Mayor & City Council

MINUTES Regular Meeting of the College Park City Council Tuesday, April 23, 2019 Council Chambers 7:30 p.m. – 10:17 p.m. PRESENT: Mayor Pro Tem Dennis; Councilmembers Kabir, Kennedy (arrived 7:33 p.m.), Brennan, Day, Rigg, Kujawa and Mitchell. ABSENT: Mayor Wojahn ALSO PRESENT: Scott Somers, City Manager; Bill Gardiner, Assistant City Manager; Yvette Allen, Assistant City Clerk; Suellen Ferguson, City Attorney; Terry Schum, Director of Planning; Ryan Chelton, Economic Development Coordinator; Gary Fields, Director of Finance; Alex Tobin, Student Liaison; Serena Saunders, Deputy Student Liaison (arrived at 8:30 p.m.). Mayor Pro Tem Dennis opened the Regular Meeting at 7:30 p.m. ANNOUNCEMENTS: Councilmember Brennan announced that Sarah D’Alexander will be leaving the Office of Community Engagement for a new position. He wished her well in her future endeavors and thanked her for her work. Councilmember Kennedy announced she just came from a Smart Growth America meeting. Also, as a result of the Housing Authority presentation, she has been working with the Housing Authority and will have an update soon. Councilmember Dennis announced that the Arbor Day celebration will be held on Friday, April 26th at 9:00 a.m. at the St. Andrews Church. CITY MANAGER’S REPORT: None. PROCLAMATIONS AND AWARDS: Mayor Pro Tem Dennis read Proclamations in recognition of Arbor Day and Children’s Mental Health Awareness Week. AMENDMENTS TO AND APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA: Add item 19-G-67, letter of appreciation to Sarah D’Alexander to consent, and item 19-G-68, letter to WMATA regarding the Albion Road property to consent. A motion was made by Councilmember Rigg and seconded by Councilmember Kennedy to approve the agenda as amended 8-0-0. PUBLIC COMMENT ON CONSENT AGENDA AND NON-AGENDA ITEMS: Mary Cook, resident: inquired as to when Council meetings will start being held at Davis Hall and whether there would be an impact on Davis Hall meeting space when meetings begin. City Manager Somers stated that meetings start taking place in September for approximately two- years and there will be no impact on meeting space at Davis Hall. College Park City Council Meeting Minutes April 23, 2019 Page 2 of 7 Carol Nezzo, resident: commented on distrust of government, suggested that the City have an open house and having more citizen involvement in decision making. Carol Macknis, resident: reminded Mayor, Council and staff to speak directly and clearly into the microphones. The new City Hall needs a better audio system. Dave Dorsch, resident: requested that the continuation of the pedestrian safety rail be installed as soon as possible and requested that Rhode Island Avenue be open to vehicles at Campus Drive. PRESENTATIONS: A. Quarterly Financial Presentation: Gary Fields, Director of Finance, presented the quarterly financial presentation to the Council (copy attached). B. Len Lucchi and Eddie Pounds from O’Malley, Miles, Nylen & Gilmore, PA summarized the 2019 Legislative Session: Mr. Pounds reported on the highlights: Transportation – Complete Streets – Access to Healthy Food, Transportation – Bikeways Network Program – Funding, Payment of Wages – Minimum Wage – Fight for $15 and Election Law – Registration and Voting at Precinct Polling Places. CONSENT AGENDA: A motion was made by Councilmember Rigg and seconded by Councilmember Day to adopt the Consent Agenda, which consisted of: 19-G-62 Approval of Business Recognition Program 19-G-49 Approval of purchase of a 21-seat hybrid electric 19-G-66 Approval of Minutes of the March 23, 2019 Budget Worksession 19-G-67 Approval of a letter of appreciation to Sarah D. Alexander 19-G-68 Approval of a letter to WMATA regarding the Albion Road property The motion passed 8-0-0. ACTION ITEMS: 19-G-65 Approval of direction for the Design Development Drawing phase of the City Hall redevelopment project City Manager Somers presented the City Hall project which was also presented at the April 16, 2019 Worksession. Design Collective developed the schematic plans in February based on the guiding principles set by the City and the University of Maryland. In March, Davis Construction used the schematic design to provide a cost estimate which was higher than the anticipated cost. The schematic plans were originally having City Hall at 39,000 square feet. Design Collective worked with staff to reduce 10,000 square feet from the City Hall space, without reducing the square footage on the upper two floors. Mr. Somers reviewed the outdoor space, plaza and the retail spaces. He reviewed the revision to the City Hall space shown in red, where the space was decreased approximately 10,000 square feet. Mr. Somers explained that workstations were reduced, printing and copier spaces were consolidated, some meeting and community spaces were eliminated, and the Council Chamber was reduced in size. The space would include room for a future Building Codes Department, as requested by College Park City Council Meeting Minutes April 23, 2019 Page 3 of 7 Council, and includes plans for future expansion in certain departments for future growth. The City Hall building is now approximately 33,000 square feet. Mr. Somers explained that the early estimate of about $13M was based on the $350/square foot building cost. Since there is an increase cost for materials and labor, the estimated costs to build the building is estimated at $20.5M based on $420/square foot construction costs. The project team estimates that the overall cost of the building will be $47M with