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TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS
MINUTES OF THE EXECUTIVE AND REGULAR SESSIONS OF THE
FOUNTAIN HILLS TOWN COUNCIL
JUNE 19, 2014
EXECUTIVE SESSION
* CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Kavanagh called the Executive Session to order at 5:30 p.m. in the Town Hall Fountain Conference Room –
located on the 2nd Floor.
AGENDA ITEM #1- ROLL CALL AND VOTE TO GO INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION: PURSUANT TO
A.R.S. §38-431.03(A)(4), DISCUSSION OR CONSULTATION WITH THE ATTORNEYS OF THE PUBLIC
BODY IN ORDER TO CONSIDER ITS POSITION AND INSTRUCT ITS ATTORNEYS REGARDING THE
PUBLIC BODY'S POSITION REGARDING CONTRACTS THAT ARE THE SUBJECT OF
NEGOTIATIONS, IN PENDING OR CONTEMPLATED LITIGATION OR IN SET TLEMENT
DISCUSSIONS CONDUCTED IN ORDER TO AVOID OR RESOLVE LITIGATION. (SPECIFICALLY,
DINA GALASSINI V. TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS AND STATE OF ARIZONA.)
ROLL CALL: Present for roll call were the following members of the Fountain Hills Town Council: Mayor Linda
Kavanagh, Councilmember Ginny Dickey, Councilmember Dennis Brown, Councilmember Cecil Yates, Vice Mayor
Cassie Hansen, Councilmember Tait Elkie and Councilmember Henry Leger. Town Manager Ken Buchanan, Town
Attorney Andrew McGuire, outside legal counsel Jeff Murray and Town Clerk Bevelyn Bender were also present.
Councilmember Yates MOVED to go into Executive Session at 5:30 p.m. and Councilmember Dickey SECONDED
the motion, which CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY (7-0).
AGENDA ITEM #2 - ADJOURNMENT.
Without objection, the Executive Session adjourned at 5:55 p.m.
REGULAR AGENDA
* CALL TO ORDER AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Mayor Kavanagh called the meeting to order at 6:32 p.m. in the Town Hall Council Chambers.
* INVOCATION – A moment of silence was observed.
* ROLL CALL
Present for roll call were the following members of the Town Council: Mayor Linda Kavanagh, Councilmember
Ginny Dickey, Councilmember Dennis Brown, Councilmember Cecil Yates, Vice Mayor Hansen, Councilmember
Tait Elkie and Councilmember Henry Leger. Town Manager Ken Buchanan, Town Attorney Andrew McGuire and
Town Clerk Bevelyn Bender were also present.
* MAYOR’S REPORT
i) THE MAYOR WILL READ A PROCLAMATION RECOGNIZING JULY 2014 AS PARK AND
RECREATION MONTH IN THE TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS.
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Mayor Kavanagh stated that parks and recreation programs are an integral part of communities throughout this
country, including the Town of Fountain Hills and their parks and recreation are vitally important to establi shing and
maintaining the quality of life in their community, ensuring the health of all citizens and contributing to the economic
and environmental well being of a community and region. She added that parks and recreation build healthy, active
communities that aid in the prevention of chronic disease, provide therapeutic recreation services for those who are
mentally or physically disable and also improve the mental and emotional health of all citizens. She further stated that
parks and natural recreation areas improve water quality, protect groundwater, prevent flooding, improve the quality of
the air we breathe, provide vegetative buffers to development and produce habitat for wildlife. She noted that the U.S.
House of Representatives has designated July as Parks and Recreation Month and stressed that the Town recognizes
the benefits derived from parks and recreation resources. The Mayor designated July 2014 as Park and Recreation
Month in the Town of Fountain Hills.
ii) Rotation of the Vice Mayor position to Councilmember Cecil A. Yates, pursuant to Fountain Hills Town Code,
Section 2-2-2, which requires every elected Councilmember to serve as Vice Mayor during the member's elected term.
Mayor Kavanagh thanked Councilwoman Hansen for serving as Vice Mayor and for her support. She announced that
the new Vice Mayor will be Cecil Yates and congratulated Vice Mayor Yates on his appointment.
SCHEDULED PUBLIC APPEARANCES/PRESENTATIONS
i) THE MAYOR MAY REVIEW RECENT EVENTS ATTENDED RELATING TO ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT.
Mayor Kavanagh advised that she attended the 14th Annual Pakistani Information & Cultural Organization lunch and
reconnected with their friends who bring them the Kite Festival each year. She said that she is happy to report that the
Kite Festival in Fountain Hills has been scheduled for Sunday, March 21st and added that she hopes they get a nice
windy day to make that event a success. She reported that she had a great positive and productive meeting with the
Plaza Fountainside Merchants Group. She pointed out that a large part of the success of the Plaza is the dedication of
the business owners there to support each other and to support the Town. She stated that she was invited to sit on the
Resolutions Subcommittee meeting for the League of Cities & Towns and reported that a meeting was held on
Tuesday where they discussed all of the resolutions submitted by the municipalities and made recommendations on
which ones would go on to the full committee of all 91 Mayors at the League Conferen ce in August. She explained
that any resolutions that make it out of that committee will be sponsored by the League for possible legislation in the
coming season. She stated the opinion that the League did a great job researching all of the submitted res olutions and
answering all of their questions and they did have a lot of questions and comments at that meeting. She added that all
of those comments and concerns will be passed along with their recommendations for the entire committee to consider.
ii) UPDATE BY COUNCILMEMBER GINNY DICKEY REGARDING THE RECENT MARICOPA
ASSOCIATION OF GOVERNMENTS (MAG) REGIONAL DOMESTIC VIOLENCE COUNCIL
MEETING HELD JUNE 5, 2014.
Councilmember Dickey advised that the group met on the 5th at MAG headquarters and said that they just did their
annual report but it wasn't quite done yet so they had to table it and it wasn't approved but when it comes out she will
be sharing that with everybody. She stated that they continue to work on their State-wide and regional coordination
strategies for domestic violence protocols with law enforcement. She further advised that the annual training will take
place in August and said that October is always Domestic Violence Month and that is when their outreach event will
be and she thinks the Town is going to be recognized at whatever the event is because they are one of the 19
municipalities and groups that adopted the Start by Believing resolution. She reported that human trafficking is going
to be on the agenda for their September meeting and its relevance to the Super Bowl (whenever there is any kind of big
event like that). She said that they were all interviewed by the Chair and the Vice Chair in an effort to determine roles;
there were a ton of comments that will all be compiled. She stated that this did lead her to think about what happens
when she cycles off and she would ask the Council to consider what they would like to do at that point because they
are trying to figure out what role an elected person might have as opposed to someone who might be in the field (i.e.
CARE of Fountain Hills or the Public Safety Commission). She added that they might try and figure out who should
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fill that role and maybe have someone who is more in that line of work because they would certainly know what works
and be a good liaison between the region and the Town. She said she would be happy to answer any questions and
there is a lot of information on the website as well.
Mayor Kavanagh asked if they are going to be asking the committee about the Super Bowl and to do any work with
them. She stated that she knows this is a big issue with them and she wanted to know who they are reaching out to in
order to get some of the help they will need.
Councilmember Dickey advised that the Governor has the Task Force, the Cindy McCain Task Force, and there have
been a lot of presentations on a lot of areas because there is terminology that people are not familiar with (when they
hear human trafficking they don't think of it happening in the United States). She reiterated that it will be on the
agenda in September and there are a lot of advocates in the various groups as well as a lot of law enforcement
personnel.
Mayor Kavanagh thanked Councilmember Dickey for her presentation and for serving on the board on behalf of the
Town.
iii) PRESENTATION BY ROBERT BENNETT, REPUBLIC SERVICES GENERAL MANAGER, ON THE
THREE-YEAR STATUS REPORT.
Robert Bennett, Republic Services General Manager, addressed the Council and highlighted a PowerPoint presentation
relative to the last three years of the public/private partnership that Republic Services has had with the Town (Copy of
the PowerPoint available on line and in the office of the Town Clerk). His presentation included the following:
* Waste/Recycling Data
* Reduced Rate (Savings per household)
* 2014 Rate Increase (1.22%)
* Reduced Number of Haulers & Associated Benefits
* Donations/Support
* Landfill Diversion
* Republic Rewards
* Winner: $10,000 to go to Fountain Hills Cultural & Civic Association to help fund the planting of shade trees in
Fountain Park
* Free Walk Up Service (a $25.00 value)
* Service Providers
Mr. Bennett indicated his willingness to respond to any questions from the Council.
Mayor Kavanagh asked how the company makes residents aware of the walk up service that is available and Mr.
Bennett advised that they have been sending out postcards but maybe they could do automated phone messages that
will let people know that that is an option for them.
Mayor Kavanagh stated that the Town also has a Volunteer Coordinator who has a list of people who are already
getting rides because they are disabled and she might also be able to provide Mr. Bennett with an additional list. She
said that they had discussed the possibility of recycling in the park and talked about how it wasn't practical to do
everything but perhaps they could just do bottles and cans using a specialized trash container with a small opening.
She asked where the company was on that.
