample, Kelly, Ballanfant, Reilly, Turner Noes: None Absent: None 9. Council Rules of Procedure Matters related to adoption of an ordinance revising the Council Rules of Procedure on the second and final reading. Recommended Action: Discuss and approve ordinance on the second and final reading. Councilmember Reilly moved to adopt the revised Rules of Procedure. Councilmember Turner seconded the motion. Mayor Sample said she still does not like "close further discussion" language added to Rule 32 because she doesn't think it's in the spirit of how West U meetings are run. Councilmember Reilly said he believes there needs to be an anti - filibuster rule, which is what adding that language does. Mayor Sample said she is not sure an anti - filibuster rule is needed in West U and her thought would be to change it to say "at the conclusion or closure of debate or discussion, the presiding officer shall call for a vote." She said she feels that everyone on Council should be able to speak. Councilmember Reilly said the Rule could be because there is somebody who continues to speak at a time when the rest of Council wants to move forward with an item and absent this provision there is no way to stop discussion from that one person. He said it also could be that if Council feels that matters are being considered inappropriately, for example, out of order, this rule could be used to restore the proper order. Councilmember Turner said she believes the rule already indicates what is needed without adding any extra words to the paragraph. Mayor Pro Tern Kelly said he was shut down once before with the rule that is place, so either that was improper at the time or there is already an effective way to shut down a lengthy discussion with the rule already in place. 5of10 City Council Minutes, August 24, 2015 Councilmember Reilly said he is just trying to be clear. He said if Rule 23 states "except as provided in Rule 32" then Rule 32 ought to satisfy the exception and make it clear. Mayor Sample moved to amend the original motion to approve the ordinance on second and final reading, but strike the "closed further discussion and" language from Rule 32. Councilmember Turner seconded the motion. Councilmember Reilly said he thought it was important to clarify Rule 32 so that the members of Council who felt like there was an inappropriate consideration of an item could have a way of stopping discussion, calling for a vote and moving on. He said this change gives members of the Council, other than the presiding officer, an opportunity to make sure that discussion of agenda items occur in an appropriate manner and consistent with the rules. He said absent that clarification, councilmembers don't have the ability to police the presiding officer to be sure the meeting is held in accordance with the agenda. He said he thinks Council needs that ability. Mayor Sample said the way it was used previously was not policing the presiding officer, but rather bludgeoning the presiding officer and she doesn't think that is how Council wants its meetings conducted. At this time a vote was made to the amended motion by Mayor Sample and seconded by Councilmember Turner, MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Sample, Kelly, Ballanfant, Reilly, Turner Noes: None Absent: None At this time a vote was made to the original motion by Councilmember Reilly and seconded by Councilmember Turner to adopt the Rules of Procedure. Ayes: Sample, Kelly, Ballanfant, Reilly, Turner Noes: None Absent: None 10. West University Place Flooding Matters related to flooding in West University Place, including the 3800 block of Southwestern Street. Recommended Action: Discuss and take any desired action. Public comments relating to this item were taken before any discussion. Paul McIntosh, 3834 Southwestern, spoke to say that he is speaking on behalf of concerned neighbors and residents in the 3800 block of Southwestern. He said the main problem, per the original plan shared with him by the current Interim City Manager back in 2005 -2006, is that a lot of the improvements envisaged for the 3800 block of Southwestern were never implemented in the final 2007 work scope; therefore, some of the flooding issues evident then are still evident now. Mr. McIntosh said there was a period when that flooding issue was not as apparent, but now it's clear that even after the work and removal of the restrictor that the fundamental issue of drainage in that area has not be addressed. He said during heavy rainfalls it quickly overwhelms the storm drains in that area. Mr. McIntosh said he and his neighbors would like to understand why some of the drainage improvements that were originally envisaged for their particular block were not actually part of the final plan that was implemented. He said the original plan included up to 3 storm drains 6of10 City Council Minutes, August 24, 2015 at the corner of Southwestern and College and installing a new storm sewer down the full length of the 3800 block of Southwestern with additional storm drains to bring floodwater back into the larger new College Street storm sewer system. Mr. McIntosh said what was actually put into place were just two storm drains at the corner of Southwestern and College, so what was envisaged originally as a piece of work to address a significant flooding problem turned out to be a relatively minor installation of additional storm drains. He said what he and his neighbors would like is for those additional storm drains to be installed as soon as possible and they would also like to understand why the original work to install a new storm sewer down the full length of Southwestern couldn't still be an option. Mr. McIntosh said he and his neighbors do recognize and appreciate the work that was done to remove the restrictor but said the fundamental problem has not been addressed, which is that there are not sufficient storm drains in that part of the area to handle the overflow that comes from a number of surrounding streets and ends up at the end of the 3800 Block of Southwestern, which is one of the lowest places in the City. Kathy Hamill, 3833 Southwestern Street, spoke to say that on behalf of her husband and herself Mr. McIntosh has already said what they wanted Council to understand. Les Albin, 3817 Southwestern, spoke to say that Mr. McIntosh did a great job of presenting, but