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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Minutes 2011-05-02 Special 05/02/11 3562 � STATE OF TEXAS )( CITY OF FRIENDSWOOD )( COUNTIES OF GALVESTON/HARRIS )( MAY 02, 2011 )( MINUTES OF A SPECIAL MEETING OF THE FRIENDSWOOD CITY COUNCIL THAT WAS HELD ON MONDAY MAY 02, 2011, AT 6:30 PM AND A REGULAR MEETING AT 7:00 PM AT FRIENDSWOOD CITY HALL COUNCIL CHAMBERS, 910 S. FRIENDSWOOD DRIVE, FRIENDSWOOD, TEXAS, WITH THE FOLLOWING PRESENT CONSTITUTING A QUORUM: MAYOR DAVID SMITH MAYOR PRO-TEM JIM HILL COUNCILMEMBER MICHAEL BARKER COUNCILMEMBER JIM BARR COUNCILMEMBER PAT MCGINNIS COUNCILMEMBER BILL HOLBERT COUNCILMEMBER DEIRDRE BROWN CITY ATTORNEY BILL OLSON CITY MANAGER ROGER ROECKER CITY SECRETARY MELINDA WELSH Mayor Smith called the meeting to order. CLOSED EXECUTIVE SESSION � Council convened into Executive Session in accordance with the Texas Government Code, pursuant to Section 551.071: Consultation with attorney concerning pending or contemplated litigation; a settlement offer; or a matter in which the duty of the attorney requires it. (Wight Realty Interests, Ltd. vs. City of Friendswood, in the 405th Judicial District Court, Galveston County, Texas). Council kept the Executive Session open and convened into Regular Session at 7:18 PM with no action taken later in the meeting. REGULAR SESSION Mayor Smith called the meeting to order. The invocation was given by Pastor John Wise, Friendswood Community Church. Mayor Smith led the Pledge of Allegiance to the United States and to the State of Texas. SPECIAL RECOGNITION AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Mayor Smith presented a proclamation to City Secretary Melinda Welsh proclaiming May 01-May 07, 2011, Municipal Clerk's-City Secretary's Week in the City of Friendswood. City Manager Roger Roecker presented the Five Star Spirit Award to Morad Kabiri, for the first quarter of 2011. Mr. Kabiri is the Director of the Community Development Department. He began his career with the City in late 2007 as the Deputy Director of Community Development. In July 2008, he was named the Interim Director of Community Development and was promoted to Director of the Community � Development Department in September 2009. Mr. Kabiri received numerous nominations from residents and developers alike that cited the assistance he provides to citizens, the work he puts in with the Planning and Zoning Commission and the Galveston County Consolidated Drainage District, and his generally courteous nature. 05/02/11 3563 .� He was aiso recognized for the attention to detail he provides when working with the development community on a day-to-day basis. The City very much appreciates the service that Morad Kabiri has provided this community, and he is congratulated on being the recipient of the Five Star Spirit Award for the first quarter of 2011. Morad Kabiri received a standing ovation from citizens and Council. He gave thanks for the opportunity to work at the City of Friendswood and introduced his wife and sons who were in the audience. JOINT DOCKETED PUBLIC HEARING Mayor Smith and Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Kevin Holland called the hearing to order to receive comments from the public, both oral and written regarding the consideration of proposed amendments to Specific Use Permit, Ordinance No. 95-09, a .4821 acre tract of land, property located at 307 E. Edgewood Drive, Lot 4, Block 9, Friendswood Subdivision, Sarah McKissick League, Friendswood, Galveston County, TX, to allow NAICS uses#52 Finance and Insurance, #531 Real Estate, #54 Professional, Scientific and Technical Services, #55 management of companies and enterprises, #621 Ambulatory health care services, and #8121 Personal Care Services. (Bergamos — Real Estate Office.) Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Kevin Holland asked if anyone would like to speak in favor of the proposed zone change. Jason Alexander, applicant, stated they would like to be able to open a real estate office in the facility and be able to provide for future growth. Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Kevin Holland asked if anyone would like to speak in opposition """`' of the proposed zone change and no one spoke. Hearing no further comments, Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Kevin Holland closed their portion of the Joint Docketed Public Hearing. Hearing no further comments, Council kept their portion of the Joint Docketed Public Hearing open. Mayor Smith and Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Kevin Holland called the hearing to order to receive comments from the public, both oral and written regarding a zone classification change request for a tract of land containing 1.4950 acres in the Bales Lea Subdivision being Lot 2 and Lot 3, property located at 1003 and 1005 S. Friendswood Drive, Galveston County, TX, to change from Neighborhood Commercial (NC)to Downtown District(DD). (Texas Gulf Bank N.A,) Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Kevin Holland asked if anyone would like to speak in favor of the proposed zone change. Lloyd Trevino, applicant and Bay Area President for Texas Gulf Bank, stated they are voluntarily requesting a change from Neighborhood Commercial to Downtown District. Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Kevin Holland asked if anyone would like to speak in opposition of the proposed zone change and no one spoke. Hearing no further comments, Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Kevin Holland closed their portion of the Joint Docketed Public Hearing. � Hearing no further comments, Council kept their portion of the Joint Docketed Public Hearing open. 05/02/11 3564 With concurrence of Council, Mayor Smith moved to Agenda Item 9A, Discussion with the Planning and Zoning Commission regarding the notice requirements for Joint Public Hearings on opposed amendments to the Zoning Ordinance. SPECIAL SESSION Mayor Smith opened discussion with the Planning and Zoning Commission regarding the notice requirements for Joint Public Hearings on proposed amendments to the Zoning Ordinance. Community Development Director Morad Kabiri explained the only notice that goes out in the newspaper is 14 days before the public hearing. If it is a proposed zone change to a specific piece of property the same notice goes out plus a written notice to property owners within 200 feet of the site. The Planning and Zoning Commission has discussed doing the same written notices within 200 feet of a zoning category that is submitted within the Permitted Use Table as well as other notification methods and the last recommendation from the Planning & Zoning Commission was to add Groupbuilder to items. He stated it is over and above what state law requires. Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Kevin Holland stated it is called an alert and they are worried about a gap where all of the current homeowners know about it and others move into town not knowing about it. To avoid this they are considering giving information to new residents when they sign up for water service with the City. Mayor Smith stated he understands that the Planning & Zoning Commission's recommendation is to stay with the recommendation as far the change to the rules for people and to add one more layer of communication and Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Kevin Holland affirmed. ,,,,� Councilmember McGinnis stated he really likes the flow chart and asked if there was any reason Groupbuilder was not used for the zoning change and Morad Kabiri replied since state law and the City's current code requires a written notice via mail it seemed redundant, but it can be done. Councilmember McGinnis stated he recommends that it become a standard practice. Councilmember Brown asked if this is a review of the one change that was proposed for the notice requirements and Morad Kabiri stated it is. Councilmember Brown stated the questions she raised in March were synthesizing all of the changes so that it is understood how that applies overall. She stated she agrees with Councilmember McGinnis that the email can be used for all parts, a lot of the representations Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Holland gave are not included in the ordinance change and if that is the intent it needs to documented and voted on, is concerned with the problems Groupbuilder is having so it looks like technology needs to be in place first before alert processes are started because people will begin to rely on the processes. Community Development Director Morad Kabiri stated there are other previous suggestions such as notices in the water bill or packets given when citizens sign up for water service that are intentionally not placed in the ordinance and Councilmember Brown stated she agrees that it should not be in the ordinance but there should be a subsequent adopted policy to the ordinance. Councilmember Barr stated he would like the change the word "may" to state a required action as it refers to putting out the alerts, none of his five email addresses to which a recent town hall meeting notice was sent through Groupbuilder were received by him. He stated he would like to see the zone change notices be consistent. Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Kevin Holland stated he hears that Councilmember Barr wants to �,,, change the word "may" to the word "require" and Councilmember Barr answered that he sees that it has to be done for the Permitted Use Table change, and wants to make sure it is required. Chair Holland stated if there is a technology glitch and the word "require" is in the ordinance what will happen regarding compliance. Councilmember Barr stated he understands and that is why it should be by policy and not by ordinance. 05/02/11 3565 .