Loading...
Min 07/21/1998 232 Wichita Falls, Texas Memorial Auditorium Building July 21, 1998 Items 1 & 2 The City Council of the City of Wichita Falls, Texas met in regular session on the above date in the Council Room of the Memorial Auditorium Building at 8:30 o'clock a.m., with the following members present: Kay Yeager - Mayor Don Johnston Councilors Dan Shine - Angus Thompson - Bill Altman - Bud Beaty - James Berzina - City Manager Greg Humbach - City Attorney Lydia Torres - City Clerk Johnny Burns - Absent Mayor Yeager called the meeting to order. Invocation was given by Ron Hardin, Fire Department Chaplain. Item 3 There were no presentations. Item 4 Jack Robertson, 4619 Sierra Madre, expressed continued concerns regarding the flooding problem in the 4600 block of Sierra Madre. They still have concerns after speaking with Mr. Bonnett, therefore, are requesting that Council look into the matter. He mentioned the following concerns: runoff from Spanish Trace, Hospice, Shenandoah Drive, city water plant, and North Cypress which runs into Johnson Road. This empties into one irrigation ditch which runs behind the homes of 4600 block of Sierra Madre. There are eight storm drains on the west end of Johnson Road but the water never reaches these drains before it overflows into the area of the irrigation ditch. Also, the alley that runs parallel to the irrigation ditch was replaced and was lowered in one area in order for the overflow to run into the ditch, however, this created an area where the water runs out of the ditch. We questioned the alley design and we were told that there would be no problem. Thirdly, we were told the City could not make any changes or modifications to this irrigation ditch because other people along the ditch may be affected. However, the City just finished enlarging two big drainage conduits draining water from Spanish Trace to this irrigation ditch. Fourthly, this ditch was designed to handle irrigation water at a slow and steady rate. When the City made this ditch into a storm drain, no engineering or special construction was done to handle storm water at a high volume and speed. That is why water backs up and floods our 233 Item 4 cont'd. homes. It would be interesting to find out who has the main responsibility of civil liability of this ditch - the City, the County or both. Lannie Walker, 4635 Sierra Madre, said that his concerns were also with the ditch, and that Mr. Robertson had expressed most of his concerns. He mentioned the fact that they had been told that nothing could be done, yet the flow drains to Spanish Trace were made larger and he wanted to know how that was possible and who makes these decisions. He lives in a non-flood zone, yet he and his neighbors are flooded from the decisions made by the City. It is an abandoned irrigation ditch not a drainage ditch and nothing has been done to make it a drainage ditch, yet this problem is ongoing. This was not done in your tenure but your decisions will affect our present and our future. He also wanted to know who makes the decision of allowing more water to flow into an irrigation ditch that already floods and comes into his home. He asked that the Council address this issue and make a decision to fix the flooding problems. City Manager stated that Staff has looked into this but may not have all the answers yet and would like to get a complete report back to the Council at the end of this meeting. Chris Mauk, 5414 Castle, representing Texoma inline hockey leagues, expressed concern for the kids involved in these leagues and the need for a safe place to play. He provided information on the various teams involved and the reason for their need. He suggested the use of "Little Canada" located at Loop 11 and Old Iowa Park Road. Item 5 The Minutes were approved as corrected. City Manager gave a briefing on the items listed under the Consent Agenda. Items 6a-8k Councilor Altman requested that Item 7a be brought down to the Regular Agenda. Moved by Councilor Thompson that the Consent Agenda be approved with the exception of Item 7a. Motion seconded by Councilor Johnston and carried by the following vote. Ayes: Mayor Yeager, Councilors Johnston, Shine, Thompson, Altman, and Beaty Nays: None Item 6a RESOLUTION NO. 106-98 RESOLUTION APPOINTING DR. JAMES SNOWDEN AS NORTH TEXAS LIBRARY SYSTEM ASSEMBLY REPRESENTATIVE. 