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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1992.0206.TCRM.Minutes TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS MINUTES OF THE REGULAR SESSION OF THE FOUNTAIN HILLS TOWN COUNCIL FEBRUARY 6, 1992 A public meeting of the Fountain Hills Town Council was convened and called to order by Mayor John Cutillo at 6:30 p.m., Thursday, February 6, 1992, in the Fountain Hills Town Hall, located at 16836 E. Palisades Blvd., Building C, Fountain Hills, Arizona. ROLL CALL - Following the pledge to the flag and the invocation by Pastor Don Lawrence, Christ's Church, roll call was taken. Present for roll call were the following members of the Fountain Hills Town Council: Mayor John Cutillo, Vice Mayor Peg Tibbetts and Councilmembers Frank Clark, Mike Minarsich, Charlie Fox, Bill O'Brien and Wally Hudson. Also present were Town Manager Paul Nordin, Town Attorneys Bill Farrell and Nick Dotterman, Director of Community Development Gary Jeppson and Town Clerk Cassie Hansen. Mayor Cutillo stated that there was a consent agenda and that all items listed with an asterisk were considered to be routine matters and would be enacted by one motion and roll call vote of the Council. There would be no separate discussion of the items unless a Councilmember or member of the public so requested, in which event the item would be removed from the Consent Agenda and considered in its normal sequence on the agenda. The consent agenda items were read by Mayor Cutillo and the Council acted on them. Councilman Clark made a MOTION to approve as read. SECONDED by Councilman O'Brien. A roll call vote was taken and the motion CARRIED unanimously. AGENDA ITEM #2 - ACCEPTANCE OF THE MEETING MINUTES OF JANUARY 14TH AND 16TH OF 1992. This item was a part of the consent agenda. Councilman Clark made a MOTION to approve. SECONDED by Councilman O'Brien. A roll call vote was taken and the 141) motion CARRIED unanimously. AGENDA ITEM #3 - CONSIDERATION OF THE SPECIAL EVENT REQUEST OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE FOR THE GREAT FAIR TO BE HELD ON THE AVENUE OF THE FOUNTAINS AND FOUNTAIN PARK ON FEBRUARY 22ND AND 23RD, 1992. This item was a part of the consent agenda. Councilman Clark made a MOTION to approve. SECONDED by Councilman O'Brien. A roll call vote was taken and the motion CARRIED unanimously. AGENDA ITEM #4 - CONSIDERATION OF THE SPECIAL EVENT REQUEST OF THE FOUNTAIN HILLS ROTARY CLUB FOR HEARTBURN ' 92, A CHILI COOL-OFF PLANNED TO RAISE FUNDS FOR "THE GIFT OF LIFE" PROGRAM. This item was a part of the consent agenda. Councilman Clark made a MOTION to approve. SECONDED by Councilman O'Brien. A roll call vote was taken and the motion CARRIED unanimously. AGENDA ITEM #5 - CONSIDERATION OF A SPECIAL EVENT LIQUOR LICENSE PERMIT FOR THE ROTARY'S CHILI COOK-OFF. This item was a part of the consent agenda. Councilman Clark made a MOTION to approve. SECONDED by Councilman O'Brien. A roll call vote was taken and the motion CARRIED unanimously. AGENDA ITEM #6 - CONSIDERATION OF THE SPECIAL EVENT REQUEST OF MCO FOR A FREE Minutes of the Regular Session of the Town Council 02/06/92 .4011 Page 1 of 7 CONCERT IN THE PARK ON FEBRUARY 9, 1992. This item was a part of the consent agenda. Councilman Clark made a MOTION to approve. SECONDED by Councilman O'Brien. A roll call vote was taken and the motion CARRIED unanimously. AGENDA ITEM #7 - CONSIDERATION OF PETE URBON'S REQUEST FOR AN EXTENSION OF PREMISE LIQUOR LICENSE APPLICATION AT BIG DADDY'S ON FEBRUARY 22ND AND 23RD, 1992. This item was a part of the consent agenda. Councilman Clark made a MOTION to approve. SECONDED by Councilman O'Brien. A roll call vote was taken and the motion CARRIED unanimously. AGENDA ITEM #8 - CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION 1992-02, ABANDONING WHATEVER RIGHT, TITLE OR INTEREST THE TOWN HAD IN THAT CERTAIN PUBLIC UTILITY EASEMENT AND DRAINAGE EASEMENT LOCATED ALONG THE EAST LOT LINE OF LOT 32, BLOCK 1, OF PLAT 206, FOUNTAIN HILLS, ARIZONA, AS RECORDED IN BOOK 147 OF MAPS, PAGE 2, RECORDS OF MARICOPA COUNTY, ARIZONA; EXCEPT THE SOUTH TEN FEET OF SAID EASEMENT. This item was a part of the consent agenda. Councilman Clark made a MOTION to approve. SECONDED by Councilman O'Brien. A roll call vote was taken and the motion CARRIED unanimously. AGENDA ITEM #9 - PRESENTATION BY MAGISTRATE SHOOS OF HIS MONTHLY COURT