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04-21-2015 MinutesMINUTES REGULAR MEETING April 21, 2015 A Regular Meeting was held by the Schertz City Council of the City of Schertz, Texas, on April 21, 2015, 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 Daryl John Staff Present: Deputy City Manager John Bierschwale Interim Executive Director Dudley Wait City Attorney Charles Zech Call to Order Mayor Pro -Tem Cedric Edwards Councilmember Grumpy Azzoz Councilmember Robin Thompson City Manager John Kessel Executive Director Brian James Chief of Staff Bob Cantu Deputy City Secretary Donna Schmoekel 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 Director of Development Services Brian James who provided the following announcements: • Friday, April 24, Chamber Grand Re- Opening for Hands N' Harmony; Whole Body Wellness, 2041 Universal City, 3:00 p.m. • Friday, April 24, Dog Park Ribbon Cutting, 3:00 -6:00 p.m. • Friday, April 24, Schertz- Cibolo Lions Club Casino Night, 6:00 p.m., Civic Center. Upcoming Events • Thursday, May 7, Schertz Sweetheart Coronation, Civic Center, 5:30 p.m. • Sunday, May 17, Schertz EMS Golf Tournament, Olympia Hills Golf Course. • Sunday, May 24, EMS Banquet, Civic Center, 6:00 p.m. • Announcements and recognitions by City Manager (J. Kessel) 04 -21 -2015 Minutes - Page -1- Mayor Carpenter recognized City Manager John Kessel who stated he wanted to recognize a few employees from Public Works. A few months ago we applied for a TERP Grant which lets you retire old equipment that is polluting the environment; if we permanently disable it, we can be eligible for a reimbursement from the state. We received $107,000 back from .the state. We can now reassign that money for other purchases for more fleet equipment. Mr. Kessel named Jonathan Harshman, Cindy Raleigh, Jennifer Jones, Jimmy Hooks, Larry Busch, Jr. and other folks in the Public Works Department as contributors to attaining this reimbursement. With further research they found that by trading in three of the pieces of equipment they could get more value through a trade in. This was a very smart way of handling this matter and he commended the public works staffers for their leadership and ingenuity. Mayor Carpenter moved to the Hearing of Residents portion of the agenda next. Hearing of Residents Mayor Carpenter recognized the following who spoke: Mr. Glen Outlaw, 3729 Forsyth Park, who spoke on the future operation of the senior center. He believes the city realizes this is a very worthwhile program but understands that they do not have the resources, staff or skills to operate it; making it an easy option to engage a third party to run it. He thinks the decision to hire a third party should be an economic one, making sure we get our money's worth. Workshop Session • Discussion regarding the Skate Park Phase II Project. (Item requested by Mayor Pro -Tem Edwards) (B. James /C: VanZandt) Mayor Carpenter recognized Executive Director Brian James who stated when we built the skate park we received a $25,000 grant to help us and the city kicked in an additional funding amount, resulting in about $140,000 to get the first phase up and running. The park opened last March. He showed a picture of the design on the overhead screen. There are three more circles of skating space that can be added. However, we haven't done the actual construction drawings for the future phases. That would be the next step if we decide to proceed. Initially we probably thought it would occur in three phases. The first phase is the least expensive. One of the next steps is that the Parks Department will come in and add some extras such as a bench, water fountain, a gazebo, picnic table, some trash cans, etc. They are starting to build this into their current workload. They are planning to talk with the Parks Board and talk about the city budget and what the members feel is needed and what our priorities should be. Mayor Carpenter recognized Mayor Pro -Tem Edwards who stated he thinks the park is being fully utilized all the time; in fact, there are kids using it from our surrounding areas (i.e, Universal City, New Braunfels) who come to hang out with their friends in Schertz . He has spoken to some of the youngsters and they are interested in the other phases being added to what we have now. He is encouraged and wants to hear what the Parks Board has to say about the budget as well. 04 -21 -2015 Minutes Page - 2 - Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Azzoz who asked whether we have any hours of operation posted and/or any security cameras. Mr. James stated we do not. In fact we are waiting to see about the possible need to add lighting and then also post hours of operation at that time. We have not had any problems so far, but once we grow the facility, we may want to consider some camera installation options. Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Fowler who sked if any of this is going to be put into next year's budget. Mr. James said the Parks Board will need to tell us what the priorities are and take this into consideration. We have been successful so far with the design -build process. With this process you hire someone, tell them your budget, and they go out and do the actual plan design and build it all in the same effort. If council is interested in doing this, staff could probably go out and get a better feel for what we think the next phases will cost and establish an order of magnitude. Mayor Carpenter stated that unlike other skate parks that needed cameras, the skate community here seems to be adept at being self - policing. The choices we made in building it are good ones (i.e., sturdy materials) and it looks like it will hold up for a long time. He thinks the council would like to see a few choices on what we might do in the upcoming budget year and then we could have a discussion to see what options are available in securing private funding assistance. Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Thompson who suggested that we engage the opinions of some of the current skate park users by showing them the proposed design drawing and ask them which of the three future circles they would like to see built first. Mr. James concurred that this was a good idea. Discussion and Action Items Minutes - Consideration and /or action regarding the approval of the minutes of the Regular Meeting of April 14, 2015. (J. Kessel/B. Dennis) Mayor Carpenter recognized Mayor Pro -Tern Edwards who moved, seconded by Councilmember Fowler to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of April 14, 2015. The vote was unanimous with Mayor Pro -Tem Edwards, Councilmembers Fowler, Azzoz, John and Thompson voting for and no one voting no. Motion Passed. 2. Resolution No. 15 -R -29 — Consideration and/or action approving a Resolution Authorizing an Emergency Services Mutual Aid Agreement with Alamo Area Fire Chiefs Association. (D. Wait/D. Covington) The following was read into record: RESOLUTION NO. 15 -R -29 A RESOLUTION BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SCHERTZ, TEXAS AUTHORIZING AN EMERGENCY SERVICES MUTUAL AID 04 -21 -2015 Minutes Page - 3 - AGREEMENT WITH ALAMO AREA FIRE CHIEFS ASSOCIATION, AND OTHER MATTERS IN CONNECTION THEREWITH Mayor Carpenter recognized Fire Chief David Covington who stated they have an existing mutual aid agreement with the Alamo Area Chief's Association. Due to changes in the state law we had to make those same changes in our agreement and we also cleaned up some other language for clarification and continuity. Since it wasn't just a normal renewal, they thought they needed to bring it back to council to approve. According to the agreement, any time an agency /city decides not to respond, it is not an obligation. However, in cases when there is an unusual fire or large structure fires, the mutual aid agreements are great to have in place so that outlying area assistance is available to us. Mayor Carpenter recognized Mayor Pro -Tern Edwards who moved, seconded by Councilmember Fowler to approve Resolution No. 15 -R -29. The vote was unanimous with Mayor Pro -Tem Edwards, Councilmembers Fowler, Azzoz, John . and Thompson voting for and no one voting no. Motion Passed. Before proceeding to the next item on the agenda Mayor Carpenter recognized Mr. Dwayne Robinson from Judge Nelson Wolffs office in Bexar County, who was in the audience tonight. 3. Ordinance No. 15 -T -13 — Consideration and/or action approving an Ordinance authorizing a Budget Adjustment to the Drainage Channel Maintenance Fund for Improvements to the Laura Heights Drainage Channel — Downstream Section. First Reading (J. Bierschwale /L. Busch) The following was read into record: ORDINANCE NO. 15 -T -13 AN ORDINANCE BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SCHERTZ, TEXAS AUTHORIZING A BUDGET ADJUSTMENT TO THE DRAINAGE CHANNEL MAINTENANCE FUND FOR IMPROVEMENTS TO THE LAURA HEIGHTS DRAINAGE CHANNEL — DOWNSTREAM SECTION; REPEALING ALL ORDINANCES OR PARTS OF ORDINANCES IN CONFLICT WITH THIS ORDINANCE; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE Mayor Carpenter recognized Storm Water Manager Larry Busch, Jr. who stated this is an ongoing project, Phase III (final phase) of the Laura Heights Drainage Channel. The city has funded the first two phases already. After talking with the Home Owners Association (HOA), they were more than willing to participate so that Phase III could be completed. As a result, they donated $25,000 to help finish it. Now we are looking at about $30,000 for the project. All that remains, is for us to do a budget adjustment to move that donation from the HOA to the Drainage Channel Maintenance Fund to finish out this project. 04 -21 -2015 Minutes Page - 4 - Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Fowler who moved, seconded by Mayor Pro -Tem Edwards to approve Ordinance No. 15 -T -13 first reading. The vote was unanimous with Mayor Pro -Tem Edwards, Councilmembers Fowler, Azzoz, John and Thompson voting for and no one voting no. Motion Passed. 4. Resolution No. 15 -R -31 - Consideration and/or action approving a Resolution in Support of House Bill 1415 introduced by Representative John Kuempel during the 84th Regular Session of the Texas Legislature related to the establishment or use of cemeteries in certain municipalities. (J. KesseI/D. Wait) The following was read into record: RESOLUTION NO. 15 -R -31 A RESOLUTION BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SCHERTZ, TEXAS IN SUPPORT OF HOUSE BILL 1415 INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE JOHN KUEMPEL DURING THE 84TH REGULAR SESSION OF THE TEXAS LEGISTLATURE RELATED TO THE ESTABLISHMENT OR USE OF CEMETARIES IN CERTAIN MUNICIPALITIES Mayor Carpenter recognized Interim Executive Director Dudley Wait who stated in 2011 the city worked with Representative Kuempel and Senator Wentworth to introduce a bill that would allow somebody in the City who had a desire to open a city cemetery could do so. Currently, under state law, it is not allowed to start up a new cemetery within the city limits of a municipality. Representative Kuempel's law was passed in 2011 and had a sunset date of January 1, 2014. Since these plans did not materialize, now there is a desire to reintroduce it. Representative Kuempel has reintroduced it this time without a sunset date. It has made it through the House and has been introduced to the Senate. There has been an approach to Senator Uresti to carry it through the Senate. With his tenure in the Senate, he requested a resolution from the elected officials of the city showing that we were indeed in support of a bill like this, and that is why we are here this evening. Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Azzoz who asked where something like this (a new cemetery) would be located. Mr. Wait stated it could be anywhere but one place that was talked about was south of the air force base where it is mostly parkland and where we can't build anything else to protect the base. Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Azzoz who moved, seconded by Councilmember John to approve Resolution No.. 15 -R -31. The vote was unanimous with Mayor Pro -Tem Edwards, Councilmembers Fowler, Azzoz, John and Thompson voting for and no one voting no. Motion Passed. Roll Call Vote Confirmation 04 -21 -2015 Minutes Page - 5 - Mayor Carpenter recognized Deputy City Secretary Donna Schmoekel who recapped the votes for agenda items 1 through 4. Requests and Announcements 5. Announcements by City Manager • Citizen Kudos • Recognition of City employee actions • New Departmental initiatives No further announcements were provided. 6. Requests by Mayor and Councilmembers that items be placed on a future City Council agenda. Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Fowler who requested the following: 1) A work session to discuss considering a code amendment to require surveys of the first floor foundation prior to issuing a Certificate of Occupancy (CO) of a new residential home so that if at a later date there were concerns about foundation issues this document would provide a basic level of information. After first going to the Planning and Zoning Commission with this then a council work session could be scheduled for council to discuss further. 2) A work session on the subject of the city participating in student internship programs. 3) An overview by Public Works Director Sam Willoughby of the road bond project work we did as a result of the 2006 Bond Election, addressing what we did and how we prioritized our work projects (i.e., Northcliffe roads like Tiffany Drive that did not get completed due to running out of funding). Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Azzoz who requested a general discussion work session regarding Section 4.07A of the city charter. Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Thompson who requested an update on the Amazon incentive package (tax abatements) and benchmarks, in particular, with regard to the number of employees (full time /part-time) it has on board. It was agreed to put this on the agenda for further discussion in a couple of weeks. Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Azzoz who requested an update on the Employee Classification and Compensation Study currently in progress and being conducted by Evergreen Solutions. This item is to be placed on the agenda in a few weeks for discussion. Mayor Carpenter recognized Mayor Pro -Tern Edwards who requested we prepare a proclamation for local business Schertz Bank and Trust for being in business over 65 years. He also asked for a proclamation thanking all the outside organizations and groups that helped with the recent re- dedication of Gutierrez Park. 04 -21 -2015 Minutes Page - 6 - 7. Requests by Mayor and Councilmembers to City Manager and Staff for information. None requested. 8. 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 Mayor Pro-Tern. Edwards who asked the rest of the councilmembers to avail themselves to write letters of recommendation for our local high school seniors. There are a lot of families sending their kids off to college in a few months and the kids are needing these letters for attaining acceptance into college. He also stated that at the recent re- dedication of the Gutierrez Park there were a lot of clubs in attendance (Lions, Leo's, Key Club, Art Club) who were all volunteers. He suggested we do something for them; kudos, on public record, letting them know that what they are doing in the community is good. Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Fowler who stated the Schertz Chamber luncheon today was excellent and it was nice to see all of the non -profit organizations who were there participating. Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Azzoz who stated he enjoyed the tour last Friday of Amazon.com and seeing all the state -of -the -art technology they use. He also complimented the Schertz Chief of Police and his department staff members in regard to their frequent presence patrolling the community and keeping everyone safe. Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Thompson who thanked Park Manager Chuck VanZandt of the Parks and Recreation Department in regard to the care of the Gutierrez Park as well as a thank you to the Gutierrez family for providing lunch for everyone who attended the park's re- dedication on Sunday, April 19. Mayor Carpenter stated the local HEB had their grand re- opening at 9:30 a.m. on Friday, April 17. They did a fine job and are good partners here in our community. Adi ournment As there was no further business the meeting was adjourned at 6:58 p. . 04 -21 -2015 Minutes Page - 7 - Michael R. Carpenter, Mayor ATTEST: Donna Schmoekel, Deputy City Secretary 04 -21 -2015 Minutes Page - 8 -