CITY OF FORT THOMAS, CAMPBELL

COUNTY, KENTUCKY, ON MONDAY,

MAY 1, 2006

Mayor Mary H. Brown called the Regular Meeting of City Council to order at 8:00 P.M. on May 1, 2006. She asked the Clerk to call the roll and the following Councilmembers were present: Barb Runge, Jim Doepker, Karen Lied, Eric Haas, and Roger Peterman. Tom Lampe, absent. Other staff members attending included: Acting City Administrative Officer Fred Ewald, City Clerk Melissa Kelly, City Attorney Jann Seidenfaden, Assistant to the CAO Jay Treft, Fire Chief Mark Bailey, Police Chief Mike Daly, and Jeff Earlywine, Advisor/Consultant to Mayor.

Mayor Brown led the group in the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag.

Mayor Brown recognized Jeff Earlywine and thanked him for 24 years of excellent service.

Minutes from the previous Regular Meeting were presented to Council. Mr. Peterman made a motion to approve the minutes as written. It was seconded by Mrs. Runge. Motion carried.

Mayor Brown asked if there were any visitors or communications having topics to bring before Council.

Mrs. Krista Baioni of 61 Mayfield Avenue was present. Mrs. Baioni was present to re-address the traffic issues on Mayfield Avenue. This issue was brought to Council about a year ago and Mrs. Baioni wanted to express her gratitude on the steps taken to help improve the situation. She feels the Administration and Council has been very receptive to the residents and their concerns. Mrs. Baioni is concerned about summer traffic issues on the street. She is asking to get the speed humps installed on Mayfield until the new entrance on James Avenue is completed. Mayor Brown noted that there is a guideline for speed humps and we would have to go thru the process of a petition to be presented to Council. This petition would be prepared by the City and would need to be signed by at least 2/3rds of the property owners on the street.

Barb Runge questioned on how long the process would take to get the speed humps installed. Jeff Earlywine noted that the cost of the project to install the speed humps would be approximately $3,000. This would include installing three (3) speed humps and approximately 32 man hours. This project can be completed within 2 to 3 weeks pending a completed petition. The location of the speed humps was determined by the City Engineer and adhere to Accepted Traffic Design Standards.

Mr. Ken Weidinger was present and addressed Council. Mr. Weidenger wanted to commend the City’s Police Chief, Mike Daly and his Department for an excellent job of patrolling Mayfield Avenue and Highland Park and also to thank City Council for hearing the concerns of the residents on the street several times.

Mr. Joe Schwerling addressed Council. Mr. Schwerling said that he was not notified of a meeting regarding speed humps for Mayfield Avenue. He also indicated that he is the first owner on the street and does not see that much speeding. Mr. Schwerling’s overall feeling on speed humps is that they are a nuisance and will cause problems with parking.

Mr. Schwerling then addressed some concerns with the Holiday Lane Project that is currently underway. Mr. Schwerling is concerned with the curbing profile and that it may be too high for people to get in and out of their driveways. He suggested reducing the height of the curb by a couple inches or making a curb cut at each driveway. Mr. Haas suggested that staff talk to the engineer to verify the profile of the rolled curb. Jeff Earlywine noted that the profile has been relaxed from a 6” curb to a 5 ½” curbing detail.

Mr. Pete Grote of 365 Rossford Avenue was present and addressed Council. Mr. Grote indicated that at the last meeting it was his understanding that there was an agreement that the City would move the sewer line located in the rear yard of his property. Councilmember Peterman explained to Mr. Grote that the City had stated it would work with him to grant an easement over Park property, once the owner relocated the private sewer line at his expense. Fred Ewald noted that a letter has been sent to Mr. Grote’s attorney, Jim Luersen. This letter spells out what the City will and will not do in this case and Council did not promise any funding, the responsibility of moving the line falls on the property owner.

Mr. Luke Bezold of 48 Porter Lane was present. Mr. Bezold has had a problem with the grade of his front yard because of the three homes built at the bottom of the Lane. This problem started when the sewer line was installed and the street was widened. Mr. Bezold cannot cut his grass over a particular place in the front yard due to a 4’ drop. The City had taken some pictures of the subject property. It is hard to tell by looking at the pictures that the grade has a 4’ drop. Mr. Bezold would like to see the area graded a little more to alleviate the drop. Fred Ewald agreed to meet Mr. Bezold at his residence to discuss this issue further. Council took no action on this issue.

Chief Mike Daly presented the Monthly Report of the Police Department. It was received and filed and upon a motion by Mrs. Runge, and second by Mr. Doepker. Motion carried 5-0.

