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HomeMy Public PortalAbout04-22-1999 BOARD OF PUBLIC WORKS AND SAFETY OF THE CITY OF RICHMOND,INDIANA,APRIL 22,1999 The Board of Public Works and Safety of the City of Richmond,Indiana,met at 5 p.m.Thursday,April 22, 1999,in the Community Room in the Municipal Building. Chairperson Bob Goodwin presided with Robin Henry,Bruce Metzger and Assistant City Attorney Steve Rabe present.The following business was conducted: APPROVAL OF MINUTES The minutes for the April 15, 1999 meeting were not available. CLAIMS FOR PAYMENT Claims for payment submitted by the City Controller's office were read by Henry who reported that they totaled$552,906.52 and moved for approval,second by Metzger and the motion was carried on a unanimous voice vote. OLD BUSINESS Chairperson Goodwin said the Board has a decision to make on a grievance hearing that occurred at the April 15, 1999 meeting and asked if there is any additional information needed by Board members or any questions that need to be resolved. Henry asked the advice of Assistant City Attorney Steve Rabe about the wording of the motion.He answered that the motion should be made to either deny the grievance or uphold it.Henry moved to deny the grievance,second by Metzger and the motion was"carried on a unanimous voice vote. Henry commented that she felt that the contract language was not clear as far as the importance of seniority that plays in the hiring process.She said if the intent was that seniority was a priority,to her,it was not clear in that contract.She said she also had some problems with the status of these types of employees, adding that she felt that the part-time status did not qualify them for that consideration. Chairperson Goodwin asked if that was by virtue of the continuous employment section and Henry said that was correct.Rabe said that is Section 10b or Section 8.Henry said she had a problem with the term "seniority of employees will be recognized,"but she said it was not clear about what recognition that was. She questioned as to whether or not it is the only reason or are there other factors. Metzger 'said for seniority of employees to be recognized it says,"seniority of employees will be computed from the date of first assignment provided their employment is continuous."He said you have to be an employee first before seniority can be recognized.He said he thinks both sides agreed that Bellew was not an employee anymore at the time the hiring decision was made,that she was furloughed.Then,under Section 8c,which Henry just referred to,"when there is a vacancy opening shall continue for 30 days the following procedure shall be used in filling the vacancies.Seniority of the employees will be recognized." Again,he said,Bellew was not an employee.Then,he read,"if the vacancy is not filled in this manner the vacancy will be bulletined for a five day period."He said then it talks about calling back furloughed employees,which is what Bellew was.He said if the seniority of the furloughed employees was to be recognized then it should have been contained in that following paragraph and not where it was.He said it appears before the language of the furloughed employees and not in the language.He said he thinks the language is clear that the management was correct in doing what they did.Henry agreed. Board of Works Minutes Cont'd April 22, 1999 Page 2 REQUESTS A. Captain John Farmer brought before the Board a request by the student activities board at Earlham College for a noise variance or a sound permit that would allow amplified music and other crowd-related noise.The event on the college campus will be from 1 to 6:30 p.m.April 24 and will involve some local musicians,he said,adding that there will be several activities for the Earlham community including booths and sale items.He said in the past years there have been several events hosted by the college and the Richmond Police Department has received no complaints.He added that most of the complaints go directly to the college security.Metzger moved to approve,second by Henry and the motion was carried on a unanimous voice vote. B. A request by the Southside Neighborhood Association for a four-way stop sign at South 5th and Q Streets was brought before the Board by Captain Farmer who said they had experienced problems for the past two years with excessive speed.He said the Police Department had responded with about every optional manner available,which included increased enforcement,studies on traffic counts and speed checks in the area.He agreed that the only option left is the installation of a four-way stop to force a slow down of the traffic in that area.After reviewing and dealing with it two years,this is about the best and last resort to solve the problem,he said. Speaking on behalf of the neighbors was Sue Mathews who said traffic fluctuates in density and nothing is consistent because