City Council

Mayor Mark S. Nexsen Lake Havasu City Vice Mayor Don Callahan Lake Havasu City Police Facility Councilmember Crystal Alger 2360 McCulloch Blvd North Councilmember Dean Barlow Councilmember Donna Brister Regular Meeting Minutes - Final Lake Havasu City, Arizona 86403 www.lhcaz.gov Councilmember Jeni Coke Councilmember David McAtlin City Council Tuesday, January 28, 2014 6:00 pm Regular Meeting 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. INVOCATION: Pastor Doug Bock, Lamb of God Lutheran Church 3. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE 4. ROLL CALL Present: 7- Mayor Mark S. Nexsen, Councilmember Dean Barlow, Councilmember Crystal Alger, Councilmember Donna Brister, Vice Mayor Don Callahan, Councilmember Jeni Coke and Councilmember David McAtlin 5. CALL TO THE PUBLIC Mr. Lonnie Taylor addressed the Council and stated he was present to voice his feelings concerning the new City logo, “Play Like You Mean It” which was chosen to replace “Home of the London Bridge” that has been the City logo for around 40 years. He said it seemed as though the City is reaching out to appease a younger group of people that might possibly care less about the history of the London Bridge, Lake Havasu City, or the vision that Mr. Robert McCulloch had when he decided to found the City and bring the London Bridge here. Mr. Taylor said allowing this new slogan to come into play and replacing one that has worked so well throughout the years, shows a lack of respect for Mr. McCulloch, the founder of the city. Mr. Jay Coombs addressed the council and said what he opposes is the very concept of rebranding the city. He added that he opposed the City’s “Play Like You Mean It” license agreement with the Convention and Visitor’s Bureau (CVB). Mr. Coombs said he does not have issues with the CVB using it as an advertising slogan as long as it supports the iconic brand “Home of the London Bridge”. He added that established brands and catchy slogans are designed to work together and in this case it is a destination. He said in his opinion it does not make sense for the city to forfeit or Lake Havasu City Page 1 Printed on 2/25/2014 City Council Regular Meeting Minutes - January 28, 2014 Final change its iconic brand “Home of the London Bridge”. He asked the Council the following questions; 1) if the City would be willing to revisit the decision of the rebrand; 2) if the City would be willing to allow the voters to decide in the November election; and 3) if Mayor Nexsen would be willing to discuss rebranding at his next public coffee session. Mayor Nexsen stated that all topics are open for discussion at the coffee sessions. 6. CONSENT AGENDA 6.1 ID 14-0075 Approval of January 14, 2014, Work Session and Regular Meeting Minutes 6.2 ID 14-0054 Recommend Approval of a Special Event Liquor License Application for the Vietnam Veterans Celebration on March 29, 2014, at SARA Park, 7260 Dub Campbell Parkway/Campbell-Nagel 6.3 ID 14-0044 Adopt Resolution No. 14-2793 Approving Mohave County Sheriff's Office User Agreement - NCIC/ACJIS Data 6.4 ID 14-0058 Call for Executive Session Pursuant to A.R.S. 38-431.03(A) 3:00 p.m. Tuesday, February 11, 2014. Councilmember McAtlin moved to approve the Consent Agenda as presented, seconded by Councilmember Coke. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 7 - Mayor Nexsen, Councilmember Barlow, Councilmember Alger, Councilmember Brister, Vice Mayor Callahan, Councilmember Coke and Councilmember McAtlin 7. CORRESPONDENCE, COMMUNICATIONS, PETITIONS, ANNOUNCEMENTS, CITY MANAGER REPORT 7.1 ID 14-0059 Announce Vacancies on Lake Havasu City Boards, Committees, and Commissions City Clerk Kelly Williams announced the current vacancies for various Lake Havasu City Boards, Committees, and Commissions. 7.2 ID 14-0048 FY13-14 1st Quarter Reports of Grant Agencies Mayor Nexsen noted that this item was for informational purposes only. 7.3 ID 14-0060 FY13-14 1st Quarter Reports of Contracted Agencies Mayor Nexsen noted that this item was for informational purposes only. Lake Havasu City Page 2 Printed on 2/25/2014 City Council Regular Meeting Minutes - January 28, 2014 Final 7.4 ID 14-0064 Quarterly Investment Report at December 31, 2013 Councilmember Callahan asked if the correct interest for the year to date was $642,000, to which Administrative Services Director Valerie Fenske said that number was the previous year’s total, and the City is earning a little less interest now which is a reflection of lower interest rates. 