Belgrade City Council

BELGRADE CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES Council Chambers April 6, 2021 ( Tuesday) 7: 00 PM This meeting was open to the public and attended both in-person and via the Zoom video conference platform. Mayor Russell Nelson called the meeting to order. Other Council Members in attendance were: Brad Cooper, Mike Meis Jim Simon, Kristine Menicucci and Ken Smith. Council Members attending via Zoom video were: Jim Doyle. City staff in attendance were: City Manager Ted Barkley, City Clerk Sue Caldwell, Planning Director Jason Karp and Public Works Director Steve Klotz. City Staff in attendance via Zoom video were: Coty Attorney Rick Ramler, Accounting Tech Kris Norby, Finance Director Diane Eagleson and City Engineer Tom Eastwood. Others in attendance were: Krista Baziak, Eric Gilbaugh, Jona Main, Ruth Ann Marchi, Tony Marchi, Tracy Menuez, Ben Nistler, Dan Petty and Wayne Thompson. Others in attendance via Zoom video were: Bret Bartling, Richard Dicks, Jeanine Maines, Mary P, Eric Reinhardt, Judy Doyle and Diana Setterberg. APPROVE MINUTES ACTION: Council Member Menicucci moved to approve meeting minutes for March 15, 2021. Council Member Smith seconded the motion. All voted aye, motion carried unanimously. PUBLIC FORUM Mayor Nelson opened the public forum and called for public comment. Dan Petty, residing on Oakwood in Belgrade, stated that he was unable to participate or comment at a past meeting when the subject of allowing chickens was discussed, and therefore wanted to comment on the subject in person tonight. He stated that the group represented by Ashley Fiske should not have blamed the Belgrade Council and the local government staff for their group' s failure to obtain the required signatures to place the question of allowing chickens on the next ballot. The fact that their group failed to meet the signature requirement should have ended the discussion. Petty felt that allowing chickens would create a code enforcement nightmare. The City staff was already struggling to effectively deal with many other issues such as dog control, trash issues and parking complaints. He felt that this should not have been placed on the ballot because the group did not meet the basic requirements. Council commented that the subject of allowing chickens has come up on a regular basis so allowing it to be a question on the regular ballot was a way to let a majority of the citizens make their Page 1 of 10 wishes known. Petty commented that if chickens were allowed, and then they produce their unpleasant smell, would the City then install fans to remove the odor for the residents who have to endure it? Richard Dicks, residing on 13th Street in Belgrade, spoke about the enactment of Emergency Powers in our area. He said that this continues to change the landscape and deteriorate City businesses. Dicks noted that the Emergency Declaration came with funding, but that also had complications. He felt that the mask mandate must be removed because it interfered with freedom and rights. He said he can' t enter businesses without being harassed or threatened. He stated that if the Belgrade Council should change the mandates or the Council members would be changed out by voters. City Manager Barkley noted that the mask mandate was not originated by the City of Belgrade. The City was subject to directives and mandates that had come through the Governor and the Gallatin City County Health Department. The Governor had also deemed that the County could issue their own specific health orders. Belgrade had issued no orders and Barkley was not sure if we even had that kind of authority. He noted that he could ask a member of the County Health Department staff to address the Council to provide more clarification. Discussion followed that if the City of Belgrade ended the Declaration of Emergency, we would still be subject to the health orders such as wearing of masks. The Declaration affected eligibility for funding as a result of the American Rescue Plan Act and other such programs. Funding under certain FEMA programs could also be applicable at some point. Barkley noted that there was discussion at the legislative level about how the County' s restrictions could affect the amount of assistance our City would be eligible for, but he would bring back more information to Council as to how this clause would be interpreted. Barkley noted that the discussion regarding the Declaration of Emergency was scheduled as a Discussion Agenda Item for the regular Council meeting coming up on April 19, 2021. Dan Petty commented that someone on the Belgrade Council should be on the Health board. Discussion followed about representation on the Gallatin County Health Board. Various Council members had served on that board in the past, but none were currently serving on it at this time. Council asked the City Manager to look into how a representative from the Belgrade Council could be added if possible. Mayor Nelson called 2 more times for public comment. There was none and the public forum was closed. REPORTS Mayor' s Report— Mayor Nelson had nothing to report City Attorney' s Report— the City Attorney had nothing to report. City Manager' s Report Page 2 of 10  City Manager Barkley reported on planning to closely follow progress of House Bill 632 which aimed to outline spending for funding that the state expected to get from the federal COVID stimulus bill. Barkley reported that the City IT staff would be performing updates on computers and laptops