Columbus, Georgia

MINUTES



COUNCIL OF COLUMBUS, GEORGIA

WORK SESSION

NOVEMBER 23, 2004



The regular monthly Work Session of the Council of Columbus, Georgia was

called to order at 9:00 A.M., Tuesday, November 23, 2004, in the Ground Floor

Conference Room, of the Government Center, Columbus, Georgia. Honorable Robert

S. Poydasheff, Mayor, presiding.



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PRESENT: Present other than Mayor Poydasheff and Mayor Pro Tem John J. Rodgers

was Councilors R. Gary Allen, Wayne Anthony, Berry Henderson, Julius H. Hunter,

Jr., Charles E. McDaniel, Jr., Evelyn Turner Pugh and Nathan Suber and Evelyn

Woodson. City Manager Carmen Cavezza, City Attorney Clifton Fay, Clerk of

Council Tiny B. Washington and Deputy Clerk of Council Sandra Davis were also

present.



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ABSENT: Councilor Glenn Davis was absent.



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INVOCATION: Led by Mayor Pro Tem John J. Rodgers.



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PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: Led by Mayor Robert S. Poydasheff.

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SOA WATCH:



Mayor Poydasheff said he is proud of this Council and the City Manager and

what they have done to facilitate the weekend that we have each year with the

SOA Watch. He said he and the City Manager were there on Saturday as well as

Sunday and also attended the God Bless Fort Benning event.



He said until you see the professionalism of the Police Department and

Fire Emergency Services and the support with the Sheriff and the State

Department and the working relationship with Fort Benning you can?t understand

how all these years we have built up the relationship and how they do their job

and how we do our job. He said they only arrested three individuals during the

SOA Watch and said it was done in a responsible way. He said once again this

City is going to go on record as a City that is professional and understands

the importance of the first amendment and does not beat, or does not, in any,

interfere with first amendment rights and also a City that really cares about

Fort Benning and their families.



Mayor Poydasheff said he would like to ask the Council to call for a

resolution commending our public safety personnel and the State Patrol and Dr.

& Mrs. Tidwell who participated and created the God Bless Fort Benning event.



Councilor Suber said on Sunday, the State Patrol was having driver

licenses check on 10th Avenue right across the street from E. J. Knight and

they also had it on Wynnton Road and 10th Avenue



Mayor Poydasheff said he would check into that.



Councilor Woodson said some people were also stopped quiet often on South

Lumpkin Road; because she was getting a lot of telephone calls from people in

their district.



Councilor Suber said he knows that at one point, the Sheriff wouldn?t

allow them to come in, in the past. He said they have been writing tickets on

I-185 as well and then asked Mayor Poydasheff if that has changed. He said at

one point in time, they were not allowed to write tickets in Muscogee County.

He said the Sheriff wouldn?t let them come in.



Mayor Poydasheff said he our public safety personnel were tied with

another situation, and he can discuss that with Councilor Suber. He said the

State Patrol was helping us with traffic and some other things.



He said he would look into those concerns of Councilor Suber. (Referral)

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RETIREMENT OF CITY MANAGER CAVEZZA:



Mayor Poydasheff said he would like for the Council to receive the

retirement letter of City Manager Cavezza. Councilor McDaniel moved the letter

be received with regrets. Seconded by Councilor Allen and carried unanimously

by those nine members of Council present for this meeting.

*** *** ***

MINUTES: Minutes of the November 9, 2004 meeting of the Council of the

Consolidated Government of Columbus, Georgia were submitted and approved by the

Council upon the adoption of a motion made by Councilor Allen and seconded by

Councilor Woodson, which carried unanimously by those nine members of Council

present for this meeting.

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CONSENT AGENDA:



THE FOLLOWING ITEMS WERE SUBMITTED AND APPROVED BY THE COUNCIL PURSUANT TO

THE ADOPTION OF A MOTION MADE BY MAYOR PRO TEM RODGERS AND SECONDED BY

COUNCILOR ALLEN, WHICH CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY BY THOSE NINE MEMBERS OF COUNCIL

PRESENT FOR THIS MEETING: ________________________________________________



A Resolution (492-04) - Accepting a deed to Watervalley Drive, Waterstone

Drive and Waterhill Drive located in Section Four, Waterstone Subdivision.



