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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2002-03-19 Bd Comm minutesMINUTES HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION APPROVED/FINAL JANUARY 17,2002 Members present: Lori Bears, Christine Boyer, Amy Correia, John Deeth, April Gutting, Gretchen Holt, Rick House Members absent: Kathleen Renquist, Bill Stewart Staff present: Tracy Hightshoe, Steve Nasby Others present: Maggie Grosvenor, Irvin Pfab Call Meetinq to Order The meeting was called to order by House at 6:30 p.m. Approval of Minutes from December 20, 2001 Bears moved to approve the minutes from December 20, 2001. Boyer seconded. Approved 7-0. Public/Member Discussion of Items Not on the Aqenda Correia wondered why times were not listed on the agenda. In response to Correia, Nasby stated that staff would schedule public hearings at the beginning of meetings. It is not mandatory to include times on agendas. iowa City Housinq Authority Update Grosvenor stated that the table of contents and introduction pages to the ICHA plans (Section 8 Administrative and Public Housing Admissions and Continued Occupancy plans) were sent in the packets. Grosvenor stated that entire plans were not inserted, due to being too voluminous. Grosvenor had full packets available for any HCDC member interested at the meeting. She stated that the documents were sent to Council so they would have an overview. Most regulations in the plan are federal requirements, but the document includes local policies as well. Due to federal changes and requirements the ICHA plan must be updated. Section 8 used to have both the certificate program and voucher program. In 1998 the certificate program ended, however it's taken 2 years to get all clients moved to the voucher program. In a new requirement, HUD stated Public Housing programs were required to allow for pets, however ICHA, the local housing authority, is able to set their own guidelines regarding pet ownership. An income exclusion clause is included in both the Section 8 and Public Housing programs. This clause states that if you are unemployed or underemployed, or on assistance, and you get a job to improve your situation, that income must be excluded from rental calculations for 12 months. In addition, 50% of the increase must be excluded for another 12 months. There is a four-year allowance to do this, and the client/tenant can stop and start. Criminal record checks are performed that reviews the past three years, however HUD changed regulations to state that patterns (of abuse) can also be reviewed. Therefore, ICHA is now looking back five years rather than three years. Boyer questioned when regulations were made versus when they came into effect. Grosvenor stated that these policies were updated January 11, 2002, however, many regulatory changes were made due to the Quality Housing and Work Responsibility Act of 1998. Deeth questioned criminal checking of juveniles in the household. Grosvenor stated that the legalities of that issue are still being determined. She said the entire family household is reviewed. Correia wondered about the discretion of criminal issues. Is there enough evidence to substantiate reasons for termination or denial of assistance? Aisc if the ICHA decision is reviewed by the City Attorney for substantial evidence. Grosvenor stated all clients are offered the opportunity for an informal hearing if terminated or denied assistance, with witnesses and/or police if requested. Housing and Community Development Commission Minutes January 17, 2002 Page 2 Bears wondered about time frame involved. Once termination notice is sent out, clients are allowed ten days to request a hearing. Once there is a hearing request, the City Attorney's office works on scheduling the hearing, which could take up to 30-60 days. Once the hearing is set, the process is very regulated. The Assistant City Manager is then given fourteen days to make a determination, and notice will be sent out on whether ICHA's decision is upheld or denied. Correia questioned how many terminations are due to criminal records. Grosvenor stated that she did not have the exact number as there is a difference between denials and terminations. Correia wondered if those people being denied assistance are told their denial is due to criminal activity and if they are able to appeal? Grosvenor said yes, they are. Also, federal guidelines state when hearings are required to be offered. For example, if you are granted a two-bedroom, but you want a three-bedroom, you are not automatically granted a hearing appeal. However, if you are being downsized due to household changes, you are allowed a hearing. People who are being denied assistance do appeal. Correia wondered about specific areas of criminal activity that are reasons for denial. Previously, a tenant could only be denied for drug-related and violent-related criminal activities. 1998 regulations expanded what types of activity could be a reason for denial. Patterns of abuse are now being looked at, including alcohol abuse. Correia questioned can versus must deny. There are also new regulations about when ICHA is required to deny assistance (i.e. sex offenders) and when they are given the option to deny assistance. Grosvenor believes that drug and alcohol abuses are required denials, but was not positive. However, the applicant/client is still given the opportunity to appeal. This would be affected by any alcohol abuse, even when off the premises (i.e. OWl, assault). There is also always a provision in the plan for rehabilitation. If a tenant agrees to rehabilitation, a requirement regarding receiving assistance, and then does not complete or attend, termination will be immediate instead of waived. Termination without the possibility of re-applying is not based on lifetime, but rather on a 1-3 year basis, depending on the crime. Gutting questioned Section 8 information given to landlords. Grosvenor stated this would be if a tenant were changing to another housing unit and will be switching landlords. A landlord must request this information, and it is to be factual and specific. ICHA uses written forms rather than provide verbal information. ICHA does not do any screening, however the landlords can use these forms to request information and per[orm their own screening. One landlord can put information in about a tenant, but that information will not be passed along until potential new landlord requests that information. Only pertains to clients on housing assistance, not to the general public. Bears wondered about a tenant moving to a different location. Grosvenor said that the first step would be to talk to the landlord, as lease terms can be very different. Once landlord approval is obtained, lease is up, then come to ICHA caseworker, go through regular procedure. Deeth questioned how much of a problem the juvenile record can be for parents with assistance. Grosvenor does not believe that at this time it is significant, but data is not complete yet. It does happen, however legal implications are unknown. Corriea wondered about pet policy. Grosvenor said their policy is based on the City's animal shelter regulations. ACOP (Admissions & Continued Occupancy Plan--public housing) and Section 8 both go by these regulations. Waiting list of about a year for Section 8 (around 350 families) and the ICHA is running at 108% occupied. Four-month process, so there are some outstanding vouchers (maybe 60-70). Public Housing waiting list iS likely 500; this figures includes many of the estimated 350 families on the Section 8 waiting list. However, this is not really a large waiting list. Des Moines will only take applications once a week (sometimes even less frequently), and could easily have 2,000 on their waiting list. Correia wondered about housing situation of those on waiting list. Grosvenor said she did not have details or statistics on that. Monitorinq Reports Rental Housing - Lexington Place L.P. (Deeth): No further updates. Housing and Community Development Commission Minutes January 17, 2002 Page 3 Review of the FY03 CDBG/HOME Allocation Schedule House asked if dates looked OK to the commission. Hightshoe wondered if HCDC still wanted tours of the proposed FY03 projects. If so, when would that take place? All agreed to do it before question/answer session, however not all application sites need to be toured. Discussion held on possible dates. Settled on noon hour (11:00-1:00) on February 12 and/or 13. If majority of commission will attend tour(s), a public meeting notice and minute taker will be required. Proforma Basics Nasby stated that Bank-Ability is a guide that lays out rules for projects and expenses, sources, etc. Holt found this very helpful. Nasby stated that the packet also includes the instructions given to applicants as well as the proforma guide. Rent generated, fair market rents, owner income, parking fees, etc. This shows more detail of how figures are arrived at. Applicants are asked to escalate their income by 2%, which is about equal to the increase used for Section 8. Proforma is a financial projection. Correia wondered about how to evaluate, what specific items are you looking for? House stated that income to service debt is what is looked for. Nasby explained that debt-income ratio is net operating income divided by total debt to be paid, and that would give the debt coverage. Strong debt coverage is over 1.15. If the number is larger than 1.15, then you could ask for interest payments or the applicant could afford higher amounts of debt. House stated that operating costs/expenses should be watched to make sure they are not underestimated to make project look better or overestimated to show a financial need. Nasby pointed out that if the DCR is less than 1, then not enough income is being generated to cover debt. HUD sets the rents, so operating expenses is where the ratio will really have the effect. Other factors could include renovation on older buildings, legal, water and sewer, etc. Private market looks at operating cost percentage to income. But, not as much revenue in this situation, so percentage of operational costs will be higher. Total operating expense divided by unit will give you an indication of comparison between applicants. Of course, with services, that number can vary (line 13). Boyer wondered if this information would be provided in question/answer session. It will actually be provided on application. Another item Nasby pointed out is line 19, return on investment. That number can vary, of course, and is influenced by tax implications. In second half of proforma, with tax information, there can be depreciation, reserves, and tax rate to also be reviewed. Non-profit should have 0% tax implications, however for-profits would. As such, HCDC should look at yearly average for a return on investment. So look at line 36 every year for the return on investment. Correia wondered if applicants need to do proformas after they are funded. Nasby stated that they do not for us, but would for their lender. Most have audits of various types. They use numbers based on what they have applied for, base it on the proposals, not after the fact figures. Correia wondered about options for loans. Nasby believed that non-profits were at 0% and profits were at 3% for a period of 30 years and this is a 20-year projection. Correia asked if proformas are required to be completed for state applications as well. Nasby stated that they are and this one is actually less complex, although the same type of format. Gutting wondered what will be included in staff reports. Nasby stated that current outline is based on ranking sheet. Application and ranking sheet should be in coordination with each other. Will discuss brief explanation of project, what activity it fits, what CITY STEPS fits best. Previously, Gutting reminded, there have been questions of compliance. Nasby said the question was clarified by the City Attorney's office. Gutting suggested that some of this information should be included in the proforma, and if needed to look at while doing preliminary, recommendations can be made. Old Business Review and Discussion of Enterprise Zones: Housing and Community Development Commission Minutes January 17, 2002 Page 4 Not everyone has been able to make phone calls, or receive return calls. Boyer wondered what exactly to ask of people when they are reached. Nasby recommended letting them know about collection of information and ask them about their experience and/or any anecdotal evidence on enterprise zones. What is it like for developers who are using enterprise zones, and what are financial incentives, benefits and challenges? House spoke with Kenny Anderson, developer, in Council Bluffs. Anderson was very enthusiastic about enterprise zones. He's done a number of projects, including small, affordable housing, and some larger developments, including four-plexes with many tax credits. Anderson referred to Brenda Kurtz, city staff, who was also very helpful and enthusiastic. House asked about establishing commission and any problems. Kunz was not involved in getting established, however no real expense to city for maintenance or for other expenses. Council Bluffs has business and housing both involved in enterprise zones. Other issues with businesses, like tax implications, but housing aspect is pretty minimal involvement. City has many developers who work with the city. Correia wondered about Steve Atkins calling Kunz. Nasby said that a majority of Council has declined to pursue this, so not likely avenue, but she could call if she wanted. House recommends getting more support from public to pressure Council. House said issues always need to be ironed out, however he had no negative feedback on the state enterprise zone. Correia wondered if both housing and business enterprise zones must be established. Nasby stated that both are eligible uses. Some started out just for commercial, and then residential came along later. House stated that is controlled by the commission. House recommends that information continue to be gathered on this topic. Correia discussed Metro Plains tax credit update - was it granted? Nasby stated applications were due January 14 and the results of the awards would not be known until spring. February, March and April will be allocation meetings. Correia asked about other housing projects. Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship has been developing plans and submitting applications. Habitat for Humanity purchased four lots. Council is doing budget workshops. If there is anything the commission would like to lobby, now is the time to discuss and plan. The City's proposed financial plan was distributed to the commission members. Adjournment The meeting was adjourned at 7:42 p.m. ppdcdbglrnin/hcdcO 1-17-02.do= MINUTES FINAL/APPROVED IOWA CITY AIRPORT COMMISSION THURSDAY JANUARY 10~ 2002 - 5:45 P.M. IOWA CITY AIRPORT TERMINAL MEMBERS PRESENT: Rick Mascari, Howard Horan, Mark Anderson STAFF PRESENT: Sue Dulek, Ron O'Neil CALL TO ORDER: Chairperson Mascari called the meeting to order at 5:45 p.m. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Mascari said that under Chairpersons report, he said Meigs Field would be around another 25 years, not 50 years. With that change, the minutes of the December 13, 2001, Commission meeting were approved. AUTHORIZATION OF EXPENDITURES: Horan made a motion to approve the bills. Anderson seconded the motion and the motion passed 3 - 0, with Ellis and Ruyle being absent. PUBLIC DISCUSSION - ITEMS NOT ON AGENDA: Blum said Fly Iowa has been approved for Cedar Rapids in 2003 and in Washington in 2004. It is in Lamar in 2002. PUBLIC HEARING: IOW Aero, Inc. agreement - IOW Aero has requested a five-year lease for Building D and approval to operate a commercial flying club. The public hearing was opened at 5:51 p.m. No comments were received. The public hearing was closed at 5:52 p.m. Gordon Aircraft lease - Gordon Aircraft has requested a five-year lease for Building H. The public hearing was opened at 5:52 p.m. There were no public comments. The public hearing was closed at 5:53 p.m. ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION/ACTION: a. Fuel site - Dick Blum, from H.R. Green, said he was not prepared to recommend final approval. He said John Bernard from Double Check at the Airport yesterday to run some tests on the 100LL card reader system. He did not perform all of the tests Blum had requested. Blum said he would recommend releasing ali but the 5% of the project costs. This would leave about $ 8000 to make final corrections. There was a report ora leak near the filter, but Oqqeil and Blum looked for a leak and could not find any sign of a leak. If there were a leak, it would be covered in the two-year warranty period. Anderson made a motion to release all but 5% of the fees owed to Double Check. Horan seconded the motion and it passed 3 - 0, with Ellis and Ruyle being absent. b. Airport Zoning Code update - ALP changes - Blum said H.R. Green would make the changes to the Airport Layout Plan. There are 13 pages. There will be no changes to the Terminal Layout Plan, which is page 11. He said this will require survey work, which is beyond the scope of what the Commission has requested. Blum said it should be corrected at some time, but it was probably not critical to have it done immediately. Blum discussed the new zoning map with the Commission. The approach for Runway 25 extends 50,000 feet to the east. The Zoning Commission will meet to discuss and approve the new map and ordinance on January 23, 2002. c. Gordon Aircraft lease - Ogqeil said the terms of the lease were the same as the lease the Commission passed last August. The term of the lease is for five years. This will give the University of Iowa the assurances they wanted for their program. The University is subleasing space for an aircraft simulator. Horan made a motion for a resolution to approve the Gordon lease. Anderson seconded the motion and at roll call vote, the motion passed 3 - 0, with Ruyle and Ellis being absent. d. Aviation Commerce Park 1. January report - Tracy Overton circulated the January status report. He said he has contacted Rob Nickels and he should be ready to sign the lease on Tuesday or Wednesday of next week. Overton said he would like the Commission to talk to the Council to designate the Aviation Commerce Park as a TIF district. Horan made a motion to request the Aviation Commerce Park be designated as a TIF district. Anderson seconded the motion and it passed 3 - 0, with Ellis and Ruyle being absent. O'Neil will contact David Schoon to see what the Commission needs to do request a TiF district. 