Nowthen City Council Workshop meeting, January 4, 2018
City CouncilThursday, January 4, 2018
Agenda
Not on file
What was on the agenda.
Packet
Not on file
The supporting materials the board reviewed.
One-line summary
At the January 4, 2018 City Council workshop, Nowthen discussed planning items, 2040 open house materials, official newspaper concerns, road overlay feasibility reports and assessments, capital funds, fire-service billing, COLA timing, and clerk hiring, with no formal votes recorded in the provided transcripts.
What was on the agenda
15 items as recorded in the minutes, each with a short summary of what was at issue.
- Discussion only
1Call to order and Pledge of Allegiance
The workshop opened with the Pledge of Allegiance and was identified as a City Council workshop on Thursday, January 4, 2018.
Workshop opening; no formal action recorded in the transcript.
- meeting opening
- Discussion only
2Planning and zoning item: Jarvis Street road easement and subdivision findings
The council reviewed a planning and zoning item involving soil borings, flood protection elevations, and a change to findings of fact to require dedication of road easement for Jarvis Street before the item returned for formal action.
The council reviewed a planning and zoning item that had been waiting on soil borings and elevation information. Staff said flood-protection and lowest-floor information was satisfactory, recommended replacing one finding with a requirement to dedicate 33 feet of road easement for Jarvis Street, and noted the formal decision would occur the following Tuesday.
The transcript says the formal decision would be on Tuesday, not at this workshop.
- planning and zoning
- Jarvis Street easement
- Hedberg item
16:41we finally gotten the information we needed sorting on soil borings and elevations so Shane could determine flood protection elevations in the lowest floor was satisfactory so with his approval that gets us to you17:18I'd like to do is replace that number 1 by requiring the required dedication of Road easement for Jarvis Street certainly it's a prescriptive easement and they'll dedicate the 33 feet as part of the subdivision34:44I just want to tell mr. Hedberg that the formal decision will be on Tuesday - Discussion only
32040 comprehensive plan open house materials
The council discussed final display details for a Monday open house on draft 2040 land use planning, including possible commercial and industrial expansion areas, traffic maps, and whether to distribute reduced-size copies.
The council prepared for a Monday open house on the draft 2040 plan. Members discussed showing land-use maps with possible commercial and industrial expansion areas, aerial and traffic maps, and decided it was better not to distribute small copies of maps while the plan was still changing.
The council gave informal direction for the open house; no formal vote was recorded.
- 2040 plan
- open house
- land use
- traffic maps
18:03an open house so I just created a sort of a summary memoral just so we could go over any final details if they need to for Monday's meeting18:48displaying two large land use maps with the possible commercial industrial expansion areas so basically draft 2040 plans at this time and then an aerial photo of the city33:48I'd rather have as much accurate information of what really is going to be in the 2040 plan available and if we're still in the middle of change is probably better not to have this map for distribution - Discussion only
4Code enforcement update
Code enforcement was briefly updated, with staff noting a few items to address after the holidays and that one situation appeared under control.
Brief update only; no formal action recorded.
- code enforcement
- Discussion only
5Consent agenda and financial report items
Under consent agenda and financial-report discussion, the council was told that a light-duty rescue truck had been purchased and that the recycling center was nearly complete; garage-door repairs were also discussed.
Workshop discussion of consent/financial items; no formal vote recorded.
- financial report
- rescue truck
- recycling center
36:39the council's information you hadn't heard we did purchase a twenty two thousand five light duty rescue truck36:56pictures of it fall put it down payment on it will be delivered the end of the month recycling the center is pretty much complete37:07the question on the garage door repairs was that in the recycling center is that associated with our bumpers - Discussion only
6Resolution designating official newspaper
The council discussed the official newspaper resolution, including costs charged by the Union Herald compared with the Record and concerns about whether the paper covered city issues constructively or thoroughly.
The council discussed whether to keep the same official newspaper. Members balanced the lower cost of the Record against concerns that the city’s official newspaper had not covered major land-use issues or positive city events well, and discussed submitting city-written articles to improve coverage.
The discussion identified cost and coverage concerns; no formal vote was recorded in the workshop transcript.
- official newspaper
- public notices
- communications
38:04resolutions adopting comments there I'm okay with leaving things the way they work from last year other comments39:43the purpose of choosing them as a papers to let our residents know what's going on42:42the Union Harold decided to raise the rates over last year and thus their chart and they're only charging the county two dollars per inch is better for $10.75 that they'd be charging us - Discussion only
7Responsible authority, commissions, and committee liaison discussion
The council discussed liaison assignments to committees, including a request to serve as liaison for the Road and Bridge Committee and the idea of asking committees for feedback on council liaisons.
Workshop discussion only; no formal action recorded.
- committee liaisons
- Road and Bridge Committee
44:07I'll just state again I'd love to liaison for the road bridge company I haven't put them up right44:59our committees now have been exposed to different council members as liaisons you know I think you know we should be asking them45:34I think they should have some say and you know who represents them at the console me regardless of whomever that is in whatever Committee that is - Discussion only
8Other commission and annual event items
The council briefly discussed annual permissions or reports related to city activities, including a fish tank use, city planning/commissions, and the ice fishing contest.
The transcript is unclear, but no formal action was recorded.
- commissions
- ice fishing contest
46:21well I did have one thing on that person quarry building a fish tank you need to see Francis and I would like to use Andy's company name46:42if we do the same for City Planning yeah knees and commissions night fishing contest pretty much what you've been asked in years past might have good solid ice this year - Discussion only
9Pinnacle Lake Estates feasibility report
The council reviewed a feasibility report for a Pinnacle Lake Estates overlay project, including driveway treatment, shoulders, estimated project cost, possible financing methods, and special-assessment hearing timing.
The council reviewed a two-mile, two-inch overlay feasibility report for Pinnacle Lake Estates. The estimate was $146,500, with a possible $2,930 per-unit assessment if the city paid 50 percent, but members wanted more information on financing costs and whether to use local bank financing or a larger bond approach before calling hearings.
The council discussed financing and hearing timing, with no final action recorded in the workshop transcript.
- Pinnacle Lake Estates
- road overlay
- special assessments
- financing
49:25starting and stopping locations of the project and red propose you know a two-mile overlay to a two inch constructor thickness mostly finished yards in this area52:41the more straightforward project of the two our total estimated cost is one hundred and forty six thousand five hundred53:52assuming that the city pays 50 percent of the total project cost it would yield an assessment amount of two thousand nine hundred and thirty dollars per unit - Discussion only
10Old Viking Boulevard feasibility report
The council reviewed the Old Viking Boulevard feasibility report, including the proposed overlay width, street approaches, aggregate shoulders, ditch conditions, parcels to assess, possible Green Acres deferrals, tax-exempt properties, and whether to study paving the Fort Brooke cul-de-sac while the project is underway.
The council reviewed the Old Viking Boulevard overlay, discussed reducing the width to 22 feet, adding approach overlays, parcel-by-parcel assessment questions, possible Green Acres deferrals, tax-exempt or religious/cemetery properties, and whether Fort Brooke should be paved while equipment was nearby. Members asked for more information before finalizing the feasibility work.
The council identified questions for further work and possible Tuesday direction; no formal action was recorded at the workshop.
- Old Viking Boulevard
- road overlay
- special assessments
- Green Acres
- Fort Brooke
1:13:13the feasibility report we have here shows old Viking to be twenty four feet there for two minutes cost reflects that reasonable overlaying yes1:14:27with the twenty two feet width and overlaying the approaches that could get any number from you1:16:40if money was no object I would do some additional ditch work particularly on this western side there's there's not much of a ditch9:47we've determined the Buddhist supposedly is accessible Historical Association that'd be big and then we need to make a decision on whether we're going to assess or delay assessment on the bigger agricultural parcels18:15I think that also ways into the consideration if we're going to have a bond of any significance what all do we want to cover in that bond but I'm just thinking that that might be a good one to give to the blacktop there and incorporate some of that those homes into this assessment - Discussion only
11Funding capital improvement funds
The council discussed setting up capital-improvement funds for buildings, parks equipment, technology, digitization, road improvements, and road equipment, while asking the treasurer to evaluate effects on reserves before action in February.
The council discussed creating or funding building, parks equipment, technology, digitization, road improvement, and road equipment funds using current cash and a 2016 road-fund remainder. The treasurer cautioned about maintaining at least six months of reserves, and the matter was expected to return after financial review.
The expected next step was to direct the treasurer to investigate and bring the matter back; no formal workshop vote recorded.
- capital improvement funds
- reserves
- parks equipment
- technology
- roads
23:45funding of capital improvement project mr. mayor as we talked about during budget meetings that there seemed to be a need to set up some sort of capital improvement fund26:00your request is to put 30,000 into building capital fund mm-hmm you mean fund rather than planned25:32to pay for pay for things that weren't specific specific in the budget without having some money set aside like this so that we it's not affecting the overall budget32:40so we're gonna table this until February well he'll motion to to direct Cory to investigate of Yemen it won't be in the action till February Tory's had a chance to look at the consequences - Discussion only
12Hockey rink cost reporting
The council discussed whether hockey rink costs should be reported quarterly or only during seasons with activity, with members noting that tracking costs was reasonable but the reporting frequency needed clarification.
