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Home My WebLink About2002-09-03 Town Council MinutesTOWN COUNCIL EVENING MEETING TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2002 7:00 P.M. TOV COUNCIL CHAMBERS The regular meeting of the Vail Town Council convened at 7:00 P.M. on Tuesday, September 03, 2002, in the Vail Town Council Chambers. MEMBERS PRESENT: Ludwig Kurz, Mayor Rod Slifer, Mayor Pro-Tem Dick Cleveland Diana Donovan Bill Jewitt Greg Moffet Chuck Ogilby STAFF MEMBERS PRESENT: Bob McLaurin, Town Manager Pam Brandmeyer, Ass't. Town Mgr. Matt Mire, Town Attorney • The first item on the agenda was Citizen Participation. Bob Armour, Vail resident, former Vail mayor and member of the Vail Mountain Rescue Group, addressed the Council, advising of the Committee of National and International Mountain Rescue volunteers conference in Vail in June of 2005. Armour stated a committee had been formed and would be traveling to Penzlo, Italy this month to speak at a European Mountain Rescue conference and would be inviting the community to Vail for an international symposium during that time. Armour asked for assistance from Mayor Kurz in signing letters of invitation to key dignitaries from around the world. Joe Hoy introduced himself as a candidate for Eagle County sheriff. Hoy stated he had 27 years of public service experience and had been with the Eagle County Sheriff's Office for the past 13 years. Ron Riley, local resident and business owner, asked the Council to review the parking policies and put the item back on agenda for further discussion. Riley stated he was a strong proponent of Free after three, feeling it gave the statement "Vail wants your business" and did not feel this was the time to change that message. Dave Gorsuch, Vail resident and shop owner, addressed the Council, stating he was addressing the same issue. Gorsuch stated 65% of his winter business was done from 3-7 P.M. and felt the town was sending a bad message to people. Gorsuch felt the town F:mcaster//Tcmeet/2002/040302 1 should take advantage of the "mess in Avon" at the old stolport and do whatever it could to business back to Vail. Paul Rondeau, Vail resident, questioned the Council regarding Vail Center. Rondeau stated last week a presentation was made on the conference center and no staff input was given. Mayor Kurz stated the sense of the Council was of a timing issue and the needed to put the item on the November ballot. Rondeau expressed his frustration in the ability to contribute to the pro -con statement process. Mayor Kurz told Rondeau he would call him the next day to discuss the matter further. Robert Aikens, manager of Verbatim Booksellers, spoke regarding the proposed parking rates. Aikens agreed with what others had stated before him and also suggested putting the discussion back on a future agenda for further discussion. Kaye Ferry, VCBA, stated she had received an overwhelming resistance to the new plan. Ferry stated the VCBA board was behind a change back to Free after 3 and 90 minute free parking. Ferry stated she agreed with comments made by Ron Riley and Dave Gorsuch, feeling the town was sending the wrong message to the tourists. Mayor Kurz stated the Council had acted on the recommendations of the Parking Task Force, which included members of the business community, after their long deliberations on the issue. Ferry stated one member was not in favor the change, while the other member did not have a • strong opinion one way or the other. Town Manager Bob McLaurin stated the new parking equipment had been ordered and there would be a penalty to pay if the order was terminated, however, it was up to the Council to reconsider the options. Rod Slifer stated he would be happy to revisit the proposed parking fees, saying he was not for it in the beginning. Dick Cleveland advised he would revisit the half hour free parking, opting to go to an hour. Bob Armour, local resident and former Mayor, reminded the Council that a motion was needed to recall or consider the item. Town Attorney Mire advised the Council the proper way to proceed would be to schedule the item for discussion at a future meeting, and parking should not be discussed at this meeting, as it was not an agenda item. Town Manager McLaurin was directed to call the committee together to further review the program. Rick Scalpello, Vail Today, invited the Council to an Italian Festival this Saturday and Sunday in Vail Village, including food and a wine tasting tent. Scalpello stated two pairs of tickets to Tuscany would be given away at the festival. Diana Donovan commented on the 58 phone calls the Council had received expressing their views, asking