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HomeMy WebLinkAboutminutesPROCEEDINGS OF THE COMMON COUNCIL CITY OF OSHKOSH, WISCONSIN OlHKOlH ON THE WATER REGULAR MEETING held Tuesday, May 13, 2008 at 6:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers, City Hall. Mayor Tower presided. PRESENT: Council Members Jessica King, Tony Palmeri, Burk Tower, Dennis McHugh, Paul Esslinger, Bryan Bain, and Mayor Frank Tower. ALSO PRESENT: John Fitzpatrick, Acting City Manager, Pamela Ubrig, City Clerk, Lynn Lorenson, City Attorney and David Patek, Director of Public Works Council Member King read the Invocation. The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Lindsay Tippins and Jayna Stark from Carl Traeger Elementary School; and, Logan Seckar and David McCarthy from Carl Traeger Middle School A proclamation was presented by Mayor Tower declaring, May, 2008 as, "National Historic Preservation Month" in the City of Oshkosh. Presentation of Awards: On behalf of the Landmarks Commission, Harold Buchholz and Shirley Mattox presented Acanthus Awards to Thomas and Jane Ninzle, 208 East Irving Avenue, for refinishing the wood surfaces and repainting their home with a tri-color palet and accenting elements. Mr. Buchholz and Mrs. Mattox presented Don Tenner and Karen Benning, 1202 Algoma Boulevard, with an award for their work on restoring their porch to its original condition, and to the Oshkosh Northwestern for their balcony and masonry work at 224 State Street. Mr. Buchholz and Mrs. Mattox awarded the final award to Don Stolley for his exhibit re-photography of Oshkosh exhibits. Mr. Buchholz shared photos of buildings downtown during the filming of "Public Enemies". He stated he observed people noticing detail of buildings and the history of them. Public Hearing The Mayor ordered the following Public Hearing: Resolution 08-156 Approve Final Resolution /Revenue Bond Financing / UW-Oshkosh Foundation, Inc. There were no appearances and the public hearing was CLOSED. MOTION: ADOPT (Bain; second, McHugh) 1 CARRIED: Ayes (7) King, Palmeri, Tower, McHugh, Esslinger, Bain, Mayor Tower Proceedings of the Common Council -May 13, 2008 Mayor Tower explained there was a revision made to the Resolution so that the university would possibly get a better rate. Consent Agenda The minutes of the April 22"d, 2008 meeting were approved as presented. The Report of the Acting City Manager was read. Ken Bender, 806 Oak Street, stated his concerns regarding the request for the Memorial Day Procession. Robert Cornell, 548 West Smith Avenue, asked Council to support the Peace and First English Lutheran Neighborhood Picnic. He stated it was basically for the kids that attend Jefferson School, and he extended an invitation to all to attend. Lois Luebke, 619 Division Street, stated she would like to see flags up during the Memorial Day Procession. Deputy Mayor Bain questioned if vendors need to have permits and if there was a way to prohibit vendors from the Memorial Day Procession. Ms. Lorenson explained that the City does not have any current permitting process for vendors in parades. She stated that Sergeant Kroening had worked with some of the organizers pertaining to this issue. She stated she would look further into the process of having permits. The bills were presented in the amount of $ 4,700,336.39. The report of the City Clerk was read. Resolution 08-157 Grant Conditional Use Permits; Approve Planned Development: A) 1314 Oregon Street B) Woodland Avenue Area Council Member Palmeri questioned the proposed parking lot. He questioned if the University would close the entire street. Mr. Kinney, Director of Community Development, explained that this area had been vacated since 2006 and was owned by the University. Resolution 08-158 Terminate Tax Incremental District Number #15 Kurt Koeppler, 1726 River Mill, stated he was one of original developers of the 4 Imprint property and part owner of City Centre. He stated that he would like to see support for an extension of TIF 15 and the earmark of the funds that this TIF creates for the River Walk project. 