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HomeMy Public PortalAbout1969_11_12 1_02 MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING OF LEESBURG TOWN COUNCIL, NOVEMBER 12, 1969. A regular meeting of the Leesburg Town Council was held in the Council Chambers , 10 W. Loudoun Street , Leesburg, Virginia, on Novem- ber 12, 1969 at 7 :30 P.M. The meeting was called `to order by Mayor Pro-Tem. Robert A. Orr, with a silent prayer. Those present were : Councilmen G. Dewey Hill , Frederick R. Howard, Walter F . Murray, Robert A. Orr, John W. Pumphrey and John A. Wallace, Jr. ; also Town Manager James W. Ritter , Jr. and Town Attorney George M. Martin. Absent from the meeting was Mayor Kenneth B. Rollins . The Minutes of the regular meeting of October 22, 1969 were approved as written. Town Manager Ritter reported the following : (1) Invitations to bid on the Semones-Durfey storm sewer project were opened on November 10, with the low bid being $9, 120 by McLeod Construction Company, which bid was considerably higher than the Utility Committee had thought . He said this project; can probably be done for about $5 ,000 with Town forces , and will be considered at the next Utility Committee meeting . (2) Bids on the sewer line on Route 654 from the Tuscarora Inter- ceptor to Route 7 were also opened on November 10th. There were three (3) bids and Maryland Excavators was low, at $33 ,343.00. He asked for approval of this project tonight since the time element is very impor- tant . Maryland Excavators would like to get started right away and the By-Pass job is to be advertised by the Highway Department in December, which eliminates the existing sewer line . (3) Re the appropriations on the Agenda , the $996.78 to Dewberry, Nealon &Davis is for two items - the design of the sewer crossing at Route 7 and the By-Pass and the one at Evergreen Mill Road and the By- Pass . The $1,934.17 to Johnson and Williams is a part of the engineer- ing contract ; and the $325 .00 is for the City Block Statistics Program approved by Council in June of 1968. $200.00 was paid on this project - at_ that time, and -this..is the balance due. The information from this Program will be very valuable to the Planning Commission. (4) Re the authorization to have Michie Company proceed with the up-dating of the Town Code this was discussed last winter and they gave us an approximate cost of $2,000 at that time , however, there have been several Ordinances adopted or amended since that time , so the cost could vary . This Code was put together in 1963 and there have been three ses- sions of the General Assembly since that time and considerable change in the Motor Vehicle Laws , which would be included in this project. (5) On the Rt . 15 South sewer job, the low bid was Maryland Exca- vators at $29,635 . Perry Engineering 's bid was $34,574 and S. 0. Jen- nings bid $47 ,272 . (6) The Arl Curry sewer project has been completed by Maryland Ex- cavators and they would like to have their money as soon as possible. He asked that Council appropriate the $4,200 for this job and he will withhold 10 per cent until the paving is completed satisfactorily. Councilman Hill asked if we have an Ordinance that can make the owner tear down the property located at the corner of Loudoun and Wirt Streets . Mr. Ritter said we passed the necessary resolution, however, we did not set a time limit . He said the brush in • the front yard is to be burned this week by the Fire Department . This matter was dis- cussed, with the decision that Mr. Ritter would contact the owners and see when they plan to tear it down. Councilman Wallace asked if we have heard anything on the apprais- als on the Myers Well . Mr. Ritter reported that Mr. Snyder of Sydnor Hydrodynamics said they cannot do this type of thing. Someone suitable will be appointed to do this as soon as possible . However, he reported that, at the meeting with the Highway Department today regarding the By-Pass , it was found that the road will be between the Well and the Town, regardless of which way it goes , so it will not be in the way of the By-Pass . 103 MINUTES OF NOVEMBER 12 , 1969 MEETING. Mr. Wallace asked about the policy relating to water and sewer con- nections outside the Town limits . Mr. Ritter said he was directed to write to the Virginia Municipal League and also the City of Winchester, but he has not heard from them yet . However, he does not believe this will accomplish our purpose - he thinks the answer would be to have a consulting engineer write up a policy that ispatterned after what we want . Mr. Wallace commented that he rode with Officers Elder and McDonald last week when they were working radar and he wished to personally con: gratulate them, he believes they are doing .a good job and giving the people a good break. . Also, Mr. Wallace .said the Finance Committee discussed the two dif- ferent percentage rates that Johnson and Williams is using on our engi- neering fees . , It was his understanding that they were .to use the 51 per cent figure .across the board, where they' are now using 51 per cent on Contract S-I and 6-3/4 per cent on Contracts S-II and S-III. He thinks we should have this in .writing . . • Councilman Howard said he had been contacted regarding the parking p situation at the corner of Edwards Ferry Road and Woodberry Road, prin- cipally on .Sundays . He asked that measurements be taken at this loca- = tion to see if there is room enough for two cars- to pass when cars are parked on these streets . • Councilman Pumphrey asked who is assuming the responsibility for burning the brush on the property at Loudoun and Wirt Streets when the Fire Department burns it . Mr. Ritter' saidJhe would check on this . . -Mayor Pro-Tem Orr read a proposed letter from Mayor Rollins to the Board of