� Councilmember Barker asked City Attorney Bill Olson about going above state law requirements, does adding this layer of communication put the City in jeopardy and Bill Olson stated there is a risk in making these requirements mandatory and it does put the City at more risk, and recommends not making the additional notifications mandatory. Mr. Olson stated the discussion has been to insure the wording of the ordinance clarified that it is not a mandatory requirement and the failure to provide the notice would not put in jeopardy the validity of any action of the Planning and Zoning Commission or City Council. His first recommendation would be not to include the new paragraph 2 in the ordinance but adopting a policy to direct Staff is acceptable. He stated if the City chooses to leave paragraph 2 in the ordinance it needs to be clear that it is not mandatory. Councilmember Barker asked if it is the City Attorney's base recommendation that paragraph 2 not be included and Bill Olson clarified that his opinion is not to include it in the ordinance but to adopt a policy that covers Staff's obligations. Mayor Smith asked the difference between the ordinance, the policy, and the practice. In his mind, practice allows Staff to dictate what the day to day operations are and that seems like it would put Staff at risk if there is a technology failure. Bill Olson stated the ordinance poses the requirements of law as far as notification of a proposed amendment to the zoning ordinance, what the City is talking about is adding another layer of notification but not making it a mandatory requirement. The policy can state that Staff is to use best efforts to notify citizens within 200 feet of a change in classification to notify through the alert system or whatever is available, that way Staff will not be in failure if notification efforts do not go perfectly. Mayor Smith asked the members of the Planning and Zoning Commission if they find any jeopardy with their negotiations and recommendation by making those changes to what is being proposed and Chair Holland stated the objective is to increase transparency so awareness is on the citizens. Planning and Zoning Commission Vice Chair Mark McLean stated this was a way for them to address the � concerns of the citizens especially when commercial may be built next to a neighborhood or vacant land and also bear in mind Council's admonition to keep it discretionary. Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Kevin Holland stated this is the best solution. The Planning and Zoning Commission adjourned to the upstairs conference room to continue their meeting. Councilmember Hill stated hours have been spent discussing this and thinks it is a good solution, agrees with Bill Olson that there will be notification failures and there is nothing the City can do about that. Citizens have to be aware if they are near a large vacant tract it will probably be commercial, and appreciates all the work done on this. Councilmember Brown stated she wants to echo some of the comments of the City Attorney. A code is higher than a policy. Council has run into a lot of legal, dicey issues. Notification is important in any planning and zoning dispute and she applauds the efforts of the Planning and Zoning Commission, thinks it can go a step forward and it is Council's job to make policy. There are a lot of issues that the Planning and Zoning Commission deal with that Council never sees. She further stated a policy needs to be written sooner rather than later, remove paragraph 2 and have it ready for the next meeting, likes the flow chart that was on the agenda backup, and appreciates the Planning and Zoning Commission and everybody's help. Councilmember Barker asked the City Manager and Community Development Director Morad Kabiri if it will, from their perspective, be a difference between policy and ordinance. Mr. Kabiri stated the answer is yes and no, from a legal perspective there is more flexibility but from a practical standpoint he still enforces the Design Criteria Manual as requirements for development and if it is adopted the onus will be � on the Community Development Director to enforce it. Councilmember Barr stated he would like to thank the Planning and Zoning Commission, hears that it is better to do a policy rather than an ordinance, hand is pleased that everyone is working to better communicate with citizens. 05/02/11 3566 Community Development Director Morad Kabiri stated the other changes outside of paragraph 2 will be included in an ordinance change at an upcoming meeting. Mayor Smith stated this is a good, better, and best issue coupled with some practical, frugal thinking. The absolute best way to notify people would be to go door to door but that would be onerous and expensive. There is no way to inform everyone because the City cannot be the town crier but this does create more opportunities to get the public engaged which is not hard to do in this electronic age. SPECIAL RECOGNITION AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Mayor Smith acknowledged the Boy Scouts and introduced Matt Steakely, Den Leader for Pack 442. Mr. Steakely stated they are part of the Keep Friendswood Beautiful initiative and they planted and maintained some native Texas plants in Stevenson Park around the Compassionate Friends memorial. Bill