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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2023-08-01 - Minutes -Vacant Ward 1 Position 1 Council Member D'Andre Jones Ward 1 Position 2 Council Member Sarah Moore Ward 2 Position 1 Council Member Mike Wiederkehr Ward 2 Position 2 Mayor Lioneld Jordan City Attorney Kit Williams City Clerk Treasurer Kara Parton City of Fayetteville Arkansas City Council Meeting August 01, 2023 City Council Meeting Minutes August 01, 2023 Page 1 of 11 Council Member Scott Berna Ward 3 Position 1 Council Member Sarah Bunch Ward 3 Position 2 Council Member Teresa Turk Ward 4 Position 1 Council Member Holly Hertzberg Ward 4 Position 2 A meeting of the Fayetteville City Council was held on August 01, 2023 at 5:30 p.m. in Room 219 of the City Administration Building located at 113 West Mountain Street, Fayetteville, Arkansas. Mayor Jordan called the meeting to order. PRESENT: Council Members D'Andre Jones, Sarah Moore, Mike Wiederkehr, Scott Berna, Sarah Bunch, Teresa Turk, Holly Hertzberg, Mayor Lioneld Jordan, City Attorney Kit Williams, City Clerk Treasurer Kara Paxton, Chief of Staff Susan Norton, Chief Financial Officer Paul Becker, Staff, Press and Audience. Pledge of Allegiance Mavor's Announcements, Proclamations and Recognitions: None City Council Meeting Presentations, Reports, and Discussion Items: Monthly Financial Report and Sales Tax Report — Chief Financial Officer Paul Becker, Chief Financial Officer stated that sales tax had increased positively and had gone up seven percent compared to last year. Retail sales tax for food was down and construction taxes had gone up. He stated the city's driving force continued to be sales tax on food and alcohol but, there had been shifts that he has not figured what they could mean yet. He stated property taxes were down two percent, sales tax were up seven percent, franchise fees were up eight percent, beverage taxes were up, building permits were up, court fees were up five percent. Paul stated, 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www.fayetteville-ar.gov City Council Meeting Minutes August 01, 2023 Page 2 of l l overall, the city was up approximately seven percent for the General Fund. He briefly spoke of other financial percentages and asked if there were any questions from council when he concluded. Council Member Turk asked what the target percentage was. Paul Becker explained the city was close to the proposed target at 6.73 percent. Agenda Additions: None Consent: Approval of the July 18, 2023 City Council meeting Minutes. APPROVED Ahnimisha Consulting, LLC (Service Contract): A resolution to award RFP #23-04 and authorizes a one year contract with Ahnimisha Consulting, LLC for organizational development consulting services as needed with an option to renew for up to four additional one year terms. Resolution 157-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk Skills Lab Training (Service Contract): A resolution to award RFP #23-04 and authorizes a one year contract with Skills Lab Training, LLC for organizational development consulting services as needed with an option to renew for up to four additional one year terms. Resolution 158-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk Water System Rehabilitation (Budget Adjustment): A resolution to approve a budget adjustment transferring the amount of $216,477.00 from the Eastside Water Storage Tank Account to the Water System Rehabilitation/Replacement account. Resolution 159-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk Henard Utility Products, Inc. (Purchase Agreement): A resolution to approve the purchase of 1,780 cellular advanced metering infrastructure water meters from Henard Utility Products, Inc. in the amount of $455,413.00, plus applicable taxes and freight charges, for use by the Utilities Department, and to approve a budget adjustment. Resolution 160-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk E Source Companies, LLC (Service Contract): A resolution to approve a Professional Engineering Services Contract with E Source Companies, LLC for water loss investigation services in an amount not to exceed $95,000.00, and to approve a project contingency in the amount of $10,000.00. 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www.fayetteville-ar.gov City Council Meeting Minutes August 01, 2023 Page 3 of 11 Resolution 161-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk Lewis Ford of Fayetteville (Purchase Agreement): A resolution to approve the purchase of five Ford vehicles from Lewis Ford of Fayetteville in the total amount of $401,869.00 plus any additional surcharges or delivery fees, pursuant to Ordinance 6491, and to approve a budget adjustment. Resolution 162-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk Rush Truck Center (Purchase Agreement): A resolution to approve the purchase of an International dump truck from Rush Truck Centers of Arkansas, Inc. for the amount of $241,210.78 plus any additional surcharges and delivery fees up to 10% of the original purchase price, pursuant to a Sourcewell Cooperative Purchasing Contract, and to approve a budget adjustment. Resolution 163-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk Wrapology, LLC (Service Contract): A resolution to award bid #23-20 and authorize a one year contract with Wrapology, LLC for the purchase of wraps and decals for Fleet vehicle and equipment rebranding, with an option to renew for up to four additional one year terms. Resolution 164-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk Springdale Tractor Co. (Purchase Agreement): A resolution to authorize