Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout02/04/2003 Regular Council Meeting MinutesMIl~TU`I'ES OF REGULAR CUUNCII. MEETING MARANA TOWN HALL FEBRUARY 4, 2003 PLACE AND DATE Marana Town Hall, February 4, 2003 I. CALL TO ORDER By Mayor Sutton at 7:04 p.m. II. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Led by Mayor Sutton III. INVOCATION/MOMENT OF SILENCE Led by Mayor Sutton IV. ROLL CALL COUNCIL Bobby Sutton, Jr. Mayor Present Herb Kai Vice Mayor Present Jim Blake Council Member Present Patti Comerford Council Member Present Tim Escobedo Council Member Present Ed Honea Council Member Present Carol McGorray Council Member Present STAFF Mike Hein Town Manager Present Dan Hochuli Town Attorney Present Jim DeGrood Development Services Admin. Present Jocelyn Entz Town Clerk Present Joel Shapiro Planning & Zoning Director Present Jane Howell Human Resources Director Present Attached is a list of public attendees. V. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Upon motion by Council Member Honea, seconded by Council Member Blake, the agenda was unanimously approved. 1 .....MINUTES OF REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING R+IARANA TOWN HALL FEBRUARY d, Z~3 VI. ACCEPTANCE OF MINUTES Upon motion by Council Member Escobedo, seconded by Vice Mayor Kai, the minutes of the January 21, 2003 regular Council meeting were approved 6/0 with one abstention by Mayor Sutton who was absent from the January 21st meeting. VII. CALL TO THE PUBLIGANNOUNCEMENTS Carl Winters, Marana Health Center Board of Directors, spoke before the Council regarding an upcoming calendar event. He announced that the first annual Recognition of Our History dinner was being held by the Marana Health Center on April 4, 2003. He informed the Council that this event would be honoring Ora Harn for her many years of service to the Marana community. He invited all to attend. Mr. Winters continued by presenting Dan Groseclose, Town of Marana's Affordable Housing General Contractor, with a plaque in recognition of his service to the Town and, especially, to the Marana Health Center over the years. °} He applauded Mr. Groseclose for his community spirit and commitment. Ora Harn, Associate Director of the Marana Health Center, invited everyone to participate in an upcoming blood drive on February 11, 2003. She noted that the bloodmobile would be parked at the health center from 5:00 to 11:00 a.m. on that Tuesday. She urged everyone to donate. Kristen Rickus, Den Leader, introduced Cub Scout Pack 219 from Coyote Trails & Twin Peaks elementary schools to the Mayor and Council. The young men were in attendance at this meeting in order to earn a citizenship badge. The group of 4th graders included John McKearney, Cary Kelly, Zach Cotsonas, Andy Rickus, Jesus Almada, Skyler Connor and Kyle McCutcheon. Jane Howell introduced the newest member of the Human Resources staff, Lisa Jones. Ms. Howell related to the Council that Ms. Jones been a longtime employee of the Alphagraphics Corporation and brought to the Town fourteen years of experience in the human resources field. Vice Mayor Kai welcomed Robert Condit, Manager of the Cortaro Water Users Association, back from his recuperation after surgery. He said that he was very glad to see Mr. Condit back on his feet. 2 MINUTES C)F REGUi.AR COUNCIL. MEETING.. MAItANA TOWN HALL FEBRUARY 4, 2~3 VIII. STAFF REPORTS There were no questions regarding the staff reports. IX. GENERAL ORDER OF BUSINESS A. CONSENT AGENDA 1. Resolution No. 2003-16: Exchange a portion of the Town of Marana public rights-of--way of Artesiano Road for the New Continental Reserve Loop (Farhad Moghimi) 2. Discussion/Action: Disposition of current municipal facility at 13251 N. Lon Adams Road (Mike Hein) Upon motion by Council Member Blake, seconded by Vice Mayor Kai, the consent agenda was unanimously approved. B. COUNCIL ACTION ~~,. 1. PUBLIC HEARING: Ordinance No. 2003.02: Southwest corner Fl ' Diamond & Camino de Oeste: This item was continued, from the January 21, 20Q3 meeting. A request to rezone approximately 9.56 acres from "C" (Large Lot Zone) to "R-144" (Residential -144,000 square feet per lot) located at the southwest corner of Flying Diamond and Camino de Oeste, in Section 12, Township 12 South, Range 12 East (Joel Shapiro) Upon motion by Council Member Escobedo, seconded by Vice Mayor Kai, unanimous approval to go into public hearing was given. Jim DeGrood addressed the meeting and said that the Town staff had worked with the property owner in developing eight conditions identified within the proposed ordinance. He explained that these conditions basically granted the Town the necessary rights-of--way for Camino de Oeste, provided for any necessary roadway improvements based on the proposed development submittals, required that any lot splits be brought before the Town staff for approval, and required verification that the property in question had been annexed into the Northwest Fire District. 