12-02-2014 MinutesMINUTES
REGULAR MEETING
December 2, 2014
A Regular Meeting was held by the Schertz City Council of the City of Schertz, Texas, on
December 2, 2014, at 6:00 p.m., in the Hal Baldwin Municipal Complex Council Chambers,
1400 Schertz Parkway, Building #4, Schertz, Texas. The following members present to -wit:
Mayor Michael Carpenter
Councilmember Jim Fowler
Councilmember Cedric Edwards
Staff Present:
Deputy City Manager John Bierschwale
Chief of Staff Bob Cantu
City Secretary Brenda Dennis
Call to Order
Mayor Pro -Tem Daryl John
Councilmember Grumpy Azzoz
City Manager John Kessel
Executive Director Brian James
City Attorney Charles Zech
Mayor Carpenter called the meeting to order at 6:01 p.m.
Invocation and Pledges of Allegiance to the Flags of the United States and the State of
Texas (Councilmember Azzoz)
Councilmember Azzoz provided the invocation followed by the Pledges of Allegiance to the
Flags of the United States and the State of Texas.
City Events and Announcements
• Announcements of upcoming City Events (J. Bierschwale/B. James)
Mayor Carpenter recognized Executive Director of Development Services Brian
James who provided the following announcements:
• Thursday, December 4, 2014, and Friday, December 5, 2014, Management
attending all -day Leadership Team Building Retreat, La Quinta Inn & Suites,
17650 Four Oaks Lane, Schertz, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
• Friday, December 5, 2014, Schertz Festival of Angels; Parade and Snow, Hal
Baldwin Municipal Complex, 6:00 p.m.
• Monday, December 8, 2014, Employee Appreciation Lunch, Schertz Civic
Center, 11:30 to 1:00 p.m.
• Announcements and recognitions by City Manager (J. Kessel)
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Mayor Carpenter recognized City Manager John Kessel who wanted to give a
shoutout to the team of staff members who put together the `Movember' mustache
growing contest to raise awareness for men's health. The committee members were
Bryce Cox from Development Services, Colin Sherman from Economic Development
Corporation (EDC) and Patty Horan also from EDC. They had really good
participation and had a lot of fun with it. He also wanted to mention a few ladies who
participated in the `faux mo you can't grow' contest; Patty Horan and Brenda Dennis
and a few others. Thank you to all the ladies who showed support.
Hearing of Residents:
Mayor Carpenter recognized the following who spoke:
• Ms. Maggie Titterington, Schertz Chamber of Commerce who stated they had their
Chamber Luncheon today and were able to give out $15,000 from the DECA program
to be split between Clemens and Steele High Schools; they were so excited. Also,
O'Haver Construction, Schertz Bank and Trust, Frost Bank and HEB stepped forward
to contribute total or partial tuition funds for three students to attend the Leadership
CORE Program classes next year. This Thursday night will be a chamber mixer at the
Hampton Inn and Suites from 5:30 -7:00 p.m. There will also be a ribbon cutting for
Baptist M & S Imaging on Thursday, December llo' at 10:00 a.m. She thanked
Councilmember Fowler for coming out in the cold weather yesterday and welcoming
Fox's Pizza. The `Twelve Days of Chamber Christmas Cash' has begun and anyone
can participate. The final prize will be $500 cash at a drawing at the Cibolo Coffee
Haus on December 15th-. Last, but not least the cookies are courtesy of Signature
Catering.
• Ms. Danielle Campbell and Ms. Kyla Morgenroth (Cibolo Creek FFA), who invited the
council and mayor to their annual Cibolo Creek FFA Chapter. Their organization is
comprised of students from Samuel Clemens High School and Byron P. Steele High
School and other junior members in the local Schertz - Cibolo Universal City ISD. Each
year their organization hosts a show where the members can show their livestock
projects to a local judge, parents, family members and community members. They
personally invited them to their annual FFA Chapter exhibit on December 13, 2014, at
8:30 a.m. at the Toby Conner Complex, 541 Schlather Street.
