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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2/6/2018 - RegularMINUTES OF A REGULAR MEETING OF VINTON TOWN COUNCIL HELD AT 7:00 P.M. ON TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 6, 2018, IN THE COUNCIL CHAMBERS OF THE VINTON MUNICIPAL BUILDING LOCATED AT 311 SOUTH POLLARD STREET, VINTON, VIRGINIA MEMBERS PRESENT: Bradley E. Grose, Mayor Matthew S. Hare, Vice Mayor Keith N. Liles Sabrina McCarty Janet Scheid STAFF PRESENT: Barry W. Thompson, Town Manager Susan N. Johnson, Executive Assistant/Town Clerk Susan Waddell, Town Attorney Pete Peters, Assistant Town Manager, Director of Economic Development Anne Cantrell, Treasurer/Finance Director Tom Foster, Police Chief Joey Hiner, Public Works Director William Herndon, Assistant Public Works Director Donna Collins, Human Resources Director Chasity Barbour, War Memorial Facilities Manager The Mayor called the regular meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. The Town Clerk called the roll with Council Member Liles, Council Member McCarty, Council Member Scheid and Mayor Grose present. Vice Mayor Hare was absent for the roll call. Roll call Vice Mayor Hare arrived at the meeting at 7:02 p.m. I After a Moment of Silence, the Town Manager le-' I the Pledge of Allegiance to the U.S. Flag. Under upcoming community events, Council Member McCarty announced the following: March 27 10:00 am to 2:00 pm —Senior Expo -Vinton Wa Memorial; February 14 — 11:30 am —Vinton Love Work Sculpture Unveiling —Vinton War Memorial; Februa 19 — 10:00 am to 2:00 pm —Work Day -Vinton Histo Museum and a Yard Sale scheduled for May 12 Debbie Adams announced this is the last weekend fo the Gin Game at the Star City Playhouse. I Council Member Scheid asked for a clarification of the last sentence of the second paragraph on Page 6 of the minutes concerning the price of the trashcans. After discussion, the Town Attorney suggested that the language "total for 3,300 cans" be placed in brackets for clarification. Council Member Scheid made a motion to approve the Consent Agenda as amended; the motion was seconded by Council Member Liles and carried by the following vote, with all members voting: Vote 5-0; Yeas (5) — Lifes, McCarty, Schei Hare, Grose; Nays (0) — None. I The next item on the agenda was a briefing on the proposed amendment to the Retiree Group Health Insurance Benefit Policy. Donna Collins commented on the proposed Resolution provides that an employee retiring from Town service in good standing with 20 years of service to the Town and meets the Virginia Retirement System (VRS) requirements would be eligible for $200 per month to be paid towards the employee's Town group health insurance premium until they are eligible for Medicaid and/or Medicare. The previous Resolution required the employee to have at least 25 years of Town service and be at least age 55. The requirements under VRS for Public Safety personnel are at least age 50 with at least 25 years of service credit in a hazardous duty position. The recommended change in the Policy would make the eligibility balanced among all employees. There is currently only one employee who would be eligible under the new Policy. The next item on the agenda was to conside adoption of a Resolution allowing the Tow Treasurer/Finance Director to remove outstandin• Personal Property delinquent taxes and Vehicle Licens Fees over five years old from the active records to permanent file. Anne Cantrell commented that th amount to write for Personal Property is $5,217.79 an for Vehicle License Fees is $11,826.04. The collectio rate for 2012 was 98% for the Personal Property an 93% for the Vehicle License Fees. Ms. Cantrell confirmed that these taxes have bee reported to the State Debt Set -Off Program and they ar also in the process of using the DMV Stop Program t place stops so individuals will not be able to renew the i i driver's licenses or vehicle I tags until they paid their bill, The Town Manager commented that Roanoke Count uses the DMV Stop Program and the Town ha benefited from the Program because some individual have paid the Town taxes as well as the County taxes. ' Approved minutes of the Regular Council meeting of January 16, 2018, as amended 0 There was a problem with the Town moving forward in the past because of the MUNIS System, but that has been corrected. Vice Mayor Hare made a motion to adopt the Resolution as presented; the motion was seconded by Council Member Scheid and carried by the following roll call vote, with all members voting: Vote Liles, McCarty, Scheid, Hare, Grose; Nays (0) — None. The next item on the agenda was to conside adoption of a Resolution allowing the Tow Treasurer/Finance Director to remove outstanding Wate and Sewer delinquent bills over five years old from th active records to a permanent file. Anne Cantrel commented that the amount to write for Water an Sewer is $10,016.96 and these accounts have als been sent to the Debt Set -Off Program. In the futur these would also be eligible for the DMV Stop Program The collection rate was 99.70%. Council Member Scheid made a motion to adopt t Resolution as presented; the motion was seconded Council Member McCarty and carried by the followi• roll call vote, with all members voting: Vote 5-0; Ye- (5) — Liles, McCarty, Scheid, Hare, Grose; Nays (0) None. I The next item on the agenda was to conside adoption of a Resolution establishing a ne Intradepartmental and Interdepartmental Transfer Policy Anne Cantrell commented that Council was briefed o this Policy at their January 16'h Council meeting. Th Finance Committee is recommending that Council adop the Resolution approving the new Policy. Ms. Cantrel y next read the Policy. After additional comments, Vic 'I Mayor Hare made a motion to adopt the Resolution a 1 presented; the motion was seconded by Counci Member Liles and carried by the following roll call vote, with all members voting: Vote 5-0; Yeas (5) — Liles, McCarty, Scheid, Hare, Grose, Adopted Resolution No. 2230 allowing the Town Treasurer/ Finance Director to remove outstanding Personal Property delinquent taxes and Vehicle License Fees over five years old from the active records to a permanent file Adopted Resolution No. 22 allowing the Town Treasur Finance Director to remo outstanding Water and Sew delinquent bills over five years o from the active records to permanent file Adopted Resolution No. 2232 establishing a new Intra- departmental and Interdepartmental Transfer Policy The next to on the agenda was to consider adoption of a Resolution appropriating funds in the amount of $1,126.00 received for scrap metal to the Public Works budget. Joey Hiner commented the request is to appropriate the funds into the Public Works account for Building Maintenance and Repairs. The total amount was made up of four checks received from D. H. Griffin. Council Member McCarty made a motion I to adopt the Resolution as presented; the motion was seconded by Council Member Scheid and carried by Adopted Resolution No. 2233 the following roll call vote, with all members voting: appropriating funds in the amount of KI Vote 5-0; Yeas (5) -tiles, McCarty, Scheid, Hare, $1,126.00 received for scrap metal Grose; Nays (0) - None. to the Public Works budget The next item on the agenda was to consider adoption of a Resolution establishing a Policy on Attendance and Conflict of Interests Statements for Members of Boards/Commissions/Committees. The Town Manager commented that Council discussed during a recent briefing regarding the current Highway Safety Commission that an attendance policy be established for members to Boards/Commissions/ Committees. Staff has also recommended that a policy be established with regard to the requirement for members of certain Boards/ Commissions/Committees to complete Conflict of Interests Statements by a specific deadline each year, The Town Manager read the Policy, Council Member Liles made a motion to adopt the Resolution as presented; the motion was seconded by Vice Mayor Hare and carried by the following roll call vote, with all members voting: Vote Liles, McCarty, Scheid, Hare, Grose; Nays (0) - None. The Town Manager commented that needed to update Council on three items. The first item relates to a roof leak at the Health Department building. He then asked Donna Collins, the Risk Manager, to give an update. Ms. Collins commented that on January 29th, there was a hole in the roof that caused water' damage. One wall and carpet had to be replaced in one of the office areas, The tile under the carpet had to be tested for asbestos, which was negative. The claim was filed with VML and an adjuster met with Facility Manager Bo Herndon at the site last Thursday to inspect the damage. The roof has been repaired and the inside repairs should be completed by the end of the week. The total cost incurred will be approximately $7,500 with the Town's responsibility being the $2,500 deductible. In response to a question, Mr. Herndon commented the roof was put on in 2001-2002 and some repairs were done in 2005, From his understanding the roof is a 30-year roof. After further discussion, Mr. Herndon commented that he could get an inspection done to give us a better estimate of the life of the roof. With regard to interruption this has caused The Advancement Foundation, Mr. Herndon commented he was able to switch a finance class that meets on Thursdays to the War Memorial until the repairs are completed. There was no interruption to the day-to-day operations. Adopted Resolution No. 2234 establishing a Policy on Attendance and Conflict of Interests Statements for Members of Boards/ Commissions/Committees M The Town Manager commented that the next ite relates to the re-evaluation of the functionality of th positions in the Planning and Police Department. H asked Ms. Collins to give this update. Ms. Collin first commented that when the vacancy occurred i Planning & Zoning with the Planner/Code Enforcemen Officer resigning effective December 31st, staff re evaluated the job functions in effort to improv services that we provide to the citizens, Working with Planning & Zoning and the Police Department, it was determined that re -assignment of job duties was possible and would be an advantage to the Town. No new positions were created, but code enforcement and animal control officer duties would be combined as a Community Resource Officer. A Principal Planne position was developed and recruitment started to ,�rovide succession planning in the Planning & Zoning Department and assistance to the Director with the upcoming UDA Grants. Next, Planning & Zoning and the Police Departmen met with Finance and the Town Manager to make sur we were all in agreement before we moved forward i this direction. Miranda Brown was hired for thi position. She was the highest candidate on the las round of police officer candidates and is scheduled t go through the Academy starting the end of June. Sh is temporarily located in the Planning & Zoning Department to assist with office coverage and fo training and feedback on the code enforcemen aspects of her position from Anita McMillan. Council Member Scheid commented she understoo this position was not going to be a sworn officer. Ms Collins responded she understood from th conversation that if it was decided to make it a swor position that was fine. The Town Manager commente that it is not going to be a sworn position, but a civi position. Chief Foster made comments and indicated that if it i the decision of the Finance Committee and Counci that it not be a sworn position, that is the direction the will go. At some point down the road if we would Ilk to have the position sworn, we certainly would alway have the opportunity to do that, but the fa enforcement certification is not a necessa certification to proceed from this point. We can d• both of these job functions in a non -sworn capacity as is done in many other localities, Vice Mayor Har commented that one of the benefits of it being a sworn position is flexibility to be able to fill in for vacation or i someone is out sic�. 0 Council Member Scheid next commented that she does not have a strong feeling one way or the other, but it was stated in the meeting and Mr. Thompson stated it was his desire that it be a civil position, The Mayor commented if this Code Enforcement Officer is going to wear a uniform and have a gun, they should be a fully -trained police officer. Chief Foster commented if the position is not going to be sworn, they want to come up with a uniform that looks very different from a police officer so it is clear to the citizen that is being approached at their home for code enforcement or engaging in animal control functions that it is a civilian employee. Council Member Liles commented that if this individual was sworn, they would have other opportunities within the department and could fill in when needed, He did not know what the monetary ramifications of the training would be. Chief Foster commented that because of our membership in the Regional Academy, there is no fee to send someone through the Academy. However, there is the cost for the salary, etc. Council Member McCarty made comments in support of staff making the decision on the position. The Town Manager next commented that we received A�el . rirn of the next round of the 2017 CDBG Planning Grant. Pete Peters commented that the Town received $3,000 for pre -planning grant activity. The Downtown Management Team met twice and Hill Studio conducted a windshield survey of the housing conditions within the three adjacent neighborhoods to downtown, The application was submitted on January 12 th and we were fortunate to receive an additional $15,000.. The next component will consist of another meeting and more details about the specific areas that we would like to concentrate on. From that point we will be submitting a work plan and budget for yet another grant through DHCD with potential to actually get implementation and construction funds. In response to a question, Mr. Peters commented that there is no definitive timeline for this next phase. Under reports from Committees, Vice Mayor Hare reported that the Finance Committee is working with the Police Department with regard to their police salaries. These were under -budgeted and the Town Manager is working on making some adjustments to fill the gap. He also commented on revenues being flat year -over -year which will make for a challenge in preparing next year's budget, N Council Member McCarty reported from the Public Works Committee meeting from February purpose of the meeting was to discuss curbside refuse collection and switching from manual collection to semi -automated collection. With regard to the semi- automatic refuse truck, the chassis, cab, driveline unit, compactor body and tipper mechanisms have been selected. The purchase order is expected to be issued this week and delivery of the completed truck is to be approximately four months. Staff is working with Roanoke City to secure a loaner refuse truck on an as - needed basis, depending upon availability and a draft agreement is being reviewed by our Town Attorney, Staff has been in contact with a vendor that can provide 96 gallon containers to include a 12- year warranty, assembly of containers, RFID tagging, and delivery to citizens at a cost of $51.42 per can for a total approximate cost of $170,000 for 3,300 service points. With regard to the Ordinance, staff has researched ordinances of other localities and is in the process of scheduling a visit to view and discuss one of those operations. Points to be considered in the Ordinance will be the number of cans per stop, collection from businesses, multi -unit buildings, apartments, churches and the downtown area, the placement of containers for collection and when not in use and the enforcement. The Committee has tentatively scheduled a meetin, rl p with the refuse crew on February 13th to get thei in �6 on implementing the new collection process and item that need to be included in the Or4itance. There was further discussion regarding the availability of different size cans and a timeframe for the delivery *f the cans. Comments from Council: Vice M commented on the success of the Retreailaondr allskaer about the final appeal to the skate park. The Tow Manager responded that we have not heard anythin from FEMA since our last appeal, but would check t see where we stand with that. Council Member Schei commented on the legislature being pushed by th telecmmunicatins inustry thrh the Genera Assembly relating to cell towers and new technology fol oodoug 0 cell communications. The legislation proposed would not require any public or local government input as long as they have the property owner's permission to put up the antenna, Council Member McCarty commented on presentation by our Town Attorney. Chief Foster recognized Roy Lyon who was present at the meeting for his service on a panel for reviewing 2,pplications for the Police Department. He also txpressed thanks to him for the catered meal provided for the department on Law Enforcement Appreciation D. Council Member Scheid expressed thanks to Vice Mayor Hare for his service on the Greenway Commission. She then made brief comments and nominated Rob Lyon to the Roanoke Valley Greenway Commission to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Vice Mayor Hare to the unexpired term ending June 30, 2019. The motion was seconded by Vice Mayor Hare and carried by the following vote, with 211 members voting: Vote 5-0; Yeas (5) — Liles, McCarty, Scheid, Hare, Grose; Nays (0) — None. Mr. Lyon made brief comments. Council Member Liles made a motion to adjourn the meeting; the motion was seconded by Council Member McCarty carried by the following vote, with all members voting: Vote 5-0; Yeas (5) — Liles, McCarty, Scheid, Hare, Grose; Nays (0) — None. The meeting was 2djourned at 8:26 p.m. ATTEST: '11V Susan N. Johnson, MC, Town Clerk IWI Appointed Rob Lyon to the Roano Valley Greenway Commission to the vacancy created by t resignation of Vice Mayor Hare to t unexr)ired term endina hjne 30. 2011 wswff* a* Bradley E. Grose, Mayor M