HomeMy WebLinkAbout020821 CC MinThe City of West University Place
A Neighborhood City
CITY COUNCIL STAFF
Bob Higley, Mayor David J. Beach, City Manager
Kevin Trautner, Mayor Pro Tem Alan Petrov, City Attorney
John P. Barnes, Councilmember Thelma Gilliam, City Secretary
Lauri Lankford, Councilmember
Ed Sobash, Councilmember
CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES
ACTA DE LA REUNIÓN DEL CONSEJO DE LA CIUDAD
The City Council of the City of West University Place, Texas, met via Zoom in a special meeting on
Monday, February 8, 2021, beginning at 5:00 p.m. due to social distancing guidelines suggested by the
CDC in light of the Novel Coronavirus (COVID 19).
WORKSHOP (5:30 p.m.)
1. Call Workshop to Order/Roll Call
Mayor Higley called the virtual meeting to order at 5:00 p.m. Mayor Pro Tem Trautner and
Councilmembers Barnes, Lankford and Sobash were all present.
Staff present were City Manager Beach, City Attorney Petrov, City Secretary Gilliam, Public Works
Director Barrera, and Assistant to the City Manager Thompson.
Traffic Engineer Eleni Pappas, TDI Engineers, was also present.
2. Citywide Traffic Study Update
Matters related to the Citywide Traffic Study. Mr. Gerardo Barrera, Public Works Director and Ms. Eleni
Pappas, Traffic Engineer
Public Works Director Barrera began by stating that in February 2020, staff received the notice from
Council to proceed with the traffic study. He said this workshop is for informational purposes and
discussion and then introduced Traffic Engineer Eleni Pappas who gave the presentation to Council.
Ms. Pappas’ presentation included:
• Plan Objectives
• Existing Conditions Overview and Insights
• The Evolution of Speed Setting on City Roadways
• Case Studies
• Next Steps
Councilmember Sobash asked why use only one indicator on Buffalo Speedway where there is more
traffic. Ms. Pappas said it was intentional because Buffalo Speedway is being rebuilt so conditions
are changing.
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In looking at the results regarding crash density, Councilmember Barnes asked Ms. Pappas if there
was a reason why there are no counters in the area of Bissonnet around Westchester and Mercer.
Ms. Pappas said that is a good question and said she would get with public works staff about getting
a counter in that area.
Councilmember Lankford said when looking at Westchester/Mercer area, they should probably take
into consideration the rebuild of Cleburne’s, which she thinks will be a new factor in the area.
Councilmember Lankford also said the issue on Bissonnet at Westchester and Mercer also occurs in
by Bellaire in the Cason area. Ms. Pappas said she and TDI Engineers would work with Public Works
staff on finding those extra additional spots.
Regarding Cleburne’s and the Mercer alignment, Ms. Pappas said she believes that the rebuilt actually
made traffic better. She said it would be prudent to spend more time there since the data aligns with
Cleburne’s re-opening.
Councilmember Barnes said public driving Council to look at reducing the speed limit to 25 mph are
from people who live in the stretch of Wakeforest south of University, but the data in that area does
not show any crashes. Ms. Pappas said she would not discredit that information because it shows
recorded, reported and geo-referenced crashes. She said understanding what the concerns are of
residents is important and is what TDI is trying to address.
Councilmember Sobash asked about data on cut-through streets and Ms. Pappas there is no data for
those streets because those streets were not part of the scope of work for this study.
After some discussion, Ms. Pappas stated that lowering the speed limit leads to measurable declines
in speeds even without enforcement or engineering changes. She also said TDI will be recommending
that the City implement a default citywide speed limit that is less than 30 mph and that safe speed
studies be used to define posted speed limits on the key major roadways.
Ms. Pappas noted that the next steps following this study are:
• Final recommendation on City-wide speed limit
• Detailed assessment of arterials and collectors in collaboration with City staff
• Technical Report with supporting evidence for recommendations
• Development of the safe street toolbox
Mayor Pro Tem Trautner asked when would the analysis be finalized and when does the City get the
recommendation. City Manager Beach said the item is currently on the April 12, 2021, agenda for Ms.
Pappas to return to Council with her final recommendation. Mr. Beach said there is also a placeholder
on the agenda for April 26, 2021, for Council to take any desired action.
After some discussion, Ms. Pappas said at this point, based on the data and best practices, she is
comfortable with saying that the default speed limit of the City should be 25 mph.
Councilmember Lankford said she feels it is important to have the counts on Buffalo Speedway
included. Mr. Barrera responded and said when the City applied for federal funding for the Buffalo
Speedway project, to be eligible the speed limit could not be lower than 30 mph, so it could be
detrimental to funding for the project.
