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HomeMy WebLinkAbout062606R CC Min CITY COUNCIL REGULAR AND SPECIAL SESSION MONDAY, JUNE 26, 2006 MUNICIPAL BUILDING 3800 UNIVERSITY BLVD. 5:30 P.M. The City Council convened in Regular and Special Session in the Municipal Building (3800 University Blvd.) on June 26, 2006, with the following members present: Mayor Ballanfant presiding, Council Members Cohen, Segal, Woods and Yehle. The City Manager, City Secretary, City Attorney, Assistant City Manager/Public Works Director, Finance Director, Parks and Recreation Director, Fire Chief, Police Chief, Operations Superintendent and Assistant to the City Manager were also present. The notice for this meeting was posted in accordance with the Texas Government Code, Chapter nd 551, on the 22 day of June 2006 at 4:35 p.m. Special Session 3936 Marlowe Street; Weslayan Street. Matters related to 3936 Marlowe Street (Peden property) and Weslayan Street (from Bissonnet Street to Bellaire Boulevard), including easement or right-of-way matters, house under construction, legal defense, permits, administrative proceedings, pending or contemplated litigation or a settlement offer, and purchase, exchange, lease or value of real property and related issues. The City Council agreed to allow City Manager Michael Ross, City Secretary Kaylynn Holloway, City Attorney Alan Petrov, Assistant City Manager/Public Works Director Ron Wicker and Legal Counsel Mark Breeding to attend the Executive Session because their presence is necessary for the Council?s consideration of the issues. At this point in the meeting, the Mayor publicly announced that a closed, executive session would be held and identified the section of the Open Meetings Law under which the meeting would be held. Closed Executive Session to be held under Section 551.071 and Section 551.072 Texas Government Code. After the announcement, the City Council conducted a closed, executive session beginning at 5:30 p.m. After the closed, executive session, the Mayor announced, in open session, that the City Council had concluded its closed, executive session at 6:05 p.m. City Council Regular and Special Session, June 26, 2006 Conceptual Design on West U Recreation Center & Colonial Park. Matters related to discussion concerning the conceptual design of the West U Recreation Center & Colonial Park Pool. City Manager Michael Ross reported that in anticipation of an upcoming November bond election, at the June 12, 2006 meeting the City Council approved Amendment No. 1 to Pierce Goodwin Alexander Linville?s (PGAL) agreement to undertake the conceptual design of the West U Recreation Center and Colonial Park. Parks and Recreation Director Tim O?Connor stated that in order to provide focus to this process, the Staff?s understanding of the current basic assumptions for the two facilities are as follows: 1. Colonial Park will become the City's Aquatic Facility (where both municipal pools are located). 2. The Recreation Center will not have a pool in the new design. 3. The new Colonial Park Aquatic Facility will have a second pool with a permanent enclosure. The proposed location for the enclosed pool will be where the existing tennis courts are located. The existing pool would be renovated and operated exclusively as a seasonal pool. 4. The tennis courts will be removed from Colonial Park and a minimum of two new tennis courts would be built at the Recreation Center. These basic assumptions will provide overall guidance and efficiency to the Parks Board in working with PGAL and Staff to develop conceptual plans for Council?s consideration. Council Member Cohen asked if there had been any public reaction to the concept of having two pools at one location and related parking issues. Mr. O?Connor speculated that two or three individuals on the Parks Board felt an aquatic element was important to a Recreation Center. They also felt that Colonial Park may be too dense for two pools and it might create some parking issues. Mr. O?Connor reported that there are 104 either head-in or parallel parking spaces around Colonial Park. The Staff is currently conducting a parking study at the facility. Council Member Yehle commented that when the issue of parking came up with the various focus groups, it was acknowledged that most of the time the available parking would handle the probable demand. The City Council agreed with the above basic assumptions as provided by the Staff. Drainage and other capital projects. Matters related to drainage and other capital projects including funding options. 