Mayor & Common Council Meetings

CITY OF WESTMINSTER, MARYLAND MAYOR AND COMMON COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 25, 2013 QUORUM: A meeting of the Mayor and Common Council was held in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 1838 Emerald Hill Lane, Westminster, Maryland on the evening of March 25, 2013, at 7:00 P.M. Mayor Utz; Council President Halstad; Council Members Chiavacci, Wack, and Frazier; City Administrator and Acting City Clerk Wolf, Chief of Police Spaulding, City Treasurer Palmer, Director of Public Works Glass, Director of Recreation and Parks Gruber, Director of Community Planning and Development Horn, Director of Housing and Preservation Services Beyard, and City Attorney Levan were present. Councilman Whitson was excused from attending the meeting. CALL TO ORDER: Ms. Lynn Wheeler of Westminster Branch of Carroll County Public Library thanked Council for their support of the Sunday hours. Ms. Wheeler shared that the library was to be open from October 2012 to the end of April 2013. She shared that since January the branch numbers on Sundays have exceeded their traffic flow for Wednesdays. Ms. Wheeler explained the budget for Sunday hours included hiring and training new staff. Because the staff was willing to work the Sunday hours, the branch did not need the extra funds to hire new staff. Due to the remaining funds that are available to the Westminster branch, the Board has agreed to allow the branch to remain open nine more Sundays. Ms. Wheeler then shared that the branch would like to continue to budget for Sunday hours in FY2014. She inquired if Mayor and Council from the City of Westminster would be willing to support twenty percent (20%) of the costs, not exceeding $20,000. Mr. Frazier questioned Ms. Wheeler about the contribution of twenty percent (20%) versus the $20,000. Ms. Wheeler clarified that the branch is asking for twenty percent (20%), but will not exceed $20,000. She explained that the Westminster branch will bill the City as they need the funds, therefore if they do not need the full $20,000 for FY 2014, then the City will provide only what is needed. Mr. Chiavacci thanked Ms. Wheeler for her presentation and for the staff’s hard work at the Westminster Branch. He feels that the money that the City provided to the branch for FY2013 was well spent and he would like to continue to support the Sunday hours. He shared that he has heard and has seen positive feedback from the library being opened on Sundays. Ms. Wheeler thanked Mr. Chiavacci for his comment. Dr. Wack questioned if this was a request to the Commissioners for the budget FY2014. Ms. Wheeler replied yes, if the Commissioners budget is approved in FY2014 and if the Westminster City Council were able to provide twenty percent (20%) of the cost. She explained that the branch can continue their eighty percent (80 %). Dr. Wack explained to Ms. Wheeler that when the City provided the money for FY2013, he was under the impression that this was to help the branch begin their Sunday hours and as it continued, the County would then take over the costs, not the City. Ms. Wheeler commented that she feels the Commissioners would agree to continue Sunday hours and feels that this is a good promotion for the City. President Halstad questioned Ms. Wheeler if any other branches were opened on Sundays. Ms. Wheeler replied, not at this time, but that Commissioner Howard would like to have Eldersburg open on Sundays. Mayor Utz commented that the support of having the library open on Sundays was to promote downtown Westminster. Mr. Frazier questioned if the library’s hours on Sunday is attracting other people from other areas. Ms. Wheeler shared that it is the normal traffic flow, but according to a survey, people have requested to have other branches open on Sundays as well. President Halstad commented ideally the commissioners should fund all the branches of the Public Library. Ms. Wheeler also thanked the City for their partnership of the paving projects. Mayor Utz recommended the reappointments of Kristen McMasters, Kevin Wagman and D. Arlette Mitchell to Historic District Commission. Upon motion of Mr. Frazier and seconded by Dr. Wack, the motion passed unanimously. MINUTES: Upon motion of Mr. Chiavacci, seconded by Mr. Frazier and unanimously passed, the minutes of the Council meeting of February 25, 2013, were approved. CONSENT CALENDAR: Mr. Frazier moved to approve the Consent Calendar which consisted of February 2013 Departmental Operating Reports and approval of Traffic Safety Grants. Mr. Whitson seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. REPORT FROM THE MAYOR: Mayor Utz reported that he and the City staff have continued to meet with local businesses. He has found that the outcome has been very positive towards Main Street. He shared that there has not been any complaints about law enforcement