Workshop
• Discussion and update regarding blighted areas in our neighborhoods. (Item requested by
Councilmember Fowler) (J. Bierschwale/M. Harris /J. Hamilton)
Mayor Carpenter recognized Marshal Michael Harris who stated their presentation would
outline what the Code Enforcement Unit does and also identify some of the partnerships
they have established. Registered Sanitarian Jesse Hamilton began the presentation by
stating the compliance process /solutions start with the three C's, the City, local Churches,
and the Community. Mr. Hamilton explained the current complaint process and the
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timeline of 8 days that the resident has to resolve the code violation(s). He explained
further options and processes that continue beyond those eight days if compliance does
not occur. Several local churches have stepped up and offered assistance to those
residents who can't afford to correct a violation on their own.
Councilmember Fowler also came forward with a short presentation stating it takes three
things (a triad partnership), an alliance between the city, the churches, and the
community. Traditionally, most churches do foreign mission work and sometimes these
projects become overwhelming. Subsequently, local City resident needs are often
overlooked. Code enforcement violations are examples; yard maintenance, fence or
exterior house repair. If we can gather with our local pastors and churches and seek
volunteers, maybe we can address some of these problems in the city (i.e., elderly or
handicapped folks who can't do the work physically and/or those with insufficient funds
to hire help). Let's form an alliance between the city, churches, and the community. The
vision would be to bring about a central organization made of volunteers to provide
planning, investigation, evaluation, and privatization, management of funds, and
establishing project teams. Organizations could become structured and sustainable.
What can the churches, communities and the city do? The churches can provide
volunteers to sit on the alliance committee, a list of volunteers and their skills and even
do an annual fundraiser. The community can seek local business support, select
individuals from a cross section of the city and seek specifically skilled volunteers. The
city can identify residents that need support/help and help problem solve situations by
using appropriate city resources.
The expected results would be to improve the quality of life, slow down the deterioration
of the older neighborhoods, improve safety, and meet the real life needs of our citizens
who need help the most. Also, if in the future, we raised some money, maybe some of
the materials could be repurchased at a low rate by homeowners, thus replenishing the
working fund. This is just an idea; if anyone is interested in assisting /starting a program
such as this, please contact him.
Mayor Carpenter asked the Marshal's Office if this `helping hands' partnership is
formalized and could they provide more information on it. Marshal Harris stated it is not
formalized and is a volunteer effort from some of the churches in the area who do a few
projects during the year and they call his office asking if they know of anything the
volunteers could assist someone with. The hope is that it could become formalized in the
future and they could be available in the future as needed. Mayor Carpenter stated he has
had two different church groups come to his office in the past couple of months asking
how they can help this community. He will get those two pastors contact information
back to Councilmember Fowler and Marshal Harris so they can reach out to them.
Councilmember Fowler stated he wanted to recognize a few group representatives in the
audience tonight who have interest(s) in this idea: First Baptist Church, Resurrection
Baptist Church, Methodist Church on FM 3009, Cibolo Valley Baptist Church, and
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Pawderosa Ranch. Mayor Carpenter asked those members to please stand and be
recognized. This idea of helping each other comes to the core of what we do in the City.
He thanked them for coming together and wanting to help our neighbors in need.
• Presentation and discussion regarding Employee Compensation Model. (Item requested
by Councilmember Azzoz) (J. Kessel)
Mayor Carpenter recognized City Manager John Kessel who asked all the city staff that
were here tonight to stand for a moment. He told council that this is who serves your
community and this is who is getting the job done. He was recently told by a gentleman
in the fire department that fire trucks don't put out fires, firemen do. He proceeded with
his presentation and said that the single largest operational expense is salary paid to our
staff, over $20 million per year. A lot goes into that; medical, retirement, vacation/sick
leave, holidays, etc. He wanted to start the presentation with the reminder that our staff is
the key to our success. He provided information regarding the history of compensation
distribution from 2011 forward to next year 2015.