7.5 ID 14-0057 City Manager’s Report City Manager Charlie Cassens reported on the following: • Transit has been notified by the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) that grant funds for vehicle maintenance and mechanic salaries have increased this year from 58 percent to 90 percent reimbursement which will reduce the Fiscal Year 2013-14 general fund subsidy for transit by about $48,000. • Lake Havasu City in cooperation with the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) will offer the 5th Annual Electronic Recycling Event, Saturday, February 8, 2014, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Police Department parking lot. • City received a rating notification from Standard and Poor’s, they have upgraded the City’s GO Bond Rating from an A+ to a AA- and sited many reasons for their rational; one being that they view the City’s management conditions as strongly supported by good financial practices. 8. PUBLIC HEARINGS 8.1 ID 14-0009 Introduce Ordinance No. 14-1106 Amending City Code Section 11.06.300 to Extend City Park Hours to 11:00 p.m. City Attorney Kelly Garry stated that prior to winter break, the City was requested to leave the skate park lights on until 11 p.m. Ms. Garry said after a successful trial run, it has now been requested that the City permanently leave the skate park lights on until 11 p.m. She said for this to be accomplished, the City Code needs to be amended to allow the parks to be open until 11 p.m. Ms. Garry added that this item was presented to the department heads and no concerns were expressed. Mayor Nexsen opened the public hearing. There being no comments, he closed the public hearing. Vice Mayor Callahan moved to introduce Ordinance No. 14-1106 amending Section 11.06.300 of the Lake Havasu City Code to extend City park hours to 11:00 p.m., seconded by Councilmember Barlow. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 7 - Mayor Nexsen, Councilmember Barlow, Councilmember Alger, Councilmember Brister, Vice Mayor Callahan, Councilmember Coke and Councilmember McAtlin 8.2 ID 14-0066 Introduce Ordinance No. 14-1107 to Repeal Article XIV of Chapter 11.04 (Sections 11.04.1000 - 11.04.1040) of the Lake Havasu City Code to Lake Havasu City Page 3 Printed on 2/25/2014 City Council Regular Meeting Minutes - January 28, 2014 Final Decommission the Public Works Advisory Board Ms. Garry advised that at the recent City Council retreat there was discussion regarding some of the boards, their functions, and trouble achieving quorums. She added that staff suggested decommissioning some of the boards that are less utilized at this time and establishing a process where if an item comes up the City Council would create an Ad Hoc Committee to review items on a case by case basis. Ms. Garry said this item is the introduction of an ordinance to decommission the Public Works Advisory Board (PWAB) and remove it from the City Code. Mayor Nexsen opened the public hearing. There being no comments, he closed the public hearing. Councilmember Barlow said he has served on a couple of commissions throughout the years and it is very frustrating when you volunteer to serve on committees and are not given specific direction or charge from the City Council. Councilmember Callahan said he wanted to reiterate, for the benefit of the public, that the Council would be eliminating this particular board but not necessarily the process. He said if there is a need, the Council would establish an Ad Hoc Committee or Blue Ribbon Committee for a particular job or problem which would be a much better use of public talent. Councilmember Alger said she received a few phone calls from some of the members of the PWAB who were a little frustrated. She said they liked their job; but felt with the board being cancelled, rescheduled, or having nothing on the agenda, they felt they were not really used for their position. She said they would really like to have a voice regarding anything that is coming up in the future regarding public works projects. Mayor Nexsen said it was Councilmember McAtlin who asked that the PWAB be established during the sewer project. He said interestingly enough, there was the discussion at the Great Arizona Mayor’s Association Meeting (GAMA) and all of the cities and towns are struggling getting enough volunteers for their boards and commissions and several are going through the aspect of pooling people. He agreed that he does not like to go to a board meeting when there is nothing to talk about and added that those volunteers would probably be better off getting together for a single project and then disbanding after the project is complete so they do not meet every month with literally nothing to do. Councilmember McAtlin said at the time the PWAB was formed there were a lot of things going with the sewer project and projects with the streets. He added that it was a very involved board, but over time most of those things have been taken care of and it has come to the point where there is nothing to bring up at the meetings. Councilmember Brister said this does not mean the City does not need these people anymore, but Lake Havasu City Page 4 Printed on 2/25/2014 City Council Regular Meeting Minutes - January 28, 2014 Final there were not enough