City Council

CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION MINUTES CITY OF ODESSA, TEXAS October 18, 2022 On October 18, 2022, a work session meeting of the Odessa City Council was held at 3:00 p.m., Council Chamber, fifth floor, City Hall, 411 W. 8th St., Odessa, Texas. City Council present: Mayor Javier Joven; Council members: Mark Matta, District One; Steven P. Thompson, District Two; Detra White, District Three; Tom Sprawls, District Four; Mari Willis, District Five; and Denise Swanner, At-Large. Others present: Michael Marrero, City Manager; Norma Aguilar-Grimaldo, City Secretary; Natasha Brooks, City Attorney; Cindy Muncy, Assistant City Manager; and other members of City staff. A quorum being present, Mayor Joven called the meeting to order, and the following proceedings were held: Council member Matta gave the invocation. Discover Odessa quarterly report. Monica Tschauner, Discover Odessa, gave a quarterly report from July – September 2022. There were 37 groups assisted, 83,081 total attendees and 1,897 hotel nights. She reviewed the groups. She reported on the upcoming groups and events that included new groups. She provided a marketing report that included a monthly blog. There were three groups that had applied for Sport funds. Floyd Gwin and Public Art update. Randy Ham, Odessa Arts Executive Director, provided an update on the Floyd Gwin public art. The art selected, from 78 artists, was Formations by Randy Walker. The art illustrated birds and airplanes. The cost was $80,000. The art piece would have bird spikes for the birds. There were no moving parts on the art. He asked if the Council would consider having a mural on the wall of the Ector Theater. Mr. Marrero stated that the past Council had a desire to keep it as original as possible. Mr. Ham stated that there would be public input. Council member Thompson stated that it was a historic building and would like to keep it as it was currently. Mr. Ham stated that there were other possible sites. Council member Matta suggested a mural on a canvass that was not permanent. Mr. Ham stated that it was an option but it was more expensive. He stated that the paint on the mural was not permanent. Council member Willis appreciated the murals in the community. He stated that the art for the Water Treatment Plant would not be publicly assessible and recommended the art be on the building facing 42nd St. at an approximate cost of $40,000. Council member Swanner stated that the 1% of public art which was $920,000 for this project was not good steward of funds. Discuss economic development agreement between ODC and Border States Industries, Inc. Melanie Hollmann, ODC board member, stated that ODC approved a grant to Border States for $970,660 that had a total capital investment of $12 million. Border States would add 10 new jobs and retain 35 jobs. Tracy Jones, Chamber Economic Development, stated that it was relocating into Industrial District 1C. Mr. Marrero stated that the payment was in lieu of ad valorem. Mayor Joven wanted to review the contract before it was placed on the agenda. Ms. Brooks stated no information has been received for the contact. The industrial district contract was a seven year term. Mayor Joven stated that Council Work Session Minutes October 18, 2022 Page 2 there be a discussion on industrial districts as it related to ad valorem. He had concerns with the interpretation of ODC contracts including not meeting the criteria outlined in the contract and certain ODC actions not coming before Council for consideration. Ms. Hollmann stated that there was a good faith effort in grants being prorated which was included in the contract. Discuss purchase of traffic paint. Hal Feldman, Traffic Engineer, stated that the purchase was for white and yellow traffic paint for $52,315. Discuss bid award to vendors for annual water and wastewater treatment chemicals. Tom Kerr, Director of Public Works/Utilities, reviewed the proposed bids. He recommended the chlorine bid to DPC Industries, the polymer to Polydyne, liquid ammonium sulfate to Chameleon Industries, and liquid aluminum sulfate to Chameleon. The total cost was $1,295,140 for the year. Chemical costs were up by 40%. Discuss provision of property located near the corner of 5 th St. and Grant for the purpose of Downtown redevelopment with a Chapter 380 agreement. Casey Hallmark, Downtown Odessa, stated that the Chapter 380 agreement was for 5th St. and Grant. The owner had two established businesses in downtown. The project was for two restaurants and a roof top. The company would provide for 25 permanent jobs, have 20 retention jobs, and it would add to the property tax and sales tax base. Fernando Rodriguez, owner Sina Realty, reviewed the site plan. Mayor Joven asked about the possible glass bottles thrown to the street from the roof top. Mr. Rodriguez stated that it was possible to not use glass, but roof top restaurants have been around for many years. Ms. Hallmark reported that the total city investment for the lot was $513,572 for the purchase of the lot and demolition of the building. The agreement was for seven years. Ms. Brooks stated the letter of commitment was needed for the City. Discuss amendment to the Parkway RV Group, LLC Industrial District Agreement. Ms. Brooks stated that an amendment to the Parkway RV Group agreement was to add an additional 3.40 acre tract to the current agreement that would expire in 2028. Firemen’s Pension Board update. Ben Marts provided an update on the Firemen’s Pension. He reported that the City contributed 28% to the Firemen’s Pension plan. He gave a history of the plan from 2015 and the changes that took place due to change in legislation. He stated that the 28% from the City helped the fund exist but did not contribute toward current employees. He stated that the pension plan made the job enticing. Council member Thompson stated that the average life expectance was 85 years of age which caused an unfunded fund to be depleted quickly. He asked if there was a plan to transition out of the plan to address the longevity of people living longer. Mr. Marts stated that there was a lower rate number of retirements. Discuss and consider the supplemental budget item request for 2021-22. Mayor Joven stated that the Faudree project expenditure was not on the agenda and the contract was not going to be cancelled. He stated that he did not want to sign Resolution 2022R-50 as that had as there was a new declaration. He asked for clarification as why it took two months for the noticing of the resolution had left out sections. He asked about the procedure for signing the documents. He stated that the Mayor had no veto power according to the City Charter. Mrs. Muncy provided an explanation. She explained that Resolution No. 2022R-50 agenda item was discussed at the workshop and at the work session. There was $2,998,194 for one time supplemental budget items, $1.5 million appropriated for parks, $1.5 million for street projects and the Faudree project had $10,940,000 from the General Council Work Session Minutes October 18, 2022 Page 3 Fund that was approved. The original resolution did not have all the amounts included. The reaffirmation of the resolution includes all the funding that was appropriated. The Council understood the reaffirmation of Resolution No. 2022R-50. Haley Trevino supported the Faudree project as the area had residential and commercial growth. There were 320 homes in subdivisions and Faudree was a narrow lane with no streetlights. She provided pictures of Faudree Road. She stated it was unsafe for driving as it was only a two-lane road. Discuss the sale of water to Greater Gardendale Water Supply Corporation. Mr. Marrero stated discussions were reinstated on the sale of water to Gardendale since 2021. He recommended that the sale of water use the ECUD model for the rate. Based on the model, Greater Gardendale Water Supply’s comparative rate is $4.01/1000 gallons. The demand for water was less than 1% of the City’s consumption in a day. The term was for a ten year term with two options of ten year renewals. Gardendale would bare the costs of the infrastructure associated with the delivery of the water which was a 24” water line that was according to city specifications. Jim Wise, Greater Gardendale Water Supply President, has worked with the city staff and it would help Gardendale’s growth. The financing would include ARPA funds received from the County of $4.5 million. Tom Kerr, Director of Public Works/Utilities, stated that the water line was sufficient and would handle the future expansion. Motion was made by Council member Sprawls and seconded by Council member Swanner to adjourn the meeting. The motion was approved by the following vote: Aye: Joven, Matta, Thompson, White, Sprawls, Willis, and Swanner Nay: None The meeting adjourned at 4:44 p.m. ATTEST: APPROVED: Norma Aguilar-Grimaldo, TRMC, CMC Javier Joven City Secretary Mayor