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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2005-09-20 Town Council Minutes• Vail Town Council Evening Meeting Minutes Tuesday, September 20, 2005 6:00 P.M. Vail Town Council Chambers Council Members present: Rod Slifer, Mayor Dick Cleveland, Mayor Pro-Tem Diana Donovan Kent Logan Kim Ruotolo Farrow Hitt Greg Moffet Staff Members Present: Stan Zemler, Town Manager Pam Brandmeyer, Asst. Town Manager Matt Mire, Town Attorney The first item on the agenda was Citizen Input. There was no citizen input. The second item on the agenda was a Construction Update. Public Works Director Greg Hall provided an overview of construction projects occurring throughout the community. Updates were provided on streetscape work on Bridge Street, utility work on East Meadow Drive, streetscape work on Hanson Ranch Road as part of the Tivoli Lodge construction, and continued progress in LionsHead with construction of the Arrabelle at Vail Square. Sewer work has been completed at the West Vail roundabout and a turn lane is under construction on the South Frontage Road for an employee parking lot at the Vail Resorts maintenance yard (Holy Cross site). Hall said it was unclear if the contractor for the Four Seasons project would be able to schedule relocation of the Spraddle Creek culvert any time soon as approvals have not been completed. Hall said he did not know what impact the delay would have on the project's overall timetable. The third item on the agenda was a transfer request for Eagle County Down Payment Program. With a motion by Moffet and a second by Logan, Council voted 7-0 to approve a request to transfer $10,000 from the town's buy -down program to the Eagle County Down Payment Assistance Program. In presenting the request, Vail Housing Coordinator Nina Timm noted the Eagle County program has helped 34 employees purchase homes within the Town of Vail. She explained the town's buy -down program is used to purchase free market housing units in Vail, convert them to deed -restricted units, then re -sell the units to qualified buyers at a subsidized price. Timm said the town's buy - down program has previously donated $17,000 to the county fund. The goal is to have the county loan program be self-sustaining by 2008. The fourth item on the agenda was Council Contributions. As part of the 2006 budget process, Council reviewed 42 proposals from 37 organizations requesting funding and/or in -kind services for next year in the categories of economic, educational, recreation, arrangements and agreements, and Real Estate Transfer Tax (RETT). Introducing the • discussion Assistant Town Manager Pam Brandmeyer described the criteria used by staff to evaluate the proposals: 1) Does the request bring people to town? 2) Does it give guests something to do while they're here? and 3) Does it support them while they're here? Brandmeyer asked council to provide direction, with additional review to take place during first reading of the 2006 budget ordinance on 10.04.05, followed by second reading on 10.18.05. Council then reviewed a worksheet identifying individual funding recommendations from each member, as well as the town manager, and offered the following direction for inclusion in the budget proposal: Economic Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival/New York Philharmonic, $100,000; Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival, $25,000 and 15 Ford Park permits valued at $1,350; TEVA Mountain Games in -kind valued at $7,640; Vail Jazz Foundation Labor Day Weekend party, $7,500; Vail Farmers' Market, in -kind services valued at $8,000; Vail Valley Foundation Birds of Prey, in -kind transportation, $14,000 (contingent on bed base); Vail Valley Foundation The Session, in -kind parking valued at $3,000; Vail Valley Foundation American Ski Classic, in -kind parking valued at $3,000; Vail Valley Foundation Streetbeat Winter Concert Series, $20,000 plus in -kind services valued at $6,500; Vail Valley Foundation Vail International Dance Festival, $15,000; Vail Valley Foundation Hot Summer Nights, $25,000 plus in -kind services valued at $2,800; Vail Valley Chamber & Tourism Bureau Summer Air Guarantee, $10,000; Vail Valley Chamber & Tourism Bureau Summer Air Administrative costs, TBD; Vail Community Host Program, seven blue parking passes valued at $4,125; Vail Commission on Special Events, $650,000, plus in -kind parking valued at $825; and $50,000 as a "placeholder" for economic Is development/construction