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01.31.2020 Town Council Minutes Speciali MINUTES Special Meeting of the TOWN OF Prosper Town Council S PECommunity Room Prosper Town Hall 250 W. First Street, Prosper, Texas 75078 Prosper is a place where everyone matters. Friday, January 31, 2020 Call to Order/Roll Call. The meeting was called to order at 8:30 a.m. Council Members Present: Mayor Ray Smith Mayor Pro-Tem Curry Vogelsang, Jr. Deputy Mayor Pro-Tem Jason Dixon Councilmember Marcus E. Ray Councilmember Craig Andres Councilmember Meigs Miller Councilmember Jeff Hodges Staff Members Present: Harlan Jefferson, Town Manager Robyn Battle, Town Secretary/Public Information Officer Chuck Springer, Executive Director of Administrative Services Dudley Raymond, Parks and Recreation Director Leslie Scott, Director of Library Services Leigh Johnson, IT Director LaShon Ross, Interim Human Resources Director Betty Pamplin, Finance Director Hulon Webb, Engineering Services Director John Webb, Development Services Director Frank Jaromin, Public Works Director Doug Kowalski, Police Chief Stuart Blasingame, Fire Chief Mary Ann Moon, Prosper EDC Executive Director 2. The Town Council will hold a strategic planning work session to discuss successes and accomplishments since the last planning work session and to prioritize future strategic goals. Town Manager Harlan Jefferson welcomed Mike Conduff with The Elim Group who is serving as this year's facilitator. Mr. Conduff welcomed the group, facilitated an introductory exercise, and reviewed the agenda for the day. The group participated in an activity to identify accomplishments in the previous year, as well as projects that did not meet expectations. Small groups of staff and Council members reviewed the current 2020 Vision and Strategic Goals and made suggestions for changes and updates. The group decided to update the vision to a 2030 Vision, and made recommendations to consolidate and reprioritize the existing Strategic Goals. Town staff will revise the vision and goals and provide a draft for Council to review at a later date. Page 1 of 5 1 Town staff presented the following items before the Town Council: o Legislative Strategy Town Manager Harlan Jefferson presented this item. He reviewed the Town's previous practices, which have included scheduling meetings with the Town's legislative delegation, supporting TML's legislative agenda, and hiring a lobbyist to represent the Town. The 2019 legislative session resulted in legislation that was not favorable to cities, including revenue caps, annexation limitations, and limitations on regulating building materials. Municipalities may expect additional efforts to limit local control in the next legislative session. Mr. Jefferson suggested ways the Town can be more involved in the legislative process. The Town Council agreed to continue the Town's current practices, and increase the Town's involvement in the legislative process by conducting spring and fall meetings with the Town's legislative delegation, participating in Collin and Denton County Days, participating in letter/email writing campaigns, testifying for and against bills in the legislature, and participating in a coordinated effort with other cities and stakeholders to support or oppose legislation. The Council was in favor of developing a legislative agenda. o Use of Professional Services Town Manager Harlan Jefferson presented this item. He reviewed the various categories for which professional services are used, and the amount spent for such services in 2018 and 2019. The Council discussed the current paradigm used by the Town, which is to outsource professional services that cannot be accomplished by existing staff, or those that require specialized knowledge or expertise. The Council discussed services that are particularly related to engineering services for CIP projects. The Council agreed to continue the status quo for using professional services, but Town staff should be mindful of maximizing efficiency and deliverables when using professional services. 3. EXECUTIVE SESSION: Recess into Closed Session in compliance with Section 551.001 et seq. Texas Government Code, as authorized by the Texas Open Meetings Act, to deliberate regarding: 3a. Section 551.087 — To discuss and consider economic development incentives. 3b. Section 551.072 — To discuss and consider purchase, exchange, lease or value of real property for municipal purposes and all matters incident and related thereto. The Town Council recessed into Executive Session at 11:50 a.m. 4. Reconvene in Regular Session and take any action necessary as a result of the Closed Session. The Town Council reconvened the meeting at 1:50 p.m. No action was taken as a result of the Closed Session. Page 2 of 5 Town staff continued presentations on the following items: o Strategies for Dealing with the Revenue Cap Finance Director Betty Pamplin presented this item. With the passage of Senate Bill 2 in the 2019 legislative session, the Town will need to develop a strategy to deal with the 3.5% revenue cap. Ms. Pamplin reviewed possible strategies, which include identifying ways to control operating costs, planning for future operating and capital needs, considering an election to exceed the 3.5% cap if needed, utilizing debt financing for capital expenses that are currently being cash funded, aggressively pursuing outside funding and grants, and balancing the operating and maintenance (O&M) tax rate with the interest and sinking (I&S) rate to maintain the total tax rate and enhance the capital program. o Progress Report on Infrastructure and Transportation Study Recommendations Hulon Webb, Director of Engineering Services, presented this item. The study focused on four primary areas: project delivery, minimizing railroad impacts, traffic signal improvements, and project funding opportunities. Mr. Webb updated the Council on areas of improvement in all four focus areas. Regarding project delivery, Town staff has added staff members, improved processes, and will implement a new project management software program to help keep projects on track. Town staff is using alternate procurement and bidding methods to