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HomeMy WebLinkAboutminutes.council.20110411 Regular Meeting Aspen City Council April 11, 2011 PROCLAMATION — Colorado Architecture Month 2 CITIZEN COMMENTS 2 COUNCILMEMBER COMMENTS 2 RESOLUTION #26, SERIES OF 2011— Golf School Contract 3 RESOLUTION #29, SERIES OF 2011 — Sale of AABC Property 4 ASPEN MODERN INTEGRITY SCORING SHEETS 4 CONSENT CALENDAR 5 • Resolution #27, 2011- Contract — Hand Held Meter Replacements 5 • Resolution #28, 2011- Contract — Studio Player with Multi- format Playback 5 • Resolution #29, 2011- Contract — Sale of AABC Property 5 • Aspen Modern Integrity Scoring Sheets 5 • Housing Board Appointment — Cathy Markle joint alternate 5 • Minutes — March 28, 2011 5 ORDINANCE #13, SERIES OF 2011— Code Amendment Tap Fees Affordable Housing 5 ORDINANCE #12, SERIES OF 2011— 625 E. Main (Stage 3) PUD Amendment 6 ORDINANCE #11, SERIES OF 2011 — Amending Energy Code 6 1 Regular Meeting Aspen City Council April 11.2011 Mayor Ireland called the meeting to order at 5:08 PM with Councilmembers Johnson, Torre, Skadron and Kruger present. PROCLAMATION — Colorado Architecture Month Mayor Ireland and Council proclaimed April Architecture Month and urged all citizens to recognize and support architecture and design in Aspen. Council presented the proclamation to Heidi Hoffman. Ms. Hoffman told Council several free events are proposed for the month including a free movie at the Wheeler April 18 at 6 PM, Infinite Space; a talk at ACES April 2l sc at 6 PM and an event April 28 at the Wheeler on visual acoustics. CITIZEN COMMENTS 1. Bill Wiener requested Aspen Modern scoring sheets be taken off the consent calendar. Wiener told Council he went to a presentation at the library on new 21 Century libraries. Wiener said the problem with the art museum design on the Rio Grande is that it was too massive for the site. Wiener suggested the library and the art museum could combine on the Rio Grande site and the art museum could use the meeting spaces planned at the library and use classroom spaces at the Red Brick or Anderson Ranch and eliminate two floors of the museum. Community events like dances and play rehearsals could be moved to the old art museum space. 2. Emzy Veazy suggested Council start a leadership program with 20 citizens of Aspen to learn about departments, city boards and commissions so that community members will understand how the city runs. Veazy recommended Council members look at some modern, green libraries in California. COUNCILMEMBER COMMENTS 1. Councilwoman Kruger said there are things people can do to save energy, like after charging ones phone, unplug the charger from the wall and turn the water off when not using it. 2. Councilman Johnson noted Aspen Highlands is open for skiing for the next two weeks. Councilman Johnson said off season is construction season. The Castle Creek bridge is under construction and there are detours, slowing traffic down going out of town and into town. Councilman Johnson suggested a roundabout awareness week to get people educated about roundabout rules. 3. Councilman Torre said the Wheeler has had great shows over the last month and the performance of Peter Pan coming up is wonderful. Councilman Torre said the program at the Wheeler has been a great balance of types of shows. 2 Regular Meeting Aspen City Council April 11, 2011 4. Councilman Torre said the Aspen Art Museum put up a worthy proposal and their project will have a positive impact on the community. Councilman Torre said there is time for the art museum to rethink their design and to drop the height 2 to 5' to fit in better. 5. Mayor Ireland said schnetag was held on Aspen Mountain yesterday and it was a lot of fun. 6. Mayor Ireland announced he is the keynote speaker at a conference on sustainable tourism this week in North Carolina. Mayor Ireland said he is speaking on demographic changes and the effect on local communities. 7. Councilwoman Kruger said she would like to pull Resolution #26, golf contract, from the consent calendar. 8. Randy Ready, assistant city manager, told Council the work on the Castle Creek bridge is Colorado Department of Transportation doing a major overhaul on the bridge, replacing asphalt, laying concrete, waterproof membrane. The work is scheduled daily and all weekend in order to complete it by Memorial Day. There is a detour in place for west bound traffic; all the stop signs have been removed to keep traffic flowing. Mayor Ireland asked about pedestrians and cyclists. Ready said they are being encouraged to use the Marolt pathway. RESOLUTION #26, SERIES OF 2011— Golf School Contract Councilwoman Kruger said she is concerned about the process; it does not appear to match the thoroughness of the Wheeler lease. Councilwoman Kruger asked what else is the city paying for besides salary. Steve Aitken, director of golf, told Council the $20,000 marketing budget includes the golf school and all other parts of the golf course. Councilwoman Kruger asked if there were any local applicants. Aitken said there were 6 applicants, two of who were