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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01/03/2005 City Council (J U g 0 :0. .. January 3, 2005 MINUTES OF REGUALR SESSION OF COUNCIL HELD ON I JANUARY 3, 2005 The Regular Session of the City Council of the City of The Colony, Texas, was called to order at 7:00 p.m. on the 3rd day of January 2005, at City Hall, 6800 Main Street, The Colony, Texas, with the following roll call: John Dillard Mayor Present Allen Harris Councilmember Present Scott Ward Councilmember Present Joe McCourry Mayor Pro-tern Present Lynda Bayliss Councilmember Present Perry Schrag Councilmember Present Joel Marks Councilmember Present And with seven council members present a quorum was established and the following items were addressed: 11.0 I ROUTINE ANNOUNCEMENTS, RECOGNITIONS AND I PROCLAMATIONS: Call to Order I Invocation - Mayor Dillard Pledge of Allegiance to the United States Flag Salute to the Texas Flag Citizen Input- none Announcement of upcoming civic events and activities 1_ City Secretary Christie Wilson advised the council of Legislative changes that will affect upcoming municipal elections. Mayor Dillard read a statement regarding flags being flown at half-staff through the end of this week due to the devastation resulting from the Indian Ocean tsunami. I 2.0 I CONSENT AGENDA I 2.1 Consider approval of minutes of special and regular council meetings held December 6, 2004 (Wilson) 2.2 Consider approval of council expenditures for the month of November (Council) 2.3 Consider approval of a resolution authorizing intervention before the Railroad Commission in Gas Utilities Docket #9530, authorizing participation with other cities served by Atmos Energy (formerly TXU Gas) in administrative and court proceedings involving a Gas Cost Prudence Review related to a September 2004 filing, appointing a representative of the I 1 These items are strictly public service announcements. No action will be taken and no direction will be given regarding these items. I UU Q 'J() . " (\ C, ,"-,', January 3, 2005 city to serve on a steering committee and requiring reimbursement of reasonable legal and consultant expenses (Sparkman) 2.4 Consider approval of a resolution suspending an interim rate adjustment (GRIP rate increase) proposed by Atmos Energy (formerly TXU Gas Company), authorizing participation in a steering committee to review the proposed rate increase, appointing a representative of the city to serve on a steering committee, authorizing intervention in any proceedings related to the proposed rate increase and requiring reimbursement of reasonable legal and consultant expenses (Sparkman) 2.5 Consider approval of an ordinance amending the Code of Ordinances Chapter 10 Health and Sanitation regarding the collection of water and declaring a public nuisance (Persaud) Motion to approve the above consent agenda items-McCourry; second by Ward; motion passed with all ayes. I 3.0 I REGULAR AGENDA ITEMS I 3.1 Discuss and consider approval of a resolution awarding bid and approve construction contract for Austin Ranch and Slay/Baker park improvements (N elson) Assistant Parks Director Sam Fitzgerald reviewed the proposed improvements to Slay/Baker park and the plan for a new soccer/multipurpose field and walking path for Austin Ranch. It was explained that the city is responsible for the -----. maintenance and watering cost of the Austin Ranch project. The adjacent grove of trees will be thinned but not eliminated. Pam Nelson advised the new facility will be primarily for the Austin Ranch residents but available to others with reservation. There were concerns voiced over the lack of additional parking spaces and the lack of a barrier fence between the field and the street. Though Pam said it was felt the parking would not be a problem they will check out the possibility of adding a parking lot. Construction should begin in about ten days. Motion to approve- Harris; second by McCourry; motion passed with all ayes except for Ward who voted no. 3.2 Discuss and consider approval of a resolution authorizing revisions to the Development Agreement and Ground Lease Agreement with Marine Quest, Inc. for the sublease of Hidden Cove Park, and superceding the previously approved documents (Dillard) Mayor Dillard advised he requested this item be brought back to council due to another council member wanting more specific information in the agreements. Marcel Bosworth with Marine Quest told the council that he has reviewed the proposed changes and is in agreement with them. City Attorney Bob Hager addressed council stating that there were some pages in --".,-- the original ground lease agreement that had some blanks, and upon further review he has edited those particular segments as they were not applicable. 