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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - City Council - 12/01/2003CITY COUNCIL 1 DECEMBER 2003 The South Burlington City Council held a regular meeting on Monday, 1 December 2003, at 7:30 p.m., in the conference room, City Hall, 575 Dorset St. Members present: J. Condos, Chair (via telephone); C. Smith, T. Sheahan, S. Magowan, D. O'Rourke Also present: C. Hafter, City Manager; D. Gravelin, Assistant City Manager; Chief L. Graham, Capt. Bob Hawke, Lt. T. Shepherd, E. Lemay, Sgt. J. Snyder, T. Fraga, Cpl. D. Dubie, D. Fitzgerald, LeBlanc, Ofcr. M. Stowell, Administrative Assistant, P. Hameline, Police Department; B. Humes, B. Truex, M. McCann, architects; A. Johnston, The Other Paper; C. Cole, A. Weinhagen, CCTA; B. Wessel, B. Torpe, E. Farrell 1. Comments & questions from the audience not related to agenda items: No issues were raised. 2. Announcements and City Manager's report: Mr. Sheahan: Will attend meeting with UVM Planning people and Mr. Hafter regarding site improvements on campus, 3 December, 10 a.m. Will attend Housing Coalition Task Force meeting, 8 December. Should have something to report after that meeting. Mr. Hafter: Will attend Lake Champlain Housing Board of Directors meeting, 3 December, Noon. Steering Committee meeting, 11 December, 7:30 p.m., regarding Act 68. Will attend NLCT annual meeting in Nashville, 10-14 December. Members agreed to hold their annual retreat on 27 January, 6 p.m. 3. Report on space needs assessment & site evaluations for Police Department: Chief Graham began the presentation by showing pictures of the current facility. He noted the following drawbacks to the facility: no visibility, water damage in the hallway, not a professional image, doesn't foster community policing, safety issue for people in the hallway, work flow (critical issue), no secure storage of records, crowded aisles throughout, squad room and lunchroom not large enough for meeting or to foster a team environment, expensive and sensitive equipment located in open areas, no secure space for weapons, holding room and witness interview room too close to each other, upstairs: too many people for space and only 2 very small storage areas. Chief Graham noted the total square footage for both floors is 3,864, smaller than many homes in the city. The Chief then reviewed the process for hiring an architectural firm to do a study. He then introduced consultant Brian Humes. Mr. Humes noted that a local firm did the site analysis. He introduced Bill Truex and Mike McCann of that firm. Mr. Humes then reviewed his company's background. He noted that they specialize in police facility design. The firm has just been selected for the new police department in Scranton, PA. Mr. Humes showed pictures and information for some of the facilities they have worked on. Mr. Humes then reviewed the functional requirements for police departments in general. These include: 1. Safety/security/confidentiality 2. Work areas for specific tasks 3. Circulation of police/prisoners/public 4. Communications - radio and telephone/data 5. Storage and handling for evidence, detention, records retention Physical requirements for police stations include: 1. Accessibility/visibility 2. Public interaction (lobby/toilets/interview rooms) 3. Police work areas Deficiencies in the South Burlington police station includes: 1. Safety (resulting in increased liabilities) 2. Accessibility 3. Energy efficiency/air quality 4. Code mandates 5. Lockup requirements 6. Confidentiality 7. Space/storage Following their study of the current facility, the consultant is recommending a 25,400 sq. ft. facility with a 2650 sq. ft. maintenance/storage facility (separate). The facility should be located on a minimum of 2.5 acres. This proposal anticipates a 20+ year growth of South Burlington to a population of about 22,600 and a growth of the Police Department. It also anticipates long-term bonding and increased call for Police service. The storage square footage includes: maintenance bay, found property storage, bulk evidence storage, vehicle storage, animal control equipment, and road supplies. Mr. Hume said it would be prudent to have this as a separate facility. Chief Graham reviewed the growth in the department in the past 20 years. He noted that "incidents" are counted differently today than in the past, so exact figures are not available. The Department is projecting an increase in sworn officers from 37 to 57. This includes going from 4 to 10 criminal investigators, from 4 to 6 traffic safety officers, from 0 to 2 juvenile crime prevention officers, from 19 to 23 prevention services officers, and an additional secretary and 3 records clerks. Mr. Sheahan felt that a full acre of parking was "overkill." Mr. Humes said there has to be