Mr. Bennett reported that he met with the suppliers and noted that the company is trying to enhance recycling
everywhere. He said that right now he has initial sketches and as soon as they are done they can sit down and discuss
putting them in the park.
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Councilmember Brown commented on the fact that the service at his house is excellent and stated that the company is
doing a good job. He advised that he is seeing natural gas trucks around the country and asked how long it will be
before the company gets into a cycle of using natural gas trucks.
Mr. Bennett responded that two weeks ago he finished putting in a natural gas facility in the company's lower Buckeye
location and between now and August they will have 30 natural gas trucks on the road. He added that he covers three
locations and has 150 trucks that go out every day so they are coming; it is just a matter of when. He noted that they
are a lot cheaper than diesel trucks. He said that he believes Fountain Hills will hopefully be i ncluded in that cycle
within the next two years.
Councilmember Dickey thanked Mr. Bennett and Republic Services for all they do and stated that they worked so hard
to try and get the MAG Peaks Award and they were trying to figure out who beat them out and she just found out it
was the Greater Phoenix Age Friendly Network. She added that there was something called "Don't Let Our Air Go Up
in Smoke." She said that they were thinking about applying for the Arizona Forward award which is really more in
line with what the Town has been doing as far as the environment and that is due July 24th and the work is all done.
She further stated that she knows Jerry Butler with the Greening Committee challenged her to find out how much they
were saving with the carbon footprints so she really appreciates that the report included those numbers. She noted that
they had talked about a goal of 30% curbside for the entire Town when this was first discussed and they are not there
yet but at least they are pretty close and if they could get to 40% that would be quite outstanding. She referred to the
Solid Waste rates comparison that the Town of Queen Creek did on all of the surrounding towns. She reported that out
of the 15 or so towns, Fountain Hills was the absolute lowest of all and the next closest one was $15.00 a month (and it
has been frozen for the last three years so they haven't had to raise the rate at all). She commented that another benefit
of doing all of this is energy because manufacturing costs are less for plastic water bottles and she also noticed the
noise factor is a lot less and the aesthetic factor has improved (used to have bins on the street five days a week). She
discussed same day pickup and recycling and said that is MAG's Solid Waste Advisory Commission's best practice.
She added that the company has really come through for the Town and they appreciate it.
Mayor Kavanagh thanked Mr. Bennett for his presentation.
iv) UPDATE ON TOURISM BY COMMUNITY SERVICES DIRECTOR MARK MAYER/TOURISM
ASSISTANT GRACE RODMAN-GUETTER.
Community Services Director Mark Mayer addressed the Council and stated that Tourism Assistant Grace Rodman -
Guetter will address them following his comments and go into greater detail relative to Tourism activities. He stated
that first he wanted to talk about what they have been doing for the last five months and advised that they have been
successful in transferring the Tourism website to the Town and they have updated it and created an identity called
"Experience Fountain Hills -- Visit, Play and Stay" with an emphasis on not only what has been done in the past but
also on special events and bringing tourists to Town. He reported that they have been reclassified as a DMO -- a
Destination Marketing Organization -- through the Arizona Office of Tourism, which then provides opportunities for
Prop. 302 funding. He added that they have been working with Fort McDowell and have modified their Tourism
website at their request and brought that up to date. He said that they have created a n analytical database to measure
the effectiveness of on-line marketing strategies and this will also allow them to figure out what is the best use for the
limited dollars that they have. He advised that they have been able to update and distribute both t he Visitor's Guide
and the Dining Guide and increase their tourism and Town presence at special events (they now have it built into the
contracts that when there is a special event there must at least be space for one and sometimes two tents).
Grace Rodman-Guetter addressed the Council and highlighted a PowerPoint presentation relative to Tourism in the
Town (Copy is available on line and in the office of the Town Clerk). Ms. Rodman-Guetter's presentation included the
following:
* The Organization
* Partnerships
* Stakeholders
* Summary from January 1st
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* Current Marketing Strategy
* Website & Social Media
* Online Presence Growth
* Social Media Growth
* Goals for FY 2014-15
* FY 2014-15 Marketing Strategy
* Online Presence & Branding
* Funding Comparison
* Budget Estimates FY 14-15
Ms. Rodman-Guetter indicated her willingness to respond to any questions from the Council.
Mayor Kavanagh thanked Ms. Rodman-Guetter for the presentation and said that she did a great job.
Councilmember Hansen commented that this was kind of dumped into the Town's lap and she thinks that Ms.
Rodman-Guetter, Mr. Mayer and Mr. Hughes, before he left, did a great job of getting it up and running. She thanked
them for their efforts.
Councilmember Leger stated that Mr. Hughes and Ms. Rodman-Guetter have done a tremendous job and are moving
the Town into a progressive direction. He added that he agrees with the Mayor -- it was a great presentation.
Mayor Kavanagh asked if the Visitor Guides are being restocked and Ms. Rodman -Guetter replied yes, when they
work with Alliance Airport a set amount are set out every month and if more are needed they send them out as well.
She confirmed that she has put together a Facebook page for the 4th of July for the Town and said that the s ite has
received over 100 "likes" this week.
Vice Mayor Yates agreed that they are doing a good job and told them to continue doing what they are doing. He said
that it is nice to hear Ms. Rodman-Guetter speaking the social media language.
Councilmember Dickey asked what the difference is between "liking" and "following" and Ms. Rodman -Guetter stated
that when someone "likes" a page, all of their items then come up on that person's personal site -- they are prescribing
to something very specific. She added that "following" is something that is synonymous with Twitter (there is a little
more interaction on Facebook).
Councilmember Brown commended Mr. Mayer and Ms. Rodman Guetter and said that he is comfortable with the
program and this is a big step for the Town.
v) UPDATE FROM ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SPECIALIST SCOTT COOPER ON THE
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PLAN.
Economic Development Specialist Scott Cooper addressed the Council and highlighted a brief PowerPoint
presentation on the Town's Economic Development Plan (Copy available on line and in the office of the Town Clerk).
Mr. Cooper's presentation included the following:
* The Five Focused Approaches
* First Approach - Summary from January 1st - Business Attraction
* Second Approach - Business Retention & Expansion
* Third Approach - Entrepreneurial Development
* Fourth Approach - Gathering Information and Reviewing Incentive Strategies from the Region
* Fifth Approach - Locational Catalysts
* Next Steps for Approaches
* GPEC/ACA Leads (30)
Mr. Cooper indicated his willingness to respond to questions from the Council.
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Councilmember Leger thanked Mr. Cooper for his presentation and said it has been a tough road they have had to
maneuver through the downturn in the economy but things are starting to pick up. He added that the SPAC (Strategic
Planning Advisory Commission) and staff have done a nice job as far as enhancing the Town's Economic
Development Plan. He asked where they are at in terms of the pipeline -- do they have any projects in the pipeline that
aren't proprietary (anything he could share would be helpful).
Mr. Cooper advised that a pipeline takes time to build and time to fill and although it is not full, they are starting to
build some up in there. He stated that because of the proprietary nature of this there is nothing he can share at this time
but he hopes to announce something in the near future.
Councilmember Dickey reported that Barry Broome was on Channel 3 and talked about the job situation in Arizona
and he stated that that the State was hit harder than many others and has only rebounded 56% or so. She noted that he
said they are behind in job recovery because we are overly dependent on consumer spending and an educated
workforce is definitely important. She added that she appreciated seeing the education component in the report as well
as other points that Mr. Cooper included.
Mayor Kavanagh commented that when she attended the GPEC (Greater Phoenix Economic Council) meeting and
they talked about the Super Bowl they mentioned that they were going to be setting up a business-to-business network
to connect the Super Bowl to other businesses that think they might have something to offer because they want them to
use all local products. She commented on the many unique businesses that the Town offers and said that Mr. Cooper
should make sure that he touches base with Barry on that (they certainly want them to utilize any business in Town
that they could possibly utilize). She added that when she attended the Plaza Merchants meeting th ey mentioned that
Mr. Cooper had met with them and listened to their concerns. She said that they reported that they were very
impressed with Mr. Cooper and their comments were very favorable.
Mr. Cooper thanked Mayor Kavanagh for passing that along to him.
CALL TO THE PUBLIC
Town Clerk Bev Bender stated that one citizen wished to speak to the Council under this agenda item.
Linda Bordow addressed the Council and spoke in favor of social media. She listed a number of the various Town
websites. She said that social media is amazing and will greatly help the Town. She added that she posted what the
gentleman from Republic Services said about the free walk up services 29 minutes ago and already there are 17
"Likes" on it on the Fountain Hills Connection.
CONSENT AGENDA
AGENDA ITEM #1 - CONSIDERATION OF APPROVING THE TOWN COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES
FROM MAY 15, 2014 AND JUNE 5, 2014.
AGENDA ITEM #2 - CONSIDERATION OF APPROVING THE CANCELLATION OF THE FOUNTAIN
HILLS TOWN COUNCIL MEETINGS OF JULY 3, 8 AND 17, 2014.
