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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1990.1218.TCWSM.MinutesTOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS MINUTES OF THE WORK/STUDY SESSION OF THE FOUNTAIN HILLS TOWN COUNCIL TUESDAY, DECEMBER 18, 1990 A public work/study session of the Fountain Hills Town Council was convened and called to order by Mayor John Cutillo at approximately 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, December 18, 1990 in the conference room of the Fountain Hills Town Hall Offices located at 16836 E. Palisades, Building C, Fountain Hills, Arizona. Present for the work/study session Mayor John Cutillo and Vice Mayor Wally Hudson, and Councilmembers Mike Minarsich, Frank Clark, Bill O'Brien, Peg Tibbetts and Charlie Fox. Also present were town Manager Paul Nordin, Director of Community Development Gary Jeppson, Town Attorney Bill Farrell, and town Clerk Cassie Hansen. Also present was Fred Sindel of Ritoch, Powell & Associates. AGENDA ITEM #2 - DISCUSS RESOLUTION 1990-34 CORRECTING THE ROAD TITLE DEEDS. Town Attorney Bill Farrell addressed resolution 1990-34 as one that has caused some considerable confusion. He mentioned that Councilwoman Tibbetts brought this problem to the council's attention first in August or September of 1990 when a piece of property was about to be sold and the deeds that had been accepted from the four road districts were not totally clear to the title examiners. He explained that each of the 20-plus title companies in the state buys a copy of the daily transactions at the county recorders's office, and by being conservative because of their title insurance, they posted the deeds for each ,tw individual lot within the Town of Fountain Hills so that some interest may be claimed by the Town. Mr. Farrell and Mr. Nordin had attempted to get the title companies to come up with some corrective language as they were viewing this as a title company problem. They were unsuccessful. However, as this problem was becoming really bothersome to people wishing to transact business in the community, Mr. Farrell drafted resolution 1990-34 which would give notice that the Town of Fountain Hills is claiming title to every street, every public right of way, and every easement that the road district had, and no title claim to any individual lots. With the help of MCO, this resolution had been distributed to the major title companies with which they do business, and, he believed, was acceptable to them. Mr. Farrell asked the Council to entertain the adoption of Resolution 1990-34, authorizing Town Clerk Cassie Hansen to record a copy with Maricopa County Recorders Office, and therefore removing any ambiguity from the titles. He explained that adoption of this resolution would be easier for the Town to do than the Road Districts as they have officially disbanded and would have to reassemble to reconvey the deeds. Mr. Nordin asked the Council to pass this resolution with the emergency clause thus enabling it to take effect immediately so people can get on with their business of selling and buying property. Mayor Cutillo asked if this resolution would effect the ability of the county to collect taxes. Mr. Farrell stated that it would. Mayor Cutillo further clarified that the county would still have the power of lien on property. Town Council Work Study Minutes 12/18/90 Page 1 of 13 To Councilman Fox's question regarding the cost of this action, Mr. Farrell replied that it would include several hours of his time, or about $1,000.00, and approximately $13.00 for recording fees. Councilman Fox stated he could understand the need for adopting this resolution, but that he was not certain it would correct the problem. Mr. Farrell answered that since he had much background in title insurance, he felt this would satisfy a title officer and protect the Town's interest. Councilman Fox commented that he felt this resolution did not give any new clarification, and didn't understand if it will effect the title companies. Mr. Farrell stated this was more a "soothing balm" than a great legal document and would make the big title companies feel more comfortable with removing that restriction. Mr. Nordin explained that the major title companies had stated that this resolution would make them feel much better and would enable them to proceed with those matters they had before them. AGENDA ITEM #3 - MONTHLY REPORT BY MAGISTRATE SHOOB ON THE COURT'S ACTIVITIES. Magistrate Shoob reported that for the last two weeks he had been attending the "New Judges Orientation" course put on by the Arizona Supreme Court. It was a rather intense two -week course covering a multitude of subjects from everything having to do with what a judge can minimally wear under his robe, to how to handle a very difficult jury problem. He reported that the new part-time clerk had been hired, beginning work on December 17, 1990. The next item discussed by Magistrate Shoob was the Monthly Numerical Report. This report showed cases pending in these three areas: new cases filed for the month, hearings or trials held, other terminations (such as pleas, traffic school, or paying of fines), and the total gross revenue from the court for the month of November. (The "other" section of the report signified (a) orders of protection, (b) injunctions against harassment, (c) quasi civil action, (d) search warrants, or any other action besides traffic or criminal.) Councilwoman Tibbetts asked if