MONONA CITY COUNCIL MINUTES April 17, 2017

Transcription

1 MINUTES The regular meeting of the Monona City Council was called to order by Council President Speight at 7:32 p.m. Present: Excused: Also Present: Council President Chad Speight, Alderpersons Doug Wood, Mary O Connor, Andrew Kitslaar, Brian Holmquist (arrived late), and Jim Busse Mayor Robert Miller City Administrator April Little, Public Works Director Dan Stephany, Parks & Recreation Director Jake Anderson, Operations Lieutenant Curt Wiegel, City Planner/Economic Development Director Sonja Reichertz, and City Clerk Joan Andrusz ROLL CALL AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE APPROVAL OF MINUTES A motion by Alder O Connor, seconded by Alder Wood to approve the Minutes of the April 3, 2017 and April 10, 2017 Special City Council meetings, was carried. APPEARANCES Janet Vinje, 5500 Tonyawatha Trail registered in favor of the Constitutional Amendment. Waltraud Brinkmann, 5506 Tonyawatha Trail appeared before the Council and spoke in favor of the Constitutional Amendment. PUBLIC HEARING There is no Public Hearing. CONSENT AGENDA A motion by Alder Kitslaar, seconded by Alder Wood to approve the following, was carried: 1. Applications for 2016/2017 Operator Licenses: a. Christina S. Cole, Breakwater b. Kheanna M. Harris, Speedway Royal Avenue c. Anthony W. McGraw, Speedway Royal Avenue 2. Applications for 2016/2018 Operator Licenses: a. William T. Gingher, Ken s Meats & Deli b. Madeline M. Ellenbecker, Noodles & Company c. Benjamin J. Psyk, Noodles & Company 3. Renewal Applications for 2017/2019 Operator Licenses: a. Margaret A. Kiefer, East Side Club b. Frederick R. Bechen, PDQ Food Store

2 Page 2 c. Latoria R. Douglas, PDQ Food Store d. Kyle M. Nieman, PDQ Food Store 4. Application for Temporary Operator License: a. Robin L. Kempfer, Rockin Chocolate Marathon Alder Holmquist arrived. UNFINISHED BUSINESS Public Works Director Stephany reported the following was approved by the Public Works Committee on April 5 and there were no changes to the fiscal note since the first Council reading. Four bids were received on March 2 with the low bid chosen. A motion by Alder Busse, seconded by Alder O Connor to approve Resolution Award of Bid for Parking Lots Improvements Project. On a roll call vote, all members voted in favor of the motion. Public Works Director Stephany reported the following was approved by the Public Works Committee on April 5 and there were no changes to the fiscal note since the first Council reading. $9,100 will be reallocated from the Capital Budget. A motion by Alder Kitslaar, seconded by Alder Wood to approve Resolution Amending the 2017 Capital Budget for the Purchase of a Rapid Flash Beacon (RFB) System for the Intersection at Nichols and Schluter Roads, was carried. Public Works Director Stephany reported the following was approved by the Public Works Committee on April 5 and there were no changes to the fiscal note since the first Council reading. Two bids were received on March 16 with the low bid chosen. A motion by Alder Kitslaar, seconded by Alder Holmquist to approve Resolution Award of Bid for 2017 Micro Surfacing Project. On a roll call vote, all members voted in favor of the motion. A motion by Alder Wood, seconded by Alder O Connor to remove from the table Resolution Approving an Intergovernmental Agreement with the Village of McFarland for Building Inspection Services (Tabled 3/20/17 and 4/3/17), was carried. City Attorney Little reported the Council had requested City Attorney comments. Numbering was the only change made. Language was updated. The City will provide the Code Enforcement Officer cell phone. The City Attorney s opinion was that no Code Enforcement joint agreement was needed as this Agreement covers any provisions of that position. A motion by Alder O Connor, seconded by Alder Holmquist to approve Resolution Approving an Intergovernmental Agreement with the Village of McFarland for Building Inspection Services, was carried. Alder O Connor reported Director of Administrative Services Leah Kimmell revised the committee member application and will put it on the City s website tomorrow for Interim Alderperson applicants to use. On May 1 st candidates will provide a 5-minute presentation to the Council.

