01-12-2016 MinutesMINUTES
REGULAR MEETING
January 12, 2016
A Regular Meeting was held by the Schertz City Council of the City of Schertz, Texas, on January
12, 2016, 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 Grumpy Azzoz
Councilmember Cedric Edwards
Staff Present:
Executive Director Brian James
Executive Director Bob Cantu
City Secretary Brenda Dennis
Call to Order — City Council Regular Session
Mayor Pro -Tem Fowler
Councilmember Daryl John
Councilmember Robin Thompson
City Manager John Kessel
Executive Director Dudley Wait
City Attorney Charles Zech
Mayor Carp °enter called the meeting to order at 6:03 p.m.
Opening Prayer and Pledges of Allegiance to the Flags of the United States and State of Texas.
(Councilmember Thompson)
Councilmember Thompson provided the opening prayer followed by the pledges of allegiance to the
flags of the United States and the State of Texas.
Mayor Carpenter stated that last time he allowed the Student Mayor to also call the meeting to order
and he recognized Kelsey Ayers who banged the gavel calling the meeting to order.
Recognition and Presentation
• Introduction of the Student Mayors and Student Councilmembers for the Day. (Mayor
Carpenter)
- Student Mayors — Dobie Jr. High, 8th Grade James Kemter and Corbett Jr. High, 8th
Grade Kelsey Ayers
- Student Councilmembers — Dobie Jr. High, 7th Grade Raymond Ambrose and
Corbett Jr. High, 7th Grade Kyle Dorsey
Mayor Carpenter recognized the Student Mayors and Student Councilmembers for the day. Each
student provided brief information on what they learned during the day. Mayor Carpenter,
Superintendent Greg Gibson and City Manager John Kessel presented each student with a plaque and
certificate in recognition of their participation in the Student Mayors and Student Councilmembers
for the Day Program.
Mayor Carpenter recognized City Secretary Brenda Dennis and Social Studies Coordinator Rebecca
(Becky) Williams who came forward thanking all those that participated in the success of the
program today.
Mayor Carpenter recessed the meeting at 6:17 p.m., for photos.
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Mayor Carpenter reconvened the regular meeting at 6:24 p.m.
City Events and Announcements
• Announcements of upcoming City Events (B. James/D. Wait/B. Cantu)
No announcements were made.
• Announcements and recognitions by City Manager (J. Kessel)
No announcements were made.
Hearing of Residents
This time is set aside for any person who wishes to address the City Council. Each person should fill
out the speaker's register prior to the meeting. Presentations should be limited to no more than 3
minutes.
All remarks shall be addressed to the Council as a body, and not to any individual member thereof.
Any person making personal, impertinent, or slanderous remarks while addressing the Council
may be requested to leave the meeting.
Discussion by the Council of any item not on the agenda shall be limited to statements of specific
factual information given in response to any inquiry, a recitation of existing policy in response to an
inquiry, and /or a proposal to place the item on a future agenda. The presiding officer, during the
Hearing of Residents portion of the agenda, will call on those persons who have signed up to speak in
the order they have registered.
Mayor Carpenter recognized the following who spoke:
Mr. Richard Dziewit, 2550 Chasefield Drive, who spoke as a member of the Guadalupe
County Crime Stoppers. He thanked city representatives who met with a group from the
governor's office who came to see if Schertz would be a good place to have a convention.
He thanked Maggie Titterington, Jake Jacobs, Sue Boissonneault Jaclyn Ponder, Kyle
Kinateder, Robin Thompson and especially Erin Matlock, who put together a group of
things the conventioneers could do while in the City of Schertz. The next step is to go in
February to Odessa to promote Schertz as the city to hold the convention in 2017. He
thanked everyone for doing an excellent job.
• Ms. Laurie Crites, 8128 Garden North, who spoke about the Adult MegaPlex billboard on
IH -35 which alarms her. She shared some porn addiction statistics with council. She
asked council to definitely send the letter in Agenda Item #2. She wants our city to be
protected from porn addiction. She wants the billboard advertisement taken down.
