Aldermen Minutes
MINUTES
MAYOR AND BOARD OF ALDERMEN
CITY OF OCEAN SPRINGS
RECESS MEETING OF AUGUST 21, 2007
Be it remembered that the Mayor and Board of Aldermen of the City of Ocean Springs met in a Recess meeting at City Hall in the City of Ocean Springs at 6:00 p.m. on August 21, 2007. Mayor Moran presiding, Aldermen Gill, Lloyd, McDonnell, Weaver, Dalgo, Denyer and Hagan were present. Also present were City Clerk Adrienne Howell and City Attorney John Edwards.
Alderman Weaver gave the invocation and the Mayor led the Pledge of Allegiance.
PROCLAMATION
Mayor Moran read a proclamation declaring August 21, 2007 as Ron Williams Day (Exhibit 3-a).
Mayor Moran read a proclamation declaring August 21, 2007 as SFC Albert Hoelfilich, SSG Linweed Naber, SSG Joseph David and SPC Blaine Pugh Day to honor the National Guardsman that assisted the City in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina (Exhibit 3-b).
PRESENTATION
Mr. Robert Hirsch, Ocean Springs Schools Superintendent, and Ms. Donna Nester, Ocean Springs Schools Business Manager, presented the school district 2007-2008 Budget (Exhibit 4-a). Motion was made by Alderman Denyer, seconded by Alderman Dalgo and unanimously carried to accept the school district budget.
Motion was made by Alderman Dalgo, seconded by Alderman Denyer and unanimously carried to have the Mayor contact the Jackson Board of Supervisors to request entering into an interlocal agreement to disperse the school district ad valorem receipts directly to the school district.
Motion was made by Alderman McDonnell, seconded by Alderman Denyer and unanimously carried to add the addendum to the agenda and the second part of the Tree Committee report. Alderman Denyer abstained from the vote.
The Mayor removed item 5-c from the agenda regarding the construction plan for the Mary C. O’Keefe Museum Room to be considered at a later date.
NEW BUSINESS
Motion was made by Alderman Hagan, seconded by Alderman Denyer and unanimously carried to approve the Narcotics Task Force Interlocal Agreement (Exhibit 5-a).
Mr. David Harris with the YMCA presented a request to offer the City $350,000.00 for the purchase of the Armory to expand their youth programs (Exhibit 5-b). The Mayor explained that the City is not in ownership of the Armory at this time.
Mr. Hank Zuber presented a request by William and Jeanette Oster to close and vacate a portion of Ruskin Avenue (Exhibit 5-d). Motion was made by Alderman McDonnell, seconded by Alderman Denyer and unanimously carried to approve the request to close and vacate the right of way on Ruskin Avenue as described in the survey and have the City Attorney determine the status of the property for it to be disposed.
Mr. Charles Beaugez complained that he is retired, on a fixed income and had a $147.00 water bill which is three times what he normally pays and asked for relief (Exhibit5-e). The City Clerk reported on the history of the account and said that the meter was checked and nothing appeared to be wrong. Alderman McDonnell asked the Public Works Director to visit Mr. Beaugez’s home to investigate and asked the City Clerk to analyze the number of calls that have been received regarding high water bills to see if there is a trend.
Mr. Phillip Taylor, 4115 Yosemite Drive, presented photos of ditches in his neighborhood (Exhibit 5-f). The Assistant Public Works Director said that a crew walked the ditches this morning and did not find any obstructions.
Mr. Randy Wrigley presented an appeal of the Planning Commissions recommendation to approve rezoning of property on Groveland Road from C-1 to R-4 and C-3 with stipulations (Exhibit 5-g). Motion was made by Alderman Hagan and seconded by Alderman Denyer to deny the appeal of the Planning Commissions recommendation to approve rezoning of property on Groveland Road from C-1 to R-4 and C-3 with stipulations. Motion carried with Aldermen Gill, McDonnell, Lloyd, Weaver, Dalgo and Hagan voting aye and Alderman Denyer voting nay.
PUBLIC COMMENT
Mr. Bobby Carter reported that he is in the process of appealing the denial of a grant from the Mississippi Department of Archives and History for the repair of his historic home from storm damage and asked for a copy of the letter the City is sending to the Department regarding the grant. He also expressed his disappointment in the lack of support from the Historical Preservation Commission.
Ms. Sheila Thornburg lives adjacent to the proposed development on Groveland Road and voiced her objection to apartments being built in that area which is primarily single family residential.
