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October 10, 2006 Minutes CITY OF DENTON CITY COUNCIL MINUTES October 10, 2006 After determining that a quorum was present, the City Council convened in Closed Session on Tuesday, October 10,2006 at 4:00 p.m. in the City Council Work Session Room at City Hall. PRESENT: Mayor McNeill; Mayor Pro Tem Kamp; Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Mulroy; Council Members Heggins, McElroy, Montgomery, and Thomson. ABSENT: None 1. Council convened in Closed Meeting at 4:04 p.m. 1. Consultation with Attorney - Under Texas Government Code Section 551.071 1. Legal advice concerning public information requests and other legal matters related thereto. Following the completion of the Closed Session, the Council convened in a 2nd Tuesday Session. 1. Council received reports from Council members regarding information received at various committee, board, or organization meetings attended by Council members. Mayor McNeill updated Council on the "fly-in" to Washington, D. C. He indicated that it was a great meeting with various representatives in Washington and was a well-organized trip. Issues discussed included immigration issues, the Wright Amendment, issues with the energy industry, banking industry, and transportation issues. Mayor McNeill updated Council on TMP A issues. TMP A was generating extra kilowatt-hours and the rail spur was proceeding on schedule. Mayor Pro Tem Kamp updated Council on the regional transportation issues, TxDot's upcoming meeting, and an upcoming neighborhood meeting. Council Member Montgomery presented information on a Historic Landmark Commission meeting. The Committee was discussing a recommendation on how to use tax abatements for historic preservations with footprints and written recommendations. He also presented an update on a recent hotel/motel tax meeting. 2. The Council received a report, held a discussion, and gave staff direction regarding proposed changes to Chapter 6 of the Code of Ordinances relating to animals. Mayor McNeill stated that he would like to see a re-evaluation of the role of the Animal Shelter Advisory Board so that anything involved with animals would be directed toward that board. Lt. Scott Fletcher, Denton Police Department, stated that staff had been approached by the Denton Humane Society about proposed changes to the City's current ordinances. Changes to be considered included: . Advisory Board residency requirements. Currently the veterinarian position must be a resident of the city. It was suggested to eliminate that requirement if the veterinarian had City of Denton City Council Minutes October 10, 2006 Page 2 a practice in the city. It was also recommended to eliminate the residency requirement for the position of staff member on the Board. . Restraining animals - the recommendation was to eliminate the use of short tethers by requiring a tether of at least 10' when tied to an object, the use of a proper collar or harness and the proper tie down equipment. . Animals in truck beds or open vehicles - a recommendation was considered to require animals to be tethered to a proper collar or harness and cross-tied to prevent injury. . Rabies vaccinations - the recommendation was to allow for the acceptance of a 1 and 3 year vaccination. . Protective Custody - currently the holding time for animals in protective custody was seven days. It was suggested to reduce that time to 96 hours for a uniform holding time for all animals except those in quarantine. . Prohibited animals - it was recommended that bats be added to the list of prohibited animals plus strengthen the City's authority to impound and enforce the current prOVISIons. . Animal auctions - the recommendation was to prohibit animals as prizes or auction items in fundraising. It would not apply to vouchers or coupons to be redeemed at the shelter. . Registration - a recommendation was to waive the annual registration fee for micro- chipped animals in order to encourage the use of the device. . Intact animal fee - an increase in the annual registration fee for intact animals was recommended. The recommendation was to develop a proposed ordinance with all of the above recommendations with the exception of the tethering in a truck bed. Council discussed the provision for animal auctions. It was suggested that that portion of the proposal be postponed with further research and discussions with major charity organizations for input. Consensus of the Council was to develop a proposed ordinance for Council consideration with the exception of the provision for the auction of animals. That item would be further researched. 3. The Council received a report, held a discussion and gave staff direction related to abandoned trash and debris at the curb of vacant properties. Lancine Bentley, Program Services Manager, presented the staffrecommendations. (1) Maintain the current 7 -day abatement timeframe for occupied properties. The property owners would be cited immediately for violations as allowed by Code with increased fines for nuisance violations. (2) Eliminate the abatement timeframe at vacant properties. The property owners would be cited City of Denton City Council Minutes October 10, 2006 Page 3 immediately for violations as allowed by Code. (3) Pass an ordinance providing for a special revenue fund to restrict the use of funds collected from Code Enforcement invoices and liens. An additional option to consider was to use a portion of the utility deposit to pay for contracted services. Problems associated with that option were that a majority of residential customers were exempt from the deposit; collection would be on 35,000 customers to abate approximately 50 properties annually; the existing utility deposit would not recoup the costs of the contracted services; and the City must comply with current utility standards set by Public Utility Commission. Council discussion - . Can always cite either occupied or unoccupied properties. Use the legal waiting period time frame before contracting for cleanup and file a lien against the property owner. Work with occupied residences to get the violations taken care of. . The current deposit was low based on what was left behind on a utility bill using that amount was not efficient. However, do not ignore that possibility in case there was some money left over on a deposit. City Attorney Snyder stated that the ordinance could be amended to indicate that the deposit not only covered outstanding utility bills but also abatement of trash/debris left on the property. Consensus of the Council was to proceed with an ordinance. Consider having solid waste pick up debris left on vacant property instead of having a contractor do it. Report back in six months on how the process was working. 4. The Council received a report, held a discussion and gave staff direction on the possible annexation of land located southwest of the City of Denton. The approximately 23.84 acre parcel was generally located at the northwest corner of I 35W and Robson Ranch Road. The parcel was a tract of land situated in the E. Pizano Survey Abstract No. 994, Denton Texas and being a part of tract of land described in a deed to Robson/35W Investors LP as recorded in County Clerk's File No. 02-63784. Kelly Carpenter, Director of Planning and Development, presented details on the location of the proposed voluntary annexation. She reviewed the land use currently designated on the property. The completion of the annexation would be on February 13,2007. Consensus of the Council was to proceed with the annexation as proposed. With no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 6:00 p.m. PERRY R. MCNEILL MAYOR CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS JENNIFER W AL TERS CITY SECRETARY CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS