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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010-02-16 Town Council MinutesVail Town Council Meeting Minutes Tuesday, February 16, 2010 6:00 P.M. Vail Town Council Chambers Members present: Dick Cleveland, Mayor Susie Tjossem Kevin Foley Margaret Rogers Andy Daly Kerry Donovan Kim Newbury Staff Members: Stan Zemler, Town Manager Matt Mire, Town Attorney Pam Brandmeyer, Assistant Town Manager The first item on the agenda was Citizen Participation. Vail Homeowner's Association representative Jim Lamont spoke in regard to the upcoming Community Survey. "The degree of response has always troubled me ... It has been looked at by some as a political document as opposed to a factual document." Local filmmaker Roger Brown announced, "The Vail 50th anniversary film is being produced ... I have a 100,000 feet of film ... If we do the right job with the original film it will look like 35mm... Vail Resorts has contributed to about half the total budget ... We are really examining a lot of possibilities." If you care to contact Brown or have photography or video that may be of interest, please contact him at 970-524-1588. The second item on the agenda was the Town Manager's Report. a. Insurance Service Office (ISO) Rating Update Fire Chief Mark Miller reported the town's ISO rating had recently improved. "We are currently rated four with one being best." b. Green Business of the Year Award to the Town of Vail Cleveland announced the town had been awarded the Vail Valley Partnership's, Green Business of the Year Award. Cleveland said it was really town staff who deserved the award. Kristen Bertuglia and Bill Carlson received the award from the Mayor. The third item on the agenda was the adoption of Council Vision Document / 2010 Priorities. Town Manager Stan Zemler reported The Town of Vail budget adopted for the 2010 reflects the town's priorities established during the December 8, 2009 retreat. Primary areas of focus in 2010 are: 1. Guest relations & customer service 2. Economic vitality 3. Budget & capital management 4. Master planning 5. Transportation & parking 6. Work force housing 7. Environmental stewardship Tjossem said there needed to be more action items and tactics for guest services. Daly said the list should be more specific. He emphasized the need for an outline of concrete steps. "I am not sure that this is going to drive the future of Vail." Foley asked for a Work Session to be scheduled to discuss where exactly the town wanted to focus its efforts. Cleveland said he felt the areas of focus remained too broad. Rogers said she would like more of a community discussion. Foley said the community meeting was March 9 and that would be good opportunity to get community input. During a pause for public comment, Vail Homeowner's Association representative Jim Lamont said only winter recreation would improve the local economy. "All energy needs to be put into generating the largest amount of destination guests through the next two winters." Zemler said staff would return to Council for a follow-up discussion. The fourth item on the agenda was a Mountain Travel Market Update. Ralf Garrison provided an update on economic/market conditions in the mountain resort industry. Garrison, an analyst with the Mountain Travel Research Program, told Council members that lodging reservations had improved compared to 2008-09, although at an expense. Garrison explained lodges are dropping rates to increase occupancy. He reported occupancy in Vail hotels the winter of 2009-10 were up 5.1 percent over 2008-09 at the close of January. Garrison stated consumer confidence, looking ahead about six months, is up. "Our consumers are more optimistic about the future than they are about the present," Garrison said. He also noted there is evidence that Vail, along with other resort markets, is helping to create last-minute booking behaviors. The industry has determined guests are booking later, thus rearranging marketing strategies to capture that new behavior. Garrison was skeptical last-minute booking is as big of a market trend as lodge operators believe. "There's a III modest change in this year versus last year... Maybe the shift is not coming as much from the marketplace as much as it is from our own self-fulfilling prophecy." Garrison suggested offering something other than lower rates at lodging properties to get people to come to town. That solution aligns with the town's focus on bringing more special events to town. Tjossem mentioned other resort towns are improving occupany, so there is an opportunity for Vail to turn the corner. Vail Homeowners Association representative Jim Lamont questioned whether encouraging signs of higher occupancies combined with lower rates is good for business in the future. Lamont said once discounting has become a normal behavior, it "prolongs the economic recovery because then the consumer expects discounting to continue." Garrison agreed the scenario is a potentially negative side effect of enjoying the higher occupancies at the expense of rates. Vail Chamber & Business Association representative Rich tenBraak thanked Council for supporting the MTrip reports and said they were very valuable. Daly clarified Vail was number three in average summer occupancy rates. The fifth item on the agenda was a request to proceed through the development review process with a proposal to construct private improvements on the Town of Vail owned Gore Creek public stream tract, generally located adjacent to the Mountain Haus at 292 East Meadow Drive. Staff reported that the applicant, Mountain Haus, has requested permission to proceed through the development review process with a proposal to construct a laundry vent pipe and associated culvert on the town owned Gore Creek public stream tract. The applicant can not proceed with these development applications without first obtaining