Flushing City Council
Minutes
December 14, 2009
A Regular Meeting of the Flushing City Council was called to order on Monday, December 14, 2009 at 7:30 p.m. by Mayor George G. Kozan, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag and invocation.
Present: Richard L. Bade
Mark F. Brock
John C. Gault
George G. Kozan
Karianne M. Martus
Teresa K. Salem
Michael T. Szukhent
Absent: None
Others Present: Dennis J. Bow, City Manager
Nancy G. Parks, City Clerk/Treasurer
Edward G. Henneke, City Attorney
Approval of Agenda - Motion by Szukhent, seconded by Gault, to approve the December 14, 2009 agenda.
Yea: Bade, Brock, Gault, Martus, Salem, Szukhent, Kozan
Nay: None
Motion Carried.
PRESENTATIONS:
2008-2009 Audit Report - The City Manager gave a presentation of the 2008-2009 city audited financial statements to the Council and audience.
MEETING
OPEN TO THE PUBLIC:
Elva Cook, 1459 Flushing Road, addressed City Council.
Consent Agenda - Motion by Szukhent, seconded by Bade, to approve City Council Minutes (November 9, 2009 Regular Meeting) and December 14, 2009 Council Bills List.
Yea: Bade, Brock, Gault, Martus, Salem, Szukhent, Kozan
Nay: None
Motion Carried.
Flushing City Council
Minutes
December 14, 2009
Page Two
REPORTS:
Transfer Ownership of Liquor License – Motion by Bade, seconded by Szukhent, to approve the resolution transferring a 2008 Class C license located in escrow at 1537 E. Pierson Road, Flushing, Michigan 48433, Genesee County from Easy, Inc. to L.L. Restaurant, Inc.
Yea: Bade, Brock, Gault, Martus, Salem, Szukhent, Kozan
Nay: None
Motion Carried.
Meeting Schedule – Motion by Szukhent, seconded by Salem, to maintain the one City Council meeting per month schedule, held on the second Monday of each month.
Yea: Bade, Brock, Gault, Martus, Salem, Szukhent, Kozan
Nay: None
Motion Carried.
Café Ordinance Amendment – A request was received from Mr. Dale Harris, of Skip’s Come Back Inn, to consider an ordinance amendment, which would allow for the use of second story public right-of-way for outdoor business. His specific request would allow him to construct a balcony along Main Street.
Café Ordinance Amendment – Motion by Szukhent, seconded by Salem, to refer a Café Ordinance Amendment to the Planning Commission.
Yea: Bade, Brock, Gault, Martus, Salem, Szukhent, Kozan
Nay: None
Motion Carried.
ORDINANCES:
Amendment to Chapter 111 – Alcoholic Beverages – Motion by Szukhent, seconded by Bade, to move to second reading and adoption an ordinance to repeal ordinance Section 111.01(a)(5), and create a new Section 111.01(a)(5).
Yea: Bade, Brock, Gault, Martus, Salem, Szukhent, Kozan
Nay: None
Motion Carried.
Flushing City Council
Minutes
December 14, 2009
Page Three
APPOINTMENTS:
Committee Appointments – The individuals listed below have submitted letters of interest for council appointment to the following:
Parks and Recreation Committee Applicant(s) Appointment By
(1 position) Charles (Bill) Martin Councilperson Szukhent
David A. Lewicki
Planning Commission
(3 positions) Kevin J. Keane Councilperson Salem
Daniel D. Borgerding Mayor Kozan
________________ Councilperson Brock
Board of Review
(1 position) ________________ Councilperson Bade
Zoning Board of Appeals
(1 position) Kevin J. Keane Mayor Kozan
SALT
(3 positions) Robert Matsko Councilperson Martus
Loretta Hudson Councilperson Gault (2)
________________
Election Commission
(1 position) David Harshfield Councilperson Szukhent
Mayoral Appointments – Motion by Szukhent, seconded by Gault, to confirm the Mayor’s appointment of Councilpersons Salem and Szukhent to the Parks and Recreation Planning Committee.
