Committee of the Whole

200 South Hamilton Road City of Gahanna Gahanna, Ohio 43230 Meeting Minutes Committee of the Whole Jamie Leeseberg, Chair Karen J. Angelou Brian D. Larick Nancy R. McGregor Brian Metzbower Stephen A. Renner Michael Schnetzer Kimberly Banning, Clerk of Council Monday, June 26, 2017 7:00 PM Council Committee Rooms CALL TO ORDER Chair Leeseberg called the meeting 7:00 p.m. Present 7 - Brian Metzbower, Nancy R. McGregor, Karen J. Angelou, Stephen A. Renner, Brian D. Larick, Jamie Leeseberg, and Michael Schnetzer UPDATES FROM THE FIRE DEPARTMENTS - Mifflin Township Fire Department Chief Kauser provided an update to Council; did a comparison from last year to this year; about 3% above with the run count; had a few significant fires in the last 30 days; one was a single family residence; stats are stable; still averaging about 2 runs a day on the freeway; commended the Service Department and Police Department with the Blues and Jazz Festival; best overall planning and coordinating with events to date; currently working with the Police Department on a radio grant program that will install new radio consoles in the MECC Center and Police; working on July 4th events; also working closely with Development Director on sale of Johnstown Road parcel; no updates on dispatching center; goal is every adult size individual in the City will know CPR; just completed review of budget; where we need to be; Leeseberg asked about natural gas emergencies; asked if we have taken advantage of Columbia Gas facility; Kauser said just beginning working with their staff; is an amazing facility; respond to almost 1 a day in our district in terms of natural gas incidents; Renner said he was sad to hear about the house fire; asked if there was a cause determined; Kauser said not sure he can release that yet; everyone was okay; was a significant fire. City of Gahanna Page 1 Committee of the Whole Meeting Minutes June 26, 2017 - Jefferson Township Fire Department Not available. 2017-0140 Mifflin Township Report 6/26/2017 UPDATE FROM THE DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC SAFETY 2017-0138 Director of Public Safety June 2017 Report Thomas said this morning there was a report of a drive by shooting; they received numerous calls about a possible in the area of Johnstown and Stygler; Police responded and found no evidence of gunshots; tracked people down and asked questions; there were no actual witnesses; one car backfired the exhaust possibly that caused the calls; there was not a drive by shooting; onto the report; last month someone asked about the high number of 911 calls; reminded everyone we are a primary PSAP; 40% of calls were by cell phone; these calls generated 321 reports; 33 domestic violence reports; 70 motor vehicle crashes; 29 months free of a vehicle fatality in the City; we had 7 crashes in the roundabout; witnessed an accident last week that took out a new pole; driver had a dog on her lap; happy to answer questions; Metzbower asked about specifics for drug related traffic stops; asked about production; Thomas said nothing was indicated. POSTPONED FROM CITY COUNCIL MR-0011-2017 MOTION RESOLUTION THAT THIS COUNCIL HAS NO OBJECTION TO THE NEW D5 LIQUOR PERMIT FOR BWR GAHANNA LLC, NWC OF BEECHER RD AND HAMILTON ROAD, GAHANNA, OH 43230. Angelou said asked Ewald to send them something to reference objections; spoke to him today; said he sent via email what he has; also received something from the Police Department; said we cannot just object; there has to be specific reason; event when we had a very horrific issue, it took quite a bit to be able to object; feel the pain of the people sending us letters; we kind of have our hands tied; knows the people will not understand that; there is a bar not far from that particular intersection on Hamilton Road; wants people to understand our job; Safe Routes to School will not impact this; only objected once to her knowledge and it involved a shooting at the bar; Schnetzer said understands what Angelou is saying; sympathetic to residents in the City of Gahanna Page 2 Committee of the Whole Meeting Minutes June 26, 2017 area and agrees; thinks we need to educate ourselves on what is within their authority; drawn to the bottom half of page 2; cited ORC; would like more definition for that; believes it offers considerable leeway; Leeseberg said if we object, then we are the ones trying this; will be our City Attorney or outside legal counsel; large resources that will be used; sympathetic but these things are not unique to this situation; will have a hard time proving