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THE FOLLOWING TEMPORARY STREET CLOSING APPLICATION WAS SUBMITTED AND

APPROVED BY THE COUNCIL:



Application of Mike Snapp to temporarily close 3rd Avenue between 11th &

12th

Street on Saturday, December 4, 2004 from 7:00 a.m., to 3:00 p.m., in

connection with providing items to the underprivileged individual. Mayor Pro

Tem Rodgers moved approval. Seconded by Councilor Allen and carried unanimously

by those nine members of Council present for this meeting.



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Councilor Turner Pugh asked Mayor Poydasheff if he had a proclamation for

today for Family Week? Mayor Poydasheff said he was not aware of one to be done

today and then asked his Executive Assistant, Ed Wilson to check on this.



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City Manager Cavezza said this is one of quarterly Strategic Planning

Session and said we haven?t been doing a lot of them outside of the Council

Chambers and today, he wanted to give the Council an overview on the

Transportation/Planning to show you where we are and to review the process. He

said hopefully, the questions that you might have will be answered and it will

give you a good status of where we are in this area.

City Manager Cavezza said after the adjournment of the meeting, he would

request an executive to discuss two real estate issues and two issues regarding

potential litigation.



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FY-06 BUDGET:



City Manager Cavezza said we have started the FY-06 budget process early

this year, as there is a sense of urgency to deal with what we are projecting

that could be as much as a $12 million shortfall. He said the department

directors have been given their guidance and they will be coming back to him on

December 10th and said we will scrub that; then work with Councilor Turner

Pugh?s mini finance committee and then bring it to the full Council by December

21st. He said if this works as plan, there would be some significant changes as

we are projecting. He said this would give the department directors

approximately 18 months to work this process.

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COLUMBUS TIMES NEWSPAPER:



Councilor Anthony pointed out that the Columbus Times Newspaper was

recognized and won the small business awards for small companies. He said they

were nominated by one of their employees.

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WORK SESSION AGENDA:



TRANSPORTATION/STRATEGIC PLANNING;



Mr. Rick Jones of the Transportation Planning Department came forward and

gave a twenty-two minute very detailed update on the transportation plan for

the city of Columbus which included the following:



IMPACTS OF TRANSPORTATION:



? Economy

? Land Use

? Social Equity

? Mobility & Accessibility

? Safety & Health

? Communities & Neighborhoods

? Environment





THE TRANSPORTATION PLANNING PROCESS:



? Monitor existing conditions

? Forecast future population & employment

? Assess projected land uses in the region

? Identify problems, needs and analyze various transportation improvements

? Develop alternative capital and operating strategies for people and goods

? Estimate impact of transportation system on air quality

? Develop a financial plan that covers operating, maintenance, preservation and

new capital investments



COLUMBUS PHEXIT CITY METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION:



Mr. Jones pointed out there is an organization that we belong to which is

the Columbus Phenix City Metropolitan Planning (CPCMPO); which is a bi-state,

regional group that is housed in their office. He said their study area

includes Russell and Lee Counties. He said they have extended an invitation to

Harris County to work with them. He said everything involved with

transportation system, does not just affect only Columbus, but it?s everything

outside of Columbus as well. He said we have grown up to the point that all of

our transportation needs are looking at long range.



Mr. Jones also showed the organizational make up of the Columbus-Phenix

City MPO and those agencies that are involved in the process.



COLUMBUS-PHENIX CITY TRANSPORTATION PLANNING PROCESS:



Mr. Jones then went into further details in outlining the planning process

from start to finish. He said anyone could propose a transportation project

based on an identified need and then pointed out how that process is handled.

He also pointed out that the Transportation Improvement Plan goes to the State

and Federal Agencies for approval.



LONG-RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN (LRTP)



To be eligible for Federal funds, a project must be consistent with the

approved long-range transportation plan.





THE LONG RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN?.



? Documents conclusions and decisions of the planning process

? Includes long term and short term policies, strategies, and actions

? Covers capital improvements and operations

? Addresses movement of people and goods

? Encompasses a 20-year planning horizon

? Is financially constrained by reasonably available resources





REQUIREMENTS FOR THE LAND RANGE TRANSPORTAITON PLAN





? At least a 20-year horizon at time of adoption

? An update every 5 years ? 3 years for non-attainment and maintenance areas

? Multi-modal coverage

? Fiscal constraints

? Early and continuous public involvement

? Conformity with air quality requirements (Non-attainment & Maintenance Areas)

? Consideration of the 7 Planning Factors



Deputy City Manager Bishop pointed out that we have seen an increase in

the citizens involvement group and participation in their public meetings. He

said they have had a large turnout at these public meetings.