Magistrate Shoob felt the collections were improving, and was answered that he felt they were. Even without the additional help, the court had begun to send out letters and orders to show cause for collection, and that people walked in every day mentioning they had received his letter and would like to know what they could work out. He stated that the court hasn't been able to touch everything. He further stated that that morning, the court had an arraignment in the initial appearance calendar of over 140 tickets representing some 70 people, many of whom had multiple tickets. Approximately 50 of these people took care of their matters prior to that morning. However, of the people who did show, he estimated the court added close to $20,000 in their receivables in two hours that morning. He added that these were the major traffic violations, and that this was a rough figure. Magistrate Shoob asked what the council thought of the form he presented with the above information, and stated he was open to suggestions for improvement. Councilman Fox suggested the Magistrate add a year-to-date figure for cases filed, hearings, trials, and terminations. Magistrate Shoob agreed to begin this change and update for December, 1990. Town Council Work Study Minutes 12/18/90 Page 2 of 13 Vice Mayor Hudson asked if any traffic offenses are considered to be criminal offenses. Magistrate Shoob replied that there are two types of traffic offenses, the first is civil traffic cases, which was created in 1984. These are the minor cases; speeding up to 20 miles per hour, running stop signs, and following too closely; and are handled like a civil case. For these cases one doesn't become involved in the "rights" questions such as the right to an attorney or the appointment of an attorney. The second is criminal traffic cases. These include such things as DUI (driving under the influence), driving with a suspended license, reckless driving, racing, and several others. Driving without insurance or registration is considered a civil case. He mentioned that the fine for driving without insurance is $342.50. He said the state legislature has set down a minimum fine for this offense of $250.00, and requires the Town to pay surcharges on that. This brought the fine up to $342.50, however, the supreme court has gone from 379 to 40Z. Therefore, the court still needs to increase the fine to allow for the increase. Magistrate Shoob pointed out occasions where a person is cited for no insurance but they come into court with insurance at the time of or prior to the time of their ticket arraignment date. He feels people in this situation should be given a break. He stated that he cannot suspend any part of the $250.00, but he can suspend the surcharge, and has been doing this in cases where people bring themselves into compliance. He stated that the majority of crimes are traffic related, and mentioned that there has been some shoplifting, assaults, and domestic violence. Jane Bill of the Public asked where the majority of traffic offenses were committed. Magistrate Shoob answered that more speeding tickets are given on Saguaro Boulevard, and another area where traffic violations are committed regularly is Golden Eagle. Ms. Bill asked if the Council has ever considered increasing the speed limit on Saguaro Boulevard from 35 MPH to 40 MPH. Magistrate Shoob and Mr. Fred Sindel pointed out that the speed limit was established prior to Fountain Hills' incorporation, and was set by traffic engineer experts. They cited the road's many curves and changes in elevations to support this point. AGENDA ITEM #4 AND #5 - SCHEDULING COUNCIL MEETINGS IN DECEMBER AND JANUARY, AND PRESENTATION OF TOWN MANAGER'S ROAD PAVING REPORT. Mr. Nordin requested that Mayor Cutillo open discussion for both agenda items at the same time, which was agreed to by the Mayor and the Council. Mr. Nordin introduced Mr. Fred Sindel as his "second -opinion" engineer working on the street paving report who had, in particular, worked on the cost estimate numbers in the report. Mr. Nordin stated he had requested Mr. Sindel's presence at this work/study session to discuss the reasoning and comparables used to generate the numbers. Mr. Nordin clarified that what he intended was to encourage the Council to discuss freely and openly his street paving report. Mr. Nordin then turned the discussion over to Mr. Sindel to discuss his cost estimates and clarify the manner in which he arrived at his figures. Mr. Sindel explained that he had reviewed the cost estimates of the Town of Fountain Hills, taking the average three low bidders in the surrounding area. Some of this was based on the bids the City of Phoenix received in May of 1990. He added that many of these are projects that the Arizona Department of Town Council Work Study Minutes 12/18/90 Page 3 of 13 Transportation had received on typical projects which had taken place in the Phoenix metropolitan area and surrounding communities, and that all of these costs were based on the average three low bidders. He explained that the costs were also based on a project having quality control. He stated, "for instance, it is a guarantee that the specs are enforced for that particular project, and testing is done to insure that the taxpayer is getting what he is paying for. So, those costs should be quite close in all items. I found some that MCO had previously done, but were quite low and were based on strictly building a road ... There is no way