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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCCM-11-03-97City of Carmel CARMEL CITY COUNCIL MEETING AGENDA MONDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 1997 -- 7 P.M. COUNCIL CHAMBERS / CITY HALL / ONE CIVIC SQUARE MEETING CALLED TO ORDER 2. 3. 4. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. INVOCATION PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE RECOGNITION OF OUTSTANDING CITIZENS/CITY EMPLOYEES APPROVAL OF MINUTES a. October 20, 1997, Regular Meeting RECOGNITION OF CITIZENS WHO WISH TO ADDRESS THE COUNCIL ACTION OF MAYORAL VETOES CLAIMS · Payroll · General Claims · Retirement COMMITTEE REPORTS OLD BUSINESS a. Resolution CC-10-20-97-02/Authorization of Joinder Between the City of Cannel and the Central Indiana Regional Transportation Authority; Mayor James Brainard PUBLIC HEARING a. First Reading Ordinance D-1334-97/Salary Ordinance for Elected Officials for the Calendar Year 1998 *published in The Daily Ledger on October 17, 1997 NEW BUSINESS OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS AD JOURNM~iVlC SQUAI~E CAImEL, INDI,~d-IA 46032 317/571.2400 CARMEL CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES MONDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 1997 -- 7 P.M. COUNCIL CHAMBERS / CITY HALL / ONE CIVIC SQUARE MEMBERS PRESENT: Mayor Brainard; Council President Kevin Kirby, Councilors Jim Miller, Robert Battreall, Norm Rundle, Ron Carter and Billy Walker. Clerk-Treasurer Diana Cordray and Deputy Clerk Rebecca Wolf also attended. Councilor Luci Snyder was absent. Mayor Brainard called the meeting to order at 7:05 p.m. Councilor Miller gave the invocation. Mayor Brainard led the Pledge of Allegiance. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Councilor Rundle moved to approve the minutes from the October 20, 1997, regular meeting and the October 7, 1997, special meeting. Councilor Kirby seconded. The minutes were approved 6-0. RECOGNITION OF CITIZENS WHO WISH TO ADDRESS THE COUNCIL: Mayor Brainard explained the history of the BZA decision on the Regan Development and the resulting litigation. He stated that the BZA had voted 4-1 against the development and each board member had made an individual finding of fact for the case. He explained that the case was appealed to the Hamilton County Superior Court and then to the Indiana Court of Appeals. The mayor stated that the appellate court judge had primarily sided in favor of the BZA, but required the BZA to produce a joint finding of fact. The mayor stated the case was remanded directly back to the BZA: He stated that in July 1997, the current BZA formally adopted a joint finding of fact. Rick Sharp., a resident of 1309 Thombird Lane representing the Thistlewood Neighborhood Association, discussed the case with the mayor and asked for details about the current state of the litigation. Mr. Sharp and Mayor Brainard also discussed annexations and a specific request made to the mayor by Clay Township Resident Michael Mountain. CLAIMS: Councilor Rundle moved to approve general claims for $1,446,663.44 and payroll for $534,152.52. Councilor Carter seconded. Claims were approved 6-0. Councilor Carter asked the clerk-treasurer to have the dollar amount of claims included on agenda. Clerk-Treasurer Cordray stated she had quit listing the specific claims on the agenda so claims could be added after the cut-off date for the agenda. She explained this enabled her office to process claims more efficiently, paying vendors in a more timely manner. Councilor Carter stated he would prefer to see claims itemized on the agenda. Councilor Kirby stated he had spoken with the clerk-treasurer and understood her reasoning for not listing claims specifically on the agenda. He explained the council would have to amend the agenda at every meeting to add the claims not included in the amounts at the agenda cut-off date. ~: Mayor Brainard announced Resolution CC-10-20-97~02. a resolution authorizing a joinder between the City of Carmel and the Central Indiana Regional Transportation Authority and introduced Walt Kelly, president of the Fishers Town Board. Mayor Brainard explained he had asked Mr. Kelly to speak to the council to explain why Fishers supported the RTA. Mr. Kelly talked about the transportation problem around and especially north of Indianapolis and explained what forming the RTA could accomplish. He stated that forming the RTA would allow for federal money to hire professionals to study the area's north of Indianapolis and explained what forming the RTA could accomplish. He stated that forming the RTA would allow for federal money to hire professionals to study the area's transportation needs. Councilor Kirby emphasized that the federal money was the money paid by local taxpayers at the gas pump. Councilor Battreall and Mr. Kelly discussed if the funding had been approved at the federal level. Larry Hopkins, executive director of the Hoosier Heritage