Councilor Woodson said maybe we could ask some of the companies to put

information in their bulletins about meetings or information that citizens need

to know.



SEVEN PLANNING FACTORS:



? Support the economic vitality of the metropolitan area, especially by

enabling global competitiveness, productivity, and efficiency;

? Increase the safety and security of the transportation system for motorized

and non-motorized users;

? Increase the accessibility and mobility options available to people and for

freight;

? Protect and enhance the environment, promote energy conservation, and improve

quality of life;

? Enhance the integration and connectivity of the transportation system, across

and between modes, for people and freight;

? Promote efficient system management and operation; and

? Emphasize the preservation of the existing transportation





WHAT IS PROGRAMMING AND WHY DO WE DO IT?



? Programming is identifying top priority projects for funding



? The total cost of worthy projects always exceeds available funding ? hence

the need to set priorities



? The TIP and STIP are products of programming



Deputy City Manager Bishop said there was an article in the Atlanta

newspaper recently about transportation funding and said it pointed out that

with the budget constraints, the Federal Government are going to be pushing

more of the funding for road projects down to State to local Governments. He

said he believes that our State and local delegation will be addressing this

issue in the upcoming Legislative Session.

He said the Mayor is involved in a committee that the Governor has appointed to

look at long-range funding sources for road projects.



He said it is going to become even harder for us to get additional funds

to build these projects as we go forward. He said we have funds in the 1999

SPLOST for a list of specific projects; however, when these new products come

on line, we will be looking at State and Federal agencies for funding, but

there may not be there as much as it was in the past. He said it is going to be

coming back to the local government to help fund those projects.



Mayor Poydasheff then responded to questions of Councilor Turner Pugh

regarding the possibility of a gasoline tax and other issues.



Mr. Rick Jones also responded to questions of members of the Council.





TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENT PLAN (TIP)



? Is a means of allocating limited transportation funds to projects and programs

? Is a list of transportation projects to be implemented within the short-term

(3-5 years)

? Includes nearly all surface transportation projects proposed for federal

funding

? Includes all regionally significant projects - regardless of funding source

in non-attainment and maintenance areas

? Identifies funding for each project by programmatic source



REQUIREMENTS FOR THE TIP?.



? Covers at least 3 years

? Is updated at least every 2 years

? Is consistent with approved Transportation Plan

? Becomes part of the State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP)

? Can be amended during its life span (subject to approval by Governor and

inclusion in STIP)

? Conforms to air quality requirements

? Is financially constrained by year

? Is approved by MPO and Governor (including amendments)





CONGESTION MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS (CMS)



? Required for MPOs over 200,000 population

? Approach to identifying, analyzing, & evaluating system-wide congestion

? Serves as input into planning & programming processes

? CMS plan for region is currently being updated to address and identify

congested roadways and areas





? LEVEL OF SERIVCE:



Using a slide presentation, Mr. Jones then should an example of the six

different levels of services, i.e. Level Services A, B, C, E, E, & F



Mr. Jones and Deputy City Manager Bishop responded to questions of several

members of Council regarding the level services and pointed out that we are not

trying to build roads and add additional lanes based on peak time traffic.



Deputy City Manager Bishop said we couldn?t afford to build roads for peak

times, but said this is when we get all the complaints. City Manager Cavezza

said there are some peak time issues that we do need to address, but said we

just can?t react to all of them.



Mr. Jones then responded to questions of members of the Council regarding

Buena Vista Road, Dillingham Street Bridge and Brown Avenue Bridge.



TRAFFIC STUDY:



Mr. Jones then showed a chart of the number accidents, whether it is

property damage, or if it involves pedestrians. He said they have the number of

fatalities for the last three years. He said those accidents are there

correlated and highlighted on the map in terms of where these locations are.



CONGESTED MANAGEMENT SYSTEM



Mr. Jones said its aim is to monitor congestion on existing and probable

future congested corridors. He said the 2003 Congestion Management Study has

identified 16 corridors prioritized in terms of the need to address congestion.



Mr. Jones then introduced Mr. Rajeev Shaw, who is a Transportation Planner

within their division. He gave some of his educational background and then

called him forward to explain the maps of the congestion during the on and

off-peak times.



Mr. Shaw then called forward and went into some details in explaining the

Congested Management System and how it works and explaining a chart that shows

the reading of the average speed during certain peak hours, as well as the

reading of the congestion in the areas.