2. Other issues- Overton said he is getting 3 - 5 calls a month from potential tenants. He said that is good for this time of year. The basic lease has been completed and the restrictions have been developed. Overton said the Commission will need to decide what kind of uses they think will fit into the long term plan for the area. 3. Aviation Commerce Park restrictions - The restrictions would be used as a marketing guideline for Overton to show to potential tenants. The Commission will discuss this at their next meeting. e. IOW Aero 1. Commercial Flying Club and hangar agreement - O~Neil said IOW Aero would like a five year lease on Building D and a five year agreement to operate a commercial flying club. IOW would also like four five-year options. IOW provides some services as Jet Air. The rent would be adjusted to the CPI at the end of each term. Mascari said this would be a commitment for up to 25 years. O~Neil said the rent abatement language has been included in the lease. He said Ellis told him that didn't think any additional rent should be abated. O~Neil said Ruyle did not think any rent should have been abated. No improvements have been made since the last Commission meeting. O'Neil said he has seen the receipts but does not have copies of them and has not been able to analyze the expenses. He said he would have receipts before the next meeting. After some discussion, the Commission said they would like to stay with the 2 and a half- year lease they now have in place and keep the flying club agreement separate. O'Neil said the Commercial Flying Club agreement ends in Mamh of 2002 and would be on the agenda at the February Commission meeting. Anderson said the flying club agreement and Building D lease may be combined at the end of the building lease. O'Neil said IOW and Jet Air would like to install some additional signs for their Cessna dealership. The Commission members will look at the signs and contact OWeil as to if and where they should be installed. OTqeil said Jet Air is going to have an avionics in Building F. Dulek suggested it would be a good time for Jet Air to meet the Council. CHAIRPERSON'S REPORT: Mascari said he had nothing additional to report. COMMISSION MEMBERS' REPORTS: Anderson said he still has a roof leak. O'Neil said he contacted SWA and informed them there is still a leak. ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT: O~Neil said there is a letter in the Commission packet from the Department of Transportation, informing the Commission they did not get the VerticaI Infrastructure Grant they applied for. A new cellular telephone tower was approved by the FAA 1.45 miles southwest of the Airport. It will not change the approach minimums at the Airport. O~Neil wrote a memo to the City Manager, updating the fuel site project. There was a memo from O'Neil, outlining the days he would be on vacation or out of the office during the next six months. There was a memo in the packet concerning the budget. Quest broke a water line north of Building H while working on the phone lines. It was repaired immediately. A letter was received from the DNR, requesting addition information for the Tier 1 study. Van Winkle Jacob Engineering has provided the information requested. O?qeil said that on the February agenda, the Commission should discuss plans to hire a consultant to complete thc obstruction removal project. O'Neil gave the Commission information for their January 17 meeting on minimum standards. O'Neil circulated a copy of the FY 2003 budget that will go to the Council sometime in January. All of the capital projects the Commission included were eliminated in order to help balance the budget. This included landscaping for the Riverside Drive entrance to the Aviation Commerce Park. He said that if the Commission wants the Council to include any of the projects they originally included, they would need to address those issues at the budget meeting. O'Neil suggested Mascari make note of that when he addresses the Council. SET NEXT MEETING: The next regular Airport Commission meeting is scheduled for February 14, 2002, at 5:45 p.m. The next special meeting is January 17, 2002 at 5:45 p.m. ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned at 6:58 p.m. Rick Mascari, Chairperson 4 Minutes Iowa City Public Art Advisory Committee FINAL/APPROVED Thursday, February 7, 2002 Civic Center Lobby Conference Room Members Present: Chuck Felling, Rick Fosse, Sandra Hudson, Betsy Klein, Barbara Camillo, Emily Walsh Members Absent: Terry Trueblood Staff Present: Karin Franklin and Marcia Klingaman Others Present: Del Brown of the Lion's Club, Brad Lang of OPN Architects, Bob and Katherine Eaves CALL TO ORDER Sandra Hudson called the meeting to order at 3:30 p.m. PUBLIC DISCUSSION OF ANY ITEM NOT ON THE AGENDA: There was an introduction of the new committee member, Emily Walsh, who is taking the place of Gary Nagle. She is interested in all kinds of art, but has recently become interested in photography. She is working as a wedding photographer and is originally from Iowa City, though she has just moved back from Chicago. Emily said that she is very excited to be here and thanked the committee for the opportunity to participate. Financial Plans from Iowa City and The Epicenter Tornado proposal were distributed. ELECTION OF CHAIRPERSON AND VICE-CHAIRPERSON FOR 2002: Sandra Hudson was nominated to continue as chairperson and Chuck Felling was nominated to continue as vice-chairperson. MOTION: Chuck Felling moved adoption of the slate. Rick Fosse seconded. Motion passed 6-0. CONSIDERATION OF MINUTES OF December 6, 2001: Hudson made a clarification regarding the purpose of the Artists' Showcase: non-established artists should have the opportunity to participate, but the showcase should not be limited to them. MOTION: Rick Fosse moved to approve the minutes with clarification. Barbara Camillo seconded. Motion passed 6-0. DISCUSSION AND APPROVAL OF THE RELOCATION OF "DOROTHY": Karin Franklin suggested that this discussion be deferred to allow time for the Epicenter group to provide input. She reviewed the paper distributed which included the original proposal by the Epicenter group for acquisition of "Dorothy". The Epicenter group would like to have a role in the relocation of "Dorothy"; they will meet and will make a recommendation at the March 7 meeting. "Dorothy" was moved because of a water line near the sculpture. It is being stored upright by the Parks and Recreation Department. It will not be able to be put back out until at least May. Perhaps it would be best to relocate it in June instead of returning it to its original location on the Iowa Scultpor's Showcase pad. CONSIDERATION OF PROPOSAL FROM THE LIONS CLUB: Sandra Hudson began by enumerating what is being requested of the committee: 1. $15,000 2. Provide installation and continued maintenance of statue 3. The Irving Weber statue be erected and maintained on or near the corner of Linn and Iowa Ave. Iowa City Public Art Advisory Committee Minutes February 7, 2002 Page 2 Hudson commented that the committee's budget will most likely be halved to $50,000 or maybe less. Franklin recapped the 2003 fiscal year commitments: 1. Near Southside Transportation Project- a. Under contract b. Total art is around $40,000 c. FTA grant= 80% federal and 20% city d. $8, 170 of the committee's money is committed 2. Continuing the Literary Walk- a. Six more plaques in Linn St. between the library and Iowa Ave. as the sidewalk is replaced b. Could be stretched over 2 years since the library will not be finished until the '04/'05 fiscal year c. The artists have to know by Mar. 1 to have two plaque templates in by June/August when sidewalk is being poured (Special Meeting may be required) d. $4,000 a plaque if you do more than five, so getting a break on the price 3. Lions Club Proposal (Irving Weber statue)- a. Installation costs not included in the $15,000 (can lower the amount and try to find partner funds) b. Been on the table for a couple of years c. Maybe a grant from Cultural Affairs since a historical figure d. No major maintenance expected e. Feasible if installation costs are minimal and can be absorbed in department operating budgets f. Statue is about 300 lbs. g. Lions are flexible about location; their proposed location is on Iowa Ave. 4. Sculptor's Showcase- $500 honorarium 5. Neighborhood Art Project- a. Initially tried to get grant through Department of Cultural Affairs b. Relatively new, but important c. Begins with three neighborhoods, one of which is a combination d. Tom Muller, of the Lions, suggested the name, "Art in the Hood" for the project There is the option to pursue other funding means for any of these projects. Franklin noted that the City Council seemed to be supportive of the Neighborhood Art project and collaborative projects (private and public money combined). Hudson inquired whether there is anywhere else in Council to look for money, such as any other line items to take things out of. Fosse noted that Neighborhood Art has applied for a PIN grant for $5,000 per neighborhood project, but competition for the grant is stiff. Camillo suggested shaving a little money from all of the programs. As for the Lions Club statue, Franklin suggested the installation might be absorbed by Parks and Recreation. Fosse commented that the foundation for the statue should be stable and could cost about $700. Fosse suggested cutting the Literary Walk project if it comes down to it. He did say that he liked it and thought that it'd been successful, but maybe it's time for the committee to move on. Hudson suggested that the library use their art budget to share the costs of extension of the Literary Walk (this may already be under contract for all work to be done). Franklin suggested the possibility of getting up to $5000 from the Community Foundation. Commitment is needed ASAP for the Irving Weber statue so that the Lions can start their fundraising (will contact places such as Roberts Dairy). Their goal is to have it finished by this coming August for Irving Weber Day. It is the sense of the committee that installation and maintenance of the statue are acceptable commitments. The Lions are willing to compromise on all three points. MOTION: Rick Fosse moved to fund the Irving Weber statue at $15,000 (hard costs of installation to be included in this amount), plus soft costs of installation. Chuck Felling seconded. Camillo commented that she felt it was premature to make this decision before exploring other funds. She suggested contributing less than $15,000. Felling said that he liked the project because he felt that it is interesting and a good collaborative activity. It was determined that the Lions have no loan mechanism and that it is unlikely that the International Lions will help with funds. Iowa City Public Art Advisory Committee Minutes February 7, 2002 Page 3 Motion passed 5-1 with Barbara Camillo dissenting. The committee agreed this allocation may require reconsideration if the budget for public art was reduced by more than $50,000. Hudson suggested that the Lions give their support to the Public Art Committee's bid for a higher budget at the Budget Hearing on February 19. The Lions thanked the committee and promised to keep the group up to date. To this end, a liaison was volunteered: Emily Walsh, who will document the work in progress with her photography; Camillo will assist. A location still needs to be designated. DISCUSSION WiTH DAVID DAHLQUIST OF THE NEAR SOUTHSIDE TRANSPORTATION CENTER ART PROJECT: David Dahlquist began by thanking the committee for selecting him for the project. He discussed the components of the transportion project and updated the group as to what he is working on. Dahlquist has met with Franklin and Brad Lang of OPN Architects to see the site in order to better imagine what the building will look like. He described his vision of the fence. Dahlquist suggested that the community participation element be focused on each level of the parking ramp in the elevator lobbies, rather than on the fence. He explained that tile at the base of the fence would be too small and everything will look cleaner without the tile there. The tile can be better utilized in the elevator lobbies. His ideas for the fence and the work by the elevators include: 1. Fence composed of a series of five 4' x 8' metal placards connected by load bearing elements to a curb. The elements would repeat in each of the bays (20' x 11') formed by the piers of the building. 2. A curb height element, about 6" above grade, to channel water and anchor the placards. 3. The placards will be metal cut with some sort of floral design as a kind of "steel garden montage." These will let light in and provide nice shadow-work inside. 4. Distance between fence and building is about 25'. 5. The floral cut in the placards will be a theme that is repeated elsewhere. 6. The stair and elevator towers are vertical elements that bookend the building~ 7. Community participation will be used in the tile work in elevator lobbies and for way-finding. 8. Community participation many include focus groups or hands on work by children and others. 9. Signage as folk art- children's' concepts and drawings in tile work, with Dahlquist doing the terracotta 10. Tiles will be flat with glazed color or relief tiles set into colored flat tiles. 11. 8' x 8' image could be sandblasted in the floor of each level so that people can remember where they parked. 12. Signage components: artistic and distinct & recognizable icon. Shape, color, word/image, exaggeration, and contrast will be utilized to support memory of parking levels. The committee approved the concept of the cut plate fence. Dahlquist will work on a sketch to give to Franklin and Lang. He will check with the fire marshal (and take other safety measures) before cutting the plates. Dahlquist requires the committee's help in determining who in the community will participate (this will be towards the end of the project). Hudson suggested "brush" painting of the fence patterns on the elevator doors in lighter or darker tones instead of little elements here and there. Lang explained that the doors are stainless steel and vandal resistant, so they couldn't just be painted. Custom design of the elevator carriage is difficult and expensive, but he will check into it. Lang will also look into Camillo's suggestion of etching the doors. DISCUSSION OF IOWA SCULPTORS SHOWCASE Several slides of artwork were shown prior to the discussion. The artists' names and their resumes were included in the packets sent to the committee members. Iowa City Public Art Advisory Committee Minutes February 7, 2002 Page 4 1. Gene Anderson- Iowa City local, works in poured concrete. His submission is vertical with an oblong across the top. 2. Eric Mart- from Davenport, works in sheet iron. His submissions are an iron person ("iron magetta") and an iron meditator called "Relaxed Discipline." (He should be made aware that his slides were too dark to view). 3. Jennifer Otis- iowa City local, works in ceramic. Her submission is of upright glazed ceramic ellipses clustered together called, "One in Nine." They have solid bronze tips where they meet the ground. 4. Dennis Swanson- the committee is already familiar with his submissions: "Reasons for Moving" and "prop of s. hoo." There was some concern about the sharp edges on "Relaxed Discipline" and "prop of s. hoo", as well as whether "One in Nine" is really durable enough for exterior use. MOTION: Barbara Camillo moved that the Anderson obelisk be accepted. Betsy Klein seconded. Motion passed 6-1 with Emily Walsh dissenting. INSTALLATION OF JAZZ--EVENT? Klingaman reported that Ties that Bind is in place at the Recreation Center Lobby. Jazz will be delivered on March 16. The artist and the family will be in town the last week in March. The Committee was asked if they wished to organize a ceremony. Hudson decided to ask the Jazz group in Iowa City to take charge of this. UPDATE ON PUBLIC ART PROGRAM FUNDING The alternate funding options available were discussed earlier in the meeting. Franklin recapped that there are grant opportunities with the Department of Cultural Affairs and the Community Foundation. These options need to be discussed more because city staff does not have the time to do this, so the committee needs to decide on their level of commitment. Hudson said that the City Council must approve any grant applications. She decided to adapt the American Spirit grant and to resubmit it to the Department of Cultural Affairs, the Community Foundation, and Johnson County. Franklin suggested that this be added to the next agenda in order to talk about priorities. She added that the City will continue to provide clerical support for grants. UPDATE ON THE NEIGHBORHOOD ART PROJECT: Chuck Felling said that the Northside has talked about the grant submitted last fall. They have renewed and approved the art documentary and are working with Klingaman and Community TV to put together a program on what community art is (an educational device). Hudson suggested that Walsh join with the group to document production; Walsh accepted. The group's next meeting is March 7. COMMITTEE TIME/OTHER BUSINESS None. ADJOURNMENT Sandra Hudson adjourned the meeting at 5:15 PM. t: shared/pcd/public art/art02-07-02 doc MINUTES Agenda item 3A IOWA CITY PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES FINAL/APPROVED REGULAR MEETING THURSDAY, January 24, 2002, 5:00 PM Members Present: Linda Dellsperger, Shaner Magalh~es, Lisa Parker, Linda Prybil, Pat Schnack, Jesse Singerman, Jim Swaim, David VanDusseldorp Members Absent: Tom Surer Staff Present: Barb Black, Maeve Clark, Susan Craig, Debb Green, Kara Logsden, Martha Lubaroff, Joel Miller, Liz Nichols Others: CALL TO ORDER: President Parker called the meeting to order at 5;00 p.m. Public Discussion/President's Report Parker modified the agenda and gave her President's report. She expressed appreciation for Larry Eckholt's important role in our Library and noted how much he will be missed. She suggested using some of the Board's discretionary funds towards a memorial for Eckholt. Board members were unanimous in their support for such a memorial, perhaps naming something in the new building. Board members will bring ideas to the next Board meeting. Craig will bring ideas from the Foundation people. Craig will also have a conversation with Eckholt's son, Tobin. An official item will be on the agenda next week. Craig informed the Board that she had asked Barbara Curtin to take on the position of Development Director. Curtin accepted and will remain until the new building is completed. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Dellsperger/Prybil moved approval of the minutes. Two corrections were noted and the minutes were approved unanimously as corrected. UNFINISHED BUSINESS Building Project: The contract has been signed and returned to Knutson. There have been some complaints from the public since the fencing has been placed. Miller asked that any complaints be forwarded to him. The fence is necessary for safety reasons. Access to the Pedestrian Mall, including the library entrance onto the mall, will be closed on February 11 when demolition begins. Signs will be placed conspicuously, to direct people. It is estimated that the building will come down in about 10 days. There will be some observation holes cut in the fence so people can watch the progress. Miller reports that this part of the project is moving along smoothly. Dan Kabara, from Engberg Anderson, will come down every month for construction meetings. Craig will set up tours before some Board meetings. Swaim suggested that we run short clips on the Library Channel informing the public of the progress. He volunteered to take part in it. Craig said an ongoing program is being planned. ICPL Board of Trustees Agenda item 3A - 2 Minutes of January 24, 2002 Singerman asked if there had been other controversies regarding the bid since the initial opening. Craig responded that one individual, Richard Hughes, had requested bid documents and specifications from the City. He represents a small group of minodty contractors from the Quad City area and has made numerous inquiries regarding city projects. Schnack mentioned making use of the library's Web Site as a means to inform of building updates. This is also in the planning stages. FY03 Budget: The Budget meeting is scheduled for 7:00 pm next Tuesday, January 29. There are two groups scheduled before the library. Craig recommends arriving about 6:45 pm. The two permanent positions to start mid-year are the biggest budget items. The City Manager has included them in his recommended budget with a midyear start for the maintenance position and a delay until the following fiscal year for the start of the librarian's position. Given the City's financial situation and the fact that the City Manager has recommended approval for most of the budget, Craig felt it was doable. She encouraged Board attendance at this budget meeting. NEW BUSINESS Six month planning update_. Craig asked for comments or questions: Parker asked for more information regarding the phone call made to a local group regarding input from folks with disabilities. Craig had a conversation with an individual about some of the plans that were included in the new building like ramps inside and more restrooms. An invitation was issued to review the plans and that has not happened yet. in terms of the review of behavior policy, Dellsperger suggested an Inservice Day speaker who could educate staff on homeless. Dellsperger noted favorably the new criteria, which makes use of the gift collection, to provide more and better books to Outreach Centers and the Book End. Craig reported that in the first 6 months of the year the store has sold $15,000 in books, which is more than what they projected. A question was asked about the children's programs to be promoted in January. Green responded that her staff will be contacting Head Start and Before and After school programs for older kids. They will contact 4C's and five elementary schools which have a high percentage of Iow-income children. Staff was asked about the status of young adult programs. Logsden reported that a program was planned which received very little response so it was cancelled. A Young Adult web site is being worked on. In response to a question, Craig explained that regular advertising continues but nothing new since our commercials has been done. Swaim suggested running ads in the movie theater. However, he said, it is fairly costly. He thought this could enable us to reach out to the young adult readers. In terms of dropping checkout limits on most collections, Circulation has done some work on studying the issue. Selectors have to also think about the implications and then we will make changes if they are deemed appropriate. ICPL Board of Trustees Agenda item 3A- 3 Minutes of January 24, 2002 In response to a question about the Smart-Cards technology, Craig would recommend at some point they be used for printing, checkout, fines, and the integration of many functions. However, they are expensive to purchase and maintain and staff felt it is not time yet. In follow-up to a question about the status of the implementation of word processing, computers have been placed in the former RRO Office and they are being used to test our new internet sign up software. Once that is completed, word processing will follow. Prybil said she liked the slogan, "Opening the door in 2004". There were no other comments. Spelling Bee In response to a request from staff for $300 from gift funds to sponsor an ICPL team in the Spelling Bee, Singerman moved approval, Dellsperger seconded. The motion passed unanimously. Parking: There was concern regarding the loss of short-term parking now that a portion of the lot was occupied as a staging site for construction. Board members were of the impression that there would be some sort of reconfiguration of the Dubuque Street ramp to allow for shod-term parking in a portion of the ramp with signage indicating 60 to 90 minute limits limits. Craig responded that the Parking Director determined the cost was excessive. She also pointed out to Board that at the time Council asked Parking Director Fowler to look into this it was thought that we would be losing all of 641A, which is not the case. Craig believes that once the library is built, and the new construction begins on 641A, shod-term parking will be included. Swaim thinks that it would be wise to begin some work prior to the completion. Others agree there is a need to try to replace spaces lost. Craig will have a conversation with Fowler to get his opinion and discuss whether there are any less expensive options. Once there is a response, the building committee will be apprised and a memo sent from President Parker to Council. Several suggestions were presented to the Board that had to do with signs, meters used for part of the day, tokens, and others that Craig will mention during her conversation. Swaim moved that we expand the Park 'n Read program and add all remaining days starting February 1. Dellsperger seconded it. There was no further discussion. Motion passed unanimously. Reaching for new heights carepaign. Craig recently reported to the Foundation Board that we have not reached the fund-raising goal set for this stage of the campaign and we need to expand our fund-raising goals. The poor economy is affecting many fund raising efforts. Board members are being asked to identify names of prospects, including individuals, businesses and service clubs with whom they would be willing to set up a meeting. Review of Policies(702): Policy for Library Programming. Dellsperger/Singerman moved approval. Motion passed unanimously. iCPL Board of Trustees Agenda item 3A - ,~ Minutes of January 24, 2002 Cable Television Channel Programming (703). Dellsperger raised a question regarding the procedure to not replay community meetings. Logsden responded that is not in our mission. We provide the opportunity to go live which PATV cannot do, but if they want rebroadcast, the appropriate channel is public access. If it is a co-sponsored program we continue to broadcast. Dellsperger moved approval of the policy. Prybil seconded. Motion passed unanimously. Policy on Meeting Rooms and Lobby Use (806): These language changes reflect moro a clarification for the eligibility for meeting room use. The changes are recommended after an opinion from the City Attorney's office regarding eligibility for use of the rooms. A question was raised regarding the new statement about all events in meeting rooms being subject to public notice. Logsden responded that these appear on the lobby sign and are routinely sent out on press releases. A question was asked regarding the statement requiring appropriate documentation for nonprofit groups. What is appropriate? Logsden replied that providing at least 6 names with addresses, phone numbers and a purpose for the gathering would constitute appropriate documentation and a room could be booked. We could potentially call the individuals to verify. There was no further discussion. Motion passed unanimously after a motion by Magalh~es and VanDusseldorp. STAFF REPORTS ILA 2002 Legislative Agenda. Craig will be attending the Legislative Day which is sponsored by the Iowa Library Association. It is scheduled for Wednesday, January 30. Craig invited any Board members who were interested, to join her. Departmental Reports In response to requests from Board members to learn more about what the various departments do in the library, Coordinators will provide regular reports. Craig assigned this month to Cimulation, Information and Community & AV Services. VanDusseldorp asked that we include it in calendar. Regarding the Circulation report, Dellsperger asked about the use of credit cards for patron's fines, etc. and whether or not it was worth the expense. It seems to encourage more compliance when patrons have expenses. Craig said it comes off the top fine income as it passes through to the City, and seems to be worth it. She offered to track it at some future time if people are interested. Collection Agency fees are a flat fee paid to the agency. Dellsperger had a question regarding the drop in numbers in the information statistics. She recommends looking at these numbers when we plan for restructuring staff assignments in the new building. ICPL Board of Trustees Agenda item 3A - 5 Minutes of January 24, 2002 DO Staffing Report. At this time Curtin is not planning to hire another campaign assistant. She was scheduled to be finished in April and we will evaluate at that time. Announcements from Members Swaim reported that the County had expressed interest in displaying a piece the mural. Nichols said United Action for Youth could do what they want with the pieces they were given. Dellsperger reported that she recently saw one of the mural pieces on display at the School Board meeting. She plans to express to the School Board members how much coordinating and effort was put into the project by Nichols. FINANCIAL REPORTS Six-month reports had no significant items to point out. Use Reports There was a question about hits for Home pages and the difference in number. There has been one thing that has had a negative effect on our web site. We spend $12,000 annually to purchase cataloging records. Other libraries were using commercial software to download our catalog records to augment their own catalog. We had to create a barder and only certain libraries, which have our permission, can use our connection. This accounts for some of the drop in number of "hits". Adult programs. The County Fair accounted for the huge discrepancy between the small number of programs and large attendance at programs. Circulation is up almost 14%. Craig says that when the economy is bad, library usage goes up. VanDusseldorp commented that the groundbreaking ceremony went well. DISBURSEMENTS Singerman moved approval of the Disbursements. Swaim seconded. It passed unanimously ADJOURNMENT: Adjourned at 6:45 pm. Minutes taken and transcribed by Martha Lubaroff MINUTES FINAL/APPROVED IOWA CITY TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION MONDAY, JANUARY 28, 2002 CITY CABLE TV OFFICE, 10 S. LINN ST.-TOWER PLACE PARK1NG FACILITY MEMBERS PRESENT: Betty McKray, Cathy Weingeist, Jim Pusack MEMBERS ABSENT: Terry Smith, Kembrew McLeod STAFF PRESENT: Drew Shaffer, Mike Brau, Bob Hardy, Andy Matthews, Dale Helling OTHERS PRESENT: Jon Koebrick, Rene Paine, Rick Tyler, Lauren Reece, Phil Phillips, Dermis Green, Randy Brown RECOMMENDATIONS TO CITY COUNCIL None at this time. SUMMARY OF DISCUSSION Shaffer reported receiving 88 complaints. Tyler said that because of the magnitude of the changes being made Mediacom's calls have doubled over the last week. Mediacom is looking into putting in more phone lines and expanding office hours. Tyler said that he has been with the company for 15 years and this is the first time in which materials sent out were not approved at a local level. Randy Brown reported that the transition of the cable modem service to Mediacom will take place on February 17. Brown said that Mediacom is considering installing a system that will shift calls to other Mediacom offices when the lines are full. It is hoped this system can be operational in the second quarter. A channel line-up card will be sent to subscribers shortly before the change is made. The library channel is planning to produce a monthly program that will provide updates on the progress of the new library building. The first program is planned for mid February. Paine reported that PATV is now moved into their new facility at 206 Lafayette St. Two part-time receptionists have been hired. Two unpaid interns are working with PATV this spring. PATV's grand opening will be held April 5 from 3-7 p.m. ICCSD School Board President Lauren Reece reported that better utilization of the education channel by the school district is a priority of hers. Reece met with Corlaville City Administrator Kelly Hayworth about their plans to offer assistance to the schools in exchange for channel time, but the meeting did not clarify the situation. A meeting was held by the ICCSD administration attended by a large number of school staff and Hayworth. A number of ideas were generated at the meeting. At that meeting Hayworth offered yet another version of what Coralville's role in using the education charmel might be. Paine reported that an additional $10,000 in financing was secured from Hills Bank to cover some cost overruns at their new facility. Fundraising has generated $5,000 with which to repay the $10,000 loan. APPROVAL OF MINIUTES Pusack moved and Weingeist seconded a motion to approve the corrected November 28 and the December 10minutes. The motion passed unanimously. ANNOUNCEMENTS OF COMMISSIONERS None. SHORT PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENTS None. CONSUMER ISSUES Shaffer reported receiving 88 complaints. Most of the complaints can be broken down into 4 categories: inadequate notification, inability to reach the company by phone, confusing materials sent by the company to explain changes and options, and Customer Service Representatives not providing clear explanations. Specifically, there were 12 complaints about the rates being too high, 14 about the lack of notification, 18 about the company's phone always being busy, 9 about confusing or misleading material sent out regarding rates and tiers, 8 about having to have a digital converter for each television, 5 about being told they must subscribe to a digital tier to get any premium channels (which is incorrect), 3 about the company not returning phone calls, 3 about not getting a clear description of options from Customer Service Representatives, 2 about renaming the tiers making options more confusing, 2 about the company's 800 number always being busy or of no assistance, 2 about confusion regarding Encore, 2 about the company telling subscribers that the premium channels were being moved to digital to make space for local access channels, 1 billing problem, 1 about the late fee, and 1 ~Home technical problem. Tyler said that because of the magnitude of the changes being made Mediacom's calls have doubled over the last week. Mediacom is looking into putting in more phone lines and expanding office hours. Tyler said that he has been with the company for 15 years and this is the first time in which materials sent out were not approved at a local level. The materials sent out came from the marketing department at the division office in Des Moines. Local officials did not see it until after it had been mailed to subscribers. Being a new company there is some learning that needs to take place. The coordination is not what it should have been. Tyler said that the misinformation is coming primarily from telemarketers and door-to-door sales people. Pusack suggested that Mediacom could produce some commercials explaining the changes. Randy Brown reported that the transition of the cable modem service to Mediacom will take place on February 17. Mediacom may push back the channel line-up changes a week so the call center can better handle the expected increase in calls. Cable modem subscribers will be notified by email about the change and how to reconfigure their computers. Pusack noted that there is no web site that would inform subscribers of the changes. Brown said that the ~Home and the new Mediacom email systems will run concurrently for about 10-15 days. ~Home subscribers who use their email will receive email explaining the change. Those who use a different email system will get a first class letter. Shaffer asked if additional phone lines will be added before the cable modem change and the channel line-up is changed. Brown said that Mediacom is considering installing a system that will shift calls to other Mediacom offices when the lines are full. It is hoped this system can be operational in the second quarter. A channel line-up card will be sent to subscribers shortly before the change is made. MEDIACOM REPORT Brown reported the cable modem transition will take place on February 17 and is expected to generate many phone calls and complaints. Mediacom is doing everything they can to make the transition as smooth as possible. Notification of subscribers is taking place by email and regular post. LIBRARY REPORT Logsden submitted a written report. The library channel is planning to produce a monthly program that will provide updates on the progress of the new library building. The first program is planned for mid February. A database of library channel programs is being constructed. Planned upcoming programs include a discussion of the play Copenhagen on Feb. 19 and Women and Monday on Feb. 21. In March a program called" Quack Alert: Internet Literacy for Teens" is planned. PATV REPORT Paine reported that PATV is now moved into their new facility at 206 Lafayette St. Work is nearly finished on a grant application to the McArthur Foundation. The application is in association with the Women's Resource Action Center. PATV was awarded $10,000 last year. PATV was a recipient of a section of the mural formerly in the True Value building painted by students from the alternative high school. Two part-time receptionists have been hired. Two unpaid interns are working with PATV this spring. One will work in public relations, the other in video production. PATV's grand opening will be held April 5 from 3-7 p.m. This will also be PATV's 12th anniversary. Paine provided Mediacom a PSA on the change in PATV's channel position. Paine said that someone from Mediacom needs to contact TV Guide to enable them to get their listings on the digital tier program guide. Koebrick said he will contact TV Guide. SENIOR CENTER REPORT No representative was present. ECC REPORT Dennis Green reported the ECC met and elected Green president. The Iowa City Community School District (ICCSD) now has 2 hours of time on the channel every week night. The education channel wishes to get their program listings on the digital program guides once the procedures are worked out. Pusack said that in regard to discussions with Coralville using the education channel that the Commission may have a say on who uses the channel and said that the Commission needs to be kept informed of any further discussion on this matter. The Commission has had lengthy discussions on how the ICCSD can make better use of the channel. Providing Coralville with time on the channel for city use is not what was contemplated for the education channel. LEGAL REPORT Matthews said he had nothing to report. CITY CABLE TV OFFICE REPORT Hardy reported that work has focused on preparing to move InfoVision to channel 5 and making the studio functional for productions. Production was down a bit and programming up. Over the last 6 months over 200 new programs have been cablecast. A 24 hour per day schedule is being developed and will be implemented when InfoVision moves to channel 5. Between programs there will be more promotions of programming. Pusack asked why City Council tapes don't eliminate the break time that occurs during live meetings. Hardy said that it is difficult to determine when the meeting will start up again. The playback tape is the original tape from the meeting and that the cablecast feed is fed from the record deck. Stopping the record deck would interrupt the live feed. CABLE TV ADMiNISTRATOR REPORT Shaffer referred to the materials in the packet regarding a ruling at the FCC that permits cable operators to collect franchise fees on non-subscriber revenue from subscribers and a letter from Mediacom stating their intention to do so. The City Council, who got a copy of the letter, which was sent to the mayor, initially started to discuss this, but decided to first get a reccomendation from the Telecommunications