Jeff Earlywine summarized the report of the Planning Commission as it relates to the Zoning Map Amendment for the Highland Country Club. The Fort Thomas Planning Commission held a hearing on April 19th and acted by a 4-0 vote to approve the requested Map Amendment and Development Plan for the Highland Country Club. The change was from a Single Family Zone to a Single Family Residential Cluster Overlay Zone. This zone provides the Developer with maximum flexibility to attach and arrange residential units on the site without respecting setbacks and certain other requirements. The Development Plan includes 65 Condominium units and does not exceed the single-family density for this zone and the adjacent areas. The Planning Commission has recommended approval of the Map Amendment and conditional approval of the Development Plan. The City will move forward with a formal Annexation Ordinance to annex three acres of the site.

A motion was made by Barb Runge and seconded by Jim Doepker to refer this matter to the Committee of the Whole. Motion carried 5-0. This will be brought back to Council on May 15^th.

Karen Lied updated Council on behalf of the Recreation Committee. The Pendery Park Soccer Field has been a great success and the City has gone a long way to help the soccer league. The Soccer League has prioritized a plan that they would like to accomplish. The first thing they want to do is build a fence between the railroad tracks and the soccer fields. This will ensure that children cannot get close to the tracks. The second most important thing they would like to do is relocate a port-o-let. This project has been completed. The third thing is to create parking places that would be more efficient than what the parking is currently. They are looking into ideas of using parking bumpers or marking timbers to designate parking spaces. The parking lot is gravel, so it cannot be striped. The fourth priority is a building to help house some of their equipment. The building would hold first aid equipment and a possible concession stand. The Soccer League would like the City’s cooperation and in-kind service. Karen Lied then made a motion to work with the Soccer Association and provide all of the help with in-kind donations by the City as possible. It was seconded by Mr. Doepker. Upon call of the roll, the vote was unanimous. Motion carried 5-0.

Under old business, Mayor Brown formally appointed Fred Ewald as the Acting CAO. Mayor Brown is also setting up a search committee for the search for a new CAO. Mayor Brown is appointing Fred Ewald, Jim Doepker, and Lt. Rich Whitford to the committee. Mayor Brown thanked Mike Daly for allowing LT. Whitford to be a part of the team.

There will be a special Caucus meeting of Council and City Senior Staff on May 22, 2006 at 5:30 p.m. before Jeff Earlywine leaves. This will allow Council and City Staff to be informed about projects and issues in the City. This meeting will be advertised in the Ft. Thomas Recorder.

Mayor Brown thanked Fred Ewald for taking on two rolls at this busy time.

Under New Business, Jeff Earlywine discussed the Surplus Property Bid for 34 N. Ft. Thomas Avenue. There was a single bid made by Citizens Bank of $767,500.00. The City hand delivered a copy of the Surplus Property Bid to all of the Banks in Ft. Thomas to ensure that all were notified. There was also a perspective bank of Ft. Thomas that was notified of the Bid. With that, Mr. Peterman made a motion to refer the Bid to the Finance Committee for approval. It was seconded by Mr. Doepker. Motion carried 5-0.

The Midway CBD Steering Committee recently completed interviews of eight (8) project teams who submitted proposals for the Midway District Urban Design Streetscape Plan. Based on the results of the interviews, the unanimous decision of the committee was to recommend CDS Associates, Human Nature, KLH Engineers & Kolar Design for the project at a cost of $44,200.00 This design team has two members that are directly associated with the City through our Boards and Commissions. These members are, Chris Manning of Human Nature and Bob Heil of KLH Engineers. Mr. Manning is on the City’s Design Review Board and Mr. Heil is on the City’s Planning Commission. For the record, it has been disclosed that these individuals are involved; this project was bid out with a formal presentation and the Committee has selected lowest and best bid.

Mr. Peterman made a motion to accept the recommendation of the Midway CBD Steering Committee to approve the contract for CDS Associates, Human Nature, KLH Engineers, and Kolar Design and not to exceed a cost of $44,200.00. It was seconded by Mr. Haas. Upon call of the roll, the vote was unanimous. Motion carried 5-0.

Mr. Peterman commended the Committee for putting their time and effort into interviews for this process.

The 2006 Street Resurfacing Bids were opened on April 27, 2006 at 11:00 a.m. It was the recommendation of the City Engineer, Mark Brueggemann to accept Eaton Asphalt Paving, Co. with a low bid of $171,082.50. It was moved by Mr. Doepker to accept the low bid from Eaton Asphalt Paving Co. It was seconded by Mrs. Lied. Upon call of the roll, the vote was unanimous. Motion carried 5-0.

The Finance Committee presented their Report on Vouchers for the period of April 18 thru May 1, 2006. It was moved by Mr. Doepker and seconded by Mrs. Lied to concur in their recommendations for the processing of payments. Upon call of the roll, the vote was unanimous. Motion carried 5-0.

Executive Order EO-5-2006, Appointing Fred Ewald as Acting City Administrative Officer, was approved upon a motion by Mrs. Runge and seconded by Mr. Doepker. Upon voice vote, it was unanimous. Motion carried 5-0.

There being no further business to come before Council, the meeting was adjourned.

APPROVED:

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Mary H. Brown, Mayor

ATTEST:

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Melissa K. Kelly, City Clerk