the purchase of a Kubota Tractor from Springdale Tractor Co. for the amount of $28,045.50 plus any additional surcharges or delivery fees, pursuant to a Sourcewell Cooperative Purchasing Contract, and to approve a budget adjustment. Resolution 165-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk Hutchinson Salt Company (Purchase Agreement): A resolution to award Bid # 23-27 and authorize the purchase of bulk crushed rock salt from Hutchinson Salt Company for $40.00 per ton for materials picked up and $89.48 per ton for materials delivered as needed, and to authorize the use of other bidders based on price and availability as needed. Resolution 166-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk FYV Taxiway E Extension — (Environmental Assessment): A resolution to authorize the acceptance of a Federal Aviation Administration Grant in the amount of $189,450.00 to fund 90% of the cost of an environmental assessment for the Taxiway E Extension project at Drake Field, to approve Task Order No. 7 in the amount of $208,000.00 with Garver, LLC to complete the assessment, and to approve a budget adjustment. Resolution 167-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www.fayetteville-ar gov City Council Meeting Minutes August 01, 2023 Page 4 of 11 Continuum of Care Program Grant (Renewal Agreement): A resolution to approve the renewal of four Continuum of Care Program grant agreements with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in the total amount of $338,260.00 for the city to administer programs to assist homeless Fayetteville residents. Resolution 168-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk Arkansas Natural Resources Division (Loan Acceptance): A resolution to designate and authorize Mayor Jordan or his designee to execute certain documents in connection with funding administered by the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission to obtain loan funding for the West Water Transmission Main Project, and to approve a budget adjustment. Resolution 169-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk Council Member Bunch moved to accept the Consent Agenda as read. Council Member Jones seconded the motion. Upon roll call the motion passed 7-0. Council Member Jones, Moore, Wiederkehr, Berna, Bunch, Turk and Hertzberg voted yes. Ward 1 Position 1 was vacant. Unfinished Business: 2024-2028 Capital Improvements Plan: A resolution to adopt the 2024-2028 Five -Year Capital Improvements Plan. At the July 18, 2023 City Council meeting, this item was tabled to the August 1, 2023 City Council meeting. Paul Becker, Chief Financial Officer stated this resolution was not a budget, appropriation or authorization to spend money. He explained this plan was part of the interim planning process and it was staff s recommendation for department needs for the next five years. Paul said there had been extensive input from numerous different committees, citizen calls and discussion with the council and the committees they were on. The original request for the plan was 294,000,00 and the plan covered approximately 260,000,000. A large part of the plan's investment would be in water and sewer due to the new water line that would be tapping in near Springdale. This line was needed because of the increasing demand for water services. The second largest expenditure were for vehicles and equipment for the entire city. The majority were for replacement of existing equipment. The third largest expenditure were for the transportation system. This includes sidewalks, street overlays and public safety concerns throughout the city. Paul finished his report and asked the council if they had any questions. Council Member Moore asked the council to refer to page 19 of the Capital Improvements presentation. She stated housing had been discussed frequently and that it was often in the media. She asked a question regarding the funding allocated to land acquisition, economic vitality and how housing needs and necessities would be addressed in the Capital Improvements Plan. Council Member Turk asked for more information on economic vitality and land acquisition. 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www.fayetteviIIe-ar.gov City Council Meeting Minutes August 01, 2023 Page 5 of 11 Devin Howland, Economic Vitality Director stated the entire Capital Improvements Plan had economic vitality benefits. He explained the specific purpose of this item could be used to acquire property that could be leveraged to expand housing and employment. He stated there are three sites left in the commerce district and other properties throughout Fayetteville that could be leveraged for housing opportunities. Paul Becker asked the council to remember that this was a plan and things could always be discussed and that the plan was not a final budgeting plan. Mayor Jordan reminded the council that they could make amendments to the Capital Improvements Plan. Council Member Turk asked that the Aquatic Feasibility Study be explained more in detail. Paul Becker stated that the naming convention may be misleading and asked for Alison Jumper to answer the question. Alison Jumper, Parks Director stated the study came out of the Parks Master Plan and that the study was for determining the needs of pools, splash pads and other aquatic activities. Council Member Turk stated that it was not specific to Wilson Park pool and that the study included all aquatic resources and interests. Alison Jumper, "yes." Council Member Turk was not prepared to make an amendment tonight because it was just a plan and not locking the city into a budget. She stated her interests were funding