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23 MAY 18 CITY OF JACKSONVILLE REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 18, 2023 6:00 P.M. – 6:33 P.M. REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING - CITY HALL - #1 MUNICIPAL DRIVE The City Council of the City of Jacksonville, Arkansas met in a regular session on May 18, 2023 at the regular meeting place of the City Council. Council Member Ray delivered the invocation and Mayor Elmore led a standing audience in the “Pledge of Allegiance” to the flag. ROLL CALL: City Council Members: Dietz, McCleary, Sansing, Ray, Mashburn, Moss, Twitty, Kinman, and Rains answered ROLL CALL. Mayor Elmore also answered ROLL CALL declaring a quorum. PRESENT NINE (9) ABSENT ONE (1). Council Member Bolden was absent. Others present for the meeting were: City Attorney Stephanie Friedman, Finance Director Cheryl Erkel, Fire Chief Alan Laughy, City Engineer Adam Whitlow, CDBG Director Michelle Spencer, Lieutenant Ryan Wright, Code Enforcement Supervisor Marissa Barger, Wastewater Utility General Manager Thea Hughes, IT Director Emily Osment, Jim Moore, Reginald Ford, and Rick Kron. PRESENTATION OF MINUTES: Mayor Elmore presented the minutes of the regularly scheduled City Council meeting of May 4, 2023 for approval and/or correction at the next regularly scheduled City Council meeting. APPROVAL AND/OR CORRECTION OF MINUTES: Council Member Twitty moved, seconded by Council Member Ray that the minutes of the regularly scheduled City Council meeting of April 20, 2023 be APPROVED. MOTION CARRIED. CONSENT AGENDA: REGULAR MONTHLY REPORT/FIRE DEPARTMENT Council Member Ray moved, seconded by Council Member Rains to approve the regular monthly report for April 2023 from the Jacksonville Fire Department, reflecting a fire loss of $47,300.00 and a savings total of $1,887,700.00. REGULAR MONTHLY REPORT/POLICE DEPARTMENT Council Member Ray moved, seconded by Council Member Rains to approve the Regular Monthly Report for April 2023 regarding annual crime statistical comparisons. REGULAR MONTHLY REPORT/CODE ENFORCEMENT Council Member Ray moved, seconded by Council Member Rains to approve the regular monthly report as presented for April 2023. Assigned Calls 50 Self-Initiated Calls 206 Follow Up Inspections 261 Demolition by City 0 Complied after Notice 123 Demolition by Owner 0 Three Day Notice 28 Parking Violations 0 Seven Day Letter 320 Garbage Cans Tagged 0 Citation Letters Mailed 13 Basketball Goals 0 Citations Issued 8 Structures Inspected 517 Vehicles Tagged 32 Apartment Complexes Inspected 3 1 CITY OF JACKSONVILLE REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 18, 2023 6:00 P.M. – 6:33 P.M. Vehicles Towed 1 Red Tags Issued 17 Unsafe Structures Tagged 31 Search Warrants 1 Structures Condemned 0 Grass Mowed 0 Structures Rehabbed 0 REGULAR MONTHLY REPORT/ANIMAL CONTROL Council Member Ray moved, seconded by Council Member Rains to approve the regular monthly report for April 2023. ADOPTION FEES $ 1,320.00 SPAY/NEUTER FOR ADOPTED DOGS 1,320.00 Paid by the City of Jacksonville 1,320.00 Paid for by JFOTA - FINES 2,580.00 CONTRIBUTIONS 170.00 TOTAL $ 4,070.00 Vet Bills paid by City not spay/neuter $ 5,837.20 Vet Bills paid by JFOTA not spay/neuter 400.00 ROLL CALL: Council Member: Dietz, McCleary, Sansing, Ray, Mashburn, Moss, Twitty, Kinman, and Rains voted AYE. MOTION CARRIED. WATER DEPARTMENT: WASTEWATER DEPARTMENT: ORDINANCE 1728 (#12-2023) AN ORDINANCE DECLARING THE EXERCISE OF EMINENT DOMAIN ON CERTAIN REAL PROPERTY WITHIN THE CITY LIMITS OF THE CITY OF JACKSONVILLE, ARKANSAS FOR ACQUISITION OF PUBLIC EASEMENTS AND RIGHTS OF WAY FOR THE CONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT OF IMPROVED PUBLIC WASTE WATER LINES FOR THE CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS ON BEHALF OF JACKSONVILLE WASTE WATER; AND, FOR OTHER PURPOSES. Council Member Ray moved, seconded by Council Member Sansing to place Ordinance 1728 on FIRST READING. ROLL CALL: Council Member Dietz, McCleary, Sansing, Ray, Mashburn, Moss, Twitty, Kinman, and Rains