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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05.05.25 CC Meeting Minutes 1 City of Carmel CARMEL COMMON COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES MONDAY, MAY 5, 2025 – 6:00 P.M. COUNCIL CHAMBERS/CITY HALL/ONE CIVIC SQUARE MEETING CALLED TO ORDER Council President Adam Aasen, Council Members: Shannon Minnaar, Ryan Locke, Teresa Ayers, Matthew Snyder, Jeff Worrell, Anita Joshi, Anthony Green and Deputy Clerk Jessica Komp were present. Councilor Rich Taylor was not in attendance. Council President Aasen called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. AGENDA APPROVAL The agenda was approved 8-0. INVOCATION Amy Christie of Grace Church delivered the invocation. RECOGNITION OF CITY EMPLOYEES AND OUTSTANDING CITIZENS There were none. RECOGNITION OF PERSONS WHO WISH TO ADDRESS THE COUNCIL Greg Gormong, of the National Association of Letter Carriers, spoke to Council about the Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive that will be taking place this Saturday, May 10th. This is the largest single-day food drive in the country. Citizens will be provided with a bag and are asked to fill it with items to replenish our local food banks. Bags should be placed next to mailboxes for pickup on Saturday. David Stonehouse spoke to Council about property tax assessments, on behalf of the Huntington Chase HOA. Mr. Stonehouse stated that many people in his neighborhood have experienced close to a 25% increase in property taxes. This has created considerable financial hardship for some, particularly those nearing retirement and in retirement. Some have had to put off retirement, as they now cannot sell their homes. He stated that they are very grateful for all that the Council does to help the citizens, even coming to HOA meetings. He asked that the Council please take this issue into consideration when planning new budgets. Nancy Tatum spoke to Council concerning the way new development reduces green space in Carmel. She proposed that the City Council work along with the Plan Commission and the Board of Zoning to require developers to maintain a certain percentage of trees, such as 25%, and leave wetlands untouched. She encouraged everyone to be a good steward of the flora and fauna that’s already here, and reminded us that just because we can clear land, doesn’t mean we should. Docusign Envelope ID: 3305EBBB-A68E-416F-9318-C881DB61E692 2 Bob Carlson advocated for the approval of a TIF Bond for Phase II of the North End development. Bob’s son, Ryan, lives in an apartment at North End. This apartment has been specially designed for residents with special needs, and Ryan is thriving in his home there. The completion of development at North End with Phase II is necessary to keep the Phase I apartments for adults with disabilities financially viable. Mr. Carlson shared how important it is to continue to have these homes available for special needs citizens of Carmel. Jan Hurlbut spoke about the Christkindlmrkt. She stated that the city should give up on the market this year, as it will be hard to find someone to replace Maria Rosenfeld. She believes Maria and the former board are taking the fall for financial decisions made by the prior administration. She believes the market’s multi- million dollar economic impact warrants a sizeable investment by the city. She supports the market becoming financially independent, but this can’t happen overnight. She believes the current board lacks the relevant skills needed. She stated that Maria should not have been prevented from speaking at the last meeting, she should have had the opportunity to respond to the negative PowerPoint that was presented. She believes that the former board was let go because they refused to give special treatment to a large vendor, and she believes that Ms. Springer has a conflict of interest, being related to that vendor. Ron Carter, former City Councilor, spoke next. He posed several questions to Council about the changes that have been made with the new administration. He asked about the Mayor having two Deputy Mayors and a Chief of Staff, and if Council approved the salaries for these new positions. He asked what the current headcount is for city employees, and why Council approved the salaries for those additional positions. He asked which budget will cover the legal and administrative costs of the Affiliate Review Committee. Allie Missler spoke to Council in support of the former Christkindlmrkt Board and President. She stated that the market is more than a seasonal event, it is a destination, attracting more than a million visitors, national media attention, and generating millions in tourism revenue. She believes the city’s investment in the market is worth it. The city has spent millions on roundabout sculptures, and those are passive, static landmarks. They are not economic engines like the Christkindlmrkt. Ms. Missler encouraged the Council to support and even expand support for the market in the future. Rob Brown spoke to Council about the Christkindlmrkt. He asked them to view the market through the lens of a community asset, instead of a financial vehicle. He asked that the search for a new market President be open and transparent. He stated that there is a prevailing notion that the market is in jeopardy, but no one understands how or why. People do not understand why the market was ever subjected to review in the first place. Some have suggested that the market siphons funds needed for Police and Fire, but if