Council Meetings - 1 September 2020

The Council typically meets in our formal meetings once every two weeks. We have had three special meetings in the last two weeks to discuss, pass, and then override the Mayor's veto of an ordinance the requires masks to be worn in public spaces under certain circumstances. I've received more public input, both positive and negative, on this subject than any other during my time on the Council. Our regular meetings will be held tomorrow, with the typical assortment of items, but we will be discussing the "mask mandate" again.

PROVO MUNICIPAL COUNCIL
Work Meeting Agenda

1:30 pm, Tuesday, September 1, 2020

Business

1. A discussion of possible amendments to Chapter 9.25 COVID-19 Response. (20-118)
   The Governor of Utah allows local jurisdictions to decide if mandating masks are warranted requirements to combat COVID 19. On August 25, 2020, the Provo Municipal Council passed an ordinance initiating Section 9.25 and amending Section 9.17 of Provo City Code. This was done to address the health issues caused by COVID 19. On August 27, 2020, the Council held a special meeting to override the Mayor’s veto. Since the passage of the ordinance there have been discussions about making some changes to Section 9.25. This is likely the most hotly debated issue that I've been involved with on the Council. We held three special sessions between the last regularly scheduled meeting two weeks ago and our regularly scheduled meeting tomorrow. I don't believe there have been three special sessions in the rest of the six and a half years that I have served. This agenda item will allow us to discuss and tweaks or changes that we might want to make to the "Mask or Socially Distancing" mandate.
   

   Administration

2. A presentation regarding the Fiscal 2020 3rd Quarter Financial Report. (20-220)
   John Borget will give an overview of the Quarterly Report for the 3rd quarter ending March 31, 2020. If I'm reading the charts and tables correctly, at the end of the 3rd quarter (March 31st, 2020), the City revenues and most of the expenditures were very similar to the year-to-date figures from the previous year. But the end of March was still early in the pandemic, so Q4 totals may still be deeply affected. Presentation only. The City is doing remarkably well, considering all that is going on during the pandemic. There are definite challenges, but prudent decisions over the decades have put us in a resilient spot.
3. A presentation regarding an update on the Provo City Center Project and Redevelopment. (20-013)
   The Provo City Center project is hitting some key milestones in the next few weeks, both in the construction as well as in narrowing the field of potential development partners for the redevelopment of the existing site. Project manager Scott Henderson and David Walter from the Provo Redevelopment Agency will both provide updates on these aspects of the project. So much of the work I've engaged in on the Council has been about compromise. Perhaps no other project embodies the thrills and the resignation of compromise more than the new city office project. Presentation only. There were no big announcements, just a progress report. Things are progressing, but they found more buried "treasures" than expected, which has slowed things down.
4. A resolution approving the Municipal Wastewater Planning Program Report for 2019 in accordance with the Utah Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Report. (20-119)
   Each year, the City must update a self-assessment regarding the sewer collection and treatment system for submission to the State as part of our sewer discharge permit. This is the sixth year I have read the report. As far as reportable incidents, I believe this is the first year that there have been zero, even minor incidents. I am a little concerned about the "no"s in the first section about whether we are sustainably funding our sewer system. We've been adjusting sewer rates slowly over the past few years. Is the plan we are following still insufficient to address all of the needs? In a related theme, is it time to start a CAP (customer assistance program)? Presentation only. This item was already scheduled for the Council Meeting on September 1, 2020. The report reinforces that our waste-water team is going a great job with the resources that we have given them, but we need to continue to raise sewer rates until we get to a sustainable level.
5. A presentation from the Utah Transit Authority regarding the impact COVID-19 has had on their services. (20-221)
   COVID-19 has had an impact on ridership on UTA trains. The UTA has evaluated their services and adjusted accordingly. They are informing jurisdictions that are serviced by their trains about these new plans to address ridership. Will there be an additional reduction in service for UVX? Presentation only. The "new plans" were already implemented months ago. There are no plans to reduce the frequency of service on UVX any more.
6. A resolution to place a 0.207 acre parcel of vacant land at 1320 South and East of 1080 East on the Surplus Property List and to approve a Real Estate Purchase Contract for the sale of city property for a residential development. (20-221)
   The Municipal Council approved a resolution to surplus the property at 1320 South 1080 East in the Council Meeting on August 4, 2020. That resolution required that the terms of the Real Estate Purchase Contract would need to be approved by the Municipal Council. Staff has been able to negotiate a sale for the previously surplused property, but they would also like to include an additional strip of property located to the south of the existing substation and immediately adjacent to the proposed residential development. This is property that will not be used as part of any future expansion of the substation and can be included to enhance the approach to the proposed development. This resolution, if approved, would place this small parcel of property on the Surplus Property List and also approve the terms of the Real Estate Purchase Contract. It makes sense to include this strip of land in with the development to be landscaped and maintained by the development rather than having an isolated strip of land being maintained by the City. Presentation only. This item was already scheduled for the Council Meeting on September 1, 2020. This should be an excellent project for the long-term health of this area and the City.



