City Council Minutes

Public Hearing & Council Meeting, May 18, 2010
TUESDAY, May 18, 2010
PUBLIC HEARING & COUNCIL MEETING
7:00 P.M.

1. CALL TO ORDER: Mayor Robin Border called the City of Hilshire Village Council
Meeting to order at 7:00 P.M. at 8301 Westview, Houston, Texas 77055.
Invocation was given by Mayor Pro Tem Castro.

1.2 Present: were Mayor Robin Border, Mayor Pro Tem Connie Castro and Council
Members Shannon Whiting, Edward Davis and Bill Bristow. Also present were Chief
Gary Finkelman, Spring Valley Police Department, Efrain Him, P.E., Claunch & Miller,
Inc., Engineer for the City, Ted Lazarides, Building Official and City Attorney, David
Olson, Olson & Olson. Council Member Cheryl Wolfe and the City Treasurer, Manisha
Patel, arrived late.

1.3 Mayor Border said he would thank Council Member Wolfe for her services to the
City and present her with a plaque when she arrives.

     1.4 Oath of Office for the Mayor and two (2) Council Members. City Secretary
Blevins swore in Robin Border as Mayor. Mayor Robin Border swore in Connie Castro
and Stephanie Post as Council Members of the City of Hilshire Village. City Secretary
Blevins had the new Council Members sign their oaths and gave them a Statement of
Office.

2. MAYOR COMMENTS Mayor Border welcomed new Council Member Stephanie Post
and returning Council Member/Mayor Pro Tem Connie Castro.

Recessed Council Meeting at 7:09 P.M.

3. PUBLIC HEARING on the subdivision of the property at the Hilshire Village address
of 1209 Pine Chase Drive located in the Hilshire Manors Subdivision, legal description
TR 13B & 14A BLK 3 recorded in Volume 40, Page 10, of the Map Records of Harris
County, Texas. The new replat will be Hilshire Manors Replat No. 1.

Robert Wolfe, 1205 Pine Chase, believes the ravine should be opened prior to
construction.

Steve Tacconelly, 8013 Anadell, is concerned because he lives down stream of this
property and the flooding has gotten worse due to the building of larger homes. He
believes the culvert needs to be opened. Mr. Tacconelly stated the City needs to get
with the developer and handle the opening of the ravine prior to the development of the
property. He believes the City should defer decisions until they have all the information
regarding cost to the City.

Zandra Anderson, 8214 Mallie Court, stated she believes the tax payers should know
what the costs are to develop the two properties. She also believes the ravine should be
opened before development.

Brian Thompson, Thompson Custom Homes, stated that last year he hired a
professional engineering firm to develop the property and they presented a concept to
solve the City’s drainage issues and no one wanted that done. After that they decided to
replat and not touch the drainage. He was told by legal that there was no reason he
could not get a replat if he supplied the proper documents. Mr. Thompson also stated
the houses he will be building are not monster homes.

Mayor Border asked if anyone else wanted to talk before he closed the public hearing.

Public Hearing closed

Council Meeting reconvened at 7:19 P.M.

4. CITIZENS COMMENTS:

Richard Rains, #9 Pine Creek Lane, asked if the City would contact HCFCD to clean
the creek behind his house. He stated there was a big tree stump and concrete blocking
the drainage. Mr. Rains appreciated anything the City could do to get the ravine
cleaned.

Jean Bravenec, 8010 Burkhart, stated in regards to 1241 Archley she had looked at
the ravine and wanted to know if any Council Members had looked at the ravine. The
Mayor said that everyone had looked at the ravine. Mrs. Bravenec stated numerous
houses drain into the ravine and she feels that if any type of structure were allowed in
that easement it would cause a problem with flooding in the future.

Jorge Lefebvre, 1303 Friarcreek Lane, stated that he had purchased the house at
1003 Ridgeley for his daughter and while remodeling he added a wing wall on his
driveway without a permit. He apologized and said he has pulled a permit, submitted
plans and has engineering calculations. Mr. Lefebvre asked if he could leave it like it is
without the cost of tearing it down and rebuilding it exactly the same.

Ali Tabboush, Interfield Group, stated he was the engineer on the property at 1209
Pine Chase. He said that they checked on the deed restrictions and there are no other
restrictions that were not included on the new plat. He reminded everyone they were
only proposing the replat of the property. He stated in regards to the utilities his client
would be paying for their water and sewer connections.

