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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01-17-12 Minutes, City Commission riyr'�oo.+�°fit MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE CITY COMMISSION BOZEMAN, MONTANA January 17,2012 The Commission of the City of Bozeman met in the Commission Room, City Hall at 121 North Rouse on Tuesday, January 17, 2012. Present were Mayor Sean Becker, Commissioner Cyndy Andrus, Commissioner Jeff Krauss, Commissioner Chris Mehl, Commissioner Carson Taylor, City Manager Chris Kukulski, City Attorney Greg Sullivan and Deputy City Clerk Aimee Kissel. These minutes are not word for word and should be considered along with the audio recording. 0:00:29 A. Call to Order- 6 p.m. - Commission Room, City Hall, 121 North Rouse 0:00:29 B. Pledge of Allegiance and a Moment of Silence 0:01:05 C. Changes to the Agenda None. 0:01:25 D. Minutes -November 14, 2011 Executive Session,November 21 and November 28, 2011 Regular Minutes 0:01:28 Motion and Vote to approve the minutes of November 14, 2011 executive session, November 21 and November 28, 2011 regular minutes. It was moved by Cr. Mehl, seconded by Cr. Andrus to approve the minutes of November 14,2011 executive session, November 21 and November 28, 2011 regular minutes Those voting Ave being Crs. Mehl, Andrus, Krauss, Tavlor and Mayor Becker. _Those voting No being The motion passed 5-0. 0:01:57 E. Consent 1. Authorize Payment of Accounts Payable Claims (LaMeres) 2. Authorize City Manager to sign Memoranda of Understanding with various agencies and entities including Prospera Business Network, Gallatin County, MT, Park County, MT, the City of Livingston, MT and Gene Cook Realty Gallatin Association of Realtors (GAR) detailing the relationship and obligations for payment of a portion of fees to the City of 1 of 11 Minutes of the Bozeman City Commission, January 17, 2012 Bozeman for the Site Selector Project for a two-year period from the date of the execution of a signed contract between the City of Bozeman and GCS Research (Fontenot) 3. Authorize City Manager to sign one-year, $10,000 consulting and services agreement with GCS Research, Missoula, MT for the management, maintenance and upgrades of Site Selector software (Fontenot) 4. Authorize City Manager to sign a letter of support for the Farmhouse Partners Limited Partnership, Haggerty Lane Apartments Project to the Montana Board of Housing for a Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program (Riley) 5. Approve Resolution No. 4364, Consenting to Appointing Firefighters in accordance with Montana Code Annotated 7-33-4106 (Shrauger) 0:01:58 Public comment on consent. Mayor Becker opened public comment on consent items 1-5. No person commented, Mayor Becker closed public comment. 0:02:09 Motion and Vote to approve consent agenda E. 1-5 as submitted. It was moved by Cr. Andrus, seconded by Cr. Krauss to approve consent items E. 1-5 as submitted. Those voting Ave being Crs. Andrus, Krauss, Taylor, Mehl and Mayor Becker. Those voting No being none. The motion passed 5-0. 0:02:36 F. Public Comment 0:02:36 Mayor Becker opened general public comment. No person commented, public comment was closed. 0:02.54 G. Special Presentations 0:02.55 1. Swearing in of New Firefighter 0:02:56 Mayor Becker swore in new firefighter Dillon Smith. 0:05:35 2. 2011 State of Neighborhoods Address (Allyson Bristor,Neighborhood Coordinator & Jennifer Rockne, Inter-Neighborhood Council Chair) 0:05:53 Ms. Bristor,Neighborhood Coordinator Ms. Bristor gave a brief history of the neighborhoods program. 0:10:50 Jennifer Rockne,Inter Neighborhood Council Chairperson Ms. Rockne provided a presentation on behalf of the Inter-Neighborhood Council. She reported the goals the Council accomplished over the year and spoke regarding the state of the neighborhoods and issues and goals to work on in the future. Among the problems identified 2 ofI1 Minutes of the Bozeman City Commission, January 17, 2012 were issues with rental properties and absent property owners, problems with pedestrian travel and the need for additional streetscape improvements, problems with building neglect and threats to neighborhood character, dogs and neighbor interactions and the need for further enhancement of natural resources such as creeks. Potential solutions for these issues were also identified by the Council. 0:19:04 H. Action Items 0:19:05 1. Vandalism & Graffiti Task Force Final Report (Bristor) 0:19:16 Allyson Bristor,Neighborhood Coordinator Ms. Bristor introduced Nick Zelver, current chair of the Vandalism and Graffiti Task Force. 