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01-16-1989 Regular MeetingJanuary 16, 1989 The regular scheduled meeting of Mayor and Council was held January 16, 1989 at Smyrna City Hall. The meeting was called to order at 7:30 o'clock p.m. by presiding officer Mayor A. Max Bacon. All council members were present. Also present was City Administrator John Patterson, City Attorney Charles E. Camp, City Clerk Melinda Dameron and representatives of the press. Invocation was given by Reverend J. W. Frady, pastor of Calvary Baptist Church. CITIZENS INPUT: Dianne Whittaker from Brown Elementary School PTA requested a traffic light on Concord Road at Brown Circle. The principal of Brown Elementary had met with city officials in December requesting a light and last week a 5 year old child was seriously injured after being hit by a car at this intersection. Jim Hawkins said approval of the light is on the Consent Agenda for tonight which is being funded by Smyrna Bank & Trust. In March, 1980, a petition with 700 signatures was presented to council requesting a light but was denied by the District Engineer of the State Department of Transportation because the volume of traffic did not warrant signalization. At that time, the existing blinking yellow lights were approved. Mr. Hawkins said the light will be approved tonight and hopefully it will be up in about 5 weeks. DEPARTMENT REPORTS: library activities. PUBLIC HEARINGS• Vic Broyles was not present and Laurel Best reported on (A) Zoning request - 9.9 acres at King Springs Road & South Cobb Drive from FC to 0&I John Patterson said that Smyrna Hospital is requesting this zoning to develop this property in three different tracts. Tract A is 2.35 acres, Tract B is 3.84 acres and Tract C is 3.72 acres. Tracts A and B will be developed immediately and Tract C will remain vacant for the time being. There was no opposition and Ed Moyer represented Smyrna Hospital. Bob Betenbaugh said council had denied a zoning request from FC to GC on this property last year and the 6 months waiting period required by the State before reapplying has expired. The request tonight is for Office/Institutional for development of a funeral home on Tract A and a doctors office on Tract B. Mr. Moyer said Smyrna Hospital has had problems recruiting doctors to this area because of the lack of office space and for that reason, felt they would move quickly with construction. The other development plans for Tract A are also firm. The Planning and Zoning Board had recommended approval and following discussion, Bob Betenbaugh made a motion the zoning be approved on Tracts A, B and C as requested with the stipulation that Mayor and Council approve the plans for any project to be built on Tract C, and the site of any structure located thereon. Wade Lnenicka seconded the motion which carried 7-0. (B) Variance request - front yard setback at 1841 Lakehurst Court John Patterson said that Bob Thornton is requesting a variance to reduce the front yard setback from 35 to 30 feet at this address in the Vinings Glen Subdivision. The letter of hardship states the house will not fit on the lot without a variance and if not approved, he will lose the contract. There was no opposition. Mr. Thornton said on the rear of this lot there is a 20 foot sewer easement and there is no way they can fit the house on the lot. Originally, they thought the sewer easement was 5 feet farther back as shown on the recorded plat, but when their survey was completed they realized they could not fit the house on the lot and meet setback requirements. The house will contain 3300 square feet and be valued at $360,000. Jack Shinall asked if approval had been obtained from property owners on either side. Mr. Thornton said that lot 30 is a spec house that was just contracted and the owners of lot 32 were out of town and could not be contacted. Chuck Camp asked if there was an architectural review committee in the subdivision and Mr. Thornton said there was, and the variance had been approved by them. Jack Shinall said he did not have any problem with the variance but the ordinance does state that letters should be obtained from January 16, 1989 meeting - continued the affected adjacent property owners. Jim Hawkins said the letters are not binding, but it has been the generally accepted policy of council to make these letters part of the variance package. A gentleman from the audience said he lived on lots 27 and 28 of this subdivision and had a similar problem during construction. They wanted to extend the patio and make it larger but the city inspector had told his builder, however, that he could not get a variance and it would do him no good to apply for one. It was then necessary for them to modify the plans and make their house much smaller. Mayor Bacon said the information his builder had received was incorrect and asked him to contact John Patterson tomorrow and they would check into it. Wade Lnenicka said he was sorry that he had a problem and he thought council has tried to be very responsive to reasonable request of builders, particularly in this neighborhood because of the size of the lots. Wade Lnenicka made a motion the variance request at 1841 Lakehurst Court be approved to reduce the front yard setback from 35 to 30 feet conditioned upon the City receiving a letter from the adjacent property owner on lot 32 indicating no objections to this variance. Bob