11.09.21 Council Minutes

THE STATE OF UTAH

COUNTY OF SEVIER

CITY OF RICHFIELD

At the City Council

In and For Said City

November 9, 2021

Minutes of the Richfield City Council meeting held on Tuesday, November 9, 2021, at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers of the Richfield City office building located at 75 East Center, Richfield, Utah.   Mayor David C. Ogden presiding.

1. OPENING REMARKS
2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
3. ROLL CALL
4. APPOINTMENTS
5. MINUTES APPROVED
6. EXPENDITURES TABLED
7. FUNDS FOR THE SEVIER COUNTY COMMUNITY THEATER APPROVED OTHER BUSINESS
8. CANVASS OF THE GENERAL ELECTION HELD NOVEMBER 2, 2021 REVIEWED AND APPROVED
9. RICHFIELD BLOCK 11 SUBDIVISION APPROVED
10. PLANNING COMMISSION REPORT
11. REVIEW AND DISCUSS THE GENERAL PLAN
12. UPDATING THE 2 SIDE-BY-SIDES FOR THE TRAILS DISCUSSED
13. MEETING ADJOURNED

1. OPENING REMARKS were offered by Councilmember Nielson
2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE was led by Councilmember Christensen
3. ROLL CALL. Present: Mayor Ogden, Bryan Burrows, Kathy Christensen, Todd Gleave, Connie Nielson, Michele Jolley, Tyson Hansen.
   Excused: Kip Hansen.
4. APPOINTMENTS. Consider appointing members to the Trails Committee It was recommended that the Council appoint Carson DeMille, Ben Giblette, David Graf, Trevor Thalman, Derek Stokes, Devin Wayman, Graig Winn, Morgan Shaver, and Tyson Hansen. Mr. DeMille stated that the terms were for 2-year and 4-year terms. Graig Winn, Morgan Shaver, and Tyson Hansen are the new members that were not on the committee originally. It has been 4 years since the committee was formed, so he reviewed the bylaws of the Trails Committee as a refresher and to remind the Council what the point of the committee was. “The duty of the committee states, “It shall be the duty of the committee to act in an advisory and voluntary capacity with the development of bicycle trails and related recreation opportunities of the City residents, including, but not limited to the following: 1) Recommend to the City Council and the Planning Commission a bicycle and trails masterplan; 2) Review and recommend appropriate changes and updates to the bicycle and trails master plan to the City Council; 3) Recommend project, legislation, policies, funding allocations and other measures, programs, or activities for the development of the parks, trails and recreation opportunities within the City; 4) Carry out projects, programs or activities as directed by the City Council; and 5) Initiate sponsor and promote involvement, activities, and contributions by the private sector for the development of parks, trails, and recreation in the City.

The bylaws also state that members will be recommended by the Trails Committee and the Council approves who serves on the committee. Motion: Appoint Graig Winn, Morgan Shaver, and Tyson Hansen to serve on the Trails Committee, Action: Approved, Moved by Connie Nielson, Seconded by Kathy Christensen. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 4). Yes: Bryan Burrows, Connie Nielson, Kathy Christensen, Todd Gleave. Excused: Kip Hansen.

Councilmember Nielson thanked Carson DeMille for all of his services on this committee. One of the nicest things she has seen happen during her service on the Council was watching Mr. DeMille give so much service. It is so unselfish and it has been so advantageous for the City. She has such respect for him and for the people that he has worked with. It has been so enjoyable to see all of the things Mr. DeMille has been able to do and all of the time and effort that he has donated to this project.

Mr. DeMille stated that they have been able to accomplish a lot in 4 years and by the end of next year, we will have built everything that the Forest Service has permitted.

5. MINUTES APPROVED. The Council reviewed the minutes of the meeting held on October 12, 2021. Motion: Approve the minutes of the meeting held on October 12, 2021, Action: Approved, Moved by Kathy Christensen, Seconded by Todd Gleave. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 4). Yes: Bryan Burrows, Connie Nielson, Kathy Christensen, Todd Gleave. Excused: Kip Hansen.
6. EXPENDITURES TABLED. The Council did not receive the warrants for November 2021 in their packet. Motion: Table the review of the November 2021 warrants until the Council’s next meeting, Action: Tabled, Moved by Kathy Christensen, Seconded by Connie Nielson. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 4). Yes: Bryan Burrows, Connie Nielson, Kathy Christensen, Todd Gleave. Excused: Kip Hansen.
7. FUNDS FOR THE SEVIER COUNTY COMMUNITY THEATER APPROVED. Trenton Willson represented Megan Bird and explained that a couple of years ago, the City paid for the insurance for the Little Mermaid production, as well as the $2,000 donation. They would like to request that the City do the same this time.

