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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes PCC ROCEEDINGS OF THE OMMON OUNCIL CO,W ITY OF SHKOSH ISCONSIN M11,2014 ARCH REGULAR MEETING held Tuesday, March 11, 2014, at 6:00 p.min the Council Chambers, . City Hall. Deputy Mayor Herman presided. PRESENT: Council Members Kyle Clark, Sean Fitzgerald, Steve Cummings, Deb Allison- Aasby, Tom Pech, Jr. and Deputy Mayor Steven Herman EXCUSED: Mayor Burk Tower ALSO PRESENT: Mark Rohloff, City Manager; Pamela Ubrig, City Clerk; Lynn Lorenson, City Attorney and Dave Patek, Director of Public Works Council Member Clark read the Invocation. The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Dominic Mueller and Tillie Schroeder from Smith Elementary School; and, Ahlesiyah Vang and Tristana Xiong from Jefferson Elementary School PH UBLIC EARING Resolution 14-102 Approval of Final Resolution for Special Assessments – Contract No. 14-05 / Paving, Sidewalk, Driveway & Utilities / Second Local Street Concrete Paving Program (Central City Area) MOTION: ADOPT (Clark; second, Pech) CARRIED: Ayes (6) Clark, Fitzgerald, Cummings, Allison-Aasby, Pech, Deputy Mayor Herman CSC ITIZEN TATEMENTS TO OUNCIL Bob Cornell, 548 W. Smith Avenue, President of the Oshkosh Senior Center Board, reported that the recent open house at the Senior Center was a success. He stated there thth would be a Saint Patrick’s Day celebration at the Senior Center on March 17. On April 12 the Senior Center would be collaborating with the Parks Department for Breakfast with the Bunny, which was a pancake breakfast. He also discussed different possibilities of creating more handicapped parking spaces near the Grand Opera House. Deputy Mayor Herman requested that once a new Director of Transit was in place that the issue of handicapped parking spaces near the Grand Opera House would be placed on the agenda. Mr. Rohloff indicated he would discuss the Director of Transit position later in the meeting. 1 PCC–M112014 , ROCEEDINGS OF THE OMMON OUNCIL ARCH Gary Gray, 815 W. Linwood Ave, referenced Mr. Rohloff’s weekly newsletter from February 28, 2014 regarding refinancing the City’s Wisconsin Retirement System liability. He suggested using unused TIF funds or general obligation bonds to refinance the liability rather than using the State Trust Fund as the interest rate would be lower. CA ONSENT GENDA Approval of Bills presented by the Finance Director Council Member Allison-Aasby asked for an explanation for the payments of $4,260.00 to the Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce and $264,313.00 to Advantage Purchasing. Mr. Rohloff explained the payment to Advantage Purchasing was for the Central Garage Project. The City was allowed to purchase materials for the Central Garage Project directly from the manufacturer, tax free, instead of going through the general contractor. He stated the payment to the Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce was the monthly payment for the BID (Business Improvement District). The BID contracted with the Chamber of Commerce to be the BID Manager. Approval of Cash Report for January 2014 Receipt and Filing of Common Council Minutes from February 25, 2014 Receipt and Filing of Museum Board Minutes from January 9, 2014 Receipt of Claim filed with the City’s Insurance Company: A) Rose Mary Bednarek for alleged damages from a sewer back up B) Deborah Lane for alleged damages to her vehicle from a water main break C) Michael Pamer for alleged damages from a sewer back up D) Jennifer and Brian Perzentka for alleged damages from a sewer back up E) Liesl Storm for alleged damages from a sewer back up Resolution 14-103 Award Bid for Public Works Contract No. 14-06 to Jim Fischer, Inc. for Concrete Sidewalk ($644,174.70) Resolution 14-104 Award Bid for 5.11 Tactical Series Uniforms for Fire Department (per prices on bid tab) Deputy Mayor Herman asked if the uniforms were the day to day uniforms or the uniforms employees used to fight fires. Tim Franz, Fire Chief, stated the uniforms listed in the resolution were the day to day uniforms worn by employees, consisting of polo shirts, pants and tee shirts. Deputy Mayor Herman asked if the City paid for the uniforms outright or if the Fire Department employees received a clothing allowance. 