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HomeMy Public PortalAbout2008_06_09 Council Work Session June 9, 2008 Council Chambers, 25 West Market Street, 7:30 p.m. Mayor Umstattd presiding. Councilmembers Present: Katie Sheldon Hammier, Susan Horne, Marty Martinez, Ken Reid, David Schmidt, Kevin Wright and Mayor Kristen Umstattd Councilmembers Absent: Council Member Reid arrived at 8:09 p.m. Staff Present: Deputy Town Manager Kaj Dentler, Town Attorney Jeanette Irby, Assistant to the Town Manager Scott Parker, Director of Engineering and Public Works Tom Mason, Director of Capital Projects Management Nagi Elsewaissi, Director of Utilities Randy Shoemaker, Airport Director Tim Deike, Police Captain Jeff VanGilder, Zoning Administrator Brian Boucher, Deputy Clerk of Council/Management Specialist Debi Parry AGENDA ITEMS 1. Questions on Tuesday Agenda Items Council Meeting of June 10, 2008 a. Awarding the Town Wide Tree Canopy Construction Contract Nagi Elsewaissi recommended Council award this contract to Environmental Quality Resources, LLC, who was the low bidder. Further, he stated he hopes that the contract will be used to begin planting on Battlefield Parkway. Vice Mayor Horne asked how this project would sync with the SAGE Project. Kaj Dentler stated staff is still developing the SAGE project. Vice Mayor Horne asked that a briefing on the SAGE project be provided at the next work session. Mr. Elsewaissi stated this contract would be mostly used to replace trees and provide maintenance. Council Member Wright ensured the contract price came in at the expected amount. 2. Work Session Items for Discussion a. Airport Commission Report Dennis Boykin, Airport Commission Chair, stated the Commission met recently with the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors. He introduced Tom Toth, Airport Commission Member, to provide a report. Mr. Toth stated the Airport Commission met with the Board of Supervisors at the Leesburg Executive Airport on May 20. He stated the briefing was suggested by Supervisor Kelly Burk. He stated the Airport Commission has provided a letter addressing the four questions asked by the Town Council Work Session of June 9. 2008 Paqe 2 Board. Further, he stated Supervisor Burk has since proposed an up-zoning of the Crosstrail property to remove the residential element. Mr. Boykin stated the primary goal was to request the realignment of Sycolin Road. Council Member Wright stated the County was also provided with a copy of a letter the Town sent six years ago requesting this change. Mr. Boykin stated Supervisor Burk has been working hard on the tax deferment issue. Further, he stated Bill Whyte is not seeking reappointment to the Commission and invited Council to attend a cookout at the airport on July 3 in Mr. Whyte's honor. Council Member Schmidt stated he originally appointed Mr. Whyte to the Airport Commission in 2000 and commented on his wonderful service. Vice Mayor Horne stated she reappointed Mr. Whyte in 2004 and he has been an excellent addition to the Commission. Council Member Martinez thanked Mr. Boykin and Mr. Toth for their efforts. He stated Mr. Whyte is a good guy. Council Member Hammier thanked Mr. Boykin and Mr. Toth for their update. She asked if there is any follow-up needed for the meeting with the Board. Mr. Boykin stated he would forward to Council the letter sent to the Boa rd. Council Member Hammier asked if the Airport Commission has received any updates from Peterson Companies regarding Crosstrail. Mr. Titus stated the Commission was contacted by Mike Banzhaf and have scheduled a meeting for June 30. Council Member Wright thanked Mr. Boykin and Mr. Toth for taking the initiative to meet with the Board. Further, he echoed Council's comments regarding Mr. Whyte. Mr. Boykin stated Mr. Whyte is not seeking reappointment due to changes in his work schedule. b. Rules of Order Council Member Wright stated Council has been discussing items in the rules of order that are out of date or incorrect and stated he worked with Mr. Wells to draft this update. Further, he commented on other changes regarding where Council procedures differ from Roberts Rules of Order and meeting procedures in the event of inclement weather. He stated a public hearing could be scheduled to pass an ordinance adopting the rules and allowing further amendments to be made by resolution. Town Council Work Session of June 9. 2008 Paqe 3 Council Member Schmidt expressed the need to have involvement from the new Council Members. Vice Mayor Horne echoed Council Member Schmidt's comments. She thanked Council Member Wright and Mr. Wells for their efforts stating this is a move in the right direction. Council Member Martinez had no comments. Council Member Hammier stated other localities feel it is very effective to meet in committees rather than a committee of the whole and it may be beneficial for Council to determine how we want to continue. Further, she asked if Council wants to look to condense the monthly meetings. Council Member Wright stated he and Mr. Wells determined it was best not to amend the meeting process at this time. He stated he would favor continuing with the committee of the whole process. Council Member Reid thanked Council Member Wright, Mr. Wells and Ms. Irby for their efforts. He concurred with Council Member Hammier's comments regarding the monthly meetings. He stated Mr. Wells had proposed earlier the possibility of three weekly meetings a month, one as a work session, one for public hearings and one for action leaving the fourth week open for an additional meeting if necessary. He stated he also feels the Vice Mayor should have the specific role of parliamentarian and gently enforcing