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HomeMy Public PortalAbout1984_02_08 MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING OF LEESBURG TOWN COUNCIL AND PUBLIC HEARING ON PROPOSED AMENDMENT TO ZONING ORDINANCE RE SUBDIVIDING, FEBRUARY 8, 1984. : 2 9 A regular meeting of the Leesburg Town Council was held in the Council i7 Chambers, 10 West Loudoun Street, Leesburg, Virginia on February 8, 1984 at 7:30 p.m. The meeting was called to order by the Mayor, with Mr. Tolbert giving the invocation, and followed with the Salute to the Flag led by Mr. Gheen. Present were: Mayor Robert E. Sevila, Councilmembers Charles A. Bos, Edgar L. Coffey, Jr. , Reginald K. Gheen, Marylou Hill, John W. Tolbert, Jr. and Howard M. Willis, Jr. ; also Town Manager John Niccolls, Deputy Manager Jeffrey H. Minor and Town Attorney George M. Martin. PUBLIC HEARING: A public hearing was held on a proposed amendment to Section 8-2-2 of the Leesburg Zoning Ordinance re subdividing. Mr. Niccolls explained that this proposed amendment is intended to meet a need identified when a property owner whose land fronts on two sides wishes to subdivide his property which already had two dwelling units on it (each facing its respective street) . It was found that, under the Zoning Ordinance, this could not be done because of minimum lot size requirements. This was initiated in the Planning Commission and its report recommended the proposed changes to permit the creation of undersized lots when dwellings already exist on said lot. This would be important to a few lots in Leesburg. N Judge Carlton Penn, a resident of 39 West Cornwall Street, said his con- cern is not in what is intended under the ordinance, but that which may be done w under the law. This is fine where two streets are involved and one of the existing C:0 houses needs to be repaired or fixed up. The requirements of the proposed ordi- Q nance are good, but it does not say that each of the lots subdivided must have an existing residence on it. He cited Mr. Devine's lot as an example - he has two houses on his lot and has 50 feet on each side of his house. The ordinance says you can have a two-family dwelling on an R-2 lot, so he could end up with six houses on his lot. He did not object to what they want to do by this ordi- nance, but didn' t want to see the door opened - everybody in Leesburg who has an extra 50 feet would be able to put two more houses on it and thereby defeat what they are trying to preserve as open space. i Mayor Sevila closed the hearing. Mr. Bos asked what specific examples the Planning Commission cited and what the vote was on this? Mrs. Hill said the Commission members felt it was clear - the intent was that you could subdivide a lot that had two houses on it abutting a public street. Examples were Mr. Calloway Jones' house on Wirt Street and a- nother one on Liberty Street. Perhaps the intent needs to be clarified. Mr. Gheen thought Judge Penn's question should be looked at closely. Mr. Willis agreed that Judge Penn has a good point - clarification would probably solve the problem. Mr. Coffey thought a wording change in Item (2) would satisfy one ques- tion and the lot 'width should be at 50 feet where it fronts the street. The intent is there. Mr. Tolbert felt it should go back for some clarification. Mayor Sevila concurred - Judge Penn does not find any fault with the inten- tion of the ordinance, but what could be created and the unfortunate circum- stances that could occur. He referred this matter back to the next workshop session for further consideration. OOUNCILMEMBER COMMENTS: Mr. Bos reported that the Economic Development Advisory Committee met this morning, with most of the time being spent on the State certification program and its various elements. He reported the thoughtfulness of one of the town's employees during the recent snowstorm when the employee suggested to a resident that he wait to shovel his driveway until the town had plowed the street so his driveway would not be covered up again. This evening with the Museum people was an evening well spent and a good effort in continuing the relations with them and the three-way cooperative effort with the the town, the county and the museum - the tourism effort benefits the town and the county, as well as those who visit the area. MINUTES OF FEBRUARY 8, 1984. 