COUNCIL MEETING

April 7, 2005

 

 

The meeting was called to order by Mayor Rozier with Councilman Ray leading in prayer.  The minutes of the March 17, 2005 council meeting were reviewed.  Councilman Waller made a motion to approve the minutes, Councilman Ray seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

 

OLD BUSINESS:

 

Attorney Dickey reported that there had been no new information regarding the City’s lawsuit against the EPD since the matter was now in the court’s hands and we were waiting on a ruling from the judge.  Mayor Rozier reported that the City has received an invoice from Barbara Gallo with Epstein Becker & Green, P.C. in the amount of $2,516.56 for February services.  Councilman Tyler asked what the attorney would be doing on the case while waiting for the judge’s ruling and several council members voiced their concerns about charges being generated during this time period.  Councilman Johnson suggested that we contact Ms. Gallo and advise her that if there was a light at the end of the tunnel to go ahead with the process, but if not, please let us know.  Councilman Myrick agreed with this suggestion and asked if we could authorize Attorney Dickey to contact her and advise her that the City did not want any other expenses incurred on this issue until we received a ruling from the judge on our current lawsuit.  Attorney Dickey stated that he would advise Ms. Gallo of the Mayor and Council’s position on this matter.  Councilman Tyler stated that since we had no other choice at this time, he would make the motion to pay the February bill.  Councilman Johnson seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

 

Mayor Rozier reported that the resolution has been prepared regarding Bloomingdale’s future responsibilities for proposed improvements to Wildcat Dam Road, but had advised Dennis Baxter, Pooler’s City Administrator, that he was not comfortable signing the resolution with blank information.  The Mayor stated that as soon as a contractor is designated by the developers the resolution can be completed and executed by both cities.

 

The Mayor reminded council that at the February 3rd meeting, council had agreed to allow Debra Brant until tonight’s meeting to have the two non-conforming mobile homes on her properties located at #6 & #8 Brantville Drive moved.  The mobile homes have not yet been moved, but Paul Lovezzola, the adjoining property owner, asked that he be placed on  tonight’s agenda to discuss this matter with council.  Mr. Lovezzola stated that he will be purchasing Ms. Brant’s property and the closing is scheduled for April 15th.  Mr. Lovezzola assured council that once he owns the property he plans to move both mobile homes, but may need a little time to line up the contractor to do the work.  After discussing the request, council agreed to give Mr. Lovezzola until the July meeting to have the non-conforming mobile homes moved from the property.

 

Council was advised that David Hicks has not taken any apparent action towards the removal of the non-conforming mobile home located at #1301A E Highway 80.  It was noted that Mr. Hicks was scheduled to attend the March 17th meeting, but failed to appear.  After a brief discussion, council agreed that Attorney Dickey should proceed with the action necessary to bring the property into compliance with the zoning ordinance.

 

Councilman Myrick reported that there had been increases in the cost of the generators council had approved for purchase for Well #1 and the public safety building.  Councilman Myrick pointed out that the original bid from Yancey Power Systems had a fifteen (15) day acceptance requirement, but when council delayed action on its acceptance to obtain another bid, there had been an increase in the prices of the equipment.  Councilman Myrick advised council that the increases, along with the costs for transfer switches for both generators, totaled $5165.00.  After a brief discussion, Councilman Myrick made a motion to proceed with the purchase of the generators at the increased costs, Councilman Ray seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.  It was noted that as previously agreed, these items would be included in the budgets for FY 2005-2006.

 

The council was informed that the City received notification from Kern-Coleman, Inc. confirming that the improvements to the property owned by D.K. Morgan at #1720 E. Hwy 80 have been completed as agreed to by council on February 17, 2005.  It was noted that the only item still pending is the preparation of an agreement by Attorney Dickey outlining Mr. Morgan’s responsibility for the maintenance of the stormwater detention pond on the property.  Attorney Dickey stated that he had prepared the agreement and would contact Mr. Morgan about signing it.

