DRAFT

CITY OF ROCKY RIVER

OCTOBER 20, 2003

The Committee-of-the-Whole was called to order by Mrs. Bobst, President of Council, at 8:02 p.m.

Council Members Present: Mr. Potterfield, Mr. Frost, Mr. Malling, Mr. Hurtuk, Mrs. Bobst

Absent: Mr. Gollinger, Mrs. Bartolozzi

Administration: Mayor Knoble, Mr. Linden, Mr. Koran

Assistant Law Director: Mr. Hotz

Press: Mr. Dzurick

Because the City's Economic and Community Development Director, Mr. Koran, was in attendance, Ordinance No. 181-03, scheduled under New Business, was the first matter raised. Mr. Koran observed that our City is one of very few which has no Fair Housing Code. The purpose of the proposed ordinance is to insure that all persons will be treated equally regardless of race, gender, creed, national origin, ancestry, handicap or familial status in all respects throughout the City. He continued in a brief review of the ordinance, ending with the enforcement and penalty provisions.

Mr. Koran commented that the issue has been raised at this time because with grant application deadlines looming, Rocky River, as a member of the Urban County, is engaged in a fierce competition for grant funds. The county awards up to five points for having a Fair Housing Code in place, and as the City was one point away from being awarded its grant last year, every advantage is helpful. This ordinance was modeled after those of Bay Village and Fairview Park. This ordinance has been reviewed by Mr. Koran, the Law Director, Mayor and Paul Herdeg, the manager of Housing Programs for Cuyahoga County.

Mr. Hurtuk asked about the point system in place for scoring grant applications. Mr. Koran quickly reviewed the list including meeting HUD rational objectives such as having a low income area, an Improvement Target Area, having a master plan in place, leveraging of funds, citizen participation, and quality of applications. Each point is important as shown by the fact that our application received 73 points, and the cutoff for receiving funds last year was 74.

Mayor Knoble added that no Fair Housing violations or complaints have been reported to the Mayor's office, Building Department or Law Director in recent history.

MAYOR'S REPORT:

The traffic situation on Westover Avenue continues. The Mayor and Mr. Malling are working on alleviating the heavy traffic using the street to reach Coffinberry Early Education Center. The City has received petitions signed by almost all Westover Avenue residents asking that the street be closed to through traffic. The City is in the process of surveying the area for installation of concrete posts and a heavy chain to prevent through traffic. This will be a last resort if an agreement cannot be reached with the Fairview schools.

The Recreation Foundation Task Force will meet next Tuesday, October 28 to discuss the results of the survey recently completed.

The Planning Commission will meet tomorrow.

Thursday, the Chamber of Commerce will hear the economic development report of Director Koran. Because of expected large crowds, it will be held at the Civic Center.

The LWV Candidates' Night will be telecast on Cox Cable on Friday, October 24 and Friday, October 31^st at 9:30 p.m.

The hospitalization committee, formed last year during contract negotiations, met last Wednesday with our consultant, Sam Fiorentino and with Mrs. Whitman, Human Resources Coordinator. This committee consists of one or more employees from each department. Our plan is partially self-funded, and although some confusion still exists over mail order prescriptions, the committee is functioning very well.

Last Friday, the Mayor and Director Umerley of the Senior Center taped the monthly informational segment at Cox Cable studios. The Senior program has many activities, and Director Umerley did a fine job. The tape will be broadcast on Fridays in November.

Today, letters were mailed to all candidates for public office, enclosing a copy of Code sections dealing with political signs and sections of the ORC dealing with Election Day activity not permissible at the polls. Since this issue has been raised on previous election days, it is hoped that this will avoid confusion and encourage compliance with the law.

A cost estimate for adding a police dog to the department has been submitted by Ptl. Selong. The Administration has no recommendations as yet.

A meeting of Elmwood area residents with the Mayor and Mr. Frost has been scheduled for Wednesday, November 12 at 7:30 in the David J. Cook Council Chambers. The affected area is bounded by Detroit Rd, Lake Rd, Wagar and Gatehouse. Under discussion will be traffic conditions.

Mr. Koran has been notified that the Court Community Service Program performed litter collection in Rocky River. Twenty bags of trash were collected and removed from Depot Street.

