REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2006

CALL MEETING TO ORDER:

The Regular Meeting of the Bowie City Council was held on Monday, September 18, 2006 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, Mayor Pro Tem Brady, Councilmembers Conroy, Jenkins, Kroemer, Lyles and Turner; 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 City Council led the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.

CITIZEN PARTICIPATION:

A. Mr. Eugene Kiley, 3621 Melfa Lane, asked that a letter be sent to the Governor and the Mayor of Baltimore to ask them to reinstate MOTEC and contact Hawaii in regards to utilizing the Dundalk property to share in constructing future OTEC platforms. A copy of Mr. Kiley’s comments is attached.

CITY BOARDS AND COMMITTEES:

A. Mayor Pro Tem Brady moved the appointment of Mr. Mountaga Bah as a member of the Arts Committee. Councilman Jenkins seconded the motion and it carried unanimously.

B. Councilman Jenkins moved the appointment of Mr. Raymond Skinner as Chairman of the Economic Development Committee. Mayor Pro Tem Brady seconded the motion and it carried unanimously.

C. Councilman Turner moved the appointment of Maria Arnold as a member of the Beautification and Tree Preservation Committee. Mayor Pro Tem Brady seconded the motion and it carried unanimously.

D. Councilman Conroy moved the appointment of Ms. Kelly Anderson and Mr. Richard O’Brien as members of the Public Safety Committee. Mayor Pro Tem Brady seconded the motion and it carried unanimously.

E. Mayor Robinson swore Ms. Anderson, Mr. O’Brien, and Ms. Arnold into office in accordance with Sec. 92A of the City Charter. Mr. Bah was not present to be sworn in.

COUNCIL ANNOUNCEMENTS:

Mayor Robinson swore Katherine A. Perez into office as the new City of Bowie Police Chief. Ms. Perez’s fiancé, Mr. Allan Grines, completed the ceremony by pinning on her badge. Chief Perez introduced her family and friends who were present to wish her well.

CITY MANAGER’S REPORT:

City Manager Deutsch reported on the following items: 1) The Court of Appeals notified the City Attorney that the Court has accepted the City’s request to take the case on the appeal regarding MIE Properties. 2) Council requested that staff develop the framework for the meeting regarding the potential for residential units at the Melford property; staff is nearing the end of the development of materials for that meeting and expect to recommend a date to Council shortly. 3) The County Health Department will come to a meeting with staff to help with the preparation for pandemic flu; this item is on the Council’s November 13 worksession.

CONSENT AGENDA:

Mayor Pro Tem Brady moved approval of the following items: A. Approval of Resolution R-79-06, Expressing Support for the Continuation and Expansion of a Series of Maryland Downtown Development Association Workshops in the City of Bowie; B. Approval of Resolution R-80-06, Approving a Capital Projects Grant Agreement With the State of Maryland for the Parks and Grounds Facility; and C. Introduction of Ordinance O-8-08, Amending Chapter 17, “Park Rules and Regulations”, Section 17-2, “Rules”, To Delete a Reference in Former Subsection (EE) to Permission for Camping Upon a Property Now Under Contract to be Sold, to Set Forth Rules for the Use of the City’s Skateboard Park Facility, and to Renumber the Subsections of Section 17-2, and to Amend Section 17-5 to Refer to the Subsections of Section 17-2 as Renumbered. Councilman Turner seconded the motion and it carried unanimously.

OLD BUSINESS:

A. Resolution R-64-06 - Enlarging the Corporate Boundaries of the City of Bowie by Annexing Land Contiguous and Adjoining the Existing Corporate Area of the City on the East Side of Church Road, Consisting of Residential Properties Known as the Twelve Oaks Subdivision, and Surrounding Properties Consisting of Approximately 98.14 Acres - City Manager Deutsch summarized the staff report dated September 12, 2006, a copy of which is on file at City Hall. He reported that when the resolution was introduced, staff had indicated to Council that there was some concerns with numbers in terms of the signatures in favor of the annexation; as of September 12, there were 57 of the 125 households or 46% indicating they were in favor of annexation; signed petition and consent forms have been received from approximately 40% of registered voters who own in aggregate 45% of the assessed value. Mr. Deutsch further reported that staff understands that petitions have been signed by approximately 33% of the homeowners; state law requires 20% of registered voters to call for a referendum. He said one of the concerns is the potential ramifications of a negative vote on an annexation in any neighborhood would negatively effect the image of the City in terms of relationships with the County, etc.; many residents of Twelve Oaks have been provided a tax comparison so that they would know the personal financial implications of paying municipal taxes should they become part of the City. Mr. Deutsch concluded his report by saying that because staff is uncertain of the exact status of the support in the community and the potential for a reference petition, staff recommends that the resolution be tabled until the meeting of October 16; state law allows for a postponement of up to 30 days; it has been suggested to many of the neighbors that City staff could facilitate a meeting in the community to help clarify any concerns neighbors have on either side of the issue, and perhaps this may result in greater numbers one way or the other that might avoid a community that is divided.

Public Hearing:

1. Stewart Street, Vice President the Homeowners Association, spoke in opposition to the annexation; had been told that the community would have the opportunity to vote.

