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13 City Council (05-10-04)MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE CITY COUNCIL May 10, 2004 The City Council of the City of Paris met in regular session, Monday, May 10, 2004, 6:00 P.M. at Love Civic Center - North Hall, 2025 South Collegiate Street, Paris, Texas. Mayor Curtis Fendley called the meeting to order with the following Council Members present: Jim Bell, Jay Guest, Joe E. McCarthy, Francine Neeley and Willie Weekly, Sr. Also, present were Interim City Manager Terry Townsend, City Attorney Larry W. Schenk and City Clerk Mattie Cunningham. Mayor Fendley advised the City Council that they had been furnished the minutes and report from the Planning and Zoning Commission. Mayor Fendley called for consideration of and action on the Preliminary Plat on Lots 13-A and 13-B, City Block 119-A, being located in the 200 Block of 7tn Street S.W. A motion was made by Mayor Pro Tem McCarthy, seconded by Councilman Guest, for approval of the Preliminary Plat subject to the requirements of the City Engineer. The motion carried 6 ayes, 0 nays. Mayor Fendley called for consideration of and action on the Preliminary Plat of Tejas Plaza, being located in the 300 Block ofN. Collegiate. A motion was made by Councilman Weekly, seconded by Councilwoman Neeley, for approval of the Preliminary Plat subj ect to the requirements of the City Engineer. The motion carried 6 ayes, 0 nays. Mayor Fendley called for consideration of the Preliminary Plat of the Morrell Place, being located in the 1600 Block of Loop 286 N.E. A motion was made by Mayor Pro Tem McCarthy, seconded by Councilwoman Neeley, for approval of the Preliminary Plat. The motion carried 6 ayes, 0 nays. Mayor called for consideration of and action on the Preliminary Plat on Lots 3, 4, 5, 6, 18, 19, 20, and Part of Lots 3, and 17, of the Warren Addition, being located in the 1700 Block of Bonham Street. A motion was made by Councilman Weekly, seconded by Councilman Guest, for approval of the Preliminary Plat. The motion carried 6 ayes, 0 nays. Regular Meeting City Council May 10, 2004 Page 2 Mayor Fendley announced that the next item on the agenda was consideration of and action on the Final Plat, Extended Stay Motel of Paris, on Lot 1, Block A(Lot 14, City Block 103), being located at 1518 Lamar Avenue. A motion was made by Mayor Pro Tem McCarthy, seconded by Councilwoman Neeley, for approval of the Final Plat. The motion carried 6 ayes, 0 nays. Mayor Fendley asked if there were any additions or corrections to the minutes of April 8, 2004 and April 12, 2004, there being none, the minutes were approved as presented. Mayor Fendley advised the City Council that they had been furnished with minutes from the Paris Public Library Advisory Board, Paris Economic Development Corporation, Paris/Lamar County Board of Health, Building and Standards Commission, Historic Preservation Commission, Main Street Advisory Board, Airport Advisory Board, Traffic Commission, and Board of Commissioners, Housing Authority of the City of Paris, with no action being required. The Mayor called for receipt and discussion of structural engineer Cliff Clottey's report and consider possible direction to City staff regarding Brown Bag Park. He advised that the City Council had been furnished a copy of that report. Shawn Napier, City Engineer, advised that the City Council had directed city staff to proceed with hiring a construction engineer to look over the building to see the status of that building and get a recommendation on receiving, removing, or what needs to be done to the building. He said that Mr. Clottrey has looked at the building and his report is in the agenda package. Mr. Napier advised that what he looked at was how to take the building down to a safe condition so it could be used as a park. The cost estimate to do that was $32,000.00 to $38,000.00. The City Engineer said the reason that was so high was because the north and south side walls were so close to the existing Regular Meeting City Council May 10, 2004 Page 3 buildings that a lot of the bricks will have to be removed by hand. To do that a cherry picker or something of that nature, would have to be used to remove the bricks by hand. Mr. Napier said that was for demolition only. Councilman Bell said they could take this report and combine it and whatever it takes to finish it out as the park and that is what the city's total cost is going to be. Interim City Manager Townsend advised that there is no money allocated or available for this project. City Engineer Napier said that the cost of the park would be approximately between $10,000.00 to $15,000.00 to make it a viable park. Interim City Manger Townsend stated that once it is safe, they could come back with some conceptual ideas as to what they could do with the park. He stated they could do that before the city accepted the donation, so they would know what kind of money they were looking at. Mayor Fendley asked if they wanted to get a firm estimate on putting the park in and come back with that