0:19:43 Nick Zelver, Chair of the Vandalism and Graffiti Task Force Mr. Zelver introduced member Chris Naumann with the Downtown Business Association and then provided a presentation on behalf of the task force. He explained that the task force chose early on to focus strictly on graffiti as an issue they could deal with. Mr. Zelver explained that rapid removal is the key to discourage graffiti. He spoke regarding the public -private partnerships that have been created with a wide variety of stake holders being involved. Clean up events, public education and rapid removal models have made a big difference in reducing the graffiti throughout town. The Task Force would recommend continual clean up by City departments and staff; establishment of an on-line graffiti reporting system and revising the city of Bozeman website to include vandalism and graffiti resources. He explained much of the recommendations are already in place by the City. Many city crews are already carrying graffiti removal materials with them. The police force has also been responsive and is about to integrate graffiti reporting on a website just developed. The city could appoint some sort of advisory board to provide guidance to the police and also to initiate clean up events such as Earth Day. 0:29:17 Cr. Mehl Cr. Mehl thanked the University for being such a good partner in the efforts. He then asked Mr. Zelver why graffiti has been reduced dramatically. 0:30:11 Mr. Zelver Mr. Zelver said the Downtown Bozeman Partnership has helped reduce the graffiti downtown by cleaning up any graffiti very quickly. Mr. Zelver also spoke to other cleanup efforts and bringing awareness through the schools and the community. The Police force has also caught people in the act,which is a great deterrent. 0:31:05 Cr. Mehl Cr. Mehl asked why 90% of vandalized property owners do not clean off there graffiti. 0:31:22 Mr. Zelver Mr. Zelver said much of the graffiti is not front and center such as in an alley and gets ignored. 0:32:54 Chris Naumann Downtown Business Partnershi Mr.Naumann said he feels most of the graffiti that does not get cleaned up by property owners are rental properties and they may not do other types of maintenance as well. An abatement ordinance was looked into to address the neglect of private property owners to maintain their 3of11 Minutes of the Bozeman City Commission, January 17, 2012 property. An abatement ordinance is onerous to enforce. Once old graffiti is removed it is much easier to keep up on new graffiti. One challenge for property owners is to get to a clean slate. Most of it is simple paint over, but there are other surfaces and materials that are much harder to work with such as bricks. In these cases, providing education and materials for proper removal procedures is important. 0:35:23 Mr. Naumann Mr. Naumann explained that most of the clean ups downtown were initiated by the Downtown Business Partnership and were not reported to the police or Partnership by the business tagged. Businesses are generally not reporting graffiti. 0:36:06 Cr. Mehl Cr. Mehl asked about rules regarding cleaning up graffiti on private property. 0:37:05 Mr.Naumann Mr.Naumann explained that permission is needed to clean up graffiti on private property and some property owners will not clean up themselves and refuse to allow another to clean up the graffiti. 0:38:04 Cr. Mehl Cr. Mehl asked if we need a vandalism task force or effort. 0:38:29 Mr. Naumann Mr.Naumann explained that property owners were fairly prompt when vandalism occurred. 0:39:03 Lieutenant Rich McLane Lieutenant McLane said vandalism is a self correcting problem which gets fixed much sooner than graffiti. 0:39:37 Mr. Zelver Mr. Zelver said the task force did try to initiate graffiti subgroups for clean up material distribution within the neighborhood associations. 0:39:59 Cr. Taylor Cr. Taylor asked about the time members have put into the Task Force since it began. 0:40:27 Mr. Naumann Mr. Naumann explained that each member spent 100's of hours. 0:40:54 Cr. Taylor Cr. Taylor thanked the task force for their time and said the city looks much better for their efforts. He then mentioned that prevention is important as clean up is difficult. 0:43:23 Mr. Zelver Mr. Zelver explained that Chief Joseph Middle School Leo Club put on a skit and had a well done program regarding graffiti and also raised money for a city power washer. 4of11 Minutes of the Bozeman City Commission, January 17, 2012 0:44:16 Cr. Krauss Cr. Krauss thanked the task force and said it works downtown because clean up is funded. He asked about the recommendation for city staff to clean up graffiti. 0:45:10 Mr. Naumann Mr. Naumann explained the task force recommendation is for all city staff to carry removal materials in their city vehicles for removing graffiti as they see it out in the field. Much of the graffiti is on things like street signs and utility boxes and is easy to remove. 0:46:37 Cr. Krauss Cr. Krauss asked about prosecution. 0:46:58 Lieutenant Rich McLane Lieutenant McLane explained that several youths were caught while vandalizing and were prosecuted. 