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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01/04/1993 City Council 00463, MINUTES OF THE CITY COUNCIL MEETING HELD ON JANUARY 4, 1993 The Regular Session of the City Council of the City of The Colony, Texas was called to order at 7:30 p.m. on the 4th day of January, 1993, at City Hall with the following Council roll call: William W. Manning, Mayor Present Mike Lynch, Councilman Present Billy Sharp, Councilman Present Joe Agnew, Councilman Present Tom Bogan, Councilman Present John Dillard, Councilman Present Joel Marks, Mayor Pro-tem Present and with seven present, a quorum was established and the following items were addressed: 1. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE 2. CITIZEN INPUT Ken Wood, 5000 N. Colony Blvd. addressed the council regarding the purchasing procedures of the City, stating that he has noticed the city usually goes with the lowest bidder to save money. Mr. Wood stated that perhaps we are not really saving money by going with the lowest bidder because the product may wear out sooner, thus needing replacement sooner and causing more money to be spent than if the higher bid was accepted in the first place. Mr. Wood encouraged the city to award contracts to the best bid, not just the low bid in this coming year. 3. LETTER OF APPRECIATION TO LARRY MARSHALL Mr. Marshall could not be present due to illness, however, Mayor Manning read a certificate of appreciation which recognized his volunteer service on the police chief selection committee. The certificate will be given to Mr. Marshall by the City Manager. Mayor Manning stated that all volunteer efforts in the city are appreciated and reminded everyone that the cable T.V. volunteer committee could use some assistance. 4. CONSIDERATION OF APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE COUNCIL MEETING HELD DECEMBER 14, 1992 Motion to approve the minutes as written - Lynch; second - Agnew. Motion carried with a unanimous roll call vote. oo463a 5. CONSDERATION OF AUTHORIZING THE ADVERTISEMENT OF BIDS FOR .--. THE SALE OF THE PACKAGE TREATMENT PLANT Bill Hall said the city has tried unsuccessfully three times to sell the plant, noting this time, we are looking for someone to remove the plant and clean the site for parts only, at no cost to the city. Mr. Hall said we will advertise for clearance and materials, stating the plant is of no value to the city. Councilman Lynch said the project should be monitored to ensure satisfactory clean up of the area. Motion to approve the advertisement for bids - Lynch; second - Sharp. Motion carried with a unanimous roll call vote. 7. CONSIDERATION OF A PROPOSAL FROM THE COLONY PLAYGROUND COMMITTEE Bill Hall reminded the council of the presentation received at the last meeting and noted the committee has met. Councilman Bogan said he met with the committee, which is very energetic, going on to say he thinks this is a great project. Councilman Bogan said the site behind the Recreation Center was chosen because it is central to the city, but that alternate locations of Lions Club and Northpointe Park will be considered. Going on the Councilman encouraged citizens to participate in this project, stating it will be done 100% by the citizens and said the committee is asking tonight for the Council to approve the use .--. of the site and to authorize getting a topographical of the area done. Bill Hall said the committee needs to have the city's permission to use the land and stated there is already a topographical available. Councilman Agnew stated the letter of approval by the Council is required for the committee to move ahead. Motion to authorize the preparation of the topographical and a letter of approval authorizing use of the site behind the Recreation Center, with alternate sites available if necessary - Agnew; Second - Bogan. Councilman Lynch asked if is necessary to put a cap on expenditures. Mr. Hall said at this time there are no expenses and Mayor Manning said that is not necessary at this time. Councilman Sharp asked the committee how large the playground would be, stating he does want this to be a quality area. Debbie Satterlee responded stating the committee will wait for the Leathers Co. recommendation before the goal is set, noting it depends on the desires of the committee and how much money is raised. Councilman Sharp said the goal should be high and he feels sure it will be accomplished. Councilman Marks said he was uncomfortable approving the use of the site when he doesn't know the boundaries of the site. Tom Cravens, Director of Public Works said the plans for the site do show where future buildings may be located and those will be passed on to the company, however, Mr. Cravens said the playground area is no more than 20,000 square feet and there is much more area behind the Recreation Center than is needed. Councilman Bogan also agreed there is more than adequate land behind the Center to build ~ 4 00463 - the playground and any future buildings the city may need. Councilman Marks agreed with the concept but questioned where the playground will be built and what is being approved tonight. Mayor Manning said the council is approving the concept and the use of the land behind the Recreation Center (not abutting the building). Councilman Dillard said no city funds are to be expended on this project and if the