• Mr. Miguel Gutierrez, 2608 Patron Village, who expressed on behalf of his family their
deep gratitude to the City of Schertz for the use of the Civic Center and city personnel and
volunteers assisting last Tuesday when his father, Henry Gutierrez, was buried. The family
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appreciates the huge outpouring of support from the City. With regard to Bexar Waste,
the company is rock solid and they are committed to the same level of service that his
father demanded. Nothing will change there. He hopes he can fill his father's role and you
can call him any time. He thanked the city staff again for everything they have done.
Discussion and Action Items
1. Minutes - Consideration and /or action regarding the approval of the minutes of the Regular
Meeting of January 5, 2016. (J. KesselB. Dennis)
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Azzoz who moved, seconded by
Councilmember Edwards to approve the minutes of the Regular Meeting of January 5, 2016.
The vote was unanimous with Mayor Pro -Tem Fowler, Councilmembers Azzoz, John,
Edwards and Thompson voting for and no one voting no. Motion passed.
2. Resolution No. 16 -R -01 – Consideration and /or action approving a Resolution authorizing
the issuance of a letter from the City of Schertz regarding the Adult Megaplex billboard
located at Schertz Parkway and IH 35. (B. James)
The following was read into record:
RESOLUTION NO. 16 -R -01
A RESOLUTION BY THE CITY COUNCIL DIRECTING THE MAYOR OF
SCHERTZ TO SIGN AND SEND A LETTER TO THE ADULT MEGPLEX.
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Thompson who stated he feels this drafted letter
is lacking and is a statement that leans to a more neutral theme. He would like to see the
addition of something more, perhaps stating that the city council has received multiple
complaints about the billboard and would like to see it removed from the city limits. He feels
this is a step in the right direction but needs to be strengthened more.
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Azzoz who stated we have to be careful because
we are infringing on free enterprise. He is looking at the legal part of it and the right of
businesses and their right to advertise. He does not think we can successfully defeat this. He
made reference to the online retailer Amazon.com and what they are selling nationwide. He is
not saying this is a great thing to have. It's just a business and he is for the rights of protecting
individuals and their businesses.
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Fowler who said he thinks we should take some
action about our displeasure regarding the billboard advertisement but we may want to
consider how we can involve the community and our churches working together in unity. He
thinks this letter would only be a beginning but it has to start somewhere. This could be an
opportunity for all of our churches working together.
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember John who said people are going to do what they
want but he thinks it doesn't hurt to ask —maybe the billboard owners will be sympathetic and
take the advertisement down.
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Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Edwards who said maybe citizen involvement is
the way to go (i.e. a petition). People have free will. So do the advertisers. If we do send a
letter, we also have to send it to the billboard owner. Billboards command $2,600+ per month.
There are also some economic questions we need to be aware of.
Discussion continued regarding constitutional rights, freedom of enterprise, advertisement
patterns, etc. Mayor Carpenter said that on the advice of their legal counsel, he would like to
talk to them about this matter, so under The Texas Code 551.071 they are going to go into
executive session at this time.
Mayor Carpenter recessed the meeting into Executive Session under section 551.072
Consultation with the City Attorney at 6:52 p.m.
Mayor Carpenter reconvened back into open session at 7:07p.m.
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Azzoz who recommended tabling this item for
discussion at another time.
Mayor Carpenter stated this is challenging. This is a clear first amendment question. The
constitution and the amendments were put in place to limit government and to protect the
people. We have to be careful not to go to far as a government. However, this does not limit
individuals. He suggests that if council desires not to take any action, then we simply take no
action and move on with the rest of the meeting.
Councilmember Azzoz withdrew his request to table the item and made a motion to take no
action. Mayor Carpenter stated no motion was needed to take no action. Since no one else
spoke up, no action was taken.
Workshops
• Discussion and possible action regarding amending the City Council Rules of Conduct and
Procedure and the City Council Code of Ethics. (Item requested by Councilmember Edwards
and confirmed by Mayor Carpenter)
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Edwards who stated he feels the established
trust amongst council may have been a little bit mired recently and he feels we need to get
back that trust amongst ourselves, our colleagues, and departmental staff. He had asked for
this to be put on the agenda to find out if our legal counsel could provide anything to help us
add clarity with our code of conduct and code of ethics in regard to public media matters.
