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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1985-05-14 Council minutesCOMPLETE DESCRIPTION OF COUNCIL ACTIVITIES May 14, 1985 Iowa City Council, special mtg., 5/14/85, at 6:30 P.M. in the City Council Chambers of the Civic Center. Mayor Pro tem Erdahl presiding. Councilmembers present: Ambrisco, Baker, Dickson, Erdahl, Strait. Absent: McDonald, Zuber. Staffinembers present: Berlin, Helling, Jansen, Karr, Parrott, Franklin, Boothroy, Farmer. Tape recorded on Tape 85-C42, Side 2, 432 -End; 85-C43, Side 1, 1-388. Moved by Strait, seconded by Dickson, that the following items in the Consent Calendar by received, or approved, and/or adopted as amended: Permit Motions and Resolutions: Approving Class C Liquor License for J.S. Murrey, Inc, dba Mumn's Saloon & Eatery, 21 W. Benton Street. RES. 85-130, Bk. 86, pp. 344-345, ISSUING CIGARETTE PERMITS. Correspondence: Charles A. Mullen, attorney for Viggo M. Jensen Company, regarding rezoning of property on Harlocke Street. Jan Madsen supporting P&Z recommendation not to rezone the S. Gilbert side for senior housing. Affirmative roll call vote unanimous, 5/0, McDonald, Zuber absent. The Mayor Pro tem declared the motion carried. Moved by Strait, seconded by Dickson, to defer to 5/21/85 the Iowa City Zoning Ordinance and Map. The Mayor Pro tem announced that the Mayor was ill and would be unable to attend the meeting. A number of items on the agenda require six votes and will have to be deferred. The Mayor Pro tem declared the motion to defer carried unanimously, 5/0, McDonald, Zuber absent. Moved by Strait, seconded by Ambrisco, that the ordinance to change the name of Highlander Drive to Northgate Drive, be given second vote for passage. Baker stated that he considers the naming of streets to be a City responsibility and would be voting against the requested change. The Mayor Pro tem declared the motion carried, 4/1, with the following division of roll call vote: Ayes: Dickson, Erdahl, Strait, Ambrisco. Nays: Baker. Absent: McDonald, Zuber. Moved by Strait, seconded by Ambrisco, to defer until 5/21/85 consid- eration of the ordinance to rezone property in the southwest quarter of the northeast quarter of the northwest quarter of Section 16 in Township 79 North, Range 6 West of the Fifth Principal Meridian (aka Neuzil property) from RM -12 to RS -8 and ordinance to rezone property bounded by University Heights to the north, the former CRI&P railroad tracks to the east, the Lakewood Addition to the south and on the west by the east line of the southwest quarter of the northeast quarter of the northwest quarter of Section 16, Township 79 North, Range 6 West of the Fifth Principal Meridian from RM -12 to RS -8. The Mayor Pro tem declared the motion to defer carried unanimously, 5/0, McDonald, Zuber absent. The Mayor Pro tem announced that the next item would also require the vote of six Councilmembers however, because of the urgency of the matter a motion and discussion should be held. Moved by Baker, seconded by Ambrisco, that an ordinance to rezone from Public (P) to Central Business Service Zone (CB -2) property generally located immediately south of Council Activities May 14, 1985 Page 2 Washington Street to the bus depot building and approximately 107 feet in depth from the east line of Gilbert Street for senior citizen housing, be i given first vote for passage. Councilmembers Erdahl, Dickson, Ambrisco, Baker outlined their concerns regarding the project and their reasons for voting against the request. Councilmember Strait stated his support for the request. After discussion, the Mayor Pro tem declared the motion defeated, 1/4, with the following division of roll call vote: Ayes: Strait. Nays: Erdahl, Ambrisco, Baker, Dickson. Absent: McDonald, Zuber. W.W. Morris, President of Ecumenical Housing Corporation, ex- pressed appreciation for the Council and staff time. Rev. Bob Welsh read a joint statement from the Ecumenical Housing Corporation and the First Christian Church. Moved by Dickson, seconded by Ambrisco, to accept the joint statement. The Mayor Pro tem declared the motion carried unani- mously, 5/01 Mcdonald, Zuber absent. Moved by Ambrisco, seconded by Dickson, to defer indefinitely resolu- tion authorizing execution of a site option agreement for sale of property generally located approximately 107 feet in depth from the east line of Gilbert Street and immediately south of Washington Street to the Bus Depot building for senior citizen housing. The Mayor Pro tem declared the motion carried, 5/0, McDonald, Zuber absent. Moved by Dickson, seconded by Baker, to adopt RES. 85-131, Bk. 86, pp. 346-348, PRELIMINARY RESOLUTION FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF SIDEWALK IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CITY OF IOWA CITY, IOWA; RES. 85-132, Bk. 86, p. 349, RESOLUTION