very qualified. The other qualified applicant was from the Maroon Creek club; however, his base of operations is not local. Councilwoman Kruger said she would like to give local businesses all possible chances and to keep employment in the valley. Aitken said Rubito Golf School was chosen based on background, experience and teaching philosophy. Aitken told Council from Rubito's experience in Chicago, the business increased 25% in two years. Aitken said staff was impressed with how excited Rubito was to be in aspen; he has very qualified pros working for him. Councilwoman Kruger asked if the city has performance requirements for Rubito. Aitken said there is no guarantee. Jeff Woods, parks director, told Council Rubito was the only applicant willing to use local instructors. Rubito has an international reputation and will bring students to Aspen. Councilwoman Kruger said she would like to see performance guarantees before approval of the contract. Councilwoman Kruger said an insurance certificate should be filed. Councilwoman Kruger asked if this is a 3 year contract. Aitken said it is but there is a 90 day termination clause. Councilwoman Kruger noted she is concerned that the scope of work states building a junior program, which seems to be in competition with Aspen junior golf. Councilwoman Kruger stated she is against competition for existing programs. Woods said that reference is to bring in new junior players from out of the community; it will not compete with Aspen Junior golf'. 3 Regular Meeting Aspen City Council April 11. 2011 Councilwoman Kruger asked about the cost of $2500 /day. Aitken said Rubito is planning to come to Aspen 4 times a season as part of his contract. Those expenses would be if he had to come more than 4 times. Councilman Torre commended the incentive discount for lessons for people who have passes and noted staff should be cautious about raising the lesson rate too high for locals without passes. Councilman Torre said he would leave in the wording about a junior golf program designed to bring juniors to the Aspen golf course, not to compete with Aspen Junior Golf. Councilman Johnson noted this proposal was discussed as part of the 2011 budget to further enhance golf operations. Councilman Johnson said he feels this will elevate what is offered at the golf course and it may take several years to be successful. Council agreed since there were questions that Councilwoman Kruger would meet with staff on her concerns and continued the golf school contract to a special meeting April 18, 2011. RESOLUTION #29, SERIES OF 2011— Sale of AABC Property Councilwoman Kruger left the room due to a conflict of interest. Councilman Torre asked if there are no other uses of this parcel by the city. Steve Barwick, city manager, told Council staff has not come up with any uses. Mayor Ireland reminded Council they struggled with development proposal for affordable housing on this site because of the configuration and could not justify the costs. Councilman Johnson asked if the funds generated go back into the affordable housing funds. Barwick said they do. Councilman Torre moved to approve Resolution #29, Series of 2011; seconded by Mayor Ireland. All in favor, motion carried. ASPEN MODERN INTEGRITY SCORING SHEETS Bill Weiner listed objections; it should say 20 Century Architecture style of Aspen rather than in Aspen; this document does not look at landscape, it does not talk about spaces between buildings or views from and to the site. Weiner said there are some categories missing; character and innovation was left out; the paint color should not be considered; the document treats architecture as a product rather than art. Amy Guthrie, community development department, reminded Council when they adopted the last piece of the Aspen Modern ordinance, there were 4 or 5 criteria and the scoring sheets are one of those to help make the evaluation about a structure. Ms. Guthrie noted these scoring sheets are only part of the equation in trying to make the process more objective. Wiener said he is still concerned about the lack of an innovator category. Councilman Johnson asked how many people have opted out of the Aspen Modern program. Ms. Guthrie said the city is still working on finalizing the program and doing outreach. Councilman Torre said he feels this is a good start and it can be refined. 4 Regular Meeting Aspen Citv Council April 11. 