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HomeMy Public PortalAbout01-21-2003PROCEEDINGS OF THE COMMON COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF RICHMOND, INDIANA, TUESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2003 The Common Council of the City of Richmond, Indiana met in regular session at 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, January 21, 2003, in the Council Chambers in said City. President Bing Welch presided with the following Councilmembers present: Howard "Jack" Elstro, Etta J. Lundy, Karl Sharp, Bruce Wissel, Larry Parker, Paul Combs and Sarah "Sally" Hutton. Phil Dickman was absent. The following business was conducted: PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE PRAYER BY COUNCILMEMBER COMBS ROLL CALL Eight present. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Minutes of the December 16, 2002 meeting, January 6, 2003 meeting and the special meeting of January 6, 2003 were approved on a motion by Councilmember Sharp, second by Councilmember Hutton and were approved on a voice vote. PRESENTATIONS, MEMORIALS, REMONSTRANCES, PETITIONS AND INTRODUCTIONS MOTIONS OR RESOLUTIONS. (MUST BE IN WRITING) COMMUNICATION FROM THE MAYOR Mayor Shelley Miller said she had distributed copies of the design for the new Main Street bridge prepared by Butler, Fairman and Seufert engineering. She said this project is right on schedule, adding that the state would be letting the bid in April and construction should begin as early as May of 2003. She said that although the administration is hopeful that it will be completed within one construction season but in all likelihood it will be an 18-month project. Mayor Miller also reminded Council that recently it approved an ordinance for an application to the Indiana Development Finance Authority for a grant up to $250,000 for environmental assessment and remediation in the Starr-Gennett area. She said the administration had received notification that the project has been approved and advanced to the bid stage, adding that she would keep Council updated as to the progress. President Welch invited members of Webeloes Cub Scout Pack No. 104 to come forward and introduce themselves along with Scoutmaster Joe Williams. REPORT FROM BOARD OF PUBLIC WORKS AND SAFETY President Welch said the minutes of the meeting of the December 30, 2002 and January 2, 2003 were in the packets. REPORTS FROM DEPARTMENT HEADS City Attorney Bob Bever had no report; however he did introduce the newly appointed Assistant City Attorney Joel Harvey of New Castle. He said he and Harvey would be manning the office at all times, adding that Harvey would be there on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays and he, Bever, would be there on Wednesdays. He said that Fridays would be coordinated with the new legal administrative assistant. Harvey commented that he really looked forward to working with the City. REPORTS FROM STANDING COMMITTEES REPORTS FROM SPECIAL COMMITTEES REPORTS FROM ORGANIZATIONS MISCELLANEOUS BUSINESS President Welch stated that Councilmembers should have received in their packets nomination forms, as submitted by Councilmember Wissel, containing names of appointees. He said the first is John Rusie who has agreed to be re -appointed to the Redevelopment Commission, and the reappointment of Tom Valentine and William Sponsel Sr. to the Telecommunications Council. Councilmember Hutton said she thought Council always waited to make the appointments at the next meeting after they are announced. President Welch said that is entirely up to Council and hearing no response he said that is what will be done. Common Council Minutes Cont'd January 21, 2003 Page 2 President Welch stated that he had been handed an announcement by Councilmember Combs prior to starting this meeting in which he indicated that he intends to announce his resignation from his Council seat with his last day of service as February 28, 2003. President Welch said that Councilmember Combs had given the news media a press release and would be tiling the proper paper work with the Wayne County Clerk and the County Election Board. Councilmember Combs responded, explaining that the only reason he is not making a public comment tonight is that he had the opportunity to sit down and write out his thoughts which he submitted in the news release. He said he would be available to anyone who needs to talk with him until the end of February. Bever stated that what will occur is that because Councilmember Combs was elected through the nomination process in the Primary by the Republican Party there will be a caucus by the Republican Precinct Committee people within the City to fill that vacancy. He said that caucus may be held prior to the February 28 date so that no time will be lost filling that vacated seat. President Welch said committee assignments for 2003 will remain the same with the exception of the chair of the Tax Abatement Committee and Councilmember Wissel will be moved back to that position. Bever stated that the property referred to in Ordinance No. 1 — 2003 is not currently in a revitalization area. With that said, he stated that this is going to require a creation of a new Economic Development target area as was done in similar form with the uptown area. He added that for the reasons stated this ordinance could not be brought before Council and would be put on hold until another meeting. ORDINANCES ON FIRST READING Councilmember Elstro moved to suspend the rules and read Ordinances No. 