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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2023-06-20 - Minutes -Council Member Sonia Harvey Ward 1 Position 1 Council Member D'Andre Jones Ward I 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 Paxton City of Fayetteville Arkansas City Council Meeting June 20, 2023 City Council Meeting Minutes June 20, 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 l Council Member Holly Hertzberg Ward 4 Position 2 A meeting of the Fayetteville City Council was held on June 20, 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 Sonia Harvey, D'Andre Jones, Sarah Moore, Mike Wiederkehr, Scott Berna, Sarah Bunch, Teresa Turk, Holly Hertzberg, Mayor Lioneld Jordan, Senior Assistant City Attorney Blake Pennington, City Clerk Treasurer Kara Paxton, Chief of Staff Susan Norton, Chief Financial Officer Paul Becker, Staff, Press and Audience. Pledge of Allegiance Nlav or's Allmotmeements, Proclamations and Recognitions: None Citv Council Meeting Presentations, Reports, and Discussion Items: None agenda :additions: None Consent: Garver, LLC — Task Order No. 05 (Grant Application): A resolution to authorize an application for a Federal Aviation Administration Grant in the amount of $475,738.00 to fund 90% 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www.fayetteville-ar.gov City Council Meeting Minutes June 20, 2023 Page 2 of 11 of the costs for the design and construction of the Wildlife Fence Rehabilitation Project at Drake Field Airport, to approve Amendment No. 1 to Task Order No. 5 with Garver, LLC in the amount of $15,000.00 to provide environmental coordination services associated with the project, and to approve a budget adjustment. Resolution 143-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk Garver, LLC - Task Order No. 06 (Grant Acceptance): A resolution to authorize the acceptance of a Federal Aviation Administration Grant in the amount of $374,729.00 to fund 90% of the project costs for a proposed Airport Master Plan Update at Drake Field Airport, to approve Task Order No. 6 in the amount of $413,366.00 with Garver, LLC for planning services, and to approve a budget adjustment. Resolution 144-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk Council Member Harvey moved to accept the Consent Agenda as read. Council Member Jones seconded the motion. Upon roll call the motion passed unanimously. Unfinished Business: Raze and Removal of Structure at 2860 E. Wyman Rd: A resolution to order the razing and removal of a dilapidated and unsafe structure on property owned by Leroy H. Scharfenberg located at 2860 East Wyman Road in the City of Fayetteville, Arkansas, and to approve a budget adjustment in the amount of $17,800.00. For item history from 07/05/2022 through 02/07/2023, contact the City Clerk's Office. At the 02/07/2023 City Council Meeting, this item was tabled until the 06/20/2023 meeting. Billy Bryant, Senior Code Compliance Officer stated all three structures on the property had been razed and were in the process of being removed. He noted there were still inoperable vehicles onsite and the property was not yet back to a buildable lot. He stated staff recommended a date specific tabling based on the property owners update. Mya Scharfenberg, Property Owners Daughter thanked the individuals who had helped her through the process and spoke briefly of her history with the property. She explained how there were still debris left at the site and estimated it would take her six weeks to finish the cleanup. There was brief discussion between Council Member Berna and Mya Scharfenberg on what was left that needed cleaned up. Mya Scharfenberg stated a concrete foundation and some small debris still needed to be removed. There was brief discussion between Council Member Moore and Mya Scharfenberg on what date the item should be tabled to. Mya Scharfenberg requested the item be tabled for six weeks. Council Member Turk and Council Member Berna questioned if the removal of the concrete foundation on the property was a requirement and if a track hoe could break up and remove it. 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www.fayetteville-ar gov City Council Meeting Minutes June 20, 2023 Page 3 of 11 Billy Bryant stated it was a requirement and that the lot had to be brought back to a buildable state. He believed that a track hoe could remove the foundation. Council Member Berna could help Mya Scharfenberg with removing the foundation if the council could table the resolution for four months. Council Member Turk thanked everyone for their efforts. Council Member Berna moved to table the resolution to the October 17, 2023 City Council meeting. Council Member Hertzberg seconded the motion. Upon roll call the motion passed unanimously. This resolution was tabled to the 10/1712023 City Council Meeting. New Business: Honoring the Life and Legacy of Hank Kaminsky (Resolution): A resolution to honor the life and legacy of Hank Kaminsky. Council Member Harvey was joined by Jo Ann and Jesse Kaminsky. She briefly spoke of Hank Kaminsky and how he was a part of the community. She gave a brief description of the resolution that detailed Mr. Kaminsky's career and creations. Council Member Berna moved to approve the resolution. Council Member Bunch seconded the motion. Upon roll call the resolution passed unanimously. Resolution 145-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk Innovative Concepts for Housing Solution (ARPA): A resolution to express the City Council's support for RFP 23-12, Innovative Concepts for Housing Solutions and Case Management. Paul Becker, Chief Financial Officer gave a brief description of the resolution. He believed the proposal would encourage the maximum number of vendors to apply for the program and spoke of how it would be issued and advertised. He stated the council could review the applications and decide on what further action they wanted to take. He stated the request did not bind the City of Fayetteville to accept any of the proposals received. Council Member Turk questioned why the timeframe for individuals to apply was so short. Paul Becker explained that the process must be started by the end of 2024 and completed by the end of 2026. He felt there was an interest amongst the council to move as quickly as possible. Council Member Turk asked if the timeline could be open for a month instead of only two weeks. 