Council Business Meeting 10/23/2006

SUMMARY MINUTES OF A BUSINESS MEETING

OF THE CHAPEL HILL TOWN COUNCIL

MONDAY, OCTOBER 23, 2006, AT 7:00 P.M.

Mayor Kevin Foy called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

Council members present were Laurin Easthom, Sally Greene, Ed Harrison, Cam Hill, Mark Kleinschmidt, Bill Strom, Bill Thorpe, and Jim Ward.

Staff members present were Town Manager Roger Stancil, Deputy Town Manager Florentine Miller, Assistant Town Manager Bruce Heflin, Town Attorney Ralph Karpinos, Town Information Officer Catherine Lazorko, Information Technology Director Bob Avery, Planning Director J. B. Culpepper, Principal Long Range Planner Gordon Sutherland, Principal Transportation Planner David Bonk, Traffic Engineer Kumar Neppalli, Assistant Parks and Recreation Director Bill Webster, and Town Clerk Sabrina Oliver.

Item 1 - Ceremonies: None.

Item 2 - Public Hearings: None.

Item 3 - Petitions by Citizens and Announcements by Council Members

3a(1). Transportation Board regarding Bus Stop Design Standards.

COUNCIL MEMBER HILL MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER THORPE, TO RECEIVE AND REFER THE PETITION TO THE MANAGER. THE MOTION WAS ADOPTED UNANIMOUSLY (9-0).

3a(2). Million Solar Roofs Committee Mission and Status.

Mark Simon, representing the Million Solar Roofs Committee, asked that the Town use sustainable energy sources and carbon reduction methods to keep the sky over Chapel Hill Carolina blue. He commented that there was a need to strengthen the committee. Mr. Simon provided information regarding the Annual Solar Home Tours, noting that 300 people had taken the tour in 2005, and 250 this year.

Mr. Simon said they wanted to formalize and broaden the mission statement. He said they wanted to reaffirm their position of education and influence, not just for solar but for any sustainable energy. Mr. Simon urged the Council to consider giving the Committee permanent standing.

COUNCIL MEMBER WARD MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER GREENE, TO RECEIVE AND REFER THE PETITION TO THE MANAGER. THE MOTION WAS ADOPTED UNANIMOUSLY (9-0).

3a(3). NAACP requesting the Creation of a Chapel Hill Youth Council.

Jesse Gibson, representing the NAACP, requested that the Town support the formation of a youth council for Chapel Hill. He noted the benefits, including the opportunities to develop an interest in public service careers.

COUNCIL MEMBER GREENE MOVED, SECONDED BY MAYOR PRO TEM STROM, TO RECEIVE AND REFER THE PETITION TO THE MANAGER. THE MOTION WAS ADOPTED UNANIMOUSLY (9-0).

Council Member Thorpe asked when the response to this petition would come back. Town Manager Roger Stancil replied by November 20. Mr. Gibson noted he would be the contact person for Town staff.

Item 4 – Consent Agenda

Mayor pro tem Strom pulled Item #4g, Response to Petition regarding No Parking Signs Change on Amesbury Drive. He noted that several citizens had requested that the Council delay taking action on this item.

Council Member Harrison suggested that the item could come back to the Council on December 4, to accommodate citizen requests.

Mayor Foy asked Traffic Engineer Kumar Neppalli when this item could be rescheduled. Mr. Neppalli responded it could come back to the Council after staff had the opportunity to work with the neighbors. Mayor Foy suggested delaying the item indefinitely until Mr. Neppalli could complete that work. The Council agreed by consensus.

Council Member Ward removed Item #4d, Proposed Extension of a Lease to Sports Art Gymnastics Building. He said he wanted to use this item as an opportunity to bring up the fact that the Town's pottery facilities, owned by the Chapel Hill-Carrboro School System, would not be available to the Town for some time. Council Member Ward asked if the staff had researched alternative sites for this important recreation, and if it could be co-located at the Sports Art facility.

Mayor Foy asked if the Manager could be authorized to extend or shorten the lease. Town Attorney Ralph Karpinos said that the resolution could be modified to have that added to the terms of the lease.

COUNCIL MEMBER WARD MOVED, SECONDED BY MAYOR PRO TEM STROM, ADOPTION OF RESOLUTION R-5, AS AMENDED TO AUTHORIZE THE TOWN MANAGER TO EXTEND OR SHORTEN THE LEASE, AS NECESSARY. THE MOTION WAS ADOPTED UNANIMOUSLY (9-0).

COUNCIL MEMBER WARD MOVED, SECONDED BY MAYOR PRO TEM STROM, ADOPTION OF RESOLUTION R-1, AS AMENDED TO REMOVE ITEMS #4d AND #4g. THE MOTION WAS ADOPTED UNANIMOUSLY (9-0).

Item 5 – Information Items

5a. 2005 Transportation Management Plan Annual Report.

The report was accepted as presented.

5b. Active Living by Design Annual Report.

Regina Blalock provided highlights of the Annual Report. She stated that Chapel Hill was one of only eight communities in the State to receive this designation. Ms. Blalock said there was continued funding for transportation staff, but not after this year. She asked that the Council think about its role in keeping this alive, adding it necessitated a lead agency. Ms. Blalock said it had been wonderful that the Town had been the lead agency, and thanked the Council. She asked that they consider a role for the future.