2 - - UUgO~=1 January 3, 2005 Citizen Eric Flint of adjacent residential Saratoga development advised he is opposed to this development in Hidden Cove Park for a variety of reasons. His I concerns included the road conditions approaching the park, increased noise and boat traffic, trash, homeowner security, and property values. He suggested the lodge be located farther away from Saratoga. Kevin Bird, also of Saratoga, spoke of future development planned by Frisco along Hackberry Road. He also stated he and Eric Flint were appointed by the Saratoga residents to represent them. Councilmember Allen Harris stated he is concerned with the changes to the agreements being too specific. Councilmember McCourry added that the developer is already under strict guidelines from the Corps of Engineers. He and Councilmember Bayliss agreed with Mr. Harris. Councilmember Schrag asked if they could reach some common ground on the issues. There was a concern expressed over revised agreements causing a further delay with the Corps of Engineers. City Manager Dale Cheatham the council if they did not approve these changes then the agreements approved on December 6, 2004 will remain in effect. With further discussion among council and the city attorney, changes to the developer agreement were made to sections 2.3, 2.17, 2.20. The changes in the ground lease agreement include eliminating the blank line on page 1; in Article 6.02 the sentence regarding "floating rate" was struck; Article 17.01 (a) (ii) was struck entirely and the remaining sections were renumbered. I Motion to approve as read and requested by the city attorney- Harris; second by Schrag; motion passed with all ayes. Mayor Dillard suggested to the Saratoga residents that they appoint a spokesperson to work with the various cities and county commissioner Cynthia White regarding the issues brought forth. Councilmember Marks added that the Saratoga homeowners association should meet with Marine Quest. 3.3 Discuss and consider approval of a resolution awarding bid and approve construction contract for improvements and expansion of Stewart Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant (Scruggs) Assistant City Manager Tony Johnston told the council that TCEQ has notified him that there is a problem with the permit application, and that he plans a trip to Austin to clarify the issues. He asked the council to not address this agenda item at this time. Councilmember Harris asked for the Technologies Board to review the contract as well. No action taken. I 3.4 Discuss and consider approval of a resolution adopting a citywide Master Plan and Modeling of Water System and Well Feasibility Study as prepared by Chiang, Patel & Yerby, Inc. (Scruggs) 3 UUgO~~ ,.~ January 3, 2005 City Engineer Gordon Scruggs reviewed the background of the study and added that there will be limited pipe connections and no dead ends (looping pipeline). He added that some of these plans have already been started. Steven Riddle of Chiang, Patel & Yerby gave an overview of the Water System Master Plan including population and water demand projections, supply vs. demand, and improvements to the existing systems. It was noted that Austin Ranch's water well will access the upper zone and not impact the city's water supply. Councilmember McCourry noted a discrepancy in the wording regarding well development south of S.H. 121. These references will be corrected to "restrict". He also asked about converting all the city's wells to ASR. Gordon advised the city wells are generally functioning well and that possibly a future ground water district could have an effect. Tony Johnston added that the ASR wells are planned for the areas of largest growth. Motion to approve the Master Plan and Feasibility Study- Marks; second by McCourry; motion passed with all ayes. 3.5 Discuss and consider approval of a site plan for Lot 1, Block A, Colony Plaza Addition located north of S.H. 121 and west of Blair Oaks (Persaud) Planning Director Harry Persaud reviewed the proposed site plan and added this project is approximately twenty thousand square feet of retail and restaurant. He also stated that stipulations numbered three and four of the Planning and Zoning Commission have already been met. Councilmember Harris voiced concern that the rear of the building has no screening from the adjacent hotel. Harry advised there is no requirement for it. Bill Gates, developer of the building project, stated they can add some landscaping. Motion to approve with additional rear landscaping and the P&Z stipulations- Harris; second by Ward. Councilmember Marks asked if the hotel should be contacted about the need for additional landscaping prior to asking the developer to do this, or just go ahead. Bob Hager advised he wouldn't suggest contacting the hotel. Councilmember McCourry Called the Question. Mayor Dillard took a vote of the council on whether to allow further discussion or take the vote (requires 2/3 vote). Harris and Marks voted against taking the vote without further discussion. Council was then asked to