Councilmember Burrows thought the Chad McWilliams from the Travel Council paid some of that. The last time, the insurance was $350. Councilmember Burrows asked if we are on our $2,000 year or our $1,000 year. We are on our $2,000 year. Motion: Approve the funds for the Sevier County Committee Theater as discussed by Trenton Willson for $2,000 and to cover the $350 insurance, Action: Approved, Moved by Bryan Burrows, Seconded by Kathy Christensen. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 4). Yes: Bryan Burrows, Connie Nielson, Kathy Christensen, Todd Gleave. Excused: Kip Hansen.

Mr. Willson thanked the City for its support and noted that they will be doing a summer performance as well.

8. CANVASS OF THE GENERAL ELECTION HELD NOVEMBER 2, 2021 REVIEWED AND APPROVED. The Council reviewed the canvass report for the November 2, 2021, general election.

Richfield has 3,821 registered voters. In this election, 2,107 ballots were cast which was a 55.14% voter turnout. There were 9 provisional ballots cast with all being counted except 2 who were located outside the City limits. There were 50 ballots not counted. Five of those ballots were clearly postmarked after the deadline, and 45 were not counted because their signatures did not match the signatures on file at the County Clerks’ office.

Those 45 non-matching signature voters were notified and given an opportunity to correct (or cure) the problem before 5 pm on Monday, November 8.

The ballots remaining after Tuesday, November 2, 2021, were counted yesterday morning and official results were released at that time. However, because the deadline to cure signature issues was not until 5 pm yesterday, 2 voters did come in and cure their ballots before 5 pm. Those ballots were counted this morning and are reflected in the following numbers:

For Mayor:
Burrows, Bryan 1,136
Stubbs, Angie 958
For Councilmember:
Ogden, K. Jeanna 892
Arrington, Kevin 953
Street, Elaine 955
Thompson, Tanner 1,102

Because the point-spread between Kevin Arrington and Elaine Street is so close, Mr. Arrington would have the opportunity to request a recount. He would have 7 days to ask for a recount. This completes the official canvass of the 2021 General Election.

Motion: Approve the Canvass of the election held on November 2, 2021, Action: Approved, Moved by Kathy Christensen, Seconded by Todd Gleave. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 4). Yes: Bryan Burrows, Connie Nielson, Kathy Christensen, Todd Gleave. Excused: Kip Hansen.

9. RICHFIELD BLOCK 11 SUBDIVISION APPROVED. Mayor Ogden explained that this is the subdivision that the Six County AOG is developing for self-help homes. The property is located on 500 South between 400 West and 500 West. Hailey Ripstein, representing Six County, stated that there are five lots in this subdivision. There are 3 along 500 South, one on 400 West, and one in the middle of the block. They have 4 families that have been approved to build the self-help home. USDA has approved the 4 loans already. Once this has been approved and recorded, the loans can be finished and they can start breaking ground. She noted that they are hoping to do this as soon as possible.

Councilmember Nielson asked if they would start the construction after the first of the year. Ms. Rippstein stated that they are hoping to start before the first of the year and if they continue on the track that they are on now, they should be able to start breaking ground on December 1, 2021. Mayor Ogden stated that these homes have been so successful and it is a great thing for our community and other communities in our area.

Motion: Approve the Richfield Block 11 Subdivision, Action: Approved, Moved by Bryan Burrows, Seconded by Kathy Christensen. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 4). Yes: Bryan Burrows, Connie Nielson, Kathy Christensen, Todd Gleave. Excused: Kip Hansen.

10. PLANNING COMMISSION REPORT. Kendrick Thomas was present to discuss the meetings held on October 6 and November 3. A public hearing and they acted on a proposal to add commercial kennels in the CG zone as a C-2 use. The looked at Chapter 19 of the zoning code for off-street in the RM-11 and RM-24 zones. and they are recommending that the parking requirements match the requirements of the RM-24 zone.

They determined to amend the transportation master plan to change the designation of 100 West from 1500 South to the south. They addressed a request to rezone property at approximately 256 North 600 East from CS to the RM-11 zone, which they recommend, and they also recommended changes to the hotel/motel ordinance.

A home occupation permit for a daycare at 1625 West for Summer White was approved. An Air BNB for Jim Holt at 295 West 700 South was approved. Another Air BNB was approved for Property Management for Don and Coylene Brinkerhoff at 247 North 200 West. There was a request for a C-2 use by Donavan Allen to conduct a business called Hero Car Rentals out of the parking lot of Shepherd’s Flooring. They recommended approval of that business.

They reviewed a request to change zoning to allow for buildings historically used as a church to be used as a reception hall similar to what has happened with Knight’s Bridge Hall. They recommended this for approval. Councilmember Nielson asked if there would be a parking issue. Mr. Thomas indicated that it could, but there are very few of these types of buildings.