Yea: Bade, Brock, Gault, Martus, Salem, Szukhent, Kozan
Nay: None
Motion Carried.
Flushing City Council
Minutes
December 14, 2009
Page Four
Closed Session – Motion by Szukhent, seconded by Gault, to go into closed session pursuant to the Open Meetings Act compiled laws 15.268(d) to consider the purchase or lease of real property, or the option to purchase or lease real property.
Yea: Bade, Brock, Gault, Martus, Salem, Szukhent, Kozan
Nay: None
Motion Carried.
Adjourn: 8:31 p.m.
Reconvene: 8:48 p.m.
COMMITTEE
REPORTS:
Council
Rules Committee Report - At the
November 9, 2009 City Council meeting, Mayor George Kozan appointed a council
committee in order to review the Council Rules.
Since that meeting, this committee has met, and recommends that the City
Council consider the following revisions, all of which deal with Rule 4., Order
of Business.
1. Place the Invocation prior to the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.
2. Items G. and H., entitled Minutes and Bills, should be placed after Consent Agenda and before Public Hearings.
The purpose of this revision is to immediately handle any issues dealing with the minutes and/or the bills that are removed from the Consent Agenda, as has been past practice during meetings.
3. Delete I., Old Business.
This item is suggested for removal, as once approval of the agenda is determined, items for addition to the agenda are not discussed. This item has not been used in well over fourteen (14) years.
4. Delete D., Items for Future Public Hearings.
This item also has not been used in over ten (10) years, as items requiring public hearings are handled under A. Public Hearings, and are scheduled per local and state law.
Flushing City Council
Minutes
December 14, 2009
Page Five
5. Modify the agenda to allow for two (2) Meetings Open to the Public.
The first Meeting Open to the Public would be maintained in its current position after Presentation, and would be used for items contained on the agenda. The second Meeting Open to the Public would be placed on the agenda just prior to Council Comments. Verbiage will be added to the agenda to explain the purpose of these two agenda items, as attached.
Council Rules Committee Report – Motion by Szukhent, seconded by Bade, to consolidate the two Meeting Open To the Public sections into one section at the beginning of the meeting, with the original wording.
Yea: Bade, Brock, Gault, Martus, Salem, Szukhent, Kozan
Nay: None
Motion Carried.
Council Rules Committee Report – Motion by Szukhent, seconded by Bade, to accept the committee’s recommendation of changes one through four.
Yea: Bade, Brock, Gault, Martus, Salem, Szukhent, Kozan
Nay: None
Motion Carried.
Council Rules Committee Report – Motion by Bade, seconded by Brock, to have the committee revisit change number five at a future date.
Yea: Bade, Brock, Gault, Martus, Salem, Szukhent, Kozan
Nay: None
Motion Carried.
Capital Improvements Committee Report - At the September 14, 2009 City Council meeting, the Capital Improvements Committee, consisting of Councilpersons Brock, Gault and Szukhent, was reappointed in order to provide recommendations regarding the disposition and/or purchase of several real estate properties. The recommendations outlined below have been developed as a guide to city administration to provide direction in the manner in which City Council would like to see these properties managed.
Flushing City Council
Minutes
December 14, 2009
Page Six
Property Description – As of October 30, 2009, the City of Flushing owns approximately twenty-four (24) acres of vacant property, which is adjacent to Woodland Ponds Condominium development and Flushing’s Eastview Veterans’ Memorial Park. The parcel also includes a pond, which extends to within fifty (50’) feet of the east and west property line. This property was acquired in return for the city’s completion of the paving of Woodland Ponds Drive, as well as accepting the responsibility of the balance of the sidewalks within the development.
The property is currently zoned R-1, Residential Single-Family Development. Utilities, including water and sewer, are readily available to the property line. A ten (10”) inch water main was constructed with the development of Woodland Ponds Condominium complex, and is incorporated within the public road right-of-way. A sanitary sewer lift station is located to the east of this property, on the north end of Eastview Veterans’ Memorial Park.