For the current year, almost $650,000 is budgeted for various types of compensation. One
tool that is used by the city is a grade /step program which is common in municipalities.
The grade /step method is where the grade reflects the salary range for a particular
position and the steps in that range are an increasing salary amount that is attainable
through merit raises (pay for performance plan) or cost of living adjustment raises
(COLA).
A classification and compensation program is a market analysis study that asks, are you
competitive? It is based on job descriptions. You compare like duties to like duties and
the standard in the business world is to have at least a 70% match of the comparisons. He
provided an example of a change made in public affairs last year. Management thinks
there may be many employees who are underpaid or are compressed within their grade.
If we can't provide a fair salary then we have a concern. The last compensation study was
done ten years ago. In 2011, a partial market study was done through available TML
information. We looked at job titles but not classifications and we also didn't look at
every department; rather grouping them together and possibly even left some out.
This year we already have $300,000 funded for potential increases upon completion of
the new study in 2015. A firm will soon be selected to conduct the study for us. A
frequently asked question is why we have not done more. The answer is we set a goal
after the 2008 -2009 economic down -turn to re- establish our 25% General Fund Reserve
in five years; we did so as of September 2014. Mr. Kessel provided additional
details /numbers on the progression of this accomplishment. In most cases during an
economic down -turn you have a slowing of the growth; however, Schertz had the
opposite happen, with more land annexations, commercial and residential growth. With
this growth comes the need for more staff, increased infrastructure, and new equipment
and facilities. We will need to continue to maintain and balance these needs as we grow
towards a 50,000 population.
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So we have a staffing compensation study going on, a facility master plan, a master
thoroughfare in process and we just completed a master parks plan (thanks to Mr. Mark
Davis' leadership on that project). We are now starting another parks plan; the hike and
bike trail. This will help us when we go to bond elections with our citizens. We also
looked at some benchmark cities in the surrounding areas to study their growth and it is
likely we will end up in the same number of years at those populations and at those staff
levels. If we maintain the same level of service, we will probably have about 450 -500
employees when we reach a population of 50,000 residents.
In regard to maintenance, repair and replacement, we have deferred this need in the past
years. During our growth phase, we concentrated on new employees, equipment and
infrastructure. Although the economy affected us again, we did not lay off any staff. So
the last two years we have concentrated on prioritizing some of those previously deferred
replacement and repair needs of equipment and facilities. We need to continue to
maintain the structural balance of the city budget to ensure that we have adequate
reoccurring income to cover our reoccurring expenses as well as our reserve level.
In considering what our salaries should be, we must also look at the entire benefits
package, such as retirement, insurance, paid time off, training, advancement
opportunities, etc. The staff looks at these other items when considering their family
needs. The framework that Mr. Kessel prefers is to provide a fair salary and that it be
sustainable in our budget. We also need to be competitive. What is a full benefits
package that would be appropriate for our staff? We need to continue to maintain an
adequate training budget as well as adequate staffing levels.
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Azzoz who stated that this was a good
presentation but in reality we want to talk only about pay increases. A Cost of Living
Adjustment (COLA) is great for upper management but terrible for an hourly employee.
He thinks a cost of living should be at least 15 %. The two and four percent is out of the
question. It is great for upper management and salaries when they get that COLA, then
they get the merit and then they get the bonuses. The ones you don't see are the people
that really work hard. Where there is a will there is a way that we could compensate
them. The six month waiting period to get a pay increase should be changed to three
months. We are always trying to compare ourselves to other cities. His philosophy is we
need to be the leaders and they should compare themselves to us. We spend money like
crazy. An example is Resolution 14 -R -94 which passed with flying colors and we didn't
even know the expenses. If we pay our employees well our training budget would not be
totally used, so at the end of the year we could use it as a surplus. It would help the
economy immediately. If we pay employees well they will not leave the city. They can
support their families. He wants city council to come up with something different. He
does not like the six month waiting period nor the two or four percent increase. He does
not like the idea of the employee evaluating themselves, then the supervisor evaluates the
employee, and then him and her have the last word —but the last word goes nowhere. We
need to come up with a fair and comprehensive salary adjustment to those folks. He
wants this issue to come forth now and not in two or three months again.
