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HomeMy Public PortalAboutMinutes_City Council Work Meeting_03262024 CITY OF IONA CITY COUNCIL WORK MEETING IONA CITY HALL MARCH 26,2024 6:00 P.M. PRESENT: Mayor Daniel Gubler, Council President Robert Geray, Council Member Michael Thompson, Council Member Evan Mann, Council Member Rylea Farrens, City Attorney Andrew Rawlings, Public Works Director Zech Prouse and City Clerk/Treasurer Ken West. ABSENT: None. VISITORS: Kirsti Cook and Tony Glenn. ITEMS OF BUSINESS: Discussion of Proposed Amendments to Iona City Code § 6-4-10: Installation of Mailboxes within Public Rights-of-Way with Iona Postmaster—Mayor Gubler stated this topic has been discussed for a few months now and he felt it was appropriate to have it as another discussion this month to finalize the details before proposing an amendment for approval. Attorney Rawlings stated that after the Council's previous discussions he has drafted a repealed and reenacted version of this section of the code. Mayor Gubler stated he and Director Prouse have reviewed the United States Postal Service (USPS) code and it concludes that the final legal decision for most of these matters falls to the City. He continued and stated the City will still do their best to take the USPS standards into consideration, but ultimately the City has the final say. Mayor Gubler continued and asked the Council the initial reason for this topic. He continued and stated the reason was for continuity around the City and for the safety of all residents and accessibility for City employees while maintaining the roads in the City. Council Member Farrens asked Director Prouse if the mailboxes that are tipping over in the winter are typically ones that are placed in the ground or not. Director Prouse stated it depends on the snow load, but it is more common for mailboxes that are not placed in the ground to be knocked over by the snow truck. Council Member Farrens then asked if mailboxes that are cemented in the ground have a lower chance of being knocked over. Director Prouse stated if the post is cemented in the ground, it will typically remain standing, but the box itself will be knocked over. Council Member Farrens continued and stated she feels the recent amendments to this section of the code would create issues for the poorest residents in the City. She continued and stated the residents that have enough money to remove their cemented mailboxes and move them already have CBUs (Cluster Box Unit) and won't be affected by this amendment. Council Member Farrens continued explaining this point and stated she believes the Council should allow existing mailboxes to be grandfathered in under the amended code. Mayor Gubler stated the discussion of distance from the road was due to safety for City snow equipment and residents. Director Prouse stated the USPS standards state that each mailbox should have a turnout with an additional 6"-8" off the asphalt as to not obstruct the flow of traffic. He continued and stated this standard is referenced and recommended by the Local Highway Technical Assistance Council (LHTAC). Mayor Gubler stated the main concerns the City Council needs to address are the distance from the asphalt to the mailbox, the materials allowed and the necessity for residents to come into compliance. He continued and stated he personally does not oppose most of the materials that are being used but agreed that some of the existing mailboxes need to be located further back from the road for safety reasons. He then stated the mailboxes that are closer to the road should be of breakaway material and design. Director Prouse stated the USPS and LHTAC standards are 2" IONA CITY COUNCIL WORK MEETING - MARCH 26, 2024 and 4" posts. He then suggested the three roads that are part of the major road rehabilitation project should have CBUs installed, rather than individual mailboxes. Mayor Gubler agreed, if the USPS will allow it. Director Prouse stated the USPS code states the CBU needs to be located within one block of the residence. Clerk West asked who would be responsible for paying for and installing the CBUs. Mayor Gubler stated the City would be responsible and would include it in the cost of the road project. Council President Geray stated he wants to make sure the City is addressing issues that need to be addressed and not just trying to make things easier for the City at the expense of our residents. He continued and stated he understands that snow removal is difficult and sometimes mailboxes are going to get hit, but if that is not the norm he doesn't know if some of the proposed requirements are necessary. Director Prouse stated he agrees that if the City sets a distance standard and then mailboxes are placed closer than that and get hit by the snowplow, those residents would be responsible for replacing their mailbox. Discussion then continued regarding the intention of these amendments. Council Members all discussed and agreed to allowing mailboxes to be set in concrete. Director Prouse stated there have been standards set by organizations such as LHTAC and if the City chooses to be less restrictive than those standards it can open the City up to liability. Mayor Gubler began the discussion regarding the desired requirement for the distance from the asphalt to the mailbox. He stated the USPS standard is 8". Mayor Gubler stated the Council had previously decided on 18" as the standard, but the USPS employees said that could make it difficult for them to deliver. Mayor Gubler continued and stated the City is responsible for removing snow from the apron of the road, but the individual homeowners are responsible for clearing the path in front of their mailbox. Director Prouse concurred and stated the property owners are responsible for removing all obstructions from the path to the mailbox, not just snow. Mayor Gubler then suggested the City mirror the USPS standard