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HomeMy WebLinkAbout07/16/1996 City Council006 MINUTES OF THE CITY COUNCIL MEETING HELD ON July 16, 199~ The Work Session of the City Council of the City of The Colony, Texas was called to order at 7:00 p.m. on the 16th day of July, 1996 at City Hall with the following Council roll call: William Manning, Mayor Present Bill Longo, Councilmember Present Mary Watts, Councilmember Present David Stanwick, Councilmember Present Wilma Avey, Councilmember Present John Dillard, Councilmember Absent (Business) Dave Kovatch, Councilmember Present and with six present, a quorum was established and the following items were addressed: 1. REVIEW AND DISCUSSION OF 1996-97 ANNUAL BUDGET, CAPITAL PROJECTS, AND INFRASTRUCTURE NEEDS Mr. Smith first discussed projected needs with the council, using estimated costs for the following large projects: -- STREET PROJECTS: Street replacement $ 5,162,185 Eastvale Area Street replacement ' $ 2,790,000 Sidewalks 500,000 Waterline replacement 650,000 TOTAL $ 3,940,000 WATER PROJECTS: Billingsley property $ 560,000 IBM property $ 750,000 Wynnewood Peninsula $ 750,000 PUBLIC SAFETY: Fire: Billingsley (station & Equipment) $ 1,280,000 Wynnewood (station & equipment) $1,098,000 Police: Billingsley (personnel & equipment) $ 2,070,000 2 IBM/Ridgepoint/Stew.Peninsula (personnel & equipment) $ 3,452,364 Wynnewood (personnel & equipment) $ 5,604,890 TOTAL $11,127,636 BUILDING & INSPECTIONS: For total build out (personnel & equipment $ 188,276. Mr. Don Blackwood representing Billingsley Development Co., was present and discussed the costs to provide water to their property as soon as possible. Hal Jones, with Hunter Associates, city engineer, said they recommend a 1/2 million gallon over head storage tank to serve the 266 acres. He said the 1 million gallon tank recommended on the IBM tract will provide service to the rest of the Billingsley property and the IBM property as well. He did state that if the council chooses to build a 1 million gallon tank on the 266 acres, that would provide excess storage capacity, but again reiterated the 1/2 million gallon tank is all that is needed. A lengthy discussion followed regarding the existing capacity (water) and what will be needed at total build out of the city. Mayor Manning asked Mr. Smith how he recommends the overhead storage tank for the Billingsley tract be fmanced. Mr. Smith said in preliminary estimates, an 11.26 cent increase per 1000 gallons on the water bills for each customer would produce enough revenue to pay for that project, assuming 25 year bonds at 6.25% interest. Discussion continued regarding impact fees and roll back taxes and if they can be used to pay for this project. Mr. Smith advised all impact fees can be allocated for debt service. Further discussion regarding entering into a developer's agreement with Billingsley whereby the developer pays the cost up front and the city reimburses the developer when the impact fees come in. Councilman Wats suggested that would be the way to proceed so that the city does not have to raise water rates or go into debt for this project. Mr. Blackwood said they are willing to enter into a developer's agreement but he explained that may not mean that they (developer) will pay all the costs up front. He said it may be paid in phases. He continued, stating that he would be glad to work with the city to come up with a satisfactory agreement. Councilman Longo said the city, the developer and First Southwest (fmancial advisor) should come up with a solution and bring it back to the council. Councilman Watts asked if this project can be pieced together until the comprehensive plan is done and we know what the total bond package will be. She said she hates to take a bond issue to the public now and then again later. Mr. Smith told the council that we need to go fast forward with the impact fees, and the interim land use plan. In the meantime, he will work with Boy~d London (First Southwest) to see what the best solution is for this immediate problem. He also reminded the council that currently impact fees are only for water and sewer. The council must decide if impact fees should also be collected for streets and drainage. Mr. Jones said it will take about 6 months to complete the 3 impact fees, maybe less. The council discussed how the impact fees should be structure; amount of fees, when they should be collected, etc. It was generally agreed they should be collected -'" at time of final plat. Councilman Watts asked how soon the figures can be ready so Mr. Blackwood can proceed with development. Mr. Smith said he is not sure, but will get them as soon as possible. At this time, Mayor Manning opened the floor to discuss the items that staff researched at the request of the council during the all day budget session on June 29, 1996. 