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HomeMy WebLinkAbout09/11/2012 Study Session MinutesSTUDY SESSION MTNUTES 11555 W. Civic Center Drive, Marana., Arizona 85653 Council Chambers, September 1 l, 2012, at or after 6:00 PM Ed Honea, Mayor Patti Comerford, Vice Mayor David Bowen, Council Member Herb Kai, Council Member Carol McGorray, Gouncil Member Jon Post, Council Mernber Roxanne Ziegler, Council Member STUDY SESSION CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL. Mayor Honea called the meeting to order at 5:59 p.m. Town Clerk Bronson called roll. All Council Members were present. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE/INVOCATION/MOMENT OF SILENCE. Led by Mayor Honea. APPROVAL OF AGENDA. Motion to approve by Council Member Bowen, second by Council Member Ziegler. Passed unanitnously. DISCUSSION/DIRECTION/POSSIBLE ACTION 1: Presentation: Relating to Emergency Preparedness; providing an overview of the Town's emergency preparedness efforts and the Emergency Operations Plan update 2012. Presented by Del Post. He noted that Community is the key area in the Strategic Plan regazding the emergency operations plan. He noted that this item will be on the Council agenda next week for final approval. Looking at ways to strategize being prepared involves all departments and several community partners. He then outlined the three key elements of the plan. Melanie Nelson discussed the general structure and concepts of the plan, including the responsibilities of the organization and the coordination of the activities as well as communication functions that should be in place in case there is an emergency in the town. Another element is the financial responsibility — how we get reimbursed by the federal government. Ariother component is the development and maintenance of the Plan. This Plan was updated in 2006 and will come before September 1 l, 2012 Council Meeting Council again in the future as needed. Mr. Post thanked Melanie for her efforts to bring clarity to this topic. Emergency support functions have been established in public service areas. These are the most likely service areas to be called upon in the event of an emergency. The emergency management group meets on a monthly basis to coordinate drills and discuss any vulnerability the town might face. The last piece of this Plan is the emergency management team consisting of the Manager's Office and Sgt. Johnson to strategize and engage community partners. He discussed Emergency Preparedness Month and noted that a series of training sessions have been developed, engaging some of our key partners to come and give us practical training exercises for staff and Council. Staff is working to put into practice table top exercises to practice drills to make sure we know what to do in the event of an emergency. Council Member Bowen asked who the first responder is in an emergency. Mr. Post responded that it is the dispatch center who in turn alerts the appropriate agency depending on the type of event. 2: Presentation: Relating to Economic Development; presenta.tion and discussian relating to new and existing incentive programs ta attract development in Marana. Gilbert Davidson presented for Curt Woody, who was at an economic development conference. Mr. Davidson thanked Mr. Post and Melanie Nelson for the work they have been doing on the emergency operations plan, consisting of hundreds of staff hours by all staff. , Jay Christelman, Kevin Kish, Keith Brann and Curt Woody were responsible for putting the incentive presentation together. Mr. Davidson said that he felt a great faundation has been built which has led us to this point. The challenge faced is more prevalent in north Marana than in other areas of the community due to lack of commercial services for residents and businesses; more rooftops are needed to bring those services to bear. When the team met, the focus was where we're going as an organization in the face of the current political economic climate. The answer is to be proactive by being innovative, using competitive strategies and being community oriented — determining how we create jobs for our residents. He noted that there are four strategic areas to focus on: image, capital investments, resources and partnering. The team identified the tools we have today — the job incentive program is one. Construction sales tax rebates — and he discussed both pros and cons. The use of bed tax, which is now constrained by state legislative action. Expedited development services — which is customer service driven, but he noted that we are continuing to strengthen that area. Government Property Lease Excise Tax. The Marketing campaign. There are many things we can do, including getting out the message and the image that Marana is a great place to invest. There was a program Oro Valley launched last year called Shop Oro Valley which Marana can