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HomeMy WebLinkAbout07/20/2004 Regular Council Meeting MinutesMINUTES OF REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MARANA TOWN HALL JULY 20, 2004 I. II. III. IV PLACE AND DATE Marana Town Hall, July 20, 2004 CALL TO ORDER By Vice Mayor Kai at 7:04p.m. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Led by Vice Mayor Kai INVOCATION/MOMENT OF SILENCE A moment of silence was observed. ROLL CALL COUNCIL Bobby Sutton, Jr. Mayor Excused Herb Kai Vice Mayor Present Jim Blake Council Member Present Patti Comerford Council Member Excused Tim Escobedo Council Member Present Ed Honea Council Member Present Carol McGorray Council Member Present STAFF Mike Reuwsaat Town Manager Present Jaret Barr Assistant Town Manager Present Frank Cassidy Town Attorney Present Jocelyn Bronson Town Clerk Present Jim DeGrood Executive Asst. to the Town Manager Present Kevin Kish Interim Planning Director Present Jack Avis GIS Manager Present Attached is a list of public attendees. V. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Upon motion by Council Member Honea, seconded by Council Member McGorray, the agenda was unanimously approved. MINUTES OF REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING A'IARANA TOWN HALL JULY Z0, 2004 VI. ACCEPTANCE OF MINUTES Ms. Bronson asked that the Council disregard the Gladden Farms Community Facilities District Board minutes which were included in the Council packet by mistake. She asked that the Council vote only on the acceptance of the July 15, 2004 regular Council meeting minutes. Upon motion by Council Member McGorray, seconded by Council Member Honea, the July 15, 2004 Town Council minutes were unanimously approved. VII. CALL TO THE PUBLIGANNOUNCEMENTS Ms. Bronson spoke about voter registration and several important dates associated with the upcoming election September 7, 2004. She pointed out that, while the election was a Pima County one, the Town had a measure, the Willow Ridge Rezone Referendum, on that ballot as well. She explained that June 7th was the first day early mail ballots were made available to the public and that early voting began on August 5th. She noted that the last day to register to vote was Monday, August 9th, and the last day to request an early mail ballot was Friday, August 27th. She said that there were two early voting sites available to the Marana residents, the Pima County Recorder's office located at 115 N. Church and in Marana at 3912 W. Ina Road, Suite 212. She said that these sites would open Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Ms. Bronson pointed out that early voting continued until September 2nd and that she had plenty of voter registration forms and early mail ballot request forms as well as copies of the Marana Land Development Code regarding political signage. She added that Mr. Kish had sign permit applications available, too. The Town Clerk remarked that, in accordance with the Marana Town Code, the regularly scheduled Town Council meeting on September 7th would be held on Wednesday, September 8th. Vice Mayor Kai thanked the Town Clerk for the valuable voter information. He urged everyone to participate in the voting process and pointed out that it was an important election for the Town of Marana. Sarah Mauet, a reporter with the Arizona Daily Star, acknowledged that the Council meeting would be the last that she covered for the publication. She said that she was continuing with the newspaper in another capacity. Vice Mayor Kai thanked Ms. Mauet for her past coverage of the Council and wished her well in any future endeavors. 2 MINUTES OF REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MARANA TOWN HALL JULY 20, 2004 VIII. STAFF REPORTS There were no questions regarding the staff reports. IX. GENERAL ORDER OF BUSINESS A. CONSENT AGENDA 1. Resolution No. 2004-65: Relating to Personnel; Adopting a proposed amendment to the Town's Personnel Policies Manual, revising Policy 5-6, PROBLEM RESOLUTION (Mike Reuwsaat) 2. Resolution No. 2004-104: Relating to Water Service; Approving and authorizing the execution of the Agreement between the Town of Marana and Northwest Fire District for Construction of Water Facilities Under Private Contract for Northwest Fire Station #36 (Brad DeSpain) 3. Resolution No. 2004-105: Relating to Water Service; Approving and authorizing the execution of the First Amendment to Town of Marana ~,~, Agreement for Construction of Potable and Non-Potable Water Facilities and Provision of Water Utility Service between the Town of Marana and BCIF Group, LLC, pertaining to the San Lucas Development (Brad DeSpain) 4. Resolution No. 2004-108: Relating to the Marana Regional Airport; Accepting a Grant Agreement between the FAA and the Town of Marana for pavement maintenance and land acquisition at the Marana Regional Airport (Charlie Mangum) 5. Resolution No. 2004-101: Relating to Road Improvements; Approving an intergovernmental Agreement between the Town of Marana and Arizona Department of Transportation for the improvement to Tangerine Road from the Breakers to Thornydale Road (Harvey Gill) Upon motion by Council Member Escobedo, seconded by Council Member Blake, the consent agenda was unanimously approved. 