City Council May 2, 2011 Business Meeting Agenda Summary

OLD BUSINESS:

Item 1---Funding Request---Jay Markwalter, of the Lawrenceville Tourism & Trade Association asked council for an additional $50,000. This funding will pay for LTTA’s city sponsored events for the last eight months of 2011.

This request was made to make up the shortfall in LTTA’s budget due to the closing of Microtel Inn on Highway 316. LTTA receives its funding from the city’s hotel/motel taxes. Markwalter said the closing of Microtel will cause a deficit in LTTA’s budget of an estimated $40,000.Councilwoman Marie Beiser made the motion to give LTTA the requested $50,000.

Councilman Tony Powell seconded the motion, but amended it to include allowing the mayor to have discretion over the spending of the $50,000 set aside funding. Powell said these funds should be considered as matching funds. He said if LTTA, as expected, seeks to make up this shortfall in funding from other hotels, the city will not be required to provide the entire $50,000. Instead the city will match up funding to actual shortfall.

Powell also gave credit to Markwalter for discovering hotel stays, beyond the permitted 45 days, violations. An issue Powell said the city is working to “clean up”.

In 2009 LTTA received a loan from the city in the amount of $73,850. The loan agreement stated that if LTTA raised a penny over the projected amount of its income, that amount was to be given to the city. Markwalter said he kept his word “…but embarrassingly (LTTA) only returned $695” (to the city).

Markwalter said that funds received from hotel/motel taxes are only spent in marketing and promotion of the city year round. But this funding cannot be spent on the actual production of events. He said these funds are monitored by the state and that he provides funds tracking documents to the Department of Community Affairs and to the mayor.

In 2010 LTTA spent over $90,000 producing city sponsored events. This amount does not include the marketing of the events. For that LTTA raises funds through private and corporate donations. This year’s goal is to raise $72,000.  

LTTA’s projected budget for 2011 from the city was $245,000.

 Motion as amended carried 4-0

Item 2---1st Reading – Sign Ordinance---Dennis Billew, Director of Planning & Zoning, presented the revised Sign Ordinance. Billew provided council with specifics about the requested revisions before council meeting via email.

These revisions, mainly requested by Councilman Powell, were given during council’s April 20th Work Session.

Councilman Peter Martin made a motion to approve the 1st Reading.

Motion carried 4-0.  Mayor Johnson said the 2nd Reading will take place at council’s June meeting.

During the Public Comment portion of the meeting, Michelle Rothmeier, an attorney with Mahaffey Pickens Tucker, LLP asked council to amend the proposed Sign Ordinance. She requested on behalf of several of the law firm’s clients, some already located in the city and others looking to relocate, that council considers adding other types and sizes of electronic message center signs to the ordinance. Currently the sign ordinance only permits monument electronic message center signs.

Rothmeier asked the council to consider adding a static price sign used by a gas station affixed to a canopy. She also asked council to consider adding locations for electronic message center signs placement to ordinance.

She said if council was not inclined to adding her requested amendments, then they should consider working in a special permits process. This would allow usage of signs that do not meet the required criteria specified in the Sign Ordinance. Rothmeier said this would be done on a case-by-case basis with public hearings to get public input.

After hearing Rothmeier’s requests council made no comments and moved into Executive Session.

NEW BUSINESS  

Item 1---Henson Street Widening Bids---Johan Louw, Assistant City Engineer, following instructions given by council in an earlier Work Session, this project went out for bids.

Louw said by March 28th, eight companies had picked up (project and bid) documents. Only three of the eight companies submitted bids which were opened on April 15th. He said (Case) Benning & Partners company submitted the lowest bid of $76,461. Louw then said therefore he recommended awarding the contract to Gary’s Grading.

The mayor said that Henson Street is the street that will go into . The city and county are working together to make this street more accessible and to improve it.

Mr. Baroni said both city and the county had money budgeted for Henson Street. In a meeting with the county, both agreed to pool allocated money to do a better job of upgrading the street.

Councilman Martin made a motion to approve Gary’s Grading as the lowest bidder, contingent upon the agreement with the county.

Motion carried 4-0

Item 2---Intergovernmental Agreement with Gwinnett County - Henson Street---The mayor said this item is referring to Item number one. The Henson Street Project is a joint project between the city and the county.  Council had received the agreement prior to the meeting.

City Clerk Baroni said this agreement will come before the Board of County Commissioners on May 17th. He then asked city attorney Thompson if he had reviewed the agreement, to which Thompson said yes.

Councilwoman Beiser said Henson Street is inside of the park. She said it is a wonderful amount of money the county is spending. The park belongs to the city, but is leased to the county. Henson Street will be the new entrance.