volunteers to meet the requirements for holding a meeting. She encouraged everyone who would like to get involved to volunteer. Operations Director Gary Parsons said many of the departments have moved to more of a maintenance function and do not have as many new projects for the board to discuss. He said there are going to be plenty of opportunities for major projects in the City that do occur. He said one example is the establishment of the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO). Councilmember Callahan moved to introduce Ordinance No. 14-1107 repealing Article XIV of Chapter 11.04, Sections 11.04.1000 – 11.04.1040, of the Lake Havasu City Code to decommission the Public Works Advisory Board, seconded by Councilmember Barlow. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 6 - Mayor Nexsen, Councilmember Barlow, Councilmember Brister, Vice Mayor Callahan, Councilmember Coke and Councilmember McAtlin Nay: 1 - Councilmember Alger 8.3 ID 14-0069 Introduce Ordinance No. 14-1108 to Repeal Chapter 12.09, Development Advisory Board, of the Lake Havasu City Code to Decommission the Development Advisory Board. Ms. Garry said this recommendation is to decommission the Development Advisory Board (DAB). Ms. Garry added that the DAB has not met for several years and this ordinance would remove it from the City Code. Mayor Nexsen opened the public hearing. There being no comments, he closed the public hearing. Councilmember McAtlin stated that this board was formed to follow up on the Scoutten Report. He said it was a good board and served a good purpose. Councilmember Barlow moved to introduce Ordinance No. 14-1108 repealing Chapter 12.09, Development Advisory Board, of the Lake Havasu City Code to decommission the Development Advisory Board, seconded by Vice Mayor Callahan. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 7 - Mayor Nexsen, Councilmember Barlow, Councilmember Alger, Councilmember Brister, Vice Mayor Callahan, Councilmember Coke and Councilmember McAtlin 8.4 ID 14-0074 Adopt Resolution No. 14-2795 to Establish an Application Process for Reasonable Accommodation Requests by or for Persons with Disabilities, Approve a Reasonable Accommodation Guide and Forms, Authorize the City Manager to Appoint a Hearing Officer, and Declare an Emergency Lake Havasu City Page 5 Printed on 2/25/2014 City Council Regular Meeting Minutes - January 28, 2014 Final Ms. Garry said the proposed resolution would create an application process specifically for persons who would like to request a reasonable accommodation relating to the City’s zoning and land use regulations policies and practices when needed to provide an individual with a disability an equal opportunity to use and enjoy a land dwelling. She added that the resolution sets forth forms and an application that could be used by an individual to make the request for reasonable accommodation and sets forth a process in which that reasonable accommodation will be heard. Ms. Garry said the ordinance states the request would be heard by a hearing officer so all the information by the applicant and the City would be submitted to that hearing officer. She added that the hearing officer would have a public hearing where the evidence would be presented from both sides and public testimony may be requested by the hearing officer to make a determination. Mayor Nexsen clarified that the hearing officer would not be a City employee and this would be a public hearing not be behind closed doors. Ms. Garry replied that was correct. Councilmember Alger asked if this process would take the responsibility away from the Council, to which Mayor Nexsen explained that there would still be a meeting before the Council and the hearing examiner would be the next step. Ms. Garry further explained that this is only related to a request for accommodation so the Council would not be making that determination. She said that determination would be made by a hearing officer specifically and would be the end of the administrative process. Discussion followed concerning other cities and their request for accommodations. Ms. Garry said staff felt it was best to put the decision in the hands of somebody who has the expertise, the knowledge, and experience to make an informed decision regarding the request for accomodations. Mayor Nexsen asked if the Council would still go through the same process if a conditional use permit were denied by the Planning & Zoning Commission, if it would go before Council and if Council denied the request, then would it go to a reasonable accommodation request. Ms. Garry explained that if the reasonable accommodation process was in place they would not necessarily have to go through a different process, they could request a reasonable accommodation first. She added that there is no requirement that you have to do one process over the other. Councilmember Barlow said