Meeting Recap: August 22, 2011

Westwood overlay ordinance passed on second reading

(Stillwater, Okla. / Aug. 22, 2011) — The Stillwater City Council met Monday, Aug. 22, 2011, for a regular meeting.

First up, Council was asked to approve the Fiscal 2012 contract between the City of Stillwater and the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 102 (FOP). City Manger Dan Galloway said negotiations have been going on several months, and the FOP’s full membership recently voted to approve the written contract. All of the council members voted to approve the contract. Councilor Scott was absent.

Next thing on the agenda was the Westwood ordinance.

Ordinances (Click here to read ordinances in full.)

• Ordinance No. 3148 concerns the Westwood overlay and off-street parking. To answer a public comment, City Attorney Dorman explained that the ordinance only referred to the Westwood neighborhood. He also explained that the emergency clause is used to enact something quickly that affects health, safety or public welfare. It simply means that the ordinance doesn’t have to wait 30 days to be enacted. The intent is for the Westwood Overlay and its parking district are to begin on the same date. It was approved by all of council, except Councilor Scott who was absent.

City Council recessed for the SUA Meeting.

Stillwater Utilities Authority (SUA) Aug. 22, 2011 Meeting

The SUA Board of Trustees approved one item on the consent docket: Utility Relocation Agreement with Oklahoma Department of Transportation associated with Harrington Bridge. Councilor (Trustee) Scott was absent.

Next was a presentation and discussion concerning the Kaw pipeline assessment report. Water Utilities Director Anthony Daniel and Jason Consultants/Pure Technologies (Columbus, Ohio) presented.

In short, Pure Technologies can assess 100 percent of the Kaw pipeline’s 36 miles without shutting down the pipeline. They can use the data they collecte and make recommendations for actions to repair or replace potions of the pipeline with minimal service interruption.

Councilor (Trustee) Weaver asked about risks associated with this type of technology. The consultant explained that there challenges gathering data from a pipeline without inline valves and there were issues concerning areas with high water pressure, but both were not major concerns.

Anthony asked if the SUA trustees would authorize him to negotiate the cost and scope of the project. 

Councilor (Trustee) Bartley asked about the budget and City Manager Galloway said the funds would come from the water capital fund, which is where the increases in the water rates have been deposited. Galloway said everyone wants to know the state of the Kaw pipeline and this is the best way to find out. All present authorized Daniel to proceed. Councilor (Trustee) Scott was absent.

Mayor (Trustee) Bates said he appreciated the presentation.

SUA meeting recessed for the Stillwater Industrial & Redevelopment Authority Special Meeting.

Stillwater Industrial & Redevelopment Authority (SIRA) Aug. 22, 2011 Special Meeting

The Board Trustees approved the Business Development Incentive Agreement with Bradford Plaza Capital Venture. The sales tax incentive is meant to help revitalize the shopping district and bring new stores to Stillwater.

City Council recessed for executive meeting.

END

Recap by Sherry Fletcher, Marketing and Public Relations  
 

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Next City Council Meeting: Monday, Sept. 12, 2011, at 5:30 p.m. Council Hearing Room. Broadcast on City of Stillwater TV on Suddenlink channel 23. Click here for agendas. 

Watch the City Council Meetings:  Videos of Stillwater City Council meetings are made available on the City of Stillwater's YouTube.com channel within five days of the meeting.

Meeting Recap: August 15, 2011

Stillwater City Council discusses off-street parking

(Stillwater, Okla. / Aug. 15, 2011) — The Stillwater City Council met Monday, Aug. 15, 2011, for a regular meeting. Council approved the minutes of Aug. 1 regular meeting and the executive meeting.

All three items on the consent docket passed without discussion.

Public Comment

• Resident Vera Long commented on Ordinance No. 3147 concerning the adoption of the new code for the City of Stillwater. She cautioned councilors to review it in more detail before passing it.
• Westwood Neighborhood’s Mark Lambert and Ron Beer addressed Ordinance 3148. They were concerned about allowing up to 40 percent of the front lawn to be paved. Both thought 40 percent was excessive.

Public Hearing
Receive public input regarding a request from Candace Gfeller for closing a portion of alley at 211 W. 11th Ave. Gfeller can’t close the sale on the property because part of the house spills over onto the alley where various utilities run. Planner Patty Evans explained that approving the closure of the alley would create difficulties when making utility repairs. Staff did not recommend closing the easement. City Council asked City Attorney John Dorman to look for possible solutions and the topic was tabled, subject to call. This was approved by all.

