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Home My WebLink AboutAgenda CC 04.28.2020 WorkshopN otice of M eeting of the Governing B ody of the C ity of Georgetown, Texas April 2 8, 2 02 0 The Georgetown City Council will meet on April 28, 2020 at 3:00 P M at The City of Georgetown is committed to compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (AD A). If you require assistance in participating at a public meeting due to a disability, as defined under the AD A, reasonable assistance, adaptations, or accommodations will be provided upon request. P lease contact the City Secretary's Office, at least three (3) days prior to the scheduled meeting date, at (512) 930-3652 or City Hall at 808 Martin Luther King J r. Street, Georgetown, TX 78626 for additional information; TTY users route through Relay Texas at 711. 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Page 1 of 34 Policy De ve lopme nt/Re vie w Workshop - A P resentation and discussion regarding C O VID-19 and the City’s emergency management response, impact on timelines of City projects, expenditures, and communications -- David Morgan, City Manager B P resentation and Discussion regarding the creation of a policy for development related fee exemptions for recipients of the City’s Strategic P artnerships for Community Services Grants and its implementation -- David Morgan, City Manager Exe cutive Se ssion In compliance with the Open Meetings Act, Chapter 551, Government Code, Vernon's Texas Codes, Annotated, the items listed below will be discussed in closed session and are subject to action in the regular session. C Sec. 551.071: Consul tati on w i th Attorney Advice from attorney about pending or contemplated litigation and other matters on which the attorney has a duty to advise the City Council, including agenda items - Litigation Update Sec. 551.086: Certai n P ubl i c P ow er Uti l i ti es: Competi ti ve M atters - P urchase P ower Update Sec. 551.072: Del i berati ons about Real P roperty - Riverhaven Drive -- Travis Baird, Real Estate Services Manager - P urchase of P roperty, 1303 Wilbarger P t. -- Travis Baird, Real Estate Services Manager Sec. 551.087: Del i berati ons Regardi ng Economi c Devel opment Negoti ati ons - P roject Ice Skates Sec. 551:074: P ersonnel Matters Consideration of the appointment, employment, evaluation, reassignment, duties, discipline, or dismissal - City Manager - City Attorney Adjournme nt Ce rtificate of Posting I, R obyn Densmore, C ity S ecretary for the C ity of G eorgetown, Texas, do hereby c ertify that this Notice of Meeting was pos ted at C ity Hall, 808 Martin Luther King Jr. S treet, G eorgetown, T X 78626, a plac e readily ac cessible to the general public as required by law, on the _____ day of _________________, 2020, at __________, and remained so pos ted for at leas t 72 c ontinuous hours prec eding the s cheduled time of said meeting. __________________________________ R obyn Dens more, C ity S ec retary Page 2 of 34 City of Georgetown, Texas City Council Workshop April 28, 2020 S UBJEC T: P resentation and discussion regarding CO VID-19 and the City’s eme rge nc y management response, impact on timelines of City projects, expenditures, and communications -- David Morgan, City Manager I T EM S UMMARY: F I NANC I AL I MPAC T: This is a Workshop Item S UBMI T T ED BY: Shirley Rinn on behalf of David Morgan, City Manager AT TAC HMENT S : Description 04.28.2020 C O VI D-19 Update Page 3 of 34 COVID-19 REPORT REPORT ON COVID -19 IMPACT Page 4 of 34 WILLIAMSON COUNTY STAY HOME STAY SAFE Modified on 04/21/2020 to be consistent with Governor Abbott Executive Orders issued on 04/17/2020 •Healthcare Operations •Retail Businesses Page 5 of 34 CITY OPERATIONS •Library Curbside Service reopened 04/27/2020 •Developing procedures to reopen lobby spaces and other City operations Page 6 of 34 FISCAL IMPACT TO DATE Budget impact presentation on May 12 with expenditure reduction planning Communications $ 17,730.21 Employee support (childcare, leave, etc)$ 2,925.78 Cleaning and Sanitizing $ 19,133.09 Quarantine $ 2,933.00 Medical Supplies (PPE)$ 132,936.49 Ipads for Fire Department $ 4,189.56 Equipment (sanitizing machine)$ 17,403.00 $ 197,251.13 Page 7 of 34 VIRTUAL RED POPPY FESTIVAL •Dysfunkshun Junkshun Facebook live concert from Barrels and Amps •T-shirt proceeds to the Caring Place Page 8 of 34 COMMUNICATIONS •Sharing positive case counts by zip code daily on COVID-19 webpage, Facebook and Twitter •Mailer •Ads in the Sun and Community Impact (letter from the mayor, things people can do, and community resources) •Reporter (monthly insert for utility bills) Page 9 of 34 COMMUNICATIONS •Social Service