City of Crisfield
Minutes for Public Meetings
Minutes for Regular Meeting: September 27, 2006
The Mayor and City Council met in Regular Session on
Wednesday, September 27, 2006 at 6:00 p.m. at the Tawes Museum.
PRESENT
Percy J. Purnell, Jr., Mayor
Raymond D. Anderson, Council Vice President
Roger R. Riggin, Jr., Councilman
Kimberly B. Lawson, Councilman
Barry Dize, Councilman
LaVerne Johnson, Councilman
Calvin Dize, City Manager
Joyce L. Morgan, Clerk-Treasurer
Also in attendance; Valerie Swift, Secretary; Rick Lord,
Superintendent
of Public Works. See list of others in attendance.
Mayor Purnell opened with the Lord’s Prayer and the Pledge of
Allegiance. The Mayor went on to review the agenda for tonight’s
meeting.
At this time, Mayor Purnell announced the recent termination of
Chief
Clarence Bell, due to their philosophical differences.
Mayor Purnell also made reference to an invitation from
Annemessex
Trading Company to visit a planning firm in Baltimore. Mayor
Purnell advised
that the firm was impressive, however the City would still be
creating a controlled
SRP as promised, regarding anything that the City owns or
controls.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Mayor Purnell requested approval of the previous minutes. At
this
time, Council Vice President Anderson made a motion to approve
the minutes
from the Closed Meeting of August 22, 2006, the Closed Meeting
of August 28, 2006, and the Regular meeting of September, 13,
2006. Motion seconded by Councilwoman Johnson and carried
unanimously.
1ST SESSION – PUBLIC INPUT
Mayor Purnell advised that public input issues would be
addressed later
on. Councilman Lawson advised that anyone having agenda items
would need
to contact City Hall in advance to schedule an appointment,
therefore public input is limited.
Andre Dorman made reference to the new EDU policy and how it
would affect property he owns at Pine Croft Estates. Mayor
Purnell advised
that he would get back to him regarding this matter.
OLD BUSINESS
Mayor Purnell made reference to 2nd reader of the EDU
Ordinance. Prior to explaining this Ordinance, Councilman
Lawson made reference to Mayor Purnell’s decision regarding
Chief Bell. He advised that he supported the Mayor’s decision
and thanked him for all of his hard work.
At this time, Councilman Lawson reviewed the Ordinance and
explained that this would allow the City to collect water and
sewer hook-up fees per EDU. He also advised that no requests for
allocations will be granted in the next 60 days.
At this time, Councilman Lawson made a motion to adopt the
Ordinance to amend Chapter 45 by adding the language “or EDU
approval” , for 2nd reader. Motion seconded by Councilman Riggin
and carried unanimously.
The next item for review was the Food Lion Contract. Councilman
Lawson advised that the City would extend the construction
commencement deadline until December 9, 2006 and instead of grocery
store, the language Food Lion Grocery Store was used and must be
agreed upon by Commercial Properties for the
City to abandon its repurchase option.
A discussion with Mr. Cockey followed regarding the feasibility of
the items to be changed and the concern that the building would be
demolished and the City would be left with a bare lot.
Councilwoman Johnson stated that she does not feel that they will
meet the December 9th deadline and made reference to imposing
a fee for non-compliance.
Councilman Lawson advised that the amount of the penalty would have
to be determined.
Mr. David Turco commented that the assessed value of similar types
of projects is $100 per square foot, which could be used when
determining a penalty.
Mr. Dize made reference to the continued risk of fire and vandalism
if the building still stands.
Councilman Lawson noted that a building at this cost would net
approximately $18,200 per year in taxes to the City. He suggested
extending the construction date to April 9, 2007; if construction
has not begun 30 days after that date, a penalty of $1,500 per month
would be applied.
Further audience participation/suggestions followed regarding this
matter. During further discussion, Mr. Cockey suggested increasing
the penalty to $10,000. He advised that he is concerned that
imposing the repurchase condition may prevent development. He also
advised that the construction period could be extended. Councilman
Dize inquired about the $10,000 penalty figure. Mr. Cockey advised
that $1,500 would be meaningless to a developer, however $10,000
would actually penalize him.
Mayor Purnell suggested that the contract require that the property
be cleared and construction be started by April 9, 2007 with a
$10,000 penalty imposed monthly after that date until construction
begins and it must be completed within a year or penalty resumes.
After more discussion, Councilwoman Johnson made a motion to extend
the construction date to April 9, 2007, with a $10,000 per month
penalty imposed if construction has not begun after that date, the
completion date to be April 9, 2009, or penalty resumes.
Motion seconded by Councilman Lawson and carried unanimously.
NEW BUSINESS
The first item of New Business pertained to amending Public
Facilities Impact Fees.
Mayor Purnell advised that this amendment would allow the City
to vary the amount or method of calculating public facilities
impact fees in connection with development not connected with an
annexation if certain criteria has been met.
Councilman Lawson advised that the purpose of this amendment was
to encourage affordable new housing for moderate and low incomes
and the elderly as well as the refurbishing of older homes.
Mr. Ladell Dorman commented that this would be hard to
administer fairly and suggested waiving the fee for single
family homes.
Councilman Lawson commented that Impact Fees are part of what
isn’t augmented by City taxes. He advised that the City needs to
make sure it can maintain services such as street sweeping and
road repairs.
Mr. Dorman went on to comment that you cannot define affordable
housing, adding that there is only a limited amount of property
on which to build single family homes.
During further discussion, Mayor Purnell requested citizen input
regarding this matter.
The next item of New Business was an event application for the
annual Halloween Parade. Councilman Lawson made a motion to
approve the event application request, seconded by Councilwoman
Johnson and carried unanimously.
At this time, Mayor Purnell requested a 10 minutes recess.
DEPARTMENT REPORTS
MR. RICHARD LORD, SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC WORKS,
presented his monthly report highlighting its contents. Mayor
Purnell commented that Mr. Lord’s department is a bright spot to
deal with.
Councilman Lawson commended Mr. Lord’s department on cutting the
Woodson playground for the County, adding that he appreciates
the Public Works department.
On behalf of the Chamber, Mr. John Phoebus also thanked Mr. Lord
and his Department for their help in making Crab Derby a
success.
MRS. JOYCE L. MORGAN, CLERK-TREASURER, presented her
monthly report, reviewing the Year To Date budget for July and
August.
Mayor Purnell noted that Mr. Harold Frock was absent due to an
emergency, and would present his report at the next meeting.
2nd Session – Public Input
Mr. Andre Dorman again addressed the Mayor and Council
regarding the water and sewer issue at Pine Croft Estates. He
advised that the water and sewer lines there were privately
installed and that he also has a copy of a letter regarding his
EDU.
Mr. Keith Ward advised that he also has property at Pine Croft
and had paid the Sanitary District for his hook-up
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS BY THE COUNCIL
Councilman Riggin thanked everyone for their prayers and
expressions of concern following his surgery.
Councilman Lawson thanked everyone for their efforts during the
SRP meetings. He made reference to the list he had requested in July
for committees and advised that they are close to a decision
regarding the 1936 sewer. Councilman Lawson also thanked the Mayor
and Council for all of their hard work.
ADJOURNMENT
With no further business for discussion, Councilwoman Johnson
made a motion to adjourn, seconded by Council Vice President
Anderson and carried unanimously.
Meeting adjourned at 7:50 p.m.
Respectfully submitted
Joyce L. Morgan, Clerk-Treasurer
Prepared by Valerie Swift, Secretary
Minutes for Public Meetings
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