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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2015.0416.TCREM.Minutesz:\council packets\2015\r150507\150416m.docx Page 1 of 5 TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS MINUTES OF THE EXECUTIVE AND REGULAR SESSIONS OF THE FOUNTAIN HILLS TOWN COUNCIL APRIL 16, 2015 EXECUTIVE SESSION * CALL TO ORDER AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Mayor Kavanagh called the Executive Session to order at 5:04 p.m. in the Fountain Conference Room - 2nd Floor. AGENDA ITEM #1 - ROLL CALL AND VOTE TO GO INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION PURSUANT TO (I) 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 CONTEMPLATED OR PENDING LITIGATION (SPECIFICALLY, CONSIDERATION OF A SETTLEMENT OFFER IN A TAX ENFORCEMENT ACTION); (II) A.R.S. §38-431.03(A)(1), DISCUSSION OR CONSIDERATION OF EMPLOYMENT, ASSIGNMENT, APPOINTMENT, PROMOTION, DEMOTION, DISMISSAL, SALARIES, DISCIPLINING OR RESIGNATION OF A PUBLIC OFFICER, APPOINTEE OR EMPLOYEE OF ANY PUBLIC BODY (SPECIFICALLY FOR THE PURPOSE OF DISCUSSING THE TOWN MANAGER VACANCY); AND (III) A.R.S. §38-431.03(A)(3), DISCUSSION OR CONSULTATION FOR LEGAL ADVICE WITH THE ATTORNEY OR ATTORNEYS OF THE PUBLIC BODY (SPECIFICALLY, REGARDING TOWN CENTER DEVELOPMENT). Present for roll call were the following members of the Town Council: Mayor Linda Kavanagh, Vice Mayor Dennis Brown, Councilmember Nick DePorter, Councilmember Cecil Yates, Councilmember Cassie Hansen, Councilmember Alan Magazine and Councilmember Henry Leger. Town Manager Ken Buchanan, Town Attorney Andrew McGuire, Finance Director Craig Rudolphy, and Town Clerk Bevelyn Bender were also present. Finance Director Craig Rudolphy left the meeting at 5:25 p.m. Senior Planner Robert Rodgers and Development Services Director Paul Mood entered the meeting at 5:27 p.m. and left the meeting at 6:20 p.m. Vice Mayor Brown MOVED to go into Executive Session and Councilmember Yates SECONDED the motion, which CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY (7-0). The Mayor recessed the Executive Session at 6:25 p.m. The Mayor reconvened the Executive Session at 6:55 p.m. in the Fountain Conference room-2nd floor after the Regular Session adjourned. Those in attendance were Mayor Linda Kavanagh, Vice Mayor Dennis Brown, Councilmember Nick DePorter, Councilmember Cecil Yates, Councilmember Cassie Hansen, Councilmember Alan Magazine and Councilmember Henry Leger, and Town Attorney Andrew McGuire was also present; Administrative Services Director Grady Miller entered the meeting at 7:07 p.m. and left the meeting at 8:02 p.m. AGENDA ITEM #2 – ADJOURNMENT Without objection the Executive Session adjourned at 8:23 p.m. REGULAR SESSION * CALL TO ORDER AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Mayor Kavanagh called the meeting to order at 6:34 p.m. * INVOCATION - Pastor Justin Erickson, Harvest Bible Chapel z:\council packets\2015\r150507\150416m.docx Page 2 of 5 * ROLL CALL – Present for roll call were the following members of the Town Council: Mayor Linda Kavanagh, Vice Mayor Dennis Brown, Councilmember Nick DePorter, Councilmember Cecil Yates, Councilmember Cassie Hansen, Councilmember Alan Magazine 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 May 7, 2015 as National Day of Prayer in the Town of Fountain Hills. Mayor Kavanagh said that the Town of Fountain Hills will join together with the entire country on May 7, 2015 to celebrate the 64th anniversary of the National Day of Prayer. She noted that Congress, by Public Law 100 -307, has called on citizens to reaffirm the role of prayer in our society and to honor the religious diversity that our freedom permits by recognizing a National Day of Prayer. She added that they are ever mindful of all the heroic men and women of their Armed Forces, especially those serving abroad and in harm's way and pray for God's blessings for their governments at town, state and national levels to shower them with strength and wisdom in order to meet the challenges before them and to work together to bring hope for their community an d to enhance the well-being of all citizens and families of Fountain Hills. She said that they pray for strength and Divine direction in their educational systems, community businesses, media and places of worship and uniting in prayer gives all people of faith, regardless of their denominations or religious, an opportunity to join fellow citizens in celebrating the power and love of God and their perpetual responsibility to Him and others. The Mayor declared May 7, 2015 National Prayer Day in Fountain Hills. * SCHEDULED PUBLIC APPEARANCES/PRESENTATIONS i) The Mayor may review recent events attended relating to Economic Development. Mayor Kavanagh advised that at the GPEC (Greater Phoenix Economic Council) Mayor's meeting they discussed some expansion efforts in Western Europe, the United Kingdom and Mexico. She stated that there were no new net jobs seen from the China markets nor any business expansion so the move is to these new markets. She added that Expanding Community Partnerships will be highlighted this coming year with more services such as providing analytics and research information to municipalities through their Economic Development Specialist Scott Cooper. She noted that GPEC is in the process of constructing a digital warehouse, which will be a repository for current markets and all research material that will be accessible to Mr. Cooper all of the time. She highlighted her attendance at the MAG (Maricopa Association of Governments) meeting and said that the AZ Commerce Commi ssion introduced their new website specifically to help start -up businesses. She explained that the website is just azcommerce.com/start-up and noted that lots of information on how to start your business and help it grow can be found on that site. She commented that this is just the beginning for the Commerce Commission to create avenues for helping all kinds of businesses and she will keep everyone up to date on many more sites to come. CALL TO THE PUBLIC Town Clerk Bevelyn Bender advised that there were no citizens wishing to speak at this time. CONSENT AGENDA AGENDA ITEM #1 - CONSIDERATION OF APPROVING THE TOWN COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES FROM APRIL 2, 2015. AGENDA ITEM #2 - CONSIDERATION OF APPROVING RESOLUTION 2015-11, APPROVING A STREET NAME CHANGE FROM LOS SIETE COURT TO LOS SAGUAROS COURT, LYING WITHIN THE LOS MONTANAS DEL SOL SUBDIVISION. AGENDA ITEM #3 - CONSIDERATION OF APPROVING RESOLUTION 2015-20, ABANDONING WHATEVER RIGHT, TITLE OR INTEREST THE TOWN HAS IN THE CERTAIN PUBLIC UTILITY AND z:\council packets\2015\r150507\150416m.docx Page 3 of 5 DRAINAGE EASEMENTS LOCATED AT THE SOUTHERLY PROPERTY LINE OF PLAT 603C, BLOCK 2, LOT 5 (15811 E. CHICORY DRIVE) AS RECORDED IN BOOK 161 OF MAPS, PAGE 43, RECORDS OF MARICOPA COUNTY, ARIZONA. EA2015-03 (WEAVER) AGENDA ITEM #4 - CONSIDERATION OF APPROVING A TEMPORARY EXTENSION OF A GROUND LEASE FOR A CROWN CASTLE CELL TOWER LOCATED ON TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS PROPERTY ON SHEA BOULEVARD. Councilmember Leger MOVED to approve the Consent Agenda as listed and Councilmember Magazine SECONDED the motion. A roll call vote was taken with the following results: Mayor Kavanagh Aye Vice Mayor Dennis Brown Aye Councilmember Nick DePorter Aye Councilmember Cecil Yates Aye Councilmember Cassie Hansen Aye Councilmember Alan Magazine Aye Councilmember Henry Leger Aye The motion CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY (7-0). REGULAR AGENDA AGENDA ITEM #5 - DISCUSSION WITH POSSIBLE DIRECTION TO STAFF RELATING TO ANY ITEM INCLUDED IN THE LEAGUE OR 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 there were 344 laws passed in the recent Session. He noted that currently the League of Arizona Cities & Towns is assessing and addressing the various laws that impact Fountain Hills and as soon as that is received staff will bring them forward to the Council and provide an in-depth explanation. Councilmember Magazine said he knows that they are waiting on an analysis of those bills but asked whether Mr. Buchanan was aware of anything that passed that would create additional costs for the Town. Mr. Buchanan responded additional costs no, potential revenue losses yes (TPE - Transaction Privilege Tax). He stated that there is a fee that the Town will have to pay to the Department of Revenue for processing. AGENDA ITEM #6 - 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) directing staff to conduct further research and report back to the Council. A. None. AGENDA ITEM #7 - SUMMARY OF COUNCIL REQUESTS AND REPORT ON RECENT ACTIVITIES BY THE MAYOR, INDIVIDUAL COUNCILMEMBERS AND THE TOWN MANAGER. Mayor Kavanagh advised that the Mayor's Youth Council took a tour of the house of famous cowboy artist Carlos Hadaway, the AZ Kid. She said that Carlos is not only a western artist, he has been in past western movies and has had the pleasure of meeting cowboy screen stars. She noted that his house is like a museum of old Arizona with countless pieces of memorabilia and she thanked her dear friend, Carlos, for once again opening his home up to the students. She announced that she attended the annual Mayor's Prayer Breakfast, this year sponsored by Mesa and z:\council packets\2015\r150507\150416m.docx Page 4 of 5 stated that 500+ were in attendance to come together to share prayers of all faith. She thanked all the members of the ministerial association for bringing to them once again the annual Easter Sunrise