in going through the background information on this item, he was curious about the appeal process from the hearing officer and found there was none because at the end of the administrative process, the next step would be through the trial process. Ms. Garry advised that whether you put the final decision making capabilities on the Council or a hearing officer that would be the conclusion of the administrative process. She added that if anybody wanted to challenge that, they would have to challenge it through a legal proceeding through the Lake Havasu City Page 6 Printed on 2/25/2014 City Council Regular Meeting Minutes - January 28, 2014 Final courts. Councilmember Barlow said he would be very much in favor of having an outside hearing officer rather than somebody within the City simply because it removes any question of favoritism or conflict of interest and thought that was an important point. Councilmember McAtlin said for clarification, the hearing officer would be the final decision and they would not come back to the City Council, to which Ms. Garry replied that was correct. She stated that would be the final decision of the City and would be the completion of the administrative process. Mayor Nexsen asked if any other cities have a two or three tiered process, possibly a hearing officer first then council second. Ms. Garry said she did not find anywhere where the hearing officer makes a decision and then it comes back to Council or some other administrative level. She said typically when you take it to the hearing officer that is the final decision. Ms. Garry advised that the Council could make it a recommendation from the hearing officer where the Council would make the final decision, but stated she would not recommend that. Councilmember Brister asked who the hearing officer would be, to which Ms. Garry replied that there are hearing officers, attorneys that practice as hearing officers, and associations of hearing officers. She added that staff would seek somebody who has been through hearings in Arizona regarding reasonable accomodations, someone who has knowledge of the laws that surround the issue and some expertise and experience in the hearing officer realm. Councilmember Callahan said what staff is recommending is that the hearing officer be appointed by the City Manager, to which Ms. Garry replied yes. Mayor Nexsen opened the public hearing. Mr. Brian Riley addressed the Council and thanked them for establishing these guidelines. He said in the section titled “Guide”, paragraph 4, the last sentence reads “the accommodation hearing officer may issue a decision, seek additional information from you, or conduct a public hearing after providing at least seven days notice”. Mr. Riley said this implies that there may be some limitation of public input under this process and wanted to make sure that is provided for and citizens have the ability to make comment on any application for this type of accommodation. He suggested the language be changed to “the accommodation officer may seek additional information from you, then conduct a public hearing after seven days notice”. Ms. Garry advised that staff could make that change. Lake Havasu City Page 7 Printed on 2/25/2014 City Council Regular Meeting Minutes - January 28, 2014 Final Ms. Laura Smith addressed the Council and stated that she personally liked the application and how it is worded and written as it brings up and identifies the specific reasons that they would be requesting the accommodation. Ms. Smith said she did not like transferring the power that was given to the City Council to one person to make a decision and also did not like that there is no appeal process. She said basically, the City is forcing people to get an attorney and not everybody can afford one. Ms. Smith said the way it is written as far as how the person is appointed or hired is not clear when you read through that language. She thought a more appropriate process if the City wants a hearing officer is to let them review the application, let them come to a determination and if it is no, they can submit it to the applicant. She said if the applicant wants to appeal it they then have an appeal process for the applicant. Ms. Smith added that if a variance is granted then the appropriate board or entity should take that through the next phase of the process. Ms. Smith said currently the City Code addresses an administrative hearing officer in Section 14.60.080(b) and wondered if there would be two different hearing officers or would this hearing officer cover the duties currently handled by the Planning and Zoning Commission. She added that there was not a clear definition of these individuals. Mayor Nexsen said it was his understanding that the accommodation hearing officer could be somebody different every time a request was made. He added that this would not be an employee but would