30 Mr. Gheen found the visit to the Museum enlightening and was pleased with it. Mrs. Hill reported that Lynnwood Lay was elected Chairman of the Planning Commission and Bill Webb is Vice-Chairman. Mr. Willis was also pleased with the work at the Museum and encouraged everyone to go whenever they can. Mr. Coffey said the Town Plan Task Force met last night to review the trans- portation segment of the plan. There was a great deal of public input by prop- erty owners and developers. They will have to meet again on this segment of the plan. Representatives from the Culpeper Highway Department office were here and contributed their thoughts, in addition to their prepared recommendations. He thanked Mr. Taylor for the summary of the budget. He also called to staff 's attention the fact that there is a path from the end of Woodberry Road to the elementary school - neither the School Board nor the town has taken the responsibility for cleaning this - it should be done so the children do not have to walk through the snow. Mr. Tolbert asked if the town doesn't have a mini-snow plow for such pur- poses? Mr. Niccolls explained that the School Board asked the town to put in several of these paths so the children could walk safely, thus eliminating the need for school buses (there are some other paths leading from the apartment projects) . However, snow removal is a problem. The land for these paths was secured by revocable permits from the owners of the property, so the land is es- sentially private. The town had a sidewalk snow removal program several years back, but we could not do this everywhere, so it was stopped by Council direc- tion, other than to plow our own and enough for people to get to the meters. Perhaps there are some few exceptions that should be made. He has noted that very few residential neighborhoods have their walks cleaned. Mr. Tolbert reported that the Airport Commission met last week at the FAA with a dutch treat dinner. They are shooting for around the 1st of May for the new building at the airport. MAYOR'S REPORT: Mayor Sevila reported that he met with Senator Waddell and Delegate Rollins last week on several matters that affect the town. He asked Senator Waddell to oppose a bill that would affect the town's availability fees, although he does not think it will meet with success. He discussed with Delegate Rollins the confusion that has arisen regarding the special election in May as a result of our annexation. Staff has drafted some proposed legislation which they hope both Houses and the Governor will see fit to approve to take care of this prob- lem. Marc Weiss, Mr. Niccolls and he met with the Virginia Historic Landmarks Commission on Friday regarding the South Harrison Street project's eligibility for federal tax credits - this has a major impact on the builder or developer to carry out his original proposals . We will receive additional information as it is made available. He commented on the fine meal provided tonight by the Museum workers and on the improvements made downstairs and to the back room. This is a very in- teresting place to visit and a real asset to the community - there is a lot to be learned about our County there. He recommended it to everyone. Council had a workshop on Monday to review the Planned Development ordi- nance, which is in various stages at both the Planning Commission and Council level. This is a significant piece of legislation and this was a helpful ses- sion. Mr. Bos and he joined the Governor for breakfast in Richmond about ten days ago - they went in hopes of discussing matters of mutual concern both at the federal and the state level. They were barely able to see him, but did have an opportunity to exchange views with members of other municipalities. 1 MINUTES OF FEBRUARY 8, 1984 MEETING. 1 MANAGER'S REPORT: 31 Mr. Niccolls suggested that everyone drive out to the airport - the steel frame is up for the Flight Service Station. Mr. Rollins has provided a copy of House Bill 755, "Local Government Participation in Certain Events". This originated in George Martin's office 1 and has to do with historic and cultural events on public streets - it was requested by Council in the fall. (2) Brenda Orrison, a police officer hired last year, had to resign for health reasons. (3) The voting precinct announcements are being carried in the news- paper. This will be going to the Justice Department for approval. (4) The response to the Justice Department regarding annexation was de- livered last week. This is a very bulky document - about two inches thick. A copy is available in the office. Much of the material is in the form of copies of newspaper articles - they were very interested in what publicity attended the annexation actions. tomorrow. `q• (5) There will be a planning seminar/evening at 6:30 p.m. - this should be an interesting and informative session with Richard Collins. N N (6) Concerning the Potomac Water Treatment Plant - while we have declared W the plant is substantially complete, we have not yet declared it "complete" in CID accordance with the contract. There are a number of minor punch list items on Q which there are ongoing disputes and some resolutions, but there are two major items remaining having to do with the actual capacity of the raw water pumps at the river and with one or more cracks that exist between the sedimentation basins