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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2000.1207.TCREM.Minutes TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS MINUTES OF THE REGULAR AND EXECUTIVE SESSION OF THE FOUNTAIN HILLS TOWN COUNCIL ftrir December 7,2000 Mayor Morgan called the regular session of the Town Council to order at 5:30 p.m. Vice Mayor Hutcheson MOVED that the Council convene the executive session and Councilman Wyman SECONDED the motion, which carried unanimously. AGENDA ITEM#1 - PURSUANT TO A.R.S. §38-431.03.A.3., 4., AND 7., VOTE TO GO INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION FOR DISCUSSION OR CONSULTATION FOR LEGAL ADVICE WITH THE ATTORNEY OR ATTORNEYS OF THE PUBLIC BODY REGARDING THE CONSIDERATION OF ASPECTS OF THE NEW ARIZONA OPEN MEETING LAW AS IT APPLIES TO BOARD AND COMMISSION APPOINTMENTS; AND FOR 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 IN PENDING OR CONTEMPLATED LITIGATION REGARDING THE TOWN VERSUS MCO PROPERTIES; AND FOR DISCUSSIONS OR CONSULTATIONS 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, THE LOCATION OF WHICH SHALL REMAIN CONFIDENTIAL AS IT IS IN THE BEST INTERESTS OF THE PUBLIC BODY TO NOT REVEAL THE LOCATION OF THE POSSIBLE REAL PROPERTY TO BE PURCHASED, SOLD OR LEASED. AGENDA ITEM#2- RETURN TO REGULAR SESSION Mayor Morgan recessed the executive session and convened the regular session of the Town Council at 6:27 p.m. Following the pledge to the flag by the Panther Patrol, Pack 243(Joey LaGraffe, Korey Halle, and Eric Jensen), and a moment of silence, the roll call was taken. ROLL CALL -Present for roll call were the following members of the Fountain Hills Town Council: Mayor Sharon Morgan, Vice Mayor Sharon Hutcheson and Councilmembers Leesa Fraverd, John Wyman, John McNeill, John Kavanagh, and Susan Ralphe. Also present were Town Manager Paul Nordin,Town Attorney Bill Farrell,Director of Administration/Town Clerk Cassie Hansen, Interim Town Engineer Tom Ward, and Director of Community Development Jeff Valder. AGENDA ITEM#1 - CONSIDERATION OF APPROVING THE MEETING MINUTES OF NOVEMBER 16,2000. AGENDA ITEM#2- CONSIDERATION OF THE LIQUOR LICENSE APPLICATION SUBMITTED BY BARBARA ANN LEVATO FOR THE RENDEZVOUS RESTAURANT & BAR THAT WILL BE LOCATED AT 16872 EAST AVENUE OF THE FOUNTAINS, SUITES 104 AND 105. THE APPLICATION IS FOR A NEW SERIES#12 RESTAURANT LICENSE. AGENDA ITEM#3- CONSIDERATION OF THE FINAL PLAT FOR THE REPLAT OF THE CROSSROADS CONVENIENCE CENTER TRACT "D", LOCATED ON THE NORTH SIDE OF SHEA BOULEVARD,EAST OF SAGUARO BOULEVARD,CASE NUMBER S2000-039. Vice Mayor Hutcheson MOVED to approve the Consent Agenda as read. Councilwoman Ralphe SECONDED the motion. A roll call vote was taken with the following results. Councilman Wyman aye Councilman McNeill- aye Vice Mayor Hutcheson - aye Councilwoman Fraverd- aye Councilman Kavanagh- aye Councilwoman Ralphe— aye Mayor Morgan - aye The motion CARRIED unanimously with a roll call vote. AGENDA ITEM#4- CONSIDERATION OF APPOINTING THREE CITIZENS TO THE PARKS AND RECREATION COMMISSION TO FILL ONE VACANCY AND TWO EXPIRED TERMS. Mayor Morgan MOVED to appoint Michael Fleck, Carol Ayres, and Matt Paul to the Parks and Recreation Commission and Councilwoman Fraverd SECONDED the motion, which CARRIED unanimously. AGENDA ITEM#5- DISCUSSION OF THE DRAFT SPECIAL EVENT POLICY. Mr. Farrell stated that most of the work before the Council was result of staff work done under the direction of Director Hansen. He said staff felt that with the downtown area and community growth it was time to codify into the Town Code a policy on special events. He explained that staff had been working on this for a long period of time. He had been asked to do a legal review. Because of the nature of the topic and it was the first time that the Town would codify it, he had this agenda item listed for discussion only this evening. He stated that staff wanted to get the Council's input and comments over the next two to four weeks. He would like to bring this item back to the Council for consideration at the first meeting in January. He said this was an attempt to codify in an understandable way the various types of events that were traditional and those that are new to the Town and what the requirements would be. He proposed that the Council try to fill out the application to give them an idea of the level of intensity of information that the Town would be seeking. He said the special events had been handled on an informal/land use basis for too long. It was now time to establish rules in light of ownership of the Fountain Park area and the fountain and the decreased parking along Plat 208. He reiterated that staff felt it was time to codify this policy and asked the Council for direction, correction, and comment. Mr. Farrell acknowledged that there was a lot of reading. He said the reading would involve reviewing the text and then going back and forth between the various definitions. Councilman Wyman said that considering the amount of time that had already been spent and the number of �Ir► representatives from various departments,he felt it was pretty thorough. Vice Mayor Hutcheson said she had been part of the committee who had been involved in this process. She had found it interesting because there had been a lot of different interests represented. She stated that when a small town, such as Fountain Hills, had very successful