The council discussed tracking hockey rink costs. Members agreed that cost tracking was reasonable, but questioned whether quarterly reports made sense when there is no rink activity during parts of the year.
The council discussed bringing the topic forward; no formal action recorded at the workshop.
- hockey rink
- cost tracking
- parks
32:59the only question that I have is you know in all retrospect you know it my interpretation she Zach's asking for quarterly reports you know specific to the hockey rink33:53why do we need staff to track time do we need a piece of paper that has nothing on it you know I would I would if we're gonna do it I would recommend that we do it when there's some activity going on with the rink34:56it's appropriate to attract two-track cost is it necessary to be done quarterly - Discussion only
13Fire and emergency service billing policy
The council discussed whether the city should continue billing residents for fire and emergency service calls, including possible exceptions for illegal burns, uninsured or improper commercial uses, fire insurance reimbursement, and medical calls.
The council discussed whether residents should continue to be billed for emergency-service calls. Members raised concerns that billing can discourage residents from calling, while also discussing possible billing for illegal burns, improper business uses, commercial risks, and insurance reimbursements.
The action discussed was to authorize a later, focused discussion; no workshop vote was recorded.
- fire services
- emergency billing
- fees
35:12fire services mr. mayor I want to what I do you know obviously present to the council that you know currently the way we have things structured is we're charging for emergency services36:02we budget for receiving $8,500 for fire calls paid and we received 4200 sores about forty three forty three hundred short of that37:07I don't think we should be charging our residents for for emergency service calls41:24there are a lot of residents who tend not to call because they know they're gonna get a bill and I don't think that's right - Discussion only
14Cost-of-living adjustment review schedule
The council discussed setting a schedule for staff to gather surrounding-city cost-of-living adjustment information by October and for the council to decide by the first November meeting whether to approve an increase.
The council discussed a process for cost-of-living adjustment decisions. The idea was to have staff gather surrounding-city information by the October meeting, discuss it then, and decide at the first November meeting whether to approve an increase.
Direction for a later process was discussed; no formal vote recorded at the workshop.
- employee compensation
- COLA
- staff salaries
42:24are you saying you would like a defined date to discuss if Cola or not and if so how much42:51by the October meeting so we can discuss you know giving a increased by November first43:42the direction is to have staff get us information from surrounding areas of Cola increases of Lake cities by the October meeting so we can discuss it at that meeting and then by the November first meeting we make a decision - Discussion only
15Clerk salary range and hiring authority
The council discussed the clerk position salary range and hiring process after receiving 12 applications, with discussion of applicant current wages, requested wages, and whether the interview team could negotiate outside the existing range for the right candidate.
The council discussed the clerk hiring process after receiving 12 applications. Members considered whether the interview team should have flexibility to negotiate and recommend a final offer above the existing range if a strong candidate required it.
The transcript records discussion of interview-team authority and salary range; no formal vote was recorded in the workshop transcript.
- clerk hiring
- salary range
- personnel
44:41the clerk's salary range now Cory sent us out an email today we have 12 applicants for the position currently making anywhere from 1150 to $25 an hour 25 28 62 an hour45:15requesting anywhere from 14 to 26 44 27 sorry46:59allowing the two transom members and myself to approve if we're going to be interviewing these people and stuff approve negotiating and offering and then presenting to become sole the final offer
Sources
Documents and recordings archived for this meeting, when available.
- Document
City Council Workshop — 2018 01-04 Workshop Approved (2018-01-04)
Minutes · Thursday, January 4, 2018
5 pages
- Document
City Council Workshop — 2018 01-04 Workshop Minutes (2018-01-04)
Minutes · Thursday, January 4, 2018
5 pages
- Video
Meeting recording
YouTube
Transcript · 516 segments · 1:36:15
Show a sample of the transcript (516 segments, 1:36:15 total)
- 0:49 no you want to know anything about commercial developments and stuff the open constants on Monday at 7 o'clock
- 0:58 over here yeah some proposed there's
- 1:06 just proposed areas and it's not all the areas it's just to get some idea from
- 1:13 the public how they feel about [Music]
- 3:10 don't get ahold of shame to their I wouldn't think so
- 3:47 I was Willie doing good how you doing
- 6:36 okay I brought three I didn't know how many you want it because there is more in the basement
- 6:42 I think Brees probably good okay yeah so I didn't set up the third one no yeah I have more boards than that but on the
- 6:52 video also at the same time so I didn't know where you wanted to put them either so much it's really hard so I think if
- 7:16 you just and then when the when you have the public hearings anyways you'll have exhibits yeah
- 9:16 yeah I looked at the original plan out it's 22 feet her should be the whole way he measured in a few spots it's not even
- 9:45 22 feet for the typical sections for all the
- Showing first 12 segments. Open the YouTube video for the full transcript.
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