time limits listed on the agenda. Further, he asked if the time limits for speakers could be determined at a work session when a large crowd is anticipated for the meeting. Council Member Wright stated this legislation does not preclude Council from deciding to limit time for speakers. Mayor Umstattd expressed the need to seek input from the Council Members-elect before adopting these rules. It was the consensus of Council to hold the public hearing on July 8. c. Neighborhood Truck Parking Restrictions Ms. Irby stated prior to addressing this issue there will need to be a study period to determine if there is a commercial vehicle parking problem. She stated the minimum amount of commercial vehicles needed to enforce restrictions is 25 percent. Jeff VanGilder stated rather than basing the restrictions on weight, the restrictions would be based on signs or other identifiers. Mayor Umstattd verified this could include individuals with signs on their vehicles advertising home based businesses such as daycare, realtor, and Mary Kay. Council Member Reid stated this arose because of the concern with four or five HVAC vans and a couple of school busses parking on Tavistock Drive. He stated there could be cases where other parts of Town could be Town Council Work Session of June 9. 2008 Page 4 facing a similar situation so the key is to develop a process to deal with the eventuality where residents are concerned with an excessive number of commercial vehicles. He stated Ms. Irby has outlined a good process and Council needs to determine how best to proceed. Further, he stated it may be best to require the citizens to request action from the Town. Council Member Wright stated unless the vehicles parking on the street are from another neighborhood he is not convinced that a permit parking zone will solve the problem. Ms. Irby stated this will really affect a taxi service or electrician who has multiple vehicles. Council Member Wright asked if the concern in Tavistock is that the residents don't like the look of the vehicles, or a line-of-sight concern. Council Member Reid stated the Tavistock HOA petitioned the Standing Residential Traffic Committee (SRTC) over a year ago for a no parking zone on one side of the street. He stated it is a line-of-site issue; however, some may not like the look of the vehicles. He stated there is an HVAC contractor with four or five vehicles and perhaps it would help if he were to park his vehicles on the other side of the street. Further, he verified the ordinance would have to apply to all vehicles with a commercial sign and could not be limited to trucks or busses. Council Member Wright stated if there is a line-of-sight issue it is a problem regardless of weather the vehicles parked there are commercial or not. He stated in that case the curb could be painted yellow to address the problem. Ms. Irby stated perhaps the issue could be addressed through the home occupancy ordinance if there is a home based business generating four or five commercial vehicles. After further discussion it was the consensus of Council to allow the Town Manager and Town Attorney to investigate and if necessary address the line-of-sight issue and home business impact. d. Catoctin Ridge Tank Site Ms. Irby stated there was a resolution passed by Council accepting a deed of gift for a possible water tower site in Beacon Hill. She stated the deed was never accepted and recorded and it is staff's recommendation that Council formally disclaim the gift so that a pending sale can proceed. Vice Mayor Horne asked why the Town would have considered constructing a water tower at Beacon Hill. Mr. Shoemaker stated in 1996 the Town was having difficulty selecting a site. He stated this site was to be used as a last resort and there was never any intention that we would serve the Beacon Hill community with water. Further, he stated once Council selected the Carr Tank #2 site the Beacon Hill site was no longer needed. Town Council Work Session of June 9. 2008 Page 5 It was the consensus of Council to consider this item tomorrow night. e. Discussion of Future Cable Commission Presentation on Public, Education and Government (PEG) Initiatives JB Anderson, Cable Commission Chairman, stated the Cable Commission established a PEG Subcommittee and introduced Subcommittee Chair Oliver Peters, Marc Le Maitre and Tom Seeman. Oliver Peters stated he was involved in public access programming when he first moved to Leesburg in 1983. He stated the Commission is working to rebuild public access and outlined the four goals including; 1) creating a pathway for the public to use public access, 2) get the word out, 3) create an infomercial to educate the public on how to produce public access programming, and 4) inform Council of the economic benefits. Marc Le Maitre outlined proposed changes to the Town's website to inform residents of public access programs and to gage their interest. Tom Seeman stated the Commission is working with Arlington and Fairfax Counties to determine how their public access programs work and what can be done to get public access started in Leesburg. Mr. Anderson outlined the Cable Commission's efforts over the past few years and stated they are looking for Council's support of this initiative. Council Member Schmidt thanked the Commission for their dedication to the Town and asked who would manage the public access programming. Mr. Anderson stated Comcast has staff who would work with citizens interested in public access; however, the Town may need to lead this effort in the future. Further, he stated down the road the Cable Commission would like have a studio in Leesburg. Mr. Peters stated Jon Mertz is the Comcast staff member who would coordinate public access. Vice Mayor Horne stated this is a great opportunity as it could further engage residents in their government. Council Member Martinez thanked the Commission for their efforts. Council Member Hammier stated she appreciates the Commission's efforts. She stated a good next step would be to get the other commissions excited about leveraging the video content. Further, she asked if any resources are needed from Council. Mr. Seeman stated Council could help by facilitating the needed additions to the Town's website. Mr. Le Maitre stated he would be happy to work with the IT staff to ease the process of making changes to the website and keeping the information current. Town Council Work Session of June 9. 