Policy Items Referred from the Planning Commission

7. An ordinance amending the Provo City General Plan map designation from commercial to residential for real property located at 1555 N Canyon Road. Carterville Neighborhood. (PLGPA20200062)
   Paul Washburn, an agent for the property owner, is requesting a General Plan map amendment from commercial to residential for the conversion of a motel to residential units at 1555 N Canyon Road. This request has an associated project plan proposal and a zone map amendment from CG to CMU. The proposal shows converting the motel rooms to residential units, with 95 studio units and one two bedroom unit. This conversion would increase the parking demand for the site from the proposed 111 parking stalls to 145 parking stalls. In addition to a change in parking, the landscaping would need to be updated and added-to to meet current codes of the proposed CMU zone. In addition to the parking and landscaping demands the project would have, there are design standards in the CMU zone that the current building does not meet, and the proposal does not show addressing. The “findings of fact” section notes all of the code deficiencies described in these paragraphs. Lastly, the provided TDM plan refers to a number of parking stalls between 107 and 111 for 96 residential units. These numbers are what would be provided without providing any parking lot landscaping, failing to address code standards of 15.20.090, Provo City Code. Planning Commission recommended denial. Both the Staff and the Planning Commission recommends denial. I tend to agree with their assessment. This item was continued. This item was continued.
8. An ordinance amending the Zone Map classification of approximately 1.91 acres of real property, generally located at 1555 N Canyon Road, from General Commercial (CG) to Campus Mixed Use (CMU). Carterville Neighborhood. (PLRZ20200085)
   Same information as previous item. Planning Commission recommended denial. Related to the previous item. This item was continued. This item was continued.
9. An ordinance amending the Zone Map classification of approximately 3.75 acres of real property, generally located at 1487 W 990 S, from Agricultural (A1) to One-Family (R1.10). Sunset Neighborhood. (PLRZ20200209)
   Robert Steele is requesting a zone change from the Agricultural (A1) zone to the One-Family (R1.10) zone for four parcels of land around 1487 West 990 South. The proposed zone would require ten thousand square foot residential lots on the 3.76 acres of land. Mr. Steele is proposing this zone to subdivide one single family lot on the northwest of the westernmost parcel. This would be the initial subdivision; another subdivision would come later and could create an additional eight lots as shown on the conceptual layout plan (attachment 3). Since the lot proposed relies on the Kelshaw Lane road and utilities being developed, the subdivision would need to wait on the completion of those improvements. Planning Commission recommended approval. I don't fully understand how many lots will be placed on the 3.76 acres. Otherwise, this seems like a good fit, given the constraints on the property. Presentation only. This item was already scheduled for the Council Meeting on September 1, 2020. The proposal is to rezone for a single lot, but the proposal also shows how the rest of the property could be used in the future.



Closed Meeting

Closed meetings (aka executive meetings) are held without the public present and must meet one of the conditions listed in Utah State Code (§ 52-4-204 and 52-4-205 et. seq.). If a closed meeting is needed, it will be announced at that time. None requested.