project goes awry or it is unacceptable then the city can stop the project. Ken Wood stated he wants to see this succeeed, but thinks the plan is too vague and that the company needs to know that there some other possible uses for this site. Mr. Cravens said again that the drawings include the proposed future buildings and that staffwill indicate to the company which land is available. Councilman Agnew said the company does have to have permission before using the land. Councilman Marks said maps should have been available tonight. Bill Hall said approximately one year ago the council did approve football fields in this area and at that time there was no conflict with future buildings. Councilman Bogan stated again, there is more than adequate space for any future buildings and the playground. Councilman Dillard said we have a group of citizens who want to provide the city with a quality facility at no cost to the city, and went on to ask why we should worry about proposed buildings we don't have the money to construct anyway. Ken Wood said he understands Councilman Marks' concern, but also that the company has to know what land is available before they can even design the playground. Going on, Mr. Wood said the council is not approving the construction at this point, noting it is still up to the council to approve the plan. Councilman Marks said he is for the project, but just this evening really learned what the council is approving. Mayor Manning said the company needs to know that the city is behind this effort. Motion carried with a unanimous roll call vote. 9. CONSIDERATION OF A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING AN ADJUSTMENT OF RATES WITH TEXAS WASTE MANAGEMENT FOR RESIDENTIAL SANITATION SERVICE Bill Hall advised the council that each year, pursuant to Sect 25(B) of our contract with Texas Waste Management, the rates for sanitation are adjusted, according to the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Going on, Mr. Hall said he has met with Dwain Pomykal of Texas Waste and the proposed increase is $.07 per month per household, which means the rate will increase from $5.70 to $5.77 per month, plus the franchise fee which will increase $.02 from $1.67 to $1.69, making the total rate increase from $7.35 to $7.44 per month. Motion to approve the resolution as written - Marks; second - Lynch. Councilman Sharp asked if there had ever been a decrease and Mr. Hall said not to his knowledge. Councilman Lynch suggested that when the contract is renewed there be added a provision to decrease the rate in correlation with reducing the waste stream, (recycling). Mr. Pomykal said when this contract was written originally, recycling was very 004630 new and that Councilman Lynch had a good point and the company would be happy to address that issue. Councilman Sharp stated he does not like increases based on the CPI. Motion carried with a the following roll call vote: Lynch - Aye; Sharp - No; Agnew - Aye; Bogan - Aye; Dillard - No; Marks - Aye; Manning - Aye. 6. CONSIDERATION OF AUTHORIZING THE REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS FOR A CURBSIDE RECYCLING PROGRAM Bob van Til covered the highlights of the proposed recycling program. Mr. van Til said the proposal to provide curbside recycling includes such things as: · Mandatory curbside recycling for all residents · Educational and promotional materials · Specific data and statistics of the program · Franchise Fees - 10% · Percentage of proceeds from sale of recyclables Mr. van Til said staff is requesting council authorization to request proposals for a curbside recycling program. Mayor Manning said the city should receive all the proceeds from the sale of the recyclables, not splitting the profit· The Mayor went on to say, since we will by paying a -----. company to pick up our recyclables, we should not split the profits with them. The Mayor also warned about using drop-off centers, in light of the city's past experience with them. Mayor Manning, referencing page 17, asked if 50% is standard for participation and warned against setting the standards too high. Mr. Pomykal said 40-45% participation is good. Councilman Lynch said he thought we got a straight 10% user fee and if so the more that use the program the more money the city will receive, going on to say he leans toward the mandatory program. Councilman Lynch also said the term should be set before the RFP's are sent out, and that continued education of the program needs to be required as well as a break down of the cost for each product picked up so the city can have a better feel for what each company will do for how much. Both Mayor Manning and Councilman Lynch agreed item 5 should be removed, stating the city should not split the profits. Councilman Dillard asked the impact on each household. Mr. van Til said it is hard to say right now, but that in other cities the cost is anywhere from $1.00 per month to $1.75 per month over the regular trash pick up charges. Councilman Dillard asked the purpose of the program. Mr. van Til said the purpose is to divert solid waste from landfills and to re-introduce them as useable products. Councilman Dillard said there would be a quicker impact on landfills if grass clippings were outlawed from trash pick up. Going on, Councilman Dillard said he is not in favor of paying to have someone pick up his recyclables and sell them for a profit and also asked how the program would be enforced. Mr. van Til said enforcement is not part of the program, stating that mandatory just means that .