North with Pack 442 introduced the Webelos and stated they maintain the memorial bed and will put out flags for Memorial Day. COMMUNICATIONS FROM THE PUBLIC There were no communications from the public. COMMUNICATIONS FROM COMMITTEES AND SPECIAL REPORTS Sherry Goen, Committee Chair for Keep Friendswood Beautiful (KFB), presented the annual report. She ,,r,,, stated she is happy to be here to present the 2011 annual report and the format of this report reflects the required categories of the Keep Texas Beautiful grant. She stated the first category is Community Leadership and Coordination which is comprised of the Community Services Department support staff, and the KFB volunteer board members. She stated the volunteers have put in over 1,300 hours this year. The second category is Public Awareness which they accomplish through flyers, articles, booths, brochures, awards such as the quarterly Business Beautification Award, recognition, Santa in the Park, a website, Facebook, Twitter, and business partnerships. The third category is Education which includes litter prevention, the recycling program, environment curricula, Friendswood Independent School District (FISD) and Clear Creek Independent School District (CCISD) campus involvement, Boys Scouts and Eagle Scouts, junior master gardeners, and community groups such as churches. The fourth category is Beautification and Community Improvement such as Stevenson Park, the City Hall holiday decorations, the entrance banner to Centennial Park, landscaping for Friendswood library, Jones Hangar and the post office, the City entrance signs, and the medians. The fifth category is Litter Prevention and Cleanup which is accomplished through a litter survey, the tree giveaway, Spring Sparkle, Fall Haul-a-Day, cleanup letters, Adopt-a-Spot, Recycling Day. The sixth category is Solid Waste Management, Litter Law and illegal dumping which is comprised of City ordinances, a Compliance Officer, the litter survey, and IESI waste management. 2011 KFB recognitions include Red, White, and Blue---Go Green, Keep Friendswood Beautiful received third place for their float in the July 4 parade, the Chamber of Commerce's "Citizenship of the Year" award, and second place in the Keep Texas Beautiful Governor's grant. They were weak in cleanup because the whole City needs to be a part rather than just KFB. Positive comments were that the City does a great job, were impressed with City leadership and beautification as well as funding, and were pleased with youth participation. Councilmember Barr stated he enjoys working with KFB because they are the most enthusiastic, committed group imagined and the growth of the program is something for which the community should ,,,�, be proud. Councilmember Brown stated she has noticed Keep Friendswood Beautiful at every event she has attended, they do yeoman's work day in and day out, they do a great deal of work with very few people and they do not get enough appreciation for all of the work they do, all of the volunteers worked to make 05/02/11 3567 � the EI Dorado sign look gorgeous. She encouraged all to "Friend" Keep Friendswood Beautiful on Facebook. Councilmember Hill stated Friendswood looks better than it ever has and he appreciates the hard work. Mayor Smith stated he appreciates the hard work Ms. Goen has put in to this committee. Mayor Smith recessed the regular meeting at 8:20 PM to reconvene into closed Executive Session. "*Councilmember Brown made a point of order that the deliberation regarding Economic Development Negotiations is not noticed as part of the regular meeting. Mayor Smith stated he left the Executive Session open and he is recessing the regular meeting in order to close the Executive Session and pick up the regular meeting. ***Councilmember Brown made a point of order stating that it is not noticed to indicate that it is for a medical facility. Mayor Smith ruled that the point of order is out of order. Hearing no objection to the ruling, Council reconvened into Executive Session. CLOSED EXECUTIVE SESSION Council reconvened into Executive Session in accordance with the Texas Government Code, pursuant to Section 551.087: Deliberation regarding Economic Development Negotiations; to deliberate the offer of a "'� financial or other incentive to a business prospect. Council closed the Executive Session at 8:28 PM and reconvened into Regular Session at 8:33 PM with no action taken later in the meeting. CITY MANAGER'S REPORT City Manager Roger Roecker reported that this year's Concerts in the Park Series will begin on Friday, May 6, 2011, and will continue every Friday night during the months of May and June. Concerts will take place at Stevenson Park in the gazebo. All concerts will begin at 7:00 PM and end at approximately 9:00 PM. The first Mitch and Artha Wright Concert of 2011 will feature the Friendswood High School Jazz Combo and the Clear Brook High School Jazz Band. On subsequent evenings, attendees can look forward to pop, rock, blues, country, Motown, and classic rock music—there's a category for almost