Town Council Regular Meeting

Town of Tyrone Council Meeting Minutes March 5, 2015 Present: Mayor Eric Dial Mayor Pro Tem Gloria Furr Council Member Ken Matthews Council Member Ryan Housley Council Member Linda Howard Town Manager Kyle Hood Town Clerk Dee Baker Town Attorney Dennis Davenport Mayor Dial called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm. The Invocation was given by Pastor Howard Dial, from Berachah Bible Church of Fayetteville followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Public Comments Approval of Agenda Council Member Housley made a motion to approve the agenda. Council Member Howard seconded the motion. Motion was approved 4-0. CONSENT AGENDA: All matters listed under this item are considered to be routine by the Town Council and will be enacted by one motion. There will not be separate discussion of these items. If discussion is desired, that item will be removed from the consent agenda and will be considered separately. Approval of Minutes, February 5, 2015 and Minutes from February 10, 2015 (Retreat) Council Member Matthews made a motion to approve the consent agenda. Council Member Housley seconded the motion. Motion was approved 4-0. PRESENTATIONS/RECOGNITION: 1|Page PUBLIC HEARING: Public Hearing to consider variance V 2015-001 applied for by Lyn and Tommy Redwood to allow an accessory structure to be constructed in the front of a primary structure at 254 Trickum Creek Road. Mr. Hood informed Council of the Redwood’s request. Mr. Hood stated that the Redwoods have applied for this variance to construct an accessory structure (barn) in front of their home. The Redwoods are in the process of platting two parcels together. Mr. Hood stated that the property is currently R-12. He added that this property was annexed in at the same time the Southampton subdivision was developed and is surrounded by other R-12 properties. The lot in question is over fifteen acres and is AR in character. Mayor Dial opened the public hearing for anyone that wished to speak in favor of the variance. The applicant Mrs. Lyn Redwood spoke. Speaking in favor of the variance was the property owner Lynn Redwood and her husband Tommy. She thanked Mayor and Council for their public service and stated that she, too, served for seven years on the Planning Commission and Town Council in the late 1990’s. Mrs. Redwood stated that when the property was annexed into the Town, she also purchased four out of six surrounding properties. She added that there are extraordinary circumstances pertaining to her property. She informed Council that Trickum Creek runs through the front of her property which dictated that they build her house on the top of the hill, which is approximately seven hundred feet from the road. Mrs. Redwood stated that they have built a pool and a deck in the back of their house which only leaves eighty feet from the rear setback. She added that the width of the barn that they wish to build is sixty four feet, and the rear set back is thirty feet. This will make it impossible to locate the barn on the rear of the property. Due to the purchase of the other parcels, they now own over thirty acres. She stated that this requires several large pieces of farm equipment to help maintain the property. She added that there is no current space to store the equipment which makes it vulnerable to theft, which they have already experienced. Mrs. Redwood added that it would also be a hardship to store heavy equipment in the back top of the property due to the steep lay of the land. She added that if they were to be required to build their barn in the rear of the home, big beautiful hardwoods would need to be taken down and a path would need to be cut. She added that her rescue horses would need to be moved daily, five hundred feet. The area in question is not fenced in or adjacent to the pasture. She stated that another hardship would be that daily deliveries could not be made. She stated that she understands the reasoning behind the zoning regulations as it pertains to one acre lots and that the accessory structure should not be visible. However, this barn would be, partially hidden from a hill. The area in front of the house is mostly cleared already and the structure will be visibly pleasing. The barn contractor has built several well-known structures in the area, such as the Whistle Blow Station and the Bank of North Georgia. She added that they have been approached on several occasions to be the backdrop of photos and filming from Pinewood Studios. The barn would be a fitting addition to the rustic feel to the property, including their covered bridge. 