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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2004.0520.TCRM.Minutes TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS MINUTES OF THE REGULAR SESSION OF THE FOUNTAIN HILLS TOWN COUNCIL MAY 20,2004 Mayor Nichols called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. Following the invocation by Pastor Jim Fitz, Fountain Hills Community Church, roll call was taken. ROLL CALL — Present for roll call were the following members of the Fountain Hills Town Council: Councilman Archambault, Mayor Nichols, Councilwoman Stevens, Councilman Kavanagh. Vice Mayor Melendez, Councilwoman Nicola, Councilwoman Ralphe, Attorney Carolyn Oberholtzer, Town Manager Tim Pickering, Accounting Supervisor Julie Ghetti and Town Clerk Bev Bender were also present. PRESENTATIONS — MAYOR NICHOLS ACKNOWLEDGED OUTGOING COUNCILMEMBERS FOR THEIR CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS: VICE MAYOR MELENDEZ AND COUNCILMEMBERS LEESA STEVENS AND SUSAN RALPHE. Mayor Nichols requested that Vice Mayor Melendez and Councilmembers Stevens and Ralph join him at the podium. He stated that they had before them three people who had dedicated not only four years of their lives serving on the Council but additional time serving the community. The Mayor said everyone should be proud of these true public servants. Mayor Nichols presented plaques to the members and noted a few of the many contributions each had made to the Town. He noted that thanks to Councilwoman Ralphe, the mountains and the washes would always be there. He added that she always stood up for her beliefs and commended her on her actions. Mayor Nichols also presented the members with a photograph of the fountain and gold fountain pins. Councilwoman Ralphe expressed her gratitude to the citizens of Fountain Hills for giving her the opportunity to serve them. She said it had been an honor and a privilege and she had only good memories of her tenure on the Council. Mayor Nichols said that it had also been wonderful working with Councilwoman Stevens and added that she had been steadfast with her beliefs and had made the Town a better place than it was when she assumed office. He commented on the excellent work she performed in the planning and zoning area, both on the Commission and as a member of the Council. Councilwoman Stevens stated that she was very emotional this evening and said it had been her privilege and her pleasure to serve the Town. She added that she would cherish her memories forever and noted that she had experienced many life changes during her years of service, opened a business and married. She thanked everyone who supported and encouraged her over the years. She said she had calculated that she had spent approximately 400 evenings in the Council Chambers at meeting such as this and noted the tremendous time commitment that went along with the job. She extended her best wishes to the current and newly elected members of the Council and said she hoped to provide them with encouragement and support in the future. Mayor Nichols commented on Vice Mayor Melendez's dedication to the Town and said he volunteered numerous hours and had always been willing to listen to what people had to say. He said that the Vice Mayor's legacy involved public safety and added that he had done much to improve public safety in Fountain Hills. He stated that it had been a pleasure working with him. Vice Mayor Melendez recognized his wife, partner, and best friend Pamela and his mother-in-law Mrs. Pauline Jones. He said that it would have been very difficult to serve without their support. He also thanked former Town Manager Paul Nordin for his assistance,Tom Ward,Julie Ghetti,Joan McIntosh, and Judge Ted Armbruster and his staff. He said when he joined the Council he formed a group known as the "Kitchen Cabinet," composed of good people from different backgrounds. The Vice Mayor read the names of the Cabinet members into the record and thanked them for their support and hard work. E:\BBender\Documents\Current Minutes 2004\Regular Session 05-20-04.doc Page 1 of 14 The Vice Mayor congratulated the new Councilmembers (elect) on their successful campaigns and stressed the importance of learning how to compromise. He thanked Mayor Nichols and said he has been a good friend. He stated the opinion that the Mayor was the best Chief Executive Officer the Council could have and commended him on his dedication, professionalism, and intelligence. Mayor Nichols also read a Proclamation that outlined the history of the Veterans of Foreign Wars' Buddy Poppies and commented on the importance of this worthwhile fundraising campaign, which was used exclusively for the benefit of disabled and needy veterans and the widows and orphans of deceased veterans. The Mayor urged the citizens of the community to recognize the merits of this cause by contributing generously to its support through donations for Buddy Poppies on the days set aside for the distribution of these symbols of appreciation for the sacrifices of our honored dead, May 28th and 29th. CALL TO THE PUBLIC Town Clerk Bev Bender advised that six citizens had submitted requests to speak under this agenda item. Carolyn McClure,16212 Inca Avenue Ms. McClure expressed her best wishes to the members who were leaving the Council and congratulated the new members on their successful elections. She also thanked everyone who signed the petitions for the Fire District and reported that over 6200 voters and a similar number of property owners had signed. She said no matter what the County decided, she hoped the future Council would listen to their constituents and subjugate their personal agendas to the wishes of the people of Fountain Hills. She noted the various comments she had heard while soliciting signatures and emphasized the importance of listening to the citizens, telling the truth and maintaining decorum at meetings. Bob Scarpetti, 14623 N. Glenpoint Drive Mr. Scarpetti thanked Vice Mayor Melendez and Councilmembers Ralphe and Stevens for their hard work to make the Town a better place. He said they made a difference and he appreciated it. He also thanked the members of the Committee to Save Our Community (CSOC) and said he hoped their efforts were rewarded. Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio Sheriff Arpaio also thanked the three departing members of the Council. He said that he and his wife moved to Fountain Hills approximately three years ago and in their opinion it was the best Town in America. He said that despite disagreements that might occur, something good always occurred as a result of the members' efforts. He wished the new members of the Council the best of luck. Bob Tripp, 16410 E. Tombstone Avenue Mr. Tripp thanked the members of the Council who were leaving their positions and said that although he had often been a vocal critic on various issues, he deeply appreciated the work they performed. He commented on the success of the CSOC Fire District petition drive and noted they were officially delivered to Maricopa County. Hopefully, in approximately ten days, the results would be made known. He commended Hugh Henry and Rita Brown as well as the other members for their outstanding efforts. John McNeill, 14508 N. Creosote Mr. McNeill said he wanted to congratulate the outgoing members of the Council and said he had the pleasure of serving with Councilmembers Stevens and Ralphe. He thanked the Vice Mayor for filling his seat that became open when he moved to Idaho. He said he recognized the hard work involved in serving on the Council and expressed his appreciation to them for the work they performed. He also congratulated the new members of the Council and commended their opponents for running a good,clean campaign. Mayor Nichols thanked the speakers for their comments. E:\BBender\Documents\Current Minutes 2004\Regular Session 05-20-04.doc Page 2 of 14 CONSENT AGENDA AGENDA ITEM #1 — CONSIDERATION OF APPROVING MEETING MINUTES OF 5/05/04 AND 5/06/04. AGENDA ITEM #2 - CONSIDERATION OF THE PRELIMINARY AND FINAL PLAT FOR "PRL CONDOMINIUMS," A TWO-UNIT CONDOMINIUM DECLARATION OF AN EXISTING DUPLEX LOCATED AT 16420 MONACO DRIVE,AKA FINAL PLAT NO. 206, BLOCK 7, LOT 19 (CASE#S2004- 0Ah AGENDA ITEM #3 — CONSIDERATION OF THE PRELIMINARY AND FINAL PLAT FOR "FINAL REPLAY OF LOTS 13 & 14,"A LOT JOIN OF LOTS 13 & 13 & 14 ,BLOCK 2,PLAT 205 LOCATED AT 17008 E.ENTERPRISE DRIVE(CASE#S2004-07). AGENDA ITEM #4 — CONSIDERATION OF GRANTING AN EIGHT-FOOT PUBLIC UTILITY EASEMENT ACROSS TRACT C OF PLAT 302 TO SALT RIVER PROJECT FOR INSTALLATION OF A POWER SERVICE CONNECTION FOR THE DESERT VISTA CONDOMINIUMS. Councilman Archambault MOVED to approve the Consent Agenda as read and Councilwoman Nicola SECONDED the motion. A roll call vote was taken with the following results: Councilwoman Stevens Aye Vice Mayor Melendez Aye Councilman Kavanagh Aye Councilwoman Nicola Aye Mayor Nichols Aye Councilwoman Ralphe Aye Councilman Archambault Aye The motion CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY (7 to 0). AGENDA ITEM#5—QUARTERLY FINANCIAL REPORT. Accounting Supervisor Julie Ghetti addressed the Council regarding this agenda item and presented a brief overview of the quarterly budget report for the nine-month period ending March 31, 2004. She noted that the report summarized the total revenues and expenditures for the third quarter of the fiscal year and provided a comparison to the same period last fiscal year. The power point equipment was not working so Ms. Ghetti simply reviewed the materials which were contained in the Council's packets. She reported that the revenues exceeded expenditures in the General Fund by $1,710,948 and by $447,452 in the Highway User Revenue Fund (HURF). Ms. Ghetti reported that the Town's General Fund Revenues are at 99.6% of what was projected for the nine-month period and the General Fund Expenditures were at 63% of projections. She noted that there were five key revenue sources in the General Fund that make up approximately 90% of the Town's General Fund Revenues, local sales tax; state income tax; state sales tax; building permits and the vehicle license tax. She stated that compared to last year the Town was slightly under where they were but they were where Staff predicted they would be. Staff projected that they would have a revenue shortfall due to the economy. She added, however,that they increased the local sales tax revenue and said that although it was lagging due to a delay in reporting, it was expected to meet projections by June 30t. She noted that compared to last year, the Town's General Fund expenditures, which were the main operating expenditures, were $7.8 million compared to $9.9 million last year, a savings of$1.2 million. She explained that the $1.7 million surplus was due primarily from savings and expenditures; the revenues were where Staff projected they would be but there were significant savings in expenditures. Discussion ensued relative to the fact that wages and benefits were down approximately $1.2 million from last year, repairs and maintenance were down $68,000, and supplies and services were down $150,000; a reduced level of services was still being maintained; special revenue funds (restricted funds that could only be used for specific E:\BBender\Documents\Current Minutes 2004\Regular Session 05-20-04.doc Page 3 of 14 purposes) and the fact that the main one was the streets fund, which was commonly called the HURF Fund. Highway User Revenue Fund, the gasoline tax and the fact that that those revenues could only be used for street and road maintenance and repairs and the fact that some major road maintenance would occur during the last quarter of the year. ,t) Ms. Ghetti also discussed impact fees and said that during the nine-month period the Town collected $595,000, spent$175,000 and had a balance of$1.5 million in the five development fees that were available to the Town. She reported that as of March 31, 2004, the General Fund Balance was $5.7 million and in the HURF Fund, they had $635,000. She added that in the Special Revenue Funds there was $400,000 and in the Excise Tax Fund, which was the dedicated portion of the local sales tax there was approximately $2.5 million. She added that there was $1.5 million in capital projects. There being no questions from the Council or members of the audience, the Mayor thanked Ms. Ghetti for her input and moved on to the next agenda item. AGENDA ITEM # 6 — CONSIDERATION OF APPROVING THE RURAL METRO CONTRACT FOR EMERGENCY AND FIRE SERVICES. Town Manager Tim Pickering provided a brief overview of this agenda item and said that the original contract was negotiated by RTE Incorporated (Bob Edwards) for the Town of Fountain Hills and Rural Metro. He stated that since that time, he and Town Attorney Andrew McGuire negotiated a contract that was before the Council this evening. He said that the services received from Valley Metro were