Zandra Anderson, 8214 Mallie Court, stated in regards to changing the meeting time
she felt residents would have trouble getting to the meetings at 6:00 PM. In reference to
the 1241 Archley, she reminded Council that 1209 Pine Chase had wanted to alter the
drainage. Ms. Anderson said the City has ordinances against building over or in an
easement. She felt the City should not tell one homeowner that they can’t build in an
easement then turn around and allow another one that privilege. She felt the
homeowner could build the same square footage without impending on the easement.

Steve Tacconelly, 8013 Anadell, said he had a conversation with the builder for 1209
Pine Chase during the meeting and he thinks the City can work with him and that he
does want to cooperate. Mr. Tacconelly said he explained to the builder that all the
adjacent owners wanted was the easement opened. The builder said the engineers
would think it through. Mr. Tacconelly said Steve Samuel had been a great neighbor to
the City and he feels bad for all the problems the residents have caused but he hopes he
will consider the other citizens needs by opening the ravine.

5. REPORTS TO COUNCIL:

5.1 Police: Chief Finkelman said during the month of April there were two (2)
accidents on Wirt Road and there were also three (3) arrests. The first arrest was made
after a routine traffic stop and where a warrant was found outstanding on the individual.
The second arrest was for public intoxication and the third for a domestic violence
assault. The Chief wanted to remind everyone to utilize the vacation watch program the
police department offers. He encouraged residents to report any suspicious activity.

5.2 Fire Commissioner: Mayor Border reported that the Fire Commissioners
accepted draft three (3) of the budget. The objective from all the Commissioners was to
accept a flat budget to present at the Mayor’s workshop. Mayor Border said the fire
department fund is 30% of the City of Hilshire Villages budget. The Mayor said the
majority of the budget is compensation, wherein 95% of the fire departments budget is
salaries. He said to cut some of the capital budget and the contingencies but
compensation was not addressed. Mayor Border said the Fire Department does an
excellent job but he feels that the Commissioners need to get innovative with the budget.

5.3 City Secretary: City Secretary Blevins reported that everyone had paid their
water bill; therefore, no water was turned off. In regards to the Census, a Census
worker came by to get information on the three (3) houses that they were unable to
contact. Secretary Blevins has been attending the Village Independence Festival
meetings and they are looking for volunteers, donations and that the City also needed
someone to chair the parade float. City Secretary Blevins explained the consent
Agenda. She also explained that the Trees for Houston’s invoice was for trees planted
by the Ridgeley Improvement Committee. City Secretary Blevins stated the donations for
building the float, the festival and the Spring Branch Library were in the budget.

5.4 Building Official: Ted Lazarides stated there were nine (9) permits issued and
thirteen (13) inspections done in the month of April.

5.5 Treasurer’s Report: Manisha Patel presented the financial statements. She
stated she had transferred $200,000 of Metro funds into Tex Pool. Mayor Border said
that when he does the budget he estimates what the numbers are going to be,
underestimating revenue and escalating expenses. He said the revenue budget was not
doing well because there was no building going on in the City and the fact that no
interest is being made. Mayor Border stated the City was not in good shape. He said
the City was probably going to have to ask for a tax increase. Mayor Border stated the
police cost was going up this year and he would like to remove the trash fee and make it
a tax fee. City Secretary Blevins wanted to remind everyone the extra money that has
been put in CD’s and Tex Pool was restricted money and could not be used on general
day to day expenses.

5.6 Engineer’s Report: Efrain Him of HDR/CMI stated he was coordinating with Ted
Lazarides on installing a small residential emergency generator under the HMGP grant
program. Efrain reported he and Mayor Border attended a workshop with TDRA where
the City changed their application from working with Harris County to TDRA. The
advantage was TDRA would pay for the environmental impact study and reallocate the
funds appropriated for the Pine Chase/Glourie construction cost; therefore, increasing
the grant to the City to $229,000. The study and the grant administrator’s fee would
come out of the $229,000 and would leave the city with $204,682 instead of the
$200,000 grant from Harris County. Efrain stated Bruce Spitzengel with Grant Works
has been selected to be the Grant Administrator for this fund.

Efrain stated that Severn Trent Services had indicated they would have most of the
remaining missing water valves located by the week of May 21, 2010.