2011 CONSENT CALENDAR Councilman Johnson moved to adopt the consent calendar as amended; seconded by Councilman Torre. The consent calendar is: • • Resolution #27, 2011 - Contract — Hand Held Meter Replacements • Resolution #28, 2011 - Contract — Studio Player with Multi- format Playback • Resolution #29, 2011 - Contract — Sale of AABC Property • Aspen Modern Integrity Scoring Sheets • Housing Board Appointment — Cathy Markle joint alternate • Minutes — March 28, 2011 All in favor, motion carried. ORDINANCE #13, SERIES OF 2011— Code Amendment Tap Fees Affordable Housing Councilman Torre moved to read Ordinance #13, Series of 2011; seconded by Mayor Ireland. All in favor, motion carried. ORDINANCE NO. 13 (Series of 2011) AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ASPEN, COLORADO, AMENDING SECTION 25.12.160 OF THE CITY OF ASPEN MUNICIPAL CODE RELATING TO THE WAIVER AND EXEMPTION OF UTILITY INVESTMENT CHARGES FOR CERTAIN AFFORDABLE HOUSING PROJECTS. Mayor Ireland moved to adopt Ordinance #13, Series of 2011, on first reading; seconded by Councilman Johnson. Councilman Johnson said for second reading, he would like to know the financial history of these fees for the water department as well as the impact of a 70% and 40% fee waivers. Councilman Johnson suggested staff look at 100% for 1 unit; 70% for 2 units; 50% for 3 units; 40% for 4 units and 0 fees for 5 or over housing units. Councilman Torre suggested that instead of waiving the fees, the fees be allocated to the developers who are using the units as mitigation. Councilwoman Kruger requested a strikeout and addition copy showing the difference and changes. Roll call vote; Councilmembers Kruger, yes; Johnson, yes; Skadron, yes; Torre, yes; Mayor Ireland, yes. Motion carried. 5 Regular Meeting Aspen City Council April 11, 2011 ORDINANCE #12, SERIES OF 2011— 625 E. Main (Stage 3) PUD Amendment Mayor Ireland moved to read Ordinance #12, Series of 2011; seconded by Councilman Johnson. All in favor, motion carried. ORDINANCE NO. 12 (SERIES OF 2011) AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF ASPEN CITY COUNCIL APPROVING WITH CONDITIONS AN AMENDMENT TO A SUBDIVISION DEVELOPMENT ORDER, PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENT, AND REZONING FOR 625 E. MAIN STREET, LOTS E, F, G, EASTERLY 10 FEET OF LOT D, BLOCK 98, CITY AND TOWNSITE OF ASPEN, PITKIN COUNTY, COLORADO Mayor Ireland said approval of this application will result in the removal an eyesore from the Aspenscape and a building that may have been above the height limit. This proposal has support of the neighbors. Councilman Skadron said he would like to know more about staff s position why additional commercial is found to be consistent with the neighborhood, what the conditions are and using TDRs to increase the free market space, clarification on changes in square footage for both affordable housing and the free market. Councilman Skadron noted the applicant is exceeding the affordable housing requirement and the parking requirement, and the height of the building is dropping from 47' to 43'. Councilman Johnson asked about the requirement that TDRs be landed. Jessica Garrow, community development department, told Council this project was submitted under the 2006 land use code and there was not an ability to land TDRs to increase the unit size. Staff is recommending this project have a unit size cap of 2500 square feet. Councilman Torre said he has questions about the pedestrian amenity space on this application and would like a greater policy discussion about pedestrian amenities, especially allowing cash -in -lieu. Mayor Ireland moved to adopt Ordinance #12, Series of 2011, on first reading; seconded by Councilman Torre. Roll call vote; Councilmembers Torre, yes; Johnson, yes; Kruger, yes; Skadron, yes; Mayor Ireland, yes. Motion carried. ORDINANCE #11, SERIES OF 2011— Amending Energy Code Steve Barwick, city manager, reminded Council there is an energy budget for every residential unit being constructed. If that unit exceeds its energy budget by building hot tubs or heated driveways, they are required to mitigate for that. Barwick said the first goal is energy conservation and energy savings. The city's code requires homeowners mitigate for extra energy. Barwick presented a calculation of the amount of energy used which gets turned into a dollar amount. One can mitigate that dollar amount by providing on -site photovoltaic; by providing on -site solar hot water; by providing on -site geo- thermal. Another mitigation option is the REMP payment and the full dollar amount is required if one chooses a REMP payment. Barwick noted the REMP program is very successful and has generated over $8 million which has been used for energy conservation and alternative energy throughout the valley. The REMP money is leveraged at about 3:1 by working with other organizations and producing 3 times the 6 Regular Meeting Aspen City Council April 11. 2011 mitigation. Barwick recommended not allowing off -site mitigation for photovoltaic which would garner about 333 units of mitigation versus about 3000 units of mitigation through REMP. Barwick outlined some of the programs that have been funded through REMP, like energy conservation at the schools; a valley -wide energy efficient appliance program; public building solar. Barwick said Council needs to understand the effect on the entire energy program if off - site energy mitigation is allowed. Barwick reminded Council the REMP program was initiated with the county and these policy discussions should be held with the BOCC and with CORE board. Mayor Ireland opened the public hearing. Paul Spencer, Clean Energy Collective, told Council this is a for profit entity that installs renewable energy. Spencer said his company has