events, the Town must consider and anticipate problems or situations that could be faced in the future. Vice Mayor Hutcheson asked that the Council remember that this was a work in progress and could be revised. Councilman Kavanagh commended staff for their efforts in putting this together. He asked that Mr. Farrell note his questions with regard to Section 8-3-2 (B) [Charitable nonprofit organization] —requiring a federal exemption. He asked how this requirement would impact a community group doing some kind of an adhoc activity. He wanted to know if there were groups in that category that weren't that formal in the Charitable category. Councilman Kavanagh also questioned whether or not the Town really wanted to restrict major events to eight a year. He wanted staff to provide the pros and cons of doing this. He asked for further clarification with regard to the definition of a major event. He thought that perhaps it could be massaged. Councilman Kavanagh asked how this policy would affect businesses such as Safeway, when they hold an art show that was totally on their property and parking lot, or the Bazaar, which had tents out. Section 8-3-5 (C-16) - [Event Security/Emergency Medical Services] requiring information on medical and emergency services. He asked if the Town had a standard on what level of service had to be present? If not, should the Town have a standard since the application requested the applicant provide this information? He asked if the Town mandated medical emergency services for these events? Mayor Morgan responded that the professionals (Rural Metro and the Marshals) told the Chamber what personnel would be required. Councilman Kavanagh said he had been confused when reviewing Section 8-3-7 (E&F). He asked why subsection F would be needed if the events had to be scheduled a minimum of twenty-five days apart. Town Council Minutes Regular and Executive Session I2/07/00 Page 2 of 5 Councilman McNeill said he had been impressed when reviewing this material. He had not known that there had been this much effort put into this review. He thanked everyone who was involved with its preparation. He felt it balanced some of the events that had been successful and helped put Fountain Hills on the map around the valley in loby the past years. It would also give the citizens some assurances that they wouldn't be burdened with an excessive number of special events. He noted that special events were also an inconvenience to the residents. He asked for clarification as to what services the Marshals Department would have to perform to categorize an event as a major event. He gave an example of such an event now scheduled: "Jingle Bell Run" — the Marshals Department would stop traffic on a major street for short durations. He felt that would become one of the "eight major events" for the year. [Section 8-3-3 (E-3)] - He questioned if it was necessary to have a numeric limit on these types of events as these events were not huge and/or held in the downtown area where they would inconvenience many people. He explained that these groups were trying to raise funds for their respective good causes. He said few of these events would be a problem and he suspected these types of events were fairly small. He did not think that eight to ten of these events would be a problem. Councilman Wyman questioned how the public would know that they would be required to obtain a temporary use permit if the event would be held on a private property. Director Valder replied that the organization could call him or his staff. He explained that there were certain triggers that would have to occur for a temporary use permit to be required. If it were an ice cream social inside their hall, a temporary use permit would not be required. If they wanted to have some type of a carnival with tents and major production and it was still kept on the Church's property, that event might require a temporary use permit. Staff at that point would refer to the language in the zoning code to see if what that organization wanted to do on the property required them to obtain a temporary use permit. Mr. Farrell explained that staff would bring to the Council answers to these questions as there were some sound policy reasons that were responsible for the wording. Mr. Farrell reminded the Council that the trigger on any of the requirements was the application itself. He gave the example that if the organizations were aware of the special event ordinance and suddenly one Saturday a carnival was to spring up, they would be cited. Councilman Wyman understood that the application would be a trigger but asked how an organization would even know they had to fill out an application. Mr. Farrell said that after adoption of the ordinance, staff would notify those organizations and provide them with a copy of the code. Mayor Morgan asked if a Church organization had a dinner, and a bake sale accompanied the dinner, would that be classified a special event? Mr. Farrell responded no, not if it were held inside a hall. Mayor Morgan expressed concern that this could get out of hand. Mr. Farrell explained that was why the wording "may" was used in the ordinance rather than the mandatory "shall". Once the Council defined the level involvement that they wanted,then some zoning classifications might require a temporary use permit and others might not. Councilman Kavanagh asked about a recent memorial