 

Mayor Rozier stated that at the March 17th meeting, council had approved the first reading of an ordinance requiring the installation of grease traps for new construction of certain types of commercial businesses as well as any old construction converted to a commercial business that generates the types of waste outlined in the ordinance.  Councilman Tyler made a motion to approve the second reading of the ordinance, Councilman Johnson seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.  Councilman Johnson made a motion to adopt the ordinance, Councilman Waller seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

 

The council was advised that the City has received the audit engagement letter from Karp, Ronning & Tindol outlining the services they will provide for the financial audit for the year ended June 30, 2005 at a cost of $8500 as approved by council at the March 17th meeting.  Attorney Dickey reported this was a standard agreement and he saw no problems with council executing it.  Councilman Waller made a motion authorizing Mayor Rozier to execute the audit engagement letter in the amount of $8500.  Councilman Myrick seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

 

Council was advised that Courtney Power with Integrated Science & Engineering was scheduled to make a presentation, but she had not yet arrived so this item will be postponed until later in the meeting.

 

The Mayor reported that the City has received most of the documentation related to the New Code Books.  Council was advised they needed to approve an adopting and enacting ordinance covering the New Code and once this has been completed, Municipal Code Corporation will print the document for insertion into the new books.  The New Code will include ordinances as adopted through November 18, 2004.  Once the adopting and enacting ordinance is received by MCC and processed, the City’s codes will also be available online with a link on the City’s website to the Code of Ordinances.  Attorney Dickey stated that he had reviewed the ordinance and found it to be in order.  After a brief discussion, Councilman Wedincamp made a motion to approve the first reading of the adopting and enacting ordinance.  Councilman Ray seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.  It was noted that the second reading will be scheduled for April 21st and a current Fee Schedule will need to be adopted along with the ordinance at this same meeting.

 

Councilman Wedincamp advised council that his engineer had determined that the PUD development on Cheyenne Road would require a 3” sewer main and the developers understood they would have to back up to the point where that size sewer main already exists in the City.  Councilman Johnson asked if a lift station was going to be required, but Councilman Wedincamp stated that he was expecting his engineer to be at the meeting to discuss the information with council, but he had not yet arrived.

 

The Mayor reported that the City had received a letter from Denise Grabowski providing her comments in regards to her review of the plot plan for the PUD on Cheyenne Road submitted by Mike Wedincamp and Charles Rogers at the March 17th meeting.  Ms. Grabowski reported that the site date refers to units, but not their uses, and the development text refers to a 3-acre recreational site with clubhouse which is not indicated on the plot plan.  Ms. Grabowski noted that the proposed density and setbacks are in conflict with “Appendix A-Zoning Ordinance, page 1369” as referred to in the PUD’s development text and this issue needed to be resolved.  Pending correction of these two items, Ms. Grabowski recommended the approval of the PUD.  As stated in her review letter dated March 9, 2005, Ms. Grabowski recommended that a tree survey be conducted prior to the preparation of the final development plan.  Copies of her comments had been distributed for council’s review, but no action was taken regarding the information received from Ms. Grabowski.

 

