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HomeMy Public PortalAbout09-17-2001PROCEEDINGS OF THE COMMON COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF RICHMOND, INDIANA, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2001 The Common Council of the City of Richmond, Indiana met in regular session at 7:30 p.m., Monday, September 17, 2001, in the Council Chambers in said City. President Karl Sharp presided with the following Councilmembers present: Howard "Jack" Elstro, Etta J. Lundy, Bruce Wissel, Phil Dickman, Bing Welch, Larry Parker, Paul Combs and Sarah "Sally" Hutton.. The following business was conducted: Prior to the regular agenda, President Sharp read an explanation of the words and meaning of the Pledge of Allegiance given many years ago by a teacher of Red Skelton's in a classroom in Vincennes, Indiana. After reading it, President Sharp said that Skelton had commented on that reading, stating, "Wouldn't it be a pity if someone said that this is a prayer and that would be eliminated from schools, too." PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE PRAYER BY COUNCILMEMBER HUTTON Councilmember Hutton said that she felt with all that has been going on this past week it would be appropriate to have Father Todd Riebe of the Richmond Catholic Community give the opening prayer. ROLL CALL Nine present. APPROVAL OF MINUTES The minutes of the meeting of September 4, 2001 were approved on a motion by Councilmember Hutton, second by Councilmember Welch and carried on a voice vote. PRESENTATION OF REMONSTRANCES, PETITIONS, MEMORIALS, INTRODUCTIONS, MOTIONS AND PUBLIC COMMENTS Councilmember Lundy presented a petition by the Vaile Neighborhood Association stating: "We the undersigned are in favor of the City of Richmond Common Council enacting an ordinance prohibiting the possession of any open alcoholic beverage container on public property. We feel this ordinance would help to ensure the safety of residents, as well as help the cleanliness of our city." She explained that a few months ago she, along with Councilmember Elstro, both of whom represent parts of that district, the Police Chief and the Neighborhood Association met to talk about the issue and this petition in the result of that meeting. Councilmember Elstro asked City Attorney Bob Bever if anything had been put on paper addressing this issue and Bever said he had no knowledge of it. Mayor Shelley Miller then commented that she had met with Police Chief Bill Shake and Assistant City Attorney Steve Rabe last week regarding this ordinance and take a close look as to how effective it would be in addressing the issues in that neighborhood. As a result of that meeting, she said, Chief Shake is looking at whether or not that is something he would recommend that the administration present and pursue. She said the Police Department has seen a significant decrease of activity in that neighborhood as a result of other approaches they have taken in existing ordinances that have been utilized. She said that her interpretation of his recommendation is that it would not be effective as an additional tool. She said she had asked the Chief to get back with the Vaile Neighborhood Association and others interested and have additional conversation on that ordinance. Councilmember Hutton stated that two months ago the Neighborhood Services Clearinghouse Board of Directors voted to also support this ordinance. Councilmember Lundy said she and Councilmember Elstro would be happy to co-sponsor the ordinance. COMMUNICATION FROM THE MAYOR Mayor Miller shared an e-mail she had received last Thursday from Richmond's Sister City in Serpukov, Russia, addressing the terrorist acts of this past week. She also read a proclamation declaring the week of September 16 — 22 as Public Transportation Awareness Week in the City of Richmond. REPORT FROM BOARD OF PUBLIC WORKS AND SAFETY President Sharp said the minutes of the meetings August 23 and 30, 2001, were included in their packets. Common Council Minutes Cont'd September 17, 2001 Page 2 REPORTS FROM DEPARTMENT HEADS Terri Quinter of Roseview Transit gave Councilmembers an update on accomplishments of the Roseview Transit, stating that two new paratransit vans have been added to the fleet, and, to -date this year, 243,228 riders have been transported by both the vans and buses. President Sharp said rides will be offered to Councilmembers and other officials at 10 a.m. Tuesday. REPORTS FROM STANDING COMMITTEES REPORTS FROM SPECIAL COMMITTEES REPORTS FROM ORGANIZATIONS MISCELLANEOUS BUSINESS Councilmember