every music lover's taste! Bring your blankets, lawn chairs, refreshments, dinner or snacks and be ready to sit back and enjoy an evening of fun and family entertainment brought to you by the Community Services Department of the City. All are eligible for give-a-ways and "door" prizes, and vendors will be selling kettle corn, hot dogs, and snow cones, as well. If anyone is interested in being a sponsor or providing a door prize, please contact James Toney, Director of Community Services. The City Manager reported that the community is once again looking forward to the City's summer movies at Centennial Park. This is the third year the City of Friendswood and the Friendswood Rotary Club have sponsored the Movies in the Park series at the Evelyn B. Newman Amphitheater. This annual event, beginning July 15, 2011, and running through August 19, 2011, has turned out to be a very successful summer program. Local businesses generously sponsoring each movie night include Dentistry 4 Children, Prudential Gary Greene, HomeTown Bank of Friendswood, The Goddard School, and State "'�"° Farm Renee Langdon. 05/02/11 3568 � With the help of a high definition projector and large blow-up movie screen, the Community Services Staff plans to treat Friendswood residents to the following Friday night showings in High-definition Blu-Ray: Despicable Me; July 15, 2011, Wizard of Oz; July 22, 2011, Shrek Forever After,� July 29, 2011, The Karate Kid; August 5, 2011, Megamind; August 12, 2011, Toy Story 3; August 19, 2011. Admission is free and movies begin shortly after dusk. Various concessions such as popcorn, soft drinks, hot dogs and candy will be for sale at the event. Everyone is encouraged to bring their blankets, lawn chairs, refreshments, dinner and/or a snack and sit back and enjoy an evening of fun and family entertainment. The City Manager reported that as part of their commitment to community involvement within the City of Friendswood, IESI provides finro $1,000 scholarships to Clear Creek Independent School District and Friendswood Independent School District graduating seniors. Each school's scholarship committee selects the recipients and the scholarships are awarded according to financial need, academic achievement, and community service. This scholarship program is not part of the formal contract IESI has with the City for solid waste collection services. It is, rather, a verbal commitment from the President and Chief Operating Officer for the company when the City negotiated the original contract. IESI continues to honor this commitment and continues to build strong partnerships with the City of Friendswood, the residents and businesses. The City appreciates IESI's support and assistance to the high school graduates in pursuing their college education. The City Manager showed a sample video to demonstrate the possibilities of showing community related videos on the Channel 16. As a part of the State-issued cable television franchise agreement the City has with both AT&T and Comcast, the City receives, five percent of each of these companies' gross receipts, plus an additional one percent, which is dubbed a "PEG Capital" fee. This fee, pursuant to the agreement, must be used for capital expenditures associated with a City's Public-Education-Government „�„�„ (PEG) channel. In an effort to increase the level and type of communication that the City provides to our residents and the public at large, Staff recently met with three local professional video production companies to discuss the prospect of creating videos for the City that not only spotlight the City's functions and provide useful information, but also create shorter videos as needed to preview upcoming events or to address specific issues. These videos would primarily be used for our PEG channel, but could also be shown on our website and sent out as a link via e-mail to our residents, for example. Over the course of a year, the idea is to create a "base" series of six videos three to five minutes in length each that spotlight the City's different functions, while providing helpful information. We expect the useful life of these six "base" videos to be from one to three years, and Staff is currently brainstorming what content will go into these videos. In the meantime, the shorter videos previewing events or addressing specific issues would be requested and paid for as needed. In addition, the company would use their professional equipment to attend and film various events throughout the year to create a "library" of content for use in future videos, and charge by the hour. After meeting with the three video companies, three different quotes were received that lay out the same products such as six "base" videos, four of the "on demand" shorter videos and an estimated ten hours of taping for the archive library. After reviewing the proposals, staff recommends that the City enter into an agreement with YourTownTv.com. We believe that their work will be a good "fit" for Friendswood. With the concurrence of Council, Mayor Smith moved to Agenda Item 13, Consideration and possible action regarding approving an agreement to produce videos for the City's communication outlets and authorize the Mayor to execute the agreement. ACTION ITEMS ""Councilmember Barr made a motion to approve an agreement to produce videos for the City's ,� communication outlets and authorize the Mayor to execute the agreement. Seconded by Councilmember McGinnis. The motion was approved 6-1 with Councilmember Brown opposed. 