They reviewed a request to rezone the property located at 1180 South Cove View Road (known as the old Topsfield Lodge) to change this from CS to RM-24. The building would be improved and, in some cases, they will take two units together so they can do a kitchen and have a studio apartment there. The Planning Commission felt that it would be better in an RM-11 zone which still allows them to do what they want there.

They reviewed a request for a conditional use permit for Amelia Walls to do an adult daycare business 310 South 100 East and that was approved.

They discussed the development at the old Topsfield Lodge a little more. They are preliminary in what they want to do, but there is a drainage issue with water draining from the street onto the property. The Planning Commission wanted the City to take a look at this and see how extensive these issues are. The hope is that there will be a curb, gutter, and sidewalk installed there eventually.

They reviewed a concept plan for Eric Mainord for the development of the property across the canal from the old Topsfield Lodge. The proposal would build some student housing units on part of the property and the rest of the property would be a townhouse development for single-family homes.

They have also been discussing the general plan and whether to adopt what Bruce Parker and his students have done for us. There is also an issue with short-term rentals and they will likely recommend that the City be divided up into 3 areas with roughly the same amount of residences and that each area will be capped at 5%. No more than 5% of the residences in a geographical area will be allowed to be Air BNBs. They have spent quite a bit of time looking at other cities and what they have done to limit and try to control the Air BNB issues so they do not get out of hand and this seems to be a strategy that works well. They seem to have 2 or 3 requests for Air BNBs every month.

11. REVIEW AND DISCUSS THE GENERAL PLAN. Councilmember Nielson wondered if we could overdo RM-24 in certain sections of town. There have been citizens in different areas who worry about this. She asked if the Planning Commission had considered the possibility of overdoing these units. Mr. Thomas stated that they have considered this. Councilmember Burrows suggested that a lot of people are coming in and having their property rezoned because it makes their property more marketable, whether they are planning to put this type of development there or not.

Mr. Thomas noted that the first step is identifying if the change in zoning for the property makes sense and is beneficial to the City. Councilmember Nielson is considered that we watch so these developments are spread out over different areas so we do not have them all in one mass area.

Mr. Thomas stated that to this point it has been based on a developer coming and making a case that this would be a good location for this type of project. He felt that it has been a little hap-hazard, but the projects they have recommended for approval tend to be isolated and close to major streets so the traffic impact is not as high.

We do need to plan this out. Councilmember Gleave stated that we need to establish places where it would be a good place for it so we are not always just listening to the developers. He felt that it was odd that we came up with a zone out of the blue, but we do not have any areas that are planned to accommodate these types of developments. The Council and the Planning Commission need to get together and determine where it makes sense to allow this zoning. This is part of the general plan process and through this update that is what needs to happen. It just has not happened yet.

Councilmember Burrows pointed out that we need to do this with industrial areas too because we do not have many options in this area.

Mayor Ogden talked about a meeting that he, Councilmember Gleave, Mr. Hansen, and Ms. Jolley attended yesterday with UDOT. They were talking about zoning and the community growing and how they want to be a part of that. Councilmember Gleave has been to 2 meetings the last month discussing how we should work with the county and UDOT to make sure that we are all on the same page.

Mayor Ogden stated that we have willing professional partners that are willing to help us look at a broader view of this. He left the meeting knowing that everyone was willing to help each other.

Councilmember Gleave that it is great to know that everyone is willing to work together. In going to these meetings, he wanted to give a shout-out to our employees and officials because you find out that Richfield City is on top of things and doing pretty well.

Mr. Thomas stated that as developments are approved, we need to be careful about waiving requirements because where these dense housing units happen, especially on the south end of town, more and more traffic becomes an issue.

Councilmember Gleave stated that UDOT emphasized that transportation is not just about vehicles, but we have to think of pedestrians, bicycles, and all kinds of transportation. UDOT does not see itself as just automobile transportation anymore.

The consensus was to continue working with Bruce Parker and his students to finish updating the sections of the general plan that he has agreed to.

12. UPDATING THE 2 SIDE-BY-SIDES FOR THE TRAILS DISCUSSED. Carson DeMille stated that we purchased 2 side-by-sides for the trails crew with the grant proceeds and they are a year old and have 1,000 miles each on them. If we sold them for $17,000 each we could purchase new ones for about $18,000 each, so we could upgrade the 2 side-by-sides for about $2,000. Councilmember Gleave stated that we would order them and they would get here in about a year.

Mr. DeMille stated that we paid about $17,300 for the ones we have and the value on them right now is about $17,300. The City can get a discount when we purchase a new one. Mr. Jorgensen stated that he could go ahead and order them because he could sell them whether we took them or not. They should be in January. Councilmember Gleave and Councilmember Burrows have both ordered side-by-sides that were supposed to be here. Councilmember Gleave stated he would not sell them before the new ones get here.

