City Council

REGULAR MEETING November 20, 2018: The regular meeting of the Common Council of the City of Morgantown was held in the Council Chambers of City Hall on Tuesday, November 20, 2018, at 7:25 pm. PRESENT: City Manager Paul Brake, Assistant City Manager Emily Muzzarelli, City Clerk Christine Wade, Mayor William Kawecki, and Council Members: Rachel Fetty, Ryan Wallace, Deputy Mayor Jenny Selin, Ron Dulaney, and Barry Wendell. City Attorney Ryan Simonton was absent. The meeting was called to order by Mayor Kawecki. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Special Meeting minutes for November 7, 2018; and Regular Meeting minutes for November 7, 2018; approved as amended. CORRESPONDENCE: Mayor Kawecki read a Proclamation for Small Business Saturday. He presented a Proclamation to Mr. Roark Sizemore for Giving Tuesday. Mr. Sizemore shared a few words to include that there are approximately 2,600 children without food and with hard working people in this community we can find solutions to problems such as this Councilor Fetty shared that she received a piece of correspondence from Linda Durfee who is requesting additional signage and a correction of a sign around Morgantown High School. She is requesting signage issues to be discussed at an upcoming Committee of the Whole. Said correspondence will be forwarded to the Mayor and the City Clerk’s office for future viewing. Councilor Fetty also received correspondence from Susan Hine who has requested that we look into a situation that involves water and sewer pipes that run through her property that have been broken by a neighbor, and there is some concern because it doesn’t appear that anyone can help. To view this correspondence, contact the City Clerk’s office. Councilor Wallace stated that he received an email from Dana Johnson of the Monongalia County Animal Control who said thank you for passing the most recent revised ordinance prohibiting cruel treatment of animals. She advised that they were able to take action on a case of animal cruelty that she has been watching for the last five years and was finally able to address that based on this ordinance. Councilor Wallace also advised that he received communication from a member of the Wards and Boundaries Commission asking when and how Council will take action on the letter or the statement that was produced by the Wards and Boundaries Commission. Councilor Wallace will present that to the City Manager and the Mayor and ask if we can get back to Mr. Banks and the Wards and Boundaries Commission and address the issue. PUBLIC HEARING: AN ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING A LEASE AGREEMENT BETWEEN EMPIRE 2000, LLC AND THE CITY OF MORGANTOWN FOR LAND TO BE DESIGNATED AS “EATON PARK” Mayor Kawecki declared the Public hearing open. There being no appearances, mayor Kawecki declared the Public Hearing closed. PUBLIC HEARING: AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE FY 2018-2019 ANNUAL BUDGET OF THE CITY OF MORGANTOWN AS SHOWN IN THE REVISED BUDGET ATTACHED HERETO AND MADE A PART OF THIS ORDINANCE AS THE SAME APPLIES TO THE GENERAL FUND Mayor Kawecki declared the Public hearing open. There being no appearances, mayor Kawecki declared the Public Hearing closed. UNFINISHED BUSINESS: AN ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING A LEASE AGREEMENT FOR LAND TO BE DESIGNATED AS “EATON PARK”: The below entitled Ordinance was presented for second reading. AN ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING A LEASE AGREEMENT BETWEEN EMPIRE 2000, LLC AND THE CITY OF MORGANTOWN FOR LAND TO BE DESIGNATED AS “EATON PARK” City Manager explained, after discussion, motion by Councilor Brazaitis, second by Councilor Selin, to adopt the above entitled Ordinance. Motion carried 7-0. AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE FY 2018-2019 ANNUAL BUDGET: The below entitled Ordinance was presented for second reading. AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE FY 2018-2019 ANNUAL BUDGET OF THE CITY OF MORGANTOWN AS SHOWN IN THE REVISED BUDGET ATTACHED HERETO AND MADE A PART OF 1 THIS ORDINANCE AS THE SAME APPLIES TO THE GENERAL FUND City Manager explained, after discussion, motion by Councilor Dulaney, second by Councilor Fetty, to adopt the above entitled Ordinance. Motion carried 7-0. BOARDS & COMMISSIONS: Mayor Kawecki shared that there were Interviews for Land Reuse and Preservation Agency and MUB this evening. One more applicant for MUB yet to interview. MUB management has requested that they make a presentation to the City Council before a selection is made. We will concede. Plan to spend more time on November 27, 2018, to discuss the applicants. Nothing to report on boards and commissions currently. PUBLIC PORTION: Mayor Kawecki declared the Public Portion open. Michael Clifford, 145 South High Street, shared his concerns about the Mayor’s response on the topic of an apology regarding the removal of the cherry trees in Hazel