the City’s portion of $20.5M. We may reduce the cost by $5M with value engineering without materially altering the building which $2M could be applied to the City’s portion. Therefore, it’s anticipated that the City’s portion would total to $18.5M. Mr. Somers stated that the total funding is about $6.9M. The City received two bond bills for a total of $900,000, a community legacy grant for $100,000, rent from the Subway and Shanghai $182,000 and I-Net PEG funds $250,000 for a total of $1,432,780 which could be used toward the building. The City also has approximately $3.5M in the General Fund. A portion of the $5.5M from the General Fund has been used to pay the invoices on what has been completed to date. Negotiations have begun with the University of Maryland regarding land and parking. The rest would be raised through General Obligation bonds. Mr. Somers discussed several debt scenarios and debt ratios. Mr. Somers discussed several options: 1. Provide direction to the City Hall project team supporting approximately 33,000 sf for the City Hall portion of the building, the suggested value engineering, and the estimated $18 million to $20.5 million cost for the City Hall portion of the building and plaza. 2. Provide direction to the City Hall project team supporting the initial square footage (44,000 sf) of the proposed City Hall portion of the building 3. Request the project team pursue other options to align the estimated costs and the current budget. Staff supports the proposed value engineering and the proposed reduction in the total space for City Hall to approximately 33,000 sf as a necessary cost savings but one that does not diminish the civic presence and functionality of the building and plaza. The approximately 33,000 sf would add back community space on the first level that was eliminated in the proposed reductions. An increase in the City Hall budget to provide for a quality building with appropriate community and future growth space will be valuable for the long-term. Mr. Somers recommended an alternative motion: I move that the City Council provide direction to the City Hall project team supporting approximately 33,000 sf for the City Hall Portion of the building, the suggested value engineering to achieve further savings and to limit the General Obligation Bond for the new City Hall to no more than $14M. Questions and Answers: College Park City Council Meeting Minutes April 23, 2019 Page 4 of 7 Mayor Pro Tem Dennis stated that he is glad to see the reworked recommended motion and is hoping that we can come to an agreement about moving forward. Councilmember Kennedy asked to clarify that the motion is for City Hall only and that this motion does not include North College Park items. Mr. Somers stated confirmed that this motion is specific to the City Hall project only. Councilmember Kabir stated that he would like to see the project moving forward but is concerned with the cost increase. Would like to know why the rate of the loaded cost increased 20% and the total hard cost increased over 33%. Would also like clarification regarding the $410.67 cost per GFS which is not figuring out correctly to the loaded cost. What is the difference in the usable square foot number versus a rentable square foot number? Ms. Hearn explained that the soft cost did not dramatically increase because they are locked in and final. Mr. Hearn explained that the office space has a higher cost per square foot compared to the entire project since it includes approximately 10,000 square feet of retail space. Mr. Somers explained that the total cost of the building is about $47M and the City’s cost would be $20.5M and we should get that down to $18.5M. We can build a new building at $350 square feet or less, but you would have to revisit the guiding principle and our vision. Estimate loss in cost would be about $150,000, plus staff time. Councilmember Kennedy asked if we were to take Option 3, what would we lose at this point? Mr. Sommers stated that we would lose the properties we purchased and the cost that are associated with the consultant fees, we would have the most loss with Design Collective and then time with the design and outreach to the community. Councilmember Day made a motion and seconded by Brennan to move that the City Council provide direction to the City Hall project team supporting approximately 33,000 sf for the City Hall Portion of the building, the suggested value engineering to achieve further savings and to limit the General Obligation Bond for the new City Hall to no more than $14M. Public Comment: Carol Macknis, resident: concerned with the increase in cost of the project, concerned with parking near the building for seniors and paying to park. Mr. Somers stated that there will be visitor parking on Lehigh Road and paying to park may be eliminated after 6:00 p.m. Oscar Gregory, resident: $150,000 from backing out of a deal is not that much money compared to the cost of the building. David Dorsch, resident: the new City Hall does not fit within the Historic District, the cost of this building is enormous, seems that jobs are being created to fill the space in the building, expand this building by adding additional stories, main entrance should not be in the parking lot move it back to Knox Road, this City Hall should not include retail space, residents should have been able to view several different designs, let the UMD purchase the property we purchased and let them build their offices there, and against the City and University sharing a building. College Park City Council Meeting Minutes April 23, 2019 Page 5 of 7 Mary Cook, resident: Agreed with Mr. Dorsch. The new building should be decided by the residents and not by Council. Jordan Schackner, resident: Agrees with Ms. Cook, this item should go before the residents of College Park. Mayor Pro Tem Dennis made a roll call vote on the recommend motion: Mitchell - yes, Kujawa – yes, Rigg – yes, Day – yes, Dennis – yes, Brennan – yes, Kennedy – yes and Kabir – no. Motion passed 7-1-0. 