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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Minutes 2017-10-02 Regular 10/02/17 473 STATE OF TEXAS )( CITY OF FRIENDSWOOD )( COUNTIES OF GALVESTON/HARRIS )( OCTOBER 02, 2017 )( MINUTES OF A REGULAR MEETING OF THE FRIENDSWOOD CITY COUNCIL THAT WAS HELD ON MONDAY, OCTOBER 02, 2017, AT 5:30 PM AT FRIENDSWOOD CITY HALL COUNCIL CHAMBERS, 910 S. FRIENDSWOOD DRIVE, FRIENDSWOOD, TEXAS, WITH THE FOLLOWING PRESEN CONSTITUTING A QUORUM: MAYOR KEVIN HOLLAND MAYOR PRO-TEM STEVE ROCKEY COUNCILMEMBER SALLY BRANSON COUNCILMEMBER JIM HILL COUNCILMEMBER MIKE FOREMAN COUNCILMEMBER JOHN SCOTT COUNCILMEMBER CARLGUSTAFSON CITY ATTORNEY MARY KAY FISCHER CITY MANAGER ROGER ROECKER CITY SECRETARY MELINDA WELSH REGULAR SESSION Mayor Holland called the meeting to order. The invocation was given by Pastor Mike Ross with Friendswood Church of Christ. Mayor Holland led the Pledge of Allegiance to the United States and to the State of Texas. COMMUNICATIONS FROM THE PUBLIC Mayor Holland asked if anyone would like to speak. No one spoke. WORK SESSION Mayor Holland opened the discussion regarding the Capital Project update. Director of Public Works/City Engineer Patrick Donart presented a PowerPoint presentation regarding the progress made on Capital Projects since the September Council meeting. He reported on the restroom and pavilion at Lake Friendswood, Old City Park, Round 1 Street Improvements, Blackhawk Boulevard Phase If and Woodlawn Drive, Lift Station No. 18 and 23, current Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) projects throughout the City, and the Blackhawk Wastewater Treatment Plant. Mayor Holland opened the discussion regarding Emergency Medical Services (EMS). City Manager Roger Roecker stated one of the City's foundations is the volunteers throughout the City, volunteers are importa9t from the Fire Department as well as all the volunteers across City boards, committees, commissions, and Council. After Hurricane Harvey Staff asked Council if they would like to have a discussion regarding whether to continue down the path of issuing a Request for Proposal (RFP) for EMS services. During Hurricane Harvey the City had a lot of help provided by volunteers of all shapes and sizes, but EMS service's was emphasized as a difficulty, many of the EMS volunteers are full-time paid professionals elsewhere, if they are able to get to their place of employment they must provide services to their employer, if they are unable to get to their place of employment they can volunteer their services to the City. Staff wanted to give Council the opportunity to reconsider and discuss whether to continue the path of issuing an RFP for ' EMS services. Discussion took place between Mayor, Council, and Staff regarding that the consensus of Council was for Staff to continue with the process of issuing a Request for Proposal (RFP)for EMS services. 10/02/17 4733 Mayor Holland opened the discussion regarding Hurricane Harvey update. City Manager Roger Roecker stated he would like to commend all the volunteers of the City, they are the backbone of the City. First Baptist Church operated a donation center that has been turned into a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) disaster recovery center and gave hours of operation. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints continues to operate a call center, Calvary Chapel Houston continues to serve thousands of meals and operate a food pantry, and Mary Queen Catholic Church food pantry continues to distribute food to families and help with a legal association with needed legal services. Storm debris operations are moving slower than anyone would have expected,good news is the contractor has acquired more equipment,5,100 cubic yards a day are now being moved, and nine trucks from Texas Department of Transportation as well as two trucks from Galveston County Consolidated Drainage District have started assisting with debris pickup as of today. Daily reports sent out include a chart that shows the original estimate plus the cumulative number of debris that has been removed. There have been over 800 flood repair permits issued, Staff continues to work with homeowners and contractors, and continue to do inspections not only on flood repairs but on new constructions. The Friendswood Library has been helping people with flood related research and accommodate organizations by providing meeting rooms. A benefit concert was held, thanked Funksion which was the band that offered their services for the event, and Aric Harding played a couple of songs on the piano at the event. The Friends of Downtown Friendswood Association sold "Friendswood Strong"t-shirts at the event which sold out quickly, proceeds went to the Friendswood Rotary Club Charitable Foundation, and to date, the foundation has raised $90,000. Marathon Petroleum Corporation donated $75,000 to the City to assist in the City's Hurricane Harvey recovery efforts. Assistant City Manager Morad Kabiri stated another item that has come up since Hurricane Harvey is the difference between effective flood maps and maps insurance policies are written on. Council may recall that prior to Tropical Storm Allison in 2001,the City was under the 1999 effective maps that delineated flood ways and flood prone properties throughout the City of Friendswood and the region of Houston. After Tropical Storm Allison, Harris County commissioned a number of entities to partner with the county and ' adopted new flood plain maps based upon the impacts on Tropical Storm Allison known as Tropical Storm Allison Recovery Project (TSARP) maps. Despite Harris County's effort and the adoption of those maps by Friendswood City Council, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) continued to issue insurance policies as well as make recommendations on whether or not to have insurance based off the 1999 maps, despite better data being available. The City was required, once adopting those maps, to issue building permits and make flood zone determinations based on the 2007 TSARP maps and not what the effected maps are. This has caused a little bit of a predicament, mainly any flood prone property if it sustains substantial damage exceeding 50% of the value of that building itself, to rebuild or repair the damage it would have to comply with current flood zone regulations which in a number of cases may mean elevating the finished floor. That becomes problematic when the 2007 maps have a different finish floor than the 1999 maps. If there is a consensus of Council, Staff would like to bring an item to Council at the November Council meeting to retract the 2007 TSARP maps and stick with the effective maps that FEMA issued flood insurance policies off of. Staff recommends taking this action to prevent keeping any Friendswood homeowner's out of their homes that are not going to be able to elevate their property, and flood insurance premiums based off the 1999 map are more affordable than what would be charged otherwise on the 2007 map. Discussion took place between Mayor, Council, and Staff regarding that if residents would like to contract privately to have debris removed by their contractor, orwhomever they please,they are more than welcome to do so, however, it is not something the City would reimburse. Namely because there is a set process that must be followed based on the City's contracts as well as FEMA guidelines in order to ensure full reimbursement of debris that is picked up. The concern and limitations in respect to staging dumpsters at a variety of places throughout the City is that everything that goes into the dumpsters would have to be monitored. Otherwise, it would invalidate any reimbursement application as well as potentially invalidate that dumpster itself. The City would not be able to dispose of the dumpsters at the landfill because they would be contaminated with non-construction and demolition materials. With the concurrence of Council, Mayor Holland moved to Agenda Item 11, City Manager's Report. 10/02/17 473 CITY MANAGER'S REPORT City Manager Roger Roecker reported that this year's 16th Annual Broker and Developer Day Event and the 201h Annual "Swing into Fall" Golf Tournament will be held on Thursday, October 26, 2017, at Timber Creek Golf Club. The City Manager reported that the Friendswood Volunteer Fire Department will host the Kenneth Camp Fire Station dedication on October 14, 2017, at 1:00 PM. Any member of Council that can attend please notify Staff. With concurrence of Council, Mayor Holland moved to Agenda Item 19, Consent Agenda. CONSENT AGENDA **Councilmember Scott moved to approve all items on the Consent Agenda as presented: A. Authorizing acceptance of public improvements associated with Arbor Gate Section 2,West Ranch, into the contractor's one-year maintenance period. B. Approving amendments to the contract with Crowder Gulf for Debris Management Services. C. Approving amendments to the contract with Tetra Tech for Monitoring of Debris Removal and Related Services. D. Approving amendments to the contract with Lighthouse Charity Team for Meal Catering. E. Approving amendments to the contract with Garner Environmental Services for Emergency Response and.Equipment. F. Ratifying an agreement with Wendorf Beward & Partners, LLC', for professional services related to Tropical Storm/Hurricane Harvey recovery. G. Accepting the August 2017 Property Tax Report. H. Approving the Minutes of the August 7 and August 31, 2017, CouncI Meetings. Seconded by Councilmember Foreman. The motion was approved unanimously. ' With concurrence of Council, Mayor Holland moved to Agenda Item 10A, Annual Report from Senio Citizens Advisory Committee Chair Nancy Mastrofrancesco. COMMUNICATIONS FROM COMMITTEES AND SPECIAL REPORTS Senior Citizens Advisory Committee Chair Nancy Mastrofrancesco reported on the activities at the Senior Center. There are a variety of activities offered to appeal to the diverse and active seniors that visit the center. Average daily attendance at the center has been between 80 and 100. The bi-monthly newsletter is distributed by e-mail with printed copies being available at the Activity Center and the Friendswood Public Library. The center offers three weekly exercise programs that are very popular with 35 to 45 participants in each class. Exercise programs offered throughout the year included Tai Chai,Yoga, Chair Yoga,Zumba Gold, balloon tennis, chair volleyball, line dancing, tap dancing, and clogging. Other activities offered throughout the year to keep the seniors minds sharp include painting classes, Spanish classes, guitar lessons, crochet classes, photography classes, recorder(musical instrument)classes, AARP Smart Driver courses (offered twice a year), and special classes in self-defense. The Senior Center brings in guest speakers throughout the year to discuss topics that include Medicare and Veterans benefits, Alzheimer's, hearing/communication problems, and avoiding scams which particularly target seniors. Daily transportation to and from the Senior Center is provided for seniors who do not drive and the divers' activities that are provided to improve seniors physically, mentally, socially, and spiritually. A seven-day cruise to Key West and the Bahamas was attended by 35 people, and the fifth senior cruise has been planned for January 2018 to the Western Caribbean. Social events throughout the year included monthly bingo, monthly movie matinee, fall and spring picnics, health fair, watermelon bash and bingo, Christmas in September,and casino extravaganza. The holiday events included an Easter egg hunt, Halloween bash, Veteran's luncheon, Thanksgiving potluck, Christmas train in Alvin, breakfast with Santa, Valentine's Day luncheon, Go Texan luncheon, Cinco De Mayo luncheon, Mother's Day luncheon, and donuts with Dac{. Special events include two annual fundraisers that help support the activities offered, the spaghetti luncheon, and the barbeque lunch. City Staff continues to do an outstanding job, and the advisory ' committee is currently planning and looking forward to another active year. Councilmember Foreman stated he is the Council liaison for the Senior Citizens Advisory Committee, a I 10/02/17 4735 study was done earlier this year in regards to building a new activity center, busting at the seams, monthly committee meeting is during one of the exercise classes and have a hard time finding a parking place, recently used as a shelter during Hurricane Harvey, and Council needs to address issues at the Activity Center sooner rather than later. Councilmember Branson thanked the Senior Citizens Advisory Committee for letting the City use the Activity Center as a shelter during Hurricane Harvey, some of the programs were cancelled or delayed due to the shelter. With concurrence of Council, Mayor Holland moved to Agenda Item 18, Communications from the Mayor and Councilmembers. COMMUNICATIONS FROM THE MAYOR AND COUNCILMEMBERS Councilmember Scott stated the Friendswood Mustang football team defeated the Dickinson Gators Friday, probably the first time that has happened since he can remember, this year's team is a good group of boys that are out there fighting, play Clear Falls away this week,,then Clear Brook at home the following week, and followed by Clear Creek at home for homecoming. If you do not have anything else to do go out and watch some really good football. Councilmember Hill stated Galveston County is having a bond election in November and will give the City back almost $4 Million tax dollars. Council submitted a request to build Friendswood Lake Boulevard, enough to build at least two lanes to give traffic relief on Falcon Ridge Boulevard going to the Junior High. There would be some traffic relief on FM 528 and FM 518,would save the school district time getting buses from Windsong Intermediate to the Junior High. During a storm, it would provide a dry emergency route on the south side of town since FM 528 is impassable. It is nice of Galveston County to give the City some tax dollars back, wishes they would have done more, but a free road is not something to not appreciate. ' Councilmember Branson stated she appreciates the job Friendswood Rotary has done and the people who have been generous in giving to the Rotary Foundation. The Friendswood Education Foundation is another