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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2005.0412.TCWSM.Minutes TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS
MINUTES OF THE WORK STUDY SESSION
OF THE FOUNTAIN HILLS TOWN COUNCIL
APRIL 12,200E
AGENDA ITEM#1 —CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL
Vice Mayor Nicola called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m.
Present for roll call were the following members of the Fountain Hills Town Council: Councilman
Archambault, Councilman Kehe, Councilman Kavanagh, Councilman Schlum, Vice Mayor Nicola, and
Councilman McMahan. Town Manager Tim Pickering, Town Clerk Bev Bender, Town Attorney Andrew
McGuire, Planning & Zoning Administrator Richard Turner, and Code Enforcement Officer Raymond Reese
were also present.
Mayor Nichols was absent from the meeting.
AGENDA ITEM#2—DISCUSSION OF GARAGE SALES AND GARAGE SALE SIGNAGE.
Town Manager Tim Pickering stated that this issue has been before the staff for quite some time and noted that
anonymous complaints were also received from residents regarding this matter. He said that staff was asked to
look into this matter and develop options for dealing with garage sales, signage and enforcement and added that
staff would provide an overview of their findings.
Planning & Zoning Administrator Richard Turner addressed the Council and briefly outlined his presentation.
He referred to photographs of illegal garage signs that were collected by one Code Enforcement Officer working
just a few hours on Saturday morning during the weekend of March 28th as well as a photograph of garage signs
collected over a two-week period of time and stated that the signs were illegally erected in the Town's right-of-
way. He noted that signs were randomly being placed throughout the community on weekends and the result
was not very attractive. He discussed the history of Code Enforcement in this area and said that the Town used
to have one Code Enforcement Officer work one Saturday a month and noted that at that level of enforcement,
the Council and Code Enforcement office started to receive packets containing photographs of illegal signs from
concerned citizens. He said that in response to the concerns, enforcement was increased by altering the Friday
work schedule to have a Code Enforcement Officer work Saturday mornings to collect illegal signs. He reported
that even with the increased enforcement, the Town continued to receive complaints regarding illegal garage
sale signage.
Mr. Turner noted that garage sales were typically held over a three-day period and with Code Enforcement
working only on Saturday mornings, the problem was a difficult one to control. He added that despite the fact
that the Officer collected the illegal signs, someone was usually right behind him replacing the signs with others.
He reported that last year the Fountain Hills Times advertised 653 garage sales, of which 557 were single family
and 96 were multi-family or organization sales. He noted that these figures did not include garage sales held in
planned developments or organized community-wide sales. He added that sales that were not advertised in the
local paper were also not included in the figures and stated the opinion that this was a significant number.
Mr. Turner stated that current garage sale regulations were contained in the Town Code and they stated when
and where garage sales could be held. He said that the sales could only be conducted on the property holding
the sale and items sold could only be those that were primarily surplus to the residential use. He added that the
sales could only be held for three consecutive days and only four times per year in the same dwelling unit and
the sale and related activity may be limited to the hours between 7:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. He noted that the
Nye garage sale sign regulations were found in the Zoning Ordinance and they stated that signs must be set three feet
behind the curb and no signs were allowed in the medians or on Shea Boulevard. He added that they were
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limited to one sign every 300 feet per roadway with the same message and were limited to five signs per
destination. He added that signs could be displayed between sunrise and sunset and the maximum size of the
signs is 4.5 feet and minimum size was 4 feet. He noted that the maximum height of the signs was limited to 3
feet. He added that signs could only be constructed of wrought iron, sheet metal, 1/8`h inch thick plastic or wood
that was at least 3/8ths of an inch thick.
Mr. Turner discussed problems associated with the current situation and noted that there were different
regulations for businesses and churches than there were for residences. He emphasized that there was not
enough staff to cover the required shifts for illegal sign collection. In addition, there were no incentives for
residents to abide by the current regulations and signage returns after enforcement left the area. Mr. Turner
outlined the preventative measures that had been enacted by staff in an effort to address this matter and
reiterated that Code Enforcement alters Friday work schedules to allow an officer to collect illegal signs on
Saturdays and noted that on some weekends 30 to 40 illegal signs were collected. He advised that confiscated
signs were returned to the owner or disposed of and said that staff responded to calls concerning more than four
sales per year at a single dwelling unit.
