February 10, 2015 MinutesCITY OF DENTON CITY COUNCIL MINUTES
February 10, 2015
After determining that a quorum was present, the City Council convened in a Wark Session on
Tuesday, February 10, 2015 at 2:00 p.m. in the Council Wark Session Room at City Hall.
PRESENT: Mayor Pro Tem Engelbrecht, Council Member Gregory, Council Member Hawkins,
Council Member Johnson, Council Member Roden, Council Member Ryan, and
Mayor Watts.
ABSENT: None.
Work Session Reports
A. SI15-0003 Receive a report; hold a discussion and give staff direction on the
development review process and recommended solutions to improve the process,
including the implementation of quarterly reports.
Brian Lockley, Director of Planning and Development, stated that the presentation was one of a
series of presentations regarding development. This presentation would focus on the
development process analysis and recommendations. Future meetings would focus on Planning
and Development projects and priorities and update on Clarion Recommendations. The final
presentation would be on Planning Division warkload statistics. Topics for discussion included
the DRC process review, findings, solution implementation and quarterly reports.
Development Review process - issues were outlined as expressed by the Development
Community. Staff performed a comprehensive review of the DRC process and building permit
and inspections process. The purpose was to determine warkflow efficiencies and inefficiencies,
improve operating interfaces and define the critical path needed to facilitate development.
DRC Team Review Findings -(1) unfamiliarity by all DRC Team members with the entire
approval process, (2) incomplete submittals by applicants, (3) submittals that were not
standardized, (4) lack of training, IT support and unfamiliarity with the functions of ProjectDox,
and (5) Trak-It was not used to full potential.
Building Inspections review findings —(1) incomplete submittals by applicants, (2) submittals
were not standardized, (3) manually (emailing) applicant if project upload was complete, (4)
inconsistency in re-inspections by Building Inspectors, and (5) unfamiliarity with issuance of
Temporary Certificate of Occupancy.
DRC Team Review Proposed Solutions —(1) Initiated DRC Team training, (2) initiated
ProjectDox and Trak-It training, (3) initialing application submittal completeness check, (4)
create standardized submittal templates, and (5) author a Developer Handbook which charted the
process as well as Denton's development thresholds.
Building Inspections Review Proposed Solutions —(1) implemented Temporary Certificate of
Occupancy procedures, (2) initiating application submittal completeness check, (3) create
standardized submittal templates, (4) create standard operating procedures for re-inspections, and
(5) initiating multidiscipline plans reviewers (cross train commercial and residential examiners)
Development Review Process - the purpose of the DRC and the goal of the DRC were reviewed.
The reasons the City provided development review and building permit and inspection services
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February 10, 2015
Page 2
were detailed. The DRC team was composed of primary reviewers, secondary reviewers and
stakeholders.
Development Processes - DRC managed multiple development processes. Each process
consisted of different reviewers from several different departments. The Texas Local
Government Code mandated certain requirements such as notices, public hearings and approvals.
The processes may run concurrently depending on the nature of the application.
The procedures involved in the Pre-Application Conference Flowchart were presented. The Pre-
application conference was held 10 days after the complete submittaL The Rezoning Flowchart
was reviewed and noted that there was a 60-90 day completion in this process. Subdivision plats
flowchart included a 60 day completion in this process. The Building Permit Flowchart included
a 10-14 day completion process.
Council Member Gregory stated that he was expecting to see some kind of correlation that with
more plans to review the longer the time frames to be done. He did not see that and in some
cases, the ratios were off.
Rodney Patterson, Interim Building Official, stated that much of that had to do with the depth of
the review that was done. Some cities only do a cursory review. Denton did a very
comprehensive in-depth plan review.
Lockley stated that this was a first step in a number of amendments which were being done and
was by no means a one size fits all procedure.
Council discussed how to tell if the plans submitted had changed, the number of commercial
plans approved and length to get those plans approved, and the process for commercial plan
approval.
Council Member Johnson felt that considering electronic uploads for developers made sense.
