COUNCIL MEETING

April 17, 2008

Mayor Tipton called the meeting to order and Councilman Myrick led in prayer.  Councilman Ray made a motion to approve the minutes of the April 3, 2008 meeting.  Councilman Myrick seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.  Councilwoman Winn made a motion to approve the agenda for the April 17, 2008 meeting with the addition of discussion on real estate issues to the executive session.  Councilman Strozier seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

Under administrative and committee reports, Councilman Myrick stated that Recreation Director Joe Young had advised him that participation in the City’s softball/baseball program had doubled from last year and he commended Joe and the volunteers for their hard work.  Councilman Strozier reported that there was about a 150 square foot area at Highway 80 and Douglas Court that needed to be replaced prior to the resurfacing of the roadway and stated that the City could serve as its own contractor to get the work done.  Councilman Strozier advised council the LARP contract was scheduled to be awarded in the next week or so and the City may work with the contractor doing the resurfacing work on getting a price to do the job.  It was noted that the owner of the Douglas Plaza and the tenant had agreed to assist with this expense since the dump trucks that are patronizing the businesses are causing the problems and once the work was complete, the City will move the weight limit sign to the end of their property.

OLD BUSINESS:

Mayor Tipton recognized Trey Wilkins with EMC Engineering who reviewed with council the differences between their original cost estimates on the replacement of the lift station at the Bloomingdale Elementary School and the actual bids that were received from the contractors.  Mr. Wilkins pointed out that the size of the pumps, the scope of the electrical work, fencing, extra manholes, as well as the size of the wet well contributed to the $40,000 difference.  Council discussed the possibility of merely replacing the wet well at this time since the additional expenses were related to an upgrade rather than a replacement.  Mayor Tipton stated that he had invited School Board Representative Julie Gerbsch to the meeting to bring council up to date on the plans for the school.  Ms. Gerbsch stated that there were no plans to add on to the Bloomingdale Elementary School or to close it at this time.  She introduced Mr. Starke who was the Director of Maintenance and he reported that the only concerns he had would be the failure of the station during the school term and the possibility of a discharge of wastewater on school grounds if a problem occurred.  Councilman Myrick advised him that the City had the same concerns and that was why they were trying to address this situation before problems occurred.  Council briefly discussed other options and agreed for Mr. Brady to work with the engineers to come up with a recommendation on the lift station to present to them at the next meeting.  Ms. Gerbsch advised council that the school board was actively looking at sites for the new high school that included parcels between 30 and 40 acres.  The Mayor thanked her for attending the meeting.

NEW BUSINESS:

The Mayor recognized James B. Paul who was requesting approval for the issuance of a well permit for his property located at #20 Tipton Road for his individual use.  Mr. Paul stated that he was currently getting water from his sister and wanted to install his own well.  After a brief discussion, Councilman Waller made a motion to approve the issuance of the well permit for property located at #20 Tipton Road.  Councilman Ray seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

Council discussed a request from Kevin & Kay Heritage to renew their “medical hardship” permit for the secondary mobile home located on their property at #1230 Bloomingdale Road.  Kay’s mother, Ho Shim Shaw, lives in the mobile home.  Ms. Heritage has provided a letter from Ms. Shaw’s physician advising that she has medical conditions that require daily assistance from her daughter.  Council was advised that the ordinance requires the review of the permit every six months.  After a brief discussion, Councilman Ray made a motion to extend the medical hardship permit at #1230 Bloomingdale Road for six months.  Councilman Myrick seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

Mayor Tipton stated that as part of the process for the establishment of impact fees, council needed to create an Impact Fee Advisory Committee and appoint members to the committee.  City Attorney Dickey noted that two public hearings are also required.  City Administrator Brady recommended the following appointments to the advisory committee and advised council that the make-up of the committee met the guidelines established by the state.  Those recommended to serve were as follows:  Charles Rogers, Betty Burke, Terry Jones, Jimmy Kerby, and Mike Bazemore.  Councilman Myrick made a motion to create an Impact Fee Advisory Committee and approve the appointment of the five (5) members as recommended by City Administrator Brady.  Councilwoman Winn seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.  After a brief discussion regarding a date for the public hearing on the impact fees, Councilwoman Winn then made a motion to allow City Administrator Brady to research the matter and set the date for the hearing, Councilman Ray seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

Council was advised that the Planning Commission had made a recommendation for approval of the site plan with changes for the development of property located at #506 West Highway 80 as mini warehouses.  City Administrator Brady requested action be tabled on this recommendation until a water and sewer agreement could be reached between the City and the developer.  Councilwoman Winn made a motion to table action on this matter, Councilman Waller seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.  The Mayor recognized Mark Boswell who stated that he would inform Mr. Hamrick of the City’s position and he advised council that the plans were to have about one-half of the warehouse space as climate controlled units.