Item 6 – Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership Board of Directors

regarding Reconsideration of the Giving Kiosk

Liz Parham, Executive Director of the Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership, noted that Tom Tucker was also present. She stated that a task force had been established, and recommended that the kiosk issue be looked at and a broad based committee established. She said they would develop a message for education on where to give to programs rather than panhandlers. Ms. Parham described a Madison, WI intervention program that strove to get homeless people off the streets in partnership with other agencies. She also recommended that alternatives to the kiosk be looked at, such as donation meters, other giving locations, and an educational campaign. Ms. Parham said, with the Council’s blessing, they would continue to meet and discuss.

Council Member Kleinschmidt extended his thanks for their work. He noted that the last time Ms. Parham appeared before the Council he may have appeared harsh, and he thanked her for addressing the concerns and issues.

Council Member Ward asked about the availability of minutes of future meetings, and asked if those meetings had been scheduled. Ms. Parham stated that the meetings had been scheduled for the third Thursday, but starting in December they would move to the second Thursday of each month. Council Member Ward asked to be notified of the meetings because he would like to attend. Ms. Parham stated that a website should be up this week that would help keep the public informed.

Council Member Greene said she had been designated as the Council’s representative, but might be unable to attend all meetings. She invited Council Member Ward to serve as her alternate.

Marie Widen noted that he frequently visited the downtown area and was a former volunteer at the soup kitchen. He said the homeless were his friends, and he believed the kiosk was a good idea. He asked the Council to publicize this to let everyone know that it is there. Ms. Widen said that panhandlers were not using handouts for anything wholesome.

Council Member Ward said with regards to the partnership, one group that needed to be thanked was the Chapel Hill-Carrboro School District. He said it would be advantageous if we could get leadership from the school board.

Item 7 – Master Aging Plan, Orange County Department on Aging

Pat Sprigg provided an update on progress on the County Master Aging Planning (MAP) goals and objectives for 2007-2011. She said the mission was to maintain and improve independence, functionality and quality of life for older residents as long as possible. Ms. Sprigg said to do that, it was imperative that awareness be raised. She stated that North Carolina was the third fastest growing retirement state, and Orange County was one of the faster growing counties in the State for retirees.

Ms. Sprigg noted that the Steering Committee had approved a Bill of Rights for Older Persons and had recommended it to the Board of County Commissioners. She stated that the Bill of Rights would be the underlining principles in the preparation of future MAP updates. Ms. Sprigg said that the Steering Committee had also approved and modified the Theme and Call to Action statement, to read: “Engage all departments of Orange County government (and towns) as well as the broader community, in the process of improving the infrastructure and services to meet the needs of older adults who desire to age in place, especially those with functional disabilities and impairments.” She said they believed this was a smart growth policy to adopt.

Ms. Sprigg stated that most US cities and counties did not have plans in place to meet the future needs of an aging community. She noted that most older adults desired to remain in their own homes and communities for as long as possible. Ms. Sprigg said that conventional urban design characteristics presented obstacles for older persons’ independence and social integration. She said that the development of aging-friendly communities was good for all ages, based on Active Living principles. Ms. Sprigg said that County and Town departments and advisory boards must critically assess their readiness for the “age boom” by evaluating current public policies and practices with aging in mind and making appropriate changes.

Ms. Sprigg noted that the goals and major objectives assigned to those goals over the next five years were located in the packet of materials provided to the Council. She asked the Council to be sensitive to aging issues. Ms. Sprigg stated that the final MAP report would be submitted to the County Board of Commissioners on November 14 for approval.

Council Member Harrison stated that he had thought about this a lot the past weekend as he celebrated his father’s 90^th birthday. He encouraged sensitivity to the issues faced by the elderly, especially in regard to services such as transit for those who, like his parents, want to stay in their own homes.

Council Member Easthom commented on the number of assisted living facilities that might be available to the elderly. Ms. Sprigg stated that mortar and bricks did not necessarily answer the problem of the aging boom. She said there had to be better coordination of available services, noting that how the Town provided services was of utmost importance.

Council Member Thorpe noted that the report did not mention the fact that older persons habitually got out and voted. He suggested that Ms. Sprigg might want to consider that along with other statistics.

Item 8 – Master Technology Plan Development

Information Technology Director Bob Avery reminded the Council that they had asked the Town Manager in June to begin a process for developing a Technology Plan. He said the last complete Technology Plan had been developed in 2000 and those initiatives had been updated each year. Other technologies that have come along since then, such as the wireless capabilities that are now available, represent a need to update the Technology Plan, Mr. Avery said.

Mr. Avery explained that the Town Manager had initiated a Technology Review Team, headed by Deputy Town Manager Flo Miller, that was primarily composed of department heads. That Team was reviewing resources within the Town, looking at initiatives that were in place, and studying directions that the Town wanted to go, he said. Mr. Avery explained that the Team was developing a set of priorities, recommendations and ideas. They had inventoried what is in place, he said, noting that there were three lists in the Council’s packet. These lists include resources that were in place, initiatives that were underway, and items that would be nice to do in the future but do not have funding at the moment, Mr. Avery explained.