various in nature but all had to do with medical emergency and fire service. He added, however, that there might be some services that the Town Council was not aware of, such as Fire Code Administration; new Code compliance; hazard material inspections and a variety of other services, such as snake calls. He explained that most of the calls were broken down into two sections, EMS and snake calls, which occurred during peak calls during the season (over the last six months). *4010 Mr. Pickering said that one of the most important items in the contract was the cost and said it was a little below $2.4 million, approximately 5% over the previous contract, which was a very reasonable cost. He added that they also negotiated that the increase each year would be limited to 5% as well. He stated that the terms were also important since things might change if a Fire District was approved. He noted that the contract was for five (5) years but emphasized that the Town had the right to cancel the contract for no cause with a one- year notice. He added that Rural Metro may terminate the agreement with a two(2)year notice and said this was to allow the Town the necessary time to set up a new fire department. Mr. Pickering added that the Town would provide the buildings and equipment, as well as building maintenance for such things as HVAC, parking, and landscaping, and Rural Metro would provide utilities, daily maintenance, telephone service, and perform vehicle maintenance. In addition, Rural Metro would maintain all Town-owned fire and emergency medical apparatus and equipment with the Town paying Rural Metro 10% per item on repairs. Mr. Pickering noted that there were a few changes to the contract. He said that one of the main revisions had to do with the selection of a Fire Chief and said the agreement was now consistent with the Town's Sheriff's contract and provided the Town more control over the selection of the Fire Chief. He added that the ambulance transportation language was clarified and the ambulance lease structured so that the Town received an actual check each quarter. He stated that the Council should be aware of the fact that the response guidelines would have to be reviewed once a mutual aid agreement was established with the City of Scottsdale. He said that all of the major changes have been noted in the draft-redlined version. Mr. Pickering stated that contingent upon the Fire District not receiving the required signatures, he recommended a motion to approve the agreement, which had been reviewed by the Town Attorney. He commented that even if a Fire District was approved, the earliest service could begin would be was July 2005. Vice Mayor Melendez stated the opinion that this item should not have been placed on the consent agenda given the j interest of the community and the efforts of CSOC. He added that this type of item should be able to be debated by the Council and the public should have the opportunity to provide input. He strongly objected to a five (5)-year contract and said that he believed a two(2)-year contract would be more appropriate. E:\BBender\Documents\Current Minutes 2004\Regular Session 05-20-04.doc Page 4 of 14 Councilman Archambault commented on the achievements that Mr. Pickering, Mr. McGuire and Rural Metro had accomplished regarding this agreement. He said it was a good contract which addressed many of the Council's concerns. He added that they were talking about a large sum of money and expressed the opinion that the future Council should have the opportunity to vote on this issue before July 1st. In response to a question from Councilman Archambault relative to staffing and the fact that the contract stated that at no point should the staffing drop below 95% during any of the shifts,Mr. Pickering said that should they lose one person and fall below that percentage, Rural Metro has 12 hours in which to bring someone else on. Councilwoman Stevens asked when the current contract would expire and Mr. Pickering advised that it would terminate on June 30`h. Councilman Archambault commented on out-of-pocket expenses for ambulance services and asked when citizens might be charged for the use of the ambulance. Mr. Pickering said he would be glad to research this issue further but believed an out of town visitor who slipped and fell would not be covered but citizens of the Town would be covered. Mayor Nichols stated that a person was hurt in a store and the ambulance took them to the hospital and the individual was billed. He added that the individual filed suit against the store for falling on their property and part of the settlement covered the cost of the ambulance. He said that in this case the insurance company reimbursed the individual and Rural Metro said that they should be reimbursed for the cost of providing that service. Mr. Pickering advised that if someone called for an ambulance and when it arrived the person no longer needed it, there would not be any charge. In response to a request for clarification from Councilman Kavanagh, Mr. Pickering stated that the Town could cancel the contract with one year's notice without any specific reason. He agreed that the purpose of the five-year provision was cost containment. Councilman Kavanagh commended Staff on their frugal negotiations with Rural Metro and said that if they did wind up using them for that long, the Town would have saved a lot of money because of that clause, but they still had the one-year out option. Mayor Nichols advised that he looked at this as a one-year contract that protected the Town's liability for up to five years. Ms. Bender advised that three citizens had submitted requests to speak and the Mayor asked them to present their comments at this time. Mr.Ed Kehe, 16620 Agate Knoll Mr. Kehe commented that there seemed to be some doubt as to whether CSOC's petition drive had been successful. He said that since Maricopa County had indicated that they would review the petitions and get back to them within two weeks, it would be appropriate to table this item until the June 3rd meeting. He noted CSOC's significant effort and said the delay would not result in any negative impacts. Bob Tripp, 16410 E.Tombstone Avenue Mr. Tripp stated that Rural Metro's business status was failing and firefighters were looking for jobs in other areas. He said that he did not believe entering into a five-year contract was the right thing to do and expressed the opinion that a one or two-year contract would be long