3 Page 3 A motion by Alder O Connor, seconded by Alder Wood to approve Resolution Approving the Process for Appointing an Interim Alderperson, was carried. Alder Busse began discussion of the following Resolution. Campaign signs for the recently passed referendum stated, No Money in Elections but this action involves more than that. It seeks to take away corporate rights. He quoted an article by Chris MacDonald, Ph.D., titled, Why Corporations Must Be Legal Persons, that states corporations should be legal persons, like governments, churches, states, etc. What would be lost is the ability to own property or hold a bank account; LLC rights would be gone. They can t be sued or charged with crimes. The legal action against Exxon for a major oil spill was used as an example. City Attorney Cole ed him that the Council doesn t need to act on this. Alder Busse made a motion to postpone indefinitely Resolution by the City of Monona Electors Supporting a Constitutional Amendment. Due to the lack of a second the motion did not come to a vote. Alder Wood stated he agrees that corporations have been recognized as legal persons for a long time. This action is against free speech rights being extended to corporations. The ruling cited in the Resolution changed political spending and could be overturned without affecting other rights. Alder Busse stated We the People is a political group and using that title in the Resolution is misleading. He asks for a friendly amendment to delete that title and have the wording that the City of Monona, Wisconsin seeks remain. The maker and second of the motion agree to this change. A motion by Alder Wood, seconded by Alder O Connor to approve Resolution by the City of Monona Electors Supporting a Constitutional Amendment as amended, was carried. Alder Busse voted against the motion. NEW BUSINESS A motion by Alder Busse, seconded by Alder Wood to suspend the rules and take action on Resolution Approving a Facility Use Agreement with Madison Youth Sailing Foundation, was carried. Recreation Director Anderson thanks Alder Busse for being great to work with. This group provides youth sailing lessons. They have housed their sailboats at Stonebridge Park while working out of Schluter Park. Now they are requesting three boat slips at the Schluter Park pier. The Park & Recreation Board and City Attorney Cole approved this 3-year Agreement. They would pay a per-slip fee and give a 25% discount to Monona residents. He distributed a map showing the location of the three slips. City Administrator Little reported there is a 30-day termination clause in the Agreement. A motion by Alder O Connor, seconded by Alder Kitslaar to approve Resolution Approving a Facility Use Agreement with Madison Youth Sailing Foundation, was carried. A motion by Alder Holmquist, seconded by Alder Busse to suspend the rules and take action on Resolution Approval of Participation in a Wisconsin Bureau of Transportation Safety Grant Titled: 2017 Speed Task Force Grant, was carried. Lieutenant Wiegel reported this is an overtime grant for up to $7,500 with a 25% match cost that will be offset by payroll benefits and fuel. There are twelve 4-hour deployments in each of the three months. A motion by Alder Holmquist, seconded by Alder Busse to approve Resolution Approval of Participation in a Wisconsin Bureau of Transportation Safety Grant Titled: 2017 Speed Task Force Grant, was carried.

4 Page 4 A motion by Alder Holmquist, seconded by Alder Kitslaar to suspend the rules and take action on Resolution Purchase Approval of One Police Vehicle, was carried. Lieutenant Wiegel reported this is for the purchase of one budgeted squad vehicle. There is a time span between when a vehicle is ordered and when it is received and ready to be placed into service. The current squad will have 95,000 miles on it by the time it is replaced. A motion by Alder Holmquist, seconded by Alder Kitslaar to approve Resolution Purchase Approval of One Police Vehicle. On a roll call vote, all members voted in favor of the motion. A motion by Alder Wood, seconded by Alder Kitslaar to suspend the rules and take action on Resolution No Authorizing an Application for a Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation Grant from the Community Development Investment Grant Program, was carried. City Planner Reichertz reported if all applications can be sent in to meet the deadline the City will be eligible for a $250,000 maximum grant for the Riverfront project. The project meets all criteria for the maximum award amount. A motion by Alder Busse, seconded by Alder O Connor to approve Resolution No Authorizing an Application for a Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation Grant from the Community Development Investment Grant Program, was carried. A motion by Alder Holmquist, seconded by Alder Busse to suspend the rules and take action on Resolution No Approval of A 3-Lot Certified Survey Map (CSM) to Divide the Lot 5 of the South Towne Assessor s Plat at 2101 W. Broadway Into Three Separate Parcels, was carried. City Planner Reichertz reported this has been reviewed at three other public meetings with very little comment. Notification was sent to property owners within 300 feet of the area. This will divide the Shopko lot into three 1-acre, developable parcels. The map of the area was clarified for members. A motion by Alder Holmquist, seconded by Alder Kitslaar to approve Resolution No Approval of A 3-Lot Certified Survey Map (CSM) to Divide the Lot 5 of the South Towne Assessor s Plat at 2101 W. Broadway Into Three Separate Parcels, was carried. City Administrator Little began discussion of Resolution No Approving a Resolution Recommending the Amendment of Provisions that Shift a Greater Property Tax Burden from Commercial to Residential Homeowners. This has been discussed at her conferences and professional organization meetings. This is the big box stores effort to lower their property taxes, the burden of which is then shifted to homeowners. Dark store refers to these corporation s efforts to compare their property s value to that of an empty, vacant, blighted store. This has not happened in the City yet but Walmart s hearing was waived at last year s Board of Review so they would go directly to circuit court. She could bring in someone from the League of Wisconsin Municipalities staff if the Council requests that. Alder Kitslaar reported he spoke with Representatives Mark Miller and Jimmy Anderson who support this effort along with other municipalities across Wisconsin. Lieutenant Wiegel distributed and discussed area police department statistics comparing calls to big box stores. Monona s Walmart far outweighs those in other communities, and call volume is increasing. The costs of these deployments to Walmart and other big box stores do not include follow-up costs, like court. City Administrator Little stated these businesses should pay their fair share for the support they are given.