climate resiliency and not reducing it by $50,000 and forestry outreach. She stated these were components of quality of life which are important to her and what she believed were important for the City of Fayetteville. Paul Becker stated the programs she mentioned were relatively new programs and that the amounts were large, and staff was trying to fund what they could. Mayor Jordan stated this plan is a five-year plan and that there would most likely be adjustments. Council Member Moore understood that this was a plan that could be amended. She hoped the council would continue to adjust the budget. Council Member Wiederkehr moved to approve the resolution. Council Member Bunch seconded the motion. Upon roll call the motion passed 7-0. Council Member Jones, Moore, Wiederkehr, Berna, Bunch, Turk and Hertzberg voted yes. Ward 1 Position 1 was vacant. Resolution 170-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk. 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www fayetteville-ar gov City Council Meeting Minutes August 01, 2023 Page 6 of 11 Raze and Removal of Structure at 3301 South Coach Road: a resolution to order the razing and removal of a dilapidated and unsafe structure on property owned by Kevin Roy Calhoun located at 3301 South Coach Road in the City of Fayetteville, Arkansas, and to approve a budget adjustment in the amount of $17,500.00. For item history from December 6, 2022 through July 18, 2023, contact the Office of the City Clerk Treasurer. At the July 18, 2023 City Council meeting, this item was tabled to the August 1, 2023 City Council meeting. Billy Bryant, Senior Code Compliance Officer remarked the demolition permit was issued and that the owners of M&M Excavating stated the progress was going well and the completion of the project should finish soon. With the issuing of the demolition permit and a positive progress report from M&M he suggested the item be tabled indefinitely. Council Member Berna moved to table the resolution indefinitely. Council Member Hertzberg seconded the motion. Upon roll call the motion passed 7-0. Council Member Jones, Moore, Wiederkehr, Berna, Bunch, Turk and Hertzberg voted yes. Ward 1 Position 1 was vacant. This resolution was tabled indefinitely. New Business: 2024 Annual Benefits Renewal: A resolution to approve the 2024 Employee Benefits Package. Missy Cole, Human Resource Director stated that last week a presentation was provided to the council and recommended items to move forward with. These items were, Blue Cross / Blue Shield health insurance, Blue Cross / Blue Shield dental insurance, Blue Cross / Blue Shield vision insurance and requested moving the city paid life insurance to Blue Cross / Blue Shield. Also, recommended was the renewal of One America voluntary paid benefits short term disability, flexible spending account with American Fidelity, health savings accounts with First Security bank and continued Cobra administration. Council Member Moore spoke of how she would be impacted by the dental changes and asked what the target goal was for dentists being incorporated under the plan so individuals would not have to pay out of pocket. Missy Cole, deferred the question to Todd Setser from Brown & Brown. Todd Setser, Brown & Brown Representative stated the goal was always one hundred percent. He stated they were limited by the needs of the providers and what generally happens was that an out of network provider would be approached to try and bring them in network. He stated the dental rates were a concession that needed to be made in order to lower the rates for the health insurance. Council Member Turk asked how many dentists in the area were in network with Blue Cross / Blue Shield. 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www.fayetteville-ar gov City Council Meeting Minutes August 01, 2023 Page 7 of l 1 Todd Setser stated there were a considerable number of dentists in the plan but, does not have the exact number off the top of his head. Council Member Berna clarified that the dental concession was made to offset the nineteen percent increase down to four percent and effectively saved 1.2 million dollars. Council Member Turk thanked Missy Cole and her staff. Council Member Bunch moved to approve the resolution. Council Member Berna seconded the motion. Upon roll call the motion passed 7-0. Council Member Jones, Moore, Wiederkehr, Berna, Bunch, Turk and Hertzberg voted yes. Ward 1 Position 1 was vacant. Resolution 171-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk. Fayetteville Advertising and Promotion Commission (Service Contract): A resolution to authorize Mayor Jordan to sign a contract with the Fayetteville Advertising and Promotion Commission for the funding of the Downtown Fayetteville Coalition in the amount of $60,000.00 for services through the end of 2023. Susan Norton, Chief of Staff requested the support of council for the scope of work involving Experience Fayetteville and the services that are enumerated in the contract attached to the agreement to establish support of the new organization. She requested for Molly Rawn from Experience Fayetteville to speak before council. Molly Rawn, CEO of Experience Fayetteville stated she would explain the deliverables that are proposed in the agreements. She explained Experience Fayetteville's downtown staff would support community engagement efforts and support the upcoming downtown master plan working closely with the Development Services Department. Experience Fayetteville's downtown staff would not control master plan efforts but, be a liaison between businesses, especially those that have odd hours such as