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HomeMy WebLinkAbout080816 CC MinThe City of West University Place A Neighborhood City CITY COUNCIL Susan Sample, Mayor Bob Kelly, Mayor Pro Tem Burt Ballanfant, Councilmember Brennan Reilly, Councilmember Mardi Turner, Councilmember STAFF M. Chris Peifer, City Manager Alan Petrov, City Attorney Thelma Gilliam, City Secretary CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES The City Council of the City of West University Place, Texas, met in workshop and regular session on Monday, August 8, 2016, in the Municipal Building, 3800 University, West University Place, Texas beginning at 6:00 p.m. SPECIAL MEETING/WORKSHOP Agenda Items were as follows: Call to Order. Mayor Sample called the meeting to order at 6:02 p.m. in the Council Chambers Conference Room. Council and Staff in attendance were: Mayor Pro Tem Kelly, Councilmembers Reilly and Turner, City Manager Peifer, City Secretary Gilliam, City Attorney Petrov, Public Works Director Beach, Police Chief Walker, Building Official Chew, and Police Chief Ken Walker. Councilmember Ballanfant was absent. 1. Real Estate Acquisition Matters related to real estate acquisition. Recommended Action: Discuss and take any desired action. At 6:03 p.m., Councilmember Turner moved to recess the Special Meeting/Workshop and convene into Executive Session in accordance with Section 551.072 in Chapter 551, Open Meetings Act, of the Texas Government Code (discussion about the value or transfer of real property and other real estate matters) and Section 551.071 in Chapter 551 of the Texas Government Code (consultation with legal counsel to seek or receive legal advice). Mayor Pro Tem Kelly seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Sample, Kelly, Reilly, Turner Noes: None Absent: Ballanfant 2. Close Executive Session and Reconvene Special Meeting Matters related to the desired action resulting from discussions held in closed executive. There was no action taken. 3. Adjourn At 6:28 p.m., Mayor Sample closed and adjourned the Special Meeting/Workshop. REGULAR MEETING Agenda Items were as follows: City Council Meeting Minutes, August 8, 2016 Call to Order. Mayor Sample called the meeting to order at 6:35 p.m. in the Council Chambers. Council and Staff in attendance were: Mayor Pro Tem Kelly, Councilmembers Reilly and Turner, City Manager Peifer, City Secretary Gilliam, City Attorney Petrov, Public Works Director Beach, Police Chief Walker, Building Official Chew, and Police Chief Ken Walker. Councilmember Ballanfant was absent. Councilmember Reilly led the Pledge. City Secretary Gilliam confirmed that the notice of this meeting was duly posted in accordance with the Texas Government Code, Chapter 551. 4. Public Comments This was an opportunity for citizens to speak to Council relating to agenda and non - agenda items. Alida Drewes, 6112 Fordham Street, spoke to say that she has repeatedly asked for hearing devices, but nothing has been done about it. She also stated that the Board (Building and Standards Commission) voted unanimously to allow only new homes to have a minimum height change and said changes to pier and beam should also be allowed only on new construction. She said Council is not being transparent by holding an Executive Session to discuss real estate and she wanted to know what property was being discussed. Ms. Drewes said that she has also asked that exemptions for seniors be on a future agenda, but it's not on the future agenda items list. She said this must be addressed before the new Budget and encouraged Council not to delay providing the exemption. Ken Hoffman, 4212 Ruskin, spoke regarding parking over sidewalks. He said first and the most important is that there is a state law that prohibits people from parking over sidewalks and it's enacted to ensure the safety of sidewalks for everyone. He said the City doesn't currently enforce the law unless a resident squeals on his neighbor, which is a dangerous practice that can pit neighbor against neighbor. He said past Councils have tried to half - heartedly do something about the law by asking the Code Enforcement Officer (CEO) to enforce the law, which is ineffective because the CEO doesn't work evenings and weekends. He said Council has also suggested courtesy programs by politely asking people not to park over sidewalks, but he noted that people who break the law generally don't respond to courtesy programs. Mr. Hoffman said right now the program is bad as it's ever been. He said handicapped residents are being forced to maneuver their wheelchairs around cars parked on the sidewalks and said for the City to knowingly allow this is morally wrong. He said he finds it unbelievable that while the rest of America and the world are committed to making life easier for handicapped people, West U goes out of its way to make it more difficult for handicapped people by