234 Item 7b Bid was awarded for the purchase of three (3) each 40,000 GVW Cab & Chassis to Bruckner's Mack in the amount of$206,682.00. Item 7c Bid was awarded to various vendors for the City's annual supply of chemicals for water and wastewater treatment. Awards were as follows. Anhydrous Ammonia: BBB Fertilizer Co., McKinney, TX $ 19,816.72 Ferrous Chloride: Environmental Chemical Services, Alamo, TX $ 98,611.60 Sulphur Dioxide: DPC Industries, Inc., Cleburne, TX $ 39,008.00 Liquid Chlorine: DPC Industries, Inc., Cleburne, TX $ 97,405.00 Sodium Chlorite: Vulcan Chemical Technologies, Sacramento, CA. $ 58,424.85 Powdered Activated Carbon: Central Garden & Pet Co., McAlester, OK $ 6,912.00 Citric Acid, Food Grade: Delta Distributors, Abilene, TX $ 7,714.98 Copper Sulfate: Harcros Chemical, Dallas, TX $ 10,777.38 Potassium Permanganate: Advance Chemical, Ft. Worth, TX $ 7,459.20 Calcium Oxide(Quicklime): Texas Lime Co., Cleburne, TX $270,026.25 Hydrof/uorisilic Acid (Fluoride): Delta Distributors, Abilene, TX $ 10,921.00 Liquid Ferric Sulphate: FE3, Inc., Celina, TX $ 149,240.85 Liquid Carbon Dioxide: BOC Gases, Houston, TX $ 70,485.00 Item 8a & 8k Minutes of the meeting of the following boards and commissions were received: a. Wichita Falls Park Board - April 23, 1998. b. Wichita Falls Park Board - May 28, 1998. c. 413 Sales Tax Corporation - May 20, 1998. d. Helen Farabee Center Board of Trustees - June 1, 1998. e. Wichita Falls-Wichita County Public Health District - June 26, 1998. f. Planning & Zoning Commission - May 13, 1998. g. Planning & Zoning Commission - June 10, 1998. h. Clean Country Commission - June 30, 1998. i. Landmark Commission -April 28, 1998. j. Landmark Commission - May 28, 1998. k. Landmark Commission - June 25, 1998. Item 7a Moved by Councilor Shine that the bid to purchase two (2) each 3/ Ton Cargo Vans be awarded to an alternate bidder, Herb Easley Chevrolet, due to the inability of Ford Motor Company to supply these vans; and that the previous award of bid to Ron Roberts Ford be rescinded. Motion seconded by Councilor Beaty. 235 Item 7a cont'd. City Manager commented earlier that Staff recommends award of bid to Herb Easley Chevrolet because of the inability of Ron Robert's Ford to provide the vans as specified in the bid. Councilor Altman asked for clarification of City bidding procedures when a bid is accepted in regards to a penalty clause. Mrs. Peggy Gahagan explained that all City bids go out with a liquidated damages clause or require some type of performance bond depending on the contract. In this case there was a 10% liquidated damages clause in our contract, but after discussing the situation with Legal we opted not to enforce that clause. The reason being that it was not only our local dealership that a,x was unable to provide the units, but no one could. Ford was unaware they were going to have a build out on this particular unit and no one was going to supply us with those vans. Therefore, we opted not to go back and enforce that clause because it was through no fault of the dealership. Councilor Altman observed that we normally handle penalty clauses, but Staff felt that there was good and sufficient reasons why a dealer bid inappropriately on this contract. Mrs. Gahagan clarified that it was not an inappropriate bid; the dealers were not aware at the time of bid submission. They ordered the units for us and were going to fulfill their contract, however, Ford Motor Company advised them that they were cutting off production of this unit for this particular year. It was beyond their control, therefore, we opted not to enforce those damage clauses. Motion carried by the following vote. Ayes: Mayor Yeager, Councilors Johnston, Shine, Thompson, Altman, and Beaty Nays: None Item 10a A final public hearing was held on the proposed use of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and Home Program Funds Under the Consolidated Plan. Mayor declared the public hearing open. Mayor informed that this comes from the Department of Housing and Urban Development and it is projected that we will receive $1,784,000 for the 1998-1999 entitlement grant and an additional $502,000 as its Home Investment Partnership Act (HOME) Grant. Mayor explained the activities which can be funded under this and the requirements which must be met. Mr. Dave Clark explained the process followed prior to this. He expressed appreciation to Councilors Johnston, Shine and Altman for serving on the committee to select the projects. Councilor Shine stated that the committee concurs with the final results. Mr. Clark explained that there is a 15% cap on what you can put into the programs. The difficulty was that the total amount is less this year and the committee had to do some reductions to some of the services provided. He provided a summary of the proposed projects and funding in public services, the nonprofit facilities, the public facilities and infrastructure, the housing and code enforcement, administrative and planning, as well as funding for Home funded projects. Mayor called for public comment. There being none, Mayor declared the public hearing closed. 