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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2001-07-17 Town Council MinutesVAIL TOWN COUNCIL Evening Meeting - Minutes TUESDAY, July 17, 2001 7:00 P.M. PRESENT: Sybill Navas, Mayor Pro-tem Greg Moffet Rod Slifer Diana Donovan Chuck Ogilby Kevin Foley MEMBERS ABSENT: Ludwig Kurz, Mayor STAFF MEMBERS PRESENT: Bob McLaurin, Town Manager Allen Christensen, Acting Town Attorney Lorelei Donaldson, Town Clerk The first item on the agenda was citizen participation. There was no citizen participation. Mayor Pro-Tem Sybill Navas thanked Chief Morrison for his leadership, efforts and time as the Town of Vail Police Chief during the past six years. Also, on behalf of the Council, she wished him well in his new endeavor as the Grand Junction Chief of Police. (Greg Morrison was not in attendance at this time.) The second item on the agenda was the consent agenda. a. Approval of the June 5, 2001 and June 19, 2001 evening minutes. Council member Greg Moffet made a motion to approve the meeting minutes of June 5 and June 19, 2001 and Council member Kevin Foley seconded the motion. A vote was taken and the motion passed unanimously, 6-0. The third item on the agenda was an update of the Meadow Drive Streetscape. Todd Oppenheimer, Town of Vail Landscape Architect, said, at the April 17, 2001 council meeting staff presented 2 conceptual design alternatives for the Meadow Drive Streetscape project, the 2016 Solution and the Promenade Solution. Council favored the Promenade Solution and requested further study of possible configurations. The results of that study are to be presented to council. In addition, staff wishes to present alternatives for the Vail Road/Meadow Drive intersection, and provide the council with information regarding encroachments into the right-of-way, impacts to Mayor's Park, utilities, and construction schedule. Joe Kracum, representing the project team, stated that the team held neighborhood open houses and met with most of the people in the neighborhood. The team received several comments at these meetings. He said there are drainage issues and concerns about the . proximity of the road to residences and businesses in the area and concerns about green space 1 Vail Town Council Meeting Minutes July 17, 2001 and the loss of trees. Most of these issues can be resolved by realigning the road and the sidewalks. Joe said the majority liked the 20/6 solution. There were numerous comments that the 20/6 solution was the best solution, however some of the neighbors liked the promenade solution. Mayor Pro-tem Sybill Navas asked for public input. Steve Connolly, representing the Vail Chamber & Business Association (VCBA), stated the business community fully endorses this project and hopes they proceed soon. Jim Lamont, representing the Vail Village Homeowner's Association asked Todd when this process was started. Todd Oppenheimer stated it started in January. Jim Lamont stated this is one of the only projects he has worked on that has had so much positive support. He said the team did an effective job working with the adjacent property owners. He said if council has to make choices, he wants this project at the top of the list because of the positive energy put in this project by all parties involved. Jim said the Vail Village needs this project and is a direct link to Lionshead. He stated the council should move forward with the project and set aside funding for this project. A resident of 9 Vail Road stated he had a concern with the proximity of the road to the promenade to the 9 Vail Road building. • Paul Schultz, President of Skaal Haus, and the homeowner's met and liked the 20/6 Solution to this project. He stated the Skaal Haus homeowner's endorsed and approved this project Joan Norris, Vice President of Skaal Haus, stated the council has done a wonderful thing and has brought a neighborhood together. She applauds the team and said the public relations were tremendous. Mayor Pro Tern Sybill Navas clarified the council was being asked to validate the design on the table and to move forward. Joe Kracum stated this was correct and they wanted to move forward on the next logical step to work on the design phase. Council member Greg Moffet asked if this was budgeted for this year. Bob McLaurin, Town Manager, stated it was included in this year's budget. Council member Kevin Foley asked about the Talisman access. Todd Oppenheimer stated the Talisman has a 35-foot easement. The Sonnenalp and the Talisman are coming through the redevelopment process. The access would be worked out in conjunction with the redevelopment process. If agreeable with Council, this part of the streetscape process would be worked out during the redevelopment process of these two . projects. 