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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes CC - 02/07/2011 - 02-07-11 Reg. Mins (Migrated from Optiview)Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council February 7, 2011 Page 1 of 13 pp"M This summary is provided as a convenience and service to the public, media, and staff. It is not the intent to transcribe proceedings verbatim. Any reproduction of this summary must include this notice. Public comments b""' are noted and heard by Council, but not quoted. This document includes limited presentation by Council and invited speakers in summary form. This is an official record of the Milton City Council Meeting proceedings. Official Meetings are audio recorded. The Regular Meeting of the Mayor and Council of the City of Milton was held on February 7, 2011, Mayor Joe Lockwood presiding. INVOCATION Chaplain Remco Brommet, Chaplain for City of Milton Police and Fire. CALL TO ORDER Mayor Joe Lockwood called the meeting to order. ROLL CALL City Clerk Gordon called the roll and made general announcements. Councilmembers Present: Councilmember Thurman, Councilmember Zahner Bailey, Councilmember Lusk, Councilmember Hewitt, and Councilmember Longoria. Councilmember Tart was absent from the meeting. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Mayor Lockwood led the Pledge of Allegiance. APPROVAL OF MEETING AGENDA Approval of Meeting Agenda (Agenda Item No. 11-019) Motion and Vote: Councilmember Hewitt moved to approve the Meeting Agenda. Councilmember Zahner Bailey seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously 6-0. (Councilmember Tart was absent from the meeting.) PUBLIC COMMENT Mayor Lockwood read the rules for Public Comment. • Public comment is a time for citizens to share information with the Mayor and City Council and to provide input and opinions on any matter that is not scheduled for its own public hearing during today's meeting. • There is no discussion on items on the Consent Agenda or First Presentation from the public or from Council. • Each citizen who chooses to participate in public comment must complete a comment card and submit it to the City Clerk. • Please remember this is not a time to engage the Mayor or members of the City Council in conversation. mom • When your name is called please step forward and speak into the microphone stating your name and address for the record. mom • You will have five minutes for remarks. There was no public comment. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council February 7, 2011 Pave 2 of 13 CONSENT AGENDA City Clerk Gordon read the Consent Agenda items: 1. Approval of the January 19, 2011 Regular Minutes. (Agenda Item No. 11-020) (Sudie Gordon, City Clerk) 2. Consent to the Request for Assignment of Contract and Task Order from Street Smarts, Inc. to Stantec Consulting Services, Inc. (Agenda Item No. 11-021) (Carter Lucas, Public Works Director) 3. Approval of a Parks and Recreation Event License Agreement Between the City of Milton and i9 Sports Forsyth/North Fulton to Offer a Coed Youth Soccer Program for Ages 4-12 at Cogburn Woods Elementary School. (Agenda Item No. 11-022) (Cyndee Bonacci, Parks and Recreation Director) 4. Approval of a Parks and Recreation Event License Agreement Between the City of Milton and i9 Sports Forsyth/North Fulton to Offer a Coed Youth Flag -football Program For Ages 4-12 at Birmingham Falls Elementary School. (Agenda Item No. 11-023) (Cyndee Bonacci, Parks and Recreation Director) 5. Approval of a Parks and Recreation Independent Contractor Services Agreement Between the City of Milton and Jessica Miller to Offer a Jr. Jazzercise Program. (Agenda Item No. 11-024) (Cyndee Bonacci, Parks and Recreation Director) 6. Approval of a Temporary Access License Agreement between the City of Milton and Wellness Centers of America, Inc. for the Jr. Jazzercise Program. (Agenda Item No. 11-025) (Cyndee Bonacci, Parks and Recreation Director) Motion and Vote: Councilmember Lusk moved to approve the Consent Agenda. Councilmember Thurman seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously 6-0. (Councilmember Tart was absent from the meeting.) REPORTS AND PRESENTATIONS 1. Presentation of Rural Metro Ambulance (RMA) Emergency Medical Transport Fees. (Agenda Item No. 11-026) (Reg James, Division General Manager for RMA) Reg James: • I am the division general manager for the state of Georgia for RMA. • We are seeking your approval to increase our user fees by roughly 20% as the gross amount that we charge. "" • The agenda will have a basic overview of the system. • What's changing now since the contract was put into place on July 1 st, 2008 would be a comparison of the area rates. • Some options and alternatives as we see them will change to be objective. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council February 7, 2011 Page 3 of 13 ... • The contract began in July of 2008. Iftom • The data that the contract was developed on was 2007 data. • We are part of a multijurisdictional contract with Alpharetta, John's Creek, Roswell, Mountain Park, and Milton. • At peak load we have six advance life support ambulances operated in the area. • We operate with over 100 EMTs and paramedics. • Overall in Georgia we have 545 EMTs and paramedics in metropolitan Atlanta. • The system works as designed. • We respond to three calls per day on average. • We have a 75% transport rate that goes through the system. • Milton represents around 8.5% of the entire call volume in this area. • 911 ambulances are evaluated under three criteria: economy, efficiency, and public welfare. • By participating in a larger system, Milton is able to be a part of a large system without having to pay all of the resources which goes to the heart of economy and efficiency. • We do dynamic posting and we look at call demand trends and place ambulances in areas that are more likely to need one. • It allows us to handle more volume with fewer resources. • We obtain our medical information from Emory. • The number one cost for the ambulance service is payroll. • Vehicle expenses relating to maintenance and fuel are number two. • Operating costs are rising. • Collection rates are down 9%. • I am asking for a small increase in my base rates which is the least impactful way in trying to generate more revenue. • By charging more we will not be collecting more from Medicaid. • It will impact the insurance companies which is where we want to maximize. • We are proud of the fact that our system is working. • Our rates are currently low compared to others and even with our proposed increase we will still be lower. Councilmember Lusk: • How does our collection rate in Milton compare with Roswell or Alpharetta? Reg James: • John's creek and Milton have the highest collection rates overall, you are in the 60%. Mayor Lockwood: • If you raise your rates, will it affect the City's subsidizing cost? Reg James: • No, It will not affect your subsidizing cost. Karen Thurman: • If we have such a lower percentage, what is our response time within the city of Milton as compared to other cities? Now • I know we have a larger area and you have to have more people here. • What is our average response time. n� Reg James: • Our contract calls for us to provide 8 minutes or less for certain emergencies 90% of the time. • We are not meeting a 90% response time in this city. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council February 7, 2011 Paee 4 of 13 • It compares to others from 68%-85% month to month. • A response time is important for certain scenarios. • Your fire department provides a first response with a good response time. • During the ice storm we were able to double our resources. • If you were a part of a standalone system, you may not have had that option. Councilmember Zahner Bailey: • When you talk about collections, do you do your collection activity internally or do you outsource? • What is the current time frame or obligation for when we would get back with our sister cities to reevaluate our split? Reg James: • We do ours internally. Chris Lagerbloom: • We would have the opportunity to be evaluated every year. • We are not required to every year. • The group that brought that forward (MROC) meets on a monthly basis. • I don't think there is anything wrong with the contract that we have. • We do need to see how we can maximize the effectiveness. • The relationships between the cities is going well. Councilmember Lusk: • Can you give me some examples of where this 115% increase comes in? Reg James: • Fuel is one of the big ones. • We drive a lot with these trucks. • We have to reposition the trucks constantly. • These were brand new trucks in 2008. • They have a lot of miles on these trucks and we have to do more repairs than when they were brand new. Councilmember Longoria: • What was the duration of the contract? • This is the first increase you guys have asked for? • You said you aren't meeting that response time in Milton for a lot of reasons, what percentage happens to be within that? Chris Lagerbloom: • It is a year to year annual renewal. Reg James: • The response time ranges from 66% to 84% month to month. Fire Chief Edgar: .q • 1 just wanted to say that Mr. James and his staff has been excellent to work with. • The paramedics are the top and our staff works well with them. • The system itself works well. • It is just the stuff with the transport times and response times that is difficult. FIRST PRESENTATION(None) Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council February 7, 2011 Page 5 of 13 pow PUBLIC HEARINGS ALCOHOL BEVERAGE LICENSE APPLICATION Approval of the Issuance of an Alcohol Beverage License to The Club Pub, LLC d/b/a Erwood's located at 12635 Crabapple Road, Suite 310, Milton, Georgia 30004. The applicant is Robert Forrest for consumption on premises — wine, malt beverages and distilled spirit. (Agenda Item No. I1-027) (Stacey Inglis, Finance Director) Stacey Inglis: • The applicant has met all of the city's requirements for getting an alcohol beverage license and