236 Item 10b A public hearing was held on hazardous structures. Mayor declared the public hearing open. Mr. Jim King informed that affected property owners were notified. Structures to be Repaired: 1402 Burnett Susan Woods, 4135 Ave. B, Burkburnett, informed she had sold the property last year to Leroy Dewitt but he has not done any repairs. Mrs. Woods, estranged wife of Larry Woods and lienholder, requested that she be allowed time to obtain bids to see if it is cost effective to have repairs done to the structure. Mr. King informed that the Ordinance will allow her thirty days from today to determine her plans and that would allow her time to obtain bids, submit a plan and obtain a building permit. Councilor Altman asked who Larry Woods was. Mrs. Woods informed that was her husband, however, they have been separated for three years. Councilor Altman stated that the title to the property, according to records, appears to be in Mr. Woods name. Mrs. Woods explained that it should not be because he made the down payment but she has carried the note since April, 1997. Councilor Altman asked if she had reviewed the property since 1997. Mrs. Woods replied that she had been out there the middle of last summer. Councilor Altman asked her if she had taken any action to foreclose. She replied that she had not at this time. Councilor Altman cautioned Mrs. Woods that it was imperative for her to have work done on the property and to act promptly. Mr. King informed that there is also a garage and an accessory building. The accessory building needs to be demolished, but the garage can be repaired. Mrs. Woods was allowed thirty days from today to obtain a permit for repairs and provide a plan to Mr. King. The accessory building needs to be demolished. 1209 215t. Street Councilor Thompson repeated some of the things Mr. David E. Brock, owner of this property, told him in a telephone conversation. Mr. Brock told him he had a building permit and he intends to repair the building. Also, that when the filming had been done the door had been left open. In addition, a ladder was taken without his permission. Mr. King confirmed that Mr. Brock had applied and received a permit on July 9, 1998 to repair this building. Mr. David Clark added that Mr. Brock had met with Staff and Legal, and he agreed to complete this repair. We agreed on the sixty-day time frame to complete that building. We expect compliance and that problem should solve itself. This has been an on-going problem and we felt it was important to get Council action. Mr. Brock was allowed sixty days to complete repairs. Structures to be Demolished 306 Flood Isabelita Gonzales, daughter of Emeteria Julian, and Lee Williams, Mrs. Gonzales' uncle, requested additional time to repair the structure for Mrs. Julian to live in. Mr. King informed that the structure had been written up in 1998 and that it has been vacant since 1996. 237 Item 10b cont'd. Mrs. Gonzales explained that her mother, Mrs. Julian, had moved to Houston with her for medical reasons. The structure had been rented, however, when the tenants moved out they did not notify her. She requested additional time to repair the structure. Mr„ Williams, who would be the one to do the repairs, stated that it was mostly the roof and asked for three to six months to repair. Mr. King informed that the entire roof, electrical and plumbing will have to be repaired, however, the roof is the primary problem. They were allowed thirty days to obtain a permit and present plans to Mr. King. He defined plans as a sketch of what the finished product would be. 2118 Bluff Tommy Pruett, 3008 Huskie, informed that this structure had been intentionally burned by a neighbor because it was rented to a Negro family. Mr. Pruett is financially unable at this time to do anything to the house, but would like additional time to repair it himself. Mr. Pruett was allowed thirty days to present a plan to Mr. King and work out details with him. 1616 30th Street Linda Foster, 3102 Grace, said she would like to repair the structure and asked for nine months time. Mr. King stated that this is going to require extensive remodeling, almost a total tear down and rebuild and he wondered if the parties involved were willing to spend that much money on it. Mrs. Foster said that they figured it would take about $7,500 and her husband, who is a contractor, would work on it during the weekends. Mr. King