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HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - Special Meeting of the Ames City Council 01/15/2019MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL MEETING OF THE AMES CITY COUNCIL AMES, IOWA JANUARY 15, 2019 The Special Meeting of the Ames City Council was called to order by Mayor John Haila at 5:15 p.m. on the 15th day of January, 2019, in the City Council Chambers in City Hall, 515 Clark Avenue. Council Members Bronwyn Beatty-Hansen, Gloria Betcher, Amber Corrieri, Tim Gartin, David Martin, and Chris Nelson were present. Ex officio Member Allie Hoskins was also present. 2019-24 CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS PLAN: City Manager Steve Schainker discussed the recommended Capital Improvements Plan (CIP) for the next five years. He said it consists of the major brick and mortar projects the City of Ames will be working on. Mr. Schainker said the CIP document is on the City of Ames website for residents. He said public input will be taken at the next meeting, and final decisions on this document will be made when the budget is approved in February. Police Police Chief Chuck Cychosz distributed an update to the city-wide radio system project (page 9). He said this is the second year this project is included in the CIP, and it serves all emergency responders for the City, County, and Iowa State University (ISU). Mr. Cychosz said the Fire Department has applied for a radio grant that would offset costs if awarded. Fire Fire Chief Rich Higgins discussed apparatus replacement. He told the Council that Truck 3, the City’s only ladder truck that was purchased in 2002, is up for replacement in 2021. Chief Higgins said Truck 3 will also be refurbished so Ames will have two ladder trucks. It was also noted that Engine 1 is due to be replaced in 2022-23. Electric Electric Services Director Donald Kom discussed the deterioration of boiler tubes in Unit 7 and showed Council a new boiler tube and a boiler tube showing four years of wear and tear. He said inconel-coated tubes will be replacing certain sections of tubing in Unit 7. Director Kom said the City’s emergency storm warning system is a project Electric Services does jointly with the Police Department. An additional storm siren will be installed during the current year in the industrial park and another siren will be added during 2019-20 in the Research Park area. Ms. Betcher asked if the siren in the industrial park will be added before it is populated. Mr. Kom said when the City annexed that territory there were existing residents there, and the City wants to be cognizant of those residents. Mr. Kom said the capital budget for Electric Services is over $31 million for the next five years, much of which will be in the first year and focused on the Power Plant preparing to burn Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) long term. Director Kom also discussed Transmission and Distribution, highlighting the continued replacement of poles, new breakers, LED street lights, light and line relocation, and reliability improvements. Director Kom discussed the units at the Power Plant. Combustion Unit 1 will have communication equipment updates and Combustion Turbine 2 will have controls upgrade, and a building to contain the Gas Turbine 2 unit will be built. Mr. Martin asked how often the combustion turbines are used. Mr. Kom said under 100 hours per year. Mr. Kom discussed the work to be done on Unit 7. He said inconel-coated tubing will be replacing boiler tubes in certain locations of Unit 7 which will increase life of the boiler tubes from about four years to about 10-15 years. Mr. Martin asked about the corrosion of the tubes. Director Kom said the corrosion was not as severe with coal, but more wear and tear on the tubes has happened with natural gas. Mr. Kom said Unit 8 is the newest and the largest unit and will have a turbine generator overhaul completed. Mr. Kom told Council that fuel and waste system infrastructure will be upgraded including ash pond modifications, fuel oil tank removal, waste water treatment modifications, and coal yard reclamation. Mr. Schainker told Council that in previous years the demand side management project has been in the CIP for about $1.2 million per year. He said that project has been taken out of the CIP and is now in the operating budget. Council Member Gartin asked about security of the grid and best practices the power system is employing for security. Director Kom said by having the capability to generate all needed power in Ames, Electric Services can sustain electric supply for all peak demands as long as natural gas is flowing. He said a closed system is maintained and the fiber network is only for the electric system. Mr. Kom said there are very few times when information is imported to protect the control systems. Mr. Gartin asked if Electric Services works with a consulting firm that evaluates the system. Director Kom said Iowa Association of Municipal Utilities has recently started offering a subject matter expert on cyber security who has communicated with electric security and Information Technology. Mr. Gartin asked if Council would direct further discussion or if Mr. Kom would recommend security measures. Mr. Kom said from a