Mr. Avery told Council members that the Technology Team would look at several different areas, including infrastructure, e-government, and such things as wireless and fiber-optic cable. He explained that infrastructure included resources the Town currently uses (such as computers, network systems, database systems, radio and telephone systems) to meet established needs and examine capabilities for advancing and/or expanding services to the public. Mr. Avery noted that the Town had 14 different database systems, some of which handle information for the entire Town and others which are unique to departments. The Technology Team needs to look at how some of those databases might be changed, expanded, or enhanced to make information services more available, he said.

Mr. Avery said that the e-government initiative involved how the Town delivers services to the public. This includes the Town’s web services, email services, the new automatic bus locator system, and the webstreaming of Council meetings via the Internet. Mr. Avery said that Capital Improvement Projects were in place, such as the power generator in Town Hall, the telephone system upgrade, and fiber optic cable.

Mr. Avery noted that wireless capabilities could provide staff services and staff capabilities for public safety and emergency situations as well as providing a capability for Inspections to report in a more timely way. To expand that further and provide a Townwide wireless capability would be a fairly ambitious project, he said, noting that it would need to be looked at in detail to determine if it could fit into a long-range plan.

Mr. Avery noted that WinstonNet had proceeded with an RFP to solicit a vendor to provide wireless service and was proceeding to contract for those services. He said the Town would monitor what Winston-Salem was doing and learn if and how it might apply to Chapel Hill. Mr. Avery said that the Technology Review Team would look at all areas and bring back a list of recommendations and priorities on how the Town might proceed. The Town had limitations in its level of expertise if it wanted to get into wireless activities, and, in that case, the Team would look at working with an outside resource, Mr. Avery explained.

Town Manager Roger Stancil outlined the next steps in developing a Technology Plan. He said that at least two themes had developed from his discussions with Council members, citizens and staff members: One was the Town’s great desire to provide high quality services to its citizen; and the other was a belief that technology can play a great role in enhancing those services. Mr. Stancil said the plan that had been completed in 2000 was an excellent one and the Town had done a number of things that it had recommended. Perhaps the Town had not done a good enough job of informing people about what had been accomplished as a result of that plan, he said.

Mr. Stancil explained that the Town needed to find a way to examine its underlying resources and its capability to do even more with technology. With that in mind, he had established the Technology Team, which had been brainstorming ideas and cataloguing resources, he said. However, Mr. Stancil pointed out, in order to develop a Technology Plan that would be available for the Council’s information when they prepare the upcoming budget, he would recommend complementing the Team with some outside resources.

Mr. Stancil said that he had previously worked with RHJ Associates in developing technology plans for local government. He recommended engaging RHJ to assist the Technology Team in accomplishing the following three goals:

assess Town’s information technology resources;

identify issues that affect the deployment and usage of technology in Chapel Hill;

analyze the needs at both the departmental level and the infrastructure level.

Mr. Stancil told Council members that the cost would be a little more than $37,000. The report could be complete by March 2007, he said. Mr. Stancil recommended that the Council adopt the resolution and enact the budget ordinance authorizing the Town Manager to contract for a technology needs assessment with RHJ Associates Inc.

Fred Lampe expressed concern about the lack of focus and prioritization effort. He said the Town needed a method for ranking the applications that Mr. Avery had outlined in his memo. Mr. Lampe expressed hope that RHJ Associates would seek out applications of maximum benefit to residents and employees of Chapel Hill with the least negative impact on taxes. He described the Technology Team’s proposal as a “boil the ocean” approach, which documents everything the Town would like to do. The consultants would deliver a wonderful comprehensive list of ways to spend taxpayers’ money but there was no discussion of how that list would be evaluated and prioritized, Mr. Lampe said. He added that a cost-benefit analysis, including tax implications for residents, had not been discussed. Mr. Lampe said there were new ways to provide municipal wireless that essentially required no capital investment and no municipal operations expenses. Thus, cities could provide free services to residents without increasing taxes, he explained. Mr. Lampe added that the Town did not need to decide whether or not wireless was important, but should investigate alternative methods and get moving on it.

Brian Russell, a former member of the Town Technology Board, expressed support for the Town’s needs assessment for the Technology Plan. He said wireless was a great idea, but added that he wanted to see it devoted to helping citizens. Mr. Russell said he would like to see citizens spending time with consultants on a regular basis throughout the process, not just at one or two meetings. He gave the Town an update on what he had been doing regarding municipal networking. Thanks to Council Member Kleinschmidt, Mr. Russell said, he had formed a non-profit, called Orange Networking, which actively seeks funds to create a wireless mesh network. Orange Networking’s main focus was on the Northside neighborhood, he explained.

John Ager, whose background is in corporate information systems design and integration, said that the proposal before the Council was dated with respect to current wireless technology. He said the language revealed that RHJ Associates was not quite at the cutting edge of the technology. Mr. Ager wanted to make sure that the Town was not paying to solve yesterday’s problems when it could be solving all of the problems at the same time, he said. Mr. Ager stressed that RHJ’s work would need to be supplemented if the Town wanted to address wireless and other technologies.