Council was reminded that at the March 17th meeting, council had postponed a decision on approval of the rezoning request submitted by James Arnold, Donald McCullough and Roy Joyner (Del Ferguson has since purchased this parcel) for their properties located on Highway 80 until Denise Grabowski could review their development plan.  Ms. Grabowski has reviewed the plan and copies of her comments have been distributed for council’s review.  Ms. Grabowski states that the revised site plan includes the additional information as outlined in her letter dated March 8th with the exception of the complete tree survey and explains several points related to the survey.  In her comments, she notes that the Mayor and Council may, at their discretion, approve the rezoning on the condition that complete tree survey information is provided on the construction drawings and points out that relocation of some of the parking from the front to the sides of the buildings would still be preferable.  If council approves the rezoning prior to the completion of the tree survey, Ms. Grabowski recommends the following conditions: 1) The development is consistent with the site plan dated March 12, 2005 and accompanying building elevations presented to her with the site plan; 2) Reconfiguration of parking along the front property line to the sides of the buildings will be considered a minor change and may be reviewed as part of the construction documents; and 3) A tree survey indicating all hardwoods shall be included with the construction documents indicating trees to be removed and preserved.  Councilman Johnson pointed out that pine and gum trees are not the most desirable hardwoods and felt that the tree survey should include mainly the oak trees on the property.  It was noted that Del Ferguson had submitted a written request for council’s consideration to allow the tree survey to be provided with the construction documents.  After a brief discussion, Councilman Myrick made a motion to approve the rezoning of these properties with the stipulations as recommended by Ms. Grabowski.  Councilman Wedincamp seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

 

The Mayor reported that Thomas & Hutton Engineering was on tonight’s agenda to present an update to council regarding the data collection phase of the Drainage Master Plan that is being prepared for the City, however, they had not yet arrived.  Councilman Tyler stated that they may get here before the end of the meeting and ask that this item be postponed to the end of the agenda.

 

NEW BUSINESS:

 

Council was advised that the City has received a request from Brian Drescher for a home occupation license to operate the “office only” of a general contracting business from his residence located at #10 Drescher Road.  The Mayor reported that Mr. Drescher indicates that he will be the only employee of the business.  Council was reminded that they have the option to waive the public hearing requirement provided there will be no outside traffic related to the business coming to the residence and Mr. Drescher stated that he understood the stipulation regarding outside traffic.  Councilman Waller made a motion to waive the public hearing requirement, Councilman Johnson seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.  Councilman Ray made a motion to issue the home occupation license to Brian Drescher at #10 Drescher Road, Councilman Waller seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

 

The Mayor presented a request for a home occupation license from Tony Privette to operate the “office only” of comic, card games, and collectible toys business from his residence located at #3 Broughton Street.  The owner of the property has submitted written permission for Mr. Privette to operate the business from this location.   Mr. Privette indicated on his application that he would be the only employee and advised council that there would be no outside traffic related to the business coming to his residence.  Councilman Johnson made a motion to waive the public hearing requirement, Councilman Tyler seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.  Councilman Tyler made a motion to issue the home occupation license to Tony Privette, Councilman Myrick seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

 

Council was advised that the City had received a request from Cavalier Convenience, Inc. stating that their company will be purchasing the Timesaver located at #403 E. Hwy 80.  The occupational license fees and the regulatory fees for beer & wine sales were paid on February 28, 2005 by the previous owners of Timesaver, Inc.  An application for the occupational license has been submitted by the new owner and council needs to advise the clerk’s office as to whether the 2005 fees paid by Timesaver, Inc. can be applied to the fees that would be due from the new owner.  Councilman Johnson asked the clerk how much were the beer & wine sales fees charged by the City and was advised that the fees are $250.00 per year.  The Mayor asked Attorney Dickey about the request and was advised that the City’s Occupational Tax License does not address this issue one way or the other so the decision would be entirely up to council.  After a brief discussion, Councilman Tyler made a motion to allow the occupational license fees paid by the previous owners to be applied to the fees due from the new owners.  Councilman Myrick seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.  Councilman Johnson suggested council look at these fees before next year as he feels they are too low and other council members agreed.

