Citizens Agenda for Meetings on September 24, 2019

Citizens Agenda

Council meeting agendas are often difficult for people to navigate. Filled with jargon and legal requirements on how an item must be listed, it can be a challenge to determine what Council members are actually discussing or deciding on.
What follows is a staff interpretation of the agendas.
The official published agendas and supporting materials can be found here:  http://agendas.provo.org

PROVO MUNICIPAL COUNCIL
Work Meeting Agenda
2:00 PM, Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Work Meetings are designed to be a less formal venue for discussion among Council Members. Generally, no public input is taken during the meeting.

Business

1. A discussion regarding the carryover of certain Fiscal Year 2018-2019 budget amounts into Fiscal Year 2019-2020. (19-098)
   
   • Provo City's Fiscal Year 2018-2019 budget ordinance allows for the carryover of certain approved unused budgeted amounts into Fiscal Year 2019-2020. All unused capital improvement fund budgets may be carried into the new year. Unused budget amounts from all other funds may also be carried over into the new year with the approval of the Mayor. The purpose of this presentation is to inform the City Council of the amount and nature of the capital improvement and operating carryovers.
2. A discussion regarding defining over-occupancy as a nuisance. (19-094)
   
   • Because of Council establishing zoning compliance as one of their top priorities, various ideas have been put forward for discussion. One idea is to possibly add over-occupancy to the listing in City Code for nuisances.
3. A discussion regarding proposed amendments to Personnel Policies in Title 4. (19-082)
   
   • This is a continuation of a discussion from the Work Session on July 9, 2019. As the Administration was preparing for implementing changes to leave policies that were proposed with the annual budget this year, we noted a number of inconsistencies between current practices and some older provisions of the Municipal Code in Title 4. Many of the personnel provisions in Title 4 are no longer in alignment with standard personnel policies and administrative practices and are somewhat antiquated.
     

Wastewater Planning

The Provo City Council has been receiving updates from and working with the Public Works Department to plan for anticipated wastewater (sewer) infrastructure needs for several years now. One issue is the need to upgrade the wastewater treatment plant to meet new standards that will soon be required. The other issue is meeting the needs of growth west of the freeway.

Council approved a five-year plan for increasing wastewater rates in order to address the needs of a new plant and additional infrastructure. This allowed the necessary funds to be raised without having to bond for the projects or deplete the fund balance that needs to be available for emergencies. Those scheduled increases recently began appearing on utility bills.

Summary of Action | Meetings on September 10, 2019

PROVO MUNICIPAL COUNCIL

Work Meeting
1:30 PM, Tuesday, September 10, 2019
351 West Center Street, Provo, UT 84601
Summary of Action

Agenda

Approval of Minutes 
May 14, 2019 Budget Retreat  
June 18, 2019 Work Meeting
 Approved by unanimous consent.
 Business
 1. A discussion regarding sewer capacity west of I-15 and a consideration of options. (19-085) Presentation only.

2. A discussion regarding the Downtown Pedestrian Plan proposed by Downtown Provo, Inc. (19-093) Presentation only.

3. ***CONTINUED*** A discussion on defining over-occupancy as a nuisance. (19-094) 

4. A discussion regarding an appropriation related to elements of the FY19-20 Provo City Budget that need to be revisited (19-095) Presentation only.

5. A discussion regarding a proposed ordinance amendment to Provo City Code to reduce off-street requirements for multi-family developments if certain considerations are met. (19-092) A motion to send the proposal to the Planning Commission for review was approved 7:0.

Summary of Action | Meetings on August 27, 2019

PROVO MUNICIPAL COUNCIL

Work Meeting
1:00 PM, Tuesday, August 27, 2019
351 West Center Street, Provo, UT 84601
Summary of Action

Agenda

Approval of Minutes

• May 7, 2019 Joint Meeting with the Parks and Recreation Board   
• May 7, 2019 Work Meeting   
• May 28, 2019 Joint Meeting with the Metropolitan Water Board   
• July 23, 2019 Work Meeting   
• Approved by unanimous consent.

Business
 1. A presentation on policy updates from the Utah League of Cities and Towns. (19-089) Presentation only.

2. A discussion regarding sewer capacity west of I-15 and a consideration of options. (19085) Presentation only. A presentation was scheduled for the Work Meeting on September 10, 2019, in which several members of the development community would present to the Council on related west side sewer considerations.