Mr. Ager stated that what the proposal said did not match the vision that progressive citizens and local politicians had for wireless technology. He said there was not enough detail in the proposal, and proposed that there be citizen input to make sure that wireless gets promoted in the right way. Mr. Ager noted that there was an enormous amount of expertise in the Triangle area. He suggested that the Town tap into that citizen expertise.

Council Member Harrison said that this project would fail if looked at as only as an IT project. He said that no town or city has done a Townwide wireless network by itself. Council Member Harrison recommended that the Council hold the concept that wireless is a Townwide endeavor and that the Town will need to have partners.

Council Member Easthom thanked the citizens who had spoken. She expressed appreciation for the Town Manager’s recommendation and said that no one wanted to move on a master technology plan faster than she did. However, said Council Member Easthom, it might be in the Town’s best interests to look at other consultants as well as RHJ because something as important as this should go out for bids. Council Member Easthom said, however, that she did not want the bidding process to take too long.

Mayor Foy replied that that the staff might start thinking about what the steps and timeline would be and how this endeavor would fit into the Council’s calendar. Noting that Council Member Easthom had asked how long the delay would be, he asked the staff to provide an answer tonight. Mayor Foy then invited Mr. Lampe to come back to the microphone because he’d had an additional comment.

Mr. Lampe said that on page R6 of today’s Wall Street Journal there was an excellent article on what municipalities were doing to deliver inexpensive and/or free wireless service.

Council Member Thorpe asked Mr. Lampe to comment on the Technology Team’s proposal. Mr. Lampe said that he had gone through it in significant detail and had observed a very strong Human Resources or Personnel tone. It had a large amount of goal-setting and analysis of skills, and so forth, he said. Mr. Lampe explained that the proposal did not have much detail associated with the usage and implementation of current and future generation technology.

Mayor Foy said that the Council needed to consider that the Team’s proposal was not for wireless, but was a proposal for current needs and assessment of where the Town now stands. He said that wireless may or may not come about in the future, but was not what was being discussed right now. Mayor Foy said that everyone knew there had to be infrastructure in place for whatever they were going to do, whether it is wireless or some other kind of technology deployment. Council members understood that and they wanted citizens to know it too, said Mayor Foy.

Council Member Kleinschmidt said the discussion was reflecting the cultural shift that would have to occur in the way government functions. He told Mr. Stancil that putting together a cross-disciplinary team to address this issue across departments was a great way to begin. Council Member Kleinschmidt pointed out that this approach had cut through the vertical structure that the Town had in place and had looked at cross-sectional needs. It was a fantastic way to begin, he said

Council Member Kleinschmidt said that whatever strategies and priorities were derived from the needs assessment would require the Council to keep potential problem-solving programs, like municipal wireless service, at the forefront of their thinking. He said that the Town’s way of doing business would not continue to be efficient--and they would not be able to define their priorities, have effective standards and policies, meet basic training requirements, provide customer satisfaction, and do all the other assessment considerations that are part of the proposal--if they do not prepare themselves to respond more quickly. Council Member Kleinschmidt said that municipal wireless needed to be at the front of the Town’s thinking, whether they use RHJ or another consultant.

Council Member Greene said the discussion was getting to the heart of the matter because there was a big difference in shift between thinking internally about how to do e-government and being really receptive to some of the things that the speakers had mentioned. She agreed that the Town needed to move in the direction that Council Mmember Kleinschmidt had discussed. Council Member Greene wondered how long it would take to put this out for bids as Council Member Easthom had suggested. She said that citizens who are technologically sophisticated could complement the consultant and have a dramatic impact on what the Town’s priorities were. Council Member Greene said that doing it all in a systematic and comprehensive manner would be key.

Council Member Harrison said that he could see Council Member Easthom’s point. He expressed concern that it might slow down the momentum that Mr. Stancil had started, however. He asked Mr. Stancil what he thought about the next phases.

Mr. Stancil replied that it had been clear to him that services such as wireless and e-government were very important to the Council. He thought it was important that this particular consultant help the Town assess exactly where it is--not only in technology resources, but in organizational capability and personnel infrastructure--to accomplish the kinds of things that the Council wants to accomplish and deal with the range of choices that they can make about their priorities, he said. Mr. Stancil explained that the result should be a set of priorities that can then be considered for funding.

Mr. Stancil said that having more citizen involvement and making sure that wireless is known as a high priority from the start of the process were excellent suggestions that certainly could be incorporated. He said he knew that the Council wanted to move forward on this, and that funding would become an issue. The staff needed to get that information to the Council so they could make an informed decision during the budget, Mr. Stancil said. He explained that he had worked with RHJ Associates before and that they had produced successful results in other environments doing what he believed needed to be done in Chapel Hill.

Mr. Stancil said that the staff could certainly do an RFP. He pointed out, though, that doing so might mean it would be the end of January before they could decide on a consultant. Mr. Stancil expressed concern that the Council would not have good and complete information as they head into the budget process.

Mayor pro tem Strom said that he had heard from other citizens about the importance of having citizen input while this system was being developed. He noted that a spreadsheet of the work plan was at Council members’ places and that it was full of focus groups, site visits, one-on-one interviews, stakeholder meetings, and so forth. Whether the Town works with this or another consultant, he said, he wanted it made explicit that wireless was a high priority for the Town. Mayor pro tem Strom commented that there were many ways to proceed and that equity issues loom large.