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Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Edwards who said we are scheduled for a
discussion retreat session on Friday, December 5. If Mr. Azzoz can come there with
some ideas as to that subject so we can add that to our strategic plan because going
forward it is important for budgeting further out. He made some notes when Mr. Kessel
was speaking earlier. It looks like salaries are about 1/3 of our budget and our largest
expense. Also, right now there is only about 14 percent of people in the country that
have pensions. We are all responsible for our self - management and improvement. Step
increases are responsibility- based management. It would be irresponsible during a
downturn in the economy to start throwing cash out. We have to always be aware of
contingencies for hard times or unexpected events. On Friday at our strategic meeting,
we need to all bring our best ideas to the table for discussion.
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Fowler who stated that when he was in the
Air Force they would get a cost of living increase and then within 30 days his rent would
go up. We need to look at the impact of doing big increases for the employees beyond
the 2 or 4 percent. What do we have to cut to get that money? How does it change if we
cut the pie differently? One of his concerns is in regard to our medical program and the
increases in cost of medicine, etc. We need to cover our people from a medical
standpoint. Changes cannot just come in one part of the `pie' so to speak. There has to be
a ratio coming from each part. He does not see a very large increase in the raises we can
give out. He doesn't mind spending some time to look at the impacts of this.
Councilmember Azzoz stated he worked a job once and his employer gave him a huge
pay increase after just three weeks; his boss said he deserved it. When the economy goes
down, you hope to have a reserve that will carry you. You don't cut your help otherwise
you have nothing. Paying the staff and rewarding them for what they do is a great thing.
Planning has to take place. What is our turnover anyway? City Manager John Kessel
said he was not sure about right now, but the last time he looked it was around 11 %. Mr.
Azzoz pointed out that it costs an organization a lot of money to re -hire and re -train
employees and the lower we keep that turnover figure then that is more money that can
be passed on to our tenured employees who are staying with us.
Mayor Carpenter summarized by saying we do want to hire the best talent that we can,
we want to retain them, and we want to compensate them at the highest level that we can
comfortably maintain and sustain as a city. The previous council and budget planning
session allocated $300,000 to start us on that path. Our first employee engagement and
satisfaction survey which was taken by our employees earlier this year confirmed this. In
2004 a study was done internally but it did not solve the problem. Another one was done
in 2011 and it also did not solve the problem. In our hearts we are all interested in
compensating our employees well, which includes `benefits'. Let's continue this
discussion on Friday at the retreat meeting.
