City Council

City Council Meeting Minutes ___________________________________________________________________________________________ THURSDAY, APRIL 2, 2015 CITY HALL COUNCIL CHAMBERS CITY OF COLUMBIA CITY, COLUMBIA COUNTY, OREGON AGENDA ITEM 1 CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL: CONVENED: Mayor Young called the regular meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. Mayor Young delivered the invocation and led the flag salute. COUNCIL MEMBERS PRESENT: Mayor Cheryl A. Young Councilor Sally Ann Marson Councilor Nell Harrison COUNCIL MEMBERS ABSENT: Councilor Josh Fromm Councilor Gordon Thistle ALSO PRESENT: Michael McGlothlin, Chief of Police Micah Rogers, Public Works Superintendent Leahnette Rivers, City Administrator/Recorder ATTORNEY PRESENT: None A quorum was present and due notice had been published. AGENDA ITEM 2 PUBLIC HEARINGS: None. AGENDA ITEM 3 CITIZEN INPUT: 3.1 Kirsten Bailey regarding the placement of the basketball hoop at 3200 Fifth Street: Kirsten Bailey of 3215 Fifth Street, Columbia City, said she served on the Committee to review the placement of hoops within the right-of-way. She said spring is here again, and the hoop at 3200 Fifth Street was moved and is now centered directly in front of her driveway. She said now that the weather is nice again, the kids are congregating to play ball. She said last Sunday the kids had six different balls, and they were all having fun, which is awesome, but there is no way for her to feel comfortable using her driveway or even her home because there’s an uncomfortable feeling that something will be damaged, and if damage occurs, there’s really no way for her to hold anyone accountable. She said she does not want to deal with that day in and day out. She said a half court is 50 feet, and these kids are playing games, not just shooting hoops. She said they play harder and faster, and it impacts her 24-7 now. She said she’s done everything that she can. She said this is a street, and she has rights and pays taxes. She said it just doesn’t feel like her home - she can’t plant flowers because she is afraid they’ll be squashed or her car will get scratched. She said she’s lived here almost 10 years and she feels like her rights have been stripped away. 2 - Regular City Council Meeting April 2, 2015 Jane Eggleston of 3405 Fifth Street, Columbia City, said when you turn off of Pacific Street on to Fifth Street it is very dangerous because of that curve. She said you come around the corner and that hoop is right there. Lee Eggleston of 3405 Fifth Street, Columbia City, said he resents the fact that it is a street, it is not a basketball court, and when you drive through there kids and balls all over. He said it’s only a matter of time before someone gets run over, and he does not want to be the one that runs over one of them. He said everybody has big lots down there, and if their lots aren’t big enough they can take their kids to the school yard and play basketball. He said he raised two sons that played all sports, and they never played any of them on the street. He said he went to a lot of effort to make sure his kids didn’t play in the street. Peggy Sharpe of 3300 Fifth Street said they have four basketball hoops that are generally out on the street, and she has expressed her concerns about them to the City Hall staff and to the Police Chief. She said they have kids running wild on their street. She said the kids play basketball a lot. She said her kids played basketball all through school and up through college, but they never played in the street. She said she and her husband are former school teachers and they’ve raised quite a few kids, and they have never had issues with kids running wild on the street like this. She said her property has been vandalized and she’s filed at least two police reports and visited City Hall at least twice to report these issues. She said nothing seems to change. She said over the weekend they were playing basketball in the street after dark, and it was terrible. She said in addition to the bicycles on the streets, they have battery operated cars and a five year old riding a mini bike up and down the street and traveling at speeds exceeding 25 mph. She said she went to one parent and expressed her concerns about the vandalism in a very respectful manner, and the father of the child responded by really telling her off and denying that his kids do anything wrong. She said one day in a 30 minute period of time she counted eight vehicles that either had to stop completely or slow way, way down because the kids would not get out of their way. She said they are being very defiant and are not respectful at all. One day, she said she was pruning her shrubs near the sidewalk and she had her back to the sidewalk and did not see the kid coming until the handlebars of her bicycle caught the back of her shirt. She said the child never said anything like “coming through” or “excuse me” or “sorry” - she just kept going. Staff reminded members of the audience to report public safety issues or problems when they occur by calling dispatch at 503-397-1521. Peggy said everyone in her neighborhood used to get along just fine, but now there are two families in particular that are very difficult. Andy Bailey of 3215 Fifth Street said people voted against the hoops. He said the “no” votes had it, and then all of a sudden the City allowed people to have the hoops. Leahnette noted that the City conducted a citizen survey, but this matter did not go to a vote. She said a citizen committee reviewed the survey results and made some recommendations to the City Council about hoop