The Police and Fire Departments, working with Director Linden, have filed a request with FEMA for a refund of costs incurred because of the recent power failure. The City is requesting reimbursement of $2,793, mostly in overtime costs.

Discussion: Mr. Hurtuk asked about accessibility to emergency vehicles if Westover is closed to through traffic. The Mayor agreed that such accessibility is necessary, and explained that that is the reason for a chain which can be cut in an emergency.

• •Mr. Hurtuk also asked about the cost of a consultant to review insurance bids-a procedure the Administration is planning to conduct on its own this year. The Mayor estimated the cost at $5000. He noted that the City has received five or six requests for bid packages.
• •Mr. Malling noted that some residents in the audience wished to ask about the require-ment that landlords report tenant names and social security numbers. He asked the Mayor to repeat his statement of last week. Mayor Knoble explained that if a landlord does not wish to ask for a tenant's information, he need only submit the full name (including middle initial) and address of all wageearners. He acknowledged that the implementation procedure could have been improved, and he is now working to remedy any misunderstandings.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

Ordinance No. 155-03: This ordinance is waiting for amendment by the Administration. Several changes are anticipated.

Ordinance No. 161-03: Mr. Frost indicated that the proposed amended ordinance has restored the originally deleted prohibition on right turns on red at Center Ridge and River Oaks, as recommended by the Police Chief, i.e. such turns will still be prohibited during school hours. A new section, with prohibitions on turns from Morewood Parkway onto Lake Road and from Lake Road Market Dr. onto Lake Road on school days has also been added. No further changes have been recommended by the Superintendent of Schools or the Board of Education. Mr. Frost hopes to move for passage of this ordinance in three weeks.

Mrs. Bobst suggested that upon passage, Mr. Frost communicate with the schools to alert them of these changes so that they can, in turn, keep parents and drivers up-to-date.

Ordinances No. 175-03 and 176-03: Both of these ordinances deal with new regulations on play structures. Mr. Potterfield noted that as these structures become larger and more complex, it became clear that a guideline for their construction was necessary. Both ordinances have been referred to the Planning Commission for their review at the next meeting. Mr. Potterfield plans to attend this meeting.

MISCELLANEOUS BUSINESS:

Corner Lot Side Yard Setbacks: Mr. Potterfield, Chairman of Council's Planning and Zoning Committee, asked for Administration input on the topic. Mayor Knoble indicated that he favors a clearly defined map with no calculations involved and no guesswork which will show residents what setbacks are required.

Mr. Hurtuk noted that if we look at what other communities are doing, we should select mature communities who are in our situation, being fully developed and dealing with tear-downs and re-dos.

Mr. Potterfield indicated that his committee will continue to gather information and meet again with Kevin Beirne. He also projects that a meeting of the committee should be held during the second or third week of November to further discuss this question. He expressed concern that any new legislation not deprive homeowners of the right to make use of their property.

The Mayor further suggested that the committee consider streets that curve 90 degrees, forming in essence a corner, but not legally, since there are not two intersecting streets.

Open Burning: Mr. Frost observed that Council should have a final completed draft of the proposed Chapter 1511. A last corrected version of page 1 dated 10/20/03 has only a minor change in the deletion of 1511.04 from the contents, and otherwise the draft of 10/16/03 is the latest version. The Law Director has reviewed the contents and made changes to bring it into conformance with the state fire code. This new code will give Fire Department safety officers the tools to enforce safe open burning practices and to order dangerous or nuisance fires extinguished. An ordinance is expected soon.

Portable, free standing signs: Mr. Potterfield feels that more information and study on the application of these ordinances are necessary. The intent is for certain businesses to have these signs, but he wondered what would happen in a situation where every small business wants to display one. He suggested that his committee study this, together with corner lot side yard setbacks at the next committee meeting.

• •Mrs. Bobst asked if the City will provide more guidance on where these signs are permitted, since some sidewalks are wider than others, or whether it should be left to the discretion of the Building Commissioner.

Family Aquatic Center financing: Mrs. Bobst began by observing that last week, because of recommendations of the Law Director and the architect caused by bid problems, ordinances for construction of an aquatic facility as well as its financing were removed from the agenda. She asked the Mayor for his views as well as a timeline of when Council can expect to see the rebidding process.