downtown, thanking Chief Spaulding for a job well done. Mayor Utz explained that the City has kept in touch with downtown businesses so that everyone knows what events are occurring. He also reported that he attended a meeting with Human Services Program. He shared that Cindy Parr and HSP have done an outstanding job and are happy to be partnering with them. REPORTS FROM STANDING COMMITTEES: Dr. Wack reported that the budget is underway and that the Finance committee will have a schedule soon for budget meetings. Mr. Chiavacci reported that Ms. Gruber has hit the ground running in the Recreation Department. He shared that he has heard a lot of positive things from the staff. The advisory committee will be starting to meet again soon. He questioned the problem with the house located Main Street, where they City is with that situation. Mr. Beyard replied that when the City received the complaint, the cleaning process had begun. He shared that there will be an inspection with the Westminster Police Department because of additional concerns on March 26. Mr. Beyard has stayed in contact with the lady who filed the complaint and she seems satisfied with how the City has handled the situation so far. Mayor Utz questioned the costs involved. Mr. Beyard replied that when there is a code issue, such as this, the City places a lien against the property. Mr. Beyard commented that the tax payers are protected. Mr. Frazier questioned Mr. Beyard’s comment regarding the City keeping the outside of the house clean regardless of what this entails. Mr. Beyard replied that someone will be driving by the house every day, making sure it is not a problem property. BIDS: Mr. Glass explained that the City’s 2012/13 General Fund Budget contains necessary funds for the replacement of a Pickup truck and Full Size Van as identified in the Capital Improvement Plan (CIP). The vehicles will replace existing units in the Inspection and Recreation Departments respectively. The supplier, Sport Automotive has bid and secured a contract with the State of Maryland to supply this equipment. As a Local Government Westminster is in a position to take advantage of the procurement and economics of that contract. The quoted amounts are $23441.00 for the Truck and $20752.00 for the Van, which are substantially lower than City bid arrangements. Mr. Glass recommended that the Mayor and Common Council approve Sport Automotives proposal in the total amount of $44,193.00 for replacement of these vehicles. Mr. Frazier questioned the year and mileage of the truck and the van. Mr. Glass replied that the Inspector’s truck is a 2000 with 160,000 miles and the Recreation van is a 1997 with 120,000 miles. Mr. Chiavacci questioned make of the replacement vehicles. Mr. Glass replied that they are both Chevrolets. Mr. Chiavacci inquired if there was a local dealer here in town who could match the numbers. Mr. Glass replied the numbers are $2,000 less than what has been able to do locally. Upon motion of Dr. Wack, seconded by Mr. Chiavacci, the Council unanimously approved the bid of Sport Automotive. ORDINANCES &RESOLUTIONS: Ms. Wolf shared that the City has applied for designation as a Smart Energy Community. If designated, the City will be eligible to receive grant funding for energy efficiency projects and renewable energy projects. She explained that the application requires the City to adopt two policies. The first policy is to establish an electricity consumption baseline and develop plans with the goal to reduce per square foot electricity consumption of city buildings by 15% within 5 years of adoption. The second policy is to reduce conventional centralized electricity generation serving a local government’s buildings by meeting 20% of those buildings’ electricity demand with distributed, renewable energy generation by 2022. Ms. Wolf explained that the eligible technologies include solar, wind, geothermal heating and cooling, waste to energy, etc. She explained that both of these plans require a baseline data base that can go back as far as 2010 and provide a reduction plan that begins in 2011. The City already completed measures that can be counted toward achievement of these goals. This works in the City’s favor since we have a number of projects completed or underway: replacement of lighting, improvements to the waste water treatment plant, replacement of windows, etc. The City also has a baseline data base prepared by an engineer for the MEA lighting project. Ms. Wolf added that the City also has both solar energy and geothermal projects in our CIP between now and 2022. She commented that the staff feels confident that the City can meet the second goal also. If the City is designated, the City will receive $28,000 for the remainder of FY2013 and will be eligible to apply for additional funding in FY2014. The staff is requesting that The Mayor and Common Council