General Orders

• City of Stillwater quarterly financial report. Chief Financial Officer Marcy Alexander was out, so City Manager Dan Galloway made remarks. He stated that FY2010-2011 ended in the black—just barely. The City was 1.87 percent below budget; however, he wanted to point out that in the past two months sales tax receipts were 6 percent below this time last year. Galloway felt this would be evened out in the next few months.
• Adoption of the Design Criteria and Construction Standards. Brandon Neal made a short presentation about the process and the standards themselves. He first explained that the standards being discussed were in regards to general earthwork, easement work, stormwater collection and clean and waste water design criteria and construction standards. He thanked local builders, the ad hoc committee and others who shared their insight and, ultimately,  improved the code being considered. Neal said that the Design Criteria and Construction Standards would come back before Council in about six months with other recommendations. Provisions could be modified at that time. Following a question by Councilor Cody Scott, Director Paula Dennison explained that Building and Trade Codes were not part of the document being considered at Monday’s meeting. Councilor Joe Weaver appreciated the work of staff and local builders who worked together to develop the document.

Resolutions (Click here to read ordinances in full.)

• Resolution CC-2011-9: A resolution to adopt the Design Criteria and Construction Standards. This was passed by all.
• Resolution CC-2011-14: A resolution to establish a parking district within the Westwood Neighborhood. This was passed by all.

Ordinances (Click here to read ordinances in full.)

• Ordinance No. 3138: An ordinance amending city code to address off-street parking.  Paula Dennison first answered a question from the last City Council meeting concerning parking on University Ave. She said that staff recommended allowing on-street parking on University from Ridge to Orchard Street. Also discussed was staff recommendation to have a sliding scale for the amount of paving that would be allowed in front yards by city code. Councilor Joe Weaver said that a percentage chart was a good solution to the problem. Councilor John Bartley asked about circle drives, and Dennison said that circle drives were allowed under current city code.
  
  She reminded everyone that the city manager could establish and enforce parking on one side of the street without further action. However, Ordinance No. 3138 was the first step in creating a parking overlay district. Details would come later and residents would have 30 days to make comments.  This was approved by all.
• Ordinance No. 3146: An ordinance regarding rezoning a tract of land located at 601 and 602 S. West St. This was passed by all.
• Ordinance 3147: An ordinance calling for the adopting and enacting of a new city code. City Attorney John Dorman explained that there were “empty codes,' which are reserved for future growth. He also reminded everyone that copies of the new code have been available for the public to view at city hall and the library. He stated that all the codes in the new code have been voted on by City Council; nothing was being added that hadn’t been voted on. Councilor Scott expressed concern about the level of fines. Dorman said that the last time City Council adjusted fines was 2002. All but Councilor Scott approved the ordinance.

Miscellaneous items from City Manager.
The NewsPress conducted a Reader’s Choice Award and the City of Stillwater was recognized in several categories; in fact, the City of Stillwater was the only multi-award winner:

• Lakeside Golf Course: Favorite Golf Course
• Multi Arts Center: First Place Art Gallery
• Stillwater Arts Festival: First Place Local Event/Festival
• Boomer Lake Park: First Place Park
• Strickland Park : Honorable Mention Park

 
Miscellaneous items from City Council

• Councilor Scott welcomed students back to town.
• Councilor Bartley reminded all that public school starts Friday and to pay attention to school speed zones
• Mayor Bates encouraged council to speak their minds, even if they have different opinions than the rest of council
• Kaw Water Line discussion is a topic for an upcoming meeting.

Questions & Inquiries

• Mayor Bates asked about progress made concerning a possible meeting with Stillwater Utilities Authority and Grand River Dam Authority and Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority. Galloway said they have been asked to submit a list of concerns, which have not been received yet.

City Council recessed for the SUA Meeting.

Stillwater Utilities Authority Aug. 15, 2011 Meeting

Minutes for the Aug. 1, 2011, meeting were approved by all trustees.

General Orders

• Rural Water Advisory Board provided its quarterly report. There was no comments or questions.
• Stillwater Utilities Authority quarterly financial report was made by City Manager Dan Galloway.  He stated that SUA finished the year in the black with expenditures  at 96.16 of the total budget.

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Next City Council Meeting: Monday, August 22, 2011, at 5:30 p.m. Council Hearing Room. Broadcast on City of Stillwater TV on Suddenlink channel 23. Click here for agendas. 

Watch the City Council Meetings:  Videos of Stillwater City Council meetings are made available on the City of Stillwater's YouTube.com channel within five days of the meeting.

