City Council

Belton City Council Meeting April 25, 2023 – 5:30 P.M. The Belton City Council met in regular session in the Wright Room of the Harris Community Center. Members present included Mayor Wayne Carpenter, Mayor Pro Tem David K. Leigh (via Zoom), Councilmembers Craig Pearson, Dan Kirkley, John R. Holmes, Sr., Daniel Bucher and Stephanie O’Banion. Staff present included Sam Listi, John Messer, Amy Casey, Gene Ellis, Mike Rodgers, Chris Brown, Matt Bates, Kim Kroll, Bob van Til, Judy Garrett, Paul Romer, Cynthia Hernandez, Tina Moore, Larry Berg, Allen Fields, Wes Gilbreath and Jo-Ell Guzman. The Pledge of Allegiance to the U.S. Flag was led by Councilmember Stephanie O’Banion and the Pledge to the Texas Flag was led by City Clerk Amy Casey. The Invocation was given by Mayor Wayne Carpenter. 1. Call to order. Mayor Carpenter called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m. 2. Public Comments. (Audio 0:06) Director of Library Services Kim Kroll stated that April 23rd through 29th is National Library Week with the theme, “There’s more to the story…” Director of Public Works Matt Bates stated that awards were given at the Cen-Tex Sustainable Communities Partnership Ceremony held in Salado on Monday. Kira Woods, a member of the City’s Youth Advisory Commission, was recognized as an Environmental Ambassador for the City of Belton. Belton ISD’s Leon Heights Elementary also received a Youth Environmental Ambassador recognition for its Lights Out Lunch. There were no other comments. Consent Agenda Items 3-6 under this section are considered to be routine by the City Council and may be enacted by one motion. If discussion is desired by the Council, any item may be removed from the Consent Agenda prior to voting, at the request of any Councilmember, and it will be considered separately. (Audio 3:13) 3. Consider minutes of previous meetings. A. March 28, 2023, City Council Meeting. B. April 4, 2023, Strategic Plan Workshop Meeting. 4. Consider a resolution authorizing the submittal of a grant application to the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services Belton City Council Meeting April 25, 2023 – Page 2 (COPS) for three full-time officers to be utilized for Prevention-Focused Community Policing. 5. Consider resolution authorizing the submittal of a full application to the Texas Department of Transportation for the 2023 Transportation Alternatives Set- Aside for a pedestrian sidewalk along W. Avenue H extending from Saunders to S. Pearl Street and along S. Pearl Street from W. Avenue H to W. Avenue D. 6. Consider a resolution authorizing the submittal of a full application to the Texas Department of Transportation for the 2023 Transportation Alternatives Set-Aside for a pedestrian sidewalk beginning at Tiger Drive and Sparta Road to Dunns Canyon Road, extending to the existing sidewalk on Dunns Canyon Road. Upon a motion by Councilmember Holmes, and a second by Councilmember O’Banion, the Consent Agenda, including the following captioned resolutions, was unanimously approved upon a vote of 7-0. RESOLUTION NO. 2023-10-R A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BELTON, TEXAS, AUTHORIZING THE SUBMITTAL OF A GRANT APPLICATION TO THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE COMMUNITY-ORIENTED POLICING SERVICES (COPS) AND DESIGNATING AN AUTHORIZED OFFICIAL. RESOLUTION NO. 2023-11-R A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BELTON, TEXAS, SUPPORTING THE SUBMISSION OF A GRANT APPLICATION TO THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (TXDOT) TRANSPORTATION ALTER- NATIVE GRANT PROGRAM AND APPOINTING THE CITY MANAGER TO ACT AS THE CITY’S AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE IN ALL MATTERS PERTAINING TO THE CITY’S PARTICIPATION IN THE TXDOT TRANSPORTATION ALTERNATIVE PROGRAM GRANT. RESOLUTION NO. 2023-12-R