of 8" minimum from the asphalt to the mailbox. All Council Members agreed. Council President Geray stated he thinks there should be a grandfathering clause in the amendment, but it should include the need for the mailbox to come into compliance if the owner repairs or replaces it. He continued and stated he doesn't feel the Council needs to create new standards and require everyone to adhere to those immediately. Director Prouse agreed but did say there are some mailboxes that are grossly out of compliance and should be addressed, such as those placed in buckets. Council Member Farrens suggested posting the new changes to the City's social media pages because of complaints she has received regarding the difficulty for residents to find information. Council President Geray stated all this information will be available on the City's website and does not feel it is necessary to post it on social media. He continued and stated if the office staff chooses to post a link on the City's Facebook page to the City Code on the website, he feels that would be appropriate. Council President Geray reiterated the need for the public to get involved and seek information. Council Member Farrens stated a lot of residents only get information from social media and feels updated standards should be posted on the City's social media outlets. Council Member Thompson agreed with Council President Geray and stated a link to the website should be posted on the City's social media but feels as though a posted summary will be misinterpreted. Council Members then began discussing standard sizes for mailboxes. Director Prouse stated there are standards in the USPS manual and suggested specifying in the City Code mailboxes that are "USPS approved". All Council Members approved allowing for current mailboxes to be 2 IONA CITY COUNCIL WORK MEETING - MARCH 26, 2024 grandfathered in. Jill Smith, Iona Postmaster, arrived at the meeting to discuss the mailbox amendments. Mayor Gubler stated the Council is also discussing the idea of residents in older parts of Iona installing CBUs. He continued and stated the City will be rehabilitating the roads of Free, Scoresby and Denning Avenues, and is considering installing CBUs in those neighborhoods. Attorney Rawlings asked to confirm the standards the City Council would like him to draft for the updated amendment. He asked for clarification on brick/masonry mailboxes. Director Prouse suggested no brick or masonry mailboxes unless there is a pull-out from the road. After further discussion Council President Geray stated he believes the consensus is that brick or masonry mailboxes should be allowed, provided additional distance from the road is achieved. Ms. Smith stated the USPS does not allow mailboxes to be placed on narrow roads and alleyways. Mayor Gubler asked Ms. Smith if the USPS would approve CBU mailboxes to be placed on Free, Scoresby and Denning Avenues after the road rehabilitation project is completed. Ms. Smith stated she will need to research the USPS code to see if they are able to change the route and mailbox placement without approval from all the residents on those streets. Mayor Gubler stated those roads are completely changing to a wider road with sidewalks and curb and gutter. Ms. Smith stated she feels it is a great idea but would need to do her research and get back to the City with a decision from the USPS. Clerk West asked Ms. Smith what the City can expect the cost to be to purchase CBUs for these neighborhoods. Ms. Smith stated the largest CBUs can accommodate 16 customers and require a concrete pad of 4' x 4'. Director Prouse stated there are a total of 80 homes that would be affected, so the City would need 5 of that size CBUs. Ms. Smith stated the cost of that size CBU is approximately $1,800, plus the cost of concrete. She continued and stated the CBUs are more efficient for their carriers, so she would be in favor of adding more of those units throughout the City. Clerk West stated she has provided a copy of the updated amendment to Ms. Smith and asked if she had any questions or additional items to discuss. She stated the main concern was requiring residents to come into compliance with new standards at their own expense. Ms. Smith also stated she recommends mailboxes be set in concrete for better stability. Council Member Farrens stated the Council has decided to allow concrete. Attorney Rawlings then asked if the Council would like to have standards in this amendment that pertain to CBUs that are not part of a new subdivision. Director Prouse suggested referencing a standard drawing for CBU installation and placement. Director Prouse also began discussing the number of mailboxes allowed per support beam. He continued and stated the USPS standard is up to 4 mailboxes per support and anything above the 4 mailboxes needs to be on a support that is unattached to the original. Director Prouse recommended adhering to these standards that have already been established by the USPS. Ms. Smith asked why the City would limit boxes to 4 on a post and not allow additional boxes and posts for extra support on the same structure. Director Prouse stated this is for the breakaway factor for any driver that could hit the mailboxes. Clerk West reiterated that this is already the USPS standard, as Director Prouse previously explained. Ms. Smith stated she is not aware of that standard and will do research on that also. Council President Geray requested this be added to next month's Work Meeting agenda as 3 IONA CITY COUNCIL WORK MEETING - MARCH 26, 2024 another discussion to review the updated amendment prior to holding a Public Hearing in May for final approval. He continued and stated there is no urgency and does not want to vote on the amendment until it has satisfied all parties. All agreed. Meeting Adjourned: 6:57 p.m. COUNCIL APPROVED: April 23, 2024 Daniel Gubler, May y ATTEST: Keri West, City Clerk/Treasurer 4