2008 Page 6 Mr. Seeman stated they plan to make a show about public access and another show about how the first show was made to help others get started. Council Member Hammier stated this is a good opportunity to get kids involved. Mr. Anderson stated Mr. Peters has been working with Monroe Vo- Tech Center. He stated he has been working with Town Manager to identify PEG funds that could be use to purchase upgraded equipment for these efforts. Council Member Hammier stated the new Rust Library will have a new teen center with available technology and there may be a connection there. Council Member Wright stated in the Town we have missed the boat on opportunities available through public access. He stated the role of the Commission is to get the word out and from there it is the role of the public to work with Comcast to create programs. Council Member Reid regretted missing the presentation due to a Wilson Bridge tour. He stated he has spoken with Tom Seeman and is pleased that this is moving forward. He stated he is in the media business and is amazed at how little public access channels are used. Further, he stated he is looking forward to working with the Commission to ensure greater use of this resource. Mayor Umstattd thanked the Commission for their efforts. She stated having put together a public access show in the 90's, we are up against the inconvenience of getting trained before being allowed to use the equipment. Mr. Seeman stated with modern video recording and editing equipment shows can be completed almost entirely in the home. Mr. Le Matire stated the formatting is different today and in speaking with Comcast they were told that magazine programming would be the way to go with short vignettes put together to create a 28 minute show. Mayor Umstattd stated this is well worth pursuing and thanked the Cable Commission for raising this issue. f. Council Initiated Zoning Ordinance Amendment: Non- residential Height Restrictions Council Member Hammier stated staff has reviewed this issue of increasing building heights in the B-1 District to 60 feet and have found this to be in compliance with the Crescent District Master Plan. Further, she stated this ultimately allows us to proceed on some key projects. Mr. Boucher stated this action would simply initiate the Zoning Ordinance amendment process. Council Member Reid stated he supports the initiation of this process; however, he has concerns regarding whether we can legally restrict this by location or topography. He asked staff to look into the possibility of allowing the top story to be a pitched roof to obviate a five story building looking like Town Council Work Session of June 9, 2008 Paqe 7 the Loudoun County Government Center. He expressed concern that there could be individuals in other districts that could petition for a 60 foot height. Mayor Umstattd stated she appreciates Council Member Hammier's initiative in bringing this forward; however, she is concerned with allowing buildings 60 feet in height in the Historic District. g. Project Updates Mr. Dentler updated Council on three key projects. He stated staff is awaiting direction from Council on a date for the Parking Summit. He stated the proposed dates for the joint meeting with the Board of Supervisors are June 30 and July 14; however, Supervisor Burk is not available on July 14. He stated regarding the dog park, staff is making contact with the owner of Izaak Walton Park and are proceeding with preliminary design. Further, he stated a special exception is required for the dog park. Mayor Umstattd stated it is important to ensure Council Members-elect Butler and Dunn can attend the Joint meeting on June 30. Council Member Schmidt and Vice Mayor Horne both stressed the importance of including the Council Members-elect in this meeting. Council Member Martinez stated he will be out of Town on June 30. Council Member Wright stated he would support scheduling the Parking Summit for an early evening in Mid-July. Further, he stated it is important to discuss potential solutions before this meeting. Council Member Reid stated he has some ideas regarding street parking that he has discussed with staff. He stated he would like to have the LDBA and DIA involved and suggested holding the summit in the fall. Further, he expressed support for the joint Town/County meeting on June 30 as the County will be working on their strategic plan in July. 3. For information only June 23-24, 2008 There was no discussion of the following items. a. Public Hearing - Loudoun Baptist Temple b. Public Hearing - Amending Section 2-92 through Section 2.1-3 of the Leesburg Town Code c. Public Hearing - Amending Section 3.10, 3.11 and 7.6 fo the Leesburg Zoning Ordinance d. Tree Commission Annual Report e. ULI Study - Town Manager's Report f. Commission on Public Art Guidelines g. Endorsement of VML "Go Green" Initiative Adjournment On a motion by Council Member Martinez, seconde meeting adjourned at 9:03 p.m. 2008_tcwsmin0609