He noted that permits were not required for garage sale signs and they could be located off of the premises,
while churches and business were prohibited from doing so. He commented on concerns that had been received
from realtors,churches and citizens and said that a local realtor had commented that"if they have to abide by the
rules, then the Town should not allow these garage sale signs to clutter up the streets". In addition, complaints
from Churches include "You folks won't allow us to put out a banner for advertising youth programs, but you
allow the Town to be inundated with garage sale signs every weekend. I don't think that's right." And
concerns from citizens, which include "Just about every weekend I have people taking rocks from my yard to
holdup those hideous garage sale signs. I'm tired of it. Can't the Town do something about this?"
Mr. Turner reported that staff conducted comparisons to regulations that were in place in other upscale
communities and reported that in Kirkland, Washington, signs could only be displayed on the property holding
the sale. In addition, in Carefree, signs could only be displayed on the property holding the sale and a $100
permit was required. New Braunfels, Texas, limits the display of the signs to the property holding the sale and
Paradise Valley only allows signs with a permit. He added that Richmond Heights, Missouri, requires signs to
only be displayed on the property holding the sale and the sale must be conducted in the rear yard of the home
while in Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota, signs can only be displayed on the property holding the sale. He
noted that all towns and cities analyzed had a limit on the amount of garage sales that could be held during the
course of a year.
Mr. Turner discussed proposed options to solve the problems and outlined the following proposals:
1. Central Kiosk that would locate and advertise sales.
* One sign per sale located on the property holding the sale
* Four sales per year per dwelling unit.
2. Community-wide sales.
* One sign where sale located on the property holding the sale.
* Two to four sales per year.
3. Not allowing garage sales.
4. Keep existing code and increase enforcement by adding staff.
5. Do nothing.
Mr. Turner also discussed the pros and cons associated with the above listed proposals.
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1. Central Kiosk.
Pro: Help eliminate signs,provide a central location for advertisement and a locater map for sales.
Con: Cost of kiosk and maintenance.
2. Community-wide sales.
Pro: Help eliminate signs, control the amount of sales every weekend, and might help local businesses
such as restaurants or other retail shops.
Con: Increased traffic on sale weekends, additional burden for Town staff, cost for advertisement, and
other associated costs.
3. Not allow garage sales.
Pro: No signs and no traffic.
Con: Little community support.
4. Keeping existing Code and increase enforcement by adding additional staff.
Pro: Fewer illegal signs.
Con: Increased cost for additional Code Enforcement Officer.
5. Do nothing.
Pro: No additional cost.
Con: Continued complaints and continued sign collections.
Mr. Turner discussed staff's recommendations for community-wide sales, which included limiting the number
of events per year; having the Town provide the newspaper advertisements (at a cost of $1500 per year) and
requiring registration through the Parks & Recreation Department. He said that the advantages of community-
wide sales include more customers for sales because there would be more sales on one day; it would improve
the beauty of the Town by removing the sign clutter; nuisances caused by sales would be limited to sale
weekends and sales could become a community event. He added that this action might help local businesses by
increasing the amount of potential customers on sale weekends; realtors and residents would abide by the same
rules and enforcement would be easier and less costly.
Mr. Turner also outlined "hurdles to be overcome" and said that the dissemination of information regarding the
change would be essential; changing the residents' mindset was also important; regulation changes would need
to occur and procedures would have to be established. He discussed implementation and estimated that an
education process would take approximately six months. He added that community notification would occur
through press releases, Channel 11 and information placed on the Town's website. In addition, ads would be
placed in the garage sale section of the local newspaper and open house meetings would occur.