ignoring laws designed to help them. Mr. Hoffman suggested a solution, which is to direct police officers to enforce parking laws. He said if an officer sees a car parked over the sidewalk, the officer gets out of his car, writes a warning ticket and takes down the license plate and if the resident parks illegally again, then the officer writes the resident a ticket. He said the City needs to be committed to making the sidewalks safe. Mr. Hoffman said the tricky part about this is that the City has to be able to look the other way for corner lots. 5. Ordinance Relating to Minimum Foundation Height Matters related to an ordinance requiring a minimum foundation height. Recommended Action: Approve the ordinance requiring a minimum foundation height on the second and final reading. 2of7 City Council Meeting Minutes, August 8, 2016 Building Official Clay Chew presented and said after reviewing the floodplain requirement of elevating the lowest floor level above Base Flood Elevation, the Building and Standards Commission unanimously voted to require 15- inches above standard base level for all new homes built in the city. Steve Brown, Chair of the Building and Standards Commission, spoke to reiterate from the first reading of the ordinance the key reasons the BSC is recommending the 15- inches requirement: (1) it covers all of West U instead of just homes in the 100 -year flood plain; (2) it grandfathers existing homes; (3) experience shows that there are no problems with the 35 -foot height limit and foundations which are 15 inches higher than the standard base level; and (4) lower costs. Councilmember Turner moved to approve the ordinance requiring minimum foundation height of 15 inches above standard base level. Mayor Pro Tern Kelly seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Sample, Kelly, Reilly, Turner Noes: None Absent: Ballanfant Matters related to an ordinance updating the International Energy Conservation Code. Recommended Action: Approve the ordinance updating the International Energy Conservation Code on the second and final reading. After a brief presentation by Building Official Chew, Councilmember Turner moved to approve the ordinance on the second and final reading. Mayor Pro Tern Kelly seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Sample, Kelly, Reilly, Turner Noes: None Absent: Ballanfant 7. Sidewalks Matters related to City sidewalks associated with parking. Recommended Action: Discuss and take any desired action. Mayor Susan Sample Mayor Sample spoke to say that she requested that this item be on the agenda because she would like to propose that the police not turn a blind eye and drive past a car parked over a long driveway, except for those homes on corner lots or shorter driveways. Mayor Sample said while short driveways do present an inconvenience at times the houses were originally built with a driveway and no sidewalk bisecting them. She said the City eventually built sidewalks and bisected those people's driveways so she doesn't feel quite right telling people who could legally park in their driveway before that they are now illegal due to the City building them a sidewalk. Mayor Sample said because a resident can't park 30 feet from a stop sign, they are parking in front of their neighbor's house and feels this is a substantial enough inconvenience to ask the police not to aggressively look at cars parked over sidewalks on corner lots. 3of7 City Council Meeting Minutes, August 8, 2016 Councilmember Turner wanted to clarify if the Code Enforcement Officer (CEO) is responsible for enforcing parking laws during his working hours and that it is the police officer's responsibility when the CEO is not on duty. Police Chief Walker said everyone is responsible at all times, but that typically, if a Click West U is submitted, it is assigned to the Code Enforcement Officer if he is on duty and to a patrol officer if the CEO is not on duty. Mr. Hoffman spoke again to say that he doesn't know if the CEO writes any tickets for parking over the sidewalks, but once he leaves the City after normal work hours, there is no proactive enforcement of parking on the sidewalks. In response to Mayor Sample's question as to how many corner lots there are, Public Works Director Beach stated that there are 1,012 corner lots with 421 being noncompliant. Councilmember Reilly said parking over sidewalks is a state law and he doesn't feel Council should tell Chief Walker how to do his job with respect to the enforcement of any state law, but he does feel that Council has budget authority and if Chief Walker feels he needs another police officer and put it in the budget and that officer's principal job is to write tickets, that's where Council's discussion ought to be. He said Council shouldn't be telling Chief Walker or his officers when to stop residents and where. Councilmember Reilly said this is not a Council