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HomeMy WebLinkAboutminutes.council.20110808 Regular Meeting Aspen City Council August 8, 2011 PROCYCLING RACE 2 CITIZEN PARTICIPATION 2 COUNCIL COMMENTS 2 CONSENT CALENDAR 3 ORDINANCE #23, SERIES OF 2011— MAA Water Service Agreement 3 ORDINANCE #21, SERIES OF 2011 -518 West Main Street Subdivision 4 ORDINANCE 149, SERIES OF 2011 — Aspen Walk Subdivision 7 RESOLUTION #53, SERIES OF 2011 — Contract Change Order Wheeler 9 1 Regular Meeting Aspen City Council August 8, 2011 Mayor Ireland called the meeting to order at 5:05 PM with Councilmembers Skadron, Johnson and Torre present. PROCYCLING RACE Mayor Ireland announced the bicycle race is 15 days away. Lynn Rumbaugh, transportation department, reminded everyone that Wednesday, August 24` Independence Pass will be closed from 6 AM to 5 PM. Most of downtown will be closed to automobile traffic. People are encouraged to use mass transit to get to Aspen. There is free parking at the intercept lot; free extra buses coming up valley; there is remote parking at Aspen Highlands. Councilman Torre asked how far from Independence Pass will there be notification that the pass is closed. Ms. Rumbaugh said the city is using all their messaging sign boards and have rented more to alert motorists that Independence Pass is closed. CITIZEN PARTICIPATION 1. Connie Harvey told Council on August 22 people who are knowledgeable about rivers and water eco- systems are coming. Ms. Harvey said she would like to set up two field trips, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Council suggested she work with the city manager and Council will attend, if possible. 2. Emzy Veazy suggested Council use the creative staff to come up with ideas that could be patented and share the costs and expenses between the city and the employee. Council should foster research and development with staff. Veazy asked what Council has done for economic support for people living in the valley. COUNCIL COMMENTS 1. Councilman Johnson moved to appoint Rick Head as a city representative to the housing board; seconded by Councilman Torre. All in favor, motion carried. Councilman Johnson said Council is hoping that Will Rutledge can participate in the housing frontiers board. 2. Councilman Torre thanked the Elks Lodge for the recent picnic in Koch Park which was attended by about 350 people. 3. Councilman Torre announced the police community picnic this Wednesday at 11:30 AM in Paepcke Park. 4. Councilman Torre noted last week Council held the first public hearing on Burlingame Ranch Phase II at Burlingame. There will be more public hearings. 2 Regular Meeting Aspen Citv Council August 8, 2011 5. Councilman Torre said Council met at a retreat last month to come up with their top 10 goals. Councilman Torre noted there are other Council goals than those listed on the top 10 list, like making Main Street safer and more pedestrian friendly. 6. Councilman Torre brought up bottles, bags and the environment. Councilman Torre presented items, like a recycled cardboard water holder and completely biodegradable grocery bags. Councilman Torre said these are more environmentally safe options. 7. Councilman Johnson thanked the Elks Lodge for everything they do to support and contribute to local kid's sports programs. 8. Mayor Ireland noted his Procycling Challenge t -shirt and reminded everyone the bike race is in 15 days. Event organizers are going door to door with cards to let people know about street closures, traffic detours, and transportation options. Mayor Ireland said Aspen is the queen stage of the race, the hardest stage with two mountain passes. 9. Mayor Ireland said one discussion was that Councilmembers model environmental stewardship, like not using plastic bags for 30 days and then report on that. Mayor Ireland agreed the Elk's Lodge does a lot of great things for the community. 10. Mayor Ireland told Council he spoke with a reporter for the Wall Street Journal on their article about collecting sales tax for vacation rentals in residences and the article intimated the city was doing that to receive more revenue. Mayor Ireland said the city is pursuing tax collection because it is required by law. 11. Councilman Skadron said Good Morning America is having a contest on the "best place to visit" and Aspen is one of the nominees. CONSENT CALENDAR Mayor Ireland moved to approve the minutes of July 25, 2011; seconded by Councilman Johnson. All in favor, motion carried. ORDINANCE #23, SERIES OF 2011— MAA Water Service Agreement Councilman Johnson moved to read ordinance #23, Series of 2011; seconded by Mayor Ireland. All in favor, motion carried. ORDINANCE NO. 23 Series of 2011 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ASPEN, COLORADO, APPROVING