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HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - Regular Meeting of the Ames City Council 12/20/1994MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE AMES CITY COUNCIL AMES, IOWA DECEMBER 20, 1994 The Ames City Council met in regular session at 6:30 p.m., December 20, 1994, in the City Council Chambers in the City Hall, 515 Clark Avenue, pursuant to law with Mayor Larry Curtis presiding and the following Council Members present: Campbell, Parks, Tedesco, and Wirth. Couns. Brown and Hoffman arrived late. COMMENDATION TO LIA PIERSON: Mayor Curtis read a Commendation to Rhodes Scholar Lia Pierson, noting she was the fifth Rhodes Scholar in the history of Iowa State University. Ms. Pierson, a Chemical Engineering Major at Iowa State, was present to accept the honor. Coun. Hoffman arrived at 6:34 p.m. Coun. Brown arrived at 6:37 p.m. CABLE TV COMMISSION PRESENTATION: Commission Chair Allan Schmidt introduced Commission member Alan Kennedy, and said he wished to thank City Staff for their help with the Commission. He said there has been much community discussion lately regarding the role of public access. He said the Commission supports public access because it allows citizens to be active information creators and providers rather than just passive consumers. He said it provides access to an electronic forum and to low-cost production facilities that otherwise would not be available on a local basis. He said it serves as an information outlet for Ames' non-profit groups and local artists, and has become a part of the community's identity. Mr. Schmidt said the Commission has suggested several actions to improve the level of service public access provides to the citizens of Ames, including: 1. Renewal of studio lease for 5 more years; 2) Continued funding as a city organization with staffing at current levels for the remainder of FY 94-95 and 95-96, during which time the Commission and Staff would use survey results to re-examine the mission, strengths, weaknesses and issues surrounding public access in Ames and also develop a strategic plan for submission to the Council, including an examination of turning public access services over to a non-profit citizens group; 3) Review and update current policies and procedures to minimize abuse of the public access forum and to maximize community involvement and program diversity; 4) Approving the Cable Commission's more active role in promoting the public access channel to community non-profit organizations and city businesses. Mr. Schmidt said he had contacted individuals involved with public access from other communities and learned that they experienced controversy regarding public access channels several years ago. He said the fact that the Ames channel has only recently been the subject of controversy was a reflection of how well the public access program has been run in Ames. He said the Commission was caught somewhat "off guard" by the recent controversy. At Coun. Hoffman's request, Mr. Schmidt clarified how public access is currently funded through a portion of TCI's franchise fee paid to the City. He said a future option might be to have public access solicit alternative funding and perhaps donation of equipment from other organizations. He said however, the Commission recommended that if that were Council's decision for the future, the process be a gradual one, whereby "outside" money could gradually take over the City's funding. City Attorney John Klaus clarified that the City as an entity could currently receive gifts and solicit donations and funding. Coun. Parks said he'd received questions regarding how much is spent for public access, and the report from Staff indicated $59,865.00 was allocated for the current fiscal year. He said the basic decision before Council involved consideration of whether or not public access was serving the public, whether it was doing what they intended it to do, and whether there were standards regarding types of programming aired on the channel. There was discussion regarding the process for determining what is aired on the channel. City Attorney John Klaus said tapes of programs are to be made available in advance for review, and if anything on those tapes was judged obscene, the material would not be aired. He said the difficult issue is the definition of what is "obscene." Coun. Parks said the question he hears from citizens is "What is the extent to which public access can go before there are standards established?" Coun. Tedesco said some programming on the station was very important to the community. He said however, he was