2 PCC–M112014 , ROCEEDINGS OF THE OMMON OUNCIL ARCH Chief Franz stated the Fire Department operated a clothing commissary. He explained the Fire Department employees did not receive a clothing allowance; uniforms were provided to employees as they became worn out or damaged. Resolution 14-105 Award Bid for Four (4) Zero-Turn Riding Tractors for Parks Department - Cemetery Division ($45,949.68) Council Member Cummings asked for the brand name of the zero-turn riding tractors. Bill Sturm, Landscape Operations Division Manager, stated that zero-turn riding tractors for the Parks Department were made by Scag Mowers, which was a Wisconsin based company. Resolution 14-106 Approval of Engineering Services Agreement with CH2M HILL Engineers, Inc. for Assistance with Implementation of the Wastewater Collection System Sewer Evaluation-Capacity Assurance Plan (SECAP) & Capacity- Management-Operation-Maintenance (CMOM) Plan in the Amount of $199,000.00 Council Member Cummings asked for an explanation of the resolution. Mr. Rohloff explained per the compliance agreement with the EPA, the City was required to send plans annually to the EPA regarding ongoing overflows or backups regarding the sewer plant. Resolution 14-107 Accept Dedication of Street Right-of-way for Oregon Street; Adjacent to 2728 Oregon Street (Plan Commission recommends approval) Resolution 14-108 Approve Land Exchange with University of Wisconsin Oshkosh / West 3rd Avenue, Central Garage Development Project (Plan Commission recommends approval) Resolution 14-109 Approve Conditional Use Permit to Construct Armory Place Storm Water Detention Basin / Generally located Armory Place, Koeller Street, Crystal Springs Avenue (Plan Commission recommends approval) Resolution 14-110 Authorize Police Department Grants for: 1) Pedestrian Safety Enforcement 2) Bicycle Safety Enforcement Deputy Mayor Herman congratulated Chief Greuel on receiving the grants. He asked what area of the City the Pedestrian Safety Enforcement Grant would be used. Chief Greuel stated the Pedestrian Safety Enforcement Grant would be used throughout the City in locations that the Police Department felt were problematic. Deputy Mayor Herman asked if more “yield” signs would be purchased with the grant. 3 PCC–M112014 , ROCEEDINGS OF THE OMMON OUNCIL ARCH Chief Greuel explained the grant was not for equipment purchases. The grant could only be used for overtime safety enforcement. Deputy Mayor Herman asked if citizens would be notified that police were patrolling the area. Chief Greuel stated citizens may or may not be notified that police were patrolling the area. Deputy Mayor Herman asked what the plans were for the Bicycle Safety Enforcement Grant. Chief Greuel stated the plans for the Bicycle Safety Enforcement Grant would be used in areas throughout the City that involved crashes with bikes, the university area, the river front, trails; all areas where bike traffic was popular. Deputy Mayor Herman asked if the bike patrol officers would be doing most of the participation with the grant. Chief Greuel stated both bike patrol officers and motorized patrol officers worked well for enforcing bicycle safety. Resolution 14-111 Disallowance of Claim by Curtis Young Resolution 14-112 Disallowance of Claim by Brennan Wendt Resolution 14-113 Disallowance of Claim by Discovery Properties Resolution 14-114 Approve Appointment to the Library Board Resolution 14-115 Approve Operator License, Taxi-cab Driver License & Secondhand Dealer License MOTION: ADOPT CONSENT AGENDA (Clark; second, Cummings) CARRIED: Ayes (6) Clark, Fitzgerald, Cummings, Allison-Aasby, Pech, Deputy Mayor Herman ATO&R CTION AKEN ON RDINANCES ESOLUTIONS Resolution 14-116 Approve Assignment of Lease with WHEDA Contingent Amendment of the Development Agreement with Marion Road Apartments LLC / Rivers II Development (Redevelopment Authority recommends approval) MOTION: ADOPT (Clark; second, Pech) CARRIED: Ayes (6) Clark, Fitzgerald, Cummings, Allison-Aasby, Pech, Deputy Mayor Herman 4 PCC–M112014 , ROCEEDINGS OF THE OMMON OUNCIL ARCH Allen Davis, Director of Community Development, stated through the process of the Rivers II Project, the City had worked with the developer and WHEDA (Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority) to develop financing for the project. The legal counsel for WHEDA preferred different wording included in the original agreement which was why the amendment was needed. Deputy Mayor Herman asked what the liability would be to the City if the developer defaulted on the financing for the project. Ms. Lorenson stated the risks related to the agreement would be associated with third party claims due to the City being the property owner. Due to environmental issues with the property, the City could