Discussion and Action Items
1. Resolution No. 14 -R -93 — Consideration and approval of a Resolution by the Schertz City
Council approving a Bond Resolution previously adopted by the Board of Directors of the
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Schertz/Seguin Local Government Corporation authorizing the issuance of bonds
designated as "Schertz/Seguin Local Government Corporation Contract Revenue
Improvement and Refunding Bonds, new Series 2015 "; acknowledging that these
obligations were sold to Raymond James & Associates, Inc., Dallas, Texas, as the
authorized Representative of a Group of Underwriters pursuant to the provisions of a
purchase contract; ratifying, reconfirming, and readopting the provisions of a Regional
Water Supply Contract executed between the City of Schertz, Texas, the City of Seguin,
Texas, and the Schertz/Seguin Local Government Corporation; authorizing the Mayor, the
City Manager, and the City Secretary of the City of Schertz, Texas to execute on behalf of
the City of Schertz, Texas all documents in connection with this transaction; and other
matters in connection therewith (J. Bierschwale /J. Kuhn/M. McLiney /A. Friedman)
The following was read into record:
RESOLUTION NO. 14 -R -93
CONSIDERATION AND APPROVAL OF A RESOLUTION BY THE SCHERTZ
CITY COUNCIL APPROVING A BOND RESOLUTION PREVIOUSLY
ADOPTED BY THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE SCHERTZ /SEGUIN
LOCAL GOVERNMENT CORPORATION AUTHORIZING THE ISSUANCE OF
BONDS DESIGNATED AS "SCHERTZ /SEGUIN LOCAL GOVERNMENT
CORPORATION CONTRACT REVENUE IMPROVEMENT AND REFUNDING
BONDS, NEW SERIES 2015 "; ACKNOWLEDGING THAT THESE
OBLIGATIONS WERE SOLD TO RAYMOND JAMES & ASSOCIATES, INC.,
DALLAS, TEXAS, AS THE AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE OF A GROUP
OF UNDERWRITERS PURSUANT TO THE PROVISIONS OF A PURCHASE
CONTRACT; RATIFYING, RECONFIRMING, AND READOPTING THE
PROVISIONS OF A REGIONAL WATER SUPPLY CONTRACT EXECUTED
BETWEEN THE CITY OF SCHERTZ, TEXAS, THE CITY OF SEGUIN, TEXAS,
AND THE SCHERTZ/SEGUIN LOCAL GOVERNMENT CORPORATION;
AUTHORIZING THE MAYOR, THE CITY MANAGER, AND THE CITY
SECRETARY OF THE CITY OF SCHERTZ, TEXAS TO EXECUTE ON
BEHALF OF THE CITY OF SCHERTZ, TEXAS ALL DOCUMENTS IN
CONNECTION WITH THIS TRANSACTION; AND OTHER MATTERS IN
CONNECTION THEREWITH
Mayor Carpenter recognized Andrew Freidman, Vice - President with Southwest
Securities who introduced this item stating the SSLGC has been working with Southwest
Securities and SAMCO Capital Markets, the SSLGC's Co- Financial Advisors, on
refunding the SSLGC's outstanding Series 2007 Bonds for interest rate savings combined
with $7,300,000 in new bonds to complete land and water rights acquisition portions of
the Guadalupe Project. The refunding and new money will be sold together to minimize
costs of issuance.
The Bonds will be solely paid from the Pledged Revenues as outlined in the Regional
Water Supply Contract that became effective November 15, 1999 and entered into by and
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among the Schertz/Seguin Local Government Corporation, the City of Schertz, and the
City of Seguin.
Preliminary interest rate indications show that Net Savings, after all costs of issuance and
contributions, will be in excess of $2,300,000 ($90,000 annually until 2041). Savings
will benefit Schertz and Seguin equally.
The sale of the bonds went very well because Standard & Poors had upgraded SSLGC's
rating to A +. This helps us to borrow at a lower cost. The handout he passed out to
everyone shows the $41,720,000 new money bond sale with an interest rate of 3.917
percent. Total payments of principal and interest will be $425,000 per year for 30 years
and the City of Seguin and City of Schertz will share equally in making that payment
each year. With the refunding portion of the sale, they were able to lock in a very good
savings. If council takes action this evening and affirms the bond sale it will result in a
savings of $100,000 per year, or $3,000,000 over 30 years. The Corporation has adopted
the sale of the refunding bonds and the new money bonds as has the City of Seguin. With
Schertz's approval this would conclude the approval process and they would move to
close on January 13, 2015, and funds would be deposited for the new money portion and
also lock in the refunding for the exchange of those bonds.
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Fowler who moved, seconded by
Councilmember John that the City Council approve a Resolution approving a Bond
Resolution previously adopted by the Board of Directors of the Schertz/Seguin Local
Government Corporation authorizing the issuance of Schertz/Seguin Local Government
Corporation Contract Revenue Improvement and Refunding Bonds, New Series 2015.
