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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01/28/2020 MINB-E:AU:M�ONT M I N U T E S- CITY OF BEAUMONT W.L. Pate, Jr., Mayor Pro Tem BECKY AMES, MAYOR Randy Feldschau, At -Large Taylor S. Neild, Ward I CITY COUNCIL MEETING Michael D. Getz, Ward II Audwin Samuel, Ward III JANUARY 28, 2020 Robin Mouton, Ward IV Tyrone E. Cooper, City Attorney Kyle Hayes, City Manager Tina Broussard, City Clerk The City Council of the City of Beaumont, Texas, met in a regular session in strict compliance with the Texas Open Meetings Act, Texas Government Code, Chapter 551 on January 28, 2020, at the City Hall Council Chambers, 801 Main Street, Beaumont, Texas, at 1:30 p.m. to consider the following: OPENING Invocation Pledge of Allegiance Roll Call Presentation and Recognition Public Comment: Persons may speak on the Consent Agenda Consent Agenda Mayor Ames called the council meeting to order at 1:30 p.m. Pastor Ruby Nelson with First United Methodist Church gave the invocation. Mayor Ames led the Pledge of Allegiance. Roll call was made by Tina Broussard, City Clerk. Present at the meeting were Mayor Ames, Mayor Pro Tem Pate, Councilmembers Neild, Getz, Samuel and Mouton. Absent: Councilmember Feldschau. Also present were Kyle Hayes, City Manager; Tyrone Cooper, City Attorney; Tina Broussard, City Clerk. Proclamations, Presentation, Recognitions "Salute to Southeast Texas Workforce Week" - February 1-7, 2020 - Proclamation read by Co,uncilmember Mouton; accepted by Bill Allen, President/CEO Greater Beaumont Chamber of Commerce "2020 Census" — Proclamation read by Mayor Ames; accepted by Bridget Johnson with the Partnership Specialist for Southeast Texas United States Census Bureau and others Public Comment: Persons may speak on the Consent Agenda None CONSENT AGENDA Approval of minutes — January 14, 2020 * Confirmation of committee appointments — Resolution 20- 014 Minutes — January 28, 2020 Clarke Baker would be appointed as Chairman of the Parks and Recreation Advisory.. Committee. The term would commence January 28, 2020 and expire September 30, 2021. (Mayor Becky Ames) Vivian Todd would be appointed as Vice Chairman of the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee. The term would commence January 28, 2020 and expire September 30, 2021. (Mayor Becky Ames) Marc McDonald would be appointed as Chairman of the Convention and Tourism Advisory Board. The term would commence January 28, 202.0 and expire September 30, 2021. (Mayor Becky Ames) - Bill Bianchi would be appointed as Vice Chairman of the Convention and Tourism Advisory Board. The term would commence January 28, 2020 and expire September 30, 2021. (Mayor Becky Ames) Brenda Spivey would be appointed to the Community Development Advisory Committee. The term would commence January 28, 2020 and expire September 30, 2021. (Councilmember Robin Mouton) John Johnson would be appointed to the Community Development Advisory Committee. The term would commence January 28, 2020 and expire September 30, 2021. (Councilmember W.L. Pate) Jeff Beaver would be reappointed to the Board of Adjustment (Zoning). The current term would expire January 11, 2022. (Mayor Becky Ames) Greg Wall -Architect would be reappointed to the Building Board of Appeals. The current term would expire January 24, 2022. (Mayor Becky Ames) Lee Acevedo -Electrician would be reappointed to the Building Board of Appeals. The current term would expire January 24, 2022. (Mayor Becky Ames) Tom Neild -Alternate General Contractor would be reappointed to the Building Board of Appeals. The current term would expire January 24, 2022. (Mayor Becky Ames) —Removed at the request of Councilmember Taylor Neild A) Authorize the City Manager or his designee to execute an agreement with the DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency) — Resolution 20-015 B) Authorize the City Manager to apply for and receive funding through U. S. Department of Homeland Security, 2020 Emergency Management Performance Grant (EMPG) program — Resolution 20-016 C) Approve a resolution to reject a bid -for the purchase of ready -mix concrete and heavy materials — Resolution 20-017 D) Authorize the City Manager to execute an agreement with Fiberlight LLC for the placement of fiber optic cable in public right-of-way — Resolution 20-018 Minutes — January 