Mayor Carpenter said each councilmember has a first amendment right to say just about
anything they want to say at any time. He asked Councilmember Edwards if he wanted legal
counsel to come forth at a future meeting with a presentation on this topic. Mr. Edwards said
while he doesn't want to infringe on individual rights he also does not want to see any
hindrance occur toward what our staff is doing. What we saw over the last couple of weeks
was a clear case of hindrance. This is his only concern. He asks that we prepare something
about how to handle public media matters and add it to our city code of ethics.
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Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Thompson who said maybe it could be
something that states if there is any interview by a councilmember, there has to be a
representative from the City Information Office also present at that interview to assist and
provide guidance to the councilmember being interviewed.
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Azzoz who stated what he said in the media
interview recently was clearly posted in the newspaper. He did not hinder anything. Mayor
Carpenter interrupted the discussion to remind everyone to stay on the subject specifically
posted on the agenda. Councilmember Edwards responded that he is only asking for some
type of parameters to be added that would specifically address public media matters.
Mayor Pro -Tern Fowler and Councilmember John both expressed concern about being careful
of what is said by council; to be aware of our credibility and use restraint with our words,
especially when it is about high profile emergencies, investigations, or tragedies.
Councilmember John stated we should be very sensitive to these situations.
City Attorney Charles Zech offered to get with staff to craft some language that would not
infringe on any first amendment rights but still gets across the position of council on how
media relation issues should be handled. He gets the feeling that we just want to be careful
with information when it is provided by council and to keep in mind the intricacies of law
enforcement and any other privacy concerns that may arise as a result of their speech.
Councilmember Edwards stated he wanted to publicly apologize to Councilmember Azzoz
and did not want him to feel he was targeting just him. Councilmember Edwards stated he
feels council needs a foundation on this topic for the future on which they all can rely on.
Councilmember Azzoz thanked him for his apology.
Mayor Carpenter commented that he feels council already has the ability to police and
discipline itself and to try to legislate this some more upfront could become problematic. He
thinks we have enough information before us already to police ourselves.
For further clarification, City Attorney Charles Zech stated his understanding of what is being
asked for is guidelines on how we might handle issues of a sensitive nature —and that is all it
would be. There would not be any language stating if you do this, these are the ramifications.
It would just be sort of common sense guidance on how to handle issues drafted in a way that
we would not be treading upon any constitutional rights.
Mayor Carpenter recognized City Manager John Kessel who stated he feels it would be
beneficial on the staff level to initiate some media training not only to council but to executive
management, department heads and any other staff member who may have an opportunity to
meet with the media. He proposed that Public Affairs Director Linda Klepper work with our
Emergency Operation staff and develop a training program that could be useful to staff and
other individuals such as Citizens on Patrol that interact with us regularly. Councilmember
John stated he thinks that TML offers such a class that we could look into.
Mayor Carpenter stated he feels a need to put out a motion and see how the council feels
about it. With deference to action taken by the Schertz City Council on April 16, 1974 with
regard to the selection of a Mayor Pro -Tem, Mayor Carpenter moved that this council
pursuant to our rules of procedure, and particularly Article V, Section 5. 1, subsections (a), (b),
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and (g), establish by rule and as such in this case a standing rule that mayors pro -tem shall be
appointed for a term of one year beginning and ending in February of each year. And that
said, mayors pro tem shall be appointed by a majority vote of council following a properly
made motion to appoint a member who is both eligible and in good standing with council at
the time the motion is made and that such rule take effect immediately. Councilmember John
seconded the motion. The vote was 3 -2 -0 with Councilmembers John, Edwards, and
Thompson voting yes, Mayor Pro -Tent Fowler and Councilmember Azzoz voting no.
Motion Passed.
A short discussion continued as to the `history' of the rotation of the Mayor Pro -Tem versus
the appointment and the length of time served as mayor pro -tem. History went back to former
Councilmember /General Marsh who at that time felt the term should be rotated every six
months amongst each councilmember.
Discussion and consideration and /or action regarding the confirmation, appointment or
election of the Mayor Pro Tempore.
