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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutesPROCEEDINGS OF THE COMMON COUNCIL CITY OF OSHKOSH, WISCONSIN OlHKOlH ON THE WATER REGULAR MEETING held Tuesday, July 8, 2008, at 6:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers, City Hall. Mayor Tower presided. PRESENT: Council Members Bryan Bain, Jessica King, Tony Palmeri, Burk Tower, Dennis McHugh, Paul Esslinger, 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. Deputy Mayor Bain read the Invocation and led the Pledge of Allegiance. Mr. Sonnleitner presented Mayor Tower with an award for reading the Declaration of Independence on July 4t", 2008. Public Hearing The Mayor ordered the following Public Hearing: Resolution 08-235 Approve Final Resolution -Paving, Grading and Graveling, Sidewalk, Driveway Approach, Utilities -Wisconsin Street, Ohio Street and Witzel Avenue MOTION: ADOPT (Bain; second, Esslinger) CARRIED: Ayes (7) Bain, King, Palmeri, Tower, McHugh, Esslinger and Mayor Tower Laura Langkau, 1310 Moreland Street, explained she owned a business on the corner of 8t" Avenue and Ohio Street and that she was not satisfied with the Ohio Street project and her assessments. She stated that 8t" Avenue was in good condition and questioned why there was a charge for sanitary and storm lateral connection, since her business was connected on 8t" Avenue. Council Member Palmeri stated that on March 25t" the resolution for construction on Ohio Street was passed and it stated there was going to be a report prepared for public inspection as to the type of assessments there were. He requested a copy of the report to review. Mr. Patek stated that the report was included in the packets the property owners received with specific cost for items benefitting that property and it was only an estimate. He stated that if the property was connected to laterals from 8t" Avenue there was no need to connect from Ohio Street and there would be no charge. He stated that dimensions given were worst case scenario. 1 Proceedings of the Common Council -July 8, 2008 Council Member Tower questioned if the property owners could negotiate on the completed bill if they did not agree with the amount. Mr. Patek stated that municipal code requirements were followed and other issues would be evaluated as the project continued so the property owner would be notified of answers to her questions. He stated that the construction was being done through the Department of Transportation and the City was involved only because the work was in the City. Mr. Fitzpatrick stated that as the project progressed the City would be in communication with the Department of Transportation and that concerns would be addressed to them. Council Member Palmeri questioned if the property owner understood the explanations. Mrs. Langkau stated she understood the explanations however she suggested to change the codes due to the fact that streets were not going to be redone every 25 years. Council Member Palmeri questioned why resolutions were published in the paper. He stated that he thought only ordinances were to be published. Ms. Ubrig stated that certain resolutions were to be published. Council Member Palmeri questioned if this resolution fell under the Act 72 guidelines and only a summary would need to be published. Ms. Ubrig stated that after a quick review it would not. Ms. Lorenson explained that Act 72 related to ordinances and that this publication requirement came under the special assessment section of the state statutes. Council Member Palmeri stated that he spoke with someone from The League of Municipalities and they were under the impression that only ordinances needed to be published. Ms. Lorenson questioned whom he spoke with, so she could address the issues with them. Council Member Palmeri stated that he spoke with Claire Silverman. He stated that his concerns with the amount of money being paid to Gannett for publications and if resolutions were not required to be published then he recommended not publishing. Ordinance 08-236 Amend City of Oshkosh Comprehensive Plan /Land Use Element There were no appearances and the Public Hearing was CLOSED. FIRST READING; LAID OVER UNDER THE RULES Consent Agenda 2 The minutes of the June 24t", 2008 meetings were approved as presented. Proceedings of the Common Council -July 8, 2008 The Report of the Acting City Manager was read. The bills were presented in the amount of $3,564,321.57. The report of the City Clerk was read. Resolution 08-237 Waive Bids and Contract for Repair of Clarifier for Wastewater Treatment Plant for Public Works Department ($119,427.40) Council Member McHugh questioned why there was only one bidder for the center column. Mr. Brand, Superintendent of Utilities, stated that contractors had been polled to see which one would be available to do the work and quote prices. Resolution 08-238 Grant Temporary Easement /East County Road Y Resolution 08-239 Amend Development Agreement Terms /Akcess Acquisition Group Dick O'Day, 715 Hazel Street, stated that this