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Min 07/05/2016 CITY COUNCIL MINUTES July 5, 2016 Page 1 CITY COUNCIL MINUTES Wichita Falls, Texas Multi-Purpose Event Center July 5, 2016 Item 1 - Call to Order The City Council of the City of Wichita Falls, Texas met in regular session on the above date in Room 10 of the Multi-Purpose Event Center at 8:30 o’clock a.m., with the following members present. Glenn Barham - Mayor DeAndra Chenault - Councilors Tim Ingle - Stephen Santellana - Tom Quintero - Michael Smith - Brian Hooker - Darron Leiker - City Manager Kinley Hegglund - City Attorney Tracy Norr - City Clerk - - - - - - - - Mayor Barham called the meeting to order at 8:30 a.m. - - - - - - - - Item 2a - Invocation Pastor Tom Rodgers, Grace Church, gave the invocation. - - - - - - - - Item 2b - Pledge of Allegiance Mayor Barham led in the Pledge of Allegiance. - - - - - - - - Item 3a - Employee of the Month – Adrian Chacon, Public Works/Street Maintenance Teresa Rose recognized Adrian Chacon, Public Works/Street Maintenance, as the Employee of the Month. Mayor Barham presented a plaque, a letter of appreciation, restaurant voucher, and a check to Mr. Chacon and thanked him for his service. - - - - - - - CITY COUNCIL MINUTES July 5, 2016 Page 2 Item 3b – Presentation by Murphy Davis, Sr., Sentry Management, Inc. Murphy Davis talked to the Council about the refunding of the water/sewer bonds. He noted that the bonds do not have insurance because the city’s rating was outstanding. He reviewed the official statement and said the city saved $1.4 million annually, or $15.7 million over the life of the bonds, by refunding. He said the council deserves the credit for getting the good rates by keeping their financial house in order. - - - - - - - - Item 3c – Presentation – Individual Civil law Merit Certification in Municipal Law Julia Vasquez Kinley Hegglund said the awards are given by the Texas City Attorneys Association. Julia Vasquez has been working for the city since 2001 and has won all federal cases since her tenure began. Mayor Barham expressed appreciation for her work. James McKechnie Mr. Hegglund said James McKechnie has worked for the city for four years. He recently prevailed in his first federal case. Item 3d – Presentation - Legal Office Merit Certification in Municipal Law – Wichita Falls City Attorney’s Office Mr. Hegglund said this award is for the city attorney’s office for outstanding work. He said there is a great team who work together for the City of Wichita Falls. - - - - - - - - Item 4 - Comments from the Public to Members of the City Council Concerning Items That Are Not on the City Council Agenda. Jimmy York, 205 East Scott Avenue, said he owns the Promised Land bar. He said the business is not working now. He said the non-smokers have all the rights and the smokers have none. People are staying home because they don’t want to get fines for smoking. His business has gone from $400 per week to about $125 per week. He has been at this bar for 30 years. He said he is a non-smoker, but he believes people have the right to make the decision to smoke. Shelly Hatcher, 205 East Scott, said she is an employee at Promised Land bar. As a bartender she has lost 92% of her wages and must find a part-time job. She said she doesn’t understand why she should suffer because of the decision of a few people. She said the customers are in fear of being ticketed although there is a smoking place behind the bar. Margie Reese, 4029 Taft Boulevard, Executive Director of Wichita Falls Alliance for Arts and Culture, gave an update on the activities of the alliance. The recommendations for the arts grants are forthcoming. She said they have been working with the community through the non- profits and schools to make sure all residents have access to creativity and the arts. She asked the council to think about increasing the city’s support for arts and culture. CITY COUNCIL MINUTES July 5, 2016 Page 3 Amanda Bolding, 4612 Cascades Drive, said she has working in bars for almost ten years. The smoking ban affects the owners, employees, and also the entertainers who work at the bars. She said it is hot for people to go outside to smoke. In her opinion, the bars have been here for so long and should have been grandfathered in. She would like to see this put back on the agenda. The people who own the smaller bars are older and retired and cannot go find another job. There were no other citizen comments given. - - - - - - - Item 5 - Consent Items City Manager