Mr. Turner commented on feedback that was received regarding staffs recommendation that community-wide
garage sales be held and noted that the Fountain Hills Christian Center stated that they would support this
activity 100% ... "put us down for a big Yes! What a great idea", a member of the Fountain Hills Senior Center
said: "count us in! Unsold items could be donated to Goodwill industries. A great tax write off. This would be
a great thing to do. Other communities do it like McDowell Mountain Ranch." Mr. Turner added that Barbara
Moran, from an organization entitled "Ladies in the Hood," composed of 40 women who meet monthly said
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they too were thinking of organizing something like this and said, "Count us in!" Mr. Turner noted that a
representative of the Community Youth Group stated that they would like to take part in this process and a
representative of the United Methodist Church said, "We think it would be a good idea and would like to take j
part in this".
Mr. Turner informed the Council that staff also contacted Marianne Wiggishoff with Capital Consultants and
she noted that in some of the communities that her organization manages standard signs were used. He added
that in FireRock, a gated community, no sales were allowed and in Sunridge Canyon two community sales per
year were held. He added that according to Dave Henderson with Red Mountain Management, LLC, "a Town
policy created for a Town-wide sale would be a good thing. But not allowing an individual HOA's to govern
what they wanted to do as a community was not." He noted that they manage Crestview,Westridge, Stoneridge,
and Eagle Ridge. He further stated that Michael Latz, with Golden Valley Property Management, stated.
"having community-wide, publicized garage sales would really draw non-Fountain Hills people to the
community and increase traffic at businesses, including restaurants." He noted that the business manages 30
properties in Fountain Hills.
Mr. Turner stated that staff was seeking input from the Council regarding this issue and expressed appreciation
to Raymond Reese for all of his hard work.
Vice Mayor Nicola thanked Mr. Turner for his presentation and said that she would like to note for the record
and clarify that staffs presentation ended on Page 11 of the packet and the accompanying pages that were not
numbered were contributions from a citizen.
Councilman McMahan stated that he had received extensive feedback on this matter and requested the Vice
Mayor's permission to distribute the materials. She encouraged him to do so. Councilman McMahan said that
he was opposed to community-wide garage sales and expressed the opinion that they become a "big flea
market". He added that they were too controlled and restrictive and despite the fact that there might be some
increased business, the very nature of the event called for it to be held on certain dates and at certain times,
which might not fit the plans, needs, and timeframes of the individuals holding the garage sales. He stated that
he was busy on the computer and "cranked out" a few things on which he would appreciate the Council's
consideration.
The Vice Mayor asked Mr. Turner how long the Town had been asking the residents to use the Town provided
garage sale signs for the $30 deposit and how many they had. He responded that they currently have eight and
he was not sure how long the Town had offered them to the citizens. She asked whether information was posted
on the website to help citizens regarding the guidelines for garage sale signage. Mr. Reese responded that
information was posted on the website under the Code Enforcement section. He said that all of the regulations
for garage sales were posted in this area.
Councilman Kavanagh asked what the policies were in neighboring communities (Mesa, Phoenix, Rio Verde
and Scottsdale). Mr. Turner responded that the City of Scottsdale does not aggressively regulate garage sales
but they do allow them. Mr. Reese added that Rio Verde does not allow garage sales at all. Mr. Turner added
that staff did not check with Mesa and Phoenix because their intention was to look at municipalities of similar
size and demographics. He said that staff would be happy to do so of the Council wished.
Councilman Kavanagh stated that he would be interested in knowing what those cities did. He also questioned
whether they asked people who typically held garage sales what they thought of staffs recommendation and Mr.
Turner said they did not. Councilman Kavanagh stated that he would also like to obtain that input and would
like to know how the individuals felt about the proposal. He asked how signage would be regulated on the days
that Town-wide sales were held.
Mr. Turner stated that staff would probably have a Code Enforcement Officer available who would cruise
through the various neighborhoods checking for legal and illegal signs. He added that they would only allow
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signs on the premises holding the sales and noted that the newspaper would contain a listing of all of the sales
that would take place within the entire Town and would also contain a locator map. In response to a question
from Councilmember Kavanagh, he stated that the biggest complaint staff received was not the frequency of the
sales but rather the signs.
