MINUTES  City Council Public Works & Utilities Committee  Wednesday, August' E7,2024-3:30PM City Council Chambers  Members Present: Mac Morrow, Chair, Council Member  Lauren Wise, Vice-Chair, Council Member Owen Carson, Citizen Member Mayor Maureen Copelof, Ex-Officio Wilson Hooper, City Manager Wesley Shook, Acting Public' Works Director Dennis Richardson, Water Treatment Plant Supervisor Emory Owen, Wastewater Treatment Plant Supervisor Becky McCann, Communications Coordinator  Staff Present:  Aaron Winans, WWTP Staff Tom Jordan, Police Chief Denise Hodsdon, City Clerk Harvey Sankey  Guests:  A. Welcome and Call to Order  Committee Chair Mac Morrow called the meeting to orderat: 3:30 pm.  B. Certification of Quorum  City Clerk Denise Hodsdon certified that a quorum was present.  C.A Approval of Agenda  Motion by Mr. Carson, seconded by Mr. Wise to approve the agenda as presented.  The motion carried unanimously. D. Approval ofl Minutes - July 1, 2024 Meeting  Motion by Mr. Wise, seconded by Mr. Carson to approve the minutes oft the July1 1,2024m meeting as presented. The motion carried unanimously. E. Review of City'sLandscape Management/Depot Maintenance Practices Mr. Hooper explained that this item is to address a couple ofi inquiries from Council this week regarding landscaping management and some challenges we are having at the Depot. He asked Mr. Shook to describe the department's landscape management    practices. Mr.Shook explained that he has 4 men that maintain all oft the city's buildings and grounds. They do all the mowing; all building maintenance; and currently they are doing twice daily housekeeping at the Depot on weekdays and once daily on weekends. He noted that the Garden Club volunteers have been uncomfortable coming to the Depot to maintain the gardens because ofthe unhoused people camping out there. Cameras have been installed at the Depot and will be monitored by Community Center Director Tyree Griffin and thel Police Department to dissuade littering and other such behavior. Staffhave suggested turning off the wi-fi and electricity to the outlets overnight to deter such camping. Mr. Shook said he has received a number of calls regarding thel kudzu and invasive vines growing on the fence behind the Depot. He explained that his crew is not allowed to enter onto the SAFE property on the other side oft the fence. There was discussion aboutwhat could be done to clear the vines including using a targeted herbicide and suggesting to SAFE that removing the vines would enhance security. Mr. Hooper mentioned that the Dog Parki is difficult to maintain due to the nature of its use. One issue that has been brought up is that weeds are coming up through the gravel pathway and staffi is debating the idea ofr replacing the gravel with concrete, but there is question whether concrete is appropriate in a dog park. Itwas mentioned that al barrier beneath the gravel would be one: solution, but it would require removing the gravel and then putting itl back down. Itwas noted that any solution would need to be ADA compliant. Mr. Hooper will bring this to the Parks, Trails and Recreation Committee for its consideration. Mr. Morrow noted that staff isa also working on getting power hooked up for the lighting that was part oft the Mr. Carson suggested the idea of converting some of the heavily maintained areas into lesser maintenance areas by changing the vegetation pattern and establishing meadows and other things like that that don'tneed any sort of maintenance asa way of maximizing staff time. Mayor Copelof noted that the landscaped area at the Tannery Skatepark is not being maintained byt the community and we are not able to maintain it. She proposed removingi ita and looking into replacing it with  original design.  something less maintenance intensive.  F. ProjectUpdates  Mr. Hooper reported that the Times Arcade. Alley project is wrapping up with justa few small things left to complete, mostly drainage adjustments to capture more water in the alley. We have asked Duke tol look at the pole in the bumpout to Mr. Hooperinformed the committee that staffanticipates that the WWTP upgrade kickoff meeting with KCI will be: scheduled sometime in mid-September and they will review their schedule oft tasks for the next few months. We have submitted our funding request to the state to use a portion oft the $13M earmark to begin engineering work. They are evaluating the request and he expects to hear back  determine whether it can be moved.  from them soon.  Minutes- Council Public' Works and Utilities Committee Meeting - August 7, 2024  Page 2of3    Mr. Owen and Mr. Winans reported that they are still doing tests to determine the effectiveness of PAA: and the state has given us another 3 months because the results have been inconsistent. They have been meeting with the businesses projected to incur the high-strength waste surcharge and advised them on the process ofte testing Mr. Hooper gave an update on traffic calming measures on ProbartStreet. An amendment to the Traffic Schedule to add a 3-way stop att the intersection of Probartand Railroad Ave. will go to Council for public hearing at the next meeting. Hel has sent dimensions to the speed cushion company and expects to place the  their discharged water.  order soon, with an anticipated delivery time of4 4 to 6 weeks.  G. Public Comment  Harvey Sankey had some questions ofs staff regarding what KCI has been doing and  what to expect during the kickoff meeting.  H. Set Date for Next Meeting  The next regular meeting oft the Public Works & Utilities Committee was scheduled  for Wednesday, September 4, 2024 at 3:30 p.m.  Closed Session  At 4:49 pm Mr. Wise moved, seconded by Mr. Carson to enter closed session to discuss a personnel matter. The motion carried unanimously. Authorized to remain for the closed session with committee members were City Manager Wilson Hooper At 4:40 pm the committee resumed the meeting in open session. Noofficial action was taken in closed session and the minutes of the closed session are authorized to  and City Clerk Denise Hodsdon.  be sealed. - Adjourn  There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 4:57 p.m.  XAac hanw  Minutes Approved: Sptember 3,8084  Mac Morrow Chair, Council Member  X Dunisbision  Denisel Hodsdon City Clerk  Minutes - Council Public' Works and Utilities Committee Meeting-August7,2024  Page 3of3