January 8, 2001

A regular meeting of the City Council was held on Monday, January 8, 2001, at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers of City Hall. Mayor Black presided. The Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag was recited in unison.

Council members present:	Drummond Black, John Coppage, Mary Currie, Hollis McKeag, Marty Wazbinski
Council members absent:	None

Minutes

Approval of the minutes of the December 18, 2000 regular meeting and December 19, 2000 and January 4, 2001 special meetings was offered by Council Member Coppage and seconded by Council Member McKeag. (Motion adopted.)

McKay Press, Inc. – Industrial Facilities Exemption Certificate

Roger Elbers, Deputy City Assessor, presented information on the request from McKay Press, Inc. for an Industrial Facilities Exemption Certificate. A public hearing was opened at 7:02 p.m. Robert Smith, Controller for McKay Press, Inc. located at 215 State Street in Midland and Christine Greve, Economic Manager for the Economic Development Council, spoke in support of the request. The hearing closed at 7:06 p.m. The following resolution was then offered by Council Member Coppage and seconded by Council Member Currie:

WHEREAS, the Expanded McKay Industrial Development District No. 1 was established by resolution of the Midland City Council on May 8, 2000; and

WHEREAS, McKay Press, Inc. made an application dated November 29, 2000, which was received by the City Clerk on November 30, 2000, for an Industrial Facilities Exemption Certificate relating to approval of a new facility within said District; and

WHEREAS, the application for the certificate is for approval of a new facility with the total project cost of $6,235,133, which will be for the purchase and installation of new equipment at the McKay Press, Inc. with the same being located within the Expanded McKay Industrial Development District No. 1; and

WHEREAS, the City Council, by written notice, afforded the applicant, the City Assessor, and representatives of each affected taxing unit an opportunity for a hearing on January 8, 2001, as required by Public Act 198 of Public Acts of the State of Michigan of 1974, as amended, and has given due consideration to all information presented; and

WHEREAS, the application appears to comply with the requirements set forth in Section 9 of said statute, as amended, in that the proposed facility is located within an industrial development district that was duly established within the City of Midland with the City of Midland being eligible under said statute to establish such a district and with the district having been established upon a request before the commencement of the restoration, replacement or construction of the facility described herein; that the commencement of this project did not occur earlier than six months before the filing of the application for the industrial facilities exemption certificate, that the application relates to a construction, restoration or replacement program that when completed constitutes a new or replacement facility within the meaning of said statute and is situated within a previously established industrial development district that was established in the City of Midland which was itself eligible under the statute to establish the district; that completion of the facility is calculated to, and will at the time of the issuance of the certificate, have the reasonable likelihood to create employment, retain employment, prevent a loss of employment or produce energy in the community; now therefore

RESOLVED, that the City Council of the City of Midland finds and determines that the granting of the industrial facilities exemption certificate requested by McKay Press, Inc. considered together with the aggregate amount of industrial facilities exemption certificates previously granted and currently in force, shall not have the effect of substantially impeding the operation of the City of Midland or impairing the financial soundness of any other taxing unit which levies an ad valorem property tax in the City of Midland; and

RESOLVED FURTHER, that said application for an Industrial Facilities Exemption certificate from McKay Press, Inc. for a new facility approval within the Industrial Development District be and the same is hereby approved for a period of 12 years with an ending date of December 30, 2013; and

RESOLVED FURTHER, that the Mayor and City Clerk are authorized to execute the Public Act 198 Agreement submitted between the City and McKay Press, Inc. pursuant to P.A. 334 of Public Acts of the State of Michigan of 1993. (Motion adopted.)

Planned Unit Development No. 3 Amendment – Harcrest Woods Condominiums

Prior to consideration of Item No. 3, Mayor Black, a partner in the law firm of Riecker, VanDam, Barker and Black, requested that he be allowed to abstain because a member of his law firm was involved in the request to amend Planned Unit Development No. 3 for Harcrest Woods Condominiums. Council unanimously agreed to the abstention. Mayor Pro-tem Wazbinski assumed the chair.