AN AMENDMENT TO THE WATER SERVICE AGREEMENT WITH MUSIC ASSOCIATES OF ASPEN DATED NOVEMBER 14, 1983, AND THE WATER SERVICE AGREEMENT AMONG THE CITY, MUSIC ASSOCIATES OF ASPEN, AND ASPEN COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL DATED 3 Regular Meeting Aspen City Council August 8, 2011 MARCH 14 1994, FOR PROVISION OF TREATED WATER SERVICE OUTSIDE THE CITY LIMITS was read by the city clerk. John Worcester, city attorney, told Council he contacted counsel for the MAA about not scheduling second reading until the housing agreement is finalized. Mayor Ireland stated in March, the city reached an understanding with the MAA to address their future housing needs and this has not been submitted in writing. Andy Rosselli, water department, said construction may be delayed if second reading is delayed. Jenny Elliott, MAA, said they will address this issue at their next board meeting. Mayor Ireland moved to adopt ordinance #23, Series of 2011, on first reading; seconded by Councilman Johnson. Roll call vote; Skadron, yes; Johnson, yes; Torre, yes; Mayor Ireland, yes. Motion carried. ORDINANCE #21, SERIES OF 2011— 518 West Main Street Subdivision Sara Adams, community development department, noted this is a subdivision approval with a request for waiver of impact fees. This property contains a historically designated 19 century miner's cabin and the proposal is to demolish non - historic rear additions and a 1950's garage, relocate the historic home to the front yard setback, rehabilitate that historic cabin resulting in a duplex and add two multi - family dwellings, one west of the historic cabin and one behind the historic cabin. This is an eleven -unit 100% affordable housing project with 9 category 2 units, 2 category 3 units — mainly two- bedroom. Ms. Adams noted 2 of the units are 14 square feet under the size requirement. All units have patios or decks. The project meets all requirements of the mixed use zone and is about 100 square feet under the allowable FAR. Ms. Adams said due to location in the Main street historic district, HPC reviewed and granted conceptual approval including mass, scale, proportion, site planning. HPC granted a setback variance for light wells and a height and depth variance for a trash area. Ms. Adams told Council HPC discussed the parking requirement. The project is required to have 11 parking spaces, one space /unit and the plan proposes 8 spaces. Ms. Adams told Council during the HPC discussions, the density was reduced from 12 units to 11 units addressing concerns about both mass and the parking. This reduction resulted in a parking deficiency of 3 spaces and a parking waiver was granted by HPC. The mitigation for these 3 spaces will be addressed at final review; options have been discussed with staff. The applicant may propose cash -in -lieu of $90,000 toward a new city bus. After Council approval, this will go back to HPC for final design review. Ms. Adams told Council P &Z reviewed and approved development of affordable housing, the creation of affordable housing credits equal to 24 FTEs. Ms. Adams stated the subdivision criteria are met and the proposal is consistent with the AACP. The project combines two important community goals — affordable housing and historic preservation. Ms. Adams brought up the waiver of impact fees, which is a policy discussion for Council. Ms. Adams reminded Council of their request for history of waiver of impact fees. The city does not have a history of granting waiver of impact fees for affordable housing. Ms. Adams noted a waiver of fees does support affordable housing development but places the impacts of a development onto other funds. The historic portion of the site is exempt from fees as a benefit of being a historic 4 Regular Meeting Aspen City Council August 8, 2011 landmark. Ms. Adams said there is a request that the developer be allowed to choose the first purchasers for 5 of the 11 units. The land use code does not address that concept for this type of project. All purchasers must be qualified by APCHA but not go through the lottery. Councilman Skadron asked why this type of affordable housing is popular all of a sudden; are there tax benefits for the developer. Peter Fornell, applicant, said there are parcels in the community for which this is the highest and best use. Fornell said for this site for free market or FTE development, this housing is the best use. Fornell said there may be parcels which are located so that affordable housing would be the highest and best use. Councilman Skadron asked when the benefits accrue to the developer. Fornell said the credits become available for transfer upon certificate of occupancy. Councilman Skadron asked about cash -in -lieu for a city bus and does that