concerned that there might be a lack of needed supervision at the studio, as demonstrated by the recent memo from the Cable TV Coordinator regarding missing equipment. Coun. Campbell said she felt management questions on control of equipment should be considered separately from the issue of program content. She said clarification was needed that the funding for public access came from franchise fees, rather than from the general fund. Coun. Parks agreed, but said in making that kind of expenditure, the Council needed to make sure public access was doing the types of things they felt it ought to. He said he'd also received comments from citizens concerned that at present, the channel was controlled by a few special interest groups and had a narrow focus as a result. Coun. Brown noted there were many technological changes in the industry since the Cable Commission was formed. She said when examining the mission of public access, it might be well to take a positive stance regarding what should be done every 10 or 15 years to keep current on how resources can best be used, rather than focusing on a very narrow problem which could be taken care of with some policy guidelines. Coun. Wirth asked the timeframe for the suggestions outlined in the Commission's report. Mr. Schmidt said the Commission was currently contacting other municipalities and other facilities for research on updating policies and procedures concerning public access. He said it was hoped a report would be ready for the Council in approximately 6 months. Coun. Tedesco asked whether the current lease could be renewed for less than the 5 year period. Assistant to the City Manager Sheila Lundt discussed how TCI is the actual lease holder for the studio space, although the equipment belongs to the City. She said a large portion of the approximate $59,000 budget for public access is allocated for staff salaries, with the remainder going for repair and maintenance of equipment, and capital expenditures such as tapes and supplies. There was discussion regarding how the franchise fee is determined from total gross revenues from all sources, i.e., subscribers and advertising revenues. Ms. Lundt said the franchise agreement between the City and TCI stipulated that TCI would pay 5% of those revenues to the City. She said there was nothing in the agreement that binds the City to spend that money in any particular way. Mayor Curtis said a 1978 election allowed the franchise to exist. He discussed how the proposal at that time was to create a Cable Commission in order to separate politics from the operation of the facility. He said many other communities did nothing for cable activity, putting the money into their general fund, and receiving nothing back in terms of cable service. He said he felt the Ames' system was light-years ahead of those in other communities, and the recent controversy aside, he felt the Public Access Channel provided a great benefit to the Ames community. He said it was possible that in the future, local control over Public Access may decrease considerably. Coun. Parks said he'd received many positive comments regarding the Government Access channel, and agreed the Public Access channel was an asset to the community if it was utilized properly. He said he felt the process should begin by asking "What is it we expect of Public Access?" and then design a framework to accomplish that. He said he had questions regarding who establishes the standards for programming, whether the right amount of money was being allocated to operate the facility, handling of equipment, and sanitation of the studio. He said those questions and others needed to be addressed. Ms. Lundt introduced Laurel Nelson, the newly-hired Supervisor of the Public Access Studio, described the duties of the expanded position, and how policies and procedures regarding access to certain areas of the studio and handling of equipment have been tightened so the facility will function in a way the public expects City facilities to be operated. Ms. Lundt addressed the content of public access programming, saying by definition, "public access" allows essentially anything someone wants to do, as long as the material is not obscene. She said the law differentiates between "indecent" material, and "obscene," with the latter being protected even though it may offend a number of people. She reviewed the current policy which provides that each producer sign a contract agreeing that if a member of the community calls to complain about a particular segment, the City can request the tape for replay up to 5 times in one week. She said the agreement also states