PROPOSED MINUTES
REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING OF FEBRUARY 7, 2008


Elkins City Council met in regular session in the council chamber of city hall at 7:10 p.m. Thursday, February 7, 2008. Present were Mayor Judith A. Guye; Councilpersons: R. N. Beckwith, T. Z. Hensil, R. J. Malcolm, C. L. Metheny, D. G. Satterfield, I. D. Talbott, Jr., K. L. Wilmoth and R. A. Woolwine; City Clerk P. J. Graziani, Jr., City Treasurer L. L. Crosston, City Attorney R. T. Busch, Police Captain J. E. Batdorf and Fire Chief T. W. Meader. Councilman J. S. Bibey and Councilwoman H. K. Burford were absent.

The meeting commenced with an invocation and the Pledge of Allegiance.


AGENDA ADJUSTMENTS

Authorization to submit a joint request by City of Elkins and the Randolph County Development Authority to obtain Federal Appropriation funds.


PUBLIC HEARING

Pursuant to legal advertisement published in The Inter-Mountain, the public was afforded opportunity to comment upon Proposed Ordinance 071, providing for a feline licensing system. The public hearing convened at 7:12 p.m.

Cynthia Linner, DVM, Bridgeport, WV, said licensing of owned cats would not solve feral cat problems. Instead, the licensing initiative would only result in increased costs of ownership for domestic cat owners. The value of the initiative for retrieving lost cats was also questionable, since cats were difficult to identify. She also asserted that the measure would place an unfair and disproportionate burden upon cat breeders. Breeders would incur an additional cost of doing business in the form of the new licensing fee proposed.

Mary Ann McDonald, president of the Randolph County Humane Society, said the measure would result in a healthier and more humane community by reducing the population of unwanted cats. Additionally, she said, the measure would provide a means to identify which cats were strays and which were registered.

Joe Sabatino, 405 Kerens Avenue, said he couldn’t keep a collar on his cat.

Jim Cain, Randolph County humane officer, said passage of the ordinance would give him an additional tool in the performance of his duties. A license would demonstrate cat ownership, and it could be useful to identifying animals in instances of cat scratches or bites. He said at least two local veterinarians supported the proposed ordinance.

Ruth Humphrey, 410 Davis Street, expressed appreciation for the proposed ordinance.

Daniel Aucremanne, 110 Henry Avenue, said a cat ordinance should be enacted; however, he questioned the merits of the current proposal. He talked about language in state law regulating dogs. He questioned disposition of the fees to be generated by the proposal. And he contended that the proposal, if enacted, would take tools away from the animal control officer.

Theresa Brewer said WV State Code did not regulate cats, but there were cat problems in the state for which a solution had to be found. City of Elkins was willing to act. The proposal might not be perfect but it was a start. She lauded the county humane officer’s willingness to help with cats.

Vicki Aucremanne, 110 Henry Avenue, said responsible cat owners would be taxed. There should be a system of differentiated licensing. The ordinance does not indicate the disposition of fees to be collected. Change the ordinance to protect the dollars [to be raised] and thereby protect the cats, she said.


The mayor adjourned the public hearing and entered into the regular meeting at 7:45 p.m.
PUBLIC COMMENT

Alice Sabatino, 405 Kerens Avenue, asked for the city’s help in establishing a skatepark in Glendale Park.

Charles W. Phares, 105 Ferndale Drive, remarked on the role of the Randolph County Commission in the process whereby Graceland Hills Subdivision was annexed into the city, saying the city attorney appeared before the Commission acting on behalf of Cm Talbott. The attorney refuted Mr. Phares, saying he appeared representing the city at the specific request of the Commission. Mr. Phares raised the issue of Cm Talbott’s eligibility to seek office in the 2007 municipal election, but Mayor Guye ruled him out of order. She said the city attorney ruled on that subject matter at the last council meeting. The attorney having already responded to the various accusations made by Mr. Phares, the matter was closed, she said.


RECOGNITION

Kelly , was recognized and presented with a certificate of appreciation for her work at the Randolph County Humane Society.


CONSENT CALENDAR

Cm Beckwith, seconded by Cm Metheny, MOVED THAT COUNCIL ACCEPT THE MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF JANUARY 17, 2008 AS PRESENTED. The motion carried.


UNFINISHED BUSINESS

Cm Satterfield, seconded by Cm Hensil, MOVED THAT PROPOSED ORDINANCE 071, PROVIDING FOR A FELINE LICENSING SYSTEM, BE BROUGHT FORTH, READ BY TITLE ONLY, AND PASSED ON THIRD AND FINAL READING. The motion carried.

