REGULAR MEETING OF THE PORT HURON CITY COUNCIL

The Port Huron City Council met on Monday, November 23, 2009 at 7 p.m. at the Municipal Office Center on Port Huron. All council members were present and accounted for. They voted on and approved the minutes from the previous council meeting of November 9, 2009.

Public Audience began.

Bernard Ellery stated that his neighborhood is bad and he has decided to move out at the beginning of next month. He stated there have been so many problems at Woodrow Wilson school, the homeless shelter and Port of Hope that it's costing the city money for the police and fire to come out all the time to deal with it. He said that the problems with the homeless is costing his neighborhood the sense of safety and he's been asking and asking for something to be done and nothing has been.

Ken Harris said that he was disappointed with the agenda for the meeting. There are so many criminal issues going on and yet they put on the agenda something about planting very expensive trees in the downtown. He said that he heard they were opening another homeless shelter in the neighborhood and he thinks that's a crime.

Jeff Wine came on behalf of the Charter Commission and said that he was there to echo the sentiments of Laurie Sample-Wynns letter concerning Resolution 23, the idea to put a hybrid ward system on the ballot for May. He said the council should let the Charter Commission do their job and finish this. He also stated that all the comments he's heard about how a majority of people who have come to the Charter Commission meetings are supporting a ward system is not really true. He said a majority of those people who attended those meetings were running for council and he felt they were using it as a platform.

Pat Parcell, also of the Charter Commission said he also feels the commission should be able to finish their job. He thinks the council should vote down Resolution 23.

Cheryl Landrum spoke about an experience she had recently when a pit bull attacked her cocker spaniel while she was out walking it. She said that people let their animals run lose and she has complained about this for 13 years and no one has done a thing about it. She said the night her dog was attacked, it took the police 3 hours to get to her house. And then they wondered if she really wanted to file a formal complaint.

Darlene Peterson felt that voting on the wards issue does a disservice to the Charter Commission. She felt that by creating wards, we would be rewarding people for not getting out to vote. She said that it is our duty to vote no matter how unimportant the election might be to someone. In her opinion, all elections are important and people should get out and vote. She also thanked the council for their service.

Kathleen McCready said when something is in question, like this ward issue, we should look at it. The city has a 50% rental rate on the southend of Port Huron. She pointed out that due to the ratio of rentals vs. home owned homes, the votes cast on the southside are very strong. A majority of renters are transient so they don't vote. When you have a smaller percentage of home owners at the southend vs. the northend, it means a lot when the southend gets out and votes. Those votes really mean something. She also wondered what happened to the Quality of Life Commission.

Lonnie Stevens said that she noticed on the agenda all the appointments and how they were pretty much all the same people that have always been appointed to those boards. She said this city needs to really start looking at change hard. She also mentioned that the southend is not represented well and the number of northend residents on council now are almost all northend folks. She also said that an illegal CB tower has been set up behind her house and it interferes with her phone.

Sandy Duffy from the Southside Coalition read a statement that they have been the voice of the southend. He said that the Coalition is not in favor of the resolution on the agenda for instituting wards at this time. He said it needs to be carefully considered and the Southside Coalition will be there to help if needed.

Paul Schultz spoke and said he voted on the election at Grant School and he was number 223. He also asked if the Mayor was nervous. She said no.

Trina Avedisian spoke in response to something Jeff Wine had said. She mentioned that something he said about how only a few people showed up at the Charter Commission meeting to support the ward system and those that did were mostly running for council. She had attended those meetings and that just was not true. And even if it was only 20 or 30 people, doesn't that mean a lot since they got up and took time out of their day to come there and speak their minds? She also said that this was not about pitting the north end against the southend. She said that this was about the southend being ignored completely.

Trina Avedisian also read a letter from Margaret Enright, who had foot surgery and could not attend the meeting. It was about all the great things that Randy Fernandez and Kinney corp. have done to improve McMorran already and if the council has not been over there, they should go and take a tour because it really is a lot better already. She hopes the council will support McMorran and help improve it with any money that could be spent to do repairs. She also supported Resolution 23 on the wards.

At this time the Mayor asked to vote on the Consent Agenda. Councilmember Moeller said he moved to remove Resolution 1, 3, 6, 15 & 17 from the consent agenda and that if certain appointments to boards and commission were on the agenda under From the City Manager like From the City Manager #1, shouldn't others, such as Resolution #13 be under the City Manager? Mayor Repp explained that the appointments under Resolutions do require the council to approve them. Also, Steve Miller asked legal council if he had a conflict of interest because of his employment at the county and gets insurance from Kearns. Mr. Fletcher, legal council, said no.