Mayor Pro Tem Trautner asked Ms. Pappas what is it specifically about the West U streets that leads
her to believe that the speed limit may be 25 mph. She responded because West U is a community of
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people who are homeowners that want to walk to the park and the school, it is based on data from
comparable cities, and because safety is a top priority of Council.
Councilmember Barnes reiterated that he would like Traffic Engineers to go back and look at those
places noted where there were not counters, specifically on Bissonnet near Westchester and Mercer
and along Buffalo Speedway south of University. Ms. Pappas and Mr. Barrera said they have it noted
to do so.
Audio of the full discussion is available on the City’s website. You can also contact the City Secretary’s office
for a copy of the audio and/or a copy of the presentation.
REGULAR MEETING (6:30 p.m.)
3. Call Regular Meeting to Order/Roll Call
Mayor Higley called the virtual meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. Mayor Pro Tem Trautner and
Councilmembers Barnes, Lankford and Sobash were all present.
Staff present were City Manager Beach, City Attorney Petrov, City Secretary Gilliam, Public Works
Director Barrera, Assistant to the City Manager Thompson, Police Chief Walker, Fire Chief Thompson,
Finance Director DuBose, and Fire Chief Taylor
4. Pledge of Allegiance
Councilmember Sobash led the Pledge and a moment of prayer Captain Damien Niko.
5. Public Comments
This is an opportunity for citizens to speak to the Council relating to agenda and non-agenda items.
There were no public comments.
6. COVID-19 Update
Matters related to COVID-19. Recommended Action: Discuss and take any desired action. Mr. Aaron Taylor,
Fire Chief and Emergency Management Coordinator
Chief Taylor reported:
• Texas is continuing to see a decrease in the overall number of new cases.
• Positivity rate in Texas is 11.27 percent.
• Harris County Public Health reported a 14-day average of 17.2 percent positivity rate.
• The Texas Medical Center reported a 9.0 percent positivity rate.
• West U has 502 confirmed cases – 54 are active, 446 recovered and 2 deaths.
• There are still six vaccine hubs in Harris County, with focus still on Phase IA and Phase 1B
populations.
Mayor Higley asked about parks and pool usage. Chief Taylor said City parks are open and with
numbers decreasing, he feels that it is safe to keep the parks open. Chief Taylor said regarding pools,
staff is reviewing a proposal on how to accomplish re-opening the pools while remaining within
guidelines.
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7. Purchasing Policy
Matters related to the City's Purchasing Policy. Recommendation: Approve resolution adopting the
Purchasing Policy. Ms. Katherine DuBose, Finance Director
Finance Director DuBose presented and stated that per feedback from Council at its January 25
workshop, the proposed policy includes the recommendations and ensures that the City is compliant
with Local Government Code, Chapter 252. She said the policy also includes guidance for the City’s
procurement card program.
In response to a question by Mayor Higley, Ms. DuBose said finance staff and the city manager has
reviewed the proposed policy, but the City Attorney has not.
Councilmember Lankford said the proposals seems to be procedural with what has occurred in the
past, but suggested adding an additional requirement that any contract, maybe over “x” dollar amount
or one that deviates from the City’s standard general service contract, is reviewed by the city attorney.
She said it might be helpful to have this proposed policy reviewed.
Ms. DuBose said staff would add additional language per Councilmember Lankford’s suggestion and
have the city attorney review it and bring policy back before Council at a future meeting.
8. Debt Management Policy
Matters related to the City's Debt Management Policy. Recommendation: Approve resolution adopting
Debt Management Policy. Ms. Katherine DuBose, Finance Director
Finance Director DuBose presented and said the proposed policy was brought before Council at its
January 25 workshop and, with the incorporated changes received from Council, ensures that the City
has established guidelines for issuing new debt.
Councilmember Sobash moved to approve the Debt Management Policy as presented. Mayor Pro
Tem Trautner seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED.
Ayes: Higley, Trautner, Barnes, Lankford, Sobash
Noes: None
Absent: None
9. Fund Balance Policy
Matters related to the City's Fund Balance Policy. Recommendation: Approve the resolution adopting the
Fund Balance Policy. Ms. Katherine DuBose, Finance Director
Finance Director DuBose presented and said the City’s current Fund Balance Policy was approved in
November 2011 and that this proposed policy was discussed at the Council workshop on January 25,
2021. She said changes included in the proposed policy are:
• Provides additional justification for ensuring adequate fund balances.
• Modifies the unassigned fund balance and working capital minimums to be based on operating
expenditures, rather than operating revenues.
