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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTB Study Session 2014-09-23 Town of Estes Park, Larimer County, Colorado, September 23, 2014 Minutes of a Regular meeting of the TOWN BOARD STUDY SESSION of the Town of Estes Park, Larimer County, Colorado. Meeting held at Town Hall in Rooms 202/203 in said Town of Estes Park on the 23rd day of September, 2014. Board: Mayor Pinkham, Mayor Pro Tem Koenig, Trustees Ericson, Holcomb, Nelson, Norris, and Phipps Attending: Mayor Pinkham, Mayor Pro Tem Koenig, Trustees Ericson, Holcomb, Nelson, Norris, and Phipps Also Attending: Town Administrator Lancaster, Town Attorney White, and Deputy Town Clerk Deats Absent: None Mayor Pinkham called the meeting to order at 4:00 p.m. TRUSTEE COMMENTS & QUESTIONS. Trustee Ericson reported that an Audit Committee meeting will be held on Friday, September 26th to prepare to bring the single audit findings and management letter forward to the Town Board at the next Town Board meeting. Staff is expecting to receive drafts of the documents from the auditors prior to the meeting. The single audit must be filed with the State by September 30th. Attorney White advised the Board that the Audit Committee, as well as all advisory committees formally constituted by the Town of Estes Park, are required to adhere to the open meeting act. This requires that public notice of the meeting is given, an agenda is prepared, and meeting minutes are taken. Trustee Norris informed the Board that the terms of two members of the Local Marketing District (LMD) Board of Directors will expire at the end of the year. The positions have been posted and interviews will be scheduled in October. As liaison to Visit Estes Park, Trustee Norris will be part of the interview team. Trustee Holcomb expressed interest in serving as well. The LMD has requested that a member of their board be allowed to sit in on the interviews, however, this person would not be part of the interview team nor be part of the decision-making process. He also noted that the LMD is preparing their 2015 Operating Plan to bring forward to the Town Board. Mayor Pro Tem Koenig said the Community Service Grants (CSG) applications have been reviewed and the recommendations will be included in the budget study session packet materials. She suggested adding a discussion related to CSG to a future study session agenda to give the Board an opportunity to talk about the grants in general, the Town’s role and in what direction the Board wants to move related to the grants, and to establish criteria for the individuals reviewing the applications. FUTURE STUDY SESSION AGENDA ITEMS. A discussion of Community Service Grants will be added to the list of topics for future study session agendas. Mayor Pro Tem Koenig requested that the discussion be completed by February or March of 2015 to provide time to inform local organizations of any changes that may affect the 2015 grant program. CONSIDER A LIAISON TO ESTES PARK HOUSING AUTHORITY. Town Administrator Lancaster asked the Board for clarification related to appointing a member of the Board as liaison to the Estes Park Housing Authority (EPHA). Historically, a trustee has been a member of the EPHA Board of Directors, the last being former Mayor Pro Tem Eric Blackhurst. With Mr. Blackhurst’s departure from the Town Board Study Session – September 23, 2014 – Page 2 Town Board, that relationship no longer exists. Rita Kurelja, Executive Director of EPHA, stated that she had not polled the members of the EPHA Board about this topic, however, she personally felt it would be a good idea to have a liaison appointed. She said the liaison would not be a voting member of the Board but would provide two-way communication between the Town and the EPHA. The Trustees’ comments are summarized: better communication sounds like a good idea; better communication makes for better decisions; the EPHA is a separate entity from the Town; there has always been communication between the two entities; EPHA serves a specific segment of the population; their job is not to address every housing issue in the community; don’t want the public perception to be that the Town has taken over the Housing Authority; the physical presence of a liaison may be confusing to the public; give Director Kurelja the opportunity to explore this topic with the EPHA Board; and Director Kurelja will provide quarterly reports to the Town Board and communicate with the Board at any time circumstances warrant that the Town Board be updated. CONTINUE BOARD COMMUNICATION DISCUSSION. Mayor Pinkham continued the review of a draft document dealing with a Code of Conduct for elected officials that was started at the Town Board Study Session on September 9, 2014. He reviewed the following topics: Trustee Conduct with Town Staff, Trustee Conduct with the Public, and Conduct with the Media. The Mayor noted that the Board’s role is to set policy and provide direction to the Town Administrator. He said the Town Administrator’s responsibilities are to carry out policy and take direction from the Town Board, as well as to oversee staff; and said that this direction must come from the entire Board, not from individual members. Town Administrated Lancaster said that items to be added or removed from meeting agendas must be the result of a decision made by the full Board and requested that he be included in any communication between the Board and Town staff. The following topics were also discussed: job performance should not be evaluated in public; complementing an organization/individual on a job well done is acceptable; no public criticism; coordinate responses to correspondence with Town staff to ensure an accurate message; Town Board meetings are not the appropriate place for cheerleading or applause; avoid public debates; don’t make promises on behalf of the Board; be clear about representing the Town or personal interests; and defer to the Mayor, Town Administrator or PIO when dealing with the media. The Board said they were not interested in receiving media relations training, however, they requested that PIO Rusch put together a check list of media dos and don’ts for distribution. Town Administrator Lancaster said the Code of Conduct document would be reviewed and formatted and brought back to the next Town Board Study Session before moving forward to the Board for formal adoption. He said the Code of Conduct will be inserted in the appropriate section of Policy Governance. Mayor Pinkham recessed the meeting for a