5 Page 5 Alder Wood noted the report shows Walmart has four officers dispatched per day. Lieutenant Wiegel stated these calls are mostly theft but also include disturbances, fights, and drugs. He thanks City Administrator Little for bringing this important issue forward; the tax consequences would be devastating to residents. Lieutenant Wiegel reported he has met with Walmart staff regarding lighting issues and in-store loss prevention personnel, and they are cooperative. They have a $25 limit for calling police; less than that is handled in-house. Increasing it would encourage theft. Other big box stores call for any amount. Council President Speight compared Sun Prairie s fewer incidences and questioned whether the Department could learn from them. Lieutenant Wiegel responded the reasons are unknown but it could be because they have many more officers. The City s high call volume is partially due to the proximity to the Beltline, Interstate, and the detox center. These matters have been discussed by the Public Safety Commission. Members discussed encouraging Walmart to increase their security measures. Lieutenant Wiegel reported Walmart s loss prevention staff are not security guards and only detain cooperative perpetrators. Reasonable use of force is allowed but that is avoided due to the liability of lawsuits. Private security staff defers to police. Alder Wood suggested a visible, uniformed presence might help deter crime. City Administrator Little provided information on Resolution No Approving a Collaboration Agreement Between Legacy Community Alliance for Health and the City of Monona. As a Green Tier Legacy participant the City is eligible for this 5-year project. There is no cost to the City to train five staff members for a study of the City s policy s impact on public health. Examples include sidewalks; they are a healthier choice because they encourage walking. Staff would work with their team on a project the City would focus on. The UniverCity may have a recommendation that could work into this. Alder O Connor stated the goal is to look at the health affect and impact of City policies besides the financial consideration. City Administrator Little reported this would begin on May 25 and along with Middleton, the City is the first to participate in this project. Alder Holmquist questioned whether staff can be spared for this effort. There is a lot of work that needs to be done by a limited staff. Past efforts like this have added work load to an already stretched staff. He questioned whether this is good timing for this project. City Administrator Little responded they may need to go through the training to see its impact; this is different than the usual process. She will look into whether the training alone can be done. Alder Holmquist stated the UniverCity project was hard to define and it is hard to define what can be implemented; the results are just now being seen. He cautions getting involved with this. Alder O Connor stated this is a 5-year commitment and the City will be getting more support in this case. It could help with UniverCity projects. She requests City Administrator Little contact the group about whether a speaker can come to provide information to the Council. Alder Wood agrees that would be helpful to answer the time commitment questions. He is concerned with adding this to the UniverCity projects. They could possibly work together but he thinks UniverCity work should be done first. City Administrator Little reported the UniverCity reports are due on June 23. Alder O Connor reported there will be a raw data document and several copies of a book of executive summary provided. REPORTS Members announced upcoming committee meeting dates and times. Members expressed respect and appreciation for Alder Busse s passion and commitment to the City and his contributions to Council debate. He has been willing to persuade others while also listening to others,

6 Page 6 bringing up another angle to an issue and expressing a differing voice. Council President Speight stated Alder Busse motivated him to increase his preparations and the thought he put into Council actions. Alder Busse responded stating the City is lucky to have the staff that it does, and thanks the committees and volunteers as well. He has enjoyed working with all of the Council members and Mayors during his years as Alderperson. The Council has a big responsibility when spending other people s money. It has been a privilege to serve the community. City Clerk Andrusz reported Open Book is next Monday and Tuesday and Board of Review is May 31. City Administrator Little thanks Alder Busse for his years of service and reported the City Hall remodeling will we completed this week. Electronic code books will be available; members did not request paper copies. Police Chief Ostrenga achieved a Certificate of Management. The Volunteer Appreciation event went very well. All are welcome to participate in the mural painting event tomorrow at MG21 from noon to 3:00 p.m. The UniverCity presentation conflicts with the DCCVA annual meeting hosted by the City so she will work on that scheduling. She reminds listeners that the weekly Monona News student broadcasts are wonderful. APPOINTMENTS There were no Appointments. ADJOURNMENT A motion by Alder Busse, seconded by Alder Kitslaar to adjourn, was carried. (8:52 p.m.) Joan Andrusz City Clerk