Mr. Del McClaine, 3717 Springwood Lane, also voiced his objections to the rezoning for the proposed apartment development on Groveland Road.
Ms. Joyce Shaw, 107 Pine Drive, announced that Representative Hank Zuber will hold a Town Hall meeting on Monday, August 27, 2007 at the Mary C. O’Keefe Cultural Center at 5:30 p.m.
The Mayor announced that a community wide church service for the 2nd Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina will be held Wednesday, August 29, 2007 at 5:30 p.m. at Macedonia Baptist Church.
CONSENT AGENDA
Motion was made by Alderman Denyer, seconded by Alderman Hagan and unanimously carried to approve the Consent Agenda with the exception of items (b) and (cc) which were pulled by the Alderman McDonnell, items (a), (d) and (n) which were pulled by Alderman Denyer, item (h) which was pulled by Alderman Gill and item (x) which was pulled by Alderman Hagan.
Motion was made by Alderman McDonnell, seconded by Alderman Hagan and unanimously carried to approve item (a) to authorize assistance in the form of tables, folding chairs, port-a-lets and barriers for the Ocean Springs Fresh Market which will be hosting the Culinary Corps on September 15, 2007 to advertise the resources of the City.
Alderman McDonnell pulled item (b) regarding the Bed Tax and said his understanding was that a motion was made in a prior administration to give all tax monies received in this account to the Chamber of Commerce. The City Clerk reported that the minutes were researched and no record of the motion could be found. Motion was made by Alderman Lloyd, seconded by Alderman McDonnell and unanimously carried to give the bed tax to the Chamber of Commerce in its entirety, amend the budget accordingly and pay on a monthly basis.
Motion was made by Alderman Denyer and seconded by Alderman Gill to amend the proposed budget to remove the $10,000.00 ear marked for the Chamber of Commerce. Following discussion, second was withdrawn by Alderman Gill and motion died for a lack of a second.
Alderman Weaver pulled item (d) to make some corrections to the Minutes of August 7, 2007. Motion was made by Alderman Denyer, seconded by Alderman Dalgo and unanimously carried to add wording under New Business to follow Ms. Sandra Morrison with the Gulf Coast Women’s Center for Nonviolence thanked the Board for their funding “and requested $5,000.00 for FY08”.
Motion was made by Alderman Hagan, seconded by Alderman Lloyd and unanimously carried to correct the Minutes of August 7, 2007 and asked to make the following correction under the Consent Agenda where it reads: Alderman Weaver pulled items (z) and (aa) and include “Alderman Lloyd” asked if the right of way should be larger than 10 feet because the road needs to be widened and the Jackson County Utility Authority is planning to run a trunk line through that area.
Motion was made by Alderman Hagan, seconded by Alderman Lloyd and unanimously carried to correct the Minutes of August 7, 2007 and asked to make the change the spelling of “Jeb Moss” to “John Mass” under Public Comment.
Alderman McDonnell pulled item (h) regarding proposed changes to the Taxicab rates and said he would like the recommendation to come from the Taxi Board. Motion was made by Alderman Gill and seconded by Alderman Dalgo to table item (h) to refer to the Taxi Board. Motion carried with Aldermen Gill, McDonnell, Lloyd, Weaver, Denyer and Dalgo voting aye and Alderman Hagan voting nay.
Alderman Hagan pulled item (x) to ask the developer if he wanted the item accepted and he said yes. Motion was made by Alderman Dalgo, seconded by Alderman McDonnell and unanimously carried to accept the Planning Commissions recommendation to approve rezoning of property on Groveland Road from C-1 to R-4 and C-3 with stipulations and a two year reversion.
Motion was made by Alderman Hagan, seconded by Alderman Weaver and unanimously carried to accept the Tree Committee report (Exhibit 7-n). Alderman Denyer recused himself from the vote.
Alderman McDonnell pulled item (cc) and explained that Ms. Brou owns a trailer which she is living in and will have to be relocated while her home is being constructed. Motion was made by Alderman McDonnell, seconded by Alderman Hagan and unanimously carried to accept the Zoning and Adjustment Boards recommendation to approve a front yard variance at 313 Jackson Avenue.
Motion was made by Alderman McDonnell, seconded by Alderman Hagan and unanimously carried to allow Ms. Brou to move her privately owned trailer to the property next door which is owned by Mr. Reynolds.