1VIIlVUTES OF REGULAR COUNCII, MEETING MARANA TOWN HALL . FEBRUARY 4, 2003 Doug Wright, President of Commercial Investors Realty and representative for Cheng Holdings Limited Partnership, spoke before the Council regarding this request. He reported that the property owner had decided upon a site envelope approach to the development in order to ensure that there would be minimal disturbance to the property during construction. He remarked that archaeological as well as critical habitat surveys were in progress and the reports were scheduled for completion any day. He added that the property owner was agreeable to all of the listed conditions proposed in the ordinance. He pointed out that the owner had purchased a 35' strip of land which put the entire property size over 10.07 acres and brought the project up to compliance. This new land addition would be used strictly as a buffer to the southern property line and could not be used as a roadway or be built upon. Mayor Sutton called the meeting out of public hearing with unanimous approval from the Council. Upon motion by Vice Mayor Kai, seconded by Council Member Honea, Ordinance No. 2003.02 with the listed conditions was unanimously approved. 2. Resolution No. 2003-17: Twin Peaks Highland Preliminary Plat: A request to construct a 114-unit single-family subdivision on 29.78 acres in a portion of the Pima Farms North Specific Plan. The project is located south of Silverbell Road, adjacent to the Twin Peaks Manufactured Home subdivision in a portion of Section 20, township 12 south, Range 12 East (Joel Shapiro) Mr. DeGrood spoke before the Council and briefly explained the history of this project. He commented that the Town staff had been working extensively with the applicant in terms of addressing concerns regarding the proposed development. He recommended approval of the resolution with the listed conditions. Barbara Rose, Pima County resident living adjacent to the proposed project, spoke before the Council regarding her concerns. She reported that numerous meetings with the developer, D.R. Horton, had taken place over the last few months and she complimented this firm on their sense of cooperation and efforts to perform more sensitively to the environment than on prior projects. She said that her group still had serious reservations regarding the designation of critical habitat, particularly the acreage bordering the Safford Peak wash. She asked if the Town staff 4 MIlYUTES OF REGULAR COUNCII, MEETING MARANA TOWN HALL ,~,... FEBRUARY 4, ?A03 would meet with her group in order to discuss mitigation of these properties and, possibly, have these properties incorporated into the Habitat Conservation Plan being developed at this time. She stated that another serious concern involved the mesquite bosque that had been incorporated into plans for a community park and drainage area. She voiced her hope that this area would be preserved in its natural vegetative state and added that the U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife also held concerns regarding this area as well as other projects planned along Safford Peak wash. Mayor Sutton assured Ms. Rose that she would be a part of the ongoing discussions regarding critical habitat and environmentally sensitive areas in the Scenic Drive neighborhood. He asked for further clarification regarding the encroachment on the natural washes. Mr. DeGrood replied that the 4/4 delineation supplied to the Town by the Army Corp of Engineers had been used in the determination of land use along the wash areas. He said that several trails along Scenic Drive had been looked at in terms of further preservation of natural vegetation in the retention basin. Mayor Sutton commented that the Town was well known for keeping properties in their natural state if at all possible unless detrimental to the vegetation. He said that the critical habitat issues were important and the Town was not in a position to negotiate on those mandatory federally- imposed conditions. Council Member Comerford inquired about lots 24 through 38 where the properties did encroach upon the wash. She asked if the property along the fence line would be kept in its natural state and what methods the Town would use to enforce compliance. Mr. DeGrood replied that there would be a number of safeguards in place regarding this natural area. He noted that the property would be shown on the final plat as a preserved area and that there would be Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions (CC&Rs) written against the property and enforced by the home owners association (HOA) who would be held responsible by the Town. He concluded by stating that there could be other instruments recorded during the final platting process that would further ensure the preservation of this area. s MI1tTUT'ES OF REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING MARANA TOWN HALL ~_ FEBRUARY 4, 2003 Vice Mayor Kai asked about disclosures to potential property buyers regarding the natural gas lines running through the properties. Mr. DeGrood replied that the El Paso natural gas line would be identified not only on the final plat but also in the public report He said that there would be additional formal marking in the field as well. Upon motion by Council Member Blake, seconded by Council Member Escobedo, Resolution No. 2003-17 with conditions was unanimously approved. 