AGENDA ITEM #3 - CONSIDERATION OF THE THIRD AMENDMENT TO THE PROFESSIONAL
SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH CLIFTON-LARSON-ALLEN LLP, DATED JUNE 19, 2014, FOR
FINANCIAL AUDITING SERVICES FOR THE YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 2014.
AGENDA ITEM #4 - CONSIDERATION OF RENEWING THE CONTRACT WITH ALBERT HOLLER &
ASSOCIATES FOR SALES TAX AUDITING SERVICES IN THE AMOUNT OF $30,000 FOR ONE YEAR,
EFFECTIVE JULY 1, 2014 THROUGH JUNE 30, 2015, WITH UP TO FOUR ANNUAL RENEWALS.
AGENDA ITEM #5 - CONSIDERATION OF THE SIXTH AMENDMENT TO THE PROFESSIONAL
SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH FOUNTAIN HILLS THEATER, IN THE AMOUNT OF $63,216.00, FOR
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THE FISCAL PERIOD JULY 1, 2014 THROUGH JUNE 30, 2015, TO PROVIDE GENERAL THEATER
PRODUCTIONS AND WORKSHOP/CAMP SUPPORT FOR FOUNTAIN HILLS RESIDENTS.
AGENDA ITEM #6 - CONSIDERATION OF THE SIXTH AMENDMENT TO THE PROFESSIONAL
SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF SCOTTSDALE, MCKEE BRANCH, IN THE
AMOUNT OF $51,200.00, FOR THE FISCAL PERIOD JULY 1, 2014 THROUGH JUNE 30, 2015, TO
PROVIDE TEEN ACTIVITY PROGRAMS TO INCLUDE ACADEMIC SUCCESS, GOOD CHARACTER
AND CITIZENSHIP AND HEALTHY LIFESTYLES FOR FOUNTAIN HILLS RESIDENTS.
AGENDA ITEM #7 - CONSIDERATION FOR APPROVAL OF RESOLUTION 2014-30, ABANDONING
WHATEVER RIGHT, TITLE OR INTEREST THE TOWN HAS IN THE CERTAIN PUBLIC UTILITY AND
DRAINAGE EASEMENT LOCATED AT THE REAR AND NORTHWESTERLY PROPERTY LINE OF
PLAT 403C, BLOCK 2, LOT 35 (15826 E. CHOLLA DRIVE) AS RECORDED IN BOOK 161 OF MAPS,
PAGE 43, RECORDS OF MARICOPA COUNTY, ARIZONA. EA2014-06 (HAGERTY)
AGENDA ITEM #8 - CONSIDERATION FOR APPROVAL OF RESOLUTION 2014-33, ABANDONING
WHATEVER RIGHT, TITLE OR INTEREST THE TOWN HAS IN PORTIONS OF A CERTAIN 15'
WATER LINE EASEMENT LOCATED WITHIN PLAT 705, PARCEL A (17130 E. SHEA BOULEVARD) AS
RECORDED IN BOOK 468 OF MAPS, PAGE 3, RECORDS OF MARICOPA COUNTY, ARIZONA.
EA2014-05 (IMH SPECIAL ASSET NT 246, LLC).
AGENDA ITEM #9 - CONSIDERATION FOR APPROVAL OF RESOLUTION 2014-34, ABANDONING
WHATEVER RIGHT, TITLE OR INTEREST THE TOWN HAS IN PORTIONS OF A CERTAIN 10'
PUBLIC UTILITY AND DRAINAGE EASEMENT LOCATED AT THE SOUTHERLY PROPERTY LNE OF
PLAT 303, BLOCK 3, LOT 2 (17315 E. BRANLEY DRIVE) AS RECORDED IN BOOK 147 OF MAPS, PAGE
4, RECORDS OF MARICOPA COUNTY, ARIZONA. EA2014-07 (SEALUND)
AGENDA ITEM #10 - CONSIDERATION FOR APPROVAL OF RESOLUTION 2014-35, ABANDONING
WHATEVER RIGHT, TITLE OR INTEREST THE TOWN HAS IN THE CERTAIN PUBLIC UTILITY
EASEMENT AND A PORTION OF THE DRAINAGE EASEMENT LOCATED AT THE REAR PROPERTY
LINE OF PLAT 506B, BLOCK 1, LOT 38 (15033 E. MARATHON DRIVE) AS RECORDED IN BOOK 159
OF MAPS, PAGE 3, RECORDS OF MARICOPA COUNTY, ARIZONA. EA2014-08 (BROWN)
Councilmember Leger MOVED to approve the Consent Agenda as listed and Councilmember Elkie SECONDED the
motion.
A roll call vote was taken with the following results:
Mayor Linda Kavanagh Aye
Councilmember Ginny Dickey Aye
Councilmember Dennis Brown Aye
Vice Mayor Cecil Yates Absent*
Councilmember Cassie Hansen Aye
Councilmember Tait Elkie Aye
Councilmember Henry Leger Aye
The motion CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY by those present (6-0).
* Councilmember Yates temporarily left the dais at 7:35 p.m.
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REGULAR AGENDA
AGENDA ITEM #11 - CONSIDERATION AND DIRECTION TO OUTSIDE LEGAL COUNSEL
REGARDING RESOLUTION OF DINA GALASSINI V. TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS AND STATE OF
ARIZONA.
City Attorney Andrew McGuire addressed the Council relative to this agenda item and said that this is the same item
that was discussed in the Executive Session so they are not at liberty to discuss it right now. He stated that they need a
motion to give direction to outside Legal Counsel for resolution of the case as discussed. He added that once the
resolution is finalized they will be happy to tell everyone what the resolution is.
There were no citizens wishing to speak on this agenda item.
Councilmember Dickey MOVED to direct outside Legal Counsel to take all actions and execute all documents as
necessary to resolve the Galassini litigation and Councilmember Elkie SECONDED the motion, which CARRIED
UNANIMOUSLY by those present (6-0) with Vice Mayor Yates absent from the vote.
AGENDA ITEM #12 - CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION 2014-32, REGARDING AN
INTERGOVERNMENTAL AGREEMENT WITH THE REGIONAL PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION
AUTHORITY RELATING TO TRANSIT SERVICES.
Town Manager Ken Buchanan addressed the Council relative to this agenda item and advised that staff has been
working with Valley Metro to review the feasibility of transit availabilities to Fountain Hills. He noted that on April
3rd, Valley Metro presented to the Council the final results of a Transit Feasibility study for the Town. He said that
based on the study staff recommended to the Council that the Town proceed with the RideChoice Program, which was
also one of Valley Metro's recommendations based on their findings. He noted that they have $66,000 to be used for
this purpose and the funds can only be used for transit related items (LTAF II funding). He said that Human Resources
Administrator Joan McIntosh has been working diligently with him, other staff members and the League on this and
she has information to share on the RideShare Program.
Ms. McIntosh addressed the Council and reiterated that on April 3rd the Council approved Valley Metro's final
recommendation relative to proceeding with the RideChoice Program and directed staff and Valley Metro to come
back with some more specifics about the program and that is what they are going to do tonight. She highlighted a brief
PowerPoint presentation relative to the RideChoice Program (Copy available on line or in the office of the Town
Clerk). Her presentation covered the following topics:
* What is the RideChoice Program (explained specifics)
* How the Program Works (cap of 40 for the first year)
* Available Funding
Ms. McIntosh indicated her willingness to respond to any questions and added that Ron Brooks from Valley Metro is
also present at the meeting and willing to answer questions.
In response to a question from the Mayor, Ms. McIntosh advised that the initial 40 will be selected on a first come,
first served basis.
Councilmember Hansen asked how staff is going to get the word out to the general public about this program and Ms.
McIntosh stated that because Valley Metro is going to be administering the program they are also going to be
marketing the program. She added that Mr. Brooks told her that their board approved this IGA (Int ergovernmental
Agreement) so if the Council approves the program tonight they are willing to go forward immediately with their
marketing and getting the applications out utilizing newspapers, social media, etc. on the Town's website and perhaps
Channel 11. She stated that Mr. Brooks will expand on that area.
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Councilmember Hansen commented that they need to get the presentation out there as well because there is a lot of
good information in that and Ms. McIntosh concurred.
Mr. Brooks addressed the Council and thanked the Council for considering this item. He advised that Valley Metro
will be ready as of tomorrow to issue applications to people who have requested them. He said that they are already
getting requests from Fountain Hills' residents and they have been told that as soon as the Council approves the
program this will move forward. He noted that their contractor has already set the Town up in their database so they
are all prepared for the applications and they plan to start issuing cards right at the end of June (they can't incur any
expenses until July 1st so they are timing it to ensure that the cards don't hit the residents hands until they can actually
use them). He discussed marketing and said for RideChoice they typically do community meetings with specifically
targeted groups and said he thinks they could really use tools like Facebook and Twitter and noted that Valley Metro
has a presence in both of those social media areas. He further stated that they could also do quite a bit of outreach
through organizations here in the community (the Town's volunteer network and other things). He advised that unless
the Council has specific things that they would like Valley Metro to do, that is kind of the typical app roach. He added
that it is a pretty limited program at this point until they have a feel for how quickly the Town's residents will utilize
service so they don't want to over market it because then they would have to turn a lot of people away. He stated t hat
they will start with that kind of approach and then anything else that the Council thinks that they should do.