restaurants. Experience Fayetteville was offering to serve as a point of contact for citizens and businesses in the area of parking. She stated other areas that would be priorities of Experience Fayetteville were mobility, infrastructure improvement, historic preservation, long range planning, beautification and safety. She then remarked that an area of high priority would be the administration of the Aurora Program and providing the businesses the resources they needed and providing information regarding compliance. Experience Fayetteville would also fill a role in facilitating special event permitting, the Mayor would have final say but, Experience Fayetteville would have a part in the process. She stated the reason behind having a place in the process would be to provide more effective communication between the city and local businesses. She stated the part that had received the most attention are events, developing six signature events for the downtown areas. She remarked that this agreement was the perfect vehicle to ensure the city stayed vibrant and that quality of life was taken into consideration. Council Member Turk stated it seems that downtown was already thriving and asked why it was necessary to spend these funds and questioned why downtown businesses were not participating in the funding of this item. 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www.fayetteville-ar.gov City Council Meeting Minutes August 01, 2023 Page 8 of 11 Molly Rawn explained how the local businesses were donating their time and therefore donating their money. She expected businesses to contribute more once the coalition was formed and had become more prevalent. She expressed that a coalition like this was needed because other cities in the state and around the country already had this and to ensure Fayetteville remained vibrant a coalition like this was needed. Council Member Bunch asked what things that Fayetteville peer cities are doing. Molly Rawn explained how other cities are doing but, other cities in the Northwest Arkansas region, state and nationally have civic dollars that support initiatives like the one being proposed. Council Member felt that the plan was necessary to maximize the investment into the City of Fayetteville and would support the initiative. Council Member Wiederkehr stated this was an investment and that the city runs on sales tax. Council Member Jones stated that he had several citizens reach out in support of this initiative and that he supported this initiative as it would improve the quality of life for Fayetteville citizens. Council Member Bunch believed this initiative would unify the downtown area and was in support of the initiative. Mayor Jordan stated that the City of Fayetteville had another organization like this in the past and that he had been watching the other cities and that Fayetteville was in competition with every other city in the region in regard to sales tax. He expressed that the city needed a plan on how to program the Arts Corridor and that it was important for the long-term investment of city funds. He stated the city needed to spend the money to invest in the Arts Corridor and asked the council to support this initiative. Council Member Turk asked Devin Howland about the funding for the initiative. Devin Howland Economic Vitality Director explained that the department kept funding on hand for city interests that may arise and that this was a great opportunity in which funds could be spent. He added that there are still funds available if something else arose that would be in the interest for the City of Fayetteville. Council Member Turk asked if the funds for the initiative would come from the Department of Economic Vitality. Susan Norton said she anticipated the funds would not come out of the same department for next year and would bring ideas forward during budget allocation. Council Member Moore thanked staff for putting together the item and said she supported the item. 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www.fayetteviIIe-ar.gov City Council Meeting Minutes August 01, 2023 Page 9 of 11 Mayor Jordan stated with this resolution the city was putting seeds of faith in the community. He expressed that the city had done this with Theater Squared, Kessler Mountain and Centennial Park and believed the city would see the benefits of this initiative. Council Member Berna moved to approve the resolution. Council Member Bunch seconded the motion. Upon roll call the motion passed 7-0. Council Member Jones, Moore, Wiederkehr, Berna, Bunch, Turk and Hertzberg voted yes. Ward 1 Position 1 was vacant. Resolution 172-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk. Rezoning-2023-0016:(2900 N. Hughmount Rd./Renner, 243): An ordinance to rezone that property described in Rezoning Petition RZN 23-016 located at 2900 Hughmount Road in Ward 4 for approximately 4.35 acres from R-A, Residential Agricultural to RSF-1, Residential Single - Family, 1 unit per acre. City Attorney Kit Williams read ordinance. Jonathan Curth, Development Services Director provided a brief description of the ordinance. He stated staff found the request to be compatible with surrounding land uses. He explained that the piece of property was annexed to Fayetteville last year and as a default it was zoned Residential Agricultural and the request was to have it rezoned to Residential Single Family one unit per acre. He stated staff found the infill rating to be low and the increased allowance to be acceptable. He stated the tree density requirements would not change due to the rezoning. He stated that staff recommended in favor of the request