Ruby McQuain Park. He also spoke about the interview process for boards and commissions and that they should be made open to the public. There being no further speakers, Mayor Kawecki declared the Public Portion closed. SPECIAL COMMITTEE REPORTS: Councilor Wendell: Jewish institutions met with the Morgantown Police Chief and WVU Police to discuss security at Jewish institutions in the city, in light of the mass shooting that happened in Pittsburgh. Deputy Mayor Selin: The Botanic Garden Board held their annual meeting to continue developing their plan to design a building and further grow their plant collections. CONSENT AGENDA: None NEW BUSINESS: A RESOLUTION ADOPTING THE WEST VIRGINIA MUNICIPAL LEAGUE’S CIVILITY RESOLUTION ADOPTED DURING THE LEAGUE’S BOARD OF DIRECTOR’S MEETING ON OCTOBER 26, 2018 City Manager explained, after discussion, motion by Council Fetty, second by Council Selin, to approve the above entitled Ordinance to second reading. Motion carried 7-0. CITY MANAGER’S REPORT: Information: 1. General Fund Schedule of Revenues and Expenditures – Sept 2018 City Manager explained the revenues and expenditures up until the current point of the fiscal year. The data will be available online. New Business: 1. Bid on Jacobs Street Slip Repair (Bid Call 2019-04) City Manager explained, Council suspended the rules to allow City Engineer Damien Davis to explain the bid award. Motion by Councilor Dulaney, second by Councilor Brazaitis, to approve the award bid to Coastal Drilling East, LLC. in the amount of $160,810. Motion carried 7-0. REPORT FROM CITY CLERK: No Report REPORT FROM CITY ATTORNEY: No Report REPORT FROM COUNCIL MEMBERS: Councilor Fetty: Announced the First Ward Neighborhood Association meeting as December 10, 2018. She focused her comments on how thankful she is for the past year and how much she appreciates working with such an interesting and diverse group of people. She stated that the City Council has worked through many challenges and are still serving the great people of Morgantown. She shared that she is very grateful for this opportunity and is grateful for the new City Clerk. Happy Thanksgiving. Councilor Wallace: Addressed the cherry tree issue in whether the City Council should ask for a motion to issue a formal apology. After speaking with Mr. Roh today he believes a motion would be off target as the discussion was a very good one. He believes the discussion on the topic has been changed. He expects 2 some more information on this topic to be available to the public soon. Councilor Wallace personally apologized for not being more involved and not communicating more. He stated that everyone on the Council is making a sacrifice and he respects the opinions of all and he appreciates serving with them. Additionally, Councilor Wallace mentioned the $4,000.00 pledge to the County related to In Touch and Concerned interim solution. Councilor Wallace asked to suspend the rules and asked the City Manager for the status. City Manager shared that the payment is being processed. Additionally, Councilor Wallace shared his concerns for the city regarding B&O tax. He recommends the city get out of the B&O era and that some of our municipal revenue needs to be investigated and changed. For several reasons primarily to encourage our small businesses who struggle with the B&O and to capture some of the revenues that may not be captured otherwise. Also, to incentivize annexation which is another long-standing issue that the City of Morgantown must at some point deal with if we are to proceed. He shared that he will keep talking about this and would like to have an official study from city staff maybe in the new year as to the impacts of switching from a B&O tax revenue to a sales tax revenue. If home rule is not extended, we may be at a loss for this option. If we miss this opportunity, we will regret it. I ask that it be on the general agenda for the new year to modernize the economy in the City of Morgantown. Councilor Wallace also mentioned the MUB appointments and requests legal interpretation of a section of the Charter regarding those who can be appointed to the MUB as it pertains to the City Manager. He states that this does seem to be a conflict but is not an ethic issue. Councilor Wallace stated that this is worthy of our attention and would like further discussion. The City Manager shared that this concern will be discussed in the Committee of the Whole one week from that date. Councilor Wallace stated that his question is not related personally to the City Manager but how it relates to the role of the City Manager within the Charter. Lastly, on Saturday, December 1, 2018, at 10:00am there is a Snowflake 2k race fun run for the Morgantown Youth Running Club in support of BOPARC Parks and Playgrounds at the Wiles Hill BOPARC Community Center. Food and refreshments will be provided, and all are welcome. Deputy Mayor Selin: Addressed the concern with the cherry trees. In line with our