Mayor pro tem Strom said he would like the Council to state that a non-profit style model was their preference. If the Council does not want to do that, then it should be an option as they go forward, he said. Mayor pro tem Strom explained that he did not see a huge corporate entity developing the kind of system that would satisfy the Council and the community. Access and equity in wireless is key for a successful Chapel Hill program, he said.

Council Member Easthom said she had not seen any reference in the proposal to RHJ’s experience working with municipal wireless systems. She agreed that this issue was about equity and that involving citizens throughout the entire process was important. Council Member Easthom pointed out that UNC would also be a primary stakeholder, adding that it was important to know this with respect to the choice of a consultant. She highlighted the importance of what the Town was doing and of the $30,000 that it would spend. Council Member Easthom said that all the things the Council had mentioned needed to be incorporated in a proposal, and noted that they were not included in the proposal before them.

Council Member Easthom explained that her goal was that the Town be more technologically efficient, have a public safety benefit, have good economic development, and provide access to the Internet for children who do not have it at home. She felt very strongly that some of those things should be incorporated into the consultant’s proposal, she said. With regard to the budget, Council Member Easthom noted that Chapel Hill was not going to incorporate a wireless system immediately. It might be worth taking the time to find a consultant who can do all of the things she had mentioned, or to allow RHJ to submit a better proposal, she said. Council Member Easthom agreed that a non-profit model would be worth looking at. She added that the Town could look at what Winston-Salem was doing with its RFP and process. She concluded that it would be worthwhile for the Town to take a month or two to process all of this.

Mayor Foy said he did not see this as “the wireless effort” because he did not expect to do everything at once. He noted that page 2 of agenda item 8b said that the charge to the Technology Team was to “assess the Town’s information and technology resources, identify issues that affect the deployment and usage of technology, and analyze the needs both at the department level and at the enterprise level.” That was step one in understanding where the Town was, said Mayor Foy, adding that it was premature to suggest studying wireless as well. He said that the Town needed to put the wireless system on top of something if it was going to be something that the Town would run. If, on the other hand, the Town does not run the wireless system, but has a separate utility do so, then that would be a different situation, said Mayor Foy. He concluded that, no matter what, the Town would need to do the kind of internal work outlined in the proposal for the strength of the organization.

Council Member Greene said that Mayor Foy was correct to emphasize the three points that he had just read, but she thought the two issues were related. It was worth at least talking about what kind of wireless network would be good for Chapel Hill, she said. Council Member Greene proposed that it all ought to be part of the same conversation—or at least Parts A and B of the same conversation.

Mayor Foy agreed, adding that he saw the current proposal as a first step. He noted that both conversations could be carried on at the same time, on parallel tracks.

Council Member Greene asked Mayor Foy if he thought citizens ought to have input into that first step. “Absolutely,” Mayor Foy replied. Council Member Greene said she agreed, adding that if the conversation were about what the Town was already doing then citizens could discuss what would be needed to do other things too.

Mayor Foy replied that this was fine, but there were many other things that the Town needed to know as well. These include:

how the Police Department and Public Works Department talk to each other;

whether it is possible to have some sort of interface with the public;

which system, wireless or not, is more receptive to interaction.

Mayor Foy said these were things that everyone knew they wanted to do that were not about wireless exclusively. He explained that he saw wireless as a component of what the Town wants to do. He said it should not dominate, certainly not at the fundamental stage where the Town is right now.

Council Member Ward agreed with Mayor Foy that the Technology Team’s report was an information-gathering process to get baseline information that the Town needs regardless of the technology that it employs. He said that the Town did not have to wait for this investigation to conclude before advancing on wireless, since both could be done on parallel tracks. The wireless conversation could go on while the consultant helps the Town with the other part of the puzzle, Council Member Ward pointed out. He said that the Town Manager would enrich the proposal with a greater element of wireless and citizen participation. This might lead to a combined, rather than parallel, track, said Council Member Ward, with the first proposal being along the lines of the current contract with more information on how to move forward with wireless coming later on.

Council Member Hill expressed support for continuing the study of a wireless network. He said he was excited about the idea of someone determining whether the town could make 14 different data bases cooperate with each other in five different telephone systems, and make it all work for everyone who needs to use it. Council Member Hill said that regardless of whether they add a wireless study to this proposal, everything in the proposal needed to be done. He proposed making the contract bigger, adding another line and spending two months getting there, or going ahead with the proposal before them and having information in time for the budget. Council Member Hill praised the idea of having a consultant examine the Town’s current technological capabilities and look at how to improve that.

Council Member Keinschmidt said that when doing a study of what areas will benefit from investment in contemporary technology one has to understand what the full scope of contemporary technologies are. Reading from the plan, he noted that solutions in service and functionality can be found in a wireless system that would be applied to all departments. This is a time where one can use tools more broadly and effectively than merely fixing individual problems, he said. Council Member Kleinschmidt said that one could not actually come up with quality answers to questions raised in the proposal without recognizing the Council’s vision for use of wireless technology. He said it was a tool that would cut across all Town departments and functions in the same way that the Manager had determined the Town’s needs. Council Member Kleinschmidt explained that this was what the Council wanted, and he asked Mr. Stancil if he thought that was part of what RHJ would do.