was a Five Rivers project all over, with a lot of promise and no delivery. He stated that not once was the amount to be paid by taxpayers ever brought forth. Mike Kolcheck representing Akcess Acquisition Group, stated that the office complex would be moving forward this year. Jay Supple, 1621 Congress Avenue, stated that the project continued to move forward and displayed a floor plan and an outside elevation plan. Louis Luebke, 619 Division Street, questioned what was to be built on the land, the size of the lots and how the size was determined. She stated that condos were not a great investment, office space was everywhere and she was not sure if the hotel would be beneficial or not. She stated that she thought the park should be larger. Mayor Tower stated that there was an office building, a restaurant and a hotel with the possibility of condos. He stated that the size was determined by City Staff and City Council. Council Member McHugh questioned what kind of construction must commence by December 31St, if there was a plan or a blueprint to let the public know the development was happening. Mr. Kinney, Director of Community Development stated that the developers would need to receive a building permit, break ground and start construction. He explained in order to get a building permit there would need to be construction drawings and begin working on the foundation and other aspects. 3 Mr. Kolcheck stated that construction would mean there were crews on site, working with building permits. He stated that concrete could be poured all winter. Proceedings of the Common Council -July 8, 2008 Council Member McHugh questioned the continuity to the construction. Mr. Kolcheck responded that if there were a cold spell there could possibly be a stretch where construction would be at a stand still; however, building would be done through the winter. He explained it was in the best interest of the contractors and the owners to start before the end of December. Council Member McHugh stated that he was not confident construction would happen before next year. He questioned if the City terminated that contract could Redevelopment Authority not accept termination and if the Redevelopment Authority had authority over the Council. Mr. Kinney explained the language stated that the City, Redevelopment Authority or Akcess could terminate if construction was not commenced before December 31, 2008. He stated that the City and Redevelopment Authority would need to concur on the decision for termination. Council Member Palmeri questioned if a resolution was needed in order to be able to terminate. He questioned why the resolution needed to be approved before moving forward with a request for a Brownfield's Grant and questioned if the grant would be needed for any development that would happen. He questioned if the developers had secured enough tenants to move forward with the office building and if Akcess terminated the agreement by December 31, 2008, would they then be freed from the guaranteed tax payment. He stated that if Akcess were to terminate the contract and not be held responsible for tax payment, the City would still have debt responsibilities. He questioned if the "City reimbursing" actually means the tax payers would reimburse. Mr. Kinney stated that the resolution provided a streamline approach relative to timing. He explained the Department of Commerce Brownfield's Grants needed a project to be proceeding in order to be competitive. He stated that the developers needed to proceed with a construction schedule and if the resolution was approved the developers would move forward to create a construction schedule. He explained what needed to occur before ground breaking would take place. He stated that he believed the developers were working with previous letters of intentfor tenants in the office space. He stated that if Akcess terminated they would be free from the tax payment. He stated that the City's responsibilities would be from the 2006 revenue bond that was issued in preparing the area for development and capitalized interest would cover that through 2009. He explained the money was not generated tax money but tax increments generated in TID number 21. Council Member King questioned the construction schedule timeline. Mr. Kolcheck stated that he thought construction would start in the 60-90 day range. Deputy Mayor Bain questioned who would be the operator of the 70 docks at the marina and if Akcess paying the cost of the marina had been recently added to the agreement? 