enough. He added that he would like someone to look at the contract because he could not find a one-year cancellation clause and was only able to find a two-year clause. He stated that the new Council should have the opportunity to look at this and the Fire District issue should be resolved before proceeding. Tim Yoder,El Lago Boulevard E:\BBender\Documents\Current Minutes 2004\Regular Session 05-20-04.doc Page 5 of 14 Mr. Yoder asked that the Council consider adding language to the contract, if approved, to allow for the Fire District, at the time it was formed and funded, to be able to take over. He clarified that in the event the District was formed, at the time funds were available the District would take over payment and the contract. He said it might be earlier than July 2005 and so the language would make the funds available earlier to the District if it was approved. Mayor Nichols thanked the speakers for their comments. In response to a question from the Mayor, Ms. Oberholtzer stated that the language referring to the one-year cancellation clause without cause was located in Section 2.3a, the first sentence, "this agreement is for the protection of the Town and, as such, may be terminated without cause 365 days after receipt by Rural Metro of written notice by the Town." She added that with respect to the language suggested by Mr. Yoder, Section 8.7 of the contract assignment states that it was possible for the contract to be assigned to the Fire District, if approved, upon written consent by Rural Metro. Councilman Archambault MOVED that this item be tabled to the second meeting in June so that the new members of the Council could have the opportunity to review this issue. Vice Mayor Melendez SECONDED the motion. Councilman Kavanagh said that he strenuously argued that the adoption of the budget be passed over to the new Council because it contained a lot of issues that they would be in control of in the future. He added that police and fire protection were necessary no matter what and said he could not think of any new facts that might arise that would result in the new Council making any changes to the contract. He stated the opinion that the concerns that were raised had been adequately addressed. Councilwoman Nicola advised that when she arrived this evening she was provided a copy of a letter from the County Supervisor talking about 1% dedicated funds. She said it went on to say that they were collecting over $800,000 more than what they paid for fire service. She said this was one of the items she would like to further explore as well as whether three or four men should be on a truck and whether the Assistant Fire Chief's position should be put back into the budget. She added that she agreed the new Council should discuss this issue. 44) The Vice Mayor explained that he seconded the motion for two reasons, first, because it was his understanding that the old contract with Rural Metro would expire on June 30th and second, because over 6,000 people in the community signed the petitions. He said that as a courtesy to the citizens who put forth so much effort, he believed the item should be tabled to the second meeting in June. Councilwoman Ralphe stated the opinion that their main focus this evening had to be on the safety of the citizens of Fountain Hills. She added that they needed to ensure as best as they could that emergency medical services were available. She noted that the current contract would expire on June 30`h and said to wait until the second meeting in June before acting on this just did not make any sense to her. She stated that she supported moving forward on this issue as quickly as possible. Councilman Kavanagh advised that when Scottsdale looked at how many people should man their fire trucks and other similar issues, they formed a citizen committee and took about eight months to study that problem. He stated the opinion that to suggest they would do that in three weeks was absurd and added that if they wanted to revise the contract to add more people, he was sure Rural Metro would not have a problem with that. He noted that the issue of truck manning had not been brought up before and said it could not be decided at the last second, in two weeks, by a new Council which had no background information on that issue. In response to a question from Councilwoman Nicola, Mr. Pickering advised that the new contract would not go into effect until July 151 and said the only downside was that Rural Metro could back out at any time since it would not be a"done deal"until the contract had been approved and signed. Vice Mayor Melendez asked whether there were any legal issues that could prevent them from waiting until the second meeting in June to act on this matter. Ms. Oberholtzer responded that from a legal standpoint, as far as the contract went, the Town was not in any position as far as liability until the agreement had been executed. E:\BBender\Documents\Current Minutes 2004\Regular Session 05-20-04.doc Page 6 of 14 Vice Mayor Melendez expressed the opinion that they should extend the courtesy to the new Council and let them vote on this issue. Councilman Archambault explained that the reason he made the motion for the second meeting in June was that at kily the first meeting in June they would be discussing the budget. He noted that there would be a huge learning curve for the new Council and said he would rather afford them the opportunity to look at the various issues, ask questions, etc. He said he did not see any problem approving this proposal but added that he did want the new Council to have the opportunity to review this and vote on the matter. Mayor Nichols commented that he did not believe they needed to wait because fire service and emergency medical services must be provided to the citizens of the Town. He said that if the Fire District was approved, they would be made aware of that within 25 to 30 days and if it was approved, the contract provided that the Town could give notice to Rural Metro that the contract would be terminated in 365 days. He added that there was nothing new to learn between now and the second meeting in June and stated that the contract was an excellent one and should be approved. He added that it was a one-year contract with renewals each year to protect the Town as far as costs were concerned. He stated the opinion that the citizens did not want the Council to keep postponing things and said they should take action at this