HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-06-2014 regular meeting City Council of Peachtree City
Meeting Minutes
November 6, 2014
7:00 p.m.
The Mayor and Council of Peachtree City met on Thursday, November 6, 2014, at City Hall. Mayor
Vanessa Fleisch called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Other Council Members attending: Terry
Ernst, Eric Imker, Mike King, and Kim Learnard.
Announcements, Awards, Special Recognition
Mayor Fleisch proclaimed November 8 as Veterans Day in Peachtree City. Several members of the
Dixie Wing of the Commemorative Air Force accepted the proclamation, noting that an open house
and celebration honoring the veterans of Afghanistan and Iraq would be held at their hangar on
November 8. Shelby Barker and Jeff Izenour of Serenity Hospice accepted the proclamation for
National Home Healthcare and Hospice Month. The most recent graduates of the Citizens Police
Academy were recognized.
Public Comment
Dennis Odle, who said he had served on City Council in Connecticut and had worked in Human
Resources, spoke on the salary survey. The survey had been rushed through and poorly validated. A
change in the City's charter could provide a way for citizens to deal with a Council that made bad
errors, and there were three ways that could be done. The election cycle could be changed to a
two-year cycle so people could vote them out sooner. The second was a recall. The third way was a
referendum. None of those options could fix the current problem, but they would prevent future
problems. Council could get a private sector group to audit the Pay & Classification Survey and the
committee of employees who selected the vendor.
111 Minutes
August 4, 2011, Executive Session Minutes Approved,3-0-2(Ernst, King)
August 18, 2011, Executive Session Minutes Approved,3-0-2(Ernst, King)
October 7,2014,Workshop Minutes Approved,4-0-1 (Ernst)
October 16,2014, Regular Meeting Minutes
Learnard moved to approve the August 4, 2011, executive session minutes and the August 18, 2011,
executive session minutes as written. lmker seconded. Motion carried 3-0-2 (Ernst, King).
King moved to approve the October 7, 2014, workshop minutes as written. Learnard seconded.
Motion carried 4-0-1 (Ernst).
King moved to approve the October 16, 2014, regular meeting minutes as written. Learnard
seconded. Motion carried unanimously.
Consent Agenda
1. Consider Changes to CVB Bylaws
2. Alcohol-Consider Qualifying Location Permit, Spotty Merle, LLC, 101 Gardner Park
3. Consider Acquisition of Cart Path Easement, Rite Aid/SR 74 South
Ernst moved to approve Consent Agenda items 1 -3. King seconded. Motion carried unanimously.
New Agenda Items
11-14-01 Public Hearing-Multi-family Moratorium
Senior Planner David Rast addressed Council, noting that this agenda item was a reaffirmation of the
Multi-family Rezoning Moratorium that had been in effect since 1990. The moratorium expired in
November of each year, which was why Council reaffirmed it annually.
Fleisch opened the public hearing. No one spoke for or against the moratorium. The public hearing
closed.
City Council Minutes
November 6,2014
Page 2
111 Imker moved to approve the Multi-family Rezoning Moratorium as presented in the agenda packet.
Ernst seconded. Motion carried unanimously.
11-14-02 Discuss Dredging of Lake Peachtree
Fleisch said there had been a lot of work behind the scenes to resolve the issues in order to appeal
the Category 1 determination for the dam from Georgia's Environmental Protection Division (EPD).
She introduced Andy Welch, the City's attorney for the Lake issues, and Dan Davis of Integrated
Science and Engineering (ISE), asking each to provide a summary of events.
Welch said the City was currently in litigation with the state, appealing the decision of whether or not
the dam was properly classified as a Category 1 versus Category 2. He explained that there was no
probable loss of human life if a Category 2 dam was breached. There would be a probable loss of
life if a Category 1 dam breached. Welch continued that the Category 1 determination was based
on two properties located below the dam. The state had made the determination based on the
2008 floodplain map only, without an engineered study or any modeling of a breach. The City's
breach modeling had been done by ISE, and the study was provided to the state and the County.
The state was currently doing its own modeling, and the City was waiting to hear from them. The
intention was to resolve the matter as soon as possible so they could move on to the next phase,
which would be repairs to the spillway so the lake could be refilled. The timing of the state decision
and the dredging coincided nicely.
Davis said he and Richard Gruel of ISE had been working on the categorization of the dam, as well as
the dredging, and there were other issues that needed to be addressed in addition to the spillway.
Other areas along the shoreline needed dredging in addition to the area that would be dredged by
the County. Sunlight penetrated ponds and lakes in Georgia, causing a weedy growth on the
bottom in areas where the depth was three feet or less. Davis said the engineers felt there were
areas that at least merited a look at removing the additional material outside of the areas where the
County would remove silt.