group that has been contributing to those in need. The Education Foundation had 86 staff members that were affected by the flood and over $80,000 has been raised to give to those individuals. Ms. Branson stated she is excited about what the Friendswood Rotary and the Friendswood Education Foundation have done, a lot of help to a lot of people in the community. She thanked all who supported the Friendswood Rotary and the Friendswood Education Foundation. Councilmember Rockey stated the Friendswood Historical Society will hold their annual Historween event on October 28, 2017, and if Council or anyone would like to participate and play a role let him know. If not participating in the event, it is a real fun event and you will learn the history of Friendswood, and you will get to participate in some Halloween type events. Mayor Holland stated the community has helped one another throughout Hurricane Harvey and continue to help, people from outside the City have come to help but that seems like it has faded, neighbor helping neighbor is still going on, and he is thankful to live in the City of Friendswood. Councilmembers Foreman and Gustafson stated they had nothing to report. With concurrence of Council, Mayor Holland moved to Agenda Item 8, Special Recognition and Acknowledgements. SPECIAL RECOGNITION AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Friendswood Area Swim Team (FAST) President Jeff Theall stated FAST would like to express their appreciation for all the support that the City provides to their program. The FAST program has been around for 25 to 30 years, part of the Clear Creek Swim League, uses the pool at Stevenson Park, is a competitive swim team but also recreational, goal is to give swimmers a great swim experience, kids from ages six to 10/02/17 4731 eighteen, participate in swim meets, usually 80 events at each meet with multiple heats in each even. Stevenson Park is a great venue to hold these events, and training is also done during the week at Stevenson Park during the summer. FAST could not do the things their program does without the support of Council, the City, and the Parks and Recreation Department. Mr.Theall presented Council with a check to cover FAST's portion of the pool heater fees as promised at the beginning of the season. FAST would like to keep the team going for the City of Friendswood, appreciate the Council's help in achieving this goal. With concurrence of Council, Mayor Holland moved to Agenda Item 6, Closed Executive Session. CLOSED EXECUTIVE SESSION Mayor Holland asked if anyone would like to speak regarding the Executive Session. No one spoke. Council convened into Executive Session in accordance with the Texas Government Code, pursuant to Section 551.072 — Deliberations about Real Property — to deliberate the purchase, exchange, lease, or value of real property if deliberation in an open meeting would have a detrimental effect on the position of the governing body in negotiations with a third party. RECONVENE INTO OPEN SESSION Council reconvened into Open Session with no action taken later in the meeting. COMMUNICATIONS FROM THE PUBLIC Mayor Holland asked if anyone would like to speak. No one spoke. With concurrence of Council, Mayor Holland moved to Agenda Item 10B, Annual report from Friendswood Chamber of Commerce Board Chairman Dwight Potter. COMMUNICATIONS FROM COMMITTEES AND SPECIAL REPORTS (continued) Friendswood Chamber of Commerce Chairman Dwight Potter gave the annual report and stated he would highlight a few items that relate to the role of the Chamber of Commerce serving the City. Each year the Chamber of Commerce hosts or sponsors events that include the annual State of the City luncheon for the Mayor, a Cinco de Mayo reception, safety awareness presentation by the Friendswood Police Department, and hurricane awareness and preparation meeting. Each year a directory is mailed to over 10,006 Friendswood residents and another 4,000 mailed to area businesses, newcomers, and interested parties. The Chamber of Commerce also works directly with map.makers,in editing, selling ads, and distributing current maps for the Friendswood area. The Chamber's budget depends primarily on membership dues and other non-dues income such as raffles, and tournaments. The Friendswood Chamber of Commerce is in charge of helping assure a positive and nourishing environment for area businesses. Creating such an environment is a joint effort. The Chamber is fortunate to have many partners with the same vision. As the Chamber of Commerce and the City grow,the Chamber remains ready and willing to work in partnership with the City of Friendswood, Friendswood Independent School District, Clear Creek Independent School District, and the many organizations that make Friendswood a place where