2 Proceedings of the Common Council -May 13, 2008 Resolution 08-159 Authorize Petty Cash Fund /Oshkosh Public Museum Deputy Mayor Bain questioned where the start up funds come from. Mrs. Steeno, Finance Director, stated that the funds were from the Museum. Resolution 08-160 Award Bids for Tennis Courts at Teichmiller and Westhaven Circle Parks: 1) Fencing (American Fence $30,876.00) 2) Asphalt Work (Northeast Asphalt $33,630.00) Resolution 08-161 Award Bids for Trucks /Truck Equipment for Street Division (Various $255,464.00) Resolution 08-162 Award Bid for Public Works Contract No. 08-03 /Wastewater Treatment Plant Improvements (J. F. Ahern Co. $465,600.00) Resolution 08-163 Approve Recommendations -Urban Deer Management Program Resolution 08-164 Recognize Universal Studios for Filming "Public Enemies" in Oshkosh Resolution 08-165 Disallow Claim / Balthazor Resolution 08-166 Disallow Claim / Otto Resolution 08-167 Disallow Claim / Kobussen Buses Resolution 08-168 Approve Appointments Resolution 08-169 Approve Miscellaneous Licenses MOTION: ADOPT CONCENT AGENDA EXLCUDING 08-1576, 08-158, 08-163, 08-164 AND 08-1696 (Esslinger; second, Bain) CARRIED: Ayes (7) King, Palmeri, Tower, McHugh, Esslinger, Bain, Mayor Tower Resolution 08-157 Grant Conditional Use Permits; Approve Planned Development: B) Woodland Avenue Area MOTION: ADOPT (Esslinger; second, McHugh) CARRIED: Ayes (6) King, Tower, McHugh, Esslinger, Bain, Mayor Tower; Noes (1) Palmeri Council Member Palmeri stated that the University had been promoting itself as a green campus however; the recent projects had been parking lots. He explained that the parking ramp was 3 supposed to solve a lot of the parking issues, so he would not support the resolution. Proceedings of the Common Council -May 13, 2008 Resolution 08-158 Terminate Tax Incremental District Number #15 MOTION: ADOPT (Esslinger; second, Bain) LOST: Ayes (2) Palmeri, McHugh; Noes (5) King, Tower, Esslinger, Bain, Mayor Tower Council Member Palmeri stated that it is not ethical not to retire the TID. He stated that the City needs fiscal discipline and would like to see the district closed. He questioned if it was requested to keep donor TIF #15 open. He questioned when the River Walk was proposed if there was mention of benefiting from another district. He questioned if the project utilized TIF #15 funding, would this lesson the amount of general funds or if it would be the same amount. Council Member McHugh explained he would support due to the fact that it's an obligation to the citizens. He stated funding needed to go through budget and if money is needed for a project, then it should go through the budget process. He questioned how many feet the floating dock was and stated the cost was about $1,000 per foot. He stated there was 2'/ miles of work for the project. He questioned if the School District and Winnebago County would be affected if their share if the money was used. Council Member Esslinger questioned what year the TIF was set to retire. He questioned if passed, would Council have authority to say money would be only used for the River Walk for this year and next, and would money be used for other projects? He stated his support to use the money for River Walk. He explained that the school district was not concerned with the City's financing and this Board should not be concerned with theirs. He stated citizens had positive comments about the River Walk and were questioning when it would be completed. Deputy Mayor Bain stated he agreed with Mr. Esslinger's concerns. He stated that by utilizing the money to reinvest, this would create more increment for the long term. Council Member King stated that River Walk would be authentic for the city and a positive feature for the community to gather. She explained at a time when budgets are tight, citizens look for community sponsored activities. Council Member Tower stated that this was not an ethical issue. He stated that as Council Members, it is their responsibility to vote for what is in the best interest of the City and what is fiscally reasonable at this time. He stated he would not be supporting the resolution. Mayor Tower explained he would not support as to gain more value in the TID. Mr. Kinney explained that the TIF was created in 2001 so the mandatory termination date was 2028. He stated that any project plan would go to Council for review and money from the TID donor would be used