4 Mr. Kinney stated that the assumption was Akcess or another party would arrange to be the operator of the marina and the marina cost was always to be covered by the developer. Proceedings of the Common Council -July 8, 2008 Council Member Esslinger questioned if the part of the agreement stating that there was to be a certain amount of value in the ground in 2009 and 2010 was eliminated or if that was still in effect and what was the value required. He questioned what would happen if at the end of 2009 the required value was not in the ground. Mr. Kinney stated that the requested modifications would change the schedule, so the first dollar amount would go in the ground by the end of 2009. He stated that approximately $19 million needed to be constructed by the end of 2009 and $5 million the following year. He stated that if the construction was continuing and the projects were improving it would be acceptable. Resolution 08-240 Approve Miscellaneous Licenses Deputy Mayor Bain stated that the Hudson's license had not been used since July 2007. He questioned who owned Hudson's and what the plans were if the license was renewed. Chuck Hertel stated that in May the bank took title to the property. He stated that the plan was to sell with the intent to have a similar establishment there. MOTION: ADOPT CONSENT AGENDA EXCLUDING RESOLUTIONS 08-239 AND 08-240 (Bain; second, McHugh) CARRIED: Ayes (7) Bain, King, Palmeri, Tower, McHugh, Esslinger, Mayor Tower Resolution 08-239 Amend Development Agreement Terms /Akcess Acquisition Group MOTION: ADOPT (Esslinger; second, Bain) CARRIED: Ayes (4) Bain, King, Tower, Mayor Tower; Noes (3) Palmeri, McHugh, Esslinger Council Member Palmeri stated that he was not supporting the resolution due to the fact there was no public enthusiasm, the office building was not committed with tenants and there was not a lot of support for the condo portion of the project. Council Member McHugh stated that he would not support the resolution due to the lack of concrete plans. Council Member Esslinger stated that he was not supporting the resolution due to the fact that his confidence with regards to the development was low and there was enough vacant office space spread throughout Oshkosh. Council Member Tower stated that he would support the resolution; the developers were successful and brought money to the table. 5 Council Member King stated that she was in support of the restaurant and was pleased Mr. Supple had brought additional information forward along with additional drawings. Deputy Mayor Bain stated that this development was prudent to the community and he would support the resolution. Proceedings of the Common Council -July 8, 2008 Resolution 08-240 Approve Miscellaneous Licenses MOTION: ADOPT (Esslinger; second, Bain) MOTION: DIVIDE RESOLUTION 08-240 INTO: RESOLUTION 08-240A - B AND B SPORTS BAR AND SCREWBALLS; AND, RESOLUTION 08-2406 - HUDSONS AND EVERYTHING ELSE (Esslinger; second, Bain) CARRIED: Ayes (6) Bain, King, Palmeri, Tower, McHugh, Mayor Tower; Present (1) Esslinger MOTION: ADOPT RESOLUTION 08-240A (Bain; second, Esslinger) CARRIED: Ayes (6) Bain, King, Palmeri, Tower, McHugh, Mayor Tower; Present (1) Esslinger MOTION: ADOPT RESOLUTION 08-2406 (Bain; second, Palmeri) CARRIED: Ayes (7) Bain, King, Palmeri, Tower, McHugh, Esslinger, Mayor Tower Action Taken on Ordinances and Resolutions Ordinance 08-241 Approve Traffic Regulations MOTION: ADOPT (Esslinger; second, Bain) CARRIED: Ayes (4) Bain, King, Tower, Mayor Tower; Noes (3) Palmeri, McHugh, Esslinger Carl Sosnoski, 2475 Knapp Street, expressed his concerns regarding the loss of parking on Ohio Street. He stated that the numbers from the Department of Transportation have not supported the use for a four lane street and thought it was a premature project. He stated that at a Transportation Advisory Meeting held in May it was a unanimous vote to keep parking on Ohio Street, similar to 9t" Avenue; however in June it was reconvened which included different people than were at the meeting in May and was voted down. He explained that with the two meetings combined it was still a unanimous vote to keep the parking. Laura Langkau, 716 Ohio Street, stated that currently there was not a problem with parking on Ohio Street and would like to continue to allow parking. She stated that if there was a problem, then it would be brought to Council for reconsideration. Council Member McHugh stated that once the parking was removed it would never be allowed in the future. He questioned if the issue was safety and volume and if so, in what way. He stated in twenty years traffic was to increase approximately 4,000 vehicles per day, having a dramatic 6 change now would make small businesses suffer. Council Member Esslinger questioned what the worth was of a parking stall to a business. Mr. Strong, Director of Transit, stated that a stall could be worth $10,000 and the valuation would change depending if was in front of a residence or business. Proceedings of the Common Council -July 8, 2008 Mr. Sosnoski, 2475 Knapp Street, stated that a parking lot recently installed with twenty spots was valued at $10,000 a stall. He explained parking was not a need for day time use; the need was for evening hours. Council Member Esslinger stated that he would like to have parking during the evening hours and questioned what needed to be done to move forward with this. Ms. Lorenson suggested voting down and then working with staff as to what would be changed. Mr. Strong stated that parking would be allowed form 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. as