expressed a concern about the weekend work and the building being maintained secured. He requested a time frame of completion and their plans to keep it secure when they are not working on it. Mrs. Foster informed that their first priority would be to put in locking metal doors. Councilor Altman asked if they had any kind of agreement as far as ownership with Mr. Bill Craig, property owner. Mrs. Foster replied that they wanted to see first if Council would allow the time to repair before they entered into an agreement. Councilor Altman asked if they intended to obtain title from Mr. Craig. Mrs. Foster replied that it was their intent. Mrs. Foster was allowed thirty days to present her plans to Mr. King, satisfy his concerns, and obtain a building permit to accomplish remodeling. The following ordinance was considered by the City Council in regards to the hazardous structures. ORDINANCE NO. 59-98 i AN ORDINANCE CLOSING HEARING AND FINDING CERTAIN -Ai BUILDINGS AND/OR STRUCTURES TO BE DANGEROUS; COMMANDING PROPERTY OWNERS TO DEMOLISH SAID BUILDINGS AND/OR STRUCTURES WITHIN THIRTY (30) DAYS OF THE DATE OF THIS ORDINANCE AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY; FINDING AND DETERMINING THAT THE MEETING AT WHICH THIS ORDINANCE WAS PASSED WAS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC AS REQUIRED BY LAW. Moved by Councilor Johnston that Ordinance No. 59-98 be passed with the exceptions and provisions noted during the public hearing. 238 Item 10b cont'd. Motion seconded by Councilor Beaty. Mayor commented that the Council is much more interested in repairing these structures rather than demolishing them, yet we still feel very strongly about maintaining a City that is very clean, well kept, and a safe City for all residents. Motion carried by the following vote. Ayes: Mayor Yeager, Councilors Johnston, Shine, Thompson, Altman, and Beaty Nays: None Item 11 a RESOLUTION NO. 107-98 A RESOLUTION APPROVING AND ADOPTING THE PROPOSED USE OF FUNDS UNDER THE CONSOLIDATED PLAN FOR THE PERIOD OCTOBER 1, 1998 TO SEPTEMBER 30, 1999; FINDING AND DETERMINING THAT THE MEETING AT WHICH THIS RESOLUTION WAS PASSED WAS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC AS REQUIRED BY LAW. Moved by Councilor Johnston that Resolution No. 107-98 be passed. Motion seconded by Councilor Shine. Councilor Thompson stated that since he was the Director of Community Action Corporation he would not participate in the discussion nor vote on this item. Councilor Thompson stepped out of the Council Chambers. Motion carried by the following vote. Ayes: Mayor Yeager, Councilors Johnston, Shine, Altman, and Beaty Nays: None Item 11 b RESOLUTION NO. 108-98 A RESOLUTION GRANTING RIGHT-OF-WAY EASEMENTS TO TXDOT ON CITY-OWNED PROPERTY FOR THE IH-44 PROJECT AND AUTHORIZING THE MAYOR TO EXECUTE THE INSTRUMENTS, DETERMINING THAT THE MEETING AT WHICH THIS RESOLUTION WAS DISCUSSED WAS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC AS REQUIRED BY LAW. Moved by Councilor Shine that Resolution No. 108-98 be passed. Motion seconded by Councilor Beaty. Davis Powell, TXDOT representative, provided information regarding the location and related information on the easements in Harold Jones Park. Councilor Thompson returned to the Council Chambers. 239 Item 11 b cont'd. Motion carried by the following vote. Ayes: Mayor Yeager, Councilors Johnston, Shine, Thompson, Altman, and Beaty. Item 11 c RESOLUTION NO. 109-98 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF WICHITA FALLS, TEXAS, APPOINTING SUBSTITUTE JUDGE OF THE MUNICIPAL COURT FOR A TERM OF TWO YEARS; FINDING AND DETERMINING THAT THE MEETING AT WHICH THIS RESOLUTION WAS DISCUSSED WAS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC AS REQUIRED BY LAW. Moved by Councilor Thompson that Resolution No. 109-98 be passed. Motion seconded by Councilor Shine and carried by the following vote. Ayes: Mayor Yeager, Councilors Johnston, Shine, Thompson, Altman, and Beaty Nays: None Item 11 d Moved by Councilor Beaty to approve a proposed resolution amending Article III, Section 6 of the By-laws of the Wichita Falls Economic Development Corporation, reducing the bond requirement for the president and secretary/treasurer of the Board from $100,000 to $25,000. Motion seconded by Councilor Shine. Mayor mentioned that this would save $500-600/year on Corporation expenses. The Board determined that since the funds are handled by the Finance Department and not the Board, the bond could be decreased. City Manager added that this bond was for actual disappearance or loss of funds. Councilor Johnston asked if it only protected the misappropriation