The vote was unanimous with Mayor Pro -Tem John, Councilmembers Fowler,
Azzoz, and Edwards voting yes and no one voting no. Motion passed.
2. Application for Landmark or Heritage Neighborhood Designation — Consideration
and/or action approving a designation request for Landmark Property located at 505
Exchange Street. (B. James/D. Weirtz)
Mayor Carpenter recognized Chair of the Historical Preservation Committee Dean Weirtz
who presented a nomination for selection of one of the community's oldest private
properties as a Schertz Landmark Property. As a reminder he cited Article 14 of the
historical committee's bylaws which defines a Schertz property landmark. Previously,
council has approved a variety of properties, such as churches, residential, and
commercial.
The property before you this evening is the home at 505 Exchange Street, Schertz, Texas
and it was built by a local San Antonio builder in the year 1929 for Max and Hulda
Zamzow. The Zamzow family had previously owned a small farm between the then
small towns of Cibolo and Schertz, Texas. The Zamzow's had five children who grew up
in the home, one of whom is Mae Mylyus (born: 1924) who now resides at 1101 Fawn
Dr., Schertz, Texas and who confirms her parent's ownership of the home until their
deaths. Mae's father (Max) worked as a truck driver and was involved in the
construction of Randolph Air Field in 1930 -1931. Mae resided in the home from 1929
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until her marriage in 1948. The home stayed in the family following her parent's death.
Her sister Nadine ( Reicherzer) and husband Hugo next owned the house. Two sons of
Nadine and Hugo Reicherzer inherited the home upon their parent's death (January 199 8).
The home is currently owned by the two sons (Gary & Kenny). The home retains its
original exterior and interior design (two bedrooms /one bath/living room/kitchen) and has
a basement area.
The home is representative of the best in design and construction of the early 20th
century. Its size and set -back position on the large corner lot made it a glamorous and
most admired home of the time. Its full frontage porch with attractive red brick surround
was a special architectural feature unique within the community. The double dormer
feature centered on the front roofline added spectacular architectural interest to the
property. The home is worthy of a Schertz landmark designation due to its position as
one of the community's first neighborhood family dwellings and its unique architectural
features that reflect a beauty and style unprecedented for the period. The Schertz
Historical Preservation Commission recommends Council approval of the Landmark
Property designation for 505 Exchange Street.
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Edwards who moved, seconded by
Councilmember Fowler to approve the Landmark Property Designation of 505 Exchange
Street. The vote was unanimous with Mayor Pro -Tem John, Councilmembers
Fowler, Azzoz, and Edwards voting yes and no one voting no. Motion passed.
3. Resolution No. 14 -R -96 — Consideration and/or action approving a Resolution by the
City Council of the City of Schertz, authorizing a Professional Services Agreement with
Bury -San, Inc., relating to engineering and design for the David Lack Boulevard
extension project. (B. James/K. Woodlee)
The following was read into record:
RESOLUTION NO. 14 -R -96
A RESOLUTION BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SCHERTZ,
TEXAS AUTHORIZING A PROFESSIONAL SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH
BURY -SAN, INC., RELATING TO ENGINEERING AND DESIGN FOR THE
DAVID LACK BOULEVARD EXTENSION PROJECT AND OTHER MATTERS
IN CONNECTION THEREWITH
Mayor Carpenter recognized City Engineer Kathryn Woodlee who introduced this item
stating at the time of development of the Lack's Furniture Store on IH 3.5 and Schwab
Road, Lack's built half of the David Lack Boulevard for access to the property. When
Sysco was under construction, the other half was built to extend to the driveway of their
property. After the closing of the Lack's Furniture Store, the property was purchased by
GE Salof. GE Salof is in the process of expanding their business and in connection with
an Economic Development Agreement; the City has agreed to pay for the approximately
300 -foot extension of David Lack Boulevard to service this expansion. The
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Development Agreement approved by Council in February, 2014, included the funding of
$200,000 for that roadway extension project, both design and construction.