 

Mayor Rozier reported that a written request has been submitted by Kevin & Kay Heritage to renew the “hardship” secondary mobile home permit issued for the dwelling on their property at #1230 Bloomingdale Road.  The mobile home is occupied by Kay’s mother, Ho-Shim Shaw, who suffers from medical conditions requiring the assistant of a family member on a full-time basis.  Council was advised that the Heritages have obtained a letter from Ms. Shaw’s physician confirming the need for this assistance and the ordinance allows the mobile home permit to be extended for six month periods.  Councilman Johnson made a motion to renew the permit for six months, Councilman Myrick seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

 

Council reviewed a request from Terry Taggart, the owner of property located at #307 Church Street, for a building permit to construct a 16’ x 16’ two (2) story building that will abut an existing 12’ x 16’ storage building.  It was noted that the height of the new building will be approximately 17’8” and the building will be used for storage only.  Although the existing building is located 7.8’ from the side yard, the new building will be constructed with a 10’ side yard setback as required by the zoning ordinance.  Since the total square footage of the building, which includes both levels, will be over 500 sq. ft. council must approve the issuance of the building permit.  A copy of the floor plans and sketches showing the front, side and rear view of the proposed building were reviewed by council.  Some council members expressed concerns about the size and the height of the structure and wondered if it would blend in with the neighborhood.  Mr. Taggart stated that the building would have vinyl siding and he planned to use a beige color for the vinyl.  Mayor Rozier asked if he planned to install bathroom facilities and was advised by Mr. Taggart that there would be no bathroom in the building.  Being no further questions, Councilman Ray made a motion to approve issuance of the building permit to Mr. Taggart for the structure as requested and Councilman Waller seconded the motion.  The motion passed with five affirmative votes with Councilman Myrick abstaining.  Councilman Tyler stated that the City needed to look into regulating the size of accessory buildings constructed on smaller residential lots and Councilman Ray agreed with his suggestion.  The Mayor stated that he would discuss this issue with Ms. Grabowski to see if she may have some recommendations for council’s consideration.

 

The Mayor advised council that Allan Bland, who lives at #10 Poplar Street, has constructed a 31’ x 32’ boat shelter on his property.  Mr. Bland informed the City Hall that he did not realize that he was required to get a permit for the structure before its construction.  Although the structure is open on all four (4) sides and a building permit is not required for this type structure, it would have to meet the required rear and side yard setbacks.  The shelter is 12’ from the side yard, but only 12’ from the rear yard.  The required rear yard setback for an accessory building is 15’.  Mr. Bland is requesting that the council grant him a variance of 3’ on the rear yard setback.  Council was advised that Mr. Bland understands that if he chooses to enclose the building at a later date he must request permission from council for the issuance of a building permit if the enclosed portion is over 500 sq. ft.  Councilman Ray stated that he had no problem with the request, but wondered about the neighbors.  Mr. Bland stated that before constructing the structure he talked with the neighbor living behind him and he had no problems with the shelter.  After the discussion on the request, Councilman Johnson made a motion to grant a 3’ variance on the rear yard setback for the structure.  The motion was seconded by Councilman Tyler and passed with six affirmative votes.

 

Mayor Rozier presented a request from Idell M. Ray who lives at #102 Chestnut Street for information regarding the drainage problems she has been experiencing at her residence.  The Mayor informed Ms. Ray that the development of a drainage plan for the City was underway, but with the amount of rainfall that we have had lately, the current drainage ditches and canals were all full.  Mayor Rozier stated that Thomas & Hutton Engineering was working on the plan for Bloomingdale and he hoped that they would be here to present an update on the plan before the end of the meeting.

 

Council was informed that the City has received notice from the DOT that Boulevard Street between Cherry and Pine Streets has been selected to be resurfaced this year under the 2005 LARP program, however, prior to the resurfacing the City must make some repairs to the shoulder construction due to tree roots causing the asphalt to buckle.   The Mayor asked Supervisor Fett Burke about the request from DOT and was advised that work was already underway on the tree root problem.