1. Can the PARD Yard facility be used for recycling storage? At this time, the Parks & Recreation Department uses most of the facility. Other options will be investigated. A grant has been applied for and if approved there may be a recycling center built which would alleviate the problem. During the interim Mr. Smith would like to rent a small storage space. 2. City Manager's van - it will be driven by the city manager one more year. 3. Overtime projections by department were provided. Those amounts will not be significantly decreased with the addition of new personnel. Nor will the cost of using outside consultants will not be significantly reduced with the addition of new personnel. 4. There is not a full time grant person included in the budget. 5. A breakdown of those revenue producing departments was provided so the council could determine what departments for themselves. Only water and wastewater produce enough revenue to support their departments. 6. Can First State Bank Building be leased for a city facility. The bank is only interested in selling the building and the cost is more than the City Manager recommends spending at this time. 7. An inventory of city computers, etc. was provided as well as a discussion of the plan for the future. The city is working toward all personnel using Microsoft software. We will stay with the current network programs, but at some future date we will need to change to another program, which will be a large expenditure. 8. Random Drug Testing - In surveying surrounding cities, only three were found that have implemented this process. Other cities are handling drug testing as The Colony does now; pre-employment testing, police, fu'e and CDL holders. Because of 4th amendment concerns, the city attorney does not recommend random drug testing. Mayor Manning expressed his desire to see this done, stating he has concerns for the safety and well being of the employees as well as the citizens and wants to be sure we are doing everything we can to assure there is no abuse of drugs or alcohol by city employees. Lengthy discussion followed. The em'rent policies should be followed and enforced to alleviate any problems. At this time, Councilman Avey asked that the Eastvale water line replacement and street improvements be discussed. She said the area is below the standards of the rest of the city. She noted there are no fire hydrants in the area and it is very unsafe, going on to say a recent structure might could have been saved if there had been sufficient water. She said she would like to see some money allocated to take care of this area. Councilman Stanwick asked why this should be pulled out of the comprehensive plan and the subsequent bond issue. Councilman Avey said because of the dangerous conditions. Fire Chief, Van Morrison said the structure fire Councilman Avey referred to was difficult to contain, but not just because of the lack of water. The fire fighters could not get through the front of the house to the seat of the fire, due to the number of objects in the house preventing access. He said by the time it opened up, it was too late. He did say that of course, fire hydrants are needed and would have been a benefit. Councilman Longo asked about phasing in the project over 3 - 5 years. He suggested that if a bond issue for that area alone was put to the public it would be voted down. Mayor Manning agreed, stating it will have to be included in the whole bond package. Mr. Smith said the water line replacement could be paid for by revenue bonds which would not require a vote of the people. Mayor Manning said he supports putting in concrete streets in that area but he is not sure when that can happen. He does not support that for this year. Mr. Smith said he will put together alternatives for funding the water lines. Perhaps an increase to the $1.27 that will be added soon to handle the SRF loan for the aeration system at the wastewater treatment plant. Another option would be to increase the per 1000 gallon charge for water. After further discussion, Mr. Smith asked for clear direction from the council on what projects they want him to concentrate on first. Items discussed were Billingsley property water service, Eastvale water lines, fire equipment. Mr. Smith again asked what projects the council wants him to take away from the citizen's review committee and concentrate on right now. The council then agreed the two most pressing projects are the water service on the Billingsley property and the water line replacement in the Eastvale area. There was no decision as to which project could or should be started on first, just that the financing for both should be investigated immediately. With no further business to address, Mayor Manning adjourned the meeting at 9:45 p.m. APPROVED: William W. Manning, ATTEST: Patti A. Hicks,TRMC City Secretary 5