CITY OF PICKERINGTON
SERVICE COMMITTEE
OF COUNCIL
CITY HALL, 100
LOCKVILLE ROAD
THURSDAY, AUGUST
11, 2005
REGULAR MEETING
7:30 P.M.
1. ROLL CALL. Mr. Hackworth called the meeting to order at 7:30 P.M., with Mr. Hackworth, and Mr. O’Brien present. Mr. Parker was absent. Others present were: Judy Gilleland, Lynda Yartin, Lance Schultz, Ed Drobina, Jennifer Frommer, Jim Hite, John Haley, Bill Yaple, Kevin Kenning, Scott Blackwell, and others.
2. A. APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF July 13, 2005, Work Session regarding Virginia Homes. Mr. O’Brien moved to approve; Mr. Hackworth seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mr. O’Brien and Mr. Hackworth voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 2-0.
B. APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF July 13, 2005, Work Session regarding Wellfield Investigation Report. Mr. O’Brien moved to approve; Mr. Hackworth seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mr. Hackworth and Mr. O’Brien voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 2-0.
C. APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF July 13, 2005, Regular Meeting. Mr. O’Brien moved to approve; Mr. Hackworth seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mr. O’Brien and Mr. Hackworth voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 2-0.
3. COMMUNITY COMMENTS: There were no community comments.
4. PLANNING AND ZONING
A. REPORTS:
(1) BZA Report. Mr. Schultz stated two deck variances were approved in July and there is one hearing this month for a height variance for the Barnyard Primitive building.
(2) Planning and Zoning Representative Report (Mr. O’Brien) Mr. O’Brien stated Planning and Zoning met earlier this week. He stated the section of our Code that deals with sign colors has been clarified and that legislation is on tonight’s agenda for review by this Committee. Mr. O’Brien further stated the final plat for Windmiller Square was approved and is also on tonight’s agenda, and several Comprehensive Sign Plans were approved. Mr. O’Brien stated the Commission had also reviewed the Residential Design Standards, and had requested some changes to the proposed standards. He stated the Commission would review the residential design standards at their next meeting.
B. ACTION ITEMS:
(1) Review and request for motion to approve Residential Building Design Standards. Mr. Hackworth stated since this did not come out of Planning and Zoning, he would request it be continued on the agenda.
(2) Review and request for motion to approve draft ordinance amending Chapter 1292 of the Pickerington Codified Ordinances and Section VII of the Commercial Design Guidelines (Appendix IV of the Pickerington Codified Ordinances). Mr. O’Brien stated this basically states that no individual sign shall have more than three colors, and it will also apply to Comprehensive Sign Plans. Mr. O’Brien stated those colors do include black and white. Mr. O’Brien moved to approve and forward to Council; Mr. Hackworth seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mr. Hackworth and Mr. O’Brien voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 2-0.
(3) Review and request for motion to approve draft ordinance approving rezoning of 8.874 acres from AG (Rural District) to PM-1 (Planned Restricted Industrial District) located at the southeast corner of Pickerington Road and Stemen Road for a new Violet Township Administration and Road Maintenance Facility. Mr. Schultz stated Planning and Zoning had approved this rezoning on July 12th with six conditions that are attached to the ordinance as Exhibit A. He stated the entire facility would encompass over 23,000 square feet and would have a single access curb cut from Pickerington Road and from Stemen Road. He stated this facility would be built in three phases with the first phase being a 5,200 square foot maintenance facility; phase two would be a 9,000 square foot addition to the maintenance facility; and, phase three would be the administration offices and meeting hall of about 9,400 square feet. Mr. Schultz stated the portion of the property south of the ditch would likely be park area, owned and maintained by the Township. He further stated the Township is currently reviewing options to extend sanitary sewer service to the site and a traffic impact analysis should be prepared and approved by the City, with the scope being determined by the City engineer. Mr. Schultz stated the uses should be limited to Township maintenance and garage facilities and prohibit more intense industrial uses to protect the residents in the area. Mr. Hackworth clarified the traffic impact study would be done before the rezoning was approved. Ms Frommer stated she has been discussing the sanitary sewer services with the Township and, at this point, they have indicated they will put in the sanitary sewer lines. She stated there are several septic systems in this area and we would try to take these into consideration as well. Mr. Schultz stated Planning and Zoning Commission held a public hearing on this issue on July 12th, and there were no significant concerns from residents. He stated a public hearing is scheduled before Council on August 16th. Mr. Hackworth clarified the Township hopes to start constructing phase one of the project next year. Mr. Schultz stated because we do not know where the Courtright alignment will be or what it will look like, it may make more sense to require the traffic impact study be approved prior to the Certificate of Appropriateness approval. Mr. O’Brien moved to approve the draft ordinance and forward to Council with the conditions set by Planning and Zoning, and amending the requirement so the traffic impact study shall be approved prior to the Certificate of Appropriateness submittal; Mr. Hackworth seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mr. O’Brien and Mr. Hackworth voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 2-0.