that; McGregor said they do not technically have an address; do not know the outcome of the appeal; can anyone apply for a liquor permit without an address; seems they should have a building; Leeseberg said may be cart before the horse but not a reason to object; Larick said it may be a valid point but separate from this permit request; Renner said shares everyone's frustrations over this; not excited about what is happening with the development on this; close to residences too; understands that there is a narrow authority; was also drawn to the same bullet as Mr. Schnetzer; needs more answers; licenses are like a commodity item; follows the business and not necessarily the property; understands there is a lot more complicated in this; Banning added that we have one chance to get an extension; BZBA appeal is set for July 27th; there are no further extensions; at the July 10th Special Meeting, will still have time to submit objections and request a hearing; Schnetzer asked about first page on the document provided; Larick said the request was submitted for a 30 day extension; Angelou said interprets this as being able to request a further extension; Larick asked Banning to confirm if we can request an additional 30 days due to circumstance of the appeal; request that via email; have this as agenda item at next regular meeting for discussion; Banning suggested starting with another 30 day request and will get us past the appeal; Mayor Kneeland said if appeal is overturned, the development will not occur and there will be no need; McGregor asked if that was a financial benefit; Kneeland said yes it is. RECOMMENDATION: Postponed to July 10, 2017, Special Meeting. ITEMS FROM THE DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT ORD-0040-2017 AMENDING ORD-0214-2005, PASSED BY CITY COUNCIL ON DECEMBER 27, 2005 TO ADD ADDITIONAL PARCELS TO THE OLDE GAHANNA TIF AREA AND SUPPLEMENT THE INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS BENEFITING THE OLDE GAHANNA TIF. Jones said we are excited about a project with Mifflin Township; said City Administration has been working with Mifflin Township; City passed two TIFs in the past that have an associated revenue agreement with Mifflin for these projects; first ordinance would modify the TIF to extend elements that would go toward Mifflin Township and City of Gahanna Page 3 Committee of the Whole Meeting Minutes June 26, 2017 a new 911 center; the 2005 ordinance did not include those elements; would also include additional parcels off Johnstown Road; Al Hamm's property; want to extend the TIF into two additional parcels; the Johnstown Road TIF already includes these elements; second ordinance is a declaration; saying the monies will go toward the Mifflin Township project; will include a new 911 center, firefighting apparatus and training facility; will not cost the City dollars; has been reviewed by outside Council; will allow the Chief to speak to the project; Fire Chief Kauser said here representing Board of Trustees; is necessary to have Council approval; we simply have asked that we go back and allow the funds to be used to support these projects; primary project is a plan is a 2 story building between 6-8,000 square feet, across the street, and will have MECC and Gahanna Police share dispatching space; will occupy the second floor of that facility most likely; our support staff would occupy first floor; building will have parking in the rear; believe it will take 2 years to complete the project; anticipate that TIF funds will cover the debt; expect a $3 million dollar project; added that this creates a home for full-time employees to have a location; the training facility is just looking ahead and is conceptual; would be housed in the industrial park; will be near Columbia Gas facility; will be a place to practice skills without live fire training; is the future; McGregor concerned that this will all be in Gahanna; Kauser said yes; Angelou asked about the Council of Governments; Kauser said they subscribe; will pay a rental fee for using the facility; they pay a portion; possible that they could rent more space and bring more jobs into that space; McGregor asked if we can add the City of Gahanna location clause in the language; it is tax money from Gahanna and should be used in Gahanna; Leeseberg said it typically does; Jones said it has to be used in the TIF district; believes most appropriate way is Trustees passing an ordinance; may be difficult to identify locations; can modify declaration to state it will be in City limits; can confirm tomorrow with legal; Angelou