stewardship perspective the community should be assured that City of Ames is taking reasonable steps to safeguard its systems. Mr. Haila asked if the CIP projects affect electric rates to customers. Mr. Kom said with projections on income and expenses, he does not foresee an increase in rates. Finance Director Duane Pitcher said there is not a rate increase planned in the next five years. Water and Pollution Control Water and Pollution Control Director John Dunn said the advanced metering infrastructure technology upgrade should conclude in 2022-23. He said water plant equipment maintenance and modifications will be made. Director Dunn told Council the removal of treatment structures at the old water plant will take place over two years and that area will be returned to green space. This will not include the technical services complex. Mr. Martin asked about the condition of the building. Director Dunn said the building is 25 years old and still in good shape. Mayor Haila asked if costs include modifications. Mr. Dunn said parking modifications and some external piping modifications are included. Mr. Dunn said other improvements at the technical services complex include additional vehicle storage and an elevator. 2 Mr. Dunn said there is placeholder money included for a one million gallon elevated tank for the east industrial park to help manage pressure and provide for firefighting demands. Mayor Haila asked about industries to locate in that area and asked if there could be a need for a larger tank. Mr. Dunn said one million gallon tanks are the industry standard. Director Dunn discussed the Water Pollution Control Facility projects that include repairs, maintenance, replacement, and upgrades to equipment. He told Council for the watershed-based nutrient reduction priority, projects will have benefits beyond nutrient reduction. Mr. Gartin asked how the locations of those projects are determined. Mr. Dunn said Squaw Creek Watershed, Prairie Rivers of Iowa, Story County, and the Public Works department will help determine locations. Mr. Dunn said security measures include multiple fire walls, physical barriers to the facility, and the option to run the facility manually if needed. Public Works Public Works Director John Joiner discussed utility improvements to be made in water distribution, sanitary sewer, storm water, and the Resource Recovery Plant. Director Joiner said the ISU Research Park Phase IV project under street engineering priorities was awarded the Revitalizing Iowa’s Sound Economy (RISE) grant from Iowa Department of Transportation that will be used for roadway improvements. The Grand Avenue extension and the Cherry Avenue extension were also discussed as street engineering priorities. Mr. Joiner highlighted the shared use path improvements to be made including crossing improvements at 13th Street and Clark Avenue and South Dakota Avenue and Mortensen Road, and the expansion of the Skunk River Trail. He also told Council that updates to the Airport will be continuing according to the Master Plan. Council Member Gartin said the Resource Recovery Plant is consistently requiring about $300,000 per year for unexpected issues, and asked at what point it makes sense to think about a new plant. Mr. Joiner said there is confidence in the system in place. Improvements will continue to be made, and there are funds in the 2019-20 budget for a study to be done on the process to see if this is the best way to do what is being done. Mr. Gartin said he would like to see it moved off of Lincoln Way. Mr. Joiner said the study results could lead to a different location. Mayor Haila asked about progress on the Grand Avenue extension land acquisition. Ms. Warner said staff is waiting on a document that will be received this week or next week to move forward. Member Betcher asked about the agreement with ISU. Mr. Schainker said he will be meeting with President Wintersteen and others to discuss the easements needed. CyRide CyRide Director Sheri Kyras discussed the $13 million in CIP projects, with vehicle replacement and building expansion and modernization comprising most of that number. Ms. Kyras said the Board is looking into zero-emission, electric buses. A feasibility study and roadmap to deployment will be done in February of 2019. Ms. Kyras said CyRide is looking at a second site of about 16-18 3 acres in or near Ames to serve as a second site and in the future a consolidated site. Director Kyras discussed technology improvements including automated annunciators, passenger counters, GPS tracking system, and the coordinated radio system. Bus stop improvements include Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) bus stop assessments. Council Member Gartin said all city buses in California have to be electric by 2029. Ms. Kyras said many cities are going all electric. She said based on the preliminary discussions with a consultant, it would make sense for CyRide that about 25% of vehicles could be electric with current technology and the CyRide route structure. It was noted that diesel buses cost about $500,000 and electric buses cost about $900,000. Mr. Gartin asked about maintenance. Ms. Kyras said high voltage electric buses would require maintenance, although different. Mayor Haila said the initial cost would