DEPARTMENT REPORTS
Mayor
The Mayor presented proposals for the Fort Maurepas pavilion (Exhibit 7-a). Motion was made by Alderman McDonnell, seconded by Alderman Gill and unanimously carried to rescind the previous motion regarding the pavilion and approve Option “A” for an open gazebo with a small observation deck with a two-stall restroom for women and stairs to the rear.
Motion was made by Alderman Denyer, seconded by Alderman Hagan and unanimously carried to approve the revised contract with Brown & Mitchell (Exhibit 8-b). Motion was made by Alderman Hagan, seconded by Alderman Weaver and unanimously carried to replace the Brown & Mitchell exhibit from the last packet.
Motion was made by Alderman Denyer, seconded by Alderman Dalgo and unanimously carried to engage Compton Engineering to do preliminary cost estimates for the Heron Bayou bridge walkway project.
Motion was made by Alderman Lloyd and seconded by Alderman Dalgo to give $500.00 to Gulf Hills Golf Club for the military appreciation golf event on September 21, 2007 to promote the resources of the City. Motion carried with Aldermen Gill, Lloyd, McDonnell, Weaver, Dalgo and Hagan voting aye and Alderman Denyer voting nay.
Motion was made by Alderman Dalgo, seconded by Alderman Weaver and unanimously carried to authorize advertising for bids for a MESH Surveillance System to purchased under the Department of Justice Building Grant (Exhibit 8-e).
The Mayor announced that the Governor called her yesterday and asked that the City apply for applications totaling $6.7 million in CDBG Round III Katrina Supplemental for a Fire Station/Emergency Operation Center, sidewalk improvements on the beach and harbor and renovations to the Mary C. O’Keefe Cultural Center.
City Clerk
The City Clerk gave a report on the budget process and explained that the tax assessment has for this year has increased by $1.5 million dollars based on the current millage. Motion was made by Alderman Gill, seconded by Alderman Dalgo and unanimously carried to authorize the City Clerk to amend the current year budget to increase the ending balance by $1.5 million (Exhibit 8-f).
Motion was made by Alderman Dalgo, seconded by Alderman Gill and unanimously carried to maintain the current tax levy in general fund with no increase.
Motion was made by Alderman Dalgo, seconded by Alderman Hagan and unanimously carried to amend the budget for the Parks & Leisure Services Department to move $16,000.00 from account 738 to account 577 for equipment.
Motion was made by Alderman Weaver, seconded by Alderman Hagan and unanimously carried to accept the recommendation of the Selection Committee for repair to the City’s Federal Aid Secondary Road System (Exhibit 8-g).
Public Works
The Public Works Director presented an update on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Shearwater Bridge Erosion project (Exhibit 8-h) and announced that City Wide street paving will begin in September (Exhibit 8-i).
Community Development & Planning
Motion was made by Alderman Weaver and seconded by Alderman Denyer to adopt Ordinance No. 17-2007 AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE COMPREHENSIVE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF OCEAN SPRINGS, MISSISSIPPI, BEING ORDINANCE NO. 13-1976, AS AMENDED (Exhibit 8-j). The motion passed with a roll call vote as follows:
Alderman Weaver Voted Aye
Alderman Gill Voted Aye
Alderman McDonnell Voted Aye
Alderman Lloyd Voted Aye
Alderman Denyer Voted Aye
Alderman Dalgo Voted Aye
Alderman Hagan Voted Aye
Motion was made by Alderman Denyer, seconded by Alderman Hagan and unanimously carried to authorize the placement of a Katrina Cottage at 2359 Davidson Road (Exhibit 8-k).
Alderman McDonnell asked the Community Development Director to include a statement in the application for the placement of a Katrina Cottage to inform citizens that the cottages are temporary.
ALDERMAN’S FORUM
Alderman Weaver presented a list of properties to be considered for Hazard Mitigation. Motion was made by Alderman Denyer and seconded by Alderman Dalgo to endorse the efforts of Jackson County to acquire properties through the Hazard Mitigation program. Motion carried with Aldermen Lloyd, Denyer, Dalgo and Hagan voting aye, Aldermen Gill, McDonnell and Weaver voting nay and the Mayor exercised her right to veto. Motion was made by Alderman Weaver and seconded by Alderman Dalgo to state that the City is in favor of the purchase of these properties as long as the program that we purchase them from sources that allow us to have a variety of uses which include placing structures on them. Motion carried with Alderman Gill, McDonnell, Weaver, Dalgo and Hagan voting aye and Alderman Lloyd and Denyer voting nay.
Alderman Gill asked the City Engineer about the Diller Road project and Mr. Masters said they are waiting on the contractor.