there was no overnight parking on the City streets. He stated that to allow parking would be complicated due to the fact that many ordinances would be affected by the change. Council Member Tower questioned the financing related to this and what the consequence would be to do it later rather than now. He questioned what the cost was on the first estimate and what the cost was if parking was allowed on sections rather than the entire street. Mr. Buchholz, from the Department of Transportation stated that it was Wisconsin DOT policy that municipalities pay for the parking. He explained the plan was based on a six foot lane, to add a parking lane would raise the cost for the City and the design had not included parking. He stated an analysis would need to be completed at the City's expense due to the fact that construction had started and usually these concerns were worked out prior to construction. He explained it was an estimated cost of $35,000 based on the allowance of parking on all sections. He stated that there would be changes in the amount of local road aids depending if on street parking was allowed or not. Deputy Mayor Bain questioned if this would be required to go back to the Traffic Review Board if voted down. He explained that in November 2003 and January 2007 there were public meetings and a four lane road with no on street parking was presented. He stated that it was prudent to plan for the future and he would support the ordinance. Mr. Fitzpatrick stated that Council should consider the process to utilize the advisory groups due to the fact that they have had input on the matter. Ms. Lorenson explained the Traffic Review Board made recommendations to the Council on all matters involving unmetered street parking. Council Member King questioned the reasoning as to why the committee members changed from one meeting to the next. She questioned if the aid and compensation would be going up since parking would be eliminated. She stated that passing the ordinance would provide more 7 aid in the future for the City. She questioned if a volume study was completed and if parking was allowed, could the federal highway administration deplete theirfunding stating trafficvolume was not properly being handled. She questioned what the estimated cost of conducting a new analysis would be. She stated that the additional revenue for becoming a trunk highway would be infinite. Proceedings of the Common Council -July 8, 2008 Deputy Mayor Bain explained that one composition change was due to the fact that a term was up for one member and the other changes were if members attended the June meeting that may have been absent from the May meeting. Mr. Buchholz stated that the payment would be upgraded once the four lanes without parking was complete. He stated that funding from federal highway administration could cut funding if traffic flow was not properly handled. He explained that the scenario of removing parking so late in the process had never occurred in any community in Northeast Wisconsin, that was handled during the public hearing process. He stated that cost would run approximately $5,000 to $15,000 for analysis. Council Member McHugh questioned if the width of the traffic lanes were to be reduced during the North Main Street project. He questioned if parking was going to be provided to the Ohio Street businesses like the downtown businesses receive and if not, why. Mr. Patek stated that the sidewalk was to be widened; the number of lanes would stay the same; however the width of the lanes would be reduced. He explained the City's jurisdiction started at Algoma/Washington and continued north. Mr. Fitzpatrick explained part of the process had public hearings and had adjusted the design based on input from citizens and City staff; therefore each project was different from the next. He stated that the process was chronological and the public portion for the Ohio Street had taken place previously. Council Member Palmeri questioned the presence of business owners at the 2003 and 2007 meetings and if notices were sent out with information regarding the meetings. He questioned when the business owners were first aware of losing parking spaces. He explained his frustrations with bureaucratic blackmail; that if one thing does not happen then the City would lose something else or some funding. He questioned the current width of the sidewalks on Ohio Street and what the width would be after construction was completed and if there was a plan for bike lanes. He stated that due to gas inflation there would be more walking, biking and use of City transportation and less automobile use. He stated he was opposed to the resolution. Mrs. Langkau stated that she was not aware of the previous meetings, there were no letters sent out in regards to the meeting. She stated she first heard of the loss of parking spaces at the first meeting with the City. Mr. Patek stated that he was certain the DOT could produce record that notices had been sent out to that property. He stated that the current width was