City Council Workshop Meeting

City of Trotwood 3035 Olive Road Trotwood, Ohio 45426 937-837-7771 www.trotwood.org Meeting Minutes Monday, April 21, 2014 6:30 PM T-M Schools Board of Education Meeting Chambers 3594 N. Snyder Road Trotwood, OH 45426 City Council Workshop Meeting Mayor Joyce Sutton Cameron Vice Mayor Barbara Staggs Councilmember Bruce Kettelle Councilmember Bettye Gales Councilmember Rap Hankins Councilmember Ron Vaughn Councilmember Mary McDonald Sandra L. Riege, CMC Clerk of Council City Council Workshop Meeting Meeting Minutes April 21, 2014 I. Call to Order - Mayor Joyce S. Cameron The Council Workshop was called to order by Mayor Joyce Sutton Cameron at 6:30 p.m. II. Pledge of Allegiance and Moment of Silence Mayor Cameron led the attendees in the Pledge of Allegiance and a moment of silence. III. Roll Call: Deputy Clerk of Council Roll Call was taken by the Deputy Clerk of Council, Lori Osborne. Council Members in attendance were: Present: 7 - Mayor Joyce Sutton Cameron, Vice Mayor Barbara Staggs , Councilmember Bruce Kettelle, Councilmember Bettye Gales, Councilmember Rap Hankins, Councilmember Ron Vaughn and Councilmember Mary McDonald Staff Members present: Michael J. Lucking, City Manager; Quincy E. Pope, Sr., Public Safety Director/Deputy City Manager, Stephen McHugh, Law Director; Police Captain John Porter; Fire Chief Steve Milliken, Tom Long, Public Works Superintendent; Jeannie Peyton, Planner; Barbara Brooks, Human Resource Manager'; and Lori Osborne, Deputy Clerk of Council. Visitors present: Norm Essman, CIC Executive Director; Sharon Howard, Public Relations Consultant; Marie Battle Trotwood Chamber of Commerce; Mike Garrett, Montgomery County; Tiffany Dulin, Montgomery County; Tracy Williams; Willie Fulton; John Fecke; Kelli Wynn, Dayton Daily News; Ron Watson; Janice Chinn; Tom Grady; Jay Young, DP&L. IV. Motion to Approve the Workshop Meeting Agenda Mayor Cameron requested a motion on this item. A motion was made by Councilmember Gales, seconded by Councilmember Hankins, that the agenda be approved. Councilmember Kettelle was not present at the time of this motion. The motion carried by the following vote: Aye: 6- Mayor Cameron, Vice Mayor Staggs, Councilmember Gales, Councilmember Hankins, Councilmember Vaughn and Councilmember McDonald Excused: 1- Councilmember Kettelle V. Motion to Open Workshop Meeting Mayor Cameron requested a motion on this item. A motion was made by Councilmember McDonald, seconded by Councilmember Hankins, that the public portion of this meeting be opened. Councilmember Kettelle was not present at the time of this motion. The motion carried by the following vote: City of Trotwood Page 1 City Council Workshop Meeting Meeting Minutes April 21, 2014 Aye: 6- Mayor Cameron, Vice Mayor Staggs, Councilmember Gales, Councilmember Hankins, Councilmember Vaughn and Councilmember McDonald Excused: 1- Councilmember Kettelle VI. Introduction and Overview - City Manager Michael J. Lucking City Manager Michael J. Lucking provided an overview of the presentations on the agenda -- Quarterly CIC Update presented by Norm Essman; Communications presented by Sharon Howard; Reclaiming Futures presented by Mike Garrett and Tiffany Dulin of Montgomery County; Ordinance Revisions presented by Capt. John Porter. City of Trotwood Page 2 City Council Workshop Meeting Meeting Minutes April 21, 2014 A. PR011-14 Presentation - Trotwood Community Improvement Corporation (CIC) Quarterly Update by Norm Essman, Executive Director Attachments: 1st Qtr 2014 Update, 4-21-14 Workshop Mr. Norm Essman, Executive Director of the Trotwood Community Improvement Corporation (CIC) presented the First Quarter Update. There are two Council members who sit on the Board -- Mayor Cameron and Councilmember Vaughn. There are also two City staff personnel who sit on the Board -- City Manager Lucking and Finance Director, Patricia Shively, who serves as the Treasurer of the CIC. The presentation covered the following: Retail Development Strategies: The CIC is working to identify 2 to 3 possible nodes of retail development. They are preparing a Request for Proposal (RFP) for a retail consultant to complete a "bread basket" study to determine the retail needs for each node. The consultant would also assist in identifying those nodes. The next step would be to categorize excess vacant retail space for retail, demolition or adaptive reuse. The CIC is working with the City's Planning & Zoning Department on this step. The CIC would then determine a recruitment strategy based on current market basket weaknesses. Industrial/Distribution