the Council be given some advance notice rather than calling while the Council was in meetings, as well as being prepared to speak to the issue, as opposed to being "coached" as they were speaking. The second item on the agenda was a proclamation proclaiming September 11, 2002, as • Always Remember 9-11 Day. Greg Moffet read the Proclamation into the record. Rod F:mcaster//Tcmeet/2002/090302 2 • Slifer made a motion to approve the proclamation. Dick Cleveland seconded the motion. A vote was taken and the motion passed unanimously, 7-0. The third item on the agenda was the selection of Contractor for Information Centers. Rod Slifer stated he felt in light of budget constraints, whoeverthe contract was awarded to should be reduced by 5%, as the council was asking the town to do. Greg Moffet stated he was reluctant to vote for the item, feeling the centers should be self -funding. The Council clarified the financial commitment would be for one year only, while the contract would be for a 2-year period. Bill Jewitt then made a motion to award the contract to the lowest bidder, Vail Chamber and Business Association (VCBA). There was no second to the motion, and the motion died. Rod Slifer then made a motion to award the contract of the Vail Valley Chamber and Business Association (VVCTB), with the stipulation they reduce their bid by 5%. Chuck Ogilby seconded the motion. Diana Donovan asked that the motion include all Vail businesses be included on the Vail Walking Map. Discussion followed. Slifer amended his motion. Chuck Ogilby stated he felt the town had lost something that was valuable when the lodging component was dropped from the information booths. A vote was taken on the motion and the motion passed 5-2, Bill Jewitt and Dick Cleveland opposing. The fourth item on the agenda was Resolution No. 15, Series of 2002, a resolution repealing and reenacting Resolution No. 14, calling for a special election in the Town of • Vail, Colorado, concerning the issuance of bonds and increase in taxes to finance a conference center. Town Attorney Matt Mire stated the ballot question as adopted in Resolution #14 authorized a tax increase of $3,830,000 annually. As drafted, this would be an absolute limit. If more than $3,830,000 was collected in a future year the town would have to refund the surplus. The minor change in the question allowed the towntokeepthe surplus revenues in future years. The excess revenues would only be available for conference center purposes. Greg Moffet moved to approve Resolution #15. Rod Slifer seconded the motion. Diana Donovan stated she would be voting against the motion, expressing her opposition to a publicly funded convention center. Donovan expressed her frustration in not receiving information in a timely manner for discussion at the council meetings. Rick Scalpello, Vail resident, asked for a copy of a slide presentation given to the Council at the August 20,2002, Council meeting, relating to the convention center, stating it was not made available to the public. Town Manager McLaurin stated he would see that Scalpello received a copy of the document after the meeting. A vote was taken on the motion and the motion passed 6-1, Donovan opposing. The fifth item on the agenda was Ordinance No. 24, Series 2002, 2"d reading, an ordinance providing for the use of the Uniform Election Code in connection with certain elections. Attorney Mire stated it was necessary to utilize the requirements and procedures of the Uniform Election Code in lieu of the Municipal Election Code if the Town of Vail elects to participate in a coordinated election with Eagle. Section 2.1 of The Town Charter allows the Town to elect, via ordinance, to utilize said requirements and procedures of the . Uniform Election Code in these instances. Dick Cleveland moved to approve Ordinance 6:mca9ter//Tcmeet/2002/090302 3 #24 on second reading. Bill Jewitt seconded the motion. A vote was taken and the motion passed unanimously, 7-0. The sixth item on the agenda was the Town Manager's Report. Town Manager McLaurin stated he had nothing to add to his report. Greg Moffet advised the packet to be provided by the Vail Local Marketing District Advisory Council would miss the Thursday afternoon deadline for council packets, but would be hand delivered to the Council members over the weekend. As there was no further business, Greg Moffet made a motion to adjourn. Dick Cleveland seconded the motion. A vote was taken and the motion passed unanimously, 7-0, and the meeting was adjourned at 7:50 P.M.. OF\ 7ST: '�� Donaldson, Town Clerk Minutes taken by Mary A. Caster • F:mca9ter//Tcmeet/2002/090302 4 Respectfully submitted, Ludwig Ku4, Mayor