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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2002-08-20 Town Council MinutesVAIL TOWN COUNCIL EVENING MEETING TUESDAY, August 20, 2002 6:00 P.M. TOV COUNCIL CHAMBERS The regular meeting of the Vail Town Council was called to order at 6:00 P.M. in the Town of Vail Municipal Building by Mayor Ludwig Kurz. MEMBERS PRESENT: Staff Members Present: Ludwig Kurz, Mayor Rod Slifer, Mayor Pro-Tem Dick Cleveland Diana Donovan Bill Jewitt Greg Moffet Chuck Ogilby Bob McLaurin, Town Manager Matt Mire, Town Attorney The first item on the agenda was Citizen Participation. Mayor Kurz informed the audience it appeared there were several people prepared to speak on behalf of the Middle Creek housing project that was not an agenda item for the evening's meeting. Kurz stated the Council would hear from several citizens, but the time to speak would be at the Planning and Environmental Commission meeting next Monday, August 26`h, when the item would be scheduled on their agenda. Several citizens spoke in favor of the housing project. Ron Riley, local businessman, expressed his support of the project and asked for a show of hands from the audience that were in attendance in favor of the Middle Creek project. The majority of the audience raised their hands. Kimberly Ruotolo, Vail resident, addressed the Council, requesting the free parking in the structure be extended longer than 30 minutes. Paul Rondeau, Vail resident, addressed the Council and distributed a memo outlining an on -going improvement program. Rondeau stated he would have more input during the discussion on Resolution #11 regarding a proposed increase in property taxes. The second item on the agenda was a request to Proceed Thru the Process for Christmas Tree Lighting on Public Right -of -Way. Rick Scalpello, Vail resident and owner of the request, addressed the Council, asking for questions in response to his request. After some discussion a motion was made by Greg Moffet to grant permission to proceed thru the process. Dick Cleveland seconded the motion. Rod Slifer asked if a tree been • selected for the lighting. Scalpello stated there were 4 trees there. Diana Donovan stated F:mcastex//TCMin/2002/082002 1 • she was not in favor of the removal of mature trees and had he considered thinning them. A vote was taken on the motion and the motion passed unanimously, 7-0. Arn Menconi , Eagle County Commissioner, arrived late for Citizen Participation, but spoke in favor of Mountain Bell site. Town Manager McLaurin thanked Menconi for his participation in the private activity bonds. The third item on the agenda was a discussion of a memorial park. Diana Donovan reported their committee, consisting of Chuck Ogilby, Mery Lapin, and herself had researched sites, and were asking for authorization to proceed to work out details. The sites included the Spraddle Creek trailhead, the east end of the Katsos property near the East Vail interchange and the streamwalk between the covered Bridge and Ford Park. Chuck Ogilby stated would be nice to have Council concurrence before proceeding. Mayor Kurz stated the Council took site visit earlier in afternoon to two of the sites. Kurz felt the Spraddle Creek was more suited for the site. Bill Jewitt stated the riverwalk would be more accessible to people. Rod Slifer stated he was in favor of setting up a committee and moving forward and made a motion to that effect. Bill Jewitt seconded the motion. A vote was taken and the motion passed unanimously, 7-0. The fourth item on the agenda was a Formal Motion to Approve Design & Prepare • Construction Contract of the Donovan Park Pavilion. Diana Donovan stated the committee needed authorization to move forward with the design contract. Greg Moffet moved to approve the contract. Chuck Ogilby seconded the motion. Rod Slifer stated he had missed several of the meetings, but complimented the rest of the committee on the excellent job they had done selecting an architect and builder and should be thanked for all the time spent coming up with a great product. Bill Jewitt expressed his opposition to spending public funds for the pavilion, but stated he would be voting in favor of the approval of contract. A vote was taken and the motion passed unanimously, 7-0. The fifth item on the agenda was a discussion on the Cortina Lane Street Improvements Project. Tom Kassmel, project engineer, requested approval to award the contract to B&B Construction. Kassmel stated the project had a scheduled start date with Eagle River Water District of 8/26, with the town starting two weeks weeks later (Sept. 9T"). Completion of the project is scheduled for October 31, 2002. Council asked why B&B Excavating's bid was so much lower than others. Kassmel reported that most of their work is done locally, not requiring subcontractors. Town Attorney Mire suggested the Council word their motion to award the contract to the