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 — 2003 on first reading and read by title only, second by Councilmember Parker and the motion was carried on a voice vote. ORDINANCE NO.2 — 2003 The Clerk read Ordinance No. 2 — 2003 — AN APPROPRIATION ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING PAYMENT FOR SERVICES FROM THE RICHMOND SANITARY DISTRICT, RICHMOND POWER & LIGHT, MOTOR VEHICLE HIGHWAY, AND PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT FUNDS TO THE GENERAL FUND IN 2003 Explaining this ordinance was Tammy Glenn, of the City Controller's office, saying that this ordinance comes before Council every year and generally authorizes her office to charge certain funds for services of General Fund employees at a percentage that will be listed on the ordinance. She pointed out a change that was made this year as a result of health insurance, which is an increase in the benefits portion. She said it used to be 35 percent of the base salary but it has been increased to 40 percent. Councilmember Wissel moved to suspend the rules and advance Ordinance No. 2 — 2003 to second reading and read by title only, second by Councilmember Sharp and the motion was carried on a voice vote. The Clerk read Ordinance No. 2 — 2003 on second reading. President Welch declared Ordinance No. 2 — 2003 on public hearing. There being no comments either for or against the ordinance, Councilmember Elstro moved for engrossment, second by Councilmember Lundy and the motion was carried on a voice vote. Councilmember Lundy moved to suspend the rules and advance Ordinance No. 2 — 2003 to third and final reading and read by title only, second by Councilmember Elstro and the motion was carried on a unanimous voice vote. The Clerk read Ordinance No. 2 — 2003 on third reading. Ordinance No. 2 — 2003 was adopted on a unanimous roll call vote. ORDINANCE NO.3 — 2003 The Clerk read Ordinance No. 3 - 2003 — A SPECIAL ORDINANCE AMENDING THE ZONING MAP FOR A CERTAIN PARCEL FROM A-1 TO C-2 President Welch said this ordinance would go to the Planning Department. Councilmember Hutton asked if this is the same parcel that Council rezoned years ago. Planning Director Bob Goodwin said he believed that at one time this was a parcel granted a special use back in 1989. Common Council Minutes Cont'd January 21, 2003 Page 3 ORDINANCE NO.4 — 2003 The Clerk read Ordinance No. 4 — 2003 — AN APPROPRIATION ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING THE SUBMITTAL, ACCEPTANCE, AND APPROPRIATION OF A GRANT FROM THE INDIANA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION FA-3 GRANT PROGRAM Explaining this ordinance was Tony Foster of the office of Community Development who said the City is requesting $480,000 from the Indiana Department of Transportation FA-3. He said the money would be used to widen Salisbury Road from North West L Street to 800 feet north of Industries Road, adding that the reasoning behind that distance is that a project which includes a bridge over I-70 is expected to be started this year. Foster said this project will include creating two 12-foot lanes with 2- to 3-foot berms, widening intersections and creating turn lanes. He said this would help with the increased traffic due to what is taking place in the Industrial Park out there. He said there is a $120,000 match which is 20 percent of the total project cost that will be included in the budget for 2004. Councilmember Parker questioned stopping the project at North West L Street. Foster responded that he had only put together what he had been asked to at this time but that could be addressed if need be. Foster said the plan is to apply for a similar grant next year to go from North West L to U.S. 40 where the road has just been widened in the area of Kmart. Mayor Miller said that the City is hoping to do the entire project over a two-year period to make the application more presentable and have a better chance of being awarded. She said his suggestion would be taken to the engineering office to see why that location was the stopping point. Councilmember Elstro moved to suspend the rules and advance Ordinance No. 4 — 2003 to second reading and read by title only, second by Councilmember Wissel and the motion was carried on a voice vote. The Clerk read Ordinance No. 4 — 2003 on second reading. President Welch declared Ordinance No. 4 — 2003 on public hearing. Councilmember Parker was concerned that if Council adopts this ordinance tonight as is, then there would be no need to go to the engineer's office to question the location. Bever responded that the location could still be considered in an amendment to the application to the state. He suggested that the ordinance be adopted so the application can begin and then if Council wanted to amend it that could be done. Mayor Miller said that once this grant has been awarded there are a number of different stages that it has to go through and the actual design will be at the state level. He said what has been done here is to give the state some preliminary numbers so the state can have some idea of the magnitude of the project. There being no further comments either for or against the ordinance, Councilmember Elstro moved for engrossment, second by Councilmember Hutton and the motion was carried on a voice vote. Councilmember Wissel moved to suspend the rules and advance Ordinance No. 4 — 2003 to third and final reading and read by title only, second by Councilmember Sharp and the