REPORT. Judge Shoob stated that the filings were slightly down the past month but that collections remained approximately the same. He said the collections officer 4110, would start the next day and the training process would start the following Monday. Judge Shoob stated that the collections officer's name was Craig Sherff. AGENDA ITEM #10 - PRESENTATION OF CERTIFICATES OF RECOGNITION TO OFFICERS NICKOLS AND WEST OF THE TOWN MARSHAL'S RESERVE PROGRAM FOR EARNING THEIR A.L.E.O.A.C. CERTIFICATION. Councilman Fox stated that for a little over a year the Town had had a law enforcement group called the Fountain Hills Marshal's Reserve Program. He explained that interim Marshal Ron Dalrymple was out of town and called on Lt. Feller to assisthim with the presentation. He explained the reserve program's levels and stated that the highest level was a fully certified law enforcement officer for the State of Arizona. Councilman Fox said that one of the reserve officers would be attending the A.L.E.T.A. academy in Tucson later that month. He explained that two were currently attending another certification class in Mesa and was why they were absent from the meeting. Councilman Fox introduced Deputies Scott West and Jim Nickols and asked them to come forward for the presentation. Councilman Fox read the inscription on the plaques from the Council. Councilman Fox said that the Council was going to start a program recognizing one officer each month for his contributions to the program. A plaque would be dislayed in the Town Hall lobby for this purpose. Councilman Fox read Town Code, Chapter 4, Section 4.1.1 and 2, Police Department and made a presentation to Town Manager Nordin. Lt. Feller introduced the Reserve Officers that were in attendance. AGENDA ITEM #11 - TOWN MANAGER'S REPORT: #11.A.1. Protect update with possible direction from the Council for appropriate action on Golden Eagle Park. Town Attorney Bill Farrell stated that the Town had ,, Minutes of the Regular Session of the Town Council 02/06/92 Page 2 of 7 received reports on the Park from the Title Company, from the environmental v.) consultant and a sample deed from MCO. Mr. Farrell said that the project agreement was expected to happen within thirty days. #11.A.2. Project update with possible direction from the Council for appropriate action on Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG) . Mr. Nordin stated that there had been much activity regarding a law passed in December 1991, regarding paving funding. He said that Fountain Hills did not qualify as a rural community and therefore would not receive the $350,000 originally anticipated, but rather $90,000 instead. Mayor Cutillo asked what would need to be done by the Town and Mr. Nordin stated that he thought that M.A.G. staff would do what was necessary. He said what staff would need to do was to prepare an appropriate project for submittal and Mr. Harrel was working on that. #11.B.1. Discuss and possibly act upon the appointments to the Parks and Recreation Commission to fill the two seats whose terms have expired. Councilman O'Brien made a MOTION to re-appoint Peter Klein and Carol McKinney-Jarman for a two year term on the Parks and Recreation Commission. SECONDED by Councilman Minarsich. Councilman Clark suggested that Warren Mavis, be kept on file for future reference as there were many qualified applicants who would like to serve. Each of the Councilmembers spoke and they all agreed with the motion as well as Councilman Clark's comment. The motion CARRIED unanimously. AGENDA ITEM #12 - DISCUSS POSSIBLE FUTURE ACTION ON THE TOWN'S PURCHASE OF JAPANESE MANUFACTURED ITEMS. Councilman Fox explained that he had become upset over this issue due to the rash of character assassinations which seemed to be so prevalent lately. He stated that he requested the Council look at the issue and consider a possible future action if the agreements made with the President were not lived up to. AGENDA ITEM #13 - PRESENTATION BY PAUL NORDIN ON THE 1991-92 MID-YEAR BUDGET REVIEW. j13.A. Consideration of the purchase of a building and storage sheds for the street crew. Mr. Nordin did a slide presentation for the Council on the midyear budget review. He stated that the mid-year review was to see how they were doing. He explained that Fountain Hills had two main funds, the general fund and the street fund and the budget was a simple one. Mr. Nordin stated