for Council members and gave instructions on when the uploads would be performed. Barkley reported on the special meeting scheduled for Council to meet with Greg Prothman regarding the recruitment details for the future City Manager for Belgrade. The meeting would be at 7pm on Monday April 12th and would be conducted in person and also online via the Zoom video platform. Barkley reported on the overall water usage being down this year, even though there were more customers. The reasons for the changes to usage levels was being analyzed as to how this would affect our rate components and more information would be brought back at a future meeting. Because our sewer rates were annually averaged over the November to February usage, this could affect the City' s revenue and may require further consideration in view of funding our wastewater treatment expansion project. DISCUSSION AGENDA Consider Letter of Support for Low Income Housing Tax Credit Application Tracy Menuez, representing HRDC, reviewed the project they were working on in partnership with Boundary Development. The proposed housing would be in the northern corner opposite of the new gas station that was recently opened in the Yellowstone Airport subdivision and included 40 apartment style units. They planned to send their application to the Montana Board of Housing and would present to them in May according to the timeline for submittal. She noted that this year' s process was a bit different than past years. They proposed to start construction in the first quarter of 2022 and ready for move in by the first quarter of 2023. Over half of the units would be 1 bedroom, 1 bath at around $ 762 rent. 3 bedroom unit rent rates would be from $ 1000 to $ 1270. She compared this to the general rental rate of$ 3000 per month in the regular market. The fact that the Streamline bus served the Frontage nearby was also a great benefit to potential tenants. She asked that the Council approve of supplying a letter of support for this project. She also noted the request to have a City representative speak at the upcoming public hearing that the Board of Housing would hold. City Manager Barkley noted that initial discussions on this subdivision included mostly commercial applications, but mixed use made sense with additional housing for workforce needs and now this type of housing geared toward families. Staff felt this complimented the plans for this area quite nicely. Barkley noted that HRDC had demonstrated great engagement in our community and we had worked well together. Mayor Nelson called for public comment. There was none. ACTION: Council Member Cooper moved to approve of providing a Letter of Support as stated on behalf of Boundary Development in partnership with HRDC- IX for a Low Income Housing Tax Credit Application for a project within the Yellowstone Airport Plaza Subdivision. Council Member Menicucci seconded the motion. All voted aye, motion carried unanimously. Page 3 of 10  Continued consideration of Request by St. John' s Vianney Church - Joint Use Parking Planning Director Karp reviewed the informal mutual practice of sharing parking between the Church and the Lions Park parking lot which was adjacent to the Church. The parking areas were mutually used by both the church and the park users when high attendance events happened at the church or at the park due to tournaments etc. The Church was now undertaking an expansion of their facility that would normally require them to construct 24 additional parking spaces on site, but they were asking to have this waived and to allow continued joint use of the Lions Park parking spaces. This item had been tabled at the last Council meeting to allow further review and input by the City Public Works staff Karp noted that Public Works Director Klotz had expressed concerns about the request for shared parking and had suggested a formal agreement for clarification. Karp noted that an agreement had been drafted to help mitigate some of the concerns brought up by City staff It included a provision that if the agreement was terminated by either the City or the Church, the Church would have one ( 1) year to bring their parking into compliance. The agreement also included a" hold harmless" clause. The agreement was subject to termination by either party if there was an issue. Karp also noted that staff was in the process of reviewing City codes, of which parking rules would be a substantial part. Karp recommended adopting the agreement and reviewing it in a year or so which would allow for consideration of the revised codes. Discussion followed about requiring 1 parking space for every 3 chairs in a church. Karp didn' t feel this was a constant problem because traditionally churches provide ample parking. He noted that shared parking could be considered with the Divine Mercy Academy as well. Karp also referred to the comments made by City Attorney Ramler discussing Council' s consideration or the Board of Adjustment' s consideration. Karp noted that Public Works Director Klotz was present and available for questions. Father Eric Gilbaugh, representing the Church, spoke in support of allowing the shared parking in lieu of constructing 24 additional parking spaces, and was in support of the formal agreement. He discussed the history of the joint usage and how well it had worked out for overflow parking for various events but pointed out that quite often the Church did not use their existing on site parking space to the full as it was. One major