Development opportunities would include such amenities as potential water front development on the north side of the Blue Pond. This area may be retained for public use, or private use by adjoining lot owners. Other development of the park could include designation, by the city council, as park property.
Recommendation – As the city has expended funds for the purchase of this property through street paving and sidewalk development, an attempt should be made to recover those funds through the sale of this property, in a manner that will maximize revenue, in order to recover those expenditures, as well as provide public benefit for adjoining property owners and city residents. In order to proceed, administration should review the feasibility of an easement to the north side of this property to determine the manner in which access can be gained.
Property Description – The Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 5666 entered into a Purchase Agreement with the City of Flushing on April 13, 2009, which included three (3) parcels of land on McKinley Road. The property is being purchased through a Land Contract requiring a One Thousand ($1,000.00) Dollar down payment, annual payments of Three Thousand ($3,000.00) Dollars, with the balance due in five (5) years. This agreement expires on January 31, 2010, in the event title cannot be conveyed to the city by Warranty Deed. On Tuesday, December 15, 2009, two of the three properties will be clear for title transaction, and the sale is expected to be consummated on that date. The third parcel appears to have clear title. However, at this time, a Quit Claim Deed will need to be conveyed until confirmation of heirs to the original property owner can be contacted so that a Warranty Deed may be executed in the future.
Flushing City Council
Minutes
December 14, 2009
Page Seven
The Purchase Agreement, among other conditions, indicates that the property is intended to be used to accommodate a Senior Center and/or Library, or other public uses, as the City Council determines.
Recommendation – As this property encompasses approximately six (6) acres, as well as a building currently used by the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 5666, several new uses of the property may be accommodated on this site. Administration is urged to pursue funding, and prepare a development plan for the property. In addition to the previously mentioned uses, the parcel may be used to accommodate recreational facilities, which will accommodate other required public services.
Property Description – In 2005, the City of Flushing purchased a parcel of land lying west of Seymour Road and south of Pierson Road with the intent of retaining an area on the western side of the parcel for purposes of extending a non-motorized trail from West Pierson Road to a point north of the Central Michigan Railway property. Parcels A and B each have one hundred fifty (150’) feet of frontage along Seymour Road. The parcels are 1.2 acres and 1.5 acres respectively. Parcel C, a 1.41 acre parcel, has frontage of one hundred seventy-one (171’) feet along Seymour Road. Each of these parcels is currently zoned as R3A, Multiple Family Residential Zoning.
The Master Plan for Future Land Use designates the property as Medium Density Residential, which includes attached, detached, and clustered housing up to eight (8) units per acre. The goal in this area is to reduce the intensity of uses to be more compatible with the adjoining residential neighborhood.
Recommendation – These properties were originally intended to be sold after the divisions occurred, and upon the payoff of the Land Contract. During the past fiscal year, that Land Contract was paid off, and Warranty Deeds are now registered with the County Register of Deeds.
Administration should be directed to obtain appraisals for these parcels, after which disposition, through a sealed bid process, should proceed with a minimum price, as indicated by the appraisals.
Flushing City Council
Minutes
December 14, 2009
Page Eight
Property Description – This item initially includes a recommendation for the reuse of both properties located at 309 E. Main Street and 323 E. Main Street, also known as the former City Hall and Police Station. The city hall property is approximately two hundred sixty-four (264’) feet wide, fronting on Main Street, with a depth of one hundred ninety-eight (198’) feet. The former police station property is approximately one hundred thirty-two (132’) on Main Street, with a depth of one hundred fourteen (114’) feet. The property is currently zoned as OS-1, Office/Service Zoning, which primarily accommodates businesses of a professional office nature, and also a joint residential use, provided the structure was used for residential purposes at the time of the effective date of this ordinance.