staff recommends approval of this license. Motion and Vote: Councilmember Thurman moved to approve Agenda Item No. 11-027. Councilmember Zahner Bailey seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously 6-0. (Councilmember Tart was absent from the meeting.) ZONING AGENDA (None) UNFINISHED BUSINESS (None) pow NEW BUSINESS aft" 1. Resolution of the City of Milton, Georgia to Set Qualifying Fees for Municipal Elections. RESOLUTION NO. 11-02-170 (Agenda Item No. 11-028) (Chris Lagerbloom, City Manager) Chris Lagerbloom: • Coming into an election year, this resolution is self explanatory. • Elections in Milton will be held November 8th, 2011 for districts 2, 4, and 6. • Code allows for 3% of the total gross salary of the office paid in proceeding year as the qualifying fee. • This resolution will establish the qualifying fee for $390.00 for the election in 2011. Motion and Vote: Councilmember Lusk moved to approve Agenda Item No. 11-028. Councilmember Thurman seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously 6-0. (Councilmember Tart was absent from the meeting.) MAYOR AND COUNCIL REPORTS Mayor Lockwood: It looks like we have some Milton students tonight, welcome and we are glad you're here. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council February 7, 2011 Page 6 of 13 STAFF REPORTS Chris Lagerbloom: • We published three staff reports tonight as you saw by email. • It was designed to free up next Monday night. 1. Parks and Recreation Department Capital Projects and Programs Update. (Cyndee Bonacci, Parks and Recreation Department) Cyndee Bonacci: • In November we completed the purchase of one acre on the corner of Deerfield Parkway and Webb Road. • We used parks and recreation capital funds and designated Marta funds for this purchase. • The property was acquired for a price well below market value due to a foreclose. • The site plan has not yet been completed for the development of the property. • Regarding Bell Memorial park improvements, phase 1 of the drainage project was completed last summer. • Phase 2 of the project will be completed soon as weather issues have prevented completion. • An area between fields 3 and 4 have been readdresses since this summer. • Heather and light sensors have been installed in the restrooms and concession stands. • The block dugouts of fields 1 and 2 have been replaced with new chain link dugouts. • New benches are being ordered and will be installed prior to games beginning. • Push button faucets will be added in the restrooms. • All projects should be completed by March. • These improvements are funded by reinvestment money paid by HYA per the use agreement. • Bethwell community center will be submitted tomorrow. • The request for bid is scheduled to be released next Monday. • Construction should begin by the beginning of April and completed by mid May. • The facility will be open for public use in June by reservation and fee. • Camp Bethwell will begin June 6`h and may other programs will be scheduled at Bethwell. • Revenue from user fees and programs will offset the cost of renovations. • Intergovernmental agreements will include improvements at Cogbum Woods Elementary school, Hopewell Middle School, and Birmingham Falls Elementary school as we are exploring other IGA's. • IGA's are being finalized for these three schools. • Improvement at the school in return for priority usage include field irrigation and maintenance and dugouts at Hopewell Middle school. Improvements will be made this summer when school is not in session. • The terms of the agreements will be five years. • In return for these improvements revenues from programs will offset the cost of these improvements. • Another intergovernmental agreement for the development of a two acre city park between Crabapple Crossing Elementary school and Northwestern Middle School. • Initial site plan was approved a few months ago by Fulton County Board of Education. • I have a meeting on February 17th to finalize details for the agreement with both principals. • We hope to begin construction in June so the park will be completed by August when school begins. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council February 7, 2011 Pase 7 of 13 • The park will be used by the schools during the day and it will function as a city park before and after school, on weekends, and during the summer. • The agreement will be for 10 years. • Revenues and programs and uses will help offset maintenance and construction costs. • We have three planning projects coming up soon, Parks and Recreation comprehensive master plan. • This will be the first of our planning projects this year. • This will take the assessment plan, pattern book, needs assessment survey, national standards, and other data resources and combine everything into one comprehensive package as a future implementation plan. • This document should carry us forward for the next 10-15 years. • Included is the Birmingham Park master plan. This planning project will identify and define the future development of