2|Page She stated that they feel that this would not be detrimental to the other properties in the area; as they also have barns and accessory structures in front of their homes. She then shared pictures of her property and other similar properties in the area with Mayor and Council. Mayor Dial stated that he had driven by the property and asked if the barn would be located to the left of the bridge. Mrs. Redwood stated that it would be located near the second drive, off of Trickum Creek Road. The wood that is used for construction is one hundred year old wood. Mayor Dial opened the public hearing for anyone in opposition of the item. No one spoke. Council Member Furr made a motion to approve Variance V 2015-001to allow an accessory structure to be constructed in the front of a primary structure at 245 Trickum Creek Road. Council Member Matthews seconded the motion. Motion was approved 4-0. OLD BUSINESS: NEW BUSINESS: 1. Consideration of the RFP for ROW Maintenance Activities. Kyle Hood, Town Manager Mr. Hood stated that he and Mr. Campbell have gone through the bids and the range is not as extreme as the former right of way bidding. He stated that he believes that either of the lowest bidders, according to the revised scope and references, would be a good fit for the Town. Mayor Dial asked for the timeline on the approval of the project. Mr. Hood stated as soon as possible before the grass starts growing, but not necessarily that night. Mr. Campbell reiterated to Council that the mowing would be much more costly to the Town if the Public Works Department were to take on the project. He stated that this year the bids were almost sixty thousand dollars less than the last bidding. He added that he had taken each company representative around town to better show them the scope of the project. On the twelfth of February all three companies were brought to Town Hall for a question and answer session collectively. Council Member Furr asked if the scope included weeding. Mr. Campbell stated yes, the project includes: cutting, trimming, edging and trash pick-up. The ball field cutting has been turned over to the sports associations. However, outside the fencing of the parks will be the contractor’s responsibility. Public Works will still be in charge of tree trimming and expansion of right of ways. Mayor Dial asked how many crew members will be in charge of the Town. Mr. Campbell stated that the company would have two, two man crews on a weekly basis and that Hwy 74 would be cut weekly as well. He added that he and Mr. Hood had given the bidders a weekly street schedule in order to assure each area would be properly maintained. 3|Page Mayor Dial asked Mr. Campbell if the Town has the power to ask the contractor to pay close attention to specific areas when needed. Mr. Campbell stated absolutely, the Town has that ability. Mr. Hood stated that because of our negative prior experience we have learned valuable lessons. He stated that Rupert Landscaping, although they are not local, is one of the top companies and are the sixth largest in the state. Rupert Landscaping specified, no less than a five person crew in their proposal. AAbby is a local company and we have a good working relationship with them. Mr. Hood stated that the Town did budget monies for the existing contract, which terminated prior to its completion. We would have continued to budget that money into the following budget year. He reiterated that at the Council Retreat, Council did approve in principal, the hiring of an additional Public Works employee. If the Town were to add that money into what was already budget for this year’s right of way contract, there would be a shortfall of $20,000 (on the low bid). The middle bid is the equivalent to an additional person. If Mr. Campbell is to obtain the staffing level that he needs, it would require at least two new hires. As a replacement, we are actually obtaining the work of five additional employees with the contracted right of way services for the same price. Council Member Housley made a motion to approve the Right of Way Mowing Maintenance service bid to AAbby Group not to exceed $196,000. Council Member Howard seconded the motion. Motion was approved 4-0. Public Comments Staff Comments Chief Perkins informed Council that this year Tyrone moved up two places to fifth on the safest city in Georgia chart and we are third safest for our size. Mayor Dial asked everyone to keep the fallen Fulton County officer’s family in their prayers. Council Comments Executive Session Pursuant to O.C.G.A § 50-14-4 (b) of the Open and Public Meetings Act, Council will meet in Executive Session for two (2) items of threatened litigation and to review the February 5, 2015 Executive Session Minutes. Council Member Matthews made a motion to move into Executive Session for two items of threatened litigation and to review the February 5, 2015 Executive Session Minutes. Council Member Furr seconded the motion. Motion was approved 4-0. Council Member Matthews made a motion to reconvene. Council Member Howard seconded the motion. Motion was approved 4-0. 4|Page Council Member Matthews made a motion to approve the Executive Session Minutes from the February 5, 2015 Council Meeting. Council Member Howard seconded the motion. Motion was approved 4-0. Adjournment Council Member Matthews made a motion to adjourn. Motion was approved 4-0. The meeting adjourned at 7:56 pm. ____________________ __________________ Eric Dial, Mayor Dee Baker, Town Clerk 5|Page