that is the case, what are Fire and Police lacking, and is there no where else we can find those funds? Ed Shaughnessy spoke next, stating that he does support the review of all of the nonprofit affiliates. He appreciates the Mayor’s willingness to take all this heat, and well as the Council. He stated that it’s hard for him to understand such a high salary for someone who runs an event that requires year-long planning, but the event itself is only short term. He does not believe the market is doomed, he believes we can make it just as good or better. Sandy Richardson spoke to Council about the Christkindlmrkt. She stated that on October 7th, she requested help with some harmful conduct that might jeopardize Christkindlmrkt, Inc. What she received was a mildly legally threatening email and instead of addressing the potentially harmful conduct, an investigation was launched into the market. She stated that the harm this has done to the market is real. The German and German-speaking leaders had to resign. Contractors are hesitant to renew, sponsors are very cautious to sign back on. German artisans are staying away, cultural authenticity is not a priority at this point, and more cuts are probably coming. Ms. Richardson asked the Council and the Administration to please find a way to work Docusign Envelope ID: 3305EBBB-A68E-416F-9318-C881DB61E692 3 together to course correct. She stated that the people of Carmel and their passions and organizations need protection as much as the public funds do. Maria Adele Rosenfeld, former CEO of the Carmel Christkindlmrkt, spoke next. She read her resignation letter to help explain why she resigned. Ms. Rosenfeld stated that was excluded from discussions regarding the termination of two board members, and the appointment of new board members, not finding out the changes until after they happened. She was excluded from a meeting of the new board in which a new operating agreement was formed with the City, never seeing the terms of the agreement before it was signed. Earlier this year, when they began negotiations for an amended operating agreement, Ms. Rosenfeld presented several recommendations, many of which were never presented to the City Attorney. The new agreement was signed on April 16th, just before the Affiliate Review Committee meeting, and Ms. Rosenfeld was instructed by Ms. Augustus not to speak at that meeting. Kristin Kouka spoke to Council about the Christkindlmrkt in support of her friend Sandy Richardson. She stated that she hopes a thorough investigation can be done, which would include interviewing all parties. She shared that the market means a great deal to her family, and that she and many others volunteered very early on because they believed in the market and they believed in its leaders. COUNCIL AND MAYORAL COMMENTS/OBSERVATIONS Mayor Finkam thanked everyone who participated with the Japanese delegation that was in town for the Cherry Blossom Festival. She stated that the delegation was impressed with our city, they loved the library, they loved the school, and they loved the festival. Councilor Snyder spoke about the Cherry Blossom Festival that happened yesterday, stating that is was an amazing event, with high attendance. He stated that the Festival highlighted what diversity means, as we really do better hearing points from all different views. After the Festival, Councilor Joshi gave Councilor Snyder a ride to his car. They were in the Proscenium garage, and traffic was not moving. Councilor Snyder realized someone needed help and Councilor Joshi pulled over immediately. There was a young man on the ground, and a police officer was trying to revive him. Dr. Joshi, the police officer, and another man worked to revive the young man. When the ambulance arrived, it could not fit into the garage. Councilor Snyder would like for a review to be done of our parking garages, and those yet to be built, to see if there is a way that we can at least make sure an ambulance can fit into the garage, and be able to drive to a stairwell, so that first responders can get to those in need. Councilor Snyder stated that when the firefighters did make it to the scene, their actions revealed their excellent training. He commended all those involved for their selfless action, including Dr. Joshi, the police officer, the good Samaritan, and the firefighters. Councilor Green thanked the Mayor and the city staff for putting on the Home Place block party last Sunday, which was a great even with a great turnout. Council President Aasen stated that he enjoyed the Cherry Blossom Festival. The Mayor stated that it was the hard work of the committee and the staff that made the events so successful. CONSENT AGENDA Councilor Minnaar moved to approve the consent agenda. Councilor Joshi seconded. There was no discussion. Council President Aasen called for the vote. The consent agenda was approved 8-0. a. Approval of Minutes 1. April 21, 2025 Regular Meeting Docusign Envelope ID: 3305EBBB-A68E-416F-9318-C881DB61E692 4 b. Claims 1. Payroll – $4,341,866.25 2. General Claims – $4,853,234.48 and $26,706.53 (Purchase Card) 3. Retirement – $126,308.06 ACTION ON MAYORAL VETOES There were none. COMMITTEE REPORTS Councilor Worrell reported that the Finance, Utilities and Rules Committee will be meeting on Tuesday, May 13th at 6:00 p.m. in Council Chambers. There are several items on the agenda. Councilor Snyder reported that the Land Use and Special Studies Committee will meet this Wednesday, May 7th, at 5:30 p.m., at the Carmel Library. We continue to