on one side and the high duty pump room on the other. This week he authorized the Utility Plants Director to retain consultants to check the ca- pacity of those pumps on an independent basis. Pitometer Associates has been retained - they are experts in water matters. Under the contract, if we find as a result'of these studies that the responsibility is the contractor's, then i they pay for the engineering services and repair. If we find it is our mistake, we absorb the cost of the engineering services (something less than $1,000) . As to the cracks, the contractor is unwilling to repair them (he says it is an engineering defect) , so we will have some engineers look at it and have it fixed - then we will sue or be sued. We still owe -.them.'money, 'however. Mr. Bos asked what Senator Babalas ' intent was with regard to not exceed- ing reasonable connection or availability fees? Mayor Sevila recalled that this concerned availability fees - not "reasonable" ones . He learned unof- ficially that this is not unusual legislation for Senator Babalas to intro- duce - he is not regarded as a close friend of local government. It was their determination (Mr. Niccolls, Mr. Weiss and Mayor '.Sevila) that he didn't want us to collect any more availability fees at all - they were unable to determine any more than that. Mr. Bos also asked if the raw water pump problem is an engineering or a construction problem? Mr. Niccolls explained that the contractor was responsible for securing and installing a pump that would deliver so many thousand gallons of water per minute up the hill at a ratio that was economical. We don't contest the efficiency of the pumps, but it is the quantity of water delivered to the top of the hill. It is possible there was some mishandling during installation of the pumps. The dispute with the contractor is that internal plant piping does not allow them to measure the quantity of water accurately. Our next step would be to have the pumps repaired or replaced and hold the expense against our retainage - we are holding over $50,000, which he believed would be suf- ficient to correct the problems. On motion of Mrs. Hill, seconded by Mr. Coffey, the following ordinance and resolutions were proposed and unanimously adopted as consent items: 84-0-9 - ORDINANCE - AMENDING THE PERSONNEL MANUAL TO ADD A NEW ARTICLE CONCERN- ING FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE REQUIREMENTS. ORDAINED by the Council of the Town of Leesburg in Virginia as follows: it /MINUTES OF FEBRUARY 8, 1984 MEETING. r� 3 2 SECTION I. Chapter 12.1, Personnel Manual, of the Town Code is amended to add a new article to be known as Article 25, Financial Disclosure Requirements, to read as follows: ARTICLE 25 FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE REQUIREMENTS Sec. 12.1-62. Financial Disclosure Requirements. All members of the Planning Commission, Board of Zoning Appeals and Board of Architectural Review and the manager, assistant and deputy managers and all department directors shall file, as a condition to as- suming office or employment, a disclosure statement of his personal in- terest and such other information as is specified on the form set forth in Sec. 2.1-614 of the Code of Virginia, as amended, and thereafter shall file such a statement annually on or before January 15. The clerk of council shall cause the forms to be distributed no later than December 10 of each year to each officer or person required to file such a form under the provisions of this section. Such disclosure forms shall be filed and maintained as public records for five years in the office of the clerk of council. SECTION II. This ordinance shall be in effect on its passage. 84-17 - RESOLUTION - CONDITIONALLY CONCURRING WITH THE VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF HIGHWAYS AND TRANSPORTATION'S 1990 HIGHWAY FUNCTIONAL CLASSIFICATION UPDATE. WHEREAS, the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1973 requires that the Virginia Department of Highways and Transportation (VDH&T) realign the Federal Aid Highway System in Virginia by July 1, 1976, and periodically there- after, on the basis of current and anticipated functional usage; and WHEREAS, VDH&T has previously classified by function the state highways in accordance with guidelines presented in the Highway Functional Classi- fication Manual and developed the realigned Federal Aid System for Vir- ginia in accordance with the Federal Aid Highway Program Manual; and WHEREAS, Leesburg on November 26, 1975 concurred with the 1985 Functional Classification and Realigned Federal Aid Highway System for the town as developed by VDH&T; and WHEREAS, VDH&T has updated the Functional Classification/Federal Aid High- way System in accordance with federal regulations; and WHEREAS, Leesburg is currently reviewing and updating the town plan that