As the former city hall structure is currently in need of substantial upgrades in order to stabilize the deterioration of the building, it is imperative that a new use for this building be found, which will generate the necessary funding needed to stabilize the foundation, repair the roof, install a new heating system, replace the windows, and install building insulation. Administrative estimates of the costs of these upgrades are between Two Hundred and Two Hundred and Fifty Thousand ($200,000.00 and $250,000.00) Dollars. These upgrades would allow the facility to maintain its present integrity, but would not necessarily renovate the building to accommodate a new use. Depending on the nature of a new use, a buildout plan would need to be developed.
Recommendation for Former City Hall Property – As this structure has significant historical value to many people within the community, it is recommended that, prior to selling the building, individuals, or groups of individuals within the community, may wish to develop a plan to raise funds necessary for restoration of the building, and present a reuse plan that will allow the continued public use of the building and grounds.
This recommendation should allow an open period of perhaps ninety to one hundred twenty (90-120) days, whereby interested parties would present a redevelopment plan for the property, along with the means that would be utilized to raise funds that are needed to stabilize the structure. The redevelopment plans would be received by the city at a date established by the city council, after which the viability and necessity of each plan of reuse would be considered. If no such viable plan is offered, a recommendation for sale of this facility would be prepared in the same manner as that of the Seymour Road Vacant Property.
Flushing City Council
Minutes
December 14, 2009
Page Nine
Recommendation for Former Police Station – During the past few years, there has been considerable interest, by individuals and realtors, for the purchase of this building. As this building may be used for a variety of office uses, with minor structural modification, it is likely that the sale of this property would attract several investors due to its location and condition. As thirty-five (35’) feet of the west side of the parcel may be of great use for parking for the old city hall site, any sale of this building should exclude that area, as depicted in the attached drawing. It is possible that the entire site, incorporating the existing police station building, could be included in the future reuse of the former city hall site. It is for this reason that any sale of this structure be postponed until reuse plans are received for the former city hall building and land. Upon review of the reuse plans for that site, and, if those plans do not include the need for the former police station property, the former police station should be appraised, and offered on the market with sealed bids.
Woodland Ponds – Motion by Gault, seconded by Szukhent, to approve the committee’s recommendation to sell the approximate twenty-four (24) acres adjacent to the Woodland Ponds Condominium development.
Yea: Bade, Brock, Gault, Martus, Salem, Szukhent, Kozan
Nay: None
Motion Carried.
VFW Property – Motion by Gault, seconded by Bade, to approve the committee’s recommendation to have administration pursue funding and prepare a development plan for the VFW property located on McKinley Road.
Yea: Bade, Brock, Gault, Martus, Salem, Szukhent, Kozan
Nay: None
Motion Carried.
Seymour Road Vacant Lots – Motion by Gault, seconded by Brock, to direct administration to obtain appraisals for the Seymour Road properties, after which disposition, through a sealed bid process, should proceed with a minimum price, as indicated by the appraisals.
Yea: Bade, Brock, Gault, Martus, Salem, Szukhent, Kozan
Nay: None
Motion Carried.
Flushing City Council
Minutes
December 14, 2009
Page Ten
Former City Hall and Police Station – Motion by Szukhent, seconded by Bade, to approve the recommendation allowing an open period of one hundred twenty (120) days, whereby interested parties would present a redevelopment plan for the property, along with the means that would be utilized to raise funds that are needed to stabilize the structure. Upon review of the reuse plans for that site, and, if those plans do not include the need for the former police station property, the former police station should be appraised, and offered on the market with sealed bids.
Yea: Bade, Brock, Gault, Martus, Salem, Szukhent, Kozan
Nay: None
Motion Carried.
Adjournment - Motion by Brock, seconded by Szukhent, to adjourn.
Yea: Bade, Brock, Gault, Martus, Salem, Szukhent, Kozan
Nay: None
Motion Carried.
Adjourn: 9:28 p.m.
_____________________________ ______________________________
George G. Kozan, Mayor Nancy G. Parks, City Clerk/Treasurer