Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout01/09/1984 City Council MINU~S OF T~, CT?¥ CO~NCT]', O~ CItY OF ?H'R, CO]',ON¥ ~E'r,D 01',1 January 9, 1984 A SPECIAL JOINT SESSION of the City Council and the Parks and Recreation Board of the City of the Colony, Texas, was called to order at 7:00 p.m. at City Hall with the following Council members present: Larry D. Sample Mayor Scott North Councilman Norman Adeler Councilman Don Amick Councilman Charles Dodds Councilman Marlene Poole Councilman and with Councilman Long absent; however, a quorum was established. Mayor Sample announced that agenda item #2 would be addressed first. 2. PUBLIC HEARING ON THE CONTINUANCE OF THE ANNEXATION INTO THE CORPORATE LIMITS OF THE CITY OF THE COLONY, A 302.462 ACRE LAND TRACT GENERALLY LOCATED DUE NORTH OF THE NORTHWEST CITY LIMIT BOUNDARY ON WYNNWOOD PENINSULA Mayor Sample opened the Public Hearing. City Manager , Janice Carroll read the following Service Plan: Service Plan for a 302.462 acre land tract generally located due north of the northwest City limit boundary on Wynnewood Peninsula. In accordance with 970A Section 10B VACS the following is a statement of governmental service that must be provided in sixty days and capital improvements that must be provided in two and one-half years. 1. Presently the City does have a contract with Denton County to provide fire protection to this area and this service will be continued. Ambulance service can be provided immediately. This land is not developed and has few inhabitants. A large number of medical calls is not expected. 2. The Police Department will review immediately the provision of a new district which will provide for patrol of this area based upon need. 3. Waste collection can be provided upon request. 4. Road and park maintenance can be maintained. There are no recreational facilities on this land. 5. No capital improvements, i.e., streets, fire station, etc., are needed until the land is subdivided and consequently developed. 6. Water and sewer service is not provided by the City. This area can request to be included into The Colony #1 Municipal Utility District for these services. Councilman Dodds moved to close the Public Hearing and direct the City Manager to draw up an Ordinance to annex said property. Seconded by Councilman Adeler, the motion passed with the following roll call vote: Ayes: All members present voted aye Noes: None 1. DISCUSSION OF PROPOSED PARK PLAN Mayor Sample opened the discussion by addressing the concerns of the Softball Association. They are wondering whether or not the softball fields at the Office Creek site will be available for play during the Spring and Fall leagues. He went on to say, if the proposed High School building is going to interfere with the ball fields, it would be necessary to relocate them by August. City Manager, Janice Carroll replied that Mr. Hal Jones, Engineer, was presently surveying the B. B. Owens site looking at the possibilities of relocating the fields there. Mayor Sample advised everyone present that the funds needed for the relocation and improvement of the ball fields would come from the interest earned on the funds received from the pending sale of 13.606 acres. He went on to say, 900 to 1 million dollars of that money would specifically be used for the construction of the new Municipal building. The remainder of the funds would be held in an interest bearing account. These funds would then be allocated as needed for upkeep and/or improvements to the park areas. Councilman Poole added that some of that money would be needed for a new fire station. Some members of the Park Board addressed the problems with the ball fields with what they believe to be a cost saving resolution to relocation of the present facilities. That being, use the dirt from the construct- ion sites to regrade other areas for ball fields. There was also some concern among certain board members as to whether or not the Council would actually respond to recommendations from the Park and Recreation Board. Councilman Amick felt the City could support a public pool for liesure and sunning. Mayor Sample agreed and advise the P & R Board to research this idea as well as inventory all of their present park facilities and review their needs. He added that the Council would always welcome their recommendations. Councilman North recommended that the present dedicated park area's, not presently being used, be named. He went on to express his dismay over citizens of this City being asked to leave certain park facilities, i.e. soccer fields. His comment was followed by a lengthy discussion over the validity of such incidents. Sylvia, P & R Director, advised the Council that the playing fields in question were specifically designated as playing fields, not practice fields. She went on to say that a significant amount of money is spent each year maintaining these fields for play . If citizens were to use them at will, for any activity, they could be damaged and not suitable for playing soccer. She added, there are plenty of practice fields in the City that the public can use at any time. Councilman Dodds suggested that posting signs at the closed fields might be the answer to the con- troversy. Herschel Lindley of Schrickel and Rollins was present and made the following suggestions to possibly aid the Council and the Board in advising the designer of the needs of the City: 1. Inventory all park area's, including school facilities 2. Advise the planner where the problem areas are 3. Tell the planner what you want to emphasize, i.e. soccer, softball, baseball, etc. He went on to say that the best resource for this kind of information is from the citizens of the City. In addressing the problem with the playing fields, he said there are three stages of use with any playing field, the are: 1. Maintenance 2. Competition 3. Non-Competition He added that it is very important for the City to have enough competitive facilities to keep them active, then have secondary fields for practice. Have two sets of standards, competition and non-competition. He said his firm designs park facilities for versatility. They plan for possible changes in the future, i.e. softball today, baseball tomorrow, . etc. After lengthy discussion, the Council and P & R Board basically agreed on all points. The Mayor suggested that "we get the money in the bank, take time to gather the proper information, then proceed". Mr. Lindley added, if they would do this, when it is done, he and the City Manager could get together and discuss the preliminary needs and his firm would prepare a proposal. He went on to say, after all the aforementioned things are done, there should be another joint meeting and public hearing to plan for the needs in the next ten years. With no further discussion, Mayor Sample moved to agenda item #3. 3. CLOSED DOOR SESSION AS AUTHORIZED BY ART. 6262-17 of V.A.C.S. LITIGATION. With no further action to be taken by the Council, Councilman Dodds moved to adjourn the meeting. Seconded by Councilman Adeler, the motion passed with the following roll call vote: Ayes: Ail members present voted aye Noes: None Mayor Sample adjourned the meeting at 12:50 a.m. APPROVED: ATTEST: Ja~City SeCretary