Darron Leiker gave a briefing on the item listed under the Consent Agenda. Moved by Councilor Smith that the consent items be approved. Motion seconded by Councilor Hooker and carried by the following vote: Ayes: Mayor Barham, Councilors Chenault, Hooker, Ingle, Quintero, Santellana, and Smith. Nays: None Item 5 - Approval of Minutes of the June 21, 2016 Regular Meeting of the Mayor and City Council - - - - - - - Item 6 – Public Hearing on the Proposed 2016 Second Year Annual Action Plan of the Adopted Five Year 2015-2019 Public Housing Agency (PHA) Plan Mayor Barham opened at public hearing at 9:07 a.m. Rita Miller, Code Enforcement, said the council annually reviews the action plan. There are no staff recommendations for changes to the plan. She reviewed the plan, including housing vouchers and the number of individuals served. The city receives about $3 million annually. She noted there is not a preference for homeless individuals. The waiting list is two or three months for those with elderly or disability preferences. No other comments were given and the public hearing was closed at 9:12 a.m. - - - - - - - - Item 7a – Resolution #70-2016 RESOLUTION NO. 70-2016 Resolution Approving the 2016 Second Year Annual Action Plan of the Adopted 2015-2019 Five Year Public Housing Agency (PHA) Action Plan Moved by Councilor Ingle that Resolution No. 70-2016 be passed. CITY COUNCIL MINUTES July 5, 2016 Page 4 Motion seconded by Councilor Chenault and carried by the following vote: Ayes: Mayor Barham, Councilors Chenault, Hooker, Ingle, Quintero, Santellana, and Smith. Nays: None - - - - - - - Item 7b – Resolution #71-2016 RESOLUTION NO. 71-2016 Resolution Authorizing the City Manager to Execute an Advance Funding Agreement with TxDOT for the Replacement of the Maplewood Northbound and Southbound Bridges at McGrath Creek Moved by Councilor Ingle that Resolution No. 71-2016 be passed. Motion seconded by Councilor Santellana and carried by the following vote: Ayes: Mayor Barham, Councilors Chenault, Hooker, Ingle, Quintero, Santellana, and Smith. Nays: None - - - - - - - Item 7c – Resolution #72-2016 RESOLUTION NO. 72-2016 Resolution Approving Change Order No. 1 for the Taxiway C Reconstruction Project at Wichita Falls Regional Airport to Garver, LLC in an Amount of $197,250 Moved by Councilor Ingle that Resolution No. 72-2016 be passed. Motion seconded by Councilor Santellana and carried by the following vote: Ayes: Mayor Barham, Councilors Chenault, Hooker, Ingle, Quintero, Santellana, and Smith. Nays: None - - - - - - - Item 7d – Resolution #73-2016 RESOLUTION NO. 73-2016 Resolution Authorizing Award of Bid for the Asbestos Abatement, Demolition, Clearing and Cleaning of Two Commercial Properties and a Motel Complex to Mote’s Wholesale, Inc. in the Amount of $250,464.00 Moved by Councilor Ingle that Resolution No. 73-2016 be passed. CITY COUNCIL MINUTES July 5, 2016 Page 5 Motion seconded by Councilor Smith and carried by the following vote: Ayes: Mayor Barham, Councilors Chenault, Hooker, Ingle, Quintero, Santellana, and Smith. Nays: None - - - - - - - Item 8a – Staff Reports Darron Leiker gave an update on the water meter issue that was presented at the last meeting. He said about 1750 meters are read each work day. The readings are entered in the field and uploaded daily. About 3% of the meters are not read each day so are estimated for billing. The consecutive estimated bills were not being flagged by the system. Now a new policy has been put in place that meters must be read at least every three months. If there are discrepancies, the billing will only be for the estimated amount. Staff is trying to catch up on all meter readings. Mr. Leiker called Mr. Jones and apologized then told him the new policy. Mr. Jones was grateful for the actions taken. - - - - - - - Item 8b – Items of Concern to Members of the City Council Members of the City Council presented the following matters: Councilor Ingle said the fireworks were awesome. He asked about the panhandling ordinance. Mr. Leiker said the amendment to the solicitation ordinance is about ready. Chief Borrego said all aspects of the ordinance are being addressed. Councilor Quintero thanked the staff for their quick responses to issues. He said he has been asked to hold a town hall meeting to discuss flooding issues in Wichita Gardens. It is being scheduled. Mayor Barham also said the fireworks show was good. He noted there was a contradictory sign issue at the landfill which is being addressed. - - - - - - - Item 9 – Pre-Budget Workshop for Fiscal Year 2016/ Darron Leiker noted the budget presentations have been sent to the councilors. He added that the budget process begins in March, but this is the first presentation to the council. The budget is far from being complete, especially on the revenue side. Jim Dockery reviewed the budget process. The current total for the budget is $166.1 million, which is more than $7 million less than the prior year. He explained those cuts. Mr. Dockery reviewed the expenditures by fund. He noted the MPEC operation is still in question. General fund highlights were discussed. He said the unreserved fund balance is below the policy level, so there is no money available for one-time expenditures. He noted that revenues are generally flat. Property taxes, payment in lieu of taxes, and franchise fees are up but sales tax is lower. Operating expenditures are down, primarily due to the completion of the public safety radio system project. Health care costs are expected to raise 7.5 percent. He noted that personnel reductions of 15.43 full CITY COUNCIL MINUTES July 5, 2016 Page 6 time positions have been proposed. Other recommended cuts were reviewed. He summarized that we are near the bottom of comparable cities in tax base and sales tax growth, with rising health claims and retirement contributions. Deeper cuts than usual are recommended, with additional cuts identified but not recommended. There is funding available for a small adjustment to the pay plan, with no reserves available for one-time projects. The water/sewer fund was reviewed. The unreserved fund balance of 17% was spent during the drought, which resulted in a negative review on the water bond rating. The 2014 rate increase has helped begin replenish this balance as well as restart capital improvements and address the long-term water supply needs. Water consumption has started to increase but has not rebounded to pre-drought use. Lower sales are expected. Wholesale revenue is down. One half of the cost of the new meters is included in the budget. Operating expenditures are up a little. No change in water rates is proposed. A surplus of $663,000 will be applied to the reserve fund. The sanitation fund reserves exceed the 15% policy requirement. Money is being put aside for a future landfill cell project. The revenue is virtually unchanged. Expenditures are up, due to higher personnel costs and the need to replace curbside collection units. A rate increase may be necessary to close the revenue/expenditure gap. Highlights of the fleet maintenance fund, hotel/motel fund, general debt service fund, Regional Airport fund, Kickapoo Airport fund, golf course fund, water park fund, and MPEC fund were reviewed. Christi Klyn reviewed the salary survey process, longevity and stability pay, and benefits comparisons with benchmark cities. She also presented an FLSA update that affects the city. Pat Halverson discussed a proposed warrant arrest procedure change for the municipal court. Blake Jurecek presented a proposal to use a staffing service for building maintenance positions. Jim Dockery said a staffing service may also be considered for the pool employees. Jack Murphy discussed replacing library pages with volunteers. He addressed a proposal to eliminate the summer Youth Track program. The summer day camp program was also reviewed. A proposal to close Lucy Park swimming pool was also discussed. It was noted this proposal is not recommended. Mr. Murphy discussed benefits and consequences of consolidation of the two tennis centers. This is a recommended proposal. Mr. Murphy also presented a proposal to eliminate the highway right of way mowing program. This is not recommended. Jon Reese presented a proposal for alternative process for the fire department training academy. He also proposed implementing a commercial fire inspection fee. John Burrus discussed proposed changes to the regional airport budget, including eliminating the LEO program and reducing the customer service staffing. He also discussed the fleet replacement schedule, particularly the curbside collection equipment replacement schedule. Russell Schreiber said the sanitation is running in a deficit cycle and a rate increase is proposed. - - - - - - - - CITY COUNCIL MINUTES July 5, 2016 Page 7 Item 11 - Adjourn City Council adjourned at 3:33 p.m. PASSED AND APPROVED this 19th day of July, 2016. __________________________________ Glenn Barham, Mayor ATTEST: ____________________________________ Tracy B. Norr, TRMC/MMC, City Clerk