(4) Review and request for motion to approve draft ordinance accepting the final plat for Windmiller Square Commercial Subdivision. Mr. Schultz stated Planning and Zoning Commission approved the final plat at their meeting with the seven conditions listed on Exhibit A to the ordinance. Mr. Schultz stated the conditions are the same that were approved with the preliminary plan, and an additional condition that emergency access shall be established between the subject parcel and Old Diley Road if permanent access is not established has been added. Mr. Hackworth clarified that we have had discussions with South Central Power regarding the substation fence. Mr. Hackworth inquired if there was some way a guardrail or some other type of barrier could be put in to prevent someone from running through that fence, and Ms Frommer stated she would take a look at it. She stated it may be something that will have to be on South Central’s property to make it anything that will be structurally sound as she did not know if the City had the space. Mr. Hackworth moved to approve and forward to Council with the seven conditions; Mr. O’Brien seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mr. Hackworth and Mr. O’Brien voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 2-0.
Mr. O’Brien stated he would request we deal with the issue of renaming the stretch of Diley Road from new Diley Road up to this area. Mr. Schultz stated the County Auditor requests an ordinance from Council stating the road has been renamed for their official records. Mr. O’Brien moved to rename that section of road to Old Diley Road and forward legislation to that effect to Council; Mr. Hackworth seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mr. Hackworth and Mr. O’Brien voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 2-0.
(5) Review and request for motion to approve Preliminary Plat for Ashton Crossing. Mr. Schultz stated Planning and Zoning Commission approved the preliminary plat at their last meeting with four conditions. He stated this property is located just north of the Holiday Inn Express, and the developer plans to divide the 13-acre site into seven commercial out lots ranging in size from one to three acres. He further stated a proposed private road would extend from Freedom Way west into the site and stub about 270 feet from S.R. 256, and there would be no access from S.R. 256 to this site. Mr. Schultz stated the EPA is requiring a stream mitigation plan, a conservation easement, and a five-year monitoring plan to be approved by the EPA and the City, and we are in the process of working that out with the developer and the EPA. Mr. Schultz stated the private road would be constructed to City standards. Mr. Scott Blackwell stated he was present to answer any questions the Committee may have. Mr. Hackworth clarified our engineer will be monitoring this area to ensure we do not have a problem with stormwater. Mr. O’Brien stated he has some concerns with the portion of Freedom Way that does not appear it will be used, with regard to trucks parking there, etc. Ms Gilleland stated the American Motorcycle Association has expressed interest in perhaps accessing off that portion of the road. Mr. O’Brien stated until that is settled it may be appropriate to barricading Freedom Way at the northern end. Mr. Hackworth moved to approve the Preliminary Plat with the conditions that the stream mitigation plan, conservation easement, and five year monitoring plan shall be approved by the EPA and the City; that the proposed plan shall be revised to meet the traffic access plan, building/parking setback requirements and buffering requirements; that the construction drawings shall be approved by the City prior to approval of the final plat; and, that the proposed development shall meet all other City development requirements; Mr. O’Brien seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mr. O’Brien and Mr. Hackworth voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 2-0.