Betenbaugh seconded the motion which carried 7-0. (C) Variance request - setback requirements at Post Springs Apartments, Spring Road. John Patterson said that Post Properties is requesting this variance to reduce setback requirements on buildings 1,2,3,7,8 and 10, the wood shed, tennis court and parking spaces. This project has been in existence for several years and is grandfathered under our current ordinance but it is being sold and the new lender is requiring that the variances be approved. There was no opposition and Dan Faulk represented Post. Mr. Faulk said the project was built in 1974 and they did not realize variances were needed. Eighty four percent of these units are one bedroom and it has been their experience that 1.75 parking spaces per unit is adequate and they are asking for approval of 1.85 spaces per unit, a total of 273 spaces. Mr. Faulk said he felt parking was certainly adequate because they have had no problem or complaints from residents. Also, he was not aware of any problems that had been caused to the City or neighborhood from the setback lines on any of the buildings. Mr. Camp said this development was built prior to adoption of our current ordinance and would be grandfathered but approval of these variances will allow them to replace the buildings as they currently exist. After further -discussion, Bob Davis made a motion the variances be approved to allow setback reductions for buildings 1,2,3,7,8 and 10, the wood shed and tennis courts, and also allow a reduction in parking spaces to 273, as shown on the as -built survey dated November 26, 1984 and revised December 9, 1988. Bob Betenbaugh seconded the motion which carried 7-0. (D) Privilege license - retail beer and wine pouring - Oyster King, 2365 South Cobb Drive John Patterson said that Charles Patrick Lanzo has applied for this license as the owner of Oyster King. The original license was approved January 5, 1987. There was no opposition and the police investigation was favorable. Mr. Lanzo said he owned the restaurant and held the license originally but after one year sold the business. He has now taken it over again and needs the license transferred back to his name. Mr. Lanzo said they also had restaurants in Kennesaw and Cartersville and he has had no violations concerning alcoholic beverage sales. Kathy Jordan made a motion the license be approved. Bob Betenbaugh seconded the motion which carried 7-0. FORMAL BUSINESS: (A) Open bids - surplused fire truck. Bids for the surplused 1957 Ford F800 fire truck were opened, read and recorded as follows: January 16, 1989 meeting - continued City of Zebulon, Georgia $6,000 Paulding County Fire Dept. $6,700 Jack Shinall made a motion the bids be turned over to the Committee with their recommendation back at the next meeting. Kathy Jordan seconded the motion which carried 7-0. (B) Appointment to Clean City Commission - Ward 7 Bob Betenbaugh made a motion that Sue Brissey be appointed to the Clean City Commission representing Ward 7. Kathy Jordan seconded the motion which carried 7-0. (C) Amendments to FY89 budget. John Patterson said there are several adjustments needed to the budget from council actions and events which have occurred since the adoption of the FY89 budget to properly reflect the transactions which have transpired during the second quarter of the budget year. Jim Hawkins read the list of seven adjustments and made a motion they be approved. Bill Scoggins seconded the motion which carried 7-0. (D) Approval of rate increase - Victory Cab John Patterson said that Victory Cab is requesting approval to increase the starting meter charge and at the same time, it would be appropriate to amend our ordinance to reflect the changes in the fee structure. Dennis Hewitt represented Victory Cab. Bill Scoggins said the Community Development Committee had met concerning the rate increase and were concerned about the impact this increase would have on our Senior Citizens. Mr. Hewitt said they answer approximately 300 calls a day in Smyrna and probably 20 to 25% of those are from Senior Citizens. They are requesting an increase in the starting meter charge from $1.00 to $2.00 with the existing charge of $.20 for each additional 1/5 mile to remain in effect. Bill Scoggins made a motion that Section 23-36 of the ordinance be deleted in its entirety and replaced with the following section, and that the rate increase on the starting meter charge from $1.00 to $2.00 for Victory Cab be approved. Sec. 23-36. Rates and fares; restriction on number of passengers. The governing body reserves the right at any time and from time to time, to regulate the rates and fares to be charged by taxicabs in the City. Taxicab rates advertised and charged shall be computed on the meter basis only except when the cab is engaged on an hourly basis. Such rates shall be approved by the Mayor and Council from time to time in public meeting and filed with the City Clerk. Jim Hawkins seconded the motion which carried 7-0. (E) Approval of sanitation fee increase. John Patterson said Cobb County has increased the tipping fee charge at the landfill effective January 15, 1989 which necessitates a pass -through to our residential and commercial customers. Wade Lnenicka said the tipping fee has been increased from $15 to $20 per ton. Acworth, Austell, Powder Springs and Marietta have all increased their residential fees $1.00 per month, with varying