that the material cannot be "obscene." She said she didn't think there was much the Commission could do to control content. She said however, the Commission did have a number of suggestions regarding ways to improve the professionalism of the studio. Coun. Campbell said as the Commission takes a more aggressive role in marketing public access, there may be more variety than at present. She said the recent controversy may actually have brought several issues that needed to be examined to the forefront, and she commended the Commission for their plan. There was discussion regarding the City's liability should a program containing libelous or slanderous material be aired. City Attorney John Klaus said in a live programming situation, if the City was not able to prevent a libelous or defamatory statement, the City would not be liable. There was discussion regarding changes in policy concerning live call-in shows, which will now occur only when the Production Supervisor is present. Cable TV Coordinator Dan Edwards said one option would be to recognize the public access station is there for citizens to use, but not necessarily allowing everyone to do live programming. He suggested live programming be viewed as a privilege. Ms. Lundt said explained how the new call-back policy allows some control over crank calls, etc. Mayor Curtis thanked the Commission members for their work, and said their volunteer services were much appreciated by the entire community. Larry Westburg, 819 Arizona, said there had been much debate about programming, and he was concerned about censorship by coercion. He said public access was for everyone, and charging an access fee was political concession to self-appointed censors. Allan Beatty, 708 Lincoln Way, said he was speaking as both a Cable-TV consumer and participant. He said he agreed with the information presented by the Commission. He said if the public access channel were to depend on funds raised by a non-profit group, it would first be necessary to convince people that public access was a deserving cause and that the funds would be well administered. He said promoting the channel might solve current complaints of the channel being dominated by narrow interests. He said the current studio space is not wheelchair accessible, and that fact should be raised if renewal of the lease is discussed. He said if the mission and strategic plan are outlined and explained to the community, less staff time may be necessary to react to problems that may occur. Dave Nerdig, 2124 Torrey Pines Road, said he was a pastor at Bethesda Lutheran Church, and represented 4 religious organizations which currently use public access. He encouraged the Council to continue funding public access with no fee being charged. He said while broadcasting of congregational programming should not be an end goal of public access, it was an entry point for many youngsters who have gone on to serve in that industry. Starlene Rankin, 807 6th Street, said she had been a producer of public access TV for nearly 3 years, and encouraged the Council to continue funding it. She said they should also consider the Commission's recommendation of turning it over to a non-profit organization so the City won't have to deal with concerns regarding programming. She said it was a valuable resource in a diverse community like Ames, providing a place to learn about equipment and communication, and to become more accepting of each other. Dave Lineweaver, 111 Curtiss, said he used to produce a live call-in show, which was now on tape. He said he wanted to encourage everyone to look at the entire public access schedule rather than just the recent controversy concerning one particular show. Allan Schmidt said the Cable Commission believes it's important for the citizens of Ames to have access to the public access channel. He said the Commission's goal is to get public access to reflect the Ames community. Motion by Campbell, Second by Hoffman, to approve the Cable TV Commission's report. Vote on Motion: 6-0. Motion declared carried unanimously. PRESENTATION ON NATURAL RESOURCES INVENTORY: Planning and Housing Director Brian O'Connell said the purpose of the Natural Resources Inventory was to help the Planning and Housing Department, the City in general, developers, and property owners be apprised of the natural resource areas that exist in the community during review and decision-making on development projects. He thanked members of the Natural Resources Advisory Committee for their assistance with this project. Iowa State University Botanist Bill Norris presented a slide presentation on the final report