Mr. O’Brien requested a brief recess and Service Committee recessed at 8:20 P.M. and reconvened in open session at 8:30 P.M.
5. SERVICE DEPARTMENT
A. ACTION ITEMS:
B. WATER UTILITY MAINTENANCE. Mr. Drobina stated we had one well at the Diley wellfield that went out. He stated he did not know if the problem was with the pump or the motor as yet, however, it will not stop us from meeting our demands.
C. WASTEWATER UTILITY MAINTENANCE.
(1) Sewer back-up issues - Update. Mr. Drobina stated as of yesterday there was one check that had not been picked up. Mr. Hackworth stated this can be removed from the agenda.
(2) Review and discussion regarding EPA 208 Plan. Mr. Drobina stated we have met with the County and they are okay with the concept of our agreement. Ms Frommer stated they were going to consult with their attorney to see if there were any last minute changes and we were going to do the same, but at this point we do not foresee any changes. Ms Frommer stated the EPA has requested we convert the boundaries of the map to a GIS map so they know they are putting the accurate boundaries on. Ms Frommer stated she would recommend a Service Committee work session be scheduled when we are ready to proceed. Mr. Drobina stated the County is going to approach Canal Winchester to see if they want to be a party to this, and if Canal Winchester does not want to do that the County will get back with us. Mr. Hackworth stated if Ms Frommer has everything ready and it will not take a long time to go through, it can be done during the next regular meeting.
Ms Gilleland stated we should have the Capital Improvements Plan ready for the next Service meeting and she felt a work session would be appropriate prior to the meeting. Mr. Hackworth stated he would request a Service Committee work session be scheduled for 6:00 P.M., September 8, 2005, to review the proposed Capital Improvements Plan, and Mr. O’Brien stated he concurred with Mr. Hackworth.
D. STREET MAINTENANCE.
(1) Annual Street Repaving Project – Update. Mr. Drobina stated the contract was approved by Council, but we are still waiting on the appropriation before the contract is signed.
E. STORM WATER UTILITY MAINTENANCE.
(1) Long Road/Bowen Road Stormwater – Update. Mr. Drobina stated Mr. Hartman was planning on attending the next meeting, however, with the CIP work session perhaps it would be better to have him attend in October. Ms Gilleland stated if possible, we can have the appropriate legislation at this Committee next month, and Mr. Hartman provide his report to the Committee in October.
F. TREE COMMISSION. Update. Mr. Drobina stated he had no update.
6. ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT CAPITAL PROJECTS
A. WASTEWATER
(1) Wastewater Plant Expansion - Update. Mr. Drobina stated he had no update this evening.
(2) D-Line Interceptor Sewer Phase IIIB – Update. Ms Frommer stated we are starting to gather data to get an accurate handle during dry and wet weather on what amount of flow, based on current development, is coming into the D-Line station. She stated we have a pretty good idea of what is tributary to the Lakes Edge Station. She stated a future CIP project did include replacement of the pumps in the D-Line IIC station on Long Road and upsizing of the force main that is coming out of that. She stated she would recommend an amount be included in the contingency that would enable us to entertain the purchase of those pumps to replace the pumps in that D-Line station now. Mr. Hackworth clarified Ms Frommer was recommending the legislation be prepared for the bid price from Elite Excavating Company of Ohio, and a contingency up to an amount of $636,000. Mr. Hackworth moved to recommend award of the contract for the D-Line Interceptor Sewer Phase IIIB to Elite Excavating Company of Ohio for their bid price of $595,462, with a contingency amount of $40,538, for a total not-to-exceed amount of $636,000; Mr. O’Brien seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mr. Hackworth and Mr. O’Brien voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 2-0.