voted AYE. MOTION CARRIED. Whereupon City Attorney Friedman read the heading of Ordinance 1728. Jacksonville Wastewater Utility Engineering/Technical Services Manager Paul Richards stated there was a conflict with the electrical and gas line for the Papito’s property where they were originally going to put a manhole. He explained their engineer went in and designed it to where they could move approximately 28 feet to the east to not disrupt those services to the restaurant. He shared how they began negotiations in March, but have not been able to reach any sort of resolution, so that is why they are requesting eminent domain. Council Member Ray moved, seconded by Council Member Sansing to APPROVE Ordinance 1728 on FIRST READING and SUSPEND THE RULES and place Ordinance 1728 on SECOND READING. ROLL CALL: Council Member Dietz, McCleary, Sansing, Ray, Mashburn, Moss, Twitty, Kinman, and Rains voted AYE. MOTION CARRIED. 2 CITY OF JACKSONVILLE REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 18, 2023 6:00 P.M. – 6:33 P.M. Council Member Ray moved, seconded by Council Member Twitty to APPROVE Ordinance 1728 on SECOND READING and SUSPEND THE RULES and place Ordinance 1728 on THIRD AND FINAL READING. ROLL CALL: Council Member Dietz, McCleary, Sansing, Ray, Mashburn, Moss, Twitty, Kinman, and Rains voted AYE. MOTION CARRIED. Council Member Ray moved, seconded by Council Member Twitty to APPROVE AND ADOPT Ordinance 1728 in its entirety. ROLL CALL: Council Member Dietz, McCleary, Sansing, Ray, Mashburn, Moss, Twitty, Kinman, and Rains voted AYE. MOTION CARRIED. TH ORDINANCE 1728 (#12-2023) APPROVED AND ADOPTED THIS 18 DAY OF MAY, 2023. FIRE DEPARTMENT: POLICE DEPARTMENT: STREET DEPARTMENT: SANITATION DEPARTMENT: PARKS & RECREATION: PLANNING COMMISSION: COMMITTEE(S): GENERAL: a. CDBG update for Community Council Member Sansing stated this was originated with Council Member Bolden, but Council Member McCleary and himself have gotten a bit involved in it. He explained that CDBG Director Michelle Spencer has done an excellent job on the report to Council. Director Spencer related the City has FY 2020 CDBG program allocation amounts of $227,969.00 that were awarded for 2023, which is an increase over last year of approximately $8,631.00. She noted they have the normal proposal that will start with the Action Plan that has a comment period in July and Council approval once she gets past the CAPER coming up. She shared she is gathering a lot of the information needed in order to process what has been going on the last year, along with a lot of the overage that goes over into the following year. She related they have an 80% amount that can go over from the previous year, so she is catching up and paying a lot of bills. She mentioned IDIS being the system they pull from HUD and she is having to pay a lot of bills, pull down money, and reconciling quite a bit of things. She shared her excitement for new partnerships, adding she has been meeting with a lot of different individuals and community members. She noted they have formed partnerships with a lot of the utility companies so they are able to make payments toward individuals who are low-to-moderate income who need assistance with their financial hardships with utilities and rent. She st pointed out that the CDBG accomplishments are actually from February 21 th through May 12, 2023. She hopes to have a partnership with the Central Arkansas Development Council (CADC), who played a large role in the disaster relief by helping put displaced residents into hotels and giving them $100.00 food vouchers. She brought up that CADC had lost their lease when the Workforce Center closed down a couple of years ago, but they are wanting to get back into the community to be able to provide some much-needed services. 