The Mayor recognized Planning Commission Chairman Dexter Shearouse who stated that at their April 8^th meeting, Mary Mitchell had requested that the Planning Commission provide recognition to two of the participants in last year’s Keep Bloomingdale Beautiful campaign.  Butch Godbee of #701 E. Main Street and L.B. & Kathy Davis of #507 Oak Street had made significant improvements to their properties and had provided before and after photos as requested by the committee.  Ms. Mitchell had requested that they receive recognition from the City and that they be given $100 each from funds left over from the last campaign.  Council discussed the issue and agreed that these residents should be recognized, but felt that any monies on hand should be used in areas that could be enjoyed by all citizens such as at the community building or on the adjoining property.  Mayor Tipton asked that Councilwoman Winn look into providing plaques for these residents in recognition of their participation in the program.

Mayor Tipton stated that the next order of business was the call for an executive session. Councilman Ray made a motion to adjourn into executive session for the discussion of personnel and real estate issues.  Councilman Waller seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.  At the conclusion of the executive session, Councilwoman Winn made a motion to return to the general session, Councilman Ray seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.  Councilman Ray made a motion to execute the affidavit as required by the Open Meetings Act and make it a part of the record.  Councilman Myrick seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

City Attorney Dickey noted that council needed to approve a resolution authorizing him to proceed with the condemnation of .55 acres of property owned by Grayling Singleton, which abuts the old railroad bed in Bloomingdale.  Citizen Barbara Griffin asked how much of the property along the old railroad bed was being condemned and was advised by the Mayor that the only area involved at this time was the .55 acres owned by Mr. Singleton.  After a brief discussion, Councilman Strozier made a motion to approve the resolution as outlined by Attorney Dickey, Councilman Ray seconded the motion and it passed with affirmative votes from Councilmembers Myrick, Ray, Strozier, Waller and Winn.  Councilman Rawlings voted against the motion.

Council discussed the hiring of a fire chief and Councilman Myrick made a motion directing City Administrator Brady to proceed with the advertising of the position.  Councilman Ray seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

Mayor Tipton stated that he had overlooked one item of old business related to the development of the park at Moore & Poplar Streets.  Council discussed the need to proceed with the project, but agreed that the work should be done in phases.  Councilman Rawlings stated that he felt we should proceed with the parking area in the first phase.  It was noted that the grant that had been awarded to the City required that work be done on the covered picnic shelter and additional parking.  Mayor Tipton asked that Councilman Myrick work with City Administrator Brady on this project and Councilman Myrick agreed, but asked that other members of the recreation committee work with them.  After this discussion, Councilman Ray made a motion to proceed with obtaining bids for the construction of a picnic shed and additional parking on the property located at Moore & Poplar Streets with the work to be done in phases.  Councilwoman Winn seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

Under citizen comments, Citizen Pat Stanfield asked questions about the impact fees and was advised that once the fees are established the developers will know the costs related to obtaining water and sewer service for construction projects.  Citizen Barbara Griffin questioned the scheduling of a called council meeting at 10:00am in the morning as was done in March since that did not allow most citizens to attend. Mayor Tipton advised Ms. Griffin that in this particular situation, the meeting was held to handle an item that was left off of the agenda and was scheduled at a time that was convenient for the applicant.  Citizen Alton Griffin asked if council planned to let the citizens in Bloomingdale know that their property may be subject to condemnation for the development of Phase II of the drainage project.  Mayor Tipton stated that the City hoped that the condemnation of property would not be necessary, but at this time, only Phase I of the project was being considered.

Mayor Tipton stated that this concluded the items that were presented for consideration for inclusion on the council agenda prior to the Friday, April 11, 2008 deadline.

The accounts payable were submitted for approval.  Councilman Ray made a motion to pay the bills, Councilman Waller seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

Being no further business, Councilman Waller made a motion to adjourn at 9:15pm.  Councilwoman Winn seconded the motion and it passed with six affirmative votes.

Mayor Tipton and all councilmembers were present at the meeting.

Note:  Section § 50-14-1 of the Official Code of the State of Georgia Annotated requires that the minutes shall, as a minimum, include a description of each motion or other proposal made, and a record of all votes.  These minutes meet the minimum requirements.  However, in an attempt to provide as much information as possible to the citizens, the recording clerk has included additional background data and discussion on the subjects present to council.  The statements of individuals are not verbatim and may be summary in nature.