not sell the property to the developer until the remediation was completed. The developer indemnified the City in the agreement. The City would have risk if there was both a third party loss and the developer stepped back from the project and WHEDA had to take over. WHEDA would accept some of the risk but not all. WHEDA would not pay for professional fees, expert fees, or attorney fees under those conditions. She also stated in that situation the City’s insurance would not cover the loss so there was a potential risk there. She stated the RDA (Redevelopment Authority) weighed the risk and decided to recommend approval of the agreement. Council Member Fitzgerald asked for clarification that the agreement between the developer of the project and WHEDA was for a loan, not a grant. Mr. Davis stated the agreement between the developer of the project and WHEDA was for a loan, not a grant. Mr. Rohloff stated the only grant associated with the Rivers II Project was for environmental remediation. The City would own the property until the remediation was complete. There would some slight risk exposure to the City while the remediation took place. Ms. Lorenson noted the risk to the City would come to an end once the environmental remediation was completed and property ownership was turned over to the developer. Deputy Mayor Herman asked for a timeline on when the remediation would be completed. Mr. Davis explained remediation would be completed by the end of the construction period. Mr. Rohloff stated the remediation would be completed and the property ownership would be transferred to the developer within one year to fifteen months. Once the DNR signed off on the remediation, the City could transfer ownership of the property to the developer. Council Member Pech asked what the assessed value of the project would be. Mr. Davis stated there was a guaranteed assessed value of 5.2 million dollars for the project. 5 PCC–M112014 , ROCEEDINGS OF THE OMMON OUNCIL ARCH Resolution 14-117 Oppose SB 632/AB 816 Preempting Municipal Authority to Regulate Non-Conforming Non-Metallic Mining Operations and Borrow Pits Associated with DOT Construction Projects (Plan Commission recommends approval) MOTION: ADOPT (Clark; second, Pech) CARRIED: Ayes (6) Clark, Fitzgerald, Cummings, Allison-Aasby, Pech, Deputy Mayor Herman Council Member Clark explained the bill referred to in the resolution would remove authority from the City to regulate mining companies and borrow pits within the City. Council Member Cummings felt the bill referred to in the resolution was an attempt by the State to take away home rule from communities. Mr. Rohloff felt the aforementioned bill was overreaching in authority. If the bill was passed the City would have no say if a quarry within the City wanted to expand its boundaries. Council Member Cummings asked what the next step was if the resolution was approved. Mr. Rohloff explained if the resolution was approved the City would forward the resolution to the City’s local State representatives to let them know the Council’s position. The resolution would also be sent to committee members in the senate and assembly who were reviewing the bill. Council Member Cummings asked if other communities were drafting resolutions opposing the proposed bill. Mr. Rohloff stated not all communities chose to draft resolutions opposing the proposed bill, however The League of Wisconsin Municipalities and the Wisconsin Towns Association were on record opposing the proposed bill. Council Member Clark stated the original bill proposed last Fall was changed due to communities and organizations speaking up to oppose it. He was hopeful if there was enough opposition to the current proposed bill that the legislature would take a harder look at the bill. Deputy Mayor Herman asked if the proposed bill would affect the City’s economic development. Mr. Davis stated the proposed bill would affect the City’s economic development. He stated under the proposed bill a company could excavate material from a parcel of land that the City had planned for residential or industrial use. Deputy Mayor Herman asked if a mining business wanted to locate to Oshkosh would they have to come before the Council. 