vote. Motion passed with all ayes.. 3.6 Presentation regarding prioritizing individual road projects funded by Denton County in agreement with TxDOT for converting S.H. 121 to a toll road and receive direction from council (Johnston) Tony Johnston presented council with his proposed priority list of road projects. These projects are dependant on funding as it is received from Denton County as stated in the agreement with TxDot for converting S.H. 121 to a toll road. He added that F.M 423 is going to require relocation and some reconfiguration of a twenty-four inch water main and acquiring easements for it. He also noted that 4 OOgO~:\ " January 3, 2005 due to the construction on S.H. 121 staff felt that completing the Memorial Drive segments are important to assist with east/west traffic. His priority list is as follows: I (I) F.M. 423 ROW Acquisition and Utility Relocation (2) Memorial Dr. - Paige to Worley (3) Memorial Dr. - Blair Oaks to Paige (4) Paige Rd.- South Colony to North Colony (5) Memorial Dr. - Worley to Navaho (6) South Colony - Memorial Dr. to S.H. 121 The total dollars allocated for these projects is $18,300,000.00. Tony also presented council with his timeline for the different projects as it will be presented to Denton County. Mayor Dillard questioned the wisdom of making FM 423 the priority since it will take 24 months to do environmental assessment and engineering and will not be until 2008-09 before we can really do much on FM 423. City Manager provided some comments to include a response to Mayor Dillard's comments concerning FM 423. Mr. Cheatham reminded the Council that a few months ago the City Council approved a resolution asking the County to move forward on Boyd Road as expeditiously as possible and although that is a separate issue staff is assuming that is still a Council priority. Mr. Cheatham agreed with the Mayor that we likely will not be in a position for a couple of years to spend dollars on FM 423 I for the items we have responsibility for, but recommended this still be kept at the top of the list to communicate to the County its level of importance even if the first dollars received by the City did not go to FM 423. Mr. Cheatham indicated that since we would not get funding for all the projects in the first debt issuance we may want to pick out a few of the projects to do initially along with engineering for all the local projects so we would be in a position to move forward on the projects once additional funding becomes available. Councilman Harris agreed that FM 423 should stay at the top of the list and wanted to see sections of Memorial receive funding early on. He also indicated that Boyd was a priority that the County should move forward on because that was communicated to the citizens, but that is a separate issue from the MOU. Motion to approve road project priority list as presented- McCourry; second by Marks,. motion passed with all ayes. 3.7 Discuss and consider approval of a resolution authorizing an engineering services contract, pending the funding allocation from Denton County, for certain road projects associated with the S.H. 121 toll road Memorandum of Understanding (Johnston) Tony Johnston asked for council approval on the engineering contract in order to I begin the engineering on four of the projects as stated in 3.6 (items #3, #5, #4, and #6) when funding becomes available. Dale Cheatham advised the council the purpose for taking this step at this time is to communicate to the county that the city is ready to move forward. S OO?O~ January 3, 2005 Motion to approve- Ward; second by Marks; motion passed with all ayes. 14.0 I EXECUTIVE SESSION I 4.1 A. Council shall convene into a closed executive session pursuant to Section 551.071 of the Local Government Code to consult with the city attorney regarding pending litigation between the City of Frisco, North Texas Municipal Water District and the City of The Colony. B. Council shall convene into a closed executive session pursuant to Sections 551.071 and 551.072 of the Local Government Code to discuss with the city attorney potential litigation, real property deliberations and acquisition of property along State Highway 121 located in the central portion within the jurisdiction of The Colony. Reconvene to Open Session 4.2 A. Any action as a result of executive session regarding pending litigation between the City of Frisco, North Texas Municipal Water District and the City of The Colony. No action on this item. B. Any action as a result of executive session regarding potential litigation, real property deliberations and acquisition of property along State Highway 121 located in the central portion within the jurisdiction of The Colony. -,- No action on this item. And with no further business to discuss the meeting was adjourned at 10:56 p.m. APPROVED: CI/ '2J1ff2 ~.m Dillard, Mayor ity of The Colony ATTEST: (r;~~j~L W~ hristie Wilson, TRMC, City Secretary 6