FIXING VALUES OF LOTS; RES. 85-133, Bk. 86, pp. 350-351, RESOLUTION ADOPTING PRELIMINARY PLAT A14D SCHEDULE, ESTIMATE OF COST AND PROPOSED PLANS A14D SPECIFICATIONS FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE FY1986 SIDEWALK ASSESSMENT PROJECT. RES. 85-134, Bk. 86, pp. 352-356, RESOLUTION OF NECESSITY (PROPOSED). Lyle Seydel, 445 Garden, requested that Friend- ship Street be deleted from the project. The majority of Councilmembers present favored the deletion of the street from the project. The City Manager and City Attorney noted these resolutions set the public hearing for June 4th and requested Council amend the Resolution of Necessity after comments are heard at the public hearing. Affirmative roll call vote unanimous, 5/0, McDonald, Zuber absent. The Mayor Pro tem declared the resolutions adopted. Moved by Ambrisco, seconded by Section 23-189 of the Municipal Code of Scott Boulevard, be given second call vote unanimous, 5/0, McDonald, declared the motion carried. Strait, that an ordinance amending of Iowa City to set the speed limit vote for passage. Affirmative roll Zuber absent. The Mayor Pro tem Moved by Ambrisco, seconded by Strait, that the ordinance amending Section 23-161 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Iowa City, Iowa, be given second vote for passage. Affirmative roll call vote unanimous, 5/0, McDonald, Zuber absent. The Mayor Pro tem declared the motion carried. Moved by Strait, seconded by Dickson, that the ordinance amending Article II of Chapter 31 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Iowa City, Iowa, relating to street excavations by repealing said Article II and substituting in its place a new Article II of Chapter 31, which Council Activities May 14, 1985 Page 3 includes new Section 31-38, Exemption, be given second vote for passage. The City Manager explained this would allow for the City to use specific terms and conditions in their contracts and would avoid confusion re the City issuing themselves a permit for the work. Affirmative roll call vote unanimous, 5/0, McDonald, Zuber absent. The Mayor Pro tem declared the motion carried. Moved by Strait, seconded by Dickson, to defer indefinitely the ordinance amending Chapter 31 of the Code of Ordinances for the City of Iowa City, Iowa, by adding thereto Article VIII, entitled "Sidewalk Cafes". The Mayor Pro tem dclared the motion to defer carried unani- mously, 5/0, McDonald, Zuber absent. Moved by Strait, seconded by Ambrisco, that Ord. 85-3234, Bk. 25, pp. 98-100, AMENDING SECTION 31-10 OF THE CODE OF ORDINANCES OF THE CITY OF IOWA CITY TO DESIGNATE THE LOCATION WITHIN THE CITY WHERE CERTAIN SURFACE MATERIALS WITHIN THE STREET RIGHT-OF-WAY ARE PROHIBITED, be passed and adopted. Affirmative roll call vote unanimous, 5/0, McDonald, Zuber absent. The Mayor Pro tem declared the ordinance adopted. Moved by Strait, seconded by Ambrisco, to adjourn at 7:20 PM. The Mayor Pro tem declared the motion carried. MAYOR PRO TEM ATTEST: A";,, ,, ) e ,,!,, , J MARIAN K. KARR, CITY CLERK Informal Council Discussion May 14, 1985 Informal Council Discussion: May 14, 1985, at 7:20 p.m. in the Council Chambers at the Civic Center. Pro tem Mayor Clemens Erdahl presiding. Councilmembers Present: Erdahl, Strait, Ambrisco, Dickson, Baker. Absent: Zuber, McDonald. Staff Present: Berlin, Helling, Jansen, Karr, Smith, Parrott, Cassady, Vitosh. Tape Recorded: Reel 85-C41, Side 1, 49 -End, Side 2, All; Reel 85-C44, Side 1, All, Side 2, 1-354. Gas and Electric Utility Franchise Reel 85-C41, Side 1 Resources Conservation Commission (RCC) members Parsons, Vogel and Nychay and the City Council discussed the gas and electric utility franchise. RCC Chairperson Nychay reviewed the RCC's recommendations as outlined in the May 10, 1985 letter to the Mayor and Councilmembers. TEN YEAR FRANCHISE WITH FIVE YEAR REOPENER CLAUSE. Nychay explained the ten year re -recommendation was made due to the rapid changing technology and the five year reopener recommendation was based on allowing five years to decide if an energy conservation program was effective. Nychay suggested that the Council may want to establish a list of topics with the reopener provision that could be discussed. In response to Council concerns about a unilateral or bilateral reopener clause, Vogel said a 15 -year unilateral reopener clause existed in the expired franchise. Tom Hoogerwerf, Iowa -Illinois Gas & Electric Company representative, stated the length of the franchise is important and a long-term franchise is a necessity due to financial commit- ments. Baker asked if both the City and the utility company would have to be mutually agreeable for changes to be placed on the ballot under the reopener clause. Berlin stated the Council can approve changes and put the changes on the ballot and it takes concurrence by the electric company, even after a positive ballot