In response to a question from Councilmember Dickey, Mr. Brooks reported that there is an initial start -up fee of
$5,000 and said that it is not a recurring fee (it is used to basically establish the account, generate changes in the
software, initial setup work with the contractors, etc.). He further stated that there is a $3,000 annual management fee
by the contractor and that is a recurring fee.
Councilmember Dickey asked if the Town is pretty comparable to other cities as far as the administration of the
program and Mr. Brooks said there is a little bit of an economy of scale here because they are starting small and
hopefully as funding improves they can provide more service. He noted that some costs will go up a little bit more as
the volume increases but some will not -- the $3,000 fee for example does not change and the rest of the fees, the
Valley Metro administrative charges, are divided on a pro-rata share basis based on participation in the program. He
added that each year they will look at the prior year's experience to see what the levels of participation were and they
divide their aggregated costs of running the program among the cities based on their participation. He said that they
are also looking to expand the program because it is cheaper than some of the other services that they provide and as
the program expands it becomes more efficient and they can spread the costs better.
In response to a question from Councilmember Dickey, Mr. Brooks advised that if there happens to be any leftover
funds he is pretty confident that lottery funds can be rolled over.
Councilmember Elkie asked where the coupon revenue is coming from a nd Mr. Brooks explained that that money
comes from the passengers' contributions (the 25% that they contribute).
Councilmember Elkie commented that as he understands it, each month the participants in the program will kick in
$25.00 and the Town will kick in $75.00, not to exceed $300.00 and Mr. Brooks pointed out that the customers do not
have to contribute $25.00, they can contribute in smaller increments (down to $5.00 increments) and the Town will
match what is there. He advised that he wants to look at that because they have assumed that because the trip
distances here are probably higher than what they see in the rest of the Valley that people will contribute pretty much
the maximum to get the maximum benefit.
Discussion ensued relative to the fact that if a resident is taking a five-mile trip and they take it twice, that person will
be able to do 12 to 15 trips a month for $100; the fact that if the credits aren't used by a participant the company will
close inactive accounts and return those funds to the Town; the Town's maximum liability for the 40 participants and
lottery funds will not be exceeded; Councilmember Leger's question as to whether there is some marketing overlap
between this program and the Give a Lift program/Heather's involvement; and Mr. Buchanan's response that this
program will be in addition to the Give a Lift program.
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Town Manager Ken Buchanan thanked Human Resources Administrator Joan McIntosh for her service to the Town
and said she will be retiring in a few weeks. He stated that she has been a valuable asset.
Ms. McIntosh thanked Mr. Buchanan and noted that she has worked for the Town for a little over 14 years.
Councilmember Leger commented that he sees Ms. McIntosh transitioning into other areas and wished her the b est of
luck.
There were no citizens wishing to speak on this agenda item.
Councilmember Dickey MOVED to approve Resolution 2014-32 regarding and Intergovernmental Agreement with
RPTA relating to transit services and Councilmember Leger SECONDED the motion.
Councilmember Elkie advised that he has some concerns with the program's long- term funding particularly with
LTAF funds being uncertain from year to year. He added that the Economic Development Presentation and the
Tourism presentation showed that generally they do things better when they do them in-house. He noted that when
they first started talking about this study a year ago, the Chair of the Senior Services Committee, Jim Judge, was
present and they talked about spending the $66,000 for a study to determine things he thinks they already knew. Mr.
Judge had expressed the opinion that the Town could use the monies better in-house ($66,000 and paying $16,100
annually for agency staff, overhead and program management as well as a one-time $5,000 user set up fee).
Councilmember Elkie said that there are going to be a lot more than 40 people who would want to participate in this
program and he believes it is a considerable amount of money to spend on just 40 residents (he believes they can get
"more bang for the buck"). He reiterated that he thinks they could do it better in -house and that is not to say that this
isn't a good program that would provide a helpful service but he thinks they could do better in -house utilizing the
funds. He added that with the uncertainty of the funds and how this is going to grow, they could be creating something
that is going to end up costing the Town considerably more money (once the program starts, it will continue on).
Councilmember Leger commented that he shares some of the same concerns as Councilmember Elkie but he would
like to give the program a shot and see how it works out for a year as perhaps a pilot program. He pointed out that
Town staff has been reduced over 40% and he believes that this will be a labor intensive program and he is not sure
that they have the resources in-house to do this. He added that he agrees with Councilmember Elkie philosophically
that perhaps in-house they could cut down on their overhead but then again that might translate into salary if they have
to hire people to do those types of things. He advised that he will be looking very closely at this program and its costs
for the first year.
Councilmember Hansen stated that Jim Judge had stressed getting something in place sooner rather than later so she
thinks for the sake of getting something in place as soon as July 1st, it behooves them to go ahead with this now. She
noted that to do it in-house would take quite a bit of study and time so in order to get it moving and she thinks they
need to approve this program now.
Councilmember Dickey pointed out that the lottery funding was taken by the Legislature as everyone knows but then it
was restored in Maricopa County due to air quality and it was a court's decision. She added that the idea that the
funding is fleeting as Councilmember Elkie stated is really not the case right now though anything can happen in the
world. She said that she is much more comfortable with the reliability of this funding than she was with the ot her
(HURF funding). She stated that she does think that the $16,000 is a little heavy.
(Vice Mayor Yates returned to the dais at 7:46 p.m.)
The Mayor called for the vote.
The motion CARRIED by majority vote (6-1) with Councilmember Elkie voting Nay.
AGENDA ITEM #13 - CONSIDERATION OF A 1-YEAR CONTRACT EXTENSION FOR T-MOBILE
"STEALTH" CELL TOWER ANTENNA ON SHEA BOULEVARD.
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Town Manager Ken Buchanan addressed the Council relative to this agenda item and advised that the cell tower is
located at 17230 E. Shea Boulevard -- "the flagless flagpole." He explained that it was supposed to be a "Stealth" cell
tower -- a flagpole -- and the flag was to be proportionate to the pole, which unfortunately conflicted with the SRP
69kV electric line and was rendered unusable. He noted that there have been many attempts to continue the use of the
T-Mobile Cell Tower guised as something else but they have been unsuccessful. He said that the current lease expired
as of June 10, 2014 and a one-year extension is under consideration to determine if the pole could be moved to
accommodate the flag or find another location for the cell tower. He stated that staff's recommendation is to approve
the one-year extension to give the company time to determine whether the pole has to be moved, find another location
or if it the flag can be accommodated. He added that since the lease has expired the company has agreed to pay a $702
execution of the lease fee plus $999 a month that staff equates to the other leases that have recently been executed.
There were no citizens wishing to speak on this agenda item.
Councilmember Brown MOVED to approve the one-year extension of the T-Mobile West Tower located at 17230 E.
Shea Boulevard and Councilmember Leger SECONDED the motion, which CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY (7-0).
AGENDA ITEM #14 - CONSIDERATION OF AMENDMENT NO. 1 IN THE AMOUNT OF $62,997.00 TO
CONTRACT C2014-143 WITH LOW MOUNTAIN CONSTRUCTION, INC., FOR THE AVENUE MEDIAN
IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT.
Development Services Director Paul Mood addressed the Council relative to this agenda item and stated that the
Council had previously approved a construction contract with Low Mountain Construction for the Avenue Median
Improvements project on April 3, 2014. He said that the bid documents included SRP's plans to bring 400 amp, 3-
phase electrical power to the east median by upgrading an existing 150 kV transformer on the north side of the Avenue
of the Fountains near the Chase Bank to a 500 kV transformer. He added that the contractor was going to run
trenching conduit down to the east median. He noted that after the project was bid out and staff met with SRP
representatives for their on-site pre-construction meeting, SRP informed staff that the 150 kV transformer could not be
upgraded to a 500 kV transformer due to SRP's system limitations. He explained that staff went through a number of
designs and the one being proposed will bring power from a 600 kV transformer located at the northwest corner of
Paul Nordin Parkway and Verde River Drive to a new transformer that will be set at the southeast corner of Avenue of
the Fountains and Verde River Drive. He said that the SRP design more than doubled the length of the trench, conduit,
slurry backfill, etc., along Verde River Drive to avoid existing utilities. He noted that Verde River Drive is also known
for its rocky soil conditions and the contractor has anticipated "hard dig" conditions in their quote of $62,977.00
resulting in a revised construction contract total of $1,531,311.45. He advised that the contractor has not requested any
additional time for the SRP redesign and additional work. He stated that since the Staff Report was submitted, staff
contacted SRP and they are going to refund the Town the $26,000 cost of the original design that didn't work and they
will charge the Town $11,000 for the new design so they will be getting back approximately $15,000 from SRP. He
indicated his willingness to respond to any questions.
Councilmember Brown asked whether the $62,000 figure reflects the $15,000 credit and Mr. Mood replied no.
Councilmember Brown requested that Mr. Mood discuss why the Town's engineer did not determine that SRP's
original design would not work and Mr. Mood explained that SRP does the design work and the Town's engineer
really doesn't have anything to do with SRP's design. He added that they assume that they are going to provide power
to a certain point with certain amps. He further stated that there will be about 700 to 800 feet of trenching (the original
trench was going to be a little over 300 feet).