3. State Legislative Issues - Discussion/Direction/Action regarding all pending bills before the Legislature (Mike Hein) Mayor Sutton reported that Michael Racy, Lobbyist, was not in attendance and that a full legislative report would not be given at this time. He commented that urban revenue sharing had not been cut from the State 's budget as of yet Mike Hein spoke regarding this item. He gave a brief outline of several bills before the Legislature that were pertinent to Marana and confirmed that while cities and towns would experience a severe decline in funding, the urban revenue sharing program had not been cut by the State. Council Member Blake inquired about certain services possibly being mandated down to the municipalities and counties and he went on to comment that this type of action would be the same as cutting the shared revenue funding. Mr. Hein replied that there were certainly some methods of State budget cutting that would be perceived as funding cutting at the municipal level. He said that the Town would not be relying on the State for any additional funding and would be trying to buttress the Town's existing financial position. Ora Harn asked for support from the Town in her lobbying efforts regarding funding for school-based health clinics, specifically Kids Care. 6 MINUTES OF REGULAR COUNCIL MEET'IlVG MARANA T4RlN HALL FEBRUARY 4, 2003 She explained that budget cutting regarding tobacco tax monies had threatened the funding of Kids Care. She emphasized the fact that this was an issue that should not only be a concern to the MHC but also the Town of Marana in terms of the safety and well being of the community's children. She asked to have Kids Care included in the management staffs' efforts when lobbying for legislative items in Phoenix. C. MAYOR AND COUNCIL'S REPORT Council Member Escobedo reported that he had participated in the Town's first Community Emergency Response Team program session of which MPD Officer Bill Derfus led as the certified instructor. It was held at the Sunflower Community Center and there were 65 participants at this first time offering. He remarked that this was a fantastic project and that everyone should be watching for this program to be enlarged within the town itself to other local Marana communities. He said that he would keep the public and Council abreast of any new developments. % Vice Mayor Kai reported that he and Brad DeSpain, Utilities Director, had attended a function in Phoenix to meet all of the new Arizona State legislators at Bud Brown's Barn He added that he and his wife, Diana Kai, who is a member of the CAWCD Board, had attended a luncheon with the General Manager and the Deputy General Manager of the CAWCD and had discussed issues such as trails. Mayor Sutton reported that he had attended the Governor's Tucson Inauguration ceremony recently held at the Tucson Convention Center and that he looked forward to southern Arizona, especially Pima County, having a better relationship with the State after the record Democratic voter turnout during the election of Governor Napolitano. D. MANAGERS' REPORT There were no reports given at this time. X. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS Council Member Escobedo asked that two items be added to the next Council agenda. The two items were investigating the costs of providing helmets and vests to the graduates of the Community Emergency Response Team program and to direct the Town staff to look at setting aside a portion of the Marana Development Code for future medical facilities. rmvUTES of REGULAR couxc~ MEETIl~IG l1~ARANA 'T`OWN .HALL FEBRUARY 4, 2003 Mayor Sutton added to his report by saying that, even with the current Marana population being only 15,000-17,000, the Town still had 65 residents volunteer to join the Emergency Response Team program. He commented that there was a second list begun and this was only in one small area of the town. He said that this was certainly a testament of the large amount of human capital available in Marana that he is always touting. He commended the citizens for their community spirit. XI. ADJOURNMENT Upon motion by Council Member Escobedo, seconded by Council Member Blake, approval to adjourn was unanimous. The time was 7:47 p.m. CERTIFICATION I hereby certify that the foregoing are the true and correct minutes of the Marana Town Council meeting held on February 4, 2003. I further certify that a quorum was present. .s~~.E s 1~AI~ANA TOLVN COUNCIL 1VIEETING Public Attendees DATE: ~.c~ ~- ~ r ~D ~ ~ Name s ~~ Address ~~v3 r"~~' /y' c G~r.% rG~,~~~, ~' a 1S ~(/ ~~~G~ 7ilr,'n ~ 61,'~ ,~ rig, ~f ~ ~ c~'G~~~ ? `~ ~