Supervisors , this letter to be sent regarding the County Com- plex . On motion of Councilman Pumphrey, seconded by Councilman Hill, Council voted unanimously that this letter be sent . Councilman Murray had several questions regarding the proposed County Complex. He also said he :does not think it fair to make the .man who has requested rezon- ing of a portion of the land proposed to be taken for this Complex wait on an answer from the Planning Commission. He believes the County should make every effort to acquire this property as it becomes avail- able. Also, if the County is going to take some twenty (20) pieces of property off of our tax rolls , he believes it is time for Leesburg to consider annexing additional land. There should be some sort of under- standing regarding this , rather than having a fight about it as Lovetts- ville has had. He thinks we should think about annexation to the east very shortly, especially as far as our Sewage Treatment Plant. Council- mant Hill agreed with this thinking. Councilman Wallace said the Board . of Supervisors has passed only a resolution of intent , he understands .there is stillsome dissension among themselves . Councilman Howard com- mented that he doesn ' t believe itis really ethical for us to tell the Board what they can do. On motion of Councilman Orr, seconded by Councilman Hill, the fol- lowing resolution was unanimously adopted: BE IT RESOLVED by the Town Council of the Town of Leesburg, that $4,200.00 be appropriated to pay Maryland Excavators for construction of . sanitary. sewer to serve the Arl. Curry land. . • • On motion of Councilman Pumphrey, seconded :by Councilman Howard, the following resolution was unanimously adopted:: BE IT RESOLVED by the Town Council of the Town of Leesburg, that a contract be awarded.-to Maryland Excavators in. the a- mount of $33,343 .00 for the construction of a sanitary sewer line on Rt. 654, in accordance with their low bid on November 10, 1969. 104 MINUTES OF NOVEMBER 12, 1969 MEETING. On motion of Councilman Wallace, seconded by Councilman Orr, the following resolution was unanimously adopted : BE IT RESOLVED by the Town Council- of the Town of Leesburg, that the following appropriations be made : $ 996 .78 - Dewberry, Nealon & Davis for design of Sewer Crossings at Evergreen Mill Road and also on Rt. 7 . 1969 Bond Issue . • 20.•10 .- -A.& E Blueprinters for printing during Sep- tember. 1969 Bond Issue. ' 1,934. 17 - Johnson and Williams for Engineering on Sewer Projects . '1969 Bond Issue . • 325 .00 - Division of State :Planning & Community Affairs r. . for City Block Statistics Program. On motion of Councilman -Wallace, seconded by Councilman Pumphrey, the following resolution was unanimously adopted: . BE IT RESOLVED by the Town Council of the Town of Leesburg, that Michie Company be authorized to proceed with the updat- ing .of the Town Code 'at. a cost of $2,000 plus . On motion of Councilman Orr, seconded by Councilman Howard, the for- lowing resolution was offered: BE IT RESOLVED by the Town Council of the Town of Leesburg, that Warner Realty Company be authorized to place the prop- erty owned by the Town of Leesburg on Catoctin- Circle contain- ing the Sewage Treatment Plant, for sale with the Multiple Listing Service of Loudoun County, Inc. , at a price of $ . This matter was discussed and, on motion of Councilman Wallace, second ed by Councilman Howard, it was amended to read as follows : BE IT RESOLVED by the Town Council of the Town of Leesburg, that the Multiple Listing Service be asked to appraise the Sewage Treatment Plant property and, if the Council is satis- fied with the appraised price, it will list it with the Mul- tiple Listing Service, this -request to be made through Mr. Warner. The original motion was then unanimously defeated and -the amended motion unanimously adopted. . On motion of Councilman Pumphrey, seconded by Councilman Hill, the following resolution was offered: BE IT RESOLVED by the Town Council of the Town of Leesburg, that a Sewer Contract be awarded to Maryland Excavators for the construction of :Sanitary Sewer on Rt .. 15 South, at their low bid of $29,635 .50. Councilman Wallace voiced his objections to this , stating that he be- lieved this should not be done until a definite policy is established outside the corporate limits . Councilman Hill and others spoke in favor of this resolution, expressing the views formerly taken by the Council with regard to this sewer line eventually leading to a sewer line for the western end of Town, particularly the Dry Mill Subdivision, and th fact that there have been several meetings with Mr. Wright and Mr. Crickenberger; in which they were led to believe that we would perform this workiand their plans have been based on this . A roll call vote showed 5 for and 1 against the resolution, with Councilman Wallace vot- ing against it. 10'5' MINUTES OF NOVEMBER 12, 1969 MEETING. • On motion of Councilman Hill, seconded by Councilman Pumphrey, the following resolution was offered: ' • WHEREAS, the Town Council, at its meeting on October 22, • awarded a contract for the construction of •a Sanitary Sewer to serve the Arl Curry property, and WHEREAS, Mr. Curry has extended this sewer line a distance of 350 feet into his property, together with a manhole at the end of the line, and WHEREAS, the Town has installed a 2" water line to the prop- erty line of Mr. Curry, and WHEREAS, Mr. Curry is making arrangements to extend the 2" water line into his property, and has , by letter, -stated that he is willing to dedicate a 15-foot easement to the Town of Leesburg , including the water and sewer lines , and will pay to the Town of Leesburg $800.00 for four (4) water and sewer taps , • NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Town Council of the C Town of Leesburg, that this action meets with the approval • of the Town Council, " provided Mr. Curry performs the follow- ing items : (1) Dedicates a 50-foot right-of-way into his property, to- -. gether with a street that will meet the -approval of the - Town Council, to serve the above four water and sewer customers , and other customers that he may have at a future date . (2) 'Prepares and presents to the Town Council- a Master - -,Plan of how'he plans to develop his property. This project was discussed and, on motion of Councilman Orr, -seconded by Councilman Murray, a roll call vote unanimously tabled the resolution until Mr. Curry presents a site plan.