3 CITY OF JACKSONVILLE REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 18, 2023 6:00 P.M. – 6:33 P.M. She brought up that the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America (NACA) is wanting to provide home ownership to low-to-moderate income individuals in Jacksonville, adding that they do not necessary look at credit, but at how they are paying their bills and the timeframe of paying them on time. She shared they will be doing a workshop in July in the FEMA room at the Police Department hosting approximately sixty individuals. She hopes to be at 109 South Second Street soon since she feels like it is best for her to be a part of the community where they feel comfortable coming in and sharing their th information to get the assistance they are needing. She stated that June 11 th through the 15 she will be at a conference doing some CDBG training, as well as IDIS training, and will be coming back to Council for the CAPER, as well as the Action Plan for the year. b. RESOLUTION 835 (#04-2023) A RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF AND AUTHORIZING THE EXECUTION OF SALE DOCUMENTS FROM THE CITY OF JACKSONVILLE FOR CERTAIN REAL PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN (GENERAL LOCATION – 129 JAXON CIRCLE); AND, FOR OTHER PURPOSES. Council Member Ray moved, seconded by Council Member McCleary to read Resolution 835 (#04-2023). MOTION CARRIED. Whereupon City Attorney Friedman read the heading of Resolution 835 (#04-2023). Council Member Ray moved, seconded by Council Member Rains to adopt Resolution 835 (#04-2023) in its entirety. MOTION CARRIED. c. RESOLUTION 836 (#05-2023) A RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF AND AUTHORIZING THE EXECUTION OF SALE DOCUMENTS FROM THE CITY OF JACKSONVILLE FOR CERTAIN REAL PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN (GENERAL LOCATION – 183 AND 185 PIKE AVE.); AND, FOR OTHER PURPOSES. Council Member Sansing moved, seconded by Council Member Ray to read Resolution 836 (#05-2023). MOTION CARRIED. Whereupon City Attorney Friedman read the heading of Resolution 836 (#05-2023). Council Member Sansing moved, seconded by Council Member Ray to adopt Resolution 836 (#05-2023) in its entirety. MOTION CARRIED. d. RESOLUTION 834 (#03-2023) A RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF AND AUTHORIZING THE EXECUTION OF SALE DOCUMENTS FROM THE CITY OF JACKSONVILLE FOR CERTAIN REAL PROPERTY DESCRIBED HEREIN (GENERAL LOCATION – LOTS 34, 52, 56, 132, 155, 189, 355 OF THE SUNNYSIDE SUBDIVISION); AND, FOR OTHER PURPOSES. Council Member Ray moved, seconded by Council Member Sansing to read Resolution 834 (#03-2023). MOTION CARRIED. Whereupon City Attorney Friedman read the heading of Resolution 834 (#03-2023). Council Member Twitty moved, seconded by Council Member Sansing to adopt Resolution 834 (#03-2023) in its entirety. MOTION CARRIED with Council Member Rains voting NAY. 4 CITY OF JACKSONVILLE REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 18, 2023 6:00 P.M. – 6:33 P.M. e. City Council Long Term Strategic Planning Council Member Rains recalled it had been mentioned during a previous Administration and she would like to see if there is interest in developing a strategic plan for the City. She knows it has been done prior by Dr. Price, but it is worth the interest of the Council to look over it again and develop a plan to promote the growth of our City. Council Member Sansing concurred it is a good idea, but with the recent tornado disaster and having a busy new Mayor dealing with it, he believes now is not the best time. Council Member Rains believes they should work on it now more than ever, with having new Administration and some new Council Members, so the citizens can have something to look at and know what is ahead. Her recommendation is to move forward on developing a more recent strategic plan for the City, referencing the internet resources she provided regarding how other cities have approached it. She summarized that it is a multi-day gathering of all of the elected officials and directors to come together for a five-year plan. She stated an increase in homeownership directly responds to a decrease in violent crimes, with Baton Rouge, Louisiana seeing a 4.5% decrease of it from a 1% increase in homeownership. She was unsure how Dr. Price developed