CITY OF FORT THOMAS,

CAMPBELL COUNTY, KENTUCKY, ON

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2008

Mayor Mary Brown called the meeting of City Council to order at 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday, September 2, 2008. The Clerk called the roll and the following Councilmembers were present: Jill Steller, Barbara Levine, Eric Haas, Roger Peterman and Tom Lampe. Absent: Jim Doepker. Staff members in attendance included: City Administrative Officer Don Martin, City Clerk Melissa Kelly, City Attorney Jann Seidenfaden, Police Chief Mike Daly and Fire Chief Mark Bailey.

Mayor Mary Brown led the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag.

Minutes

The minutes of the August 4, 2008 meeting were presented to Council for consideration. A motion was made by Mrs. Steller and seconded by Mrs. Levine to approve the minutes as written. The motion passed by a unanimous vote.

Reports of Officers

Fire Department Monthly Report: Chief Mark Bailey presented the Fire Department’s monthly report for July to members of council. A motion was made by Mr. Peterman and seconded by Mr. Lampe to receive and file the monthly report for the Fire Department. The motion carried by a unanimous vote.

Police Department Monthly Report: Chief Mike Daly presented the Police Department’s monthly report for July to members of council. A motion was made by Mr. Lampe and seconded by Mrs. Levine to receive and file the monthly report for the Police Department. The motion carried by a unanimous vote.

City Administrator's Report: Don Martin presented a report to Council on the following:

· Cable Franchises: The city contracted with attorney Linda Ain to represent the city’s interest to renew the franchise agreement with Insight Cable. In the initial 12 year agreement, they were required to provide I-Net capabilities. They did not provide I-Net voluntarily and the city never requested it. Prior to the expiration of the franchise agreement, a letter was sent holding them in default for not providing I-Net in order to protect the city’s ability to require Insight to provide this service. A representative from Insight indicated a willingness to work with the city and schools to provide I-Net capabilities. Linda Ain was also contracted to address the request from Cincinnati Bell for a cable franchise agreement.

· US 27 Road Diet: Rob Hans from KDOT indicated via e-mail that the work schedule was delayed for the resurfacing project. The placement of new asphalt and the re-striping of the roadway to the three lane section will occur beginning Monday, September 8^th and be completed by Wednesday, September 10^th.

· Merchants and Music: The 5^th annual Merchants and Music Festival will be held on Saturday, September 13^th from 2:00 to 9:00 p.m. at the south end of Tower Park. The Little River Band is headlining this year’s event and will take the stage at 7:30 p.m.

· Fountain Replacement: The fountain/pond located in front of the city building will be replaced with a free-standing fountain. The current fountain is tied directly into the city building’s water system and has begun leaking into the elevator shaft. A free standing fountain would not be required to tie into the city building water system. There is no timeframe yet on purchase or installation.

New Business

Police Department Renovations: The Committee of the Whole met prior to the council meeting to discuss renovations to the Police Department. This project has been in the planning and preliminary design stages phase for a number of years and represents the greatest need within the city in terms of facilities. The Police Department workspace represents one of the smallest and most outdated office spaces for the city’s largest department. Mr. Lampe thanked the police department personnel involved in the design of the proposed department and Don Martin for all of their hard work. A motion was made by Mr. Lampe and seconded by Mr. Peterman to approve the design of renovations to the police department and to move forward on contracting CDS for the design work. Upon call of the roll, the following members voted “aye” - Mrs. Steller, Mrs. Levine, Mr. Haas, Mr. Peterman, and Mr. Lampe. Voting “no” – none. The motion passed by a unanimous vote.

Midway Redesign Proposal: The Committee of the Whole met prior to the council meeting to discuss the proposal for the redesign of the Midway Streetscape Project involving the intersection of River Road and S. Fort Thomas Avenue. It was the consensus of Council to create one larger phase of $2 million, rather than two smaller phases, and to create a scaled back design of the intersection of River Road and S. Fort Thomas Avenue which would allow for changes in the future should additional funding become available. A motion was made by Mr. Peterman and seconded by Mr. Lampe to approve the redesigned intersection and release CDS to create bid documents for the improvements. Upon call of the roll, the following members voted “aye” - Mrs. Steller, Mrs. Levine, Mr. Haas, Mr. Peterman, and Mr. Lampe. Voting “no” - none. The motion passed by a unanimous vote.

Mattel License Agreement: Mattel toys has asked for a license agreement to create a “Hot Wheels” police and fire vehicle using the City of Fort Thomas logo. A local attorney who specializes in trademarks has reviewed the agreement at no charge and recommended a few changes. Mattel agreed with the changes. A motion was made by Mr. Haas and seconded by Mr. Peterman to approve the license agreement between Mattel Toys and the City of Fort Thomas. The motion passed by a unanimous vote.

Report on Vouchers

The Finance Committee presented its Report of Disbursements and recommended the payment of warrants numbered 56312 through 56465 for the period of August 5 – September 2, 2008. A motion was made by Mrs. Steller and seconded by Mrs. Levine to concur in the recommendation of the Finance Committee. Upon call of the roll, the following members voted “aye” - Mrs. Steller, Mrs. Levine, Mr. Haas, Mr. Peterman and Mr. Lampe. Voting "no" - none. The motion passed by a unanimous vote.

Ordinances, Resolutions, and Orders

Ordinance O-17-2008: An ordinance amending the Personnel Pay and Classification Plan to adjust the compensation of the position of Greenspace Laborer II was presented to council for consideration. A motion was made by Mrs. Levine and seconded by Mrs. Steller to approve Ordinance O-17-2008. Upon call of the roll, the following voted “aye” - Mrs. Steller, Mrs. Levine, Mr. Haas, Mr. Peterman, and Mr. Lampe. Voting “no” - none. The motion passed by a unanimous vote.

Ordinance O-18-2008: An ordinance appointing Alex Scott to the position of Greenspace Laborer II was presented to council for consideration. A motion was made by Mr. Lampe and seconded by Mr. Peterman to approve Ordinance O-18-2008. Upon call of the roll, the following voted “aye” - Mrs. Steller, Mrs. Levine, Mr. Haas, Mr. Peterman, and Mr. Lampe. Voting “no” - none. The motion passed by a unanimous vote.

Ordinance O-19-2008: An ordinance amending the Personnel Pay and Classification Plan to adjust the compensation of the position of city clerk was presented to council for a first reading. This matter will be laid over for consideration at the next regular meeting of council.

Ordinance O-20-2008: An ordinance amending section XII of the Personnel Policies and Procedures Manual pertaining to education reimbursement was presented for council for a first reading. This matter will be laid over for consideration at the next regular meeting of council.

Ordinance O-21-2008: An ordinance amending section 130.02 of the Fort Thomas Code of Ordinances pertaining to the possession of air rifles or air guns was presented to council for a first reading. Council tabled this ordinance in order to make changes that will exempt police officers from the regulations of the ordinance. A first reading of the amended ordinance will be presented to council at the next regular meeting.

With no further business to come before Council, the meeting was adjourned at 8:45 p.m.

APPROVED:

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Mary H. Brown, Mayor

ATTEST:

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Melissa K. Kelly, City Clerk