Combs submitted a petition signed by residents in the area of South 6 b Street from South A to South E Streets. He said he was going to be presenting a second petition later on, signed by residents in the area of South 7t` Street from South A to South E Streets. The petition reads: "We the below signed citizens of Richmond, Indiana request the street lights be repaired or replaced as necessary to increase night lighting effectiveness. Further we request street trees be trimmed or removed as needed to help with nighttime lighting effectiveness. This is a necessary and essential tool for our neighborhood to fight the escalating crime that has ravaged our area in the past year." Councilmember Parker said he had received several letters from employees of the Sanitary Department and he would like to either submit the letters to the Sanitary Board or have those Board representatives come before Council and comment on them. He said they are all signed and contain concerns that should be addressed. Mayor Miller said she had received a couple of letters so she is aware of this and said the administration has had conversations with employees to try to keep them updated on the transition that will occur as American Water Services takes over the operations of the EA2 Management contract. She said that she felt the Sanitation Board would welcome the opportunity to discuss the issue further with Council. President Sharp said Council had three appointments to make to the Sanitary Citizens Advisory Committee which would be newly established. Rhonda Brown, Scott Abney and Kathy Wetzel were the names he said had been submitted. Councilmember Hutton moved to approve the appointment of the three mentioned, second by Councilmember Dickman and the motion was carried on a voice vote. President Sharp also stated that he has become aware that Council has two committees which require elected members on their Boards. He said he has appointed Councilmember Welch to the WUR Solid Waste District Board and since he is already liaison to the Economic Development Corp. of Wayne County, he has appointed himself to the Eastern Indiana Economic Development Board. ORDINANCES ON FIRST READING Councilmember Elstro moved to suspend the rules and read Ordinance No. 69 — 2001 in its entirety and Ordinance No. 70 - 2001, on first reading by title only, second by Councilmember Parker and the motion was carried on a voice vote. ORDINANCE NO. 69 — 2001 The Clerk read Ordinance No. 69 — 2001 — A SPECIAL ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING THE CITY OF RICHMOND TO RECEIVE A DONATION "WHEREAS, the City of Richmond, Indiana, has the option of accepting or rejecting donations for a specific purpose; and "WHEREAS, the acceptance of a donation for a specific purpose constitutes the appropriation of such property for the intended purpose. "NOW, THEREFORE, be it ordained by the Common Council of the City of Richmond, Indiana, that the following shall be accepted and gratefully acknowledged by the citizens of Richmond: "Two hundred fifty dollars (250.00) by First Bank Richmond to assist with expenses for the Community Information and Training Session sponsored by the City of Richmond Human Rights Commission." Councilmember Lundy moved to suspend the rules and advance Ordinance No. 69 — 2001 to second reading and read by title only, second by Councilmember Elstro and the motion was carried on a voice vote. Common Council Minutes Cont'd September 17, 2001 Page 3 President Sharp declared Ordinance No. 69 — 2001 on second reading and public hearing. There being no comments either for or against the ordinance, Councilmember Elstro moved for engrossment, second by Councilmember Welch and the motion was carried on a voice vote. Councilmember Wissel moved to suspend the rules and advance ordinance No. 69 — 2001 to third and final reading and read by title only, second by Councilmember Lundy and the motion was carried on a voice vote. The Clerk read Ordinance No. 69 — 2001 on third reading. Ordinance No. 69 — 2001 was adopted on a unanimous roll call vote. ORDINANCE NO.70 — 2001 The Clerk read Ordinance No. 70 — 2001— A GENERAL ORDINANCE AMENDING AND RESTATING CHAPTER 91 OF THE CITY OF RICHMOND CODE Assistant City Attorney Steve Rabe explained that this ordinance which, if adopted, would substantially re- write and streamline Chapter 91 of the City of Richmond Code. He said that chapter addresses animals within the city and represents many months of work. He said for the past several months the administration has met with meter readers from all