Mr. Stancil replied that doing so was basic to the consultant’s approach. That was why he’d had a successful venture with them in the past, he said, and that was what he would like RHJ Associates to help replicate in Chapel Hill.

Council Member Thorpe pointed out that Mr. Stancil knows this consultant and has faith in him.

COUNCIL MEMBER THORPE MOVED THAT THE COUNCIL ACCEPT THE PROPOSAL BEFORE THEM.

Council Member Thorpe said this was the first time the Council had been able to talk with the Manager about how they feel. The Manager could now go ahead and incorporate the Council’s sentiments into the process, he said.

COUNCIL MEMBER HILL SECONDED THE MOTION.

Council Member Easthom said that although she trusted the Town Manager she did not know that RHJ Associates Inc. had the expertise to do the things that the Council had articulated. She wished they had discussed having the consultant come back and provide more information before having a motion on the floor, she said. Council Member Easthom said that she did not feel comfortable supporting the motion as stated.

Council Member Ward asked Mr. Stancil if he could bring back additional information that would give the Council a greater level of confidence in the consultant’s ability to perform the additional focus areas that they had outlined tonight. Mr. Stancil replied that the consultant certainly could respond to all of the issues that the Council had brought up.

Council Member Ward encouraged the Council to hold off on the vote until the Manager had provided that information. Mayor Foy ascertained from Mr. Stancil that he could bring the information back at the Council’s next regular business meeting.

COUNCIL MEMBER THORPE WITHDREW HIS MOTION UNTIL THE NEXT BUSINESS MEETING.

Council Member Easthom expressed gratitude to the Manager for bringing RHJ forward, adding that she would feel better having it go through an RFP process so the Council could look at what others were doing and at other levels of expertise.

Mayor Foy said that the Council would defer further discussion of this item until the next business meeting.

Item 9 - Revisions to the Comprehensive Plan

Principal Long Range Planner Gordon Sutherland provided an overview of the recommended revisions by the Planning Board to the Comprehensive Plan. He said the Council was being asked to consider calling a public forum to hear citizen comments and gather input regarding potential revisions to the Plan. Mr. Sutherland noted that the Planning Board had prepared a report and would comment on it.

Mr. Sutherland said that the current Comprehensive Plan was driven by twelve major themes, noting that the Planning Board as well as other advisory boards had identified four new major themes that could be the basis of additional themes in the Comprehensive Plan: environmental protection, health promotion, sustainability, and public art. He said some of the existing themes could be expanded upon, giving redevelopment and infill development and density in relation to the downtown and other locations where there were opportunities for transit-oriented and transit supportive development as examples.

Mr. Sutherland stated that the staff recommendation was that the Council adopt the attached resolution, which would schedule a Public Forum for November 20, 2006, and also direct the Planning Board to hold a Public Forum prior to November 20, 2006 to receive additional comment from citizens.

Ruby Sinreich, chair of the Planning Board, noted there was plenty of room for expansion and change. She reviewed the six specific comments that the Planning Board was recommending be identified and addressed in a revised Comprehensive Plan:

· Tree protection on private property;

· Transportation, fiscal equity and environmental resources associated with the UNC Carolina North development;

· The Public Arts Contextual Master Plan;

· Follow-up on the Plan measures of progress which were identified in the existing Plan;

· Define the community’s sense of downtown, define its characteristics, define terms such as “human scale” to assess whether downtown development proposals are appropriate; and

· Review the Town’s strategy to provide affordable housing; consider additional strategies and actions.

Ms. Sinreich emphasized that the discussion needed to go beyond what was proposed. She said there should be more public input, more than just public hearings, that would be more interactive than a public hearing and spark creativity as well as being more participatory in nature. Ms. Sinreich said this process also needed more time devoted to dialogue. She suggested that November 20 was not a long time to devote to this process, noting that would be just the “tip of the iceberg.”

Council Member Greene asked if members of advisory boards got copies of the Comprehensive Plan. Principal Planner David Bonk stated that board members attended orientation sessions and were provided copies of the Comprehensive Plan at that time, although not all advisory board members received the entire Plan. He stated that all members of the Planning Board received a copy, but other boards received copies of the sections that were specifically of interest to them rather than the entire document.

Council Member Greene said that was a nice document, and all advisory board members would benefit from it because it was so comprehensive. She said that two-thirds of the issues in the Plan were about implementing them, not changing them, adding that they did not need to revise the whole document at this time. Council Member Greene emphasized that it was a good document, noting that the Town needed to do a better job of understanding where it was in terms of implementing the Plan. Mr. Bonk said it was important to recognize that the six issues highlighted by Ms. Sinreich were recommendations from the Planning Board.

Mayor pro tem Strom agreed with Council Member Greene’s comment that much of the comments came from advisory boards not familiar with the entire Plan. He said that the Council had make significant progress on many of these issues over the past four or five years. Mayor pro tem Strom said what was missing was matching up goals and actions with the list, and that had to happen before it goes to any public hearing. He said they should look at that before deciding how to proceed.

Mayor Foy said that the Council's idea was that the Comprehensive Plan by its own terms was to be updated five years after it was finished. He said when they undertook that effort they believed that it needed only minor modifications, not full scale change. Mayor Foy said it appeared that what was being suggested was a full-scale revision and that was not what the Council wanted or needed. He said he believed they needed to slow down and make sure they were heading in the right direction.