businesses and family can thrive in a safe community. During Hurricane Harvey, the Chamber of Commerce building flooded, staff protected computers, files, and other important data with the help of the board of directors and members, had no flood insurance, started tear out immediately, rebuilding has begun and should be completed by the end of the month. Through the kindness and generosity of Standfield Properties, the Chamber of Commerce has temporarily relocated their offices in order to get back to work. On behalf of the board of directors and the staff of the Chamber of Commerce, thanked the Police Department, Emergency Management Services (EMS), and first responders for their diligent effort during Hurricane Harvey. ' With concurrence of Council, Mayor Holland moved to Agenda Item 12, Discussion and possible action regarding approving appointments/reappointments to Boards and Commissions. 10/02/17 4737 ACTION ITEMS **Councilmember Foreman moved to approve the appointment of Chiquita Taylor to the Keep Friendswood Beautiful Committee to fill a vacancy with a term to expire November 2Q18. Seconded by Councilmember Branson. The motion was approved unanimously. **Councilmember Branson moved to approve a Friendswood Downtown Economic Development Corporation expenditure to remove certain utility poles and change aerial to buried cable along the west side of Friendswood Drive in the amount of$71,271.30. Seconded by Councilmember Rockey. The motion was approved unanimously. **Councilmember Branson moved to approve action regarding Texas Water Development Board Flood Mitigation Grant. Seconded by Councilmember Scott. The motion was approved unanimously. Assistant City Manager Morad Kabiri stated about a week and a half ago the City was notified that the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB) is administrating a buyout grant from Federal Emergency Management Agency(FEMA)for the state of Texas., The deadline to submit an application was September 28, 2017, on September 27,2017, Staff was notified the deadline was moved to October 3, 2017, and then this evening Staff received an email stating the deadline had been moved to October 10, 2017. The Staff of the Community Development and Public Works departments have been working closely with Daniel Johnson of Daniel Scott Engineering, LLC, to identify properties that would qualify for a buyout program. The grant works in a multitude of ways but the higher priority projects are properties that are classified as a severe repetitive loss, which means they have sustained flood damage four or more times with each incident in being excess of$20,000 in repair cost, and a time period is not specified. If a property qualifies as a severe repetitive loss and was damaged during this event, it would qualify as a 100% buyout from the federal government with the dollars being administered through the TWDB. The next category of projects ' is known as repetitive loss, defined as if the property has been flooded three times at least, no specific time period listed, but has sustained major damage on each of those incidents in excess of$20,000. The severe repetitive loss projects are to be funded with 90% federal dollars and 10% local match, which means the City, county, or some agency at the local level would have to put up some funds in order to make the grant work unless the homeowner was willing to take less than 100%. Staff has compiled a list of 86 properties that would qualify for the program, going through insurance documents provided by the state, there are properties that should be deemed as repetitive loss for whatever reason they are not on the list. Staff has communicated with a number of homeowners and are adding their info to the list whether they technically qualify or not. Staff needs direction from Council in regards to submitting an application on behalf of the City. If the City is awarded an application there would potentially be an opportunity in the future that the City would have to commit local dollars to make the buyout a reality, Of the 86 properties listed, a majority of them are repetitive Ions and the 10% match'equates roughly to $2:5 Million of local funds, and the$2.5 Million would be reduced based upon insurance payouts. **Councilmember Scott moved to approve interlocal agreements with various entities providing Friendswood with temporary emergency relief assistance with resources for water and sewer services. Seconded by Councilmember Foreman. The motion was approved unanimously. RESOLUTIONS **Councilmember Rockey moved to approve Resolution R2017-20 — A resolution of the City of Friendswood,Texas, Galveston/Harris counties, submitting a nomination(s)to the Board of Directors of the Galveston Central Appraisal District for 2018-2019. Seconded by Councilmember Scott. The motion was approved unanimously. **Councilmember Branson moved to approve Resolution R2017-21 —A resolution of the City Council of the ' City of Friendswood, Texas, Galveston/Harris counties, nominating a candidate for a position on the Board of Directors of the Harris County Appraisal District for 2018-2019. Seconded by Councilmember Rockey. The motion was approved unanimously. 