Port Authority, stated the funding was official. Councilor Battreall moved to introduce the resolution. Councilor Kirby seconded. Councilor Battreall stated he originally wasn't enthused about the idea, but now sees participating in the RTA as mandatory. Councilor Carter stated he was concerned about how votes will be allocated among RTA members in the future. Councilor Carter stated Carmel citizens would receive the benefits of the RTA, have a vote on the issues and contribute money to the authority. He explained that Clay Township residents also would benefit from the authority, but would have no vote and would not contribute money to it. Resolution CC-10-20-97-02 was a_nproved 6-0. PUBLIC HEARING: Mayor Brainard announced Ordinance D-1334-97. salary_ ordinance for elected officials for 1998. The mayor explained the council had passed an ordinance (Ordinance D- 1310-97) earlier this year that enabled the city to pay the employees' 3 percent contribution to the Public Employees Contribution Fund instead of giving the employees raises. Mayor Brainard stated the language of Ordinance D-1310-97 stated the City was to pay the PERF contribution for all city employees and elected officials except sworn officers such as police officers and firefighters. The mayor stated that although it would not be possible to remove the PERF from his salary, he would be returning 3 percent of his salary to maintain his campaign promise to not accept a raise. Councilor Miller moved to introduce the ordinance. Councilor Kirby seconded. Mayor Brainard opened the public hearing at 7:54 p.m. Seeing no one from the public who wished to comment, the mayor closed the hearing at the same time. Councilor Rundle stated the council would need to make a motion to cause the city to pay the elected official's 3 percent PERF. He stated the council also would have to move to reduce the salaries in the proposed ordinance by 3 percent. Councilors discussed whether it was better for the city to pay the elected officials' PERF or give them a 3 pement raise. Clerk-Treasurer Cordray explained she advertised the salary ordinance with the higher amounts, knowing the council might choose to reduce the salaries by having the city pay the PERF. After some discussion clarifying what changes needed to be made to the ordinance, Councilor Battreall moved to change the salaries in the proposed ordinance as follows: Mayor's Maximum Authorized: To Be Paid in 1998 $2,334.86 $2,266.85 (changed from $2,404.9 I) (unchanged) Clerk-Treasurer: $1,949.08 (changed fi'om $2,007.55) Judge: $2,045.64 (changed from $2,107.01) Common Council $148.66 (changed from $153.12) Councilor Kirby seconded. Clerk-Treasurer Cordray clarified the figures upon request by Councilor Carter. Mayor Brainard stated that Section 2-48 of the Carmel City Code clearly states that elected officials are included in the reference "city employees" when referring to the city paying the employees' part of the PERF contribution. Mayor Brainard called on Carmel City Judge Gail Bardach to speak to the council. Judge Bardach explained she was unhappy with the council's decision during this year's budget process not to increase one of her employee's salaries as she requested. Judge Bardach stated she also was displeased she was not consulted before the Elected Officials Salary Ordinance was advertised and was very unhappy that her take-home pay was only going to be increased by 3 pement instead of the 5 pement council promised her during the budget process. Councilor Kirby stated he did not think the council approved the judge's increase during the budget process. Councilors Rundle and Battreall stated they remembered approving the judge's 5 percent increase as part of the overall budget. Judge Bardach stated she was unhappy with council's logic during the budget process to forego a raise for her employee in order to maintain parity between her employees and employees in the Clerk-Treasurer's Office. She stated she was especially displeased, because the council then turned around and gave two employees in the Clerk- Treasurer's Office a raise. Councilor Rundle stated the council would have time to review their budget records and prepare any needed amendment by the second reading of the ordinance at the next council meeting. The amendment to Ordinance D-1334-97 was approved 6-0. Ordinance D- 1334-97 was carded over to the next meetine. Councilor Carter stated the money spent by Human Resources for the parity study of salaries would be well spent. Councilor Kirby agreed and stated the council would not be approving any raises next year unless the salary study was complete. Clerk-Treasurer Cordray explained two of her employees had received raises because one employee had received a new job reclassification and the other's salary had lagged behind the others. Councilors discussed having a planning session on a Saturday morning before the end of the year. The meeting ended at 8:21 p.m. Attest: Respe~fully submitted,