vote, before the changes can become effective. In response to questions from Strait, Hoogerwerf stated that Iowa Public Service and Iowa Power Company services Sioux City and Council Bluffs; Sioux City has a 2% franchise fee; and Iowa -Illinois Gas & Electric doesn't want a franchise fee. In response to Ambrisco, Berlin said no one attempted to use the reopener clause in the previous franchise. Erdahl noted that a majority of Council is in favor of starting the gas and electric utility franchise negotiations over. FRANCHISE FEE. Nychay said the RCC has recommended a 1% franchise fee to be charged to IIG&E; the franchise fee will be used for a community based energy conservation program; the money should be put into a line item account that citizens could borrow from for energy projects; and the franchise fee will help economic development in the community. Nychay explained that no means tests would be applied for citizens wanting to borrow money. 2 Baker said the Council needs to consider if the community based energy conservation program is justified and, if it is justified, then the franchise fee is justified. Dickson stated a fee should be charged to the utility companies for the use of public property. Council decided to continue discussion of the gas and electric utility franchise after the scheduled swimming pool discussion. Swimming Pool/Recreation Facility Update Reel 85-C41, Side 2 Cassady introduced members of the Parks and Recreation Commission. Parks and Recreation Commission member Craig Willis explained problems due to the City Park pool and Mercer Park pool deteriorating conditions; extreme use of the Recreation Center pool and Recreation Center gymnasium; and the current City use of City facilities. Parks and Recreation Commission recommends renovating City Park pool; discontinuing use of Mercer Park pool and building a new indoor/outdoor pool with a gymnasium and track facility near Southeast Junior High. Willis said this is the ideal time to build a new swimming facility because of the cooperation with the School Board and lower construc- tion costs. Randy Jordison, School Board member, reported the School Board has stated that swimming instruction is a priority and has ear marked $1 million to be used for a joint venture with the City. Erdahl inquired about the replacement of Mercer Park pool. Cassady explained that Mercer Park pools sits in eight feet of ground water and causes pressure on side walls and the filter system needs to be replaced. Cassady said financially it would be much better for the City to abandon the Mercer Park pool facility and move it to higher ground. In response to Ambrisco, Jordison said the School Board has contacted other municipalities. Jordison explained that swimming instruction should take place at the junior high level because learning to be water safe earlier is better and the junior high philosophy is to allow students to be explorative. In response to Ambrisco, Jordison said swimming will be made part of the physical education requirement. Strait inquired about the Parks and Recrea- tion Commission's pool priorities as it relates to parkland dedication. Cassady said the pool facility and parkland dedication are both high priori- ties but the pool situation is critical. Council directed Berlin to organize a committee consisting of staff, Parks and Recreation Commission and School Board members to explore and present Council with more detail on the pool facility proposal. Sidewalk Cafe Reel 85-C41, Side 2 Erdahl announced that the sidewalk cafe discussion will be rescheduled. Continuation of Gas and Electric Utility Franchise Discussion ee 85-C41, Side 2 FRANCHISE FEE. Ambrisco asked about what form the franchise fee would be put on the ballot. Nychay said he is contacting the Attorney General regarding the franchise fee ballot proposal. In response to Nychay, Erdahl said the Council should have the authority to decide the use of the franchise fee money. COGENERATION CLAUSE. Nychay stated that cogeneration is defined as producing energy in conjunction with the energy that is being supplied by IIG&E Company. Jansen stated cogeneration is already covered by federal law. UTILITY REVIEW COMMISSION. Nychay said the duties of the URC would be to audit books of IIG&E; intervene in rate cases; and process complaints according to the administrative code. The RCC would be deemed to the URC and the energy specialist would be the staff support person to the URC. BUY-OUT PROVISION. Berlin noted that the buy-out provision is already covered by state law. Hoogerwerf noted that IIG&E is regulated by the Iowa State Commerce Commission. Council discussed starting the negotiations over. Berlin said it is not recommended that Council proceed with the second reading of the proposed ordinance. Ambrisco asked if IIG&E has reviewed the City Manager's recommen- dations. Hoogerwerf