emulate. T'his can be a great partnership with the Chamber of Commerce. He noted that staff gets a lot of feedback from visitors and homeowners about the ADOT right of way and vacant laaid around Marana and how it can be spruced up. Eventually there will be improvements made to Marana Road into the I-10 interchange. With respect to resources, a percentage of one of our revenue sources could be put that into an investment fund to be used for start-up businesses, infrastructure, storefront improvements, etc. There are same challenges but also the potential for rewards. Delaying fee collection is another optian. September 1 l, 2012 Council Meeting 2 Capital investments. A lot of money could be spent here. The first component is infrastructure. In north Marana there is a big challenge because there's a blank canvas. Developing a business park or bringing in an anchor store would spur more development, but we don't have the infrashucture in place. We don't necessarily have areas that are reacly to go and all projects have deep costs and risks. The final component is looking at partners. The relationship with the Chamber is solid. Business coalitions are starting to develop. There are areas of the community like Ina Road where you are starting to see business leaders coming together and talking about the issues they are facing. We want to continue encouraging those coalitions. The homebuilders association has been a great paxtner with the town. We are a growth community and we need a number of diverse homebuilders who can succeed. We haven't done a lot with the Metropolitan Tucson Convention & Visitors Bureau, but there is opportunity there. TREO has changed its board structure and they are no longer going to charge government entities to be on their board. We will be learning more about that. Mayor Honea noted that he and several Council Members have long sought an anchor store in north Marana as an incentive to bri.ng rooftops. Mr. Davidson noted that we need to be creative in using existing dollars as a catalyst to drive more development. General discussion amongst Council followed concerned various elements of the presentation. Mr. Davidson asked Council if they could provide direction of what they would like to see staff bring back for further consideration. Council Member Ziegler noted that sevezal items that were in the presentation tonight have been talked about for years. Council Member McGorray noted that when you have the utilities, you will have development. Vice Mayor Comerford is a proponent of delaying fees. 3: Presentation: Relating to community enhancement; enhancing the base landscaping within the Public Right-of-Way, as a means to improve the aesthetic quality of the existing streetscape, and thereby enhancing the appearance of the Town for its residents and visitors. Presentation by Tim Ensign. Mr. Davidson also noted that the town has been operating off of a base level standard as to how we maintain right of way, In this year's budget $lOQK was set aside to do some enhancements along the Silverbell corridor. Dialog has started with the Continental Ranch Homeowners Association to do that. Once started, further dialog ensued as to how to maintain a consistent approach to the base level landscaping. Mr. Ensign stated the primary intent of the policy is to provide incentives to enhance the level of landscaping from a base level to an enhancement level. He then showed photographs within the community. He also noted that most communities would consider our base landscaping enhanced. The last slide discussed was license agreements — outlining both the applicant and the town's responsibilities. Executive Session pursuant to A.R.S. §38-431 A3 (A)(3), Council may ask for discussion or consultarion for legal advice with the Town Attorney concerning any matter listed on this agenda. 1: Executive session pursuant to A.R.S. § 38-431.03(A)(3),(4) and {7), for discussion or consultation with the Town's attorneys and to instruct the Town's representatives concerning (1) September 11, 2012 Council Meeting 3 the lawsuit entitled Town of Marana v. Pima County/Pima County v. Marana (consolida.ted), Maricapa Caunty Superior Court No. CV2008-001131, Arizana Court of Appeals No. 1 CA CV 11 0381; (2) the lawsuit entitled Pima County v. Town of Marana, Pima County Superior Court No. C20116094; and (3) pending legal issues, settlement discussions and contract negotiations relating to the transition of Marana wastewater collection and treatment to the Town of Marana ADJ�L��7vM��N"T. Ilpon motion by Council Member McGorray, second by Council Member Ziegler, the meeting was adjourned at 7:22 p.m. Passed unani»cously. CERTIFICATION I hereby certify that the foregoing are the true and correct minutes of the Marana Town Council meeting held on September 11, 2412. I further certify that a quorum was present. September 1 l, 2012 Council Meeting 4