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HomeMy Public PortalAbout20060511_TybeeCouncilMinsCouncil Minutes Page 1 of 6 Meeting of 2006-05-11 City Council Minutes Mayor Pro Tem Shirley Sessions called the Consent Agenda Meeting to order at 6:30PM on May 11, 2006. Present in addition to Mayor Pro Tem Sessions were Council Members Kathryn Williams, Wanda Doyle, Eddie Crone and Paul Wolff. Also present were City Attorney Bubba Hughes, City Manager Diane Schleicher and Assistant City Manager Dee Anderson. Absent were Mayor Jason Buelterman and Councilman Mallory Pearce. Mayor Pro Tem Sessions and Council Members decided to put the following items on the Consent Agenda, Jason Ball Homecoming Special Event, the recommendation for Davis Enterprises to replace the City Hall Roof and a budget adjustment of $4,420 to come out of Building Maintenance, Minutes for April 27, 2006, Alcohol License for MacElwee’ s Seafood and Alcohol License for Bernie’ s Tybee Island, Inc. Mayor Pro Tem Sessions closed the Consent Agenda Meeting. Mayor Pro Tem Sessions called the regular meeting of the City Council to order at 7:00PM on May 11, 2006. All persons previously listed were still in attendance. Reverend Hale Bishop gave the invocation and everyone cited the pledge of allegiance to the flag. Mayor Pro Tem Sessions welcomed the new city manager, Diane Schleicher, to the city and thanked Dee Anderson for filling in during the interim. Diane Schleicher told everyone a little about herself and said she is very excited about being here and working for Tybee. Presentations scheduled for Walter Parker and Burke Day were postponed until a later date. Mayor Pro Tem Sessions presented the City with a Flag donated by the Aviation Brigade, #3rd Infantry Division. This flag was flown over Bagdad on November 29, 2005. Theresa Concannon from the Ga. RDC talked about plans to update the Master Plan for Tybee. She said the City is expected to review, revise and adopt a Master Plan by October, 2008. She said two years is plenty of time to accomplish this. She felt that having the DCA team come and conduct visioning sessions and assess the issues and opportunities was an excellent first step towards developing the new plan. She said also looking at some of the key topics the DCA is pushing for inclusion into the plans are character areas such as the Back River area and the Beach area. Mr. Wolff said a draft report from the DCA should be online in the next couple of weeks for public comment with the final version coming in August. Ms. Concannon said there is a format and process change that brings the new master plans up to National standards best practices but they have provided a lot of tools to accomplish this. They have developed checklist and suggested list of stakeholders. She said the DCA website has documents you can print out that will answer a lot of the questions and help to start the process. Bill Cannon of the Tybee Beautification Committee reminded everyone about the Adopt a Highway that will be on May 20, 2006 at 8:00AM and they will meet at Council Minutes Page 2 of 6 the Tybee Sign on Hwy 80 at Lazaretto Creek. He requested everyone come in appropriate clothing to accomplish the task including gloves and hats. Dan Lockwood, a resident of Jones Ave. on Tybee, said he has been using the small boat launch on the Back River several times weekly since 1996. He said this spring the boat launch has been blocked by fisherman with coolers and tackle boxes and they set up chairs right on the boat launch. He said Major Case from the Police Department told him the problem is there is no ordinance prohibiting blocking or fishing from the boat launch so they cannot enforce it. He said Major Case said to call the police anytime if he had a problem getting them to move. Mr. Lockwood said it isn’ t easy to call the police as your coming into the boat launch on a windy day with people in your way. He requested an ordinance be adopted and a sign be put at the boat launch. Mayor Pro Tem Sessions opened the Public Hearings with the first one being the Public Park at 19th Street. Mr. Anderson said through research with the Historical Society they have discovered that the old park used to be called Amfico Club Park and Playground. He said now it is overgrown but the Gazebo and fence are still there intertwined in the weeds. He said someone has offered to build this park for the city. He said this was a public hearing to get input before going forward with the idea. He said Cullen Chambers of the Tybee Historical Society has written a letter giving his full support on this project. Mayor Pro Tem Sessions asked that the letter from Mr. Chambers and an opposition letter written by Helen Downing