The Mayor then read the Consent Agenda into record.

From the City Manager #1 - Notification from the City Manager that Donna Schwartz has been appointed to the Port Huron Housing Commission with a term to expire December 19, 2014.

Resolution #2 - Reappointing Robert C. Beedon and Walter G. Crosby, Jr. to the Traffic Study Committee with terms to expire November 23, 2011.

Resolution #4 - Confirming and declaring single lot special assessments in the total amount of $765.00 for the cost of removing noxious weeds or unlawful growths or blighthing factors.

Resolution #5 - Confirming the appointment of Janice Rose and reappointment of John Ogden and Timothy Ward to the Local Development Finance Authority (LDFA) for terms to expire June 11, 2013.

Resolution #7 - Confirming the appointment of Jim Yu for a term to expire June 30, 2011, and reappointments of James Watson for a term to expire June 30, 2011, Ronald Bular, Walter Crosby and Robert Nelson for terms to expire June 30, 2012, to the Construction Board of Appeals.

Resolution #8 - Confirming the reappointments of Dave Schwartz as the member from the Planning Commission for a term to expire August 11, 2012, and Larry McNamara for a term to expire July 1, 2012, to the Zoning Board of Appeals.

Resolution #9 - Confirming the appointment of Peggy Milam (tenant) to a term to expire June 10, 2012, and the reappointment of Steve Gurne (landlord) for a term to expire June 10 2012, to the Rental Housing Board of Appeals.

Resolution #10 - Confirming the appointment of Tim Kearns for a term to expire April 14, 2010, and the reappointments of Donna Klune, Michael J. Rossow and Lynn Secory to terms to expire April 14, 2011, and of Keith Flemingloss and John Ogden for terms to expire April 14 2012, to the Brownfield Development Authority.

Resolution #11 - Donfirming the appointment of Jill G. Brion for a term to expire August 11, 2011, and the reappointments of Janice Littlefield, Jeffrey Smith, and Rock Stevens for terms to expire August 11, 2011, and Sharon Bender and Dave Schwartz for terms to expire August 11, 2012, to the Planning Commission.

Resolution #12 - Reappointing Councilmember Lewandowski as the Council representative to the Planning Commission.

Resolution #13 - Appointing Wendy Krabach to the Downtown Development Authority to fill the vacancy and for a four-year term to expire February 9, 2014.

Resolution #14 - Appointing Alice Mariani as a Life Member of the Beautification Commission after serving for 10 years.

Resolution #16 - Reappointing Councilmember Fisher as the City Council representative and appointing Mayor Repp as the alternate member to the Blue Water Area Transportation Commission for three-year terms to expire November 24, 2012.

The Council then moved on to From the City Manager.

From the City Manager #2 was a recommendation that the bid of Marine City Nursery in the amount of $18,760.00 for the removal and replacement of 14 pear trees within the Huron Avenue Streetscape are be accepted. Councilmember Moeller opened the discussion, asking if the money was coming from the general fund. John Ogden, City Finance Director, stated that the money was coming from the Streetscape assessment. Councilmember Lewandowski wanted to know why it was so expensive to do this. Another person who was at the meeting who knew about the trees stated that this amount represented removing the old trees, moving the sprinklers and sound system that are planted in those tree boxes. The Streetscape design calls for this kind of tree. They need to follow that design. The council voted and it passed unanimously.

City Manager #3 was a recommendation that the bid of Raymond Excavating Company in the amount of $5,823,190.60 for the Erie Street North sewer separation, water main replacement and street paving project be accepted. Mayor Pro-tem Miller asked if this was a favorable bid. City Engineer Bob Clegg said it was. They originally estimated it would be about $9 million, but with the bid it came down to $7 million. There is also stimulus money which was about $2 or $3 million. There are Community Block Grant funds also available which will then put it at the $5,823,190.60. This project will start in the spring of 2010 and go to November. The council voted on it and it passed unanimously.

City Manager #4 was a recommendation that the bid of Flexi-Liner Corporation in the amount of $13,589.00 for installation of a liner in the sodium hypochlorite tank be accepted. There was no discussion, the council voted and it passes unanimously.