on the Inventory. He said it was found that the resource types in the Ames area are limited to prairies, woodlands, and Special Resource areas, and it was determined there are 2, 294 acres of Natural Resource areas in Ames and the two mile surrounding area. He said many of the areas are public areas. He reviewed quality ratings for the Natural Resource areas that were surveyed, categorized as Highly Natural, Mostly Natural, Moderately Altered, or Highly Altered. He reviewed the final inventory map and showed slides of examples of the areas discussed. Motion by Parks, Second by Tedesco, to accept the report on the Natural Resource Inventory. Vote on Motion: 6-0. Motion declared carried unanimously. Mr. O'Connell said when it was in final form, the report would be available to developers and property owners upon request. He said the information had been provided to the Land Use Policy Plan consultants, and discussed other ways in which the department might use the report. PUBLIC FORUM: Dario Zaffarano, 621 Main, said he was present to ask the Council to reconsider the suspension of the liquor license for Cy's Roost. He said the suspension would result in the establishment's liquor sales being shut down for a month, with a resultant cash flow loss of nearly $11,400.00. He asked the Council to consider the severe impact that would have on the establishment's employees. Mr. Zaffarano said he questioned whether this business would survive under this suspension. He said the owner took the over-occupancy violation very seriously, and steps had been taken to change the policies at the establishment to prevent this from happening again. He said he questioned whether the punishment was sufficient to the crime. He said people who were planning on employment are suffering from this punishment. He asked that the Council reconsider their action of last week, consider the steps the establishment has taken to avoid the overcrowding problems, and reduce the amount of the suspension from 30 days down to something more reasonable. Mayor Curtis said the Council could take no action on this item this evening. He said any reconsideration could not occur until the next Council meeting. Mr. Zaffarano asked that the Council run the period of suspension no later than January 5, 1995. Paul DeVries, 410 South Franklin, said he was an employee of Cy's Roost, and was representing all the employees of the establishment. He said the person who was doing an incompetent job on the night in question had been subsequently terminated. He said he personally would suffer financial hardship as a result of reduced hours if the 30-day suspension were not reduced. He asked Council to reconsider the 30-day suspension. CONSENT AGENDA: Mayor Curtis noted item 8a and b, easements for Pete Cooper Subdivision, had been pulled from tonight's agenda by Staff. Motion by Hoffman, Second by Wirth, to approve the following items on the Consent Agenda: Motion to approve payment of claims Motion to approve the minutes of the Special Meeting of December 9, 1994 Motion to approve renewal of the following beer and liquor licenses: a. Class C Liquor - Aunt Maude's, 547 Main b. Class C Liquor - O'Malley & McGee's Mexican Cafe, 716 S. Duff c. Class C Beer - Char's, dba Casey's, 3100 S. Duff d. Class B Beer - Pizza Pit, 207 1/2 Welch Avenue e. Class C Liquor - Sukothai, 223 Welch Avenue RESOLUTION NO. 94-524 approving appointment of John Parks to Ames Convention & Visitors Bureau Board of Directors RESOLUTION NO. 94-525 approving appointment of Robert Harvey to fill vacancy on Historic Preservation Commission RESOLUTION NO. 94-526 approving preliminary plans and specifications for the Equipment Services Department Remodeling Project; setting February 2, 1995 as bid due date, and February 14, 1995 as date of hearing and award of contract RESOLUTION NO. 94-527 accepting completion of Animal Control Shelter Site Development Project in amount of $11,171.85 RESOLUTION NO. 94-528 accepting completion of 30th and Hoover Intersection Project in amount of $119,796.99 RESOLUTION NO. 94-529 approving change order on South Duff Widening Project in amount of $19,077.00 RESOLUTION NO. 94-530 approving contract and bond for Resource Recovery Center Modification Project in amount of $6,648,300.00 RESOLUTION NO. 94-531 approving wheel-loader rotation program at the Resource Recovery Center, and authorizing Staff to negotiate a contract, in an amount not to exceed available funding, to retain possession of John Deere 624E unit until September 1997 Roll Call Vote: 6-0. Resolutions declared adopted unanimously, signed by the Mayor, and hereby made a portion