Monday, November 8, 2021

Highland City Council Preview for 9-Nov-2021

As of Friday, Nov 5th there were 127 ballots left to be counted out of 4,752 that had been received by the county. Below are the results as of Friday:

2021-11-05-Election-Data_thumb6

Thanks to those who participated in the political process and voted! Our turnout was nearly 40%, which is above average for municipal elections in Highland. Click here to view recent municipal election turnout info and click here to view the latest election results.

For Tuesday’s council meeting there are a number of interesting items on the agenda including:

  • A 6 PM work session where the council will discuss the disposal of city property that would affect 15 residences. Part of the discussion should also include how to deal with encroachment on city property. This will be followed up by an action item on the council agenda.
  • Special recognition for the following Highland residents:
    • The Reeb family (Noah, Jacque, and James). Click here to watch a short video that will make you smile and cry.
    • Outgoing Arts Council chair Shauna Larson.
    • Highland resident Kristina Woodbury.
  • Discussion of an amendment to our city code that would cover shipping containers.

This meeting will be held at city hall but we will also stream it on our YouTube channel (click here to watch). 

You can find an abbreviated meeting agenda. The complete agenda (230 pages) which includes the staff reports associated with each item can be accessed by clicking here.


Highland City Council Agenda
Tuesday, Nov, 9th 2021
6:00 PM  work session and 7:00 pm council meeting
Virtual Participation

The time and duration listed at the end of agenda items is my guess as to the start time of this item and how long it will run.


6:00 PM WORK SESSION: Review of a list of city of property to be considered for disposal (the list to be discussed are the 15 property requests the council reviewed earlier this year but ended up deferring a decision on their disposal.

One of the challenges the council faces in approving or rejecting properties on this list is that there are many homes surrounding some of these properties which have already encroached on city property. I believe the council needs to approve a policy for dealing with encroachment and authorize staff to enforce it as part of the decision on this list. My expectation is that while the council may arrive at a consensus on the policy they will defer approving the policy until the next meeting to provide the time to get feedback from staff and residents as well as consider unintended consequences.


  1. UNSCHEDULED PUBLIC APPEARANCES 7:05 PM
    Time has been set aside for the public to express their ideas, concerns, and comments. Comments are limited to 3 minutes..

  2. PRESENTATIONS 7:20 PM

    1. Youth Council
      A member of the Highland City Youth Council will report on their activities and service during the last month
    2. Arts Council
      Mayor Rod Mann and Council Member Kurt Ostler will recognize Shauna Larson for her many years of service as the Chair of the Highland City Arts Council and introduce Phoebe Hall as the new Chair of the Highland City Arts Council.
    3. Recognition Items
      Mayor Rod Mann will give special recognition to those who have contributed to Highland City.
  3. CONSENT ITEMS  7:40 PM
    Items on the consent agenda are of a routine nature or have been previously studied by the City Council. They are intended to be acted upon in one motion. Council members may pull items from consent if they would like them considered separately.

    1. Approval of Council Meeting Minutes for Sept 21st and Oct 5th Administrative
    2. ORDINANCE: 2022 City Council Regular Meeting Schedule . Administrative
      The City Council will consider approving the following City Council Regular Meeting Schedule for 2022. City Council will hold their meetings on the first and third Tuesday of every month at 7:00 pm with the following exceptions:
      • The Swearing In Ceremony will be held on Tuesday, January 4th, so City Council meetings during January will be held on January 11th and 18th.
      • No meeting on April 5th due to spring break, instead City Council will meet on March 29th.
      • Only one meeting in November, on the 1st.
      • Only one meeting in December, on the 6th.
    3. ACTION: Library Long-Range Strategic Plan Administrative  Administrative
      The library updates its long-range plan each year. A goal to hire a fund-raising consultant for capital improvements and related goals were removed based input from the survey conducted at the first of the year. Plan highlights include the following:
      • Conduct a financial audit of the Library fund in 2022.
      • Increase library card holders by 10% in 2022 and 5% each year thereafter.
      • Replace the Library carpet by 2024.
      • Grow the physical collection to 50,000 items by 2026.
      • Grow the picture book collection to 8,000 by 2026.
      • Continue our existing weekly and monthly programs and hold at least one in-person adult program each quarter.
    4. FINAL PLAT: Ridgeview Retail Administrative.Legislative
      The City Council will consider a request by Spencer Moffat for final plat approval for a 4-lot commercial subdivision located at approximately North County Boulevard and Canal Boulevard.
      2021-11-09-Ridgeview-Commercial-Plat
    5. RESOLUTION: Opioid Litigation Settlement Legislative
      The City Council will consider a request by the Utah Attorney General for the City to participate in the proposed settlements of ongoing litigation against opioid distributors and manufacturers. Here is more detail:

      Several years ago, certain states and local political subdivisions initiated litigation against these companies related to their practices in developing, marketing, distributing, and other activities that caused or furthered the opioid epidemic. After years of litigation and negotiations, the parties have reached proposed, nationwide settlement agreements, one for the distributors and one for the manufacturer.

      The proposed settlements would require the companies to provide billions of dollars in relief to states and local governments to alleviate and abate the opioid epidemic. These funds would be provided to the states, who would then use them for the benefit of the state and its political subdivisions or distribute them to local governments for local use. The proposed settlements also require the companies to take certain actions or to stop taking certain actions related to opioid manufacturing and distribution.

      The proposed settlements will only be effective if a sufficient number of states join the settlement. Further, the settlements provide for bonus incentive payments that provide additional money to states based on the number of local political subdivisions that opt into the settlements. Essentially, the companies do not wish to settle unless they can guarantee that a critical mass of government claims against them are being settled.

      For the City side, the more political subdivision that join, the more incentive money is paid out. Any political subdivision that does not join the settlement cannot receive funds from the payout and would have to pursue separate litigation against the companies. Thus the City has an incentive to participate in order to potentially receive funds or, at the least, to enable Utah to receive the most funds possible. Participation by the City requires the City to settle and release claims against the opioid companies, which would preclude the City from suing those companies for the same matters. Settlement by the City would not preclude any private person or entity from suing those companies.

    6. ORDINANCE: Municipal Code Text Amendment – Short-Term Rentals Legislative
      The council will consider approving a change to our short-term rental ordinance requiring all short-term rentals to be owner occupied. 

  4. PUBLIC HEARING/ORDINANCE: TEXT AMENDMENT – SHIPPING CONTAINERS Legislative. 8:00 PM

    Over the last few years the city has received a number calls and questions regarding shipping containers. During Covid, staff was getting a call once a week about shipping containers, whereas currently staff is receiving a call once a month. There are three (3) outstanding complaints that have not yet been resolved. When complaints about shipping containers come in, staff addresses them from a nuisance/accumulation perspective. If the shipping container is proved to be “a source of contamination or pollution of water, air or property, a danger to health, a breeding ground or habitation for insects or rodents or other forms of life deleterious to human habitation, or when such objects, conditions or structures are unsightly or deleterious to their surroundings,” the property owner is asked to have it removed (Municipal Code 8.16.050). The act of keeping a shipping container on a property is not regulated by City code. The planning commission began discussion the issue in February of this year and are recommend that the council add the following to our municipal code to address shipping containers:

    1. A shipping container is a reusable container designed for intermodal freight or other commercial transportation.
    2. Shipping containers that are kept or used on a property for longer than 60 days shall meet the following regulations:
      1. Shipping containers may only be permitted in the R-1-40, R-1-30, and R-1-20 Districts.
      2. Shipping containers shall meet the accessory structure regulations for the applicable zone.
      3. Building permits are required for shipping containers larger than 200 square
        feet or that require electrical, plumbing, or other utilities.
      4. Shipping containers may not be stacked vertically.
      5. Shipping containers shall be set back at least ten feet (10') from the front of
        the home,
      6. Shipping containers shall be painted a color consistent with that of the main
        dwelling.
      7. Shipping containers are prohibited on lots without a home.

  5. RESOLUTION: ADOPTION OF THE DESIGNATION OF DISPOSABLE PROPERTIES Legislative 9:00 PM
    The City Council will consider the adoption of a resolution designating specific parcels of public real property as orphan parcels that may be sold. This is a follow-up to the work session discussion. I would not be surprised if this item was continued.
  6. PRELIMINARY PLAT: RIDGEVIEW POD B Administrative 9:30 PM

    The City Council will consider a request by Boyer Ridgeview Commercial, L.C. for
    preliminary plat approval for a 424-lot subdivision located at approximately North County Boulevard and Canal Boulevard. The request represents an accelerated timeline for the project and is one that Boyer has previously shared with the council. Below is a summary of the changes this represents to the original plan approved by the council.

    • A reduction in the total number of units from 699 to 689.
    • Increase the size of the community park from 4 acres to 4.8 acres.
    • Removal of a row of lots that backed onto the Community Park.
    • Increasing the lot size in Pod 12, thereby reducing the number of lots from 161 to 114 and the density from 6.54 units per acre to 4.63.

    • Pod 6 will change from carriage lots to town homes. This is allowed within the current density however townhomes were originally contemplated primarily along North County Boulevard.

    The diagram below shows the revised plan. See the staff report associated with item in the full agenda for more details.

    2021-11-08-Boyer-Plat-B_thumb2

  7. DISCUSSION: OPEN SPACE FINANCIAL PLAN 9:45 PM
    The City Council will discuss the scope and deliverables of the Open Space Financial Plan being completed by Lewis, Young, Robertson, and Burningham, Inc (LYRB). This item is being presented for discussion and to receive general direction to ensure that the report produced contains the information the council needs.

  8. ORDINANCE: UPDATES TO HIGHLAND CITY STANDARD DRAWINGS AND DESIGN CRITERIA Legislative. 10:00 PM

    The Standard Drawings and Design Criteria for the City were last updated in 2015. For some time, the State Division of Drinking Water has required that portions of the City standards be updated. With that impetus, staff undertook a review of the entire documents in an effort to update them at one time rather than piece by piece. The changes do not significantly alter the requirements of the City, with the exception of the item indicated below pertaining to the parkway detail.

    An item of note for the Council is the standard drawing for the Parkway Landscape Detail, ST-06, has been updated in Note 2 to allow the use of xeriscape along the parkways. It is anticipated that a future text amendment will be forthcoming that will further define what xeriscape means and what is an acceptable design criteria. This change simply allows for xeriscape to be implemented based upon an approved plan. This change is being suggested to allow for minimized water use and maintenance on parkway corridors.

  9. DISCUSSION: MAG/UDOT FUNDED 4800 WEST STUDY Administrative 10:30 PM
    The City Council will discuss the findings of a recently completed study of 4800 West including the intersection of Timpanogos Highway (SR-92) and North County Boulevard (SR-129) extending through the roundabout at Main Street in Alpine. (For clarification, North County Boulevard turns into 4800 West north of Timpanogos Highway.)

  10. ACTION: CREATION OF AN AD HOC COMMITTEE Administrative 10:50 PM
    Purpose:
    To create a report that will be used at a future council work session on the potential for disposal of open space parcels in the Wimbleton Subdivision.

    Background:
    As the council decision to dispose of trails and open space in Wimbleton was resoundingly overturned we would like to look at what options may be available to residents that would not involve removal of the trails.

    Summary of Request
    The committee would be tasked with producing a report that will be shared and discussed with the council at a future work session to be held prior the 2022 open space disposal resolution meeting. The report should include the following:

    1. An analysis of how the current open space disposal policies would be applied to property adjacent to the Wimbleton Trails
    2. A description of city infrastructure in Wimbleton that would affect the property adjacent to trails and the costs associated with relocating or replacing any infrastructure components (i.e. city sprinklers, PI lines, detention basins).
    3. Steps the city would need to take to allow the ditch on the east side of Wimbleton to be abandoned.
  11. MAYOR/COUNCIL AND STAFF COMMUNICATION ITEMS 11:00 PM

    1. Future Meetings
      • Nov 16: Board of Canvassers Meeting, 6:00 pm, City Hall
      • Nov 16, Planning Commission Meeting, 7:00 pm, City Hall
      • Dec 7: City Council Meeting, 7:00 pm, City Hall
      • Oct 19,:City Council Meeting, 7:00 pm, City Hall
      • Jan 4,:Swearing In Ceremony, 7:00 pm, City Hall

ADJOURNMENT 11:15 PM

Links:

No comments:

Post a Comment

Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts regarding this post.