05/02/11 3569 ....� Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Kevin Holland returned to Council Chambers at this time and reported that the Planning and Zoning Commission voted unanimously to approve and recommend to Council the zone classification change request for property located at 1003 and 1005 S. Friendswood Drive, from Neighborhood Commercial (NC) TO Downtown District (DD). (Texas Gulf Bank N.A.) (Ordinance T2011-17), and the proposed amendment to Specific Use Permit, Ordinance No. 95-9, property located at 307 E. Edgewood Drive (Ordinance T2011-18) with the removal of permitted uses such as tattoo parlor, piercing, nail salon, and veterinary services. Chair Holland stated that the Planning and Zoning Commission tabled the item regarding notification. With the concurrence of Council, Mayor Smith moved to Agenda Item 9B, Discussion regarding Houston- Galveston Area Council's Sub-regional Transportation Planning Initiative. SPECIAL SESSION Mayor Smith opened discussion on the Houston-Galveston Area Council's Sub-regional Transportation Planning Initiative. Assistant to the City Manager Nick Haby introduced Chelsea Young, Transportation Planner with the Houston-Galveston Area Council, (H-GAC) who gave an overview on the Sub-Regional Transportation Planning Initiative. Chelsea Young thanked Council for the opportunity to speak and stated the Houston-Galveston Area Council is the metropolitan planning organization for the Houston-Galveston region and inc�udes eight counties. She stated they are the federally designated regional forum for transportation planning. There are many planning efforts such as the Regional Transportation Plan, the Transportation Improvement Program which is the first four years of the Regional Transportation Plan and includes a listing of funded '�"' projects, roadway, transit, bike and pedestrian, air quality improvement projects, etc. She stated the 2035 Regional Transportation Plan identified the goals of improving mobility and access between jobs and homes and services, to coordinate land use and transportation plans to provide more transit options and to create overall healthier environments. The Sub-Regional Plan fits within the Regional Transportation Plan so they are working with multiple jurisdictions in defined sub-regions to create a unified vision that can be integrated into local plans that will also benefit the region. Sub-regional planning is done to help identify local actions that will result in sub-regional, regional, and local benefits, it identifies livable centers such as Friendswood's Downtown District and helps transit issues by creating corridors, creates thoroughfare connectivity, provides access management and land use plans and policies, and encourages economic development incentives. She stated the purpose of the plan is to create a unified vision across jurisdictional lines relating to land use and transportation. The Sub-regional Planning Initiative will perform a gap-analysis of existing plans and studies, involve the public to gain valuable feedback, provide forecasting to plan for future projects and growth, develop growth scenarios through modeling and visualization, and create a sub-regional vision and implementation plan. Entities interested in partnering with H-GAC would participate in a stakeholder advisory committee and a public officials' workshop. There is also a matching fund component because it is a federally funded initiative, would be required to have interlocal cooperation across jurisdictional lines and an alignment of local plans and policies. She stated the benefits of participation are multi-jurisdictional cooperation, the identification of projects, and implementation workbooks. Councilmember Brown stated she is interested and understands the City of Pearland is taking the lead and Friendswood's funding would depend on what Pearland is willing to front. She stated her interest would be dictated by how much funding would be required. Chelsea Young stated Pearland is going before their City Council to determine how much they can contribute and it is her understanding that it will be a large amount of the match component, will give Friendswood the definite number when she gets it. ""�` 05/02/11 3570 Councilmember Barr stated she mentioned connectivity of public transportation and asked if this refers to busses or bicycle trails and Chelsea Young stated it is up to the Cities to determine what they want as far as modes of transportation. Councilmember Barker asked about the level of long term commitment if Friendswood signed up for this, asked if