work on fees and fee structures, with input from department directors. We have two items coming back from committee tonight. OTHER REPORTS – (at the first meeting of the month specified below): Henry Mestetsky, Carmel Redevelopment Director, gave the monthly report to Council. He updated the Council on the progress at projects such as Monon Square North, Civic Square Condos, Icon on Main, and Ardalan Plaza. He also shared that the CRC has worked with Old Town to put up a temporary parking lot in Midtown while work is being done on those parking garages, providing 90 extra parking spaces over the summer. Councilor Locke gave an update from the Affiliate Review Committee. He stated that the committee has spent the last five meetings going through a great deal of information pertaining to four non-profits affiliated with the city. The process of putting new procedures and new checks and balances into practice is an arduous one. The intent at the end of the review is for the committee to come together and come up with recommendations that holistically change the things that need to change, support the things that need to be supported, and improve transparency. There will be another meeting, the subject of which will be to review the Arts Grant process, and to come up with a list of other affiliates entities. Mayor Finkam next gave an update. She stated that for the last 16 months, the administration and the City Council have tried to make sense of and improve the city’s involvement in the myriad non-profit and philanthropic relationships. Hundreds of hours and hundreds of thousands of dollars have been spent, trying to understand the governance and financial condition of each relationship, and make meaningful changes, or at least suggestions for changes. Although various events have been highly successful and beneficial for the city, problems have existed. The governance of some organizations did not keep up with growth, and were not regularly reviewed to ensure alignment with the city of Carmel’s changing goals. Through changing economic times, many of these groups could not continue to function without the city’s support. The fiscal impact of the city’s subsidy is taking a bigger toll on the operations of the city. The number of events and the city’s population have grown. As such, the management and support of these events and non-profits is requiring extensive city resources. We’ve tackled the two entities that pose the greatest risk to taxpayers, Promote Carmel, LLC and Christkindlmarkt, Inc. While the Mayor is pleased with the hundreds of thousands of dollars we’ve saved of subsidies on rent, products and contracts, she is not pleased with how this work has occasionally divided members of our community, hurt feelings, and cast a shadow on the city, its affiliates, and impacted people. The Mayor suggested that we stop the madness, and work together to define an entirely new strategy and structure to manage our non-profit relationships, spaces and events. Mayor Finkam Docusign Envelope ID: 3305EBBB-A68E-416F-9318-C881DB61E692 5 proposed the creation of a new non-profit that will have co-equal governance, so that both the legislative branch and the executive branch of city government are equally aligned to identify and solve these problems together. She suggested this new non-profit be called “Experience Carmel”, and it will align our non-profit, philanthropic and event efforts. It can manage all city public spaces and events, it can be the clearinghouse for arts grants, and other philanthropic giving. Its sheer focus would be to support the quality of life that Carmel residents enjoy and provide meaningful experiences for those who visit. Having this separate department to do these things will free up our city staff to focus on the other important issues at hand. Recent state legislation will result in Carmel losing tens of millions of dollars in a short few months. It’s all hands on deck to find ways we can operate differently. The Mayor invited the City Council to turn the page and move forward with her in a productive way, for the benefit of our community. She thanked some of the Councilors for their initial support of this concept. Councilor Snyder shared how he felt about this issue. He shared his deep concern for, and love of, this city and all of its residents. He felt he needed to take a step back and examine whether or not we were doing the right thing for the city by reviewing these affiliates in the manner that we have been. He admitted that he has been a strong critic of the money that has gone into the Christmas market. During last year’s budget hearings, early on, he was a proponent of reducing the funds drastically for the 25-26 market. He had a long conversation with Maria Rosenfeld, in which he openly shared this viewpoint. To her credit, she did not entirely disagree with him. She shared a number of measures had already been taken to cut costs. Her exact words were, “Matt, if you guys can leave us alone for this year, and let us make the needed changes, we won’t need you next year, plus we can come up with a reimbursement schedule for the Street Department.” Councilor Snyder felt that this was fair, and based on what she shared, he did not doubt her. When discussions of investigation started before the opening of last season’s market, he did not get involved, not seeing merit in putting the market or the city through that. His next involvement was when the Affiliate Review Committee was formed. Councilor Snyder had hoped that a thorough review would be