Councilman Kavanagh commented that if residents were only concerned about the visibility of the signs perhaps
they should not restrict when the sales were held but rather deal with the complaint, the unsightly signs, and
determine exactly how many signs were needed. He stated that he had always felt that five signs was an
excessive number.
Town Manager Tim Pickering noted that despite what the law states, people would violate regulations and erect
whatever number of signs they believed are appropriate. He added that enforcement was the issue since the
signs were erected on the weekends. He said if they stated that signs had to be restricted to the premises, that
regulation would be fairly easy to enforce.
Councilman McMahan said he thought at one time the Town had specified garage sale signs that could be used
(A-frame signs) and residents could pick them up at the Fountain Hills Times.
Vice Mayor Nicola stated that she had a question about the March 28th collection of signs and asked whether all
of them were illegally placed or picked up simply because they were not made from the correct material. Mr.
Reese responded that most of the signs collected were because of a combination of reasons, illegally placed, and
made from the wrong materials. He added that if signs were just illegally placed but are made out of the correct
materials, he would generally move the sign to an appropriate location.
Councilman Archambault commented that enforcement appeared to be the main issue and asked what penalties
were in place to enhance enforcement efforts. Mr. Turner responded that Mr. Reese monitors the various
properties and agreed that enforcement was a difficult issue and all staff does at the current time was remove the
signs. He said he was not aware of any penalties or fines. Councilman Archambault expressed the opinion that
if people were advised of the requirements it might help and added that the enforcement issue should be
evaluated. He added that he would not like to compound their already significant responsibilities, but said they
had to somehow begin to"softly encourage"residents to obey the Codes. Mr. Turner noted that Mr. Reese does
provide residents who have erected signs with a brochure that explains the Town's requirements relative to this
issue.
In response to a question from Councilman Archambault as to whether the parties were typically one-time
offenders, Mr. Reese stated that the problem was really related to people who hold more than one sale a month
and those were the residents to whom he gives the brochures.
Vice Mayor Nicola commented that the Zoning Ordinance did not specifically identify garage sale signs, it
simply refers to portable or temporary signs, and noted that it had been mentioned that garage sale signs could
be handled in the same manner as real estate signs. She asked whether they were talking about eliminating
"open house" signs as well or simply talking about garage sale signs at this time. Mr. Turner responded that
they were only addressing garage sale signs at this time. The Vice Mayor noted that Paradise Valley treats
garage sale signs the same as "open house"realtor signs. She said that there were illegally placed "open house"
signs erected in Town because many people were uneducated about the proper placement of temporary signage.
Councilman McMahan commented that he believed real estate signs were a distinct and separate category and
should have their own rules and regulations aside from garage sale signs. Mr. Pickering noted that they
currently did have their own regulations and the Vice Mayor said that she was discussing the way that the Code
was written.
Councilman Kavanagh stated that he believed that the main problem was the sheer number of signs and he
would like to see staff work on reducing that number by re-examining the number allowed. He added that he
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believed that allowing five signs was excessive and another way to reduce the number of signs was to re-
evaluate the number of garage sales that were held. He said if people were holding them to get rid of typical
clutter, he did not believe they required four sales each lasting three days in a year. He stated that he would be Nolie
willing to consider allowing two garage sales a year. He suggested that staff look into this matter and added that
if they reduced the number to two sales a year, lasting only two days each that would be a significant reduction.
He said he would also be interested in standardizing the signs as long as the cost was not excessive.
Councilman McMahan stated that he had a sample of a sign referenced in the memo and displayed it for the
Council and members of the audience. He noted that the standard sign costs $3.50 at Paul's Ace Hardware and
the stake costs .99. He added that they were durable for the purpose and would only be erected for three days.
Vice Mayor Nicola commented that one of the problems was that residents were not removing the signs
following the sales. She said that citizens were not obeying existing regulations that were in place.