 

The Mayor recognized William McCarty who had requested that he be placed on tonight’s agenda to discuss some issues related to property located on Walnut Street.  Council was advised that on February 3rd, a recombination of two parcels of property owned by Mr. McCarty was approved.  Lot #35 consisted of a 111 sq. ft. x 200 sq. ft. tract on which is constructed a residence with a free standing garage and Lot #38 is 100 sq. ft. x 200 sq. ft. with no structure on the property.  A building permit has been requested for Lot #38 (#4 Walnut Street) by Jeffrey and Ellen Duggar.  The front yard setback requirement is 35’.  Mr. McCarty would like to discuss the strip of property running parallel to the properties on the east side of Walnut Street between Highway 80 and Moore Street that he indicates is actually owned by the City according to Chatham County.  Mr. McCarty advised council that this strip of property was created when the right of way for Cherry Street had been moved west causing all of these properties to shift.  When Walnut Street was put in by family members, it was not actually constructed where it was plotted and it remained in that same location when it was paved.  Mr. McCarty pointed out that there was about 35’ from his property line to the pavement of Walnut Street and if the new structure had to be set back an additional 35’, the house would be about 70’ from the roadway.  Mr. McCarty stated that if the City would allow the property owners to obtain ownership of this strip of property, the new structure could be placed more in line with existing residences although it would still be set back further than his dwelling.  Councilman Johnson asked Mr. McCarty if he had any paperwork that indicated the strip had ever been deeded to the county, but Mr. McCarty stated he did not know if it had ever been recorded.  Attorney Dickey advised council that even if a title search revealed that the property had once belonged to the county and became City property with incorporation, the City would have to hold a public hearing for citizen input before they could dispose of it.  Councilman Johnson stated that he would be concerned about taking any action until a title search could be done on the property and a survey prepared to see exactly how much land was involved.  After discussing the issue, council agreed to have Attorney Dickey get with Mr. McCarty to obtain any information he may have on the property so he could perform a title search to determine ownership.  Mr. McCarty stated that, in the meantime, he needed to know if he could change the setback to between 14’ & 15’ rather than 35’ due to the location of the roadway.  After discussing his request and based on council’s opinion that the location of the paved roadway was not going to change no matter who actually owned the property between Mr. McCarty’s existing property line and the pavement, Councilman Tyler made a motion to grant a variance of 14’ on the front yard setback requirement for the construction of a residence at #4 Walnut Street.  The motion was seconded by Councilman Waller and it passed with six affirmative votes.

 

Council was advised that Jeffrey and Ellen Duggar have made application for a building permit for a residence to be constructed at #4 Walnut Street.  This property is currently zoned C-1, Central Business District and a residence is considered a “conditional use”.  It was noted that there had been a residence at this location for many years, but it has been torn down and the Duggars want to build a new home on the property.  Council was informed that the surrounding lots are currently developed as residential properties.  Councilman Tyler made a motion to grant the “conditional use” permit for the Duggars to construct a residence at #4 Walnut Street.  Councilman Myrick seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

 

The council was informed that Jeffrey and Ellen Duggar are also requesting a permit for a 24’ x 48’ x 14’ free-standing garage/storage building at #4 Walnut Street (Lot #38).  The building will have vinyl siding and its proposed location on the property meets the rear and side yard setbacks.  It was noted that since the structure will include over 500 sq. ft. of enclosed area, council must approve the issuance of the building permit.  Copies of the plans showing the front and sides of the building were reviewed by council.  After a brief discussion, Councilman Waller made a motion to issue the building permit for the free-standing garage/storage building as requested by the Duggars at #4 Walnut Street.  Councilman Tyler seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

 