City Manager #5 was a recommendation that the quote of Wilkinson Corporation in the amount of $6,755.12 for a calcium chloride 10,000 gallon vertical storage tank be accepted. Councilmember Lewandowski asked if ther was a warranty with the tank. Mr. Clegg said there was. The council voted and approved it unanimously.

City Manager #6 was a recommendation that the bid of Gorno Ford, Inc., in the amount of $42,144.00 for two 2010 Crown Victoria police patrol cars be accepted. Mayor Pro-tem Miller wanted to know if the reason the cars were being replaced was because they had become a safety issue. Mr. Clegg said that it was. The cars have gone over 120,000 miles and need to be replaced. The council voted and passed it unanimously.

City Manager #7 was a recommendation that the bid of Teltow Contracting in the amount of $8,030.00 for the removal of 30 feet of 6" pipe and the replacement of 30 feet of 8" pipe located on Pine Grove Avenue be accepted. Councilmember Moeller said that since there was only $300 between the bids of those who had submitted this, he would support this. The council voted and it was accepted unanimously.

Moving on, the Council started Resolutions.

Resolution #1 had been removed from the Consent Agenda and said the City Manager was to prepare no agenda for the December 28, 2009 meeting. Councilmember Moeller explained that while he applauded the December 7th Special Meeting the council had set up, he couldn't believe they would take 4 weeks off during this time when the city has growing unemployment and so many other issues to look at. He said that he wanted to votes to know they took their jobs seriously. The vote was taken and it still passed with Councilmembers Moeller and Lewandowski voting no.

Resolution #3 was another one Councilmember Moeller asked to be removed fro the consent agenda and it talked about making a permanent Temporary Traffic Control Order No. 1229 which rescinds parking restrictions on Martin Avenue between 17th and 18th Streets, Farrand Street between 20th and 23rd Streets and Katherine Street between 20th and 22nd Street. Councilmember Moeller just wanted to point out that this goes back to the early 60s when Mueller Brass was big, but it's gone now and he supports them rescinds this. The council voted and it passed unanimously.

Resolution #6 was another that Councilmember Moeller had asked to be removed from the Consent Agenda. It was confirming the appointments of Shaun Groden for a term to expire September 14, 2010, and Thomas Shorkey for a term to expire September 14, 2013, and the reappointments of John Ogden and Joseph Vito for terms to expire September 14, 2013, to the Tax Increment Finance Authority (TIFA). There was no discussion and it was voted on. It passed with Councilmember Moeller casting the lone no vote.

Resolution #15 was removed from the Consent Agenda at Councilmember Moeller's request. It states the appointment of Councilmember Ruiz as the City Council delegate and Councilmember Moeller as the alternate delegate to the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG). The reason Councilmember Moeller asked for this to be removed is because he would not like to be reappointed as an alternate. He said that he was before when Marty Doorn was on this council but Marty always went to the meeting and he never had to go. He wanted to let the council know that he works in Detroit and couldn't make the meetings anyway, so if anyone wanted to take the alternate spot, he sure wouldn't mind. No one spoke up so it was mentioned it looked like he was reappointed whether he wanted to be or not. The council voted and it passed with Councilmember Moeller being the lone vote (amid much laughter).

Resolution #17 was the last one removed from the Consent Agenda by Councilmember Moeller. It was to designate Griswold Street Baptist Church, 1232 Griswold Street, as the polling location for Precinct 8 voters. Councilmember Moeller asked if this were in a different precinct or not. City Clerk Sue Child stated that it was in a different precinct but was right on the border. Councilmember Moeller asked Mrs. Child if there was nothing else available in the actual precinct and she said she had looked and found nothing else suitable.

Resolution #18 approved the agreement with Tetra Tech MPS for professional engineering design services for the Erie Street North Sewer Separation project. There was no discussion and it was passed unanimously.

Resolution #19 authorized the payment of $7,951.61 to the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality for the community public water supply annual fee. There was no discussion and it was passed unanimously.

Resolution #20 approved the agreement with BMJ Engineers & Surveyors, Inc., for professional engineering services for the 21st Street Area Phase II sewer separation project. Mayor Pro-tem Miller wanted to know if this was the actual cost? Mr. Clegg said that it was an estimated cost. Mayor Pro-tem Miller asked if the city could monitor this to make sure it doesn't get out of hand. Mr. Clegg said yes but with his experience, they usually come in under what they quoted. Also there is federal grant money set aside for Port Huron that they would like to use. The construction phase of this project will happen in 2011 to 2012. The Council voted yes unanimously.

