What's Up? - 16 March 2017

Vote by Mail. Capital Improvements. Water. Zoning. Parking. Tuesday will be hopping.

My comments are in blue, past comments are in pale blue, text from our document pack is in brown, and black text comes from the agendas.

What's Coming Up?

COUNCIL WORK MEETING

12:00 Noon, Tuesday, March 21st, City Conference Room, 351 West Center

1. A discussion regarding Vote by Mail
   VBM [vote by mail] through Utah County would be the least expensive of the three options. However, cost is not the only consideration. Some Provo citizens “enjoy and prefer the traditional act of walking to (a) polling place and casting a ballot there.” Others “worry about the security of votes cast by mail.” The purpose of this report is to address this last concern.
2. A presentation of the FY 2018 Capital Improvement Project Report
   The Capital Improvement Plan was submitted at the beginning of March to the Municipal Council. John Borget will lead a discussion regarding the Plan, and leave time for Council members to ask any questions that they may have.
   The City's 5-year CIP is 180 pages long. It can be considered very dry and boring. Or it can be exciting to see all of the projects that are planned. If you really want to see what the City is up to, where your tax-dollars are going, I recommend reviewing the CIP.
3. A presentation from the Water Division
   During the February 21st, 2017 Work Meeting, the Council moved that the Public Works department provide presentations on the Water Division over the next several months. The Council and the Budget Committee provided Public Works with a list of three high-level questions and a longer list of detailed questions. 
   This is round 2. The first presentation on 7 March was very interesting. It ran long because we asked so many questions. Take a look at the last "What's Up" for my report, item 3.
4. A discussion regarding a resolution to appropriate funds for the abatement of asbestos and the demolition of the former Utah County Security Center
   The former Utah County Security Center has become an attractive nuisance and needs to be demolished. Community Development is looking for funds for the abatement of asbestos and other hazardous materials and demolition.  
5. A discussion regarding the Zoning Committee recommendations
   This committee was formed to advise the Council on strategies to improve zoning compliance. The recommendations are not in our document packet, but, based on this agenda item, I assume they have made some.
6. A discussion on a 2017 Utah County Recreational Municipal Grant
   This is an annual grant offered by Utah County for communities within the county. Funding for the grant comes from the “Restaurant Tax”. Funds distributed to communities based on population data collected in 2013 Census. Based on Provo’s population, grant allocation is: $60,855.48.
   Funding will be used to pay the retained engineering consultant to design the necessary construction documents to renovate the Provo River Trail. This project is the highest priority of the 5 Year Parks and Recreation Capital Improvement Plan.
7. A discussion regarding a resolution ratifying the Redevelopment Agency's consent to a change in ownership interests in the Provo Towne Centre Mall.
   Brixton Capital has completed their purchase of Provo Towne Center Mall from General Growth Properties (GGP) and has begun the process of revitalization of the center. Section 107 of the Disposition and Development Agreement for the development of Provo Towne Center Mall requires the Agency to approve of any change in the ownership of the mall. The proposed change gives Abrams Capital an ownership position in exchange for additional capital to help Brixton revitalize the mall. Seeing there was no material change to the previously pledged agreements and seeking to meet timelines for Brixton and Abrams Capital, the Chief Executive Officer approved the change subject to ratification by the Agency Board.  The new partnership will not affect the management of Provo Towne Center nor will it involve the tax increment financing that is currently pledged as collateral for Brixton’s loan.
8. A discussion on a proposed amendment to Section 14.10.080 regarding yard requirements in the One-Family Residential Zone, specifically eliminating the combined front/rear yard requirement. City-Wide Impact.
   The proposal is to change the setback requirements (how far a home is away from the front and back of the property) in R1 zones and to better specify how those setbacks are measured.
   In extensive examination of the entire City, staff has not found the amendment would create any nonconforming situations. However, staff did find a number of existing nonconforming situations which would become conforming through passage of the amendment. Additionally, staff believes the portion of the amendment regarding the front yard measuring points will greatly benefit the Pioneer Neighborhoods where the current ordinance actually requires a greater setback behind the sidewalk than required in most of the remainder of the City. 
9. A discussion on a proposed amendment to the Provo City Code Sections 14.21A.090, 14.21B.080 and 14.23 to adopt minimum dwelling unit sizes in the Downtown One, Downtown Two, and ITOD Zones. City-Wide Impact.
   A few years ago the Council removed the minimum unit size from the DT zones at the request of a developer. As projects have been built and others proposed, we have the smallest units going in along the Wasatch Front. Community Development is proposing that we reinstate zoning minimums in the Downtown zones and add them to the Transit Oriented Development zone. The Planning Commission recommended a slight tweak to the proposed regulation, instead of a 600 sqft minimum, they suggest a 600 sqft minimum average for a project, with 400 sqft being the absolute minimum. I like the Planning Commission's suggestion because it allows more flexibility and encourages a variety of unit sizes.
10. A discussion on a proposed ordinance amendment to Section 14.50(22) of the Provo City Code to allow an apartment complex buffered by 10,000 square foot single family lots located at 31 West 4800 North. Riverbottoms Neighborhood.
    This proposed development would occur just south of the Riverwoods Shopping Center. It includes three and four story "upscale" apartment buildings directly across the street from the Shopping Center and single family homes south of apartments to "buffer" the existing residences. There are many concerned neighbors, Community Development Staff recommended the project, the Planning Commission was split 3-3.
11. A request for an ordinance text amendment to Provo City Code Chapters 14.02, 14.31, 15.01, 15.03, and 15.04 to consolidate development and subdivision plan application submittal requirements and expiration deadlines found in the various chapters of the Provo City Code. City-Wide Impact.
    This item is being pitched as a simple code cleanup. Some of the language is being changed from requiring a "preliminary project plan" to a "concept plan." I'll make sure that all substantive changes are being fully explained and considered. There may also be a request to remove the requirement for a submittal checklist from the code because there is already a checklist in the application.
12. A discussion regarding a request for a zone change from A1.1 to R1.8 for 22.5 acres of property located at approximately 890 South 1600 West, in order to facilitate Final Subdivision Approval for 70 lots of at least 8,000 square feet. Sunset Neighborhood.
    This is related to the Scott's Corner proposed development that we heard last fall and helped kick off the Westside Planning Committee. The project has continued to evolve, and the applicant feels that they have addressed the most pressing neighborhood concerns.
13. Closed Meeting