Mayor Johnson said the park should open in August of 2011.

Councilwoman Katie Hart Smith said the county is putting in over one million dollars of improvements. These improvements, said Smith, will include a huge soccer complex which should increase tourism in the city as people travel to attend soccer games and tournaments.

And Councilwoman Beiser said they will stay in the city’s hotels and eat in local restaurants.

Councilwoman made motion to accept Intergovernmental Agreement with the county for Henson Street improvements.

Motion carried 4-0

Item 3---Personnel Request and Item 4---GIS (Geographical Information System) Bids---Both of these items were presented to council by Mickey Watts, Asst. Gas Department Superintendent.

In a meeting with the Public Service Commission, the city presented the Proposed Gas Department Organizational Chart. Watts said the PSC said the chart is a great tool in re-organizing the Gas Department.

The chart includes the creation of 8 new positions (2- Asst. Superintendents, Administrative Clerk, Corrosion Foreman, Corrosion Technician, GIS Mapping Technician, Regulator Foreman and Regulator Technician); and the filling of 4 existing vacant positions (2-Technician I, Locate Foreman, and Office Clerk) that Watts asked council to approve.

Under the new re-org plan shown on the chart, the department will be split into two “areas”, Regulatory Compliance and Maintenance & New Construction. The two new Asst. Superintendents will manage these divisions.

Councilman Powell made a motion to approve new positions and the re-organization chart, but with an amendment to do away with the hiring of a new Asst. Superintendent for Maintenance and New Construction; instead slide Mr. Watts into that slot. Powell said this would save the city some money by filling that position with existing staff.

Powell said the city can either fund these positions or get fined three million dollars by the PSC then fund them. We came into office and found out our Gas Department is in terrible shape. Someone asked me a month ago if our system was safe and I could not answer them, said Powell.

He said efforts are underway to “make sure that this mess never occurs again”. The public should have known about corroded pipes, no safety plan and lack of maintenance back in April of 2010. When these issues first surfaced and fines were being paid. And no one told anyone, including members of this council, said Powell is “inexcusable”.

 Motion carried 4-0   

The PSC is pleased with the city’s proposed mapping system. Watts said this system will enable the city to retrieve information from the field, for emergency response. The PSC also gave the city the opportunity of choosing the date for its next inspection.    

The bidding for installing and implementing the mapping system attracted three companies. The bid was awarded to lowest bidder Magnolia River.  With a few alterations mapping system, Watts said, will be compatible with existing city information system(s).

Watts managed to eliminate some of the original proposed mapping installation phases, thus the overall total cost was reduced from $80,000 to $60,250.  He said if approved this mapping system can be installed and working in three months. 

The mayor said that currently the city is using incorrect and inadequate paper documents to do what the GIS mapping system will do electronically.

Councilman Powell made a motion to approve the GIS bid with Magnolia River as described.

Powell said from the PSC meeting that the city is facing some critical permitting issues. The city has a deadline of August 2^nd to submit a safety plan showing the city’s gas pipelines overlaps with Atlanta Gas Light, in Sugar Hill or Buford. In order to create the plan and to show overlap, Powell said the GIS mapping system is needed to be able to provide the PSC with that information.

Every citizen should want us to have this system as soon as possible. Powell said, because this will show every line and valve that goes directly into their homes and how to shut them off.

Motion carried 4-0

Item 5---Personnel Request---City Clerk Baroni asked council to create a position to utilize Jane Gaguski to enhance information flow and storage for all departments. Ms. Gaguski would also continue to have oversight of court services (a position earlier in the year she was to retire) until her replacement is hired.

The new position will give Gaguski a $6-$7 thousand dollar pay increase with a salary ranging from $61,734 to $75,200.  

Baroni asked council to approve the creation of a new accountant position. Responsibilities of person in this position will include supervision of payment clerks and proposed account clerk. This request is not to create another staff position, but to fill with an existing staff person. This person will receive a $6,240 pay increase.

Request from Baroni also includes the creation of a position for a degreed accountant to assist with council’s quarterly financial reports and contract compliance, etc. This person will have a salary of $50,000.

Councilman Martin made a motion to approve promotion and creation of requested positions.

During discussion of motion, Councilman Powell said that to retain Ms. Gaguski’s who is the most orderly and skilled person and to have her in this new IT position as well as continuing with the courts is “a real bonus” for the city. He said this is what he sees as the first steps in the city manager process.

Powell also said that when the findings of an on-going internal audit are made public, citizens will understand why the city needs these accountants. He said these positions will fill in gaps to make sure what happened in the Gas Department doesn’t happen in any of the city’s other departments. Motion carried 4-0

After Public Comment council moved into Executive Session.