Birmingham Park. • Fulton County created a master plan for the park and 2005. • Milton will revisit the initial research and concept for the park and apply current and future needs for a new master plan. • The Milton trail plan update will be revisited. • Press for bids should go out by the end of February. • All three planning projects should be completed this spring and summer. • All park signs will be updated so that all entrance signs look the same and can be identified as OP." Milton Property. • New directional signs will be added around the city to guide residents and visitors to these sites. `""' • Money has been set aside for some improvements for the Crabapple community center. • A final plan has not been identified yet. Mayor Lockwood: • I want to say thank you to Cyndee for all of the hard work that she has done since she has been here. • It is exciting to see some of these things come together on paper and as we move forward. Councilmember Zahner Bailey: • Will the new signage be going to the design review board? Cyndee Bonacci: • Yes, some plans will be sent to the DRB. • Programs as they exist right now, we have an agreement with Hopewell Youth Association to provide youth baseball at Bell Memorial Park. • We also have an agreement in place for a fitness camp program which is continuing to grow. • This spring we will be offering a Jr. Jazzercise program through an independent contractor for ages 4-9. • We will also offer coed youth flag football and coed youth soccer through I9 sports for ages 4- 12. • This summer we will have camp Bethwell for ages 6-12 for a maximum of 30 kids. • It will be held at the Bethwell Community Center. • We will also offer Camp Joyful Souls for ages 12-18 in conjunction with Camp Happy Hearts offered by the city of Alpharetta. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council February 7, 2011 Nee 8 of 13 • Alpharetta is being helpful to help us get this program started and we are exploring grant funding and sponsorship. • Fall of 2011 we will continue programs that we start this spring. • We will be introducing Youth four ball hockey which is a brand new sport offered through the Atlanta Thrashers and I9 sports. • We are exploring that program. • Working on partnerships for lacrosse. • We are actively pursuing partnership with girls lacrosse right now. • We are introducing a pre-school age program from ages 3-5. • We plan to introduce a running club and we plan to offer additional after school activities. • In Winter 2012 we plan to offer basketball and in addition to these programs identified with specific start times and seasons, we are actively discussing partnerships with various groups for softball, football, soccer, as well as various classes and activities. • With regards to special events, we plan to hold all events we held last year and add others as well as including a summer concert series this summer. Councilmember Lusk: • Do all of these programs fall within our recreation budget? Cyndee Bonacci: • Yes. The two camps that we will be offering this summer will be staff driven. • We have set aside money in the general fund for camp counselors to run both of those camp programs. • One will be offered at Cogburn Woods Elementary and the other at the Bethwell Community Center. Jason Wright: • All of the schools, PTAs, and administration will be added into our mailing list. 2. Discussion of Revision to Road Abandonment Law and Milton's Road Privatization Policy. (Ken Jarrard, City Attorney) Carter Lucas: • We had a meeting about changes that came through on the state law and I wanted to circle back around and touch base on that revision. Ken Jarrard: • You may recall in 2009 and 2010 the general assembly changed the statute pertaining to road abandonment. • That is the process by which the City is able to take a road out of your city system and privatize it. • Historically the statute provided that in order to take a roadway out of the City System the road had not been used for a meaningful public purpose. • There were some instances where the City Council could have determined that the road was a magnet for criminal activity or dangerous and could warrant abandonment, but the typical standard was that the usage had to be almost reduced to nothing. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council February 7, 2011 Page 9 of 13 • This has changed and I think it is significant. mmw • The language provides that abandonment can occur when there is a discontinuation of the road being used by the public to the extent that no substantial public purpose is served by it. • The additional language includes "or that it's removal from the municipal street system is otherwise in the best public interest." • The City Council is able to determine what is in the best interest of the city. • The burden now has flipped and now if the Council makes the decision to abandon based upon the fact that you believe the public interest is served by the abandonment, a party would have to prove that the council abused your