City Council Minutes

1. CALL TO ORDER: Mayor Robin Border called the City of Hilshire Village Council Meeting to order at 6:20 P.M. at 8301 Westview, Houston, Texas 77055.

   1.1 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, Stephanie Post, Edward Davis and Bill Bristow. Also present were Chief Gary Finkelman, Spring Valley Police Department, Efrain Him, P.E., HDR/Claunch & Miller, Inc., City Engineer, Ted Lazarides, Building Official and David Olson, City Attorney, Olson & Olson.

2. CITIZENS COMMENTS:

Bob Sommer, 1114 Guinea Drive, introduced a new resident to Council, Dwight Riley who bought Jane Fisher’s house.

Dwight Riley, 1118 Glourie Drive, is remodeling his house and wanted to get familiar with the City and the City’s activities.

Walter Tomlinson, 1106 Glourie Drive, wanted to make sure Council and the residents knew that brown water was still an issue and he was looking forward to Council’s discussion on the issue.

Grady Farris, 1138 Glourie Drive, requested that his speaking notes be placed in the official minutes of the meeting. David Olson said that the speaking notes would have to be approved by Council when Council approves the minutes next month. Mr. Farris stated he was concerned with the zoning regulations and read an email sent to the Mayor, City Council and the Board of Adjustments. He stated the City Zoning Ordinance establishes regulation in the City regarding building and lot size, size and character of the building and discusses condensing the population. Mr. Farris said the foundation of the Zoning Ordinance is the administration of building permits and the issuance of Certificate of Occupancies. He stated the City Ordinances states “the problems of surface drainage and transportation, health, safety and welfare are difficult for the City to cope with unless it remains suburban with a limited population density and with no substantial increase in the burden of services posed on the City”. Mr. Farris suggested lessening congestion on the street, providing more light and air, preventing the overcrowding of land and avoiding the undo concentration of population (larger homes on smaller lots). He said that on December 16, 2008, the Hilshire Village City Council approved the definition of “net building area”.   Mr. Farris said Council voted on a provision in which they did not understand the long term consequences. He said that if a house the size of 1309 Glourie was to be constructed on every lot in Telge Place Subdivision the zoning ordinances would be rendered useless.

3. REPORTS TO COUNCIL:

   3.1 Police: Chief Finkelman said January was a quiet month. He stated there were three (3) residential burglaries in Spring Valley. He wanted to remind residents to arm their alarms when they leave their homes.

3.2 Building Official: Ted Lazarides stated there were twelve (12) permits issued and twenty-five (25) inspections completed in the month of January. He wanted to bring to the attention of Council the types of homes being built in Hilshire Village are of a high quality and he wanted to make sure the houses were being evaluated correctly by Harris County. City Secretary Blevins stated that Harris County is given the original amount of the contract for a house. The contract amount does not include any changes that could have been made while the house was being built.

3.3 Fire Commissioner: The Mayor said the last Fire Commissioner’s meeting did not have any action items on it except approving the minutes from the prior meeting. He said that Piney Point’s assistant and fire commissioner switched positions.

   3.4 City Secretary: City Secretary Blevins wanted to thank Bob Sommer for his years as the Election Judge and looked forward to him continuing his support as alternate judge. She explained that Council would need to approve the new Election Judge in the Consent Agenda. City Secretary Blevins stated that emails and letters were sent out regarding grass clipping bags and she had given Council the comments that were received from residents. She reported that the retroactive billing for trash went out in this month’s utility billing and reminder letters were sent out for alarm and pet permits. City Secretary Blevins stated in regards to the Complaint and Issues Report, the dead tree on Mallie Court is not in the City’s ROW and CenterPoint had cut down the dead tree at 1100 Ridgeley. She also said that a resident came to the City regarding repairs to the bricks in the cul-de-sac near 1015 Ridgeley. Council asked her to check the plat and see who owns the property.

   3.5 Treasurer’s Report: City Secretary Blevins stated the City has received 83% of the budgeted tax revenue. She said the City’s revenue was up for the year due to the fact that the majority of the tax revenue had been received. City Secretary Blevins said the expenses were down because the City had not paid for the audit or bought the fireproof filing cabinet. She said she was working on the audit and had not had time to go out for bids on the filing cabinet.

   3.6 Engineer’s Report: Efrain Him stated per City Council request he is preparing the additional information package requested by The State Hazard Mitigation Office for the Pine Chase/Glourie $2,500,000 project. It should be completed in the middle of March. Council Member Post asked again what the status of the grant was. Efrain stated he could not say. The City was still waiting on the grant to be granted to the City.
Mayor Border said the City was still optimistic that they will get the grant. Efrain said the City meets the requirements of the grant.

Efrain Him apologized for the delay in the City Hall Emergency Generator Project. He stated the bid opening is scheduled for March 3, 2011.

Efrain stated he had submitted the 30% submittal package for the Texas Department of Rural Affairs ($204,682 grant). Mayor Border asked when the City could get started. Efrain said that it is schedule to start in May.

Efrain said he is presenting a proposal to City Council for approval regarding the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant ($23,000 air conditioning grant).