benefit accrue to the city. Ms. Adams told Council the applicant researched buying parking spaces. The parking staff noted this does not work for parking but the space becomes more of a storage space. The transportation department said they would use the $90,000, calculated at $30,000 /space, to put into bus purchase. There are some buses that go on city routes for which the city is responsible to replace. Councilman Skadron asked why HPC evaluates parking. Ms. Adams said this is not a PUD and parking is addressed through special review in front of HPC or P &Z. In a historic district, HPC is asked to take into consideration the preservation aspects of the parcel. Ms. Adams told Council staff did a parking analysis of on street parking spaces, the parking permits issued within a 3 block radius, took pictures at various times of the day. Ms. Adams told Council the applicant could change this to 8 three - bedroom units and meet the parking requirement on site. Staff felt that configuration would not meet the affordable housing demand the community has expressed. Councilman Skadron asked about the west side yard setback variance and whether that is for livability. Ms. Adams said that is for the light wells and egress for bedrooms in subgrade space and also allows an appropriate separation between the historic resource and the new building. Mayor Ireland said the affordable housing certificates should be in recordable form and should be recorded. John Worcester, city attorney, said when TDRs were discussed, Council agreed they should be bearer instruments as opposed to recording them. Mayor Ireland said these should be created as recordable instrument. Chris Bendon, community development department, said the code was amended to require a document be recorded. Worcester suggested the applicant agree to abide by whatever the city should require before getting his certificates. Councilman Johnson asked about the performance bond. Worcester said staff has looked at the assurance; this one is adequate. The public improvements in this subdivision are minimal. Councilman Johnson asked about finish for the units. Fornell said the historic cabin will be a duplex with 2 two - bedroom units of 950 square feet, which is a competitive free market size. Fornell reminded Council there are development projects with the requirement to provide category 2 mitigation, which this project will fulfill. Fornell said there is a request for modification to the minimum square footage for trash area. There will be more sophisticated systems for the trash which can be done in a smaller area. Councilman Johnson asked about the public outreach by the developers. Fomell said he knows the neighbors and invites them to his project under construction at 301 West Hyman and has gotten input throughout the construction work from the neighbors. 5 Regular Meeting Aspen City Council August 8, 2011 Mayor Ireland noted the staff report talks about conversion of the units to free market and requested a deed restriction so these units do not convert to free market. Mayor Ireland stated he does not support the developer choosing 5 of the first purchasers. Mayor Ireland noted affordable housing is created with community resources among which are fee waivers and development rights and granting a development right is giving up a finite resource. Mayor Ireland said every member of the community should have an equal right to participate in these community resources and it should not be an inside game. Mayor Ireland opened the public hearing. Ron Erickson, housing board, said they approved the project at 12 units and it was decreased by 1 unit in order to come closer to the parking requirement. The payment in lieu for parking is $90,000. Erickson stated he would rather have another affordable housing unit than cash -in -lieu for parking. Mayor Ireland closed the public hearing. Fornell told Council he has been watching the neighborhood and agreed there is ample parking. Fornell reiterated he could provide 8 three- bedroom units and not have to provide any more parking than 8 spaces on site. However, three - bedroom units are not needed as much as one and two - bedroom units. Fornell showed on the model the one story element and the two and three story elements. Mayor Ireland moved to adopt Ordinance #21, Series of 2011, on second reading; seconded by Councilman Skadron. Mayor Ireland moved to amend the ordinance to require the developer to comply with having his certificates in recordable form and recording them upon creation of transfer in accordance with the rules in effect at the time the certificates are issued; seconded by Councilman Torre. All in favor, motion carried. Mayor Ireland moved to strike #2 in Section 8 to not allow the developer