Loading...
07-14-2015 MinutesMINUTES REGULAR MEETING July 14, 2015 A Regular Meeting was held by the Schertz City Council of the City of Schertz, Texas, on July 14, 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: Councilmember Jim Fowler Councilmember Daryl John Staff Present: Executive Director Brian James Executive Director Bob Cantu City Secretary Brenda Dennis Councilmember Grumpy Azzoz Councilmember Robin Thompson City Manager John Kessel Executive Director Dudley Wait City Attorney Charles Zech Mayor Carpenter and Mayor Pro -Tem Edwards were absent. Call to Order Councilmember Fowler called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. Opening Prayer and Pledges of Allegiance to the Flags of the United States and the State of Texas ( Councilmember Robin Thompson) Councilmember Robin Thompson provided the opening prayer 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 (B. James/D. Wait/B. Cantu) Councilmember Fowler recognized Executive Director Brian James who provided the following announcements: • Wednesday, July 15 - VIP Staffing Ribbon Cutting, 1256 FM 78, Ste. 110, 4:00 p.m. • Friday, July 17 - Ribbon Cutting @Wood Creek Vapory, 1420 Schertz Parkway, Suite 200, 11:00 a.m. • Saturday, July 18 — Schertz Chamber of Commerce Home Living Showcase, Schertz Civic Center 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. Free admission, over 60 vendors in attendance. • Monday, July 20th; Operation Comfort Fund. Raiser, 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., sponsored by Grumpy's Cafe, 18817 FM 2252; proceeds will be donated to charity. • Tuesday, July 21, Chamber Monthly Luncheon, Schertz Civic Center, TxDOT Updates & Proposed Projects for area roadways, Schertz Civic Center, 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. SAVE THE DATE: 7 -14 -2015 Minutes Page - i - Saturday, August 1, City of Marion Sausage Supper, St. John's Lutheran Church, 606 S. Center Street, 9:00 a.m. -11:00 p.m. Events include a parade, trade days, meals, games, bingo, auction, live music & dancing. Saturday, August 15, Schertz Idol Finale, Crosspoint Church, 5:00 p.m. The City of Schertz will be holding its' General Election on November 3, 2015 for the purpose of electing Council Members in Place 3, Place 4 and Place 5. Any candidate desiring to have his or her name on the official ballot shall, no sooner than July 25, 2015 and no later than August 24, 2015 by 5:00 p.m., file with the City Secretary an application in writing requesting that his or her name be placed on the Official Ballot. The term of office for said vacancies will expire November 2017. Candidate packets are available in the City Secretary's office or can be found online at www.schertz.com. • Announcements and recognitions by City Manager (J. Kessel) No announcements were provided. Recognitions • Schertz Sweetheart Court Awards (L. Klepper/E. Matlock/J. Villarreal) Luling Watermelon Thump 2015 62nd Parade - 1 st Division 4 - Visiting Float Luling Watermelon Thump 2015 Sweepstakes Grand Prize Judges' Award Councilmember Fowler recognized Office Manager Erin Matlock who introduced Miss Jubilee Regina Deason, General Services Manager Joe Villarreal, and General Services Staff Members Sam Rhodes and Albert Orosco. Ms. Matlock stated that this was the first year that the City of Schertz swept all awards. Ms. Matlock turned it over to Mr. Villarreal who provided a slide show regarding the float. Mr. Villarreal explained that City staff updated the float in -house this year saving the City about $12,000. He stated that doing this in -house cost around $7,000. Councilmembers present expressed their appreciation to staff for all their work. Council also stated that the Sweethearts are great Ambassadors of the City. Hearing of Residents Councilmember Fowler recognized the following individuals who spoke: • Ms. Lisa Connolly, 3720 Limestone Cove, with the Schertz Humane Society who came forward thanking the City for hosting the 14th Annual Doggie Dash. Ms. Connolly presented Council with a plaque of appreciation as well as passed out some T- shirts. • Mr. Larry Thompson, Garden Ridge, who came forward providing information on an upcoming seminar he is hosting in the City of Garden Ridge titled "Refuse to be a Victim ". He stated that he had sent the information to Councilmember Azzoz as he thought it would be a good seminar for the City of Schertz and he had inquiries from more than one Schertz resident wanting to attend. Mr. Thompson provided( 7 -14 -2015 Minutes Page - 2 - Council with his background of accreditation. Councilmembers and Management indicated that Councilmember Azzoz had passed on the information and that the City will look into the possibility of also hosting this seminar in the City of Schertz. Mrs. Clare Layton, 12231 Lost Meadows Drive, who asked where the Mayor and Mayor Pro -Tern were this evening. She indicated that in the past the former Mayor always mentioned the absence of council members. Mrs. Layton addressed the Council regarding a statement that was made last week that should not go unchallenged. She quoted "I would not ever ask the Police Chief to come get me off the dais for my wife or any member of my family calling. I don't believe it is an effective use of tax dollars to utilize 911 for an emergency in that manner ". She stated her opinion on why the comment was made. Mrs. Layton provided an addition to the opening prayer stating: "Please protect the members of our armed forces and watch over Schertz first responders. Also, bless their families because they too make sacrifices so that all who live in the City are kept safe. Amen." Mrs. Layton commented on the importance of attendance or providing a donation to Councilmember Azzoz's charitable