REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING
MONDAY, APRIL 18, 2005

CALL MEETING TO ORDER:

The Regular Meeting of the Bowie City Council was held on Monday, April 18, 2005, in the Council Chambers at City Hall. Mayor Robinson called the meeting to order at 8:00 p.m.

QUORUM:

In attendance were Mayor Robinson, Councilmembers Aleshire, Booker Jones, Brady, Jenkins, Kroemer and Lyles; City Manager Deutsch, Asst. City Manager Fitzwater, City Attorney Robert Levan, Members of the Staff, the Press and the Public.

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG:

The Council led the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.

CITIZEN PARTICIPATION:

A. Mr. Andrew Dziekan, 12413 Rustic Hill Drive, spoke about changes to the City Code, Chapter 26, Sec. 11, which addresses the floor area of an accessory building. He said he would like the area increased to 200 sq. ft. if there were no objection from adjacent homeowners. He also asked that a roll up, garage-type door be allowed on sheds.

B. Mr. Bill Britton, 12219 Malta Lane, spoke about a town hall meeting which he had requested be scheduled with elected officials. Mr. Britton was advised that it would depend on the schedules of the elected officials.

C. Mr. Charles Burton, 12410 Canfield Lane, spoke about staffing at fire stations. A copy of his statement is attached.

CITY BOARDS AND COMMITTEES:

A. Councilman Brady moved the appointment of David Ross as a member of the Information Technology Committee. Councilman Aleshire seconded the motion and it carried unanimously.

Mayor Robinson swore Mr. Ross into office in accordance with Section 92A of the City Charter.

CITY MANAGER’S REPORT:

City Manager Deutsch reported that staff delivered a signed copy of the Joint Use Agreement on the BRAVA facility to Senator Green with a signature of a City representative; the agreement has now been signed by BRAVA and the Park and Planning Commission; all of the changes requested by Council were incorporated in the document and the Senator will be working with County Councilman Peters to secure the support and signature of a School Board representative.

CONSENT AGENDA:

A. Mayor Pro Tem Jenkins moved approval of Consent Agenda Items : A) Approval of Minutes of March 21, 2005 Council Meeting; and B) Approval of Proclamation P-7-05, Declaring the Month of May as “Poppy Month” in Bowie; C. Approval of Resolution R-24-05, Accepting Bids for a Diversity Education Program; D. Introduction of Resolution R-25-05, Enlarging the Corporate Boundaries of the City of Bowie By Annexing Residential Property on the West Side of Race track Road, Containing Approximately 126.89 Acres, Known as Phases 2, 3 and 4 of “Saddlebrook West” Subdivision and the Property Commonly Known as Bowie Race Track and Stables, Containing Approximately 183.154 Acres, Which Areas Are Contiguous to and Adjoining the Existing Corporate Area of the City of Bowie; E. Introduction of Ordinance O-6-05, Amending City Code Chapter 4, “Animal Control”, Section 4-22, “Enforcement”, Subsection (c), “Penalty”, to Increase the Monetary Penalties for Certain Violations of Chapter 4; and F. Introduction of Ordinance O-7-05, Amending Chapter 17, “Parks Rules and Regulations”, Section 17-2, “Rules”, to Amend the Provisions Pertaining to Fires and Renumber the Subsections of That Section; and Amending the Corresponding Penalty Provisions of Chapter 17, Section 17-5, “Enforcement of Chapter”. Councilman Brady seconded the motion and it carried unanimously.

OLD BUSINESS:

A. Ordinance O-4-05 - Approving and Adopting a Budget for the Fiscal Year Beginning July 1, 2005 and Ending June 30, 2006 -

Public Hearing:

1. Mary Ellen Winlund, Chairperson of the Civic Affairs Committee, said the CAC would like to address the Council about a proposal for a new event to promote the City’s image; this event would be known as “The Woman’s Circle”. She said one of the main goals would be to promote a positive self-image for today’s young women in Bowie; CAC requested that $2,550 to be included in the budget but it was not. Ms. Winlund asked that the money be put back in.

2. Ms. Maritza Alvarez, Civic Affairs Committee, said the committee was surprised the project was not included in the budget; asked the Council to reinstate the money.

3. Ms. Kathleen Parker, Chairman of the Arts Committee, spoke about public art in the City of Bowie and said there are many benefits that would come to the City. She said she would like to continue with additional public arts projects as has been supported in the past. She asked the Council to include an amount of $10,000 in the budget for public art; and make a commitment for an amount of not less than $10,000 to be included in future budgets to continue an on-going program of public art in the City of Bowie.

4. Mr. Dufour Woolfley, Chairman of the Financial Advisory Committee, reported that state shared revenues have been some what volatile; the current budget has no great surplus; the Strategic Plan is moving forward and the Committee urges a successful closure and feels it is a key component to a successful budget process; the Committee recommends that the totals in the budget be represented as a part of the fiscal policy section.

5. Mr. Charles Burton, Canfield Lane, displayed photos of bike trails along Old Chapel Road and Rte. 197 up to Whitehall Elementary School, which students would use to walk to school; the photos depicted areas that were in need of repair, crosswalks that needed to be repainted, etc.

B. Resolution R-21-05 - Adopting a Capital Improvement Program for the Fiscal Years 2006-2011 -

Since there were no persons signed up to speak, Mayor Robinson declared the public hearing to have been held.