performed for all of the non-profit affiliates of the city. He is ashamed and embarrassed with the way this has played out. He frankly did not think there was anything to investigate at the beginning, he still doesn’t know for sure. At this point, so much information has been thrown around, accurate, inaccurate, conflicting statements and timelines, that he is appalled. He believes that this community is so great because of its people. All we have done with this committee is to diminish the market, we have embarrassed ourselves by making this such a priority when we have so many other things to focus on, and the worst part is that we have negatively impacted people’s lives. He commends his fellow Councilors and the Mayor for trying their best, and for going into this with proper intentions, but he thinks this is an impossible task, and he does not see a path forward with this committee that does not continue pain for others. He would like to see this committee’s work come to an end. We must find another way to seek out truth. The idea the Mayor just presented could be a good way to do that, it will need some vetting first. He believes this committee has taken up too much of the Councilors’ time, and the Council needs them back to focus on other important matters. Councilor Green spoke next. He thanked Councilor Snyder for sharing his thoughts and told him he agreed with most of what he said. But he disagrees on some points. Councilor Green stated that he believes the market can be bigger and better than ever. He believes the Council and the Mayor can work together to accomplish that. He believes that Councilor Locke has done a phenomenal job, with the help of Councilors Minnaar and Ayers, and the other committee members, and he would like to see them finish it out, to hear their recommendations. He would like to learn more about the “Experience Carmel” concept, and it could be a mechanism for Council and the Administration to work together to manage all of the non-profits, so we don’t again get into a situation where there’s a lack of oversight, a lack of accountability and a lack of transparency. Councilor Minnaar stated that she agrees with both Councilors Snyder and Green. She thanked Councilor Locke for his hard work as chair of the Affiliate Review Committee. She also wanted everyone to know that she did read all of the documents presented, she did read all of the emails, and her only goal as an ARC Docusign Envelope ID: 3305EBBB-A68E-416F-9318-C881DB61E692 6 member was to help. Councilor Joshi thanked everyone for coming tonight. She agreed that the market is magical, and it does reach across cultures as all good festivals should. But we do need a process that ensures that all people are heard, that the community decides what it wants to see, and that is done with transparency. We must vet the people who are appointed to boards. If we don’t put proper processes in place, we will be right back in this situation again. Council President Aasen stated that there were calls for an investigation back in October when the previous Board was dismissed and new appointments were made. He thought that the Affiliate Review Committee was a good compromise, but here we are half a year later, and he has even more questions coming from constituents. He stated that Councilor Locke did a great job, but was given an impossible task. The meetings were run by outside counsel which was not approved by the committee. Said counsel has cost the city hundreds of thousands of dollars so far, which is more than the amount we were reimbursed for by the market. There is a perception of a conflict of interest with this outside counsel, which may or may not be the case. But this type of perception casts doubt on the whole thing. When the Council has asked the Mayor or the Board questions, or asked for documents, we’re not getting them. Councilor Aasen watched the April 16th meeting, and he was disappointed by how one-sided it was. He had tough questions for the CEO about salaries, but she was never given the opportunity to speak. We have one of the best Christkindlmrkts in the country, why are we trying to change something that is working? Ms. Rosenfeld had already stated that she was willing to reimburse the city more for the Street Department’s work setting up the huts, which Councilor Aasen does agree needs to happen. But on the same token, the city owns the huts, so the Street Department is actually the only group that is allowed to set them up. It’s not as though the market could have gone out to find a lower cost option. He stated that he appreciates the Mayor’s proposal to form a new board, but this proposal was presented to Council at 3:00 p.m. today, only after the add-on request was announced. Councilor Aasen expressed his frustration at not being able to answer constituent questions, because he hasn’t received clear information from the executive branch. He stated that trust has been affected, but he does believe it can be rebuilt between the Christkindlmrkt Board, and the Mayor and the Council, and with the public. There is public perception of a conflict of interest existing with the Board, and we need to eliminate that. We want the public to have the upmost confidence that no conflict of interest exists. Councilor Worrell stated that he had not heard from the Mayor about her proposal for a new board prior to this meeting, so he couldn’t speak to that. He stated that when he thinks about where we are now with the Christkindlmrkt, we are now without the number one CEO in the