With the water in the lake down, Davis said it was an environmentally-friendly time for the dredging.
There were several areas along the shoreline that were shallower than three feet. He showed the
aerial photo seen below, noting the cross-hatched areas were the areas the County was obligated
to dredge according to the agreement between the City and County. The dredging was supposed
to be performed every 10 years.
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Davis continued that the light green areas along the shoreline were shallower than three feet, and
the dark green areas showed where it was advisable to remove the vegetation while the City had an
opportunity to have the work done by the dredging company selected by the County. There was
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November 6,2014
Page 3
nothing wrong with the growth in the light green areas, but it was unsightly and spoiled the
recreational aspects of the lake. He recommended that the areas be dredged to at least three and
one-half feet, with three feet as the minimum, since there would be additional siltation in the future.
Davis noted the island made with material from an earlier dredging. The island had a great deal of
heavy vegetation. If Council decided the island should stay, Davis recommended selective
clearing/thinning on the island to create some park areas. Davis was sure staff would have some
good ideas.
What could be done would come down to the available budget, Davis said. The cost results were:
Description Estimated Cost
Three feet minimum depth (13,400 cubic yards) $402,000-$670,000
Three and one-half feet minimum depth (20,100 cubic yards) $603,000-$1,005,000
Four feet minimum depth (27,000 cubic yards) $810,000-$1,350,000
Removal of island (97,500 cubic yards) $2,925,000-$4,875,000
lmker asked what the darker green areas on the image were. Davis said they were areas currenty
exposed with vegetation, and removal would probably fit within the estimated budget for the
dredging. Those areas were below three feet in depth when the lake was full, so only the existing
vegetation needed to be removed before the lake was refilled. Some of those weeds might stick up
above the water when the lake was refilled.
Learnard asked what would happen if Council decided not to have the additional dredging done.
Davis said the weeds/grass would die, which would be an environmental challenge for the lake and
the fish.
111 City Manager Jim Pennington said that there had been questions about expanding the dredging for
a couple of years. To get the discussion going, the City had asked ISE to perform the analysis. The
County had offered the City the ability to append their contract, which would save a considerable
amount of money. The County's cost estimates might differ from ISE's but Council had something to
look at and consider.
Ernst clarified that Davis said the deeper areas where the vegetation needed to be removed could
possibly be included in the dredging costs. Davis said that, in the darker green areas, only the weedy
growth had to be removed, not the silt,which would cost less.
Learnard asked why the dredging was being done in early 2015, when the grass would grow back
before the dam and spillway would be repaired. Davis said he believed the timing would coincide.
It should take approximately three months to remove the soil, and the determination on the dam
should be made by the state by then.
Imker said it would take a certain amount of time for the design of the dam and spillway, time to
build it, then refill the lake. The grass would grow back during the engineering and construction time.
Davis said it would depend on the categorization. The County was proceeding with the dredging.
They could not control the County's timing. Davis said their work could be staged so it would be
done before the lake filled in. lmker said he needed to see a chart of the timeline with generalities
and what could/might happen. lmker said the process could take six months to one year after the
dredging was completed. He needed confirmation on whether it was smart to dredge at this time.
King asked if a new engineering process needed to be done if the state agreed that the dam should
be a Category 2. Davis said the current spillway had served its useful life at 50 years old, but if the
State agreed it was a Category 2, then temporary repairs could be made to the spillway to allow the
lake to be refilled during the design and permitting of a new spillway. If the determination was made
that it was a Category 2, then there would not be any loss of life if the temporary repairs did not hold.
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November 6,2014
Page 4
King asked if the lake could be lowered to rebuild the spillway. Davis said the construction would
require permitting from the state and the Corps of Engineers, estimating it would take six to nine
months to design and permit the new structure. King said that the lake could be full during that time.
Davis said that was correct.
Fleisch opened the floor for questions from the public.
Mary Giles asked who decided what the minimum depth level was for the lake and who monitored it.
Davis said ISE's surveyors had been out, and they had survey shots of the entire lake bed. Through
engineering, they determined what areas were less than three feet to determine which areas to
dredge. Giles asked if the normal pool fluctuated during the year. Davis said the lake had a normal
pool that fluctuated based on rainfall. The lake would be returned to the normal pool.
Learnard asked if there were any benchmarks to determine how much silt had built up in the areas.
Davis said there were, and they knew where the normal pool was at by design of the spillway. The silt
survey was done every eight years.
Bob Grove asked which areas the County was responsible for, adding if the same company would
be used for the dredging since that should save money. Fleisch verified that the same company
would be used, and the County would send out the Request for Proposal (RFP) in December. She
continued that was why Council was having this discussion now. Grove asked if it would not be
better to just fix the dam no matter what the state said. Welch answered that the reason for the legal
and financial discussion was to save money. A Category 1 dam would cost $5 million to $7 million,
while the cost was $1.5 million to $2.5 million for a Category 2 dam. Building a Category 1 when a
Category 2 was all that was needed would be a waste of taxpayer dollars.