I could see that those costs could be used on a project that is going to go bid as far as contract items are concerned. Because you are going to have to pay at least $8.50 per square yard for paving if you have (1) two inches of asphalt down, (2) six inches of aggregate base down, and (3) also you are going to have grade for paving the street. This is typically what the bids of $8.50 have. The survey monuments have been a little low. I noticed that MCO had a price there of about $80.00 each. What they were using was a mag detail of B which is a brass or bronze cap, and typically those have been bid for around $160.00 to $280.00 a piece to model these in the Metropolitan Phoenix area. So, I felt that the prices that they had weren't relevant to today's prices." Mr. Sindel mentioned that he did not know how old these MCO prices were. Councilman Clark mentioned that MCO recently had a paving program, and reminded the Council that Golden Eagle came in a few dollars less than what they had estimated. Mr. Sindel further stated that curb and gutter was typically sold for $7.50 to $9.00 per linear foot, and MCO was doing this for $4.50 per linear foot. Typical bids in the Metropolitan area of Phoenix from Tanner Construction, Granite Construction, and Hunter Contracting had all been $7.50 to $9.00 per linear foot. Another item he said that must be considered was the asphalt and concrete to surfacing per sq. yd. The cost MCO was going to do this for was $5.50. He said that when you looked at all the other bids elsewhere, you found $8.50 to $9.00 per sq. yd. instead of their bid. He further stated that a contractor would have to bid on this project and there would be faulty control specs written into the contract where they would have to guarantee the asphalt be a certain mix design, that there would be a certain density on the road, and that all of the testing would be done to insure they meet county specifications. Councilman Clark said the only thing he would not question was an increase due to higher petroleum prices today than six months ago, and wondered how MCO had come in consistently around their estimated prices. Councilman O'Brien mentioned that whoever did the streets would have to meet county inspection while observing certain quality controls. Mr. Sindel said he did not know what had been written into MCO's contract. Traffic control, among other matters such as dust control, were other considerations which may be a cost changing factor. Mr. Sindel stated that he did not know if these factors had been written into MCO's contract. Mr. Nordin told the council that his reason and strategy for Mr. Sindel's inclusion in his street paving plans was that Mr. Sindel knows what it costs to bid this type of project in the public sector. He recommended that the council use the figures in the report. He stated that he hoped the bond package would be approved, and that when final figures were worked with, that they would come in significantly less. In light of what Mr. Sindel had explained, he felt the Town Council Work Study Minutes 12/18/90 Page 4 of 13 Council would be safe to use the figures in the report, and not "too safe" as was the concern expressed by Mayor Cutillo. Mr. Nordin explained that his greatest concern in preparing this report was that when authorization was given, he would find the figures too low. He said he believed that this was the worst danger, and that it was much better to plan high, and spend less. Mr. Nordin explained that Mr. Sindel was a certified expert in road paving in that he had worked for the State of Arizona for years as a district engineer. He had bid hundreds of projects like this which he had prepared for the Town. Mr. Nordin said he felt Mr. Sindel was truly one of the best men in the state for estimating paving costs and for knowing what these projects cost in the public sector. Mr. Nordin also said he had observed that Mr. Sindel had been responsible for paving and supervising very large contracts, and had estimated very close to actual costs. In response to a question from Councilman Minarsich, Mr. Nordin replied there were certain requirements and differences between the public vs. the private sector street paving costs. For public sector bidding, quality requirements were built in by the county to protect the taxpayers from unscrupulous contractors and subcontractors, and not in the private sector. Councilman Fox said that he hoped that the Town would inspect the construction of the roads to make sure that construction met specifications and quality control, because the county doesn't inspect the roads. Councilman O'Brien questioned that, if he assumed that the variation in cost was due to quality, what would happen if the Town could demonstrate that a contractor 'LL had not met the quality control specifications. Mr. Sindel answered that a penalty could be levied against the contractor by paying him only a partial fee for his work, or even by making him do the whole job over again. He further established that any terms of penalty could be written into the contract, and certifications of quality could be required from all suppliers and contractors. All bidders would be subject to these controls. Mr. Nordin mentioned to the Mayor and Council that anything in the report was "fair game" for discussion. He told the Council that he had not yet received a letter from MCO regarding their portion of the road paving, but believed he would have this in his possession by