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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10/17/1983 City Council MINUTES OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF THE COLONY HELD ON OCTOBER 17, 1983 A REGULAR 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: Larry D. Sample Mayor Scott North Councilman Norman Adeler Councilman Don Amick Councilman Charles Dodds Councilman Marlene Poole Councilman and with Councilman Noel Long absent; however, a quorum was established. 1. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Mayor Sample led the Council and members of the audience in the pledge to the United States flag. 2. CITIZEN INPUT .Mayor Sample recognized Rebecca Ann Thompson of 5528 Gibson, who had several items she wished to present, as follows: (a) She was very concerned with the way in which children were riding their bicycles ~n the city, stating that last Friday on FM 423, she and her husband came very close to hitting a child. She had discussed this situation with the Police Department and was told that there was nothing they could do. Mayor Sample asked Janice Carroll, City Manager, to check into this again with the Police Department. (b) She was concerned that motorists were again using the Texas Power & Light easement at the end of G~bson as a short cut. (c) She stated that newspapers were causing a litter problem in her neighborhood, as they were not being picked up. She also stated that she had called one of the local newspapers which throws ~ts papers free of charge and asked them to skip her house, but she was still getting the paper. Mayor Sample then recognized Helen Gray of 5232 Alpha, who stated that children riding unsafely on bicycles were also a problem in her neighborhood. She said that they often cut across her yard and jump the curbs. 6. RECEIVE STATUS REPORT FROM REPRESENTATIVES OF THE DENTON COUNTY TAX APPRAISAL DISTRICT Mayor Sample introduced Mr. Joe Turner, who was present to update the Council on the Appraisal District. He stated that 1982 was the first year that they had published a tax roll, and they did have some problems getting organized. He stated that the 1983 tax roll did meet all of the deadlines set out by the State Property Tax Board, and he felt they had done a much better job this year. He d~d advise, however, that he felt there were some major problems in the making, and he felt that in order to reap the full benefit from House Bill 62, which set up the Appraisal District, they would have to collect the taxes in addition to appraising property and sending out the notices. Mr. Turner did clarify that each taxing entity would have to authorize the Appraisal District to collect the taxes by holding an election. He did feel that within the next few years, most of the taxing entities in Denton County would be calling on the District to collect these taxes. Mayor Sample questioned how the transferring of the actual money collected would be handled if the District collected the taxes, stating that the City does experience some cash flow problems at the begin- ning of their fiscal year until these mon~es are received. He -1- answered that the District would have no need to keep these funds and that they could probably be transferred almost on a daily basis. Councilman Dodds asked if the taxing entities would have to pay a fee for this collection service, and Mr. Turner answered that in the beginning they would, but as soon as they were collecting for most of the County, it would be a part of the budget. Mayor Sample then asked Mr. Turner if the District would have a choice on how they would assess these fees; on the number of pieces of property or the value of the tax roll. Mayor Sample stated that it would seem more fair to him for it to be based on the number of pieces of property. Mr. Turner advised that the law provides that unless an alternative method is agreed upon, the cost will be spread among all of the taxing entities based on the actual taxes. The taxing entities would have to decide on the alternate method of distributing this cost. MaYor Sample then thanked Mr. Turner for attending the meeting and updating the Council. 5. CONSIDERATION OF COST PROPOSAL SUBMITTED BY HAL JONES, TRAFFIC ENGINEER, TO STUDY TRAFFIC FLOW FROM THE COLONY ONTO STATE HIGHWAY 121 City Manager Janice Carroll was recognized and explained for the members of the audience the need for this study, citing the city's rather drastic traffic flow problems at the present time, and she also advised that Mayor Sample had suggested that a traffic engineer be contacted. Mayor Sample then recognized Mr. Hal Jones, who explained what he would be doing. He emphasized that he would need to study the situation beginning well before the traffic begins to build up in order to determine where it originates. He would, of course, do these studies both in the morning and evening. He said that he would then attempt re-timing of the signals, if he felt it would help, explaining that this would have to be by trial and error, as there was no way to be sure that this re-timing would help until it was done and the traffic studied again. He sai. d that the study would not cost any more than $1,800. Mayor Sample then asked if the city had ever had a traffic