dinner break at 5:08 p.m., and resumed the meeting at 5:38 p.m. REVIEW 2014 OBJECTIVES. Town Administrator Lancaster reviewed the 2014 Board Objectives to be completed in a one-year time frame. He noted that some projects have been delayed due to staff’s continued involvement with flood recovery including paperwork related to applying for grants and reimbursement documentation. He estimated that approximately 50% of staff’s time is still devoted to the flood in some manner. He reported that completed or nearly completed objectives include: brewery, winery, and distillery code changes; the Event Center and Stall Barn construction are substantially complete and in use; an AM public advisory radio station is on track to be operational by the end of 2014; the Citizen’s Survey; and the approval and implementation of an increase to the Town’s sales tax rate. Town Board Study Session – September 23, 2014 – Page 3 Progress is ongoing on: code changes to support redevelopment, address vacation home rentals, and the possible adoption of the dangerous building portion of the IBC; local and regional economic development efforts; Visitor Center parking structure; development of options for the Glacier Creek Water Treatment plant will be completed as part of the Water Master Plan; participation in the EDC Fiber Committee; repairs to flood damaged utilities; marketing of the Event Center; remediation of the landfill on Elm Road; stream restoration and redefining of the flood plains; updating and revision of policies; working with EVRPD on the Community Center; participating in preparations for RMNP 100th anniversary; discussion of community housing issues; increasing compliance in the operation of vacation homes; FLAP grant and preventive maintenance on Town roadways. Projects on hold include: environmental studies for the extension of the Fall River trail; development of a funding plan for facility maintenance; evaluate potential required changes in radio frequencies; Comprehensive Plan update; implementation of a capital planning process; and implementation of Transportation Visioning Committee signage recommendations. Town Administrator Lancaster said he would continue to update the Board on a quarterly basis; as well as provide summaries of the topics discussed at the many meetings he attends. FISH HATCHERY PROPERTY APPRAISAL. Town Administrator Lancaster said that he is in the process of selecting an appraiser and getting on schedule for an appraisal of the Town-owned property known as the Fish Hatchery property. The historic Fall River Hydroplant museum, the picnic grounds, as well as several Town-owned homes, and storage buildings are located on this property. He noted that the Town will retain the approximate six-acre portion of the property which houses the museum and the picnic grounds. He suggested that for purposes of the appraisal, the property be sectioned off into several segments, rather than appraising the entire property as a whole. That way if the Board chooses to separate portions of the property for sale, the value of each separate area would be available. He said he would formalize designation of the portions to be appraised and make sure that the appraiser had specific information about these areas prior to beginning the appraisal process. He noted that the appraisal would supply the Board with the current market value of the property and the values of each section could be added together to come up with a value for the property as a whole. He said he is hopeful that the appraisal can be completed by the end of the year, however, it will be dependent upon the appraiser’s schedule. Town Administrator Lancaster said that the demolition of the Black Canyon Water Treatment Plant is underway. Conversations about possibly offering this property for sale can begin once the demolition is complete. CONSIDER HIRING A MOUNTAIN URBAN PLANNING CONSULTANT. With the implementation of the FLAP grant project, development/redevelopment opportunities within the downtown core area may be on the horizon. The Trustees discussed hiring a consultant to help provide ideas and a vision for how the Town of Estes Park might evolve over the next ten to 20 years. Trustee Nelson said the FLAP grant project, microbreweries, and the Event Center are all factors that may redefine the character of Estes Park and provide an opportunity to shape the community’s future related to aesthetics, citizen comforts, and the ability to attract businesses to the area. He said a consultant may be able to provide ideas about successful development and how to take advantage of the Town’s attributes. He said conversations with staff have identified some topics to explore including the comprehensive plan; neighborhood planning; design guidelines; mixed use areas; how to attract young people to the area to retain vibrancy within the community; evaluation and revision of the codes to encourage Town Board Study Session – September 23, 2014 – Page 4 rather than discourage redevelopment; utilization of natural attributes such as the rivers and river walk; and pro-actively working with the Economic Development Corp (EDC). Discussion is summarized: a mountain town planners conference could be organized to bring planners to Estes Park; the 2017 team was provided with a report that addressed the nature of mountain communities and how to expand their economies; this is the role of the Community Development Department, have Director Chilcott and Town Administrator Lancaster come back with recommendations; need a joint plan with the EDC; where is commercial property located?; current code is protective and restrictive, needs to be changed so it can be enhancing; and need to identify successful trends. Town Administrator Lancaster proposed consideration of identifying the downtown core as the first neighborhood to establish a neighborhood plan concept. The public meetings related to the FLAP project including the NEPA study public input piece may be utilized and discussions broadened to include ideas for redevelopment possibilities. Additionally, a Downtown Development Authority (DDA) could be discussed where tax increment financing (TIF) can be used for improvements. Discussion will continue and staff will review the budget and identify reasonably priced organizations or individuals who may be able to provide information before considering hiring a consultant or commissioning a report at this point in time. There being no further business, Mayor Pinkham adjourned the meeting at 6:45 p.m. Cynthia Deats, Deputy Town Clerk