Commission. The item should be put on next month's agenda. This will permit staffto generate some materials on the issue. The City Channel will start doing some cross-promotion for the City's web site. Pusack said that the documents provided in the Commission meeting packet could be made available to the public on the City web site. Shaffer reported that there has been good progress on the Avatar Project, including building a set, setting up a message board, getting ASCAP/BMI music clearances and other items. EDUCATION CHANNEL UPDATE ICCSD School Board President Lauren Reece reported that better utilization of the education channel by the school district is a priority of hers. She met with the ECC who said the District could have as many playback hours as they wish. Reece met with Corlaville City Administrator Kelly Hayworth about their plans to offer assistance to the schools in exchange for channel time, but the meeting did not clarify the situation. A meeting was held by the ICCSD administration attended by a large number of school staff and Hayworth. A number of ideas were generated at the meeting. At that meeting Hayworth offered yet another version of what Coralville's role in using the education channel might be. Since the school administration began working on this there has been no new programming. The proposed expansion of the alternative school includes a television studio. Pusack asked if the classroom teachers are aware that they could utilize the channel. Reece said she was unsure. Pusack noted that PATV trains a number of high school aged students in video production and there are video clubs in the high schools. While the administration has indicted that a major constraint on the schools is the lack of funds for staff, there does appear to be sources for some programming already in place. Superintendent Plugge did not appear to have as much enthusiasm when he met with the Commission. Weingeist said that she is frustrated that programming from the ICCSD is available but not cablecast. As an example, the City High Jazz Showcase will be held next week and will be taped regardless if it will be on TV. There is no reason the tape could not be played back on the education channel. Reece said that what appears to be lacking is a single individual to coordinate the ICCSD's efforts. The alternative high school scenario may evolve as soon as next school year. Pusack said there may be some pass-through funds available to assist the schools. Weingeist said that Plugge offered a number of reasons why the idea would not work, but nothing on how various entities could work together to make it work. Reece said she will put the education channel on the February school board agenda. PATV BUILDING UPDATE Paine distributed a document outlining developments regarding PATV's new facility. The Everett Conner Center lease has been signed and rent is now being collected. PATV shut down operations for two weeks while moving. PATV is now fully operational. An additional $10,000 in financing was secured from Hills Bank to cover some cost overruns. Fundraising has generated $5,000 with which to repay the $10,000 loan. Two benefactors have come forward with $2,500 each. The property tax exemption was filed on January 28. TRIENNIAL REVIEW Shaffer said that February 2002 would be the timing for the initiation of the Triennial Review. One area that was mentioned previously as an area for review is this new company's future plans. Staff will forward documents relating to the Commission's previous discussions. ADJOUNMENT Weingeist moved and Pusack seconded a motion to adjourn. The motion passed unanimously. Adjournment was at 6:53 p.m. Respectfully submitted Wm. Drew Shaffer Cable TV Administrator MINUTES PARKS AND RECREATION COMMISSION FINAL/APPROVED FEBRUARY 13, 2002 MEMBERS PRESENT: Toni Cilek, Kevin Boyd, Doug Ginsberg, Craig Gustaveson, Nancy Ostrognai, Rex Pruess, Al Stroh, John Westefeld MEMBERS ABSENT: Matt Pacha GUESTS: Ruth Baker, William Buss, Amy Bouska STAI?F PRESENT: Charles Schmadeke, Terry Trueblood FORMAL ACTION TAKEN Pmess chaired the commission in the absence of Pacha. Boyd noted a correction to the January 9, 2002 minutes on page 4 last paragraph. They should be changed to reflect that the City of Coralville applied for $4.5 million for the "Hotel and Conference Center", not the Iowa Child. Moved by Bovd~ seconded by Westefeld, to approve the Januar3, 9, 2002 minutes as amended. Unanimous. Moved by Boyd~ seconded by Stroh~ to accept staff's recommendation on the fundine vroposal for the Waterworks Park Proiect. Unanimous. Moved by Gustaveson, seconded by Ginsberg~ to strongly urge the City Council to accept staff's fundin~ vroposai for the Waterworks Park Project, to accept the commission's C.I.P. priorities, and to give special attention to development of the Miller/Orchard Park. Unanimous. Moved by Boyd~ seconded by Cilek~ to accept the 1.22 acres of open space as proposed~ with the requirement that the area is restored and the trail is constructed by the developer to the City's specifications prior to final acceptance (Gilbert Street and Napoleon Lane). Unanimous. WATERWORKS PARK PROJECT Trueblood noted that originally the Waterworks Park project was proposed to be funded with water revenue bonds, but it was not supported by the City Council. Staff was instructed to prepare a budget breakdown for them as to what funds could legitimately come from water revenue bonds and G.O. bonds, including the Miller/Orchard Park project. Staff proposed that $100,000 be taken from the Butler House Trail Head Park project, $250,000 from the Waterworks Park project, and $200,000 from Miller/Orchard Park project. This proposal was not approved and the overall budget was reduced from $550,000 to $376,000. Trueblood reviewed the funding proposal developed by him and the Public Works Director for the recommended development components for Phase I of the Waterworks Park project. Proposed funding would be $100,000 from the Butler House budget, $76,000 from the Waterworks Park budget, and $200,000 transferred from the Miller/Orchard Park budget. The City Cotmcil indicated a willingness to reallocate the $200,000 for Miller/Orchard in FY04 or FY05. With respect to the Miller/Orchard Park project, Trueblood stated $10,000 from the Parkland Development account would be earmarked to provide for cleaning up the 2-acre parcel and minimal park development per the neighborhood's wishes. Once the $200,000 is reallocated to the project, it could conceivably be used for acquisition as opposed to development. Ruth Baker of the Miller/Orchard Neighborhood Association stated they would also like picnic tables and trash containers to make the area usable. She also noted it appears the Parks and Recreation Commission February 13, 2002 Page 2 of 5 City Council is being supportive of funding future acquisition of land and wanted to make certain the Miller/Orchard Park project did not get bumped again for the next phase of the Waterworks Park project. Gustaveson indicated the commission is very supportive of the Miller/Orchard Park project, being the commission's number one priority last year on their list of capital improvement projects. Stroh noted there was no guarantee in that the commission did not make the final decision, but the project will remain a high priority for the commassion. Moved by Boyd~ seconded by Stroh, to accept staffs recommendation on the funding proposal for the Waterwork Park Proiect. Unanimous. Moved by Gustaveson, seconded by Ginsberg, to strongly urge the City Council to accept staffs funding proposal for the Waterworks Park Proiect, to accept the commission's C.I.P. priorities, and to give special attention to development of the Miller/Orchard Park. Unanimous. NEIGHBORHOOD OPEN SPACE - Gilbert Street & Napoleon Lane Tmeblood denoted the location of the proposed development. The developer is proposing to dedicate approximately 1.22 acres. The proposed land dedication could provide for a trail compatible with the South District Plan, with part of the trail along the sewer easement and the remainder through the proposed open space. Staff recommends acceptance of the proposed open space. Tmeblood noted the development requires a zoning variance and the city could require seeding and construction of the trail as a condition of the rezoning. Amy Bouska addressed the commission on behalf of the Pepperwood Neighborhood Association. She referred to a booklet they developed addressing the Sand Prairie Preservation. She noted the subdivision was orig/nally part of the McCollister Homestead, and is bounded by the Pepperwood Neighborhood to the north and Wetherby Park to the east. North and northeast of this property is a 20-acre parcel, which contains a Native American burial mound, which the McCollister Homestead owns. The proposed development area is a sand prairie and supports a population of the ornate box turtle. The prairie remnant has been a pasture, but has never been tilled. It still contains many native sand prairie grasses and flowers. The neighborhood association believes the area is an environmentally unique habitat and should be subject to protection under the Iowa City Sensitive Areas Ordinance. Bouska indicated they have entered discussions with Southgate Development and the bottom line will be money, as well as what the Department of Natural Resources decides and the Sensitive Areas Ordinance. They would like to create a partnership with Southgate Development and the City to preserve this area, creating a win-win situation. Bouska noted that the area in question is a small section of the sand prairie, which consists of another 73 acres. Trneblood asked if the group would like to see the total area preserved; Bouska indicated they are primarily interested in preservation of the pasture area. Pruess asked when larger developm~nt of the area would take place. Bouska noted the major plan is to get the land subdivided to sell, with the rezoinng process currently underway. She recognized the developer was donating more acres than what is required and a portion of this area will be disturbed by it. She noted depending on the trail type and its activity, it could be just as destructive as building on it. Pmess asked if they were suggesting a limestone trail; Bouska stated they did not have a recommendation at this time. Stroh indicated the trail could be constructed along a portion of the existing utility easement. Bouska noted the area north of the utility easement, where the proposed area lies, is sand prairie. The group would like to see the area preserved, but also recognize the Parks and Recreation Commission February 13, 2002 Page 3 of 5 value of a trail. They would like to see the plan changed in order for the trail to run along the existing utility easement, but recognized this was not something the commission could do. Trueblood noted with any development, the disturbed area would have to be restored. Bouska asked that the site be visited prior to trail construction to carefully select its location in order to try to minimize the impact on the area. Moved by Boyd, seconded by Cilelc, to accept the 1.22 acres of open space as proposed~ with the requireruent that the area be restored and the trail be constructed b¥ the developer to the City's specifications prior to final acceptance. Unaniruous. COMMISSION TIME Cilek indicated she has been questioned by parents of Southeast Junior High students about use of the Scanlon Gymnasium. The only time they have use of the gym is on game days and they would like gym time on practice days. Trueblood noted when the facility was built, a creative funding package was established, which included fundraising efforts. The director and comnmssion chair met with the school administration to determine if they were interested in contributing to the project and working out an agreement for a designated amount of time for use of the facility. The school administration did not want to contribute towards the project. After the facility was constructed, representatives from Southeast Junior High requested use of the facility from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m., Monday through Friday and every Saturday for games from the beginning of the school year to the middle of March, which is prime time. This request was denied, but they were provided with after-school hours on Tuesdays and Thursdays for practices and/or games, as well as selected Saturdays for games. Cilek asked if use of the facility was negotiated each year; Trueblood noted each party submits their request each year. This year Southeast Junior High requested use of the facility every day again. Tmeblood stated the city and school district have a reciprocal agreement that the city and school may use each other's facilities, but each party has priority use of its own facilities. He stated the department no longer uses Southeast Junior High facilities for evening adult programs, and this time has been freed up for school use. Cilek asked if the present allotted time is all that will be available to Southeast Junior High in the future. Trueblood noted the allotted time may be more or less, depending on the use of the facility by youth for which the facility was constructed. One of the key reasons for constmchng the Scanlon Gymnasium was for youth that are not involved in organized scholastic sports programs. Trueblood noted earlier this year staff prepared a report on the use of the facility. At that time, the facility was averaging over 40 youth per day per hour between 3:00 and 6:00 p.m., and the numbers are continuing to increase. Boyd indicated he met with the Friends of Hickory Hill Park and they are pursuing fundraising efforts to purchase a portion of the land proposed for the Hickory Heights subdivision. When this development was proposed, the group felt they were playing defense and being reactive. In the future there will be additional proposed developments in this area and the group feels it would be a good idea to come up with ways to buffer the park, such as plantings inside the border of Hickory Hill Park to help with runoff concerns. This way the developer will know what is expected. Tmeblood asked if the group wanted to do plantings on park property at this time or wait until construction is completed. Boyd stated the group is trying to decide what the best buffers would be in certain areas of the park. When an area is unsuitable for plantings, they would like guidelines established for developers so they are aware of what the community expects. Pruess questioned other Iowa City parks, which may have worse problems than Hickory Hill Park. Gustaveson questioned the need for a buffer for a buffer, noting the area in question is a stormwater management area and not officially parkland. He questioned when it becomes unrealistic to say no development within a certain distance of a park and having a buffer for a buffer. Parks and Recreation Commission February 13, 2002 Page 4 of 5 Boyd stated he was trying to look at the larger picture and how to deal with ail parks. The group is trying to define the problems and how to address them now, being proactive instead of reactive. It will put the commission in the same situation each and every time a development is proposed near the park. Pruess noted the comrmssion is comrmtted to protecting and maintaining the integrity of the park. Gustaveson noted there are different mechanisms in place to help protect sensitive areas, and he felt the Planning Department did a good job with where houses could be and being proactive with this development. Stroh suggested the possibility of hiring a consultant to look at this issue and to evaluate transition, although the focus may be difficult. He noted there are mechanisms in place that work to address the issues. He asked if there was anything in the current report with respect to the trails in Hickory Hill Park dealing with how to handle the park's perimeter; Trueblood indicated there was not. Trueblood stated staff would be willing to meet with the Friends of Hickory Hill to discuss possible plantings. He noted the area in question is a stormwater management area and any plantings would need to be cleared with the Public Works Department. Westefeld asked what the group would like the park's perimeter to look like. Boyd stated they noted the commission had passed a motion indicating it was troubled with the development, but didn't really say what troubled it. He would like the commission to also be proactive, but didn't know if the answer in this case is buffers. Gustaveson noted the problem with Hickory Hill Park when First Avenue went through there was a lot of false information. The area in question is not Hickory Hill Park, but is a stormwater detention area that has been allowed to be used as a park. Ostrognai asked if Mike Stineman could be hired to evaluate the issue; Trueblood stated the contract could possibly be extended. He noted plans to have a consultant on board this spring to complete a citywide park and recreation master plan. Cilek asked if the Friends of Hickory Hill Park suggested plantings along Hickory Hill's Park perimeter. Boyd indicated he suggested that they be proactive and work on possible plantings. The group was wanting to restrict any disturbance within 100 feet of the park. He stated he encouraged them to think about what could be done inside the park to help protect it. Trueblood asked that the group contact him to set up a time to discuss the matter further. DIRECTOR'S REPORT Tmeblood reported on the following: Iowa City Boys Baseball. The City received a "Baseball Field of the Year" award for diamond #2, which was turned into a tournament diamond. Joe Wagner and his helpers deserve much of the credit, along with Iowa City Boys Baseball. Two major tournaments have been held here and many positive comments have been received. Johnson County Heritage Trust. This item was removed from the agenda at the request of Johnson County Heritage Trust. Some matters needed to be addressed yet and they felt it was too early to address the commission with respect to potential land acquisitions. Highway 6 Trail Project. Good bids were received and the project will begin this spring. South Sycamore Drainage Project. Phase I has been completed, and a consultant has been hired to complete the trail design. Parks and Recreation comrmssion February 13, 2002 Page 5 of 5 ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 6:20 p.m. MINUTES PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION FEBRUARY 7, 2002 FINAL/APPROVED EMMA J. HARVAT HALL MEMBERS PRESENT: Ann Bovbjerg, Dean Shannon, Pam Koppes, Jerry Hansen, Don Anciaux, Benjamin Chair MEMBERS ABSENT: Pam Ehrhardt STAFF PRESENT: Bob Miklo, Shelley McCafferty, Mitch Behr OTHERS PRESENT: Stacy Van Zante, Dianne Kaufman, Larry Schnittjer, Karin McKeone, John Loomis, Linda Fisher, Dave Klockau, Don Hammond, Mike Pugh, Gary Reed, Glenn Siders, Karen Dawes, Richard Rhodes II, Dave Moore, Gary Reed, Gary Fairchild, Bob Downer RECOMMENDATIONS TO COUNCIL: Recommended approval, by a vote of 6-0, REZ01-00028/SUB01-00031, an application submitted by Hickory Heights LLC for a rezoning from Low Density Single-Family, (RS-5) to Sensitive Areas Overlay Low Density Single-Family (OSA-5) and a preliminary plat of Hickory Heights, an 18.2-acre, 20-lot residential subdivision located west of Scott Boulevard near its intersection with Dodge Street. CALL TO ORDER: Chairperson Bovbjerg called the meeting to order at 7:32 pm. PUBLIC DISCUSSION OF ANY ITEM NOT ON THE AGENDA: There was none. ANNOUNCEMENT OF VACANCIES ON CITY BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS: Bovbjerg announced current vacancies on the various Commissions and Boards and the closing dates for submitting an application for a position(s). REZONING ITEMS: REZ01-00028/SUB0'I-00031. Discussion of an application submitted by Hickory Heights LLC for a rezoning from Low Density Single-Family, (RS-5) to Sensitive Areas Overlay Low Density Single-Family (OSA-5) and a preliminary plat of Hickory Heights, an 18.2-acre, 20-lot residential subdivision located west of Scott Boulevard near its intersection with Dodge Street. (45-day limitation period: 2/7/02). Miklo said a revised plat had been received which now showed a construction limit line where construction would occur for the street and individual housing units. Each lot had approximately 12,000 square feet of construction area. Within the construction area, steep and critical slopes could be disturbed. Beyond the construction area, was a protected slope area and buffer area where no development, excavation, removal of existing vegetation, etc. could occur. The visible man-made portion of the railroad bed also coincided with this area. A note had been added to the plat and would be placed in the legal papers for the subdivision and the covenants pertaining to the steep and critical slope areas beyond the identified construction zone. The note specified that there would be no grading activity in that area, and if any of the existing vegetation were removed, it would be replanted with plants appropriate for steep and erodable soils. The plant list, which included wild flowers, prairie plantings and other types of grasses, was provided by Wayne Petersen of the Soil Conservation Service. Miklo said with the addition of the note to the plat and legal papers, and the clear indication of the construction area, the grading and disturbance of steep and critical slopes would be minimized. Protected slopes would also be protected, so Staff felt the plat met the requirements of the Sensitive Areas Ordinance. Staff recommended approval of the application. Miklo said a letter had been received from the State Archeologist regarding the potential railroad bed location. He said the letter indicated that the State was not interested in pursuing the railroad bed as an archeological site but did recommended that it be referred to the City Historic Preservation Commission for possible consideration as a historic land mark. Miklo said regardless of the findings of the City Historic Preservation Commission, the majority of the rail bed was located in a protected area and would not be disturbed by the construction on site. Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes February 7, 2002 Page 2 Public discussion was opened. Stacy Van Zante, 1168 Hotz Avenue, board member of the Friends of Hickory Hill Park. She said that it was Friends understanding that the Commission intended to pass the plat as it now stood. Van Zante said Friends appreciated all the hard work and effort that the Commission, the City and the developer had done to work together to come to this point. She said Friends felt that since the plat still did not meet the Northeast District Plan, it should be denied until it was in compliance with the Plan. She asked for a clarification regarding the next step in the process, was it correct that the item would now go to the City Council and if so, when. Miklo said the item would now go to the City Council for their February 19 meeting. At that meeting, a public hearing would be set for the first Tuesday in March. Because the item was a rezoning, a public hearing would be held and three readings of the ordinance were required at the following Council meetings. Dianne Kaufman, 811 N. Linn Street, asked about the pipe which would carry the storm water runoff from the subdivision driveways and the effects it would have on the creek and the potential for erosion. Bovbjerg said that issue had been previously raised and asked the applicant's engineer to address the question. Larry Schnittier, 1917 S. Gilbert Street, said a stilling structure and basin had been proposed for that location which would reduce the velocity of the flow of water as it exited the pipe. A stilling structure is an energy dissipation structure. Schnittjer said there would be additional work done above what they normally did in an area to minimize potential erosion and to reduce the velocity of the water contained in the pipe. He said when water came down a pipe, particularly with a grade of this type, the water moved at a high velocity. The last structure on the pipe system would be an energy dissipater which would slow the water down and disburse it to a wider space so it did not enter into the park in a large rush as could happen with a storm sewer pipe. Bovbjerg asked what they would use for the basin - boulders and pipe or similar items. Schnittjer said a combination of boulders and a concrete wall structure. The final design had not been completed yet, but it would not be a large facility. Bovbjerg asked if it would be like a pool. Schnittjer said it would not be like a pool but a series of rip-rap and possible a concrete wall with a drainage system underneath it. When the water hit the wall, it would slow down and fall away. He said there were various types of structures that could be used to achieve the intended purpose, but the final design had not been selected yet. Bovbjerg said if it were going to be a pool, it would be/could be dangerous. Schnittjer said it would not be a water feature. Kaufman asked about the water quality. She said the water would be draining off driveways and concrete and would contain a large amount of auto, oil and petroleum products that would wash across park lands and feed into the creek. She asked if there was a way to minimize and to address the impact of the water as it washed across public and other person's properties. Kaufman asked if there was a way to enact a covenant or something that would mitigate the water quality impact and the erosion issue. Schnittjer said at the current time there was not a requirement for water quality control out of storm sewer systems. In the next year or two there would be additional requirements. Behr said the City Engineering Division had looked at the plat and approved it based on the size of the storm water detention area. Bovbjerg talked about prior conversations/presentations in previous meetings regarding excess water leaving the subdivision and its dispersion among various planned outflow methods. Anciaux asked about the routes and percentages of water leaving the project to designated outflow areas. Schnittjer said it was designed so that half would go to the Scott Boulevard drainage system and half to the subdivision's drainage area moving out through Hickory Hill Park. Karin McKeone, 1181 Hotz Avenue, said due to the number of still unanswered questions regarding stormwater and runoff, would it be possible for the Commission to force the applicant to work with Wayne. Peterson to address these issues. Behr said the City Engineer had reviewed the plat and determined that it had met the stormwater management ordinance requirements. Miklo said most of the Soil Conservation Service recommendations to the applicant had been included in the revised plat. John Loomis., 219 Teeters Avenue, asked what type(s) of land disturbance restrictions and restrictions on plantings in the slopes and buffer areas existed? Bovbjerg said a note had been placed on the plat and in Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes February 7, 2002 Page 3 the legal papers regarding this and a list of plantings had also been included. Miklo said the areas shown in yellow were regulated by the Steep and Critical Slope sections of the Sensitive Areas Ordinance. There was a list of acceptable vegetation and a designation of areas not to be graded. The areas shown in white were less than 18% slope so they were not regulated. Loomis asked if erosion occurred, would the City incur the costs of dealing with it? Miklo said the City Engineers felt that there would be no consequences due to drainage flow, and if something did occur, it would probably be a civil case. The City, as an adjacent property owner, did have the right to enforce their property owner rights. Bovbjerg asked if this would be on a complaint basis. Behr said yes. Linda Fisher:, 303 7th Street, Coralville, asked how homeowners wourd know where the restricted areas were. Behr said anyone who purchased a lot was "put on notice" by the plat. The notes were on the plat and the homeowners had to be aware of and comply with those notes. There would not be flags or markings of any type placed on the individual lots. Public discussion was closed. Motion: Shannon made a motion to approve REZ01-00028/SUB01-00031, an application submitted by Hickory Heights LLC for a rezoning from Low Density Single-Family, (RS-5) to Sensitive Areas Overlay Low Density Single-Family (OSA-5) and a preliminary plat of Hickory Heights, an 18.2-acre, 20-lot residential subdivision located west of Scott Boulevard near its intersection with Dodge Street. Anciaux seconded. Shannon said he had visited the site and was glad the developer had added some of the things the Commission had asked them to consider in previous meetings. Shannon said all of his questions had been answered and he was glad a motion had been made to approve the application. Anciaux said the Commission had heard a lot of good information, for both the pros and cons. He said the application could not be denied because it met all the criteria in the Sensitive Areas Ordinance. Chait said he felt comfortable with the process. The property owner, developer, and greater community had been well served by the process. However the possibility for the land to be obtained by the Friends of Hickory Hill Park still existed if they reached an agreement with Gary Watts. Koppes complimented everyone on their involvement in the process and encouraged them to stay involved in the whole process. She said she did not see how the Commission could not approve the application. Hansen said he would have preferred to have seen a more clustered development, but the letter of the law had been followed. He said he hoped the homeowners who would build homes on the site embraced the site because it was a real gem and they would have the very best view in town. Hansen said sometimes the Commission had to do things they did not like to do, but the plat met all the criteria of the law. Bovbjerg said there was a reason why the site was named Hickory Heights. It was in the best interest of the development to keep Hickory Hill Park and the area around it attractive and to maintain the sensitivity of the area. The motion passed on a vote of 6-0. REZ01-00024, discussion of an application from D.J. Hammond & Associates for a rezoning from Interim Development Single Family (ID-RS) and Interim Development Multi-Family (ID-RM) to Planned Development Housing Overlay - 12 (OPDH-12) on 17.64 acres to allow 168 dwellings in 18 buildings located on the east side of Gilbert Street south of Napoleon Lane. (45-day limitation period: 3/8/02). McCafferty presented Staff report. She said the applicant had proposed to develop a 168-unit apartment complex in 17 buildings plus one club house. The applicant's targeted rental population would be students, however, there was no legal mechanism to guarantee that only students would occupy it. Additionally there was no means to guarantee that the management practices proposed by the applicant Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes February 7, 2002 Page 4 would be in place over the long term, or that the property would not be sold at a later date. McCafferty urged the Commission to evaluate the proposed development only on the basis of it being a large apartment complex and not on the merits of it being University student housing only. McCafferty said the development would be a relatively dense concentration of apartments, 168 units on 17.64 acres, which was a density of 9.88 units per acre. 120 units would be four-bedroom, four-bath units; the remaining 48 would be three-bedroom, three-bath units for a total of 624 bedrooms with 624 bathrooms. The units would be a mix of townhouse style units, 12-plex and 8-plex apartment buildings with 681 proposed parking spaces including spaces for handicapped persons. McCafferty said Staff felt the proposed multi-family apartment complex did not comply with the goals of the Comprehensive and South District Plans to create well-balanced, diverse neighborhoods. Comprehensive Plan guidelines designed to meet these goals included: · A mix of housing types within new neighborhoods. Single-family housing would be the predominant housing type interspersed with multi-family housing in the form of duplexes, townhouses and small apartment buildings to avoid large concentrations of apartments and/or apartment buildings. · Multi-family uses should be located at the intersection of arterial and collector streets and near public amenities. Lots should be small in order to assure that resulting apartment buildings would be no more than four to six units per building and no more than 24 units located at any one intersection. · Medium density housing should be similar in height and appearance to large, single-family housing. McCafferty said the proposed development contained 7 times more apartment units than the South District and the Comprehensive Plans recommended at that intersection. She said, as proposed, the density of the complex would be equivalent to approximately 17 two-bedroom units per acre, well above the 8 units per acre anticipated for most of the property in the South District Plan. She said Staff had initially advised the applicant that their proposal did not comply with the Comprehensive Plan but attempted to work towards a revised plan that would comply. After reviewing several revisions to the applicant's draft plans, staff concluded that it would not be possible to design a project which met their needs and at the same time complied with the Comprehensive Plan. In that part of the City, South Gilbert Street is a two lane chip-seal surface with no curb, gutter or shoulder, designed to meet rural traffic needs. Prior to the construction of the proposed development, South Gilbert Street would need to be improved to meet City standards. There are no designated funds in the City's capital improvements budget for improvements to the street so the applicant, developer of Napoleon Heights (Southgate Development) and the City would need to reach an agreement to rebuild this portion of Gilbert Street. The closest public transit stop is more than % of a mile north, City Transit does not project changing their routes to provide coverage to this area should the complex be built. If this is to be approved staff recommends that the applicant would be required to provide a regular shuttle service to the campus and downtown area until such time that the public transit service is available. McCafferty said the Neighborhood Open Space Ordinance required the dedication of 1.14 acres of open space or fees in lieu of open space. The applicant had proposed to dedicate approximately 1.22 acres. The Parks and Recreation Commission will review this proposal at the 2/13/02 meeting and provide a recommendation to the P&Z Commission. A sand ridge with ornate box turtles, a protected species, is located on the adjoining property to the proposed complex. Hydric soils are located in the southwest corner of the property. Special construction techniques may be necessary for foundations and roadways to be constructed in these areas. McCafferty said Staff had worked with the applicant to find a design or mix of housing types that would more closely adhere to the Comprehensive Plan and had reviewed several revisions to draft plans. Staff had concluded that in order to accommodate the proposed apartment complex, an amendment to the Comprehensive Plan to allow large concentrations of multi-family housing citywide would be required. Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes February 7, 2002 Page 5 The South District Plan Future Land Use Plan would also need to be revised to show primarily apartments and some townhouses at the location of the proposed complex. McCafferty said Staff had two primary reasons why they did not recommend this rezoning. 1) Density: The proposed development did not comply with the goals and guidelines of the Comprehensive Plan and the South District Plan. An amendment/revision to both Plans would be required which would have City- wide effects on policies regarding large complexes. 