of these minutes. REPORT ON SCHOOL/CROSSING SAFETY PROGRAM: Assistant City Manager Bob Kindred reviewed the staff report. He said while the City's involvement in school crossing safety for children walking to and from school has been approached on a reactive basis in the past, the City wished to become more proactive in approaching this issue. He said Staff had taken a comprehensive look at a number of criteria regarding the use of the existing 15 paid guards at 14 different intersections throughout the City. He said the number of children utilizing some of these crossings is very low. He said they had also looked at the appropriate use of mid-block traffic signals. He said many resources are available to help get children safely to school, including the parents and children themselves, Parent/Teacher Organizations, and the schools themselves. He said the Superintendent of Schools has been very supportive of this re-evaluation of the Crossing Safety Program. He reviewed the Staff report which summarized possible resources to be used, including the AAA School Crossing Safety program. He reviewed existing criteria for paid adult crossing guards, and the proposed modifications to those criteria as contained in the staff report. Coun. Tedesco said he felt the report was excellent, and Coun. Hoffman agreed. Coun. Parks expressed concern that ample crossing time be provided, particularly at unmanned crossings. He also questioned the history of accidents within 300 feet of the intersection as one criteria for paid adult crossing guards. Coun. Hoffman said she felt this was a much-needed report, as things had changed a great deal in 20 years and it was time to re-evaluate the school-crossing situation. She suggested the Committee consider not providing crossing guards automatically at noon-times, unless a Kindergarten-age child were present. Coun. Wirth said it would be necessary to evaluate each location very carefully to see what factors need to be taken into consideration. Mr. Kindred said Dr. Rice had indicated he would ask each PTO group to designate a safety committee to meet with Staff and school principals for a presentation by an AAA representative on the school safety patrol concept and to initiate a discussion with each PTO group regarding the specific situation at individual schools. He said Staff had been extremely pleased with the support from the School District administrative staff thus far. He said constructive involvement from parents, PTOs, and school principals would be crucial as well. Motion by Tedesco, Second by Parks, to approve the concept of shared responsibility for school crossing safety, including the proposal for consideration of the AAA's School Safety Patrol program; give preliminary approval to the revised criteria for paid adult crossing guards; and direct Staff to work with the School District, elementary principals, and PTO's to develop partnerships and jointly promote this school crossing safety concept. Vote on Motion: 6-0. Motion declared carried unanimously. P-C PLAN AMENDMENT FOR PROPERTY LOCATED AT 218 WELCH: Motion by Tedesco, Wirth, to adopt RESOLUTION NO. 94-532 approving P-C Plan Amendment to allow building addition and new signage for property located at 218 Welch. Coun. Campbell said she had heard concerns expressed from neighbors regarding this item, and one suggestion had been to extend to the east the fence currently south of the business to provide a buffer between the business and the residential area. Planning and Housing Director Brian O'Connell said the concept of a fence was discussed at the Planning and Zoning Commission meeting when this item was considered, but discussion had focused on the fence as a vehicle to prevent trespassing. He noted the P & Z recommendation to Council did not include the extension of the fence. Coun. Campbell said a number of the calls she's received on this item dealt with the use of the building, and noted that was not part of Council's consideration this evening. Motion by Campbell, Second by Brown, to amend the Main Motion to include stipulation that the fence be extended to the east to divide business from residential. Coun. Hoffman said she felt it was a reasonable amendment to divide the Commercial area from the Residential. Coun. Tedesco questioned whether a similar requirement had been made of other property owners in the area bordering residential areas. There was discussion on the history of use changes for the property. Coun. Parks said one purpose of the Planned-Commercial area was to try to mitigate certain circumstances. He noted the use for this property was changed after the