of funds and City Manager replied that it is pure money loss. Councilor Shine questioned why even have a bond. City Attorney stated that it was good business practice. Councilor Johnston asked that if the bond only covers money that is lost why have the bond at all? City Manager replied that he did not know but would have that studied. The comfort zone may be to have a bond. Councilor Altman moved to amend the resolution to omit entirely the requirement of a bond because there is no recognized need for it and if at a later date you decide there is a need for it, you can bring it back to Council. Right now everything you have told us indicates there is no need for it. Mayor suggested tabling this item since this is essentially amending the By-laws of the Corporation. 240 Item 11d cont'd. Moved by Councilor Johnston to table this item until next Council meeting. Motion seconded by Councilor Thompson and carried by the following vote. Ayes: Mayor Yeager, Councilors Johnston, Shine, Thompson, Altman, and Beaty Nays: None Item 11 e Moved by Councilor Johnston to table the proposed resolution amending Article III, Section 7 of the By-laws of the Wichita Falls 4B Sales Tax Corporation reducing the bond requirement for the president and secretary/treasurer of the Board from $100,00 to $25,000. Motion seconded by Councilor Beaty and carried by the following vote. Ayes: Mayor Yeager, Councilors Johnston, Shine, Thompson, Altman, and Beaty Nays: None Item 12a Councilor Thompson advised citizens to take precautions in the heat, and to check on each other, especially the senior citizens. Councilor Beaty commended the Mayor, Dr. Rodriguez, Dr. Howard Ferrell, and those who were involved in getting the Dallas Cowboys to Wichita Falls. It is a great success. Councilor Johnston echoed Councilor Beaty's remarks and mentioned that the City Staff has done a lot of work on that event. Secondly, Councilor Johnston stated that we have to get a handle on this flooding problem in the City. Councilor Shine also echoed the comments about the successful Cowboy event and enthusiasm of the past week. Councilor Altman reported that he and Councilor Shine had attended the TML meeting in College Station which was a new experience for him and he learned quite a bit. The legislative meeting was very worthwhile, enhancing our knowledge of how other cities work, the problems they face and solutions. We learned how to apply those solutions to the problems our City may face in the future. Mayor expressed appreciation to all the City Staff and employees involved in the Community Cowboy event on Tuesday at Jaycee Park. Mayor thanked the citizens for their support at the event and the practice sessions. Item 12b Mr. George Bonnett gave a report on the Sierra Madre flooding issue and answered the concerns addressed by Mr. Robertson and Mr. Walker. 241 Item 12b cont'd. Mr. Bonnett stated that the irrigation canal in question was located south off Johnson Road. He informed that Spanish Trace was developed in the late 50's early 60's and is in essence a dry bottom lake with an outlet at the bottom of the lake The outlet is a 42" irrigation canal covered, which takes off and goes to the east under Rider High School and comes up at Johnson Road and then goes by open ditch across the park. When the area was developed, adequate storm sewage was not brought into the area. Spanish Trace was developed with two out-falls, and they have been there for 25 years and the only work done was to rebuild the outfalls which hadY ,:. fallen off. This was addressed due to neighborhood complaints. A drop of water that found its way into this complex is going the same place and as fast as it was before. There has been no change. This area is dropping into an irrigation canal where the 42 does not have sufficient capacity to carry the water. The water cannot get out of the 42 fast enough. It has been an ongoing problem since 1984. We have looked at a variety of solutions. One was to reverse the flow, taking over the irrigation canal and running the flow backwards, but we would have to do something with the water. The only place for the water to go would be a State system on Barnett Road which is at capacity. The water naturally wants to run from the drainage north of Cypress, to get down to natural drainage at the intersection of Barnett and FM 369. He addressed the concern about work in the alley. There was a high spot or dam that was built across the alley, and that has been an on-going point of contention. It is a question of who gets flooded. The solution is to get the water out and get it where it wants to go. Mr. Bonnett