A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BELTON, TEXAS, SUPPORTING THE SUBMISSION OF A GRANT APPLICATION TO THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (TXDOT) TRANSPORTATION ALTER- NATIVE GRANT PROGRAM AND APPOINTING THE CITY MANAGER TO ACT AS THE CITY’S AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE IN ALL MATTERS PERTAINING TO THE CITY’S PARTICIPATION IN THE TXDOT TRANSPORTATION ALTERNATIVE PROGRAM GRANT. Belton City Council Meeting April 25, 2023 – Page 3 Planning and Zoning Councilmember Pearson announced that he would abstain from this item. 7. Z-23-09 – Hold a public hearing and consider a zoning change from Agricultural (A) and Single Family-1 (SF-1) Residential District to Light Industrial on approximately 51.341 acres located at 849 Elm Grove Spur, at the southeast intersection of Elm Grove Spur and Capitol Way. (Audio 4:58) Planner Tina Moore presented this item. Public Hearing: Jill Decker, 205 Decker Road, spoke against the zoning change. Bonnie Conway, 583 Decker Road, spoke against the zoning change. Cynthia Hernandez, Executive Director of BEDC, spoke in favor of the zoning change. No one else spoke for or against. Councilmember Holmes made a motion to postpone action on this item until the May 9, 2023, City Council meeting. The motion was seconded by Councilmember Bucher. The postponement was approved upon a vote of 6-0-1 with Councilmember Pearson abstaining. ORDINANCE NO. 2023-13 **POSTPONED** AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF BELTON BY CHANGING THE DESCRIBED DISTRICT FROM AGRICULTURAL DISTRICT AND SINGLE FAMILY-1 DISTRICT TO LIGHT INDUSTRIAL ON APPROXIMATELY 51.341 ACRES LOCATED 849 ELM GROVE SPUR Councilmember Pearson returned to the meeting. 8. Z-23-10 – Hold a public hearing and consider a zoning change from Agricultural to Commercial-2 District on approximately 0.898 acres located at 7272 Rattlesnake Trail, south of Interstate 14 and east of Simmons Road. (Audio 21:33) Planner Tina Moore explained that at its April 18, 2023, meeting, the Planning and Zoning Commission recommended postponing this item until their meeting on May 16, 2023. Public Hearing: Belton City Council Meeting April 25, 2023 – Page 4 Brandy Jewell, 7228 Rattlesnake Trail, asked how this zoning change would affect her property and what the future plan was for the property. Planner Tina Moore will reach out to her about her concerns. No one else spoke for or against. Councilmember Kirkley made a motion to postpone this item until the May 23, 2023, City Council meeting. The motion was seconded by Councilmember O’Banion and passed unanimously upon a vote of 7-0. 9. P-23-02 – Consider a final plat for or Tradition Industrial, comprising 27.560 acres, located at Interstate 14 and Digby Drive. (Audio 24:07) Planner Tina Moore presented this item. Upon a motion by Councilmember Holmes, and a second by Councilmember Pearson, the final plat of Tradition Industrial was approved upon a unanimous vote of 7-0. 10.Hold a public hearing and consider an amendment to Section 49.8(D) of the City of Belton Zoning Ordinance regarding super majority requirements or three-fourths (¾) vote of Council required when a zoning change is opposed by area property owners. (Audio 27:23) Director of Planning Bob van Til presented this item. He offered four options including: a. Approve the proposed Ordinance amendment as recommended by the Staff clarifying that the word “acknowledged” means “notarized.” b. Remove the wording “acknowledged (notarized)” from the proposed amendment as recommended by the Planning and Zoning Commission and not require the form to be notarized since notarization is not required by State law and peer cities do not require notarization. c. Make no changes, leaving the current ordinance wording of “duly signed and acknowledged” but following the City Attorney’s