original plan approval. Coun. Wirth said she felt the amendment was a reasonable request, given the use of the property. Coun. Campbell said the proposed use is an allowed use in a Commercial area. She said however, in deference to the fact that it is a buffer, and does abut residential property, she felt the amendment was a fair compromise. Vote on Motion to Amend: 6-0. Motion declared carried unanimously. Bart Clark, landlord of 218 Welch, said the idea of a fence was discussed at length at the Planning and Zoning Commission meeting on this issue. He said he would rather not incur the expense of erecting a fence that he felt would be torn down and need constant repair. Coun. Parks said he realized fences did require repair, but said they could be maintained. He said he felt erecting a fence was a reasonable thing to do in this particular circumstance. He said the type of traffic that could ensue in that area might be detrimental to the other property owners. Roll Call Vote on Main Motion as Amended: 6-0. Resolution declared adopted unanimously, signed by the Mayor, and hereby made a portion of these minutes. APPROVAL OF CONTRACT AND PROMISSORY NOTE FOR KILIPER CORPORATION: Motion by Hoffman, Second by Parks, to adopt RESOLUTION NO. 94-533 approving contract and promissory note between City of Ames and Kiliper Corporation for EDSA compliance. Roll Call Vote: 6-0. Resolution declared adopted unanimously, signed by the Mayor, and hereby made a portion of these minutes. HEARING ON REPAIR OF ELECTRIC UTILITY NO. 7 AUXILIARY TRANSFORMER: Mayor Curtis declared the public hearing open. There being no one present wishing to testify, the public hearing was declared closed. Motion by Parks, Second by Wirth, to adopt RESOLUTION NO. 94-534 approving final plans and specifications and awarding a contract to MagnaTek Ohio Transformer in amount of $7,640.00 for inspection and $31,222.00 for rewinding of Transformer, plus applicable sales tax. Roll Call Vote: 6-0. Resolution declared adopted unanimously, signed by the Mayor, and hereby made a portion of these minutes. ORDINANCES REVISING MUNICIPAL CODE REGARDING FOUNDATIONS: Motion by Campbell, Second by Hoffman, to remove from table an ordinance establishing inspection requirements for subgrade walls. Vote on Motion: 5-1. Motion declared carried 5-1. Motion by Campbell, Second by Hoffman, to pass on second reading an ordinance establishing inspection requirements for subgrade walls. Roll Call Vote on Motion: 4-2. Voting Aye: Brown, Campbell, Hoffman, Wirth. Voting Nay: Parks, Tedesco. Motion declared carried 4-2. Motion by Campbell, Second by Wirth, to suspend the rules required for the adoption of an ordinance. Roll Call Vote: 5-1. Voting Aye: Brown, Campbell, Hoffman, Parks, Wirth. Voting Nay: Tedesco. Motion declared carried 5-1. Motion by Campbell, Second by Wirth, to pass on third reading and adopt ORDINANCE NO. 3315 amending Municipal Code to establish inspection requirements pertaining to subgrade walls. Roll Call Vote: 4-2. Voting Aye: Brown, Campbell, Hoffman, Wirth. Voting Nay: Parks, Tedesco. Ordinance declared adopted 4-2. Mayor Curtis said he intended to veto this ordinance, and Council would receive a message from him to that effect in 30 days. Motion by Wirth, Second by Hoffman, to remove from table an ordinance establishing standards pertaining to construction of foundation walls. Vote on Motion: 5-1. Motion declared carried 5-1. Motion by Campbell, Second by Hoffman, to pass on second reading an ordinance establishing standards pertaining to construction of foundation walls. Roll Call Vote: 4-2. Voting Aye: Brown, Campbell, Hoffman, Wirth. Voting Nay: Parks, Tedesco. Motion declared carried 4-2. Motion by Campbell, Second by Wirth, to suspend the rules required for the adoption of an ordinance. Roll Call Vote: 5-1. Voting Aye: Brown, Campbell, Hoffman, Parks, Wirth. Voting Nay: Tedesco. Motion declared carried 5-1. Motion by Campbell, Second by Wirth, to pass on third reading and adopt ORDINANCE NO. 3316 establishing standards pertaining to construction of foundation walls. Roll Call Vote: 4-2. Voting Aye: Brown, Campbell, Hoffman, Wirth. Voting Nay: Parks, Tedesco. Ordinance declared adopted 4-2. Mayor Curtis said he intended to veto this ordinance, and Council would receive a message from him to that effect in 30 days. ORDINANCE REZONING PROPERTY LOCATED AT 221, 223, 229, and 301 STANTON AVENUE FROM R-3 (MEDIUM-DENSITY RESIDENTIAL) TO R-4 (HIGH DENSITY RESIDENTIAL): Motion by Parks, Second by Hoffman, to pass on third reading and adopt ORDINANCE NO. 3310 rezoning property located at 221, 223, 229, and 301 Stanton Avenue