Adjournment

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PROVO MUNICIPAL COUNCIL
Regular Meeting Agenda

5:30 PM, Tuesday, September 1, 2020

Opening Ceremony

Items in this category do not involve legislative action.



Public Comment

Instructions for making public comments at this electronic meeting can be found on the officially published agenda: agendas.provo.org.

Fifteen minutes have been set aside for any person to express ideas, concerns, comments, or issues that are not on the agenda:

Please state your name and city of residence into the microphone.

Please limit your comments to two minutes.

State Law prohibits the Council from acting on items that do not appear on the agenda.



Action Agenda

1. A joint resolution of the Provo City Mayor and Municipal Council outlining support for the Provo School District General Obligation Bond. (20-115)
   At the joint meeting between the Provo City Council and Provo School District Board, there was a discussion about the need to reconstruct Timpview High School. In order to pay for the reconstruction, the Provo School District Board has placed a General Obligation Bond on the November ballot. This is the least expensive and disruptive of all the options before the school board and for the citizens of Provo. I strongly supported the School District bond six years ago but argued against the bond that was proposed last year because of the timing and what was included. I support this much more limited request for 2020. In our previous joint meeting with the School Board, they asked if the Mayor and Council would be willing to pass a resolution of support. We will consider acting on this request. A motion to continue this item to the September 15, 2020 Council Meeting was approved 7:0. I believe we will pass this on the 15th. Some of the councilors wanted to study the issue more. Some also wanted to look into the historical precedent of passing resolutions of support for other entities.
2. A resolution to place a 0.207 acre parcel of vacant land at 1320 South and East of 1080 East on the Surplus Property List and to approve a Real Estate Purchase Contract for the sale of city property for a residential development. (20-221)
   The Municipal Council approved a resolution to surplus the property at 1320 South 1080 East in the Council Meeting on August 4, 2020. That resolution required that the terms of the Real Estate Purchase Contract would need to be approved by the Municipal Council. Staff has been able to negotiate a sale for the previously surplused property, but they would also like to include an additional strip of property located to the south of the existing substation and immediately adjacent to the proposed residential development. This is property that will not be used as part of any future expansion of the substation and can be included to enhance the approach to the proposed development. This resolution, if approved, would place this small parcel of property on the Surplus Property List and also approve the terms of the Real Estate Purchase Contract. See my preview of item 5 on the earlier agenda. Approved 7:0. This should be an excellent project for the long-term health of this area and the City.
3. A resolution approving the Municipal Wastewater Planning Program Report for 2019 in accordance with the Utah Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Report. (20-119)
   Each year, the City must update a self-assessment regarding the sewer collection and treatment system for submission to the State as part of our sewer discharge permit. See my preview of item 4 on the earlier agenda. Approved 7:0. The report reinforces that our waste-water team is going a great job with the resources that we have given them, but we need to continue to raise sewer rates until we get to a sustainable level.
4. An ordinance amending the Provo City General Plan map designation from commercial to residential for real property located at 1555 N Canyon Road. Carterville Neighborhood. (PLGPA20200062)
   This was item 7 in the work meeting. See my preview of item 7 on the earlier agenda. Continued.
5. An ordinance amending the Zone Map classification of approximately 1.91 acres of real property, generally located at 1555 N Canyon Road, from General Commercial (CG) to Campus Mixed Use (CMU). Carterville Neighborhood. (PLRZ20200085)
   This was item 8 in the work meeting. See my preview of item 8 on the earlier agenda. Continued.
6. An ordinance amending the Zone Map classification of approximately 3.75 acres of real property, generally located at 1487 W 990 S, from Agricultural (A1) to One-Family (R1.10). Sunset Neighborhood. (PLRZ20200209)
   This was item 9 in the work meeting. See my preview of item 9 on the earlier agenda. Approved 7:0. The proposal is to rezone a single lot, but the proposal also shows how the rest of the property could be used in the future.
7. An ordinance amending Chapter 9.25 and related Sections of Provo City Code (20-118)
   This was item 1 in the work meeting. See my preview of item 1 on the earlier agenda. Continued.




Adjournment