asked how far Johnstown and Olde Gahanna TIF goes; Jones explained the boundaries; will benefit TIF district; Schnetzer asked about estimated use of apparatus; Kauser said that is about 15 years; heavy rescue is 10 years; ambulances are 3 years; Schnetzer said current proposal is to allow monies to be used for the physical plan; potentially at a later date, fire and training facility; McGregor asked if it is just north of Olde Gahanna; Jones explained where the district was modified to include additional parcels. RECOMMENDATION: Regular Agenda. ORD-0041-2017 APPROVING CERTAIN EXPENDITURES FROM THE JOHNSTOWN ROAD TIF AND THE OLDE GAHANNA TIF FOR CERTAIN PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENT DIRECTLY BENEFITING City of Gahanna Page 4 Committee of the Whole Meeting Minutes June 26, 2017 THOSE TIF AREAS. See discussion under ORD-0040-2017. RECOMMENDATION: Regular Agenda. MR-0020-2017 MOTION RESOLUTION THAT THIS COUNCIL HAS NO OBJECTION TO THE TREX D-2 LIQUOR PERMIT FOR LOCAL CANTINA, 101 MILL STREET, GAHANNA, OH 43230. Jones said we have a liquor license transfer for Local Cantina; they currently have a beer and spirits license; would like to include wine; we see no objection; additional services can only benefit us. RECOMMENDATION: Consent Agenda. ITEM FROM THE DIRECTOR OF PARKS & RECREATION MR-0018-2017 MOTION RESOLUTION TO TRANSFER FUNDS IN THE AMOUNT OF $20,000 FROM ACCOUNT NO. 101.431.5102, PARKS DEPUTY DIRECTOR TO ACCOUNT NO. 101.431.5531, PARKS LAND ACQUISITION FOR THE PURCHASE OF THE VFW PROPERTY. Barr said this is a request to transfer funds for the VFW property; from the vacant deputy position funds; Leeseberg asked if there have been additional conversations with St. Matthew’s; Barr said yes. RECOMMENDATION: Consent Agenda. ITEM FROM THE CITY ENGINEER ORD-0042-2017 TO AUTHORIZE THE MAYOR TO SIGN A RIGHT-OF-WAY ACQUISITION AND UTILITY RELOCATION AGREEMENT WITH THE CITY OF COLUMBUS TO NEGOTIATE RIGHT-OF-WAY NEEDED FOR THE HAMILTON ROAD PHASE A WIDENING PROJECT. Priestas said this is to widen Hamilton Road north of Morse and a small section between Morse and Trellis Lane; they are preparing to acquire right of way; they need this to do it on our behalf; McGregor asked if that is on Columbus; Priestas said report should read northbound; Angleou asked if the culvert on Morse will be part of this; Priestas said will be widened; Angelou said Morse Road gets a lot of traffic; lot of residential in that area; Priestas confirmed sidewalks are confirmed with this project; Angelou asked if this is funded through Safe Routes to Schools; Priestas said it is not; first phase was complete and this will complete the second phase. City of Gahanna Page 5 Committee of the Whole Meeting Minutes June 26, 2017 RECOMMENDATION: Consent Agenda. DISCUSSION ITEM FROM THE DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC SERVICE - Substitute HB49 Discussion Franey said the Mayor wanted us to be able to have a discussion regarding HB49; basically this house bill asked that all communities pay the same for the water commodity; removes annexation restrictions; that is boiling it down to the most basic issues; is very complex; one reason why it may not be a good idea; as of today, it was in the Senate Conference Committee; does not believe it will be pulled out of the budget; Columbus has drafted a letter to the Governor; many are opposed; said it is concerning; it is silent with regard to contracts; there are 6 master meter communities; that uncertainty is concerning; if existing contracts are grandfathered, wonder what effect this will have; think that Columbus tries to make good business decisions; would this require them to provide water to a community that was not good business; if not grandfathered, even more concerning; contract would be way more concerning; in a master meter, we already maintain our own lines and are responsible; do not know that Columbus would be compelled to maintaining those lines; the part referencing rates, there is no question that if this went through, there would be a massive rate study; that is uncertainty; if right now we paid the same rates as Columbus, the basis before we put our surcharge would be about $20 more than what residents pay now a quarter; right now, the City of Columbus will do capital projects to serve a community; not sure if they will translate to all our rates; do not know; City of Columbus bears a risk of bonding; if competition was greater, have to believe risk is higher; could translate to higher rates; Columbus does not charge Gahanna for water capacity; not sure