discussions re civility. We would like to work with the family as much as possible. This is a living memorial. Every member of Council has expressed empathy regarding the issue of the cherry trees. We need to keep showing our actions to work with the Roh family and renovate the park as much as possible. We should all practice working together. November 24, 2018, from 2pm to 4pm, there is an Al Anderson film at the history museum regarding preserving history. She spoke with Janice from Westover who attended the meeting that we all attended with the County Commission concerning points of commonality. She shared that we should collaborate with other communities and entities on topics to perhaps increase our purchasing power. If we could contact other communities to see if there is interest. Would be wonderful to make attempts to see what might transpire. Councilor Dulaney: Echoed Wallace’s desire to study how sales tax might be implemented to offset losses that result from reducing the B&O tax. He agreed that the B&O tax is not an incentive to do business in the city, and that we should see if there are benefits to eliminate or reduce the B&O tax. He also revisited the budget report and thanked the City Manager for providing those reports for the general fund as many look forward to them. He shared that many other cities such as Huntington and Wheeling provide those types of reports on their websites. He added that when we do the same it will demonstrate transparency and show that we are good stewards of taxpayer money. The Morgantown City Hall’s Facebook page has put out an invitation for residents to take a survey related to the 5-yr. consolidated plan. The call is to have the residents express concerns, needs, ideas, barriers. He encouraged folks to inquire about this. There is a public hearing related to this same subject scheduled for Wednesday, November 28, 2018, at 6pm in City Council Chambers. The public is encouraged to attend. Lastly, the Morgantown history museum has decorated for the holiday and there is a holiday reception at the museum which is located at 175 Kirk Street. It is the Morgantown history museum, but it embraces the greater Morgantown regional history. This celebrates the legend of Osage; Al Anderson is an example of that. The museum is not just for those in the city limits. Councilor Brazaitis: Shared that the South Hills Neighborhood Association will meet Wednesday, November 28, 2018, at the Marilla Center from 6:30pm to 8:30pm. A variety of topics will be discussed such as keeping safe from vandalism. He stated that he is in support of investing sales tax. He thanked applicants for their interest in boards and commissions. He stated that he continues to hear from folks regarding the bus terminal and routes often with disappointment. He wished everyone a Happy thanksgiving and reminded about Giving Tuesday. Councilor Wendell: Shared that Thanksgiving is this week and that he and Joe will be traveling. He stated that some people are not so lucky. Families can be hard. Sometimes children and parents are estranged, or people are far from home and don’t have friends where they live. Franc Stern, a long-time member of Tree of Life Morgantown, passed away Monday. He shared that he received news on Monday that Jarred Parrott, a quietly strong behind-the-scenes political guy, and still young, with a young child, had passed away. Mr. Stern was most recently campaign manager for Danielle Walker, who won a seat in the West Virginia Legislature. He shared that he is thankful for good things in life, without failing to recognize the pain of others who have lost family members to age, or sudden disease, or bullets shot randomly. He will be back Sunday to continue work with Joe handling the spiritual needs of Morgantown’s Jewish community, and he, hopefully, representing the aspirations of the people of Morgantown, and making this the city of our dreams. He and Joe wish everyone a meaningful and satisfying Thanksgiving. 3 Mayor Kawecki: Reminded everyone to remember Giving Tuesday and to support the community. He suggested that the history museum is a 501C and capable of receiving contributions. He also shared that they are doing a lot of good things. He shared that there is an upcoming WVU game and that Empty pockets is presenting a live play related to a WWII Christmas. The play is located at Empty Pockets on Parsons Street behind the Woodburn School. Additionally, the Sound of music at the Creative Arts Center on November 26, 2018, and many things to do at the library and the Botanic Gardens. He thanked everyone in Council for their participation and wished everyone listening a Happy Thanksgiving. ADJOURNMENT: There being no further business, motion by Council Wallace, second by Councilor Wendell, to adjourn the meeting. Time: 8:50 p.m. _____________________________ ___________________________________ City Clerk Mayor * ALL COUNCIL MEETINGS ARE AVAILABLE ON DVD IN THE CITY CLERKS OFFICE* 4