Jon Lynch, Director of Planning and Community Development, presented information on the request to amend Planned Unit Development No. 3 for Harcrest Woods Condominiums by allowing installation of traffic control gates at the east entrance of the Harcrest Drive just west of Thornberry Drive. Robert VanSickle, 2309 Oakfield Drive, the petitioner on behalf of Harcrest Condominium Association, James A. Ramseyer, 2012 Oakfield Drive, Albert Starr, 6101 Pebblestone Drive, John Reicker, 2216 Mapleleaf Drive and Kenneth Yerrick, 6205 Pebblestone Drive, all residents of Harcrest Woods Condominiums, spoke in favor of the request to install a traffic control gate at the east entrance citing concerns of increased traffic and additional maintenance to private streets within the complex caused by the increased traffic and the potential safety hazard to the residents. Brian Pike, 5800 Gratiot, representing the installation firm for the traffic control gate, explained the features of the traffic control gate. Colin Broddle, 2318 Oakfield Drive, opposed the petition indicating that he did not believe there was a traffic problem. Victor St. Amand, 2100 Ramble Lane, expressed concern that a traffic control gate on Harcrest would divert traffic through his neighborhood. Thomas McCann, 3310 Jefferson, supported the rights of residents to place a gate if they so wished. Mr. McCann questions the necessity of coming before Council for the placement of a traffic control gate on private property. The public hearing closed at 8:16 p.m. Dan Hargarten, Fire Chief, indicated that traffic control gates cause time loss in response time to a fire. James St. Louis, Chief of Police, stated that no traffic enforcement action can be taken on private property with the exception of drunk driving or driving recklessly, speeders cannot be ticketed on private property.

The following resolution was then offered by Council Member McKeag and seconded by Council Member Coppage:

WHEREAS, Robert VanSickle, on behalf of the Harcrest Condominium Association, has submitted a request for an amendment to Planned Unit Development No. 3, Harcrest Woods Condominiums, to permit installation of traffic control gates at the east entrance to the complex (Harcrest Drive just west of Thornberry Drive); and

WHEREAS, the City Planning Commission has conducted a public hearing in accord with Section 26.4(a) of the Zoning Ordinance of the City of Midland on said amendment; and

WHEREAS, the Planning Commission has submitted its recommendation of approval, in accord with Section 26.4(b) of the Zoning Ordinance of the City of Midland, subject to a requirement that the gate be equipped with emergency access equipment approved by the City of Midland public safety departments; now therefore

RESOLVED, that the City Council finds the request for an amendment to Planned Unit Development No. 3 to be in accord with Section 26.5 of the Zoning Ordinance of the City of Midland, and hereby approves said amendment, in accord with documents submitted and dated October 19, 2000, subject to the gate being equipped with emergency access equipment approved by the City of Midland public safety departments. (Motion denied. Yeas: McKeag, Nays: Coppage, Currie, Wazbinski Abstained: Black)

Mayor Pro-tem Wazbinski returned the gavel to Mayor Black.

Zoning Petition No. 470

Jon Lynch, Director of Planning and Community Development, presented information regarding Zoning Petition No. 470 – rezoning property on the north side of W. Wackerly Street and east of Sturgeon Avenue. The Planning Commission recommended approval of rezoning to Office-Service 2 and Business A. A public hearing opened at 9:17 p.m. Charlotte Allen, 222 N. Saginaw Road, speaking on behalf of residents located along W. Wackerly, opposed rezoning to B-2 and felt that Office-Service 2 was appropriate for the area. However, she indicated that they were not opposed to Business A or Office-Service 2. Michael Skinner, one of the petitioners, spoke in support of the Business B-2 rezoning but indicated they would go along with the Office-Service 2 and Business A. Thomas McCann, 3310 Jefferson, felt it was a mistake not to rezone to Business B-2. Denise Skelcey, 2107 Schade West Drive, indicated that residents had concerns about Schade West becoming a through street and an increase in traffic. Christopher T. Forsdyke, 6204 Alyse Lane and Don Beckwith, 2609 Schade West Drive, spoke in opposition to the rezoning. Orin Barrett, 2717 Schade West Drive, spoke in support of the Business A and Office-Service 2 rezoning. Pamela Streeter, 2828 W. Wackerly Street, opposed any rezoning. The hearing closed at 9:50 p.m. The following ordinance amendment was then offered by Council Member Wazbinski and seconded by Council Member McKeag:

ORDINANCE NO. 1492

AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND ORDINANCE NO. 727, BEING AN ORDINANCE TO REGULATE AND RESTRICT THE LOCATION OF TRADES AND INDUSTRIES AND THE LOCATION OF BUILDINGS DESIGNED FOR SPECIFIC USES, TO REGULATE AND LIMIT THE HEIGHT AND BULK OF BUILDINGS HEREAFTER ERECTED OR ALTERED, TO REGULATE AND DETERMINE THE AREA OF YARDS, COURTS, AND OTHER OPEN SPACES SURROUNDING BUILDINGS, TO REGULATE AND LIMIT THE DENSITY OF POPULATION, AND FOR SAID PURPOSES, TO DIVIDE THE CITY INTO DISTRICTS AND PRESCRIBE PENALTIES FOR THE VIOLATION OF ITS PROVISIONS BY AMENDING THE ZONING MAP TO PROVIDE AN OFFICE-SERVICE 2 CLASSIFICATION WHERE A RESIDENTIAL A-1 DISTRICT PRESENTLY EXISTS, AND TO PROVIDE A BUSINESS A ZONING CLASSIFICATION WHERE A RESIDENTIAL A-1 DISTRICT PRESENTLY EXISTS.

The City of Midland Ordains:

Section 1. That the Zoning Map of Ordinance No. 727, being the Zoning Ordinance of the City of Midland, is hereby amended as follows:

That property described as: Beginning at the Southwest corner of Section 32, Larkin Township, City of Midland, Midland County, Michigan; thence Easterly 1498 feet; thence Northerly to the South right-of-way line of US-10; thence Westerly along the South right-of-way line of US-10 to the West line of Section 32; thence South along said Section line to the Point of Beginning,

be, and the same is hereby changed to an Office-Service 2 District, and

That property described as: Beginning at the Southwest corner of Section 32, Larkin Township, City of Midland, Midland County, Michigan; thence Easterly 2276 feet along the South Section line to the Point of Beginning; thence Northerly to the South right-of-way line of US-10; thence Westerly 778 feet along the South right-of-way line of US-10; thence Southerly to the South Section line of Section 32; thence East along said Section line to the Point of Beginning,

be, and the same is hereby changed to a Business A District.

Section 2. All Ordinances or parts of Ordinances in conflict herewith are hereby repealed only to the extent necessary to give this Ordinance full force and effect.

Section 3. This Ordinance shall take effect upon publication. (Ordinance adopted. Yeas: Black, Coppage, McKeag, Wazbinski Nays: Currie)

PUBLIC COMMENTS

Tom McCann, 3310 Jefferson, requested that the Zoning Board of Appeals meetings be televised on cable TV and stated he would put up $10,000 to televise the meetings. Mr. McCann expressed disappointment in the decision Council made regarding denial of placement of a propane tank at Gil-Roy’s Got-It Hardware Store and recommended that each Council member attend sessions on planning and zoning. He indicated that he felt the City Manager was at the Council’s disposal to answer questions but not to direct Council on how to vote.

Dorothy Lengerman, 405 E. Nelson, urged Council to work out any problems they have with MDEQ and come to a resolution on the sewer issue.

Charles Hepenstall, 1317 North Parkway, urged the City to provide residents with periodic status reports on the sewer project.

Richard McCreadie, 2700 Washington, urged Council to advertise the upcoming election for Council candidates.

Downspout and Roof Drain Removal Project Progress Report

Noel Bush, Director of Utilities, presented a progress report on the Downspout and Roof Drain Removal Project. The following resolution was then offered by Council Member Coppage and seconded by Council Member McKeag:

RESOLVED, that the Progress Report on the Downspout and Roof Drain Removal Project be received and filed in the office of the City Clerk. (Motion adopted.)

Report on Political Sign Ordinance

James Branson, City Attorney, presented a report on the issue of reviewing the current City of Midland political sign ordinance for possible revisions. The City Attorney recommended not modifying the current ordinance.