3 MINUTES OF REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING NL4R.ANA TOWN HALL JULY 20, 2004 B. COUNCIL ACTION 1. Presentation on Santa Cruz Valley National Heritage Area (Jim DeGrood) Ora Harn, Marana Museum Curator, spoke before the Council regarding the effort to have the Santa Cruz Valley designated by Congress as a National Heritage Area. She said that this designation would afford the area special funding privileges and other opportunities related to tourism as well as historical and cultural projects. She noted that there was a broad spectrum of stakeholders working on this important project including local governments, federal and state land and park managers, agencies, organizations, and businesses interested in regional economic growth, groups involved in historic preservation, nature conservation, and environmental education, and non-profit organizations associated with the preservation of heritage and nature resources. Ms. Harn explained that the proposed boundaries of the Heritage Area included the upper and middle watershed of the Santa Cruz River, from Marana to Nogales, Arizona. She introduced Jonathan Mabry, a leader in the designation effort and a representative of the Center for Desert Archaeology. Mr. Mabry spoke regarding the building of regional support for the designation effort. He provided the Council with an informational sheet listing the various governments, agencies, and organizations involved in the project and a pamphlet describing the project. These materials have been made a permanent part of the record. He reported that formal support had been acquired from 99% of the local governments within the proposed National Heritage Area. He added that progress had also been made in the public outreach and feasibility study areas. He said that a series of public meetings across the region had been held and that he would like to have a Town Meeting in Marana to educate the residents about the project. He said that the feasibility study work had begun and that a goal for completion ~~as set by the end of September 2004. He said that the study would be presented to the Congressional sponsors in Washington at that point where the staff members of Senator McCain, Congressman Grijalva, and Congressman Kolbe would review the materials. Mr. Mabry noted that he would also send the public input with the study. He explained that, after the area was created, it would have some real benefits for this region and said that other national heritage areas in the nation have seen significant boosts in various types of tourisms. He stated that the designation would bring long term economic benefits to Marana and that it would be only the third national heritage area in the western United States and the first one on the border with Mexico. 4 MINUTES OF REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MARANA TOWN HALL JULY 20, 2004 Mr. Mabry said that Marana and the new Heritage Park being planned here would be the northern gateway to this new national heritage area. He said that Marana would see all kinds of benefits from this project. Vice Mayor Kai wished Mr. Mabry luck in this endeavor and said that it was a very worthwhile project. He said that he hoped the Town continued to participate and help. 2.a. Public Hearing. Ordinance No. 2004.18: Relating to development; rezoning 230-acres of land from "R-144" to zone "F" and creating the Tortolita Vistas Specific Plan on property located south of Moore Road and west of Thornydale Road (Kevin Kish) Upon motion by Council McGorray, seconded by Council Member Honea, unanimous approval to go into public hearing was given. Mr. Reuwsaat spoke regarding this item and the following item which he said were intricately connected. He asked that the two items be considered together when the Council voted. Mr. Kish gave a brief description of the proposed development. He said that a minor amendment to the Marana General Plan was incorporated into this process and was changing the Rural Density Residential zoning designation to Master Planning Area. He said that two land use designations were planned for this project, Clustered Residential Area (RA) and Open Space (OS). He noted that the traffic circulation would be regulated by a loop system internally connecting Moore and Thornydale Roads and that all local streets would comply with the town's Local Street standards. He said that there were significant natural resources in the subject area and that the Specific Plan employed various methods to ensure that development procedures were appropriate for clustering the proposed development. He described the lot size and home placement within the subdivision. Vice Mayor Kai asked if there were any speakers from the audience tivishing to comment during a public hearing on this item. He also reported that three letters of opposition had been received. These letters have been made a permanent part of this record. 5 MINUTES OF REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MARANA TOWN HALL JULY 20, 2004 Doug McVie, resident, voiced his opposition to this development agreement and rezoning. He commented that only Marana would increase the land use density by three times and still consider the amendment to the General Plan minor. He said that the land in question was sensitive habitat and that the existent zoning designation would only allow 69 homes, with a maximum in the General Plan of 115 residences. He said that it was his understanding that U.S. Fish and Wildlife had not had any contact with the Town in well over a year in regard to this project. He said that he was concerned that commercial development would be placed to the south of the Tortolita Vista development at a later date after this project was completed. He said that it was unwise to "up-zone" these sensitive lands. Lou Benson, Pima County resident, spoke before