be added as part of the minutes as well. Mr. Wolff asked how many parking spaces the city would lose. Mr. Anderson said we would lose about 8 parking spaces that are only used for overflow parking. Mary Adams spoke in opposition to the park. She said the concept of a park with bathrooms seems like a benign idea but in this situation it is not. She said one reason is the south end has a history of late night partying and carousing. She believes a park would ask for more of that. She said at night it is an isolated section where people come to stay up all night. She said that end of the Island is so dangerous with many people drowning there. She said her brother has saved 35 people from drowning. She said just a few years ago even with life guards in the area a child got in trouble 5 feet from the shoreline and Sprague Exley saved him. She said a life ring sits on the porch of the house just in case they need it. Howard Reeves said his mother owns the house midway across the street and his wife owns the property next door to that. He said they were not notified of this meeting. He asked if the buildings would have to comply with federal laws. Mr. Hughes said all buildings would have to comply. He said he doesn’ t think it is a good idea to have bathrooms there because it is a residential area. He said they have all kinds of traffic in front of his mother’ s house and they leave a lot of things behind. Mr. Hank Buckley spoke in favor of the Park and said he grew up about two blocks down from the old park. He said it would be a good thing to preserve in its original state. He said he is not in favor of the new plan because it is not original. He said he was looking for a legacy for his Dad that was City Clerk for 41 years. He said his Dad had received the Carnegie Medal for rescuing 3 people off of that sandbar in 1951. Sissy Ward said she has rescued 3 sets of people off of the sandbar also. She thinks it is a bad idea to invite people to go there. She said it is a dangerous situation. She said a park is a good idea but access to the water is not. Carol Hyman said his family had redone the AMFICO Park in 1984 by removing all the rock bands and junk that had collected there. He said there were car break-ins that were happening about 10 years ago that were brought under control by his adding a roof deck on his house. He is concerned about crime because he is the only one there in the winter. He said at a minimum there needs to be a fence that is posted with times so that he could Council Minutes Page 3 of 6 call if someone goes in there after hours. He said the crime elements that have been addressed over the last 21 years need to be considered. Ms. Jo Buckley said she raised her children down there and she loves parks and she likes the new design better than the original park. Mr. Henry Levy said the children’ s play area should be where people can observe it. Ms. Williams said the area Mr. Levy pointed out was a driveway that can’ t be moved and the trees to the east are in a conservation easement. Mr. Levy said the bathrooms should be moved forward and the gathering place should be moved to the back. Mr. Sam Adams of 1904 Chatham Avenue said there is a right of way that is a driveway that is not shown on the drawing. Mr. Crone said the driveway is already there and is not included in the drawing. He said years ago the city decided that they wanted a water tower located there. The neighborhood rallied against it and won. He said the neighbors are surprised again. He said a public park with bathrooms in a high value neighborhood is a bad idea. He asked if Council is looking out for visitors or tax payers. He said he resides at his house on Tybee about 6 months a year. He asked if the visitors that come here to stay up all night and drink will do so where a patrol car is likely to pass them or are they going to the southern tip? He said they know they live at a public beach and their expectations of public decorum are low and they are often woken up in the middle of the night. He said the Southern Tip has adequate parking to qualify for the Beach Renourishment money and taking away any spaces could be interpreted by the Feds as Tybee acting in bad faith. He suggested that Council not let this public park distract from their scrutiny of the Campground deal. He said in his opinion that is the purpose of the park. He said look at the campground deal for what it is and either do it or don’ t do it but it should stand on its own. He has decided to personally look at the campground deal. He said if he were on city council and a relative of his employer had a major deal involving tax payer dollars in front of council he said he would be bound by ethics to recuse himself and not to vote or push the deal with fellow council members. He said the park cannot block their ability to get to their home. Ms. Williams said Mayor Buelterman had requested that they postpone making a decision on this park until a future date. Mayor Pro Tem Sessions asked Mr. Hughes if they have to table the petition. Mr. Hughes said they do not have to take any action at all but they can table it if that is what they want to do. Ms. Williams motioned to table the 19th Street Park, Ms. Doyle seconded, and the vote was unanimous. Council requested that the 19th Street Park be put on the next agenda. Mr. Wolff said they should revisit the restroom location and consider how much parking is being lost and possibly lean towards the historic nature of the Gazebo as was suggested. He said this should not be misconstrued as a visitor attraction because it is a neighborhood park and one of the suggestions from the DCA team was for pocket parks throughout the island on city property. He believes the restrooms should be locked at dark and possibly a fence being installed as well to prevent disruption in the neighborhood. Ms. Doyle asked that the City Manager review it and come up with some different discussion ideas. Mayor Pro Tem Sessions requested that Ms. Schleicher look into Police presence at that end of the island late at night. Lawanna Tsoulos presented the petition for a Front Setback Variance of 5 feet at 1707 Butler Avenue for a deck from Petitioner Jimmy Harper. She said it is in the C-1 Zone and the 200 ft rule does not apply because it is a residential property in the C-1 Zone. She said the PC voted in favor of the petition. She said the motion was conditioned on them putting the steps under the new porch. Ms. Lisa Harper presented revised plans and said they have tried to move the metal building off of the property but no one will move it. Mr. Crone asked why PC had recommended they move the building. Ms. Harper Council Minutes Page 4 of 6 said because the building was put on the property line for storage and they need to move it over 5 feet. Mr. Anderson said the PC did not say anything about the metal building but the City Staff had made that request because it was against the ordinance. Mr. Wolff said with the 5 foot addition it seemed that they would still be in line with the other houses and the proposed deck will not come out as far as the steps do now. He said it will be a deck and not a screened porch. Ms. Williams asked if the existing steps would be removed. Ms. Harper said yes. Mr. Charlie Wilkins said he lives at 1708 Lovell and their back yards connect. He just wanted to make sure the deck would be the only change. He asked if the new drawing showed any changes that were not addressed. Mr. Anderson said the new drawing should show the steps under the deck and that would be the only change. Mr. Wilkins asked what the setback would be after the variance. Mr. Wolff said 15 feet. Ms. Williams motioned to table the petition to have staff review the revised plans. Motion failed for lack of a second. Mr. Crone motioned to approve the revised plan, Mr. Wolff seconded. Ms. Doyle said Ms. Harper had done the second drawing because the Planning Commission had recommended it and it isn’ t fair to penalize her for doing what they requested. Ms. Schleicher suggested an amended motion to include the contingency that it is approved only after the Zoning Staff has verified the revised plans. Mr. Crone amended his motion as suggested, Mr. Wolff seconded the amended motion, and the motion carried 4 to 1 with Ms. Williams voting against. Ms. Tsoulos presented the Petition for a setback variance for Trinity Methodist Church in Zone R-2 at 911 Butler Ave. She said they want to expand the social hall. She said the PC approval was contingent on the Metal Shed being moved to the property line. Ms. Williams asked if the 200 ft rule applied. Mr. Anderson said no because this is the rear yard and the 200 ft rule only applies to front yards. Mayor Pro Tem Sessions presented a letter from the adjacent neighbor that is in favor of the variance. Reverend Hale Bishop said the metal shed met the code when they put it there and they would like the petition approved without having to move the shed unless it gets destroyed during construction. Mr. Russell Bridges, the other adjoining neighbor said he was in favor of the project. Mr. Crone motioned to approve the petition as presented without condition, Ms. Doyle seconded, and the vote was unanimous. Ms. Tsoulos presented the petition for a side setback variance at 156 South Campbell for Charles and Sandra Brewer. She said it is a continuation of a non conforming side setback for a den and bedroom expansion. She said