the utilities, representatives of the U.S. Post Office, the Police Department and representatives of the animal control people in Muncie. In addition, he said, Captain Truitt has assembled a group of volunteers who are doing a lot of things relating to animal control and animal services within the city. Rabe said this toughens up the fines and for dogs running loose it adds a fine and if a dog bites someone it substantially streamlines and clarifies the procedures for vicious dog hearings which are held by the Board of Public Works and Safety. At the present time, Rabe said, the Police Department is taking applications for the position of animal services officer due to the retirement of the former animal control officer. Captain Truitt said she's been involved in working on the revision of Chapter 91 for the past three years and during that time she said her effort has been trying to improve the quality of life for animals in this community by switching the focus from animal control to animal advocacy or animal services. She went into detail about some of the progress that's being made in that area. In addressing the fines, Rabe said that cities are limited in how much they can assess for ordinance violations and the state law reads that you can only fine a person up to $100 if you are going to give the person the ability to come into the Clerk's office and pay the fine. When those fines exceed $100 state law reads that the City has to file a separate lawsuit to collect on that. President Sharp said that at the last Board of Works meeting this issue was discussed and, the dogs in question were declared vicious and they were destroyed. He announced that a Committee of the Whole meeting to discuss this ordinance would be held at 7 p.m. Wednesday, October 3, in the Council Chambers and invited members of the public to attend. ORDINANCES ON SECOND READING AND ENGROSSMENT AMENDED ORDINANCE NO. 18 — 2001 The Clerk read Amended Ordinance No. 18 — 2001 — A SPECIAL ORDINANCE FIXING CERTAIN BENEFITS UNDER THE POLICEMAN PENSION FUND FOR THE CITY OF RICHMOND City Controller John Kenny said he had only recently got a chance to look at this ordinance and Ordinance No. 28 — 2001 and had spoken with a consultant who is aware of the issues and she is ready to look into this to give a true cost to the City. He said this will be a fairly detailed review which will take some time to come up with the figures needed to make some kind of decision. He said he is fairly comfortable in saying it will probably be the middle of November before this will happen. Councilmember Welch commented that it would be possible for Council to table these ordinances until he (Kenny) is ready to come up with the figures that are needed. He moved to table both ordinances and hold them until Kenny and the Mayor feels the actuarial study is complete and it is time to bring them back on the agenda, second by Councilmember Dickman and the motion was carried on a voice vote. ORDINANCE NO. 28 — 2001 The Clerk read Ordinance No. 28 — 2001 — A SPECIAL ORDINANCE FIXING CERTAIN BENEFITS UNDER THE 1937 FIREFIGHTER'S PENSION FUND FOR THE CITY OF RICHMOND Action on the above ordinance also includes this one. Both are tabled until further notice by Council. Common Council Minutes Cont'd September 17, 2001 Page 4 ORDINANCE NO. 55 — 2001 The Clerk read Ordinance No. 55 — 2001 — A SPECIAL ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING THE APPROVAL OF A STATEMENT OF BENEFITS FOR A PROPERTY OWNER APPLYING FOR DEDUCTIONS UNDER I.C. 6-1.1-12.1 Councilmember Elstro said the wording on this ordinance looks good, but he asked Councilmember Wissel for further comment. After a brief discussion, he suggested that the ordinance be amended to reflect the values that were on the statement. He also said it was indicated that Vandor was going to purchase both new and used equipment and he explained that Council is not allowed to abate used equipment that comes from Indiana and has already been abated. He said an amendment is needed to require Vandor to report where they purchased the items. He proposed that the first amendment reads "a value of $1,763,500," second by Councilmember Elstro and the motion was carried on a voice vote. He also proposed an amendment to state that Vandor would be required to notify the City by the end of the year to advise the City as to whether the equipment is not going to be new or used equipment bought outside of Indiana, second by Councilmember Elstro and the motion was carried on a voice vote. President Sharp declared Amended Ordinance