Development: The major points discussed were -- 1) aggressively market the Trotwood Commerce Park; 2) identify a 300-acre site with adequate utilities and access; 3) determine acquisition and development strategies; and 4) identify retail sites that can be reutilized as manufacturing sites. City-Owned Development Sites: 1) Revision strategy for Tech Connection and aggressively market the site; 2) develop a strategy for the Community Center; 3) develop a strategy and detailed information for Salem/Shiloh Springs and aggressively market the site. All of the above strategies will be presented to Council for approval before proceeding. Residential Development: The CIC has spent a majority of its time to date on this piece and, again, is working closely with the City's Planning Department. The CIC is currently working to obtain a house for rehab/resell purposes. Unfortunately, the process is not moving as quickly as hoped, partly due to the funding process. The CIC is working with its partners on funding and they have no reason to believe that this endeavor will not move forward. Mr. Essman stated that it is not his recommendation to use CIC or City funds, but rather would use several funds from other sources. City Manager Lucking stated, we have some real estate coming online soon through pending tax foreclosure which will provide houses to the CIC at a very low cost. Expect to have the first house within the next 30 days or so. Mr. Essman explained, once the titles are obtained on houses, then the CIC will initiate the rehab process. The CIC intends to remain conservative and will not use taxpayer's dollars unwisely. He also stated that a partnership is in the works with the Trotwood Ministerium and The Point Church for staff assistance. The CIC does not believe it will take a huge amount of time to pre-qualify buyers, and is working with other agencies to assist in that process. Councilmember Gales stated, she read Jefferson Township is offering funds City of Trotwood Page 3 City Council Workshop Meeting Meeting Minutes April 21, 2014 for housing and wanted to know if Trotwood is also doing that. Mr. Essman said, the assistance in Jefferson Township is through an outside agency and that agency has not contacted the City or the CIC. The CIC is working to coordinate numerous agencies to assist with funding, etc. Mayor Cameron said the CIC helps those who can be helped -- they need to be savvy, able to maintain their homes, financially stable, etc. The CIC will perform screenings with everyone who comes forward, and they must be able to qualify for the assistance and for the loans. Mr. Essman indicated the housing is only one piece of the CIC activities. There's an economic development side which has not seen a lot of activity to date. However, some of the transactions in place right now are confidential. Once those transactions have been finalized, then the CIC will provide a detailed report to Council. There are four (4) major projects at this time -- some are retention and some would create new jobs. Councilmember Kettelle asked that the CIC look at reuse of large box buildings, especially along Salem Avenue to determine guidelines for converting buildings into smaller stores/businesses. Mr. Essman said most of those buildings are improperly zoned. He is working with the City's Planning Department on this issue to be presented to Council at the appropriate time. Other Activities: Mr. Essman reported the CIC is working with the State of Ohio and has completed all tax incentive and rail reports. The State provided appropriate responses to ten (10) confidential leads, working with the Ministerium on neighborhood revitalization, working with four (4) various entrepreneurs on confidential projects, and is working closely with CountyCorp to finalize funding of housing opportunities. City of Trotwood Page 4 City Council Workshop Meeting Meeting Minutes April 21, 2014 B. PR012-14 Presentation - Public Information and Community Image, presented by Sharon Howard, Public Relations Consultant. Ms. Sharon Howard, Communications/PR/Media Consultant, presented "Communications: The Critical Tool" to Council and City staff. She has 20 years of broadcast media experience, is a member of six (6) community boards including the Ohio Arts Council, Greater Dayton RTA and Dayton Public Schools' Accountability Panel. She possesses proficient skills in project management; community development and engagement; marketing, media and public relations; social media development; strategic communications; digital media; and collateral material