2) Traffic and Street Infrastructure: South Gilbert Street infrastructure is currently inadequate to handle this development. The City does not have designated funding allotted for this project nor plans to improve South Gilbert Street in the near future. McCafferty said Staff recommended REZ01-00024 be deferred until the next meeting. Chair asked for a clarification on the overhead map where the proposed east-west arterial street would be in relation to the apartment complex. He said that any development in this area will require the improvement of South Gilbert Street. McCafferty said before an upzoning could occur, South Gilbert Street would need to be improved, which was not listed in the Plan or City budget. When the apartment complex was occupied, it would result in a 'sudden' surge or influx of traffic on South Gilbert Street as opposed to a slower infiltration of traffic as would occur with single-family housing units being built. Hansen said at the time the South District meetings had taken place, there was no discussion about improvements to or traffic flows on South Gilbert Street. The idea was so far in the future, it was not even discussed. He asked if this development was driving the creation of and actions on the east-west arterial street. Mlklo said it was not. The proposed apartment complex (issue) and other applications were independent from plans for the arterial street. Hansen said downtown Iowa City currently had an increasing number of large apartment complexes. Hansen said he and many other people and downtown business owners, preferred to see the students and large apartment complexes located in the perimeter of the City and the students bussed in. Anciaux asked what would be the procedure(s) to amend the Plans. Miklo said setting a date for a public hearing to amend the language of the Comprehensive Plan regarding apartment complexes, setting a date for a public hearing to amend the South District Plan. He said those hearings can be held on February 21 and then the Commission could make a recommendation to the City Council to amend the plan or not to amend the plan. Bovbjerg asked about the transfer of density along the east side of the property. Was it possible to permit this based on that open space or to obligate another developer in the future? Behr said that as part of a Conditional Zoning Agreement (CZA) on the larger property that could be considered. Miklo said that in a CZA the City and applicant and property owner could agree that housing units that otherwise might be expected to be built on the sandy soils, could be built on adjacent property in exchange for leaving the sandy area as open space. Chair said dialogue should be initiated between the Commission, the applicant and citizens. From Staff's presentation, what he was hearing was why the proposed complex could not happen instead of how we could make it happen. Chair said if the City or the Commission did not want large apartment complexes to be built, they should make it known now, upfront, to everyone and not waste the developer's time and money or the Commission's time and efforts. Hansen said he felt it was worth discussing but was concerned about the City-wide ramifications to changing the Comprehensive Plan policies regarding large apartment complexes. Bovbjerg said the Commission may hold a public hearing on the amendments and then decide if changes were in the best interest of this neighborhood and the City as a whole. Public discussion was opened. Don Hammond, President of D.J. Hammond and Associates, Inc. They had been in business for 20 years. The company had experience in building apartment complexes. His company had 32 sites in 20 different states. Designing and building apartment complexes targeted toward a student population was a new venture for them. Hammond narrated a PowerPoint presentation showing exterior and interior photos Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes February 7,2002 Page 6 of student apartment complexes that they had built nation wide. All complexes designed for students included apartment buildings; a club house with work out area, lounge/social area and computer lab; swimming pool; outside grills and picnic tables; outside basketball hoops and sand area for volleyball; public transit stops; parking spaces; landscaping; and on-site supervision/security of buildings and premises. Hammond said in student apartment complexes their policy required that the parents sign the lease. Past practice had shown that little damage occurred to the buildings or the furniture provided by Hammond and Associates, Inc. when the parents were liable for damages. Leases were signed on a 12- month basis. Policy also stipulated only one person per bedroom, and their on site managers utilized ongoing measures to ensure that density remained at only one person per bedroom. Hammond said 'management' was frequently in and out of the apartments to be aware of occupants and the environment of the units and buildings. He said his company had entered into many extensive agreements with various cities to ensure that the densities of the apartments were maintained on a one-to-one basis. He was most willing to work with the City to reach an agreement here too. Hammond said if Hammond and Associates, Inc. were held to the current criteria in the Comprehensive and South District Plans, they would not be able to build here because the Plans were incompatible with their designs. He said they did not wish to scale back or downsize their proposed project. Hammond said Iowa City had a growing student population and an aging housing market. Students were moving into traditionally non-rental, owner occupied neighborhoods. His company had found that complexes built for students attracted the students to their site and kept them there. They preferred to build on the periphery of cities and keep the students within the complexes. His company had entered into agreements and covenants with cities that remained in existence even after his company had left the site. Hammond said if the City did not want large apartment complexes built, let him know upfront and they would not expend their time and efforts here, where they were not wanted. Chair asked Hammond, in the past, when they had looked for and negotiated the purchase of properties, what percentage of the time had they been unsuccessful in their negotiations? Hammond said some of the negotiations had been very long and difficult processes, but they had only not been able to successfully negotiate two times. Hansen asked Hammond to discuss why they sell some of their properties. Hammond said they had sold $1.5 billion in sales in the core 45 years of existence. None of the sales had been student housing complexes. He said Hammond and Associated, Inc. built conventional complexes, leased them, shored them up and sold them. Student housing and affordable housing had never been a part of those sales. Hansen asked at what occupancy would they break even. Hammond said about 70% occupancy. He said they had had one venture which almost did not make a go of it, but after two years, it had been at break even occupancy. Hammond said the student properties were always at 100% occupancy. He did not foresee a problem with the Iowa City market. Mike Puqh, 705 Grant Street, attorney for the applicant, said an amendment to the Comprehensive Plan was not necessary. The guidelines of diversity of housing in the Comprehensive and South District Plans were only general principles to consider, they were not strict letter of the law requirements. Pugh said two compelling reasons to consider amending the Comprehensive Plan were 1) The South District Plan did not contemplate a major east-west arterial street going through this location. That would be a change of circumstances that changed how the City should consider how the land should be used. Did plans adopted in 1996 meet the current needs of the area? 2) If a development like this could not happen at the intersection of two major arterials and in a location like this, one would have to ask where could it happen. Was it City policy to not permit any large (in size not density) apartment complexes. By all standards this was a Iow density proposal. The Plan did not address the concerns of the community with a population base of 30,000 students. Pugh said if one read through all the district plans, at no place in the plans did it address accommodating the University of Iowa student housing. He said college students would not want to live in a four-plex unit located in the South District at the intersection of two collector streets. He said student housing should be located where there is sufficient parking. The economics of smaller apartments would prohibit having any amenities so they would choose to live closer to town. Pugh said one of the over-riding themes and goals of both the downtown planning district and the central planning district was to protect the integrity of older historic districts adjacent to downtown and the UI campus. The proposed development was an alternate site away from downtown. Pugh said he felt there Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes February 7, 2002 Page 7 was a way to amend the Comprehensive Plan that was site specific. A reference could be made in the Comprehensive Plan to provide for a larger scale multi-family district, if adopted within the specific district plans of the area where it was to be located. Each district plan was very specific to its area. Hansen asked if the Commission voted to amend the South District Plan as suggested by Pugh, would the entire South District Plan be opened up to permit large apadment complexes. Pugh said each district had a land use map, this complex could be done in the South District Plan specifically for this intersection only. Bovbjerg asked if this were spot zoning or specificity. Chair suggested the setting of standards for each site. Miklo said it would not be spot zoning if it was based on a comprehensive land use map. He said in addition to amending the land use map the City would need to amend the stated policy of the plan to discourage large apartment complexes in new neighborhoods on the edge of town. The Commission could put in criteria, but criteria exclusively for student housing could not be enforced through zoning. Behr said if a district plan were amended, it would apply to an entire district and to the properties within the district that met the criteria or guidelines established in the plan. Hansen asked how limited in scope were they with criteria. Behr said the Comprehensive Plan could not be amended to admit this site and only this particular site. The bigger policy question was did the Commission want to amend the Comprehensive Plan to allow large apartment complexes. As they dealt with the larger policy, they could develop the criteria and discussions would occur as to if they were getting too specific. Miklo said the land use map would also have to be amended. Miklo addressed an earlier comment which said the Comprehensive Plan did not discuss student housing or identify locations. He said it did not do so specifically, but it did provide for large areas of high density housing in the downtown area, specifically south of Burlington Street. The City had a plan in place to encourage redevelopment of the area with high density housing because it had easy access to downtown, the campus and to public transit so that it would not necessarily require additional parking. Pugh said the Downtown Planning District Plan recognized that there was an ongoing tension between merchants, business owners, and students. Students and student housing took away parking spaces from clients who would go there to shop. Chait said what they were discussing was an enabling process. He felt the Commission needed to address the philosophy of "Do we want this?" If the Commission wanted to encourage large apartment complexes such as this one, they could recommend that the City Council amend the Comprehensive Plan. Dave Klockau., 1031 Briar Drive, member of a group of south side residents called Concerned Citizens for Sand Prairie Preservation. Klockau said he was not anti-development, but pro-smart development and development which balanced things. He said one of his first concerns as a resident of this area was that the area was surrounded by high density housing. Klockau said he put in a lot of time in 1997, as did many citizens, to help craft the South Side Plan. The plan identified this particular area, as an area that would allow multi-family housing, but not at the density that was being proposed. He said there had been dialogue with the developer and the sub-developer to try to make this project work. KIockau said according to the South District Plan, this particular project was too dense and would also affect the quality of life of the residents living in the area for a long time. It would put a strain on the infrastructure of Gilbert Street with 600 cars traveling to and from campus everyday. Klockau said when he traveled to work, on a daily basis he saw maybe 5 or 6 college students waiting for busses at apartment complexes on his route, but there were no cars in the apartment's parking lots. This indicates that many students drive to campus rather than wait for a bus. Klockau said the proposed complex would cut into an area known as a sand prairie or dry prairie. It was a very long large area that ran from the crest of the hill overlooking Sand Road east to the center of Wetherby Park. Klockau said he did not have a problem with a developer putting in the right kind of development in this area, but it needed to be done with a balancing act. There was a known endangered species in the area and under Iowa Code it had to be protected by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. Klockau said all he was asking for was some sensible planning and some balance, not to see the quality of life go down hill. Chait asked Klockau what he meant when he said, "making it work." Klockau said they needed to see some give and take here. He had sat in on some of the Commission's work sessions and had heard the dialogue. Everyone seemed to mean well and wanted to do the right thing. Klockau said it was an easy thing to say, but to make it happen was another thing. There were a lot of opposing forces present. Chair asked Klockau for further clarification of his statement, "make it work." Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes February 7, 2002 Page 8 Chair repeated Hammond's statement that his company designed, constructed, managed and maintained large scale projects. This would be a very large apartment complex, with high density and numbers. Klockau said he had heard Hammond state that his company did not want to scale back their project. He was looking at the big picture, not just this development. Klockau said he was looking at the whole 147 acres and a broader range of making it work. He did not feel this apartment development met the Plan nor was it a good idea. Karen Dawes, 1055 Briar Drive, member of Concerned Citizens for Sand Prairie Preservation. She said she had many of the same comments as made by Klockau, but due to the lateness of the hour, would not repeat them. Dawes said the proposed rezoning of the area for the proposed apartment complex did cut into the sand dune area by a fair number of acres. She said the issue had to be properly resolved, which could take time, before the grading and cutting into the hillside were considered. Dawes said she commended the City Staff for following most of the recommendations of the South District Plan, which was still a very good plan, had the input of residents who lived there at that time and some who still lived there. Dawes said she was pleased to see the intent of the overall plan being appreciated. Dawes said the open space, designated as green space on the Plan was not an arbitrary designation, there was a unique land feature there that should be preserved. The South District Plan should be followed on that issue. Since it did not seem possible from the developer's point of view that they could scale back their project, Dawes said she would recommend that the project not be done. Richard Rhodes II, 2014 Rochester Avenue, said he wanted to reiterate that the bottom of the slope where there were known prairie remnants, prairie plants and ornate box tudles would be impinged upon by the apartments and parking lots. Additionally, the pasture (significantly impinged upon by the proposed development) was meant to be an open space on the Comprehensive Plan. Rhodes asked Staff to point out on the overhead map where the sewer and the McCollister fence lines were located. He said, on Page 3, Appendix A of the South District Plan in the Comprehensive Plan, it said the McCollister property showed indications of ornate box turtles. Anyone who purchased the property had to have known since December of 1997 that there would be environmental problems with the development of the property. Rhodes said he was also puzzled why Staff and the Commission were not considering the larger context, not just this piece or the commercial zoning piece or the arterial piece. The process seemed to be very piece meal. Rhodes said the whole tract should be considered as unit for purposes of planning. Dave Moor~, 425 Davenport Street, said he had a concern about the location of the proposed complex. Once development began south of ~owa City on Sand Road, it would just keep going. Moore said, as a community, as some point they had a choice to make - did they want every place to be as fully developed as it could. Moore said the original settler, John Gilbert, and many original Native Americans had their camps in the wooded area next to the proposed development. Moore said in the summer the baseball diamonds in the area were full of kids and families and it was a great recreational area. With the proposed student apartment complex, the population mix would become one of 600+ college students, the quarry, the Iowa River and tubing with families 'mixed in'. This would be something for the City to consider. He said heading south (on Sand Road), migrating birds could be seen in the quarry lake area and surrounding trees. He had seen 50 bald eagles in that area three weeks ago. After the small residential area, golf course and orchard area, all that could be seen was "good old rural Iowa" all the way to Hills, which Moore felt was a beautiful, special sight. Moore said he did not think that he was the only one in the community who thought it was nice to get out of town without getting on an interstate or driving past strip malls and fast food businesses. Moore said the area was unique, nothing like it could be seen to the east, west or north of the area. It would do more good for the community in the long haul to leave the area as it was so that in 10 or 20 years it could be expanded for recreational or preservation uses or maintained as rural Iowa. Moore said he believed that many people had come to and still came to Johnson County because they knew it was a place where families still had access to simple pleasures. Moore said to him the 300 homes with 600+ students in luxury student apartments, all the traffic and commercial complexes, this was not the right place for it. He hoped the City would tread lightly and keep in mind what they would be missing in the future if they went down that road. Gar,/ Reed, 11021 Aurora Avenue, Urbandale, IA, said he was an engineer for the applicant. They had represented Hammond and Associated, Inc. on their Ames and Cedar Falls projects. With regard to density, Ames was 14.4 units/acre, Cedar Falls was 12.0 units/acre and Iowa City would be 9.8 units/acre. Reed said they had already shown why this project was suitable for the site and now he would show why the site was suitable for this development. Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes February 7,2002 Page 9 Infrastructure: Sanitary sewer service would be provided by the City with a 96" gravity line that ran right through the property itself. Water would be provided by the City, a 12" main was located on the frontage of Gilbert Street. Storm water would be provided for by a regional detention facility south of the site. Gas and electric would be provided by Mid American Energy Company. All above listed items had adequate capacity and they had letters of utility serviceability from all the above agencies which had been provided to the Commissioners. Traffic: The proposed site was 17.6 acres in size. Based on the proposed 168 units and 6.11 trips/day (rate was taken from the Institute of Engineers Transportation manual) for this type of development, he estimated 1026 trips/day would be generated from this complex. The South District Plan proposed small lot single-family use for the land, which equated to 106 single-family lots on the same acreage. At a rate of 10.03 trips/day (rate from the Institute of Engineers Transportation manual), developed per the South District Plan, would generate 1060 trips per day. The figures showed that essentially traffic generated by the proposed complex would be no different than if it developed per the South District Plan. Reed said the location was on the fringe of the District and was located near arterials, so traffic generated from the site would most likely use Gilbert Street as a north arterial and the future east-west arterial. Miklo said the City Transportation Planner had looked at the traffic issues and come up with somewhat different conclusions that Staff would present at the next meeting. Hansen asked if the calculated trips took into account bussing the student's downtown. Reed said the calculated trips assumed no transit and no bicycle traffic. He said they proposed having a shuttle service if Transit would not service a stop at their complex. A bike path was proposed to come through the area, so it was hoped that students would utilize their bicycles instead of their cars. Hansen asked what was the average shuttle use at their other facilities similar to this one. Gary Fairchild, representing the applicant, said shuttles ran for as little as 10-15% of a site (as close as 1.5 blocks) up to 80%-90%. Their marketing department had projected that this location could expect 60%-80% shuttle bus ridership. Before they even moved in the number one question from a student was "Where do I park" and "How do I get to school". Fairchild said even with a shuttle service, they could not make a property work without some type of a transit service. Hansen asked how often would the service run, at what intervals and would there be some type of scheduling. Fairchild said he projected it would be their bus if the mass transit system didn't move closer and they could make a round every 25 minutes on a continuing basis. Koppes said in the OPDH, one of the general standards was that a development would not overburden existing streets and utilities. She said she did not have an issue with the utilities, but did have an issue with the current streets in the area. At 1026 trips per day, on a two-lane street, it would be problematic. Reed said they were engaged in a traffic study right now to analyze that, he preferred not to speculate without a hard and fast study on the volume of Gilbert Street and being able to accommodate it. It was hoped the study would be done by next week so the Commissioners could review it before the next meeting. Shannon said the City currently did not have any funds or plans to renovate South Gilbert Street. Could Hammond and Associates, Inc. foresee getting involved with or helping the City with the street? Glenn Siders said he would address that issue. Chair asked the range of project sizes they had from small to largest and what was the average, to get a sense of the scale needed to do what they did. Hammond said a lot was dictated by the price of the land. The smallest project was 120 units, the largest was nearly 300 units located in College Station. The average would be 165-180 units. Larry Schnittier, said the project, as proposed, was .25 mile south from any existing single family homes. The north border line was exactly .25 mile from Pepperwood Additions. This project was 50 feet below Pepperwood Addition. Pepperwood Addition was located on a plateau, to see this property they would have to come across the sand dune and drop down 50 feet lower to the river corridor for the terrain level of this project. Schnittjer said, standing in their own yard, it was highly unlikely anyone in Pepperwood Addition would see this project. The Iowa River Corridor bike trail currently terminated at Napoleon Park. There was also an 8 foot sidewalk on the west side of Gilbert Street from Highway 6 to the public works Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes February 7, 2002 Page 10 site so there would be adequate pedestrian and/or bicycle access to the development. The only neighbor to the project would be the public works site. An Indian burial ground and open space would be located to the east, a historic landmark or the old Showers House to the north and the sand pits which might be reclaimed were to the south so there would be no actual residential property in the immediate vicinity of the proposed development. The proposed project was very well isolated from adjacent developments. Schnittjer said he too questioned the necessity of an amendment to the Comprehensive Plan when the OPDH allowed the possibility of aggregating units into a location and changing the architectural style. Everything they were attempting to do was allowable by an OPDH. Schnittjer requested additional definition clarification as to why they could not do what they were proposing. Miklo said one of the issues was the Comprehensive Plan for the South District showed a density of 2-8 dwelling units in the form of single family or single family duplex. The land use plan was at issue. The other issue was the over riding policy issue of discouraging mega complexes, which Staff had previously spoken of. Glenn Siders, PO Box 1907, property owner. Siders said they were aware that ornate box turtles and prairie plantings existed on the site, but no one knew to what extent they existed. He said they were going to find out. Qualified people would be engaged to investigate both accusations. Currently dialogue had been established with the DNR who was the governing body for the box turtle, they would investigate what prairie plants were there and their significance and to what extent the prairie existed. Siders said he did not understand some of the statements made in the Staff report. For example, Staff had said this particular project was 7 times denser than the South District Plan allowed. Using that analogy on a 17.5 acre lot, the density would be in the area of 2 dwelling units per acre instead of 8 or 9. The density on this site was 9.88 units per acre, an OPDH-12 was the requested zoning which was not in violation of any density. When something was zoned OPDH, it was in compliance with the density. Siders said using the analogy, because there were 4 bedrooms it would be the equivalent of 314 units was not a fair statement. If the property were rezoned RS-8 and single-family dwellings were built, 105 dwellings would be allowed. If the units had 4 bedrooms each, it would be the equivalent of 210 units. The density was less than 10 which was well within the bounds of an OPDH-12 zone. Siders said that may even possibly be within the bounds of an OPDH-8 zone, where up to 10 units per acre were allowed. If the area were to be zoned single-family density, it would probably be zoned RS-8. Siders said they were right in the ball park with densities. Siders said they had been in dialogue with the Staff regarding improvements to Gilbert Street. They had told Staff if improvements were needed, they would be made. Staff's position was that improvements were not in the 5-year capital improvement plan, which was true. Staff had said if improvements were made, it would be 100% the responsibility of the developer. Siders said that would not happen on an ordinary assessment. They would be responsible for 50% of the improvements and the City, as owner of the street, would be responsible for the other 50%. It would be a political decision. He said Southgate Development had committed to the improvements, they had told Staff if the improvements were necessary, they would be made. Siders said he did not know what triggered the improvements and it was probably not known yet exactly what improvements were needed. A traffic study was being done and a dialogue with Jeff Davidson had been established. It might boil down to a question that with the traffic count a 4-lane road was not immediately necessary, but the funds should be acquired to do so. Siders said he also had the same questions regarding amendments to the Comprehensive Plan. He didn't feel the Plan needed to be amended for two reasons. A planned area process was part of the OPDH Plan. An OPDH plan was a give and take process in which things such as traffic, design standards, density, parking and green space were studied. Secondly, if it was in violation of the OPDH plan, Siders knew of areas where three 18-unit apartment buildings were located in an OPDH-8 zone. If open space was at issue, they had 20 acres of open space to the north of their project that realistically could not ever be developed because of the slopes on the land. Siders said the end goal was a well-balanced neighborhood. It was his opinion if a density of less than 10 dwelling units per acre existed, it would be the same density as if it were zoned RS-8. A controlled complex had been proposed. The South District Plan had changed a lot since its conception. They had been told by the City Manager that someday the public works area would all be across the street. Another change being considered was going from a collector street status to an arterial street status. It was currently being suggested to realign the arterial street to cross their property which changed the potential land use of their land. It would be a challenge to build and market single family dwelling units on either side of the collector street and it would not be appropriate use of the land. If the land use were to remain Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes February 7, 2002 Page 11 residential, it would need to be something of some density and the complex was a Iow to medium density proposal. Hansen said he had the larger question of was it their job to settle the clear delineation of whether the Comprehensive Plan needed to be changed or the Comprehensive Plan did not need to be changed. Bovbjerg said setting and having public hearings would help them to decide if change was needed, and if so, where and hew. Hansen said if the Commission decided no change was necessary but the City said it was, what would happen. Bovbjerg said they would meet and wait to see what happened down the road. Miklo said in Staff's opinion, two Comprehensive Plan amendments were necessary to accomplish the proposed project. There was nothing standing in the Commission's way of recommending a change to the Comprehensive Plan to the Council and the Council could decide in the end. Iowa land use legislation and practice indicate that zoning should be in compliance with the Comprehensive Plan. If a City approved a rezoning that was net in compliance with the Plan, it opened up the City te litigation from neighbors, neighboring property owners or neighborhood associations to challenge the zoning. That was why Staff always advised that if a zone were going to be changed that was not in compliance with the Plan or there was any doubt, the Comprehensive Plan should be changed. This is beneficial to the property owner, as it also prevented a potential lawsuit and dragging out the process. Chait asked Siders what was the time frame that he anticipated in order to be able to address the larger questions and issues regarding the turtles and prairie plants. Siders said he did not know how long it would take or what all was involved in some of the investigations. They would hire persons knowledgeable in the respective areas. They did have a concern as to what could be done in the mean time. As far as the plat, Siders said he hoped to proceed with the plat which would at least enable them to transfer the title of the property if they wanted to. The only improvements that would be done would be the improvements to this site and to the arterial street, once the alignment was decided. A grading plan had been designed which limited the grading around that street. Early conversations with the DNR had indicated that the potential to do that excavation looked promising, but it was not definite. Southgate currently was awaiting a response from the DNR. They were several months away from doing any subdivision work. Chair said given all the information that the Commission was seeing, it was problematic to consider just this piece, and not in the bigger context. If the existence of box turtles was determined by the DNR after the City had approved something which then could not be done, the developer would need to go back before the Commission with a revised plan. Siders said if he were the owner of the property in question, he would not spend any money on improvements until a determination had been made. Behr said the State regulated the turtles. If the City approved something that could not be done later because of State regulations, the developer would need to reappear before the Commission. Miklo said he wished to make a clarification with respect to Staff's position in terms of construction of Gilbert street adjacent to this property. On page 4 of the Staff report, Staff stated that Gilbert Street had to be improved for a development of this density and that there were options. The developer could build it or the City could participate but it would require the City Council to budget funding. Right now that would be difficult given the budget situation. Staff had not ruled that option out, however it would be a political decision that the Council would need to make. Staff's main concern was that a project of this density not be developed on that rural cross section because it would not be a safe situation. Another clarification was about the OPDH zoning and what it allowed. OPDH zoning did allow clustering and variations of the underlying zoning district. In this case there was no underlying zoning district yet. The OPDH did not allow variation from the Comprehensive Plan. There had been other OPDHs where the Comprehensive Plan had been amended to allow the OPDH that was being proposed, Mormon Trek Village would be an example where the density ef the project was reduced to comply with the Comprehensive Plan. Chait asked why the City was doing a traffic study when they already knew they didn't want the development to occur until street improvements had been made. Miklo said the applicant was doing the traffic study. Siders said Hammond and Associates, Inc. were doing the traffic study on their own and he assumed that they would share the information when the study had been completed. Reed asked Staff for a clarification - did they feel it was a volume or a safety issue on Gilbert Street. Miklo said it was both. Public discussion was closed. Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes February 7, 2002 Page 12 Motion: A motion was made by Chait to defer REZ01-0002~:, an application from D.J. Hammond & Associates for a rezoning from Interim Development Single Family (ID-RS) and Interim Development Multi-Family (ID-RM) to Planned Development Housing Overlay - 12 (OPDH-12) on 17.64 acres to allow 168 dwellings in 18 buildings located on the east side of Gilbert Street south of Napoleon Lane until the February 21 meeting. Shannon seconded the motion. Chair said, based on Monday evening's discussion, he would like to see more involvement with the process on the part of the Commission and Staff, and more interaction/dialogue about this type of process. When looking at the bigger picture, this was a fairly big deal. Chair said he felt their hands were somewhat tied when they only had two meetings to dispatch an issue. There seemed to be a lot more background and conversations with Staff. There would be some benefit to having more background context available to the Commission regarding issues that appeared before them that were significant issues. Many of the Southgate initiatives were fairly significant. Bovbjerg said the Commission had had large parcels come before them in past years with large issues at stake. The Commission and the City had taken months to 1.5 years to reach a decision. It was a benefit to everyone to get all the background, the questions out, to get redrawings and to work it all out because no one wanted a bad project. Chair said he was looking for a sense of the Commission. He was looking for a solution where they could become more involved in the process earlier and be more up to speed and pro-active. Hansen said he agreed with Chair. Chair said with respect to the points made by Siders and Pugh about the South District Plan, it was the first district that had been done in the current Comprehensive Plan. Given the kinds of changes that had happened, the requests that were being made and the market as is seemed to be developing, the Commission needed to stad re-looking at the South District again. Hansen said he would like to know more about the implications and impact to the other parts of town if the District and the Comprehensive Plans were amended. Miklo said there was no mandated time for revisiting the Plan, in the past they had tried to do it roughly every five years. The 1997 Comprehensive Plan was somewhat unique in that it was a general comprehensive plan for the City, then more specific plans had been done for each district of the City. Each district was an update to the Comprehensive Plan. Miklo said the plan could be revisited at any time that the need arose. Shannon said he wanted to speak to the big picture item. Since he had been on the Commission, there had been downzonings to properties near downtown. He had been very much opposed to the downzonings. Shannon said he felt land use should be dictated by what usage was needed. Neighborhood Associations had come (to the meetings, voiced their opinions) so Shannon had lost at the Commission and Council levels. Shannon said what he had heard from the Neighborhood Associations and persons who had packed the Commission meetings was why didn't they build this stuff out of town and not ruin any more neighborhoods. Shannon said he did not agree with them, he felt land use should be whatever was best suited. Now this issue had come up and he was not sure that this was the best use for this land - it contained a lot of pit falls that building a large project such as this could involve. Shannon said he really wanted the Commission to look at this proposal and see if they could make it work. Apparently it was what the citizens of Iowa City had said they wanted in the past so the Commission owed it to the citizens to look at the proposal to see if it was what was needed for student housing and if it was, the Commission should go with it. Anciaux asked at what point in the process did someone look to see if police and fire services could adequately be provided. Miklo said that should always be their consideration when looking at new development. It had always been the City's policy that if growth occurred in Iowa City, the services would be provided. If questions regarding the availability of adequate police and fire protection services existed, those should be considered now when a large change was being proposed. Miklo said they could ask the fire marshal and police chief for their input. Chait asked where the $300,000 in property taxes went. Bovbjerg said the taxes would go into the general fund, but there was no guarantee that they would provide for additional police or fire personnel. Anciaux asked if the area was serviceable in its current location. The motion passed on a vote of 6-0. Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes February 7, 2002 Page 13 COMPREHENSIVE PLAN ITEMS: Setting a public hearing for February 21 on amendments to the Comprehensive Plan to provide for the location of large apartment complexes and to amend the South District Plan land use map to depict multi- family development on the east side of South Gilbert Street east and south of Napoleon Park. Motion: Anciaux made a motion to set the public hearing as listed above. Hansen seconded the motion. The motion passed on a vote of 6-0. Setting a public hearing for February 21 on amendments to the Comprehensive Plan to change the South District land use map to add a commercial area on the east side of South Gilbed Street east and south of Napoleon Park. Motion: Chait made a motion to set the public hearing as listed above. Koppes seconded the motion. The motion passed on a vote of 6-0. Setting a public hearing for February 21 on amendments to the Comprehensive Plan, South District Plan, to depict the location of an east/west arterial street between Gilbert Street and Sycamore Street. Motion: Chait made a motion to set the public hearing as listed above. Koppes seconded the motion. The motion passed on a vote of 6-0. DEVELOPMENT ITEM: SUB01-00023. Discussion of a preliminary plat of Apex Commercial Park, a resubdivision of Lot 2, Donohoe Fifth Subdivision, a 6.55-acre, 9-lot commercial subdivision located south of Highway 1 West at Landon Avenue S.W. (45-day limitation period: Waived). Miklo said the applicant had agreed at Staff's request to defer the item to the 2/21/02 meeting. Staff would be meeting with the applicant to try to come to some type of compromise, if possible. Public discussion was opened. Pugh said he was council for Apex Commercial Development. They had deferred this for several months and had proposed covenants and restrictions which had been given to the City. They had met with the City once and planned to meet with the City and County officials next week in order to be back on the agenda for the 2/21/02 meeting. Public discussion was closed. Motion: Chair made a motion to defer SUB01-00023, a preliminary plat of Apex Commercial Park, a resubdivision of Lot 2, Donohoe Fifth Subdivision, a 6.55-acre, 9-lot commercial subdivision located south of Highway I West at Landon Avenue S.W. until the 2/21/02 meeting. Anciaux seconded the motion. The motion passed on a vote of 6-0. TEXT AMENDMENT: Discussion of amendments to the Neighborhood Commercial, CN-1, zone to broaden the uses allowed and to revise the dimensional requirements and design provisions. Motion: Hansen made a motion to defer this item to the 2/21/02 meeting. Shannon seconded the motion. The motion passed on a vote of 6-0. Discussion of amendments to the Zoning Code, Article 0, Sign Regulations, to permit portable signs in the Central Business Service, CB-2, Central Business Support, CB-5 and Central Business, CB-10, zones. Motion: Hansen made a motion to defer this item to the 2/21/02 meeting. Shannon seconded the motion. The motion passed on a vote of 6-0. Planning and Zoning Commission Minutes February 7, 2002 Page 14 Miklo requested the Commissioners review the proposed text amendments and forward their requests for revisions to him prior to the next meeting. He would forward them to the consultant to hopefully have the revisions ready for the 2/21/02 meeting. OTHER: Discussion of Site Plan for an addition to the Oaknoll Retirement Residence located on the west-side of Benton Court north of Benton Street. Miklo said this was in response to the Conditional Zoning Agreement for this property when it was rezoned from RS-8 to RM-12. Staff found the item to meet the intent and recommended its approval. Public discussion was opened. Robert Downe(, 122 South Linn Street, attorney for Oaknoll Retirement Residence Steve Roe, Chief Financial Officer and Director of Resident Services, Oaknoll Retirement Residence Downer said he had reviewed the item, it was in order and he would be willing to answer any questions the Commission might have with respect to the site plan. There were no questions. Public discussion was closed. Motion: Anciaux made a motion that the concept plan be approved. Chair seconded the motion. The motion passed on a vote of 6-0. CONSIDERATION OF THE JANUARY 21, 2002 MEETING MINUTES: Motion: Koppes made a motion to approve the meeting minutes with corrections and revisions as previously forwarded to Miklo. Hansen seconded the motion. The motion passed on a vote of 6-0. ADJOURNMENT: A motion was made to adjourn the meeting at 10:55 pm. The motion passed on a vote of 6-0. Dean Shannon Secretary Minutes submitted by Candy Barnhill FINAL/APPROVE[ POLICE CITIZENS REVIEW BOARD MINUTES - February 26, 2002 CALL TO ORDER Chair John Stratton called the meeting to order at 7:05 P.M. ATTENDANCE Board members present: Bill Hoeft, Bev Sm[th, John Stratton and John Watson; board members absent: Loren Horton. Legal Counsel: Catherine Pugh {7:20 P.M.), Staff: Kellie Turtle. RECOMMENDATION TO COUNCIL Accept PCRB Report on Complaint #01-05. EXECUTIVE SESSION Motion by Smith and seconded by Hoeft to adjourn into Executive Session based on Section 21.5(1 )(a) of the Code of Iowa to review or discuss records which are required or authorized by state or federal law to be kept confidential or to be kept confidential as a condition for that government body's possession or continued receipt of federal funds,and 22.7(11 ) personal information in confidential personnel records of public bodies including but not limited to cities, boards of supervisors and school districts, and 22-7(5) police officer investigative reports, except where disclosure is authorized elsewhere in the Code; and 22.7(18) Communications not required by law, rule or procedure that are made to a government body or to any of its employees by identified persons outside of government, to the extent that the government body receiving those communications from such persons outside of government could reasonably believe that those persons would be discouraged from making them to that government body if they were available for general public examination. Motion carried, 4/0, Horton absent. Open session adjourned at 7:07 P.M. REGULAR SESSION Returned to open session at 8:00 P.M. Motion by Smith, seconded by Hoeft to accept the Public Report for Complaint #01-05. Motion carried, 4/0, Horton absent. The Board scheduled discussion on the MATS training for the April 9, 2002 meeting. Chair John Stratton informed the Board of a phone call from the Daily Iowan regarding some interest from the U of I Student Senate for student representation on boards and commissions. 1 FINAL/APPROVED The Board directed staff to get an update as to when the next cut of the PCRB video would be ready to view. Smith asked the Board to briefly review the data loss discussion from the previous meeting of February 5, 2002. ADJOURNMENT Motion for adjournment by Hoeft and seconded by Smith. Motion carried, 4/0, Horton absent. Meeting adjourned at 8:16 P.M. 2 POLICE CITIZENS REVIEW BOARD A Board of the City of Iowa City 410 East Washington Street Iowa City IA 52240-1826 (319)356-5041 TO: City Council Complainant Stephen Atkins, City Manager R. J. Winkelhake, Chief of Police Officer(s) involved in complaint FROM: Police Citizens Review Board RE: Investigation of PCRB Complaint #01-05 DATE: February 28, 2002 This is the Report of the Police Citizens Review Board's (the "Board") review of the investigation of Complaint PCRB #01-05 (the "Complaint"). BOARD'S RESPONSIBILITY Under the City Code of the City of Iowa City, Section 8-8-7 B, the Board's job is to review the Police Chief's Report ("Report") of his investigation of a complaint. The City Code requires the Board to apply a "reasonable basis" standard of review to the Report and to "give deference" to the Report "because of the Police Chief's...professional expertise." Section 8-8-7 B.2 While the City Code directs the Board to make "findings of fact," it also requires that the Board recommend that the Police Chief reverse or modify his findings only if those findings are "unsupported by substantial evidence," are "unreasonable, arbitrary or capricious," or are "contrary to a Police Department policy or practice or any Federal, State or local law." Sections 8-8-7B.2(a), (b), and (c). BOARD'S PROCEDURE The Complaint was received at the office of the City Clerk on September 26, 2001. As required by section 8-8-5 of the City Code, the Complaint was referred to the Police Chief for investigation. The Chief's Report was received on December 21, 2001. The Board voted to review the Complaint in accordance with Section 8-8-7B.1(b), interview/meet with complainant and Section 8-8- 7B.l(e), which means performance by Board of its own additional investigation. The Board met on December 27, 2001, January 8, 2002, January 22, 2002, PCRB 01-05 Page I February 5, 2002, and February 26, 2002 to consider the complaint. The Board reviewed case reports, summaries of interviews with the Complainant and a witness, and a transcript of the 911 call. In addition, representatives of the Board interviewed the Complainant, and a witness. A Name-Clearing Hearing was scheduled to be held on February 26, 2002. The officer signed a waiver and the hearing was not held .... FINDINGS OF FACT ~i: .~ .~ ~.~, The Iowa City Police Department received a 911 call from the Complaina_rtt'early~ morning in August 2001. She was excited and nervous, and reported that~ someone was attempting to gain entry to her residence, an upper-floor apartment, by pounding on her door. The Complainant and the other per~ on the premises described the action as "body-slamming" against the door. The Complainant also heard sounds that resembled that of a person vomiting or "dry- heaving", and "growling" sounds. The other person in the residence placed his body against the inside of the door in an attempt to prevent forcible entry, while the Complainant was making the 911 call. After the call was completed, but prior to arrival of police officers, the sounds ceased. Officer A arrived and checked the perimeter of the building on the ground floor and the second floor landing. Officer A then gathered information from the Complainant and the other person in the apartment about the incident, and during this process did not note any apparent damage to the door. Officer A then went downstairs to check with another officer who had arrived at the scene, and who had stopped a suspect near the building. The two officers confirmed that the suspect was the person who had attempted to gain entry to the apartment. Officer A returned to the apartment and informed the Complainant that the other officer was going to give the suspect a ride home because he was intoxicated. There then ensued a conversation between the Complainant and Officer A about the proper disposition of the matter. The Complainant wanted the suspect arrested. Officer A indicated that according to standard operating procedure, one of the methods of dealing with such a case was to take the intoxicated person home. During the conversation, apparently, the matter of crowding at the County Jail came up as a reason for not arresting the intoxicated person. The remainder of the incident involved Officer A and the Complainant disagreeing over the resolution of the matter, the procedures used, and the demeanor of Officer A, Officer A then contacted the other officer ihvolved and told him that the Complainant was being "vindictive" and the intoxicated person was to be arrested and taken to jail. The Complainant disputed the use of the word "vindictive" and felt that she was becoming an accused person, rather than the victim. She objected to the use of the word as unprofessional, unsympathetic, and inconsiderate. Officer A then arrested the intoxicated person, and informed the complainant that the intoxicated person would be taken to jail. PCRB 01-05 Page CONCLUSION This complaint focuses on two issues: (1) Officer A's initial decision not to arrest an intoxicated person after the person had attempted forcibly to enter a residence, was improper; (2) Officer A's use of the word "vindictive" to describe the Complainant's wish that the person be arrested, was inappropriate. Alle,qation '1: Police officers are provided broad discretion whether or not an arrest should be made, and factors to be considered are clearly described in General Order 99-11, Arrests. Officer A's initial decision to remove the intoxicated subject from the scene by transporting him home was consistent with this policy. The Board finds that the Chief's conclusion that Officer A acted in accordance with policy is supported by substantial evidence, and is not unreasonable, arbitrary or capricious. Allegation #1 is NOT SUSTAINED. Alle,qation 2: The Board believes that use of the term "vindictive" by Officer A represented a casual and dismissive demeanor and attitude that the Complainant perceived as demeaning and insensitive. Standard Operating Guideline 01-11, Victim/Witness Assistance, clearly states that "... members of the department shall treat all victims and witnesses with dignity and assist victims in obtaining available services...." and "Regardless of the seriousness, or violation, the victim/witness deserves support and fair treatment." In their interview with representatives of the Board, the Complainant and witness both denied that Officer A apologized for his use of the word "vindictive" or for his demeanor. The Board finds that the Chief's conclusion that use of the word "vindictive" was inappropriate is supported by substantial evidence, and is not unreasonable, arbitrary or capricious. Allegation #2 is SUSTAINED. COMMENTS The Police Citizens Review Board could not find a General Order or Standard Operating Guideline that specifically addresses public intoxication. We recommend that the Chief consider whether such a written policy should be created to provide clearer guidance for officers in the handling and disposition of such incidents. PCRB-.~I-05 Page MINUTES SENIOR CENTER COMMISSION TUESDAY, JANUARY 15, 2001 FINAL/APPROVED MEMBERS PRESENT: Lori Benz, Jay Honohan, Joanne Hora, Allan Monsanto, Charity Rowley, Jim Schintler, Deb Schoenfelder and Carol Thompson MEMBERS ABSENT: None STAFF PRESENT: Michelle Buhman, Linda Kopping, Susan Rogusky and Julie Seal GUESTS: Lee McGovern CALL TO ORDER Honohan called the meeting to order at 3:00. MINUTES Motion: To approve the December minutes as amended, The motion carried on a vote of 8-0. Rowley/Schintler PUBLIC DISCUSSION Lee McGovern reported that he had called members of the Board of Supervisors and requested that the Board continue to fund 20% of the Senior Center's operational budget. SENIOR DINING/ELDER SERVICES INC. - Kopping Kopping reported on recent changes in the dining program. Several old cabinets and desks have been removed, a thorough cleaning has taken place, and there are plans to purchase some new equipment. Two of the four people who occupied office space in the kitchen have been relocated to the Elder Services Inc, suite on the second floor. No other changes are expected at this time. Commissioners expressed support for the Elderly Services, Inc, (ESI) nutrition program and noted that the next order of business is to create a new lease with ESI for the operation of the program. Members of the Executive Committee will work with Senior Center staff, Assistant City Attorney Sue Dulek, and ESI Director Connie Benton-Wolfe to develop a new lease agreement. It is likely that the initial lease will be quite similar to the lease used for the Johnson County Senior Dining Program and that it wilt run until the end of this fiscal year. At that time the lease will be thoroughly reviewed and modified as necessary. It is hoped that a draft of the lease will be available for review at the February Commission meeting. 28E COMMITTEE UPDATE - THOMPSON Thompson reported that there was a good public turnout at the Board of Supervisor's Monday, January 7, 2002, work session focusing on the 28E Agreement related to the operation of the Senior Center. C:\TEMP\january meeting.doc MINUTES 2 SENIOR CENTER COMMISSION TUESDAY, JANUARY 15, 2001 Members of the City/County 28E Committee will review and discuss the most recent draft of the 28E Agreement, prepared by Jay Honohan, at their next meeting. Thompson said she would like to see the County and the City form a partnership with the new agreement. PARKING FACILITY STRATEGIC PLANNING COMMITTEE UPDATE- Honohan Honohan reported asking Joe Fowler to relocate several designated parking spaces that are close to the skywalk entrance. These spaces have been relocated once, but they are still close to the Skywalk entrance. It is hoped that the designated spaces will be moved (for the second time) to another area of the ramp in order to free up parking spaces adjacent to the skyvvalk for Senior Center participants. Discussions continue with representatives from the law firm office located on the third floor of Tower Place about the possibility of changing a section of flooring in front of the West elevator. The uneven surfaced flooring was installed by the firm and, despite the fact that it meets ADA requirements, it is not "eider friendly." The situation remains unresolved. FYO3 BUDGET UPDATE - Kopping Kopping reported that the proposed budget for FY03 was reduced by the City Manager in many areas prior to being sent to the City Council for consideration and approval. Two capital improvement projects related to building safety and security were included in the proposed budget. All other capital requests and staff additions were omitted. The Senior Center Commission budget meeting with the City Council is scheduled for January 29~h, 2002, at 6:30 p.m. Kopping will be out of town for that meeting and asked for volunteers to represent the Commission. Honohan and Rowley volunteered to attend the meeting. Kopping reported that the Center was bequeathed approximately $10,000 from the estate of Ruth Wagner. SENIOR CENTER UPDATE Operations - Kopping After Hour Room Use Kopping reported that at the current time, two community groups use the building on Friday nights and three on Sundays. In addition, the Elder Services, Inc. nutrition program runs on both Saturday and Sunday. All individuals or groups that use the Center on nights and weekends agree to clean up after themselves and leave the room in the same condition in which it was found. At times the individuals or groups are limited in what they can do because they lack the proper cleaning supplies or building access to do such things as remove trash, vacuum up food crumbs, or remove accidental food stains on the carpet. Even when rooms are left in good condition, any additional building use generates an increase in building traffic and bathroom use. 02/25/2002c:\temp\jan uary meeting.doc MINUTES 3 SENIOR CENTER COMMISSION TUESDAY, JANUARY 15, 2001 As a result of the weekend building use, the first thing on Monday mornings the Maintenance Worker III (MWIII) must remove all the salt, sand or dirt from the entry traffic areas, clean and restock the bathrooms on three floors of the building, remove trash, and often vacuum the carpet in the rooms that were used. All of this is in addition to the MW IIl's routine work of unlocking all the interior rooms and stairwells, checking the building for maintenance-related problems, and when necessary, snow removal. In order to have the building ready for public use at 8 a.m. on Monday morning, the MW III now must report to work by 6 a.m. In order to avoid creating an unreasonable workload for the MW III, weekend room rental agreements will not be expanded any further. Current usage will be maintained by making space available for public use only when one of the existing weekend groups stops using the facility. Rowley and Benz will meet with Kopping to look at the situation. Accreditation An announcement that the Senior Center has been accredited by the National Institute of Senior Centers, a subsidiary of the National Council on Aging, appeared in both the Press Citizen and the Gazette. Proqrams - Seal Seal distributed a list of events scheduled for February highlighting programs related to Black History Month. For a complete list of activities in February, see the February Post. Volunteers - Rogusky Rogusky was not present to report on volunteer programs. CITY COUNCIL -Schoenfelder Schoenfelder informed the City Council that the Center has been accredited. BOARD OF SUPERVISORS - Honohan Honohan reported that they discussed the 28E Agreement. Commission Discussion Honohan reported that the Board of Supervisors would like to see all the kitchen equipment stay at the Senior Center and therefore plans to donate all of it to the Center. The final vote on this matter will take place at the next Board Meeting. Thompson will be sending an announcement of the Board's action as well as an inventory of equipment to Kopping after the vote. Honohan expressed sympathy for death of Commissioner William Kelly last month. Kelly's death has created a vacancy on the Commission. Motion to adjourn: Motion passed on a vote of 8-0. Schoenfelder/Monsanto 02/25/2002c:\temp\jan uary meeting.doc