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Minutes November 14, 1995 AGENDA CITY OF DENTON CITY COUNCIL November 14, 1995 The Council convened at the Campus Theatre at 5:30 p.m. to consider the following: RESOLUTION OF APPRECIATION FOR LLOYD V. HARRELL Brock motioned, Biles seconded to approve the resolution. On roll vote, Miller "aye", Young "aye", Cott "aye", Krueger "aye", Brock "aye", Biles "aye", and Mayor Castleberry "aye". Motion carried unanimously. The Council convened into a Work Session on Tuesday, November 14, 1995 at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers. PRESENT: Mayor Castleberry; Mayor Pro Tem Biles; Council Members Brock, Cott, Krueger, Miller and Young. ABSENT: None 1. The Council received an update, held a discussion and gave staff direction regarding the Solid Waste Master Plan. Bob Nelson, Executive Director for Utilities, stated that this item had been reviewed by Council on several occasions. Council appointed a committee in February of 1994 to look at Denton's long term waste issues. That Committee worked for about 13 months and a report was finished in March of 1995. There were some decisions on equipment and possible contracts for services which needed to be discussed and finalized. Some of the guiding principles which the Committee looked at as it worked on the project included: (1) Cost - minimize the cost of the solid waste system for Denton residents and businesses; (2) Flexibility - do not commit to a single method of handling solid waste; (3) Economic development opportunities - industries associated with the solid waste industry could work with the City; (4) Risk - minimize the financial, human and environmental risks to the community; (5) Educational opportunities - build core programs with the two universities; (6) Environmental stewardship - minimize the impact of Denton's solid waste on the environment and public health. The Committee took a middle-of-the road view in the program recognizing that there was a substantial cost to recycling. Some of the major components of the program included (1) constructing a facility for yard waste and wastewater biosolid composting; (2) implementing a cardboard, office paper and newspaper baling operation; (3) constructing an intermediate processing center in 1998; (4) implementing a residential curbside recycling program; (5) expanding the intermediate processing center to a materials recovery facility in 2005; (6) expanding the existing landfill site in 1997. The intermediate processing center would be a good area for a public-private partnership. Howard Martin, Director of Environmental Operations, p~emented the waste diversion rate, based on the recommendations previously presented, which allowed for a diversion rate of approximately 50- 55% by the end of the planning period. Translated into rates that would change the current rate of $13 to $17.50 by the year 2004 which correlated with the end of the intermediate processing center and right before the expansion to the materials recovery center. 45¸ 46¸ city of Denton City Council Minutes November 14, 1995 Page 2 That rate would increase to $27.60 by the end of the planning period. On the commercial side, the average rate of $133.45 would increase to $213.66 by the year 2004 and increase to $273.15 by 2015. Key issues to consider included the financial issues of Subtitle D; construction costs; closure/post closure liability; debt retirement of the existing site; and repayment of debt to the Electric Department. Service issues included frequency of residential solid waste pickup; curbside collection versus drop-off centers; automated versus manual collection; franchise fees for recycled materials collection; and weight-based rates for landfill customers. Council Member Cott asked about Subtitle D costs. Martin replied that those costs were for one area. One way to help with the costs would be to provide short term financing over the life of the area. Council Member Young asked if there were any plans to include private industry in this program. Martin replied that that would depend on direction from Council. Public-private opportunities had been looked at as they pertained to recycling. If Council desired to move forward with some kind of curbside program, it was anticipated that it would be some type of public-private venture. Council Member Young asked how much extra would be added to the utility bill for this program. Martin replied that if all of the money Council provided for curbside recycling were removed, the rate would be approximately $12.15 versus the current $13.00 today. Council Member Young asked if, after a certain amount of time and after the program was developed, the residential customer would stop paying for this service. Martin replied that there would be times when the intermediate processing center was fully utilized and/or the materials recovery center was being fully utilized, that there would be a decrease in %he anticipated ~ate ove~ what would be paid if nothing were done. Council Member Young expressed a concern with the increase in rates and expressed a problem with government competing with private enterprise. Nelson stated that Option 8, with a lower recycling valuo for the product, was a 4% per year increase. The inflation factor of 3.5% was used for trucks, fuel and labor and known numbers for the cost of the landfill were used in the formula. All the programs recommended by the