lowest responsible bidder, avoiding any potential problems with contractors requesting changes after the bid award. Greg Moffet moved to award the Cortina Lane Street Improvement Project to the lowest bidder. Bill Jewitt seconded the motion. A vote was taken and the motion passed unanimously, 7-0. As a result of the meeting moving faster than had been anticipated and the parties • representing the parking discussion were not in attendance, the Council heard from Bob F:mcaster//TCMin/2002/082002 2 McLaurin regarding the Town Manager's Report. Chuck Ogilby moved to authorize the town manager to go forward with the design of a new pedestrian at the Gore Creek promenade, as well as improvements to the whitewater park beneath the bridge. McLaurin stated the project would begin in spring of 2003. Greg Moffet seconded the motion. Diana Donovan expressed her hopes of value engineering to cut cost of project. A vote was taken on the motion and the motion passed 5-2, Bill Jewitt and Dick Cleveland opposed. The Council then moved to the twelfth item on the agenda was Ordinance No. 19, Series of 2002, second reading, an ordinance establishing standards and regulations regarding the protection of wildlife. Town Attorney Mire presented the ordinance to the Council, noting strikeouts where the ordinance had been changed from first reading, the main points being the ordinance makes it unlawful to place trash containers out on days other than the scheduled pick- up days, and may only be placed after 6:00 a.m. and returned to appropriate storage areas by 7:00 P.M. the same day. After discussion, Dick Cleveland moved to adopt ordinance No. 19 on second reading. Greg Moffet seconded the motion. Diana Donovan suggested the public look at the display of bear proof containers in the parking lot. Rick Scalpello agreed with the intent of the ordinance, and suggested rewriting the ordinance to eliminate opportunities for selective enforcement. Guy Ayrault, local resident, thanked the Council for approving the measure, calling it a "great leap forward". A vote was taken on the motion and the motion passed unanimously, 7-0. The next item heard was a discussion on proposed parking fees. Mayor Kurz thanked members of the parking task force for coming up with the new parking fees. Kurz also stated he had received 58 voicemails regarding the new guidelines. Public Works Director Hall presented the new proposal to the Council, which included a simplified hourly rate structure capped at $13 per day; free parking for the first 30 minutes with a $1 rate for up to 90 minutes; new metered short-term parking for $3; free parking after 5:00 p.m.; free validated parking for Vail library users; new low-cost outlying parking options for employees; a new park `n ride option from Edwards to Vail; merchant ski pass discounts for employees who purchase outlying parking passes or park 'n ride passes, and continuation of the Debit Card, Blue Card and Gold Card parking passes. Much discussion followed, including comments from Kaye Ferry, Vail Chamber and Business Association, expressed concerns regarding proposed price increases in the parking passes and the removal of the Free after 3 parking. Ferry also stated her group had planned to do a parking survey of the business community. Dobson user groups expressed their desire to have parking validations similar to the public library users. Bill Jensen spoke in favor of the parking recommendation. Jensen stated Vail Resorts was willing to make a $300,000 contribution in merchant pass discounts to create incentives for low-cost outlying parking opportunities for employees. Jensen also stated 375 parking spaces would be freed up on Friday, Saturday and Sunday with the use of the • parking discounts being offered. Greg Moffet stated he favored 1 hour free parking as F:mcaster//TCMin/2002/082002 q . opposed to 30 minutes. Rod Slifer expressed his support of Free after 3 and the hour and one half free. Michael Cacioppo, Speakout, expressed his belief the local merchants would be hurt by eliminating the 1 1/2 hour free parking. Robert Akins, manager of Verbatim bookstore, spoke if favor of keeping the 90 minute free parking. Mayor Kurz thanked the staff for doing a very thorough job of informing the task force, stating most of the questions brought up tonight were brought up in other meetings and the business community had been included in discussions. Ogilby stated he hated to lose free after three and 1.5 free parking, reminding the Council and the public of his election platform that included free parking in Vail, and acknowledged the fact that Vail Resorts had bent over backwards to seek parking alternatives. Dick Cleveland stated he felt the incentives work better than dissentives. Diana Donovan stated she was impressed with the Task Force work, calling the recommendations "creative" and "balanced", and felt the program should be adopted as is. Donovan also stated