increases in their commercial fees. The Public Works Committee has met and recommends an increase in residential rates by $.50 per month which is half that of other cities, and increase the commercial fees according to the fee schedule presented. Wade Lnenicka made a motion the proposed rates of $.50 increase on residential and commercial rates presented, be approved. Jim Hawkins seconded the motion. Jack Shinall said he could see why residential rates should be increased because it affects the City directly. However, we just negotiated a commercial contract and our fees have not changed, no matter if the County increases tipping fees or not. It is not costing us the additional money to January 16, 1989 meeting - continued operate at this time, and Mr. Shinall said he would not support an increase on commercial customers. Jim Hawkins said Mr. Shinall has a valid point but we must face the realization that when the 5 year contract with Chambers expires, we will be faced with adopting the prevailing rate at that time. We have a choice of going up gradually over a 5 year period or we can hold off and increase our rates drastically. Mr. Hawkins said he would much rather see a gradual increase. It is true that we will gain some revenues over and above what we are spending but the evening out period will come at the end of the 5 year contract. Jack Shinall said we negotiated and approved a 5 year contract with Chambers based on no rate increases and could not go along with an increase at this time. John Patterson said the source he had spoken with at the County talked as if there was going to be at least a 20% increase each and every year. They are attempting to fund a transfer station and with the new Federal regulations, would not anticipate any less than a $5.00 increase each year. The contract with Chambers allows them to go up at least 5% each year based on the Consumer Price Index, so in July 1990 they would have the opportunity to increase their rates by that amount. After further discussion, vote on the motion carried 4-3, with Jack Shinall, Kathy Jordan and Bob Betenbaugh opposed. (This motion was later vetoed by Mayor Bacon in a letter dated January 17, 1989.) (F) Ordinance amendment - Section 3-14(a) John Patterson said the ordinance amendment will change the minimum age for applicants from 25 to 21 years of age, to bring us in conformance with State law. Jim Hawkins made a motion that the ordinance be amended by deleting Section 3-14(a) in its entirety and replacing with the following section: Sec. 3-14. Filing original application; form; contents --Spirituous liquors. (a) All persons twenty-one (21) years or older desiring to obtain a spirituous liquor license required under this chapter shall make written application to the governing body of the City through the City Clerk for such privilege upon forms to be prepared and approved by the governing body. Such application shall state the name and address of the applicant; the place where the proposed business is to be located; the nature and character of the business to be carried on; if a partnership, the names of the partners; if a corporation, the names of the officers and stockholders; and such other information as may be required by the City Clerk or the police department, and be sworn to be the applicant or agent thereof. Wade Lnenicka seconded the motion which carried 7-0. (G) Appointment to Planning and Zoning Board - Ward 4. Jim Hawkins made a motion that Tommy Cheatham be reappointed to the Planning and Zoning Board representing Ward 4. Bob Betenbaugh seconded the motion which carried 7-0. BID AWARDS: Nothing to report. COMMERCIAL BUILDING PERMITS: (A) Venture Construction requested a permit for construction of a new Burger King on South Cobb Drive at the Concord Village Shopping Center at a total estimated cost of $160,000. Jim Hawkins made a motion the permit be approved. Wade Lnenicka seconded the motion which carried 7-0. Bob Betenbaugh commented that we need to be careful about this intersection and exercise caution. A lot of people attempt left hand turns and it is very dangerous. Jim Hawkins said that hopefully the new light at Concord and Brown Circle will encourage people to use the exit at Concord Road rather than South Cobb Drive. (B) A grading permit was requested for a proposed camper sales facility at 770 Windy Hill Road at an estimated cost of $15,000. Kathy Jordan made a January 16, 1989 meeting - continued motion the permit be approved. Jack Shinall seconded the motion which carried 7-0. CONSENT AGENDA: (A) New permit fee valuation - Community Development (B) Approval of traffic signal - Brown Circle & Concord Road (C) Approval of left turn signal - Powder Springs Street & South Cobb Drive Bob Betenbaugh made a motion the consent agenda be approved. Jack Shinall seconded the motion which carried 7-0. COUNCIL INPUT: Jack Shinall said the Fair Labor Standards suit filed by the Fire Department has been settled. To be fair with everyone, it was decided to pay every firefighter at the settlement amount and not just those involved in the suit. Bob Betenbaugh invited everyone to the open house at the Police Station this Friday from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. to see the newly renovated building. With no further business, meeting adjourned at 8:41 p.m. /(• ;A,.rBACIO:;, BOB AVIS, W 1 ILL INS, ,JOY,ISHINKL-L, WARD 5 BOB BETENBAUGH, WARD 7