2 City Council Regular and Special Session, June 26, 2006 Mr. Ross reported that METRO has agreed to fund the City?s entire $4.33 million drainage project. This includes the 2-year storm frequency design for College Street and Bellaire Boulevard to Poor Farm Ditch. This design also assumes that the existing 72-inch storm sewer pipe will remain in place and that this new pipe will compliment this existing system. Additionally, this is an opportunity for the City to provide further benefit and plan for the future by including 24-inch pipe stub-outs so that each side street may have these lines extended at the time the remaining streets are replaced (4 streets are new and 5 are old). The following dead-end streets are included: Swarthmore, Case, Byron, Oberlin, Villanova, Marquette, Southwestern, Riley and Ruskin. Mr. Ross stated that the Staff was recommending the following: 1. Proceed with METRO and authorize Claunch & Miller to develop a proposal for the above design work for the City?s approval. 2. Include a 24-inch storm sewer stub-out from the new College Street line at each of the above streets with the understanding that the lines will be extended at the time the remaining stub streets are replaced. The City Council agreed with the above recommendations. An engineering proposal will be presented at the next Council meeting. The City Council recessed the Special Session at 6:25 p.m. and reconvened at 6:30 p.m. Park Property. Matters related to the purchase, exchange, lease or value of real property for park purposes. The City Council agreed to allow City Manager Michael Ross, City Secretary Kaylynn Holloway, Parks and Recreation Director Tim O?Connor and City Attorney Alan Petrov to attend the Executive Session because their presence is necessary for the Council?s consideration of the issues. At this point in the meeting, the Mayor publicly announced that a closed, executive session would be held and identified the section of the Open Meetings Law under which the meeting would be held. Closed Executive Session to be held under Section 551.072 Texas Government Code. After the announcement, the City Council conducted a closed, executive session beginning at 6:30 p.m. After the closed, executive session, the Mayor announced, in open session, that the City Council had concluded its closed, executive session at 6:40 p.m. 3 City Council Regular and Special Session, June 26, 2006 The City Council recessed the Special Session at 6:40 p.m. and convened in Regular Session. Formal Session Mayor Ballanfant stated that the Council was unable to agree or engage the owner in discussion and move forward with negotiations for the property on Plumb Street that the Council was considering for potential park site and as a consequence has decided not to continue considering that property. Citizen Comments. Mayor Ballanfant invited citizens who wished to address the City Council to come forward as their names were called. Burton Dickey, 6514 Mercer, stated that he opposed the development of a park on Plumb Street. Jim Berry, 3609 Plumb, stated that he was opposed to a park on Plumb Street and that he was bothered by the process where the City did not give notice to the residents in the area. Fred Huston, Jr., 3612 Plumb, commented that he was glad to hear that the Council was not going to pursue purchasing the property for a park but that he was still troubled that he was not approached by the City. Sue Hanna, 6505 Mercer, stated that she is a member of the Friends of West University Place Parks Fund and has helped raise money for the parks and park equipment for the last six years. She commented that it was a little difficult to read in the editorial page of the newspapers that the Friends were sneaky when they have done nothing but work for the benefit of the City. Comprehensive Annual Financial Report. Matters related to the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report. Finance Director Walter Thomas stated that the City is required each year to submit its books and records to an annual audit by an independent firm of certified public accountants. When the audit is complete the auditor issues a report on the results of that audit. The 2005 audit report included in the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) is a ?clean opinion?, meaning that the auditors found that the 2005 Financial Statements fairly present the City?s financial activity. The Comprehensive Annual Financial Report is used primarily by rating and regulatory agencies as a source for financial information about the City. It also serves as the primary archival document about the City?s financial activity in 2005. Each year the City submits its CAFR to the Government Finance Officer?s Association (GFOA) for an independent review. The GFOA?s staff and two other professionals who are involved with governmental reporting independently review our CAFR. Reports that meet the standards established by the GFOA are awarded a 4 City Council Regular and Special Session, June 26, 2006 Certificate of Excellence in Financial Reporting. The City has consistently received this annual award and we believe this report continues to meet the high standards established by the GFOA for this program. Mr. Thomas stated that as in