as a package, or did they want to pursue this. Councilman Bell questioned the possibility of it being developed in the private sector. Mr. Bell asked if the city could order the current property owners to do the $30,000.00 work and then agree to take the property. Mayor Fendley said as it stands, the owner of the property could come back and build a building or sell it to someone to build a building, or the City of Paris can receive it and build a park. He said that the cost would be approximately $50,000.00 to make the building safe and build a park. City Attorney Schenk advised that at this point, the city is not in a position to order the property owner to do anything as the city has not gone through the administrative process nor has city staff received directions from the City Council to do that. He said where they are, it appears the property owner in lieu of doing anything else with the property, wants to donate it to the City. Amanda Whitaker, 2415 Wildwood Lane, came forward telling the City Council that the nine month time period that was given to the estate was up on Regular Meeting City Council May 10, 2004 Page 4 the Sth of the month. They did file for an extension due to there being some debt and the heirs in the estate are trying to assume those notes and hopefully within a two month time period, it looks like all of it should be closed out. Ms. Whitaker asked if some of the debt that will be incurred in making that property stable, could be reduced by some of the work being done through the prison system or through the Main Street Program. Interim City Manager Townsend advised that it may have a lot to do with how possible it is for an individual to remove those bricks. City Engineer Napier said they did talk about that issue, but what you are talking about there is the prisoners are only here for one-half of a day. He said that basically all the equipment rental and everything that the city is getting the cost would double. He said that the Bonham Prison has a safety officer who comes over and looks at anything that is out of the ordinary that they would possibly get the prisoners to do. Mr. Napier advised that he is going to come and take a look at this and see if it is a viable project. After further discussion, the City Council directed city staff to get a concept of the park and get estimated cost of this project and bring back an estimated cost of finishing out the park. Mayor Fendley declared the public hearing open regarding re-adoption of an ordinance adopting Article III to Chapter 21 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Paris entitled "Curfew Ordinances for Children." Karl Louis, Police Chief, came forward stating that they would like to see this ordinance continued. They feel it is safer for our children and it helps reduce the crime rate, it is an anti-gang tool. He advised that they have not had any negative responses from anyone that he is aware of. Mr. Louis said this the best thing for the parents and children. Mr. Louis urged the City Council to continue the curfew. No one else appeared, and the public hearing was closed. Regular Meeting City Council May 10, 2004 Page 5 ORDINANCE NO. 2004-010 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PARIS, PARIS, TEXAS, ADOPTING ARTICLE III TO CHAPTER 21 OF THE CODE OF ORDINANCE, CITY OF PARIS, PARIS, TEXAS, ENTITLED "CURFEW ORDINANCE FOR CHILDREN'; MAKING OTHER FINDINGS AND PROVISIONS RELATED TO THE SUBJECT; REPEALING ALL ORDINANCES OR PARTS OF ORDINANCES IN CONFLICT HEREWITH AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE, WAS PRESENTED. A motion was made by Councilwoman Neeley, seconded by Councilman Weekly, for adoption of the ordinance. The motion carried 6 ayes, 0 nays. ORDINANCE NO. 2004-011 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PARIS, PARIS, TEXAS, FORMALIZING THE CITY' S STATUS AS ITS OWN SELF- CONTAINED RISK POOL FOR PROVIDING HEALTH AND RELATED COVERAGES TO ITS EMPLOYEES PURSUANT TO CHAPTER 172 OF THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT CODE; PROVIDING FOR THE DESIGNATION OF CITY STAFF MEMBERS AS TRUSTEES FOR IMPLEMENTING SAID RISK POOL; AND DECLARING AN EFFECTIVE DATE, WAS PRESENTED. A motion was made by Mayor Pro Tem McCarthy, seconded by Councilwoman Neeley, for adoption of the ordinance. The motion carried 6 ayes, 0 nays. ORDINANCE NO. 2004-012 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PARIS, PRIS, TEXAS, PROVIDING THAT THE CODE OF ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF PARIS, PARIS, TEXAS, BE AMENDED BY REVISING SECTION 7-156 OF SAID CODE TO INCLUDE THE PLANTING OF GRASS, FLOWERS, Regular Meeting City Council May 10, 2004 Page 6 SHRUBS, AND TREES UNDER "ORDINARY MAINTENANCE"; REVISING SECTION 7-157 OF SAID CODE TO ALLOW FOR CERTIFICATES OF APPROPRIATENESS IN PROPOSED DISTRICTS IN CONFORMANCE WITH THE UNITED STATES SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR' S STANDARDS FOR THE REHABILITATION OF HISTORIC BUILDINGS AND TO REQUIRE COMPLETION OF THE DESIGNATION PROCESS BY THE COMMISSION WITHIN 180 DAYS; DELETING