BROWNSVILLE CITY COUNCIL

MEETING MINUTES

September 17, 2007

ROLL CALL: Mayor Ware called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. with Councilors Brenner, Cole, Shepherd, Hoffman and Pinnock present. Councilor Hoyer was excused. Also present were City Administrator Scott McDowell, City Planner Bill Sattler and Public Works Director Karl Frink.

ADDITIONS AND DELETIONS: Mr. McDowell said he would be substituting an executive session dealing with a different matter for the one already on the agenda.

MINUTES: The Council reviewed the minutes of the August 20, 2007, City Council meeting. Councilor Cole moved that the minutes be approved as corrected. The motion was seconded by Councilor Pinnock and was approved unanimously.

PUBLIC HEARINGS / PRESENTATIONS:

  1. Chris Brugato – Westech Engineering – Wastewater Project. Mr. Brugato was present to provide his regular update on that status of the wastewater project. Mr. Brugato said that the lagoon liner is not yet installed as the contractor was having problems with the supplier, but an alternative source has been located and the liner should be here by October 1. The force main is about half done, the rest should be finished within a week. The Phase 2 contractor has been working their way down Hwy. 228 and have been moving slower than they had hoped. The will soon be going down Washburn to Kisling, then moving back north after that. Councilor Cole asked about the three trees on Washburn. Mr. McDowell said that the City had hired an arborist to inspect the trees and he believed all three were hazardous and should be removed. The arborist did not believe the trees would survive the work being done around their roots. Councilor Pinnock asked how long it would take to bore the siphon under the river. Mr. Brugato said that it should take about two weeks.

  2. Scott Johnson – Sweet Home Sanitation. Mr. Johnson introduced himself to the Council as the new representative of Sweet Home Sanitation, saying that Mr. Weld had taken another position with the company and would be in Colorado for about two years. Mayor Ware asked why Halsey gets two cleanup days per year while Brownsville only gets one. Mr. Johnson said that he wasn’t sure, it had been that way for many years.

  3. CenturyTel Franchise Agreement. The representative from CenturyTel was not present, so Mr. McDowell provided the Council with an overview of the proposed franchise agreement. There was discussion regarding whether CenturyTel would be itemizing the City’s franchise fee on their billings.

CITIZEN INPUT: NONE

DEPARTMENTAL REPORTS:

  1. Administrator Report. Mr. McDowell submitted a written report to the Council. Mr. McDowell said that he would cover the various areas of his report in the course of the scheduled agenda items.

  2. Public Works. Mr. Frink submitted a written report. In addition, Mr. Frink told the Council that the Public Works crew had been working at the cemetery and had been working on the library repairs and maintenance. The landscaping should be started soon. Ms. Rikki Gutierrez asked if the City could install a light on the flag in the Library Park as no one is taking the flag down at night. Mr. Frink said that he is planning to move another flag pole to that site and the other flag pole has a light installed on it already.

  3. Planning. Mr. Sattler provided a written report and updated the Council on current projects around town. Mr. Sattler said that he had been contacted by the developers of the large subdivision project off Washburn and that they are still interested in pursing their project.

  4. Library Report. Mr. McDowell said that he had forgotten to include the library report in the packet. Mr. McDowell said that the Library Advisory Board has been reviewing the policy manual and that the Council should receive a copy of the revised draft at the October Council meeting. The new library software is installed and the process of entering the library’s book is beginning. Mr. McDowell said that there had been questions asked about a library inventory and that the new software would provide a current inventory when the books have been entered.

  5. Sheriff’s Report. Sgt. Lawler was present and gave a brief report to Council. Councilor Cole noted that the hours reported on the report are always greater than the amount contracted for and asked if the City paid extra because of that. Sgt. Lawler said that there is no extra charge if excess hours are delivered.

  6. Council Report. Councilor Cole said that she would not be able to attend the CWCOG meeting this month and asked if any other Councilor would like to attend. No one else was interested.

LEGISLATIVE ACTION:

    1. Ordinance No. 709 – Social Gaming. Councilor Cole moved that Ordinance 709 be read by title only. The motion was seconded by Councilor Hoffman and was approved unanimously. Mayor Ware read the title of Ordinance 709. Councilor Pinnock asked if there had been any problems with this type of ordinance in the cities that have already approved social gaming. Mr. McDowell said that he had spoken with Judy Cleeton, the City Administrator in Halsey, and Ms. Cleeton had said there hadn’t been any problems. Mr. McDowell noted that similar ordinances have been adopted all over Oregon with few reported problems. This ordinance does have a six month review provision and the Council can amend or repeal the ordinance at any time. Mr. McDowell said that to begin with he would just be requesting a letter of intent rather than developing a new form for the application process. Mr. McDowell said that any nonprofit could host social gaming at the present, this ordinance simply permits for-profit businesses to do the same under certain conditions. As this was the second reading of the ordinance Councilor Hoffman moved that Ordinance 709 be approved. The motion was seconded by Councilor Brenner and was approved unanimously.

    2. Ordinance No. 710 – Amending the Comprehensive Plan, the Comprehensive Plan Map and the Zoning Map. Mr. Sattler explained that this ordinance implemented the zoning changes already approved by Council for the River’s Edge PUD. Councilor Hoffman moved that Ordinance 710 be read by title only. The motion was seconded by Councilor Cole and was approved unanimously. Mayor Ware read the title of Ordinance 710. Councilor Cole moved that Ordinance 710 be approved. The motion was seconded by Councilor Hoffman and was approved unanimously.