Councilman McMahan commented that Code Enforcement Officers should cite the offenders and they should be
required to pay a $25 non-compliance fine. He added that new regulations would have to be written in order to
accomplish the goals.
Councilman Kehe agreed that if there were not a consequence in place, people would pretty much ignore the
regulations. He stated that enforcement was key and there had to be some consequence to suffer if the rules
were not obeyed such as the fine referred to by Councilman McMahan.
Councilman Archambault concurred with Councilman McMahan and Councilman Kehe regarding the
importance of active enforcement and the initiation of fees. He noted that some of the pertinent sign
information was contained in ordinances and some of it was in the Code and suggested that the information be
combined for easy reference. He added that they might need to identify a specific Garage Sale Sign area in the
Code.
Councilman Kavanagh recommended that language be incorporated into the ordinance requiring people who
erect the signs to list their addresses. He added that because of the lapse in enforcement that had occurred as
well as the fact that citizens were not aware of the regulations, he believed that for the first offense people
should receive a warning rather than be charged a $25 fine. He emphasized that the warning should be a
stringent one and perhaps a form could be made up formally noting the offenders' names and stating that a
second violation would incur the fine. He said they would keep a copy of the forms on record.
Mr. Reese reported that violators currently received courtesy notices and then they followed the same process as
any other misdemeanor charge. Councilman Kavanagh expressed the opinion that the sign violation should not
be a misdemeanor charge; it should be just a violation. He noted that misdemeanor acts were criminal acts and
in his opinion that was not called for.
Town Attorney Andrew McGuire noted this would be classified a violation and not a misdemeanor and
Councilman Kavanagh said he was glad to hear that.
Vice Mayor Nicola read a portion of the Zoning Ordinance (Sign Regulations, Penalties, Section 6.05) and
noted that for the first offense, the fine was not to exceed $25 and confiscation of signs; for a second violation
within 12 calendar months, the fine should not exceed $50 and confiscation of signs and the fine for all
subsequent violations within 12 calendar months of the first offense should not exceed$100 and the confiscation
of signs. She noted that when they had a Marshall's Department, this regulation was enforced through the
municipal court as a civil offense.
Mr. Turner confirmed for Councilman Kavanagh that citizens who erected illegal signs could not be brought up
on a misdemeanor charge.
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The Vice Mayor commented that a criminal violation would be having five or more per calendar year at the
same residence. In response to a question from the Vice Mayor regarding four-plexes. Mr. Turner advised four-
plexes are considered to be single dwelling units for this purpose.
Councilman Kehe stated that he believed allowing the sales to occur twice a year was sufficient. He also noted
that although the sales occurred from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., most of the desirable items were sold before 10 a.m. so
perhaps the timeframe could be reduced as well. He added that instead of three consecutive days, they should
consider reducing the number to two.
Vice Mayor Nicola advised that signs were the problem,not the number of sales per year. She cautioned against
creating criminal codes that would be difficult to track and enforce.
Councilman Kehe said he would support consistency in garage sale signage.
Councilman Kavanagh agreed that the garage sale hours could be reduced, perhaps to 1:00 p.m., and stated that
the sales should be limited to two per year. He commented on the significant difference this type of limitation
would result in. He added that he would like to receive input from citizens who run the garage sales as to how
late they actually go to.
Councilman Archambault said he did not believe that the length of time was an issue because it was self-
regulating anyhow because of weather and lack of goods. He agreed that the real issue was taking enforcement
a step farther. He asked Mr. Reese whether he felt this issue was out of control and Mr. Reese responded that he
did. He said it was a vicious cycle and staff was unable to keep up and follow-up without having any addresses
on the signs.
In response to comments from Councilman Archambault regarding enforcement difficulties, Mr. Pickering
stated that he believed the system was the issue versus the people who were doing the enforcement. He added
that the Code Enforcement Officers performed the best job they could but the problem was the system and what
the Town allowed. He suggested that they try conducting community wide sales to see if the public participated.