his plan, but having a document that the Administration creates is important. She believes they should look at previous plans and take them into consideration to see what may have been dropped that they can focus on now. Council Member Mashburn suggested starting with Dr. Price’s plan to compare and add to it. APPOINTMENTS: CRIMINAL NUISANCE ABATEMENT BOARD Council Member Ray moved, seconded by Council Member Twitty to appoint Craig Friedman, S. Renee Parker, Kelly Scarborough, Geraldine Broadway, and Bill Howard. MOTION CARRIED. UNFINISHED BUSINESS: ANNOUNCEMENTS: Tornado Cleanup Update City Engineer Adam Whitlow stated as of tomorrow, they are considering the first pass of right-of-way cleanup complete. He explained the debris hauler is going to take a weeklong break and come back Tuesday or Wednesday after Memorial Day to give the remaining stragglers a chance to bring anything remaining to the right-of-way for pickup. He confirmed they have seen quite a bit of work on the damaged houses with debris being removed by the property owners, presumably by contractors engaged through insurance, which is FEMA’s recommendation as step one and City disposal being last. He related that the debris will still be processed and taken to the landfill through this week, adding that to date, they have picked up right under 28,000 cubic yards of vegetation and construction demolition material. He recalled 50,000 cubic yards was their initial estimate, so he still hopes they remain under. He noted if the Elementary School becomes eligible for pickup, there will be a couple thousand yards there. He pointed out that they had the contractor 5 CITY OF JACKSONVILLE REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING MAY 18, 2023 6:00 P.M. – 6:33 P.M. prepare an estimate through what they know is going to be part of the 100% reimbursement period and they are at a little over $250,000.00. He clarified that the pile located at the Elementary School is the staging area for construction demolition material that originally started out at Wooten Road, but when the contractor said it would be a tough site to get in and out of with big trucks, they chose the parking lot of the school since it is close to the damaged area. He told how the vegetation debris is being staged adjacent to the old City landfill in the Rogers Road area and will start shredding by a chipper tomorrow. He shared that Two Pines Landfill has agreed to accept it as daily cover on the landfill at no charge, therefore, the City benefits from not paying tipping fees on it, while someone gets beneficial use out of it. When Council Member Kinman inquired, Mayor Elmore responded that they had a system going through Engage Arkansas that tracked the last several weeks of active volunteering. He confirmed he has been in contact with a lot of the other civic organizations, groups, and churches in the area and received the first batch from Samaritan’s Purse today that comes out to $18,500.00 off the 25% the City is responsible to pay for FEMA. He pointed out that the value of equipment provided, and all goods and services that were given or provided, such as the value of the semitruck of chicken that came from Tyson, will go toward the 25%. Engineer Whitlow mentioned meetings with FEMA, so everything is started, adding that the initial public assistance grant application has been th submitted. He surmised all of it to come to fruition around July 7 when the City gives them the final estimated costs. He confirmed there will still be a lot of work that will continue a year or so afterwards. Mayor Elmore noted that the FEMA rate for every hour of volunteering is worth $10.00. He added that the Governor has requested from the President an extension of that thirty days where it was 100% covered, but they have not heard of a final decision on it yet. ADJOURNMENT: Without objection, Mayor Elmore adjourned the meeting at approximately 6:33 p.m. MOTION CARRIED. Respectfully, ________________________ _________________________ Susan L. Davitt MAYOR JEFF ELMORE City Clerk-Treasurer 6