Urban County Council Meeting

Summary

Meeting Overview

The Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government Council met on February 17, 2011, at 6:00 p.m. in Lexington, Kentucky, with Mayor Gray presiding. The council addressed 11 agenda items during the session, including roll call, committee reports, ordinances and resolutions at both first and second reading stages, mayoral communications, and public comments. The body took 9 motions and votes and heard 1 public comment. The meeting covered routine governmental business including the approval of committee reports, passage of ordinances and resolutions on second reading, introduction of ordinances and resolutions on first reading, and communications from the mayor's office.

Attendance

Present: Kay, Lane, Lawless, McChord, Myers, Stinnett, Beard, Blues, Crosbie, Ellinger, Farmer, Ford, Gorton, and Henson

Absent: Martin

Late: None

Votes and Decisions

All motions and votes during this meeting passed unanimously with 14 votes in favor and no votes against or abstentions.

Special Council Meeting Scheduled 5:02 Ms. Gorton moved to schedule a Special Council Meeting for a Police Disciplinary Hearing on March 15, 2011, at 5:00 p.m. Ms. Crosbie seconded the motion, which passed unanimously (14-0).

Audit Professional Appointment Referred 7:17 Ms. Gorton moved to refer Fred Brown's appointment as Council-appointed audit professional to the Internal Audit Board. Mr. Ellinger seconded the motion, which passed unanimously (14-0).

Ordinance 0130-26: Budget Amendment 8:07 Ms. Crosbie moved to amend certain budgets of the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government to reflect current requirements for municipal expenditures and re-appropriate funds under Schedule No. 91. Mr. Myers seconded the motion, which passed unanimously (14-0).

Ordinance 0131-26: Police Department Restructuring 8:07 Ms. Crosbie moved to amend Section 23-5(b) of the Code of Ordinances to abolish two Police Captain positions and create two Police Lieutenant positions in the Division of Police, with appropriate funds pursuant to Schedule No. 92. Mr. Myers seconded the motion, which passed unanimously (14-0).

Ordinance 0132-26: Zoning Correction 15:39 Mr. Ford moved to amend Ordinance No. 6-2011 to correct a clerical error by adding conditional zoning restrictions for property at 1528, 1532, and 1534 N. Limestone, changing the zone from R-1C to B-4. Mr. Lane seconded the motion, which passed unanimously (14-0).

Resolution 0133-26: Second Reading Approvals 17:50 Ms. Gorton moved to approve the second reading of three resolutions: accept donation of a pool table from Ms. Christie Barbour, execute settlement with Julia Householder, and execute Change Order No. 1 to the Charles Deweese Construction contract for the Lexington Streetscape Phase One West Main Street Project. Mr. Farmer seconded the motion, which passed unanimously (14-0).

Resolution 0134-26: Multiple Approvals 42:47 Ms. Gorton moved to approve the second reading of multiple resolutions including grant applications, contract modifications, property acquisition authorizations, and personnel appointments. Ms. Crosbie seconded the motion, which passed unanimously (14-0).

Resolution 0135-26: Mayor's Communications 43:48 Mr. Ellinger moved to approve the Communications from the Mayor, including appointments and reappointments to various boards and commissions. Ms. Gorton seconded the motion, which passed unanimously (14-0).

Adjournment 56:01 Ms. Crosbie moved to adjourn the meeting. Mr. Myers seconded the motion, which passed unanimously (14-0).

Budget and Financial Actions

The meeting included multiple contract adjustments and new financial commitments across various city projects and services.

Contract Price Increases:

• Lexington Streetscape Phase One West Main St. Project: $173,106.39 increase with Charles Deweese Construction (Resolution 0133-26)
• Clays Mill Rd. Improvement Project: $56,027.00 increase with CDP Engineers, Inc. (Resolution 0134-26)
• Lexington Streetscape Phase One Vine St. Project: $124,158.01 increase with Marrillia Design and Construction (Resolution 0134-26)
• Materials Recovery Facility project: $28,000.00 increase with IPS Baler, Inc. (Resolution 0134-26)
• Town Branch Wastewater Treatment Plant Pump Station Pump Replacement Project: $45,518.59 increase with Triplett Striping, Inc. (Resolution 0134-26)
• Meadows/Northland/Arlington Public Improvements Design Phase 5A: $46,500.00 increase with Sherman-Carter-Barnhart Architects, PSC (Resolution 0134-26)

