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2017 06 08 WS MinutesMINUTES OF THE REGULAR WORK SESSION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BAYTOWN JUNE 08, 2017 The City Council of the City of Baytown, Texas met in a Regular Work Session on Thursday, June 08, 2017, at 5.33 P M. in the Hullum Conference Room of the Baytown City Hall 2401 Market Street, Baytown, Texas with the following in attendance Laura Alvarado Council Member Robert Hoskins Council Member Charles Johnson Council Member David McCartney Council Member Terry Sam Council Member Stephen DonCarlos Mayor Rick Davis City Manager Ignacio Ramirez City Attorney Leticia Brysch City Clerk Keith Dougherty Sergeant at Aims Mayor DonCarlos convened the June 08 2017 City Council Regular Work Session with a quorum present at 5 33 P M., all members were present with the exception of Council Member Presley who was absent DISCUSSIONS Discuss the City of Baytown's state of preparedness Lieutenant Marshall Hutton the Planning Section Chief for the City of Baytown Emergency Management Division, presented the agenda item and stated that he's been in the Baytown Fire Department for twenty-two years whereas his experience as an emergency manager dates back to Hurricanes Katrina and Ike where he served as the Baytown representative to the Hams County Emergency Management Office (Hams County EOC) Lt Hutton stated that the City is prepared for the upcoming hurricane season and any impacts from other natural or manmade disasters He stated that the City has the technology equipment and trained staff that can handle any situation He noted that one of the first things that he did when he took over his position was met with all department directors to receive their input on how Emergency Management could better serve them and their departmental needs He stated that everyone he s worked with thus far has been very cooperative and helpful Lt Hutton stated that updated and more frequent traimngs for staff is needed and he's already started that process by providing a number of emergency management trainmgs to include 300 400 financial reporting and regional evacuation hubs He stated that he's also started working on his national City Council Regular Work Session Minutes June 08 2017 Page 2 of 4 and international emergency management training, in order to update his own certifications and training. He further stated that he's working with the Mt Belvieu LEPC to have a full scale drill that will have the full scale activation of the EOC Lt Hutton stated that the EOC is here to serve the City outside of just hurricane season, case in point the murder of Assistant Chief Deputy Greenwood He stated that during this event, the EOC was activated and multiple agencies were able to work together to get the job done He stated the visiting agencies were so impressed with the facilities technology and support that they've requested the use of the facility for future events and trainings Lt Hutton stated that staff will be working on the creation of emergency plans for the City's big events such as the 4th of July and Christmas on Texas Avenue Gnto Fest, etc., to ensure that every responsible department is aware of its role and responsibilities during these events He also stated that he's looking into a new messaging system to replace Blackboard Connect that s less expensive but much more robust electronically web base and cell phone compatibly and messaging similar to a reverse 911 He noted that the City can send out messages to phones and social media by selecting a geographic area in our GIS system without the need of them being registered in our system He also noted that about 20,000 people are registered for our current messaging system, in which the hope is to expand flus number, however with the new software there won't be a need to be registered in order to receive messages (text, voice, email) as long as the number is associated to a lot/address Mayor DonCarlos noted the biggest problem during Hurricane Ike was the inability to communicate effectively and stated that whatever system selected need to be able to send out information such as, what roads are open is there electricity in my home, is the bridge open etc to anyone that has a cell number that's important to them during emergency events Lt Hutton stated that the new city sirens will be installed on lune 19th with one at West Main and Market Street and the other at West Texas Avenue and Laredo Street. He stated that other sirens around town me still functional and staff is working on identifying other locations throughout the city as it expands for other sirens in the future He noted that said sirens are tested every Wednesday morning to ensure functionality During further discussion, Lt Hutton stated that the debris removal and monitoring contracts which are standby contracts activated in the case of a hurricane are ready for Council's approval during the meeting following the current work session He noted that the companies were vetted extensively with the purchasing department and have completed all the necessary paperwork according to the legal department* therefore everything is in place if needed He further stated that the companies selected were not the same as those that the surrounding communities are using because he wanted said companies to be focused on Baytown in the case of a hurricane and not trying to spread resources amongst the surrounding cities The Council requested that staff work with CenterPomt to ensure that the branches from trees that can be trimmed back are in order to help mitigate damage to power lines in the case of storms or hurricanes, along with the generators at the City's lift stations and those of the gas stations Mrs Tiffany Foster, Planning and Development Services Director stated that all new gas stations are required by ordinance to have back-up generators in order to process at least City Council Regular Work Session Minutes June 08 2017 Page 3 of 4 three (3) customers at the pumps She noted that many of the new gas stations have back up generators with enough power to run the pumps and have the store open such as Kroger's, Stripes and others Lt. Hutton further discussed with Council the use of H E B for points of distribution (pods) during a huitcane event, similar to what Harris County is going to be doing. He noted that this is something that he could pursue with H E B Council agreed with additional resources Mayor DonCarlos stated that he was concerned with the evacuation plans for the nursery and rehabilitation homes throughout the City regarding their plans being good and workable for their patients He noted that he did not want the same situation that resulted from Hurricane Ike regarding such Lt Hutton stated that most of such plans have been submitted and are in the process of being reviewed Mayor DonCarlos further requested that the small group homes also be included in this process Lt Hutton noted that he believed that in order for them to be re certified by the City on a yearly basis they needed to provide them with an evacuation plan Council discussed the need to have access and a plan for evacuation buses Lt Hutton noted that buses did not arrive during Hurricane Ike because the drivers had met their allowable 18 driving hours and were stopped in the City of Pasadena until such time as they had rested which caused 150 buses to be stranded in Pasadena and unable to respond to Baytown Lt Hutton stated that he's already working with the state to identify resources for an evacuation plan that include tracking of individuals families and animals, nice charter buses and the setup of evacuation hubs Lt Hutton noted that the process has been setup with the City emergency personnel that in order for essential staff to re-enter the City during an emergency they will only need to show their City identification badge He further noted that local industries already have essential personnel badges issued to them by Hams County in order to re-enter the area Additionally he stated that he felt comfortable with the City's level of preparedness and would work with staff and public affairs to do the necessary outreach to the community for hurricane season Receive and discuss the quarterly substandard structures report Mrs Foster presented the agenda nem to discuss the quarterly substandard structures report and also presented the Council with a spreadsheet of all of the active substandard cases being handled by her staff at this time She stated that they keep 45 50 substandard cases going at any given time and as some are closed new ones are added She noted that they currently have 47 cases open and that four (4) were closed in the month of May She further noted that a case is closed when there s a final resolution and that staff will not look at the case again whether it's demolition or completed repairs Mrs Foster stated that in February and early March, Staff focused on the A.C.E District and identified locations that needed some attention She stated that they used the existing building code and maintenance regulations to notify property owners to fix up their properties She noted that Staff notified 15 properties owners that needed the most attention and so far three (3) or four (4) of those are moving to another process with the court for failure to respond She further noted City Council Regular Work Session Minutes June 08 2017 Page 4 of 4 that there are ten (10) property owners that have either completed or pulled permits for painting and/or repairs Additionally Mrs Foster stated that this effort is being successful and that Staff would continue to target areas in the same manner to help beautify the areas Council reviewed the information and expressed appreciation for the work the planning department in actively pursuing the resolution to these substandard cases c Discuss any or all of the agenda items on the City Council Regular Meeting Agenda for June 08, 2017 which is attached below This item was not discussed ADJOURN With there being no further business to discuss, Mayor DonCarlos adjourned the June 08, 2017, City Council Regular Work Session at 6 18 P M M1� Leticia Brysch City C erk `` '• 'r , .^'t. City of Baytown