City Council Regular Meeting

Star City Council Meeting Minutes June 3, 2008 Pre-Council Meeting – 6:30 pm Boise Valley Economic Partnership Presentation – Paul Hiller gave an update on activities that BVEP is currently working on. Hiller congratulated the Council and Gary Smith on getting the vitamin supplement project in Star. Their web site will be linked to Star’s web site so everyone will know what is happening. Currently BVEP has twelve active projects. Ada County Assessor Presentation – Bob McQuade stated that they have sent out 3,500 tax assessments to Star Residents. They have been getting calls regarding assessed values going down. There is a lot of confusion about when assessments begin – they begin on January 1st. There are properties that have appreciated – some in Garden City along the river. There are two numbers that should jump out at everyone; one is the two years of values, increasing 18 to 24% per year and the second is new construction – it has just stopped, it is off 50%. They do compare their assessment numbers with MLS. How accurate are the Assessor’s numbers? They were at 99.5% last year. This years’ numbers should be very close. McQuade reviewed the numbers on a hand out. Land values are going down. McQuade stated that an office at the Star City Hall has been put in the upcoming budget. Regular Council Meeting – 7:35 pm The regular meeting of the Star City Council was called to order by Mayor Nathan Mitchell at 7:35 pm at the Star City Hall. All stood for the Pledge of Allegiance. Roll Call: Council persons Tammy McDaniel, Dustin Christopherson, Tom Erlebach and Chad Bell were all present. Approval of the Agenda: The Mayor stated that item 7A – Roseland (Colina Vista) Park discussion should be removed and will be scheduled for a later date. Bell moved to approve the agenda with the removal of 7A, Erlebach seconded the motion. All aye: motion carried. Consent Agenda: The Consent Agenda consisted of Regular Meeting Minutes of May 6, 2008, Claims Against the City for April 2008 and EZ Entrees Alcoholic Beverage Permit. An addendum has been added to the Claims List. Bell moved to add the Claims addendum and approve the Consent Agenda, McDaniel seconded the motion. All aye: motion carried. 1 Presentations/Public Input: Audit Report - Bailey & Company – Jared Zywgart handed out the Audit report for 2007. He stated that pages 3 & 4 are the Auditor’s statements. The Balance Sheet was reviewed. Zwygart reviewed the revenue page, property taxes are still increasing along with other revenue items. Expenditures came in under our realized revenue. The City has no debt. On pages 26 and 27 are the internal control review, and they have opinions on this, but found no discrepancies. In years past, cities would hire auditors, a recent ruling from the Federal Government now states that cities should hire a person to do the audits. This is the reflected deficiency. The City does not have a CPA on staff. Zwygart stated that this is not a good ruling and even the State of Idaho has not followed it, as Bailey and Company work for the State. Zwygart stated that the overall controls are there and everything looks good. Public Input: Jack Strong, 12032 W. Caribee Inlet Drive, Star, Idaho stated that he was there representing the residents of Pinewood Lakes Subdivision. Strong read a letter and asked that it be put into the record along with signed petitions (see attached). Residents of Pinewood Lakes are not against growth. Public Hearings: The Mayor reviewed the procedures for public hearings and asked the Council if they had any ex parte contact or conflicts of interest, hearing none, the public hearing was opened. Kirtley/Drinkall Rezone & Conditional Use Permit – Applicant: Darrin Drinkall, 481 W. Moon Lake, stated that he was the applicant and he is trying to set up a fireworks stand for a couple weeks of the year. The current zoning does not permit the fireworks stand. He was not present at the neighborhood meeting that was held. There were two concerns, one concern was weeds which were seen as a fire hazard and the other was the long term traffic problems. He assured the Council there would not be long term traffic issues. Of the agency letters received, there was only one of concern and it was from Idaho Department of Transportation requesting a setback and landscaping. Drinkall believes they think that this stand would be permanent. All other agencies did not have a problem with the application. McDaniel asked if there was a plan for parking ingress and egress? Drinkall stated the area has ingress and egress on both Star and State Street roads. Erlebach was concerned about changing zoning for two weeks and asked if we don’t have some type of temporary zoning change we could use. The Mayor stated there was nothing like that. Elrebach asked about dust abatement, will they have a water truck. Drinkall stated they would use magnesium chloride which also works to keep dust down or water. Erlebach asked about dumpsters and porta-potties. Drinkall stated that they haul their own garbage and will have porta-potties on site. Staff: Mary Shaw Taylor had nothing to add to her staff report. The Mayor stated that this application will require a building permit. 