issue, but rather a policy issue. He said there is an Administrative Policy in place right now that says that the City will not enforce the law on short driveways, but there is no policy with respect to long driveways. He said the policy with respect to long driveways is like the policy about not parking within 20 feet in front of stop sign, which is the police are going to use their discretion to decide when it's appropriate to give that person a ticket, when it's appropriate to give them a warning and when it's appropriate to drive right on by because they are chasing somebody who's committed a crime. In response to Mr. Hoffman's question as whether the City needs a policy on a state law, Councilmember Reilly stated he doesn't think so and, in fact, he thinks that it violates the Department of Justice guidelines and the enforcement of the Americans with Disabilities Act. He said if the City doesn't do something about this there is going to be a Department of Justice investigation of the City's policy because it's blatantly discriminatory. He said he has had conversations with the Department of Justice about it and they are very receptive to that complaint being filed. He said he thinks the City should do the right thing without the Department of Justice hammering the City and said the right thing is to make parking on sidewalks be just like any other violation of state law. Mr. Hoffman said he is dumbfounded that a moral issue on making the City sidewalks safe for handicapped people has to be debated. Councilmember Reilly said he would love it if Council would repeal the City's policy that states that the City does not ticket people who park on a short driveway. Councilmember Reilly asked Chief Walker if he thinks Council should tell officers how to do their jobs in respect to this law or any law? Chief Walker said no because he thinks it gets Council in a position it doesn't want to be in. Councilmember Reilly agreed. 4 of 7 City Council Meeting Minutes, August 8, 2016 Councilmember Reilly asked Chief Walker if he feels that he doesn't have enough officers to ticket people for parking violations. Chief Walker said it's not that the police department doesn't do any of that, but it's a matter of priorities. Chief Walker showed a presentation of some of the more serious offenders and their crimes. Chief Walker said he would love to have the resources to do everything that needs to be done, but he doesn't want his guys looking for parking violations when there are people trying to break in homes. Councilmember Reilly said he wants to see the City repeal the City policy that allows people on corner lots to park on their sidewalks, because he doesn't think it's a good idea. He said it's the only policy we have of any kind regarding how the police enforce state laws. He also said he doesn't think that Council should be telling the police which crimes are important and how to do theirjobs. He said that has always been left to police discretion and the way it's got to be. Mr. Hoffman spoke again to say police officers can proactively enforce parking when they are driving around at 2:00 a.m. or 2:00 p.m. when nothing is happening. He said there is not a crime spree in the City that the Chief's presentation will lead one to believe. He said if Council is going to say that it will continue to let the police use its discretion, what Council is saying is that there will continue to be no enforcement of parking. Councilmember Reilly said Council is a legislative body so it can't decide how the police enforce state laws, but the City should be complying with the state law. Councilmember Reilly said he would suggest that the police and code enforcement be encouraged to ticket repeat violators parking on the sidewalk. He said he doesn't think there should be a formal policy exception for people with short driveways. He said he does think the City has some responsibility for the situation where the City put in sidewalks in particular in areas where there could have been an accommodation to allow a driveway, but at the same time there are going to be some locations where those people need to either park in their garage or park on the street. Councilmember Reilly said at the last City Council meeting when this issue came up, he moved that the policy be repealed, but it failed. He said he will make another motion right now, but if it doesn't pass this time, he won't try again but instead he will go to the Department of Justice and ask them to revoke the City's policy. Councilmember Reilly said his daughter is in a wheelchair and one doesn't realize that it is a civil rights issue until they have to deal with it. He said he hopes this Council directs the City Manager to repeal that 2004 policy and he hopes that police officers use their appropriate discretion in situations in which they find parking violations. Councilmember Reilly moved to direct the