19-O-10 Introduction of the FY ’20 Budget Ordinance Mr. Fields summarized the changes to the proposed budget that was presented on March 8, 2019. There is no change in the total proposed budget ($20,888,435) as previously presented A motion was made by Councilmember Kennedy and seconded by Councilmember Rigg to introduce Ordinance 19-O-10. The Public Hearing will be held on May 14, 2019. 19-G-63 Appointments to Boards and Committees A motion was made by Councilmember Brennan and seconded by Councilmember Kennedy to appoint reappoint Christine O’Brien to the Tree and Landscape Board, reappoint Rosemary Perticari to the Seniors Committee, reappoint David Turley to the Animal Welfare Committee, appoint Branson Cameron to the Complete Count Committee, appoint Lynn Topp to the Seniors Committee, and reappoint Mary Anne Hakes to the Seniors Committee. The motion passed 8-0-0. MAYOR AND COUNCIL REPORTS/COMMENTS: None. STUDENT LIAISON’S REPORT/COMMENTS Alex Tobin reported that Ireland Lesley was elected as the next SGA Student Body President. Councilmember Rigg congratulated Alex for being accept to the Harvard Law School. CITY MANAGER’S REPORT/COMMENTS City Manager Somers reported that Bulk Trash Report will be brought back to Mayor and Council in May or June. He and Robert Marsili are meeting with the Pay As You Throw subcommittee to incorporate some of their work into the report. Mr. Somers has also had several discussions with the Prince George’s County Property Owners Association to address their concerns and to get their input. Councilmember Day asked the City Manager if we would reach out to the County Executive regarding their food scrap composting pilot. Mr. Somers stated that he nor has staff spoke to the County Executive regarding this program. However, we have talked the County regarding our program, and they are able to accommodate the scraps we collect at the transfer station. Mr. Somers also noted that food scraps can now be dropped off at the City’s farmers markets. College Park City Council Meeting Minutes April 23, 2019 Page 6 of 7 COMMENTS FROM THE AUDIENCE: None. ADJOURN: Pursuant to the Maryland Annotated Code, General Provisions Article § 3-305, a motion was made by Councilmember Brennan and seconded by Councilmember Mitchell to adjourn the Regular Meeting and enter into a Closed Session to consult with Counsel to obtain legal advice, to consider the acquisition of real property for a public purpose and matters directly related thereto; and to discuss a matter directly related to a negotiating strategy before a contract is awarded. With a vote of 8-0, Mayor Pro Tem Dennis adjourned the Meeting at 10:17 p.m. _______________________________________ Yvette Allen, CMC Date Assistant City Clerk Approved CLOSED SESSION STATEMENT April 23, 2019 Council Chambers Pursuant to the Maryland Annotated Code, General Provisions Article § 3-305, a motion was made by Councilmember Brennan and seconded by Councilmember Mitchell to adjourn the Regular Meeting and enter into a Closed Session to consult with Counsel to obtain legal advice, to consider the acquisition of real property for a public purpose and matters directly related thereto; and to discuss a matter directly related to a negotiating strategy before a contract is awarded. With a vote of 8-0, Mayor Pro Tem Dennis adjourned the Regular Meeting at 10:17 p.m. After a brief recess, Council entered into the Closed Session. All members of the City Council were present. Mayor Wojahn was absent. Mayor Pro Tem Dennis was the Open Meetings Trainee. The City Attorney advised the City Council about ongoing real estate and development negotiations. The discussion was held in Closed Session to protect the City’s interests. The City Council did not take any action. At 10:50 p.m., a motion was made by Councilmember Brennan and seconded by Councilmember Kujawa to adjourn the Closed Session. With a vote of 8-0, Mayor Pro Tem Dennis adjourned the meeting. CLOSED SESSION STATEMENT April 16, 2019 Council Chambers Pursuant to the Maryland Annotated Code, General Provisions Article § 3-305, a motion was made by Councilmember Dennis and seconded by Councilmember Day to adjourn the Worksession and enter into a Closed Session to consult with Counsel to obtain legal advice, and to consult with staff about pending or potential litigation. With a vote of 7-0, Mayor Wojahn adjourned the Worksession at 10:01 p.m. After a brief recess, Council entered into the Closed Session. All members of the City Council except Councilmember Rigg were present. Mayor Wojahn was the Open Meetings Trainee. The City Attorney advised the City Council about three ongoing legal matters: a current College Park City Council Meeting Minutes April 23, 2019 Page 7 of 7 contract, a matter of ongoing litigation, and a current agreement. The discussion was held in Closed Session to protect the City’s interests. The City Council did not take any action. At 10:44 p.m., a motion was made by Councilmember Kabir and seconded by Councilmember Day to adjourn the Closed Session. With a vote of 7-0, Mayor Wojahn adjourned the meeting.