be significant. Ms. Betcher asked if any cities in Iowa have electric buses. Ms. Kyras said Des Moines has six and Rock Island and Davenport have three and will be getting three more. She said CyRide is interested in learning about the challenges faced by communities adding electric buses, and is participating in a midwest electric bus group to learn. Member Nelson asked how many buses are in the CyRide fleet. Ms. Kyras said 93 buses. Parks and Recreation Parks and Recreation Director Keith Abraham said some unexpected projects, including replacement of the bridge at Emma McCarthy Lee Park and work to the fishing pier at Ada Hayden Heritage Park, have delayed other projects. Mr. Abraham said public meetings will begin soon to discuss location options for a new spray pad. Playground replacement was discussed. Because of a bridge removal, the disc golf course will be reconfigured. Mr. Abraham said the ADA inventory and assessment will be done soon, and then a transition plan will be developed to address compliance issues. Director Abraham shared details on the new clubhouse for Homewood Golf Course and told the Council that there is $750,000 in the current year CIP. He said construction could start this summer. Mr. Gartin said this amenity is much needed. Mr. Abraham also said the splash structure at Furman Aquatic Center will be refurbished. Mr. Abraham told Council that a funeral pavilion will be added at the cemetery, more column burials will be purchased, and all column burials will be near the pavilion. Mr. Haila asked about the Memorial Day service. Mr. Gartin said he would like to see the Memorial Day event continue to be hosted in that area. Ms. Betcher asked about unisex bathrooms. Mr. Abraham said unisex bathrooms will be added moving forward. Mr. Martin asked about Franklin Park. Mr. Abraham said $80,000 is in the current year budget, and work will begin soon. Planning and Housing City Manager Steve Schainker said the City will continue supporting the Neighborhood Improvement Project Grant, the Downtown Facade Grant Program, and the Campustown Facade 4 Grant Program. Mayor Haila asked if Downtown Ames asked for an increase in facade grants. Ms. Betcher said a request was submitted to make the grant more flexible to include other improvements. Fleet and Facilities Fleet and Facilities Director Corey Mellies said City Hall improvements will include some new flooring. He told Council a hoop building will be added behind the Fleet Services maintenance facility to plug in trucks and allow increased storage capacity. Mr. Schainker said it will cost substantially less than other options and still protect vehicles. Ms. Betcher asked if refurbished fire apparatus would be stored there. Mr. Schainker said the refurbished fire vehicles will be at the fire stations. Mr. Schainker said on page VIII of the CIP document the bond issues are summarized based on this CIP. He said the City will have a debt service level that allows for the addition of bonds if new projects arise. Finance Director Pitcher said the State of Iowa statutory debt limit is 5% of total actual valuation but the City of Ames by policy reserves 25% of available debt capacity. Mr. Schainker said public feedback will be taken on January 22, 2019. Budget Overview will begin on February 1, 2019 and final decisions on the CIP and the budget will be made on February 12, 2019. COUNCIL COMMENTS: Mayor Haila told the Council that Volunteer Center of Story County will be hosting “Monday Meals” to serve breakfast and have discussions on the third Thursday of January, February, and March. DISPOSITION OF COMMUNICATIONS TO COUNCIL: Moved by Beatty-Hansen, seconded by Gartin, to request a memo from staff regarding the request from Gary and Kathy May dated January 10, 2019. Vote on Motion: 6-0. Motion declared carried unanimously. Moved by Corrieri, seconded by Nelson, to allow $3,500 of the $250,000 allocated by City Council for a grant process to distribute funds to human service agencies for capital projects to be used by United Way of Story County (UWSC) to pay for administrative costs of the program, as requested in a letter from Jean Kresse dated January 14, 2019. Vote on Motion: 6-0. Motion declared carried unanimously. Moved by Betcher, seconded by Martin, to request a memo from staff regarding the email from South Campus Area Neighborhood (SCAN) on January 10, 2019, expressing concern about transitional Letters of Compliance. Vote on Motion: 5-1. Voting Aye: Beatty-Hansen, Betcher, Gartin, Martin, Nelson. Voting Nay: Corrieri. Motion declared carried. CLOSED SESSION: Mr. Gartin asked City Attorney Mark Lambert if the City Council had a legal reason for going into Closed Session. Mr. Lambert replied in the affirmative. Moved by Gartin, seconded by Nelson, to hold a Closed Session as provided by Section 20.17(3), Code of Iowa, to discuss collective bargaining strategy. 5 Roll Call Vote: 6-0. Motion declared carried unanimously. The Council entered into Closed Session at 7:52 p.m. and returned to Regular Session at 8:41p.m. ADJOURNMENT: The meeting adjourned at 8:41 p.m. _________________________________________________________________________ Diane R. Voss, City Clerk John A. Haila, Mayor ____________________________________ Erin Thompson, Recording Secretary 6