mitigation. Educational Eagle Valley Alliance for Sustainability, $15,000 "placeholder"; Vail Symposium, use of Donovan Pavilion through cooperative partnership with Vail Library; Vail Valley Exchange, $6,000; and Vail Valley Institute, $2,500. Recreation Battle Mountain High School Ski Team, up to 500 parking coupons, valued at $2,500; Battle Mountain Huskies Hockey Booster Club, TBD; Skating Club of Vail, nine days of ice, valued at $11,891; Ski & Snowboard Club of Vail, four days of ice valued at $5,285; Snowshoe Shuffle, in -kind parking valued at $4,000; Special Olympics, 80 parking coupons, valued at $1,280; Vail Junior Hockey Association, TBD; and Vail Valley Medical Center Luncheon/Style Show, in -kind parking, valued at $4,000. Arrangements and Agreements Vail Valley Community Channel 5 operating, $64,000; Vail Valley Community Channel 5 capital improvements, $8,200; Youth Recognition Award, $7,000; Eagle Valley Child Care, $40,000; and Vail Valley Athlete Commission, $4,750. 0 Real Estate Transfer Tax Fund 2 • Vail Memorial Park Endowment Fund, $50,000; Eagle River Watershed, $100,000; Betty Ford Alpine Garden Foundation operations and maintenance, $50,000; Betty Ford Alpine Garden Foundation Educational Interpretive Stations in the Main Garden, $30,000 based on a $70,000 Great Outdoors Colorado grant. In reviewing the requests, Council members also redirected several proposals to other funding sources, including requests by the Colorado Ski Museum and the Vail Valley Chamber & Tourism Bureau (VCBA). Funding proposals for seven programs submitted by the Vail Chamber and Business Association (VCBA) received the most attention during the evening with Councilman Farrow Hitt expressing support for a $233,075 VCBA proposal to subsidize free gondola rides in LionsHead to help mitigate construction impacts. The gondola program was part of a "passport" program encouraging LionsHead business development. During the public comment period, Craig Arford of Vail Ski & Bike Tech in LionsHead and Bill Jewitt of Bart & Yeti's shared their support for the gondola proposal, saying the construction impacts in LionsHead were taking a toll on the business community's ability to remain viable. While the two acknowledged no sales tax revenues are derived from activities on the mountain, they said the passport component of the proposal would generate sales tax elsewhere since it requires recipients to visit businesses in LionsHead before a free gondola ticket would be issued. Town Manager Stan Zemler urged caution in Council's evaluation of the request, noting other businesses in other areas of the community are also being impacted by construction. He suggested consideration of a mitigation program assisting businesses across the community. While acknowledging the difficulties experienced by LionsHead merchants and in lieu of the gondola proposal, Council agreed to set aside 10 $50,000 as a "placeholder" to be used for a yet -to -be identified program to improve the business climate townwide as a result of the construction impacts. Other VCBA proposals included $15,347 to fund a booth at the Colorado Snow Sports Expo in 2006; $41,734 and a blue parking pass to fund the Premier Impressions customer service recognition program; $14,700 to fund the Vail Gift Card program; $36,740 to fund the Vail Guide; $8,345 to fund the Vail Loves You Coupon Book; and $11,555 for web site funding. Kaye Ferry, VCBA Executive Director, was among those who spoke to explain the value of the VCBA's funding requests. In particular, Ferry explained the perceived benefits of participating in the Colorado Snow Sports Expo, the positive contributions of the Premier Impressions program and the subsidy required to produce a comprehensive guide for Vail that includes the listings of all business license holders. VCBA board members Marka Brenner and John Cogswell also asked Council to support the programs. While individual Council members favored contributing reduced amounts to selected VCBA programs, the consensus of the Council majority was to leave the requests unfunded unless otherwise resubmitted by the town manager. Other speakers during the public comment period included Matt Scherr, director of the Eagle Valley Alliance for Sustainability, Jeanne Reed of Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival, Jim Brandmeyer, executive director of the Betty Ford Alpine Gardens, and Sybill Navas, Coordinator for the Vail Commission on Special Events. In addition, Rick Silverman helped explain regulations