The Mayor recognized Danny Fries, Sr. who had requested that he be placed on tonight’s agenda to discuss the development of Lot #’s 15 & 17 located on Conaway Road.  Mr. Fries explained that he had made application for building permits for these tracts of land and had not been informed when he submitted the plans that there would be any problem with obtaining permits.  However, just prior to his picking up the permits, he was advised by Diane Proudfoot that the properties were located in a floodway and building permits could not be issued until he obtained data from an engineer indicating that the structures would have zero impact on the immediate area if floodwaters should become a problem.  Mr. Fries reported that he had secured the information from EMC Engineering and submitted it to the City, but was informed by Ms. Proudfoot that a “No-Impact” Certification would have to be issued by FEMA before his permits could be issued and the information had been sent to them for review.  Mr. Fries stated that he had paid the engineering firm for the required data and had then received a letter from FEMA advising him of the costs for the certification and he did not understand why the review from FEMA was necessary.  Attorney Dickey advised him that the Flood Ordinance required the City to follow these procedures and if this review was not performed, there would be problems with violation of state regulations.  Councilman Johnson asked the representative from EMC to explain to council the data that he had prepared for these properties.  The engineer reported that Mr. Fries had a couple of options regarding the construction of the structures on the properties and his firm could oversee the project to make sure they met any requirements of the ordinance.  Council was informed that FEMA allowed for a review of EMC Engineering’s data by the City’s engineers, but since there was no City engineer on staff; council would have to decide how to handle this option.  Attorney Dickey asked EMC’s representative if in his dealings with other cities had he submitted engineering data that required a review by another engineer and he stated that this was not an unusual request.  After discussing the issue, Councilman Johnson suggested that we have Toss Allen with Southeast Engineering and Environmental review the data submitted by EMC and submit a report on their findings to the City.  It was noted that the cost for the review would have to be paid by Mr. Fries, but Toss Allen, who was present at the meeting, stated that this review should not be very costly.  Councilman Tyler made a motion to allow Southeast Engineering & Environmental to review the data submitted by EMC on behalf of Danny Fries, Sr. and submit their report to the City on the condition that Mr. Fries pay the cost for the review.  Councilman Myrick seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.  Mr. Fries asked if he was going to have to wait for council to review the information before he could continue with the permitting process and council agreed that if the report from Southeast Environmental and Engineering indicated that EMC Engineering’s calculations were correct, the process could continue without Mr. Fries having to come back to council.

 

Mayor Rozier stated that he had received a request from Anderson County Administrator Joey Preston regarding the approval of a resolution endorsing the formation of a regional task force to study issues related to the Savannah River Basin.  It was noted that the request and sample resolution had been forwarded to Attorney Dickey for his review.  Attorney Dickey stated that due to the City’s pending litigation regarding water issues he would not recommend council passing the resolution at this time.

 

Council was advised that Michael Mashburn has submitted a letter to the City asking that Attorney Dickey advise him as to whether he or a future owner could obtain a building permit to construct a 40’ x 80’ garage/workshop behind the existing mobile home on his property located at #68 Cheyenne Road.  Attorney Dickey stated that he had talked with Mr. Mashburn about his request, but since he wanted a response to his questions in writing he informed him that council would have to make the decision on this request at their meeting.  Attorney Dickey reported that since there was already a residence on the property and the request was to construct an accessory building, rather than a residence; he did not feel that the City would be able to deny him the permit provided the applicant met the building permit requirements for an accessory building.  Councilman Tyler stated that he understood that a permit could be issued for a workshop, but wanted to know how council should address a request for a residential structure.  Attorney Dickey advised council that the questions related to approval of residential construction may be more of a civil matter since it would depend on Mr. Mashburn’s ability to provide access to his property.  Attorney Dickey pointed out that since a residence already existed on the property and the existing roadway has been used as access in the past, this was a rather clouded issue.   Mr. Mashburn asked if he or future owners would have the right to request a variance from the City of Bloomingdale for future residential construction on his property and was advised by Attorney Dickey that the City could not deny him or future owners their rights to request a variance, but there would be no guarantees that the request would be approved.  Mr. Mashburn stated that he understood this stipulation, but just wanted to make sure they would be allowed to pursue the variance at a later date.  Charles Rogers raised questions about the City allowing Mr. Mashburn to obtain a variance for a nonconforming use and was advised that the only thing the City was approving was the issuance of a letter to Mr. Mashburn advising him that he had the right to request a variance in the future.