country. That CEO is a member of our community and a constituent. We have a community that appears to be divided. We have board members that seem to have been treated poorly. We have a board now that has no non-profit experience on their resumes, and we lost a board that had over 100 years of non-profit experience. What has been most disturbing to Councilor Worrell is that residents have reported that there have been inaccuracies and misstatements from the experts that we are paying to give us a report. He stated that it all started with the Executive Session, which he is not allowed to talk about, but there was a statement made that there is money unaccounted for. That is when that narrative started. There was inaccurate information that was reported on April 16th. He understands that Councilor Locke would like to continue the work of this committee, because now we can look at future and other non-profits. But he senses that this committee has gone as far as they can with the Christkindlmrkt. Councilor Worrell believes that in terms of the market, we have to get all the information out there. The investigation must be viewed as honest, open and fair. You may not like it, but you get it all out on the table, and then you have to accept it, and then find a way to improve, moving forward in the best interest of our community. That is why he originally proposed an investigation back in October and November. He and the Mayor spoke and the concept of a review process was decided upon. The public has become very well informed through this process. But many questions still remain - Councilor Worrell actually has four pages of them. He does not see agreement on what actually happened around the Christkindlmrkt, or more importantly, why what happened needed to happen. Therefore, Councilor Worrell respectively made a motion to follow state statute, abide by our local rules, and establish a committee of the whole by majority vote of this Council tonight, to investigate the actions taken by representatives, Docusign Envelope ID: 3305EBBB-A68E-416F-9318-C881DB61E692 7 contractors, and the CCI Board of Directors, as it relates to the Carmel Christkindlmrkt only, and anything else the committee may wish to explore pertaining to that. He believes this is the only way that we are going to get everyone on the same page, and to start moving forward and try to replace the huge loss of people who seem to give heart and soul. Councilor Minnaar seconded the motion. Mayor Finkam made a comment regarding the concerns she’s heard about what information was reviewed in the Affiliate Review process. The information that was reviewed was what had been negotiated into the resolution that formed the review committee, which included governance, financial status, and executive compensation. The why’s and the operations of the market were not in the scope of the review. Councilor Worrell thanked the Mayor for that clarification. He then stated that the resolution was presented to be signed, he did not realize there were negotiations. He had thought that both sides would get to share information. He felt that as Marilee Springer presented her findings, there was no chance to explain the context – why were those decisions made? Why was there now a deficit in the 2024 operations? He said he attended a CCI Board meeting, and the CFO explained that made a ton of sense, but those explanations never came out in the Affiliate Review. The comparison of the $86,000.00 salary of the Great American Songbook CEO being flashed on the screen, in Councilor Worrell’s opinion, was wrong if you look at the 990’s. Councilor Snyder stated that if we go through this effort to do this bulletproof review, this will be the last he talks about it. Whatever executive summary comes out of whatever firm does this, that will be the accepted document. Otherwise this is never going to end. It is in the best interest of the people of Carmel to find out whatever needs to be found out, and then use that data to move forward. Councilor Worrell stated that in his opinion, the only way you get through a divided issue is to get everything out, you give people their voice, let them vent, and the facts are what guides us. Then we can accept it and move on in the best interest of our community. Councilor Green spoke next. He stated that he found out about a possible investigation coming on Thursday from Councilors Minnaar and Snyder, but no one has spoken to him about it since then. He doesn’t have any information on how the investigation would occur, and he has many questions. Since hearing that an investigation might take place, he looked online at public comments, and also happened to see one of Councilor Worrell’s videos on civility. Specifically, he watched a video that addressed the importance of having hard conversations, possibly making people uncomfortable. He stated that he agrees with much of what was said tonight, especially the remarks from citizens who love the market and want to see it continue. He thinks that after last week, it appears that there may have been a rush to do things, some conflicts of interest that weren’t thought through, maybe some lapses in due diligence, perhaps unintentional, but nonetheless the perception is there. Councilor Green might be able to agree with an investigation, but he has many questions first. What’s the best mechanism to get through this, to get all of the needed answers, and then put this to bed? Because we have many other problems as a city to deal with. We don’t yet know the fiscal impact we will