Friendswood can get out later and Ms. Young stated there is a commitment only during the ten to twelve months of the study period. Councilmember Barker clarified that the only thing H-GAC is asking for at this point is for Friendswood to participate in the study and Chelsea Young stated yes. Mayor Smith asked if Friendswood would still maintain autonomy for decision making and Chelsea Young stated yes. Councilmember McGinnis stated he sees that Metro is a potential partner and asked if they have more influence than the represented cities or other entities and Chelsea Young stated they do not and they will not be a financially contributing provider but are there to provide planning efforts in order to see how they will overlay with the cities' plans, and to determine the interest and mobility to the medical center or the greater Houston area. Councilmember Holbert asked what H-GAC wants from Council tonight and Mayor Smith stated they are looking for interest level and to determine if there will be a need for it to be placed on a future agenda. He thanked Ms. Young for the presentation. With the concurrence of Council, Mayor Smith moved to Agenda Item 10, Consideration and possible action regarding approving an appointment to fill a vacancy on the Community and Economic ,� Development Committee. ACTION ITEMS **Councilmember Barker moved to appoint Tony Annan to the Community and Economic Development Committee for an unexpired term to expire July 2013. Seconded by Councilmember Holbert. The motion was approved unanimously. *'`Councilmember McGinnis moved to approve an amendment to the Interlocal Tax Collection Agreement with Galveston County Tax Assessor/Collector and authorize the Mayor to execute the amendment agreement. Seconded by Councilmember Barr. The motion was approved unanimously. **Councilmember Hill moved to approve authorizing Gulf Coast Waste Disposal Authority to proceed with the design work related to the rehabilitation of the Blackhawk Wastewater Treatment Plant. Seconded by Councilmember Barker. The motion was approved unanimously. **Councilmember Barker made a motion to approve a lease/purchase agreement for the replacement of computer hardware and software and authorize the Mayor to execute the agreement. Seconded by Councilmember Holbert. The motion was approved 5-2 with Councilmembers Brown and McGinnis opposed. **Councilmember Brown made a motion to approve a settlement offer to Wight Realty regarding the litigation of Wight Realty vs. the City of Friendswood, of$35,000 which must be accepted within 14 days and if not accepted no settlement offers until discovery is complete. � The motion died for lack of a second. 05/02/11 3571 ,.... RESOLUTION **Councilmember Barker moved to approve Resolution R2011-11 -A resolution of the City Council of the City of Friendswood, Texas adopting guidelines and criteria governing tax abatement agreements in the City of Friendswood. Seconded by Councilmember Barr. The motion was approved 6-1 with Councilmember Brown opposed. ORDINANCES **Councilmember Hill moved to approve the First and Final reading of Ordinance 2011-16—An ordinance amending City of Friendswood, Texas, Ordinance No. 2010-28, passed and approved October 4, 2010, same being an ordinance approving and adopting the City's General Budget for Fiscal Year 2010-2011, by approving "Budget Amendment VII" to the"Original General Budget of the City of Friendswood, Texas, for the Fiscal Year 2010-2011"; providing for supplemental appropriation and/or transfer of certain funds; providing for severability; and providing other matters related to the subject. Seconded by Councilmember McGinnis. The motion was approved 6-1 with Councilmember Brown opposed. Mayor Smith closed Council's portion of all Joint Docketed Public Hearings. **Councilmember Hill moved to approve the First reading of Ordinance T2011-17 - An ordinance amending Appendix C of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Friendswood, Texas, said Appendix C being the Zoning Ordinance of the City, by changing the Zoning Classification of a 1.4950-acre tract of land located at 1003 and 1005 S. Friendswood Drive (all Lots 2 and 3. Bales Lea subdivision, according to a map or plat thereof recoded in Volume 18, Page 334, Galveston county map and records, Galveston County, Friendswood, Texas), from Neighborhood Commercial (NC) to Downtown District(DD); providing '"'� for amendment of the City's Official Zoning Map; providing a penalty in an amount not to exceed $2,000 for each day of violation of any provision hereof' and providing for severability. (Texas Gulf Bank N.A.) Seconded by Councilmember McGinnis. The motion was approved unanimously. **Councilmember McGinnis moved to approve the First reading of Ordinance T2011-18 — An Ordinance amending Appendix C of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Friendswood, Texas, said Appendix C being the Zoning Ordinance of the City, by changing the Zoning Classification of a .4821-acre tract of land, located at 307 E. Edgewood Drive, out of Lot 4, Block 9, Friendswood