the need to look at validating Dobson users. Dick Cleveland moved to adopt the proposed parking fees for 2002-2003 season as submitted. Bill Jewitt seconded the motion. Diana Donovan suggested amending the motion to look further into validation for Dobson users. Dick Cleveland amended his motion accordingly. Bill Jewitt stated he would not amend his second, and the motion died for lack of a second. Diana Donovan seconded the motion. Rod Slifer stated he felt strongly about the hour and a half free parking and Free after 3. Bill Jewitt stated he felt if the town opened up validation at Dobson, it would start special interest groups putting pressure on the Council for each • their groups. A vote was taken on the motion and the motion passed 4-3, Slifer, Moffet, and Ogilby opposed. The seventh item on the agenda was Resolution No. 11, Series of 2002, a resolution calling for a special election in the Town of Vail, Colorado, concerning an increase in the town's property tax. Attorney Mire stated this was a County -wide mail in election. Chuck Ogilby suggested a recitial be added that identified the intent of the resolution, to address improvements to Lionshead Village; improvements to Vail Village; improvements to loading and delivery infrastructure; the hiring of additional firefighters; and improvements throughout the community. Chuck Ogilby made a motion to adopt Resolution 11 with the recommended changes. Rod Slifer seconded the motion. Attorney Mire proposed putting a time limit on it. Dick Cleveland stated he thought capital improvements should be included. Paul Rondeau suggested the need to accompany the property tax issue with an ongoing improvement program that would focus on effectiveness and efficiencies within the organization. Jim Lamont, Vail Village Homeowners Association, suggested the need to get the word out as to the how money is to be spent, i.e., public safety and a new fire department as well as other improvements. Diana Donovan stated she hoped for discussion from the public. Paul Rondeau, Vail resident, referred to a public meeting held in December, and questioned what had happen since then. John Cogswell, business owner, inquired how commercial property would be taxed. A vote was taken on the motion and the motion passed 6-1, Moffet opposing. Moffet stated he was uncomfortable with the ballot measure because it did not address tax relief provisions for full-time residents and • business owners. F:MCaSter//TCMin/2002/082002 4 . The eighth item on the agenda was Resolution No. 14, Series of 2002., a resolution calling a special election in the Town of Vail, Colorado, concerning the issuance of bonds and increase in taxes to finance a conference center. Attorney Mire presented the resolution to the Council. A presentation was made by Stan Cope, of the Lodging Community, as well as a presentation from a Minneapolis -based company regarding feasibility studies done on public assembly spaces followed. The report identified corporate groups and national associations as a target market for a Vail conference center. Tom Wierdsma of Hans Phelps, a Greeley -based construction/program management company, presented plans to provide a comprehensive development management agreement that would deliver a turn- key facility to the community, risk -free. The total development cost is estimated at $46.2 million. The donation of Vail Resorts land is valued at $9 million. Porter Wharton, III, of Vail Resorts, addressed the Council, stating the current maintenance and warehouse would be moved to the Mountain Center in Avon, snowcat facilities would move across the street with the water treatment plant, and lift maintenance would be located on the mountain. Discussion was held regarding who would run the conference center. Town Manager McLaurin expressed his confidence in the bond attorneys of George K. Baum & Company, stating the town had a long working relationship with and had complete trust in them. Although Bill Jewitt and Dick Cleveland expressed reservations about possible competing ballot issues, both expressed support for moving forward with the project. Greg Moffet, Rod Slifer and Mayor Kurz expressed their support in moving forward with the • project. A motion was then made by Greg Moffet to adopt Resolution #14 with a change on page 3 that sunsets the sales tax amended to include the lodging tax. Rod Slifer seconded the motion. Diana Donovan stated she would be voting against the resolution. and read a list of objections and observations she had regarding the conference center. Chuck Ogilby gave an optimistic observation as to why the flown should proceed with the conference center and how it would relate to the renaissance of Vail. Ogilby recalled a presentation last winter by Ford Frick stating the need for great diversity. Greg Moffet stated with a $9 million kickstart by the land owner and the hotels and business owners in support of the convention