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2007 11 05 CC Minutes, Special MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL SESSION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BAYTOWN November 5, 2007 - 6:30 p.m. The City Council of the City of Baytown, Texas, met in special session on November 5, 2007, at 6:30 p.m. in the Council Chamber of the City of Baytown with the following in attendance: Lena R. Yepez Council Member Scott Sheley Council Member Brandon Capetillo Council Member Don Murray Council Member Lynn A. Caskey, II Council Member Sammy Mahan Council Member Stephen H. DonCarlos Mayor Garrison C. Brumback City Manager Robert D. Leiper Deputy City Manager Ignacio Ramirez City Attorney Lorri Coody City Clerk Mayor DonCarlos called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. with a quorum present. MINUTES Consider approval of the minutes for the Regular Council Meeting and the Work Session Meeting held on October 25, 2007. Council Member Mahan moved to approve the minutes as submitted. Council Member Capetillo seconded the motion. The vote follows: Ayes: Council Members Mahan, Murray, Yepez, Capetillo, Sheley and Caskey Mayor DonCarlos Nays: None The motion carried. CITIZENS COMMUNICATIONS AND RECOGNITIONS Recognize employees for their dedicated years of service to the City (5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30+ years) City Manager Brumback recognized the following employees for their dedicated years of service: Page 2 of 9 Minutes of the Special Session Meeting— November 5, 2007 Five Years Jamie Eustace Todd Guidry Terry Lindsey Ten Years Sandra Deshotels Patty Fowler Twenty-Five Years Captain Keith Dougherty Thirty Years Deputy City Manager, Robert D. Leiper Employees with service years of 10, 25 and 30 years were recognized with a plaque and background information concerning their contribution to the city. Mr. Ken Williamson has requested to address Council regarding the use of unauthorized vehicles on Bayway Drive from Decker to Baker Road. Mr. Williamson explained his background and his experience with Baytown. He stated that it seems that the Baytown Police Department does not care. He stated that trucks are coming from Houston down Bayway to Decker to Baker Road. He is concerned that this is not a truck route and these trucks go past schools and homes. Mr. Williamson would like to request that the City Council have the Baytown Police Department stop unauthorized truck traffic on this road. He has called the Police Department as many as 50 times to complain. Mr. Chester Strange has requested to address Council concerning support and assistance from the City of Baytown to hold the 1st Annual City of Baytown and Pelican Junction Texas Avenue Cruising Toy Run on December 22, 2007. Mr. Strange would like assistance from the City as follows: 1. A fire truck with a Santa Claus; 2. Police for traffic control; and 3. A room at the Community Center for the Children to receive gifts from Santa He told Council that he needed the assistance on December 22 because he would like to have a program in the City of Baytown like he has done in the City of South Houston. He explained that he has a program there wherein he has made arrangements to give as many as 600 children gifts through donations and he has done this for 6 years. He believes that it would be good for Page 3 of 9 Minutes of the Special Session Meeting— November 5, 2007 Baytown and this community to have a similar program because it helps the children. In order to grow a program like this, he works with the schools and has the support of local car clubs and motor cycle clubs. Any money that would be raised at the event would than be spent at Kroger’s during Christmas in order to send dinners to needy families. He told Council that his group will hire the necessary police officers to work the traffic, because he realizes it may be difficult for the police department to support their effort. Council engaged in discussion about working with the group. Mr. Brumback informed Council that there are costs associated with the request. The discussion ensued about the costs and the event as well as the positive affect it would have on the community. Council asked staff to work with this Mr. Strange to develop the project and make it a success. Mr. Ronnie Anderson has requested to address the City Council concerning the City's sign ordinance. Mr. Anderson addressed council concerning the sign ordinance. He began his presentation by giving background information about a trip he took from his place of employment to his home. He told Council that during that trip, he counted 125 signs that were planted where they should not have been according to the City’s current sign ordinance. Additionally, he told Council that there are many “bandit signs” placed everywhere throughout the City and