0:48:30 Lieutenant Rich McLane Lieutenant McLane explained two of the three recommendations made by the Task Force the city is already practicing as part of their day to day operations. The City does have an online reporting system which will be live in the next few days and allows residents to upload a photo. This helps with seeing trends and patterns to Iearn where patrols should be put in place to find the perpetrator. The sooner graffiti is reported,the sooner it can be acted upon. The police department does clean up graffiti as they see it and they have kits available to provide to property owners. When officers see graffiti they report it,wipe it off and move on. if it is something that cannot be easily removed,they forward the information to other city staff or encourage property owners to remove it. They cannot force private property owners to remove it, but can and do provide the resources. They will put together a webpage in the next several months that provides information on how to remove graffiti. 0:51:17 Cr. Andrus Cr. Andrus asked whether other city departments are following these recommendations and whether there have been issues. 0:51:24 Mr. Kukulski Mr. Kukulski said the city supports all city staff taking on graffiti removal as a part of their everyday tasks. There is full cooperation in that regard. 0:52:04 Mayor Becker Mayor Becker asked about the future of the task force. 0:52:11 Nick Zelver Mr. Zelver said the Task Force could act as an advisory group and meet less regularly but provide occasional recommendations and possibly put together efforts for Earth Day as they have in the past. 0:53:35Mr.Naumann Mr. Naumann explained the task force was set up to be temporary, has done its job and has dissolved. An advisory group could be created if necessary, but may or may not be needed. 5of11 Minutes of the Bozeman City Commission, January 17, 2012 There are existing groups and partners such as the Inter-neighborhood Council or the downtown BID's that may be able to carry on with tasks that city staff is not able to accomplish. 0:55:15 Mr.Naumann Mr. Naumann spoke regarding measures that can be undertaken in areas that are routinely hit. 0:57:08 Public Comment Mayor Becker opened public comment. No person commented, Mayor Becker closed public comment. 0:57:27 Motion to accept the fndin s of the Vandalism and Graffiti Task Force and direct staff to come up with some ideas for implementing the recommendations for graffiti mitigation. It was moved by Cr. Krauss, seconded by Cr. Taylor to accept the findings of the Vandalism and Graffiti Task Force and direct staff to come up with some ideas for implementing the recommendations for graffiti mitigation. 0:58:08 Discussion on the motion. 0:58:24 Cr. Krauss Cr. Krauss spoke regarding his views on this issue and said this ties into an urban decay ordinance which he is still interested in. He would also like to make a statement to property owners that they need to take care of cleaning up the graffiti on their property and a statement to taggers that graffiti is unacceptable. 1:02:47 Cr. Taylor Cr. Taylor read the motion and recommendation that the city owned property the city is responsible to clean up and will act as quickly as possible. The decision has been made not to do a city ordinance at this time that would require owners to clean up graffiti. We need to encourage fast removal of all graffiti by everyone in the city. Cr. Taylor also referred to interest in some form of a neglect ordinance. 1:04:45 Mayor Becker Mayor Becker would like a graffiti volunteer Corp. institutionalized as part as an annual yearly clean up event or something similar which should be continued. He would also like to see an annual report and discussion that could possibly coincide with earth day cleanup activities. 1:06:32 Mr. Kukulski Mr. Kukulski clarified what staff is already working on and asked whether commissioners want to get into the urban decay ordinance or other things of that magnitude and if so where does that fit into the priorities of the Commission. 1:07:35 Cr. Mehl Cr. Mehl said the city should continue to monitor and track graffiti and report back if efforts are working. 6of11 Minutes of the Bozeman City Commission, January 17, 2012 1:10:29 Mr. Kukulski Mr. Kukulski spoke regarding his expectations on this issue and said he feels the best way to approach graffiti on private property is through education, neighbors dealing with neighbors and all of the citizens to pay attention to this. We need engagement in the neighborhoods. 1:13:04 Discussion occurred regarding the meaning of the motion. 1:18:37 Vote on the motion accepting the findings of the Vandalism and Graffiti Task Force and direct staff to come up with some ideas for implementing the recommendations for graffiti mitigation. Those voting Ave being Krauss, Taylor, Mehl, Andrus and M ayor Becker. Those voting No being none. The motio Massed 5-0. 1:18:58 Break Mayor Krauss called for a break- 1:19:03 Back from Break Mayor Becker called the meeting back to order. 1:19:12 2. Bozeman Gateway Planned Unit Development Major Modification Conditional Use Permit No. Z-11276 (Krueger) 1:19:20 Brian Krueger Mr. Krueger provided the staff presentation for this item. 1:28:45 Cr. Krauss Cr. Krauss began questions for staff asking if the proposed sign are consistent with the entryway corridor. 