Urban County Council Work Session

Summary

Meeting Overview

The Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council held a meeting on January 20, 2009, presided over by Linda Gorton. The council worked through 8 agenda items, taking action on a range of matters including requested rezonings, budget amendments, and new business items, all of which were approved. In addition to action items, the council received informational updates from the Intergovernmental Committee, the Lexington & Fayette County Parking Authority, and a Council Report. Over the course of the meeting, 11 motions and votes were recorded and 1 public comment was heard.

Attendance

The following members were present at the January 20, 2009 Council meeting:

• Linda Gorton
• Blues
• Ellinger
• James
• Beard
• Henson
• Stinnett
• Crosby
• Baird
• Feigl

The following members were absent:

• Gray
• Lawless
• McChord
• Myers

No members were recorded as late.

Votes and Decisions

All motions at the January 20, 2009 Council meeting passed unanimously. No roll call votes were recorded.

• Zoning Ordinance Amendment (Docket Placement) 1:41: Moved by Blues, seconded by Ellinger, the Council voted unanimously to place on the docket an ordinance amending Articles 28-4(h)(5), 28-5(h)(5), 17-3(c), and 17-5 of the zoning ordinance to allow additional signage in the Mixed-Use Community (MU-3) Zone, without a public hearing.

• Amended Docket Approval 3:50: Moved by Ellinger, seconded by James, the Council unanimously approved the amended docket.

• Meeting Summary Approval 4:22: Moved by Ellinger, seconded by Beard, the Council unanimously approved the summary of January 13, 2009.

• Budget Amendments 4:55: Moved by Beard, seconded by Ellinger, the Council unanimously approved budget amendments.

• New Business Items A–Q 5:27: Moved by Blues, seconded by Henson, the Council unanimously approved new business items A through Q.

• Citizen's Advocate / GTV3 Program 8:44: Moved by James, seconded by Beard, the Council unanimously directed the Citizen's Advocate office to work with the CIO to produce a periodic program on GTV3.

• Citizen's Advocate / Software Solutions 9:46: Moved by James, seconded by Crosbie, the Council unanimously directed the Citizen's Advocate office to work with the CIO and Council Office staff to identify software solutions for logging and tracking data.

• Outside Boards and Commissions Reporting 10:51: Moved by James, seconded by Crosbie, the Council unanimously required all outside boards and commissions to submit annual reports and meeting minutes to the LFUCG Administration for publication on the LFUCG website.

• Alexandria Drive Parking/Turn Lane Referral 1:15:53: Moved by Henson, seconded by James, the Council unanimously referred to the Services Committee a proposal to remove on-street parking and install a center turn lane in the 1300 block of Alexandria Drive.

• Community Correction Audit Referral 1:19:09: Moved by Ellinger, seconded by Beard, the Council unanimously placed the completed internal audit of the Division of Community Correction into the Budget & Finance Committee.

• Mayor's Report Approval 1:24:33: Moved by Blues, seconded by Henson, the Council unanimously approved the Mayor's Report.

Budget and Financial Actions

The Council addressed three financial items at the January 20, 2009 meeting, covering utility relocations for a road improvement project and an office equipment purchase.

Clays Mill Road Utility Relocations

Two contracts were approved in connection with the Clays Mill Road Improvements Project, both involving the relocation of utilities:

• Agreement 048-09 authorized a contract with Columbia Gas of Kentucky in the amount of $485,913 for the relocation of gas utilities as part of the Clays Mill Road Improvements Project.
• Agreement 051-09 authorized a contract with Kentucky Utilities Company in the amount of $126,085 for the relocation of electric utilities in support of the same project.

Together, these two utility relocation agreements represent a combined commitment of $611,998 tied to the Clays Mill Road Improvements Project.

Office Equipment Purchase

• Agreement 046-09 approved a purchase from Ikon Office Solutions, Inc. in the amount of $2,780 for additional accessories to upgrade a copier.