regulations, and the Council made some modifications to the Committee’s recommended regulations. She said the adopted regulations do provide the Council with the ability to revoke a permit at any time and for any reason. She said, for example, the Council does have the ability to revoke a permit that is not a good fit within a neighborhood. Kirsten said it can be overwhelming when you look out your front window and people are running up and down your driveway to retrieve balls, and the amount of people out playing in the street is getting out of control. Chief McGlothlin said that particular stretch of Fifth Street does appear to have the highest concentration of basketball hoops that are frequently used. 3 - Regular City Council Meeting April 2, 2015 Lee asked if he could pay $10 for a permit to park his motor home in the street. He complained that it can take 60 days to get tall weeds cut. Members of the audience continued to discuss these matters with staff and the Mayor at length. Mayor Young said the curvature of that road is actually her concern. She said she did not realize the road had a curve there near the intersection. Peggy said the street is narrow, and when two cars are coming in opposite directions and need to pass each other, and then cars are parked along the street, it is difficult to safely get by. She said she talked to her neighbor and expressed her concerns about the children not watching for traffic. She told him they just shoot right out into the street, and she had suggested that he ask his children to watch for traffic. She said it would be devastating if a vehicle were to hit one of those children. She said the father of the children just told her off. She said one foggy evening when it was dark she rounded the corner from Mattie Street and nearly hit their basketball hoop because she didn’t see it, even with the reflector on it. She said they’ve dealt with dogs running at large, children vandalizing landscaping, motorized vehicles using sidewalks, etc. over the years. Jean Carulli of 3330 Tahoma Street said she does not like driving down Fifth Street. She said the other day she was pulling up next to Peggy’s house and there the basketball was in the street with no one around, and she had to swerve around it. Jeanine Klein of 3305 Tahoma Street said she hears the noise from the kids over her fence, but the only time she is really affected is when she goes to visit her friends that live on Fifth Street. She said she doesn’t want to park there. She said she’s seen the motorized bike on the bike path. Discussions continued between members of the audience, staff and the Mayor. Linda Guy of 2700 Sixth Street asked Chief McGlothlin if motorized bikes are legal on the streets. Chief McGlothlin said it depends on what type of propulsion system it has and what the cc rating is. He said they need to be looked at on a case-by-case basis. Mayor Young said we’ve had a considerable amount of input in this particular case, and the curvature of the street does tend to present a problem. She said there are other alternatives for the Allen’s, and she recommended the Council consider making a motion to revoke the Allen permit and refund their fee. Peggy suggested the permit for the hoop near her home be revoked too. Mayor Young suggested we just deal with the Allen hoop tonight because the Council had no prior knowledge of any issues associated with any other hoops prior to this meeting. MOVED (MARSON), SECONDED (HARRISON) AND CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY, THAT DUE TO SAFETY REASONS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS PARTICULAR HOOP, WE REVOKE THE ALLEN HOOP PERMIT AND REFUND THEIR FEE. Mayor Young encouraged residents to report problems when they occur to Columbia County dispatch by calling 503-397-1521. Peggy thanked all of those that have been working on the Veterans Park. She said it is just beautiful. AGENDA ITEM 4 COUNCIL REPORTS: 4 - Regular City Council Meeting April 2, 2015 4.1 Parks Committee: Chair Marson thanked the Garden Club, the Boy Scouts, Dave Hamblin, and all of the other people and volunteers that have been working in the Veterans Park. She said it is really beautiful. 4.2 Water and Sewer Committee: No report. 4.3 Street Committee: Micah said the crack seal work is tentatively scheduled to start next Thursday or Friday. He said after the streets are striped, they will add new reflectors to the centerline around the corner at Fifth and “J” Streets and replace the damaged guardrail. 4.4 Audit Committee: No report. 4.5 Hazard Mitigation Planning Group: No report. 4.6 Other Reports: None. AGENDA ITEM 5 CONSENT AGENDA: 5.1 Appointment of Dan McGraw, Sr., to the Hazard Mitigation Planning Group. 5.2 Activities report from the City Administrator/Recorder. MOVED (MARSON), SECONDED (HARRISON) AND CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY TO APPROVE THE CONSENT AGENDA. AGENDA ITEM 6 UNFINISHED BUISNESS: None AGENDA ITEM 7 NEW BUSINESS: None. AGENDA ITEM 8 OTHER BUSINESS: Fall burn period: Leahnette said this November’s burn period will only run for one week and two weekends, and it is covers a period of two weeks and three weekends. MOVED (MARSON), SECONDED (HARRISON) AND CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY TO EXTEND THE FALL 2015 BURN PERIOD TO RUN FROM NOVEMBER 7, 2015 THROUGH NOVEMBER 22, 2015. AGENDA ITEM 9 ADJOURNMENT: There being no further business to come before the Council, the meeting adjourned 7:02 p.m. APPROVED: _______________________________________ Cheryl A. Young Mayor ATTEST: ___________________________________ Leahnette Rivers City Administrator/Recorder