a "public component" for parking. Mr. McCann then explained the process used for site identification and then showed aerial photos for each site being considered with an architect's rough sketch of how the site might work. Sites being considered are: 1. The current site at 595 Dorset St. (problems include a significant setback from the Interstate and wet/boggy soil) 2. The Midas site, 2.5 acres carved out of the school field. Mr. Condos did not feel this was a viable site. 3. A Dorset St. Site owned by Pizzagalli just down the road from the current site. Mr. McCann said they are prepared to look at other potential sites. Mr. Smith asked if there are any ways to create any economies of scale. Mr. Humes said they have done that exercise several times. Mr. Magowan asked if there have been talks with any of the property owners. Mr. Humes said no. Members tended to favor site #3 because of its proximity to the schools. Mr. Hafter recommended looking at some structured parking. Mr. Baron, Director of a teen facility noted that he works with a number of police departments in the state. He acknowledged the professionalism of the South Burlington department and specifically cited their responsiveness and consumer friendliness. Mr. O'Rourke asked how detailed the next phase will be. Mr. Hafter said it will include site constraints, etc. and will be enough to move forward with a recommendation on how to proceed. Mr. Condos noted a number of other money issues the city will be confronting in the near future including: ambulance service, recreation center, new City Hall facility, and expansion of the Fire Department. He felt a more comprehensive plan is needed to accompany the Police Department plan. Mr. Condos also felt the current City Hall cite is ideal for Police and Fire services but the current facility would have to be razed and a location found for City Hall. He felt it would be a year before a decision could be made. Mr. Sheahan felt something may need to be done in the short term while a long-term solution is worked on. Mr. Hafter said he had some ideas that he will be bringing to the Council. Members agreed to work toward a solution to support the Police Department's needs. Chief Graham said the committee would like to have a City Council representative. Mr. O'Rourke will serve in that position. 4. Presentation of CCTA Budget for FY 2005: Mr. Cole noted that passenger revenue is up 9.2%, and advertising revenue is up about the same. Planning revenue is also up. Purchase of services is up 21.44% (including the Burlington shuttle service, management of two other services for which a management fee is charged). The federal formula is up slightly, but they are not anticipating any increase in state funding. There is a 3-year grant to run the Burlington to Montpelier route. In the area of expenses, payroll is up due to increased staffing. Legal expenses are down slightly. Insurances are up about 21%. Fuel is about 90 cents a gallon. Tires are up. The marketing budget is down. Overall the proposed budget represents a 9.8% increase. Mr. Cole reviewed the funding formula. He noted that the mileage formula is flawed, and the Board wants to move away from that. A new formula plan will be brought forward in the spring. Mr. Cole noted there is a disincentive to improve the system because it results in increased costs. For this year, they will use the mileage formula, but they will use federal funds to cover improvements. South Burlington will be level funded this year. Para-transit will see a reduction. 5. Review DRB agenda for meeting of 2 December 2003: No issues were raised. 6. Review minutes of 17 November 2003: Mr. Smith moved to approve the Minutes of 17 November as written. Mr. O'Rourke seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 7. Update on affordable condominium project, Farrell Street; request from Burlington Community Land Trust for application to Vermont Community Development Grant program for additional funding: Mr. Magowan stepped down during this item due to a potential conflict of interest. Ms. Torpey showed the completed building design. She noted the original request was for $600,000. They initially got $300,000. They are asking the city to go back and request the remaining $300,000. Ms. Torpey noted the Grant people suggested reapplication, but the request has to come from the city. Mr. Smith moved to authorize the City Manager to sign the letter of request for funds identifying the project for which the funds are being requested. Mr. O'Rourke seconded. Motion passed unanimously. 8. Sign Disbursement Orders: Disbursement orders were signed. As there was no further business to come before the Council, the meeting was adjourned at 9:40 p.m. Clerk Published by ClerkBase ©2019 by Clerkbase. No Claim to Original Government Works.