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02-06-2012 February 6, 2012 " Mayor and Council Meeting MO February 6, 2012 All council members were present. Also present were City Administrator Eric Taylor, Assistant City Administrator Tammi Saddler, City Attorney Scott Cochran, City Clerk Susan Hiott, Management Fellow Kevin Klosterboer and representatives of the press. The regular scheduled meeting of Mayor and Council was held at Smyrna City Hall. The meeting was called to order by presiding officer Mayor Max Bacon at 7:31 o'clock p.m. Mayor Bacon called on Dr. Steven Kimmel of Smyrna Baptist Church, who conducted the invocation and led all present in the pledge to the flag. AGENDA CHANGES: Mayor Bacon stated that two items were being added to the consent agenda and called upon Mr. Taylor, who read aloud new agenda items (G) and (H). He shared that these involved drainage easement on property located at lot 18 of the Birch subdivision and the approval of an agreement with John S. Lewis for the display of Civil War relics. 11"1" MOTION: Councilman Lnenicka moved to add the items to the agenda. Motion was seconded by Councilwoman Pritchett and approved 7-0. MAYOR'S REPORT: The Mayor acknowledged Joey Hatchell from Faith United Methodist Church who made known a prayer event to be held on February 24th at 5:30 at the Emory Adventist hospital. Mr. Hatchell extended an invitation to the Mayor, Council and community members on behalf of the Church's new pastor Casey Leno. (A) Proclamation in Recognition of Arbor Day Mayor Bacon called on Councilman Welch, who read aloud the proclamation and presented it to Assistant City Administrator Tammi Saddler and representatives of Keep Smyrna Beautiful. The Proclamation was accepted on behalf of Ann Kirk who was unavailable due to illness. It was made known that February 17th was designated as Arbor Day. (B) Proclamation in Recognition of Black History Month Mayor Bacon called on Councilwoman Blustein to read aloud the proclamation, following which she announced that on Feb 25th the Hand, Feet and Mouth Society would host a special black history month program. Sue stated that it was open to the public and encouraged all to attend, making known that it would AWN be held at 7 pm at Campbell Middle School. She presented the proclamation and Mayor Bacon addressed the recipients, who extended an invitation to all present to attend the program February 6,20U 2 4. LAND ISSUES/ZONINGS/ANNEXATIONS: Mayor Bacon stated that there were none. 5. PRIVILEGE LICENSES: (A) Public Hearing-new ownership and agent-retail package sales of beer and wine-Racetrac Petroleum Inc dba Racetrzc #579-Rachel Lynn Pearson-4290 East-West Connector (WL) Mayor Bacon confirmed the presence of the applicant and called on Eric Taylor to deliver the background. Mr. Taylor shared that new owner had been given a copy of the city's ordinance and attended the mandatory alcohol awareness training. He made known that a background check had been conducted by the police department and that nothing to preclude the issuance of the license had been found. Mayor Bacon announced that this was a public hearing and called for comment. There was none. Councilman Lnenicka inquired about the planned opening of the store and Ms. Pearson responded that enhancements were still being made that could impact the projected March 17th date. The Councilman asked if she would be supervising that location and she noted that it would be among the dozen stores under her responsibility. She confirmed that she conducted regular inspections to ensure compliance of all shifts. Ms. Pearson cited several locations under her purview and that she had never lost a license. She explained that there was an intensive two day training program and that compensation was tied to performance on quarterly assessments. Ms. Pearson elaborated that the top employees from existing RaceTrac locations were transferred to new stores. Councilman Lnenicka stated that Smyrna performed routine compliance checks and Councilwoman Pritchett stressed that clerks found violating city ordinances were arrested. Councilmember Lnenicka expressed Council's excitement with the new development, wishing RaceTrac success and remarking on his appreciation to have RaceTrac as a corporate citizen within city limits. MOTION: Councilman Lnenicka moved to approve the new ownership and agent-retail package sales of beer and wine-Racetrac Petroleum Inc., dba Racetrac #579-Rachel Lynn Pearson-4290 East-West Connector Motion seconded by Councilman Fennel and approved 7-0. 6. FORMAL BUSINESS: (A) Appointment of Ward 1 Representative to Keep Smyrna Beautiful (MP) Councilwoman Pritchett introduced Ms. Rosalyn Ikedife, providing her background and acknowledging her ability to contribute to the Smyrna community. MOTION: Councilwoman Pritchett moved to appoint Rosalyn Ikedife as Ward 1 Representative to Keep Smyrna Beautiful for a term to expire on 12/31/2013. Motion was seconded by Councilwoman Blustein and approved 7-0. Councilwoman Pritchett announced that her first KSB meeting would take place the following evening. (B) Approval of name change from Pine Hills Apartments to Riviera Apartments, 1021 Church Street S.E. Smyrna 30080, Church Street Ventures, LLC (TA) .., Mayor Bacon called on Eric Taylor, who made known that a request for a name change from Riviera Apartments to Pine Hill Apartments had been approved by the City of Smyrna in 2008 but that the current signage still read Riviera apartments. The current owner had asked that the name revert back to the original February 6,2012 3 designation. Councilwoman Anulewicz expressed her support of the motion to have the name reflect what was displayed on the signage. MOTION: Councilwoman Anulewicz moved to approve the name change from Pine Hills Apartments to Riviera Apartments, 1021 Church Street S.E. Smyrna 30080, Church Street Ventures, LLC. Motion was seconded by Councilwoman Blustein and approved 7-0. 