2 Erlebach asked if this is the same business that was at Highway 16 and 44. Drinkall stated that that one will move to Star. Bell asked if this was not an allowed use. It is not an allowed use, but could be taken out of the CBD if rezoned. The Mayor stated that there are temporary uses in the CBD now, like Christmas tree sales - fireworks stands are not allowed there without a zone change. Discussion was held on where exactly the CBD is. Christopherson stated that the staff report says the surrounding area is CBD. The Mayor stated that Commercial and CBD uses are pretty close to each other, but development standards are different. The Mayor stated that the standards for C1 is more restrictive than CBD. The current zoning designation is CBD. Public Input: Barbara Thompson, 481 N. Carsell Way, Star, Idaho asked about the impact on her home in case of a fire? The Mayor stated that the applicant will need to provide proof of insurance to the City. Question from the audience - Is it legal to shoot fireworks in the City. The Mayor stated that it was for some fireworks. Mr. Jack Strong, 12032 W. Caribee Inlet Drive, Star, Idahostated that last summer a fireworks stand burned down in Boise due to setting off fireworks in the stand. The Mayor stated that the Council can put a condition on the fireworks stand tonight, if granted that would not allow for that type of activity. Applicant: Drinkall stated that regarding property damage, most cities require a $100,000 policy, they carry a five million dollar policy. They have a very good safety record and regarding fireworks being discharged – he assured Council no one would be allowed to light fireworks in or around the stand. Erlebach asked if somebody would be staying overnight on the premises? Drinkall stated that there would be. Erlebach asked about the lighting, will it be run by generator. Drinkall stated that it would be. The people staying on site will stay for security purposes. Drinkall stated that the generators will be used for about a half hour. They shut down around ten o’clock. The Mayor stated that everything brought up can be placed as conditions on this application. 3 Erlebach asked about Ada County Highway discouraging 44 access. The Mayor stated that it was ITD and their preference is ingress and egress on Star Road. Erlebach asked about a barrier. The Mayor stated they would figure something out. The Mayor closed the public hearing and moved to deliberations. Christopherson is frustrated with the application. He stated that our schedule of uses is out of whack when we can have Christmas trees as permitted and fireworks is not. He does not have a problem with the fireworks stand being there, but if fireworks are not allowed in CBD we need to look at zoning separately. He is hesitant to make that much of a change for a specific use when everything around it is CBD. He is not inclined to make a zone change. Bell agrees with Councilman Christopherson, we don’t have fireworks stand, but we have Christmas trees. He has a problem with rezoning for a specific use, especially when we’ve gone through a major process to change things. Bell doesn’t see changing the zoning for a two week operation. The Mayor stated that the zone change does comply with the Comp Plan. He thinks we should look at the applications separately. Shaw-Taylor stated that a permanent use in the commercial zoning would be a bank and it would be approved. Erlebach doesn’t see any benefit to the public, it is property owner only and he doesn’t like the change in the zoning. Erlebach stated that getting cars in and out is a problem. McDaniel disagrees with the Council. She believes the land owner is looking to the future. She is inclined to go ahead and approve the rezone. Erlebach asked if the County had made this use more restrictive. A zoning text amendment was discussed, but any changes to the zoning ordinance would have to go to another public hearing. Christopherson moved to deny File #RZ 08-03 the Kirtley/Drinkall rezone application, Bell seconded the motion. Bell would be more comfortable with the land owner attending the meeting and making a presentation. He does not feel comfortable with this. Christopherson also offered as an explanation, regarding the CBD, he believes it needs to be a contiguous block as it does go two blocks beyond. The Mayor stated that as an option, if the Council wants to hear from the land owner, that the application can be tabled. McDaniel is in favor of giving the land owner an opportunity to come talk to the Council to discuss his future plans. 4 Bell, Erlebach, Christopherson – all aye; McDaniel nay. Motion carried. The rezone application was denied. Ordinance No. 187 Code Enforcement - The Mayor declared the public hearing open and reviewed the changes to the Code Enforcement Ordinance. This Ordinance changes who enforces code, striking language that Council appointed the Fire Marshall, and adding limitations to pay citations and fees. The Mayor read Section 2, 3 and 4. The Mayor explained the different types of citations. He stated that this was to clarify language. Erlebach asked if we can lien property to recoup fines. The Mayor stated that we cannot. Gary Smith, 258 S. Langer Lake Way, Star, Idaho stated that he believes this is a great idea to turn over to Law Enforcement, he supports this 120%. Our officers do a great job at patrolling and he is in favor of the change. Richard Tinsley, 10459 W. Achillea, Star, Idhao asked how receptive are the deputies to taking care of this. The Mayor stated that they are in support of it. The Sheriff’s Department is also in support of it. Tinsley asked if it was legal. The Mayor stated that it was. The Mayor closed the public hearing. Resolution No. 2008-06 Land Use Fees – The Mayor opened the public hearing. He explained that this was a break down of application land use fees. The Mayor read the changed fees, we are adding five new fees. Bell stated that it is a good idea for the development agreement costs of $150. He asked if we are covering costs or are they pass through charges. The Mayor stated that they are pass through fees, it is part of the land use application. Erlebach asked if someone is applying for annexation and zoning if it is not approved do they get their money back. The Mayor stated that they did not. Christopherson would like to hear justification. The Mayor stated it is to cover staff time spent on dealing with applications. The justification is that they are typical fees, the same as around the valley. Our fees are relatively low. Shaw-Taylor stated that we do not charge the same as compared to other cities. These fees are based on staff time spent and on going monitoring. Erlebach asked if the annexation and zoning were all the same price. Shaw-Taylor stated that she can only compare them to other applications. The Mayor stated that attorney and engineers fees are directly expensed