Resolution #21 approved the agreement with the Michigan Department of Transportation for the concrete pavement removal and replacement work along Dove Street from 24th Street to the west City limits and authorizing a local match of $94,400.00. Councilmember Lewandowski wanted to mention this was Federal Grant money that the city had to match to get the grant. The council voted and it passed unanimously.

Resolution #22 approved the agreement with Malcolm Marine, Inc., for ice-breaking services in the Black River for flood relief. Mayor Pro-tem Miller said that this was about the ice jams in the Black River last year and all the damage to the homes it caused along the canals and Riverside Drive area. Chief Eick said there was a concern for the residents on the Canals and Riverside Drive area. They had two floods last winter. He checked with the coast guard but they don't have something that fits in that small of an area to break up jams. He stated that the city would only use the service if it was absolutely needed. He did say he could talk to Port Huron Township to see about sharing some of the cost because these floods impact them too. Councilmember Moeller said that Chief Eick had actually talked him right out of voting for this. He motioned to postpone until the December 14th meeting until Chief Eick talked to Port Huron Township and even Fort Gratiot. Mayor Pro-tem Miller seconded this montion. Chief Eick said that since he didn't think anything bad would happen within the 3 weeks, he would talk to the townships. The motion to postpone was voted on and passed unanimously.

Resolution #23 directed the City Manager to prepare a resolution with appropriate Charter amendment language to provide for the two-year, at large election of three Councilmembers and to provide for the two-year election of four Councilmembers from one of four wards (or districts). Councilmember Moeller started the conversation by saying he was baffled at the opposition to this. Particularly from the Southside Coalition since they have been asking for this for 30 years. He said the Charter Commission has voted in the majority for at-large systems of electing Councilmembers. He also quoted Mike Connell's article in the Times Herald a few weeks ago. He said the reason he introduced this resolution was to cut down on something before it happened. The general consensus is that if they go with wards the north end will vote it down. If they go with at-large, the southend will vote it down. He felt that the Charter Commission could take the results of this and use it to write the Charter since this seems to be the hot topic for that document. He felt it might end the riff between the north and south side. He stated that since he lives in a democracy, he will always try to bring things to the vote or will of the people. Councilmember Archibald said she thought they should not take this out of the Charter Commissions hands. Mayor Pro-tem Miller felt uncomfortable getting involved in this. Councilmember Moeller pointed out that the Commission has 3 years to get this done. If they council introduces this now, it will give them a couple years to see how it is going to work before the Charter Commission finishes. He said he would hate to see the Charter voted down because of one issue. Councilmember Fisher said that while this is usurping the Charter Commission, it does give the people total control of this one issue. Councilmember Lewandowski was concerned that putting it on the May ballot would cost the tax payer money. He also felt there was no real teeth to this resolution. They called up legal council Mr. Fletcher who did a short review of the Charter Commission from when the people voted to revise this. If the Charter is voted down, it can go back 2 more times for revisions. If this were to pass and the Charter Commission elects to not put this in the Charter and the Charter was voted in, that would whip out this action. Mayor Repp stated that while she was on the Charter Commission they had discussed having 2 or 3 charter options to vote on. Councilmember Archibald clarified that they could possibly have Charter A reflecting at large voting, or Charter B reflecting wards or a hybrid ward system on the same ballot. It was stated they could do that. A little bit more discussion touching on the same points that were already made continued and then the council voted. It was voted down with Councilmembers Fisher and Moeller voting yes.

Two more resolutions were added to the agenda.

Resolution #24 allowed a transfer of a liquor license to 223 Huron Ave., which is the Black River Cafe. It was voted on and passed.

Resolution #25 allowed a transfer of a liquor license to the new bar Hollisterz in the same block of Huron. It was voted on and passed.

At this time the Mayor read upcoming events.

November 24 - The Charter Commission meeting would be held at 7 p.m. in Room 408 at the Municipal Office Center.
November 26 & 27 - City offices would be closed in observance of Thanksgiving.
November 27 - Santa Parade in Downtown Port Huron at 6 p.m.

The Mayor also announced she has asked for the Spirit of Port Huron awards nominations to be extended.

Councilmember Moeller said that people have asked where they could get the city flag at. Mr. Osborn said the large flag cost $225 + tax and they don't keep an inventory of them since they are so expensive. The could be custom made so people could preorder them.

The motion was made and the meeting was adjourned.

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