seven and the new width would be 8 reduced to six. Council Member Esslinger stated it was not fair to fund parking downtown and not on Ohio Street. He stated that the Council needed to stand up to the bureaucratic blackmail. He questioned if Mr. Sosnoski was informed by the DOT regarding the loss of parking spaces Mr. Sosnoski stated that he did not recall any specifics on parking being eliminated entirely on the street. He stated that when he went to the Traffic Advisory Meeting he spoke with Mr. Strong Proceedings of the Common Council -July 8, 2008 regarding the issue. He stated that if parking on Main Street was not allowed that City would get more funding. Mr. Strong stated that his intention for the first meeting was to present information on Ohio Street parking apart from any basis of grievance between the City and the State. He stated that there had been five crashes with on street parking from 2005 to 2007. He explained that money in discussions was allowed, it was his discretion not to bring it forward as he thought other issues were more important. He stated the finances were always part of the project; however, in dollars and cents it was in late May when he learned that money was a component. He explained other City staff was aware of the plans prior to his starting with the City in April. Ordinance 08-242 Approve Zone Change / 2402 Jackson Street and Adjacent Vacant Lot on Bacon Street MOTION: ADOPT (Esslinger; second, Palmeri) CARRIED: Ayes (7) Bain, King, Palmeri, Tower, McHugh, Esslinger, Mayor Tower Citizen Statements Louis Luebke, 619 Division Street, expressed her various concerns regarding City property that needed to be cleaned up. She suggested the City's priority to be with the flood victims. She presented photos and stated that the condition of Menominee Zoo was poor. She suggested flags be flown throughout the City. Justin Mitchell, 652 Monroe Street, expressed his concerns with the safety of Menominee Park Beach. He explained that following the flooding, contact was made to the City Health Department in regards to the safety of swimming and was told the City does not test the lake waters and they recommended not swimming there and there were signs posted stating swim at your own risk. He explained what some of the health hazards were after flooding occurs. He stated that the County agreed to test the waters for the City of Oshkosh, every two weeks generally between the months of May and August for 14 to 16 weeks and the County would charge the City for the cost of the lab work which was $20. Deputy Mayor Bain questioned what action the County took after finding high levels of E.coli. Mr. Mitchell stated that the testing was not done at beach areas; the County does not have beach areas that would be of concern. He stated that they collected for water quality not protection from swimming; however, due to his concern they would test the swimming area.. 9 Council Member Palmeri stated that customer services were important. He stated that the County was more proactive with their response than the City. He stated that the signs at Menominee should have a better explanation as to what the danger was. Mr. Fitzpatrick stated that quality of the lake had changed over the years. He stated that if there were concerns he should have been informed. He stated that general information had been provided regarding swimming. Proceedings of the Common Council -July 8, 2008 Mr. Mitchell stated that the County had dialog with the City's Health Department and received permission to test the swimming area. Deputy Mayor Bain suggested to put this on a future agenda for the Parks Board to discuss. Dick O'Day, 715 Hazel Street, stated that he had respect for the Supple family and did not agree with the way the RDA spent money. Steve Barney, 1260 Elmwood Avenue, introduced a resolution to consider and provided copies to Council Members. He explained what ICLEI was and what the process was to becoming a full member. He explained that ICLEI had a guide book on their website. Council Member announcements, Statements and Discussion Council Member McHugh suggested to waive permit fees for work performed in relation to the flooding. Council Member Esslinger congratulated the Fire and Police Departments on the great job patrolling Sawdust Days. Council Member Palmeri questioned what the process would be to waive permit fees for work performed in relation to the flooding. Mr. Fitzpatrick stated that a resolution would need to be brought forth; have a time frame; refund those victims that had paid and have still have permits taken out to maintain with inspections and safety. Mayor Tower stated that following the meeting was the Jackson Street median workshop and the Ambulance Billing workshop was rescheduled to August 12t" City Manager Announcements, Statements and Discussion Mr. Fitzpatrick stated that he was pleased at the work Council had done with this year's workshops. MOTION: ADJOURN (Esslinger; second, Palmeri) CARRIED: VOICE VOTE 10 The meeting adjourned at 8:50 p.m. PAMELA R. UBRIG CITY CLERK 11