SECTION 7-161 OF SAID CODE; PROVIDING FOR A PENALTY NOT TO EXCEED $2,000.00; REPEALING ALL ORDINANCES OR PARTS OF ORDINANCES IN CONFLICT HEREWITH; MAKING OTHER FINDINGS AND PROVISIONS RELATED TO THE SUBJECT; AND DECLARING AN EFFECTIVE DATE, WAS PRESENTED. A motion was made by Councilman Bell, seconded by Councilwoman Neeley, for adoption of the ordinance. Resolution No.2004-082, approving and authorizing the Regional Controlled Apprehension Program Drug Task Force to solicit bids for the competitive sale of firearms and other weapons confiscated as a result of the Task Force's Drug Interdiction Activity; authorizing the solicitation and acceptance of competitive bids from licensed, registered federal firearms' dealers only; making other findings and provisions related to the subject, and providing for an effective date, was presented. A motion was made by Councilman Guest, seconded by Councilman Weekly, for approval of the resolution. The motion carried 6 ayes, 0 nays. Resolution No. 2004-083, approving and authorizing the execution of Amendment No. 2 to the Texas Community Development Program Contract No. 719068; making other findings and provisions related to the subject, was presented. A motion was made by Councilman Guest, seconded by Mayor Pro Tem McCarthy, for approval of the resolution. The motion carried 6 ayes, 0 nays. Regular Meeting City Council May 10, 2004 Page 7 Resolution No. 2004-084, declaring certain personal property surplus; approving an auctioneer service agreement with Monte Moore Auctioneers and making other findings and provisions related to the subject, was presented. A motion was made by Councilman Guest, seconded by Mayor Pro Tem McCarthy, for approval of the resolution. The motion carried 6 ayes, 0 nays. Resolution No. 2004-085, resolving that an application be made to the U. S. Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, to provide funding for the COPS in Schools Grant Program in the amount of $125,000.00 to pay for salary and benefits of one School Resource Officer over a three year period for Chisum High School, was presented. A motion was made by Councilwoman Neeley, seconded by Councilman Weekly, for approval of the resolution. The motion carried 6 ayes,0 nays. Resolution No. 2004-086, authorizing the submission of a grant application to the Texas Historical Commission for a Certified Local Government Grant to partially fund the completion of an updated Historical Resource Survey of the City of Paris; authorizing the expenditure of funds; accepting said grant award upon notice thereof; authorizing the execution of any and all documents necessary for acceptance and implementation of said grant upon notice thereof; making other findings and provisions related to the subject, and declaring an effective date, was presented. A motion was made by Councilwoman Neeley, seconded by Mayor Pro Tem McCarthy, for approval of the resolution. The motion carried 6 ayes, 0 nays. Resolution No. 2004-087, declaring as surplus a set of used Mechanical Scales as part of the abandoned equipment in the Uarco Building and authorizing transfer of said scales to the Texas Department of Corrections, Buster Cole State Jail in Bonham, Texas; making other findings and provisions related to the subject, was presented. A motion was made by Mayor Pro Tem McCarthy, seconded by Councilman Weekly, for approval of the resolution. The motion carried 7 ayes, 0 nays. Regular Meeting City Council May 10, 2004 Page 8 Resolution No. 2004-088, resolving that the regular Thursday meeting of the City Council scheduled for June 10, 2004, be, and the same is hereby, rescheduled for Monday, June 14, 2004, at 6:00 P.M. and that a copy be placed on the City Hall Bulletin Board giving notice of the rescheduling, was presented. A motion was made by Councilman Bell, seconded by Councilman Guest, for approval of the resolution. The motion carried 6 ayes, 0 nays. Resolution No. 2004-089, resolving that Sherian Dixon, be, and she is hereby appointed Assistant City Clerk to act in the stead of City Clerk Mattie Cunningham when she is occupied with other duties, absent from the City or incapable of acting as City Clerk, was presented. A motion was made by Mayor Pro Tem McCarthy, seconded by Councilwoman Neeley, for approval of the resolution. The motion carried 6 ayes, 0 nays. Mayor Fendley announced the next item on the agenda was approving an agreement with Wollack Testing Service for the use of promotional examination for police and firefighter personnel pursuant to the Civil Service Act. Karl Louis, Police Chief, was present asking the City Council to table action of that item because they wanted time for additional research of this matter before they commit to it. A motion was made by Councilman Weekly to table action of the resolution. The motion was seconded by Councilwoman Neeley and carried 6 ayes, 0 nays. Resolution No. 2004-090, approving and authorizing the expenditure of funds for fiscal year 2003-2004 to pay the cost for training and equipping a Fire Department HAZ-MAT Mitigation Team; and providing