been approached by potential customers in the valley asking whether they could use community solar for REMP mitigation. Spencer requested they be allowed to be one of the 3 approved solutions for energy mitigation. Spencer said they do not want to supplant REMP and they support CORE. Spencer told Council it is estimated that 3 out of 4 people mitigate on site with one of the approved solutions; the 4th person pays the fee. If 100% mitigated on site, the REMP fees would go away as well that that funding for CORE. Spencer suggested one could mitigate 75% of their REMP with off -site solar and pay the other 25 %. Spencer said the solar hot water mitigation is about 30 cents on the dollar as opposed to 100% mitigation by paying the fees; solar is about 70 cents on the dollar and geothermal is $4 to $7 on the dollar. Spencer said a community solution is maintained and has 50 years worth of operations funds which will last longer than much on -site mitigation. Spencer told Council their solar farm locations get 31% more sunlight than Aspen locations. Spencer said community solar is a good environmental solution and allows customers more options. Spencer reiterated they do not want to negatively impact REMP revenues. Mike Tierney, local solar installer, told Council he served on the Energy 2000 committee in the 1980's and out of that came CORE. Tierney said REMP has been a successful program and it is nice to see projects up and down the valley funded by REMP. Tierney noted 75% of the projects do mitigation on site and the other 25% do not want or cannot do solar on site. Tierney said he would like to see the local money stay local by keeping the REMP and not allowing the money go down valley. Tierney said some of this has to do with out of sight out of mind; when this is off site, people do not think about energy and REMP. Tierney encouraged the city to stay with mitigation on site. Stephanie Lewis said she supports both the Clean Energy Collective and REMP. Ms. Lewis said citizens should have a right to choose to purchase energy off or on -site. Ms. Lewis supports allowing off -site mitigation. Katherine Dart, CORE, told Council she runs the grant programs and interviews all grant applicants. Ms. Dart said the REMP increases the livability of this community and increases the network of innovators in the valley, leading the state in interesting projects and getting grants from outside organizations. These innovative projects have been supported through the REMP. Ms. Dart said she supports not amending the code to allow off - site. 7 Regular Meeting Aspen Citv Council April 11, 2011 Jack Hoffman asked Council to consider allowing their constituents the ability to have choices. Hoffman said the solution may be to adjust the formula. Hoffman urged Council to work with the BOCC on these solutions and on adjusting the formula. Dan Richardson said he feels there is a way to allow this innovative solution to remain. Richardson told Council the REMP has spurred innovative ideas and opportunities to implement clean energy. Richardson said neither REMP nor its funding of CORE should go away; the first priority should be on -site renewable energy. The second priority should be CORE; the third priority could be solar farms, which is an opportunity for REMP to further a business model. Richardson said this should not supplant the existing CORE funding. Lauren Martindale, Clean Energy Collective, told Council they have been active in bringing community solar to Excel Energy and to other utilities around the country. Ms. Martindale requested Council consider treating off site the same as on site in making policies. A lot of communities are working on this and trying to reach compromises to meet community's needs. Ms. Martindale said community solar should not be looked at as taking away REMP funds. Ms. Martindale said this should be looked at as complementary to REMP and to meeting resident's needs. Ms. Martindale said CEC works with their customers has open houses and tries to keep the public involved. Ms. Martindale suggested allowing people to mitigate a certain percentage of the REMP requirement to maintain the fund for the future and at the same time allowing new technology. Nathan Ratledge, CORE, told Council the ultimate goal is to reduce energy consumption. REMP is not designed to provide easy offsets. Ratledge said the important message is reduce, reuse, and recycle. REMP is designed to reduce energy consumption. Ratledge told Council CORE supports renewable energy generation in a variety of forms and supports innovative ways to install solar energy. Ratledge said he does not feel an off -site option strengthens the program but weakens the program by allowing an out of sight, out of mind option. Ratledge pointed out if a person chooses to have a highly consumptive system, like a heated pool, there are options to consider during designing of the program. Addressing energy on site requires a person to consider those energy demands. Ratledge told Council he support staff's recommendation which reinforces the mantra of less energy