    3. Ordinance No. 711 – Vacating A Certain Portion of An Alley. Mr. Sattler said that this ordinance would vacate the 38’ of alley as requested by Mr. & Mrs. Nelson and discussed previously by the Council. Mr. Sattler explained that state law requires vacation ordinances to be effective in less than 30 days so they always have an emergency clause. Councilor Cole moved that ordinance 711 be read by title only. The motion was seconded by Councilor Hoffman and was approved unanimously. Mayor Ware read the title of Ordinance 711. Councilor Cole then moved that Ordinance 711 be approved. The motion was seconded by Councilor Hoffman and was approved unanimously.

    4. Ordinance No. 712 - Communications Franchise Agreement. Councilor Pinnock moved that Ordinance 712 be read by title only. The motion was seconded by Councilor Cole and was approved unanimously. Mayor Ware read the title of Ordinance 712.

    5. Resolution No. 589 – Transfer of East Blakely Street. Mr. Sattler said that this Resolution is requesting Linn County to turn over jurisdiction of that portion of East Blakely running in front of the new fire station in order to assist the fire district in their construction process. Councilor Cole moved that Resolution 589 be approved. The motion was seconded by Councilor Hoffman and was approved unanimously.

    6. Resolution No. 590 – Awarding Exclusive Contract for Media Replacement for Water Treatment Plant Filter #2. Mr. McDowell explained that filter #2 still needed the sand media replaced and that exhaustive research had resulted in only one vendor for the needed sand. In order to award such a large contract to a sole source provider Mr. McDowell said that he wanted to do so by Resolution to make it public record and to explain the reasons. The Council discussed the requirements for the sand filter media. Councilor Hoffman moved that Resolution 590 be approved, awarding the contract to Knife River. The motion was seconded by Councilor Cole and was approved unanimously.

ACTION ITEMS:

  1. Warren Williamson – Willamette Country Music Festival. Councilor Cole said that she had seen flyers for the proposed festival which said that it would be held outside of Brownsville. Mr. Williamson said that had had to make alternative plans in case arrangements with the City did not work out, but he hoped to hold the event in Pioneer Park. Councilor Cole asked what the attendance would be. Mr. Williamson said that he couldn’t say, perhaps 4,000 to 5,000 total. Mr. Williamson said that he had formed a corporation to run the event. Councilor Shepherd said he thought the festival would provide a boost for the City. Councilor Brenner asked what was the difference between the music festival and the Festival of Tents. Mr. McDowell explained that Festival of Tents is a nonprofit group who gather in the park annually and who don’t charge admission, whereas the music festival is a private profit-making enterprise that wants exclusive use of a portion of the park for a business venture. Councilor Hoffman asked where all the people would stay. Mr. Williamson said that he is making arrangements with a local farmer to have camping space available and suggested that hotel rooms all over the southern Willamette Valley would probably be used. Mr. Williamson was asked about traffic issues related to trying to have the festival on the July 4th weekend. Mr. Williamson said that the festival would use the east side of the park but that the rest of the park would still be available for the public to view the fireworks. Mr. Williamson was asked about having a beer garden. Mr. Williamson said that he would like to have one as they generate substantial revenue, but that he would leave it up to the Council as to whether they wanted to permit one. Questions were asked about the hours of the festival. Mr. Williamson said that Friday and Saturday nights would be the latest shows and that it would end early on Sunday, probably around 7 p.m. There was discussion about camping. Mr. Williamson said that he is trying to arrange a private campground but that some of the campers would probably utilize Pioneer Park. Mr. Sattler asked what figure was being considered as rent for the use of the park. Mr. Williamson said that he was thinking of five to ten percent of the net. Mr. Ian Thomlinson discussed the layout of the park and how arrangements could be made for the fireworks. Mr. Williamson said that he would pay for the fireworks as they would be an attraction for the festival. Councilor Pinnock moved that the Council give tentative approval to the idea of holding the festival in Pioneer Park on the weekend of July 4, 2008, and directing staff to begin work on preparing an agreement to work out the details. Councilor Shepherd seconded the motion. Councilor Cole said that she couldn’t support the motion as she thought the event was too big for the park and she thought the event should be held out of town. The motion was approved for to two, with Councilors Pinnock, Brenner, Hoffman and Shepherd voting yes and Mayor Ware and Councilor Cole voting no.

  2. Marsha Morrill – Signage Request. Mr. McDowell told the Council that he had spoken with a number of different people about the request to put up signs regarding compression brakes and that what he was told was that the signs would not likely have any effect and that the Sheriff’s Department does not have the staff to provide significant enforcement. The Council decided by consensus to take no further action.

DISCUSSION ITEMS:

  1. Special Meeting for Economic & Community Development. Mr. McDowell suggested Monday, October 1, as a possible date for a special meeting devoted to this topic. The Council discussed the matter and agreed on that date.

  2. Aesthetics and Subdivision Development. Tabled at the request of Councilor Cole.

  3. Council Comments. Mayor Ware asked Mr. McDowell if he could provide some simple financial reports for the Council at each meeting so the Council could get a better idea of the City’s financial status. Mr. McDowell said he would do so.

HANDOUTS:

  1. Westech Monthly Report.

2. August Financials.

EXECUTIVE SESSION: The Council adjourned to an executive session pursuant to ORS 192.660.

ADJOURNMENT: The Council returned from Executive Session and the meeting was adjourned at 9:00 p.m. with no further action being taken.

 

 

 

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City Administrator S. Scott McDowell Mayor Don Ware