for an effective date. Ronnie Grooms, Fire Chief, came forward advising the City Council that he had been approached by various members of local industry, and he had checked his records where he notified a contingency of the local industry of the fact that Regular Meeting City Council May 10, 2004 Page 9 the Paris Fire Department could no longer perform offensive mitigation because of the lack of certification. He said that since that time they have been able to increase their level of certification, but not to the point such that they could begin offensive mitigation. Mr. Grooms explained that offensive mitigation is if they had a HAZ-MAT situation such as a chlorine leak at the Water Treatment Plant, they can respond to that leak and they can set up a perimeter and keep people from going in and control the access. They cannot physically go in and cap that cylinder or do anything that is considered an offensive approach without the proper certification, training and equipment. Mr. Grooms explained that what they have tried to do is address this issue and they have met with Mayor Fendley and various members of the city and members of local industries. He said they have a proposal before the Council that would help them to be able to get where they need to be in order to offensively mitigate these situations. Mr. Grooms explained that they are basically talking about approaching this a step at a time. He said they were not saying that they wanted to begin and open themselves to the whole world of HAZ-MAT, but what they have targeted within the local community is specifically, two separate hazards, one being ammonia, which both Sara Lee and Campbell Soup have, and there are some other smaller companies that use that product, and the chlorine that the city currently uses at the Water Treatment Plant. Mr. Grooms said with these funds, they can purchase the training and the necessary equipment, and put together a HAZ-MAT Team that can respond and mitigate these situations. Mr. Grooms explained that they will start slowly and hopefully they can increase the amount of equipment and training so they can handle even more of the HAZ-MAT chemicals and products that are around this area. Mr. Grooms stated that they wanted to go into this slowly and make sure they get the proper and necessary training for the staff. He said the big point that he wants to make is that they make sure they do what is right for the staff. Mr. Grooms informed the Council that they were talking about 15 to 18 Regular Meeting City Council May 10, 2004 Page 10 personnel that they choose or who volunteer and not the whole department, which would not be cost effective to try to train the whole department. The closest response team is Longview, DLS, which is a private company, that they have used on occasion. They will respond, but they are two hours away. There is also one in Sherman. Mayor Fendley advised the Council that this is not in Mr. Grooms' budget for this year, but he had requested that he bring this forward because he felt that the city needed to work with our industry and go ahead and get this problem resolved. Mr. Grooms explained that the city has applied for a FEMA Grant for their physical wellness and fitness program. He further explained that would allow them to take their personnel, which they are suppose to be doing anyway, and give them comprehensive physicals. The first would be that and immunization and on an annual basis they would have to keep this up. Mr. Grooms said in order to have a HAZ-MAT Team, the city has to make sure they have these personnel who are assigned this duty have their physicals and immunizations. He called the Council's attention to their handout, which shows an option A and option B. Option A is the most expensive but it would allow them to go ahead and incorporate the funding for the wellness and fitness program so they can go forward and initiate the physicals and immunizations for the complete staff. He advised that in that process they can pick the 15 or 18 personnel from that and it will not be a problem. Mr. Grooms said that option B focuses on targeting enough funds for those particular ones. Councilman Bell questioned Mr. Grooms regarding using the Firefighters Association Training, which would not cost the city anything. Mr. Grooms said he did not have a problem with that. But after talking with the Texas Commission on Fire Protection, who certifies the curriculum at this time he was advised that he talk to Texas A&M Extension service and both agencies have confirmed this and they recommend, because the city's personnel are certified through the Texas Commission on Fire Protection, to go ahead get the Regular Meeting City Council May 10, 2004 Page 11 Texas Commission Fire Protection certification training. And, that is the reason they have placed $7,000.00 for training. He advised that on short notice, that was about the only bid they could get. They are also exploring another possibility, and today he received information from another trainer contact, and it may be that they can