Councilmember Burrows stated that we either need to trade them in or take bids for them. Mr. DeMille stated that he would sell them because it would not make sense if we trade them in. Mr. Hansen stated that we could do a minimum bid of $17,000 and then accept bids until a certain date.

Motion: Approve the sale of the trail crew side-by-sides and the purchase of new ones, Action: Approved, Moved by Kathy Christensen, Seconded by Connie Nielson. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 4). Yes: Bryan Burrows, Connie Nielson, Kathy Christensen, Todd Gleave. Excused: Kip Hansen.

13. OTHER BUSINESS. Mr. Mogan discussed the water line at the Business Park. He explained that the line dead-ends at the end of Mulberry Lane. The was brought up because Dustin Nielson is developing 2 large buildings there and we thought he was going to run a 2-inch service to each building. Instead, his engineer called for an 8-inch line down the middle of his property with a fire hydrant set in the middle of the lot. Mr. Mogan stated that it does not make sense for him to have an 8-inch line through there that he has to maintain. If we are looking at the possibility of looping our line. We could run the line through the rest of Mr. Nielson’s property which is approximately 230 feet. Then the line could be run along the road to the north which is about 330 feet and then it would turn to the south to the east boundary of the business park which is about 1,400 feet. This would loop the whole system and help with fire flow that is not adequate without the line tying through.

A rough cost to run the line through the property and to the north by Dogberry would be approximately $30,000 to $35,000. It could be done in 2 phases, but if we have a contractor come in, it would make sense to do it all at the same time for mobilization costs. Mr. Nielson stated that the line he already ran was $24,000. He has asked if the City would participate in that cost since he is willing to give us an easement through the property.

We have applied for an economic development grant to do the road that runs east along the north side of Dogberry. It was going to include the cost of the waterline. It may just be an easier way to pay for part of the line if it were included in that project.

The fire flow there is not adequate. If there were a fire and we had to use that line for water, it would collapse because it is a dead-end line.

Mr. Mogan noted that Mr. Nielson is willing to give the City an easement through his property for an 8-inch line. Mr. Nielson spent $23,000 to put a portion of the water line in and he wondered if the City would consider reimbursing him some for what he has installed already. He has already purchased a hydrant and we will move it to the east property line.

Councilmember Burrows felt that we should do this. Councilmember Christensen stated that we have to have decent fire flow in the event of a fire.
Councilmember Nielson wondered how we are feeling about the grant. If we are feeling fairly confident that we will get it, then we should leave the installation of the water line on the east/west road to be part of that project.

Councilmember Burrows stated if we did the project while the contractor is there, it would save some money. Councilmember Gleave felt that we should just run the line all the way to the east. If we do not get the grant, we will have to do it anyway. Mr. Mogan thought it would be roughly $60,000 to go all the way to the east. He indicated that we could get some hard numbers from a couple of contractors.

Councilmember Nielson wondered about Christmas Tree Lane and the Light parade and if everything has been scheduled. Amy Myers stated that they were hoping to have the trees up by the first of December, so they would be there while the Scourge play is going on.

Sherri Christensen did retire on November 1. We had interviews for the position and hired Brady Edwards. He is currently the Recreation Director for the North Sevier Area. He is supposed to start on November 22.

The swimming pool would like to close the week between Christmas and New Year’s. They would still be open from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., but the swim teams will be in there from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. There will not be any open swim that week. There was some discussion about having consistent hours so people know when they can swim. Councilmember Gleave would like to have it open and advertise it. Mayor Ogden stated that people have family that comes to town and that is a time when they need things to do. Councilmember Burrows would like to have free swim that week from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Councilmember Gleave wanted to know why they wanted to close. Is it not busy or do they just not want to be there? It is difficult to get the kids to work during the holidays. Councilmember Gleave thought that Councilmember Burrows had a good idea.

Micklane Farmer has put together an application for the City to apply for funds from the Safe Sidewalk program. It would put a sidewalk in front of Wells Fargo Bank to 1500 South and along with the property in front of JRs Car Sales. The grant would be a 25% match, so the City’s share of what is proposed would be about $39,000. If we get the grant, the City will have to vote to accept the grant and commit the 25% match.

The Christmas party this year will be at the Snow College Administration building on December 10 at 6:30 p.m. It will be catered by the Main Event.

14. MEETING ADJOURNED. At 9:03 p.m., Motion: Adjourn, Action: Adjourned, Moved by Kathy Christensen, Seconded by Connie Nielson. Vote: Motion carried by unanimous roll call vote (summary: Yes = 4). Yes: Bryan Burrows, Connie Nielson, Kathy Christensen, Todd Gleave. Excused: Kip Hansen. PASSED and APPROVED this 14th day of December 2021.