Efrain stated in regards to the 1241 Archley Drive he had reviewed the drainage plan
and submitted the required changes to their engineers. He also performed a site visit to
discuss the site’s existing conditions, the proposed improvements and the drainage plan.

Efrain stated he reviewed the replat information for 1209 Pine Chase Drive and took no
exceptions to them.

6. ACTION ITEMS (CONSIDERATION AND POSSIBLE ACTION):

6.1 A motion was made by Mayor Pro Tem Castro to approve the replat consisting of
subdividing lot 13 and 14 in Block Three (3) of Hilshire Manor Subdivision recorded in
Volume 40, Page 10, of the Map Records of Harris County, Texas. Property address is
currently known as 1209 Pine Chase Drive in Hilshire Village. The request is to
subdivide said property into two (2) parcels, seconded by Council Member Bill Bristow.
Efrain Him stated he had reviewed the resubmitted replat and the builder had corrected
all of his issues. Efrain stated that HDR/C&M takes no exceptions and recommends that
the proposed 1209 Pine Chase Drive replat be approved by City Council. David Olson
said he also did not take exception to the proposed replat. He stated all his issues had
been taken care of.   Mayor Border confirmed with Efrain that both the lots met the
property line requirements. Mayor Border stated when someone comes into the City
and builds a house the builder has to bring his utilities to the City’s line and there should
not be any material cost to the City. He also stated all engineering cost had been paid
by the builder. Council Member Whiting wanted to be clear on the fact that the City at
the time of the construction of the property could address the opening of the ravine.
David Olson confirmed this. Council Member Post questioned the fact that Pine Chase
only had a two inch (2”) water line. Mayor Border stated that when the Pine Chase
Glourie Loop construction happens this problem should also be addressed. A vote was
taken to approve the motion approving the replat consisting of subdividing lot 13
and 14 in Block Three (3) of Hilshire Manor Subdivision recorded in Volume 40,
Page 10 of the Map Records of Harris County, Texas. Property address is
currently known as 1209 Pine Chase Drive in Hilshire Village. The request is to
subdivide said property into two (2) parcels. The vote passed unanimously.

6.2 A motion was made by Council Member Whiting to approve the waiving of
irrigation installation permit fees for residents who are authorized to install sprinkler
systems to include the watering of the newly planted trees and plants in the Ridgeley
Drive cross-culverts , seconded by Council Member Davis. Council Member Whiting
stated members of the Ridgeley Improvement Committee brought up the fact that they
would extend their water sprinklers to irrigate the plants. It was also suggested that the
permit fees should be waived. Council Member Whiting thought this was a good idea
and they discussed the fact if work was done on the right-of-way they were responsible
for repairs. Mayor Pro Tem Castro stated she thought the City had a watering contract.
Council Member Whiting confirmed this. David Olson stated that he would need to look
at the watering contract so that the citizens watering the trees would not void the
contract. Council asked City Secretary Blevins to put this item on the Agenda in two
years after the contract had expired. A vote was taken to table the motion to
approve the waiving of irrigation installation permit fees for residents who are
authorized to install sprinkler systems to include the watering of the newly
planted trees and plants in the Ridgeley Drive cross-culverts, seconded by
Council Member Davis. The vote passed unanimously.

6.3 A motion was made by Council Member Bristow to approve the proposed
construction of a home partially cantilevered over a prescriptive drainage easement
resulting from the Ridgeley Place Subdivision established in 1949 at 1241 Archley,
seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Castro. David Olson wanted to make it clear that the
easement of record was not a prescriptive easement.

Mike Gordy stated he and Vicki were the property owners of 1241 Archley. He stated
they had been working on the development of this property for several years. Mr. Gordy
stated they have evaluated the lot and tried to design a home to fit the natural beauty of
the neighborhood. He stated the lot is approximately 33,000 square feet and he would
only be building on 18% of the property. Mr. Gordy stated he would be addressing and
satisfying all the City’s Engineering requirements except that he was asking permission
from Council to place the following structural elements in the Ridgeley Place drainage
easement: Cantilever approximately 900 square feet of the house over the easement
which has no affect on the drainage and it will help stabilize the banks, 6.8 feet of wing
wall and 2.2 feet of slab (this will make the house look normal from the street), six (6)
drilled piers and approximately 5.6 feet of one (1) corner of the pool (11 foot of drop will
not affect the drainage in anyway). He bought the house because of the beauty of the
ravine and he is building the house in a way not to damage the natural beauty. Mr.
Gordy stated there were houses, walls and decks around the City built in the ravines.
He said they were allowed because they also did not affect the City’s drainage.