B. TRANSPORTATION:
(1) Courtright Drive.
a. Courtright Drive Extension Project, Phase III – Update. Ms Frommer stated at the Special Service Committee meeting the Committee indicated they supported Option C, and she has tried to redesign the site to squeeze more single family lots out to compensate and she is not having a lot of luck with that. She stated as far as the lot layout itself, there is not a lot of flexibility. Ms Frommer continued she has requested a meeting with the developer, but it is a pretty tight site. Mr. Hackworth clarified we have had conversations with MORPC who is seeking uses for money, and the Courtright project is on the MORPC 20/30 unfunded list. Ms Frommer stated they have discussed pushing a few of our projects up on their list and she would contact them if the Committee desired and let them know the City’s strong desire to have our projects considered. Ms Frommer stated with regard to the Courtright extension, it would need to be a City sponsored project to receive funds for construction. Mr. Hackworth inquired if a traffic signal upgrade could be financed with MORPC funds, and Ms Frommer stated she would check with MORPC to see if that was possible. Ms Gilleland stated it was her understanding that MORPC was looking for items that have been on their list, that are planned and ready to go, they are not willing to add new projects at this point. Mr. Hackworth clarified that the Courtright project is on our Thoroughfare Plan so we could convert it to a City sponsored project fairly easily. Ms Frommer stated as she understood it, the Committee wanted her to see what we can get from MORPC and then they would make a decision which project to use the funds on, and also to pursue a meeting with the developer and hope to bring the dollars down a little more so a decision can be made.
(2) Diley Road Realignment:
a. Diley Road/256 Intersection Improvement Project, Phase II – Update. Mr. Drobina stated the contractor should start repaving on Monday.
b. Diley Road/S.R. 256 Intersection Improvement Project, Phase III – Update. Mr. Drobina stated this project is on schedule and they will do their final pavement next week as well.
(3) Diley Road Improvements Project:
a. MORPC/ODOT Project – Update. Mr. Hackworth stated we are at the beginning of the right-of-way acquisition.
b. Noise Barriers – Update. Ms Frommer stated the noise barrier design was not included in the original scope of the engineering fee because you did not know if you were going to have them until the study was conducted. She stated she should have more information on this next month.
(4) Cover/Ebright Connector
a. Pickerington Health Care Access Road – Update. Ms Gilleland stated we have three options on this issue. She stated she had provided the Committee with a draft resolution of intent to appropriate the private access drive going from S.R. 256 down to the medical building. She stated it would terminate at the access road going to the nursing home. She stated if the Committee wished to move that to Council this evening, we could at least get that process started and it would not obligate us to any sort of eminent domain proceeding, it is just a beginning. She stated in addition to that Mr. Dailey has suggested we look at moving the traffic signal and notifying the doctor that we are considering that. She stated perhaps if the doctor was notified that the traffic light was paid for by public funds for a public purpose, to alleviate some traffic issues, and it is not serving its purpose and we are considering taking it down, that might give the doctor a little more interest in talking with us. She stated the final option was to simply do nothing and continue to live with the issue. Mr. Hackworth clarified that emergency vehicles have to get into the health care facility fairly often and that, although it is not an ideal situation, the vehicles can get in there. Ms Gilleland stated the goal is to close the Pickerington Health Care access on S.R. 256, but the accessibility to that facility once we close that access will be a little tough. Ms Frommer stated with regard to moving the light, it would be very beneficial to have a light on the other side which would coincide very well with the proposed Stone Creek Drive extension. Mr. Hackworth clarified this would mean removing that light and moving it down to the other entrance to Kohl’s by Picktown Beverage. Ms Frommer stated again the resolution of intent is just the first step in the process and would authorize the law director to begin the process if we decide to do so. Mr. Hackworth stated he would also request the City Manager send a letter to the doctor informing him of the possibility of removing the light. Mr. O’Brien stated he did not want this to be an empty bluff on the City’s part, if we say we are going to do something, then we are going to do it. Mr. Hackworth moved to approve the draft resolution of intent and forward to Council; Mr. O’Brien seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mr. Hackworth and Mr. O’Brien voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 2-0.