He noted that the cost would be minimal, approximately$1500, and said then they could judge whether this type
of community sale reduced the number of garage sales. He stressed the importance of creating some balance
and to allow people who were moving in or out, etc. to conduct garage sales but also offer this community-wide
event for the benefit of the rest of the community.
Vice Mayor Nicola asked what kind of costs were associated with the proposal and Mr. Pickering responded that
the proposed$1500 would cover the cost of advertising one community-wide sale a year in the local paper.
Councilman Kavanagh said that he thought most of the customers would come from Mesa.
Mr. Pickering added the opinion that they should try it to see if it worked and see if the public participated and a
balance was created.
Councilmember Kavanagh stated that he believed the idea was a good one and they might possibly reduce the
number of sales by 50%. He added that an immediate change to the Code requiring that addresses be placed on
the rear of the signs would be helpful for enforcement purposes.
Councilman Schlum commented that they would not stop garage sales and that was not their purpose, they
simply wanted to educate the public as to the benefits of having standardized signs and understanding public
rights-of-way and make them aware of the regulations. He stated that he did not want to add more staff to
monitor the sales and added that they had to keep in mind public safety issues surrounding the placement of
signs and impacts on safety. He said compliance was needed and they might have to fund additional dollars for
enforcement purposes. He agreed that first time offenders should receive a warning rather than a citation and
said there might be benefit to having a garage sale weekend in the Town. He noted that eventually it should be
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run by some organization and concurred that it would limit the overall number of signs. He also added that they
should consider some type of charge to be part of the advertisement if the Town is running it in order to
recuperate some of the costs. He spoke in favor of an annual Town organized garage sale and added that he 440
would not want to become too restrictive as far as the signage goes. He commented on the need for enhanced
enforcement efforts and thanked Councilman McMahan for his efforts in this area.
Councilman Archambault indicated his interest in trying a community held garage sale to see how it worked out.
Councilman Kavanagh said that in the last town he lived in, they had a yearly bulk trash pickup and the
residents placed their large items at the curb and the solid waste staff picked the items up and carted them to the
landfill. He stated that he realized they did not have the equipment to conduct this type of operation but he
brought it up because a lot of interesting things happened. He noted that people began putting bulk items
outside about a week before the scheduled pickup and hundreds upon hundreds of people from surrounding
communities cruised the streets to pick up the various items for their own use. He added that he was not sure he
wanted to do this in conjunction with a one-day community wide garage sale, because he had not had the
opportunity to look at the pros and cons, but asked staff to look into this. He noted that this would be in addition
to allowing citizens to hold garage sales and would allow other residents to place a bulk item that was
serviceable, not pure garbage, and that they wanted to get rid of on their curb with perhaps a "Free" sign on it.
He added that citizens driving by might pick up the items for themselves. He requested that staff report back on
the pluses and minuses of such a program.
Vice Mayor Nicola commented that when she sold her house last month, she had a sleeper sofa and a side-by-
side refrigerator on the curb with free signs on them and they were gone in six hours. She said if they were
headed in a direction where they were going to encourage community garage sales,then she would strongly urge
that they select the same two weekends that Sunridge Canyon has. She noted that they already advertise, they
place professionally done signs out and it made sense to piggyback on their operation. She added that the
biggest problem was enforcement and a lack of understanding and knowledge of the regulations in the
community. The Vice Mayor emphasized the importance of putting together clear and concise information and
ask the newspaper to help them get the message out. She said they should also utilize The Compass as they
have in the past to put the regulations out, utilize Channel 11 and place a link on the Town's website in order to
obtain maximum voluntary compliance.
Councilman Kehe commented that the placement and size of signage was a big issue and requested that staff
clarify these issues and provide a lot of leeway despite the fact that the signs would be standardized.
Councilman Schlum emphasized the importance of educating the citizens and putting something simple together
for them to read. He agreed that they should utilize The Compass and Channel 11 in order to get the word out
the best they can.
In response to a question from the Vice Mayor regarding the removal of illegal signs, Mr. Reese stated that
when the owners came to pick up the signs they were advised that there were regulations and penalties in place.