• On motion of Councilman Howard, seconded by Councilman Pumphrey, the following -resolution -was offered for discussion. - _ - WHEREAS, there exists a traffic problem on Route 7 East created by left-turn movements in front of the Shopping Center, and - - WHEREAS, the District Traffic Engineer of the State High- . way -Department hasmadea - study of this problem, and has submitted a •recommended plan and an alternate plan showing recommended treatments which will alleviate the situation, and • - • WHEREAS; Plan "A" is the' preferred treatment and has an • estimated cost of $25,000 minimum, which would consist of the addition of one lane with curb and gutter, and • WHEREAS, Plan "B? would cost approximately $3 ,000, which would consist of pavement widening between the Atlantic Service Station and the Texaco Service Station, and which • would provide 'a good` left-turn storage lane into the Shop- ping Center, as well as Gino 's , by prohibiting left turns at the west entrance to the Shopping Center, due to the poor sight distance created by the vertical alignment of Route:7 , NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Town Council of the Town of Leesburg, that Plan "B" be adopted, and that the Town Manager be directed to place this plan into effect . Mr. Ritter explained both plans . Mr. John A. Wallace was in the audience and spoke at length on this matter, stating that he did not believe the proposed Plan "B ' was worth considering. Mr. Ritter pointed out that this is not his recommendation, but from the Highway Department, and is the cheaper of their two recommendations. Mr. Wallace 's opinion was 106 MINUTES OF NOVEMBER 12 , 1969 MEETING. .• • • .thatthe entire distance should be four-laned, with curb - and gutter, all the way to the triangle , and then :there would have to be one-way streets to handle the traffic . This is -the ultimate recommendation of the High- way Department :and will _have to -be done in the -very near _future and, the longer we wait , the more it will cost. At .the present . time , the Highway Department will pay for 85 - per cent _of this work, _providing the one-way street system is adopted. He also pointed out that this would save him - from building a deceleration lane and curb and,gutter on the next portion of his Shopping -Center,- :Councilman.Hil1_pointed out that ;. -- , one-waying the streets is not as easily-done as said, this would create other problems on other streets in Town. Mr. Wallace again suggested that the Council-aim for the full cooperation with the State Highway Department and get the job done properly _ _ Councilman Murray _pointed out that it would have to wait until next year 's Budget. Also, the fact that the Highway Department has not yet seen -fit ,to give us authori- ty for a light at - the intersection of Route .7 and. Catoctin Circle , where there are many accidents, - and where they say the traffic count does not warrant it : : The above resolution was defeated by a roll call vote of 5 to 1, with Councilman .Howard voting for it . On motion of Councilman Orr, seconded by Councilman Murray, the fol- lowing resolution was unanimously adopted: . _ • - •BE: IT., RESOLVED by the Town Council of the Town of Leesburg, that the Town Manager be authorized to make application to • ' the Virginia Electric and Power Company for the privilege of - attaching to a number oftheir 'poles along King 'Street and Market Street certain.wiresand_other fixtures necessary to provide decorative lighting for the Christmas season, and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Town will assume all re- sponsibility for each installation and agrees to save Vir- ginia Electric and Power Company, harmless from any doss ; cost, inj:ury, ' or .damage to; persons or property: resulting out of or arising from the installation, operation , use, -non-use or removal of -such installations , and • - , I BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, thatthe •Town of Leesburg agrees to assume responsibility for the payment to Virginia Electric and Power Company for all ,electric energy used through said installations, with . the understanding that billing .will be ' made under the existing municipal contract . On motion of -Councilman Wallace , seconded by Councilman Orr, and there being no objection to considering this tonight, the following resolution was unanimously adopted by roll call vote: BE IT RESOLVED by the Town Council . for -the Town of Leesburg, - that the -Town Manager ask- Dewberry, Nealon and Davis to give . . us an approximate cost of -developing policies for -sewer and water ;'development outside the Town limits . r. Mr. Ritter. said that Dewberry , Nealon & Davis have made quite a study of the drainage area east of Town , besides the fact that he has dis- cussed this with Mr . John Patteson of that firm, so he does -not believe it will be too costly. Councilman Wallace also pointed out that the Loudoun County Sanitation Authority has hired a firm that has come up with suggestions for every watershed in the area . . - There being no further business , the meeting adjourned at 9:00 P.M. I Ma or i - x , 21 Clerk o /he Council