that the Arizona Budget Law did not allow deficit spending, explaining that this meant the Town had to have a dollar to spend a dollar and it had to have permission to spend it. Mr. Nordin said that the present fiscal year approved budget general fund expenditure limit was $2.2 million. He said the expenditure limit for the street fund was $968, 937. Mr. Nordin gave a projected expenditure for the entire fiscal year in the general fund of $1.8 million and the street fund was projected to reach a little over $700,000. Mr. Nordin stated that the Town's net savings for the first six months of operating was $183,181 adding that the Town's reserve funds totalled $912,000. He said that in eighteen months, the fund balance had tripled. Mr. Nordin reviewed the progress that had been made in the time since the Town incorporated. He stated that the Town's largest street paving project was just about to start and should be completed by the end of September. Mr. Nordin explained that the Town operated on state shared revenues and building permit fees for the General Fund and the street fund with gas tax money. He said the Town did not operate on property taxation and that incorporation had brought about a slight reduction in property taxes in Fountain Hills. Mr. Nordin stated that the Parks and Recreation department had sponsored twenty-six events since its creation. He said that the Town had received close to one million dollars in grants to date. Councilman Hudson stated that the money the Town had was not in the bank, it was in federal securities of different forms. Mr. Nordin Minutes of the Regular Session of the Town Council 02/06/92 Page 3 of 7 presented the idea of a Town newsletter on an every other month basis and asked the Council to consider the idea. He also requested the consideration of the purchase of a portable building for the Road Department staff at the cost of $50,000. Mr. Nordin stated if the Council approved the request, he would work with the Sanitary District to meet any requirements they would make. Councilman Clark asked if there would be more presentations on the proposed Road Department building and Mr. Nordin stated that Mr. Harvey and Mr. Harrel could make a presentation at the next Council meeting. Councilman Fox explained the sketches he had seen on the proposed building and recommended not renting the building. Councilman Fox made a MOTION to approve the $50,000 request with the stipulation that staff present diagrams and more data be presented at the next Council meeting. SECONDED by Councilman Clark. Mayor Cutillo stated that he felt the issue should be addressed with the sanitary district and that it be done as a budget item during the next calendar year. Councilman O'Brien stated that he did not know if the money was being spent for the best solution. Councilman Minarsich stated that he felt that Mr. Harvey and Mr. Harrel were the best qualified to know the needs of that department. Mayor Cutillo stated that he was against the approach. Councilman Hudson stated that the storage shed situation had to be changed immediately for safety reasons. Councilman Fox stated that the situation had been studied for four months. Ms. Petroff asked if the $50,000 was a maximum to be spent and wondered what the urgency was. Mayor Cutillo stated that it would be a maximum and there would be further meetings regarding the matter. Mr. Jim Horvath asked if other types of buildings could be considered for the storage and Mr. Harrel stated that they had floor plans of their needs and there would be other systems considered. Motion CARRIED with a vote of five aye votes to two nay votes. Mayor Cutillo and Councilman O'Brien cast the nay votes. #13.B. Consideration of authorizing staff to begin work on a Town Newsletter. Mr. Nordin asked the Council for direction on the issue. Councilman Minarsich stated that it was a good idea to communicate with the community and would be worth trying. Vice Mayor Tibbetts said that citizens had told her that between the two local newspapers, there was enough information available, however, she felt the newsletter was necessary. Councilman O'Brien agreed that it would be good, however, to minimize postage costs he recommended a quarterly letter. Councilman O'Brien suggested considering taping the various Town meetings for view by the public on cable television. Councilman Fox agreed with Councilman O'Brien except he