for other projects within'/ mile of the district. He explained that the dock would not be a river walk development, but 576 feet of docking facilities. He stated that if the 4 TID was retired all taxing jurisdictions would share in future property taxes from that district. He explained that if the resolution was passed now, money would go back to donors at the end of 2008 and any funds not needed to pay for the original outstanding debt would then be distributed to taxing jurisdictions. He stated that it was always recognized that TIF would play a roll in the financing or River Walk if possible. He stated that the Access project would provide money for the seawall and improvements on the river walk area. Proceedings of the Common Council -May 13, 2008 Ms. Lorenson stated that it would be binding a future Council to have money be used only for the River Walk project. Mr. Fitzpatrick explained that the taxing jurisdictions would receive all of their money if a TID was not retired, it would just be at a later time. Resolution 08-163 Approve Recommendations -Urban Deer Management Program MOTION: ADOPT (Bain; second, Esslinger) MOTION: AMEND TO ADD "NO LATER THAN OCTOBER 28, 2008" TO BRING FORWARD A PROPOSAL TO COUNCIL. (Bain; second, King) CARRIED: Ayes (6) King, Tower, McHugh, Esslinger, Bain, Mayor Tower; Noes (1) Palmeri VOTE ON MOTION TO ADOPT: CARRIED: Ayes (6) King, Tower, McHugh, Esslinger, Bain, Mayor Tower; Noes (1) Palmeri Council Member McHugh questioned the status of the deer project. He explained that two of the options seemed similar. Deputy Mayor Bain stated that he would like a time frame, so that staff, Council and citizens would know when something was going to be brought back to Council. Council Member Palmeri questioned if the time allowance was adequate for the Humane Society. He questioned how the surveys would help due to the fact that some residents would see change while others would not. He stated that he would not support a time frame. Council Member Tower stated his concerns that not having a time frame would stop the process of culling the deer next year. Chief Greuel explained that the four step plan was to be brought before the Council in stages. He stated that letters were sent to 106 residents with a 10% response to set a date to have the Humane Society come. He stated that the time matched the growing season and they were going to videotape to show the process. He stated that another survey would be distributed among the residents to see if changes were made. Mr. Fitzpatrick stated that there was three points in this proposal-working with the United States Humane Society, culling of the deer, and reviewing the possibility for a grant to try to fund the culling process. Ms. Lorenson stated that an ordinance would need to be brought forth to allow the use of 5 firearms in the City. She stated that first was the Humane Society would come in and would then come back to Council with the next steps. She stated that next would be the ban of feeding of the deer. She stated that budget concerns may need to include the price for culling of the deer. She stated that the grant application deadline was in mid-December and notification would be in January. Proceedings of the Common Council -May 13, 2008 Resolution 08-164 Recognize Universal Studios for Filming "Public Enemies" in Oshkosh MOTION: ADOPT (Bain; second, Esslinger) CARRIED: Ayes (6) King, Tower, McHugh, Esslinger, Bain, Mayor Tower; Noes (1) Palmeri Deputy Mayor Bain stated, that citizen Dan Rylance suggested the idea and wrote the text for this resolution. Council Member Palmeri stated that Universal Studios had been given over $4 million dollars in tax credit and that represents the taxpayer's way of saying thank you. Resolution 08-169BApprove Miscellaneous Licenses / Sweetwater Performance Center MOTION: ADOPT (Esslinger; second, Bain) CARRIED: Ayes (5) Palmeri, Tower, McHugh, Bain, Mayor Tower; Abstain (1) King; Present (1) Esslinger Council Member Esslinger stated that he would be voting present due to Sweetwater being a client of his. Council Member King stated that Sweetwater was a client of hers as well. Action Taken on Ordinances and Resolutions Ordinance 08-170 Approve Traffic Regulations MOTION: ADOPT (Bain; second, Esslinger) CARRIED: Ayes (7) King, Palmeri, Tower, McHugh, Esslinger, Bain, Mayor Tower Ordinance 08-171 Prohibit Feeding of Deer MOTION: ADOPT (Esslinger; second, Bain) CARRIED: Ayes (6) King, Palmeri, Tower, Esslinger, Bain, Mayor Tower Noes (1) McHugh Council Member McHugh questioned the amount of food allowed to be considered feeding the deer. He stated that without a time limit as to how often citizens would be allowed to feed the deer he would not support. Council Member Palmeri questioned the memo from Ms. Lorenson and Chief Greuel regarding 6 the little or no enforcement other municipalities had with this ordinance. Council Member King explained that in the ordinance, it was unlawful to feed or entice the deer. She stated that this was a starting point to solve the dispute among neighbors. Deputy Mayor Bain explained that no matter the amount of feed, one would be cited if found feeding the deer. He stated that this would be on a complaint basis. Proceedings of the Common Council -May 13, 2008 Mr. Fitzpatrick stated that an amount of less than '/ gallon can be placed on the ground; any more would need to be placed Eft or higher. Ms. Lorenson stated this ordinance was to create a rebuttal presumption that more than a '/ gallon of food placed less than 6 feet high was considered feeding the deer. She explained other municipalities had little or no enforcement once the ordinance was passed. She stated the Humane Society would educate residents so they would be aware of the outcome if an ordinance was violated. Ordinance 08-172 Amend Ordinance Duties of the Mayor -Awarding Keys to the City and Council Meetings FIRST READING; LAID OVER UNDER THE RULES Citizen Statements John Daggett, 717 Bowen Street, stated the duties and responsibilities of a City Manager. Rick Wing, 923 Taft Avenue, Chairman for Oshkosh 4t" of July Parade, thanked Council for their support with the parade. Ken Bender, 806 Oak Street, stated he and Officer Kaiser had a discussion and his respect for the Police Department was restored. He stated his respect for the Fire Department as well. Robert Cornell, 548 West Smith Avenue, thanked the Council for their performance on Saturday evening at "Oshkosh Goes to the Movies". Council Member announcements, Statements and Discussion Council Member Esslinger stated the downtown workshop would be scheduled once the new City Manager was hired. He explained the workshop would include retail, industrial and downtown development. He stated he had enjoyed Saturday's show and thanked all that attended. Council Member Palmeri stated this was a great first step to hopefully create a year round economical commission. He requested Mr. Laib receive information regarding the workshop on the water tower. Deputy Mayor Bain questioned if this would occur after the new City Manager was hired. He stated he liked the idea of an open forum for a town meeting and then a summit meeting to what 7 was heard and what would be done to move forward. Mayor Tower stated the waiting for the new City Manager was a good idea. He stated following the meeting there would be the workshop on the Leach Amphitheater. He explained May 20t" there would be a workshop for the water tower and citizens could comment and there would be workshops on June 10t" for single stream recycling and June 24t" for storm water. Proceedings of the Common Council -May 13, 2008 Mr. Fitzpatrick stated the Oshkosh Community Foundation donated $100,000 towards a $250,000 facade restoration of downtown and the City was donating $10,000 with monies occurred from the indirect cost of filming "Public Enemies". He stated Scott Matula worked on the facades for "Public Enemies" in Columbus and Oshkosh, and was interested in working with the City again. MOTION: CONVENE INTO CLOSED SESSION TO DISCUSS THE NEGOTIATION AND STRATEGY REGARDING JACKSON STREET AND MURDOCK AVENUE INTERSECTION IMPROVEMENT PURSUIT TO SECTION 19.85 (1) AND (E) OF THE WISCONSIN STATE STATUTES WHEREAS COMPETITIVE AND BARGAINING REASONS REQUIRE A CLOSED SESSION. (Bain; second, Esslinger) CARRIED: Ayes (7) King, Palmer, Tower, McHugh, Esslinger, Bain, Mayor Tower MOTION: ADJORN (Bain; second, Palmeri) CARRIED: VOICE VOTE The meeting adjourned at 8:14 p.m. PAMELA R. UBRIG CITY CLERK 8