Committee were in that 4% per year. City of Denton City Council Minutes November 14, 1995 Page 3 47 Martin stated that the benefit from this type of program was in the length of the landfill and how long it would be in operation for the City. Council Member Miller stated that he was under the impression that it would cost money to recycle under any scenario. But one alternative indicated there would be a savings for the recycling. Martin replied that in the later years of the intermediate processing center there would be revenues which would offset the rates. That was the same for the materials recovery center in the later years. Council Member Miller stated that there were recycling containers for other companies in Denton and asked if that had been taken into consideration. Martin felt that Council Member Miller's question was was it known how much recycled material was being pulled from the community by other vendors. The answer today was no. Council Member Miller stated that that would have to be factored into this consideration. Historically 75% of the waste going into the landfill was commercial and 25% was residential. Martin replied that residential waste had decreased to approximately 11%. An equal amount of that was contracted cash customers. Council Member Miller asked what percentage was coming from the commercial market and what percentile was from residential. Martin stated that with the current method of collection that would be difficult to determine. Council Member Miller stated that citizen input was important in this area. Recycling was a need which needed to be met but there was a need to be careful to not overtax the citizens. Education would be very important with a change in the tax for tipping fees at the landfill. The State would be returning 50% of the money it collected. Council Member Brock stated that recycling was a way to extend the life of the landfill by 20 years. As the landfill costs were very large, how would the savings be factored over the next 20 years. Martin replied that was probably the most difficult part of the analysis of the Committee. The Committee looked at various asDects of the landfill and assessed the value for that property. Brock stated that she would be very cautious about having twice-a- week pickup for recycling unless there was an indication that this was what the community wanted. The educational component was critical. She asked if newspaper recycling could b~ don~ with 48 City of Denton City Council Minutes November 14, 1995 Page 4 present equipment. Martin replied yes and that there were dollars in the budget which were contemplated for that program. Council Member Krueger felt that the smaller the government, the better government. He suggested the City work out a partnership with private enterprise for recycling. Mayor Pro Tem Biles felt that an excellent approach would be to go out and gather extra information dealing with privatization. There was a need to look in the direction of an intermediate processing center but a materials recovery center might be too far ahead. After discussion by Council on newspaper recycling and the merits of how often to collect the recycling, Biles motioned, Young seconded to direct staff to initiate a pilot project on a trial basis. There would be a report back to Council and the Public Utilities Board on the progress of the program. Staff would proceed with a request for proposal for a variety of the privatization options for the recycling process. The option for once or twice a month pickup would be left to the discretion of the Solid Waste Department. On roll vote, Miller "aye", Young "aye", Cott "aye", Krueger "aye", Brock "aye", Biles "aye", and Mayor Castleberry "aye". Motion carried unanimously. 2. The Council received a report, held a discussion and gave staff direction regarding U.S. 377. Council Members Cott and Young left the meeting. Rick Svehla, Deputy city Manager, stated that this had been a very long process with a public meeting being held in June. Council Member Young returned to the meeting. Svehla continued that all of the property owners had been advised of that meeting. There were seven - eight landowners at that meeting. Council Member Cott returned to the meeting. Svehla stated that the questions at the meeting dealt with the raised median and driveway access. An enclosed left turn lane would be built in the area of 511, 505 and 501 which would be specific to those businesses. This would be a similar left turn lane as was at the intersection of Carroll and Pearl. The Highway Department agreed with that ~onfiguration. There were a number of other areas where driveways would be added or an agreement had been worked out with adjacent property owners to make sure their objectives and needs were met. Staff was asking for Council approval to proceed with the project. Currently the project was in the 1997 year of the Transportation Improvement Program of the Highway Department which was very important. If that slot in the City of Denton City Council Minutes November 14, 1995 Page 5 program was lost, the project would be lost in that year and might be lost in succeeding years depending on scheduling. Council Member Miller pointed out that the project was from 1-35 north. Miller motioned, Krueger seconded to proceed as recommended by staff. On roll vote, Miller "aye", Young "aye", Cott "aye", Krueger "aye", Brock "aye", Biles "aye", and Mayor Castleberry "aye". Motion carried unanimously. 