3. A discussion regarding a resolution authorizing City Administration to accept a State of Utah Infrastructure Bank Fund Loan for improvements related to the Provo Airport Terminal Project. (19-087) A motion to support both funding sources for the projects enumerated was approved 6:0, with David Sewell excused.

Presentation only. Following a review by the State's Transportation Commission, Public Works staff may return after September 20, 2019 to a Council Meeting in October or November.

4. A discussion regarding an Interfund Loan from the Energy Fund to the Wastewater Fund for sewer improvements related to the new Airport terminal. (19-088) [The motion for item 3 also applies to this item.]

Citizens Agenda for Meetings on September 10, 2019

UPDATED 9/9/2019

Citizens Agenda

Council meeting agendas are often difficult for people to navigate. Filled with jargon and legal requirements on how an item must be listed, it can be a challenge to determine what Council members are actually discussing or deciding on.
What follows is a staff interpretation of the agendas.
The official published agendas and supporting materials can be found here:  http://agendas.provo.org

PROVO MUNICIPAL COUNCIL
Work Meeting Agenda
1:30 PM, Tuesday, September 10, 2019

Work Meetings are designed to be a less formal venue for discussion among Council Members. Generally, no public input is taken during the meeting.

Business

1. A discussion regarding sewer capacity west of I-15 and a consideration of options. (19-085)
   
   • For many years, City officials in Provo have known that sewer system capacity was a limiting force in further residential and commercial development in Provo west of Interstate 15. The wastewater collection system in west Provo was planned for many years based on most of west Provo remaining in agricultural use as identified in the general plan. However, in the last 10-15 years, there has been greater demand for additional residential development in this area. Within the last few years, the City has adopted a new Southwest Area Plan in the General Plan document that gives much more specificity as to planned development and density in the area. Additionally, Provo High School has moved to the northwest area in the city, consuming some sewer capacity and likely stimulating more growth in the future in this area of the city. Provo School District has also announced plans to relocate Dixon Middle School to southwest Provo in the next few years, which will also require added sewer capacity in this part of Provo.
   • With a number of forces at work, many land owners and developers in the area have argued that additional sewer capacity on the west side has become more critical and time-sensitive, and would like to approach the Council to consider strategies to accelerate capacity expansion.
   • Council leadership has asked that Public Works staff come to the work meeting on August 27 to provide some history and context and to talk specifically about the current CIP plan and how it relates to this increasing demand. They have also offered to some of the larger developers and land owners in this part of Provo to present their plans and perspectives on September 10. Our hope is that if the Council would like to see any alternatives to the current CIP plan and strategy, the Council would ask staff after the September 10 meeting to develop some scenarios that could be considered.
   • The Administration sees this as an important policy question that impacts the City budget, development pace on the west side, housing availability, agricultural preservation, transportation, and other important policy issues. The Council's consideration of any potential policy changes should be made carefully with good data and careful consideration, and these discussions are intended to begin a dialogue with the stakeholders to see if a change in current policy is warranted or advisable.
2. A discussion regarding the Downtown Pedestrian Plan proposed by Downtown Provo, Inc. (19-093)
   
   • In discussing the Provo City Transportation Master Plan, the downtown business community felt a statement on the area from 500 W to 200 E along Center Street could be helpful to clarify their expectations. Specifically, they indicated agreement and support for the designation of Center Street from 500 W to 200 E as a pedestrian mall allowing for pedestrians to receive priority in this area. Further they have concerns about how this plan is being implemented. As part of their statement, they request that as decisions about parking, light patterns, traffic flow and other future projects keep pedestrian friendly environments as the top priority. Finally, they provide a list of suggestions that could help enhance this effort. They are as follows:
     
     • Enforcement of the 15 mph limit on Center, and other speed limits in high traffic pedestrian areas.
     • Synchronizing light patterns and new green arrows encouraging cars to use 100 N for freeway access.
     • Additional signage including new pedestrian way-finding signs.
     • Additional kiosks in public spaces allowing for way-finding and designated public announcement areas.
     • Physical changes that allow a driver to recognize a difference as they enter the “historic downtown” corridor. such as:
       
       1. Either raised crosswalks
       2. Crosswalk lights
       3. Or other physical changes