Councilmember Brown pointed out that that equates to an additional $62,000 for approximately 400 lineal feet more of
trenching.
Mr. Mood clarified that the $62,000 is the full 700 to 800 feet and there is a credit back in the contract -- there are
calculations for what they had in their bid originally.
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Councilmember Brown advised that he is confused and asked if the $62,000 reflects the entire 700 to 800 feet and if
there was an original 300 feet, then where does the credit come to them.
Mr. Mood responded that when they hard bid a contract, the contractor is going to put money in different line items
and they show a credit of $6,182 in their calculation.
Vice Mayor Yates stated that, to piggyback on Councilmember Brown's comments, now they are going to charge the
Town $62,000 for 400 extra feet.
Mr. Mood replied yes and advised that SRP had underbid their original trenching conduit.
Councilmember Brown said that this doesn't add up and for some reason he is struggling with it.
Mr. Mood advised that staff went over all their numbers and noted that t hey pay a little premium when they do a
change order; there is a 10% markup from the contractor.
Vice Mayor Yates stated that to again piggyback on Councilmember Brown's comments, if the original hard bid was
$6,200 for 300 feet (aside from the redesign) and they are coming back for 400 more feet, even if they add in the 10%
change order and double that amount they are still coming in at $20,000.
Mr. Mood concurred and said when they did the original bid they were bidding approximately 70+ items so they might
put more money in asphalt or more money in landscaping and different things and when they go back to do a change
order they are getting the true costs to do their work.
Mr. Buchanan advised that now they are dealing with a change order process.
Councilmember Brown commented that the math doesn't add up and added that he doesn't mind paying a little bit of a
premium because he understands change orders and knows what they are going through but he knows that SRP is one
of the most difficult organizations to deal with (they are unregulated). He stated that this is not a little bit of a gouge, it
is a huge gouge and they may be handcuffed and the Town Manager is saying that they are but have they looked at
other options like a single phased system and can they address this differently.
Mr. Mood reported that all of the equipment has been ordered as well as everything else. He added that if they wanted
to bid this work out they could but that will take two months and he is surprised that they haven't a sked for delays
already.
Councilmember Brown stated that he believes they don't have an option and it is really too bad to be taken advantage
of.
Councilmember Elkie said that he picked up on something that Mr. Mood mentioned earlier -- when SRP originally
bid it it was at 300 feet and they bid it at $6,182 and Mr. Mood concurred but said honestly he doesn't believe they
could do it for that price. Councilmember Elkie advised that they underbid it at that time and now for 800 feet it is
$62,997 and Mr. Mood said correct, and they are providing their subcontractor's man hours, equipment and rental rates
(just the slurry backfill for that length is almost $18,000). Councilmember Elkie commented that they underbid it
because it was for a big project but now that it is a separate thing they want to get full cost of what it might have been
for a single job and Mr. Mood advised that he was absolutely correct.
Councilmember Leger stated that at the end of the day with all of this going on, in terms of what the costs are here and
what the refunds are and all the numbers that are moving around, he would like to know what it is costing the Town
and Mr. Mood responded about $48,000.
In response to a question from Councilmember Hansen, Mr. Mood reported that the contingency for this project is
$40,000 and they are going to be using it on some other things.
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There were no citizens wishing to speak on this agenda item.
Vice Mayor Yates MOVED to accept the change order bid of $62,997 to contract C2014-143 with Low Mountain for
the amended work as presented with the credits as discussed and Councilmember Leger SECONDED the motion,
which CARRIED by majority vote (5-2) with Councilmembers Hansen and Brown voting Nay.
Vice Mayor Yates informed Mr. Mood that he did nothing wrong, the Council is just voicing its frustration.
AGENDA ITEM #15 - DISCUSSION WITH POSSIBLE DIRECTION TO STAFF REGARDING POSSIBLE
CHANGES (I) TO THE AVENUE OF THE FOUNTAINS MEDIAN PROJECT TREE SELECTION, (II)
PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEM, (III) WI-FI SYSTEM, AND (IV) A ROUNDABOUT AT THE
INTERSECTION OF LA MONTANA AND AVENUE OF THE FOUNTAINS.
Tree Selection:
Development Services Director Paul Mood addressed the Council relative to this agenda item and advised that he was
asked to provide information regarding the tree selection for the Avenue Median project and how they came about it.
He stated that he knows that the Mayor and Council have received some emails and there have been some letters as
well in the Fountain Hills Times. He noted that the project has been going on for a few years and highlighted a brief
PowerPoint presentation on the Avenue of the Fountains Median Project (Copy available on line and in the office of
the Town Clerk). He reported that the original hardscape and landscape plans were modeled around the Downtown
Vision Plan and Downtown Area Specific Plan to provide a green mall, shade, amenities (art walk), and upgrade
fountains and to fit within the project budget. He described the original concept landscape plan, which consiste d of 62
trees and advised that the final landscape plan consists of the following 61 trees:
* 22 Sissoo
* 16 Mondel (Afghan Pine)
* 4 Chitalpa
* 8 Swan Hill Olive
* 11 Evergreen Elm
Mr. Mood stated that the new trees will be a combination of 36" box tr ees and 48" box trees. He referred to the final
landscape plans that showed the trees' locations. He said that staff went out and looked at all of the existing Sissoo
trees in Town and they have not posed any problems at all. He commented that staff was asked why they are not using
the Jacaranda tree, which was adopted as the Town tree in 1997 and explained that the Jacaranda is not really a shade
tree and it is native to tropical and sub-tropical regions and needs more water. He reported that it is not on the ADWR
(Arizona Department of Water Resources) low water use plant list. He added that staff was also asked why they
weren't using native desert trees (Palo Verde, Ironwood, Mesquite, Acacia and Desert Willow) and stated that
Xeroscape does not conform to the Downtown Vision Plan for a "green mall" and were not considered for the project.
Mr. Mood indicated his willingness to respond to questions regarding this portion of the presentation and noted that the
architect and landscape architect are also present in the audience.
Town Clerk Bevelyn Bender stated that there were citizens who wished to speak on this agenda item.
Robin Lueck addressed the Council and said that she lives in Gilbert but has had a business in Town for 34 years. She
pointed out that the Sissoo tree has sucker roots and she has about ten of them growing in her backyard from a
neighbor's Sissoo tree. She stated that the nursery told her to put root kill on it that will take it down and kill the
original trees and said that is the only way she can get rid of them. She advised that she has provided the Council with
some documentation and pointed out that the State of Florida has labeled the Sissoo trees as an invasive species. She
also briefly highlighted the material for the benefit of the Council relative to the various trees. She advised that based
on the information she has accumulated, she sees problems down the road with some of the proposed trees including
the Chitalpas (the ones from California are infected right now). She added that she was challenged to find some
acceptable trees and although it was not easy she did find a few of them that use a lot less water (watered once, maybe
twice a month) and said that information has also been provided to the Council.
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Peter Bordow addressed the Council and said that he is a Fountain Hills resident as well as a Commissioner on the
Strategic Planning Advisory Commission (SPAC) and was there to discuss Wi-Fi. He advised that economic
development is important to everyone and something that the SPAC and the Council has been working on -- and one of
the first things he did as a member of the SPAC was look at the Wi -Fi access, cellular access, power grid opportunities
as well as broadband internet service. He stated that it is important to look at what would attract more population to
the Town and getting visitors and young families moving there. He spoke in strong support of Wi -Fi being on the
agenda (it was one of the four items he identified to be addressed) for discussion and expressed the opinion that adding
municipal Wi-Fi down Avenue of the Fountains could really be a key draw for attracting more population/young
families. He shared some comments regarding the benefits of Wi-Fi that he found on line. He reported that one out of
four people are connected to the internet in their daily lives and having this as part of their Downtown plans he thinks
is a key element in forward thinking and making the Town attractive.
Mayor Kavanagh stated that they will first discuss the trees and then move on to the other items listed under this
agenda item.
Landscape Architects Wade Felkins and Don Campbell addressed the Council. Mr. Campbell said that he is excited
that people have actual taken note of what of is going on as far as the trees and are involved in the process. He first
addressed the Sissoo trees and stated that they were introduced into the Valley about 25 years ago and are from
Australia, a desert tree. He advised that they are a great substitute for eucalyptus trees and reported that they are
putting in a system that will provide deep watering once, twice and maybe three times a month during the summer
months and during the winter months maybe every other month. He stated that they want to encourage the roots to go
downward and seek where the water is best found instead of on the surface. He noted that he has been planting Sissoo
trees for the last 25 years and they have had great success and he explained the planting process that he follows. He
added that it is an evergreen tree so it will have some leaf drop but the trees are nowhere near as messy as the elms and
the ashes or the eucalyptus trees.