3. The Council received a report from the Juvenile Crime Interagency Coalition and gave staff direction regarding juvenile intervention programs. Margaret Smith, Chair-Juvenile Crime Interagency Coalition, stated that the Coalition was not asking for money. In January of 1995 Council passed a resolution creating the Juvenile Crime Interagency Coalition which was made up of people from all areas of the City. The Coalition's charge was to look at the situation with youth and devise programs to try and help the courts with juvenile crime. The Coalition started the effort by talking with different agencies about the need of such a program. They looked for ways and means to provide programs in those areas. Tom Josey, Court Administrator, stated that the Coalition had found a Title V grant to apply for. Given the time constraints, the application was completed before coming to Council and they since had received notification that they had received this grant. The grant was for $94,000 to be used for several programs. The teen court was one of the top programs and the Coalition wanted to expand it to a full-time teen court which would serve more youths in that manner. The Boys and Girls Club would provide for after school, weekend and summer activities for approximately 50 youths at the Fred Moore Learning Center. The program would provide activities and tutoring for the children. The teen court was the intervention portion of the program. The Coalition would like to apply for a second grant which came from a private charity in Canada. The "Contract and Bonuses" program was being used in several area cities and involved children with counseling and offered cash rewards for certain activities. This grant would be for $34,700 and the Coalition hoped Council would agree to allow them to pursue that source. Young motioned, Miller seconded to allow the City to pursue grant funding for Title V delinquent prevention and "Contracts and Bonuses" and to implement as recommended by staff. Council Member Cott asked what happened to children who were disruptive in the programs. Josey stated that the program was designed for a child who would not be disruptive and the children with those types of behavioral problems were screened out. 49 50 City of Denton City Council Minutes November 14, 1995 Page 6 On roll vote, Miller "aye" Young "aye" Cott "aye" Krueger "aye" Brock "aye", Biles "aye", and Mayor Castleberry "aye". Motion carried unanimously. 4. The Council received a report, held a discussion and gave staff direction regarding appointments to the committee that would advise the Planning and Zoning Commission about updating the Denton Development Plan. Frank Robbins, Director for Planning and Development, stated that the Council had adopted a program for the update of the Denton Development Guide on October 17th. After those nominations were made, the Council could consider the resolution appointing those individuals to the Committee. Young motioned, Brock seconded to develop a policy committee made up of two members of the Planning and Zoning Commission selected by the Planning and Zoning Commission, two members of the City Council selected by the Council, one business representative for each three Chambers of Commerce selected by the Chambers of Commerce, one real estate professional selected by the real estate association, one development professional selected by the appropriate professional association, one representative from the DISD selected by the DISD, one representative from TWU selected by TWU, one representative from UNT selected by UNT, four representatives of City geographic areas one from each City Council district chosen by neighborhood associations, three members appointed by the Council with suggestions by staff and/or represented professional associations from the architect, professional planners - not staff members, professional engineer and a chair to be appointed by the city Council. Council Member Cott suggested a time limit to complete the procedure in a timely manner. He felt the four representatives of geographical areas should be increased to seven and should be chosen by Council. Mayor Castleberry stated that there would be a total of 19 people if the chair was selected from the group or 20 members with a chair. Council M~mber Young wanted a 20 member committee. Council Member Cott stated that many of the neighborhood associations were just now forming and that it would be difficult to choose four representatives. He felt that it was a wrong time, at this point in time, to use that for a base for choosing the rcpr~ntative~. Mayor Pro Tem Biles expressed a concern on how to select or not select the neighborhood associations which were legitimate to participate in the process. Could the neighborhood associations communicate to Council their preferences for representatives. City of Denton City Council Minutes November 14, 1995 Page 7 51 Krueger stated that the motion indicated that the four representatives of the geographical areas would be chosen by the neighborhood associations. There was nothing in the motion to indicate that the Council would choose a member. Council Member Miller asked if the appointees had to be residents of the City. Council Member Young agreed to put a residency requirement in his motion. Council Member Brock agreed with that in her second. On roll vote, Miller "aye", Young "aye", Cott "nay", Krueger "aye", Brock "aye", Biles "aye", and Mayor Castleberry "aye". Motion carried with a 6-1 vote. 5. The Council received a report and held a discussion regarding the City Hall in the Mall project and the City of Denton Volunteer Program. Officer Jeryl Golden, Business Area Coordinator for the Police Department, stated that one of the first duties assigned to him was to open an office in the Mall. There were three different coordinators placed into position at the same time. Two were residential, responsible for staffing the two existing offices. The Department was contacted by the Mall which offered space at the Mall. The Mall had been very helpful with this project and donated a significant financial contribution for the renovation of the space. The office will be located next to the Old Country Buffet. The bid from the contractor to renovate the space was $62,000 which required them to take another look at the renovation plans. A substantial amount of the money for the bid dealt with the demolition of the area. Police labor was used to do that work which kept the project under $30,000. The Mall had donated $15,000 and the rest was paid for by seizures from local drug dealers. Several officers spent large amounts of time in the area for the renovation. The Mall will now have 24 hour security as they will have an office in the area. There will also be a customer service counter in the office which will provide services for paying utility bills, paying taxes, direct access to a hot line, registration for park activities, library applications, maps for utility line applications, volunteer opportunities, signing up for Civil Service tests, alarm permit applications, and trash bags. Other use of the space would include holding crime prevention classes, self-defense classes, robbery prevention classes, forgery prosecutions, space for community use, non-profit organizations could use the space for meetings, city meetings and business groups could use the space. The Utility Department had committed an individual to work at the offi~ from 11~00 a.m.- ~00 p.m. Monday - Friday. There would also be volunteers to help with information questions. Veronica Rolen, Administrative Assistant, stated that the volunteer program, Project CD, was a program of citizen volunteerism in D~nton City government. Th~r~ was a two fold mi~ion with the 52 City of Denton City Council Minutes November 14, 1995 Page 8 first to provide an opportunity for citizens to make a meaningful contribution to the community. Second it allowed staff to increase the quality of services provided while maintaining or reducing costs. The program would complement the staff positions in the City. In order to facilitate the accomplishment of the mission, she had been appointed the Volunteer Coordinator to implement a city-wide volunteer program. There were now seven departments which had volunteer positions available. The goal of the program was to have volunteer positions available in every city department. A plan of action included coordinating with RSVP, TWU, UNT, local churches, neighborhood groups and civic organizations. Currently they were recruiting volunteers to staff the mall office and would assist the full-time staff in the beginning. It was hoped that the hours of the volunteers could be expanded to include all of the Mall hours. 6. The Council convened into a Closed Meeting to discuss the following: Legal Matters -- Under TEX. GOV'T CODE Sec. 551.071 Considered and discussed settlement and the defense of Rodqers v. City of Denton. e Discussed settlement and defense of litigation concerning efforts to rezone 3.753 acres from SF-7 to Office zoning on the south side of 1-35E and Lindsey Street. B. Real Estate -- Under TEX. GOV'T CODE Sec. 551.072 Ce Personnel/Board Appointments -- Under TEX. GOV'T CODE Sec. 551.074 Held a briefing regarding the selection of a Fire Chief. Following the completion of the Closed Meeting, the Council convened into a Special Called Meeting. PRESENT: Mayor Castleberry; Mayor Pro Tem Biles; Council Members Brock, Cott, Krueger, Miller and Young. ABSENT: None 1. The Council considered approval and took action on an ordinance authorizing the Mayor to execute a compromise settlement agreement in th~ ma~r ~f RP$ Joint Venture, et al v. City of Denton, Texas. Jan Bailey stated that she was representing the Denia Area Community Group. The Group asked that the Council not use their political power in this issue. She felt it was unwise when it was a legal issue which should be settled in court. City of Denton city Council Minutes November 14, 1995 Page 9 53 The following ordinance was considered: NO. 95-235 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS, APPROVING AND AUTHORIZING THE MAYOR TO EXECUTE A COMPROMISE SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT IN THE MATTER OF RPS JOINT VENTURE, ET AL. V. CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS; AND DECLARING AN EFFECTIVE DATE. Young motioned, Biles seconded to authorize the Mayor to execute the compromise settlement agreement in the matter of RPS Joint Venture v. the City of Denton. On roll vote, Miller "nay", Young "aye", Cott "nay", Krueger "aye", Brock "nay", Biles "aye", and Mayor Castleberry "aye". Motion carried with a 4-3 vote. With no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 10:40 p.m. NiFE~WAL~ERS Y SECRETARY CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS ACC002D0 CITY OF DENTON, T