Thursday night's meeting. Councilman Clark said he felt it would be important for the Council to know if the amount would be paid in full now, or if it would be proportioned by year. Mr. Nordin promised he would discuss this matter with MCO within the next few days. Mr. Nordin said the Council needed to decide if they wanted any special or additional meetings other than those actually scheduled on calendar now, and the date of the election. Mr. Nordin specified that he recommended in his report that the election date be March 12, 1991, but that this date was not necessarily "cut in stone." He discussed the suggestion that the election be held the same day as the guberatorial run-off election and said he had discussed this with several people as well as with Mr. Farrell. Mr. Nordin further recommended that the Council not hold its regular Work Session on New Year's Eve, but continue to plan for the regular meeting on the following Thursday, January 3, 1991. He commented that the next regular session of the Town Council would be held on Town Council Work Study Minutes 12/18/90 Page 5 of 13 January 17, 1991, and this would be the last possible day that it could act on the recommendations in his street paving report and give the Town staff time enough to prepare the necessary items for action in terms of call for the bond elections. Mr. Nordin stated that the Council could take action as early as January 3, 1991 or even earlier on the following Thursday night's meeting. He explained that no matter what action the Council did take, they should not feel as if they have "Crossed the Rubicon." In other words, the Council could, because of any public input between now and January 17, 1991, irregardless of their decision, stop the process and not call the bond election. Councilman Minarsich commented that part of the reason the issue of Fountain Hills Boulevard was not addressed in Mr. Nordin's paving report or in the bond issue was that the developer was planning on going forth with Palisades Boulevard next year. He felt that based on the information received today, that it was unlikely that Palisades would be paved. He stated that he had spoken with other road district trustees in the past and they had indicated that Fountain Hills Boulevard is a mess, is disintegrating, and will require major replacement if the Town does not do major maintenance. Councilman Clark stated that he never thought it was within one year, but rather within two years that Palisades Boulevard would be paved, and that MCO had not made a public announcement to this end. He further commented that the recent slurry process had done wonders to help hold the road together and even if it did not last the full five years as expected, that doing the slurry process twice would only cost what a chip seal would have cost. Due to his trust in the abilities of the slurry process, he agreed with Mr. Nordin's recommendation and felt the Town was better off waiting to see how its traffic load patterns change based on the completion of Palisades Boulevard. Mr. Nordin stated that he felt any weakness in his cost estimation procedures in his paving report was the $200,000 estimate for the repair of Fountain Hills Boulevard. He said he never represented this figure to be less solid than the other numbers, but that he was looking at a relatively difficult situation and arriving at an amount reasonable to further the life of the pavement for a given amount of time. He further stated that even if he had estimated $300,000 or $400,000, he was sure that the money could be well spent on Fountain Hills Boulevard. However, his decision was based on a desire to not increase the bond issue too much, keeping it down to a reasonable cost. He went on to say that if the Council would like to add more money to that estimate, he would not object. Councilman Clark commented that the old estimate for reconstructing Fountain Hills Boulevard prior to the Iraqi situation was about $2 million but felt that using the latest estimating figures, a more likely figure would be $3 million to $4 million. Councilman Fox expressed his concerns regarding the slurry seal previously placed on Fountain Hills Boulevard and how well it would weather with the upcoming seasons. He stated that he felt a big majority of the maintenance obligation rested on the developer. Town Council Work Study Minutes 12/18/90 Page 6 of 13 Mr. Sindel stated that a good "rule of thumb" for overlay on any road was that every inch of overlay added will increase the road's life by one year because chip and slurry seals add no structural value. They are strictly appearances. He found that chip seals and slurry seals were a good way to hold the road together until the Town had enough money to do it right and, because the traffic patterns may change, enough time to assess a future design. In answer to Mayor Cutillo's suggestion to pursue federal/state support, Mr. Sindel mentioned there was some money available depending on the various routes of a Town which would qualify for federal aid. He said the Town might have to designate some of the major arterioles or collections of streets that would come under the review of federal funding. He has found in federal funding for these towns (which Fountain Hills would come under Maricopa Association of Governments) that the person who has the plans ready gets the money. One can designate certain routes that would then qualify for federal aid. The county does the same thing