Regarding 1309 Glourie, Efrain said he visited the jobsite along with Ted Lazarides to address drainage issues due to the recently installed drainage system. He stated the drainage issues had been corrected by the builder.

ACTION ITEMS (CONSIDERATION AND POSSIBLE ACTION):

   4.1 A motion was made by Mayor Pro Tem Castro to approve the specifications for Parking Pads to be used by the building official for all parking pads that have been approved by Council, seconded by Council Member Bristow. Mayor Border said he wanted to go line by line. In number two (2) he wanted to add the word “the” in front of “bank”. Mayor Border was concerned with the wording on number three (3) regarding the terminology being used. David Olson said the only consistency the City had was the road and that is why he worded it using the wording “the edge opposite the road paving”. After discussion Council decided to delete number (4) regarding “not being able to utilize parking pad for more than one vehicle”. Council Member Bristow had issues with number five (5) and Council decided to remove the wording “or pedestrian access across a drainage ditch area”. Bill Bristow thought definitions needed to be added. Mayor Border wanted “a minimum of” to be added in front of “two inches of crushed granite” and Council Member Whiting wanted to know if you could use something other than the geo-textile filter? Council decided to add the “ability to use any pervious material as long as the Building Official approved of it”. Council decided to delete number 15 regarding waivers. David Olson reworded item 17 after discussion. He also wanted to add “The City may deviate from the parking pad specifications if there is a showing of an undue hardship or unusual lot configuration or City Council otherwise deems a deviation is warranted” to number 18. David Olson stressed the reason for the specifications were to have guidelines so that the City would have consistency if they approved a parking pad to be installed. He wanted everyone treated the same. Council wanted the corrections made and would look at the specifications again next month. Mayor Pro Tem Castro withdrew her motion to accept the Parking Pad Specifications as presented, seconded by Council Member Bristow.

The Building Official was excused at this time.

5. DISCUSSION ITEMS:

   5.1 Amendment to the Code of Ordinance Section 9.111 – requirement for Storm Drainage (18” Culverts) on Road Section with Open Ditch. Mayor Border said he placed this on the Agenda because in the Village you can’t always place a standard 18” culvert in every ditch. Council Member Post excused herself from the conversation because she is in the middle of building a house and this topic could affect her. Council Member Bristow stated he would like the usage of the word “Village” to be changed to “City”. Mayor Border took exception to the wording in number two (2) regarding “no paved dips or low water crossings”. City Attorney, David Olson, suggested they eliminate number two (2) which stated “All driveways and walkways shall have culverts: no paved dips or low water crossings for driveways or walkways will be allowed”. He then recommended the use of the alternative wording by the City Engineer. David Olson’s recommendation was that item three (3) read “In the event the minimum 18-inch diameter culvert cannot be installed due to the existing physical constraints in the area, the City may consider and grant a variance to implement an alternative solution to the problem, upon review and recommendation by the City Engineer, if the drainage in the area will not be adversely effected”.

The City Attorney was excused at this time.

   5.2 Complaints regarding brown water. Council Member Davis stated he updated his previous report dated February 10, 2010. He stated his recommendation at that time was to have the Fire Department systematically do annual flushing of the fire hydrants to maximize flow reversals and thus minimize the severity of the red water events. Council Member Davis stated that Council voted against the flushing’s. He stated his investigations and analysis to date have progressed to a point where he is convinced that the red particular matter that appears in the City’s water is in fact iron oxide. Council Member Davis said there may be other items that come from City of Houston. He stated the City of Hilshire Village has no control over the water it purchases from the City of Houston. In the past, when the Fire Department flushed the hydrants they did not do so in a certain order; however, they are no longer flushing fire hydrants. Council Member Davis stated Spring Valley is also having issues with red water (they too received their water from the City of Houston). Spring Valley is contracting with a company called NAPCO to treat the water. He stated Mayor Border and he met with them to discuss the City’s issues and was informed they do not require a storage tank. However, they need an engineering design on flushing the hydrants. Council Member Davis said that the City can’t eliminate all of the red water but can only take corrective actions to mitigate such an event. Even getting rid of the cast iron pipe the City will still have breakouts of red water because the City gets its water from the City of Houston.

Council Member Post said that she too sees the red water. She feels that little by little the City needs to replace the cast iron pipes. Council Member Davis said that the City Engineer gave an estimate to replace 900 feet of 9” pipe would roughly cost $150,000. Using a computer program Council Member Davis said he came up with 14,000 linear feet of various sizes of cast iron pipes. By his figures he comes up with approximately $1,400,000 to replace all of the cast iron pipes in the Village which would cost each resident $4,700 and that is why the City has not replaced the cast iron pipes. Council Member Bristow stated he put in a water filter and water softener for approximately $3,000. Council Member Davis said he put in a water filter for less than $500. He also suggested that everyone drain and clean their water heater. Council Member Post urged Council not to let this issue drop but to work with Efrain and try to figure this problem out
Mayor Border said that one of the City’s goals is to raise $50,000 to $60,000 a year in water fees for replacement funds. Mayor Border said that some of the pipes have to be replaced. He said the main reason they are going after the grants is to replace some of the streets and the City would replace the infrastructure at the same time.