discretion. • Milton has a privatization policy that requires 100% buy in by effective stakeholders. • If the council wanted, you can revisit the policy. • The statute gives the council more flexibility. Carter Lucas: • One question that came up was what does the surrounding jurisdictions do with approval of an application for the abandonment of a road? • John's Creek, Sandy Springs, Roswell, and Fulton County all require 100% approval. • Alpharetta requires all property owners submit the application and be 100% of the property owners submitted. • Sandy Springs and John's Creek also included the type of street that can be abandoned. Now • A street that connects two collector type streets is not eligible for abandonment under their policy. • Their policies target smaller cul-de-sac streets. • Sandy Springs has a provision that allows a homeowners association to act on behalf of a subdivision when making application for privatization or abandonment of a road. • Our ordinance prohibits Homeowners associations from making those determinations. Councilmember Thurman: • I don't believe that 100% approval is a realistic standard. • I think it needs to be a majority, but not 100%. Mayor Lockwood: • Is 100% approval across the entire spectrum? Carter Lucas: • Any application that comes forward for any of those types of roads. Councilmember Longoria: • We didn't set out to write an ordinance specific to road abandonment or 100% approval, we inherited those from some source. • Now"Is it fair to say that John's Creek and Sandy Springs inherited those from the same source that we did? Carter Lucas: • I believe those are based on the Fulton County standards. • Fulton county was the base and we modified it. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council February 7, 2011 Nee 10 of 13 Mayor Lockwood: • My personal opinion on 100% rule is it doesn't give anyone direction to make the best decisions in the interest of the city. • I would like the affected citizens have the ability to make a decision. Councilmember Lusk: • I would imagine that Fulton County created this when Fulton County was more rural. • It was probably easier to get 100% when the area was more rural. • I believe the provision has outlived itself now that we are more populated. • I would like to revisit that part of the ordinance. Councilmember Hewitt: • lam for changing this 100% to something where a group would have the opportunity to present it to us. Mayor Lockwood: • I would like to get a majority on if we should look at it. Councilmember Zahner Bailey: • I think we need to look at how it will affect citizens. I would like to know when Fulton County last updated the ordinance. I want to say it was in 2006 or 2007, but I would like to know for sure. Ken Jarrard: • With this new law, you will be faced with the issue of abandoning heavily used roads. Mayor Lockwood: • We would like to ask the staff and attorney to come up with some solutions for this. • To come up with some other options for this particular item. City Manager Lagerbloom: • We will be happy to look at it. • Individually you all have ideas that you want us to work with. • Send me ideas that you may have so we can be sure to work everyone's ideas into this. Councilmember Zahner Bailey: • Black Oak Road was something that was discussed because it was a road that was utilized by citizens and that particular developer wanted us to abandon that road so they could take ownership. • We had a lot of citizens that did not want us to abandon the road and give away the asset that was the City's. 3. High Intensity Use Buffers and Undesirable Uses Discussion. (Lynn Tully, Community Development Director) Lynn Tully: 0 This is a continuation of a discussion from several months ago. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council February 7, 2011 Page 11 of 13 • We were looking at the standard condition I that has been placed several different commercial ,,,,,,,w zonings that have happened since you have all been a city. • In going through that list, I pulled several different approved commercial rezoning. • They were pretty similar with some changes for zoning on specific sites. • That list appeared for the exclusions to carry a few themes. • Those themes are: o Items or uses which were generally objectionably o And uses which seem to have a more high intensity type use. • When I went through those, I looked at some of the other jurisdictions as well as jurisdictions throughout the country. • There is not a lot of consistency among those uses. • What is somewhat consistent are those that are generally accepted as objectionable uses. • There is not a lot of consistency there. • If you are familiar with zonings, anything in C 1 is allowable. • We had a difficult time finding our high intensity use. • One place that would an appropriate use for somewhat high intensity uses if it generated traffic, it should not be clustered together. • They should be separated to reduce traffic. • I have prepared a list of staff recommended changes that would address