event on July 20,'2015 regarding the `Operation Comfort' Fund Raiser. Discussion and Action items 1. Minutes - Consideration and/or action regarding the approval of the minutes of the Regular Meeting of July 7, 2015. (J. Kessel/B. Dennis) 2 Councilmember Fowler recognized Councilmember Azzoz who moved, seconded by Councilmember Thompson to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of July 7, 2015. The vote was unanimous with Councilmembers Fowler, Azzoz, John and Thompson voting for and no one voting no. Mayor Pro -Tem Edwards was absent. Motion passed. Resolution No. 15 -R -60 — Consideration and/or action approving a Resolution authorizing the approval of the Bexar Metro 911 Budget for Fiscal Year 2016. (D. Wait/D. Wait) The following was read into record: RESOLUTION NO. 15 -R -60 A RESOLUTION BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SCHERTZ, TEXAS AUTHORIZING THE APPROVAL OF THE BEXAR METRO 911 BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR 2016, AND OTHER MATTERS IN CONNECTION THEREWITH Councilmember Fowler recognized City Manager John Kessel who introduced this item answering questions from Council. Mr. Kessel stated that this item is to recommend approval of the Bexar Metro 9112016 budget, which is our 911 services in our three (3) county area. This is a service that is not paid for out of City taxpayer dollars, but is a charge on all cell phones and land lines for anyone that is in those three counties. This funds the 911 service we all utilize when we call 911 or for emergencies on the interstate. He stated that the budget that is in front of you was downloaded to your IPads for you to review. He stated for the record it is about $42 million dollars' worth of budget, but the operating expense is about $6 million. They are not proposing rate increases. The rates have remained flat since 7 -14 -2015 Minutes Page - 3 - the life of the 911 project and since its inception has relied on the growth in the region to add to the capacity. The major components that they provide are a redundancy for all different 911 services, which is a really( good feature. They also upgrade that particular service in our region and one of the big action items we are looking forward to with it is to take our 911 service to the next generation that is able to deal with more features of cell phone use. This is a big advantage. The action by City Council that staff is recommending is approval; the most important thing that the Council should know is that this is largely symbolic, as the three (3) counties vote is what it takes to approve the budget and many of the smaller communities are not sufficiently large enough in the system to affect more than voice of support or voice of opposition. However, this is very meaningful for a community to support or oppose a budget like this because it sends a strong message. The final information he would like to share is that in the past we have received grants. For example the recent grant we received was for upgrades to our dispatch service. He stated we were able to upgrade our 911 Dispatch Center with modular equipment through the grant we received. He stated the budget has no increases in 911 fees so there will be no additional impact upon the citizens of Schertz beyond what they pay today. He is supportive of this item and recommends approval. Councilmember Fowler recognized Councilmember Azzoz who moved, seconded by Councilmember Thompson to approve Resolution No. 15 -R -60. The vote was unanimous with Councilmembers Fowler, Azzoz, John and Thompson voting for and no one voting no. Mayor Pro -Tem Edwards was absent. Motion passed. Roll Call Vote Confirmation City Secretary Brenda Dennis who provided the roll call vote information for agenda items 1 and 2. Requests and Announcements Announcements by City Manager • Citizen Kudos • Recognition of City employee actions CP New Departmental initiatives No further announcements were provided. Requests by Mayor and Councilmembers that items be placed on a future City Council agenda. Councilmember Fowler recognized Councilmember Azzoz who inquired where the $2 million dollars was that was given to us by TxDOT for the FM 3009 sidewalks project. Councilmember Azzoz also inquired about the money that was budgeted last year for the restrooms that were to be placed at the Playscape. 7 -14 -2015 Minutes Page - 4 - Councilmember Fowler recognized City Manager John Kessel who asked Councilmember Azzoz if he wanted these as agenda items or would it be possible to provide this as information to the full Council. Councilmember Azzoz concurred. Councilmember Azzoz also asked for an update from Evergreen Solutions on the Salary Classification and Compensation Survey. City Manager John Kessel stated that this is targeted to come to Council on July 28, 2015 provided we can get the final information. He stated that they had a conference call this afternoon to see if we will be in a position to have the draft information from Evergreen. They are still working on this and it is our intention to come to Council on July 28th with that information. Mr. Kessel stated that this would be a draft document until Council approves it. There is a lot of detail and information so it may be that Council would want to review this; we will call this a draft until it is approved. 5. 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 Councilmember Fowler recognized Councilmember Azzoz who commented on the importance of the July 20, 2015 fundraiser explaining that the proceeds will benefit the family members of Officer Diaz. Adjournment Meeting was-adjourned at 6:37 p.m. �k� G V&, _--- ouncilmember Jim Fowler, Presiding Officer ATTEST: Bred s, City Secretary 7 -14 -2015 Minutes page - 5 -