(5) Traffic Signal Update.
a. Review and request for motion to award contract for Refugee Road/Windmiller Drive Traffic Signal. Mr. Drobina stated we had the bid opening today and the low bid was from Jess Howard Electric for $58,000. Ms Frommer stated she would request a five percent contingency be included in the legislation. Mr. Drobina stated unless we have other plans for the light being removed at the old Diley Road alignment, we might be able to use the poles and some other components to bring the cost of this light down. Mr. Drobina stated he had mentioned this to Jess Howard and they were willing to discuss that possibility. Ms Gilleland stated the bid price was well below the engineer’s estimate. Mr. O’Brien moved to award the contract to Jess Howard Electric for $58,000 and to include a five percent contingency, and to forward the legislation to Council; Mr. Hackworth seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mr. O’Brien and Mr. Hackworth voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 2-0.
Mr. O’Brien stated he had requested a site line investigation and Ms Frommer had provided him with a report. He stated he would like to know if we can direct the Service Department to measure the line of site on the railroad tracks. Mr. Drobina stated that has already been done and he would provide that to Mr. O’Brien. Mr. O’Brien stated he was also concerned about line of site at the intersections in the City and he did not know if we had established criteria for this to ensure that there is adequate site distance that should be assured at intersections. He stated he is noticing more and more that some intersections have cornfields, city trees, and other things that do not allow you to see unless you pull out into the intersection. Ms Frommer stated the information she provided previously was just respective of railroads. Mr. Drobina clarified the site triangle for streets was not the same and she would get that information to Mr. Drobina. Ms Gilleland stated it would not be a problem to check our intersections to ensure they are safe. Ms Frommer stated as far as checking all city street intersections, she would like to start with the highest classification of roadway and work down. She stated it would take an extensive effort and would take a good bit of time to do it. Mr. O’Brien stated he did not have a problem with that.
Mr. O’Brien stated he would also like to speak about traffic lights. Mr. O’Brien stated he has spoken with the Mayor, and the Mayor is willing to support borrowing money to complete the Stilson study and use the remainder of the money towards purchasing money. He stated has also spoken with the Chair of Finance and she has stated she would support this effort. Mr. O’Brien stated he would propose we do a borrowing to improve our traffic signals, complete the study, and then implement the recommendations from the study, such as purchase of equipment, reprogramming, and whatever is necessary to do that. He stated he would further propose that when doing the CIP we look at what we have out there for traffic lights because he felt we needed the higher spending in the short term, and lower amounts to maintain later on. Mr. O’Brien stated he would propose a borrowing of $250,000 for this issue. Ms Frommer stated she felt they could come up with an estimate of what would be logical, based on the problems being experienced now, and what it would take to fix them. She stated, however, she would not know the final amounts until the study is completed. Mr. Hackworth requested Ms Frommer get that information to the Finance Committee so it can be considered at their meeting. Ms Gilleland stated with respect to borrowing, we have had our borrowing laid out this year, but our financial advisor and bond counsel try to consolidate borrowings because the bigger the package, the better the rate, etc. She stated for our CIP discussions this year, she hoped to be in a position to lay out options to Council on items that we are going to be needing as a growing community and then our debt capacity, so we can see what it is realistic to borrow each year. Ms Gilleland stated if the Committee agreed, she would like to postpone the traffic signal discussion until the CIP is discussed. She stated then everyone’s priorities could be discussed together. Ms Gilleland stated further in speaking with our financial advisor he reminded her that with our Utility Fees committee in place, we can begin making decisions on our utility fees and some of our utility debt can be rolled from general obligation into revenue bonds. She stated it would be Council’s decision on what they would like to do. Mr. O’Brien stated he has been pursuing traffic light improvements for ten years and part of his reason for getting on Council was to do something more than talk about it. He stated he has been asked over the course of the summer to wait until next, and every year he is told wait until next year. Mr. O’Brien stated we have new lights coming on Diley Road, we have new lights coming on S.R. 256, we are going to talk about an access plan that will include signals, there are two lights in the downtown that are not working out, and he felt we need to look at the big picture and look at every signal in the City and find how we can make them work together. Mr. Hackworth clarified the traffic study could be completed in four to six weeks. Ms Gilleland stated if Ms Frommer could give her an estimate within the next few days, that is what she needs to take to Finance to request a borrowing and it will be put on their agenda regarding traffic signal improvements. Mr. O’Brien moved to recommend Finance Committee consider a borrowing for traffic study update and signal improvements; Mr. Hackworth seconded the motion. Roll call was taken with Mr. Hackworth and Mr. O’Brien voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 2-0.