Mayor Knoble reported that he had spent 3 or 4 hours this week studying the issue and talking with a resident who is a municipal financing vice president for a large Cleveland bank. The information gathered there, together with conferences with the Finance Director and rereading pages on bonding in the City's financial report, have given the Mayor some insights into the financing process. Based on our assessed values of $602 million, we are allowed 10.1% debt, or $63 million. We currently have $7 million, or slightly more than 10% of the debt limit allowable under Ohio statutes. Our bond rating is Aa2 which is the third highest, behind Aa1 and AAA. In the current financial situation, it is not beneficial to the City to issue debt bonds prior to spending the money. We would pay about 4%, and are only receiving 1.1% on a Money Market account, for a 2.9% loss. We need to be sure, however, to pass legislation authorizing issuance of bonds prior to passing ordinances for construction. This authorization does not mean that bonds must be issued. City officials will not try to "time" the market.

Prior to issuance of bonds, a current rating from Moody's must be obtained at a cost of about $4000.

We then need the services of a bank, currently National City, to register owners of the bonds. Cost is about $3000 to $5000.

Finally, we need a legal opinion that the bonds are properly issued and are tax exempt. Cost is about $25,000.

Every time bonds are issued, these expenses, totaling about $35,000 are assessed, but more than one project can be included in each issue.

An alternative is to hire a bonding organization. They will try to time the market and time the bonds. We can sell them to a bank which will issue.

Notes are issued for one year, but can be rolled over for 20 years at a cost of $10,000 to $20,000 per year. Notes are advantageous when the amount can be paid off more quickly.

The Mayor indicated that notes or bonds can be issued by the City, and that its indebtedness can be substantially increased. He made it clear that he is offering information, not recommending a course of action.

• •Mrs. Bobst asked for a timeline for the reopening of the bidding process. The Mayor responded that the architect feels that a bid process after the first of the year can be used for construction after Labor Day.
• •Mr. Potterfield asked for a comparison of interest rates between notes and bonds. The Mayor pointed out that the rate will change for notes every year as it is renewed. It will be subject to market conditions at that time. When the City issued notes for the Civic Center, those notes were paid off when the construction was completed.
• •Mr. Hurtuk observed that it would seem to be a good idea to see all proposed projects requiring bond issuance at the same time, and have all related ordinances presented together.

COMMITTEE REPORTS:

Planning and Zoning Committee: Mr. Potterfield requested a follow-up from Commissioner Beirne on tie-in costs for sewers and the different way such costs can be calculated. The Mayor recalled that there could be a $300 tie-in fee, and that Council had discussed the merits of a flat fee v. pipe size and one tie-in v. multiple tie-ins.

Safety Committee: The Working Group on Animal Control Laws will meet at 7:00 p.m. on November 3 in the Committee Room adjacent to the David J. Cook Council Chambers. The two items on the agenda remain to be determined.

NEW BUSINESS:

Ordinance No. 181-03: This was discussed at the beginning of the meeting.

Mr. Frost asked about the proposed canine addition to the Police Department. This issue has been raised because there is an officer who has worked with drug-sniffing dogs and is interested pursuing this project. At present, with such a large expenditure for new police computers and other equipment, the Mayor is not ready to move ahead, but there may be grants and other subsidies available. The interested officer has prepared a three-year projected budget which was distributed to Council members. It was noted that all other surrounding communities except Bay Village have a canine member. We have, on occasion, borrowed the services of neighboring police dogs.

COMMUNICATIONS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS:

The Chamber of Commerce will meet Thursday at noon.

The League of Women Voters will sponsor its candidates program on Thursday at 7:00 p.m.

The Master Plan Working Group will meet November 19 at 5:00 p.m.

All the above meetings will be held at the Don Umerley Civic Center.

As there was no further business by Council members, the meeting was adjourned at 9:04 p.m.

____________________________ _______________________________

Pamela E. Bobst Misao Kurokawa

President of Council Clerk of Council

Please note: This is a draft copy of the minutes of the meeting of the Committee-of-the-Whole of

October 20, 2003. These minutes may be amended or revised at the next Legislative Meeting.