No. 55 — 2001 on public hearing. There being no comments either for or against the ordinance, Councilmember Elstro moved for engrossment, second by Councilmember Hutton and the motion was carried on a voice vote. Councilmember Combs moved to suspend the rules and advance Amended Ordinance No. 55 — 2001 to third and final reading and read by title only, second by Councilmember Welch and the motion was carried on a voice vote. The Clerk read Amended Ordinance No. 55 — 2001 on third reading. Amended Ordinance No. 55 — 2001 was adopted on a unanimous roll call vote. ORDINANCE NO. 64 — 2001 The Clerk read Ordinance No. 64 — 2001 — AN APPROPRIATION ORDINANCE FIXING THE ANNUAL COMPENSATION OF ALL ELECTED CITY OFFICERS FOR 2002 City Controller John Kenny said he had no further comments about this ordinance unless Council had questions. President Sharp declared Ordinance No. 64 — 2001 on public hearing. There being no comments either in support or against the ordinance, Councilmember Welch moved for engrossment, second by Councilmember Dickman and the motion was carried on a voice vote. After hearing comments from Kenny saying he would like to have all three of the ordinances, 64, 65 and 67, heard at the special Council meeting on September 27, President Sharp said this would be held along with the other two that follow on the agenda. ORDINANCE NO. 65 — 2001 The Clerk read Ordinance No. 65 — 2001 — AN APPROPRIATION ORDINANCE TO BE KNOWN AS THE 2002 SALARY ORDINANCE President Sharp declared Ordinance No. 65 — 2001 on public hearing. Councilmember Hutton requested that she be allowed to make an amendment to the ordinance, stating that she would like to remove the Assistant Park Superintendent and the Assistant Street Commissioner, second by Councilmember Parker. At the request of Councilmember Wissel, discussion ensued, with Mayor Miller and City Attorney Bever explaining. Mayor Miller said the salary ordinance is a mechanism to allow positions to occur at the maximum salary being the most that can be paid an employee. She said the administration has a commitment as one of its budget priorities that it will not increase full time employees in this budget. She explained that the salary ordinance as it is written would allow, through attrition, once a position has become vacant at a different level, that position would be eliminated and the assistant position would then be filled so that there would be no increase in full time employees, only changing it to give it additional responsibilities. By taking those positions out of the ordinance this time, she said, it would require the administration to come back before Council to amend the salary ordinance and that would take a substantial amount of time. She said she feels it is very critical to those two departments that those positions be created. She added that the positions have been funded through this budget at that level but not with additional full time employees. Common Council Minutes Cont'd September 17, 2001 Page 5 Councilmember Dickman then said he wanted to get it straight, saying that the position of the assistant park superintendent would not be filled unless another position within the park department was eliminated first. Mayor Miller said that he was correct, adding that then in the following year that position would fall off the salary ordinance. After a brief discussion, Councilmember Wissel said he would like to give this more thought and asked Councilmember Hutton if she would withdraw her motion and she agreed to do that. Other comments about the two positions and those departments were made by Councilmembers Lundy, Elstro, Combs, Parker and Welch. ' President Sharp said Ordinance No. 65 — 2001 would be held on second reading and come back to Council at its special meeting September 27. ORDINANCE NO. 67 — 2001 The Clerk read Ordinance No. 67 — 2001 — AN APPROPRIATION ORDINANCE TO BE KNOWN AS THE 2002 BUDGET Councilmember Wissel had some questions about the cell phones mentioned in the Parks budget. He asked for a better explanation of that and Kenny said that would be provided at the September 27 meeting. In answer to a question by Kenny, Councilmember Welch said the three ordinances would be held on second reading, and none of them were engrossed, which means that changes can be made at the special meeting. ORDINANCES ON THIRD READING There were none. CALL FOR ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, on a motion duly made, seconded and passed, the meeting was adjourned at 9:10 p.m. ATTEST: Norma Schroeder, Clerk Karl Sharp, President