Councilmember Hansen stated that after doing some research and learning about the risks associated with Sissoo trees,
she emailed Mr. Buchanan and asked if they could get some sort of a guarantee that after putting in all of this
infrastructure the Town will not encounter problems. She advised that she understands about the deep water irrigation
and everything else that was talked about but there are so many things written about these trees including an article
written by the Director of Horticulture at the Botanical Gardens wherein he states that he would not plant this tree
within 40 feet of any hardscape or foundation. She added that he said they could cut the roots but they should expect
them to return. She stated the opinion that planting these trees seems like a gamble to her.
Mr. Campbell advised that he has seen the same articles but has not experienced the problems and he does not see
planting the trees as being a gamble. He pointed out that they are going to be in a lot of areas where they want some
shade and that is what the Avenue should do -- create some shade to invite people down there to use the area and
attract new businesses to the area. He said that he is sure he could find other trees for this purpose but he thinks that
the Sissoo trees are really their best bet and where they should go for the future. He added that if the Council would
like some other recommendations, he would come back and provide that information to them (trees that would work
very well). He further stated that Ironwoods, Acacias, Mesquites and Palo Verdes are not friendly trees, they are not
trees -- they are shrubs that have been trained over the years into trees so they grow like a shrub and there is a lot of
maintenance.
Councilmember Hansen said that in the same article, the Director of Horticulture recomme nded the use of Feather
trees and Mr. Campbell advised that Feather trees are lovely, light and open and grow well in rocky areas but will not
achieve the height and fullness that they are looking for.
Councilmember Hansen questioned whether the precautionary infrastructure has already been put in at this point in the
project and Mr. Campbell replied yes it has.
Councilmember Leger asked whether the infrastructure is already in for the Sissoo trees and Mr. Campbell responded
that it is in the design but they have not started the irrigation yet.
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Councilmember Leger said that he is looking at timelines and if they were to look at the Sissoo trees for example and
ask the contractor to replace half of them and come back with a recommendation what would that do to their schedule
from a practical point of view and would there be a change order.
Mr. Mood advised that all of the irrigation submittals have been approved, the electrical conduit is in the ground and
they are finishing up the fountain plumbing. He added that they will be working on the irrigation within the next few
weeks and the contractor has actually been holding off on ordering the trees because of this meeting. He said that they
need to get the trees ordered (Mr. Campbell has to go down to the nursery to inspect the trees that they want) and the
landscaping on the west median without having the schedule in front of him should actually be going in within the next
month or so. He said they could wait and come back and do it at a Council meeting in August but the contractor is
going to be asking for time and money.
Mayor Kavanagh advised that one of the biggest complaints that they get from residents when they take down trees is
that they are going to be replaced with real small trees. She stated that in doing her research she learned that Sissoo
trees are one of the fastest growing species. She asked if that was one of the reasons the contractor chose this tree --
because it will grow fast and provide a lot of shade.
Mr. Campbell said that is one of the reasons why he selected it and added that he just likes the trees -- they grow fast
and he has not experienced problems and has never seen them come back up with suckers. He added that if the
Council desired, he could research other trees to use in its place and provide that information by tomorrow but he is not
sure what the cost and availability would be.
Councilmember Dickey asked what sort of protections the Town has as far as any of the trees that will be planted (if
they die or are damaged) and Mr. Campbell replied that there is a one-year guarantee on all of the trees. He stated that
within one year they will be able to tell whether the trees are healthy and will make it.
Vice Mayor Yates requested that Mr. Campbell provide the names of some of the projects he has done close by that
have these trees (Sissoo) at those locations.
Mr. Campbell advised that he is the landscape architect for the Mesa School District and advised that he has utilized
Sissoo trees on a number of their campuses including Mesa High School.
Vice Mayor Yates asked whether Mr. Campbell has experienced any of the problems referred to in the articles that
were mentioned this evening and he replied no. He added that if they are not watered properly surface roots can occur
on those trees and many other species as well. He stressed the importance of putting in a drip system and watering
these trees separately like he does at the schools so they get deep watered and grow the way they are supposed to.
Councilmember Leger commented that the Council had received a number of calls and letter regarding the trees and
his goal was to bring Mr. Campbell in so he could do a presentation and provide the public with the rationale behind
why they are doing what they are doing and why these trees were selected. He said that he believes that Mr. Campbell
has looked at the issues and has methods in place to remediate those types of issues and he is comfortable with that.
He added that he appreciates his coming out and helping them with the rationale. He pointed out that this is to be a
green belt and he knows it sounds counter-intuitive that they are not using desert plants. He stated that Mesquites and
Palo Verde trees do provide shade but in the winter time that has a tendency to go away.
Mayor Kavanagh thanked Mr. Campbell for his presentation.
Public Address System
Mr. Mood addressed the Council relative to this issue and noted that staff had been directed to look at the Public
Address (PA) system. He stated that he contacted an audio/visual company that is doing a PA system out in Tolleson -
- they are doing an $8 to $10 million town streetscape renovation project and they are adding a PA system as well. He
advised that he talked with the company, gave them the Town's electrical drawings, provided them with aerial maps of
the median and they came back with a system that would put two speakers on each of the 17 light poles that are going
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to be in the median. He reported that for the company to provide the speakers/equipment and install it all would cost
approximately $60,000 as long as the Town provides conduit, power and other items. He explained that the Town
would have to run about 2,000 feet of conduit up and down the median, provide a new central block wall enclosure
with a gate (costs about $5,000), run power to an air conditioned enclosure to house the PA system equipment ($5,000
cost), run separate conduit for the microphone system to have jacks at the Plazas (they would be boring under Verde
River Drive at some point). He said when staff looked at it they thought it would be a $75,000 to $100,000 item to add
it to the median. He added that he did some research and when the sidewalk projects were done they did add conduit
for a PA system but they put in 3/4" conduit and it would be very hard to run all the wires through that size conduit.
He stated that if the Council wanted to look at something at this point he would suggest maybe looking at a future type
project where the other conduit would work. He pointed out that the only events that use a PA system are the two Art
Fairs and they rent a portable system.
Councilmember Dickey asked how this would relate to the Wi-Fi discussion and Mr. Mood advised that he would
address Wi-Fi separately.
Mr. Mood informed the Council that if they did want to move forward he would have to go out and get all the quotes
and real design prices and he wouldn't be back before the Council until August and then there will be more landscaping
and they would be digging up a lot of stuff that they already did.
Mayor Kavanagh advised that she is not willing to spend $100,000 for a PA system that the Chamber is going to use
and maybe one other group. She added that it sounds like something for the future but not right now.
Councilmember Elkie asked whether it could also play music over the PA system (he said he was thinking in terms of
their Christmas events) and Mr. Mood replied yes it could but they are going to have a system sitting out on the
Avenue and although it will be in a locked enclosure it is not super secure. Councilmember Elkie asked whether after
this is all done and they have an opportunity to assess, are there wireless opportunities that can be looked at and Mr.
Mood stated that he is sure there are but that is not his area of expertise. Councilmember Elkie said he is talking about
something that could be put up for special events and then taken down and stored until it is needed again and Mr.
Mood said that he is sure that it could be done at some point in the future.
Councilmember Leger commented that he does not want to increase the cost of the project and added that the
information received is good for future use.
Wi-Fi
Mr. Mood advised that staff had a meeting last year with some people who do the Wi -Fi and the architect contacted
Hot Zone, which does Wi-Fi. He stated that Wi-Fi is easier but he personally would not do it in the median because
they are going to have the repeaters and then they need power and they have to be put on poles. He noted that their
concrete light poles have already been ordered and they are not set up for that. He added that from what he has been
told the equipment for the Wi-Fi is about $10,000, relatively cheap, and they could look at doing it on the existing light
poles and adding some outlets to those. He stated that for budgetary purposes he would look at $10,000 for equipment,
$5,000 to $10,000 to get poles outfitted to handle that but then they are also looking at anywhere from $4,000 to
$5,000 annually from the IT budget to subscribe to the internet provider and to cover any maintenance. He noted that
it is not a really big amount but he would do it as a separate project outside of the median project.
Mayor Kavanagh stated that she was at the meeting that Peter Bordow talked about and they had Cox come in just to
fill them in on what could possibly be done and they said the exact same thing -- it would be easier to put it on the light
poles and they talked about the repeaters that would be needed so maybe they do need to look at that as a separate
project.
Councilmember Elkie agreed that this is something that they should look at later. He said if the Town is providing Wi -
Fi service, he would like to know what kind of legal liabilities exist if someone hacks into it and Town Attorney
Andrew McGuire advised that the legal liabilities are the same, whether the Town provides it or someone else and that
"Pandora's Box" was opened quite a while ago.
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Councilmember Dickey stated that businesses and stores offer it and asked if that was usable; Mr. Mood responded
that they offer a limited range. Councilmember Hansen commented that users would likely need a password.
Mayor Kavanagh reiterated that she and a number of Councilmembers think this is something they should look at as a
separate project for the light poles.