7. COMMERCIAL BUILDING PERMITS: Mayor Bacon stated that there were none. 8. CONSENT AGENDA: Mayor Bacon called on Mr. Taylor, who read aloud the consent agenda. (A) Approval of January 17, 2012 Mayor and Council Minutes (B) Approval to use Council Chambers on February 19, 2012 from 6:00-9:00 pm for Ward 6 - Creatwood at Vinings HOA meeting (C) Approve Atkins Park 2012 Crawfish Boil Celebration in the Market Village on Sat., April 28, 2012, Ipm - 10:45pm and April 29, 2012, from fpm - 8 p.m. (D) Approval of Atkins Park 2012 St. Patrick's Day Celebration in the Market Village on Sat., March 17, 2012 from 12 p.m. — 10:45 p.m. (E) Approval of Council Chambers Use Policy (F) Approval of RFQ 12-010 to lowest responsible and responsive bidder to Water Works for $18,438 for Tolleson Pool Grate repair using the surplus funds from other CIP projects (G) (Clerk's note) Agenda item added: Acceptance of a drainage easement agreement from William and Diane Kaplan to the City of Smyrna, Georgia for property on Birch near its intersection of Powder Springs St. Said property described as Lot 18, Birch subdivision, as shown on plat recorded in plat book 11, page 67 (H) (Clerk's note) Agenda item added: Approval of an agreement with John S. Lewis for the display of Civil War relics and authorization for Mayor to sign and execute related documents MOTION: Item was seconded and approved 6-1 with Councilman Lnenicka voting against. COMMITTEE REPORTS: Councilwoman Pritchett shared that the RaceTrac development had gone out to bid and anticipated groundbreaking within 45 days. She advised all present of Dr. Ron Newcomb's appointment as President of Chattahoochee Tech and stated that she did not have any committee reports. The Councilwoman thanked Shebra Thompson for her service as appointee for Keep Smyrna Beautiful. February 6,2012 4 Councilwoman Blustein announced that she had no formal report and expressed her desire to see the Campbell Rd. Bridge project completed expeditiously. Councilwoman Anulewicz congratulated former colleague Dr. Newcomb on his appointment. She pointed out that Jonquil Village was on the agenda for the February 25th meeting and encouraged those not already on her mailing list or facebook to join, providing the means to do so. Councilman Welch commented on the significance of the grand opening of Kroger and encouraged all to visit. Councilwoman Wilkinson thanked the public safety officers involved with the recent search for a missing child and stated that Mr. Taylor would provide additional details. Councilman Lnenicka noted that in the past several weeks he had attended positive meetings with several homeowners associations including Heritage at Vinings and Devonshire Court. He made known his planned presence at the upcoming meeting of Creatwood at Vinings and echoed congratulations to Dr. Newcomb. Councilman Lnenicka proudly remarked that this was the first time a former councilmember had been president of a school and that, to the best of his knowledge, was the first time a college president resided in the city of Smyrna. Councilman Fennel congratulated Dr. Newcomb and opined that he would serve the University system admirably. The Councilman thanked community groups and members of the Bennett Woods Garden Club with whom he had visited. He relayed details of his meeting with residents of the Weatherbrook subdivision and the items brought to the attention of staff, thanking all for their efforts at resolving those matters. The Councilman mentioned a report he delivered at the Vinings Homeowners Association meeting that included an update on the city's police and fire departments. He offered accolades for the outstanding response to a missing child situation by Smyrna's public safety personnel. Councilman Fennel discussed the federal grant awarded for the construction of fire station #5 and made known his enthusiasm for the groundbreaking. He shared that the anticipated completion date was scheduled for sometime around Labor Day. Mr. Taylor publicly recognized the efforts of Smyrna's public safety team during the events of a missing child alert. He praised Chief Hook and Chief Lanyon for their dedication in being on site all night and commended coordination of efforts with other agencies. Mr. Taylor relayed the positive comments offered by the representative from the Department of Missing and Exploited Children, who praised the City's efforts. SHOW CAUSE HEARINGS: Mayor Bacon stated that there were none. CITIZEN INPUT: Alex Backry of 3459 Shawnee Trail commented on contributions received by Councilman Fennel's campaign. Mr. Backry expressed his hope that the Councilman would recuse himself from discussions or abstain from voting on any issues involving