COUNCIL MEETING

5:30 PM, Tuesday, March 21st, Council Chambers, 351 West Center

Public Comment
3. A joint resolution of the Provo City Mayor and Municipal Council appointing temporary Justice Court Judges for the Provo City Justice Court.
   Two new judges will be appointed, joining the three current temporary judges, as recommended by Judge Romney. They can cover for Judge Romney when he is unavailable.
4. A resolution ratifying the Redevelopment Agency's consent to a change in ownership interests in the Provo Town Centre Mall.
   See Item 7 in the Work Meeting agenda above.
5. A resolution appropriating $725,000 in the General Fund to pay for the cost of asbestos abatement and demolition of the former Utah County Security Center, generally located at 1776 Buckley Lane.
   See Item 4 in the Work Meeting agenda above.
6. An ordinance amending Provo City Code to adjust the parking ratios for off-street parking.
   This will be the second consecutive time we've discussed this item in the Council Meeting, and we discussed it twice so far in Work Meetings. Here is what I've said previously about it: Should the current relaxation of parking requirements in our more urban areas be removed? This strikes me as a very unimaginative solution. I might be okay with it if it is a short-term holding solution until our Parking Manager can get going. I fear, though, that short-term solutions have a way of sticking around (e.g. the RC zone)...We heard from a number of community members, including some developers. I am hopeful that we will back off of the parking reductions Downtown, rather than eliminate them completely. We heard a lot about flexibility and differing needs in differing areas. I think it makes sense that Downtown parking needs would be different than parking needs elsewhere. But again, my hope is that this is just a stop-gap measure until a more creative, flexible, parking strategy can be developed.
7. An ordinance amending the Zone Map Classification of approximately 22.5 acres of real property, generally located at 890 South 1600 West, from Agriculture (A1.1) to One-Family Residential (R1.8). Sunset Neighborhood.
   See Item 12 in the Work Meeting agenda above.
8. An ordinance amending the Consolidated Fee Schedule to add a Meter Reading Fee for customers who elect not to have an AMI Meter.
   This was Item 1 at the 7 March Work Meeting. Roughly half of the meters have been placed, and so far 21 people have protested having their meter replaced. Provo Power predicts that maybe three would pay a monthly fee to stay on the old technology. $25 would be about the incremental cost to the City to send out an employee to physically read somewhere around 10 meters each month.
9. A resolution appropriating up to $70,980 in the City Recorder’s Office for the funding of Elections for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2017.
   This amount would cover the cost of contracting with the County to administer our fall election, as we usually do. What is unusual is that previously the County did this with electronic voting machines, this year they are only offering a vote-by-mail process.
10. An ordinance amending the Official Neighborhood Map.
    This was Item 6 at the 7 March Work Meeting. The non-controversial proposals will move ahead. The Downtown proposal will get some more discussion and public input. One additional, non-controversial, boundary alignment has been added in.