2 Vail Town Council Meeting Minutes July 17, 2001 0 Council member Kevin Foley stated that made sense. Todd Oppenheimer stated the timing of the projects should work out with the streetscape project. Council member Chuck Ogilby stated that the water feature looked great to him. Council member Diane Donovan asked about the cost to the hospital and if the town is paying for this entire project. Joe Kracum stated this had not been discussed yet. Council member Diane Donovan said one concern is the entry into Meadow Drive. The configuration of the entry needs to be reviewed. The crossings across Vail Road need to be reviewed and reconfigured to align with the path. She also stated that Mayor's Park needed to stay intact as much as possible. She liked the project but reiterated there needs to be other partners from the neighborhood to fund this project. Joe Kracum stated that during the design process they would be in front of council several times to go through each portion of the project. Council member Rod Slifer said he supports the 20/6 solution. He is concerned about the • 'roundabout' in front of the fire station. Council member Greg Moffet said his only concern is coordinating effectively with other redevelopment projects with this project. • Mayor Pro Tern Sybil Navas complimented the group on their efforts. She said she concurred with Diane's comments to stay out of Mayor's Park. She also stated a concern is working with the Vail Plaza Hotel and how this project ties in without delaying the town's project. Joe Kracum said it would be a matter of lining up their project with the redevelopment of the other projects. Mayor Pro Tern Sybill Navas asked when construction would begin. Joe Kracum stated it could probably start in early Spring of 2002. Bob McLaurin asked if there was any sewer work that needed to be done. Joe Kracum said he didn't know yet. Council member Kevin Foley added the hotel redevelopment needed snowmelt for shaded areas in the winter and the need to keep pedestrian walkways clear. Todd Oppenheimer said the current budget doesn't include snowmelt but they will coordinate with adjacent property owners. 3 Vail Town Council Meeting Minutes July 17, 2001 Council member Greg Moffet made a motion to direct staff to move forward with design 2016 as presented and move through the approval process. Council member Kevin Foley seconded the motion. Council member Diane Donovan stated and clarified the projects needed to comply with this plan not the other way around. A vote was taken and the motion passed unanimously, 6-0. The fourth item on the agenda was a presentation of the costs for the Red Sandstone Athletic Field. Gregg Barrie, Project Landscape Architect for the town, stated this presentation included the final design and budget for the Red Sandstone Elementary School Athletic Field project. He stated the budget increased from $250,000 to $350,000. He reviewed the various design concepts and explained the basic idea was to provide the kids with turf area for activities. The smaller area located closes to the school will allow easier access from the school for short recess periods. The large turf area would allow for activities such as kick ball, soccer, and t-ball. Also, the Vail Recreation District (VRD) could use this field as a practice facility for younger kids. There is almost an acre of turf (.9 acres) for the school to use. . Gregg said there is an aggressive revegetation process along with this project. He said there would be 10,000 plants planted on site to establish the natural area within 5 years. Aspen trees will be planted to have a visual barrier between the school and SunVail Condominiums. The fence proposed is 6-foot high chain link fence to stop balls and kids from going down the slope. There are other materials for fencing that may be used that could help which would be 8-10 feet high but it also costs more. The material is a lighter weight wire (Invisible coil fence) that is stronger than the netting fences, and more aesthetically pleasing than chain link. • Gregg explained that during the preliminary analysis, it was found that the slopes to the north of the field contained several seeps and springs. Part of the increase in cost is for engineering techniques that were not included in the original plan. The engineering report stated the water is not an issue and the upper hill is not an issue but the fill on the lower side will need to be terraced in and compacted. This area is where the major cost would be. The proposed budget would need to be increased to $350,000. Greg stated he is confident that entire project would come in on that budget. Gregg stated the Inter -Governmental Agreement (IGA) between the Town of Vail (town), the Eagle County School District (school district) and the Vail Recreation District stated the cost of the construction for the field will be split between the town and the school district, 50150. Originally, the Town was going to pay for all the costs up front and the school district would reimburse the town one-half of the cost at the completion of the project. However, the school district has the money to pay the $175,000 now. Council member Greg Moffet asked when was the start date of construction. 4 Vail Town Council Meeting Minutes July 17, 2001 Gregg Barrie said the work could start next Monday, July 23, 2001. He said the majority of the work would be done before school starts on August 27, 2001. The contractor will put in turf that is resilient for kids to be on. Council member Diane Donovan said the color of the fences that were brown or a dark color would not be a good color to use. She said the fence needs to blend in during the snow season too. Gregg Barrie explained that the aspens and the service berry bushes that would be planted should hide it some of the fencing. Mayor Pro-tem Sybill Navas asked if the school district would be responsible for the maintenance of the grounds at all times. Gregg said the VRD would provide for the maintenance of the fields if the VRD could use it as a practice field. This would allow students to use the field for soccer practice without going anywhere after