1:28:53 Mr. Krueger Mr. Krueger said the signs are high quality and consistent with the other signage allowed in the community. 1:29:18 Cr. Taylor Cr. Taylor asked for clarification about the request and how these signs will help consumers find the numerous businesses within the large development. 1:30:12 Mr. Krueger Mr. Krueger explained there may not be full site lines later on in the development. 1:31:32 Cr. Mehl Cr. Mehl asked whether a precedent would be set if this was approved. 1:32:28 Mr. Krueger Mr. Krueger explained that staff reviews every individual request based upon the context in 7 of 11 Minutes of the Bozeman City Commission, January 17, 2012 which it is submitted. Staff does not look at precedent. They look within the regulations and respond to the criteria specific to the request. 1:32:49 Cr. Mehl Cr. Mehl asked further questions regarding precedent. 1:33:09 Greg Sullivan, City Attorney Mr. Sullivan explained that variances, deviations and requests such as this one, staff has to look at the application presented to them on the merits against the standards that are in the codes. Precedent does not come in when reviewing the application. As a matter of policy the commission can consider that, but not within the specific context of an individual application. 1:35:29 Cr. Mehl Cr. Mehl continued questions regarding having a discussion about precedent. 1:37:52 Cr. Mehl Cr. Mehl said he would like discussion regarding concerns around precedent at a future time. He also asked for further detail on the request. 1:40:56 Cr. Andrus Cr. Andrus asked about statements made during the Design Review Board review of this application. 1:42:20 Cr. Andrus asked for further detail regarding the look of the signs. 1:43:05 Jim Ulmen,Morrison Maierle Mr. Ulmen explained he has been involved in this development since inception. He would extend the fact that he does not believe the intent of the development has changed. There have been some minor changes, but the overall vision has stayed the same even though the market has changed. They are trying to bring infill to the city. They are not asking for an increase in the number or size of signs, they would just like to have the ability to have multi-tenant signs. 1:45:27 Cr. Andrus asked why the applicant did not ask for this relaxation earlier. 1:45:44 Mr. Ulmen Mr. Ulmen responded to Cr. Andrus saying they need to offer visibility to sell these spaces. Since the economic downturn, they need more things to invite them to the development. If a business is in the core of the development, the developer needs to ensure visibility. 1:48:01 Cr. Andrus asked questions regarding the look and lighting of the signs. 1:48:53 Public Comment Mayor Becker opened public comment on this item. Seeing none, he closed public comment. 1:49:00 Discussion, motion and vote 1:49:01 Motion that having reviewed application materials, considered public comment and all information presented, I hereby move to approve Planned Unit Development Mayor 8of11 Minutes of the Bozeman City Commission, January 17, 2012 Modification Conditional Use Permit application No. Z-11276 to allow a new PUD relaxation to 38.28.100 Bozeman Municipal Code and hereby r b . ,. incorporate by reference the findings included in the staff report with conditions and subject to all applicable code 12rovisions. It was moved by Cr. Taylor, seconded by Cr. Mehl that having reviewed application materials, considered public comment and all information presented, I hereby,move to approve Planned Unit Development Major Modification Conditional Use Permit application No. Z-11276 to allow a new PUD relaxation to 38.28.100 Bozeman Municipal Code and hereby incorporate by reference the findings included in the staff report with conditions and subject to all applicable code provisions. 1:49:43 Cr. Taylor began discussion on the motion. 1:53.57 Cr. Mehl continued discussion on the motion. 1:55:00 Cr. Andrus continued discussion on the motion. 1:55:11 Cr. Krauss continued discussion on the motion and about the application process. 2:02:02 Mayor Becker continued discussion on the motion. 2:04:32 Cr. Taylor continued discussion on the motion and the application process itself. 2:05:43 Vote on the motion that having reviewed application materials, considered public comment and all information presented, I hereby move to approve Planned Unit Development Major Modification Conditional Use Permit application No. Z-11276 to allow a new PUD relaxation to 38.28.100 Bozeman Municipal Code and hereby incorporate by reference the findings included in the staff report with conditions and subject to all applicable code provisions. Those voting Ave beine Crs. Taylor, Mehl, Andrus, Krauss and Mayor Becker. Those voting No being none. The motion passed 5-0. 2:06:14 3. Appointment to the Building Division Board of Appeals (Kissel) 2:06:14 Motion to appoint David Wright to the Building Division Board of Appeals. It was moved by Cr. Mehl, seconded by Cr. Andrus to appoint David Wright to the Building Division Board of Appeals. 