said IIG&E has read the City Manager's recommendations; language differences should be able to be resolved; and there are problems with the regulatory ordinance. Erdahl said a committee should be established to address the City Manager's recommendations. Berlin stated it is important that all seven Councilmembers meet with staff and the RCC to discuss the franchise. Berlin stated a meeting will be scheduled with additional information sent to Councilmembers. Strait asked IIG&E to respond to the City Manager's recommendations. Old Elks Building Reel 85-C44, Side 1 Berlin noted a letter was received from Southgate Developers regarding structural integrity of the Old Elks Building. Baker asked what the poten- tial property revenues would be if the building remained privately owned. Southgate Development representative stated current taxes are $9900 and taxes would be an estimated $25,000 if the building were fully developed. Braverman explained that urban rehabilitation credit and IRBs may be used and tax laws limit the amount of space in privately held buildings that have been devel- oped with tax free bonds. Braverman said he would like to start the project by the middle of June, 1985. Berlin stated that Braverman is willing to rent the City space on a temporary basis if the City pursues the Elks Building proposal and the Elks Building proposal will involve complex legal work costing a lot of money and time. Erdahl inquired about the cost difference in owning a renovated older building as opposed to owning a new structure. Vitosh said the Elks Building project would cost $3,280,000 and new construction with GO bonds would cost $4,089,000 based on price per square foot construction costs. Councilmembers briefly discussed the location and feasibility of new construction. Ambrisco said the City should study the feasibility of building east of the Civic Center. In response to Erdahl, Berlin said Civic Center remodeling monies could be obtained and new construction work would involve GO bonds or a lease purchase agreement. Berlin noted that the City will have up to $80,000 in rental expenses by the year after next if additional space is not obtained. 1—,:z a In response to questions from Strait, Braverman said the Elks Building structure has been examined and the redevelopment will comply with state and city building regulations. Berlin requested a written, copy of the structure report from Braverman. Braverman reviewed the preliminary drawings of the redevelopment with Councilmembers. Council directed staff to proceed with negotiations for the Elks Building. City Attorney Candidates Interview Process Reel 85-C44, Side 2 Berlin stated the City Attorney candidates' interviews are scheduled for the afternoon of June 3; consensus should be reached by that evening; and terms and conditions of employment should be decided before the interview. Berlin said applicants have raised concerns about the Iowa City housing market and applicants have been told that residing in Iowa City is a condition of employment. Councilmembers discussed if interviews should be opened or closed to the public. Jansen read the state law as follows: "to evaluate the professional competency of an individual whose appointment, hiring, performance or discharge is being considered when necessary to prevent needless and irrepa- rable injury to that individual's reputation and that individual requests a closed session." Majority of Council wanted interviews in open session. Berlin stated he will inform the City Attorney applicants that the Council prefers an open session interview but an applicant's preference for a closed session will not adversely affect his/her candidacy if it is a legitimate reason. Berlin recommended that a background check be made before a final offer is extended to an applicant. Berlin said the applicants will meet with the Mayor and City Manager early on June 3 to answer any questions about the city; a City department head will accompany the applicants on a tour of Iowa City and to lunch; and then interviews will take place in the afternoon. In response to Strait, Berlin stated the City has paid for department head positions moving expenses. Berlin stated the Council should consider an employment agreement and short-term solution to housing. Council Time Reel 85-C44, Side 2 Karr explained the schedule of the bidding process for the ramp expansion. The tentative schedule is as follows: Council will set the June 4 public hearing on May 21, on June 4 Council will approve plans and specs and prepare bids, bids will be received until June 25 and awards for construction for the project would occur at the next scheduled Council meeting on July 16. Lundell has requested Council hold a special meeting to award contracts earlier than July 16. Council directed Karr to schedule a meeting for June 26, 8:00 a.m. Meeting adjourned at 10:20 p.m.