concern now was the delay in starting the construction in view of the building season underway and the availability of contractors in our valley. He felt this expansion was a positive for the community, would not result in additional maintenance costs for the Park and would also result in a lot of new sidewalks around the property. They had started the permitting process many months ago to avoid this type of last minute issue so he hoped to avoid any further delays. He thanked Council for their support. Discussion followed about applying code requirements equally to building projects throughout the City. Gilbaugh noted there were currently 55 parking spaces in their lot, also improvements being done along Quaws Blvd at the Church' s expense which provided a lot of space for street parking. He noted their attendance at services was approximately 350 on the weekend. He would continue to offer multiple masses so the area would not be overwhelmed. Page 4 of 10  Wayne Thompson, church member residing in Manhattan, spoke in favor of the agreement and in support of the church expansion. He commended the efforts of Gilbaugh on behalf of the community and the Church. He felt that the green area was important around the Church and it should not be turned into parking spaces if possible. Tony Marchi, church member residing in Bozeman, spoke in favor of the agreement and noted Gilbaugh' s connection with the community and support of the Church. The desire was to attract people to this church. Krista Baziak, church member residing in Belgrade, spoke in favor of the agreement. She noted her family' s practice of walking or riding bikes to mass in nice weather. She felt that many members did this and it cut down on the demand for parking. She felt that the need for greater seating capacity did not necessarily mean the need for more parking as they had many large families which equated to one vehicle and did not fit in with the thought of 1 parking space per 3 seats. Dan Petty, residing in Belgrade, questioned how many parking spaces were required for establishments such as the Mint and other downtown businesses. Karp noted that the downtown area requirements were different. They use public parking areas. Ben Nistler, church member residing in Bozeman, spoke in favor of the agreement. He also felt that there were big families using 1 vehicle and the parking spaces should not be negatively affected. Gilbaugh asked specifically if there was any opposition or questions by Council members so he could respond before they voted. Public Works Director Steve Klotz discussed the proposed agreement. He felt the formal agreement was in the best interest of all involved for clarification of expectations. City Manager Barkley noted that this agreement did not allow exclusive use of parking spaces for either party. This was a protection measure being put in place and suggested by our Public Works department to help the Council consider all angles before making a decision. Mayor Nelson called for additional public comment. There was none. ACTION: Council Member Meis moved to approve of St. John Vianney Church counting the city- owned parking in the adjacent Lions Park to go towards their required off- street parking spaces. The church shall not be required to construct additional parking spaces for their planned addition, except as provided in the agreement. Council Member Simon seconded the motion. All voted aye, motion carried unanimously. ( roll call vote) City Manager Barkley noted that this may come up again if similar circumstances occur. Each situation would come before Council for their approval on a case by case basis. Consider Updated Improvements Agreement— Yellowstone Airport Plaza PUD/ Subdivision Page 5 of 10  Planning Director Karp noted that this Improvements Agreement would cover sidewalks and curb ramps with a financial guarantee required in the amount of$ 403, 236. 44. If approved, the sidewalks and curb ramps would not be installed until July 2022 with further extensions possible, unless a building was constructed on a particular lot before that time. Mayor Nelson called for public comment. There was none. ACTION: Council Member Smith moved to approve the Improvements Agreement for the Yellowstone Airport Plaza PUD/ Subdivision for sidewalks and curb ramps with a Letter of Credit in the amount of$ 403, 236. 44 and complying with the terms of the Improvements Agreement. Council Member Cooper seconded the motion. All voted aye, motion carried unanimously. Consider Request for Sidewalk Variance— 402 Hoffman Street Planning Director Karp reviewed the applicant' s request asking for a waiver from the City' s requirement of installing sidewalks along the street frontage adjacent to the lot where the new building was under construction. Karp noted that in previous sidewalk waiver requests, the Council required the applicant to sign a Waiver of Objection to future requirements imposed by the City through any special assessment or Special Improvement District( SID) for the installation of sidewalks which the City may require at any time at the owner' s expense. Mayor Nelson called for public comment. There was none. ACTION: Council Member Menicucci moved to grant a variance from the sidewalk requirements and to waive the sidewalk installation at 402 Hoffman Street, with the condition that the applicant waives any objection to any special assessment or Special Improvement District ( SID) for the installation of sidewalks along the property and acknowledges