wanted the newsletter to be monthly. Mayor Cutillo asked if the school district was satisfied with the responses from their newsletter and Mr. Nordin stated that they had not been asked. Mr. Nordin stated that the proposed cost was based on other town's experience. Councilman Clark stated he was in favor of the newsletter but felt the projected cost was too high. Councilman Minarsich suggested the postal fees be checked to see if the Town would qualify as a non-profit organization. Councilman Minarsich made a MOTION to authorize staff to begin work on a Town Newsletter and the expenditure not to exceed $20,000 for the balance of the current fiscal year. SECONDED by Councilman Fox. Councilman Hudson AMENDED the motion to be a bi-monthly publication. SECONDED by Councilman Clark. Mayor Cutillo called for discussion of the amended motion and Councilman Fox stated that with all the current issues, the newsletter should be monthly. Councilman Minarsich agreed with Councilman Fox adding that if it was every other month, it would be old news. Councilman Hudson said he felt a monthly newsletter would be too much to ask of staff. Councilman O'Brien stated he did not support the expenditure. Vice Mayor Tibbetts stated that the postage would be the same and explained if the newsletter went out every month, it would not be a bulky. She said she found that if the publication was every two months, it was too many pages and people tended not to read it. Councilman Minarsich stated that his experience with newsletters led him to believe that the project would come out under budget. He felt it was the Council's responsibility to see that the public was furnished the information in an accurate speedy manner. Councilman Clark stated he would go along with the newsletter but could not justify the cost. Mr. Tancredi stated cow Minutes of the Regular Session of the Town Council 02/06/92 Page 4 of 7 that his last profession was as a printer and he stated that if staff wanted the public to read the newsletter, it had to be professionally done and colorful. He added that it did not have to be cost prohibitive. Mr. Thomas said that he felt even a monthly publication was not often enough. Mr. Sparks said he felt it should be at least monthly and said he thought the community was hungry to know what was happening in the Town. Amended motion FAILED by a vote of five nay to one aye vote. Councilman Hudson cast the aye vote. Councilman Fox said he felt staff would not abuse the budgetary limit of $20,000 and felt that they would produce a good product at as little cost as possible. Councilman Minarsich stated that there would be some original startup costs but that staff would use the money wisely. Councilman Clark stated that during the coming budget review, the newsletter would need to be studied carefully. Mr. Nordin said that he wanted to be sure to have enough to do the newsletter without having to come back to the Council. He said he could come back to the Council and present what staff would be coming up with in the next few weeks. Mr. Nordin stated that he did not know how many newsletters would be published this year. Councilman O'Brien said he was not concerned with the details of the publication, but the overall cost and what the readership wanted. Councilman Minarsich stated that surveys could be done on the readership to see what their areas of interest were. Ms. Petroff said she would help with the newsletter and that she did not wish to see the work be sent outside Fountain Hills. Mr. Hansen said the Chamber produced a quality newsletter and he felt staff could produce a quality work in house, except for the printing. Mr. Nordin agreed except he did not know if staff would always have time to do all the writing. Mr. Sparks said the public was interested in what was going on and he felt the people would read what was sent. Original motion CARRIED unanimously. Councilman O'Brien was called away to the telephone and did not vote on the original motion. AGENDA ITEM #14 - PRESENTATION BY PAUL NORDIN ON THE FIVE YEAR PLAN FINANCIAL PROJECTIONS AND SOURCES OF REVENUE. Mr. Nordin displayed a slide, stating that it represented revenue and expenditure forecasts for five years in the general and street funds and an analysis of what additional sources of revenue could be available to the Town. Mr. Nordin stated that it was important to note that the presentation figures were