motion was carried on a unanimous voice vote. The Clerk read Ordinance No. 4 — 2003 on third reading. Ordinance No. 4 — 2003 was adopted on a unanimous roll call vote ORDINANCE NO.5 — 2003 The Clerk read Ordinance No. 5 — 2003 — AN APPROPRIATION ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING THE SUBMITTAL, ACCEPTANCE, AND APPROPRIATION OF A GRANT FROM THE INDIANA CRIMINAL JUSTICE INSTITUTE'S VICTIM OF CRIME ACT PROGRAM Explaining this ordinance was Foster who said this is a pass through grant, which means that the YWCA Genesis program prepares the grant application, the City approves it, and the City simply acts as a fiscal pass through agent. He said the total requested is $55,000 with a 20 percent local match of $13,750 which is made up of cash and in -kind contributions provided by Genesis. Councilmember Lundy moved to suspend the rules and advance Ordinance No. 5 — 2003 to second reading and read by title only, second by Councilmember Parker and the motion was carried on a voice vote. The Clerk read Ordinance No. 5 — 2003 on second reading. President Welch declared Ordinance No. 5 — 2003 on public hearing. There being no comments either for or against the ordinance, Councilmember Parker moved for engrossment, second by Councilmember Hutton and the motion was carried on a voice vote. Common Council Minutes Cont'd January 21, 2003 Page 4 Councilmember Lundy moved to suspend the rules and advance Ordinance No. 5 — 2003 to third and final reading and read by title only, second by Councilmember Elstro and the motion was carried on a unanimous voice vote. The Clerk read Ordinance No. 5 — 2003 on third reading. Ordinance No. 5 — 2003 was adopted on a unanimous roll call vote. ORDINANCE NO.6 — 2003 The Clerk read Ordinance No. 6 — 2003 — A SPECIAL ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING THE APPROVAL OF A STATEMENT OF BENEFITS FOR A PROPERTY OWNER APPLYING FOR DEDUCTIONS UNDER I.C. 6-1.1— 12.1 Explaining this ordinance was Councilmember Wissel who said it is an abatement request by Mac -Del Inc. at 1655 Rich Road. He said they are requesting a 10-year abatement for $230,000 for real estate, adding that they plan to retain 37 jobs and start two new jobs. He said the committee would review the request and bring it back to Council on second reading. ORDINANCES ON SECOND READING AND ENGROSSMENT ORDINANCE NO. 105 — 2002 The Clerk read Ordinance No. 105 — 2002 — A SPECIAL ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING THE APPROVAL OF A STATEMENT OF BENEFITS FOR A PROPERTY OWNER APPLYING FOR DEDUCTIONS UNDER I.C. 6-1.1-12.1 AND SPECIFICALLY 6-1.1— 12.1-7 (UPTOWN AREA) President Welch had requested that this ordinance be held for at least 30 days pending re-evaluation of the request but it had been inadvertently placed on tonight's agenda Councilmember Combs asked if this was the ordinance for Beach Automotive and President Welch answered that it is. Councilmember Combs commented that the owners, Brad and Lisa Beach, were in the audience tonight and he felt badly that because of a parliamentary procedure that they would be unable to speak. What ensued were comments made by Councilmember Elstro, President Welch and further comments by Councilmember Combs. Bever suggested that testimony could be heard tonight without further action being taken. He also said that as far as the legal questions about how this applies to the City's current uptown abatement ordinance and the state statute he would be happy to make copies of his written opinion and give them to all the Councilmembers. Brad Beach stated that he believed that he had researched the state codes and he qualifies for this abatement and invited questions from Councilmembers. Councilmember Combs said that if Council cannot help Beach Automotive and other small businesses then it needs to take a second look at some of the other tax abatements that have been given to larger businesses where that extra step has been taken to redefine areas that are going to be targeted and to help. President Welch pointed out some of the things in the request that need to be defined and interpreted by the City Attorney. He said this is the second application for the new target area and they should know that if there are more people coming out of that target area that the right thing is being done by this Council. Councilmember Lundy said it is her wish that some rules and regulations be set and followed for the target area. Also speaking in favor of this ordinance was co-owner Lisa Beach who quoted from state statutes and brought out some further points of discussion. After listening to the comments, Councilmember Wissel said it seemed to him that Council had not clearly defined what they are looking for and possibly might have "muddied the issue," with the attention focused on Beach Automotive. He added that he felt that that wasn't fair to Beach and the issue here is what is going to be done with this ordinance. He apologized to Beach for the "unnecessary cruelty," adding that it certainly looked like Council has home work to do. The discussion on Ordinance No. 105 — 2002 in its entirety is on tape which is on file in the City Clerk's office. J N 11112k,11201090112U Y I 11 N III N Dkll 1111201 UNFINISHED BUSINESS Common Council Minutes Cont'd January 21, 2003 Page 5 CALL FOR ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, on a motion duly made, seconded and passed, the meeting was adjourned at 8:50 P.M. Bing Welch, President ATTEST: Norma Schroeder, Clerk