be facing, but we’re likely going to have to make cuts, and even if we make big cuts, we’re probably going to have to raise taxes. We have an aging infrastructure that still needs to be dealt with. The city is getting more and more developed, more congested, there are more safety concerns with pedestrians and bike riders, and more car thefts. We have to get back to the issues at hand. This city has been here for 188 years, and 181 of those were without the Christkindlmrkt. The market is great, and he wants it to continue, but the Christkindlmrkt didn’t make Carmel, Carmel made the Christkindlmrkt. And Carmel can make more festivals, and make the Christkindlmrkt greater than ever. In his time on the Council, there have been a couple of investigations. The first was February 26, 2020, when the story broke that the Hotel Carmichael had gone $18 million over budget, far more than Council had approved. Councilor Green found out about this four days before the story broke, in an email from CRC Director, Henry Mestetsky. For months, then-Councilor Carter had asked Director Mestetsky in Council meetings if the hotel was overbudget, and Director Mestetsky said it was not. When the story broke, Director Mestetsky apologized to Councilor Green, but let him know that two of the other Councilors had been in a meeting prior and already knew this. Councilor Green wanted a deep investigation done, but agreed to narrow the scope of the Docusign Envelope ID: 3305EBBB-A68E-416F-9318-C881DB61E692 8 investigation so as not to make it political, believing that was best for the city. About a year later, there was another investigation, this time into accusations of systematic harassment and a hostile work environment. Again, Councilor Green wanted to dive into it, but he agreed to narrow the scope and keep the politics out of it. As far as this new proposed investigation, Councilor Green feels he could go along with it, IF we narrow the scope, and keep the politics out of it. He would ask that we hold off on starting an investigation until Councilor Locke has completed the Affiliate Review process, otherwise we’ll have two different entities doing the same thing. Secondly, he strongly believes that anyone working on the investigation should not give the perception that this is political, meaning that it shouldn’t be anyone who had been on Woody Rider’s slate, essentially campaigning against Mayor Finkam. We need to remove the emotion from this as well, by not having anyone on the investigation committee who has close ties to the market. For those reasons, he believes the committee should be comprised of Councilors Locke, Ayers, and himself. His third request is that he and Ryan Locke, the two attorneys on Council, perform the due diligence to hire the right law firm to work on the investigation. Council President Aasen stated that the motion was for a committee of the whole, to include the full Council. He would not get behind a committee of three. He also stated that he took a little offense to the notion that an election would sway the motives of this Council. He believes all the facts need to be out in the open. He has many questions, such as why Ms. Rosenfeld was told not to speak at the April 16th meeting. Was Mayor Finkam aware of that? Did she speak with the board about that? Councilor Snyder told Councilor Green that he made a lot of great points, but by virtue of making those points, he exposed his own emotional attachment. Councilor Snyder will not get behind a committee of three, swapping one committee for another. He believes we should hire a law firm who has never done work in Carmel. All questions should go to that firm, and the firm will provide an executive summary when the investigation is complete. Councilor Locke stated that he believes the current review committee should come up with recommendations based on the review that they have done. He also noted that another person on the dais was not on Mr. Rider’s slate, and that is Councilor Joshi. This becomes political when we reject the premise that Dr. Joshi is of the other political party, as though her contribution doesn’t count. This is a city of 105,000 people of varying viewpoints that equally care about this city. He does not believe this is an impossible task for the Affiliate Review Committee. He believes that collectively, we can come up with an end document that helps us move forward. What has been frustrating for the ARC is that they have not been able to get the full story. Based on what he has learned and heard thus far through this review process, he is in support of an investigation. Councilor Joshi thanked Councilor Locke for his comments. She stated that the Christkindlmrkt is not the problem, the people are not the problem, it’s the process that’s the problem. She asked if she could be educated on the process of an investigation before they take the vote. Councilor Aasen moved to make an amendment to Councilor Worrell’s motion, moving that we vote on a chair for the committee at the next Council meeting. Councilor Worrell seconded the motion. Councilor Joshi stated that she still does not understand the investigation process, and it was a lack of good processes that got us where we are now. She is not comfortable voting on something without a clear understanding of how it works. Councilor Worrell shared that the chair of the committee could determine what the process is going to be. What he would be looking for is something that we didn’t have in the ARC, which is to be able to hear from all sides. Councilor