Mayor Carpenter moved that Councilmember Cedric Edwards be appointed Mayor Pro -Tem
for a period of one year immediately following the expiration of Mayor Pro -Tem Fowler's
term of service. Councilmember John seconded the motion. The vote was 3 -2 -0 with
Councilmembers John, Edwards, and Thompson voting yes, Mayor Pro -Tem Fowler
and Councilmember Azzoz voting no. Motion Passed.
Roll Call Vote Confirmation
Mayor Carpenter recognized City Secretary Brenda Dennis who provided the roll call votes for
agenda item 1, and the two (2) workshop items.
Requests and Announcements
3. Announcements by City Manager
• Citizen Kudos
• Recognition of City employee actions
• New Departmental initiatives
Mayor Carpenter recognized City Manager John Kessel who reminded everyone that council
would be having their retreat at the GVEC Operations Center Training Room this coming
Thursday and Friday. On Thursday, city staff will be there and on Friday, City Council will be
there with staff joining them in the afternoon. After the meeting tonight please visit with the
City Secretary (Councilmembers John, Azzoz, Fowler and Edwards) to provide her with some
needed information regarding the retreat.
Also, the City held two groups today in the council chambers 1) The Chamber Leadership
Core, and 2) Student Mayor and Student Councilmember for the Day Program. They had very
impressive results from these activities. A lot of staff participated, including City Secretary
Brenda Dennis, Director of Public Affairs Linda Klepper, Officer Helen Lafitte, Parks
Manager Chuck VanZandt, City Engineer Kathy Woodlee, and Director of Planning and
Community Development Lesa Wood and GIS Coordinator Tony McFalls. There were other
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staff members that participated in both of these exercises. He hopes to see us continue in these
student programs. He congratulated Brenda Dennis and Linda Klepper for today's success.
4. Future Agenda Item Request for City Council: This is an opportunity for City Council
members to request that items be placed on a future agenda. No discussion of the merits of
the item may be taken at this time. Should a Council Member oppose placement of the
requested item on a future agenda, the Mayor, without allowing discussion, shall ask for the
consensus of the other City Council members to place or not place the item on a future
agenda.
No items were requested.
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
Mayor Carpenter recognized Mayor Pro -Tem Fowler who just wanted to verify the dates of
the regular council meetings beginning this month as the 1St, 2"a, and 4th Tuesdays. City
Secretary Brenda Dennis confirmed this as correct.
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Azzoz who stated at `Operation Comfort' they
are still collecting contributions for our wounded soldiers going through rehab. He will
provide more information at the next council meeting.
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Edwards who stated General Marsh's husband
passed away and the funeral was this past Friday.
Mayor Carpenter recognized Councilmember Thompson who complimented city staff of the
Schertz Civic Center in showcasing the Civic Center to the Texas Crime Stoppers
representative on Friday.
Mayor Carpenter also mentioned that regarding the passing of General Marsh's husband any
visit or card sent her way would be appreciated.
Executive Session
6. City Council will meet in closed session under section 551.074 of the Texas Government
Code, Personnel Matters, to deliberate the appointment, employment, evaluation,
reassignment, duties, discipline, or dismissal of the City Secretary.
Mayor Carpenter recessed the meeting into Executive Session under section 551.074 of the
Texas Government Code, Personnel Matters, to deliberate the appointment, employment,
evaluation, reassignment, duties, discipline, or dismissal of the City Secretary at 7:45 p.m.
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Reconvene into Regular Session
6a. Take any necessary action based on discussions held in closed session under Agenda Item
number 7.
Mayor Carpenter reconvened back into open session at 9:16 p.m.
Mayor Carpenter recognized Mayor Pro -Tern Fowler who made a motion to give the City
Secretary a pay increase of 2% effective immediately, seconded by Councilmember Azzoz.
The vote was unanimous with Mayor Pro -Tem Fowler, Councilmembers Azzoz, John,
Edwards and Thompson voting for and no one voting no. Motion passed.
Roll Call Vote Confirmation
Mayor Carpenter recognized City Secretary Brenda Dennis who provided the roll call vote for agenda
item 6a.
Adiournment
Mayor Carpenter adjourned the meeting at 9:18 p.m.
Michael Carpenter, Mayor
ATTEST:- -
Brenda Dennis, City Secretary
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