to get federal aid for secondary roads. Mayor Cutillo said that the state was going to designate the route, if they have not already done so, because it directly leads to a county park. Mr. Nordin stated that there was no question in his mind what had to be pursued. He agreed with Councilman Minarsich that this may have to be a priority situation, and if the funds are available, and whoever asks for them first gets them, then we should be there "knocking on the door." Councilman Clark suggested pursuing federal money for all three roads which come together at the North end of town, Palisades, Fountain Hills Boulevard, and Saguaro Boulevard. Mr. Nordin qualified that Mr. Sindel may be able to respond better than he, but he saw no harm in asking for federal money and, out of the three roads, Fountain Hills Boulevard would be the primary recipient. Councilman Minarsich agreed that Fountain Hills Boulevard was the major concern since Palisades was the developer's responsibility and that Saguaro Boulevard was in much better shape. Mr. Nordin stated that he believed that if the Town could get these roads designated in the federal aid system, that this would be a help in itself. These roads would have to be designed to certain standards and the construction would also have to be administered up to certain standards. Usually, Mr. Sindel said, those projects would have to be administered by the Arizona Department of Transportation as far as inspection and contract administration unless they designate someone in the Town who could do it. Mr. Sindel said he is familiar with Towns who didn't have the staff available and, in order to save money, had a surveyor qualified to do inspections run compaction tests. Otherwise, the town had to come up with a certain percentage of the contract administration cost for this. Councilman Fox said one of the biggest problems in Fountain Hills was line of site problems. Mr. Sindel agreed that the Town would have to meet various design criteria for site distances, alignment, and everything else. For instance, Inca, the intersection which didn't line up, would require work in order to be a safe intersection. After the Council expressed some concerns over taking away peoples' driveways in order to correct this problem, Mr. Sindel explained that it was possible to stay within the specifications and still remain within the aesthetic values of the community. This was particularly true with a local Town Council Work Study Minutes 12/18/90 Page 7 of 13 government project depending on what class the Town wishes to put the road under. Each class has its own design standards, and each road can probably be classified to keep the aesthetic values. Based on certain design speeds one can get away with not changing too much at this intersection. Mr. Nordin expressed to the Mayor and Council that the amount of money put in the bond issue for Fountain Hills Boulevard, whether the amount remained the same or was raised, was not intended to be a permanent solution to the problem. The issue of Fountain Hills Boulevard would have to be revisited in the near future. He felt that the two years this would give the Town time to do the leg work necessary to get some federal help. Mr. Sindel explained that if the road came under the preview of a local government project, then it woiuld have to meet state and federal standards if the Town wants to have federal money. Mr. Sindel explained that applying for these funds usually goes through the state and added that the "squeaky wheel gets the grease". Councilman Fox asked that if the state turned Fountain Hills Boulevard into a road of regional significance, would it be maintained with state or federal money. Mr. Sindel answered that some of these projects were done on a "90/10" (105.' by the community, and 90Z by the federal money administered by the state). He said he didn't know what the percentage would be right now, but that this was what typically set the standards. Councilman Fox said that he felt that one key thing that had to be addressed in Thursday's meeting was that some time should be spent addressing the fact that Fountain Hills Boulevard was not in the program. He said the Council should state that one of the mains reasons was that the Council was looking at it as a regional assistance area and it would come to pass within a 2 to 21 year period. He said it was important for the public know that the Council hadn't forgotten about Fountain Hills Boulevard and to keep driving that point home. Councilman Minarsich agreed that he felt an issue would be made of this if the Council just ignored it. Councilman O'Brien said the only possible plan he saw for the Council can do was to give an example of the cost of an entire rebuild, the most expensive they could possibly think of. He felt the public should know that, at this time, the Council didn't have any input on shared funding, didn't yet know how much of the road did or did not have to be redone because they don't know what standards must be met. He emphasized that the public should be informed that the Council was not ignoring the issue and that it was pursuing other avenues of alternative funding for rebuilding, major maintenance or whatever was necessary. Councilman Fox explained that there were certain sections of the street which were going to be the developer's responsibility. He said that until this was considered and the Council determined what areas were the developer's responsibility, there