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www fayetteville-ar.gov City Council Meeting Minutes June 20, 2023 Page 4 of l 1 Paul Becker believed the timeline could be changed without amending the resolution. He questioned Senior Assistant City Attorney Blake Pennington if that would be possible. Blake Pennington, Senior Assistant City Attorney believed that if the Administration was amendable to extending the timeframe then it wouldn't be a problem. Council Member Moore thanked Council Member Turk for suggesting the time extension. There was brief discussion of the council wanting to extend the timeframe to a month. Paul Becker: Once we do that and I bring it back I want to caution the Council Members, because you'll all be part of a selection group, not to entertain any questions from any perspective people or vendors. We need to cut off all contact and any contact needs to go through the Purchasing Department to make sure we treat everyone equally and that's in line with the Purchasing Laws in the State of Arkansas and that's how we advertise Federal Funds. Thank you very much. Council Member Hertzberg moved to approve the resolution. Council Member Moore seconded the motion. Upon roll call the resolution passed unanimously. Council Member Harvey appreciated everyone coming together to figure out how the city would use the last of the American Rescue Plan Act Funds. She was grateful for everyone's support. Council Member Jones echoed Council Member Harvey. He was excited for Ward 1. Resolution 146-23 as recorded in the office of the City Clerk Mental Health First Aid Certification (Resolution): A resolution to encourage the City of Fayetteville to partner with Arkansas Rural Health Partners and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Arkansas to offer free mental health certification for mental health first aid to all city employees. Council Member Jones requested the item be tabled so a representative from Arkansas Rural Health Partners could be present to address questions and concerns. There was brief discussion of which City Council Meeting the item should be tabled to. Council Member Jones requested the item be tabled to the July 18, 2023 City Council Meeting. Council Member Harvey and Moore, co-sponsors for the item, were amenable to tabling. Council Member Turk questioned what the estimated cost would be, how long the training was and if it would be available for all employees. Council Member Jones stated the program was grant funded and therefore free, it was flexible in delivery and could be done online and that the training was for eight hours. Council Member Berna questioned if the resolution needed to be amended to remove Council Member Harvey from co -sponsoring due to her resignation from the City Council. 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www fayetteville-ar gov City Council Meeting Minutes June 20, 2023 Page 5 of I I Blake Pennington, Senior Assistant City Attorney stated Council Member Harvey could stay as the original cosponsor and that if two active members of the council were continuing to sponsor the resolution it would be fine. Council Member Jones moved to table the resolution to the July 18, 2023 City Council meeting. Council Member Harvey seconded the motion. Upon roll call the motion passed unanimously. This resolution was tabled to the 0711812023 City Council Meeting. Amend §120.02 Landlord's Representative Registry (Ordinance Amendment): An ordinance to amend § 120.02 Landlord's Representative Registry of the Fayetteville Code by modifying (d) to include whether the landlord would accept voucher -based assistance for their properties. Senior Assistant City Attorney Blake Pennington read the ordinance. Council Member Jones would like to include in the ordinance for city staff to work with the Fayetteville Housing Authority to create a way to educate landlords on the Department of Housing and Urban Development policies. Mayor Jordan questioned if Council Member Jones wanted to put an amendment on the ordinance or leave it on the first reading. Council Member Jones requested the language to be included now. There was brief discussion that if the language was included at the meeting it would have to be in the form of an amendment to the ordinance. Council Member Moore briefly spoke of how the request would be about the Community Services Department working with the Fayetteville Housing Authority on communication with landlords to understand what the Department of Housing and Urban Development required and if they might be able to become a voucher participant and keep the registry updated. Council Member Turk believed the intent behind the proposal was good but stated it was missing the educational component. She gave her perspective from a landlord's point of view. She suggested the educational part be created and made available and then the ordinance be amended. Council Member Jones believed education was important and wanted to ensure the council was intentional with his original ask to have the information about accepting vouchers on the registry. Council Member Moore questioned if a yes or no input could be placed on the registry form on whether a landlord accepted vouchers or not. She briefly spoke of bringing forward an amended version in the future to work on the educational component for the request. 