10/02/17 4738 **Mayor Holland moved'to approve Resolution R2017-22—A resolution of the City of Friendswood, Texas, Galveston/Harris counties, endorsing the reappointment of three (3) members and appointment of one (1i new member to the Galveston County United Board of Health. Seconded by Councilmember Scott. The motion was approved unanimously. ORDINANCES **Councilmember Branson moved to approve the Second and Final reading of Ordinance No. 2017-29 An ordinance amending the Code of Ordinances of the City of Friendswood,Texas,Appendix C—"Zoning,' by amending the zoning classification for a tract or parcel containing 0.18 acres of land, being the remainder of a called Reserve"D," Block 1, Park 518 Reserve"B" replat and addition recorded under Volume 2006A, Page 189 of the map records of Galveston County, Texas; amending the zone classification from Community Shopping Center (CSC) to Community Shopping Center/Specific Use Permit (CSC/SUP) and granting a Specific Use Permit for NAICS Use No. 517"Telecommunications;" providing for amendment of the Official Zoning Map; providing a penalty in an amount not to exceed $2,000 for each day of violation oif any provision hereof; and providing for severability. Seconded by Councilmember Rockey. The motion was approved 6-1 with Councilmember Gustafson opposed. *'Councilmember Branson moved to approve the Second and Final reading of Ordinance No. 2017-30 An ordinance amending the Code of Ordinances of the City of Friendswood,Texas,Appendix C—"Zoning,, by amending the zoning classification for a tract or parcel containing 3.202 acres of land, being out of Lot 26, Voss Subdivision, Galveston County, Texas; amending the zone classification from Office Park District (OPD) to Community Shopping Center (CSC); 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. Seconded by Councilmember Foreman. The motion was approved 5-2 with Councilmembers Rockey and ' Scott opposed. Discussion took place between Mayor, Council, and Staff regarding that the requested letter of credit and Property Owner's Association agreement had been received, and the request for no curb cuts to Leisure Lane had been added to the ordinance. Mayor Holland read the agenda item to approve the First and Final reading of Ordinance No. 2017-32—An ordinance approving and adopting the City of Friendswood, Texas, General Budget for the Fiscal Year 2017/2018; making appropriations for the City for such Fiscal Year as reflected in said budget, and making certain findings and containing certain provisions relating to the subject. **Mayor Holland moved that the proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2017-2018 be adopted as presente including revenue projections and expenditure appropriations totaling $26,304,237. Seconded by Councilmember Branson. The motion was approved unanimously. Mayor Holland read the agenda item.to ratify the property tax revenue reflected in the Budget for Fiscal Year 2017-2018 (Ordinance No. 2017-32), as required by Local Government Code Section 102.007 (c). **Mayor Holland moved to ratify the property tax revenue reflected in the budget for Fiscal Year 2017-2018, as required by Local Government Code Section 102.007(c). Seconded by Councilmember Branson. The motion was approved 6-1 with Councilmember Hill opposed Mayor Holland read the agenda item to approve the First and Final reading of Ordinance No. 2017-33—An ordinance providing for the levy and collection of ad valorem taxes of the City of Friendswood, Texas, for the tax year commencing October 1, 2017, and ending September 30, 2018; providing the date on which ' such taxes shall be due and payable; providing for penalty and interest on all taxes not timely paid;providing for severability; and repealing all ordinances or parts of ordinances inconsistent or in conflict herewith. 10/02/17 4739 "Mayor Holland moved that the City of Friendswood's property tax rate be decreased by the adoption of a tax rate of-$0.527349, which is approximately 3.4% less than the current tax rate. The proposed tax rate is composed of a maintenance and operations rate of$0.432349 and a debt service rate of$0.0950. Seconded by Councilmember Scott. The motion was approved 6-1 with Councilmember Hill opposed. The meeting was adjourned at 7:21 PM. Mayor Kevin o I nd Attest: �1, ()�� QXc��•F pRIEFA( Melinda Welsh, TRMC , -\e' S•�'• City Secretary �O •••9TF OF T��P':