Marino Fuentes said he did not live on the lake, but he enjoyed it. It looked like the opportunity to
dredge the lake during the drier summer months had been lost. He was in favor of the additional
dredging. However, the timeline was questionable. Pennington pointed out the decision on when to
dredge the lake had been made by the County and their engineers.
Miles Long asked if a dry dredging was cheaper. Pennington said he did not know, but the County
made the decision to do a dry dredge. Davis said a dry dredge was cheaper and did not require an
area, like Drake Field, for the sludge to dry out.
Felix Kelly said he had read the state code regarding Category 1 and 2 dams, and he understood if a
dam retained drinking water, then it was automatically a Category 1. Welch said that was not
correct. Kelly disagreed, saying he would bring a copy of section of the code to Welch. Kelly said
dredging around the edges should be easy to get to, asking if the cost included bric-a-brac and
bulkheading once the area was dredged. Davis said it included hauling routes to get the material
out, leaving a three to one slope from the shore to the bottom of the lake. He did not anticipate
problems requiring seawalls.
Chip Glazer asked if the additional dredging was in the budget. Fleisch said it was not, and any
money spent would be unbudgeted. Glazer asked if the City had ever had extra dredging done
before. Pennington said it had never been addressed, and there was no basis for cost. Glazer asked
if there was any way to have the County pay for the additional dredging. Over the years, the silt
would have gone further into the lake. He asked if the volume had been checked over the years.
Davis said that, to his knowledge, no areas beyond the crosshatched areas had ever been checked.
The lake was at least 50 years old, and it was time for some major rehabilitation.
Fayette County Water System Director Lee Pope said the County was definitely concerned about the
loss of volume in the lake, and the County needed to maintain the reservoirs it had. They would
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November 6,2014
Page 5
definitely work with the City on the dredging. A dry dredging provided more "bang for the buck,"
and it would be a cleaner process than a wet dredging.
hiker said he did not want to make any assumptions, asking if the light green areas were a 50-year
buildup. Davis said he could not answer that question, which was why it was an important time to
look at the overall picture. Imker asked if the shoreline was dredged now whether it was good for
another 40 or 50 years. Grove said he had lived on the lake for 33 years, and the shoreline had never
been dredged.
Debbie Britt asked what was underneath the island and what had it done to the quality of the lake
over the last 20 years. It was an aging lake, and they needed to consider what the City would have
in 30 years. Britt said the majority of residents were ready to make the investment. It was a quality of
life issue, and the City had to do it right this time. She asked what it would cost to not make the
investment.
Jerry Petty asked where the material from the dredging would be taken. Pennington said there
would be a temporary cut to connect Drake Field to SR 54, and the silt would be removed to a site of
the contractor's choice. Pope added that the soil tests had come back good, so the City and
County could look at their projects to see if either one had a need for the topsoil. If not, the
contractor could sell the material as topsoil to offset his costs.
Fleisch asked if the lake would always need to be dredged. Davis said they were in the Piedmont
region of the state, and there would always be silt transported in the creeks that fed the lake. The
bulk of the basin had been developed, and that should cut down on the silt load.
Kathy Pettinget said it was obvious that the County's silt had gone into the City's lake. Davis clarified
that the silt could not be called the City's or the County's; the silt had come from upstream. Welch
said that, per the agreement, the cross-hatched areas were what the County was responsible for
dredging.
Tori Jaekel asked why the entire lake had never been dredged. She asked, if the County was so
concerned about the decrease in the size, why the City had to pay to dredge the other areas.
Welch said that was a valid point. There was a cooperative agreement between the City and
County where the County benefitted by using the lake as a reservoir for drinking water, and the City
benefitted from having the lake as an amenity. Certain areas had been designated for silt removal
as part of that agreement. The original agreement was negotiated 60 years ago, and it had been
amended and renewed. Jaekel asked what value there was in dredging the areas along the
shoreline. Davis said it would preclude the aquatic growth on the bottom of the lake. Welch said the
decay of the vegetation adversely affected the lake by creating instability in the oxygen level of the
lake.
Mike McGowan said he understood the lake had a silt trap that should have been cleaned out, but
was never maintained. Welch said they would have to look into that. A silt trap might be able to
minimize the rate that siltation made its way down to the lake. There were some safeguards put in
place when Lake Kedron was built to help with siltation, and that might be a way to minimize the silt
going into Lake Peachtree.
Fuentes recalled that grass-eating carp had been introduced into the lake in 2006 or 2007, and they
had helped with the weeds. He did not think the shoreline needed dredging.