time. Councilman Kavanagh expressed the opinion that the Council owed it to the citizens who signed the Fire District petitions to continue the Rural Metro contract and said that when CSOC and the Commissioners came before the Council requesting permission to collect signatures, they assured the Council that the new board that would be appointed, based upon the petitions, was a "caretaker board" and that would not get rid of Rural Metro and institute their own department. He added that they said that monumental decision would be left up to the first elected board. He said that keeping Rural Metro was what the signers of those petitions wanted. Councilman Archambault stated that he was going to work with the new members of the Council and wanted their vote of confidence on this contract. kay Vice Mayor Melendez said that it was consistent to allow the new three members to decide the matter and added that the citizens who put forth such effort regarding the petitions deserve to have this item delayed to the second meeting in June. Councilman Kavanagh clarified that fire protection was a necessity and not an option and said he believed the new Council should be provided the opportunity to review the budget. He added that if the members of the Council agreed with Councilman Archambault, then he would expect a motion to adjourn because they had other contracts and public hearings to review this evening and if everything was going to be deferred to the next Council,then they should adjourn until the first meeting in July. Mayor Nichols called for the question. A roll call vote was taken with the following results: Councilman Archambault Aye Vice Mayor Melendez Aye Councilwoman Stevens Nay Councilman Kavanagh Nay Councilwoman Ralphe Nay Councilwoman Nicola Aye Mayor Nichols Nay The motion FAILED for lack of a majority vote (4 to 3). Councilwoman Ralphe MOVED to approve the contract with Rural Metro and Councilman Kavanagh vir SECONDED the motion. E:\BBender\Documents\Current Minutes 2004\Regular Session 05-20-04.doc Page 7 of 14 Councilwoman Nicola clarified that the Council was not part of the contract negotiations and said that she was not suggesting that within a two-week period of time the Council would change the manning of the trucks. She stated that she was trying to make the point that $800,000 that was not being used for fire service was going into the General Fund. She added that they heard a request to put the Assistant Fire Chiefs position back into the budget and said she was disappointed that this was not done. She stated that she was disappointed that there was no provision in the contract for mutual aid and noted that the Council voted to direct the Town Manager to develop IGA's for mutual aid with surrounding communities. She said that the contract called for automatic "move up" from Scottsdale as long as they were still with Rural Metro, which would just be this one fiscal year. She commented that the contract was only for one year and said that there were a lot of issues that would need to be addressed as things change in Scottsdale and Rio Verde. She stated that she was prepared to support the contract, but there were some things they needed to talk about. Councilwoman Nicola said she hoped to see at least one more position brought in to assist the Chief, an Assistant Chief, and added that she believed the language on Page 7 relative to the manning level needed to be "cleaned up." She further stated that on Page 16, she wanted to make sure that the current Certificates of Insurance were in force and on file. She referred to Page 27, under the Fire Code, and expressed the opinion that lines 1 and 3 where it said "Rural Metro will work closely with the Town and will follow and enforce the codes and standards that are in effect under the Town Code" should be changed to "shall." She said she had spoken with Mr. Pickering regarding the required reports and stated the opinion that due to the aging of the infrastructure, water lines, and fire hydrants, the Town should pay closer attention to the condition of its fire hydrants. She also commented on response times and stated that the definition should be from the time the call was received by dispatch. Vice Mayor Melendez expressed the opinion that Rural Metro had not shown fiscal strength, dependability, and loyalty. Councilman Archambault said he concurred with a number of Councilwoman Nicola's concerns and said he would like the flexibility to be able to address some of those concerns and have feedback from the Staff on some of the verbiage changes and response times. He said he would like Staff to research how other communities calculated 4i) response times. Mr. Pickering noted that he reviewed all of the reports on a monthly basis and said they listed dispatch times and showed exactly when they were called out and when they arrived on the scene. He stated that in practice their definition was by dispatch because that was what was shown each month. He added that other municipalities followed the same standards in their reports. In response to a question from Councilman Archambault, Mr. Pickering stated that the main Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) that the Town needed to work with was with the City of Scottsdale and explained that they were not prepared at this time to sit down with other communities to work out the IGA's. He further stated that they would be covered for the first year through their mutual aid agreement, which was better than any IGA they could have. Councilwoman Nicola asked why the reports differed from the contract language and Mr. Pickering explained that they contained all responses, not just Code 3 responses. He added that this was what was traditionally negotiated and he saw no reason to differentiate from that. Councilwoman Nicola said she thought they had envisioned entering into an IGA with the Rio Verde Fire District and the Salt River, Fort McDowell reservation, in order to achieve a sense of cohesiveness. Mr. Pickering stated that it was determined that that would be accomplished within one year and definitely not before this contract was approved. Councilman Kavanagh commented on the fact that Scottsdale's Fire Chief would come on board next month and that was the reason why they had not met with the Town yet regarding IGA's. He added that as far as response times, the critical numbers were the trucks to the scene, when the wheels start to roll to when they stopped. He noted that it was