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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES Town Board 2012-07-10Town of Estes Park, Larimer County, Colorado, July 10, 2012 Minutes of a Regular meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Town of Estes Park, Larimer County, Colorado. Meeting held in the Town Hall in said Town of Estes Park on the 10t' day of July, 2012. Meeting called to order by Mayor Pinkham. Present: Also Present: William C. Pinkham, Mayor Eric Blackhurst, Mayor Pro Tem Trustees Mark Elrod John Ericson Wendy Koenig Ron Norris John Phipps Greg White, Town Attorney Frank Lancaster, Town Administrator Deputy Town Administrator Richardson Cynthia Deats, Deputy Town Clerk Absent: None Mayor Pinkham called the meeting to order at 5:24 p.m. 1. REQUEST TO ENTER EXECUTIVE SESSION: It was moved and seconded (Koenig/Blackhurst) the Town Board enter into Executive Session for the discussion of specialized details of security arrangements under C.R.S. Section 24-6-402(4)(d), and it passed unanimously. Whereupon, Mayor Pinkham adjourned the meeting to Executive Session at 5:25 p.m. Mayor Pinkham reconvened the meeting to open session at 6:53 p.m. and called for a short break. At 7:00 p.m., Mayor Pinkham called the meeting to order and all desiring to do so, recited the Pledge of Allegiance. PUBLIC COMMENTS. None TOWN BOARD COMMENTS / LIAISON REPORTS. Trustee Ericson said the Proud to Wear Pink Golf Tournament that will be held on Wednesday, July 11, 2012, in conjunction with the Rooftop Rodeo. Mayor Pro Tem Blackhurst announced that Mayor Pinkham received the Elected Official Leadership Award from the Colorado Municipal League and offered his congratulations. He stated that the Estes Park Housing Authority is one of three housing authorities in the state that will be undergoing a charrette process to develop a housing project that will fit the needs of the community for future development of a property near Good Samaritan. Trustee Koenig encouraged the community to get out and enjoy the Rooftop Rodeo, and invited interested parties to attend the Sister Cities meeting to be held on July 11, 2012, at 8 a.m. at the Senior Center. Board of Trustees — July 10, 2012 — Page 2 Trustee Norris attended the Visit Estes Park Board Meeting at which policy review, policy governance, and the Woodland Heights Fire were discussed. He noted that Visit Estes Park will fund a media campaign to help reduce the negative impact of the fire. Mayor Pinkham complimented staff for their actions during the Woodland Heights Fire and thanked everyone who attended the community fundraisers held to benefit victims of the fire. TOWN ADMINISTRATOR REPORT. • A Woodland Heights Debrief will be held with the Board of Trustees on Tuesday, July 17, 2012. • Sales tax for May 2012 showed a 20% increase over May 2011. Sales tax is up 16% for the year, however, June may be hit hard due to the fires. • During a pre -budget meeting held in June, the Trustees discussed decreasing fund balance to 25% and using unallocated revenues to fund road improvement projects. Discussions continue on the topic with staff recommending use of the funds through 2013 to allow adequate time to plan and complete the projects, and allow for coordination with other utilities when possible. • A discussion regarding the Catastrophic Reserve Fund is scheduled for an upcoming Town Board Study Session. At that time staff will provide the Board with information about the creation of the Fund, a recommended amount to hold in the Fund, and how circumstances and insurance coverages have changed since the Fund was formed; and will ask for direction from the Board. 2. CONSENT AGENDA: 1. Town Board Minutes dated June 26, 2012, and Town Board Study Session Minutes dated June 26, 2012. 2. Bills. 3. Committee Minutes: a. Community Development/Community Services, June 28, 2012. 4. Estes Valley Board of Adjustment Minutes dated May 1, 2012 (acknowledgement only). It was moved and seconded (Blackhurst/Koenig) to approve the Consent Agenda, and it passed unanimously. 3. ACTION ITEMS. 1. FEE WAIVER POLICY. Dir. Chilcott presented a re -stated fee waiver policy at the request of the Community Development / Community Services Committee members. The proposed changes establish a uniform policy for waiving Community Development fees in support of essential community needs such as affordable housing, assisted living, and health care services; and will condense the policy into one, readily accessible document. The proposed fee waiver policy would apply to public -funded government construction, taxing and special districts, as well as private non-profit organizations that meet the specified criteria. Staff is proposing that the Community Development Director be authorized to waive up to $500 in fees; authorizing the Community Development Committee to waive fees in the amount of $500 to $3000; with the Town Board being the decision - making body for fee waivers in excess of $3000. Following discussion the Board asked staff to remove the references to private, non-profit projects allowing for the focus of the waiver to be whether or not the project meets an essential community need as defined as well as the qualifying criteria stated in the policy; and to add language to forward the fee waiver request to the Town Board of Trustees — July 10, 2012 — Page 3 Board in the event of a tie at the Committee level. It was moved and seconded (Ericson/Norris) to approve the fee waiver policy with changes as discussed, and it passed unanimously. 