C. Ordinance O-5-05 - Amending City Code Chapter 1, “General Provisions”, Section 1-6, “Misdemeanor; Municipal Infractions; General Penalty; Continuing Violations” to Increase the Monetary Penalties for Municipal Infractions - City Attorney Levan summarized the ordinance and said the purpose of the ordinance is to increase the fine for a declared municipal infraction from $50 to $100 for a basic fine; the $50 fine was ineffectual as an impediment to those people who do not adhere to warnings, etc. and continue to violate specific sections of the ordinance.

Since there were no persons signed up to speak, Mayor Robinson declared the public hearing to have been held.

Mayor Pro Tem Jenkins moved adoption of Ordinance O-5-05. Councilman Brady seconded the motion and it carried unanimously.

NEW BUSINESS:

A. Presentation of Status Report by President of Bowie State University - Dr. Calvin Lowe introduced his staff and displayed maps showing the layout of the campus, additions to be made in the next few years, and recreational facilities; the University has 5500 students and 600-700 employees; a real estate advisor is being brought on board to help determine use of the property. He also spoke about the new residential hall, and noted that 4 more are expected to be built in the future to house 25-30% of students on campus; construction will begin in June for a new school of business and in next year’s budget, a performing arts building is proposed which will contain studios, practice rooms, etc. Dr. Lowe said that they are looking at future construction of parking garages on the edges of the campus.

Following a few questions from Councilmembers, Mayor Robinson thanked Dr. Lowe for his presentation and said the City would like to have the opportunity to participate as the planning stages move forward to discuss matters of mutual benefit, and to have an ongoing dialogue to help each other out.

B. Detailed Site Plan #05013 - Bowie Nissan - Ms. Cynthia Fenton, City Planning staff, reported that the applicant is proposing an auto dealership on the west side of Rte. 301 approximately 450 feet south of the Mt. Oak Road intersection; it is proposed to be 29,700 sq. ft., is zoned C-N and contains 6.44 acres. She said the Bowie Advisory Planning Board heard this item and questions that arose concerned noise generated from the dealership, fencing requirements, employee parking and access to the adjacent residential Noerling property; two residents attended the hearing, one of which indicated that he was satisfied the median issue was being address by SHA, and the other who is a Noerling family member and wanted clarification regarding the access and easement issue; the Board approved this item unanimously with staff conditions. Ms. Fenton displayed a Power Point presentation showing a location map, topographic map, aerial photo and site plan; a stakeholder’s meeting was held on March 29, 2005 and residents had questions regarding stormwater management and the access easement issue. Ms. Fenton summarized the staff report, a copy of which is on file at City Hall. Her summary included access, parking and internal circulation; landscaping; architecture; and Preliminary Plan compliance. She concluded her report by saying that staff is recommending approval subject to the conditions noted on Page 6 of the staff report. She added that the BAPB unanimously voted to approve the application with the staff conditions.

Mr. Norman Rivera, attorney for the applicant, said that they concur with the staff recommendation and conditions except for Condition #3 which refers to the elimination of parking spaces. He spoke about access to the facility and the number of spaces; a 30 ft. landscape strip is required and although the proposal does not include a strip that is 30 ft. wide, there is a fence that will be heavily landscaped. He asked Council to consider this as an alternative. With respect to traffic, Mr. Rivera said that the off-loading of vehicles that will be for sale would be on site so tractor-trailers will not be stopping along Rte. 301. He also spoke about providing sidewalks for pedestrian safety, as well as hiker biker access, which will be worked out with City staff.

Public Hearing:

1. Mr. Richard Schroder, 1305 Port Echo Lane, representing the Civic Association of South Bowie, reported that the Association was concerned about traffic safety in accessing and exiting the dealership, trying to cross the median and possibly going against the traffic. He commended the applicant for coming up with a solution.

2. Mr. Al Noerling, 2504 Crain Highway, spoke about traffic on Rte. 301 and felt it would increase in the future. He felt that this was not a good location for an auto dealership and asked the Council to consider not approving this application.

Following discussion between Council, staff and the applicant, Councilman Lyles moved for approval of Detailed Site Plan #05013 subject to the conditions listed on Page 6 of the staff report amended as follows: 1, 2, 4, 5-11 remain the same; delete #3 and renumbering remaining conditions to read Conditions 1-10; add 3 conditions as follows: #11- “Applicant shall construct sidewalk along its frontage and work with neighboring properties to the south to extend sidewalk south to applicant’s second parcel”; Condition #12 - “100% of rooftop parking shall be screened”; Condition #13 - “No squawk box loudspeakers on site”. Councilman Aleshire seconded the motion.

Councilman Brady asked that the motion be amended to add Condition #14: “All offloading will be done on site”. The maker and seconder of the motion concurred. The motion to amend the original motion carried with a vote of 6-1 (Lyles).

The motion to approve DSP 05013 with staff conditions as amended carried with a vote of 5-2 (Jenkins, Booker Jones).

ADJOURNMENT:

Mayor Pro Tem Jenkins moved to adjourn the meeting and move into a Worksession regarding the Master Plan. Councilman Brady seconded the motion and it carried unanimously. The meeting was adjourned at 10:15 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Pamela A. Fleming, CMC, City Clerk