not so much how long it took the fire trucks to get there but how many fire stations were built and where they were located. E:\BBender\Documents\Current Minutes 2004\Regular Session 05-20-04.doc Page 8 of 14 Mayor Nichols called for the question. A roll call vote was taken with the following results: Vice Mayor Melendez Nay Councilwoman Ralphe Aye Councilman Archambault Nay Councilwoman Stevens Aye Councilman Kavanagh Aye Mayor Nichols Aye Councilwoman Nicola Aye The motion CARRIED by majority vote (5 to 2). AGENDA ITEM #7 — CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION 2004-05 APPROVING AN INTERGOVERNMENTAL AGREEMENT WITH MARICOPA COUNTY FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT SERVICES FOR FISCAL YEARS 2004-07. Mr. Pickering provided a brief overview of the Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) with Maricopa County for law enforcement services and said that he and the Town Attorney negotiated the contract. He said that they reviewed other agreements and Fountain Hills was the largest agreement the County had and they received a substantial break because of that. He noted that the services in the contract included traffic enforcement, crime prevention, patrol activities, youth educational services, a high school resource officer (added since the last Council meeting), court services, neighborhood Block Watch, responding to dog complaints, and complaints received at the Sheriff's Office walk-up window. He added that they also handled the court services as well as transporting services and dispatching, which was almost a "freebie" for the Town because they used the County's dispatching service. He reported that staffing levels would remain approximately the same, about 3.5 deputies per patrol beat and said that a majority of the calls received over the last six months fell into four categories, alarm calls; welfare checks; suspicious persons and civil matters. He added that they also handled all of the traffic accidents and speed enforcement. He reported that the cost for the 2004-05 fiscal year was approximately $1.7 million, an 8% increase due to the addition of the high school resource officer. He clarified that they did not have excessive spending and noted that expenses were way down compared to last year. He said that although not guaranteed, traditionally they had received less than a 3% increase in the Sheriff's contract and said true value was being received. He stated that the cancellation period was 24 months for both parties and recommended approval of the contract. Vice Mayor Melendez stated that Maricopa County was fiscally strong and Sheriff Arpaio and the County provided one of the finest law enforcement services in the country. He added that they had proven to be loyal and competent. Vice Mayor Melendez MOVED to approve the Intergovernmental Agreement with Maricopa County for law enforcement services for Fiscal Years 2004-07 and adopt Resolution 2004-05. Councilwoman Stevens SECONDED the motion. Councilwoman Ralphe commented on the fact that she had cast votes in the past in support of the establishment of a local police department and said on a long term basis, she still believed that this was the way to go but said she favored this contract. She further stated that the Town's greatest need was continuity when it came to law enforcement and she believed the Sheriffs Department could provide that. Councilman Archambault commended the Town Manager on the preparation and negotiation of the contract and asked what the cost of the resource officer included. Mr. Pickering responded that it included all of the benefits, uniforms, and office supplies. He added that the range was between $65,000 and $78,000, which took into consideration the full cost of bringing on someone new. He said that he envisioned that the person would be someone who had been on the force for a while so the pay level was going to be somewhat higher. Councilwoman Nicola commented that she too had concerns about the dollar amount associated with the resource officer, particularly with the summer months approaching, but said she would support the contract and said it was a E:\BBender\Documents\Current Minutes 2004\Regular Session 05-20-04.doc Page 9 of 14 good one. She added that the Town was looking forward to a census in 2005 and hopefully more revenues would be received as a result of increased population. She further stated that increased population could result in increased crime levels and stressed the importance of keeping up and maintaining appropriate service levels. In response to a question from Councilman Archambault, Mr. Pickering stated that animal control was not included '0111) in this contract and was a separate contract with Maricopa County Animal Control. He said that they were on 24- hour call and although the Sheriffs Office would respond to those situations, if there was an animal to be captured, they called Maricopa County Animal Control. He reported that the contract was approximately $25,000 and had been contracted for three years. Councilman Kavanagh said he was pleased with the service and with the price and was glad that the resource officer was added. Mayor Nichols also commented on the excellent service that is received from the Sheriffs Department and said he supported the motion. The motion CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY(7 to 0). AGENDA ITEM #8 — PUBLIC HEARING REGARDING THE TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS' FISCAL YEAR 2004-05 TENTATIVE BUDGET. Mayor Nichols declared the public hearing open at 8:00 p.m. and said that this was an opportunity for citizens to present their remarks regarding the budget. He explained the process that would be followed and noted that there would be no approval of the budget this evening, discussion would be obtained and direction would be given to the Town Manager as to proposed changes. He said that the budget would come before the Council at the first meeting in June. Ms. Bender advised that a number of citizens submitted requests to speak under this agenda item and the Mayor asked them to come forward at this time. John O'Flynn, 16538 E. Sullivan Drive Mr. O'Flynn, President of Senior Services and ADA, Home Delivered Meals, addressed the Council and thanked the Town Manager and the Council for including them in the budget. He said that the proposed funding would cover staffing costs and expressed appreciation for their support. Sharon Morgan, 15084 E. Mustang