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The three items total $614,778 in authorized expenditures approved at this meeting.

Public Comment

Only one member of the public addressed the Council during the public comment period at the January 20, 2009 meeting.

• Bill Farmer 0:34 requested the opportunity to speak following the Parking Authority presentation. Specifically, Farmer asked to be recognized after Gary Means delivered his presentation, indicating he wished to either add to or rebut points made by Means during that presentation.

No other public comments were recorded for this meeting.

Appointments

The Council took the following appointment action during the January 20, 2009 meeting:

• Michael Haskins was appointed to the Black & Williams Community Center Board.

Contested Items

• Parking Meters in the Chevy Chase Area: Merchants in the Chevy Chase area raised concerns about newly installed parking meters. The opposition from the business community was significant enough to prompt a formal petition, and a meeting with the Parking Authority was planned as a next step to address the dispute. The record does not indicate a final resolution was reached at this meeting.

Requested Rezonings / Docket Approval

1:41

Council Member Blues moved to place on the docket an ordinance that would amend Articles 28-4(h)(5), 28-5(h)(5), 17-3(c), and 17-5 of the zoning ordinance. The proposed amendment would allow additional signage in the Mixed-Use Community (MU-3) Zone.

Key speakers on this item included Council Members Blues and Ellinger. The motion to place the ordinance on the docket was approved by the Council.

Approval of Summary

4:22

Council Member Ellinger moved to approve the summary of the January 13, 2009 meeting. Council Member Beard was also noted as a key speaker during this portion of the proceedings. No concerns or debate were recorded in connection with this item. The motion was approved.

Budget Amendments

4:55

The Council took up the matter of budget amendments during this portion of the meeting. Council Member Beard moved to approve the budget amendments, with Council Member Ellinger also participating as a key speaker in the discussion.

The resolution was ultimately approved by the Council.

*Note: The available record identifies Council Members Beard and Ellinger as the key speakers on this item, but does not include additional detail regarding the specific content of the amendments, any figures or line items discussed, concerns raised, or the precise nature of Ellinger's contribution to the debate.*

New Business Items

5:27

Council Member Blues moved to approve new business items A through Q. Council Member Henson was also noted as a key speaker during this portion of the meeting. The items were presented as a group for consideration by the full Council.

The record does not detail individual debate or concerns raised regarding the specific items within the A–Q range. The block of new business items was brought forward and acted upon collectively.

Outcome: The new business items were approved.

Intergovernmental Committee Update

7:39

Council Member James presented an update on the Intergovernmental Committee. The update included motions to direct the Citizen's Advocate office to work with the Chief Information Officer (CIO) on various initiatives. This item was informational in nature, and no formal vote or decision was recorded as an outcome of the presentation.

Lexington & Fayette County Parking Authority Update

13:31

Gary Means, Executive Director of the Lexington & Fayette County Parking Authority, delivered an informational update to the Council on the status of the Parking Authority's operations. The presentation covered the implementation of new parking meters as well as responses to concerns raised by Council members.

The update was informational in nature, with no votes or formal actions taken as a result of the presentation. Specific details regarding the scope of the new meter implementation, the timeline for deployment, and the particular concerns addressed by Means are not available in the meeting record summary.

Council Report

1:13:07

Council members provided a series of updates and announcements during the Council Report portion of the January 20, 2009 meeting. Several members offered congratulations to President Obama, whose inauguration took place on that date. The following council members contributed remarks during this segment: James, Henson, Blues, Ellinger, Crosby, and Stinnett.

In addition to the inaugural congratulations, council members announced upcoming neighborhood meetings, providing constituents with information about opportunities for community engagement. The report was informational in nature, with no votes or formal actions taken as a result of the discussion.

Mayor's Report

1:24:33

The Mayor's Report was presented to the Council during the January 20, 2009 meeting. The key speakers associated with this item were Blues and Henson. Following the presentation, the Council approved the Mayor's Report.