of quitting time for the factories and different activities on Saturday nights.At those times the traffic is heavy,she said,but most of the times there isn't much.She said there are several children in the area.Captain Farmer said several trucks go down that road at a high rate of speed.He added that South 5th Street also carries the majority of the volume of traffic servicing all the residential areas south of South L Street in the City. He said it is also the primary street for servicing the business and industrial traffic in that area. Mathews said putting a four-way stop at Test Road and South Q Street has helped a lot,but added that she knew that was not put there for speed.Metzger moved to approve the request, second by Henry and the motion was carried on a unanimous voice vote. C. Fire Chief Mike Allen request the Board's approval for the use of the parking garage and alley for the 1999 applicant testing process.He said he had talked with Terri Quinter,the operations manager of Roseview Transit,and she saw no problem with using the garage on Sunday,April 25;Saturday,May 1;and Sunday,May 2;with rain dates for May 8 and May 9 for the agility testing.Chief Allen said they will be using South 7th Street but felt they could do that without asking that the street be closed as they have in the past.Henry moved to approve,second by Metzger and the motion was carried on a unanimous voice vote. D. Chief Allen explained to the Board the findings of the administrative inquiry conducted by the Richmond Fire Department to an alleged incident involving Firefighter Kyle George.He said the alleged incident initially resulted in Firefighter George being charged with criminal recklessness. He recommended the following disciplinary action be taken against Firefighter George: 1. That Firefighter George remain in therapy until the doctor releases him from treatment. ! Board of Works Minutes Cont'd April 22, 1999 Page 3 2. That Firefighter George require his doctor to forward a written report to the Richmond Fire Department on a monthly basis his progress and also when Firefighter George's therapy has ended. 3. That Firefighter George continue to take his prescribed medication until the prescribing physician suggests that it may be discontinued. 4. That Firefighter George report any changes in his medication to the Richmond Fire Department and that Firefighter George require his treating physician to supply month updates. 5. That if there are any future outbursts of behavioral difficulties,on or off duty,it may lead to additional disciplinary action up to and including dismissal. The Chief added that Firefighter George had related to him that he does not wish a hearing. Rabe said that state law provides this Board make a determination whether or not to uphold the Chief's recommendation,then provides for a five-day period during which the firefighter may appeal the decision.He said in the past,by mutual agreement,this Board has not made a decision whether or not to uphold the Chief's decision until after a hearing has been held. However,he said,in this instance the firefighter involved has indicated he does not wish a hearing and accepts the discipline as recommended by the Chief.In light of that,Rabe said,he would recommend that the state statute be followed and that this Board make a decision this evening whether or not to uphold the Chiefs recommendation.Henry asked if the firefighter had put it in writing that he does not wish a hearing and Rabe answered that he had not yet reduced that to writing.Metzger moved to approve,second by Henry and the motion was carried on a unanimous voice vote. (Chief Allen's letter in its entirety is on file in the Clerk's office). E. Chairperson Goodwin said the disposition of the bus would be held over until the next Board meeting. BID OPENING A. Chairperson Goodwin announced that three bids had been received for the fencing at McBride Stadium.Henry read the bid by Larry Lahrman for$5,399;Metzger read the bid by Oler's Fencing and Construction for$7,843;and Chairperson Goodwin read the bid by Everlasting Woods of Centerville for$7,383.73.He announced the bids would be taken under advisement and would be awarded at a later time,possibly by the end of this meeting. B. Chairperson Goodwin read the bid for the tree and stump removal from Fitzwater Tree& Lawn Care of Greenville,Ohio,stating that it was for 49 trees listed individually at a total cost of$19,000 and the stump removal,listing 30 separate locations,at a cost of$1,792.City Engineer Bob Wiwi said this is a compilation of work in different parts of the City,based upon the sidewalk work where trees have been removed and the sidewalks are raised and need to be replaced.Chairperson Goodwin said this would also be taken under advisement. Board of Works Minutes Cont'd April 22, 1999 Page 4 AGREEMENT A. Wiwi explained Change Order No. 1 is for the North West 13th Street storm