Giles said the weeds in the darker green area would naturally die back when the lake was filled. She
would also like to hear what the County had to say about the weeds. Since money was an issue for
the City, Giles asked Council what harm there was in waiting eight to 10 years to do the additional
City Council Minutes
November 6,2014
Page 6
dredging and budgeting for it rather than making a decision that could harm the City's finances
later.
Imker asked if Council could pay for it with a bond and putting it on the ballot as a referendum in the
2015 election. The average hit on a homeowner would be$10 annually for the bond cost based on a
$2 million bond with interest, for a ballpark figure.
Mary Ann Grove said the drained lake was a huge eyesore that needed to be addressed
immediately. She would support a bond.
Learnard asked Pennington what he was looking for. Pennington said there would be more
discussion. They needed to look at the finances. This presentation was to kick off the discussion.
Learnard asked that Davis' presentation be placed on the City website. She added that she lived on
the lake, and this was the perfect opportunity to take advantage of a one-time opportunity they
would never have again.
Imker said a decision needed to be made by the next meeting. Pennington said the County needed
the information for their RFP.
Ernst asked if the cost estimates would change if the City did not tag on to the County's RFP. Davis
said they would increase significantly.
Pope said, if the City put the items on the RFP as an additive alternate, they would see better
numbers. It would give the City time to look at the financing or even decide not to have the
dredging done. The City needed to decide what it could do, but going out with a single, large
volume contract was the best option. The RFP was to go out in mid-December.
Welch added they would need to know the cost in order to issue bonds. They could discuss how to
pay for it at the next meeting. Imker said there were a lot of options to consider, saying a bond was
probably the worst option.
No action was required at this meeting.
11-14-03 Consider Request to Authorize Signature on CSX Agreement for MacDuff Bridge
Crossing
Pennington noted the bridge over the railroad had been an extremely difficult issue. The developer
had been working on the negotiations to get to this point, which was a construction agreement with
CSX. It was required to be signed by the developer, the City (at no expense), and the railroad. Staff
was asking Council to authorize the Mayor to sign the agreement.
King moved to authorize the Mayor to sign the CSX agreement for the MacDuff Bridge crossing.
Learnard seconded. Motion carried unanimously.
Council/Staff Topics
Pennington said the information coming in regarding the MacDuff Parkway bridge was good. He
added that John Wieland Homes had submitted the plans for 1,400 linear feet of MacDuff Parkway
that the developer was responsible for designing and building. Things were moving forward.
Pennington continued that staff would bring Council plans on where golf carts could be allowed to
cross SR 74, SR 54, and other places. After recent state legislation allowed golf carts to cross state
highways, the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) had not developed any plans for
appropriate crossings. The GDOT regional office staff suggested the City make a plan and submit it.
There were certain areas where golf carts should not be allowed to cross due to the amount of traffic.
Staff would work on the plan, and they hoped to bring it to Council in early December.
City Council Minutes
November 6,2014
Page 7
Learnard thanked Pennington for his solid answers to her questions regarding the pay and
classification study. She asked that it be put on an agenda as a discussion topic.
Pennington said Imker had made a suggestion regarding changes to the City's annexation
ordinance, and City Attorney Ted Meeker had a draft ordinance ready. The Planning Commission
would look at it first, and they hoped to have it ready to forward to Council in December.
Ernst expressed his pride in his sister-in-law Joni Ernst, who was the first female combat veteran elected
to the U.S. Senate from the state of Iowa.
Imker said he did not consider the pay study a closed issue because they had not yet figured out
how to pay for it. He was not happy with what he had seen. The City had paid $40,000 for the study,
and they had not seen the data to back up the charts. Some of the figures were outrageous. There
were a dozen salaried employees who had received nothing. Council had no part in making the
decision as to who got what increases. One employee was promoted and received a $35,000 raise.
A wage war had been created in the surrounding entities, and it was exactly what the City's
employees had wanted. He had heard nothing from the three prevailing Council Members on how
to pay for pay increase. He did not expect the salary increase to be removed, but there were
solutions to address the issue without raising taxes or using City reserves. He hoped the majority was
willing to hear the options.
King said that, if Imker was going on the record to say the City gave an employee a $35,000 raise
based solely on the pay increase, he would like to see the back-up. Imker said he would provide the
information outside the meeting.
Executive Session
Learnard moved to convene in executive session for real estate and pending or threatened litigation
at 8:40 p.m. King seconded. Motion carried unanimously.
King moved to reconvene in regular session at 9:03 p.m. Ernst seconded. Motion carried
unanimously.
There being no further business, King moved to adjourn e meeting. Ernst seconded. Motion carried
unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 9:04 p.m.
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Pamela Dufresne, De ty City Clerk Vanessa Fleisch, Mayor �'