interpretation that acknowledged means notarized. d. Make no changes, leaving the current ordinance wording of “duly signed and acknowledged” but not requiring notarization. Public Hearing: No one spoke for or against. Councilmember Pearson made a motion for Option 3 which was seconded by Councilmember Kirkley. The motion failed 3-4 with Councilmember Pearson, Mayor Carpenter, Councilmember Kirkley voting in favor of Option 3 and Councilmember Holmes, Councilmember O’Banion, Councilmember Bucher and Mayor Pro Tem Leigh voting against Option 3. Belton City Council Meeting April 25, 2023 – Page 5 Councilmember Holmes made a motion for Option 4 which was seconded by Councilmember O’Banion. The motion failed 2-5 with Councilmember Holmes and Councilmember O'Banion voting in favor of Option 4 and Councilmember Bucher, Councilmember Kirkley, Councilmember Pearson, Mayor Carpenter and Mayor Pro Tem Leigh voting against Option 4. Councilmember Bucher made a motion for Option 2 which failed for a lack of a second. Mayor Pro Tem Leigh made a motion to send the item back to Staff to develop an internal policy which will clarify the requirements without changing the Code. The motion was seconded by Councilmember Holmes and was unanimously approved upon a vote of 7-0. ORDINANCE NO. 2023-15 **FAILED** AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BELTON, TEXAS, AMENDING THE ZONING ORDINANCE FOR THE CITY OF BELTON; PROVIDING A SAVINGS CLAUSE; PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE; PROVIDING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; AND PROVIDING AN OPEN MEETING CLAUSE. 11. Hold a public hearing and consider an ordinance approving an extension of the City’s juvenile curfew ordinance. (Audio 1:04:40) Captain Allen Fields presented this item. Public Hearing: No one spoke for or against. Upon a motion by Councilmember Kirkley, and a second by Councilmember Pearson, the following captioned ordinance was approved upon a unanimous vote of 7-0. ORDINANCE NO. 2023-14 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF BELTON, TEXAS, READOPTING A CURFEW FOR PERSONS UNDER SEVENTEEN YEARS OF AGE TO PROHIBIT THEIR BEING IN ANY PUBLIC PLACE FROM 12:01 A.M. UNTIL 6:00 A.M. ON ANY DAY OF THE WEEK; PROVIDING DEFINITIONS; PROVIDING ENFORCEMENT AND ADMINISTRATIVE APPEAL PROCEDURES; PROVIDING PENALTIES CONSISTING OF A FINE FOR MINORS NOT TO EXCEED FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS ($500.00), AND FOR PARENTS OF MINORS CONSISTING OF A FINE OF NOT LESS THAN FIFTY DOLLARS ($50.00) BUT NOT TO EXCEED FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS ($500.00); ADOPTING CERTAIN DEFENSES; PROVIDING A SAVINGS CLAUSE; PROVIDING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.  4/27/2023 EXHIBIT "A" Strategic Planning Follow-Up April 25, 2023 1 Strategic Planning Workshop Review • During the strategic planning workshop, City Council and City Staff discussed the long-range vision of the City • Personnel requests and facility needs were a large part of the discussion • Decisions on these issues and others will affect the budgets for FY 2024 and beyond 2 2 1  4/27/2023 Preliminary FY 2024 Type FY 2023 Budget FY 2023 Estimate FY 2024 Budget General Fund Property Tax $7,977,140 $7,754,668 $8,509,010 Revenues Sales Tax 6,113,840 6,191,642 6,501,220 • General Fund revenues Franchise Tax 1,255,780 1,364,732 1,349,170 total $22,731,930 Permits 474,840 449,858 508,390 • Property tax revenue assumes a $0.5850 tax Court Fines 276,290 323,989 303,750 rate with a 7.24% increase in value Charges 2,823,560 3,389,480 3,610,390 • Sales tax revenue Other 2,365,970 2,810,300 1,950,000 assumes 5% growth over the FY 2023 estimate Totals $21,287,420 $22,284,669 $22,731,930 3 3 Preliminary FY 2024 General Fund Expenditures • Department Heads have prepared budgets with basic and supplemental