to select the purchasers; seconded by Councilman Torre. Mayor Ireland reiterated in order for the housing program to continue to succeed, it needs to be a level playing field, not who you know. Mayor Ireland stated there have been allegations that for extra money one can become the designee. The simplest way is to say everyone is eligible. Erickson pointed out the buyers will still have to qualify under the APCHA guidelines so it is the same pool of people being housed. Councilmembers Johnson and Skadron and Mayor Ireland in favor; Councilman Torre opposed. Motion carried. Councilman Torre noted the project is 100% affordable housing and the land use code provides for 33% of units in the AH zone to go to the developer. This is zoned mixed use but the idea is the same. Councilman Torre stated he could support the developer getting 3 units to designate to purchasers of his choice for the first round. Councilman Torre said this has been done in some affordable housing projects. Ms. Adams listed some of the projects that had owner designation units. Mayor Ireland said he feels units should be open to everyone in the community equally. 6 Regular Meeting Aspen City Council August 8, 2011 Mayor Ireland moved to amend the ordinance so that deed restrictions shall specify that the units are not available for sale on the free market other than by the written approval of the City Council; seconded by Councilman Johnson. All in favor, motion carried. Councilman Torre moved to amend the ordinance to 3 units to be placed by the applicant; seconded by Councilman Johnson. Mayor Ireland said he feels this is a mistake, especially for people who have lost the lottery several times. Councilman Skadron asked if this would add to incentive for developers to bring affordable housing project through the process. Cindy Christensen, housing office, told Council the housing board agreed to allow the applicant to pick owners for 5 units and agreed that 3 units would be better. Ms. Christensen said the Board feels with 100% affordable housing projects that the purchaser has to be in the top priority; have to have worked in Pitkin County for 4 years, meet the income and asset guidelines. Mayor Ireland said he is afraid of the temptation to monetize the priority. Councilman Johnson said both staff and the APCHA board have reviewed and recommend this. Councilman Johnson said he would like to see more parameters around this in the land use code. Councilman Skadron said a higher principle is served by not allowing applicant choice of ownership. Councilmembers Torre and Johnson in favor; Councilman Skadron and Mayor Ireland not in favor. Motion NOT carried. Councilman Johnson brought up the fee waivers. Staff said the ordinance does not allow fee waivers; the history of Council is not to allow waivers. Roll call vote; Councilmembers Johnson, yes; Torre, yes; Skadron, yes; Mayor Ireland, yes. Motion carried. ORDINANCE #19, SERIES OF 2011— Aspen Walk Subdivision Stan Clauson, representing the applicant, reviewed the history of this application; it started as a private /public partnership between APCHA and a private developer, something which the AACP reinforces. The project was delayed by the moratorium and then fell under the amendments that reduced the bulk and massing of the project. The code amendments also required more housing mitigation and required more floor area on site. Some of the floor area for affordable housing was moved off site. The project went through conceptual approval and was approved for floor area of 1.28:1. Clauson noted at the time of conceptual approval, Councilman Skadron said he would like to see the FAR reduced to 1.25:1. The project was at 1.25:1 and the concept and floor area should be honored. Clauson said after the last public hearing the applicants agreed to some changes to salvage a project they have worked hard on. Clauson presented proposed changes; break the project into 3 buildings, 2 for free market and the affordable housing building; reducing the number of free market units; eliminate the roof top deck; and architectural revisions. Clauson stated they proposed to reduce the number of affordable units from 17 to 14, which was the only way to improve livability of the affordable units within the footprint and increased the unit sizes to 7 Regular Meeting Aspen City Council August 8, 2011 conform to the housing guidelines; provided either patios or decks for all the units. Clauson noted the increase in net livable of the affordable portion is 738 square feet. The reduction in total units allowed for the elimination of tandem parking for a total of 49 spaces. There will be more storage provided in the garage area. Those things that are not changed are the 100% affordable housing mitigation