Mr. Shaw and Deputy City Manager Bishop, along with City Manager Cavezza

then responded to questions of members of Council as it relates to the traffic

congestion during peak hours time.



Mr. Jones pointed out that all this information that we are talking about

here today is on our website and anyone can go and download it or look at it

anytime they want to, to get a better understanding of it.



Councilor Woodson said now that we have a Transportation Planner and we

have all this information available, if we could do a special report on CCG-TV

and run it constantly so that the citizens can see this process and how it

works. (Referrals)





CHALLENGES FACING OUR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM



? Time Factor

- 5 to 7 years to build a new road



? Environmental Concerns

? Identification of Historic Properties

? Design Concepts

? Public Information





? Funding

- Finding a Constant Source





Mr. Jones said any one of these things could kick it out of kilter. He

said we have projects that have been on the books for 10 or 15 because we have

things going on or the money is not there. He said the biggest thing is

finding a constant source of funding. He said from our standpoint, what GADOT

requires from us, is to go out and pay the right-of-ways and secure the

utilities and they will take care of the design, engineering and everything

else. He said we have to come up with the money and if the money is not there

when the project is ready, they might skip over us and go to another project

somewhere else in the State. He said this would delay the projects that we have

a board another two or three years.



Councilor Turner Pugh said they have been working on St. Mary?s Road for a

long and she assumes that we purchased those two homes that were torn down, to

which Deputy City Manager Bishop said we did.



She said the new homes that they are building on St. Mary?s Road, they are

closer to the road than the other houses where and said she doesn?t understand

that.



Deputy City Manager Cavezza said those are setback; we have gotten with

DOT and all the right-of-ways issues were resolved. He said the alignment may

be going the other way, we had to relocate utilities and everything has been

coordinated with those houses.



Councilor Suber said then asked if they are going to take those homes

coming from I-185 bypass, are you going to take those houses on the right-hand

side of the roadway? Deputy City Manager Bishop said he wasn?t sure of that,

but said he would check into that. Councilor Turner Pugh asked Mr. Bishop to

look into this concern. (Referrals)



Deputy City Manager Cavezza said there was a historical structure on that

site, where Ted Freeman purchased that property. He said we had to deal with it

and then he came in and purchased it because he wasn?t a part of the City and

the Federal Government and built houses.

He said we had to move the road over to miss that site.



Several minutes of discussion continued on this issue, with Deputy City

Manager Bishop responding to further questions of members of the Council

regarding this scheduled road widening. City Manager Cavezza also responded to

questions of the Council.



Mr. Jones continued his presentation, outlining the following items.



CHALLENGES FACING OUR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM



? Land Use/Zoning Issues

? Air Quality

? Operation and Maintenance

? Alternative Modes

o Bicycling

o Walking/Jogging

o Public Transit

? Freight Operations



Mr. Jones said they have a coalition working with Alabama Department of

Management and the Georgia EPD and they have submitted to EPA, a new proposal

that would allow us to have a monitoring station that would drop us below the

requirements for non-attainment. He said in talking with the gentleman from ADM

on last week, he said it looks like we will go into a non-attainment.

He said EPA is going to avoid or ignore all the data that we have submitted to

them. He said we probably would go into non-attainment by this time next

month.

He said they haven?t said that, but we are trying to get prepared for that.



City Manager Cavezza said the State of Georgia and the State of Alabama

has recommended that we not go into non-attainment. He said the Mayor has sent

a letter to the Congressional Delegation sometime ago and has sent another one

on yesterday advising them that we need some assistance in this area. He said

unless the Congressional representatives get involved and we stuck with this,

it?s going to hurt us in terms of development.



Several members of discussion developed on this subject, with City Manager

Cavezza, Deputy City Manager Bishop and Mr. Jones responding to several

questions of members of the Council.



Mayor Pro Tem Rodgers and other members of Council asked that Mayor

Poydasheff and City Manager Cavezza to contact our Congressional Delegation and

sit down and talk with them regarding these concerns of non-attainment for air

quality.



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TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS:



Mr., Jones then showed a map on the transportation projects on Veterans

Parkway and outlined several of those projects that are being proposed out in

the area. He said there are two new schools proposed for this area and said the

issue in telling with the traffic, where will all this traffic go. He said once

these schools go in, we are sure that housing or some other development will

come up behind.



He said they are estimating that another 1500 units will go out there

surrounding this site. He said all this traffic couldn?t all come out on

Veterans Parkway. He said you have to deal with topography, existing

neighborhoods and how you are going to impact them and said it is not going to

be easy.