Mayor Foy said it was almost frustrating to see something like tree protection added here, when that was not a new idea. He stated that the Land Use Management Ordinance revolved around environmental protection, which included tree protection, so it was not a new idea. Mayor Foy said he was not clear on exactly what the Council needed to do, because these did not look like new ideas but only a reworking of thematic threads.

Council Member Kleinschmidt said he believed this was simply restating or reorganizing Town goals. He said he agreed that they did not need to completely redo the entire Comprehensive Plan, but wanted to support adding to the sixteen major themes the issue regarding the downtown. Council Member Kleinschmidt said that was also an opportunity to restate some of the Town’s values.

Mayor pro tem Strom said, given the changing nature of the Town they needed to address specific issues, for instance infill and transit-oriented development. He said those types of issues needed to be worked on, to promote the kind of growth that they were seeking for the Town.

Mayor Foy said he believed it was less productive to spend a lot of time reworking the Plan than it would be to actually do some of the things that they had previously deferred. He said he believed they needed to come to some conclusions relatively quickly and move on with implementation.

Council Member Hill said he understood that the Parking Committee was going to request changes to the Plan, and he believed they should delay any action on this for a while.

Mayor Foy said they had already delayed it and he believed they had an obligation to “wrap it up.” He proposed that the staff, after having heard this evening’s conversation, provide the Council with some guidance on this. Mayor Foy said rather than scheduling a public hearing, he would like the staff to give guidance on how to proceed to modify the Plan as well as narrow those modifications down. He asked that the staff bring the Council something that was formed so that they could make a decision. Mr. Bonk said they could come back on November 20 with suggestions on how best to proceed.

The Council agreed by consensus to proceed in that manner.

Item 10 - Legislative Program for 2007 Session of the NC General Assembly

Mr. Karpinos noted that the NC General Assembly would convene its 2007 Session on January 24, 2007, adding that this would be the year for a “long session.” He said the General Assembly would be more likely to take up local matters that might be deemed as “controversial.” Mr. Karpinos said in recent conversations the Council had expressed an interest in beginning its development of a legislative program earlier than it had in the past. In addition, he said, the Town had received an inquiry and request from the Triangle J Council of Governments (TJCOG) asking that they share their legislative interests for their consideration this fall.

Mayor Foy said in the past they had asked for authority to bury utility lines as well as a funding source for that. He said he believed it was a good idea, and would like us to develop a strategy to get that. Mayor Foy said the last time they proposed that was just after the ice storm, and they were not successful, noting they had not really been able to get a lot of other people interested in the idea. He said it would be good if they could get the TJCOG or other municipalities on board with them.

Council Member Harrison noted that transportation funding was being termed as in a crisis, noting that funding sources were at issue. He said he wanted that to be a high priority for the Council.

Mayor Foy said the Council had never taken a viewpoint on specific funding, but preferred a menu of potential funding. Council Member Harrison stated that any new revenue source should be available to everyone.

Mayor pro tem Strom said as a Council they had decided to stop asking for a real estate transfer fee, and he believed they needed to put that back on the table. He said that was the right revenue source, noting it was fair and equitable and did not have the negative impact of other revenue resources. Mayor pro tem Strom added that a ticket tax would go a long way in Chapel Hill, noting it would be earmarked for transportation.

Mayor Foy said they needed to get UNC on board if they wanted to pursue that, to come to some agreement about what would be fair and if they would support it.

Council Member Ward said that UNC should be increasingly more willing to agree to something like that as they are being asked more and more frequently to help solve traffic and safety issues, as well as air quality.

Council Member Easthom advocated for reconsideration of a local bill to authorize a publicly funded program for Chapel Hill municipal election campaigns. Mr. Karpinos said it could be proposed again.

Council Member Kleinschmidt said that he did not believe there was anything on last year’s or the year before’s list that should be removed. He said they needed to think about which things they needed to have partners for and who they would be, noting nothing should be removed unless they had been passed. Mr. Karpinos said this is just the start.

Mayor Foy said he was interested in the firefighting revenues, noting that if they were going to do that again Chief Jones needed to begin that process now so that an incremental increase could be proposed.

Council Member Ward said he believed they also needed to consider the Bill of Rights for Older Persons presented tonight, and perhaps promote it on a statewide basis. He said there had also been efforts in the past for a bottle bill that he believed was long overdue. Council Member Ward said that was an issue that would help locally as well as Statewide. He noted that the Homestead Act was another issue, to help people not get priced out of their homes, noting that was a common problem in Chapel Hill for the elderly.

Council Member Hill said that the way sales tax distribution was done in this State seemed to be archaic. He said he would like to know if it worked in Chapel Hill, and if distribution on a per capita or population basis made more sense than on a county/geography basis. Council Member Hill said he would like some research on whether that would be good for Chapel Hill.

Item 11 – Appointments

11a. Orange County Animal Services Advisory Board (R-11).

The Council recommended Adrienne Breaux as Chapel Hill’s representative to the Orange County Animal Services Advisory Board.