No action was taken on Proposed Ordinance 072, establishing regulation of city trees.


NEW BUSINESS

Cm Talbott, seconded by Cw Wilmoth, MOVED THAT COUNCIL ADOPT PROPOSED RESOLUTION 102, APPROVING INVOICES RELATING TO THE PROPOSED WATER PROJECT AND AUTHORIZING DRAWDOWN NUMBER 3 THEREOF FROM FUNDS AVAILABLE FROM THE WATERWORKS SYSTEM DESIGN BOND ANTICIPATION NOTES, SERIES 2007. The motion carried. [Chapman Technical Group will be paid $37,897.95.]

Cm Talbott, seconded by Cm Beckwith, MOVED COUNCIL APPROVE APPLICATION FOR 2007 DEMONSTRATION CITY GRANT FUNDS AND AUTHORIZE THE MAYOR TO EXECUTE NECESSARY PAPERWORK. The motion carried. A condition of the grant requires the city to provide documentation of $3,500 in matching funds. The matching funds could be in the form of an in-kind contribution. Cm Woolwine was told the grant would provide funding to plant new trees. He then determined that no site plan had yet been approved to create green spaces in the parking lot behind city hall. That subject matter, the mayor said, would be presented for council’s consideration at a future date.

Cm Hensil, seconded by Cm Malcolm, MOVED COUNCIL GRANT PERMANENT EMPLOYMENT STATUS TO JAMES T. FLETCHER AS A WATER WORKER 1EFFECTIVE FEBRUARY 11, 2008. The motion carried.

Cm Metheny, seconded by Cm Malcolm, MOVED COUNCIL GRANT PERMANENT EMPLOYMENT STATUS TO ZACHARY G. THOMPSON AS A LANDFILL/SANITATION DEPARTMENT FLOATER EFFECTIVE FEBRUARY 5, 2008. The motion carried.

Cm Woolwine, seconded by Cm Hensil, MOVED COUNCIL APPROVE A JOINT SUBMISSION BY THE RANDOLPH COUNTY DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY AND CITY OF ELKINS OF A FEDERAL GOVERNMENT APPROPRIATIONS REQUEST - FISCAL YEAR 2009 TO OBTAIN FUNDING FOR THE BENEFIT OF A DOWNTOWN STREETSCAPE PROJECT AND, FURTHER, AUTHORIZE THE MAYOR TO EXECUTE ANY NECESSARY PAPERWORK. The motion carried. The application, through Representative Capito’s office, requested $300,000. If approved, the award would be matched with $50,000 from the Authority and $24,000 from City of Elkins. The city’s award match could be in the form of an in-kind contribution. The federal funding would be used for streetscape development including: sidewalks to make usable pedestrian networks through the Railyard for facilities including Davis Memorial Hospital and Elkins Senior Center; lighting to match the Town Square; connection of the bike trail to the historic depot; and the addition of trees and benches.

Cw Wilmoth, seconded by Cm Talbott, MOVED COUNCIL APPROVE APPOINTMENTS TO THE CITY’S VARIOUS BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS. The motion carried

APPOINTEE	BOARD OR COMMISSION	TERM ENDING DATE
Nestor, W. Grant	Board of Zoning Appeal	December 31, 2010
White, Zan C.	Board of Zoning Appeal	December 31, 2010
Gross, Larry G.	Municipal Building Commission	December 31, 2012
Phillips, Jr., Willard F.	Municipal Building Commission	December 31, 2011
Biola, Joseph L.	Municipal Building Commission	December 31, 2008
King, Ph.D., Dr. William E.	Planning Commission	December 31, 2008
Kyle, Edgar D.	Planning Commission	December 31, 2008
Marstiller, Clifford E.	Planning Commission	December 31, 2010
Minnick, Dr. A. Jean	Planning Commission	December 31, 2010
Varner, Alfred C.	Planning Commission	December 31, 2010
Gainer, John M.	Firemen’s Civil Service Commission	December 31, 2011
Pritt, Donald R.	Policemen’s Civil Service Commission	December 31, 2009
Worden, George S.	Policemen’s Civil Service Commission	December 31, 2010
Painter, Gary L.	Policemen’s Civil Service Commission	December 31, 2011

COMMITTEE REPORTS

BUILDING

The Committee received 9 building permit applications since the last meeting of council, 3544 thru 3552. Acting upon recommendation of the building inspector, the Committee approved all applications.

Cm Malcolm, seconded by Cm Metheny, MOVED THAT COUNCIL GRANT BUILDING PERMITS FOR THE 9 APPLICATIONS APPROVED BY THE COMMITTEE. The motion carried.