is still met; there are 25 bedrooms, 14 units and over 9300 square feet of affordable housing. The technical variance at the garage entry is still requested. There are six category 3 units and eight category 4 units proposed. The floor area is 1.25:1. The affordable housing building is 12,790 square feet and the free market building has been reduced 3249 square feet and is proposed at 27,909 square feet. There is a commitment to find housing for the existing tenants. Clauson said the applicants thought the $750,000 paid to APCHA was intended to assist to relocate existing tenants. Clauson told Council he discussed these proposed changes with the housing board, who voted to approve the changes as affected affordable housing. The housing board favors finding some form of mitigation for the existing tenants. Clauson said 301 West Hyman will have six category 2 units available and these six units could cover the tenants that may be displaced by this project. These six units could be purchased with the $750,000. Clauson said the homeowners associations are structured to protect the affordable homeowners from costly assessments. Clauson said the affordable housing mix is 1 three - bedroom unit; 9 two - bedroom units and 4 studios, which is 14 units and 25 bedrooms to meet the requirements of the code. The free market is eight 2500 square foot units and four 2200 square foot units with 3 or 4 bedrooms. Clauson showed the proposed site plan with the free market building divided into two buildings with some amenities provided between the two buildings. Clauson noted most other elements are unchanged. There is a patio, congregating space for the affordable housing units. This site plan is predicated on the land swap with the city for the right -of -way of the road. Clauson showed some architectural drawing mixing together flat roof and gable elements. Councilman Skadron said one of his issues is that this project fit into the organic neighborhood and in an appropriate way to incorporate itself. Councilman Skadron noted there is about a 2500 square foot net reduction or a 6% decrease and why doesn't the FAR reflect that. Clauson said these are preliminary calculations and the FAR may change when reviewed. Councilman Skadron asked if this redesign would reduce or eliminate the height variation requested. Clauson said the variation is required because the garage ramp is descending into the building and the way the code requirements measurement, there is a differential requiring this variation. This is not a visible height area. Councilman Skadron asked if this redesign will enable the affordable housing structure to be moved on the site. Clauson said it is design to be as far away from the Tailings as possible. Councilman Johnson said this proposal is a step in the right direction and the increased livability of the affordable housing units is important. Councilman Skadron said his issue is bulk and mass, which is critical for neighborhoods, and having a viable project with the appropriate affordable housing. Councilman Torre pointed out at the last clicker session 64% of the respondents support designing quality affordable housing units, that livability is a priority. Councilman Torre supports the direction this proposal is going. Councilman Johnson stated he 8 Regular Meeting Aspen City Council August 8, 2011 supports elimination of the roof top deck, would like to see more work done on the livability of the affordable housing units, and likes the proposal to house the existing tenants. Mayor Ireland opened the public hearing. Tom Griffiths, Midland Park, said this plan is moving in the right direction; however, it is difficult to conceptualize the flat roofs mixed with peak roofs. Cindy Houben, Midland Park, agreed this plan is moving in the right direction. Ms. Houben stated she still has concerns about the livability of the affordable units and the distance between buildings for light and air. Ms. Houben said she is not convinced this is the best public /private partnership for this and the category of units. Ms. Houben said she would like to see what units are there today and a comparison of what existing tenants could afford. Mayor Ireland closed the public hearing. Mayor Ireland said Council is being asked to give input on the direction of this project without committing to a vote on a fully developed proposal and there should not be reliance on input. Mayor Ireland stated he is concerned about scale and mass and livability. Mayor Ireland said he would like to see a homeowner's agreement that protects the category housing from expensive costs to the free market homeowners. Mayor Ireland said he is concerned that there is no written plan or commitment regarding the current tenants, and he would like