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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES Town Board Study Session 2022-07-12 Town of Estes Park, Larimer County, Colorado, July 12, 2022 Minutes of a Study Session meeting of the TOWN BOARD of the Town of Estes Park, Larimer County, Colorado. Meeting held at Town Hall in said Town of Estes Park on the 12th day of July, 2022. Board: Mayor Koenig, Trustees Cenac, Hazelton, MacAlpine, Martchink, Webermeier and Younglund Attending: Mayor Koenig, Trustees Cenac, Hazelton, MacAlpine, Martchink, Webermeier and Younglund Also Attending: Town Administrator Machalek, Assistant Town Administrator Damweber, Attorney Kramer, Town Clerk Williamson, and Deputy Town Clerk Beers Absent: None. Mayor Koenig called the meeting to order at 4:30 p.m. LIQUOR CODE AMENDMENTS. Town Clerk Williamson stated Municipal Code related to liquor licensing requires updates to bring the code current with the Colorado State Liquor Code. Prosecuting Attorney Kristen Brown assisted the Town with liquor violation prosecutions in 2021 and 2022 and was retained by the Town to identify Municipal Code amendments for Board consideration. She stated the Town Board acts as the Liquor Licensing Authority (LLA) for new, transfer and change of locations. Ordinance 01-22 passed by the Board identified the Municipal Judge as the Authority for show cause orders and hearings on suspensions, revocations, and other disciplinary actions. Prosecutor Brown reviewed the requirements of the LLA recommending amendments to the code, and creating a new chapter to identify unlawful acts to include open container and underage possession. Items for consideration included: local control of special event licensing, codify tastings, eliminate the 500’ school zone; entertainment district/festival permits and updates to the fee schedule. Staff requested Board interest in moving all functions of the LLA to the Municipal Judge and highlighted benefits including: Municipal Judge can build an initial rapport with licensee’s during the application process, establishing a relationship of trust and a desire to not disappoint, consistency with approach to liquor licensing and violations, and removing responsibility from the Board to meet statutory liquor code requirements. Attorney Kramer stated the current Board would have ultimate authority over the ordinances and changes to the code. Town Clerk Williamson stated if the LLA was moved to the Municipal Judge minutes would be produced and a report would be provided to the Board to keep them informed. Staff requested direction on the code amendments. Board comments have been summarized: Whether there are any identified disadvantages to moving the LLA to the Municipal Judge; financial implications; how the administrative processing would be handled in the Clerk’s office; undue hardship for applicants being required to attend the LLA with the Municipal Judge instead of the Board such as the time of day; how other communities handle the needs and desires; how the 500’ limit impacts the Town; how special events are handled and whether they would be moved to the LLA or handled administratively; and questioned whether outreach to current licensees had been conducted. The Board requested more information before determining a decision on continuing to act as the LLA for new, transfer, and change of location licenses or moving all functions to the Municipal Judge. Staff would bring recommended code changes to the Board at a future meeting. CLASSIFICATION & COMPENSATION PLAN OVERVIEW & CURRENT TRENDS. Consultant Laurie Graves with Graves Consulting LLC provided an overview of the compensation process, classification, and current trends. Highlights of her presentation included: the Town’s defined market; data sources and job matching, placement in range; classification and reclassification; pay structure; annual market update process Town Board Study Session – July 12, 2022– Page 2 and the current labor market. The Estes Park defined market was proposed to include Arvada and several markets were proposed to be removed to maintain a fair market area primarily due to size and lower pay structures. She presented the identified smaller previously defined market for sworn police officers and did not recommend any changes. She discussed moving the administrative pay family into technical and professional due to negative perceptions for the classification ‘administrative’. She stated each pay structure would be adjusted annually based on the average market increase of the positions in one of the six pay families. Changes in the labor market has placed stress on hiring and has forced municipalities to revise their compensation practices. She stated any recommendations would include data which has been aged forward to ensure pay ranges stay competitive through 2023. The Board requested a benefits comparison along with the market review. Staff would bring forward changes to the compensation philosophy and the policy to help address challenges identified by the Retention and Recruitment Task Force. QUARTERLY COMPREHENSIVE PLAN ADVISORY COMMITTEE UPDATE. Director Garner introduced Jeremy Call, Logan Simpson Consultant for Estes Forward and Planning Commissioners in attendance for the presentation. He presented the draft vision, nine guiding principles, and the draft future land use plan. Conversations are ongoing to identify recommendations in the land use plan to address the needs identified in the Housing Needs Assessment. Board questions have been summarized: how property owners can request zoning corrections; clarification was requested on removing density limits in mixed-use zones; zoning limitations for allowing large single- family homes to be converted into multiple units; and the hierarchy of regulations established by homeowner associations or covenants and whether they can further restrict areas. The Board and members of the Estes Park Comprehensive Plan Advisory Committee participated in a survey to provide feedback on the proposed future land use categories, goals and priorities. Staff and CompPAC would meet to further review the land use draft and would host community outreach events to obtain additional feedback. TRUSTEE & ADMINISTRATOR COMMENTS & QUESTIONS. None. FUTURE STUDY SESSION AGENDA ITEMS. Mayor Koenig requested a discussion prior to the budget hearing reviewing recession and inflation implications, to which the Board were in agreement to add a discussion to future unscheduled items. There being no further business, Mayor Koenig adjourned the meeting at 6:39 p.m. Bunny Victoria Beers, Deputy Town Clerk