be an outside individual, likely an attorney that is familiar with reasonable accommodation cases. Ms. Smith replied that was not clear and stated that is a very controversial issue on reasonable accommodation and there is a lot of case law out there where it can go either way. She said one of the biggest issues is, does the disability create the condition or would they have that condition anyway. Ms. Smith said she did not like pulling it completely out of the hands of the local government, which is what is being done by having a hearing officer. Ms. Smith said her other questions is, if you go to the Arizona Revised Statues it addresses commission and hearing officers and she wondered how much power the hearing officer would have. Ms. Smith said if you take something that normally requires a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) and you provide a variance, is that hearing officer then going to take over where the Commission normally would go through the CUP process. Mayor Nexsen explained that with a disability you do not have to go through the CUP process as Federal Law allows them to do that. Discussion followed concerning the CUP process and the reasonable accommodation process. Ms. Smith then said for a reasonable accommodation if this was a zoning issue, does it go before a hearing officer or back to the Planning Commission. Ms. Garry explained that the reasonable accommodation would not go back to the Planning Commission but would go to the hearing Lake Havasu City Page 8 Printed on 2/25/2014 City Council Regular Meeting Minutes - January 28, 2014 Final officer who would make a determination whether the request for reasonable accommodation should be granted or should not be granted, with or without conditions, whatever their decision might be. Ms. Smith said she did not like that there was no appeal process and thought they should be able to appeal it to somebody. She added that she thought taking the control away and the closeness to the local community was not right and felt there needed to be more detail. There being no further comments, Mayor Nexsen closed the public hearing. Councilmember Alger stated that she agreed with Ms. Smith in regards to taking the responsibility away from local government. She said the justice system is not always fair and thought it should either be a two tiered system or an appeal system. Councilmember Alger added that she liked having seven councilmembers making a decision and not just one hearing officer. Ms. Garry said if that is the direction the Council wanted to go then she needs to know what process they want to use. She added that this is a complicated area and the process before the Council was being recommended by herself and outside council. Councilmember McAtlin said he would rather have a review officer with a recommendation to the Council, with the Council making the final determination. Mayor Nexsen said he really believed a hearing officer needed to be involved at some level because the cases are so complicated with so many different paths to go down. He said he would like to see somebody that has experience with reasonable accomodations. Mayor Nexsen added that the idea of a recommendation to Council is not a bad idea but expressed concern that this has to be a fairly expeditious process. He added there is value to what Councilmember Barlow said about taking the local entity out so you take the local bias out. Ms. Garry advised that would also help insulate the City a little bit as far as liability goes. She added that by bringing it back under the Council’s control, if the Council does not like the recommendation or wants to change the recommendation, the City would probably be challenged. She said the Council would have to have a really good basis not to accept that recommendation after the City chose somebody as a hearing officer who has that knowledge and expertise. Councilmember Callahan asked if the applicants or the parties involved beyond the decision of the hearing officer can go to litigation at that point, to which Ms. Garry answered that if the party is dissatisfied with the hearing officer’s decision they can challenge just the same as they can challenge the City Council’s decision once it is complete. Lake Havasu City Page 9 Printed on 2/25/2014 City Council Regular Meeting Minutes - January 28, 2014 Final Mayor Nexsen asked if there was an in-between step if the applicant does not like the recommendation but decide they do not care about another public hearing. He asked if there was some way that they could accept the hearing officer’s decision or do one final appeal, to which Ms. Garry said if what Mayor Nexsen is asking is create an appeal to the City Council of the hearing officer’s decision, she would not recommend that as it would place the City Council in a role they would not want to be in and would not be appropriate. Councilmember