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11-27-17 City Council Work Session MinutesKALISPELL CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION MINUTES NOVEMBER 27, 2017 View the minutes attached to the audio of the meeting at: http://kalispell.com/mayor and city council/Streaming-AV.php A WORK SESSION OF THE KALISPELL CITY COUNCIL WAS HELD AT 7:00 PM ON MONDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2017, IN THE COUNCIL CHAMBERS AT CITY HALL IN KALISPELL, MONTANA. MAYOR MARK JOHNSON PRESIDED. COUNCIL MEMBERS JIM ATKINSON, SANDY CARLSON, KARI GABRIEL, CHAD GRAHAM, PHIL GUIFFRIDA, TIM KLUESNER, ROD KUNTZ, AND WAYNE SAVERUD WERE PRESENT. Also present: City Manager Doug Russell, City Attorney Charles Harball, Planning Director Tom Jentz, and Senior Planner Jarod Nygren. Mayor Johnson called the work session to order. DISCUSSION ITEMS 1. Management of Kalispell City Airport with User Group Russell enumerated the changes made to the lease from the last meeting with the Airport Users Group, noting that staff is looking for direction for a final Lease Agreement. There was lengthy discussion regarding each amended lease item. Council consensus was for the 20 year lease term (option 2). Russell noted that when the lease is final, staff anticipates bringing it forward for approval and then giving the users group 120 days to effectuate it, which would put the timeframe on them. Zack Anderson, Airport Users Group, commented they would prefer option 3, the 30 year lease term, but they understand why council chose the 20 year lease term. Public Comment John DeNeeve, 670 Concord Lane, commented that he is confused about the option for a 20 year lease, and remarked that adding an additional 20 year lease option adds to the risk to residents and schools. He also asked about the city's liability insurance regarding the airport and suggested a five year lease and a city-wide referendum as to what to do with the airport land. Margene Barry, 919 2nd Avenue East, remarked that she is concerned about accountability in the uncontrolled airspace; she said planes vector over her house at 4:00 am and the aviation manager has no idea who they are. She said she thinks it is illegal to fly without landing lights over a populated area and that we need to know who is flying above us. Kalispell City Council Work Session Minutes November 27, 2017 Page I Christina Granrud, 535 East California Street, echoed the sentiment that there is a complete lack of accountability; the area around the airport has increased in residential density and the new school will be in harm's way of small planes. She said a five year lease would be much more sensible. Scott Davis, 448 5th Avenue West, representing Quiet Skies, said he was shocked to hear a councilman ask what a B-2 airplane is and that council should be aware the airport is not designed to be a B-2 airport; he said there should be no jet -fueled or turbo -propped aircraft landing there and wants that restriction written into the lease. Roxanna Brothers, 786 4th Avenue WN, said she found additional information about problems from planes flying over schools; they can cause learning impairments and planes are worse than cars for learning problems. She said leaded gas is used in small airplanes and the school land has not been tested for lead, but she is willing to test for it. She also suggested a five year lease to give the users time to close it down. Bill Cox, 501 4th Avenue East, commented that he focused on the airport's burden on the city's taxpayers and said the cost to taxpayers is revenue that could be gained by selling the property to a paying customer. He remarked that alternative uses of the acreage would be valuable in sales or rentals and the users group should agree to pay rent commensurate with any alternative uses and require a shorter lease so rent can be adjusted. Cox concluded by noting a 20 year lease is too long a commitment for this use. 2. The Downtown Plan Russell gave a brief history and introduced the issue of the public comment received at the last meeting regarding the Downtown Plan, particularly the lane configuration on Main Street. Russell commented that MDT is planning to create a steering committee for Highway 93 and will start up in the first quarter of 2018; tentatively, it will consist of city officials, MDT officials, county officials, and six persons from the private sector. There was lengthy discussion. Mayor Johnson remarked he is concerned with MDT working off of a 20 year old environmental impact statement and that this is a vision document, not a construction document or an engineered design plan. Graham commented that the city has not been able to get the message clearly out to the public. Atkinson noted that moving traffic safely is important and we can have a vital downtown without destroying the traffic flow. Kuntz remarked he will give his comments prior to the vote. Saverud commented that the word "plan" sounds precise, but some of the things in it will come true and some won't. He reminded council that the first urban renewal plan created in the 1970s included a large parking structure that was never built. Kalispell City Council Work Session Minutes November 27, 2017 Page 2 Guiffrida remarked that the city seems to be in defense mode; we are not doing a good job getting the message out and seem to be doing damage control instead. He said other agencies are getting information out to the public, but that some of it is false. Guiffrida concluded by commenting this is a guiding document and we can't take away the transportation, pedestrian friendliness, or walkability aspect of it and we need to give the tools to succeed to the downtown area and staff. Kluesner said he agreed it is a vision document and he is also concerned with the public's lack of knowledge regarding the document, noting there is no angled parking mentioned in the plan, just a photo from the 1940s. Gabriel remarked it is time to bring this forward for action. Carlson commented that Small Business Saturday seemed to be very successful and busy, and seemed to be an indication of what downtown can be. Mayor Johnson noted we want to create a destination; the core area redevelopment will change the whole area so we need this to dovetail with the core area plan. He said both plans create a vision for the commercial area and a place we want to be for the next 20 years, noting that all plans change and evolve over time. Russell noted he will bring the Downtown Plan forward for action at the December 4 meeting. Public Comment Pam Carbonari, KDA and BID, said she was excited to hear about MDT's steering committee, and that it is an important part of the process. She said the Downtown Plan will be good for the community, and that people need to read the document and see what is in there. Christine Granrud, 535 East California, commented that she hopes MDT will be flexible and keep to a slower pace; she said while she is happy with the businesses and shops that are going in downtown, her only issue is the lack of limitation on the height of structures that might be built. She said she is fearful that someone will build something excessively tall and she would like to see a height limitation of 48 feet or four stories. David Peterson, Goodale & Barbieri, remarked that his only concern is traffic and he hopes council thinks about all of the citizens in the city and not just in the downtown corridor. He said traffic is economic viability and we need to keep the flow of traffic up. He said he wants a strong downtown, which is the heart and soul of our community, but he does not want decisions that negatively impact business. CITY MANAGER/MAYOR/COUNCIL REPORTS Russell noted that: • the Airport Lease and Downtown Plan will be on next meeting agenda; • a work session on stormwater design standards is coming up; Kalispell City Council Work Session Minutes November 27, 2017 Page 3 • the county commission will hear the Flathead County Economic Development resolution regarding CHS and the Rail Park on November 29; and • the orientation for new council member Kyle Waterman will be held next week. Mayor Johnson reminded everyone to look at their real estate tax bills and look at everything that is assessed on them; pay attention to what and who is charging the tax. He said the city needs to look at something more consistent and evenly spread out than how Helena is handling the finances now. ADJOURN The work session was adjourned at 8:32 p.m. Prepared by: Q q_ Judi Funk Attest: Deputy City Clerk SA Ai e Brunckhorst, CMC= SEPL _ City Clerk s 1€392 Xx !liidl Kalispell City Council Work Session Minutes November 27, 2017 Page 4