that the City of Belgrade may at any time require sidewalks to be installed along the street frontage adjacent to the property at the property owner' s expense. Council Member Smith seconded the motion. Motion carried 5 to 1. Council Members voting aye: Cooper, Meis, Simon, Menicucci, Smith Council Members voting no: Doyle Discuss Funding for Regional Utility Study City Manager Barkley noted the need to have a broader discussion about utilities in our valley. It should include the City Engineer, Public Works Director, City Manager, key staff from Gallatin County, Bozeman, Three Forks and Manhattan. Planned rural development, growth factors, reducing sprawl were just an example of the many concerns in our area. Barkley recommended that the Council commit to funding a regional study and make sure that Belgrade has a seat at the table. The location and capacity of utilities will influence where growth occurs. Barkley noted that the engineering groups of AE2S and TDH were putting together a proposal to do a study on regional water and wastewater in Gallatin Valley. The study would cost about 400, 000 based on an interlocal agreement with the other entities. Bozeman had pledged $ 300, 000 for this purpose but Gallatin County had not yet indicated an amount. Barkley recommended that Belgrade pledge $ 50, 000 out of our planning funds based on an approved agreement. The agreement Page 6 of 10  was still under development. Barkley noted that Belgrade had a healthy balance in the planning fund so this would not place any additional burden on taxpayers. Funding would no doubt be pledged by Three Forks and Manhattan as well, although in smaller amounts. Mayor Nelson called for public comment. There was none. ACTION: Council Member Menicucci moved to commit the amount of$ 50, 000 toward a regional utility planning study with further review and approval upon development of an interlocal agreement. Council Member Smith seconded the motion. All voted aye, motion carried unanimously. Consider addition of 1 Full Time Staff position- Sworn Police Officer City Manager Barkley noted he was actually asking for 2 full time positions. He noted that as we moved into the COVID season, the original plan for adding 2 positions was reduced to 1 position, so now he was asking for the second position to be added back. Barkley discussed the plan to lower taxes by an equivalent amount due to the annexation into the Fire District. With the permanent 68 mil levy, combined with the City' s general fund levy, it appears we are solid in our ability to be able to fund these positions. Barkley noted that one officer will be out on military duty for about 18 months so this will assist in filling that need while they are on active duty. Barkley noted that the State Consortium that was previously used to identify qualified applicants for law enforcement positions was no longer active so it will take a bit more effort and time to locate and attract candidates. In regard to the budget, Barkley noted this change may be included in an upcoming Budget Amendment to authorize adding of 2 full time positions. We would also be filling positions for 4 more full time Public Works particularly in view of the Plant upgrade. Mayor Nelson called for public comment. There was none. Council asked if the City would need to obtain additional patrol cars. It seemed like we had more than enough vehicles. Barkley noted that in certain incidents, all the cars are needed so we have to be prepared. He noted that the City periodically auctioned off older vehicles as they were rotated out of service and replaced. Barkley did not feel that we had an excessive number of vehicles. Council asked if we had hired police staff last year. Barkley confirmed that we had and we had more applicants at that time. Now that the consortium recruiting arrangement was no longer available, there were not a lot of applicants right now. ACTION: Council Member Cooper moved to approve of the addition of two ( 2) full time staff positions of Sworn Police Officer. Council Member Meis seconded the motion. All voted aye, motion carried unanimously. Consider Policy on Deferred Compensation Match for Exempt City Employees City Manager Barkley noted that Department Directors had historically been allowed a percentage of matching funds toward pre- tax deferred compensation retirement benefits as part of their salary and benefit package. This benefit was being expanded to include other exempt positions. Page 7 of 10  Barkley noted that the question had come up asking why this benefit was not an option for all City employees. It was only offered to department directors, and now it was being proposed to include all exempt employees due to their responsibilities and classification as mid- level supervisors and/ or professionals. Barkley noted that all employees had the option to participate in the deferred compensation retirement plan, but only exempt employees would be given the option of the matching funds as part of their compensation package. Mayor Nelson called for public comment. There was none. ACTION: Council Member Simon moved to approve of expanding the Deferred Compensation Match option to include exempt City employees, currently at the rate of 7%. Council Member Menicucci seconded the motion. All voted aye, motion carried unanimously. Consider Lease Renewal for Office Space at the Belgrade Mercantile Building City Manager Barkley reviewed the adjustments proposed for the office space rental agreement for the units used at the Belgrade Mercantile Building. The monthly rent plus expenses was increased from $ 1930. 