Roundabout
Mr. Mood advised that in June of 2007 Wick Engineers, Inc. completed a roundabout feasibility study for the
intersection of La Montana and Avenue of the Fountains. He reported that the total project cost was $1.5 million
(design and construction) and the project was in the Town's Capital Improvement Program (CIP) but was removed
back in the 2011-12 Fiscal Year due to lack of funding. He stated that the project can be done but some of the key
design issues included in the engineer's report included:
* Maintaining drainage flow along Avenue of the Fountains
* Maintaining drainage flow from the Post Office which flows onto La Montana south of the intersection
* Street light requirements at roundabout
* Additional sidewalks (approximately 2,000 linear feet) to the north and west of the intersection
* Relocation of Post Office drop off further south on La Montana
* Median construction on La Montana north and south of intersection
* Loss of parking on Avenue of the Fountains (north and south side)
* Reduced median width on Avenue of the Fountains and removal of Avenue Median project improvements
Mr. Mood stated that the only true way to find out what it is really going to cost is to hire an engineer and have him go
out and do a survey, look at all the utilities and the drainage and get a plan set to about 30% design and then they could
do a good estimate off of that.
Mayor Kavanagh asked if the $1.5 million figure provided in 2007 included all of the things that Mr. Mood just talked
about and he responded that they made assumptions. He noted that construction prices were high back in 2007 but
they could have missed something too so it is difficult to determine what the cost would be in today's dollars.
Councilmember Dickey pointed out that this intersection was first discussed in April of 1996 and she has compiled
documents from that time relative to this intersection. She said that this intersection has been an issue for a very long
time. She pointed out that since 2007 they have gotten additional reports and information and the material seems to
point to a lesser cost. She said she wanted to find out if there is any desire to go forward and get more information --
maybe something that would require halting some of the further west median work while they take a look at it to see if
it is something that they would perhaps like to go ahead with either as part of this project or not.
Mr. Mood advised that staff did pull the data for the last 24 months for the intersection and there has only been four
accidents. He noted that if the Council wanted to do a study, just for him to go out and get an engineer will take 2 to 3
months because of the procurement process. He explained the detailed process that would need to be followed. He
said that by the time an engineer was selected, the median project would be pretty much complete.
Councilmember Dickey commented that just last week she was walking by that intersection and somebody was
coming south on La Montana and turned east in a westbound lane so they were going by the driveway into the post
office and going the wrong way -- it was not an accident but the area is definitely confusing and they have been talking
about this for so very long.
Councilmember Brown said that that has actually happened to him twice over the last seven or eight months, where he
was headed west on the Avenue and the people who were headed south on La Montana turned down the westbound
lane so it is very common and at a very minimum he thinks the intersection should be looked at a little more closely.
Mr. Mood concurred and stated that they re-striped it about two years ago and it greatly improved. He added that
Councilmember Brown's issue is the width and there are overlapping conflicting turning lanes.
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Councilmember Brown advised that he has to agree with Councilmember Dickey and he wouldn't mind at least
keeping it on the burner and when they have some money going out and not attaching this to the median, but truly
looking at putting a roundabout in at that intersection.
Vice Mayor Yates said that out of all the places in Town he thinks that might be the location that warrants a
roundabout but before they get into that he wanted to know whether any traffic study has been done regarding the
different types of intersections that could be done at that spot.
Mr. Mood responded that the 2007 report looked at three different configurations of a roundabout and a traffic signal.
Councilmember Elkie commented on the fact that they are doing the whole median project for $1.5 million and in
today's market probably doing a roundabout at that location would be less than that 2007 number. He agreed with
Councilmember Dickey that they have talked about this intersection for a very long time and said they are either going
to do nothing (put in a stop sign), put a light in, which he does not think will ever happen, or construct a roundabout.
He asked if there is a fourth option that they are not aware of.
Mr. Mood replied those are the only options and Town Engineer Randy Harrell concurred.
Councilmember Elkie said that he would like to have further discussion regarding a roundabout at this location at a
future date.
Mr. Mood reported that they would have to do a lot of the front end work (surveying, utility information, etc.) so they
are probably looking at $50,000 to $75,000 to get a set of plans that would provide a good estimate.
Vice Mayor Yates questioned the 30% drawings and Mr. Mood explained that a lot of it is the up-front work.
Councilmember Leger stated that he was here when they had the last presentation and the groups that did that work
gave a pretty elaborate presentation but he is not sure how detailed their drawings were. He said he was wondering
whether they could piggyback off of the work that they did in an effort to cut their costs down.
Mr. Mood advised that they would give that report as part of the advertisement to get an engineer and pointed out that
they really didn't do the surveying to figure out the drainage, they just made assumptions and he doesn't see anywhere
where they looked at utilities that could be relocated, etc. He added that they really need an engineering company to
come it and look at everything.
Mayor Kavanagh commented that the Council is saying that this is something that they need to look at in the future if
and when they have the money because they acknowledge that it is a very confusing intersection. She added that they
have to also think about whether there is any other way to make it safer.
Town Clerk Bevelyn Bender advised that one citizen wished to speak on this agenda item.
Linda Bordow addressed the Council relative to this agenda item and stated that Wick Engineers did the report and
they had assumed that Bashas was going to build on the corner and Bashas was going to vacate the other store and
become something else so they were taking into account the Town size of 22,000 at the time, which they are not
anymore and that Bashas was going to do a bigger shopping center. She said that they didn't take into account Adero
Canyon because that just happened and of course they weren't building the Ellman property either. She added that the
Town's population is going to vary again and said she personally thinks that the roundabout would be helpful at this
intersection because it is confusing and she found it more confusing after they re -striped it than before. She stated that
maybe there is an inexpensive way to re-stripe it in some way that makes it more serviceable for folks. She noted that
the people who live here know it, but that it is the out-of-towners who don't. She added that she did want to respond to
something that Councilmember Elkie said and pointed out that with Wi-Fi they can take their I-phone and go onto say
Pandora and plug a cable into that, plug it into a PA, and get a speaker and stand and that could automatically play.
She said that they (the public) are surfing at their own judgment when they go on Wi -Fi and noted that some are
encrypted and some are not.
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Mayor Kavanagh thanked Ms. Bordow for her comments and advised that this agenda item does not require any
motions.
AGENDA ITEM #16 - CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION 2014-31, DECLARING AS A PUBLIC
RECORD THAT CERTAIN DOCUMENT FILED WITH THE TOWN CLERK AND ENTITLED THE "2014
DEVELOPMENT IMPACT FEE ORDINANCE OF THE TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS."
Mayor Kavanagh advised that there will be one report for Agenda Items 16 and 17.
Town Attorney Andrew McGuire addressed the Council relative to this agenda item and said that Senate Bill 15 25
required the Town to go through and massively overhaul the Town's Development Fee System. He noted that they
have gone through the process, the fees have been adopted and this is now the adoption of the Code Amendment that
goes with it to implement the new process. He pointed out that this is based on the model ordinance that was drafted
by the League back in 2011 and then modified to match Fountain Hills and update a little since then but for the most
part this is the final piece of the puzzle so that everything will match in August when the fees go into place.
Mayor Kavanagh advised that at the last subcommittee meeting the League said, "By the way, the builders may be
back." She added that just when they get it all fixed, it might wind up changing again.
There were no citizens wishing to speak on this agenda item.
Councilmember Hansen MOVED to approve Resolution 2014-31 and Vice Mayor Yates SECONDED the motion,
which CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY (7-0).
AGENDA ITEM #17 - CONSIDERATION OF ORDINANCE #14-06, ADOPTING THE "2014
DEVELOPMENT IMPACT FEE ORDINANCE OF THE TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS," BY REFERENCE
AND AMENDING THE TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS TOWN CODE, CHAPTER 7, (BUILDINGS AND
BUILDING REGULATIONS), ARTICLE 7-10 (DEVELOPMENT FEES), BY DELETING IT IN ITS
ENTIRETY AND REPLACING IT WITH THE 2014 DEVELOPMENT IMPACT FEE ORDINANCE OF
THE TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS.
(For discussion of this item see Agenda Item #16 above.)
There were no citizens wishing to speak on this agenda item.
Councilmember Hansen MOVED to approve Resolution 2014-06 and Vice Mayor Yates SECONDED the motion,
which CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY (7-0).
AGENDA ITEM #18 - CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION 2014-22, LEVYING UPON THE ASSESSED
VALUATION OF THE PROPERTY WITHIN THE TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS, SUBJECT TO
TAXATION, A CERTAIN SUM UPON EACH ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS ($100.00) OF VALUATION
SUFFICIENT TO RAISE THE AMOUNT ESTIMATED TO BE REQUIRED IN THE ANNUAL BUDGET,
SPECIFICALLY FOR THE PURPOSE OF PAYING PRINCIPAL AND INTEREST UPON BONDED
INDEBTEDNESS; ALL FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 2015.
Town Attorney Andrew McGuire advised that this is the annual tax levy that is required in order to implement the
budget and all of the debt service that needs to be paid for the next fiscal year.
Mr. Buchanan confirmed that monies will be used to pay for the debt service (12 cents per $100 of valuation).
Councilmember Hansen MOVED to approve Resolution 2014-22, levying a property tax upon the property owners of
the Town of Fountain Hills a levy of $0.1151 per $100 of assessed valuation for the purpose of payment of principal
and interest on bonded indebtedness and Councilmember Dickey SECONDED the motion.
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There were no citizens wishing to speak on this agenda item.
The motion CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY (7-0).