all of the uses in one of the two categories. room • The first map includes all of the properties that are currently zoned C2. • They are located primarily along highway 9. • They are all developed to some degree. • The two northern most properties on highway 9, one is substantially developed but not entirely. • The other includes an old home which could be redeveloped into something else. • These are already all developed in one form or another. • The second parcel map looks at the clustering buffer. • All of the gas stations and fast food restaurants jumped out as high traffic generating. • It is primarily convenience traffic. • When looking at the gas stations and putting a % mile buffer and a 1 mile buffer between the existing use gas station, you can see this takes up the majority of the parcels. • The parcels are the ones that were unconditional which would eliminate gas stations with a clustering buffer and would contain the majority of those gas stations along highway 9. Councilmember Zahner Bailey: • On the C2 and Chadwick's Landfill, is that a C2? • If we could, we should note that it is use permit with a defined time frame. Lynn Tully: • It was permitted separately, so it is not a C2. ,,.,. • In the recommended changes, we are looking at moving some of these items that are currently shown in C2. • We would want to move barber shops and beauty salons to a C2 district which is a higher zoning district. • Laundromats from C 1 to C2. 0 Adding commercial amusements both indoor and outdoor. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council February 7, 2011 Pap -e 12 of 13 • Commercial amusements seem to be listed specifically in C2. • Escort dating services is something to go in C2. • Flea markets and second hand stores to be moved to C2 which would include these "we buy gold" stores or pawn shops. • Fortune tellers have been mentioned and would be objectionable. Mayor Lockwood: • Can we restrict a use completely? Ken Jarrard: • Typically that would run into federally protected rights or state constitution. • Depending upon the use, I am unaware of any constitutional or federal protection that they have. Councilmember Thurman: • We could move something like escort dating services to something completely objectionable instead of C2. Lynn Tully: • The freestanding fast food restaurants would be recommended to be moved to a clustering buffer. • I used a 1/2 mile to a mile as a visual aid, but it is not set and can be set by you all. • Liquor sales and package stores can be moved to C2. • Liquor stores have their own ordinances as far as placement. Councilmember Lusk: • Aren't liquor stores regulated by the state as far as proximity to each other? Ken Jarrard: • The minimum distances are but the localities are left with jurisdictions to increase and go above the state requirements. Lynn Tully: • Massage parlor stand alone. • We can remove those entirely or we can regulate those by definition and require that they have their own certification amongst certified professionals which would included doctors. • We would have to revamp the definitions to make sure we are inclusive enough in our zoning ordinance. • Motels are specific to a certain site. • We can allow those to remain there. • Pool halls is one that I have seen as fairly objectionable in other cities consistently. • The definition for that is a little sporadic. • Produces stands and farmers markets are zoned to agricultural uses. • Tattoo, piercing, and body artist shops are closely regulated by zoning and the health department. • If it is something we deem objectionable entirely we can move them to the higher commercial uses. Regular Meeting of the Milton City Council February 7, 2011 Page 13 of 13 ow-. • Video arcades might be allowable if they have restaurant facility uses as well and could be zoned C2. Now Councilmember Lusk: • Where would you categorize an amusement park? Lynn Tully: • That would be outdoor amusement. • It is not in this document and that is why we changed it to indoor/outdoor. • We would move it to C2. • The closest related use that is listed is outdoor batting cages. • Carnivals are not specifically listed but would be allowable as a special event. • This would eliminate commercial districts. Councilmember Thurman: • Do they have to get a special use permit to come in? Lynn Tully: • Yes ma'am. Councilmember Zahner Bailey: .n% • Did some garage repair places end up in a C2 versus a Cl? Lynn Tully: • It could. It was not consistent over the jurisdictions. • This will still have to go back to the planning commission before it comes back to you all. • If there are any other questions or concerns, please contact me. EXECUTIVE SESSION(None) ADJOURNMENT (Agenda Item No. 11-029) Motion and Vote: Councilmember Hewitt moved to adjourn the Regular Meeting at 7:59 p.m. Councilmember Thurman seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously 6-0. (Councilmember Tart was absent from the meeting.) Date Approved: February 23, 2011. mom Sudie AM Gordon, City Jerk Joe Lockwoo ayor I"_""7