However, tenant finish outs were different and in those cases an electronic system would be
difficult. Think about the process in terms of building permits and what the process should be to
fit the customers. He questioned how a temporary certificate of occupancy could be used as a
tool for a business.
Lockley stated that there were situations where a temporary certificate of occupancy could be
issued as long as it was not a health, safety or welfare situation.
Mayor Pro Tem Engelbrecht asked how long a temporary certificate of occupancy lasted and
what happened when it expired.
Lockley stated that the temporary certificate of occupancy was for a 30 day period to complete
the requirements and do re-inspection. It was likely that at the end of the 30 days, the business
would already be opened and an extension would be provided. However, if it went on too long a
citation would be issued.
Mayor Pro Tem Engelbrecht requested a report on the number of temporary certificates of
occupancy, how long it took to complete and the amount of staff time used to get it completed.
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February 10, 2015
Page 3
Mayor Watts stated that what the City sometimes received was not a high quality submittal. He
would encourage staff to find a way to define some line that represented a strong set of
submittals. He requested an Informal Staff Report that summarized what the Government Code
indicated for time frame and if City didn't have anything, think about instituting some.
Council Member Gregory suggested considering an express lane for small projects.
Lockley stated that was one of the items looked at when preparing the report. It was still on the
table for further consideration. Staff was discussing the types of reviews from cursory to in-depth
reviews, when they were done and why.
Council Member Hawkins suggested a tenant finish out handbook to help with those types of
projects.
Council Member Johnson felt it was important to not get mired down in data so that the process
does not suit the developer.
B. ID 15-144 Hold a discussion and provide staff direction with regard to possible
amendments to the City Council Rules of Procedure.
City Manager Campbell stated that Council had redlined versions of the revision of the rules and
that this meeting would focus on the number of ineetings with more details at the March 3ra
meeting. He noted that the section on meeting could be changed to streamline meetings or add
additional meetings. The first and third meetings were televised while the 2nd Tuesday meetings
were not. A suggestion was to make the first, third and fourth Tuesday meetings regular
meetings with all three meeting being televised.
Council Member Johnson stated that he would rather meet every Tuesday starting at 3:00 p.m.
rather than at 1:00 and have more shorter meetings more times.
City Manager Campbell stated that the goal was to make the meetings more productive. The
fourth Tuesday meeting could be more specialized meetings such as public hearings.
Mayor Watts felt that the meeting were too long when starting at 1:00 and ending at 10:00. He
suggested a trial basis for the fourth Tuesday meeting and not amend the ordinance at this time.
See if the 4th Tuesday helped with the times and televise all the meetings.
Council Member Ryan suggested meeting every Tuesday. The fourth Tuesday could be similar
to a 2nd Tuesday wark session. Business could be done on the first and fourth Tuesdays with the
fourth Tuesday becoming a regular meeting if one of the others was canceled.
Council Member Hawkins stated that there would be no personal time to take time off if every
Tuesday was a meeting.
Council Member Gregory agreed that the meetings should not go past 10:00 p.m. if started at
1:00 p.m. in the afternoon. A fourth Tuesday meeting would time away from wark for those
who were still warking and noted that he tried to schedule outings on 4th Tuesday. He
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February 10, 2015
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suggested a cutoff time far meetings and would be in favor if items then had to go to fourth
meeting.
Council Member Roden stated that there was a benefit to have off weeks and also saw all the
staff that had to attend meetings at all of these weeks. He felt the meetings needed to be more
efficient rather than adding meetings.
City Manager Campbell suggested adding the fourth Tuesday meeting for next 90 days and treat
them as special meetings to see how it would wark and then Council could decide if it wanted to
change the ordinance. He stated that staff would include the power points in the backup so
Council had the information before the meeting. He suggested Council let staff know before the
meetings about questions on current agenda items.
Council Member Hawkins stated that he send emails about questions on the Consent Agenda but
that sometimes he wanted to say his comments in public.
City Manager Campbell stated that if staff had the questions beforehand, the right person to
answer them would be at the meeting.
Council Member Ryan suggested that Council listen to a whole staff presentation before asking
questions.