Joshi asked when we need to have these decisions made by, for the sake of this year’s market. Councilor Green asked Councilor Locke if he was up for chairing the investigation. Councilor Locke responded yes. Councilors Snyder and Joshi both wanted the public to hear that there will be a market this year, that is not dependent on this investigation. Councilor Aasen withdrew his amendment. He then called for a vote on the original motion to launch an investigation, this was approved 8-0. Docusign Envelope ID: 3305EBBB-A68E-416F-9318-C881DB61E692 9 OLD BUSINESS Council President Aasen announced the sixth reading of Ordinance D-2762-25; An Ordinance of the Common Council of the City of Carmel, Indiana, Amending Chapter 8, Article 5, Sections 8-37, 8-47, and 8- 48 of the Carmel City Code; Sponsor: Councilor Aasen. This item remains in the Land Use and Special Studies Committee. Council President Aasen announced Resolution CC-02-03-25-07; A Resolution of the Common Council of the City of Carmel, Indiana, Recommending Consideration of an Amendment to the Unified Development Ordinance for the City and Referring the Same to the Carmel Plan Commission for Recommendation; Sponsor(s): Councilor(s) Aasen, Snyder and Taylor. This item returns from the Land Use and Special Studies Committee. Councilor Snyder stated that this item has been vetted for a very long time. He then asked Sergey Grechukhin, Corporation Counsel, to explain this resolution pertaining to Group Homes. Mr. Grechukhin shared that the resolution includes a licensure requirement, specifically for group homes for developmental disabilities, or psychiatric disorders. In certain districts, there will be no more than eight unrelated persons in a group home. The 300 feet distance requirement has been removed, and will be a consideration for approval by the board, because there are some fair housing act concerns, and every group home application is considered on a case by case basis. The DOCS director will inform the applicant regarding compliance with Indiana Department of Homeland Security building classification. All special exceptions will be considered by the BZA, instead of a hearing officer. There are now three special types of exceptions that we have in the UDO, those are group homes, short term rentals and non-dwelling short term rentals. Councilor Snyder made a motion to approve the resolution. Councilor Minnaar seconded. There was no further discussion. Council President Aasen called for the vote. Resolution CC-02-03-25-07 approved, 7- 0. (Councilor Green left the meeting.) Council President Aasen announced the fourth reading of Ordinance D-2767-25; An Ordinance of the Common Council of the City of Carmel, Indiana, Amending Chapter 2, Article 4, Section 2-96 of the Carmel City Code; Sponsor(s): Councilor(s) Taylor and Snyder. This remains in the Finance, Utilities and Rules Committee. Council President Aasen announced the second reading of Ordinance D-2769-25; An Ordinance of the Common Council of the City of Carmel, Indiana, Amending Chapter 6, Article 4, Section 6-63 of the Carmel City Code; Sponsor(s): Taylor and Ayers. This item remains in the Land Use and Special Studies Committee. Council President Aasen announced the second reading of Ordinance D-2770-25; An Ordinance of the Common Council of the City of Carmel, Indiana, Adopting a New Article 6 Under Chapter 4 of the Carmel City Code; Sponsor(s): Councilor(s) Aasen, Taylor, Snyder and Ayers. This item remains in the Finance, Utilities and Rules Committee. PUBLIC HEARINGS There were none. NEW BUSINESS Council President Aasen announced the first reading of Ordinance D-2771-25; An Ordinance of the Common Council of the City of Carmel, Indiana, Authorizing the Issuance of Economic Development Tax Increment Revenue Bonds to Support the North End Phase II Project, and Authorizing and Approving Other Actions in Respect Thereto; Sponsor: Councilor Aasen. Councilor Joshi moved to introduce the item into business. Councilor Minnaar seconded. Councilor Minnaar presented the item to Council. CRC Director Docusign Envelope ID: 3305EBBB-A68E-416F-9318-C881DB61E692 10 Henry Mestetsky introduced Rebecca McGuckin and Justin Moffit of Old Town Design Group. Ms. McGuckin explained that there are currently over 250 residents of North End Phase I. There are 40 attainable units that are integrated into 168 apartments that are set aside for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Old Town headquarters is also located there, with 160 employees. Fields Market Garden is located in North End, which also supplies food for Freeland Restaurant, located in a renovated home on the property. Phase II has always been a part of the plan to keep the attainable housing financially feasible for all perpetuity. Phase II incorporates multi-generational living with a 55 and over product. These apartments have been custom designed with a townhome-style architecture. Old Town left some density on the table with Phase II, instead focusing on accomplishing their goal of financial sustainability. There will be a Monon Trail connection, and a plaza park space. Director Mestetsky added that the application of Park Impact Fees has been negotiated with Michael Klitzing and the Park Board. The current vacant parcel of land generates about $20,000.00 per year in property taxes. Once developed, it will create $463,000.00 of annual property taxes, and $67,000.00 of new money going to the schools each year. Councilor Snyder asked if the park impact fees would be used for actual public park spaces, and Mr. Moffitt replied that they would. Councilor Worrell asked about the trees on the rendering, and Mr. Moffitt replied that the rendering is largely factual, those are actually existing trees. Councilor Locke asked about the traffic impact on Smoky Row. Mr. Moffitt replied that the new roundabout adjacent to U.S. 31 was specifically placed in that location after a traffic study revealed the best placement to accommodate for Phase II. Ordinance D-2771-25 was sent to the Finance, Utilities and Rules Committee for further review. Council President Aasen announced Resolution CC-05-05-25-01; A Resolution of the Common Council of the City of Carmel, Indiana, Recommending Consideration of an Amendment to the Unified Development Ordinance for the City and Referring the Same to the Carmel Plan Commission for Recommendation; Sponsor(s):Councilor(s) Ayers, Joshi, Minnaar and Snyder. Councilor Snyder moved to introduce the item into business. Councilor Joshi seconded the motion. Councilor Snyder presented the item to Council. He explained that this is an omnibus cleanup of a number of items in the UDO that the Land Use Committee has been working on with much input from other city departments, over the last year and a half. Sergey Grechukhin explained that the biggest substantive highlight from a zoning perspective is a development plan requirement for projects in B1 and B2 districts. Another big amendment improves, streamlines, and simplifies the process itself. The UDO is an extremely large document that can be hard to understand, without legal counsel to decipher it. We have added a great deal of explanatory language and references, to make the document much more user-friendly. We also introduced a 30-day deadline for technical review, with some exceptions. Councilor Snyder explained that these amendments are the result of a collective effort to ensure that the city of Carmel provides the best customer service to small businesses. This resolution would send the proposed ordinance to Plan Commission and then back to Council for final approval. Councilor Minnaar moved to approve the resolution. Councilor Worrell seconded the motion. There was no further discussion. Council President Aasen called for the vote. Resolution CC-05-05-25-01 approved, 7-0. AGENDA ADD-ON ITEMS There was one agenda add-on request. Council President Aasen read a memo to add Ordinance D-2772-25 to the May 5, 2025 Council agenda. This ordinance establishes requirements for nonprofit organizations receiving public support. Councilor Snyder moved to add the ordinance to the agenda. Councilor Minnaar seconded. There was no discussion. Council President Aasen called for the vote. Motion to add Ordinance D-2772-25 to the agenda approved, 7-0. Councilor Worell moved to introduce the item into business. Councilor Joshi seconded. Councilor Worrell presented the item to Council. Councilor Snyder explained that this ordinance aims to create some balance in how our boards and commissions are created. Ted Nolting, of Kroger, Gardis and Regas, further explained that this ordinance more clearly defines what an affiliate entity is. It further requires that all affiliate entities must have at least one City Council appointee to qualify for city support, and all Mayoral appointees must also be approved by the City Council. There would also be an express budget review process for the affiliated entities. Additionally, any entities receiving a grant f rom the Docusign Envelope ID: 3305EBBB-A68E-416F-9318-C881DB61E692 11 city must follow a grant process that’s been established and approved by City Council. Councilor Minnaar asked if affiliated entities with their own governing documents would have to change them. Mr. Nolting replied that we can’t force an organization to change their governing documents, but we can tie it to funds received from the city. This means that they may need to amend their governing documents in order to continue to receive city support. Councilor Worrell asked if a group such as the Rotary Club would fall into this category. Rotary is a non-profit, with their own board. They put on Carmel Fest. The city sponsors the fireworks at CarmelFest. Mr. Nolting replied that the Rotary Club would not fall into this category. Samantha Karn, Corporation Counsel, stated that our city legal department has not had time to review this document, as it was just received late this afternoon, but at first blush, it appears to be overreach. Councilor Locke responded that it is not meant as overreach, but as regular reach. He asked that the city legal department review this through the lens of finding a path for the legislative and executive bodies to work together in the best interests of city government as a whole. Ordinance D-2772-25 was sent to the Finance, Utilities and Rules Committee for further review. Councilor Worrell asked if the Mayor’s proposal will also be discussed in committee, as it may relate to this ordinance. Ms. Karn stated that she does not have anything in writing for that yet. There was further discussion on whether or not the Mayor’s proposal should even be discussed yet. OTHER BUSINESS There was none. ANNOUNCEMENTS There were none. ADJOURNMENT Council President Aasen adjourned the meeting at 9:46 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, _______________________________ Jacob Quinn, Clerk Approved, ATTEST: _______________________________ Adam Aasen, Council President _______________________________ Jacob Quinn, Clerk Docusign Envelope ID: 3305EBBB-A68E-416F-9318-C881DB61E692