to the developers. There is no time recovered back from going back and forth with applications. There is a reason we separate building from land use. We pay the planners 5 salary from taxes. If it were paid by fees, there would be a perception or reality would be that the planner works for the developer – no one can question decisions if they are paid by taxes. We will always pay for position with tax money. Shaw-Taylor stated that a larger land area includes more land owners. McDaniel asked how long has it been since it was changed. The Mayor stated that it was about 2004 when the fees were changed. Christopherson stated that he has issues with this. A lot of entities have the ability to raise taxes, but sub entities don’t and fees are justified. He sees this as arbitrary just because other cities are doing it and he is not in favor of it. Bell doesn’t feel good about changing the fees. Rockbridge Crossing Landscaping - The Mayor stated that we have discussed this before when we approved the Rockbridge Crossing Plat, the landscape plan is now before you – it did not come before you before it was installed as requested. Cord Christiansen, 2644 E. Aspenwood, Eagle, Idaho stated that he doesn’t know what he is here for. The site started out as foreclosure, they took it. He stated that he found the site grossly ignored and processes that weren’t done. They have worked very closely with staff to solve the problems. They have a sign off on drainage from the City Engineer. They have had landscapers in to spruce it up more to get more businesses in. Since they have taken over, they have taken care of the problems. The one thing that is out of their control is the restaurant which was sold to another person. It is in litigation. They have offered to do landscaping around it. The Mayor explained the platting process and the northeast corner created an additional parcel – the landscape plan was to come before the Council. As one of the conditions, there was to be a buffer along the area that abuts Steven Springs Subdivision. Christiansen stated that it is a narrow strip. When you deal with the run off it could be a problem. There are five trees planted as shown on the landscaping plan. Bell hasn’t looked at the area in six or seven days, but from his perspective this is not a buffer. Bell would not have approved that if he had seen the plan. He suggested arborvitae trees, as the house is not buffered. Erlebach thanked Christianson for stepping up to take over the Crossing, but it is the Council’s responsibility to buffer the neighbors from noise and dumpster problems. Those trees are the cheapest number two trees he has seen and he would like to see better buffer for the neighbors. He would like to see arborvitae or something year round – some evergreens. Christopherson stated that it needs a lot more bushes and things that are more year round. 6 The Mayor stated that the landscaping that is there was put in prior to Christiansen purchasing the property. The discussion was to provide a visual buffer. The Mayor has some concerns – the condition was placed on the original owner and the building is empty. The Mayor suggested making occupants put more landscaping in at the tenant improvements stage. The occupancy could be conditioned. Erlebach stated that he feels the Mayor’s idea was fair. Christiansen stated that the property owners could plant trees now if they were concerned. Christopherson liked the Mayor’s idea to tie the condition to the tenant improvements. The Mayor stated that the Council needs to specific as to what they want for buffering. Erlebach proposed putting twenty arborvitaes in that are five to six foot tall. Bell moved to put five to six foot tall arborvitae every four feet as a condition upon occupancy of the building, Erlebach seconded the motion. Erlebach asked how many tenants the building would hold. Christiansen stated that there were two proposed tenants. All aye: motion carried. Ordinances & Resolutions: Ordinance No. 187 Code Enforcement – McDaniel moved that pursuant to Idaho Code, Section 50-902 the rule requiring an Ordinance to be read on three different days, with one reading to be in full, be dispensed with and that Ordinance No. 187 be considered after reading once by title only, Christopherson seconded the motion. Roll Call: McDaniel, Christopherson, Erlebach and Bell – all aye: motion carried. Bell moved to approve Ordinance No. 187 Code Enforcement, an Ordinance of the City of Star, Idaho, a municipal corporation of the State of Idaho, providing for enforcement of the Star City Code; providing time limitations in which to pay citations, providing for penalties if citations are not paid including the imposition of criminal penalties; amending Ordinance No. 175; and providing for an effective date, Christopherson seconded the motion. Roll Call: McDaniel, Christopherson, Erlebach and Bell – all aye: motion carried. Resolution 2008-06 Land Use Fees – Bell moved to not adopt Resolution 2008-06. He would like to see a different schedule. Christopherson seconded the motion. Roll Call: McDaniel, Christopherson, Erlebach, Bell – all aye: motion carried. Reports: 7 Staff – Shaw-Taylor stated that she gave Council a copy of meeting minutes from COMPASS regarding our participation in the Ortho project. Project cost could be $4,000. Ward stated that the Council will get to see the web site this week. Council – Erlebach stated that the carnival is in town now. Bell stated he had a good time fishing. Mayor - The Mayor stated that our Representatives are: Moyle, Winder and Labrador. The Mayor thanked the Lions Club for the 222 flags that were put at the cemetery to represent our service people. They are running the breakfast at Mule Days so please thank them for their efforts. Mule Days is this weekend. Adjournment: Bell moved to adjourn the meeting, Christopherson seconded the motion. All aye: motion carried. The meeting was adjourned at 9:55 pm Respectfully submitted: Approved: _____________________ ______________________ Cathy Ward, City Clerk Nathan Mitchell, Mayor 8