approve Resolution 13-02, authorizing the submission of an application for funding as a Smart Energy Community. President Halstad questioned if the City could meet the twenty percent (20%) of energy usage. Ms. Wolf replied yes, the staff feels that the City can meet the energy usage. Mr. Chiavacci questioned if there was other criteria to meet other than the twenty percent or if there was any criteria’s that could create a problem for the City. Ms. Wolf replied that the City had someone do a whole assessment of the City’s buildings and made recommendations. President Halstad commented that the City has been working towards the goals. Upon motion of Mr. Chiavacci, seconded by Mr. Frazier and unanimously passed, Resolution 13-02, Smart Energy Community Application, was approved. Mr. Horn explained that the Mayor & Common Council conducted a public hearing on the proposed rezoning of WMC Development Corporation parcels from ‘NC’ Neighborhood Commercial to ‘B’ Business. The applicant was present to offer justification for the request. No one spoke in opposition to the proposed rezoning. The Mayor & Common Council introduced Ordinance No. 841 on Monday, February 25, 2013. According to the petitioner’s statement, it was a mistake to rezone the subject properties. Changes to the zoning of the subject properties, resulting from the adoption of the 2009 City Comprehensive Plan, inadvertently created hardships for property owners seeking funding and refinancing from lending institutions. The subject properties were rezoned from the ‘B’ Business Zoning District to the ‘N-C’ Neighborhood Commercial Zoning District. At the time of the original zoning decision, it was not evident to affected property owners, City Council or City staff that obstacles to lender financing would result from the referenced zoning changes. Adoption of Ordinance No. 841 rezones the properties, effectively removes the referenced funding obstacles, and facilitates lender financing for planned commercial buildings, additions and alterations on the subject properties. Mr. Chiavacci motioned to approve Ordinance No. 841. Mr. Frazier seconded and the motion unanimously passed. Mr. Horn shared that the Mayor & Common Council introduced Ordinance No. 842 on Monday, February 25, 2013, which would allow telecommunications facilities as a special exception on school sites meeting certain specific criteria. The Ordinance proposes an amendment that would add a definition of ‘School Site’ to the City’s Code. It also allows for the increase in size the size of the communications panels from 6 ½ feet to 8 feet. Finally, the Ordinance allows telecommunications facilities as a special exception on school sites located within the R-20,000, R-10,000 and R-7,500 zones. Mr. Horn recommended approval of Ordinance No. 842 to allow telecommunications facilities as special exceptions, requiring public hearing before the Board of Zoning Appeals, on school sites meeting specific criteria. Mr. Frazier motioned to approve Ordinance No. 842. Dr. Wack seconded and the motion unanimously passed. NEW BUSINESS: Ms. Palmer shared that there are three transfers of appropriations that need to be approved by the Mayor and Common Council. The first transfer of $103,000 from the Capital Projects Fund was for the Pennsylvania Avenue Streetscape Project. These funds were budgeted last year and the project was not completed. It was an oversight that they were not re-appropriated to complete the project this year. The second transfer of $73,210 from the Capital Projects Fund was for three Police vehicles. These funds were budgeted last year and the vehicles were not purchased until this year. The third transfer of $12,250 from General Fund Reserves for extended Davis Library hours. Ms. Palmer asked Council for approval of those revisions. Dr. Wack questioned if the $12,250 was for the activity that is occurring now. Ms. Palmer replied that is correct. Upon motion of Mr. Frazier, seconded by Mr. Chiavacci, the Council unanimously approved the Budget Revisions. Dr. Wack motioned, pursuant to Section 10-508(a)(7) of the State Government Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland, to conduct an executive session at the conclusion of the current meeting. Mr. Frazier seconded, and the motion passed unanimously. DEPARTMENT REPORTS: Mr. Cumberland reported that for the month of January, the department responded to 117 fire calls; 58 in the City, 45 in the County, and 14 Mutual Aids. He shared there is an average of 9 responders per call. He stated for the 2013, the department has 254 calls compared to 2012, when they had 202. He also reported that EMS ran 460 calls, averaging 16 calls a day. The department’s total for 2013 is 949 compared to 2012 at 801. He pointed out that the department is up 148 calls from last year. He stated that 242 calls were in the City, 186 calls were in the first