the Council regarding his opposition to this development. He said that the current zoning allowed 92 houses on this property and that it was critical habitat for the pygmy-owl which called for more sensitive applications. He said that the characterization of the General Plan amendment as minor was misleading. He noted that there were no other residential developments in the area similar to this project and that it was not within the character of the `~ neighborhood. Carol Smith, Marana resident, spoke to the Council about her opposition to the proposed development. She said that the character of land ~~as already compromised from ranch land down to 3.3 residences per acre. She asked that the zoning remain the same and that tract housing not be allowed. Upon motion by Council Member Escobedo, seconded by Council Member Blake, unanimous approval to go out of public hearing was given. 2.b. Resolution No. 2004-100: Relating to Development; approving and authorizing the execution of a development agreement regarding the Tortolita Vista development project. Mr. Cassidy said that Mr. Kish had reviewed the high points of the development agreement and that he would be happy to answer any questions. He said that the two actions, the rezoning and the development agreement, were designed to go to Council vote in tandem. Vice Mayor Kai inquired about the site disturbance and when U.S. Fish and Wildlife would come into the project. 6 MINUTES OF REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MAR~~'vA TOWN HALL JULY 20, 2004 Mr. Barr replied that, as with all of the Town's development agreements and subdivision plats, compliance with all requirements of the Endangered Species Act and other federal and state agencies was mandatory. Mr. Reuwsaat said that U.S. Fish and Wildlife was aware of this project and that the project was redesigned to ensure open access to the wildlife corridors. He said that the Town was asking for no more than a maximum of a 40 % disturbance. Upon motion by Council Member Honea, seconded by Council Member McGorray, Ordinance No. 2004.18 and Resolution No. 2004-100 were unanimously approved. 3.a. Ordinance No. 2004.17: Relating to Zoning; modifying Condition 13 of the Gladden Farms rezoning as set forth in Ordinance No. 2000.09 (Frank Cassidy) Mr. Cassidy spoke to the Council regarding the proposed modification to the Gladden Farms rezoning Condition #13 contained in Marana Ordinance No. 2000.09. He said that the original rezoning of this property was for two school sites but that the Marana Unified School District (MUSD) had indicated they preferred to receive in-lieu funds instead of the second school site. He added that the amendment of the development agreement, the following proposed action, went hand in hand with this action and was for a voluntary school improvement contribution fee of $900 per residential lot within phases 2, 3, and 4. Upon motion by Council Member Escobedo, seconded by Council Member Blake, Resolution No. 2004-102 and Ordinance No. 2004.17 were unanimously approved. 3.b. Resolution No. 2004-102: Relating to Development; approving and authorizing the execution of a second amendment to the Gladden Farms development agreement (Frank Cassidy) This resolution was approved under the previous item. MINUTES OF REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MARANA TOWN HALL JiTLY 20, 2004 4. Presentation: Development Services Enhancement Team 3, Mission and Expectations Statement Triangle (Jack Avis) Mr. Avis spoke about the Development Services Enhancement Team and said that the team had developed a Mission and Expectations statement. He noted that this statement was contained on a 3D Triangle design which could be displayed in the work place. Mr. Barr thanked the team for its outstanding work and said that they have inspired others. C. MAYOR AND COUNCIL'S REPORT Council Member Escobedo reported that the Marana Teen Advisory Council (MTAC) attended the Chamber of Commerce luncheon last week and that some of the State representatives were also present. He said that Representative Steve Huffman was interested in scheduling a visit to Phoenix by the MTAC members in order for the youth to assist in writing a bill related to teen speeding. Vice Mayor Kai reported on his attendance at a CAP meeting in Page, Arizona. He said that the group took a tour of Lake Powell where the water level was down over 120 feet. He noted that this was a dire situation for the lake area. He said that the group also toured the Navajo Generation Station, acoal-fired. power plant operated by Salt River. D. MANAGERS' REPORT Mr. Reuwsaat reported on his recent vacation and said that he was glad to be back in Arizona. X. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS There were no items suggested for future agendas. 8 MINUTES OF REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MARANA TOWN HALL JULY 20, 2004 XI. ADJOURNMENT Upon motion by Council Member Escobedo, seconded by Council Member McGorray, unanimous approval to adjourn was given. The time was 8:42 p.m. CERTIFICATION I hereby certify that the foregoing are the true and correct minutes of the Marana Town Council meeting held on July 20, 2004. I further certify that a quorum was present. ocelyn onson, Town Clerk 9 ~Z9RANA TOWN COi.~NCIL MEETING Public Attendees a DATE: Address N car ~ ~prU~~i l/t cajer'~~~ ~~lsa ~~~~~ ~~~ ~o.~ .o ~~i ~,~t ~Q~ ,, n R T (C~.~'~a el GKw~dc ~•~ ~~~ ___- , n ~~ ~~ s~r~, ~ ~ Z~S A TOE Cp~TCIL 1ViEETING ~ti4RAN Public Aftendees DATE Ads Name ___-- ~ a ~~ ~~-; ~~ ~/~ ~~ C/~~~~