PERMIT	APPLICANT	LOCATION	DESCRIPTION	VALUE
3544	Davis Electric - shop	Scott St	Re-roof	$4,000
3545	McCauley, Jeremy	1606 S Davis Av	Siding, drywall, windows & remodel	$4,000
3546	Lohr-Barb Funeral Home	121 First St	Wiring upstairs apartment	$5,698
3547	Terry, Justin	111 Wayne Av	Bedroom addition	$3,000
3548	Health Facilities	22 Buffalo St	Asbestos abatement	$15,000
3549	Carr, Joe	4 Hampton Rd	Replace front and back porches	$16,879
3550	Sands, Joni	1410 Lavalette Av	Replacement windows	$ 2,830
3551	Shiflett, Ken	300 S Randolph Av	Sheet rock, leveling floors, etc.	$10,000
3552	Carr, Joe	4 Hampton Rd	Install furnace and a/c	$5,600

PUBLIC SAFETY

Cm Bibey reported that in the previous month $2,472.50 of expense had been incurred housing inmates at the Regional Jail.


RULES AND ORDINANCE

The Committee’s regular recurring meeting time was changed to 4 p.m. on the first Tuesday of each month.


SANITATION/LANDFILL

Cm Metheny said the landfill had been over flown and aerial photography completed. The aerial photography will yield new topographic maps to facilitate design of a new lined disposal cell.

Initial results of an ongoing study of the city’s sanitation operation indicated that a majority of solid waste collected originated with commercial customers. Two point two tons of commercial solid waste was collected for each ton of residential refuse. [The ongoing study will be unable to identify what portion of commercial tonnage resulted from illegal dumping by unidentified individuals into commercial dumpsters.]


STREETS

The cost of the city’s fall Leaf Pickup Program exceeded $30,000, Cm Hensil reported.

Cm Talbott, making reference to an article by Wayne Sheets recently published in The Inter-Mountain, wondered if some of the traffic stoplights on Davis Avenue could be replaced with stop signs. Indicating public safety, fiscal conservatism and streetscape aesthetics as his motivation, he opined that stop signs were safer than stoplights; hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars could be saved by not replacing existing stoplights; and the appearance of the streetscape would be improved by the removal of the lights. Other members demurred, saying new stoplights could be erected on decorative poles; modern stoplights were redundant in nature, thus providing greater safety in case of malfunction; were user/handicapped friendly; could have traffic control cameras installed; and 4-way stop signs were not pedestrian-friendly.


WATER

The Committee expressed its site selection rationale for construction of a new water treatment plant on Reservoir Hill: The property is city-owned, vacant and secure, resulting in lower capital costs; it is outside the 500-year flood plain; no archeological or historic preservation considerations; no need for high service pumps or clear wells; one of two necessary water storage tanks exists onsite; the site is the highest point in the distribution system; and gravity flow from storage tanks into the distribution system would eliminate surges in line pressure, thus minimizing premature failure of piping and unaccounted for water loss.

Approximately 25% of the water transmission and distribution mainlines will be replaced as part of the overall waterworks improvement project. Age was not a criterion for selection of mainlines to be replaced; instead, history of line breaks and other problems experienced were determinants.

As currently envisioned, the financing package for the waterworks improvements project will be a blend of grants and zero-percent interest, low-percent interest and market rate interest long-term loans.

The U.S. Army Corp of Engineers and U.S. Geological Survey have undertaken a study that could determine if/when the city’s flood control inlet/outlet works should/could be replaced.

The water treatment plant continues to monitor levels of trace aluminum present in filter backwash water being discharged into the Tygart Valley River. Polyaluminum Chloride coagulants and settles suspended particulate matter present in raw water.

OTHER BUSINESS

The annual financial statement for the Elkins-Randolph County Airport Authority was received. Correspondence has been exchanged between the Authority and the WV Aviation Division concerning the Division’s formulation of contingency plans for alternate operational sites in the event of natural disaster or other emergency. Our airport could be an alternate site. There have no additional developments in the land swap proposed between the Authority and an abutting land owner.

Ten new cat traps were provided to the county humane officer. Delivered cost of the traps was $506.

The Randolph County Development Authority reported that in 2007 Greenfield Cabinetry paid gross wages of $1,465,000; employed 60; produced 11,790 cabinets; remitted $18,293 in Business and Occupation Tax; and paid 85% of the cost of employee health insurance premiums.


The meeting adjourned at 8:44 p.m.


/s/ Judith A. Guye, Mayor
/s/ Philip J. Graziani, City Clerk