Council's joint property owner authorization for the proposed construction on the town owned parcel. Foley said he was disappointed there was no site visit. He then encouraged approving the request and allowing the PEC to review it. Mountain Haus representative Steve Hawkins spoke in support of the request. Rogers moved to approve the request with Foley seconding. Newbury said she wanted to stay consistent with the town's goal of preserving riparian areas. "I don't think we need to make special circumstances for certain properties." Cleveland said he had serious concerns about a potential steam plume being emitted in a riparian area. Local hotelier Rob Levine encouraged Council to allow the applicant to proceed through the process at his own peril. VCBA representative Rich tenBraak and Rich Self spoke in support of Council allowing the applicant to proceed. The motion failed, 3-4 with Tjossem, Foley and Rogers voting in support. The sixth item on the agenda was the First reading of Ordinance No. 3, Series of 2010, an ordinance amending Section 14-10-5, Building Materials and Design, Vail Town Code, pursuant to Section 14-1-3, Administration of Standards, to allow for changes to the solar panel regulations. On January 25, 2010, the PEC forwarded a recommendation of approval, with modifications, for changes to both the LionsHead Redevelopment Master Plan 3 and the Development Standards of the Vail Town Code. The modifications, which are reflected in the proposed language in the ordinance and resolution, are as follows: The definition of solar panel was proposed to be revised to be more specific to solar panels and not the broader definition of solar collectors. The phrase "and shall not exceed the height of adjacent roof ridges" was proposed to be stricken from the suggested language. Planner Rachel Friede explained that today's regulations do not meet the need for alternative energy or photovoltaic aesthetics. Daly said he did not want solar panels to dramatically impact the heights of buildings. Donovan expressed concern that solar panels could not be aesthetically modified in any way and maintain their warranty. Local hotelier Rob Levine said lowering the amount would probably kill the project. Environmental Sustainability Coordinator Kristen Bertuglia said to restrict the number of panels or the size of the array would limit the potential solar arrays return on investment (ROI). Vail Homeowner's Association representative Jim Lamont said Council should pay close attention to reflectivity. "We need to be cautious with how we redevelop these buildings." Daly moved to approve the ordinance with the amendment that maximum allowable roof height not exceed two additional feet with Foley seconding. The motion failed 3-4, with Foley, Donovan, and Daly voting in favor. Rogers then moved to approve the ordinance with Tjossem seconding. The motion passed 4-3, with Cleveland, Newbury, Donovan and Foley opposed. Daly asked for renderings of the potential impacts of solar arrays on lift lines. Levine said if the town wanted to improve the environment there would have to be aesthetic tradeoffs. The seventh item on the agenda was Resolution No. 3, Series of 2010, a resolution approving the second amendment to the Core Site Employee Housing between the Town of Vail and the Vail Corporation, d/b/a Vail Associates, Inc. The town and the Vail Corporation d/b/a Vail Associates, Inc. (VAI) are parties to a certain Core Site Employee Housing Agreement dated as of December 18, 2007, and as modified by the Amendment to Core Site Employee Housing Agreement dated as of March 26, 2009. The Employee Housing Agreement establishes requirements for the posting of a Letter of Credit by VAI. VAI has proposed to modify the requirements under the Employee Housing Agreement governing the amount of the Letter of Credit in the manner provided in the Second Amendment to Core Site Employee Housing Agreement for the Council's consideration. Rogers expressed concern Vail Resorts had owed employee housing for over two years. "Pulling a building permit is not a guarantee you will have a project... I'm not willing to allow the risk of another disappointment." Cleveland said he wanted to make the sure the project once started would be completed. During a pause for public comment, Michael Cacioppo said he believed Vail Resorts received too much special consideration. Rogers moved to deny the resolution with Foley seconding. The motion failed 2-5 with Foley and Rogers voting in favor. Daly then moved to approve the resolution with Donovan seconding. The motion passed 4-3 with Foley, Rogers and Cleveland opposed. GI The eighth item on the agenda was Resolution #6, Series of 2010, a resolution of the Town of Vail allowing for a one time, eighteen month, administrative extension to the lapse of approval for certain approved development plan approvals. On February 2, 2010, Council instructed staff to prepare a resolution for the Council's consideration that allows for an extension to the approval periods for four specific development plan approvals. The four projects affected by this resolution are Cascade Residences, Cornerstone Residences, Strata and Timberline Roost Lodge. In instructing staff to prepare the resolution, Council concluded the current state of the economy and the present circumstances within the financial markets making the ability to obtain construction financing difficult, or nearly impossible, warrants the need for this resolution and the 18 month extension. Rogers moved to approve the resolution with Daly seconding. Cleveland said he was not comfortable with granting an 18 month extension. The motion passed 6-1, with Cleveland opposed. The ninth item on the agenda was Adjournment. Foley moved to adjourn with Newbury seconding at approximately 8:40 p.m. The motion passed unanimously, 7-0. SEAL Dick Cleveland, Mayor ATTEST: �l Lorelei Donaldson, Town Clerk 5