Campaign •RecAtHome •Facebook frames for profile pictures •Fact Fridays (sharing answers to commonly asked questions) Page 10 of 34 STATUS OF PROJECTS Due to the emergency response by City staff and the economic impacts of COVID-19, staff evaluated upcoming projects and initiatives to prioritize projects that need to continue and projects to postpone until emergency situation diminishes. Page 11 of 34 PROJECTS ON HOLD Page 12 of 34 PROJECTS ON HOLD •Downtown Parking Study / Parking Garage •Citizen Satisfaction Survey •Employee Engagement and Enablement Survey •Parks & Recreation and CVB Summer Programming •Historic Design Guidelines Public Engagement Page 13 of 34 PROJECTS ON HOLD •Downtown Trash Rate Study •Transportation Impact Fee Study •Mobility Bond (May 12 Council Workshop) •Operation of Fire Station 7 Page 14 of 34 PROJECTS ON HOLD •Tennis Center Pool Demo •Lyft Pilot Contract (Rideshare) •2nd Laptop Purchase •Parks and Recreation Open Space Masterplan Page 15 of 34 PROJECTS TO PROCEED Page 16 of 34 PROJECTS TO PROCEED •Water Rate Study •Workday •Budget/Business Planning •Distance Learning Page 17 of 34 PROJECTS TO PROCEED •Electric Fund Work Plan •Transfer Station Design •Road/Utility Capital Improvement Projects •Streets and Stormwater Maintenance Plan Page 18 of 34 PROJECTS TO PROCEED •Georgetown Municipal Complex Lobby Remodel •Rec Center/Natatorium HVAC •Village PID and ADA Trail Improvements •Operation of Fire Station 6 Page 19 of 34 PROJECTS TO PROCEED •Transit Service Review •Communications Strategic Plan •Long Range Water Planning •Water Conservation Engagement Enforcement Initiative Page 20 of 34 PROJECTS TO PROCEED •Fiber Asset Allocation •TxDOT FY2021 Signal Takeover •UDC Amendments (Review/Case by Case due to public feedback component) Page 21 of 34 Utility Billing Financial Assistance •On April 14, Council gave direction to waive certain fees, including late payment fee through May 31 •Also guidance to stop disconnections for non-payment currently •Encouraging payment plans •Provides ongoing service; but can compound outstanding bills, i.e. customers get further behind •Staff and Council looking for ways to provide more assistance during stay home orders •Many businesses closed or scaled back in operations •Some residents working from home or have loss of income (furloughs, layoffs) •General worries about the economy •Georgetown Electric and Georgetown Water are community owned utilities •May provide relief to the community through utility bill assistance Page 22 of 34 Utility Billing Financial Assistance -Opportunities •Electric Conservation Special Revenue Fund •Balance of $977K •Set up for electric conservation programs, but focus has been on other areas of utility for past several years •Propose utilizing approximately $500,000 towards utility billing assistance •Can expand the utility conservation fee to allow other uses (new) •Utility Conservation SRF has balance for programming that has not been used •Water Fund •Received payment for the Blanchard that was unbudgeted of $987,000 •Propose utilizing approximately $500,000 towards utility billing assistance •Total of $1 million for residential and businesses •Utilize partnerships, such as WBCO, to determine eligibility for residential •Administer business assistance with the help of our Economic Dev team Page 23 of 34 Next Steps for Utility Financial Assistance –with Council guidance •Electric rate ordinance on the 4/28 agenda provides for an expansion of the use of the conservation fee to allow for utility bill assistance •Second reading on 5/12 •Staff developing criteria for allocation of funds •Can bring back for Council’s review on 5/12 •Budget amendment scheduled for 5/12 would include adjustments for utility bill assistance funding •Second reading on 5/26 •Bill relief beginning 5/27 •Can be applied to any existing utility bill balance that meets the eligibility criteria, that is, balances before the adoption (such as April and May billings, could be paid with the assistance) Page 24 of 34 NEXT STEPS/QUESTIONS Page 25 of 34 City of Georgetown, Texas City Council Workshop April 28, 2020 S UBJEC T: P resentation and Discussion regarding the creation of a policy for development related fee exemptions for recipients of the City’s Strategic P artnerships for Community Services Grants and its implementation -- David Morgan, City Manager I T EM S UMMARY: At its April 14, 2020 City Council Meeting, the City Council provided direction to staff to develop a workshop item to discuss the creation of a policy to exempt development related fees for recipients of the city’ social services grants and provide a process to achieve the goals of the policy. Staff ’s proposal to accomplish the goals outlined in this policy would be to include provisions in the 501(c)3 non-profit grant recipients’ S P CS Funding Agreements to allow them to request and receive an exemption from having to pay for development related fees should they decide to remodel and/or build new facilities in the fiscal year they received the grant funds. This would not include impact fees. Should the City Council approve this policy related to exempting Development related fees for our SP C S grant recipients, the FY 2019-20 Funding Agreements for each agency will need to be amended to include the provisions outlined in this policy in the event any of them plan to request an exemption of Development related fees for projects they are working on in the current fiscal year. F I NANC I AL I MPAC T: City staff reviewed its reco rds over the past two fiscal years to determine which o f our Strategic P artnerships for Community Services grant recipients (past and prese nt) if any o f them have re c e ive d any fee exemptions for their development related projects. The financial impact of allowing the City’s SP CS Grant recipients to request and receive development fee exemptions would vary from year to year depending on how many agencies received an exemptio n(s). The following table outlines the development fees, as well as a few sign permit fees that would already be e xe mpte d under c urre nt policie s, that either were previo usly exempted or under the new policy would be eligible to be e xe mpte d if any of these agencies received a S P CS grant under the current proposal. Name of Non-P rofi t Agency F Y 2018 F Y 2019 F Y 2020 (YTD)Total Brookwood in Georgetown (Bi G)$0 $1,581 $8,486 $10,067.00 Faith in Action $55 $75 $2,450 $2,580 Ride on Center for Kids (R.O.C.K.)$0 $740 $0 $740 Habitat for Humanity $763 $0 $0 $763 Assistance League Thrift Store $30 $0 $0 $30 CASA of Williamson County $0 $359 $0 $359 The Caring P lace/Annex $295 $365 $0 $660 Total $1,143 $3,120 $10,936 $15,199 The City Council is also asked to consider whether or not to implement a cap on the total amount of development fee exemptions any one agency would be eligible to receive should they request any development fee exemptions in the fiscal year they receive their S P CS grant. S UBMI T T ED BY: Shirley Rinn on behalf of David Morgan, City Manager AT TAC HMENT S : Page 26 of 34 Description P owerP oint P resentation Page 27 of 34 Development Fee Exemptions Strategic Partnerships for Community Services Grant Recipients Page 28 of 34 •April 14, 2020 City Council Meeting •Directed staff to develop a Workshop •Creation of a Policy to exempt development related fees •For recipients of the city’s social service grants •Develop a process to achieve goals of the new Policy City Council Workshops and Meetings Page 29 of 34 Financial Impact •Review Development Fee Records •501(c)3 non-profits who have or have had in the past received a Strategic Partnerships for Community Services Grant •Development fees either were previously exempted or agency(s) would be eligible for an exemption(s) under new policy. •FY 2018: $1,142 •FY 2019: $3,120 •FY 2020 (YTD): $10,936 Page 30 of 34 Name of Non-Profit Agency FY18 FY19 FY20 (YTD)Total Brookwood in Georgetown (BIG)$0 $1,581 $8,486 $10,067 Faith in Action $55 $75 $2,450 $2,580 Ride on Center for Kids (R.O.C.K.)$0 $740 $0 $740 Habitat for Humanity $763 $0 $0 $763 Assistance League Thrift Store $30 $0 $0 $30 CASA of Williamson County $0 $359 $0 $359 The Caring Place/Annex $295 $365 $0 $660 Total $1,143 $3,120 $10,936 $15,199 Page 31 of 34 Implementation •Strategic Partnerships for Community Service Grant Recipients •Does the City Council want to cap the annual amount of exempted fees offered through the grant? •Proposed language to amend current funding agreements and implement in future agreements: •As a recipient of a Strategic Partnerships for Community Services Grant, “Name of Agency” shall also have the ability receive an exemption of development related fees in an amount not to exceed $$ should “Name of Agency” remodel their current facilities and/or build new facilities if the request is made in the fiscal year defined in this Funding Agreement. Page 32 of 34 Implementation •Strategic Partnerships for Community Service Grant Recipients •Development Related Fees are defined as: •Land development processing fees outlined in the City of Georgetown’s Unified Development Code (UDC) Development Manual •Building Permits and Inspections Fees •Fire Code Permit Fees •Does not include •Electric Connection/Engineering Fees •Water & Wastewater Connection/Engineering Fees •Impact Fees Page 33 of 34 QUESTIONS Page 34 of 34