Council Members

Orange County Animal Services Advisory Board

Foy

Easthom

Greene

Harrison

Hill

Kleinschmidt

Strom

Thorpe

Ward

TOTAL

Vote For 1 Applicant

Adrienne Breaux

Robert Peterson

Other; please list:

Council Members

11b. Orange County Animal Shelter Committee (R-12).

Council Member Ward expressed interest in serving on this Committee.

COUNCIL MEMBER KLEINSCHMIDT MOVED, SECONDED BY MAYOR PRO TEM STROM, ADOPTION OF RESOLUTION R-12, AMENDED TO INCLUDE COUNCIL MEMBER WARD AS THE COUNCIL’S APPOINTEE TO THE ORANGE COUNTY ANIMAL SHELTER DESIGN COMMITTEE. THE MOTION WAS ADOPTED UNANIMOUSLY (9-0).

11c. Transportation Board.

The Council appointed Jason Baker, Mirta Mihovilovic, and Matthew Scheer to the Transportation Board.

Council Members

Transportation Board

Foy

Easthom

Greene

Harrison

Hill

Kleinschmidt

Strom

Thorpe

Ward

TOTAL

Vote For 3 Applicants

Timothy Auble

Jason Baker

Bharathwajan Iyengar

Mirta Mihovilovic

Matthew Scheer

Marc ter Horst

Other; please list:

Item 12 - Petitions

12a. By the Mayor and Council Members.

12a(1). Mayor Foy regarding Bicycle Commuter Access to Research Triangle Park

Mayor Foy said he wanted the Council to explore the possibility of a bicycle commuter route from Chapel Hill to the Research Triangle Park. He petitioned the Council to refer the issue to the Town Manager, the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Board, and the Transportation Board so that they could provide input to the Council.

Council Member Harrison said they needed to let the TAC know they really want action on this.

COUNCIL MEMBER WARD MOVED, SECONDED BY MAYOR PRO TEM STROM, TO RECEIVE AND REFER THE PETITION TO THE TOWN MANAGER, THE BICYCLE AND PEDESTRIAN ADVISORY BOARD AND THE TRANSPORTATION BOARD. THE MOTION WAS ADOPTED UNANIMOUSLY (9-0).

12a(2). Request from University regarding Committee of Citizens from Area Neighborhoods in the Vicinity of the School of Law.

Mayor Foy said that Chancellor Moeser had suggested that the Town and the University appoint people who lived in the area to a committee to advise them about how the Law School expansion would affect nearby neighborhoods. Mayor Foy said that was a more formalized way to do what should be getting done.

Mayor pro tem Strom asked how they would find those citizens, what would they tell them to do, and what would their input mean. He said possibly they needed the chairs of all boards and commissions involved before moving on this. Mayor pro tem Strom said they needed to think through all the instructions as well as what the outcome would be.

Mayor Foy suggested that maybe they do not need to be involved, that the University could do that on its own. Mayor pro tem Strom said if they were to appoint people to such a board then they would have to think it through carefully.

Council Member Easthom commented it could help them to be involved, noting she agreed with the general philosophy of such a committee.

Council Member Ward said he was concerned that an appointment from them would have some implied power or influence on their ultimate decisions, and he did not know how that would work. He said in order to take advantage of participating in the Law School project he believed they should identify persons who have an interest through whatever means necessary.

Mayor Foy said he believed it was the Council’s consensus that they were not prepared to appoint people to a committee but did support a way for people to participate early on in the process. He said he would convey that to the Chancellor.

COUNCIL MEMBER WARD MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER KLEINSCHMIDT, TO RECEIVE AND REFER THE PETITION TO THE MANAGER. THE MOTION WAS ADOPTED UNANIMOUSLY (9-0).

12a(3). Mayor pro tem Strom regarding the Downtown Economic Development Initiative.

Mayor pro tem Strom stated that the Town’s negotiating committee for the Downtown Economic Development Initiative had met today, and the Council would be going into closed session to talk about that. He said the Committee wanted to recommend to the Council that the Council set a date for a public forum for forthcoming proposals for November 13. Mayor pro tem Strom said if the Council decided not to proceed, then the public forum could be cancelled.

MAYOR PRO TEM STROM MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER KLEINSCHMIDT, TO SET A PUBLIC FORUM FOR NOVEMBER 13 TO HEAR THE DEVELOPERS PROPOSAL FOR LOT 5. THE MOTION WAS ADOPTED UNANIMOUSLY (9-0).

Item 13 - Reserved for Discussion of Consent Agenda Items: None.

Item 14 - Request for Closed Session

COUNCIL MEMBER WARD MOVED TO GO INTO CLOSED SESSION, AS AUTHORIZED BY NC GENERAL STATUTE SECTION 143-318.11(a)(6), TO CONSIDER PERSONNEL MATTERS RELATED TO AN INDIVIDUAL PUBLIC EMPLOYEE, AND, AS AUTHORIZED BY NC GENERAL STATUTE SECTION 143-318.11(a)(4), TO DISCUSS THE DOWNTOWN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROPOSAL FOR LOT 5. THE MOTION WAS SECONDED BY MAYOR PRO TEM STROM. THE MOTION WAS ADOPTED UNANIMOUSLY (9-0).

The meeting was adjourned at 9:50 p.m.