the city attorney to review a written plan for relocation binding on the applicants. Mayor Ireland moved to continue Ordinance #19, Series of 2011, to September 12 seconded by Councilman Torre. All in favor, motion carried. RESOLUTION #53, SERIES OF 2011— Contract Change Order Wheeler Steve Bossart, asset department, said the mission of this project is to upgrade the office and tenant spaces in the Wheeler. Bossart noted that based on the work to date and the existing conditions, staff is requesting additional budget authority of $665,000 to cover two unforeseen components in this project. Bossart told Council staff is pleased with the integrated project delivery and feels it has saved 10% in the phase I budget. Bossart said the restaurant space was a Lengthy discussion with Council, who decided to decrease the lease from 10 to 5 years, which created some imbalances in amortization of the improvement costs of the tenant, like the hood and stainless steel duct work. These will remain as city property. The retail space was cut in half resulting in a deconstruction and rebuilding of that retail space. The IPD team recommended the entire space be flexible for future use or changes. The HVAC system was in a mechanical mezzanine, invisible to staff until the space was demolished. The engineers have said, although the existing equipment can be reused to some extent, the city would be better off purchasing new equipment and a new system will be more efficient than what is there now. Bossart said 3 key elements in this management model are time, money and quality. The time is not flexible in this project; quality should not be skimped in this project. Bossart told Council staff may apply to CORE for a REMP grant based on the energy efficiency of the new equipment. Bossart said the problem with the previous mechanical system is that it is difficult to access and to maintain. Mayor Ireland asked if some of these changes were driven by Council 9 Regular Meeting Aspen City Council August 8, 2011 decision. Jeff Pendarvis, asset management, said yes. Mayor Ireland asked if staff is sure that redoing the HVAC system will not wall some other system off. Bossart said the operations manager of the Wheeler has reported he has access to all the systems he needs. Bossart confirmed this with Resource Engineering Group. Mayor Ireland asked what is in capital reserve so the staff knows how long before this has to be looked at again. Mayor Ireland said he would like a written evaluation of likely future upkeep, life cycle of improvements. Councilman Johnson said these things happen when you get into old buildings. A lesson learned is putting in larger than 10% contingency in budgets in very old buildings. Councilman Johnson said he feels this is a good use of money, addressing safety, addressing the longevity of the space. Pendarvis reminded Council when finalizing the budget, staff told Council the costs may exceed $2.5 million. Pendarvis agreed the contingency should have been larger. Councilman Skadron asked Aspen Constructors Inc. about the project, that there were no surprises and what they found was common for buildings of this age. Mike Tanguay, contractor, said over 99% of the demolition has been complete and they know the as -built conditions and where they differ from what the construction team thought they would find. Tanguay said they could not have planned for what they found after deconstruction. Councilman Johnson said during the process, Council was aware that issues with the construction would come up and the plan was to come back to Council for review and approval. Councilman Skadron said he thought Council tour of the work in the Wheeler was important and the project will return to the community a wonderful project. Councilman Torre asked how this request fits into the original budget. Bossart said the original budget in May was projected at $2,230,000; the $665,000 brings the budget to $2,895,000. Bossart said the request for $665,000 covers 3 contracts; the resolution only approves the contract with Aspen Contractors. The two other change orders with Mills & Schnoering will have to be approved at a subsequent Council meeting. Councilman Torre said he would like to see 100 square feet more for the retail space so that the new space is not rendered unusable. Scott Miller, asset manager, told Council the retail tenant has been part of the IPD process and is pleased at the result. The tenant has designed movable walls to give her more storage. Mayor Ireland moved to approve Resolution #53, Series of 2011; seconded by Councilman Johnson. All in favor, motion carried. Councilman Johnson moved to adjourn at 8:00 PM; seconded by Councilman Torre. All in favor, motion carried. x41/4__ Kathry och City Clerk 10