28, 2020 Councilmember Mouton moved to approve the Consent Agenda. Councilmember Getz seconded the motion. AYES: MAYOR AMES, MAYOR PRO TEM PATE, COUNCILMEMBERS NIELD, GETZ, SAMUEL AND MOUTON NAYS: NONE MOTION PASSED WORK SESSIONS Receive an informational report related to the 2020 Census Chris Boone, Community Development Director gave a report related to the 2020 Census. Mr. Boone commented on why the census is so important, stated that there's congressional and other representation that comes with the census along with planning and grant allocations for education, transportation, transit, CDBG/HOME, .other federal and state programs.. There's emergency preparedness, resiliency planning, recovery and local planning. The census is the most reliable data for research, decision making and planning for both the public and private sectors. There was discussion as to what's new for 2020, there will be internet and phone responses. The first day to. start the census will be April 1, 2020, letters will go out for self -responses in March of 2020, there will be three mail requests for phone or internet responses and four attempts will be a mailout of the questionnaire. The NRFU will begin in early May of 2020, the apportionment count will be in December of 2020 and a detailed count in April of 2021, with a continued refinement of data through 2023. The City's call for action will be to participate with partners from the Census Bureau and the count committee to encourage participation and dispel misinformation. There will be a media push to encourage participation which will include social media, posters at city facilities, buses and water bill messaging. Neighborhood Associations will be encouraged to talk to their members and neighbors to participate. Review and discuss possible amendments to the Charter of the City of Beaumont Kyle Hayes, City Manager and Tyrone Cooper, City Attorney reviewed and discussed possible amendments to the Charter of the City of Beaumont. The City Manager and City Attorney discussed the first five chapters of the Charter with a total of six proposed changes. The suggested changes are as follows: New wording in the annexation section, the City Attorney stated that the new wording was to make the provisions more general as state law as this issue .has changed many times. New wording (The City shall have the power, by ordinance, to fix and change the bounds and limits of the city and to provide for the extension of the said bounds and limits and the annexation of additional territory, lying adjacent to the city with or without the consent of the territory and the inhabitants thereof annexed; provided, however, that such an ordinance, or any amendment Minutes - January 28, 2020 thereto, shall be published onetime, prior to passage, in some daily newspaper published in the city and such ordinance shall not be passed until at least thirty days have elapsed after publication. The city shall have the power to annex additional territory, lying adjacent to the city, and the inhabitants thereof, as may be authorized by, and in the manner and form prescribed by any general law of Texas.) Article III; Section 3 — Qualifications: Original wording (and shall not be in arrears in the payment of any liability due the City). It was recommended that the wording be removed. Article III; Section 12 - Auditors: original wording (A summary of report shall be published in a local newspaper within thirty (30) days after.receipt of same). It was recommended to read as follows: (A summary of said report shall be posted on the City's .website). The summary report is the Independent Audit of Accounts. Article IV; Section 2 — Election Officers and Canvassing Returns: Original wording (The election judges and other necessary election officials for conducting all such elections shall be appointed by the Council, and they shall be qualified voters of the election precinct in which they are to serve)` It was recommended to read as follows: (The election judges and other necessary election officials for conducting all elections shall be appointed by the Council, and they shall be qualified voters of the City of Beaumont). In the same/section, original wording (within five (5) days after an election, the Council shall meet and canvass the returns and officially declare the results of the election). It was