that we seem to have lost control of this area of enforcement in our City. He stated that he wanted to focus his attention on one particular area of the sign ordinance that is of major concern - garage sale signs. He would like to have revisions made to the current ordinance to address garage sale signs since he believes these signs to be a problem in our city. He especially noted the problem with signs not being collected when the sale is over, the improper placement of signs, and the same residents holding sale after sale after sale. Mr. Anderson sited several cities in the area that do not have these problems. Deer Park, for instance, limits the number of garage sales to two sales per family per year, all garage sale signs must be obtained from city offices, and the signs come with a list of rules on how to use them. Mr. Anderson would like Council to implement a similar garage sale sign program in Baytown. He suggested that neighborhood protection groups could help with enforcement and that a 90 day “easing in period” period would be appropriate. He also mentioned that the new Land Development Code does not address garage sale signs so he would like a citizens committee to review this aspect of the code. Councils’ comment to the presentation was that they would like to see some information from staff on this topic at an upcoming work session. Page 4 of 9 Minutes of the Special Session Meeting— November 5, 2007 PROPOSED ORDINANCES Consider Proposed Ordinance authorizing a settlement regarding the design, construction and construction oversight of the Baytown Emergency Operations Center. No action taken on this item at this time. PROPOSED RESOLUTIONS Consider Proposed Resolution casting the City of Baytown’s ballot for the election of a representative to the Board of Directors of the Harris County Appraisal District. The Proposed Resolution casts the City of Baytown’s ballot for the election of a representative to the Board of Directors of the Harris County Appraisal District. The City of Baytown along with other cities in Harris County, except the City of Houston, may nominate a representative for the HCAD Board of Directors and each entity must then cast its ballot for the nominee of its choice. While Mr. Bill Harry, a City of Baytown nominee, has previously served in this position, he indicated that he did not wish to continue to serve. As such, the City nominated Mr. Steve Daniele at the regular meeting on October 11, 2007. Unfortunately, the City's nomination was not received prior to the deadline and, thus, Mr. Daniele is not listed on the ballot as a nominee. The nominees are Ed Heathcott, Laurence W. Tobin and Richard E. Yehle. The City's ballot must be received no later than December 17, 2007. Council Member Sheley moved to elect Ed Heathcott. Council Member Mahan seconded the motion. The vote follows: Ayes: Council Members Mahan, Murray, Yepez, Capetillo, Sheley and Caskey Mayor DonCarlos Nays: None The motion carried. RESOLUTION NO. 1895 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BAYTOWN, TEXAS, CASTING ITS BALLOT FOR THE ELECTION OF A PERSON TO THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE HARRIS COUNTY APPRAISAL DISTRICT AND PROVIDING FOR THE EFFECTIVE DATE THEREOF. DISCUSSIONS Consider authorization to solicit proposals for residential curbside recycling services. Deputy City Manager Leiper explained that the 2007-08 adopted budget included the initiation of residential, curbside recycling in Baytown. This Request for Proposals (RFP) will solicit proposals from qualified contractors to provide this service. Proposals must be submitted by Page 5 of 9 Minutes of the Special Session Meeting— November 5, 2007 Friday, December 21, 2007, and will be reviewed for presentation to Council at the first meeting in January 2008. The key elements of the RFP include:  Three year initial contract with up to three additional one-year terms.  The rates will be adjusted each January based on the CPIU.  The contractor must detail any fuel surcharge and "sale of recyclables" revenue programs.  The contractors will submit a proposal based on either the contractor or the City furnishing the containers.  The contractor will make the initial delivery of the containers to the residents.  The containers will include a label indicating which day the recyclables are collected.  Collection will be once per week based on the garbage pick-up schedule.  The only non-collection days are Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day.  No sorting by the resident is required.  Recyclable materials include newspaper, aluminum cans, plastic containers, glass containers and steel cans.  Other items can be added by mutual agreement. Discussion was had concerning the terms of the RFP and the method of how the recyclables will be picked up from the curb. There was also discussion about the amount of trash for Waste Management to pickup once recycling begins. There was also discussion about the distribution of the 18 gallon containers to each home. Council Member Caskey moved for authorization to solicit proposals for residential curbside recycling services. Council Member Capetillo seconded the motion. The vote follows: Ayes: Council Members Mahan, Murray, Yepez, Capetillo, Sheley and Caskey Mayor DonCarlos Nays: None The motion carried. Discuss and consider alternative methods for delivery of Council packet information. Ms. Leticia Garza, Assistant City Clerk, explained that one of the elements of the transition to electronic agenda packets was the elimination of the physical delivery of the Council packet. Currently, the packet delivery is generally performed by a Utility Department employee on overtime. While there will be occasions when we will need to deliver physical documents to the Council, we would like to discuss options and alternatives for basic packet materials. Ms. Garza explained to Council that in addition to the delivery of the packet on CD to Council Members, the packet is also uploaded to the City’s website so that Citizens can view the file prior to Council meetings. This file is easily accessible and printable from any location outside the City. Ms. Garza told Council that it is a convenient and effective method of transmitting data in this ever new and growing world of technology. She told Council that Mr. Wells would show the Council how easy it is to access the packet from the website and download it to a local computer. Page 6 of 9 Minutes of the Special Session Meeting— November 5, 2007 Discussion was had that they would like to have an email sent informing that the packet and agenda has been posted. Also, questions were asked about how they get their laptops connected so that they can access the web. Dennis Wells, from the City’s IT department, addressed the question telling Council that his department will configure the laptops through wireless connections and assist the Members in anyway needed. Mr. Wells also gave a demonstration on how to download files from the city’s website. Council agreed with the download process of receiving the Council Packets. CONSENT Council Member Sheley moved to approve the Consent agenda items 6a through 6c. Council Member Mahan seconded the Motion. The vote follows: Ayes: Council Members Mahan, Murray, Yepez, Capetillo, and Sheley Mayor DonCarlos Nays: None Council Member Caskey did not vote. The motion carried. Consider Proposed Ordinance authorizing an Industrial District Agreement with IPSCO Koppel Tubulars Corporation. ORDINANCE NO. 10,750 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF BAYTOWN, TEXAS, AUTHORIZING AND DIRECTING THE MAYOR TO EXECUTE AND THE CITY CLERK TO ATTEST TO AN INDUSTRIAL DISTRICT AGREEMENT WITH IPSCO KOPPEL TUBULARS CORPORATION.; AND PROVIDING FOR THE EFFECTIVE DATE THEREOF. Consider Proposed Ordinance authorizing the renewal of the contract with the Houston Area Library Automated Network (HALAN). ORDINANCE NO. 10,751 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BAYTOWN, TEXAS, AUTHORIZING THE FISCAL YEAR 2008 HOUSTON AREA LIBRARY AUTOMATED NETWORK (HALAN) CONTRACT FEE FOR AN INTEGRATED AUTOMATED CIRCULATION SYSTEM AT THE STERLING MUNICIPAL LIBRARY IN THE AMOUNT OF SEVENTY-SEVEN THOUSAND TWO HUNDRED FORTY-ONE AND NO/100 DOLLARS ($77,241.00); AND PROVIDING FOR THE EFFECTIVE DATE THEREOF. Page 7 of 9 Minutes of the Special Session Meeting— November 5, 2007 Receive Six Month Agreed Upon Procedures on Sales Tax Allocation. Report received by motion and approval of consent. EXECUTIVE SESSION Recess into and conduct an executive session pursuant to Texas Government Code, Section 551.071 to seek the advice of the City’s attorneys regarding contemplated litigation and/or possible settlement offers concerning the design and construction of the Emergency Operations Center. No action was taken on this item. No Executive Session was held. APPEALS Conduct appeal of Harish Batra c/o Dinesh Batra, of the October 1, 2007 decision, of the Urban Rehabilitation Standards Review Board (URSRB), ordering the demolition of a 2- story apartment building located at 2007 West Texas Avenue in Baytown, Texas. Harish Batra c/o Dinesh Batra – Opening Statement Mr. Batra told Council that he wants the Order from the URSRB rescinded. He explained that he had tried to sell the property that is currently in question and the buyer was going to have it redeveloped but the deal fell through because of the collapse in the mortgage market. When the deal fell through, he decided to redevelop the property himself because he has over $300,000 invested in the property. He told Council that he has the recourses to complete the redevelopment and wants the opportunity to request the building permits and