6. ACTION ITEMS (CONSIDERATION AND POSSIBLE ACTION):

   6.1 A motion was made by Council Member Whiting to approve an Engineering Services Proposal for the City Hall HVAC Units Upgrade/Replacement – SECO/EECBG Grant, seconded by Council Member Post. Efrain reminded Council that there was no cost to the City. A vote was taken to approve the motion to approve an Engineering Services Proposal for the City Hall HVAC Units Upgrade/Replacement – SECO/EECBG Grant. The vote passed unanimously.

The City Engineer was excused at this time.

   6.2 A motion was made by Council Member Edward Davis to approve Ordinance # 655 changing the date of the May Regular Council Meeting to May 24, 2011, to accommodate newly elected candidates, seconded by Council Member Post. A vote was taken to approve the motion approving Ordinance # 655 changing the date of the May Regular Council Meeting to May 24, 2011, to accommodate newly elected candidates. The vote passed unanimously.

   6.3 A motion was made by Council Member Davis to approve a “yes” vote for the City’s Fire Commissioner; issues related to the VFD payroll system, realignment of salary components, initiation of a performance based salary scale and initiation of a formalized career ladder, seconded by Council Member Whiting. Mayor Border said the Fire Commissioners have had several benefit meetings. The Commissioners discussed pay, certification and extra pays. He said the existing system has 17 steps and the Commissioners wanted to change it to nine (9) steps. The Mayor said in the past the employees received a raise every year regardless of their performance and received raises just for taking courses regardless if they passed or not. He said there were several issues with the step process and the new Fire Chief supported the changes the Commissioners wanted to make. With the changes that they are proposing, it will save approximately $50,000. Some employees would make more and some would make less. The system would be a fairer process and the employees would know exactly what they needed to do to get a promotion. A vote was taken to approve a “yes” vote for the City’s Fire Commissioner; issues related to the VFD payroll system, realignment of salary components, initiation of a performance based salary scale and initiation of a formalized career. The vote passed unanimously.

7. REPORTS TO COUNCIL

   7.1 Mayor and Council:

   Mayor: None

   Whiting- Bridle Spur: None

          Ridgeley Improvement Committee: Council Member Whiting asked Council if they wanted to dissolve the committee since there was not any further need for their services. Council said the committee had completed their task and could be dissolved. Council Member Whiting wanted to thank the members of the committee for their hard work and let them know they had been instrumental to the design of the Ridgeley project.

8. CONSENT AGENDA:

   8.1 Council Member Post made a motion to approve the Consent Agenda with the deduction of the Severn Trent invoice and including the Minutes of the Regular Council Meeting of January 18, 2011 and the appointment of Jeffrey Klam as the election judge for the May 2011 Elections, seconded by Council Member Whiting. A vote was taken to approve the motion accepting the Consent Agenda with the deduction of the Severn Trent invoice and including the Minutes of the Regular Council Meeting of January 18, 2011 and the appointment of Jeffrey Klam as the election judge for the May 2011. The vote passed unanimously.

   Council Member Post questioned the $1700 cost for repairs on Pine Creek. The Mayor said there was a major leak under the road. Council Member Whiting said she had an issue with the work orders for locating meters and questioned the amount of time they spent looking for them. City Secretary Blevins said she would talk to Joe Williams regarding the charges. Council Member Post made a motion to approve the disbursement of the Severn Trent invoice less $137.95, seconded by Council Member Whiting. A vote was taken to approve the motion accepting the disbursement of the Severn Trent invoice less $137.95. The vote passed unanimously.

9. ADDITIONAL CITIZENS COMMENTS:

Alan Wolfe, 1314 Pine Chase Drive, stated that every water connection should be metered, “no systems should be unmetered”. He does not think the City should encourage parking pads. Mr. Wolfe agreed with Councils decision on the culvert at 1309 Glourie. He believes Council should consider low water crossing as a viable option and the City needs to look into trench drains. He also wanted to recognize the passing of resident Travis Riley. He will be missed.

Grady Farris, 1138 Glourie, stated he believes Council needs to revisit the clarification of “net building area”. Mr. Farris stated 1309 Glourie is an example of that clarification. He wanted Council to review the International Building Codes and the requirement for fire sprinkler systems on existing homes. He said this revision affects 115 homes and those people need to be notified by some type of organized meeting. Mr. Farris gave Council a copy of the other Memorial Villages ordinances on the fire codes because the Mayor said that the City of Hilshire Village needed to update its ordinances like the other Villages. In reference to the Drainage Guidelines, Harry Walker under oath said that the guidelines are in conflict with the established City’s Ordinances and said he would report so to Council. To date Mr. Farris is not aware of any report to Council. Mr. Farris had issues with the wording of the agenda regarding parking pads. He said it was not clear. He stated why bother with specifications when the City does not enforce ordinances.

10. ANNOUNCEMENTS: None

11. ADJOURNMENT: Council Member Davis moved to adjourn, seconded by Council Member Post. The meeting was adjourned at 9:26 P.M.



                           ____________________
                           Robin S. Border, Mayor
ATTEST:

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Susan Blevins, City Secretary