The engineering consulting firm Bury -SAN, Inc. provided design services to Sysco and
designed the existing constructed segment of David Lack Boulevard. Prior to hiring the
City's current On -Call Engineering Firms, because of the project engineer's knowledge
of the project site, Bury -SAN's services were requested to assist with this short
extension. The approval of the Professional Services Agreement with Bury -SAN, Inc.,
will allow for this project to be designed bid for construction. The agreement includes
Site Civil Engineering, Surveying, Geotechnical, and Title Research Services for this
project.
A current preliminary estimate of construction cost for the project is $176,000 which
given the design costs would be over budget by approximately $13,000. Cost saving
options will be explored during the engineering process to achieve the most cost effective
design. Depending on the breakdown of costs of construction, drainage improvements,
utility work, and street construction, staff will explore options to make up the difference
in funding. Staff recommends Council approve hiring Bury -SAN, Inc. to engineer and
design approximately 300 -foot extension of David Lack Boulevard.
Mayor Carpenter recognized both Councilmembers Fowler and Azzoz who stated they
were glad to see this project moving forward and it is needed. Councilmember Azzoz
predicted this would in time become a heavily developed area.
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Edwards who wanted to point out to
everyone that the backup material indicated the project is already over budget by
approximately $13,000. Executive Director of Development Services Brian James
acknowledged that fact and stated as the project goes along they are definitely going to
look for other ways to cut costs, as they typically do, but not at the expense of pushing
problems into the future that will be more costly to address at that time. However, there
are some drainage issues coming off the Sysco property that are going to be a challenge.
Until the design is done we don't know exactly what those challenges are on site.
Mayor Carpenter recognized City Manager John Kessel who pointed out that this is not a
normal city project that was developed with the city budget. It was developed in
conjunction with GE and the Economic Development Corporation (EDC). This is a
budget that was set as a grant, so there is no city dollars expended so far except for EDC.
The city general fund or various other funds are not bringing anything to the table so far
except for staff time. Once the engineer designs it we will get some known costs; that
dollar amount, if it is in excess, will be the total cost to the city.
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Fowler who moved, seconded by
Councilmember John to approve Resolution No. 14 -R -96. The vote was unanimous
with Mayor Pro -Tem John, Councilmembers Fowler, Azzoz, and Edwards voting
yes and no one voting no. Motion passed.
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4. Resolution No. 14 -R -98 — Consideration and/or action approving a Resolution
authorizing the application for the 2014 Assistance to Firefighters Grant. (J.
Bierschwale/D. Covington)
The following was read into record:
RESOLUTION NO. 14 -R -98
A RESOLUTION BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SCHERTZ,
TEXAS AUTHORIZING THE APPLICATION FOR A GRANT, AND OTHER
MATTERS IN CONNECTION THEREWITH
Mayor Carpenter recognized Fire Chief David Covington who introduced this item
stating that the City is requesting authorization to apply for a 2014 Assistance to
Firefighters Grant through the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for Vehicle
Acquisition and Operations and Safety projects in the total amount not to exceed
$240,000, of which 10% is matched by the City. The goal is to secure a vehicle in an
amount not to exceed $190,000 to be used exclusively at highway incidents to protect
Fire, EMS, Police, and others while operating at an emergency scene and to purchase a
hazardous materials identification tool not to exceed $50,000 to improve safety and
efficiency of emergency operations when dealing with unknown substances.
For protection at roadway incidents the Fire Department uses existing equipment valued
at as much as $750,000 to block the emergency scene from dangerous traffic. Providing a
lesser cost vehicle to provide such protection is fiscally responsible. Such a vehicle will
be equipped with crash attenuator, message board, and equipment to reduce the damage,
time -on- scene, and impact to traveling public. Matching funds of up to $24,000 will
come from Fire Department operating budget. Some replacement equipment will be
deferred to accommodate the cost. Staff recommends approval.