The citizens were provided all of the information on this issue.
Councilman McMahan commented that if they took away the residents' individual garage sale signs, there
would be a lot to answer for.
The Vice Mayor commented that Code Enforcement might have to increase their budget to work beyond five or
six days a week.
Mr. Pickering said that staff would try a Town-wide garage sale (one or two, depending on how the first one
turned out). He added that they would see whether that decreased the amount of other garage sales in the
community. He stated that they knew a problem existed that was difficult to enforce. He expressed the opinion
that encouraging rather than mandating such an event might work and at the very least it was an effort to solve
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the problem. He stated that staff would also look at the other options suggested by the Council and might be
back if those items warranted more discussion and consideration. He added that staff would also look at the
dates and what items could be placed out on the curb during the Town-wide sale.
Vice Mayor Nicola asked whether a consensus existed regarding the $1500 advertising cost and said she did not
support the Town buying a page to support the individuals who were going to have a garage sale on whatever
weekend they finally selected. She stated that she would prefer to see this done a different way, such as utilizing
the Town's website or other methods that did not have associated costs.
Councilman McMahan commented that this would be an event and personnel would have to be devoted to the
process. He added that the event would be similar to a flea market.
Mr. Pickering stated that there would definitely be administrative costs associated with such an event but
pointed out that those costs occurred every weekend now with Code Enforcement. He said that he would rather
have that administration cost run for two to three weeks. He added that they had talked with Parks &Recreation
staff and they handled every other registration and it would be like signing up for a class if you wanted to
participate. He agreed that there would be some minor costs associated with printing and as far as where and
what they advertised,they would need to talk to the people who had garage sales now and ask them about that.
Vice Mayor Nicola asked why the Parks & Recreation Department was selected over the Building Department,
which already handled signs and sign regulations. Mr. Pickering responded that the Building Department was
already overwhelmed carrying out the administration of the building codes. He added that the Parks &
Recreation Department was used to handling community events.
Councilman Archambault concurred with utilizing the Parks & Recreation Department and said he thought the
funds should be expended to give the even a fair shot at success.
In response to a question from Councilman Kehe, Mr. Reese advised that Code Enforcement Officers were
proactive when it comes to the removal of illegal garage sale signs. Councilman Kehe asked whether the rest of
the officers' functions were also proactive or reactive, in a broad sense. Mr. Reese advised that the first thing
staff reacted to were safety issues followed by citizen complaints. He said they could spend the whole day out
collecting garage sale signs.
Councilman Kehe stated that it appeared that garage sale sign enforcement was proactive and asked whether the
rest of the officers' jobs, in a broad sense, was proactive or reactive. Mr. Reese said that it was reactive (in
response to complaints). Mr. Pickering added that for signs in general they were proactive and business owners
were contacted if illegal signs were observed. He noted that Code Enforcement was "split"between complaints
that were received and acted upon and sign violations, which they were proactive on.
Vice Mayor Nicola asked whether anyone wanted to provide additional input and no one came forward. She
clarified that the Council was not making any legislative decisions; they were simply going to adopt a
community-wide garage sale weekend and see how that progressed. She noted that they would then evaluate the
event and discuss it in more depth at another time.
AGENDA ITEM#3 -ADJOURNMENT
COUNCILMAN ARCHAMBAULT MOVED that the Council adjourn and COUNCILMAN KAVANAGH
SECONDED the motion, which CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY by those present (Councilman Schlum had
exited the room.) The meeting adjourned at 6:15 p.m.
L
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i
TOWN OF FOUNT N)-TILLS //
By /_, ,/
Wally Nic ls, yo
ATTEST AND
PREPARED BY:
Bevelyn J. B der, own Clerk
CERTIFICATION
I hereby certify that the foregoing minutes are a true and correct copy of the minutes of the Work Study Session
held by the Town Council of Fountain Hills on the 12th day of April 2005. I further certify that the meeting was
duly called and that a quorum was present.
DATED this 5th day of May 2005.
Bevelyn J. Be er, wn Clerk
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