expedite projects while choosing vendors that provide the best value to the Town. The Town has minimized railroad impacts by pursuing a future quiet zone for the entire BNSF corridor, planning for grade separations at key intersections, and pursuing outside funding opportunities for overpasses. Town staff has worked to improve traffic signals by establishing agreements for traffic signal maintenance, hiring an in-house traffic signal technician, completing a master plan for future traffic signal locations, and implementing a traffic control committee. Finally, Town staff is pursuing outside funding opportunities for items such as grade separations, trails, and traffic control improvements. The Council advised staff to be proactive in acquiring right-of-way for future projects. The Engineering Services Department recently held a departmental strategic planning session to identify new ideas for improvement. Town staff is planning to implement a project dashboard with real- time data on project completion status. o Roadway Design Standards Hulon Webb, Director of Engineering Services, presented this item. Mr. Webb referred to the Town's Thoroughfare Plan, which describes the major and minor thoroughfares across Prosper. Town staff will continue to use a strategic process in designing roadways to allow for maximum flexibility in design and construction, in order to minimize cost and time needed to complete projects. o Infrastructure development in conjunction with schools Hulon Webb, Director of Engineering Services, presented this item. He reviewed previous infrastructure projects, provided an overview of the latest Prosper ISD timeline for school construction, and briefed the Council on upcoming infrastructure projects. Anticipated unfunded costs for upcoming infrastructure projects in conjunction with schools is approximately $34 million. Page 3 of 5 o Bond Election Projects Fire Chief Stuart Blasingame presented this item. Due to increased call volume and response times, Town staff estimates a third fire station will be needed within three years. Chief Blasingame reviewed future staffing needs, and repairs that are needed at Central Fire Station. Dudley Raymond, Parks and Recreation Director, continued the presentation. He reviewed facility and park projects that will be needed over the next ten years. In most cities, a Recreation Center is typically built prior to a Senior Center. Additionally, the 407 Rec Center has alleviated some of the need for senior programs. The total Town -funded cost of all Parks & Recreation projects in the CIP over the next ten years is approximately $30 million. The Council directed staff to investigate whether it is possible for developers to build parks at a less expensive cost, and then be reimbursed by the Town. o Water Rate Structure Briefing Town Manager Harlan Jefferson presented this item. He reviewed the terms of the Town's current water supply contract, and provided an overview of the Town's current and historical water rates and usage. The Town utilizes a rate structure that discourages peak usage in an effort to encourage water conservation, and uses strategies to educate and provide tools to water customers to control water usage. The Council directed staff to maintain the Town's current rate structure, and work toward moving from a customer city to a member city with the North Texas Municipal Water District (NTMWD). o Communication Strategies and Citizen Engagement Town Secretary/PIO Robyn Battle presented this item. Town staff employs a variety of strategies to communicate Town -related information to residents and other stakeholders. She reviewed components of the Town's 2019-2021 Communication Plan, including the Town's guiding principles and strategies for communication, and the different channels that are used. She provided an overview of the social media platforms utilized by the Town and some statistics on the growth of social media followers over the past five years. The Town has also implemented several citizen engagement programs over the past year, including the quarterly HOA Presidents Meetings, the Town Talks speaker's bureau, and the State of the Community held in January 2020. She described the various ways the Town uses citizen engagement to interact with residents, and reviewed the Town's citizen engagement strategy, which is to build relationships with stakeholders in order to build trust, and create a network of informed and engaged residents. The Council agreed with the proposed initiatives to conduct a resident communication survey, and to engage a consultant to assist the Town in developing a graphic identity policy and branding style guide. o Downtown open space recommendation Parks and Recreation Directly Dudley Raymond presented this item. The Council provided input on two concept plans on September 24, 2019, and a public input meeting was held on January 8, 2020. The Town's consultant is finalizing the plan, which will be presented to Council within approximately 60 days. Town staff will follow up on today's meeting by revising the Town Vision, Strategic Goals, and Major Initiatives, based on feedback gathered from today's meeting. The revised documents will be presented to Council at a later date. Page 4 of 5 1 1 EXECUTIVE SESSION: Recess into Closed Session in compliance with Section 551.001 et seq. Texas Government Code, as authorized by the Texas Open Meetings Act, to deliberate regarding: 3a. Section 551.087 - To discuss and consider economic development incentives. 3b. Section 551.072 - To discuss and consider purchase, exchange, lease or value of real property for municipal purposes and all matters incident and related thereto. The Town Council recessed into Executive Session at 4.45 p.m. Reconvene in Regular Session and take any action necessary as a result of the Closed Session. The Town Council reconvened the meeting at 5.15 p.m. No action was taken as a result of the Closed Session. 5. Adjourn. The meeting was adjourned at 5:15 p.m. on Friday, January 31, 2020. These minutes approved oWt�e h, "' day'of February 2020. r • r "ATTE '+� • 191 • - • ' • •t+ % T % Robyn BAttle, Town Secretary APPROVED: �JIA Ray Smit , Mayor Page 5 of 5