from R-3 (Medium-Density Residential) to R-4 (High-Density Residential). Roll Call Vote: 5-1. Voting Aye: Campbell, Hoffman, Parks, Tedesco, Wirth. Voting Nay: Brown. Ordinance declared adopted 5-1, signed by the Mayor, and hereby made a portion of these minutes. ORDINANCE REZONING LAND SOUTHWEST OF INTERSECTION OF OAKWOOD ROAD AND ELWOOD DRIVE FROM R-2 TO R2 PUD (SUSSEX PLACE): Motion by Hoffman, Second by Parks, to pass on third reading and adopt ORDINANCE NO. 3311 rezoning land generally located southwest of the intersection of Oakwood Road and Elwood Drive from R-2 to R2 PUD (Sussex Place). Roll Call Vote: 6-0 . Ordinance declared adopted unanimously, signed by the Mayor, and hereby made a portion of these minutes. ORDINANCE REGULATING PARKING AND SPEED LIMIT ON SOUTHEAST FIFTH STREET, AND DESIGNATING IT AS THROUGH STREET FROM DAYTON ROAD TO FREEL DRIVE: Motion by Wirth, Second by Parks, to pass on third reading and adopt ORDINANCE NO. 3312 regulating parking and speed limit on Southeast Fifth Street and designating same as through street from Dayton Road to Freel Drive. Roll Call Vote: 6-0. Ordinance declared adopted unanimously, signed by the Mayor, and hereby made a portion of these minutes. PARKING PROHIBITIONS ON HEMLOCK CIRCLE: Motion by Hoffman, Second by Tedesco, to pass on third reading and adopt ORDINANCE NO. 3313 designating parking prohibitions on Hemlock Circle. Roll Call Vote: 6-0. Ordinance declared adopted unanimously, signed by the Mayor, and hereby made a portion of these minutes. ON-STREET PARKING REGULA TI O NS I N AREA O F 20TH STREET/HAYES/MCKINLEY: Motion by Parks, Second by Hoffman, to pass on third reading and adopt ORDINANCE NO. 3314 changing on-street parking regulations in the area of 20th Street/Hayes/McKinley. Roll Call Vote: 5-1. Voting Aye: Brown, Campbell, Hoffman, Parks, Tedesco. Voting Nay: Wirth. Ordinance declared adopted 5-1, signed by the Mayor, and hereby made a portion of these minutes. COMMENTS: Coun. Campbell said she had made the motion setting the 30-day liquor license suspension for Cy's Roost at the December 13, 1994 meeting. She said in light of the fact that this was a third violation, she felt the Council was being lenient in suspending the license during a period when ISU was not in session. Coun. Parks said he felt the Legislature should consider allowing penalties for such municipal infractions to be raised. Mayor Curtis said the League of Municipalities was looking into that issue. He noted the respondent could appeal this matter to the State Alcoholic Beverages Commission. Coun. Wirth said the Council had received a December 2, 1994 letter from the Historic Preservation Commission requesting a short, joint meeting with the Council. She requested that such a meeting be scheduled, and Mayor Curtis said Staff would schedule that meeting when possible. Coun. Wirth said she had received a number of complaints regarding visibility and safety problems with parking in the Hospital area. She said she had written a letter to Mr. Kell requesting his help with the issue, and Council would receive a copy of that letter. There was discussion regarding whether these problems were a result of displaced parking due to the construction project. Coun. Campbell said she would hope people would use the valet service available at the Hospital during the construction period. Mayor Curtis suggested Staff might increase parking surveillance for enforcement in that area, and Coun. Wirth said she had already spoken to Staff about doing so. Coun. Tedesco said he would support the previous comments regarding the request for reconsideration of Cy's Roost liquor license suspension. Coun. Tedesco wished everyone a happy holiday season, and thanked Staff for their support throughout the past year. Coun. Hoffman said she has waited for the valet service at the Hospital, and said it was not always on time. Coun. Hoffman asked whether the owner Cy's Roost had been made aware that he could appeal to the State Alcoholic Beverages Commission, and Mayor Curtis said his attorney should give him that legal advice. Coun. Hoffman asked whether the meeting on the Hyland Widening Project had been held last evening, and Public Works Director Paul Wiegand said that it had been held. Assistant City Manager Bob Kindred noted copies of the Municipal Policy Leaders Handbook had been distributed to Council this evening. Mr. Kindred reminded the Council of the annual City employee Holiday Party on December 22, 1994 from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. ADJOURNMENT: The meeting adjourned at 8:38 p.m. Larry R. Curtis, Mayor Sandra L. Ryan, City Clerk