2. Andrea Langster said she does not support the annexation; wants to allow the majority of the community to vote.

3. Michael Watson spoke in support of the annexation.

4. Earl Leach, 14401 Danube Lane, also spoke in support of the annexation.

5. Frank Tolton, 14607 Donegal Ct., was in favor of the annexation.

6. Alice Thomas, 14602 Donegal Ct., spoke in favor of the annexation.

7. Clyde Boykins, 14530 Dolbrook Lane, also spoke in favor of the annexation.

In response to a question posed by Councilman Lyles, City Attorney Levan said that the annexation would be effective in 45 days unless a petition for a referendum is filed. Ms. Levan answered other questions asked by Mr. Lyles regarding residency and voting requirements with regard to the referendum.

Further questions were asked by members of Council and Ms. Levan explained that to consent to the annexation two separate categories of consent are needed: owners of 25% of the assessed value and 25% of the registered voters; conversely, in order to vote in the referendum a resident only needs to be a registered voter in the territory to be annexed.

Following further discussion of the process, Mayor Pro Tem Brady moved to adopt the staff recommendation to table the resolution to the October 16th Council meeting. Councilman Jenkins seconded the motion and it carried with a vote of 4-3 (Conroy, Lyles, Turner).

Mayor Robinson turned the meeting over to Mayor Pro Tem Brady at this point in the meeting.

NEW BUSINESS:

A. Resolution R-81-06 - Adopting the Housing and Community Development Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation Report (CAPER) for Fiscal Year 2006 - Mr. Jesse Buggs, Grants Contract Administrator, summarized the staff report dated September 18, 2006, a copy of which is on file at City Hall. He said this is the second of the two major reports produced each year for the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD); this report states that all of the objectives for the fiscal year have been accomplished; 4 major speed projects and several street sign projects have been completed, as well as working with the Planning Department on other initiatives in the Huntington section of the City to improve pedestrian and vehicular transportation in the City. He reported that in the next 2 years the City would have to enter into a new five-year agreement.

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

Councilman Conroy moved to approve Resolution R-81-06. Councilman Kroemer seconded the motion and it carried 5-0 (Robinson, Lyles absent).

B. Preliminary Plan #4-05135 - Dixon Property - City Manager Deutsch reported that the developer is in the process of making some changes on the plan that have not yet been completed; staff has learned that several of the items that staff had suggested are being incorporated in the plan and staff recommends that Council table this item until the October 3, 2006 meeting.

Councilman Jenkins moved to table Preliminary Plan #4-05135, Dixon Property. Councilman Turner seconded the motion and it carried with a vote of 5-0 (Robinson, Lyles absent).

C. CB-75-2006 - Agricultural Open Space Zone - Ms. Elizabeth Chaisson, City Planning staff, summarized the staff report dated September 14, 2006, a copy of which is on file at City Hall. She reported that the bill will be before the Planning, Zoning and Economic Development Committee (PZED) for discussion; staff has reviewed the legislation and finds that CB-75-2006 is generally consistent with the approved 2002 General Plan and with the City’s past policy on land development within the Rural Tier and, therefore, recommends that the City Council support the legislation as long as the bill is revised to reflect the recommended uses as outlined in the staff report, and provided that amendments are made that address the following issue: That wherever additional lot coverage is limited, additional impervious surface area shall be limited as well.

Councilman Kroemer moved to approve the staff recommendation relating to support of the AOS zone, but would leave it up to the County as to what special exception should be covered. The motion died due to lack of a second.

In response to Councilman Jenkins’ question, City Manager Deutsch said that the Council has historically taken positions on rural preservation as well as positions in favor of low-density development in the Rural Tier. Councilman Jenkins then said he is overtaken by exactly what this bill does, what the impacts of it are going to be and it is an extremely complex matrix; he does not feel compelled to take a position on something that has so many unanswered questions and felt the Council should pass on taking a position on this legislation at this stage. Councilman Jenkins

Councilman Turner said he would feel comfortable with having staff attend both the PZED meeting as well as the Sectional Map Amendment hearing and report back to Council.

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

Councilman Jenkins then moved that the City not take a position on CB-75-2006 and that staff attend the meetings as suggested by Councilman Turner. Councilman Lyles seconded the motion and it carried with a vote of 6-0 (Robinson absent).

COUNCIL COMMENTS:

A. Councilman Jenkins commended City Attorney Elissa Levan for a job well done in connection with the Court of Appeals agreeing to review the decision in the Science and Technology Center case. He added it is not a routine matter and means a higher court has agreed to hear the City’s argument that the lower court may have erred in ruling in one area in which it did not support the covenants.

B. Councilman Conroy congratulated the winners of the recent Primary Election. He also noted the invitation by the Radio Control Club to attend their event on Swanson Road, and noted the recent resignation of Joyce Halper from the Education Committee and felt she did an outstanding job as a volunteer.

ADJOURNMENT:

Councilman Jenkins moved that the meeting be adjourned. Councilman Turner seconded the motion and it carried unanimously. The meeting was adjourned at 9:41 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Pamela A. Fleming, CMC
City Clerk