Ms. Morgan expressed concerns regarding the proposed staff additions and said that the Public Information Officer's (PIO) position could be deleted from the budget and those responsibilities could fall under the Assistant Town Manager's position (or Assistant to the Town Manager's position) if that position was truly needed and the PIO position could be eliminated. She agreed that an accounting assistant's position was important and questioned whether it needed to be full time. She suggested that they add grant seeking responsibilities to that job description and said then it would be worthy of a full time position. She further stated that for a long time there had been talk about an Economic Development Director's position and said they currently had a Downtown Development Coordinator. She noted that other towns used volunteers for those types of projects and challenged them to prove her wrong. She agreed that a Strategic Plan was needed but not at a cost of over$100,000 and recommended that local expertise be sought and utilized. She added that perhaps the Assistant Town Manager could be involved in this area. She cautioned against spending too much money. Mary Pilarinos, 13810 Fountain Hills Boulevard Ms. Pilarinos expressed concerns regarding a lack of attention to the citizens' input and said she would like to think that they did have an affect and their comments were taken into consideration. She stated that she opposed the hiring of a consultant to work on the Strategic Plan and said the Town Manager should work with Staff to develop a plan. She spoke in favor of multi-tasking and urged the Council not to approve the various additions and changes E:\BBender\Documents\Current Minutes 2004'Regular Session 05-20-04.doc Page 10 of 14 included in the budget. She also said "no" to a downtown restructuring and urged the Council to consider simpler, less expensive, and less intrusive options. Ed Kehe, 16620 Agate Knoll Mr. Kehe said that over the last five or six weeks he had had the opportunity to speak with a variety of citizens and they were saying that the Council must exercise fiscal restraint. He commented on the proposed increase in the budget from last year and recommended that the budget be sent back to staff for the purpose of reductions and said that impact fees should be revisited. Martin Brown, 15615 Jamaica Lane Mr. Brown said he was present to ask the current and newly elected members to approve the budget that contained monies for a "splash park." He stated that he represented the noon Rotary Club and said that along with the morning Rotary Club, two developers and others, they were willing to contribute approximately $140,000 to the amount the Town was allocating for the park. He discussed positive impacts on the entire community and noted that the park had been designed to recycle the water, using a very sophisticated water quality management system, and there was zero depth and therefore zero liability. He noted that they had worked on this project for approximately one year and reported that the Parks &Recreation Department had approved the proposal. Dick Baer, 16435 N. Nicklaus Mr. Baer said he was co-chairman of the morning Rotary Club and concurred with all of the previous speaker's remarks. He commented on the extensive effort that had gone into this project and said they had raised $100,000 and, in addition,they had a$40,000 bronze statue that could be placed at the entrance of the park. He noted that the park would contain over 20 water features and they had the ability for people to run through tunnels, room for toddlers, support of their Rotary Club and everyone they had talked to over the last year supported this wonderful improvement. Ms. Bender advised that Monte Corley does not wish to speak but wanted to indicate his support for the planned Fountain Park. Frank Ferrara Frank Ferrara, representing the Chamber of Commerce, thanked the members of the Council who would be leaving for their efforts and support. He also congratulated the new members on their successful election. He said he was there to speak about the Tourism Bureau's budget and said that it amounted to $100,000 from the Town as well as an additional $100,000 from the Indian Community, which was their partner in the tourism area for a total amount of$200,000. He referred to the justification provided for the Town's contribution of$100,000 and noted that all of those monies would be used for tourism purposes. He added that the Chamber of Commerce was funding the consultant,their operations,and their expenses. Mr. Ferrara commented on discussions that took place regarding the implementation of a food and beverage tax to ensure consistent, stabilized funding for the Bureau and said they came to the conclusion that one half of one percent was the number they would ask for. He stated that the response from the Council was that this was something they could try but they needed the support of their members and the community. He reported in April they discussed whether or not it would be feasible and whether the impacted businesses would support the proposal. He stated that a resulting article in the newspaper upset a lot of the residents,not necessarily the businesses. There were no additional citizens wishing to speak and the Mayor declared the public hearing closed. Mayor Nichols declared a recess at 8:20 p.m. and the meeting reconvened at 8:35 p.m. thiw AGENDA ITEM #9 — DISCUSSION WITH POSSIBLE DIRECTION TO STAFF REGARDING THE TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS' FISCAL YEAR 2004-05 TENTATIVE BUDGET. E:\BBender\Documents\Current Minutes 2004\Regular Session 05-20-04.doc Page 11 of 14 Mayor Nichols announced that at the next Council meeting when the budget would be approved, a public hearing would be held so citizens would have another opportunity to provide input. Vice Mayor Melendez asked whether the commitment from the Rotary Club was in writing and Mr. Pickering responded that it was, as well as the commitment from the first developer but only a verbal commitment had been received from the second developer. Mayor Nichols stated that he felt very strongly that the keystone of the community was the fountain., Based on improvements in the fiscal stability of the Town, he would like to move back to the Fountain's original operational time of every 15 minutes on the hour. It was the consensus of the Council that this item be placed in the budget. Mr. Pickering noted that the cost was