2. ESTES PARK MEDICAL CENTER FEE WAIVER. The Estes Park Medical Center has submitted a request to waive the application fee associated with a special review/location and extent review for the construction of an MRI addition to the hospital. The waiver of the $2000 application fee was heard by the Community Development / Community Services Committee at their June 28, 2012 meeting and was forwarded to the Town Board for final action. Trustee Koenig commented that philosophically there is a difference between fees being paid for by taxpayers by way of taxes collected through a special taxing district, as opposed to a fee being paid for with funds raised by a foundation. She said development fees provide revenue to operate the planning and building divisions and that it may be necessary to pull funds from other areas of the budget to make up budget shortfalls due to reduced fee revenue. It was moved and seconded (Koenig/Ericson) to deny the Estes Park Medical Center fee waiver. Trustee Elrod said that the Medical Center Foundation is involved in raising funds for equipment, not for construction of the addition to the hospital, and as treasurer for the Foundation, abstained from participation in the discussion. Further discussion is summarized: the Medical Center is obligated to pay development fees, just like any other private entity; $2000 will remain in hospital operating budget if fee waiver is approved; the Board has routinely waived fees in the past for taxing districts, the school, and the hospital; and $2000 less revenue will be earned by Community Development, but it is a significant contribution in the spirit of cooperation. Trustee Ericson said he could not support the fee waiver based on derogatory comments made by hospital staff in regard to the repaving of Prospect Avenue. The motion to deny the fee waiver failed. Those voting "Yes" Trustees Ericson and Koenig. Those voting "No" Mayor Pro Tem Blackhurst, Trustees Norris and Phipps. Trustee Elrod abstained from the vote. It was moved and seconded (Blackhurst/Norris) to approve the Estes Park Medical Center fee waiver, and the motion passed. Those voting "Yes" Mayor Pro Tem Blackhurst, Trustees Phipps and Norris. Those voting "No" Trustees Ericson and Koenig. Trustee Elrod abstained from the vote. SUNGARD PROJECT MANAGER CONSULTANT CONTRACT. Supt. Fraundorf reported that a Request for Proposal (RFP) was issued for a Project Manager to guide the Town through the process of replacing its current financial system with the SunGard OneSolution product. One response to the RFP was received from Don Widrig of Estes Park. Mr. Widrig has the credentials and expertise to fill the position and staff is recommending approval of the contract and 2012 expenditures for the SunGard Project Manager at a cost not to exceed $50,000 from account #502-7001-580-33-33 (10%), 503-7000-580-35-54 (10°to), and 625-2500-425-26-32 (80%). Mayor Pro Tem Blackhurst expressed concern with sole -sourcing and questioned why more responses were not received. Supt. Fraundorf said he received five or six inquiries to the RFP from large, out-of-state companies that would normally bring in a team of people to work on the project. Since the Town is looking for an individual to serve as Project Manager, the larger companies were not interested in submitting proposals. The Trustees concurred that Mr. Widrig is a good fit for the work that needs to be done and it was moved and seconded (Norris/Ericson) to approve the contract for SunGard Project Manager and expenditures for 2012 as described above, and it passed unanimously. 3. TOWN BOARD REIMBURSEMENT POLICY. Town Administrator Lancaster proposed a Town Board Reimbursement Policy designed to officially adopt current practices related to purchasing logo apparel for members of the Board and reimbursement to the Mayor to cover Board of Trustees — July 10, 2012 — Page 4 cell phone costs associated with Town business. The Trustees requested the following changes be made to the policy: include the dollar amount that is equal to the maximum amount reimbursable to employees as a cell phone service stipend; the Town may pay for up to two items of logo apparel after each biennial election, with the dollar amount not to exceed $75. Trustee Elrod pointed out that the Mayor and Trustees are not required to seek reimbursement from the Town for these items. Attorney White also noted that items received by the Trustees from the Town are not considered a gift under Amendment 41. It was moved and seconded (Norris/Blackhurst) to approve the Town Board Reimbursement Policy with the changes discussed, and it passed unanimously. 4. REQUEST TO ENTER EXECUTIVE SESSION: It was moved and seconded (Koenig/Norris) to enter into Executive Session for a conference with the Town Attorney for the purpose of receiving legal advice on specific legal questions under C.R.S. Section 24-6-402(4)(b) — Woodland Heights Fire / Rockfall, and it passed unanimously. Mayor Pinkham stated that no action would be taken by the Board following the executive session and called for a five minute break. The Board entered executive session at 8:20 p.m. Mayor Pinkham reconvened the meeting at 8:35 p.m.; whereupon he adjourned the meeting at 8:35 p.m. Cynthia A. Deats, Deputy Town Clerk (td ill aim C. Pinkham, Mayor