stated that several options were considered. The only one which provides relief is a concrete drainage canal located at the intersection of Barnett & FM 369, that is where the water wants to go. We have provided a 42" culvert which runs down Catskills and follows the natural topography and will drop into that drainage way. A Short term solution is to buy a house, take the house out and build a flume taking *f the overflow into the street, but a ten year event will come close to putting water in the homes on Catskills. The solution is to run the storm sewer up. He added that a third alternative is to go between the houses and build concrete flumes between them. The cost for the flume and purchasing a home is approximately $197,000. This still puts water on the surface of Catskills. The down side is that high frequency storms would put a lot of water in the street itself. Long term solution is a 42" storm sewer at an estimated cost of $700,000 to install storm sewer and go to the intersection of the irrigation canal where it currently drops into the 48 irrigation pipe. The advantage to that is that the 48 pipe can now be abandoned and there is no longer the issue of the pipe under Rider High School. We have looked at every other alternative we could think of and we can find short term relieve with a lot of money, but every time we do something someone else is adversely affected. The only way to fix it and fix it correctly and thoughtfully is to run that storm sewer up there. Councilor Altman asked about the timing of the construction of the alley. He commented that it was rebuilt as a concrete alley and that prior to that time, on the Sierra Madre side, there was a dam which prevented the water from overflowing into the houses. He asked if the flooding was sufficient to get into the homes. Mr. Bonnett replied that that was what they had said. Councilor Altman asked if he had any idea when the dam was built. Mr. Bonnett answered that he was just guessing but thought it was built when that area was developed. Councilor Altman commented that it appears that the folks who were there first, about 30 years, did not have a flooding problem until the Spanish Trace and area further up was developed. Mr. Bonnett stated that they have had flooding complaints from both Spanish Trace and Sierra Madre. The irrigation canal has a very low grade and there were constant requests to clean it out. Councilor Altman was trying to clarify that somehow someone made a conscious decision to allow the houses on Sierra Madre to get flooded when they 242 Item 12b cont'd. weren't before. It appears that somehow along the way their houses were sacrificed so that Spanish Trace would be saved, when they were there first and doing fine. Mr. Bonnett said he did not think there was conscious effort to do this, rather the alley is placed so that it has an inverted gutter for draining purposes. He explained the specifics of the alley construction. I do not think anyone wants to flood one or the other, we all want the problem to go away. Councilor Altman said that he realized that but wanted to make sure that it is the current policy of the City when areas are developed that we make sure that persons developing a property are required to take sufficient steps to provide adequate drainage. This issue is one example when this was not followed when developed. Mayor mentioned that the Storm Water Detention Ordinance was amended last year because it was written so that you could be in compliance with the Ordinance but have an adverse impact on the people down stream. Councilor Altman asked if there was any way to divert that water on Johnson Road coming down into the water plant. Mr. Bonnett replied that there was not and gave an explanation. Councilor Altman informed that we do not have an immediate solution, but it is not out of mind and we are still looking at it. Councilor Shine suggested that Council reinstate the infrastructure committee to look into these problems, and that Council needs to find the money. Mr. Bill Gerth, 4626 Sierra Madre, provided background information on the paving of the alley being discussed. City Manager mentioned that Staff working with Board of Commerce and Industry have been looking at our enterprise zones, which will expire shortly. Council will consider these at the next Council meeting. Mr. Dave Clark provided information on the enterprise zones, suggested changes, the restrictions, benefits, etc. Item 13 The City Council adjourned at 10:55 a.m. PASSED AND APPROVED this -A day of 6U C /i v , 1998. L KA RYN A. Y GER' MAYOR ATTEST: V Lydia Torres City Clerk ,�<, ,. ,, . _, �.e �