Service in the Park and added that it was a beautiful morning and the park was filled once again with residents and many brought their Easter visitors with them. She commented that there were quite a few kids and several people brought their dogs and she thanked Pastor Tony Pierce and the Baptist Church volunteers who provided a very nice scene with the Fountain in the background. She also thanked Phyliss Kern for her generous donation of her Showmobile, a portable stage that had a great sound system for the music and many prayers. She advised that she presented her State of the Town to the morning Rotary and said it was a pleasure to bring the Town government to this awesome volunteer group and to answer various questions. Town Manager requested that Administrative Services Director Grady Miller come forward and provide a brief report on the status of the mid-decade census and the potential impacts that the Town will see. Mr. Miller addressed the Council and noted that since 1985, the State of Arizona as a rapidly growing State has chosen to do Special Censuses. He advised that the State's population as a whole, because of the recession and lack of growth, has grown by only 4.68% over the last five years. He stated that last summer at the League of Cities & Town's Conference, a resolution was considered by some cities that wanted to go ahead full bore and do a Special Census in the region and also State wide. He added that there were also a number of cities that recognized that the population growth of their cities did not match what was anticipated for the growth of the State (if a city or town has grown by less than 4.68%, even though that is a net in their growth/population, their slice of the pie, which is State Shared Revenue, is actually smaller and so as that revenue gets redistributed the percentage of proportion actually gets smaller). He said that Mr. Buchanan and he were at a meeting of the East Valley Managers a couple of weeks ago and a number of the larger-growth cities in the East Valley, mainly Gilbert and Queen Creek, were wanting to go forward with their Special Census. He pointed out that it is very costly to go through a Special Census but they do get the most accurate numbers. He advised that they felt from their standpoint, as did all of the other cities, that each of the Managers and Councils have a fiduciary responsibility to their cities and to look after the best financial interests of the citizens and make wise decisions, not only as far as expenditures but also in trying to maximize revenues. He informed the Council that what actually happened was as they discussed this it was obvious that there were winners and losers and they have never been in this quandary before as a region -- every city and town in the past (since 1985) has benefitted economically from a Special Census but that is not the case this year and so some cities are going forward with the Special Census and some cities are on the fence. He noted that Fountain Hills is one of those towns that recognize that $450,000 to conduct a Special Census, when they are already losing money, is a bad proposition. He stated that the analysis that is in the Council's report shows that the Town would stand to lose anywhere between $93,000 and $227,000 and it is all dependent on who participates in the Special Censuses and which cities choose to go with the State's estimates. He said that he wanted to provide the Council with an update and pointed out that MAG realizes that this is not a regional issue at this point and basically has involved the Arizona League of Cities & Towns (there is a meeting downtown tomorrow to discuss this matter and try to work out any kind of special legislation that could come out of this so maybe they can come up with a special bill that might remedy the issue). He advised that he will continue to monitor this issue and provide the Council with updates and indicated his willingness to respond to any questions from the Council. AGENDA ITEM #8 - ADJOURNMENT The Mayor announced that the Council would reconvene in Executive Session after the adjournment of the Regular Session. Councilmember Yates MOVED to adjourn the Regular Session at 6:40 p.m. and Vice Mayor Brown SECONDED the motion, which CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY (7-0). z:\council packets\2015\r150507\150416m.docx Page 5 of 5 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 Session, held in the Fountain Conference Room - 2nd Floor and Regular Session held by the Town Council of Fountain Hills in the Town Hall Council Chambers on the 16th day of April, 2015. I further certify that the meeting was duly called and that a quorum was present. DATED this 7th day of May, 2015. _____________________________ Bevelyn J. Bender, Town Clerk