if that would change; also Columbus' consent order with EPA; they were ordered to separate storm and sanitary lines; suburbs were believed to use 10% of lines; they take that and split among all suburbs; if all rates go the same, may all share that; contacted the City of Columbus to ask their options; they said Mount Air contacted them to service failing system; they would have to extend the main line; they said they could obtain water under Franklin County; Columbus told them there is a parcel on the north side that is already annexed into Columbus; if they annex in, they could recuperate some of their money when the development would go in; annexation portion is more political or development related; Mayor Kneeland said question came about because Mayors of other municipalities took a stand against it; many things in it that they felt were not good; bill was written to help specific municipalities and not in general; Renner said HB49 is a fiscal operations bill for 2018-2019; an amendment was added to the operating bill; it is likely going to house floor on Wednesday; will then City of Gahanna Page 6 Committee of the Whole Meeting Minutes June 26, 2017 go to Senate; Mayor Kneeland said will find out if there is support after Wednesday; stand firmly on his position on it; believes it is a bad bill; Metzbower said understood this only applies to the Columbus area because of the population; Franey said others do the same thing as Columbus; but they are being called out; Angelou said when the casino went up in the area, they couldn't get water because they didn't want a casino downtown; said we pay more for water and sanitary than they do in Columbus; believes this is ridiculous; this is going to create a disaster in terms of the relationships; do not know MORPCs position; McGregor said there must be some support somewhere because they have a hearing; Metzbower asked if this is just a central Ohio issue; Angelou asked if there was anything attached; McGregor asked if people are speaking against this; Ohio Municipal League. ITEM FROM THE CLERK OF COUNCIL ORD-0043-2017 TO AUTHORIZE THE MAYOR TO ENTER INTO AGREEMENT WITH CLERKBASE FOR THE ONBOARD WEB APPLICATION PORTAL FOR PURPOSES OF ENTERING, TRACKING AND REPORTING BOARD, COMMISSION AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS. Banning said we have an antiquated system to track appointments; is an obsolete software; not user-friendly and people are using Excel spreadsheets; said Holbrook was able to attend a conference and witness this software; is a web-based software; will manage tracking; would be beneficial to other departments; would not be on your computer but web-based; this software is $1,200 year; will prorate it this year; have funds this year; would budget each year for this moving forward; met with IT and there will be no additional cost; is a minimal cost to manage our boards and commissions; said Shane has reviewed the contract; one feature that they are adding is an application module; will be an ongoing backfile of members interested in boards and commissions; Larick asked if this includes monitoring and tracking subcommittees; Banning said yes; Larick asked roughly how many positions we have today; Banning said 75 rough estimate; would be $100/month to the end of the year; said we also have a 30 day trial period built in; Larick asked how we see implementation internally; Banning said we are working on an internal process for onboarding boards and commissions; will meet with all stakeholders; Jones added that this would be helpful for their department; Metzbower asked if there has been discussion with this being a shared expense; Banning added that it is a minimal cost; we have always housed TermTracker; we have administrative rights; has always been housed in Council; Metzbower asked if we have explored other options that are just as effective; Banning said a spreadsheet City of Gahanna Page 7 Committee of the Whole Meeting Minutes June 26, 2017 does not have the capabilities; not a good use of this process; this tells us if there has been an overlap in appointments or we have an upcoming appointment; there are other software that we looked at that were way more expensive; one company is $6,000/year; Larick asked about Granicus; if want to use that it is an additional $6,000/year; Banning confirmed; Schnetzer asked if we can lock in for more than 1 year at the $1,200 rate; Banning said only increase would be new portal; could not increase price without Council approval. RECOMMENDATION: Consent Agenda. ADJOURNMENT 8:17 p.m. City of Gahanna Page 8