prior years, the Auditors have issued a Management Letter recommending ways that the City could strengthen its procedures and processes. The Staff agrees with the Auditors comments and will implement them as soon as possible. Robert Belt from Sanderson, Knox and Belt was present at the meeting to answer questions. Mr. Thomas commented that he received some errata changes from the City Council and these changes will also be made to the CAFR. The City Council accepted the 2005 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report. Memorandum of Understanding for public parking. Matters related to a Memorandum of Understanding for public parking between the City of West University Place and the West University Baptist Church. To ensure equity the discussion may also include other similar situated properties in the City. Assistant City Manager/Public Works Director Ron Wicker reported last year, WUBC applied to the Zoning Board of Adjustment for special exceptions and variances in connection with a proposed new activity building to replace the existing gym. The ZBA approved the application, but with conditions. Among them was a condition that the WUBC study the required parking, loading and circulation and, if necessary, come back to the ZBA for additional consideration. The WUBC traffic study indicated that additional off-street parking spaces would be required, so WUBC approached the City about a possible shared parking arrangement. The MOU emerged from that discussion. Under Appendix A of the MOU: (a) the City would allow to use the public three City lots close to WUBC on Sundays and Wednesday nights (Lots 4, 5 and 6), and (b) WUBC would allow to use two large WUBC lots on Milton Street (Lots 1 and 2) the public Monday through Saturday. The following is a summary of the spaces included in the MOU: Lot number City-owned spaces WUBC-owned spaces 1 34 2 11 4 3 5 5 6 23 TOTALS 31 45 In addition, the MOU allows the City to use Lot 1, next to the Public Works Building on Milton. City employees would have priority parking rights (15 spaces), and the City could use the whole lot for special events (e.g., recycling and heavy trash collection). The City would provide 5 City Council Regular and Special Session, June 26, 2006 ordinary maintenance of Lot 1 ?to the extent determined from time to time by the City?s Public Works Director.? Mr. Wicker stated that if the City Council approves the MOU, the WUBC would still have to return to the ZBA for approval of its overall parking and loading plan under the zoning ordinance, together with any applicable special exceptions and variances. Current calculations indicate that construction of the new WUBC activity building would add about 6,900 square feet of building space. Under Articles 10 and 12 of the zoning ordinance, those 6,900 additional square feet would require 23 additional off-street parking spaces, on an incremental basis. The WUBC has indicated that spaces under the MOU will be offered to satisfy this requirement, subject to ZBA approval. Council Member Yehle recommended that the ZBA consider if the sharing agreement in anyway changes the application of the 75% rule because this could possibly be precedent setting for other institutions who might want to have sharing agreements. A motion was made by Council Member Segal, seconded by Council Member Cohen to approve the Memorandum of Understanding for parking with the West University Place Baptist Church. A vote was taken on the motion with the following result: Voting Aye: Mayor Ballanfant, Council Members Cohen, Segal, Woods and Yehle Voting Nay: None Absent: None Rice Pocket Park. Matters related to the Rice Pocket Park preliminary design acceptance and approval to prepare final design and bid documents. Parks and Recreation Director Tim O?Connor reported that the Rice Pocket Park & Library Courtyard Task Force has completed the preliminary design phase of the Rice Pocket Park project. The preliminary design process consisted of a City Council workshop, two public meetings and numerous meetings between White Oak Studio, Task Force and Staff. The proposed preliminary design is a culmination of the input received from the City Council, public and Task Force. In addition, the Task Force also facilitated a ?value engineering? exercise to identify specific areas that could reduce the actual cost of constructing the improvements. The following areas were identified: Alternate 1 - remove the arbor; Alternate 2 - remove the clock tower, but install the foundation for a future clock tower; and Alternate 3 - remove the arbor and clock tower. Below is a summary of total project cost for this project: 6 City Council Regular and Special Session, June 26, 2006 Preferred OptionAlternate 1Alternate 2Alternate 3 o Arbor & N All ElementsNo ArborNo Clock TowerClock Tower PHASES Preliminary Design Fees*$4,775$4,775$4,775$4,775 Construction Design Fees$50,700$46,300$49,500$45,100 Development Costs$10,000$10,000$10,000$10,000 Construction Costs**$320,186$278,936$264,086$222,836 TOTAL PROJECT COST: $385,661$340,011$328,361$282,711 Notes: * Preliminary Design Fees have already been spent. ** Includes a 10% Contingency for Construction. It is anticipated that the construction design phase could be completed within 3 ? 