Contract Price Decrease:

• Municipal Recycling Center modifications: $127,743.49 decrease with Machinex Technologies, Inc. (Resolution 0134-26)

New Contracts:

• Trinity Rd. Stormwater Improvements with Gooch Construction, Inc.: $82,970.00 (Resolution 0134-26)
• Public education events and activities with Lexington Legends: $29,500.00 (Resolution 0134-26)

Grant Funding:

• Kentucky Division of Waste Management: $3,000.00 for disposal and recycling of waste tires (Ordinance 0130-26)
• Kentucky Dept. of Military Affairs, Div. of Emergency Management: $115,734.38 for emergency preparedness activities (Ordinance 0130-26)
• U.S. Dept. of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women: $400,000.00 for domestic violence accountability project (Resolution 0134-26)
• U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security: $13,600.00 for mobile home fire safety improvement program (Resolution 0134-26)
• Kentucky Dept. for Local Government: $75,200.00 for Brighton Rail Trail Phase 4 (Resolution 0134-26)

Price Contracts (amounts not specified):

• Aramsco, Inc. for seismic acoustic listening devices and accessories for the Division of Fire and Emergency Services (Resolution 0134-26)
• Madrax d/b/a Trilary, Inc. for trail bollards for the Division of Parks and Recreation (Resolution 0134-26)
• Aulick Chemical Solutions, Inc. and ChemTreat, Inc. for manhole odor control chemical and containment delivery system for the Division of Water Quality (Resolution 0134-26)

Public Comment

53:44

Mr. Bernard McCarthy addressed the meeting with comments regarding traffic infrastructure and development planning. He suggested extending Jefferson Street northward to connect with Russell Cave as a means to alleviate traffic congestion in the area.

Mr. McCarthy argued that widening existing roads is not a feasible solution to congestion problems. Instead, he advocated for new development to include more through streets as part of the planning process. He also recommended that new development projects be required to pay impact fees to fund necessary infrastructure improvements.

Appointments

The following appointments and reappointments were made:

Internal Audit Board - Fred V. Brown — appointed

Board of Architectural Review - Ronald Jackson — appointed

Carnegie Literacy Center Board of Directors - Lucy Anne Pett — appointed

Citizen Corps Council - Richard Curtis — reappointed - Timothy Melton — appointed

Commission for Citizens with Disabilities - Bruce C. Burris — reappointed - Sandra L. Cowan — reappointed - Jacob L. Karnes, Jr. — reappointed - Peggy Henson — reappointed - Roger H. Daman — appointed

Greenspace Commission - Kenneth B. Cooke — appointed

Human Rights Commission - Gaston T. Ngandu-Sankayi — appointed

Infrastructure Hearing Board - Jonathan E. Nieman — appointed

Sister Cities Program Commission - Linda Gorton — reappointed - Lori Houlihan — appointed

Special Events Commission - William P. Enright — reappointed - Henry G. Hester — appointed - Jerry E. Hancock — appointed

Tree Board - David E. Leonard — appointed

Bluegrass Crimestoppers, Inc. Board - Ronnie Bastin — reappointed - Robert Sarrantonio — reappointed - Jeremy Bates — appointed - Jerome Cerel — appointed - Paul Grant — appointed - Michael Johnson — appointed - John Kirkland — appointed - William Poteat — appointed - Ronald Watson — appointed

Contested Items

Zoning Amendment for 1528, 1532, and 1534 N. Limestone

A zoning amendment for properties at 1528, 1532, and 1534 N. Limestone resulted in a split vote among council members. Council Member Gordon requested clarification on the proposed zoning change, which prompted discussion about a significant administrative issue.

During the discussion, it was revealed that a clerical error had omitted conditional zoning restrictions that had been recommended by the Planning Commission. This oversight meant that the zoning amendment as initially presented did not include protections or conditions that the Planning Commission had deemed necessary for the properties in question.