was no reason to slow the other paving issues up for this data collection. Councilman Minarsich pointed out that the intersection which needed the most help was the one near the new Safeway Center because the traffic in this area would be increasing. Councilman Clark said that he thought the Town was going to get Town Council Work Study Minutes 12,118190 Page 8 of 13 some help along the roadway adjacent to the development. To Mr. Sindel's question as to whether or not there was a permit system in the Town designating that you can only have openings so close to an intersection, he was answered that this had not been done yet. Mr. Nordin mentioned that this was part of a process which hadn't been completed yet. Mrs. Bill from the public asked how many roads would be left to be paved after the bond issue and whether or not the Council was considering all the roads in Fountain Hills. The Council answered that they were considering all the roads they were responsible for. Councilman Clark commented that if the cost was held down to 859 of the estimate (which was within the realm of possibility), that savings would approximate the Town's share of Fountain Hills Boulevard. Mr. Nordin agreed that this was one point which was quite true, but had not been made yet. Mr. Nordin said that if the Town did realize a cost savings, he would come back and report this to the Council with a number of options that could be considered at that point. The Council could then make a decision. Councilman Fox said that the cost estimates put together by the road district show Fountain Hills Boulevard with a median. He speculated that if Palisades was going to have a median, and it is the major entrance to the West, then the Council may not want to spend a lot of money for the short term for the construction and the long term for the maintenance on a median on Fountain Hills Boulevard. He pointed this out as a major cost savings. Councilwoman Tibbetts interjected that she thought the Council had to be careful not to spend so much of the presentation talking about the exceptions, but to concentrate on purpose. Vice Mayor Hudson agreed that the Council should just have an answer if someone asked a question. Mr. Nordin said he did intend to mention this somewhat briefly as he did show this as a $200,000 cost item. Mr. Farrell told the Council that the State statute required that a call for an election in the form of a resolution be adopted by the governing body and that it was traditionally done approximately sixty days in advance of the election. He further said this sets into motion a series of mechanisms that go backwards from the date picked for the election such as the close of voter registration and the availability of ballots for absentee balloting. Most of the cities and towns, if not all in the county of Maricopa, contract with Maricopa County to provide assistance to Cassie with the onerous responsibility that any election places on the Town Clerk. Contracting for and obtaining polling places, obtaining consent from paid workers on the approval of those resolutions, preparing the ballots, making sure that all of the election paraphernalia is delivered and delivered on -time, posting signs for the limits of advertising and the numerous other things that are necessary to go on. There is nothing in the law that would prohibit us from joining the governor run-off election on the 26th, as far as our contract with Maricopa County is concerned. However, there is somewhat of an unwritten code that exists between the cities and towns and county elections department that says that the cities and towns will primarily hold their elections in the spring of a given year and that the county election department will concentrate on statewide and federal elections in the fall. There is a tremendous resistance on the County's part from adding items such as special elections to a statewide election. The reason is that Maricopa County Town Council Work Study Minutes 12/18/90 Page 9 of 13 uses their exterior boundaries and establishes districts within the framework of the county. Those districts do not respect city and town limits, school district limits, or special district limits. So that if there was a voter that was in anv of our districts here that was in the county district but outside the corporate limits of our town, the county would have to create split registers and there would have to be split boards so that you wouldn't be in that awkward position of walking in and perhaps signing in one area to vote in the governor's election, and then walking over to an entirely separate board, and determining whether or not you could vote on the bond issues. Thirdly, the county's voting tabulation mechanism is all geared to the media and to that governor's race so that there is an excellent possibility that even if they allowed us to join them, they would suggest that we had paper ballots and then would suggest that they would not be available to count them which would require us to put another special board together for the counting, so I think with the dynamics of the statewide governor's race and the logistics problems that it causes it would be my recommendation that we stick with the original date of the 12th of March for our election. Mrs. Bill from the public asked what number of voters need to get turned out to pass the bonds -and she was answered that no certain percentage of voters are required. Councilman O'Brien asked Mr. Farrell