those donors. Mr. Backry remarked on the Mayor's statement from a previous Council meeting that a town hall would be held within 60 days. He asked that a date be provided in order to raise community awareness and promote attendance of that event. Mr. Backry February 6,2012 5 proposed that the Council consider placing public comments back at the beginning of the agenda as a convenience to the citizenry. gem Lem Ward of 1496 Spring St. handed a packet to the City Clerk concerning procedural points of order as pertaining to zoning. Mr. Ward stated he was concerned about the revised site plan of Jonquil Plaza not being presented in public forum at a Planning and Zoning meeting prior to approval by Council. He urged Council to send the item to P&Z for an advertised public hearing, claiming it was a matter of public policy and afforded impacted citizens a venue in which to express their concerns. Keith Bentley of Williams St. expressed his excitement at seeing Jonquil Plaza developed but stated that he had apprehensions about the speed at which this issue was progressing. He wanted to go on record with what neighboring residents would like to see included, and excluded, from that site. Mr. Bentley cited streetscapes with pavers, an architectural style that complimented Market Village, restaurants with outdoor seating space, a water feature and small shops with rear parking lots and storefronts facing Atlanta Rd. Mr. Bentley made known that citizens were resistant to a strip mall with front loaded parking and apartments. He highlighted that the location of Jonquil Plaza made it a t gateway to the City and stressed the importance of developing an attractive, high quality project. Ron Davis, of 1651 Roswell St., also commented on Jonquil Plaza. He opined that it should be a destination retail center that improved the halo of surrounding neighborhoods and enhanced the existing downtown area. He praised the fact that citizens had long been offered the opportunity to work the City on similar matters and stated his support for the beneficial nature of such. Mr. Davis relayed the sentiment that the proposed plan was so unlike the original that it should be presented to a panel to include P&Z, staff, a landscaping and architectural advisory committee, the developer and citizens in order to gather input for the final design. Mr. Davis stated that similarly structured committees had been utilized successfully by the County. He urged Mayor and Council to disapprove the construction of apartments, citing the bylaws of his neighborhood association. He concluded that this site offered a one time opportunity to build out the city to the standards it deserved. Robin Phillips, residing at 2647 Gilbert St., stated her pleasure to hear of movement on the Jonquil Plaza project and made known her concerns about the proposed apartments. She cited that significant taxpayer funds were currently being used to purchase and demolish apartment complexes in Smyrna. Ms. Phillips informed all present that owner occupied properties kept their value longer and placed less strain on public safety departments. She elaborated that the transient nature of apartments had a negative impact on schools and did not add to the city's tax base. She made known that the citizenry wanted time to evaluate the plans and a forum in which to discuss a long term approach to that portion of the city. Joe Velkovich of 2711 Matthews St. requested that speed bumps be placed on that roadway. Mr. Velkovich presented packets to the City Clerk to be distributed to Council. He shared that the limit on Matthews St. was posted at 25 mph street and that there was no painted divider line. Mr. Davis shared that he had observed motorists travelling at speeds up to 55 mph, wildlife and other animals being killed and made known that he had nearly been struck while walking. He mentioned his correspondence with Keith Williams and the City Fire Marshall. Councilwoman Anulewicz announced that striping would be done following the road improvements currently underway on a street she concurred was a major connecting 04.0, road. She encouraged him to stay in contact with her regarding this issue. Mayor Bacon commented on Jonquil Plaza, clarifying that the only approved plan was the one presented several years ago. He stated that with limited financing options for buyers there was currently no market for condos. He emphasized that a decision was not being rushed and that the item had been tabled to allow February 6,2012 6 time for the new council members to review the changes and provide citizens an opportunity to offer input and comment publicly on the proposed development. He shared that the property had gone into foreclosure and that the City was working with the developers to establish a high quality project at a gateway location. .. Councilwoman Anulewicz confirmed that they were working toward that end with the owners and developers, thanking all for their insightful comments. ADJOURNMENT With no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 8:20 o'clock p.m. A. MAX BACON, MAYOR SU AN D. HIOTT, CITY CLERK ` =4> EN' --'RITCHETT, WARD 1 ANDREA BLUSTEIN, WARD 2 AU f \ ,c)J‘QVC) a, Li __cc...6 TERI ANULEWIC !WARD 3 CHARLES A.WELCH, WARD 4 411Pdt,/ A ....44.41A•4//,." SUSAN WILKINSON, WARD 5 WADE S. LNE iI KA, ' ARD 6 /10 ' N FENNEL, WARD 7