 

The Mayor recognized Willie Mitchell who provided council with some photographs showing a tractor trailer parked across Douglas Court at the southern end of the street.  Council reviewed the photos and asked Mr. Mitchell if he had contacted the police while the vehicle was parked across the roadway.  Mr. Mitchell stated that he had not called the police, but was encouraged to do so in the future.  It was noted that the City had an ordinance against parking along the right of way and council agreed that the truck should not have been parked out in the road.  Mr. Mitchell asked council if the City could place some no parking signs along Douglas Court to help to eliminate this problem.  Councilman Johnson stated that he had already talked with the maintenance department about ordering some signs to be placed down both sides of Douglas Court and Supervisor Fett Burke reported that as soon as the signs were received they would be installed.  Mr. Mitchell also asked when the City was going to hire the code enforcer and was advised by Mayor Rozier that the City’s current budget did not include this expense, but plans were to put this proposed expense in the new budget that should, hopefully, be adopted by July 1st.

 

Mayor Rozier reported that he had requested that Don Amerson be added to the agenda to discuss the water and sewer service provided to his property located on Poplar Street, but Mr. Amerson had contacted him and stated that he was not able to attend the meeting.  The Mayor advised council that Mr. Amerson wanted council to discuss the matter and make a decision about whether he would be required to pay the cost for the City running the water and sewer to his property without his permission.  Councilman Johnson stated that he felt the City had accommodated Mr. Amerson in every way possible and felt that if Mr. Amerson did not want to pay the cost related to the running of the water service that we could cut off the water to his property and he could drill a well.  Councilman Johnson pointed out that the sewer service was mandatory, so this was a different issue, but if he wanted to pay someone else to run another line, that was up to him.  Councilman Myrick stated that for the benefit of those citizens who may not know the history related to this issue, he wanted to outline some of the events leading up to this meeting.  Mr. Amerson had requested a building permit for a parcel of property that did not have access to a public right of way as required by the zoning ordinance.  The City had granted him permission to use a privately-maintained access easement as his access provided he opened the roadway to City specifications, at his expense, prior to the issuance of the building permit.  The City agreed to issue him a variance on the width of the roadway and waived the paving requirement.  Then the City allowed him to pay his water and sewer taps prior to a scheduled increase in the fees even though he had not yet obtained his building permit which allowed Mr. Amerson to save $1450 in tap-in fees.  Also, council authorized the issuance of his building permit prior to the completion and approval of the roadway he had to construct because of wet conditions in the area and due to financial commitments with his construction

loan.  When an inquiry was made to the City by his builder as to when the services were going to be provided and after the supervisor discussed the request with Mr. Amerson the mains were extended to the property.  Mr. Amerson has indicated that he never actually gave permission for the City to extend the services, but was merely waiting on a cost estimate.  Councilman Myrick pointed out that in a previous meeting, Mr. Amerson had been advised of the costs of $2.50 per foot, per service for the City to run the water and sewer mains.  Although there was some fault with the water and sewer department in not getting a signed agreement before running the lines, Councilman Myrick stated that he felt the supervisor was merely trying to get the services run to the property as soon as possible for the owner.  It was noted that  since there had never been a problem with a customer not wanting to pay the fees after the services were run, the City does not have a policy requiring written permission, however, in light of this situation, the procedure will be changed.   Councilman Myrick stated that prior to this meeting he had contacted some contractors and found out that the City needed to reconsider its $2.50 per foot, per service, fees because it costs about $8.00 to $10.00 per foot, per service for a contractor to run these same lines.  Several council members expressed their feelings that if Mr. Amerson did not want to reimburse the City for these costs, the City would plug the lines and allow him to have a contractor run the lines for him.  It was noted that these lines would have to be inspected and approved by the City before their connection to the City’s mains.  Mayor Rozier stated that he would inform Mr. Amerson of the council’s position regarding the cost for the extension of the water and sewer mains.