2:06;33 Cr. Mehl began discussion on the motion. 2:06:50 Vote on the motion to appoint David Wri ht to the Ruildina Division Board of Appeals. 9of11 Minutes of the Bozeman City Commission, January 17, 2012 Those voting Ay_e being Crs. Mehl,Andrus, Krauss, Tavlor and Mayor Becker. Those voting No being none. The motion passed 5-0. 2:07:10 I. FYI/Discussion 2:07:11 1. Budget Calendar(Rosenberry) 2:07:13 Anna Rosenberry, Finance Director Ms. Rosenberry spoke regarding plans to change the way the city of Bozeman handles the budget calendar. This proposed budget calendar would get us to the adopted budget for the fiscal year by the end of June, prior to the beginning of the fiscal year. In the beginning of the year this will impact staff as they prepare their budgets. It will also have a significant impact on what the Commission will see on the agenda in May and June. The intended result is that the city will have an adopted budget before the fiscal year begins. The city will still not receive taxable values until August, but could come back with a budget amendment in August if necessary. Many department budgets do not have anything to do with taxable values. The revised calendar will be provided to the Commission tomorrow and will be posted on the city web site for review. Ms. Rosenberry asked the Commission for direction regarding this new plan. 2:10:49 Cr. Krauss Cr. Krauss said he would be interested in learning how the finance department will deal with cash carry over. He also said the Mayor should give some thought to how the agendas within the next six months will be impacted. Cr. Krauss is also worried about taxable values retreating as they are in many other areas of the country. 2:12:14 Mayor Becker Mayor Becker would be interested in finding out how we would deal with a significant change in taxable values when the final numbers were released in August. 2:12:39 Ms. Rosenberry Ms. Rosenberry explained the strategies they will put in place to look at the elements of the budget and the extent of the taxable values estimate. 2:14:06 Cr. Mehl Cr. Mehl said this plan is responsive to what the Commission asked for and he will be asking further questions as the process moves forward. 2:15:05 2. Story Mansion Sale update City Attorney Greg Sullivan said the Story Mansion sale should be coming before the Commission in February. 2:16:313. Cr. Andrus will be gone for the February 6th Commission meeting, 2:16:44 4. Meeting start times moved to 5 p.m. Cr. Becker would request that if major agenda items drop off any of the upcoming agendas that have early start times, those start times be moved back to 6 p.m. He would ask that 5 p.m. start times be kept to a minimum. 10 of 11 Minutes of the Bozeman City Commission, January 17, 2012 2:17:12 5. Executive Session briefing Greg Sullivan said he will provide a briefing to the Commission for next week's executive session on Thursday. 2:17:32 6. CTEP funding issues Cr. Becker said he has written a letter to Washington to encourage ongoing funding of community transportation enhancement money. There have been issues lately about states being able to divert that all to highway money. Cr. Becker asked whether the Commission would also be interested in signing a letter encouraging ongoing CTEP funding. The Commission responded in the positive. 2:19:03 7. Bogert Sewer Line Cr. Becker spoke regarding an issue with the Bogert sewer line being in the way of proposed changes to Bozeman Creek as put forward by the Bozeman Creek Enhancement Project Committee. He would like staff and the Commission to look at this issue and consider replacing this particular sewer pipe sooner rather than later so the line could be relocated. 2:20:12 8. Retreat Agenda Cr. Becker asked questions regarding the upcoming agenda for the Commission retreat. Staff and the Commission discussed the agenda and the process. Mr. Kukulski explained that Ted Mitchell had requested to speak to the Commission earlier in the meeting and asked the Mayor if Mr. Mitchell could speak during FYI. 2:28:02 9. Ted Mitchell,Mitchell Development Group Mr. Mitchell and his father are the developers at Bozeman Gateway. He said they have had some significant meetings with the planning department over the years. Mr. Mitchell said the leadership provided by the new Planning Director, Tim McHarg has helped the relationship between city staff and the developers improve dramatically. Mr. McHarg has been quick to understand the issues, is concise, sticks to his agreements, is sincere and conducts himself with a high level of integrity. Mr. McHarg is genuinely concerned about the applicant, but still knows who his employer is. Mr. Mitchell thanked the Commission and staff. 2:30:54 J. Adjournment Mgayo5 r cku adjourned the meeting at 8:46 p.m. � Scan A Becker Mayor erl^C, City Clerk rt • o- PREP MRE BY: ' Aimee is el, Deputy City Clerk Approved on 2, 11 of 11