there was also a petition for a cantilever deck to go into the 25 ft buffer line. She said the PC recommended denial. Ms. Brewer asked to table the petition for the cantilever deck and go forward with the side setback variance. Mr. Hughes said the Council could address each issue separately. Mr. Wolff asked if the expansion was coming to the edge of the concrete pad. Ms. Brewer said that was correct. Ms. Brewer said her hardship was that the fireplace had no mortar left and they will have to take that wall out with the fireplace so they wanted to expand the living and bedrooms while they were doing that so they would have more of a view. Mr. Wolff moved to approve the bedroom extension contingent on all storm water runoff being diverted away from the marsh, Mr. Crone seconded, and the vote was unanimous. Mr. Wolff motioned to table the variance request for the deck pending our findings from the study that is being done right now on our buffer ordinance, Ms. Williams seconded, and the vote was unanimous. Mr. Wolff said the first draft of that ordinance should be done sometime in May. Council Minutes Page 5 of 6 Ms. Tsoulos presented a Site Plan for a maintenance shop at the Tybrisa Beach Resort at 1 15th Street in C-1. Ms. Tsoulos said the PC had approved contingent on the siding being the same on all sides and the elevation on the ramp being the same at the property line and the street Mr. Tom Olson of Kern Coleman said he had addressed both concerns of the PC and had submitted new plans to Mr. Anderson last week. Mr. Wolff motioned to approve the new plans submitted, Ms. Doyle seconded, and the vote was unanimous. Mayor Pro Tem Sessions opened the meeting for items legally presented with the consent agenda as, the Jason Ball homecoming and the City of Tybee co- sponsoring this event, Recommendation from Staff to have Davis Enterprises replace the roof at City Hall for $24,420 and a budget adjustment of $4,420 from Building Maintenance, Minutes from April 27, 2006, Alcohol License for MacElwee’ s Seafood and Alcohol License for Bernie’ s Tybee Island, Inc. Mr. Crone motioned to approve the consent agenda items, Ms. Williams seconded, and the vote was unanimous. Mr. Anderson recommended postponing the decision on the Engineering Firm until next meeting so that Diane Schleicher can review the proposals. Council Agreed and asked for this to be put on the next agenda. Mr. Hughes prepared a resolution to be adopted regarding the campground lease. Mr. Wolff motioned to approve the resolution authorizing the appropriate actions with respect to the bond validation & agreement within the parameters indicated & to authorize the execution of the lease agreement when appropriate, Ms. Williams seconded, and the vote was unanimous. Mr. Wolff asked if we would be leasing the campground during the term of the bond and once the bond is paid off we would take ownership. Mr. Hughes said yes. Mr. Wolff motioned to go into Executive Session to discuss, Real Estate, Litigation or Personnel, Ms. Williams seconded, and the vote was unanimous. Ms. Williams motioned to go into open session, Mr. Wolff seconded, and the vote was unanimous. Ms. Doyle said she had received a call from Mr. Hansboro regarding the purchase of trees and removal of stumps. She said he told her about a representative of the adjacent property owner cutting the trees down on his property without his permission in order to move a house out. She asked how the city could issue a permit to cut down trees on someone else’ s property. Mr. Anderson said the agent was representing an LLC group of property owners and the property is not shaped in a square so there was confusion about where the lines ended. He said as soon as the agent was made aware of the mistake he offered to replant the trees. Mr. Hughes recommended that the city wait to see how this is resolved between the property owner and the agent before taking action. Ms. Williams disagreed and stated that she feels that the city should take action to ensure that this does not happen again. Mr. Anderson said that the agent had looked at the alternate route to take the house out but it was determined that the house would not fit through the Ft. Screven Gate. Ms. Williams said there should be consequences for this and council agreed that the city should hold the agent accountable. Mr. Hughes will check into this matter and report back to council. Mr. Wolff motioned to adjourn, Ms. Doyle seconded, and the vote was unanimous. Council Minutes Page 6 of 6 ______________________________________ Mayor Jason Buelterman ______________________________ Vivian O. Woods Clerk of Council (2006-05-11, Amended, 09/07/2006, delected draft and corrected heading to lower case)