and the Planning Commission forwarded it to City Council unanimously. He stated there had been no public comment on the item since the Planning Commission meeting. He noted Bo Renner was in the audience to take questions if the council requires. Bo Renner, Applicant stated he was available for questions. Council Member Hertzberg moved to suspend the rules and go to the second reading. Council Member Berna seconded the motion. Upon roll call the motion passed 7-0. Council Member Jones, Moore, Wiederkehr, Berna, Bunch, Turk and Hertzberg voted yes. Ward 1 Position 1 was vacant. City Attorney Kit Williams read ordinance. Council Member Hertzberg moved to suspend the rules and go to the third and final reading. Council Member Berna seconded the motion. Upon roll call the motion passed 7-0. Council Member Jones, Moore, Wiederkehr, Berna, Bunch, Turk and Hertzberg voted yes. Ward 1 Position 1 was vacant. City Attorney Kit Williams read ordinance. 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www.fayetteville-ar gov City Council Meeting Minutes August 01, 2023 Page 10 of 1 l Mayor Jordan, asked shall the ordinance pass. Upon roll call the ordinance passed 7-0. Council Member Jones, Moore, Wiederkehr, Berna, Bunch, Turk and Hertzberg voted yes. Ward 1 Position 1 was vacant. Ordinance 6675 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk. Amend §51.136 Monthly Water Rates and §51.137 Monthly Sewer Rates: An ordinance to amend §51.136 Monthly Water Rates and §51.137 Monthly Sewer Rates to change water and sewer rates as recommended by the Cost of Service Study conducted by Black & Veatch. This item was not included in the agenda to be heard at this meeting. It was added during the meeting for amendments to be made by the City Council. Mayor Jordan stated there are existing water and sewer rates that have been tabled and that these rates needed to be updated. He talked with the City Attorney earlier in the afternoon and it was decided that the old water and sewer rates needed to be updated to the new rates before the public hearing on the fifteenth of August. Kit Williams, City Attorney "Yes, in order to follow state law that is what we need to do. I sent you a memo last week but, basically what it is, is that you have to introduce the new ordinance with the new rates before we call the notice for the public hearing so therefore we need to remove from the table the old ordinance. Once we have the old ordinance here then we need to amend it to the new ordinance with the new rates so that then has been presented properly according to what state law tells us to do. The notice for public hearing will then be published, I believe, in the Thursday paper which I believe will be ten days before our next meeting and that means you can have a public hearing and consider the ordinance at the August fifteenth meeting. So, if someone will make a motion to remove the old the old water and sewer rates from the table so we can consider it, that would be what I would like." Council Member Turk moved to remove from table the monthly water and sewer rate increase. Council Member Bunch seconded the motion. Upon roll call the motion passed 7- 0. Council Member Jones, Moore, Wiederkehr, Berna, Bunch, Turk and Hertzberg voted yes. Ward 1 Position 1 was vacant. Kit Williams, "Okay, at this point the ordinance is before us and now we will need to move to amend to the new updated ordinance and it's updated rates and to really present that properly to the council and public I will read the new ordinance." City Attorney Kit Williams read ordinance. Council Member Bunch moved to amend to the new ordinance and new rates as read by the City Attorney. Council Member Turk seconded the motion. Upon roll call the motion passed 7-0. Council Member Jones, Moore, Wiederkehr, Berna, Bunch, Turk and Hertzberg voted yes. Ward 1 Position 1 was vacant. 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www fayetteville-ar gov City Council Meeting Minutes August 01, 2023 Page 11 of 11 Kit Williams, "As I said in my memo, this will all be discussed all the public comment, the explanation from Paul will be discussed on August fifteenth and no public comment is needed now." Council Member Berna asked what the definition of a public hearing was. Kit Williams, "It is similar to what we are doing now in a lot of ordinances but, the state law says here there will be a public hearing which requires public comment. If you look at state law it doesn't require that we allow public comment on ordinances so it is actually by state law that we must have public comment but we go above and beyond that and allow public comment on our ordinances too." This ordinance was left on the second reading. Announcements: Susan Norton, Chief of Staff stated that the animal shelter was currently full regarding dogs and that intake was being limited to emergency only and adoption fees are being waived. Council Member Berna, reminded council of the ribbon cutting for Walker Park. Susan Norton, stated this Friday would be the revealing for the refurbished Walker Park basketball court. Council Member Berna, stated the ribbon cutting would be on Friday morning. Susan Norton, stated the ribbon cutting was on Friday and the giveaway event was on Saturday. City Council Agenda Session Presentations: Energy Report - Peter Nierengarten. Crisis Intervention Response Team (GIRT) Presentation - Sgt. Patrick Hanby and Steven Greathouse. City Council Tour: None RK��sGl'TR lll�l 01 Y p r�'�, _��• FAYET7EVIL[_t Kara Paxton, Cityotlerk Treasuip�;•;'�'r, 11f;1111111161 WOO, 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www fayetteville-ar gov