held at a local church and that same church's grand opening. He said those events both drew over 500 people. He asked if those would fall under the definition of"major events" and would they have had to apply for a special event permit. Mr.Farrell said initially the grand opening would have had to have the special event permit and memorial event would not. Mr. Farrell noted that with regard to a memorial event where there was a huge time constraint, and the Marshals Department was contacted, staff would be charged with using common sense. On the other hand, organizations must realize that last minute (overnight ideas) can not be implemented without a special event permit. Councilman Kavanagh said that if the Town were to implement the "eight-major events a year" policy, and those events had to be scheduled by December of the previous year, the memorial, if classified as a major event, could have technically violated the law. He proposed that some type of exception clause might be needed for emergency situations. Mr. Farrell said that although he could not speak for the committee,deaths and religious events were not considered by anyone on the committee as a major event in terms of the special event policy. He assured Councilman Kavanagh that churches would not be cited. Mr.Farrell stated that staff would come back to the Council with an answer for each and every comment. Director Hansen explained that for an event to be considered a major event there would have to be a request to close a major street. She reiterated that that was what triggered an event to be considered major. Something that took place at a church would not be considered a major event. It may be a temporary traffic interruption but not streets closure exceeding the five-hour limit. She explained that the Jingle Bell Run would not be considered a major event as it was only a momentary traffic interruption and no street closures would be required. Saw Town Council Minutes Regular and Executive Session 12/07/00 Page 3 of 5 Mayor Morgan offered her services to any of the other Councilmembers because of her past experience with special events. ilow Councilwoman Fraverd asked if this policy would be implemented in the coming year. Mr. Farrell responded that it would depend on the direction staff was given tonight. Mayor Morgan asked how this policy would be put into effect in January when everything for 2001 had to be turned in by December of 2000. Mr. Farrell said that presented a difficulty in drafting because someone could not be held to a standard decided upon in the month before the ordinance was adopted. Vice Mayor Hutcheson said that if the Council took their time and worked through the issues there would be nothing that would stop the Town from putting this into place with a start date for the year 2002. There would be enough lead-time to accustom themselves to the application and the ordinance. No one could then say that the policy had been rushed through. Frank Ferrara,Executive Director for the Chamber of Commerce He said he represented the Chamber as the Executive Director. He commended the committee for their attention to detail and concurred with the draft almost as written. He said he had looked at it a year ago and it had taken just about that long to fine-tune it. He said the Chamber and their Board of Directors saw no problems or conflicts with the definitions. He felt it protected the nonprofit organizations and let them continue to raise funds at major events, which would then go back into the community. He felt it was a win-win situation for all. He noted that the Chamber did not consider the two major fairs as Chamber of Commerce events but looked at them as Town institutions. They welcomed codification of the policy to define what they were supposed to do and not do. He said that although the permit was lengthy, it was not difficult to complete. AGENDA ITEM#6- CALL TO THE PUBLIC. Rev. Mark Lansberry,Fountains United Methodist Church He apologized for being late and not arriving in time to perform the invocation. Mayor Morgan announced that the Council would be returning to the executive session after a five-minute recess. She stated that the Council would take no further discussion or actions following the executive session. Vice Mayor Hutcheson MOVED that the Council reconvene the executive session and Councilman Wyman SECONDED the motion, which carried unanimously. Mayor Morgan asked Rev. Lansberry to say a few words in closing, which he did. AGENDA ITEM#7- ADJOURNMENT. Vice Mayor Hutcheson MOVED to adjourn and Councilman Wyman SECONDED the motion, which CARRIED unanimously. Mayor Morgan adjourned the meeting at 7:45 p.m. Town Council Minutes Regular and Executive Session 12/07/00 Page 4 of 5 TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS By: Sharon Morgan,Mayor ATTEST: CIA-114L., Cassie B. Hansen, Director of Administration/Town Clerk ' � n PREPARED BY: (x--)6.,„ ev Bender,Executive Assistant CERTIFICATION I hereby certify that the foregoing minutes are a true and correct copy of the minutes of the Regular and Executive Meeting held by the Town Council of Fountain Hills on the 7th day of December 2000. I further certify that the meeting was duly called and that a quorum was present. DATED this 20 day of December 2000. Nor Cassie B. Hansen, Director of Administration/Town Clerk Town Council Minutes Regular and Executive Session 12/07/00 Page 5 of 5