Summary of the March 1 Meetings

In the Work Session

Council Priorities:
Council Members continued their discussion on priorities and made assignments to further them. The Policy Governance Committee will look at "structured policy" and come back with recommendations. For the priority on Provo's west side, Council Members will be asking constituents for input. "Civic engagement" has been changed to "public engagement" and Dave Harding, Dave Knecht, and Dave Sewell will each be gathering information on the three outcomes listed for this priority. The discussion on priorities will continue at the March 15 Work Meeting.

Community Development Fees:
Council Members is working with the Budget Committee to review 25 user fees each quarter, comparing actual costs to the fees being charged. Community Development presented the fees in their department to the Budget Committee at their previous meeting and did the same at the Council's Work Meeting. The department regularly compares their fees to those charged by other cities in order to stay "in the middle." They also don't aim for full cost recovery on these user fees because of the overall benefit to the community. After a healthy discussion, Council Members decided to continue this item to the March 15 Work Meeting to allow time for the Community Development department to gather some additional information.

The Council also:

• Heard and approved the ad hoc housing committee mission statement.
• Heard a presentation from Claudia O'Grady and Jonathon Hanks of Utah Housing Corporation and discussed low income housing tax credits
• Postponed the Development Review Process and discussion of items referred to the Planning Commission being placed on Work Meeting agendas until the March 15 Work Meeting due to time constraints
• Discussed the status of infrastructure on the west side of Provo as it relates to future development
• Heard a presentation on and discussed the proposed 2016-17 Annual Action Plan to be submitted to the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The Council, in a vote of 5-2, expressed its intent to have 15% of the CDBG funds directed to social service projects. 
• Discussed a potential transfer of property in downtown Provo to further the goals of the Redevelopment Agency.

In the Formal Meeting

Spring Creek Neighborhood:
Mary Millar, Spring Creek Neighborhood Chair, spoke about the variety of housing in the neighborhood as well as their claim of having the most permanent residents in Provo (Provo City Cemetery). Their neighborhood includes many businesses as well as a variety of housing types and is looking forward to a new park.

Compost and Green Waste:

The solid waste district to which Provo belongs ended composting services in December 2015 and Provo City has been working to determine options for how to handle green waste. The good news is that Provo has a compost yard which is opening under the city's management. More details on the yard waste sanitation cans and composting are available on the Mayor's blog.

The Council also:

• Supported the Mayor in Proclaiming Radon Awareness Month. Radon test kits are available from the Utah County Health Department and Habitat for Humanity.
• Heard a presentation to Aaron Davenport, Water Reclamation, as February's Employee of the Month
• Held a public hearing and approved a resolution appropriating $40,000 in the the Mountain Vista Fund for various expenses
• Approved an ordinance amending the Consolidated Fee Schedule to update sanitation fees charged at the Compost Yard
• Approved a resolution authorizing the transfer of property in downtown Provo. Properties are being exchanged to facilitate the development of the new State courthouse and a new hotel.
• Held a public hearing and approved/denied a resolution to adopt the Franklin Neighborhood Plan as a component of the Provo City General Plan
• Passed an ordinance amendment to revise, codify, and compile the general ordinances of Provo City. This is a yearly update to bring the Provo City Code up to date.

This is a general summary of the Council's meetings. For a more detailed agenda and minutes, please visit our public documents site: http://publicdocuments.provo.org/sirepub/meet.aspx
Video recordings:  Work Meeting and Council Meeting

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