engineer, and she stated that we had not ever had a separate individual outside the city staff with this designation, but some traffic engineering work had been done in the past by the city's engineering firm. Councilman Poole then asked if this study would include the intersections of North and South Colony Boulevards with FM 423. Mr. Jones answered that in his study, since he will be observing where the traffic is coming from, these intersections will naturally be looked at as a part of the overall problem. Mr. Jones also stated that Highway 121 was carrying about twice as much traffic as it should. He had also spoken with the State Highway Department, and they admitted to him that they had not evaluated the signals on Highway 121 to see if they were properly timed. Mr. Jones did advise Councilman Poole that he could do the survey on FM 423 in lieu of the state, but the state would have to approve the survey when it was done; he would give them a recommendation based on his study. Mayor Sample asked Mr. Jones if he worked with COG, stating that at a recent meeting he attended at their offices, they displayed a map of Denton County roadways which was outdated by about ten years. Mr. Jones stated that he had worked with COG in the past and was familiar with their operation, but he did state that if up-to-date information was not furnished to them, they would assume what they had Was correct. Councilman Adeler stated that he had recently provided the COG office with some up-to-date information. There followed a lengthy discussion concerning the timing of this traffic study during which the following points were made: Would the study be valid if done during the time that Crowder Road is closed, since the situation will change as soon as Crowder is open again. Would any study of FM 423 be valid before the widening of this road is completed. It was pointed out that the original reasoning behind contacting a traffic engineer at this time was to look into the particular problems caused due to the closing of Crowder Road. --2-- Mr. Jones was asked if he would give The Colony the same rate for his service, if he were retained as the traffic en91neer, since traffic is definitely an ongoin9 problem. There was a brief discussion of which days would be best for conducting the study, and Mr. Jones stated that Tuesday through Thursday were considered to be the average traffic days. Regarding the timing of the study, Mr. Jones stated that traffic signals should always be checked at least every six months, therefore, any t~ming work that is done should not be expected to be permanent. Regarding the intersections on FM 423, he clarified that the determin- ing factor would be the amount of traffic on the cross streets entering FM 423, therefore, it should not matter whether or not the widening was completed. He advised further that these traffic studies can even be made using projections of future traffic and that the state has approved such studies in the past. Mr. Jones also clarified that once the state approved a location for a traffic signal, it could be ~nstalled any time thereafter. The determining factor would be whether or not the state was being asked to provide the signal with their own funds, in which case it would probably take around 260 days, their average timetable. If, however, the City wished to pay for a traffic signal, the timing would be up to them. Mr. Jones advised further that a traffic signal would cost about $55,000 to $65,000. At this point Councilman Dodds requested an item on an agenda in the near future to consider retaining a city traffic engineer. Councilman Poole stated that she would also be in favor of doing this, and she also asked Mr. Jones about the possibility of using temporary signal lights at some intersec- tions, similar to some she had seen at the TML convention in Houston. Mr. Jones stated that there would probably be limitations on what the controller in one of these temporary signals could do, and he did not think that the state would accept one of these signals for use for any length of time; he said that they are generally used in emergencies when a signal is out. Councilman Amick asked, ~f Mr. Jones' proposal was accepted, how soon would there be a change in the timing of the signals, and Mr. Jones answered it would probably be in about a week. Councilman Amick then stated again that since Crowder Road would probably be open in about two weeks, possibly this study should not be done until after this road is opened. Councilman Amick also felt that we should contact the state, since the City was paying taxes for these signals. Mrs. Carroll clarified tht the state had been contacted and had come out but that they seem to fix the immediate problem without studying the overall problem to see if any improvements are needed. Councilman Amick then moved to authorize this work to be pursued at the intersections identified by the City Manager at such time as Crowder Road is Completed. Councilman North seconded this motion. Mayor Sample agreed that this study should be delayed if Crowder Road will actually be open in about two weeks, but he did state that if there were delays in the completion of this road, it might be worth spending this money to get this temporary traffic situation corrected. Mr. Jones then clarified for Mayor Sample that the end of next week would actually be the time frame for his completion of the traffic study. Councilman Amick then made a new motion to authorize Mr. Jones to go ahead with the study whenever his time was available. This motion was not seconded. Mayor Sample then called for a vote on the motion on the floor, which passed by the follow~ng vote: Ayes: All members present voted aye Noes: None 3. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Councilman North moved to approve the minutes of the Regular Session held on October 3, 1983. Seconded by Councilman Dodds, the motion passed by the following vote: Ayes: All members present voted aye Noes: None -3- 4. CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION REQUESTING A LEASE FROM THE U.S. CORPS OF ENGINEERS FOR THE USE OF MUNICIPAL ATHLETIC FIELDS Mayor Sample read the following Resolution aloud: WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of The Colony, Texas, wishes to formally apply for a Department of the Army lease for twenty-five years for public park, athletic, and recreational purposes on Lake Lewisville Reservoir. BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF THE COLONY, TEXAS: That Janice Carroll, City Manager of the City of The Colony, Texas, be, and she is hereby, authorized and directed to execute and submit the attached application for a twenty- f~ve year Department of the Army lease for public park, athletic, and recreational purposes on behalf of the City of The Colony, Texas, to the District Engineer, U. S. Army Engineer District, Fort Worth, P. O. Box 1600, Fort Worth, Texas, and to do such other and further acts, and to execute such additional instruments as may be necessary and proper to carry in force and effect the terms and provisions of such application and to enable the City or County to accept any lease granted as a result of said application and to fulfill any require- ments made by the proper authorities with reference thereto. PASSED AND ADOPTED THIS DAY OF , 1983. /s/ LARRY D. SAMPLE, MAYOR ATTEST: /s/ JANICE CARROLL, CITY SECRETARY Councilman Poole moved to approve this Resolution. The motion was seconded by Councilman Adeler. Janice Carroll, City Manager, stated that this item was on the agenda tonight at the request of Councilman Long, and that this Resolution dealt with an area on the west side of FM 423 across from the CATV facility. Council- man Amick stated that he thought the Resolution should be re-written to give a stronger emphasis on why the City is seeking this land and that it should include a statement as to the needs of the community and the desires of the City Council. Mayor Sample did clarify that a formal proposal would go along with this Resolution, and that these needs would be set out in the proposal. Councilman Amick then asked if anything in this process would restrict the construction of fencing for ball fields. Mrs. Carroll stated that all of this would be clarified during the proposal process. Councilman North then stated that his concern with this Resolution was that it was very vague and could apply to any area of Corps property around Lake Lewisville. He advised further that he would like to see somewhere in the Resolution a description of the area. Councilman Adeler suggested stating that the area was adjacent to The Colony. Councilman Dodds felt that the proposal which would go along with the Resolution would sufficiently take care of the details. Councilman North then stated that he was concerned with why we were rushing this right now, as he felt that it was premature at this t~me. Councilman Amick agreed, stating that he was also concerned that the wording was very vague and the City might end up getting an undesirable piece of property. Councilman North suggested that the area might be described as recreational properties on Lake Lewisville generally south of North Colony Boulevard and north of South Colony Boulevard and west of FM 423. Councilman North then suggested that an updated Resolution could be passed at a later date when there is an actual application, and it could then include a description of the property. Mayor Sample then called for a vote on the motion on the floor, which passed by the following roll call vote: Ayes: All members present voted aye Noes: None -4- 7. CLOSED DOOR SESSION AS AUTHORIZED BY ARTICLE 6252-17 OF VERNON'S ANNOTATED CIVIL STATUTES, AS AMENDED A. BOARD APPOINTMENTS B. PERSONNEL Mayor Sample announced that the Council would now meet in a closed door session concerning the above matters. 8. CONSIDERATION OF BOARD APPOINTMENTS A. PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD B. INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION C. BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT & APPEALS Upon reconvening in open session, Mayor Sample announced that no action would be taken on these appointments. There being no further action to be taken by the Council, Councilman Dodds moved that the meeting be adjourned. Seconded by Councilman North, the motion passed by the following vote: Ayes: All members present voted aye Noes: None Mayor Sample adjourned the meeting at 12:30 a.m. [ ~LE ,~AY~R ATTEST: JANICE CARROLL, CITY SECRETARY -5-