subdivision out of the Sarah McKissick League of J.R. Williams League; providing for the granting of a new Specific Use Permit(SUP) to allow the use of the property nor NAICS use#621 —Ambulatory Health Care Services, NAICS use#52 — Finance and Insurance, NAICS use #531 — Real Estate, NAICS use #54 — Professional, Scientific and Technical Services, NAICS use #55 — Management of Companies and Enterprises; and NAICS use #8121 — Personal Care Services; providing for amendment of the official zoning map; providing a penalty in an amount not to exceed$2,000 for each day of violation of any provision hereof; and providing for severability. (Bergamos—Real Estate office) Seconded by Councilmember Barr. ***Councilmember McGinnis amended the motion to remove the following items from acceptable uses: nail salon, tattoo parlor, piercing, and veterinary services. Seconded by Councilmember Barr. The amended motion was approved 6-1 with Councilmember Brown opposed. COMMUNICATIONS FROM THE MAYOR AND COUNCILMEMBERS .�, Councilmembers Barker and Holbert stated they had no report. 05/02/11 3572 Councilmember McGinnis reported that the library will host a long range planning meeting this Saturday, May 7, 2011, at the library, there will be a classical guitarist playing at the library on Wednesday, May 4, 2011. He reported on the possibility of creating a community foundation to encourage public-private partnerships. He has contacted by Ann Murphy from the Denny Partnership, George Granger from the Houston Endowment, and Pete Karabotsos with Friendswood Independent School District. He suggested hosting a town hall meeting or joint workshop to invite these and other committee members and interested citizens. Councilmember Barr stated that this was good work and he hopes to get the chance to discuss this in the future. Councilmember Barr stated that a town hall meeting to discuss recycling was held Monday, April 25, 2011, and the turnout was relatively good with a lot of interest, he stated Wednesday, May 04, 2011, is a rescheduled Park Board meeting. Councilmember Hill stated he is wearing his flag tie tonight because he is proud of our country, is proud of our president, and is proud of the men who wear our uniforms. It shows no matter who leads our country, we are a persistent nation and is proud to be a part of it. Councilmember Brown reported that the Boys Scouts Regional Bay Area Council are having a fund raising breakfast May 4, 2011, at the Green Event Center, and thanked the Boy Scouts for being here tonight. She stated Community Development Director Morad Kabiri's Five Star award is well deserved for his professionalism and response times, and has gone above and beyond. She stated she appreciates the comments that Councilmember Hill made, today was a very good day both for the United States and the world and no individual made that happen. She stated there was an Executive Session today to discuss the Wight Realty litigation and her position is that if the Wight Realty litigation does not get any ,,,� type of settlement posture any time soon she will be very reticent to make any type of approval of any motion related to that going forward. Other parties have settled with the City and Wight has been contacted and he can settle with the City too. Mayor Smith reported that Council has an opportunity to support a trip to Washington, D.C., that keeps newly elected as well as veteran congressmen and senators informed about the importance of human space flight exploration. The City's practice has been to send two people to support that endeavor and time is short to decide who will go and it needs to be decided. Councilmember Barker stated that Councilmember McGinnis has not had the opportunity to go and believes he should get that opportunity. Mayor Smith stated there is money in the budget for finro people to go so Councilmember Barker and Councilmember McGinnis can go. Mayor Smith stated the National Day of Prayer is Thursday, May 5, 2011, at Stevenson Park and everyone is invited. CONSENT AGENDA *"Councilmember Barr moved to approve the Consent Agenda as presented: A. Authorizing a one-year contract extension with Garner Environmental Services for equipment and services used in times of emergency response. B. Authorizing the Mayor to execute a contract renewal with Hill Sand Company for debris management services for emergency management purposes. C. Authorizing the Police Department to dispose of eight out-of-service police vehicles through Houston Auto Auction. D. Authorize the acceptance of streets, drainage and utilities for West Ranch Lakeside; Section 1 for the contractor's one-year maintenance period. E. Accept the March 2001, Property Tax Report. F. Approve the minutes of the April 04, 2011, Council meeting. � Seconded by Councilmember McGinnis. The motion was approved unanimously. 05/02/11 3573 � A motion was made and approved to adjourn at 10:16 PM. Mayor Davi .H. Attest: �',;�,��.-�(.�1�...--�l�x.�-,�'`� FR�EIy Melinda Weish, TRMC pF �S� City Secretary '� p 'r O v v * * cP Py ��rF OF t�� � �.