use. Ratledge said the point of allowing REMP is for difficult locations that cannot access solar. Mayor Ireland asked what the REMP funds are leveraged with. Ratledge said CORE funds grants for projects where the applicants go out and get other grants or funding. David Wiedmeyer, CEC, told Council they have an innovative solution and are the first in the country providing community solar ownership. Wiedmeyer said they would like the city's support indicating solar farms are a good idea and make sense. Wiedmeyer said they feel this is a solution that will be part of the REMP and they propose language to insure the fees do not disappear. Wiedmeyer said he believes in the leveraged concept of community returns to other programs. Wiedmeyer said solar farms will not be a threat to the REMP if the fee structure is designed so that it will not go away and provides a solution that is beneficial. Bill Stirling, CORE Board, said the idea of energy mitigation came from having to put limits on and to reduce energy consumption. Stirling said REMP has brought in revenue and is a successful Robin Hood concept. Stirling noted the basic of REMP is the reduction of energy; to mitigate on site, which is not always possible; and if those two do not work, there is an onerous fee which goes to 8 Regular Meeting Aspen Citv Council April 11, 2011 REMP. Stirling said when one gets to put their energy mitigation out of sight, it is also out of mind. Councilman Torre said he met last week with Paul Spencer of Clean Energy Collective to discuss this issue. Councilman Torre said his support is to move forward with the ordinance as presented by staff; however, he also supports meeting with the BOCC and CORE. Councilman Johnson said he, too, would like to discuss this issue with the BOCC and CORE. Councilman Johnson said he supports energy reduction, which is the main focus. Councilman Johnson said he likes being able to leverage the REMP funds. There may be a win/win and working with a public /private to get additional leverage and ways to make sure the funding for REMP is preserved. Councilwoman Kruger said she would like to encourage new ideas and creative thinking in energy savings. Councilwoman Kruger said she, too, would support conversations with the BOCC and CORE. Councilwoman Kruger reported she met with Paul Spencer to get more information on his program. Councilman Skadron stated there is a principle the Council is charged with upholding, which is the intent of the original program. Councilman Skadron said following the request of the CEC will tear the heart and soul out of program. Councilman Skadron noted the key of the program is to drive efficient building practices and this option does nothing for energy efficiency. Councilman Skadron said he would like to vote on this tonight and to support staff's recommendation. Mayor Ireland said his concern is that the notion that Aspen outsources its problems and outsource the energy production to Carbondale. Mayor Ireland said he does not think it is a bad idea for neighbors to see solar panels, which suggest this is an acceptable solution. Councilman Skadron said Council's priority is to honor the original intent of REMP and CORE and the will of the citizens of Aspen, which is to drive efficient building practices that result in decreased energy use, not to provide infinite offsets for excessive consumption. Councilman Skadron moved to adopt Ordinance #11, Series of 2011, on second reading; seconded by Councilman Torre. Mayor Ireland moved to continue that motion until Council has had a chance to hear from the BOCC as this is a joint program; seconded by Councilman Johnson. Mayor Ireland said he does not want to end up with different policies for the city and county. There is time for the city and county to work together before adopting legislation. Councilman Johnson agreed this warrants further discussion with BOCC and with CORE. There may be a win/win to be found by adjusting the formula. Councilmembers Kruger and Johnson, Mayor Ireland in favor; Councilmembers Torre and Skadron opposed. Motion carried. Mayor Ireland moved to go into executive session at 8:25 PM pursuant to C.R.S. 24 -6- 402(4) (b) Conferences with an attorney for the local public body for the purposes of receiving legal advice on specific legal questions; (e) Determining positions relative to matters that may be subject to negotiations; developing strategy for negotiations; and instructing negotiators; and 0 Personnel matters except if the employee who is the subject of the session has requested an open meeting; seconded by Councilman Johnson. John Worcester, city attorney, told Council the b and e are 9 Regular Meeting Aspen City Council April 11, 2011 regarding the Castle Creek hydropower project and the second is a personnel issue. All in favor, motion carried. Councilman Torre moved to come out of executive session at 8:55 PM; seconded by Councilman Johnson. All in favor, motion carried. Councilman Torre moved to adjourn at 8:55 PM; seconded by Councilman Johnson. All in favor, motion carried. /Mr ;. n Koch City Clerk 10