related to Title IX during a discussion about a request for ice time at Dobson Arena for the Battle Mountain Huskies. Silverman also suggested the town impose an impact fee on developers to help fund programs to assist neighboring businesses during construction. The fifth item on the agenda was a Mountain Haus Request to Proceed. With a motion by Moffet and a second by Ruotolo, the Council voted 7-0 to approve a request by the Mountain Haus to proceed through the development review process for a new covered 3 • entry and removal of the request to alter landscaping on the west elevation of the existing building within the Town of Vail property surrounding Slifer Square. While discussing the item, town planner Warren Campbell noted the entry improvements were contained in a 1998 town approval, but were never completed. Councilmembers added an amendment to the motion, requiring an easement should the improvements be approved. Diana Donovan expressed frustration with the applicant for cutting trees, calling the unapproved action "unforgivable." The sixth item on the agenda was a Emergency Ordinance Setting Ballot Language for Amendment to Vail Home Rule Charter, re: Vail Municipal Court Jurisdiction. Following a motion by Moffet and a second by Cleveland, Council voted 7-0 to approve an emergency ordinance to submit a Town of Vail Charter amendment to Vail voters at the 11.08.05 election. Town Attorney Matt Mire explained the ballot question was prepared to address a recent Colorado Supreme Court case requiring Home Rule cities with charter language similar to Vail's to use their municipal courts to handle zoning and land use appeals. Due to the lack of appropriate resources, Mire noted the Eagle County District Court has historically presided over such cases rather than the Vail Municipal Court. The Charter Amendment, he said, would formalize the existing practice. The ballot will read as follows: SHALL THE HOME RULE CHARTER OF THE TOWN OF VAIL, COLORADO, BE AMENDED TO ELMINATE THE EXCLUSIVITY OF THE VAIL MUNICIPAL COURT'S JURISDICTION OF ALL CASES ARISING UNDER THE ORDINANCES OF THE TOWN? Due to its emergency status, the ordinance required an affirmative vote from at least five of the seven Council members. The seventh item on the agenda was a birthday recognition. Mayor Slifer interrupted the meeting to ask those in the room to join him in wishing Kim Ruotolo a happy birthday. The eighth item on the agenda was an authorization of Town of Vail Matching Employee Financial Contribution to the American Red Cross for Hurricane Katrina Relief Efforts. With a motion by Moffet and a second by Cleveland, Council voted 7-0 to authorize an expenditure of $3,500.50 from Council Contingency funds to match an equal amount of dollars raised by town employees to be donated to the American Red Cross for Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. Council made a finding that providing matching funds is for the public purpose of intergovernmental cooperation and assisting with the cost of providing food, shelter, clothing and other necessities for the victims of Hurricane Katrina in Colorado and elsewhere in the U.S. The ninth item on the agenda was the Town Manager's Report. • Pine Beetle Mitigation on Upper Bench of Donovan Park Stan Zemler provided an update on the town's forest health program, which included cutting pine beetle -infested trees on a 29-acre town -owned parcel above Donovan Park. The work will also involve cutting of some aspen stands in an overall effort to help rejuvenate the forest and reduce the fire danger. • Holy Cross Easement Following a motion by Moffet and a second by Ruotolo, Council voted 7-0 to grant an easement to Holy Cross Energy for an underground electric transmission line in the 4 • area of the Vail Associates snowmaking pump station and to allow the town manager to execute the easement/agreement. The action follows previous approval of an easement for the same area which was granted to Vail Resorts. However, in explaining the need for a new easement agreement, Town Attorney Matt Mire indicated the utility company preferred to take the easement directly from the Town of Vail rather than Vail Resorts. The tenth item on the agenda was Adjournment. Moffet moved with Ruotolo seconding a motion to adjourn. The motion passed unanimously, 7-0 at approximately 8:30 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, ATTEST: i is Lore ei Donaldson, 0 SEAL ORP� Town Clerk Minutes provided by Corey Swisher. ��---�2 ": �a Rodney E. Slifer, Mayor 5