CITY OF BERKELEY LAKE
4040 BERKELEY LAKE ROAD
BERKELEY LAKE, GEORGIA 30096
PUBLIC HEARING/COUNCIL MEETING
FULL MINUTES FOR
April 18th, 2002
Those in attendance for the Public Hearing and Council Meeting were as follows:
Mayor – Lois Salter
Council Members: Tony Arakawa, Frank Lombardi, Ken Massaroni, Delicia Reynolds, and David Steventon
Richard Carothers - City Attorney
Claire Grimes – City Clerk
Tom Kitchens – BLEMA
John Rockers – City Manager/Treasurer
Citizens Present 9
CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Salter called the meeting to order at 6:10 PM at the Berkeley Walk Clubhouse.
PUBLIC HEARING
The Public Hearing was for Ordinance Chapter 39, Sections 103,201,810,703,804,806,1202.
CITIZENS' COMMENTS CHAPTER 39
Jane Hardwick 770 Lakeview Lane: Jane stated that she wanted to register her concern about any change from the City's R-100 Single Family Residential Zoning. She stated that she is totally opposed to any changes to the Ordinance and that she wants it 100% enforced.
Dana Nigh 4006 S. Berkeley Lake Road: Dana stated that her next-door neighbor is running a commercial recording studio operating out of his home. There was an article in Sunday paper that clearly stated the business he is doing and he is charging $900 dollars for making CD recordings. He broadcasts over the Internet 24 hours a day. The traffic is awful in both houses that he owns. He actually owns two houses next to each other on S Berkeley Lake Road. The studio is in one of the houses and he lives in the other house. This is illegal and clearly against our zoning ordinances. There seems to be a hesitancy to go ahead and issue a citation against him. She stated that she wanted clarification on the City's hesitancy when it is so clearly evident with a newspaper article and a website to prove what he is doing.
Dudley Simpson 774 Lakeview Lane: Dudley stated that after living in the City for over 17 years and enjoying the Single Family zoning, he hopes the City will enforce all aspects of the R-100 zoning ordinance.
OTHER CITIZENS' COMMENTS
Jane Hardwick 770 Lakeview Lane: Citing a recent FDIC publication warning the public about deposits exceeding $100,000 in any one bank, Jane stated that she continues to be concerned about the clustering of the City's monies at one bank. She stated that the City money is now lumped in Peachtree Bank. She further stated that the BLHA money is now at Peachtree Bank also. "These are public funds; you do not gamble with public funds and my tax money." If you want to improve City Hall then do so but don't plan on building a huge community center until you are certain our money is totally safe. She stated that she does not see the need for a Community Center when we have the use of the Pinckneyville Park, which is right across PIB.
Council Member Reynolds responded by explaining that the City monies at Peachtree Bank are secured by federal "T Bills" and being held in our name at Sun Trust. The money is fully backed by Federal funds. We get a monthly report, which comes to City Hall. The City of Norcross has over six million dollars in one bank and it is secured the same way. This is a normal way of doing business and it is as secure as we can make it. The auditor verifies this every year when he does the audit. He makes sure that the money is guaranteed and secured.
Council Member Arakawa responded by explaining the Community Center. He stated that the thoughts of Council were for a City Administration Center because the current City Hall does not function well under any circumstances. This is part of a vision for the City's future growth to be able to give access to our City employees and our citizens in a more functional environment. This will bring us "up to date" with what we need to do for City services. The first vision is to accomplish the plans for this portion and then decide whether to go beyond that stage with a design concept of a Community Center.
Council Member Steventon stated that it is becoming evident that there is a need for a Community Center and that it would be a facility that could and would be used by the citizens. Council Member Arakawa further stated that in some ways we can connect to the County facility but a Community Center would thread us together as a City. This is a vision that we would at least like to explore.
WORKING SESSION
Topics discussed during the Council working session were as follow: Claire Grimes and John Rockers reported that the City would cite two homeowners who have not responded to the Septic Tank Ordinance. Procedures for Council Members to follow when attending outside meetings were also discussed. Council Member Lombardi passed around a draft of a Travel Authorization Policy and Expense Reimbursement Policy for Council to review. The date for the Council retreat was discussed and was decided to be April 27th. City Attorney Carothers reported on a question asked by Council about the possibility of leasing the City parking lot at the beach. After discussion, Council asked Mr. Carothers to prepare the appropriate document for leasing the lot.
MINUTES
Council Member Massaroni moved to approve the Minutes. Council Member Arakawa seconded the motion and approval was unanimous.
FINANCIAL REPORT
Council Member Reynolds moved to accept the Financial Report as filed. Council Member Massaroni seconded the motion and approval was unanimous.
STAFF AND COMMITTEE REPORTS
Mayor Salter announced that she has received the following reports: BLEMA, Arbitration Board, Finance Affairs, Stormwater Management, Communications and OEO.