Barlow said the only way the Council can put an end to some of the questions is to go with a hearing officer. He added that otherwise there would be an endless challenge whether there was prejudice or bias involved. He said he agreed with the logic in it being the last process in the administrative process and added that there are plenty of steps with the court. Councilmember Coke asked how many of requests come through in a year, to which Ms. Garry stated there was no way to predict that. Mayor Nexsen said he was torn between some ideas on both sides and that the citizens want the City Council to make good sound decisions. He said these kinds of things are so complex, the City needs to find somebody that is familiar with the cases, familiar with the law, and is experienced. He said on that basis, he thought the hearing officer was probably the right answer. Councilmember Barlow added that he agreed with Councilmember Alger in that this is taking power away from the local people, but that is exactly what the law was intended to do and they did it very effectively. Councilmember Barlow moved to adopt Resolution No. 14-2795 establishing an application Process for reasonable accommodation requests by or for persons with disabilities, approving a reasonable accommodation guide and forms, authorizing the City Manager to appoint a hearing officer, and declaring an emergency, seconded by Vice Mayor Callahan. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 6 - Mayor Nexsen, Councilmember Barlow, Councilmember Brister, Vice Mayor Callahan, Councilmember Coke and Councilmember McAtlin Nay: 1 - Councilmember Alger 8.6 ID 14-0050 Approve Expenditures to Exceed $40,000 with Chapman Ford to Purchase Five (5) 2014 Ford Pickup Trucks Maintenance Services Division Manager Mark Clark advised that the item before Council was a housekeeping measure to approve paint expenditures anticipated to be over $40,000. Mayor Nexsen opened the public hearing. There being no comments, he closed the public hearing. Lake Havasu City Page 10 Printed on 2/25/2014 City Council Regular Meeting Minutes - January 28, 2014 Final Vice Mayor Callahan moved to approve and authorize the Vehicle Maintenance Section to purchase five (5) Ford Pickup Trucks from Chapman Ford, for a total that may exceed the $40,000 threshold and utilize the Arizona State Procurement Office Contracts as applicable to keep the fleet operating at optimum efficiency, seconded by Councilmember Barlow. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 7 - Mayor Nexsen, Councilmember Barlow, Councilmember Alger, Councilmember Brister, Vice Mayor Callahan, Councilmember Coke and Councilmember McAtlin 8.5 ID 14-0034 Approve Expenditures Exceeding $40,000 with Ennis Paint, Inc., for Annual Traffic Paint Supply Mr. Clark stated that the item before Council is to approve expenditures over $40,000 for the purchase of five Ford pickup trucks. Mayor Nexsen opened the public hearing. There being no comments, he closed the public hearing. Vice Mayor Callahan moved to approve expenditures exceeding $40,000 with Ennis Paint, Inc., utilizing the ADOT State Contract Blanket Order No. ADSPO13-036207, for the purchase of waterborne fast dry traffic paint, seconded by Councilmember Alger. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 7 - Mayor Nexsen, Councilmember Barlow, Councilmember Alger, Councilmember Brister, Vice Mayor Callahan, Councilmember Coke and Councilmember McAtlin 9. CURRENT EVENTS Mayor Nexsen reported that the next “Coffee with the Mayor” would be held on Friday, February 7, 2014, at 7:30 a.m. at Jersey’s Grill. 10. CALL TO THE PUBLIC Ms. Laura Smith addressed the Council and said she wished the Council had looked at a lot of the language that was proposed in Agenda Item 8.4. She said the law is not black and white, and at least with the Council making the decisions they would take local factors into account. She expressed concern that an attorney may lean so far to accommodate that the City loses their zoning. 11. FUTURE MEETINGS Tuesday, February 11, 2014, @ 4:00 p.m. - Work Session Tuesday, February 11, 2014, @ 6:00 p.m. - Regular Meeting 12. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS Councilmember Callahan requested a future agenda item to address abandoned and burned out Lake Havasu City Page 11 Printed on 2/25/2014 City Council Regular Meeting Minutes - January 28, 2014 Final property. 13. ADJOURN Upon motion by Vice Mayor Callahan and seconded, the meeting adjourned at 7:13 p.m. CERTIFICATION I hereby certify that the foregoing is a full and true copy of the Regular Meeting Minutes of the Lake Havasu City Council held on the 28th day of January, 2014. I further certify that the meeting was duly called and posted, and that a quorum was present. ____________________________________ Kelly Williams, City Clerk Lake Havasu City Page 12 Printed on 2/25/2014