expenditure requests • Basic budgets include the cost of existing operations with typical expenditure growth plus increases to certification pay as recommended by the compensation study • Supplemental requests include the cost of additional personnel, service enhancements, or program expansions • Supplemental requests have been separated into three “packages” • Bronze • Silver • Gold 4 4 2  4/27/2023 Preliminary FY 2024 General Fund Expenditures Basic Budget • Basic expenditures total $21,886,170 Basic Expenditures • Preliminary revenue exceeds basic Revenues $22,731,930 expenditures by $845,760 Expenditures 21,886,170 • The tax rate necessary to cover basic expenditures is $0.5333 per Surplus/(Deficit) 845,760 $100 of taxable value Potential Tax Rate per $100 $0.5333 5 5 Preliminary FY 2024 General Fund Expenditures Bronze Supplemental Package • Bronze package includes $534,410 of supplemental requests • 2 Police Officers Bronze Supplemental • 1 Deputy Fire Marshal Revenues $22,731,930 • 1 Firefighter • 1 Maintenance Technician Expenditures 22,420,580 • 1 Planning Technician Surplus/(Deficit) 311,350 • 1 Associate Judge Potential Tax Rate per $100 $0.5660 • Maintenance items for Fire, Parks, and the Harris Center 6 6 3  4/27/2023 Preliminary FY 2024 General Fund Expenditures Silver Supplemental Package • Silver package includes the bronze package plus $327,800 of additional requests Silver Supplemental • Employee development programs Revenues $22,731,930 • 1 Civilian Crime Scene Tech • 2 Part-time Dispatchers (1 FTE) Expenditures 22,748,380 • 1 Police Officer/Detective Surplus/(Deficit) (16,450) • Mowing high-traffic, visible areas such as TxDOT rights-of-way and Potential Tax Rate per $100 $0.5860 interstate corridor 7 7 Preliminary FY 2024 General Fund Expenditures Gold Supplemental Package • Gold package includes the bronze and silver packages plus $2,359,280 for an additional 24 positions, including Gold Supplemental • 4 Police Officers • 3 Fire Lieutenants Revenues $22,731,930 • 5 Firefighters Expenditures 25,107,660 • 3 Maintenance Technicians • 1 Parks Superintendent Surplus/(Deficit) (2,375,730) • 1 Mechanic Potential Tax Rate per $100 $0.7303 • Gold package also includes a SWAT vehicle and a bus or van for City Hall 8 8 4  4/27/2023 Preliminary FY 2024 General Fund Budget • Staff seeks direction from Select Supplemental Package, If Any Council on the expenditures to include in the FY 2024 Proposed Budget Finalize the Departmental Budgets • Finalized departmental budgets will be compared to projected available revenues Determine a Sufficient Tax Rate • Property tax revenue will be modified when we receive the estimated property values in late April Create the Proposed Budget 9 9 Recommendation • Management recommends proceeding with the silver supplemental package • The silver package adds much needed personnel to Police, Fire, Parks, and Planning • It also enhances recreation facilities, beautifies the city with additional mowing, and increases training for employees • Depending upon property values, we may be able to do this with little increase to the property tax rate • Modifications can be made as we get closer to budget adoption 10 10 5  4/27/2023 Recommendation – Silver Supplemental Public Safety Parks & Recreation General & Administrative 3 Police Officers 1 Maintenance Technician 1 Associate Judge 1 Civilian Crime Scene Technician Automated ballfield lights 1 Planning Technician 2 Part-time Dispatchers Shade covers for picnic tables High-profile landscaping 1 Deputy Fire Marshal Lamp shades on trails TxDOT ROW mowing 1 Firefighter Soccer goals and backstops Interstate corridor mowing Station 2 parking lot asphalt Disc golf baskets Belton U for employees Station 1 bay lights Lobby TV at Harris Financial education for employees Blind replacement at Harris 11 11 Questions 12 6