Mr. Jones then showed the existing land use of the area on the map in

terms of industrial and mixed uses, schools, etc., as well as what is being

proposed as far as future land use. He said in the CIP, they have three

projects that are ready to be looked at on Veterans Parkway.



Deputy City Manager Bishop said from DOT prospective, the project is

moving very quickly, but said it is still not going to meet the opening of the

elementary school and may not meet the opening of the middle school. He said

traffic will continue to grow in this corridor and it?s going to be a major

concern for all of us.



He said the entrance from Cooper Creek going into the elementary school,

that is the road that the school is proposing to build to the elementary school

and middle school. He said their design is to be a two-lane road with a turn

lane all the way in. He said from the City?s prospective and when you look at

all the possibilities of single-family and mixed used development around that

site, a minimum of 500 or 1500 houses, is that what we really need to do at

this time. He said they have been working with Larry French, the school

system?s engineer on this project, to determine if we want to partner with the

school system and instead of building a three-lane go ahead and built a

five-lane while the construction is going on, and what would it cost.



Deputy City Manager Bishop said the school system has their money to build

the driveway into the school, but at the end of the day when it is completed,

they are going to want the City to take it over. He said they want to go ahead

and partner with the school system and make it a five-lane road now. He said it

is going to cost about $1.3 million for us to do our share.



Several members of the Council expressed their views regarding this

subject, after which Mr. Bishop then responded to several questions and

concerns of the Council regarding the proposed project for this area. City

Manager Cavezza also responded to questions as well.



After more than one hour and twenty minutes of discussion on the

transportation planning, Mr. Rick Jones? presentation was then concluded.

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TRANSITION PROJECTS:



City Manager Cavezza said there are several transition projects that he

wants to review with the Council, but he would do it at a later time.



He said he would like to request an executive session because there is two

real estate procurements that he needs to discuss with the Council, as well as

some potential matters of litigations that we have to deal with.



*** *** ***



PAWNSHOPS:



City Manager Cavezza pointed out that he met with the Police Department

and Finance Department and said on November 29th, at 5:30 p.m., there will be a

meeting with the pawnshop owners regarding the new ordinance, which will be

held at the Public Safety Building. He said letters will be going out and they

will have to sign for those letters; so that we can make sure everyone gets the

word on this meeting.



*** *** ***



BI-STATE LUNCHEON:



City Manager Cavezza said there would be a bi-state luncheon on Thursday,

December 9th at 11:30 a.m. at the Trade Center. He said GMA, Carl Vinson

Institute will be acknowledging the metropolitan statistical areas throughout

the State, of which we are one, and we are working in conjunction with the

State of Alabama to pull together common issues and how to work together across

boundaries and State lines.



He said GMA and the Carl Vinson Institute has done a great job in this

area and it is very important to us; because the intent is to let Atlanta know

that they have some major areas outside of Atlanta that they need to deal with

and we need to be able to flex and assert ourselves in that process.



*** *** ***



EXECUTIVE SESSION:



Regarding the request of City Manager Cavezza to go into a brief executive

session to discuss a real estate matter and matters of potential litigation,

Mayor Pro Tem Rodgers then made a motion to allow the Council to go into

executive session. Seconded by Councilor Anthony and carried unanimously by

those eight members of Council present at the time, with Councilor Suber being

absent for this vote.



Mr. Chuck Williams of the Columbus-Ledger then asked City Attorney Fay if

the Council can go into executive session for potential litigation or does it

have to be litigation.



City Attorney Fay said either one. However, Mr. Williams said it has to be

litigation, and not potential litigation.



City Attorney Fay then citied the State law advising that they can. He

then read the Code Section stating it says litigation or potential litigation.



*** *** ***



At 10:40 a.m. the Council adjourned its regular session to allow the

Council to go into an executive session.



At 11:21`a.m. the meeting was called back to order, at which time Mayor

Poydasheff pointed out that we met in executive session to discuss a real

estate issue and matters of potential litigation, but there was no votes taken.



*** *** ***



With there being no other business to come before the Council, Mayor Pro

Tem Rodgers then made a motion for adjournment. Seconded by Councilor Suber and

carried unanimously by those nine members of Council present for this meeting,

with the time being 11:22 a.m.



*** *** ***





Tiny B. Washington, CMC

Clerk of Council

The Council of Columbus, Georgia