due area, and 6 were mutual aid calls. He shared the total fire loss for 2013 was $14,400.00. He explained EMS transported 339 patients to Carroll Hospital Center, 7 patients to University of Maryland Shock Trauma, 4 patients to John Hopkins Hospital, 2 patients to Sinai Hospital, 1 patient to Union Memorial and patients refused transport 55 times. Mr. Beyard reported that the City ran the advertisement in the paper as suggested by Council for the Rental Licensing meetings. He shared that the meetings have gone very well. He shared that the City sent out 600 letters. Mr. Beyard reported that the City has received 919 applicants and has received $18,320 in licensing fees. He shared that 712 licenses have been issued and that four of the biggest landlords have submitted their applications so far. He commented that the program has been going well so far. Mr. Chiavacci questioned the general tenor. Mr. Beyard replied that it has been civil. Mr. Beyard commented that he has offered to attend meetings with the landlord associations if need be. Ms. Gruber reported that the Recreation department is moving forward on their Spring Events. She shared that there will be two Easter Egg Hunts. She also reported that the Recreation department is preparing for their summer events, hiring temporary staff for the pool and summer camp. Ms. Gruber also reported that the ADA lifts were installed at the pool and the Family Center. She shared that the Recreation department has been looking at space utilization in the Armory as well as upgrades for fitness center equipment. She added that she is currently developing an RFP for new water slide at the pool because the old one had to be removed. She also looked into completing the extension the Wakefield Valley Trail from Uniontown Road to West Main Street. Ms. Gruber shared that the Recreation Department has been approached by Dr. Galleghar who does the Celtic cantor which has grown from 80 runners to 400 runners this March. Dr. Galleghar is asking for City’s support for this growing event. Chief Spaulding reported that March 15 represents the end of the third year that the automotive, red-light camera program as the Council recalls down to one red-light camera. He shared that the Police Department is in the process of filing crash data as well as citation of violation data. He expects to have a report of recommendation for Council in continuation of that program in the next week. Chief Spaulding reminded Mayor and Council that the annual rewards ceremony will be on April 24 and please RSVP to Chief Spaulding or Karen Bullock. Mr. Glass reported that the City is in the process of putting together the annual roadway bid package. He also reported that they are in the process of coordinating plans for draining and painting of the Wakefield Valley tank. Dr. Wack questioned if the asphalt will be about the same in cost, so that will mean keeping the bids the same. Mr. Glass replied that would be his guess at this juncture in time. Mr. Frazier questioned how close to being caught up with paving the roads to where they are all in decent shape. Mr. Glass replied that the City is about eight years out. Mr. Chiavacci questioned how far out was the City two to three years ago. Mr. Glass replied probably about 14 or so years out. Mr. Chiavacci commented that the City has covered a significant ground in the past year and a half. Mr. Glass replied that is correct. Ms. Wolf reported that BGE has completed work on Main Street. She shared that they did a good job on trimming trees, Eric Schilitzer oversaw the work that they did. BGE had to remove two small trees out; one was interfering with the transformer. Ms. Wolf reported that Human Services Program shared that the cold weather shelter will be closed as of March 31. She shared the business roundtable is going very well and we are half way through meeting with the businesses. Ms. Wolf added that they will be preparing the report of the meetings to share with Council. Ms. Wolf also reported that the Commissioners are providing $7,000 for advertisements for the municipal Main Streets in Carroll County. CITIZEN COMMENTS: Rebecca Ornstein of 64 Pennsylvania Avenue shared that she disagrees with the Rental Licensing Program and there should be an exclusion if a landlord has only one unit. Ms. Ornstein commented that she is concerned about the project of the Council celebrating citizens and encourages Council to follow through with this project. Mr. Ornstein shared the history of Mary Shellman and expressed her concerns of celebrating the Corbit’s Charge in the City of Westminster. She feels that the City of Westminster has nothing to mark the 150th Anniversary. She shared that she needs to have $5,000 in order to have the event, but is unable to receive the funds. ADJOURN: President Halstad adjourned the meeting at 8:11 PM. Respectfully Submitted, Shannon Visocsky