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Edwards who moved, seconded by
Councilmember Azzoz to approve Resolution No. 14 -R -98. The vote was unanimous
with Mayor Pro -Tem John, Councilmembers Fowler, Azzoz, and Edwards voting
yes and no one voting no. Motion passed.
5. Resolution No. 14 -R -97 — Consideration and/or action approving a process for
considering and appointing an individual to the vacant Place 5 City Council position. (J.
Kessel/B. Dennis
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Edwards who said he wanted to make a
motion to take applications and then make an appointment. Councilmember Azzoz
seconded that. Mayor Carpenter stated for clarification and to make sure we are looking
at the third option, would it be Resolution A or B. Councilmember Edwards said A and
Councilmember Azzoz said B.
City Manager John Kessel stated we are getting very close to the deadlines and option A
would maybe not be possible anymore. City Secretary Brenda Dennis confirmed we
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would not be able to get it published properly. Councilmember Edwards pointed out that
council can reserve the right to alter the procedure at any time by resolution or rule.
Subsequently, Councilmember Edwards withdrew his motion and Councilmember Azzoz
withdrew his second. Councilmember Edwards stated in his opinion we need a full
council seated quickly because we have pressing items to address.
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Fowler who asked City Secretary Brenda
Dennis what procedure we normally would go through regarding advertisements. Ms.
Dennis stated we would get it out on the website and publish it in the newspaper. The
Commercial Recorder is our newspaper of record but we also advertise in The Herald
newspaper. We missed the deadline for The Herald but we can make the Commercial
Recorder.
Councilmember Edwards said that with option J we don't have to publish in a paper.
Mayor Carpenter stated that the reason option J is in there is that there could be a time
where council may not want to go through applications due to the circumstances.
After more discussion of dates and times, Council decided to advertise on the city
website only and set Tuesday, December 9, 2014 as the deadline to receive applications
and then from those applicants, Council will make their appointment decision at the
council meeting on Tuesday, December 16, 2014.
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Azzoz who moved, seconded by
Councilmember Edwards to go with option (J) under the "Appointment Procedure for a
Councilmember" and that we advertise on the city website utilizing the banner, accept
applications through next Tuesday, December 9, 2014, and conduct interviews on
Tuesday, December 16, 2014. The vote was 3 -1 -0 with Mayor Pro -Tem John,
Councilmembers Azzoz and Edwards voting yes and Councilmember Fowler voting
no. Motion passed.
Roll Call Vote Confirmation
Mayor Carpenter recognized City Secretary Brenda Dennis who recapped the votes of items 1
through 5.
Requests and Announcements
6. Announcements by City Manager
o Citizen Kudos
o Recognition of City employee actions
o New Departmental initiatives
Mayor Carpenter recognized City Manager John Kessel who stated that Senior
Administrative Assistant Sandy Bryant and EMS Director Dudley Wait also participated
in the Mo'vember "Faux Mo" category.
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7. Requests by Mayor and Councilmembers that items be placed on a future City Council
agenda.
No items requested.
Requests by Mayor and Councilmembers to City Manager and Staff for information.
No request given.
9. Announcements by Mayor and Councilmembers
• City and community events attended and to be attended
• City Council Committee and Liaison Assignments (see assignments below)
• Continuing education events attended and to be attended
• Recognition of actions by City employees
• Recognition of actions by community volunteers
• Upcoming City Council agenda items
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Fowler who stated he attended the Ribbon
Cutting ceremony for Fox's Pizza on Monday, December 1, 2014, and that he also
attended his first Schertz - Seguin Local Government Corporation (SSLGC) meeting today.
As there was no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 8:31p.
Michael R. Carpenter, Mayor
A ST:
LIPe..
Brenda Dennis, City Secretary
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