4 months depending on the amount of public input received and that the construction would take approximately 3 ? 4 months depending on the lead-time for materials. The City has a project budget of $175,000 to complete this project. Currently, there is available funding in the General Fund Reserve to fund the remaining The adopted project budget is $175,000, providing adequate funding for this particular contract but leaving an overall shortage of approximately $210,000 for the full project. While the City anticipates receiving outside funding from other agencies and private sources to help offset the overall project; funds are available in the General Fund Reserves to finance the balance. The Rice Pocket Park Task Force recommends the following: 1. Accept the Rice Pocket Park Task Force recommendation on the preliminary design including the clock tower and arbor; and 2. Authorize the City Manager to negotiate and enter an agreement with White Oak Studio, to finalize the design and prepare bid documents for the Construction of improvements at the Rice Pocket Park in the amount of $50,700. Council Member Woods commented that since the fence has been projected toward the street, he sees that as a potential problem for drivers backing out and not having good vision of the sidewalk. The City Council discussed preparing the bid documents with the full design and the bid alternate approach. This item will be brought back to the City Council for further discussion once bids are received and opened. motion was made by Council Member Cohen, seconded by Council Member Woods, to A approve the final design of the Rice Pocket Park and to authorize the City Manager to negotiate and enter an agreement with White Oak Studio, to finalize the design and prepare bid documents for the construction of improvements at the Rice Pocket Park in the amount of $50,700. 7 City Council Regular and Special Session, June 26, 2006 A vote was taken on the motion with the following result: Voting Aye: Mayor Ballanfant, Council Members Cohen, Segal, Woods and Yehle Voting Nay: None Absent: None Easement at Bissonnet and Buffalo Speedway. Matters related to an easement located at Bissonnet and Buffalo Speedway. Mr. Wicker stated that the attached executed easement is the result of several weeks of negotiations with property owners Don and Patricia Rodgers, who own the property at 3143 Bissonnet Road, which is the south east corner of Buffalo Speedway at Bissonnet. Acquiring this easement is the first step in cleaning up this entryway into West University Place. This easement/agreement outlines the expectations of both parties and provides for proper maintenance, landscaping and signage of this intersection. This easement should allow for installation and controlled maintenance of the improvements at this corner. The City is currently obtaining prices for the work at this corner and anticipates the work being included in the Priority Area 11B work. There will be available funds left in that project to fund these improvements. A motion was made by Council Member Yehle, seconded by Council Member Cohen, to accept the recommendation of the easement at 3143 Bissonnet Road. A vote was taken on the motion with the following result: Voting Aye: Mayor Ballanfant, Council Members Cohen, Segal, Woods and Yehle Voting Nay: None Absent: None Elevated water storage tank. Matters related to the elevated water storage tank including bids received for the rehabilitation. Mr. Wicker reported that the 2006 Budget included $200,000 to complete renovations to the Elevated Water Tower along Bellaire Blvd. This project includes minor structural repairs and painting that will extend the life of the 70-year old tank by approximately 15 years. The City received four bids to complete this project. Utility Service Company was the low bidder and has demonstrated their ability to perform this work in a professional manner consistent with the contract specifications. Utility Service Company?s bid was $115,000.00 8 City Council Regular and Special Session, June 26, 2006 higher than the original budget and therefore an additional appropriation is necessary to perform this renovation. The table below details the original and revised project costs: Budget Original Revised*Increase Construction $165,000$280,000$115,000 Engineering$25,000$25,000$0 Contigency$10,000$10,000$0 Total$200,000$315,000$115,000 * Note: Revised construction cost includes Alternate Number 3. Operations Superintendent Patrick Walters reported while this is a significant increase in the project