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www fayetteville-ar gov City Council Meeting Minutes June 20, 2023 Page 6 of 11 Council Member Jones believed having the voucher information available on the registry was necessary and requested the council move forward quickly on the request. Council Member Berna questioned if Jonathan Curth had any concerns regarding the request. Jonathan Curth, Development Services Director believed having the voucher information widely available was important. He briefly spoke of his concerns; the ability for individuals to distinguish between what units might be available, the landlord registry would not capture renters that operated fewer than three units and that if the landlords did not want to include the information in the registry they could face possible violations. Council Member Jones requested the council pass the ordinance as it was and then work with Administration on how to include the educational component later. Susan Norton, Chief of Staff believed the educational component would be a matter of Yolanda Fields, Community Resources Director/Equity Officer, translating the Department of Housing and Urban Development policies to create a way to interact with the public with information. Mayor Jordan: So, you want the staff to work with the Fayetteville Housing Authority to-? Council Member Jones: To craft language to provide education to the landlords concerning the Department of Housing and Urban Development. There was brief discussion between Mayor Jordan and Blake Pennington on if an amendment was needed for the ordinance. Blake Pennington stated if it was the intent of the City Council to support such a program, they could do that in the form of an amendment, or they could do it in separate legislation. Blake Pennington read the language he had drafted that the council could include in the ordinance if they had wanted to express intent for the Community Resources Department to work with the Fayetteville Housing Authority to provide an educational component to landlords. Council Member Bunch preferred to vote on things that were formed instead of hashing it out while at the meeting. She questioned if an amendment was going to be made to the ordinance. Mayor Jordan: Council Member Jones has asked for an amendment. If I understand everything, we're going to work with the Fayetteville Housing Authority and that would be done through Yolanda, correct Susan? Susan Norton: Yes, sir. Council Member Bunch spoke of the concern Jonathan Curth expressed regarding landlords facing possible violations and being sent to the prosecutor. She did not want that to happen. Council Member Berna believed everyone supported the idea but did not believe it was ready to move forward. He requested work be done with Blake Pennington and Yolanda Fields to get the request right before bringing it back to council. 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www fayetteville-ar gov City Council Meeting Minutes June 20, 2023 Page 7 of 1 I Council Member Turk thanked Jonathan Curth for providing his concerns to council. She questioned how staff and the city's software would be able to address and manage the units. Jonathan Curth spoke of the city's current cybersecurity incident and how he had not been able to speak with IT staff to evaluate what it would look like in terms of software and forms. He spoke of the current landlord registry form and how it could possibly be added to with a yes/no section for voucher information. He stated the registry did not have the ability to distinguish between units and was unsure if that could be an easy addition. Council Member Turk requested the item be tabled until the next City Council Meeting so the amendment could be included in the presentation and questions could be answered from IT. Council Member Jones was concerned for the individuals who were challenged in finding a home. He wanted to ensure the council was intentional in making sure the request was available as a resource. He requested to hear from the public regarding the urgency of the ordinance and believed that should be the council's consideration on tabling or not. Council Member Wiederkehr questioned how often the landlord registry was updated. Jonathan Curth spoke of the ordinance that created the landlord registry and explained staff s role in contacting property owner's if there had been complaints information was inaccurate or unavailable. He stated property owners placed their information on the registry and only updated if something had changed. Council Member Wiederkehr believed it sounded as though the proposal would be a rolling update and that all landlords would not be surveyed unless they needed to submit a new form or additional information. There was brief discussion of how Yolanda Fields was not present at the meeting, but she could help with translation services for the Department of Housing and Urban Development regulations. Senior Assistant City Attorney Blake Pennington stated the amendment he had drafted requested that the Community Resources Department work with the Fayetteville Housing Authority to provide information to landlords/owners. There was discussion regarding what motion the council was on. City Clerk Treasurer Kara Paxton stated Council Member Jones had brought forward an amendment but there had not been a second. Senior Assistant City Attorney Blake Pennington read the amendment he had drafted. Council Member Harvey moved to amend the ordinance to add the language Blake Pennington had drafted. Council Member Turk seconded the motion. Upon roll call the motion passed unanimously. The City Council received 7 public comments regarding this ordinance. Council Member Harvey moved to suspend the rules and go to the second reading. Council Member Jones seconded the motion. Upon roll call the motion passed unanimously. 