(1) Wellfield Investigation – Update. Mr. Hackworth stated we have received a proposal for $93,000, and one of his concerns is that Pickerington is pumping 2.5 million gallons per day, and he felt somewhere down the line we need to address this issue with Metro Parks. Mr. Hackworth stated he would like to revisit this early next year. Ms Gilleland stated she felt Canal Winchester and Metro Parks should participate in this study, and Mr. Hackworth stated he agreed with that especially since Canal Winchester would like to put a well in that area. Mr. Hackworth stated he would like the Manager to pursue seeing if those entities would participate in the funding of this study, and also ensure the scope of study was mutually agreed upon by the three entities. Ms Gilleland clarified the Committee would like her to contact Metro Parks and see if they agreed with this scope and if they were interested in participating in the study. Mr. Hackworth stated this did not have to happen today or next month, but as we approach higher demands for water he would like to have an official study that all three entities can agree to.
(2) Review and request for motion to approve draft ordinance authorizing the City Manager to execute a Letter of Understanding with the Village of Canal Winchester regarding the provision of water services. Mr. Hackworth stated this agreement is limited to 300,000 gallons per day, and we have the option of discontinuing it if we have a need for the water. Ms Gilleland stated she would also recommend this be a one year agreement. Mr. O’Brien clarified the cost per gallon was in our water service agreement that is currently in place. Ms Gilleland stated this agreement provides about $30,000 revenue per year to our water fund. Mr. Hackworth moved to forward the ordinance authorizing the Manager to execute the Letter of Understanding with Canal Winchester regarding provision of water services to Council; Mr. O’Brien seconded the motion. Mr. Hackworth stated if possible he would like to have emergency language in the ordinance so this can be in place if the water is needed. Roll call was taken with Mr. Hackworth and Mr. O’Brien voting “Yea.” Motion passed, 2-0.
D. STORMWATER. No Report.
7. CHAIRMAN. Mr. Hackworth stated he had nothing to bring forward.
8. OTHER BUSINESS.
Mr. O’Brien stated he would like to see that the sale of Lot #1 was completed or that we rescind the ordinance authorizing the sale and re-bid that property. He stated he did not want this to drag on forever because we were pretty clear about the access up front. Ms Frommer stated we provided the scope of a study to the buyer’s engineer to see if there should or should not be access, however, the City has the ability to walk away from the sale. Mr. Hackworth clarified the purchase contract has not been signed. Ms Frommer stated she does not know if the engineer has started the study. Mr. O’Brien stated the engineer would probably find very favorably for his client and our engineer will check it out. Mr. O’Brien stated it would probably be easier to let the buyer walk away from this and we go back and re-bid the property.
Mr. O’Brien clarified that Ms Frommer and Mr. Schultz were still working on the Access Management Plan and they hoped to have it ready to bring back to Committee very shortly. Mr. Hackworth stated he would like to have Access Management added to the Service Committee agenda as a permanent item like street maintenance, tree commission, etc.
9. ADJOURNMENT. There being nothing further, Mr. O’Brien moved to adjourn; Mr. Hackworth seconded the motion. Mr. Hackworth and Mr. O’Brien voted “Aye.” Motion carried, 2-0. The Service Committee adjourned at 10:15 P.M., August 11, 2005.
RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED:
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Lynda D. Yartin, Municipal Clerk