there were two points that needed more emphasis. He said the only drainage in place for the 3800 block of Southwestern are the two drains at the very end, which also drain into the drainage system for Southside Place. He said at the east of the 3800 Block of Southwestern (the dead end) there are two inlets, one on the north side and one on the south side of the street, which have been there at least since 1993 and those drain into the same drainage system that drains the City of Southside Place. He said they do not drain into any of the new infrastructure improvements that were done by West U. Mr. Albin said during planning for the drainage improvements, some residents were concerned that the planned improvements might not be adequate, but they also felt that it was probably the best solution practical at the time. He said what was surprising was the things that they were led to believe were part of the plan, were eliminated so there is no drain where they thought there was going to be one and no additional inlets where they thought they would be. Mr. Albin said they would certainly like to see more done because it's not fun looking at his hardwood floors through 4 inches of water. Wuu -Liang Huang, 3804 Southwestern, spoke to say that he has been living in West University for 20 years an appreciates that the City has tried to improve the flooding problem, but it keeps getting worse. William Peterson, 3809 Southwestern, spoke to add that he and his wife share their neighbor's concerns and urge Council to take some type of action to alleviate the flooding. Annette Glod, 3818 Southwestern, spoke to say that she has lived on Southwestern since 2007 and has had flooding issues the entire time. She said anything the City can do no matter how small will be appreciated. There no more public comments. Interim City Manager Peifer spoke to say that the original theory for Southwestern was to scalp water back to College so that it would take it from that 60 inch pipe that runs down between Southside Place and West U so that Southwestern, being the lowest elevation, would have priority 7of10 City Council Minutes, August 24, 2015 in that pipe. He asked the engineers from HDR (previously Claunch and Miller) to come forward to provide more technical background on the design and the situation. David Hunn, HDR, spoke to say that he wasn't with HDR at the time, but has talked with Mr. Claunch regarding the issue and provided some background on some of the decisions. He said it is his understanding that at some point in the project, due to Harris County's funding being cut back, a decision was made to do the best project possible with the funding available, which was a 2 -year storm event design. Duane Barrett, HD improvements, was District (HCFCD), bi event and a system that can handle the events. R, spoke to say that the initial design, which envisioned a lot more based on the promise of funding coming from Harris County Flood Control it in 2007 funding dried up and so instead of looking at a large design storm that could handle a large event, the City was forced to scale back to a design smaller events better, but flooding would still occur during the bigger storm Mr. Hunn said the most obvious thing that can be done is to install inlets on the corner of Southwestern on the east side of the intersection of College. He said, again, it will provide relief for the 2 -year event storms, but there will still be back -up during the more serious, heavier storms. Councilmember Turner said the relative elevations of Marquette, Riley and Southwestern are obviously contributing to this problem. She asked if this is true or not and asked if Marquette and/or Riley are higher than Southwestern. Mr. Peifer said yes, but it's relative. Councilmember Turner said she was just wondering what the impact is, because even a small height difference (2 or 3 inches) is going to force more and more water onto Southwestern because it's lower. Mr. Peifer said other things that would help are raking leaves so as to not clog up the drains and not placing trash out too early. He said staff can do a public education campaign in these regards. Councilmember Ballanfant said the meteorological, geological and land use here is essentially something no one in this room tonight can really answer. He said he thinks the concerns of the citizens should be looked at, but at the end of the day it will be engineering and hydrologic knowledge that comes into play, so he believes Council should invoke the disciplines needed to come to Council for an assessment of the program. He said there needs to be a history report and engineering and topography report, as well as how much it will cost. Mr. Hunn said for HDR to install the drains mentioned tonight, it will cost approximately $50,000. After more discussion, Mayor Pro Tern Kelly suggested directing staff to get with the engineers and come back before Council with a proposal with recommendations and associated costs. Mayor Sample and Council agreed that staff get with the engineers to devise a menu of a study, which includes all options and costs, for discussion and debate at the next meeting. Mr. Albin requested that consideration be given to oversized drains rather than standard size. Mayor Sample requested that it be added to the study. Councilmember Ballanfant suggested involved resident Les Albin as a neighborhood expert. 11. Boards and Commissions Appointments Matters related to approving a resolution appointing members to the Building and Standards Commission, Zoning and Planning Commission, Zoning Board of Adjustment, Parks and Recreation 8of10 City Council Minutes, August 24, 2015 Mayor Pro Tern Kelly seconded the request by Councilmember Reilly to add the City Facilities Master Plan Task Force item to the next agenda. 13. 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 the City Council Minutes of of August 6, August 10, August 18, August 19, and August 20, 2015. Councilmember Turner moved to approve the Consent Agenda as presented. Mayor Pro Tem Kelly seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Sample, Kelly, Ballanfant, Reilly, Turner Noes: None Absent: None 14. Adjourn Meeting With no further discussion or action before Council, Mayor Sample adjourned the meeting at approximately 8:12 p.m. Pr B Thelma A. Lenz, City Secretary , v Oate Approved a F,rga . 10 of 10