school. The IGA sets forth the use requirements. The school would have first priority of use and it will be closed to the public during school hours. The town would have second priority and VRD would have 3"d priority. He said the concerns about maintenance issues such as trash and maintaining fencing could also be added to the IGA and VRD would maintain them. He said the restrooms are also a concern. Typically, the restrooms in schools are not available to the public. When the town or VRD uses the fields, the restrooms at the school would be available during those times. He said that adding a restroom at the fields would cost an additional $60,000-$70,000. Bob McLaurin, Town Manager, said if there is a problem with the VRD doing the maintenance, the school district would step in and do it. Council member Greg Moffet said the VRD is desperate to have additional fields and they are willing to do the maintenance if they get to use the field. Council member Rod Slifer said the VRD would have the option to open up the school's restrooms. Council member Diane Donovan reiterated that this needs to be in the contract. Allen Christensen, Acting Town Attorney, stated none of the areas of concern are insurmountable. He stated staff wanted direction from Council on how to proceed. Council member Diane Donovan stated she would like to see the changes discussed added to the IGA before signing it. Council member Greg Moffet made a motion to execute the IGA now and add the amendments to the IGA at the next town council meeting, as well as approving the increase of the budget to $350,000 and approving the start of the construction on July 23, 2001. A clarification of the amendment to the IGA would be held at the next regular town council evening meeting on August 7, 2001. 5 Vail Town Council Meeting Minutes July 17, 2001 • Council member Kevin Foley seconded the motion. 0 Further discussion ensued. Council member Kevin Foley thanked Harry Gray for initiating the item and Karen Strakbein for representing the school district in this project. A vote was taken and the motion passed unanimously, 6-0. The fifth item on the agenda was the Town Manager's Report. Bob McLaurin, Town Manager, stated one item to discuss was an update of the capital projects list. Steve Thompson, Finance Director handed out a memorandum for their review and discussion at the next town council meeting in August. Steve Thompson stated that each year the town updates the capital projects list and there is a 5-year list per the Town Charter. He said this list is the beginning, and on pages 13 & 14 were the adjustments to the 2001 capital projects numbers. He stated those were the most relevant changes and staff would be going before the town council for a supplemental adjustment and moving money to various projects. This memorandum brings the town council up to date with capital projects. Steve also stated that from 2003 out they have added capital projects for the year 2006. Staff' has looked at various projects and had made additions to the list. Bob McLaurin, reiterated this is the beginning of the capital projects list. He said that the elected officials place every project that gets funded on this list. This memorandum allows the town council time to review the list prior to the August meeting Council member Diane Donovan asked if the critical strategies list could be separated out of this list. Steve Thompson stated the problem with separating it out is projects like Vail Center because the town doesn't have costs on these types of projects. Bob McLaurin said he would try to come up with a list of specific projects as an exhibit to the capital projects list. Further discussion ensued about various aspects of the capital projects list. Steve Thompson said the capital projects list would be presented to council on August 14. He said there are other factors such as Donovan Park leasing and the town needs to keep options open. Council member Greg Moffet said there were additional upcoming items and a variety of unaddressed items in the critical strategies list that need to be addressed. Council member Diane Donovan asked where PEEP gets their funds. Vail Town Council Meeting Minutes July 17, 2001 Russ Forrest, Community Development Director said PEEP gets their funding from the county. the Town of Vail ($8,000) and other contributions. Mayor Pro Tern Sybill Navas asked that the Vail Center be taken off the list and look at it separately. Further discussion ensued. Additional time on the August 7 and August 21 evening meetings will be needed to discuss these in further detail. Chief of Police Greg Morrison entered the council chambers. Mayor Pro-tem Sybill Navas again offered thanks to Greg Morrison for his many years of service and wished him well in his new endeavors. She said his leadership and the police department's recent efforts with the July 4th celebration were successful. She also stated that the town council and community would miss him. Council member Greg Moffet stated Greg had been a great asset to the community. As there was no further business, a motion was made by Council member Greg Moffet to adjourn the meeting and Council member Kevin Foley seconded the motion. A vote was taken and the motion passed unanimously, 6-0. The meeting was adjourned at 8:05 p.m. Respectf mitted, • ii , avas _M yor Pro-tem Lorelei D naldson, Town Clerk AE! k Minutes taken by Lorelei Donaldson f�EAL 0 7 Vail Town Council Meeting Minutes July 17, 2001