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www fayetteville-ar.gov City Council Meeting Minutes June 20, 2023 Page 8 of I 1 Senior Assistant City Attorney Blake Pennington read the ordinance. Council Member Harvey moved to suspend the rules and go to the third and final reading. Council Member Jones seconded the motion. Upon roll call the motion passed unanimously. Senior Assistant City Attorney Blake Pennington read the ordinance. Council Member Jones wanted the citizens of Fayetteville to know that the council would do whatever they could to make life easier for them. He felt the request was reasonable. Council Member Turk wanted the public to know that the council was concerned about affordable housing and that they had spent hours discussing it over the weekend. She would reluctantly be in support of the request and believed the implementation part was not well defined. She was concerned about the usefulness of the ordinance and spoke of how the city would have to get all the landlords in Fayetteville to update the registry and that it was now a requirement. Council Member Berna would be in support of the request. He briefly spoke of technology issues and how Yolanda Fields was not present to answer any questions the council had. He believed it made sense to table the ordinance to clarify the issues but would be in support of the request. Council Member Wiederkehr: As a voluntary registry, this doesn't add a single unit accepting vouchers, it allows us to detect a landlord who had not indicated previously that they were willing to accept vouchers, either to the Fayetteville Housing Authority or Yolanda, and for that reason I will support it. I want to be clear that it doesn't create additional voucher supported housing. Council Member Bunch believed the idea was good and would be in support. She briefly spoke of the amendment and how the proposal would not create new voucher -based housing. Council Member Moore appreciated the support to put the request forward. She encouraged landlords to update their registry hoped the change would bring forward additional landlords and make the process less cumbersome. Mayor Jordan asked shall the ordinance pass. Upon roll call the ordinance passed unanimously. Ordinance 6670 as Recorded in the office of the City Clerk Rezoning-2023-0013: (1275 N. Gregg Ave./Pathway Baptist Church, 405): An ordinance to rezone that property described in Rezoning Petition RZN 23-003 located at 1275 North Gregg Avenue in Ward 2 for approximately 2.23 acres from RMF-24, Residential Multi -Family, 24 units per acre to RMF-40, Residential Multi -Family, 40 units per acre. Senior Assistant City Attorney Blake Pennington read the ordinance. 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www fayetteville-ar gov City Council Meeting Minutes June 20, 2023 Page 9 of 11 Jonathan Curth, Development Services Director gave a brief description of the ordinance. He stated staff found the request to be compatible and spoke of the wide mixture of housing in the area. He stated staff found the request to be complimentary of the city's long range adopted documents and that the Future Land Use Map called the property out as a city neighborhood area. He spoke of infill and how staff found the request to be consistent with the adopted goals of City Plan 2040. He noted the property had steep portions and there was a part of the property that was in the Hillside Hilltop Overlay District. He stated the tree preservation requirements for the property would stay at 20%. He stated overall, staff recommended in favor of the request and the Planning Commission felt similarly, forwarding it to council by a vote of 9-0. He stated no public comment had been received and noted Nathan Crouch was present as the applicant. Council Member Turk: You mentioned that one section has the Hillside Hilltop Overlay District over it. How does that work where you add an additional 5% for tree preservation? Is it just that little corner? Jonathan Curth explained how the city's foresters took a weighted average of the different zoning districts when working out the overall property. There was brief discussion between Council Member Bunch and Jonathan Curth on where the Hillside Hilltop Overlay District was located on the property. It was explained that it was near the front of the property by the street. Council Member Hertzberg moved to suspend the rules and go to the second reading. Council Member Moore seconded the motion. Upon roll call the motion passed unanimously. Senior Assistant City Attorney Blake Pennington read the ordinance. Council Member Hertzberg moved to suspend the rules and go to the third and final reading. Council Member Moore seconded the motion. Upon roll call the motion passed unanimously. Senior Assistant City Attorney Blake Pennington read the ordinance. Mayor Jordan asked shall the ordinance pass. Upon roll call the ordinance passed unanimously. Ordinance 6671 as Recorded in the office of the City Clerk Rezoning-2023-0014: (SE of Dead Horse Mountain Road and E. Goff Farm Road/Riverwood Homes, 606, 607, 645, 646): An ordinance to rezone that property described in Rezoning Petition RZN 2023-014 located southeast of Dead Horse Mountain Road and Goff Farm Road in Ward one for approximately 112.98 acres from R-A, Residential Agricultural and RSF-4, Residential Single Family, 4 units per acre subject to a Bill of Assurance to NC, Neighborhood Conservation; CS, Community Services; and R-A, Residential Agricultural. Senior Assistant City Attorney Blake Pennington read the ordinance. 