Chris Loudermilk, Gay & Loudermilk Engineers, Inc, stated he had completed a site visit
and it was the opinion of Gay & Loudermilk Engineers that the locations of the deep
straight shaft piers would not impede the normal flow or base flood flow through the
ravine and the proposed construction of the residence and pool would not have a
negative impact on the existing drainage.

Out of Order:
Mayor Border recognized former Council Member Cheryl Wolfe’s services by presenting
her with a plaque. He wanted to thank her for her services as Council Member and for
her services as Treasurer for the City. Cheryl Wolfe said that it had been an interesting
experience and thought everyone should take a turn as a Council Member.

Council recessed at 8:50 P.M.

Council reconvened at 9:06 P.M.

Mr. Gordy wanted to say thank you to Council. He said that every Council Member, the
Mayor, the Building Official and the City Engineer all came and walked the property and
looked at their plans. Mr. Gordy said he has never seen more than a foot or so of water
in the ravine. He stated there was not a drainage issue in the ravine, only a small area
drains into the ravine. Mr. Gordy stated there was an eleven (11) foot drop and he was
going to repair the ravine and stop it from eroding.

Council Member Davis asked what the elevation was in the 100 year flood plan
at this location in the Spring Branch Creek. Mr. Gordy said it was 56 feet. Council
Member Davis then asked what the slab elevation on the house was and Mr. Gordy
responded 69 feet. Council Member Davis stated that they were 13 feet above the flood
plan.   The portion of the house that is supported is 12 feet or more above the 100 year
flood plan. Council Member Davis stated this house cannot possibly impede the
drainage in the ravine. The whole discussion on drainage is superfluous, the City needs
to be sensible and he does not see a problem with the way the Gordy’s want to build on
the property. Council Member Whiting asked if a soil test had been done. Mr. Gordy
stated he had a soil test done before he bought the lot and it has been presented to the
City with the plans. He also had another test done recently and the structural engineers
designed the peers in accordance with the soil test. Mr. Gordy stated the peers are
going to be 25 feet deep with a two (2) foot diameter straight shaft construction.

Mayor Border said the wording should be changed to approve a variance to an
encroachment of an easement, that the City was not approving his construction at this
time. Mayor Border confirmed with Efrain Him that Harris County Flood Control did not
have any jurisdiction over this particular area. Mayor Border did not feel this lot would
set any kind of precedence because of all the special issues regarding this property.

David Olson made suggestions as to how the motion should be reworded. Council
Member Post wanted to be clear that the City could come in and make changes to the
ravine if needed. David Olson stated it was the City’s right-of-way. Council Member
Bristow made a motion to approve an encroachment into the public easement not to
exceed the preliminary design as presented and conditional on the approval by City
Council of the building and drainage plans, seconded by Council Member Davis.

Efrain stated that it was the Gordy’s engineer and his opinion that the drainage would
not be impeded. He stated the drainage plan would still need to be approved. The issue
will come in play if the City needs to make repairs to the drainage. David Olson strongly
recommended that the house be built so that the portion of the house impeding in the
easement could be removed.

A vote was taken to approve the motion approving an encroachment into the
public easement not to exceed the preliminary design as presented and
conditional on the approval by the City Council for the building and drainage
plans. The motion passed unanimously.

6.4 1003 Ridgeley: David Olson stated the home owner built a driveway without a
permit but subsequently he has pulled the permit and submitted plans. Building Official,
Ted Lazarides felt that elevations should be checked to assure the water flow. The
home owner agreed to cover the cost to survey the culvert. Council made no motion.

The Building Official was excused at this time.

The City Engineer was excused at this time,

6.5 A motion was made to change the start time of the regular City Council Meetings
to 6:00 P.M. instead of 7:00 P.M. Council Member Bristow thought the City would have
better and longer attendance. The City Secretary stated the Treasurer, the Chief of
Police, the City Engineer, the Building Official and the City Attorney had no problems
meeting earlier. A vote was taken to approve the change of time of the regular City
Council Meetings to 6:00 P.M. instead of 7:00 P.M. The motion passed
unanimously.

6.6 CLOSED EXECUTIVE SESSION: NONE

The City Attorney was excused at this time.