Motion was made by Alderman McDonnell, seconded by Alderman Dalgo and unanimously carried to authorize the purchase of up to two defibrillators from the Ward II Capital Improvement Account to be placed at the Civic Center and Senior Citizen Center for the staff to utilize in case of an emergency.
Alderman Lloyd said he would like to pave the parking lot at the Chamber of Commerce which is private property and the City Attorney said he will research as to whether it can be done.
Alderman Denyer asked the Public Works Director to look at the Holcomb Bridge at the beach.
Alderman Denyer said that traffic is backing up on Hanley and there is a need for a right turning lane headed west bound.
Alderman Denyer asked the Police Chief to remove derelict cars from the Police station because the parking lot is full and there are also parking issues at City Hall.
Alderman Denyer asked that the Mayor contact Jackson County and request another library be built in a different location in town.
Motion was made by Alderman Dalgo, seconded by Alderman Denyer and unanimously carried to set the public hearing for the budget on September 10, 2007 and adoption at the September 18, 2007 recessed meeting.
Alderman Hagan asked the Public Works Director for a cost estimate to stripe Reilly Road.
Motion was made by Alderman Hagan, seconded by Alderman Dalgo and unanimously carried to authorize the City Engineer to develop a set of documents outlining sewer and water for Reilly Road.
Alderman Hagan asked that Parktown be utilized as a testing ground for the boombox ordinance.
Motion was made by Alderman Hagan, seconded by Alderman McDonnell and unanimously carried to authorize the City Clerk to add in the FY08 budget the remaining amount left in the Ward Capital Improvement accounts.
Alderman Denyer requested that a committee be formed to examine the professional services contracts.
EXECUTIVE SESSION
Motion was made by Alderman Hagan, seconded by Alderman Dalgo and unanimously carried to go into closed session to determine the necessity of going into executive session.
The City Clerk returned to the meeting and announced that a motion was made by Alderman McDonnell, seconded by Alderman Dalgo and unanimously carried to remain in executive session to discuss personnel issues in the Mayor’s Office, City Clerk’s Department, Police Department and Public Works Department and potential litigation in the Public Works Department and Parks & Leisure Services Department.
Motion was made by Alderman Lloyd, seconded by Alderman Hagan and unanimously carried to come out of executive session and return to regular session.
Motion was made by Alderman McDonnell and seconded by Alderman Denyer to offer Johnnie Bernhardt the position of Public Relations Administrative Officer at a salary of $36,000.00 plus benefits to exclude insurance not to exceed a figure of $42,000.00. Motion carried with Aldermen Gill, McDonnell, Lloyd, Weaver, Denyer and Dalgo voting aye and Alderman Hagan voting nay.
Motion was made by Alderman Gill and seconded by Alderman Weaver to accept the recommendation of the Police Chief to appoint Captain Mark Dunston as the Deputy Police Chief. Motion carried with Aldermen Gill, Lloyd, Weaver and Dalgo voting aye, Aldermen McDonnell and Denyer voting nay and Alderman Hagan abstained from the vote.
Motion was made by Alderman Lloyd, seconded by Alderman Hagan and unanimously carried to authorize the Mayor to give notice Southern Consultants, Inc. of the City’s decision to end our water system improvement contract per Article VI Termination of Contract #2.
Motion was made by Alderman Hagan, seconded by Alderman McDonnell and unanimously carried to accept the recommendation of Public Works to authorize Compton Engineering to assume the contract previously awarded to Southern Consultants for Water Well and Improvements.
Motion was made by Alderman Hagan, seconded by Alderman McDonnell and unanimously carried to suspend a Public Works employee for two weeks without pay for conduct unbecoming a City employee effective tomorrow.
Motion was made by Alderman Hagan and seconded by Alderman Weaver to terminate the City Clerk effective immediately. Motion carried with Aldermen Gill, McDonnell, Weaver and Hagan voting aye and Aldermen Lloyd, Denyer and Dalgo voting nay.
Motion was made by Alderman Hagan, seconded by Alderman McDonnell and unanimously carried to authorize beginning the process to fill the City Clerk and Human Resources/Risk Manager positions and post them for in house candidates for two weeks.
Motion was made by Alderman McDonnell, seconded by Alderman Gill and unanimously carried to authorize the Mayor to hire accounting assistance on a temporary basis if needed to prepare the budget.
Motion was made by Alderman McDonnell, seconded by Alderman Gill and unanimously carried to adjourn until 6:00 p.m. on September 4, 2007.