recommended to read as follows: (after an election, the Council shall meet and canvass the returns and officially declare the results of the election within the time period prescribed by the Election Code of the State of Texas). Article VI; Section 2 — Preparation and Submission of Budget: original wording (Total proposed expenditures shall not exceed total anticipated revenues in the City Manager's proposed budget). It was recommended to read as follows: (Total proposed expenditures shall not exceed total anticipated, revenues and available reserves in the City Manager's proposed budget). Article VI; Section 10 — Effective Date of Budget; Certification; Copies Made Available: original wording (A copy of the budget, as finally adopted, shall be filed with the City Clerk, the County Clerk of Jefferson County, and the State Comptroller of Public Accounts in Austin Texas). It was recommended to read as follows: (A copy of the budget, as finally adopted, shall be filed with the City Clerk and shall be posted on the City's website). Minutes - January 28, 2020 Review and discuss applying for federal grant funds to be used towards the purchase of buses for the Beaumont Municipal Transit System Chris Boone, Community Development Director reviewed and discussed applying for federal grant funds to be used towards the purchase of buses for the Beaumont Municipal Transit System. Mr. Boone stated that the Beaumont Municipal Transit is a publicly funded transit agency with twelve (12) fixed route buses for ten (10) routes. There are six (6) para -transit buses for door-to-door service along with thirty nine (39) drivers; nine (9) mechanics; one (1) general manager, one (1) assistant general manager, one (1) dispatcher, one (1) maintenance foreman and two (2) administrative assistants. The hours of operations are weekdays 6:00 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., and Saturdays 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Fare cost is as follows: Single Monthly Regular $1.50 $40.00 Elderly/DisabledNouth $0.75 $30.00 Para — (STS) $2.50 $80.00 Transfer $0.25 The current fleet fixed route service has twelve (12) fixed route (large) buses on the road at any one time for the ten (10) routes. Currently there are seventeen (17) .large buses (five are reserves). Grant funded buses must last a minimum of twelve (12) years and a minimum of 500,000 miles. Seven (7) of the seventeen (17) large buses have reached this minimum age/mileage and seven (7) are close to the minimum but _ are expected to be useable for three to five more years. There are three (3) large buses that are relatively new, however,. in order to ensure the fleet remains acceptable, staff would like to apply for this year's TxDOT fleet replacement grant to purchase three (3) large buses, each CNG -fueled bus is estimated to cost $525,000. Prior grants have covered 80%-100% of costs, under the new grant rules, only 50% of the costs are covered. There isn't knowledge as to if any funds will be received, but the award will be made in mid-May of 2020 in time for budget planning. Procurement and delivery of buses takes at least one year. Current fleet STS Service has six (6) STS (small) buses on the road at any one time, currently there's ten (10) small buses, four (4) are reserve. These buses must last a minimum of five (5) years and a minimum of 150,000 miles. Eight (8) of the small buses have reached the minimum age/mileage and are in need of replacement. The two (2) new small buses were purchased with grant funding last year, in order to ensure the fleet remains acceptable, staff would like to apply for this year's TxDOT fleet replacement grant to purchase four (4) small buses. Each CNG -fueled bus is estimated to cost $120,000. Prior grants covered 80%-100% of the costs, under the new grant rules, only 50% of the cost will be covered. There isn't knowledge as to if any funds will be received, but the award will be made in mid-May of 2020 in time for budget planning. Procurement and delivery of buses takes at least one year. The fleet grant request at this time although, the grant amount is unknown, if a full award is made, the cost would be at follows: Minutes — January 28, 2020 Three (3) large buses $1,575,000 TXDOT/FTA $ 787,500 City $ 787,500 Four (4) small buses $ 480,000 TXDOT/FTA $ 240,000 City $ 240,000 Total City Match $1,027,500 Current spare fleet has an FTA Rule C 9030.1 C that restricts larger systems to only allowing a spare ration of 20%. However, as there's less than 50 vehicles, there's no set limit on how many spares are kept, currently the spare ratio is approximately 40%. The final discussion was big vs. small buses, many see larger more expensive buses that are often not full and ask... "Why doesn't the City purchase smaller buses? While larger buses are triple the cost of smaller buses, they last more than four -to -five times longer. The operating cost for big and small buses is almost the same, smaller buses only hold ten (10) passengers; as such, during peak times, riders would be denied service. Larger buses are involved in accidents or need servicing, being able to interchange buses from one route to another prevents service disruption and big buses allow more citizens to be evacuated during disasters. COMMENTS Public Comments (Persons are limited to three minutes) Eric Bender 27701 H 10 E Beaumont TX Made comments regarding bicycle lanes, stated that he has looked at the proposed Dowlen Road extension and in his opinion it would be devastating to the ,Parkdale Mall area, thinks that there are a lot of areas in Beaumont that the funds could be used for such as, to rebuild streets, sewer lines, these are more important, stated that he recently rode his bicycle from work to the Parkdale Mall area, it's terrifying, if you're not a bicycle rider and you go into the mall area drivers don't know how to behave, there's no accommodation that he could see for active transportation which is people who walk and people who ride bicycles, also wanted to tie the discussion in with the buses, the larger buses have side doors that can,accommodate bicycles, there can also be bicycle racks on the buses, the bus is a tool maybe that can be used to increase active transportation in the city where people can bring their bicycles to their destination and then ride home etc., Marcia Cavett 6220 Phelan Beaumont TX Spoke to Council regarding their vote on next week for Little Woodrow's, has submitted to the Clerk an extension request, stated that Basic Foods has lost three key employees, within four months, there has been a loss of $100,000, hasn't been able to raise any employees benefits, asked several questions, in the amendment will the cleaning of the broken glass in the parking lot be added and if so, what will be the enforcement, would like the signage to say that Basic Foods close at 8:00 p.m., Basic Foods has received a letter from the City regarding liter, the letter stated that if they didn't comply they would be fined, would like to Minutes — January 28, 2020 know why hasn't Little Woodrow's been cited as well for all that they are doing, asked if the City has made any plans as to how people will get out of the parking lot Councilmembers/City Manager/City Attorney comments on various matters COUNCILMEMBER COMMENTS COUNCILMEMBER NEILD - NONE COUNCILMEMBER GETZ - SPOKE REGARDING THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE AUSCHWITZ LIBERATION THAT WAS CELEBRATED ON JANUARY 27, 2020, STATED THAT THERE IS A RISE OF ANTISEMITISM IN THIS COUNTRY AND AROUND THE WORLD, EVERYONE NEEDS TO REMEMBER WHAT HAPPENED BACK THEN, THERE ARE PEOPLE THAT LIVED THROUGH AUSCHWITZ WHO ARE STILL ALIVE TODAY COUNCILMEMBER FELDSCHAU - ABSENT MAYOR PRO TEM PATE - COMMENTED ON THE GOOD AND THE BAD PEOPLE THAT LIVE IN THIS WORLD, WE HAVE TO REMEMBER TO PRAY FOR ONE ANOTHER AND TO NEVER FORGET THE HOLOCAUST, ASKED THAT EVERYONE PRAY FOR COUNCIL, THEY ARE TRYING TO-DO THE BEST THAT THEY CAN, THANKED PASTOR RUBY NELSON FOR GIVING THEM A WORD OF ENCOURAGEMENT COUNCILMEMBER SAMUEL - NONE COUNCILMEMBER MOUTON - NONE CITY ATTORNEY COOPER - NONE CITY MANAGER HAYES - CONGRATULATED THE.. MAYOR ON RECEIVING THE 2020 PUBLIC LEADERSHIP IN THE ARTS AWARD FOR A CITY WITH A 100,000 IN POPULATION OR MORE, THE AWARD WAS RECEIVED AT THE UNITED STATES CONFERENCE OF MAYORS IN WASHINGTON D.C., ON JANUARY 24, 2020 MAYOR AMES - THANKED EVERYONE IN THE CITY FOR ALL OF THEIR HARD WORK THAT ALLOWED HER TO RECEIVE THE 2020 PUBLIC LEADERSHIP IN THE ARTS AWARD, THANKED THE CITY MANAGER FOR BRINGING THE AWARD TO EVERYONE'S ATTENTION there being no' Executive Session, Council adjourned at 3:19 p.m. Tina Broussard-,Tity. Clerk Minutes — January 28, 2020