includes a transportation element which may alter VDH&T's proposed plan and change Leesburg's position on the proposed 1990 Highway Functional Classifications: THEREFORE, RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Leesburg in Virginia as follows : Leesburg concurs with the updated 1990 Highway Functional Classification and Realigned Federal Aid Highway System as described in December 8, 1983 correspondence from Donald M. Wagner, VDH&T Urban Programs Engi- neer, on the condition that VDH&T agrees the town may revise and resub- mit a new plan to reflect the most recent transportation plan adopted by the town. 84-18 - RESOLUTION - AUTHORIZING AN AGREEMENT, APPROVING A PERFORMANCE GUARANTEE FOR THE INSTALLATION OF PUBLIC IMPROVEMENTS, APPROVING A WATER EXTENSION PERMIT AND EASEMENT AGREEMENT FOR THE LOUDOUN MEMORIAL HOSPITAL PSYCHIATRIC CARE ADDITION. RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Leesburg in Virginia as follows: SECTION I. The manager is authorized to execute on behalf of the town an agreement (Form PC-2) with the Loudoun Memorial Hospital of Leesburg, Virginia for installation of public improvements shown on the plans ap- proved by the Director of Engineering for the Psychiatric Care addition to Loudoun Memorial Hospital. MINUTES OF FEBRUARY 8, 1984 MEETING. c � SECTION II. The extension of municipal waterworks for this facility `�', is approved in accordance with Section 19-18 of the Town Code. SECTION III. A surety bond in a form approved by the Town Attorney in the amount of $16,761 is approved as security to guarantee installation of the public improvements shown on plans approved by the Director of Engineering for the Psychiatric Care addition. SECTION IV. The manager shall on behalf of the town enter into an agree- ment with Loudoun Memorial Hospital that will vacate a water main ease- ment, establish rights of ingress and egress by the town to the town's water storage facilities, establish Loudoun Memorial Hospital's ingress and egress rights across a portion of the town's water supply facility site and vacate a building restriction line from the hospital property in accordance with the plat prepared by Chamberlin Associates dated January, 1984. Aye: Councilmembers Bos, Coffey, Gheen, Hill, Tolbert, Willis and Mayor Sevila. Nay: None. 84-19 - RESOLUTION - REQUESTING APPROVAL OF THE STATE HIGHWAY AND TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION OF VIRGINIA FOR A NEW ROAD ENTRANCE ON THE LEES- BURG (ROUTE 15) BYPASS. N On motion of Mr. Willis, seconded by Mr. Coffey, the following resolution W was proposed: QWHEREAS, residential developments are proposed along both sides of the Leesburg (Route 15) bypass within the enlarged town limits; and WHEREAS, the town assumed maintenance of the Leesburg (Route 15) bypass on January 1, 1984; and WHEREAS, a new intersection will provide a more efficient and safe road system for Leesburg and reduce negative traffic effects on existing resi- dential neighborhoods; and WHEREAS, a new intersection along the Leesburg (Route 15) bypass was proposed by the Virginia Department of Highways and Transportation in the Leesburg Transportation Study completed in December, 1983; and WHEREAS, a public hearing was held on December 14, 1983 at which time persons affected by this proposed resolution had an opportunity to appear and present their views; and WHEREAS, no opposition was expressed at the public hearing: THEREFORE, RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Leesburg in Virginia as follows : SECTION I. The State Highway and Transportation Commission of Virginia is requested to approve a new intersection along the Leesburg (Route 15) bypass at Station 505 + 80, VDH&T Route 15, Project 0015, 104, C501, PE101. The opening of this new intersection will be contingent on the following conditions: (a) An understanding that this intersection would ultimately be grade separated as proposed in the Leesburg Transportation Study; (b) Dedication by the developers of sufficient right-of-way to con- struct the eventual interchange; (c) Permission from the State Highway and Transportation Commission of Virginia to make the initial intersection at-grade; (d) Construction of the intersection to meet Virginia Department of Highways and Transportation standards; and (e) Completion of the intersection at no cost to the Virginia Depart- ment of Highways and Transportation. i MINUTES OF FEBRUARY 8, 1984 MEETING. 