-~ everybody will be billed for the service, whether they use it or not. Mr. Pomykal agreed with Councilman Dillard, stating that grass clippings have a major impact on the landfills and that in the near future there will be a State mandate to ban them, noting that they are still picked up and the volume is considerable. Mr. Pomykal said anything the city can do to ban clippings would be beneficial. Councilman Dillard said if the purpose of recycling is to reduce the amount in landfills then the first thing the city needs to do is ban grass clippings, and going on, the Councilman said he doesn't like to force citizens to pay for a service they won't use. Mayor Manning said history proves that mandatory is the only way this will work and noted that soon everyone will have to recycle. The Mayor also agreed with the need to ban grass clippings. Councilman Agnew asked Mr. Pomykal if there are fewer loads going to the landfill in cities where recycling has been implemented and if so is the cost for trash pick up adjusted accordingly. Mr. Pomykal responded from a industry point of view, stating that revenues from recycling are insignificant because the market is very unstable, however, he went on to say the loads going to the landfills are being reduced, but the benefit from recycling lies in not having to make large expenditures to build new landfills as soon. Ken Wood addressed the council, stating he would be happy to let someone else pick up his recyclables and sell them for a profit, but he does not want to pay for that service. Mr. Wood said there is a town in Ohio that charges residents a $2.00 penalty if they do not participate in the recycling program, but if they do participate, they do not pay anything. Councilman Bogan said residents already pay to have trash picked up and in 3 - 4 years, it will be mandatory that everyone recycles, going on to say he feels we need more study and that the City is not ready for this type program. Motion to postpone for further study, possibly referring to a committee and for public input - Bogan; second - Dillard. Councilman Lynch advised that by 1993 or 1994 grass clippings will be outlawed and by January 1994 the solid waste stream must be reduced by 40% and that we need to do this soon. Going on, the Councilman said in a California city this type program was enacted and the trash pick-up rate was reduced. Councilman Agnew said this is a Request for Proposals which we can review and take action or not, going on to say delay is not a good idea. Councilman Bogan said we are asking companies to tell us what they can do for us and that he thinks we should be specific in the proposals about what we want from the companies. Councilman Bogan said he doesn't want to postpone this for a long time, that we need to look into several other things and specifically tell companies what we want. Councilman Lynch said then we will need to go out for bids not proposals. Drucilla Secor, 5412 Hawse said tabling and requesting citizen input is the right thing to do, but she wondered where grass clippings are supposed to go if the city bans them from the trash pick up. Motion passed with the following roll call vote: Lynch - Aye; Sharp - Aye; Agnew - No; 7 00463'i Bogan - Aye; Dillard - Aye; Marks - No; Manning - Aye. ---- Mayor Manning said the a work session will be held January 11, 1993 at 7:00 p.m. to discuss this issue. 8. CONSIDERATION OF A RESOLUTION REPEALING RESOLUTION NO. 88-08 REGARDING AGENDA PREPARATION Mayor Manning said he had asked the City Secretary to prepare this resolution which adds item No. 8 requiring that matters ending in a tie vote of the council will automatically be brought back for action when it is known there will be a full council. Motion to approve as written - Lynch; second - Bogan. Councilman Marks said this might force items on Consent Agenda to be pulled and forced into a tie so they can be brought back a later time and that this might make us (council) think more about electronic voting. Motion carried with a unanimous roll call vote. 10. CITY MANAGER'S REPORT 1. There will be a public hearing regarding the extension of Josey Lane at 7:00 p.m. on January 7, 1993 at The Colony High School. The extension will run from the intersection of the existing Josey Lane at FM 544 to the existing intersection of FM 423 and Hwy 121. The plans are drawn and the money is available. Mayor Manning said the Council bond election authorized funds to straighten Crider Road and if Josey Lane is extended then that work on Crider doesn't need to be done and the money can be saved. Mr. Hall said there is an aerial of the area in the lobby. Councilman Bogan suggested a letter to the council suggesting the Crider Road project be put on hold. All council agreed. 2. Tom Cravens advised the Christmas chipping will be on January 9, 1993 and encouraged people to bring their Christmas trees to the lot beside the Civic Center. He said if people bring a bag(s) they can have mulch for their own use. Signs are being placed at major intersections. With no further business to address, Mayor Manning adjourned the meeting at 9:13 p.m. ~ROVED: /Q William W. Manning, Mayor ~ ATI~ST: Patti A. Hicks,TRMC, CMC/AAE, City Secretary