HomeMy WebLinkAbout07-28-2003 Meeting
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ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES
AGENDA
COMMITTEE ROOM - July 28, 2003
I:OOP. M.
1. Request the Commission to allow an appeal- the 15 day appeal period has
expired - and reverse the decision of the Historic Preservation Commission
thereby approving the Certificate of Appropriateness for demolition of the
structure at 1106 Wrightsboro Road. (District 2, Super District 9).
2. Authorize Public & Engineering Department to hire the Mapping and Drafting
Team Leader at a salary of$36,000 to be funded from the Highway
Administration Budget.
3. Add seat on Downtown Advisory Panel for commercial property owner.
4. Increase 2003 budgeted rent for Housing & Neighborhood using Urban Services
Fund as a source of revenue.
5. Report from the Administrator regarding the Project Success Summer Program.
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ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES
COMMITIEE
COMMITTEE ROOM - July 28, 2003
1:00 P. M.
PRESENT: Hons. Beard, Chairman; Kuhlke, Co-Chairman; Hankerson and
Cheek, members; George Kolb, Administrator; Vanessa Flournoy, Staff Attorney;
Warren Smith, HND Director; Kevin Jones, HND Department; Teresa Smith, Public
Works Director; Rob Sherman, License & Inspections Director; Chief Al Gillespie, Fire
Department; Lena Bonner, Clerk of Commission.
ABSENT: Hon. Bob Young, Mayor.
Also Present: Stacey Eidson of The Metro Spirit, Heidi Williams of The Augusta
Chronicle, George Eskola ofWJBF Television and Hons. Bridges, Mays and Colclough,
Commissioners.
1. Request the Commission to allow an appeal- the 15 day appeal period has
expired - and reverse the decision of the Historic Preservation Commission
thereby approving the Certificate of Appropriateness for demolition ofthe
structure at 1106 Wrightsboro Road. (District 2, Super District 9).
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Mr. Sherman: This is a property we've been working on since 1997 and continue
to have complaints on. There is a church group that wants to purchase the property for
the construction of a church and they have been denied a certificate of appropriateness by
the Historic Preservation Commission. The time expired for the group to appeal the
decision and they have been told they have to wait a year before it can again be heard.
We're-asking you to waive theIS-day appeafprocess aiid to-approve the Certificate of
Appropriateness to reverse their decision so that either the petitioner can continue with
thcir project to demolish the structure or we can include it in our list of properties to go to
the court at the end of August asking the judge to issue an order under our nuisancc
abatement code and we can demolish it.
Mr. Cheek: So move.
Mr. Hankerson: Second.
Mr. Kuhlke: Who would challenge us on this?
Mr. Sherman: I don't think the property owner would object because they want to
sell it. The buyer doesn't want to purchase it until they know they can demolish the
structure .
Mr. Chairman: I think you would want to stipulate in the motion that there be a
notification from our legal department rather than just going out and demolishing it.
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Mr. Kuhlke: What are you adding to it?
Mr. Kolb: The motion would be to authorize demolition of this structure subject
to review of the legal department.
Mr. Cheek: Do we want to add that subject to review for appropriateness that if
this is not the way to go with waiving the 15-day appeal that we follow the nuisance
abatement program?
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Mr. Kolb: Yes.
Motion adopted unanimously.
2. Authorize Public Works & Engineering Department to hire the Mapping and
Drafting Team Leader at a salary of $36,000 to be funded from the Highway
Administration Budget.
Mr. Cheek: I move to approve for discussion.
Mr. Hankerson: Second.
Motion adopted unanimously.
3. Add seat on Downtown Advisory Panel for commercial property owner.
Mr. Kuhlke: So move.
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Mr. Cheek: I'm going to second that and ask that a stipulation be added that the
property owner's property be in good standing.
Mr. Kuhlke: I'll accept that.
After a short discussion, the motion was adopted unanimously.
4. Increase 2003 budgeted rent for Housing & Neighborhood using Urban
Servicl's Fund as II source of revenue.
Mr. Kevin Jones: In 2002 HND was scheduled to relocate to the ANIC building
that's being constructed on Laney Walker. Because of several delays it was not
completed in 2002. At that time it was understood that ANIC would pay the difference in
the rent that we'd be paying them if we had relocatcd at the time and the rent that we
wcre paying at Riverfront Center. In February of this year when the lease was finalized
with ANIC for HND and the Fire Administration to move there, they were released from
those penalties for the difference in the rent but at that time, for (me reason or another,
there was no revenue source identified for that difference in rent that we had budgeted
and the rent that we were being charged. The recommendation here is that the urban
services fund would pick up the difference between the average market rent that HUD
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allows HND to pay and the actual rent that we're being charged at Riverfront Center.
There are funds available to cover that.
Mr. Kuhlke: Is the difference $135,000?
Mr. Jones: That's correct.
Mr. Kuhlke: When are you moving to the ANIC building?
Mr. Jones: ANIC has said they expect us to be in there in October, but we've
gotten the services of an architect to give us advice on the building and they say that it
looks like it may be the first part of 2004 before we can move in.
Mr. Kublke: I move appoval.
Mr. Beard: I'll second it.
Mr. Cheek: How much is the architect being paid?
Mr. Jones: $3,500. They will coordinate with ANIC for us and the Fire
Department for our move into the building.
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Mr. Smith: We had set up a transition move team to deal with any issues and
problems that have come up. One issue that came up concerned the costs for the
computer conn~ctions _we' ~e_going to peed._ Those _c2~~ :l!e stilU.o_ b~ de!e1'lllined <I,Il~we
are waiting for that.
Mr. Mays: I want to know where the problem is in the slowing down of the
project, whether it's on our side or ANIC's side.
After a discussion, Mr. Smith: I think at this point everything is going the way
that it should.
Chief Gillespie: I think we've met C\'ery request they've had. We'vc met both
together and individually.
Mr. Mays: Then if everyone is doing everything as they should, then why are we
here asking for funding?
Mr. Chairman: I'm going to ask the Administrator to contact Mr. Cooks at ANIC
and find out what problems they're having and report it back to our next committee
meeting.
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Mr. Mays: Could YOll have that in a public meeting?
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Mr. Chairman: We'll ask the Clerk to notify HND, the Fire Department and
ANIC and have them at our next meeting and put them on the agenda to hear from them.
Motion adopted unanimously.
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5. Report from the Administrator regarding the Project Success Summer
Program.
Mr. Kolb: I submitted a report for your review. John Adams of Project Success
was the contact person and he advised HND that the funds were no longer needed.
Originally HND had worked with Project Success to come up with the funds.
Mr. Chairman: I contacted Mr. Adams and this was his agreement as listed here.
Mr. Smith has said he would work with them if they continue this project and I think we
can accept this as information.
Mr. Kuhlke: I so move.
Mr. Cheek: Second.
Motion adopted unanimously.
ADJOURNMENT: There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned.
Lena 1. Bonner
Clerk of Commission
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