that if what he was really saying is that the expense is probably going to be a wash. Mr. Farrell answered that the factor of the burden on the Town staff is much better on the 12th of March than it is on the 26th. Cooperation from the county, availability of polling places, lack of the need for a split register, all work much better for the Town's internal mechanism. He said that the Town could get one polling place, but that would have to be covered in the initial resolution. He said, he suggests we return to the traditional polling places. He said that he wants to make sure that the federal government does give the Town their mandatory pre -clearance requirement and to make a substantial change in polling places, which he did once in Glendale, and ended up flying to Washington in January, in a snowstorm to explain that to justice department. Mr. Farrell added that the Town could count on being very much discouraged by the county official from holding our election on February 26th. Councilwoman Tibbetts pointed out that they are only talking about a two week difference. Councilman Minarsich expressed his concern about voter turn -out. Danny Tancredi asked Mr. Farrell if the Council would have a better chance of winning if it had both the elections together because of the turn -out. He stated that he believed that to have more of a turn -out would be a chance of winning, disagreeing with Councilman Minarsich that less of a turn -out would be. Mr. Farrell commented that the cost issue is probably a "wash." There would be no economy to gain by combining. In other words, the hard cost dollars to the budget of the Town was going to be the same whether it was the 26th or the 12th. He said, "Those things they give us they send a bill for, those things that they won't do for us, we pay for. Mr. Nordin started this next item by making suggestion that if it was possible, he recommended the Council act on his recommendations at the next regular Council meeting. He stated that it would give adequate time for the public to react as To wn Council Work Study Minutes 12/18/90 Page 10 of 13 well as allowing the largest amount of leadtime for a "pro" (yes) committee to be established. It would also be a definitive clear action of intent on the part of the Council to go ahead and begin the planning. He said this may work to the Council's advantage. He also said if the Council did not feel comfortable with this, they could discuss the possibility of having a special meeting on the 27th. If enough councilmembers were not available then, the issue could still be approached on the 3rd of January. He did recommend that action be taken as soon as possible when the Council feels comfortable. Councilman O'Brien clarified, through questioning Mr. Nordin, that this would require a simple majority of the forum. To Councilman Fox's question, Councilwoman Tibbetts answered that she would be meeting with the Council on the 27th, but not on Thursday, the 20th. Councilman Fox said that he felt that the Council should give the community at least one week and one printing of the paper to be able to act. Councilman Fox said he felt the Council would have some opposition and would just like to diffuse anybody's statement that the Council presented the issue and "rammed it down the Towns" throat the same night. Councilman O'Brien questioned what type of feedback it would take for the Council to change their minds. Mayor Cutillo replied that if the Council was solidly committed, but changed after listening to the public's opinion, they could change their minds on the third. He said he felt that the Council should give the public a chance to speak whether the Council agreed or not. To Councilman Fox's question, Mr. Nordin said he was unclear as to what exactly the content of the pending newspaper articles would be. In response, Councilman Minarsich said he felt that if the article states that Thursday is the night the Council would be acting on the street paving issue, then that would give the public their opportunity to be there. Councilman O'Brien said he was committed to this issue and is ready to take the flack, but that if the Councilmembers changed their minds later on, he felt this would not be good. Councilman Minarsich said he didn't feel the Council was surprising anybody. He felt that the newspaper article indicated that this issue would be addressed by the Council on Thursday. Many residents had already held discussions with Mr. Nordin and were getting their voice on the election date. Vice Mayor Hudson said the reason he was not convinced to act on this issue was because he was not sure he liked the method of funding. He did not like this funding, but if it was all that was available, he would go with it. He expressed that he felt there was a way of using sales tax. Councilman Minarsich pointed out that property tax would increase the assessment about $41 on a $100,000 home but that the average family of four, paying a 17. sales tax, would pay $155 more per year. Mr. Nordin commented to Vice Mayor Hudson that he, Mayor Cutillo and Councilman Clark had researched this matter and had begun preparing some information pursuant to the Mayor's suggestion. However, because of subsequent conversations indicating no further interest on the part of the Mayor, he had discontinued his research. Mr. Nordin stated that there was no way that the Council would use sales tax as an underlying security for a bond issue. He stated he had asked the bond experts and they had asked their bond attorneys. In response to Vice Mayor Hudson's suggestion that there may be ways of getting money without calling a Town Council Work Study Minutes 12/18/90 Page 11 of 13 bond election, Mr. Nordin answered that the only way to do this was through a municipal property corporation or certificate of anticipation and those methods all require collateral or security. Those mechanisms didn't allow for this security to be only a sales tax. They required something more specific. Mayor Cutillo pointed out that the option remained open for someone to make the motion on Thursday night if they so chose. Councilman Minarsich commented that even though there were no guarantees of a unanimous vote on the 27th, he felt a unanimous vote on this issue to be critical to the success of this program Cassie Hansen interjected the suggestion that the Council have a work studv session on the 27th and a vote on the 3rd. Councilman Fox pursued the idea that if there were other possible funding avenues which could be considered, they could report next week and vote. Vice Mayor Hudson promised that due to his belief that the Council could find alternate funding, if he found any new ideas, he would present them in writing. Mr. Nordin expressed his willingness to answer the public's questions. He said that if the Vice Mayor found anything that he hadn't been able to find, he would like to be the first to know. Councilman O'Brien stated that most of the funding mechanisms discussed by Mr. Nordin such as certificates of participation and municipal property corporations, were designed to pledge an asset such as real estate, and that Fountain Hills, unfortunately, couldn't do this. Mr. Nordin directed the Council's attention to appendix G of his report which showed a letter from Peackock, Hislop, Staley, & Given addressing this issue. He read from the second paragraph, "The Town does not have the statutory authority to issue revenue bonds for road improvements, notwithstanding the fact that sale tax revenues would be pledged for debt service..." as the key sentence. "In addition, in the context of a municipal property corporation bond issue for street improvements, the Town would need sufficient other assets as the underlying security (besides the roads) to effectuate a lease/leaseback transaction." He relayed that he had asked the company to check with their bond council on this to confirm. Mr. Tancredi interjected to the Council that if everybody was favorable to this issue, and if many people with unpaved roads didn't mind the property tax increase, that he felt the Council should vote for the issue. He told Mr. Nordin that he had done a very good job on his report. Mr. Tancredi also said he felt this would give more time to form a committee. Mayor Cutillo said he would feel more comfortable knowing he had all of the information possible. Councilman O'Brien reiterated that if the Council did vote on this issue, it would not void the possibility of further information changing their opinions. Councilman Hudson commented that although the Town definitely needed the HURF funding for the project, it may not need the property tax. Mr. Nordin said that regardless of the day action was taken, the Council could sav that it did adopt the recommendation but directed him to pursue any possible sales tax alternatives. Town Council Work Study Minutes 12/18/90 Page 12 of 13 9 im Mayor Cutillo said there were those who, even if they voted for this issue and passed it, would not consider or want to consider sales tax. Mr. Nordin said he could still pursue and present the sales tax issue. Vice Mayor Hudson commented that if, at a later time, a sales tax option presented itself as a possibility, that people could vote against the property tax and the sales tax could be passed. Mrs. Bill from the public stood and asked the Council if it was going to develop one- to five-year plan. She further stated that she had been in Scottsdale and had found that property taxes were less than half of her Fountain Hills property taxes. Councilman Minarsich said that during the incorporation campaign Scottsdale taxes were just about equal, but their bond election caused a dramatic increase in taxes. In the Scottsdale Progress Mayor Drinkwater hadjust stated that they were going to have to go back for more money -- another bond issue to the voters. Councilman Fox commented that the Town had had the tax assessors group out to give the Council an education on taxes and assessments and that on new construction, the taxes were very low. He said it takes around one and one-half years for the actual assessed value, and they come by every three years and re- assess an area based on actuals. So, people in Fountain Hills who bought new homes around one and one-half years ago, are getting tax bills that are really high compared to when they first bought. AGENDA ITEM #6 - ADJOURNMENT The council adjourned the work/study session at approximately 8:25 p.m. ATTT6E�ST: Cassie B. Hansen, Town Clerk CERTIFICATION TOWN gFOIN IM�7_1 By: Joh . Cutillo. Mavor I hereby certify that the foregoing minutes are a true and correct copy of the minutes of the regular meeting of the Town Council of Fountain Hills held on the 18th day of December, 1990. I further certify that the meet in was duly called and that a quorum was present. DATED this day of January, 1991• Cassie B. Hansen, Town Clerk Town Council Work Study Minutes 12/18/90 Page 13 of 13