certify their facilities as a HAZ-MAT training center and have a trainer come in and they might even lower those training cost. Gene Anderson, Director of Finance, came forward advising that if the Council wanted to do this now, as it is not budgeted, if the City Council gives approval and say this is what they want to do, the budget can be amended in the last three months of the fiscal year by moving money around to make it work. After further discussion, a motion was made by Councilwoman Neeley, seconded by Councilman Weekly, for approval of the Resolution using Option No. A. The motion carried 4 ayes, 2 nays, Councilman Bell and Councilman Guest voting no. Resolution No. 2004-091, accepting the recommendation of the Main Street Board to participate in the Visionaries in Preservation Program created by the Texas Historical Commission; authorizing the filing of appropriate applications letters of support, and other necessary documents associated therewith; and declaring an effective date, was presented. A motion was made by Councilwoman Neeley, seconded by Councilman Guest, for approval of the resolution. The motion carried 6 ayes, 0 nays. Resolution No. 2004-092, approving and authorizing the execution of a professional services agreement with ArchiTexas for preparation of design guidelines for the Downtown Historic District, was presented. A motion was made by Councilman Weekly, seconded by Mayor Pro Tem McCarthy, for approval of the resolution. The motion carried 6 ayes, 0 nays. Mayor Fendley called for a report on the status of the Police and Courts Regular Meeting City Council May 10, 2004 Page 12 Facilities. Karl Louis, Police Chief, came forward advising that Mr. Denny Bowls from Brinkley-Sargent Architect was also present and advised the Council that the plans were displayed for their review. He advised that he has furnished each Council Member an update, including the dates and a summary of where they started this project to the present. Mr. Louis said they have reached the point where the building has been taken down to bear bones. He commended Mike Alexander for the outstanding job he has done with the prisoners. Mr. Louis stated that they were at the point where they would like to ask the City Council to consider giving them the authority to advertise for bids for the construction portion of this proj ect. Resolution No. 2004-093, approving plans and specifications for the re- construction and conversion of the UARCO Building to a new Police, Court, and Jail Facility; authorizing the advertisement for bids for said construction, was presented. A motion was made by Mayor Pro Tem McCarthy, seconded by Councilwoman Neeley, for approval of the resolution. The motion carried 6 ayes, 0 nays. Mayor Fendley announced that the next item on the agenda was discussion of the City Audit for fiscal year ending September 30, 2003. Mr. Anderson advised that this was placed on the agenda at the request of Councilman Bell, after the Council had time to review it in case they had any questions. There was no discussion of potential future agenda items. Mayor Fendley called for consideration and approval of future local events for City Council and/or City Staff pursuant to Resolution No. 2004-080. No one had any events for consideration. Regular Meeting City Council May 10, 2004 Page 13 Interim City Manager Townsend gave the Council Members a report in memorandum form. He said if the Council had any questions he would be happy to answer those questions. He advised it covers some of the scheduling the next couple of months in regard to Councilman Guest's request for the consulting firm on the wage survey; the City Manager's firms that will be scheduled May 24, 2004 for interview; personnel changes the Director of Library Services, Betty Landon and Director of Utilities, Herb Campbell retirements. He advised that he had also included a list of Boards and Commissions. Councilman Bell advised that there is another company that has contacted him and Mr. Anderson, but they have not received a presentation from them. He would like to see them put on the list for presentation or at least give a copy of their presentation to the City Council for review. Mr. Anderson advised that he did talk to them on the telephone and suggested that they send him information, which they did, and he told them where the city was in the process and they had narrowed it down to three firms. Mr. Anderson said his review of their presentation, they were not in terms of size nearly as big of as the other firms that the city is looking at and their cost is not substantially different from the ones the city will be reviewing. He said that based on their clientele and positions that they have filled, they are not as experienced as the three that the city is looking at. There being no further business, a motion was made by Mayor Pro Tem McCarthy, seconded by Councilwoman Neeley, to adjourn the meeting. The motion carried 6 ayes, 0 nays. CURTIS FENDLEY, MAYOR Regular Meeting City Council May 10, 2004 Page 14 ATTEST: MATTIE CUNNINGHAM, CITY CLERK