Mayor Watts suggested that if the meeting were in the Wark Session Room it should be televised
or at least recorded.
City Manager Campbell stated that everything in the Wark Session Room would be televised.
Council Member Gregory stated that the bulk of the wark was done in wark sessions and it
showed the public how much of the discussion happened in the work sessions if they were
televised.
Consensus of the Council was to start with the March meetings to have the fourth Tuesdays for
wark session/closed meetings. The start time could be flexible but not start earlier than 2:00
p.m.
C. Under Section 551.042 of the Texas Open Meetings Act, respond to inquiries from
the City Council or the public with specific factual information or recitation of
policy, or accept a proposal to place the matter on the agenda for an upcoming
meeting AND Under Section 551.0415 of the Texas Open Meetings Act, provide
reports about items of community interest regarding which no action will be taken,
to include: expressions of thanks, congratulations, or condolence; information
regarding holiday schedules; an honorary or salutary recognition of a public official,
public employee, or other citizen; a reminder about an upcoming event organized or
sponsored by the governing body; information regarding a social, ceremonial, or
community event organized or sponsored by an entity other than the governing body
that was attended or is scheduled to be attended by a member of the governing body
or an official or employee of the municipality; or an announcement involving an
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February 10, 2015
Page 5
imminent threat to the public health and safety of people in the municipality that has
arisen after the posting of the agenda.
Council Member Hawkins requested a staff report on towing.
Council Member Johnson stated that Council had received an Informal Staff Report on tree
landscaping requirements. It was his desire to not slow down the process to plant trees this year.
Council Member Ryan requested a wark session on the decision and policy making process used
when to making street repairs for street reconstruction and how the list was made based on the
OCI.
Council Member Roden requested a wark session on the taxi ordinance.
Council Member Roden stated that the emergency shelter no longer had a home and questioned
what the City could do to help.
Council Member Johnson asked about the type and size for the trees for the Hickory Street
Grand Project and if they were not going to be 15-20 feet tall take the money out of the tree fund
to put in that size.
Mayor Watts also requested a wark session on the towing issue and what other cities doing.
Mayor Watts asked about the public art master plan and a time frame for executing a contract.
Council Member Ryan suggested posting the Informal Staff Report on line for citizens to read.
Following the completion of the 2nd Tuesday Session, the City Council convened in a Closed
Meeting at 5:00 p.m. to consider the specif'ic items listed below under the Closed Meeting
section of this agenda.
Closed Meeting
A. ID 15-145 Consultation with Attorneys - Under Texas Government Code, Section
551.071. Consult with and provide direction to City's attorneys regarding legal
issues and strategies associated with the current Gas Well Ordinance, and proposed
Gas Well Ordinance amendment, regulation of gas well drilling and production
within the City Limits and the extraterritorial jurisdiction, including: Constitutional
limitations, statutory limitations upon municipal regulatory authority; statutory
preemption and vested rights; impacts of federal and state law and regulations;
impacts of gas well drilling upon protected uses and vice-versa; current and
proposed extension to, moratorium on drilling and production; other concerns about
municipal regulatory authority ar matters relating to enforcement of the Gas Well
Ordinance, both current and proposed; settlement matters concerning gas well
drilling in the City; surface development issues involving surface and mineral
estates; and legal matters associated with a citizen's initiative ordinance and
pending litigation styled Jerry Patterson, Commissioner, Texas General Land Office
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February 10, 2015
Page 6
v. City of Denton Texas, Cause No. D-1-GN-14-004628 currently pending in the
53rd District Court of Travis County and Texas Oil and Gas Association v. City of
Denton, Cause No. 14-09833-431 currently pending in the 431st District Court of
Denton County regarding hydraulic fracturing where a public discussion of these
legal matters would conflict with the duty of the City's attorneys under the Texas
Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct of the State Bar of Texas.
The Council reconvened in Open Session and with no further business adjourned at 6:00 p.m.
CHRIS WATTS
MAYOR
CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS
JENNIFER WALTERS
CITY SECRETARY
CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS