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HomeMy Public PortalAbout2011_tcwsmin0425Council Work Session April 25, 2011 Council Chambers, 25 West Market Street, 7:30 p.m. Mayor Kristen Umstattd presiding. Council Members Present: David S. Butler, Thomas S. Dunn, II, Katie Sheldon Hammler, Ken Reid, Kevin Wright and Mayor Kristen Umstattd. Council Members Absent: Council Member Dunn arrived at 7:43 p.m. Fernando "Marty" Martinez absent. Staff Present: Town Manager John Wells, Deputy Town Manager Kaj Dentler, Town Attorney Jeanette Irby, Director of Engineering and Public Works Tom Mason, Director of Finance Norm Butts, Transportation Engineer Calvin Grow, Deputy Director of Utilities Aref Etemadi, and Clerk of Council Lee Ann Green AGENDA ITEMS 1. Work Session Items for Discussion a. URAC Update /Status Report Dan Connelly and Edward Munoz of the Utility Rate Advisory Committee (URAC) presented findings on behalf of the committee. Mr. Munoz stated the URAC has done a lot of work, having 10 meetings since December. He stated they have defined some objectives for the group and made a recommendation on the snowbird policy. He stated they have come up with a strategy of what guidelines to incorporate in pricing as and the one issue heard over and over is that the practice of using the winter quarter as the base to define the high usage threshold. Further, he stated the application of high usage rates applies to all water used, not just beginning with the high usage. He stated the 1:1 water to sewer ratio is another objective, but they are not looking at changing that. He stated fixing the three items that they have been charged with fixing would go a long way in arguing that the town has taken a very fair and balanced look at this. Mr. Munoz described the process the group is using to test their models. He stated thus far using the model, the bills are lower than using the current system for lower usage customers. He stated the higher user customers will have higher bills using this system. He stated this will not affect people who use their sprinkler systems judiciously, but if you have a large yard and use your sprinkler system a lot, you will pay for it. He stated using the additional charge to curtail high usage will keep from having to expand the plant sooner. Mr. Connelly stated they have evaluated all the data within certain criteria, one of which is the utility fund has to remain solvent and the other is to maintain the basic principle of fairness. He stated if someone's bill is decreased then someone else's bill will have to go up. He stated they discussed fixed charges and everyone believes it will be necessary to raise them. He 11Pige Council Work Session April 25, 2011 stated fixed costs cover administrative costs and what is necessary to maintain the facilities and the currently charged fixed costs are not sufficient to do that. He stated those numbers are not currently recommended to be changed, but will need to increase if a change is made in the 1:1 water /sewer ratio. Mr. Wells clarified that the presentation is not the committee's recommendations at this time. He stated the committee is presenting information to show the variables and different ideas that are still being considered. There was discussion on how to fairly bill sewer use. Mr. Connelly stated the URAC continues to consider the variables and evaluate the data using the models they have developed. He stated they still have to come to consensus as a committee which may include evaluating the appropriate fixed rates. He stated they have posted the model to their Sharepoint portal in case any Council members would like to look at it. Frank Holtz stated the town staff has been extremely helpful. Vice Mayor Wright stated the presentation was helpful and appreciates the time and effort that URAC is putting into this. He clarified that the County government and the schools do pay for water. He questioned if there is a logical way to set break points for commercial users. Mr. Munoz stated there is a way to do this and the committee has not started on this process yet. He stated that meter sizes differ and that data can still be analyzed for distribution of usage. Vice Mayor Wright questioned whether there is any room in the bottom line for the committee as they try to keep revenues and expenditures balanced. Mr. Wells stated the committee has asked that question and the fund is generally on track with revenues and has been able to create some expenditure savings based on actions the town has taken in the last month. He stated there are some limited dollars on the expenditures side, but in terms of revenue it is the same. Vice Mayor Wright cautioned that the sewer policy, as it is today, is correct for a user like himself who does not water the lawn. He stated any of the water that he uses goes into the sewer system. He stated under the old policy, if he used more water in the summer, he was getting a `free ride' on the sewer billing, which is not appropriate. He encouraged finding the top of the tier where all the water used is going into the sewer. He stated he is a fan of the way Loudoun Water approaches sewer billing, which acknowledges that 2IPage Council Work Session April 25, 2011 there will be more use in the summer that will enter the sewer system, but after that, it is going on the lawn. Further, he stated he has no problem giving the committee extra time to do the work because he sees the quality of the work being done and wants them to have the additional time to get it right. Council Member Hammler stated the committee is doing a great job. She stated since sewer use cannot be measured, the question is how to set a fair rate for it. She stated that the customers, as well as the bond rating agencies, want predictability. Mr. Holtz noted that metering sewer is extremely expensive and the infrastructure would need to be built in. Mr. Munoz agreed that predictability is an excellent point. He stated is a big proponent of the fixed rate increase, but it will need to be done in a way that the total bill does not really change. He stated this will give the customer more predictability and any variability can be explained by usage. Council Member Hammler stated the value of the system needs to be communicated to the public. Council Member Butler cautioned applying the decrease in expenses to a decrease in rates. He stated users are aware of the higher prices this year and will be more vigilant with their water usage so he expects revenue to be down this coming year. Further, he stated charging a tiered rate structure for both water and sewer is an intriguing thing and might make sense as part of a longer term model. He also agreed that the fixed rates need to go up, which was a conclusion that the first URAC came to as well. Council Member Reid thanked the committee for their hard work and analysis. He stated his regret for the difficulty of achieving a quorum and his concern with the timing of the recommendation, which he hoped would be ready by February. He stated he is aware there is very little sympathy by some council members for those who are forced to water their lawns because the lawns are new, but because this has taken so long, there will be no relief this summer. He stated the political reality is this issue needs to be resolved in order to mend relations with the Board of Supervisors. He stated his concern over his constituents and the complaints that they have voiced. Council Member Dunn asked for clarification on the word `conservation'. He questioned at what level the town would be concerned that it will exceed capacity. Mr. Munoz stated the system is engineered to serve the 10% of customers who have higher users, but by curtailing higher users, the town may see the benefit of not having to expand the plant as frequently. 31Page Council Work Session April 25, 2011 Aref Etemadi stated the plant expansions were based on predictions of growth made in 2002. He stated it is a three year design period and a three year construction period. He stated in 2002, there was no indication that the real estate market would collapse. Further, he stated the plants have to be expanded in set increments. He stated it appears there is excess capacity at this time, but looking at the projections for planned build out, there is no excess capacity and the town has to meet the maximum daily demand as per state requirements. He stated it would be difficult to tell customers that there is no water at any given time. Mayor Umstattd stated her appreciation for the committee's work. She asked for clarification of the committee's recommendation on the snowbird policy. Mr. Connelly stated the URAC's previous recommendation was for an adjustment for snowbirds. Council Member Hammler asked for a plan to communicate any possible changes in rates to customers. b. Street Parking Plan (Reid) Calvin Grow stated that Council Member Reid asked staff to evaluate additional parking in the downtown on certain streets. Staff had the following recommendations: 1. Additional parking on Wirt Street between Loudoun and Market on Saturdays: Roadway geometry does not allow for adequate travel lanes when parking is permitted on both sides. Reduced traffic volumes on Sunday allow for parking with minimal impact. 2. Additional parking on North Street between King and Church on Saturdays. Roadway geometry does not allow for adequate travel lanes when parking is permitted on both sides. Reduced traffic volumes on Sunday allow for parking with minimal impact. 3. Additional parking on Loudoun Street between Wirt and Liberty Street. Would interfere with sight distance from both Liberty and Wirt Streets. Town removed loading zone restrictions on the north side of Loudoun in front of the Norris House. 4. Additional parking on West Loudoun just west of Liberty Street. Would interfere with sight distance from Liberty Street. 5. Remove 11 meters in the lot at Royal and Liberty. The 11 meters will be bagged to see if the meters can be removed permanently. 41 P age Council Work Session April25, 2011 6. Remove meters on Harrison Street between W &OD Trail and South Street. The 11 meters will be bagged to see if the meters can be removed permanently. 7. Seek permission from the Loudoun County Courts to allow weekend parking on Church between Market and Cornwall. Increase signage at the Loudoun County Parking Garage. County is not supportive of parking on Church, but will increase signage on their garage. 8. Convert Liberty Street to one way between Loudoun and Royal to allow parking on one side. Width would not allow on street parking. 9. Create a Residential Permit Parking Zone on Royal between Wirt and Liberty. A Residential permit parking study will be performed. Vice Mayor Wright questioned whether the signs on the court lots could be changed to allow parking after hours. Mr. Wells stated he would follow -up with Mr. Hemstreet. He noted those lots are being used as staging for construction, so there might be some restrictions. Council Member Hammler requested that any signs that are erected be high quality signs. Council Member Butler stated he is uncertain whether he supports removing or bagging street meters. He noted making meters higher cost might actually improve turnover. Mr. Wells stated bagging them gives the opportunity to find out if it makes sense or not. Council Member Reid questioned whether the Council has the prerogative to overrule Judge Horne with respect to street parking on Church Street. Mr. Wells stated he would not recommend that as the Fire Marshal does not support street parking on Church either. Council Member Reid suggested creating two spaces on Wirt Street between Loudoun and Royal Street. Mr. Mason stated the area of the street that has street parking has not caused an issue even though it does not meet current regulations. He stated 51Pagc Council Work Session April 25, 2011 the Fire Marshal would recommend removal of all street parking. He stated there is risk involved in making changes that do not meet current standards. Council Member Dunn verified that there is nothing stopping people from parking in the county garage at the present time. Mr. Wells stated the issue is the sign has to be flipped over. Further, the sign is small and the location right at the entrance makes it likely that someone would pass by the garage before noticing the sign. He stated nothing is prohibiting parking there, but nothing is promoting it. Council Member Dunn stated not putting parking on a street because current regulations would not allow it, but the same condition exists further down the street where parking is allowed seems to be looking for reasons not to allow it. He questioned whether all the streets should be cleared to keep the Fire Marshal happy. Mr. Mason stated the required clear line of sight from Liberty looking west on Loudoun is 280 feet. He stated currently the existing parking just clears that amount, so adding more parking closer to the east would obstruct the line of sight even more. Council Member Dunn requested a memo from the courts regarding their security concerns. Further, he noted that meters will encourage turn over. Mr. Wells stated that given the range of discussion, he would recommend Council action on this plan at the May 10 meeting. c. Rules of Order This item was deferred. 2. Additions to Future Council Meetings Council Member Dunn: Resolution for the H -2, removing the purview of the H -2 from the BAR to the Planning Commission. 3. Closed Session On a motion by Mayor Umstattd, seconded by Council Member Butler, the following was proposed: Pursuant to Section 2.2- 3711(A)(3) and (7) of the Code of Virginia, I move that the Leesburg Town Council convene in a closed meeting for the purpose of receiving information and discussion regarding: (a) Cornerstone (b) Linden Hill (c) Proffer Policy 6 1 Fag Council Work Session April 25, 2011 The motion was approved by the following vote: Aye: Butler, Dunn, Hammler, Reid, Wright and. Mayor Umstattd Nay: None Vote: 6 -0 -1 (Martinez absent) The Council convened in closed session at 9:45 p.m. The Council reconvened in open session at 10:40 p.m. On a motion by Mayor Umstattd, seconded by Council Member Wright, the following was proposed: In accordance with Section 2.2 -3712 of the Code of Virginia, I move that Council certify that to the best of each member's knowledge, only public business matters lawfully exempted from open meeting requirements under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act and such public business matters as were identified in the motion by which the closed meeting was convened were heard, discussed or considered in the meeting by Council. The motion was approved by the following vote: Aye: Butler, Dunn, Hammler, Wright, and Mayor Umstattd Nay: None Vote: 5 -0 -2 (Martinez and Reid absent) 4. Adjournment On the motion of Council Member Dunn, seconded by Vice Mayor Wright, the meeting adjourned at 10:40 p.m. 71P age