ANNOUNCEMENTS AND APPOINTMENTS
Mayor Salter announced that Officer Dunlap would be retiring from the City. He will continue to work for us until his replacement Officer can be on the job. The Officer recommended by Officer Dunlap is Officer Doug McClure. The Mayor recognized Officer Dunlap with this months Lois's Laurels in appreciation for his diligent service to our City.
The Mayor thanked the Berkeley Walk community for allowing the City to rent the building for the Council meeting. This was an effort of Council to make themselves available to all parts of the community.
The Mayor announced that there is a Soil and Water Conservation field day on May 10th and Council Member Arakawa plans to be in attendance along with our OEO.
The Mayor also announced that the speaker at the GwMA meeting this month was from GRTA. One of the many things he talked about was the fact that they are preparing to offer a free van to citizens who want to get together to ride to work or to MARTA. The citizens would share the cost of the use of the van, which would be about $50.00 a month. The person who drives the van would use it for free. GRTA would even come and get the van during the day while people are in their offices in order to take it for maintenance. Please let us know if you are interested or know of citizens who commute in a similar pattern and are interested in this project.
The Mayor announced that she has handed out some current City information in response to citizens' questions about streetlights, illegal solicitors, ordinance enforcement, mosquito prevention and Neighborwoods.
The Mayor reported that the purchase of the Ferrier property should take place before the end of the month.
OLD BUSINESS
Chapter 39 modifications, (single family dwellings)
There were questions about the word "natural" shoreline. George Sipe explained that the word is mentioned throughout Chapter 39, so the P&Z decided to have a new definition placed in the definitions portion of the Chapter. The City Attorney stated that property lines with respect to the lake have been an ongoing problem for him and others. Other questions were asked about other Chapter 39 sections.
Council Member Steventon motioned to table the changes to Chapter 39 until next month. There was no second.
Council Member Massaroni motioned to place Chapter 39 modifications to single-family dwellings on 2nd read and approval with revisions noted. Council Member Arakawa seconded the motion. There were 4 votes for approval. Council Member Steventon abstained.
BLEMA Alert System – Kitchens
Tom Kitchens explained the new alert system. City Attorney Carothers explained that he has studied the potential legal hazards of having such a system. He believes that we can move forward on it after making certain that we know exactly how to operate the system and that the system itself is geared to work and does not have problems so that we have done all that we can do to ensure that the procedure we are setting up will work. The issue is that when the tornado siren goes off, it goes off to everyone. When the phone calls are made, if someone is missed and then injured by a tornado they could have a claim. Mr. Kitchens stated that other communities have this product. He further stated that he would run a test on the equipment before its implementation. It was suggested that a caveat statement be issued to the public before this system is put into operation. Mr. Carothers agreed and stated he would develop such a statement. Mr. Kitchens stated that the cost of this call to every citizen technology is about $30 for every time the calling chain process is initiated.
Council Member Massaroni motioned that the City purchase the equipment under discussion and move forward with this program. Council member Arakawa seconded the motion. There were 4 votes in favor with Council Member Lombardi abstaining.
Earth Day
Council Member Steventon described the Earth Day festivities going on in the City on Saturday the 20th of April. Coffee and doughnuts will be offered to the citizens at City Hall beginning at 8:00 AM. The co sponsor for the event is Dish Network and they will be setting up a tent at the Chapel and offering hotdogs and hamburgers with all the trimmings for lunch. Everyone is urged to come out and help us keep our City clean.
Status of commercial property
City Manager Rockers explained to citizens the timeline of events in regards to the development of the commercial property on the corner of PIB. The most recent events are of concern and need to be watched closely. There was much discussion and many questions were asked. Chairman Sipe stated that there needs to be a site development plan with all the City's stipulations on it so that there would be enforceability to the terms of the ordinance that governs this parcel. Attorney Carothers suggested that the City consult McFarland because he has done a lot of this kind of work and will be able to answer questions and give us ideas as to what we should do. It was decided to get together a group within the City to include George Sipe and City Attorney Carothers to discuss the details of the issue before the next meeting with the developer.
Transportation plans – Arakawa
Mr. Arakawa reported that last month we talked about preliminary plans for phase one sidewalk project. On Tuesday Mr. Arakawa met with engineers and the Gwinnett Dept. of Transportation. We were able to make some good decisions. There are still some questions about the River Mansions folks not wanting the sidewalk on the River Mansions side of Bush Rd. The other challenge is whether to place the sidewalk on the Chapel side of S. Berkeley Lake Rd. or the City Hall side. To put the sidewalk on the City Hall side would create problems with parking and there are two households on the same side of S. Berkeley near the intersection of Lakeshore that would be severely impacted by the amount of right-of- way that would have to be utilized for the sidewalk. Construction should begin in three months. We still have a chance to make some suggested changes and in 30 days they will release some final plans. There was much discussion and many questions were asked. Council decided to postpone discussion until the retreat on April 27th.