based on the presumption that the present level of service would continue for the next five years. Mr. Nordin explained his presentation, stating that the receipt of state shared revenues was the reason the government could operate without relying on property taxes. He said that it amounted to approximately $1.2 million for Fountain Hills. Mr. Nordin said that he felt the $1.7 million figure was conservative, that the Town would receive with the mid-decade census. He reviewed the revenue sources, reading some of the amounts as follows: vehicle license tax, $140,000-$160,000; franchise fees from Dimension Cable, $60,000- $90,000. He said all those revenue sources would be added together to get the total revenue available, that would be added to the carry forward balance in the general fund and that would give the total available funds for that particular fiscal year. Mr. Nordin said that figure was $3,840,145. Mr. Nordin displayed the expenditure analysis for the general fund for the same time period and explained it. He explained that there was an allowance of seven to eight percent for salary increases and a decrease in the contract line item, relying on staff engineering department. Mr. Nordin stated that the two part time positions were projected as full time positions in the budget. He said his figures were estimates and one of the reasons for this was to help him determine how much additional funding would be expected from the present revenue sources. Mr. Nordin stated that at future meetings, when he spoke about various departments, he would be able to figure from this basis. Mr. Gendler asked if the Town's contingency money could be invested and Mr. Nordin stated that that was being done. Mr. Nordin stated that if the Town continued with its present configuration of expenditures and revenue, they would be able to make it through the next five years in good shape for the general fund. He said that his Minutes of the Regular Session of the Town Council 02/06/92 Page 5 of 7 proposed figures included up to four new employees. 41, Mr. Nordin addressed the street fund next stating that he followed the same revenue format. He said there were not as many sources of revenue for the street fund, naming gas tax, lottery funds, interest income and miscellaneous. Mr. Nordin said the projected totals were from a low this year of $681,000 to 1995-96 of $737,000 and in 1996-97, projected to $972,000, because of the population jump. He said the carry forward amounts would decline and he would discuss them with the expenditures rather than the revenue figures. Mr. Nordin showed his expenditure figures stating that general fund money could be spent for the street department but street department funds could not be spent for non-street department issues. Councilman Clark asked if the street department staff would need to be increased within the next five years and Mr. Nordin said it would. Mr. Nordin stated the M.A.G. revenue was not shown in his figures and that revenue could be used for the salary increases. He said the street fund situation could be better, however the Town had other sources. Councilman O'Brien asked what percentage increase of roadways would the paving represent and Mr. Harrel said that it would increase by approximately ten percent. He added that there would also be new roadways created within new areas of development within the community. Mr. Nordin said the contingency line items would continually decrease. He stated that the street funds needed to be continually spent and would continually decrease. Mr. Nordin stated that the expenditures necessary in the street department were being met through the budget. Ms. Woods asked where funds for transportation were shown and Mr. Harrel said that through the ride share program, which the Town was contributing to. Mr. Nordin said that there were many projects to address and in the next few weeks, five of them would be presented; initial funding for the street program, planning and zoning, parks and recreation, civic center and the police department. He said what he would present next were possible ways of funding for some on those areas. He clarified that what he was presenting were just possibilities and he did not recommend any of them. Mr. Nordin stated that the first source was a local sales tax. He said the projection on that would be to add $250,000-300,000 to the general fund for each one cent