The identification of this error by Council Member Gordon's inquiry highlighted the importance of careful review of planning documents and the need to ensure that all recommendations from the Planning Commission were properly incorporated into council proposals before voting.

Roll Call

0:00

Mayor Gray called the meeting to order and conducted a roll call of council members. The roll call showed 14 members present and one member absent. Following the roll call, Mayor Gray proceeded to open the meeting.

Invocation

Rev. Gerard Howell offered an invocation at the beginning of the meeting 1:11. In his remarks, Rev. Howell expressed gratitude for the city's commitment to religious freedom. He also offered prayers for wisdom and balance in the Council's decisions as the members conducted the city's business.

This agenda item was informational in nature and served as the opening ceremonial element of the meeting.

Committee Reports

Vice Mayor Gorton reported on the Committee of the Whole Work Session 6:44. During this session, the committee considered Fred Brown's appointment to the Internal Audit Board. A motion to refer this appointment was brought forward and approved by a vote of 12-1.

Ordinances – Second Reading

8:07

Two ordinances received second reading and were approved unanimously during this portion of the meeting.

Ordinances Considered

The council considered two separate ordinances: - An ordinance amending budgets - An ordinance reorganizing police positions

Key Speakers

Ms. Crosbie and Mr. Myers were the primary speakers during discussion of these items.

Outcome

Both ordinances passed unanimously.

Ordinances – First Reading

9:09

Five new ordinances were introduced for first reading during this agenda item. The ordinances were presented for initial consideration and placed on file for public inspection, allowing for community review before subsequent readings.

Key Speakers

Mr. Ford and Mr. King participated in the discussion of the ordinances.

Content and Scope

The ordinances introduced addressed multiple areas of municipal business, including:

• Budget amendments
• Grant applications
• Program authorizations

Outcome

All five ordinances were advanced to first reading status and placed on file for public inspection. This action allows the public access to review the proposed ordinances before they proceed to additional readings and final consideration.

Resolutions – Second Reading

16:43

Three resolutions received second reading and approval during this agenda item.

The resolutions addressed the following matters:

• Acceptance of a pool table donation
• Execution of a settlement with Julia Householder
• Increase to the contract price for the Lexington Streetscape project

Ms. Gorton and Mr. Farmer were the key speakers during discussion of these resolutions.

All three resolutions were approved.

Resolutions – First Reading

18:21

Multiple resolutions were introduced for first reading during this agenda item. The resolutions addressed a range of matters including grant applications, contract modifications, property acquisitions, and personnel appointments.

Key speakers during this discussion included Mr. Blues, Mr. Ellinger, Mr. McCord, and Ms. Gorton.

A public meeting was held specifically for Resolution 16 as part of the first reading process.

All resolutions presented during this agenda item advanced to first reading status.

Communications from the Mayor

43:48

Mayor Gray presented recommendations for appointments and reappointments to various boards and commissions. The recommendations included positions on the following boards:

• Bluegrass Crimestoppers
• Board of Architectural Review
• Other boards and commissions

The Mayor's recommendations were presented for consideration by the council. Following the presentation, the recommendations were approved unanimously by the body.

Communication from the Mayor (For Information Only)

Mayor Gray announced the reinstatement of John Cox to his position as Community Corrections Officer, effective February 28, 2011. 43:48

This item was presented for informational purposes only and did not require a vote or further action from the body.

Announcements

44:21

Two announcements were made during this portion of the meeting.

Council Member McChord announced a public information meeting regarding the Clays Mill Road Improvement Project.

Council Member Ford announced the first meeting of the Charles Young Center Redevelopment Task Force.

Public Comments

During the public comment period, Mr. Bernard McCarthy addressed the body regarding traffic congestion and infrastructure development. 53:44

Mr. McCarthy spoke in favor of extending Jefferson Street northward as a means to reduce traffic congestion in the area. He advocated for the creation of new through streets to improve traffic flow and circulation. Additionally, Mr. McCarthy discussed the use of impact fees as a funding mechanism to support the necessary infrastructure improvements.

The outcome of this agenda item was informational, with no formal action taken during the public comment period.