AGENDA ITEM #19 - DISCUSSION WITH POSSIBLE DIRECTION TO STAFF RELATING TO ANY
ITEM INCLUDED IN THE LEAGUE OF ARIZONA CITIES AND TOWNS WEEKLY LEGISLATIVE
BULLETIN OR RELATING TO ANY ACTION PROPOSED OR PENDING BEFORE THE STATE
LEGISLATURE.
Town Manager Ken Buchanan addressed the Council relative to this agenda item and advised that the Resolutions
Committee met on Tuesday and there were questions and recommendations on a number of them and also some were
pulled off. He noted that the resolutions are now going to go back to the Executive Committee and then to the 91
Mayors at the League Conference for further discussion and/or approval as part of the overall Legislative agenda for
the coming year. He stated that this gives the Council an opportunity to throw their hat in relative to any support for
any of the resolutions tonight so the Town's name could be on some of them if the Council so desires. He said that
obviously the HURF bill stands out and if the Council has any others that they want to bring forward for discussion
now is the time.
Mayor Kavanagh stated that the Council was supposed to get copies of the bills but apparently that didn't happen. She
advised that most of the bills were recommended with a lot of questions and a lot of comments. She noted that most of
the pieces of legislation are not very clear as to what will happen, what could happen and the recommendations are
really just to move this along and say that this has some value and then the discussion will continue. She added that
ultimately the 91 Mayors will decide which of these they want. She advised that two of them were pulled off by
Flagstaff (#9, the Arizona Housing Trust Fund and #18, the Mayor of Flagstaff had authorization from the other
municipalities to remove it). She reported that #1 through #7 were recommended to go on, #8, the Sampling Method,
was recommended but not put on the consent because there were so many questions about that (they want to make sure
that that one gets a good discussion at the meeting), #9 was withdrawn, #10 was recommended, #11 was recommended
but it was amended not to lock in a sweep. She said that most of the Mayors there were concerned about the $500
million shortfall in 2017 that the State is probably going to be facing so while they want to recommend some things
like #11, which is to appropriate $20 million for infrastructure, restoring original statutory mandate and funding levels,
they don't want to lock it in as a restricted fund. She stated that they feel that there are some things that have to remain
open so that if they do have another economic situation and the State needs money from somewhere, all of the money
won't be locked in leaving them nowhere to go.
Mayor Kavanagh further reported that #12 and #13 were combined and recommended and #14 and #15 were also
recommended. She discussed #16, ban on cell phone, texting, etc., and stated that a texting ban was introduced into
the Legislature the last Session and they couldn't even get texting through so they decided to reduce it to texting and
pass it on as a significant municipal issue. She explained that they felt that if they could at least get the texting that
would be progress. She stated that one of the big things with texting is that they need whatever they decide to be State
wide (right now Phoenix is doing something different than Fountain Hills and Tucson too and people move around a
lot so they wouldn't know that in one area they could text but in another they couldn't). She pointed out that
California's policies are totally uniform and it should be that way in Arizona as well. She said if they start with the
texting and get that through the entire State that will be a good first step and then they can move on to other areas. She
noted that there was a lot of objection to cell phone usage. She reported that #17 was recommended.
Councilmember Dickey asked what the Mayor would think about the Town joining in on #6 and #7, HURF resolutions
and then #10 and #11, State Parks and GADA. She said they all have to do with the restoration of funds that have been
swept or otherwise taken from cities and towns.
Mayor Kavanagh replied that #6 and #7 are easy ones and she believes everyone was pretty much in agreement on
those and no negative discussion took place. She added that she would be fine with #10 and #11 as amended too.
Councilmember Dickey MOVED that the Town of Fountain Hills join the efforts for Resolutions #6, #7, #10 and #11
as they go forward and Councilmember Leger SECONDED the motion, which CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY (7-0).
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Councilmember Dickey pointed out that there were a couple that had to do with Public Safety retirement and she
thinks that last year when they were doing this they actually had some staff provide input on what they felt was good
and/or bad about the proposals. She stated that maybe after it all kind of filters through staff can bring forth anything
that they saw and thought was alarming. She added that the State is in line to possibly restore $800 million and
perhaps over $1 billion to Education (K-12) because of the lawsuit. She said that just yesterday she saw that the
University of Phoenix Stadium, which was funded partly with rental car surcharges or whatever to the tune of $150
million may land in the State's lap also so she thinks all of these things will be challenging but she is still happy to put
their name on the efforts.
Mayor Kavanagh said 6 & 7 were easy and advised that most of the Resolutions that were recommended will be
recommended together with all of the questions and comments that everybody had. She expressed the opinion that
probably a lot of these will change and maybe some of them will just be dropped bu t she thinks they were a lot more
careful today and they chose things that they thought really could go through. She noted that the League did a good
job of giving the Town information. She stated that the last few, the Healthcare Professionals that went through, #19,
#20 and #21, were all grouped together and the League is going to push for tort reform on those and they added
residency to medical schools on #19. She said that both staff recommendations from the League went through and on
#2, they asked for a lot more instances of how they could streamline so they weren't satisfied with some of the things
that the League had presented.
Councilmember Leger requested that he and the Council be provided a copy of the document the Mayor was referring
to and Mayor Kavanagh said copies had been made and the Council should have received them but she will make sure
that they do.
Councilmember Dickey stated that she does have a question about the census resolution and she hopes they could get
some input from staff somehow on that one because they could either be really helped by that or really hurt by that.
Mayor Kavanagh said that that is one that she spoke up on because Maricopa has already done a mid -decade census
and they of course have increased their population. She advised that it cost them $500,000 to do that. She added that
Gilbert is expecting their population to be up and Chandler too so the problem is if everyone does the mid -decade
census and they don't and they just guess, even if they went up a little bit in population there is going to be a significant
cost to do the study. She added that that is going to have to be something that staff looks at and decides but if
everyone does it the Town might be locked in and have to do it because that is how they are going to divide up the
State Shared Revenues. The Mayor indicated her willingness to respond to any questions. She stated that they will
have the big meeting at the League and then everyone will find out what is going onto the Legislature and then the
League will keep them all informed of what is going on at their weekly meetings.
AGENDA ITEM #20 - COUNCIL DISCUSSION/DIRECTION TO THE TOWN MANAGER KEN
BUCHANAN.
Items listed below are related only to the propriety of (i) placing such items on a future agenda for action or (ii) directin g staff to
conduct further research and report back to the Council.
None.
AGENDA ITEM #21 – SUMMARY OF COUNCIL REQUESTS AND REPORT ON RECENT ACTIVITIES
BY THE MAYOR, INDIVIDUAL COUNCILMEMBERS AND THE TOWN MANAGER.
Mr. Buchanan noted that the 4th of July Celebration is coming up shortly and reported that staff called for Requests for
Proposals (RFPs) for the Shea project this week and hopefully that will be back before the Council the first meeting in
August.
Councilmember Elkie said he went to southern California and got to see the significant effects of the wildfires out
there. He stated that he has some really grave concerns about the fire risks during the upcoming 4th of July
Celebration. He noted that during 4th of July events there are multiple fires in some of the washes and he is very
disappointed that the Legislature has pushed the Town to allow fireworks. He encouraged everyone to go to the 4th of
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July event that will take place down at the Fountain and to make the conscious decision not to use consumer fireworks
in Town and not put the Town at risk. He reported that they are currently at an extreme risk for fire danger and the
Fire Chief concurred with that statement.
Fire Chief Randy Roberts addressed the Council and said that the Fire Department does have some concerns about the
4th and they too are disappointed about what the Legislature did because it certainly put the Town at more risk but
they did not consult with the Town or the Fire Department. He advised that they are staffing up for the 4th and Rural
Metro is going to pay for some additional staffing and one of the event organizers is also going to pay for some of the
staffing. He too encouraged attendance at the Fireworks at the Fountain and confirmed that there will be a fire truck (a
pumper and both brush trucks) at the Fountain.
Councilmember Dickey advised that she was over in Avondale last week for an event for Mayor Marie Lopez Rogers,
who is becoming the new County Supervisor so she stepped down. She noted that she was the Chair of MAG and also
the head of the National League of Cities & Towns. She added that when they introduced some of the folks who were
there Fountain Hills got a shout out for the person who came from the furthest place.
AGENDA ITEM #22 - ADJOURNMENT.
Vice Mayor Yates MOVED to adjourn the Regular Council meeting and Councilmember Elkie SECONDED the
motion, which CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY (7-0). The meeting adjourned at 9:40 p.m.
TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS
By _______________________________
Linda M. Kavanagh, Mayor
ATTEST AND
PREPARED BY:
_________________________
Bevelyn J. Bender, Town Clerk
CERTIFICATION
I hereby certify that the foregoing minutes are a true and correct copy of the minutes of the Executive and Regular
Sessions held by the Town Council of Fountain Hills in the Town Hall Fountain Conference Room – located on 2nd
Floor (Executive) and Town Hall Council Chambers (Regular) on the 19th day of June, 2014. I further certify that the
meetings were duly called and that quorums were present.
DATED this 7th day of August, 2014.
_____________________________
Bevelyn J. Bender, Town Clerk