of sales tax added. Mr. Nordin said that an additional $80,000-100,000 could be expected if food was also taxed. Councilman Minarsich stated that this type of tax would be the least offensive to the residents because it would be mostly reflected in new construction and non-residents. Mr. Nordin said that if the Council would decide to implement a sales tax any time in the future and chose to fund an additional operation, he recommended projections be done before that time came. Councilman Hudson asked how much revenue was generated by the business licenses. Mr. Farrell stated that Fountain Hills had no property tax on real property by the Town Council. He explained if the Council adopted a sales tax and did not tie it to a specific project, but made it general fund money, the Council could assure the community that it would not have to impose a real estate property tax. Mr. Farrell said the tax would be a bargaining tool for borrowing money. He said it was a very good policy not to tie sales tax to a specific entity. Mr. Nordin stated that some permanent programs could be put in place because the revenue source would be permanent. Mr. Nordin said that there was no vote of the people to impose a local sales tax, it would be an act of the Council. He said the Council would have to enact the model cities tax code which required uniformity in the things that would be taxed. Mr. Nordin stated that the next tax that the Town could impose was property tax and the authority was given by the Arizona Statutes and the annual levy amount was unlimited, however, there had to be an election of the people before it could be levied. He said there could only be a two percent annual increase in the amount. Mr. Farrell explained the tax law and how the tax increases would be incurred. Mr. Nordin said the tax would be able to be used to support the same type of town programs as the sales tax. Mr. Nordin said the Town had general obligation bonding capacity with a twenty percent assessed value limit. He said coor Minutes of the Regular Session of the Town Council 02/06/92 Page 6 of 7 that would mean an approximate $16.5 million for the Town. Mr. Nordin stated that it would require a vote of the people and the money could be used for the construction of a civic center, acquire the water company, for parks acquisition and construction, and drainage improvement. Mr. Nordin addressed municipal property corporation bonds and lease purchase financing. He explained that they were secured by excise tax revenue and required no vote. Mr. Nordin said that the two sources would work in concert with a local sales tax. Mr. Nordin stated that funding for a police department would start with the $417,000 currently allowed for the contract with Maricopa County Sheriff's Office. He explained that there were many sources of funding for a police department. AGENDA ITEM #15 - CALL TO THE PUBLIC. Mayor Cutillo made the call to the public. No one responded. AGENDA ITEM #16 - PURSUANT TO A.R.S. 38-431.03.A.7 AND 38-431.A.3, VOTE TO GO INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION FOR DISCUSSION OR CONSULTATION WITH DESIGNATED REPRESENTATIVES OF THE PUBLIC BODY IN ORDER TO CONSIDER ITS POSITION AND INSTRUCT ITS REPRESENTATIVES REGARDING NEGOTIATION FOR THE PURCHASE OR LEASE OF REAL PROPERTY AND CONSULTATION FOR LEGAL ADVICE WITH THE ATTORNEYS OF THE PUBLIC BODY, RESPECTIVELY. Councilman Fox made a MOTION to go into executive session. SECONDED by Councilman O'Brien and CARRIED unanimously. The Town Council went into executive session at approximately 10:12 p.m. AGENDA ITEM #17 - RETURN TO REGULAR SESSION AND ADJOURNMENT. The Town Council returned to regular session at 11:14 p.m. Councilman Minarsich made a MOTION to adjourn. SECONDED by Councilman O'Brien and CARRIED 411) unanimously. The Town Council adjourned at approximately 11:15 p.m. TOWN OF)TOAIN LLS By: _ ��j .t�r Jo n M� Cutillo, Ma or ATTEST: Cass' B. Ha s Town Clerk PREPARED B : C ri L. ratcher, Secretary CERTIFICATION I hereby certify that the foregoing minutes are a true and correct copy of the minutes of the Regular Meeting held by the Town Council of Fountain Hills on the 6th day of February 1992. I further certify that the meeting was duly called and that a quorum was present. DATED this ol-014- day of February 1992. Cassie B. Hansen, Town Clerk Minutes of the Regular Session of the Town Council 02/06/92 Page 7 of 7