bring the property back to livable standards. Council asked Mr. Batra questions to which he responded. He has owned the property for 20 years and no one has ever lived in the structure. When asked why he should be given the chance to redevelop this property after it has been in disrepair for so many years, he explained that in the past, he has not had the funds to complete the redevelopment, but now he has the resources and would like to be given the opportunity to move forward. He told Council that has over $300,000 invested into this property and wants a chance to recover these funds. He also told Council that he has paid his taxes on the property. He stated that he needs 30 days to get started and 90 to 120 days to complete the redevelopment project. Tiffany Foster – Opening Statement Ms. Foster told Council that the URSRB had looked at the property numerous times. The last time began in January 2007 and since that time, the Board and City staff has worked with Mr. Batra to resolve the issues at 2007 West Texas Avenue. The Board continued to table the property so that Mr. Batra could get ownership of the property since the property was owned by Page 8 of 9 Minutes of the Special Session Meeting— November 5, 2007 his deceased father. It seemed that it was always one thing after another with this property. The Board finally voted to demolish the property located at 2007 West Texas Avenue on October 1, 2007. Ed Branch – Opening Statement Mr. Branch explained the condition of the home through a slide program of pictures. The pictures displayed decaying lumber destroyed by water from years of leaks. Mr. Branch told Council that the report from Mr. Carnes states that the building must be completely rehabbed or totally demolished in order to be brought into compliance. Kevin Byal – Opening Statement Mr. Byal explained that the current building structure is not in compliance with the City’s building code. Harish Batra c/o Dinesh Batra – Closing Statement Mr. Batra restated his request. Tiffany Foster – Closing Statement Ms. Foster asked that the recommendation of the Urban Rehabilitation Standards Review Board be affirmed. Consider affirming, reversing or modifying the decision of the Urban Rehabilitation Standards Review Board ordering the demolition of the 2-story apartment located at 2007 West Texas Avenue, Baytown, Texas. (Harish Batra c/o Dinesh Batra appeal). Council Member Yepez moved to affirm the decision of the Urban Rehabilitation Standards Review Board by ordering the demolition of the 2-story apartment located at 2007 West Texas Avenue, Baytown, Texas. Council Member Sheley seconded the Motion. The vote follows: Ayes: Council Members Mahan, Murray, Yepez, Capetillo, Caskey and Sheley Mayor DonCarlos Nays: None The motion carried. MANAGER'S REPORT The Annual Arts and Crafts Show will be held Friday, November 9th from noon to 7:00 p.m. and Saturday, November 10th from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the Baytown Community Page 9 of 9 Minutes of the Special Session Meeting— November 5, 2007 Center. Admission into the show is free! Over thirty booths will provide a wonderful opportunity to do a little early Christmas shopping for your family and friends. The Annual Arts and Crafts Show will be held Friday, November 9th from noon to 7:00 p.m. and Saturday, November 10th from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the Baytown Community Center. Admission into the show is free! Over thirty booths will provide a wonderful opportunity to do a little early Christmas shopping for your family and friends. The Baytown Veterans’ Day Ceremony will be held on Saturday, November 10, 2007 @ 11:00 a.m. The annual event will be held at the Bicentennial Park’s Veterans’ Memorial Plaza, 1001 Market Street. Honoring All Those Who Served! A Veterans’ Day Ceremony will be held on Saturday, November 10th at the Veterans’ Memorial Plaza, located at 1001 Market Street in front of Bicentennial Park. The ceremony will begin at 11:00 a.m. In the event of inclement weather, the ceremony will be moved to the Baytown Community Center, located at 2407 Market Street. The Public Safety Recognition Dinner will be Tuesday, November 13th at 6:30 p.m. in the Baytown Community Center. The Texas Recycles Day will be held in Baytown in the Lowe's parking lot from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 10, 2007. Receive Departmental Presentation from the Baytown Fire Department. Departmental Presentation made by Chief Shon Blake. ADJOURN Council Member Caskey moved to adjourn the meeting. Council Member Yepez seconded the motion. The vote follows: Ayes: Council Members Mahan, Murray, Yepez, Capetillo, Sheley and Caskey Mayor DonCarlos Nays: None The motion carried. With no additional business the meeting adjourned at 8:10 p.m. ______________________________ Lorri Coody, City Clerk