sewer/swale project,which is now complete.He said in the course of the project it was determined there was a gas and water line which did affect the depth of the sewer that was constructed and resulted in some increases in the depth.The_catch basins for the pipe itself,he said,did have some additional fittings that were required and additional pavement and inlets.He said there were also some reductions in rip wrap and curb that was installed and the net effect of that is an increase of$3,015.43.He said the original contract amount was$19,119.80,making the total amount of the project$22,635.23.He said this is the only change order for this project and is less than 20 percent so funds are available.Henry moved to approve,second by Metzger and the motion was carried on a unanimous voice vote. B. City Attorney Bob Bever explained that in 1996,the town of Boston erected a new sewer works for the treatment of sewage in their town.He said actually their lines pick it up and • transfer it to the Richmond Sanitary District.He said it was in 1996 that the sanitary district entered into a contract for the treatment of the sewage from the town of Boston on their new line,which goes along State Road 227 down to the sanitary district. Now,Bever said,it has become advisable,and the City has been in negotiations through the ground at the airport,to tap into the Boston line.He added that even though we're treating the sewage from the town of Boston it would be appropriate for the City to pay a tap-in fee to actually tap into the line,because the line is Boston's even though we are ultimately doing the treatment of the sewage. Bever said this is simply a tap-in of property owned by the City(the airport)and it would be up to the Board of Works to approve this tap-in.He said the Board has before it the agreement worked out between the legal counsel for the town of Boston and himself for this tap-in to their line in exchange for the$10,000 which has been budgeted.He explained that it would be beneficial in the long run to have the tap-in because it saves the City because we're getting to tap in to the line paid for by Boston and only contributing$10,000 to that line and still have tap-in availability at the airport. Bever said it was recommended by the sanitary district and the City administration to enter into this,adding that the town of Boston gets some money to help offset the cost of that multi- million dollar project of the sewer line.Wiwi said he supports this,because it is the first step in getting infrastructure to the airport,adding that right now they have an antiquated sewer/septic system which is in dire need of upgrading.He said this provides a means of doing that at a very minimal cost,and he recommended approval. In answer to a question by Metzger if the airport authority had any jurisdiction over this, Bever said not for the tap-in on the property,adding that it is still up to the City to control the land on which the airport is located.Wiwi said this has been discussed with the airport board and they are in favor because they want to pursue it.He added that this only provides the tap in and they have to provide the sewer to get out to the road.Bever said they did not have the funds and since the funds are coming from the City's general budget he thought it appropriate that this was the proper body to act upon this agreement.Metzger moved to approve,second by Henry and the motion was carried on a unanimous voice vote. Board of Works Minutes Cont'd April 22, 1999 Page 5 BID AWARD - A. Chairperson Goodwin read a letter written by City Controller Shelley Miller and Jan Hibner, director of Human Resources,which stated that based upon the review of the two proposals for the procurement of property and liability insurance,it is their recommendation that the Wayne County Insurance Services be awarded the contract for the proposed insurance contract for the period of April 1, 1999 to March 31,2000.Bever said after the comparison the premiums were found to be still slightly lower and Chairperson Goodwin said the total cost which is in excess of$200,000 is still a significant savings over what it was last year. Henry moved to approve,second by Metzger and the motion was carried on a unanimous voice vote. B. Assistant City Engineer Greg Stiens announced that he had reviewed the bids for the fencing at McBride Stadium read earlier in the meeting,and recommended the bid be awarded to Larry Lahrman for$5,399.He added that the recommendation carried a stipulation that a certificate of liability be provided to the Purchasing Manager.Metzger so moved including the stipulation,second by Henry and the motion was carried on a unanimous voice vote. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business,on a motion duly made,seconded and passed,and carried on a unanimous voice vote,the meeting was adjourned. Robert Goodwin,Chairperson ATTEST: Norma Schroeder,Clerk