38 to $ 2, 005. 38 per month. He noted that once the Library improvements happened, that would allow for the rearrangement of offices and the City wouldn' t need this space in the future. It was not as expensive as some other spaces in that building. Barkley recommended continuing the arrangement as stated. He noted it was a common practice to use the tax information in establishing the rate of rent. Mayor Nelson called for public comment. There was none. ACTION: Council Member Meis moved to approve the Lease renewal and updated rate for office space at the Belgrade Mercantile Building and authorize the City Manager to sign related documents. Council Member Smith seconded the motion. All voted aye, motion carried unanimously. Consider Summary of Revolving Loan Fund Stabilization Loan and Activity— NRMEDD City Manager Barkley reviewed the recent activity on the Belgrade Revolving Loan Fund Program and Business Stabilization Program. He discussed the protocols for authorizing the loans and noted that the main agreement states that Council would review and approve, but then the subsequent agreement regarding stabilization loans states that the Committee could approve. This summary was compiled in order to allow the Council to be able to review all of the activities and approve it for auditing purposes. Barkley noted that all participants were on track with no loans in arrears. There were 2 more applications in the process for review. Mayor Nelson called for public comment. There was none. ACTION: Council Member Doyle moved to approve the RLF loans and business stabilization loans as reported. Council Member Simon seconded the motion. All voted aye, motion carried unanimously. Page 8 of 10  Status Update for Water Reclamation Facility( Sewer Plant) Upgrade Project Public Works Director Klotz discussed the progress on the Sewer Plant upgrade project and noted that the contractors began work on October 12, 2020. He provided a printed report with a 3 month Klotz outlook notedthe which had been recently updated, along with a photo. In view of the timeline goals, project was at 20% completion and the City had paid approximately 10% of the costs. He noted that most of the work thus far included earth work and foundations. The contractor was quite confident that they would be able to hit timelines and milestone dates. Milestone# 2 was March 28, 2022 which would include the liquid start up. Klotz noted this was significant so the City could start writing capacity letters to DEQ. He confirmed that the contractor was checking in regularly and the working relationship with the City was good. Klotz discussed the water testing related to the Oxidation ditches and that this would be a delicate process. He noted that the aerators were installed about a week ago and these would address the turnover and the odor. They were successfully adding a significant amount of oxygen to the mix and were working well. Discussion followed The studies based our regarding the plan of capacity capacity on a with the new plant coming online in 2023. growth rate of 3% but the actual growth rate has been at 12% so this would have to be taken into consideration for future expansion. Barkley noted that the growth itself would help pay for expansion through impact fees and additional customers. Mayor Nelson called for public comment. There was none. CONSENT AGENDA Pledged Securities for November 2020 ACTION: Council Member Cooper moved to approve the consent agenda items. Council Member Smith seconded the motion. All voted aye, motion carried unanimously. FOR YOUR INFORMATION Council Member Smith reported that he was glad to be able to meet at the Council Chambers again and discuss matters in person. Council Member Menicucci reported on plans by the Gallatin Water Quality District to review Belgrade' s nitrates of water ways and the results would be interesting. She noted the 5- year plan for our watershed and that so far the water quality was good. She said she would forward the report to any who wanted to review the information Council Member Simon wanted to confirm that the special meeting would be on April 12th at 7pm. Barkley confirmed that Greg Prothman would be joining via Zoom video platform and the meeting would a hybrid setting with in-person attendance as well like this one. Simon also reported that he had gotten a lot of positive input about the new street lights. He had received a complaint about the Holiday Gas station lights, but it appeared that the Holiday turned it down a notch. Council Member Meis reported on his meeting with a resident about lights. He noted that they will shield one light near the man' s home and he appreciated the response. Meis asked if Cushing Page 9 of 10 Terrell had received any public input on the sidewalks. Barkley said they will meet tomorrow to get going on that effort. Council Member Cooper asked if the City had any more electronic speed signs and if we could order some more and install one on Madison Avenue. Barkley said there was a list of locations pending. Also developers were required to pay for them in certain places. Barkley said he would find out if any were available and not committed yet. Barkley noted there were more planned for in the budget. Council Member Doyle had nothing to report. ADJOURN Council Member Doyle moved to adjourn the mee ' ng at 9: 35 pm. rd Russell C. Nelson, Mayor Attest Susan Caldwell, City Clerk Page 10 of 10