7. DISCUSSION ITEMS:

7.1 Mayor Border wanted to discuss the budget and fire chief hiring so that he would
have guidance on how the Council wanted him to vote on the upcoming issues. He
wanted to know what this Council wanted for a budget. “Do we want a flat budget, 10%
increase or decrease in the budget. $154,000 is the budget number from last year. Is
that the number we want?” Council Member Davis stated that the City wants the
appropriate fire protection. He said the Council needs to know what kind of services the
City wants and what it will cost to provide those services. Council Member Davis wanted
the new chief to establish the needs of the fire department and what could be cut and
what needed to be added. Mayor Border stated the fire department services were
adequate. The question is do we have too much command staff. Mayor Border said the
major issue is the compensation package. He would hope the candidate for the new
chief would suggest a better way to run the department. Mayor Border said he would
vote for a fire chief that was open minded and prepared to look at providing a service for
a better bargain. Mayor Pro Tem Castro said that other Fire Departments were doing
this. Council Member Davis felt that every fireman did not need to be an EMT. The
Mayor said that VFD was the only fire department in the City of Houston Metropolitan
area that had an automatic aid agreement with the City of Houston. To qualify for the
automatic agreement the fire department is required to have a ladder truck which is very
expensive. The rest of the cities have a mutual agreement. Mayor Border stated the
ladder truck is the most expensive piece of equipment the fire department has to operate
and maintain. It also serves as a cardiac unit and goes on every ambulance call. Mayor
Pro Tem Castro wants to eliminate the automatic agreement and get rid of the ladder
truck. When a fire alarm goes off the fire call is also routed to the City of Houston who
also responds to the call. Mayor Pro Tem Castro said that the Mayor was trying to
change the Fire Departments meeting time to the Thursday following the third Tuesday
so that Council would know what was going to be on their agenda. Mayor Border said
that what he understood from their discussion was that Council wanted a “flat” to “down”
budget and wanted to hire a new chief who shows willingness to change, innovation,
efficiency and service.

8. REPORTS TO COUNCIL

8.1 Mayor and Council:

Mayor:     NONE

Whiting:
       Bridle Spur: NONE
          Ridgeley Improvement Committee: Council Member Whiting stated the
Committee was working on a list of shrubs to purchase.

7. CONSENT AGENDA: The Mayor read the wording under the consent agenda
explaining that everything put in the consent agenda was routine.

7.1 A motion was made by Council Member Post to accept the consent agenda
excluding Severn Trent’s invoices, including Minutes of the Council Meeting of April 20,
2010, Connie Castro to be Mayor Pro Tem, a donation of $500 to HV Civic Club if a float
was to be built for the VIF parade, a temporary permit allowing the Hilshire Village 4th of
July Festival Float to be parked outside during the construction and teardown, approving
a donation of $750 to the Villages Independence Festival, and a donation to the Friends
of The Spring Branch Memorial Library in the amount of $2500, seconded by Council
Member Whiting. A vote was taken to approve the motion accepting the consent
agenda excluding Severn Trent’s invoices, including Minutes of the Council
Meeting of April 20, 2010, Connie Castro to be Mayor Pro Tem, a donation of $500
to HV Civic Club if a float was to be built for the VIF parade, a temporary permit
allowing the Hilshire Village 4th of July Festival Float to be parked outside during
the construction and teardown, approving a donation of $750 to the Villages
Independence Festival, and a donation to the Friends of The Spring Branch
Memorial Library in the amount of $250. The vote passed unanimously.

A motion was made by Council Member Whiting to approve Severn Trent’s invoices
excluding $681.64 for maintenance on the lift station, seconded by Council Member
Post. Council Member Whiting had questions regarding the overtime charges to repair
the lift station. City Secretary Blevins will call and discuss the invoice with Severn Trent.
A vote was taken to approve the motion approving Severn Trent’s invoices
excluding $681.64 for maintenance on the lift station. The vote passed
unanimously.

8. ADDITIONAL CITIZENS COMMENTS:

Mike Gordy, 1241 Archley, thanked Council for their time and efforts regarding his
property.

9. ANNOUNCEMENTS: NONE

10. ADJOURNMENT: Council Member Whiting moved to adjourn, seconded by all of
Council. The meeting was adjourned at 11:02 P.M.



       ____________________
       Mayor Robin Border
ATTEST:

__________________________
Susan Blevins, City Secretary