center, he felt the time was right to proceed. Rod Slifer stated he agreed with Ogilby's and Moffet's comments and felt Vail was suffering today because of the lack of such a facility. Slifer congratulated the committee who had worked on putting this proposal together. Mayor Kurz was in agreement with comments by Rod Slifer. Paul Rondeau, Vail resident, suggested drafting pro and con statements now for the issue. Jeff Wright of Destination Resorts, reported an increase in areas with conference businesses. Rick Scalpello, Vail Today, presented a list of concerns and questions, including the` potential risk to the town and what he described as a need for additional private sector contributions. Scalpello urged the Council to postpone its vote, citing the need for additional analysis of the information presented at the meeting. Michael Cacioppo, Speakout, offered general supportforthe center, although he expressed concern about the proposed location. A vote was taken on the motion and the motion passed, 6-1, Donovan opposing. • The next item on the agenda was Resolutions #12 , Series of 2002, regarding F:mcaster//TCMin/2002/082002 5 . Vail Mountain School. Resolution #12 amended the Town of Vail official rockfall hazard map to change the designation for a portion of Lot 12, block 2, Vail Village 12th Filing and a portion of Tract C, Block 1, Vail Village 12th Filing from high severity rockfall to rockfall hazard with approved mitigation.Russ Forrest presented the proposal to the Council. Greg Moffet moved to approve Resolution 12 with approved findings subject to criteria to page 21 on memo. Bill Jewitt seconded the motion. A vote was taken and the motion passed unanimously, 7-0. The next item on the agenda was Resolution #13, Series of 2002, a resolution amending the Town of Vail Land Use Plan, changing the land use designation for Tract C, Block 1, Vail Village 12th Filing from low density residential (LDR) to Public/Semi-Public (PSP). Greg Moffet then moved to approve Resolution #13, land use designation subject to findings on page 12 of the pec memo. Bill Jewitt seconded the motion. A vote was taken and the motion assed unanimously, 7-0. The next item on the agenda was Ordinance #21, Series of 2002, first reading an ordinance amending the zone district boundaries of the Official Zoning Map for the Town of Vail in accordance with Title 12, Zoning Regulations, Chapter 5, Zoning Map, Section 3, Changes, Vail Town Code; rezoning Lot 12, Block 2, Vail Village 12" Filing from the Agricultural and Open Space (A) District to the General Use (GU) District. Russ Forrest addressed the Council, stating these resolutions and ordinances had been review at the • work session held earlier in the day. Greg Moffet moved to approve Ordinance #21 on first reading, with changes to the criteria on page 13 of staff memorandum to the Planning and Environmental Commission and findings on page 16 of the staff memo. The motion was seconded by Bill Jewitt. A vote was taken and the motion passed unanimously, 7-0. The next item on the agenda was the first reading of Ordinance #22, Series of 2002, an ordinance amending the zone district boundaries of the Official Zoning Map for the Town of Vail in accordance with Title 12, Zoning Regulations, Chapter 5, Zoning Map, Section 3, Changes, Vail Town Code; rezoning Lot 11, Block 2, Vail Village 12Ih Filing from the Two -Family Residential O District to the General Use (GU) District. Greg Moffet made a motion to approve Ordinance #23 on first reading, subject to page 13 of the staff memo to the Planning and Environmental Commission and findings on page 16 of the memo. Bill Jewitt seconded the memo. A vote was taken and the motion passed unanimously, 7-0. The next item on the agenda was the first reading of Ordinance #23, Series of 2002, an ordinance amending the zone district boundaries of the Official Zoning Map for the Town of Vail in accordance with Title 12, Zoning Regulations, Chapter 5, Zoning Map, Section 3, Changes, Vail Town Code; rezoning Tract C, Block 1, Vail Village 12Ih Filing from the Two -Family Residential (R) District to the General Use (GU) District. Greg Moffet made a motion to approve Ordinance 22, on first reading, with criteria included in page 13 of the staff memo to the Planning and Environmental Commission and findings • in the staff memo on page 16. Bill Jewitt seconded the motion. A vote was taken and F:mcaster//TCMin/2002/082002 6 • motion passed unanimously, 7-0. Forrest stated a public hearing would be held on September 17th for the second reading on all three ordinances. As there was no further business, Greg Moffet made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Rod Slifer seconded the motion. A vote was taken and the meeting was adjourned at 10:55 P.M. Respectfully submitted, �N 4F Ste - Ludwig Kurz,%Aayor ATTEST: elei naldson, Town Cleric IsMinutes taken by Mary A. Caster 0 F:mcaster//TCMin/2002/082002 7