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HomeMy WebLinkAbout07/27/1981 City Council 000917 MINUTES OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF THE COLONY HELD ON JULY 27, 1981 A WORK SESSION of the City Council of the City of The Colony, Texas, was called to order at 7:30 p.m. with the following members present: Richard Turner Mayor Scott North Councilman Norman Adeler Councilman Gary Shipman Councilman Charles Dodds Councilman and with Councilman Upchurch not in attendance; however, a quorum was established. 2. RECEIVE PETITION FROM CONCERNED COLONY CITIZENS COMMITTEE REGARDING STUCCO HOMES Mayor Turner announced that the Council would receive this petition from citizens prior to the first agenda item. Mr. Charles Hammonds, spokes- man for the Concerned Colony Citizens Committee, presented to the Council a petition of 1,329 signatures of residents from all areas of the city. Mr. Hammonds explained to the Council the reasons for this petition and the specific items requested. He stated that initially citizens were upset regarding the stucco housing only, however, in meetings and discussions, it was brought out that citizens also recognized a need for explicit building standards in The Colony. It was also recognized that many citizens were extremely concerned about the amount of rental property in The Colony, and they would like to discourage those absentee landlords that do not have the capital money to properly maintain the rental property. He stated that the petition explicitly requested that the Council consider an ordinance requiring homes to be 75% brick veneer; that all homes be required to have an enclosed attached garage; and that 1200 square feet be the minimum living area allowed in The Colony. Mr. Hammonds stated that citizens would like for the City Council to act promptly on these issues and reques- ted that the issuance of permits be deferred until these requests could receive their due consideration. Councilman North responded to Mr. Hammonds by stating that he also had been concerned with the stucco housing and ini- tiated this response from the Council viewpoint. However, Councilman North stated since his initial concern, this had been discussed with Fox & Jacobs, and a letter had been provided to the city stating that Fox & Jacobs would no longer build the cottages with a stucco finish and that further they had contacted ten of the thirty who had requested this finish, and they have agreed to go with brick. At Councilman Shipman's request, Mr. Bradburry did advise the citizens that we do have all of the same construc- tion codes that other cities maintain. Mr. Hammonds answered that he and the committee were primarily interested in an architecturally restricted ordinance. There followed a very lengthy discussion with a great deal of citizen input regarding the citizens concerns and the Council's proposed action. Mr. Savage did advise the Council that each issue must be considered on its own merits and that a report will be given to the Council at the August 3 meeting; however, the citizens cannot realistically expect all of these issues to be resolved by next Monday. 1. CITIZEN INPUT Bill Baxter, a representative of The Colony Jaycees, requested that the Council consider paying for water service to the Dave Cowan park site for the next budget year. He further stated that the Jaycees have been actively soliciting corporate donations for the initial water hookup at the park and assured the Council that they did intend to be responsible for further development. At this time, he presented to the Council their plans for the development in this area. Councilman Shipman asked if the Park and Recreation Board were aware of these plans. Mr. Baxter advised -1- 000918 that Rick Herold had reviewed them, however the board had not. After discussion of this request, the Council directed the staff to check into the water cost for this park area and to direct these plans to the Park & Recreation Board for further review and study. Wanda Gillett presented 311 letters to the Council requesting that they give serious consideration to the funding of a library. George Gillett added that the reason these signa- tures were procured was in response to the Council concern during the last budget process that only a limited number of citizens were interested in this facility. Another citizen stated that at many of our intersections trees were blocking stop signs. Mr. Savage advised the Council that the staff had been looking into this problem and that no longer did the developer plant a tree in the section of the easement where a stop sign is located. 3. RECEIVE STATUS REPORT ON TEXAS POWER & LIGHT RATE CASE Mr. Savage stated that the Public Utility Commission did hold a meeting in Dallas at 10 a.m. today regarding the TP&L rate increase request. PUC did advise the city that they should have made a final determination by August 4 and then will have ten days after that date to create a proper rate structure. The cities were advised that they had several options in this case; however, they recommended that the cities suspend the rates for a period of 30 days. TP&L would most likely then post bond to put their rates into effect. At this time, the city would then adopt the rates recom- mended by Touche Ross, which would reflect a $32,000,000 increase for TP&L. He stated that the Council probably will be taking action sometime in August. 