34 SECTION II. The manager shall transmit this resolution to the State Highway and Transportation Commission of Virginia and provide all necessary information and documentation to support this request. Mayor Sevila said this resolution meets the town's needs and meets the concerns of those property owners in the area of this intersection. The Ball's Bluff Road itself is outside the annexation area. Mr. Coffey suggested that Item (e) be amended to state the "at-grade" intersection. Mayor Sevila asked if this will be done at the entire cost of the town or in conjunction with the development of land to the east and west? Mr. Niccolls said that, under the existing subdivision and planned development policies of the town, it would be done at the expense of the developers. There was also discussion as to who would pay for the ultimate grade separation mentioned in (a) . Mr. Nic- coils said discussions are being conducted with the developers concerning their contribution toward facilities required by their projects and it is hoped their planned development application will contain promises or proffers indicating that funds will be set aside for future development of both the By- Pass and this interchange. The principle is that they should contribute a pro-rata share of the cost for improvements necessitated by their projects. There has been no discussion concerning this with representatives of the Beus tract - they are not that far along in their plans. On motion of Mr. Coffey, seconded by Mr. Willis, Council voted unanimously to amend item (e) to read as follows: (e) Completion of the at-grade intersection at no cost to the Virginia • Department of Highways and Transportation. I ' Aye: Councilmembers Bos, Coffey, Gheen, Hill, Tolbert, Willis and Mayor Sevila. Nay: None. The resolution, as amended, was unanimously adopted: Aye: Councilmembers Bos, Coffey, Gheen, Hill, Tolbert, Willis and Mayor Sevila. Nay: None. 84-20 - RESOLUTION - ACCEPTING CATTAIL BRANCH SEWAGE PUMPING STATION, RELEASING A PERFORMANCE BOND AND WAIVING MAINTENANCE BOND REQUIREMENT. Mayor Sevila asked Mr. Bos to chair the meeting for this resolution inas- much as he has a conflict of interest. On motion of Mrs. Hill, seconded by Mr. Tolbert, the following resolution was proposed: WHEREAS, International Pavilion Company, developer of Carrvale Subdi- vision and the Cattail Branch Sewage Pumping Station, has completed the Cattail Branch Sewage Pumping Station in accordance with town stand- ards and specifications and these have been inspected and approved by the town; and WHEREAS, the sewage pumping station has been in service for several years; and WHEREAS, the issuance of a Certificate to Operate by the state health department was conditioned upon review and approval by that depart- ment of an Operations and Maintenance Manual: THEREFORE, RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Leesburg in Virginia as follows: SECTION I. The Cattail branch Sewage Pumping Station and force main serving Carrvale Subdivision are accepted for public use by the town. SECTION II. Performance bond number 923704 from Republican Insurance Company in the amount of $75,500, which guaranteed installation of the Cattail Branch Sewage Pumping Station, is released and the maintenance bond requirement is waived. SECTION III. This resolution shall be effective upon issuance of an uncon- ditional Certificate to Operate by the Virginia State Health Department. MINUTES OF FEBRUARY 8, 1984 MEETING. Mayor Pro-Tem Bos explained that this station has been operating for several 3 5 years, so no maintenance bond is required. The resolution was unanimously adopted: Aye: Councilmembers Coffey, Gheen, Hill, Tolbert, Willis and Mayor Pro-Tem Bos. Nay: None. Mayor Sevila assumed the Chair. 84-21 - RESOLUTION - ENDORSING KEEP LOUDOUN BEAUTIFUL'S ANNUAL CLEAN-UP. On motion of Mrs. Hill, seconded by Mr. Tolbert, the following resolution was proposed: WHEREAS, Leesburg is blessed with unusual natural beauty; and WHEREAS, past efforts by many individuals and organizations have con- tributed to keeping this beauty unspoiled: THEREFORE, RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Leesburg in Virginia as follows: SECTION I. The Leesburg Town Council hereby declares April 2 through April 24, 1984 as Spring Clean-up Weeks. LU SECTION II. The Leesburg Town Council urges all individuals, families, businesses, organizations, clubs and groups, governmental as well as private, to cooperate with Keep Loudoun Beautiful in this worthy effort to benefit the Town of Leesburg. Mr. Bos said Jan Shepherd of our office staff has been working with the litter project and trying to coordinate it with the Keep Loudoun Beautiful campaign - she is doing a good job. This is one of the things the new Environmental Ad- visory Committee will be handling. Mr. Niccolls explained that we cooperate with the Keep Loudoun Beautiful people by picking up the bags of litter, etc. ll that their volunteers put out and sometimes put trucks out in convenient lo- cations for them. The resolution was unanimously adopted: Aye: Councilmembers Bos, Coffey, Gheen, Hill, Tolbert, Willis and Mayor Sevila. Nay: None. There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 8:40 p.m. 7 Mayor /: /!.� Clerk of th ' Council