development. Ms. Howard's presentation included the following: The definition of communication: the act or process of using words, sounds, signs or behaviors to express or exchange information. A message that is given to someone (letter, telephone call, etc.). Ways of sending information to people. Four key components of effective communication are: Complete, Clear, Brief, Timely. Challenges include: Trotwood's image and public perception. Media relations and relationships. Focused communication tools and execution. City vs. Council -- what is the difference? Community issues should come from the Mayor and/or Council. "You are the chief cheerleaders for the City and act as ambassadors." Ms. Howard stated, "Everyone who is on the City staff is an ambassador for the City!" Communication Tips: Everything doesn't go to everybody. Community events only need to go to specific media contacts. What is the long-term goal? Who is the audience? Give the audience a sense of involvement -- this is where social media comes into play. Take the approach that you are always running for office -- then you will always be in the mode of touching and talking with people. Maintain Consistency: Need one voice, one writer. Stay on message -- don't get caught up and say too little or too much. Presenting Trotwood News: Ms. Howard discussed standards/guidelines for news releases which should be funneled through the Administrative Assistant to the City Manager, who will forward to Ms. Howard. Press conferences -- think visual, think about whether this is the best form of communication. We want people to know you are actively involved in the community. We have been amping up the City's social media -- every City employee should "like" Trotwood's Facebook page and invite their friends to like the page also. We are about to begin redesign of the City's website. The quarterly newsletter design will also change to mirror the website and social media sites. Special events/community events are important for promoting the City's image and "brand". Ms. Howard also provided interviewing tips in her presentation. She stated that "you are in control of the interview." Council was very receptive to Ms. Howard's presentation. City of Trotwood Page 5 City Council Workshop Meeting Meeting Minutes April 21, 2014 C. PR013-14 Presentation - Reclaiming Futures Montgomery County, Ohio - Mike Garrett, Project Manager Montgomery County Juvenile Court Attachments: Reclaiming Futures.docx Public Safety Director/Deputy City Manager Quincy E. Pope, Sr., introduced Mike Garrett and Tiffany Dulin of Montgomery County who presented "Reclaiming Futures." This is a mentoring program for any citizen who is interested in fostering relationships with the youth of Montgomery County who are part of the "drug court" and probationary discipline. The program allows citizens to work with youth to develop change in their lives and become a part of a solution for helping young people steer away from drugs, alcohol and crime. Numerous handouts and applications were available for the public at the meeting. D. PR014-14 Discussion and recommendation for changes on Trotwood City Ordinance Part Nine, Title Five, Chapter 95, Section 951.02 (Municipal Park Lands and Facilities-Prohibited Activities. Attachments: Revised guns in parks ordinance (00674769@xA06A8).pdf Capt. John Porter and Law Director Stephen J. McHugh discussed revisions that are needed to Chapter 951.02 of the City's codified ordinances. The State of Ohio has determined that weapons can be openly carried in public parks and lands, which is in conflict with the current ordinance. There are two (2) cases in the Ohio Supreme Court that have shown cities' constitutional rights to "home rule" does not take precedence over the State law. Therefore, open carry is legal, as well as concealed carry in some cases. Open carry is legal on the State level and local municipalities cannot override the law. The law states that any signage at City parks stating weapons are not permitted must be removed. Much discussion from among Council and City staff ensued about this issue. It was determined the City cannot override the State law and changes would be made to the current Ordinance for approval by Council at the May 5, 2014, Council Meeting. VII. Motion to Adjourn Mayor Cameron called for a motion to adjourn the Workshop and the workshop was adjourned at 8:40 p.m. with all in favor. Aye: 7- Mayor Cameron, Vice Mayor Staggs, Councilmember Kettelle, Councilmember Gales, Councilmember Hankins, Councilmember Vaughn and Councilmember McDonald City of Trotwood Page 6