4. REVIEW OF PROPOSED BUDGET FOR THE 1981-82 FISCAL YEAR Mr. Savage began this budget discussion by outlining the items that are not included in the filed budget. He stated that the requested library supplies had not been included; however, he would like the City Council's permission to pursue a lease-purchase contract for the building owned by Methodist Hospital adjacent to City Hall. He stated that this would be an adequate facility for public use and that, unless a facility was pro- cured, the monies requested would be of no use. Councilman Adeler agreed that this proposal cannot be seriously considered until a facility has been obtained. Councilman Shipman stated that, in his opinion, the library was one of the higher priority items. Mr. Savage also requested the Coun- cil to consider monies for the development of a new master land use plan. This was discussed at the last Planning & Zoning Commission meeting, and it was their request that the city consider the development of an indepen- dent master plan. Mr. Savage recommended a cost figure of $10,000 for this item. The final item for the Council to consider was supplies to be used for street repairs. He stated that labor and equipment was budgeted but, if these materials could not be purchased, he did recommend that the other items be removed from this year's budget. He advised the Council that supplies should run approximately $25,000. Mr. Savage stated that the staff was still predicting a carryover in the amount of one-quarter of a million dollars, and he stated that this large amount will probably never be enjoyed again by the city. However, he did state that the revenue figures could change, particularly regarding building permits if permits were held up because of negotiations with Fox & Jacobs and that for some unknown reason, municipal court revenue has been down in this month. He advised the Council that expenditure estimates are holding true at this time. Regarding the revenue estimates for the 1981-82 budget, Mr. Savage again advised the Council that building permit revenue could be seriously affected by the negotiations with Fox & Jacobs regarding the types of construction within The Colony. Sales tax revenue showed only an $8,000 increase, however, he advised the Council that they could not anticipate a great deal of funds from Griffin Square Shopping Center during this budget year. He advised the Council also that interest from invested city funds was probably at a low estimate, however, if interest does drop which would be good for sales in the city, this figure could also drop. A $25,000 reserve for contingencies was included in this proposed budget. Mr. Savage stated he is of the opinion that a city should have a 2% carryover. -2- 000019 Mr. Savage told the Council that rather than to review each department line by line he would like to review only the packages at this time. The Council concurred. Councilman Shipman stated that he felt the city manager should not only review the packages but possibly give them a priority rating for the Council to consider. Mr. Savage then reviewed the following proposed packages: 1 General Administration--part time clerk $ 4,683 2 Parks & Recreation--2 part time maintenance men 5,120 3 Parks & Recreation--maintenance pickup 8,191 *4 Fire--6 fire department personnel 80,904 5 Fire--fire and medical equipment 8,421 **6 Fire--3 year lease purchase of ambulance 15,000 7 Community Development--2 street maintenance employees 26,527 ***8. Community Development--equipment compound 15,000 9. Police--command rank position 3,739 +10. Police--communications recorder 5,946 ++11. Police--additional officer starting April 1 11,380 *Fire--6 fire department personnel: At this time, Councilman North stated that he felt all six officers should be hired by January of 1982. This would necessitate hiring three officers in October. Council- man Adeler was concerned with the expense on this. The Council also discussed the reason for hiring a fire officer to work directly under the chief. Chief Gothard advised the Council that this person would be responsible for initiating any of the training programs needed when the additional officers were hired. Councilman Shipman also noted that this would be an asset to the commun~z_~_providin~_~time covera~.__ **Councilman Dodds recommended that, if a new ambulance were purchased on a lease purchase plan, the old ambulance could be renovated for use by the Park & Recreation Department. This would save approximately $8,000 now allocated in the budget for a Park & Recreation pickup. ***Councilman Shipman asked if a pole barn was a high priority in this package. Mr. Bradburry stated that it was important that city equip- ment be protected from the weather. Councilman Adeler stated that the staff should look into a possible joint use with the utility district. It was so noted. +Councilman Shipman stated that he felt this was a lower priority item. Councilman North disagreed, stating that this was not a luxury but possibly a legal responsibility for the city. ++Mr. Savage advised the Council that this police officer would be primarily responsible for working traffic exclusively, which would of course be a source of revenue for the city as well. In a brief discussion, Councilman Shipman stated that he felt this position should be contingent upon the 60% funding for the juvenile officer. If, in October, the city does receive this funding then the officer will be hired in April of 1982. The Council concurred that although this position was a needed one, no city monies should be allocated for it at this time. In a brief discussion after reviewing all of the packages, Councilman Shipman asked that the staff consider reducing the Park & Recreation pickup to a used pickup rather than a new one. Councilman Dodds suggested that they look into a three-wheel Cushman for use by the Park & Recreation maintenance people. Mr. Savage explained that this pickup would have, for one of its primary uses, trash pickup and was concerned that the smaller vehicle would not provide adequate carrying space. Councilman North agreed that possibly a used pickup should be provided. At this time, Mr. Savage advised the Council that staff had taken the liberty to post a budget work session for Thursday, July 30, at 7:30 p.m. to finalize many of these budget items before the public hearing, which is scheduled for August 3. The Council concurred with this date for a budget work session. Mr. Savage advised the Council that he would review again the revenue, the packages and line item accounts to determine what can be provided without an increase in taxes of more than 5¢. There being no further action to be taken by -3- 000920 the Council, Councilman North moved that the meeting be adjourned. Seconded by Councilman Dodds, the motion was passed by the following roll call vote: Ayes: Ail members present voted aye Noes: None Mayor Turner adjourned the meeting at 11 p.m. %~CHARD TU~ MAYOR ~ ATTEST: C~VCARROLL, CITY SECRETARY -4-