6 PCC–M112014 , ROCEEDINGS OF THE OMMON OUNCIL ARCH Mr. Davis replied that under the proposed bill, if a mining business wanted to locate a business in Oshkosh they would not have to come before Council for DOT projects. Mr. Rohloff explained there were areas where the DOT had taken away dirt, which from an economic development standpoint, left the property undevelopable due to too much fill being needed to bring the property level. Thus, the unusable property becomes as eyesore as things begin to develop around it. Council Member Pech felt it was special interest groups, not the legislature that was behind the writing of the proposed bill. CD,DCMFAI OUNCIL ISCUSSION IRECTION TO ITY ANAGER AND UTURE GENDA TEMS Council Member Herman asked the Council if they felt a workshop was needed to discuss the special event policy. Council Member Fitzgerald felt City staff did a thorough job in addressing Council concerns in the draft of the special events policy. He did not feel a workshop was needed. Council Member Pech stated City staff did a tremendous job on the draft of the special events policy. Council Member Clark was comfortable with the draft of the special events policy and did not feel a workshop was necessary. Deputy Mayor Herman highlighted the four areas of concern the Council wanted addressed for changes to the special events policy: 1) Disruption to business activity, particularly in the downtown area during special events. 2) Frequency of overtime and impact on staffing. 3) Review of fees and establishing a fee for the use of public venues. 4) Poorly planned events or events which have disproportionate negative impact in relation to potential benefits. The recommendations to address the concerns made by Council were more and better public notice of events; propose new ordinance language to specifically address poorly planned or unduly disruptive events; increase information sharing relative to larger events and require events that utilize police and fire to turn in their applications more than the current 45 days prior to an event; consider potential fees for use of public facilities and late payments for extraordinary services. Mr. Rohloff stated City staff was ready to present a Special Events Policy Ordinance, which would require two readings, beginning on the March 25, 2014 Common Council Meeting. He explained the changes to the special events policy would take effect January 1, 2015. A workshop on NeighborWorks would be held on April 22, 2014. Mr. Rohloff asked the Council to keep May 13, 2014 open for a workshop on a topic yet to be determined. 7 PCC–M112014 , ROCEEDINGS OF THE OMMON OUNCIL ARCH CSC ITIZEN TATEMENTS TO OUNCIL Patricia Diener, 1316 Broad Street, thanked the Department of Public Works for their efforts in thwarting freezing water mains and the Sanitation Department for collecting her garbage. CMAS ITY ANAGER NNOUNCEMENTS AND TATEMENTS Mr. Rohloff reminded the public that the State of City Address would be held on Monday, March 31, 2014 at the Oshkosh Convention Center. Doors opened at 6:00 p.m. and the presentation would begin at 6:30 p.m. He announced that the new Transportation Director, st Jim Collins would begin employment on March 31. and the new Finance Director, Trena th Larson, would begin employment on April 7. Deputy Mayor thanked Mr. Vickman and Mr. Nokes for filling in for the Transportation Director and the Finance Director positions while the City searched for replacements. Council Member Cummings reminded the public of the Saint Patrick’s Day Parade which th would be held Saturday, March 15 on North Main Street. Council Member Allison-Aasby also wanted to thank Tara Wendt in the Finance Department for stepping up her responsibilities while the City searched for a new Director of Finance. MOTION: TO CONVENE INTO CLOSED SESSION TO DISCUSS BARGAINING STRATEGY, OPTIONS AND PARAMETERS RELATED TO THE NEGOTIATION OF AGREEMENTS WITH THE OSHKOSH CHAMBER OF COMMERCE PERTAINING TO THE COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT OF THE UNIVERSAL BUSINESS PARK AND WITH CHAMCO, INC. PERTAINING TO THE INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT WITHIN THE CITY’S INDUSTRIAL PARKS; AND TO DISCUSS BARGAINING STRATEGY, OPTIONS AND PARAMETERS RELATED TO THE NEGOTIATION OF A DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT FOR A POSSIBLE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROJECT PROPOSED FOR AVIATION PLAZA (THE FORMER WALMART SITE) SOUTH KOELLER STREET, ALL PURSUANT TO SECTION 19.85(1)(C) OF THE WISCONSIN STATE STATUTES WHERE COMPETITIVE BARGAINING REASONS REQUIRE A CLOSED SESSION. (Cummings; second, Clark) CARRIED: Ayes (6) Clark, Fitzgerald, Cummings, Allison-Aasby, Pech, Deputy Mayor Herman MOTION: ADJOURN (Cummings; second, Clark) CARRIED: VOICE VOTE The meeting adjourned at 6:58 p.m. PAMELA R. UBRIG CITY CLERK 8