cost, it is due to several factors that changed between mid-2005 and when the project was bid in Spring 2006. In determining the original budget, the City met with the City?s steel water tank consultant and the Shell Site Manager to discuss project preparations for bidding the job and use of the Shell property for material staging and relocating employee vehicles to protect them from overspray. Since mid-2005, fuel and labor cost have increased significantly and Shell has increased their employees (and number of vehicles) at their facility and they are no longer able to relocate vehicles to protect them from overspray and allow the contractor to stage on site. Fortunately the bid price includes an alternative for shrouding of the tank to protect surrounding structures and vehicles. The contingency of $10,000 is for possible additional work that may be required to remove salt deposit from the inside of the tank. Staff will not be able to determine whether this work is required until the tank is completely drained. Utility Service Company?s cost to perform this work is $8,000. Funding for the project increase is available from the Water Fund Construction Reserve, which had a balance of $622,000 on January 1, 2006; this is the proposed funding source for this project. The City Council asked questions regarding the budgeted amount for this project and the required additional appropriation. A motion was made by Council Member Cohen, seconded by Council Member Yehle, to approve the bid from Utility Service Company, Inc. in the amount of $280,000.00. A vote was taken on the motion with the following result: Voting Aye: Mayor Ballanfant, Council Members Cohen, Segal, Woods and Yehle Voting Nay: None 9 City Council Regular and Special Session, June 26, 2006 Absent: None City Council minutes. Matters related to the minutes of the Regular and Special Session conducted on June 12, 2006. A motion was made by Council Member Yehle, seconded by Council Member Woods, to approve the minutes as amended. A vote was taken on the motion with the following result: Voting Aye: Mayor Ballanfant, Council Members Segal, Woods and Yehle Voting Nay: None Absent: None Abstain: Council Member Cohen Intergovernmental & Infrastructure Issues; Staff or Council Report. Matters relating to intergovernmental relations and agreements including negotiations, extra jurisdictional meetings, regional issues, Interlocal Agreements with the City of Southside Place, Metropolitan Transit Authority agreements, infrastructure projects, drainage, flooding, Kirby Drive construction, Center Point Energy Entex, gas rates and coalition, City owned properties, potential purchase of property, City Center project, streetlights, railroad quiet zones and task force, board and commission liaison reports and related matters. This may include report(s) from staff and reports and directives to staff from Council Members. There were not any reports given at this time. 3936 Marlowe Street; Weslayan Street. Matters related to 3936 Marlowe Street (Peden property) and Weslayan Street (from Bissonnet Street to Bellaire Boulevard), including easement or right-of-way matters, house under construction, legal defense, permits, administrative proceedings, pending or contemplated litigation or a settlement offer, and purchase, exchange, lease or value of real property and related issues. This item was not discussed during the Regular Session. The City Council adjourned the Regular Session at 7:38 p.m. and reconvened in Special Session. Park Property. Matters related to the purchase, exchange, lease or value of real property for park purposes. 10 City Council Regular and Special Session, June 26, 2006 The City Council agreed to allow City Manager Michael Ross, City Secretary Kaylynn Holloway, Parks and Recreation Director Tim O?Connor and City Attorney Alan Petrov to attend the Executive Session because their presence is necessary for the Council?s consideration of the issues. At this point in the meeting, the Mayor publicly announced that a closed, executive session would be held and identified the section of the Open Meetings Law under which the meeting would be held. Closed Executive Session to be held under Section 551.072 Texas Government Code. After the announcement, the City Council conducted a closed, executive session beginning at 7:42 p.m. After the closed, executive session, the Mayor announced, in open session, that the City Council had concluded its closed, executive session at 7:50 p.m. Adjournment. With no further business to come before the City Council at this time, a motion was made by Council Member Cohen, seconded by Council Member Segal, to adjourn the Special Session. A vote was taken on the motion with the following result: Voting Aye: Mayor Ballanfant, Council Members Cohen, Segal, Woods and Yehle Voting Nay: None Absent: None The City Council adjourned the Special Session at 7:51 p.m. 11