• Adds language to address balances for Internal Service Funds.
• States that unassigned fund balance surpluses will not be used for recurring operations.
• Allows surplus unassigned fund balance in the General Fund to be transferred to Capital Reserve
Fund.
• Establishes recommended timeframe for replenishing fund balance deficit
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• Adds Monitoring and Reporting section.
• Minor grammatical and formatting changes.
After discussion regarding some of the policy verbiage, Mayor Pro Tem Trautner moved to approve
the policy as presented. Councilmember Barnes seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED.
Ayes: Higley, Trautner, Barnes, Lankford, Sobash
Noes: None
Absent: None
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 Minutes of the regular meeting of January 25, 2021 and the special meeting of January
28, 2021. Recommended Action: Approve City Council Minutes of January 25, 2021 and January 28,
2021. Ms. Thelma Gilliam, City Secretary
B. Ordinance Calling for the 2021 General Election
Matters related to an ordinance calling the May 1, 2021 General Election. Recommended Action:
Approve ordinance calling for the May 1, 2021 General Election on the first and final reading. Ms. Thelma
A. Gilliam, City Secretary
Ordenanza por la que se convocan las elecciones generales de 2021
Asuntos relacionados con una ordenanza que convoca a las elecciones generales del 1 de
mayo de 2021. Acción recomendada: Aprobar la ordenanza que pide las elecciones generales del 1 de
mayo de 2021 en la primera y última lectura. Sra. Thelma A. Gilliam, Secretaria de la Ciudad
C. Chiller Replacement
Matters related to awarding a contract to replace the Chiller unit in the Police Department
building and approve an ordinance to amend the budget to include funds for the replacement of
the Chiller. Recommended Action: Approve ordinance amending the FY 2021 Budget on first and final
reading, award contract to the Carrier Corporation in the amount not to exceed $101,500 for replacement
and installation of the Chiller, and authorize the City Manager to execute a contract. Mr. Gerardo Barrera,
Public Works Director
D. Replacement of Wakeforest Elevated Storage Tank Riser Pipe
Matters related to awarding a contract to replace the Wakeforest elevated storage tank riser
pipe. Recommended Action: Award contract to Central Tank Coating (CTC) in an amount not to exceed
$87,500 and authorize the City Manager to execute the contract. Mr. Gerard Barrera, Public Works
Director
Councilmember Lankford requested Item B be removed from the Consent Agenda for discussion.
Councilmember Sobash moved to approve Items A, C, and D on the Consent Agenda as presented.
Mayor Pro Tem Trautner seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED.
Ayes: Higley, Trautner, Barnes, Lankford, Sobash
Noes: None
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Absent: None
Councilmember Lankford had concern regarding Section 3, Item E in the ordinance. After discussion
and the City Attorney confirming that the language is correct as presented, Councilmember Barnes
moved to approve the ordinance calling for the election. Mayor Pro Tem Trautner seconded the
motion. MOTION PASSED.
Ayes: Higley, Trautner, Barnes, Lankford, Sobash
Noes: None
Absent: None
11. Executive Session Related to Personnel
City Council will recess the regular meeting and convene into executive session in accordance with
the following provision of Chapter 551 of the Texas Government Code (TGC):
• Section 551.074 – Personnel Matters
o City Manager Contract
o Request for Qualifications for City Attorney/Legal Services
At 7:04 p.m., Mayor Higley recessed the regular meeting and convened the executive session.
12. Adjourn Executive Session / Reconvene Regular Meeting
Matters related to any desired action resulting from the executive session. City Council may take
action on the matters discussed in Executive Session as deemed Appropriate.
At 7:53 p.m., Mayor Higley adjourned the executive session and reconvened the regular meeting.
Mayor Pro Tem Trautner said that with the increased needs of the City for legal services, he moves
the accept Olson and Olson’s proposal for City Attorney services, authorize the city manager to
negotiate an engagement letter with Olson and Olson and authorize the city manager to negotiate a
separate engagement letter with Alan Petrov for special projects. Councilmember Barnes seconded
the motion. MOTION PASSED.
Ayes: Higley, Trautner, Barnes, Lankford
Noes: Sobash
Absent: None
Councilmember Barnes moved to approve the City Manager’s agreement as amended.
Councilmember Sobash seconded the motion. MOTION PASSED.
Ayes: Higley, Trautner, Barnes, Sobash Lankford
Noes: None
Absent: None
13. Adjourn Regular Meeting
At 7:55 p.m., Councilmember Barnes moved to adjourn. Councilmember Sobash seconded the
motion.
Prepared by: Thelma A. Gilliam
Approved by City Council on February 22, 2021