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www Fayetteville-ar gov City Council Meeting Minutes June 20, 2023 Page 10 of 11 Jonathan Curth, Development Services Director gave a brief description of the ordinance. He addressed the questions from Agenda Session regarding the topography of the property and the proximity of floodplains. He gave a brief overview of the history of the zonings on the property. He stated staff s finding were mixed when reviewing the request for land use compatibility and stated staff had concern with the potential intensity that could come as a result of the rezone. He stated staff had concerns regarding infrastructure, street improvements for the nearby roads and the potential upgrades that would be necessary for the city's sanitary sewer networks. He stated that from a long-range plan standpoint staff had concern the request might not fully be consistent with the designations in the area given the high potential amounts of development that could occur between the two proposed zonings. He stated staff also had concerns that the request would not fully agree with the city's adopted land use goals and briefly spoke of the properties infill rating being between one and three. He briefly spoke of the potential development and of drainage concerns. He stated there had been public comment received both in favor and opposed to the request. He stated staff recommended in denial of the proposal and the Planning Commission had a split vote of five to four. He stated Robert Rhoads was available as the applicant. Robert Rhoads, Law Firm of Hall Estill was joined by Mark and Taylor Marquess on behalf of Riverwood homes and Taylor Johnson on behalf of the golf course. He briefly spoke of the letter he had sent to council and of staff s report with the concern regarding density and the possibility of 800 lots being developed on the site. He stated the applicant would submit a Bill of Assurance that limited the density to 350 single family lots in the Neighborhood Conservation portion and another that stated no apartment buildings or gas stations would be built, only retail mixed uses in the Neighborhood Services Area. He believed staff s concerns of water supply, infrastructure and traffic congestion would no longer be valid due to the proposal being for 350 lots. He spoke of the potential development plans, the nearby properties and how he believed the proposal would be compatible. He stated the developer was bringing forward homes in the $275,000 to $300,000 range. He briefly spoke of drainage issues and how the proposal would improve them by draining into the golf course. He stated there had been more public comments received in favor of the development than against it. He requested the council leave the item on the first reading so the Bill of Assurance's could be submitted. Council Member Hertzberg spoke of the 100 homes that Mr. Rhoades stated would be approximately under $300,000. She asked what the cost for the remaining 250 homes would be. Mark Marquess, Riverwood Homes briefly spoke of the approximate 100 homes that would cost between $270,000 to $350,000 and that an additional 100 homes would be designated for the community members that were 55 or plus years older. He stated the remainder lots would be blended in with affordable homes, middle priced homes, retirement homes and estates. He spoke of how the company had provided affordable housing for Fayetteville since 1989. Council Member Hertzberg questioned what the cost estimate was for the approximately 100 manor style homes. Mark Marquess stated they would be between $350,000 to $450,000. 113 West Mountain Fayetteville. AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 www fayetteville-ar gov City Council Meeting Minutes June 20, 2023 Page 11 of 11 Council Member Moore spoke of the concerns staff noted regarding water capabilities. She questioned what the revision of there only being 350 units instead of 800 units would look like regarding the concern expressed. Jonathan Curth stated the Utility Department noted there were areas of concern but did not feel as though any of the concerns could not be overcome by required improvements with development. He believed staff could get a better evaluation for the proposed 350 units by the next meeting. Council Member Turk believed it would be helpful to have a member from the Water and Sewer Department present for questions at the next meeting. She recalled there may have been a sewer issue that needed to be updated. Jonathan Curth briefly spoke of the issues that had previously been noted regarding the ability for a development to get to the lift station chain and of land ownership. He stated there had been concern about the property and whether it had access to the lift stations. He believed the golf courses participation in the request addressed those issues but believed the capacity issue would need to be addressed by Tim Nyander at a future meeting. The City Council received 6 public comments regarding this ordinance. The council requested information be presented at the next City Council Meeting regarding cost sharing, narrowness of the road, flooding issues, a revised opinion be submitted by staff regarding the new information and for Tim Nyander to present information regarding lift stations. This ordinance was left on the First Reading. Announcements: None City Council Agenda Session Presentations: 2022 Financial Audit Results - Steve Dotson & Chad Reed. City Council Tour: None Adjournment: 7:54 p.m. ��nurr K / \�G C\T Y O`rG . FAYr7EVi •in Kara Paxton City C erk Treas rer =zi ' �v • . .A,NS -0N"0, 113 West Mountain Fayetteville, AR 72701 (479) 575-8323 Nww fayetteville-ar gov �I �