Other
City Manager Rockers stated that AT&T has asked the City to extend the Resolution to negotiate the franchise contract for 60 days. The issue of a 5% franchise fee was also discussed.
Council Member Reynolds motioned to extend the Resolution to negotiate the franchise contract with AT&T for 60 days. The negotiations should include the possible change to a 5% franchise fee rather than the present 3% franchise fee. Council Member Arakawa seconded the motion. There were 4 votes of approval with Council Member Massaroni abstaining.
NEW BUSINESS
Ordinance Chapter 3 modifications-Massaroni
Council Member Massaroni motioned to place on first read the changes to Ordinance Chapter 3 section 401 in order to create the position of Deputy City Clerk. Council Member Lombardi seconded the motion and approval was unanimous.
Occupational Taxes and Regulatory Fees
Attorney Carothers explained that occupational taxes are just to make money and they don't make much money. For example, Roswell charges $100 for the first employee and $5 dollars for every employee after that. Under Lilburn's criteria, if a commercial business in the City has 100 employees the City gets $500 dollars a year. There were many questions asked by Council Members. Council Member Reynolds suggested that it would probably not be worth the time it will take the City employees to monitor. Council agreed not to create an occupational tax ordinance at this time.
Fencing along the dam
City Manager Rockers reported on his research into the cost of fencing along the dam. This fencing is to deter the off-road vehicles on the dam. He asked Council to consider types of temporary barriers. Mr. Rockers recommends the split rail fencing because it can be taken up at the time the sidewalks are built. He acknowledged that some Council members prefer riprap rock. There was much discussion and many questions were asked. The cost for the fencing would be $1770 fully installed and would go from the parking lot to where the grade drops off severely. Tom Kitchens stated that if the trench was moved in more and the riprap was built high enough, the jeep might get over the riprap but the nose would be buried in the ground on the other side. Mayor Salter suggested that Mr. Rockers and Mr. Kitchens meet with the Safe Dam Authorities and ask for their suggestions and report back to Council by next month.
Drainage Issues
Mr. Rockers reported that he had consulted with Wolverton and Assoc. who are an engineering firm who specializes in hydro engineering. They have identified four areas around the city that need to be addressed either this year or budgeted for next year. The Ridge Road project is the one that needs to be addressed first. Mr. Rockers explained the different options offered by the engineering firm and asked Council to begin to consider these options. Council asked many questions.
Council Member Arakawa motioned to authorize Mr. Rockers to move forward with the Wolverton Company for the expenditure of $6500 dollars to perform the survey for the scope of work required for the Ridge Road project. Mr. Arakawa would also like them to specify a very specific estimate of the curb and gutter as a result of the survey. Council Member Massaroni seconded the motion and approval was unanimous.
Greenspace Award Agreement
Attorney Carothers reported that he has already sent the letter to the appropriate authorities.
Other
City Flag – Council Member Lombardi reported that he has found a company to print a flag and banner with the City logo. The cost to the City would be around $500 dollars. Council endowed Mr. Lombardi with authority to obtain a flag and a banner for the City.
Old City Signs – There was a question that someone thought that the old Berkeley Lake City signs were going to be auctioned at the Earth Day garage sale. No Council member had any information about this question.
CITIZENS COMMENTS
Tom Kitchens 150 Bayway Circle – Tom asked about the City's intent as to the commercial business now being run in our City. The Mayor stated that she and the City Attorney have discussed this issue thoroughly and have decided to cite the man. She further stated that she has instructed the OEO to try to obtain additional photos or other evidence, which might help the City's case.
Mr. Kitchens also reported that he plans to distribute the mosquito larvicide again this year. He reminded Council that this was done last year on the City right-of-ways.
Jane Hardwick stated that she was appalled and shocked that the business on South Berkeley Lake Road has been allowed to even hatch in our City.
Barbara Kirschner 4016 S Berkeley Lake Rd.- Barbara asked the status of the speed tables along S. Berkeley Lake Rd. Council Member Arakawa reported that at one time the County explored the issue of speed tables and after pressing the County for years on this issue they finally offered an alternative solution by allowing the City to take ownership of that road. We are now in the process of exploring alternatives if we decide to take ownership.
COUNCIL MEMBER ARAKAWA MOTIONED TO MOVE INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION FOR THE PURPOSE OF DISCUSSING PERSONNEL MATTERS. COUNCIL MEMBER MASSARONI SECONDED THE MOTION AND APPROVAL WAS UNANIMOUS.
After Executive Session there were no citizens present.
THERE BEING NO FURTHER NEW BUSINESS, COUNCIL MEMBER MASSARONI MOTIONED TO ADJOURN. COUNCIL MEMBER ARAKAWA SECONDED THE MOTION AND APPROVAL WAS UNANIMOUS. THE MEETING ADJOURNED AT 10:00 PM.