City Manager to revoke the policy that was adopted in 2004 that permits parking on the sidewalk. MOTION DIED DUE TO LACK OF A SECOND. Mayor Pro Tem Kelly spoke to say that Council spent a considerable amount of time regarding this at a previous meeting and there were several citizens who came forward to speak, but some of the comments made at the time was that this is a City of 12,000 residents and 2- square miles and people are literally on top of each other. He said at the time he asked the City Attorney if the City was in violation of any state law by the way Council was handling the parking and blocking 5 of 7 City Council Meeting Minutes, August 8, 2016 sidewalks issues and the City Attorney said no, mainly because there are exceptions to that state law, one with having to do with traffic flow problems resulting from people having to park on the streets. Mayor Pro Tern Kelly said had the City Attorney said that the City was in violation of a state law, he would have voted a different way that day. Councilmember Reilly clarified that he did not get a second on his motion at the prior meeting and at that meeting he asked if anyone wanted to move to affirm the City's current policy and not a single person on this Council was willing to make that motion, so he called again for someone on to make that motion. No one made a motion. Councilmember Reilly said he assumes that by not seconding his motion, the other Councilmembers present tonight are not saying that they necessarily want to vote to require that the City Manager maintain the 2004 policy. He said the prior policy was not adopted as the result of a Council vote, but rather just by unilateral action of the then City Manager and for that same reason the current City Manager can unilaterally withdraw that policy unless this Council directs him to maintain it. For clarification on the policy, City Manager Peifer said it addresses exclusively the corner lots and as of today depending on resources and priorities, anyone interior to a corner lot is at risk of being ticketed for a violation at any given time. Mayor Sample said there is no action to take since Council doesn't direct the police, but said she would like to encourage the police to knock on a resident's door if they see cars parked across the sidewalks on quiet evenings and weekends. She said she thinks a knock on the door would go a long way. 8. Pier and Beam Foundations Matters related to providing guidance to the Building and Standards Commission to review foundation construction methods relative to requiring pier and beam foundations within West U. Recommended Action: Discuss and take any desired action. Mayor Sample said she added this to the agenda because it was of interest to Councilmember Ballanfant, but since he is absent he can bring it up at a future meeting or another councilmember can discuss it tonight if they would like. City Manager Peifer spoke to say that the ideal situation for a pier and beam to get the required slope requires 10 feet on either side. He said a lot of the City's lots are 5 foot which ensures that water doesn't continuously sit under the house per se. He said that is an issue with the smaller lot and it would also add an additional cost if the home meets the height requirement. City Manager Peifer said he has a philosophical problem with mandating one construction type versus the other if there is no apparent detriment. Mayor Sample said she doesn't think any members of Council are recommending that. Building Official Clay Chew said he believes Bellaire's ordinance had to do with the flood plain management. 6 of 7 City Council Meeting Minutes, August 8, 2016 Mayor Pro Tem Kelly asked if cost is the only reason why one wouldn't want to build a pier and beam. Building Official Chew said no. He said some of the comments he has heard from builders is that it traps moisture underneath, so it is a constant nightmare keeping the vents clear to get the proper ventilation. Mayor Kelly said he would also have a problem with mandating one construction type versus the other. 9. Future Agenda Items Matters related to future agenda items. Recommended Action: Discuss and take any desired action. City Council No items added. 10. 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 Minutes of the July 25, 2016 Council meeting. Recommended Action: Approve Minutes. Councilmember Turner moved to approve the Consent Agenda as presented. Mayor Pro Tem Kelly seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Sample, Kelly, Reilly, Turner Noes: None Absent: Ballanfant 11. Adjourn Councilmember Turner moved to adjourn the regular meeting at approximately 7:30 p.m. Mayor Pro Tem Kelly seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED. Ayes: Sample, Kelly, Reilly, Turner Noes: None Absent: Ballanfant .*EST UN/kF Prepared B . a � � v y b C Thelma A. Gilliam, City Secreta AS DateApprovbd 7 of 7