 

The Mayor reported that an executive session has been schedule for the discussion of personnel and legal issues.  Councilman Waller made a motion to adjourn into executive session, Councilman Ray seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

 

A copy of the signed affidavit as required by the Open Meetings Acts is attached.

 

At the completion of the executive session, Councilman Tyler made a motion to return to the general session, Councilman Ray seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.  The Mayor reported that personnel and legal issues had been discussed in the executive session but there was nothing to report at this time.

 

The Mayor recognized Courtney Powers with Integrated Science and Engineering who apologized to the Mayor and Council for arriving late to the meeting.  Ms. Powers advised council that until recently, municipal sites were exempt from having to prepare Stormwater Management Plans for their Public Works Sites as an industrial site, but this exemption no longer applies unless a Certificate of No Exposure can be obtained from EPD.  In order to make a determination about whether the City’s Public Works Site would qualify for this certificate, she had made an inspection of this site accompanied by Councilman Johnson, the City Clerk, Ernest Grizzard and Buddy Burke.  Ms. Powers stated that after consulting with other personnel familiar with the issuing of these type certificates, she had determined that the City’s Public Works Site would qualify to apply for this certificate with only a few minor changes to the site.  Ms. Powers further stated that by using some of the funds remaining in the monies budgeted for the Stormwater Management Plan, ISE could prepare and submit the request for the Certificate of No Exposure on the City’s behalf to the EPD.  Council was advised by Ms. Powers that due to the great job done by the City’s staff, the Stormwater Management Plan had been tentatively approved with only one comment and this required very little follow-up work with EPD which had saved the City some money.  The City Clerk pointed out that one of the reasons that the report had received such a favorable response from EPD was due to the fact that Ms. Powers had a good working relationship with Barbara Seals with the EPD.  It was noted that Ms. Powers had worked with Ms. Seals when she was employed with the MPC, so she was familiar with the type information that Ms. Seals would be looking for in the report.  After a brief discussion regarding the proposal, Councilman Tyler made a motion to approve the costs for the preparation of the paperwork to EPD for the Certificate of No Exposure for the City’s Public Works Site to come out of the remaining funds that were budgeted for the preparation of the SWMP and to authorize Integrated Science & Engineering to perform the work and submit the information on behalf of the City.  Councilman Johnson seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes. 

 

The Mayor recognized Michael Mashburn who asked for a clarification of the City’s position regarding the issuance of a building permit for an accessory building on his property located at #68 Cheyenne Road.  Mr. Mashburn was advised that there would be no problem with the issuance of a permit for an accessory building for this property.

 

Mayor Rozier stated that this concluded the items that were presented by the Friday, April 1st agenda deadline.

 

The following committee reports were submitted by council:

 

Councilman Wedincamp stated that the Planning & Zoning Committee needed to get more members that would attend their meetings on a regular basis. 

 

Councilman Ray reported that after bids were solicited and received from area banks for certificates of deposit and CDARS, investments totaling $3,800,000 were made with First Chatham Bank for a term of twelve (12) weeks at a rate of 3.16% with an annual yield of 3.26% with the investments maturing on June 23, 2005.

 

After discussing the need to start preparation of the City’s budget for FY 2005-2006, a budget workshop was scheduled for Monday, April 18th at 7:00pm.

 

Councilman Johnson stated that due to the heavy rains that had occurred over the last several weeks the streets and highways department was being kept very busy.

 

Councilman Myrick advised council that the trees had been removed at Taylor Park.

 

Councilman Tyler stated that he had nothing to report on water and sewer at this time.

 

Council was advised that the framing of the public safety building was underway and bids on the electrical work were being solicited.

 

The accounts payable were reviewed.  Councilman Ray made a motion to pay the bills, Councilman Tyler seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes. 

 

Being no further business, Councilman Waller made a motion to adjourn at 9:00pm.  Councilman Johnson seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

                                                                

Mayor Rozier and all council members were present at the meeting.