approximately $35,000. Mayor Nichols also spoke in support of encouraging tourism in Town and said that$50,000 had been budgeted and he would like to increase that amount to $75,000 and suggested that the Chamber not continue with the Scottsdale Convention Bureau, which would result in a savings of$30,000 a year. Councilman Kavanagh concurred with the Mayor's recommendations and said he previously suggested the $25,000 increase. It was the consensus of the Council that the amount be increased to$75,000. Councilwoman Nicola commented on Resolution 96-83 and said she was not aware of it. She questioned whether this issue could be addressed again and asked how much of the sales tax revenue was part of the bed tax. Mr. Pickering responded that in accordance with the law, that information could not be released to the public because it was proprietary based on the small number of hotels in the Town. He added that he had informed the Council that the Chamber might raise this issue and he wanted them to be aware of it and that was why it was provided. He noted that the Town was currently in conformance with the resolution. Councilman Archambault said he wanted to clarify some misconceptions and reported that the Town was down 30 employees from 2002 and added that Staff had been multi-tasking to the extreme. He advised that other cities and towns were increasing their staff dramatically and said that 30% of the Staff was reduced because of financial hardships in 2001. He further stated the opinion that an accounting clerk was not qualified to perform grant writing activities. He added that an Assistant Town Manager was a multi-tasking position. In response to a request from Councilman Archambault, Mr. Pickering clarified that the funds should be looked at and compared separately. He stated that on an annual basis the best indicator of spending was the General Fund and said it was at approximately $14 million, $1 million less than two years ago. He noted that there were $400,000 of taxes in there as well as a potential tax rebate of$400,000 for a total of$800,000 out of that increase. He emphasized that the Town was being fiscally responsible. Mayor Nichols commented on the $29 million budget and said that he teaches corporate accounting and had been exposed to municipal accounting that was much more complicated. He said that the $29 million contained many multi-counted items and Mr. Pickering reported that $1.8 million was double counted because it was shown in two separate funds. Mayor Nichols stated that he was hearing people say that they were running too fast to add things back into the budget, such as a Public Information Officer, and perhaps it was too soon to set up a public information strategy. He said that they would need to discuss the seven initiatives and decide whether it was too soon to do that and postpone that item, which would eliminate the necessity for a PIO. He added that this would be discussed at the next meeting and said they needed to discuss whether they wanted to defer some of those seven initiatives to another year. He also stated that people were saying they were spending too much money on the strategic plan and wanted to know whether volunteers and current Staff could help accomplish this goal for a lot less money. He said that before the next meeting they needed to look at how the plan could be done in a less expensive manner. E:\BBender\Documents\Current Minutes 2004\Regular Session 05-20-04.doc Page 12 of 14 Councilwoman Stevens expressed the opinion that the community was not ready for a Public Information Officer position and recommended that it be postponed for a year. She emphasized the importance of providing accurate information to the citizens and said they needed a public information program to communicate accurate information to the public. She added that she supported the Assistant Manager's position, particularly if they were not going to hire a consultant to assist with the Strategic Plan. Councilman Kavanagh advised that at the last budget meeting he argued against the new positions and spending money on the Strategic Plan. He said he was glad to see that they were getting more direction towards that and hopefully the final proposal would reflect those changes. Mayor Nichols stated that Staff had direction from Council to work on the revised budget and thanked everyone for their input. AGENDA ITEM #10 — COUNCIL ASSESSMENT AND REVIEW OF THE MEETING TO IDENTIFY PROCEDURAL STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES AND DISCUSS POSSIBLE IMPROVEMENTS FOR FUTURE MEETINGS. Vice Mayor Melendez said that in his earlier remarks he failed to recognize the Town's former Director of Administration, Cassie Hansen, as well as Town Clerk Bev Bender and Executive Assistant Sue Stein. He commended them on their professionalism and efforts. He encouraged the public to thank the members of the Council who would be leaving when they see them on the street and noted the time and effort they had given to the community. AGENDA ITEM#11 —COUNCIL DISCUSSION/DIRECTION TO THE TOWN MANAGER. None. AGENDA ITEM#12—SUMMARY OF COUNCIL REQUESTS BY THE TOWN MANAGER. tkiw Mr. Pickering stated that he would work on budget revisions as directed. He added that he would not make language changes to the contract with Rural Metro because they had already signed the contract and he did not want to renegotiate the entire contract. He added that the items discussed could be obtained without further negotiations taking place. Mayor Nichols stated that he should keep a list of those items for future reference. AGENDA ITEM#13—ADJOURNMENT Councilwoman Stevens MOVED that the Council adjourn and Vice Mayor Melendez SECONDED the motion, which CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. The meeting adjourned at 8:55 p.m. L E:\BBender\Documents\Current Minutes 2004\Regular Session 05-20-04.doc Page 13 of 14 TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS , By � k `i Way Nicl s,Mayor '440) ATTEST AND PEPARED BY: /l Bevelyn J. Bender,Town Clerk CERTIFICATION I hereby certify that the foregoing minutes are a true and correct copy of the minutes of the Regular Session held by the Town Council of Fountain Hills on the 20th day of May 2004. I further certify that the meeting was duly called and that a quorum was present. DATED this 3rd day of June 2004. /C6 6 `C L ' /1 Bevelyn J. Ben*,Town Clerk • j E:\BBender\Documents\Current Minutes 2004\Regular Session 05-20-04.doc Page 14 of 14