Meeting Recap: August 1, 2011

Stillwater City Council holds public hearings

(STILLWATER, OKLA. / Aug. 1, 2011) — The Stillwater City Council met Monday, Aug. 1, 2011, for a regular meeting. Following the approval of minutes from July 18 and July 25, Council held three public hearings. (Official minutes will be posted here.)

Mayor Bates asked for a moment of silence to honor long-time Stillwater resident and community volunteer Elvis Pennington who passed away recently.

Public Hearings

Hearing 1: There was no public input concerning the revised City Code.

Hearing 2: The public hearing for the closure of a portion of an alley at 211 W. 11th Ave. was postponed until Aug. 15 meeting.

Hearing 3: There were two public hearings on parking in the Westwood Neighborhood Preservation Overlay District—one for on-street parking and one for off-street parking.

Development Services Director Paula Dennison provided background information for both hearings.

She explained that the city was looking at a variety of tools that could correct the crowded streets of this neighborhood.

One tool is to restrict parking to one side of the street, which was recently authorized by the city manager. Dennison said the City’s Transportation Department suggested streets with the least number of driveways (to maintain maximum number of parking spaces) to be the side with parking. One resident asked that University Avenue also be considered for on-street parking. Dennison will provide more information on University Avenue, so the council can make an informed decision.

Dennison reminded everyone that City Council would not be taking action at tonight’s meeting as this was a public hearing. Several residents spoke in favor of the decision for parking on one side of the street in the Westwood Neighborhood.

City Attorney John Dorman explained the process for creating a parking district, which is being considered for Westwood:

• Hearing (Aug. 1 meeting)
• Adoption of Resolution (Aug. 15 agenda.) with a 30-day period for public input after the resolution is adopted. Unless 51 percent of the property owners objected — the parking district would be permanent.
• After the parking district resolution is adopted, City Council would set the rules on who, when and how the parking will be allowed.

Hearing 4: The  last hearing concerned off-street parking within the Westwood Neighborhood Preservation Overlay District.

Dennison provided City Council current city codes and possible rules about parking (for residential and boarding house) that could be adopted. This included issues such as: How much of the private yard could be paved, how many parking spaces could be provided, what types of materials could be used to build, and so on. Councilor Weaver suggested that this topic be sent to the Land Development Ad Hoc Committee for further discussion and then brought back to Council.

On-Street Parking District Westwood Neighborhood

Resolutions

The resolution to participate in the Oklahoma Certified Retirement Communities Program was approved by all.

The resolution authorizing signatures for depositories was approved by all. (This refers to who can sign checks and other documents.)

Ordinances

All three ordinances were passed by all. This included Ordinance No. 3146, 3147 and 3145. (Click here to read ordinances in full.)

Appointments

The following people were appointed to the Certified Retirement Community Advisory Committee:

• Sally Harris  
• Larry Shell
• Kay Heath
• Milton Morris 
•  Esther Winterfeldt  
• Josh McKim 
•  Gladeen Allred
• Connie Stokes  

Lynda Burkes was appointed to the Library Trust Board.

  

Stillwater Utilities Authority Aug. 1, 2011 Meeting

Approval by all for the Minutes for the July 1, 2011, meeting.

Update on Rural Water Corp. #3 service area:

• Water Utilities Director Anthony Daniel provided an update on the new pump station that is being installed to serve the twin towers.
• SUA Trustees authorized City Administration to call for mandatory external water restrictions in a portion of Rural Water Corp. #3 service area served by the Twin Towers if the new pump station is not effective in resolving the low-pressure problems in the area. The extent of the restrictions, if necessary, will be determined after the new pump station has been operational for several days. For updates on this issue, visit the City of Stillwater's website.

No action was taken on the resolutions concerning the wholesale electric power supplier. The topic will be a future City Council study session.

Stillwater Industrial & Redevelopment Authority Aug. 1, 2011 Meeting

The minutes for the July 11, 2011 meeting were approved.

The SIRA Trustees approved an economic development agreement with Brooklyn’s Restaurant, LLC, which will be locating in the renovated Katz Building in Downtown Stillwater.

***** 

Next City Council Meeting: Monday, August 15, 2011, at 5:30 p.m. Council Hearing Room. Broadcast on City of Stillwater TV on Suddenlink channel 23. Click here for agendas.  

Watch the City Council Meetings:  Videos of Stillwater City Council meetings are made available on the City of Stillwater's YouTube.com channel within five days of the meeting.

END

Recap by Sherry Fletcher, Marketing and Public Relations