Columbus, Georgia

Minutes



COUNCIL BRIEFING



Meeting

January 13, 2004



Members Present: Mayor Pro Tem John J. Rodgers and Councilors R. Gary Allen,

Julius Hunter, Jr., Charles E. McDaniel, Jr., Evelyn Turner Pugh, Nathan Suber

and Evelyn Woodson. Also present were Mayor Robert S. Poydasheff, City Manager

Carmen Cavezza, City Attorney Clifton Fay, Interim Finance Director Angela Cole

and Department of Parks and Recreation Director Tony Adams.



Members Absent: Councilors Wayne Anthony, Glenn Davis and Berry Henderson,

were absent.



Guest: Mr. Allen Griggs and Mr. Jim Robinson from JRA Architect and Mr. Jim

Humes and Mr. Bob Tanner.



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Mayor Pro Tem Rodgers called the meeting to order at 8:36 a.m. in the Council

Chambers Conference Room, Plaza Level of the Government Center.



Skate Park:

City Manager Cavezza said that we are ready to begin working on the Skate Park;

we have obtained all of the approvals necessary. He then immediately called

upon the architects for the Skate Park, at which time, Mr. Allen Griggs from

JRA Architect and Mr. Jim Robinson came forward.



Mr. Allen Griggs from JRA Architect presented a small model of the

architectural structure of the new Skate Park. He then briefly outlined the

exact location of the structure. He identified the area where the swimming

pool would be located on the site. He added that this area would be fenced in

where an individual could not see into the pool area from the street. He

recognized the area were the natatorium cover would be placed when the pool is

enclosed in the future. He pointed out that there would be a private and

separate entrance to the pool area from the exterior; this was something that

was worked out with the youth group. He continued to explain the layout of

various areas and the construction material that would be used.



Mr. Griggs then responded to questions regarding the downward sloping of the

roof. With regards to the location of the ice rink, Mr. Griggs acknowledged

that the ice rink is at the rear with spectator seating of about approximately

500. He then spoke of the mechanical storage space as well as the

concessionary areas, which could be assessed from both the exterior and the

interior; therefore, an individual does not have to go inside the building to

get snacks. In the upstairs area of the facility, Mr. Griggs pointed out that

there is a mezzanine with a large party room and game room, which is exposed to

the ice rink and the open area. He added that there are also administrative

offices. Wedding planners have requested, he explained, a conference room,

training rooms and perhaps even a weight room.



When Councilor Woodson asked about additional seating in the future, Mr. Griggs

replied that there is space for approximately 200 or 300 more, but that would

be the most. At this time City Manager Cavezza emphasized that the funding is

in place for this as a result of SPLOST money for the pool and the bond that

was approved by Council. He said that we want to give the architects the go

ahead; so, they could get started on it to be ready for the summer of 2005. He

then asked if there were any concerns.



In response to a question from Councilor Allen, City Manager Cavezza assured

everyone that the Hurricanes are very happy about it and as a matter of fact,

one of the modifications in the plan was suggested by them. He also pointed

out that the Youth Advisory Council has been a key player in this and Deputy

City Manager Hugley has conducted several public meetings. Deputy City Manager

Hugley confirmed that we have had meetings with all of the stakeholders; there

were two meetings with the Hurricanes.



Councilor Turner Pugh asked how much it would be to cover the pool, at which

time, City Manager Cavezza replied $2.7 million. He maintained that we could

always add that later.



Tri-Rivers Discussions:

City Manager Cavezza reminded everyone that the Tri-Rivers discussions broke

down; therefore, with the break down of the discussion, the State of Georgia,

Corp of Engineers and Atlanta have come together with an agreement, which would

basically hold the water and reserve water up in the Atlanta area. He

determined that this would cause problems for us, and we do not feel that an

adequate study was done. He explained this could adversely affect the flow and

our water down here. City Manager Cavezza identified a group of people called

the Middle Region Users that includes the City of Columbus and people along the

Chattahoochee River and as part of the State, as well as some elements on the

other side of the river in Alabama, who oppose this. He advised that the Board

of Water Commissioners has decided to enter into a friend of the court breach,

and a lawsuit that?s in Washington challenging whether this is appropriate to

have this agreement and possibly jeopardize water problems for us. To follow

the suggestion by the Water Works, City Manager Cavezza recommended that the

Council state, by formal resolution, the City?s position on whether we support

this or not. He then recognized the presence of Mr. Jim Humes and Mr. Bob

Tanner. He recommended that the Council verbally support it, because it is

right that they do an appropriate study on this. He also cautioned that this

would put us in an awkward position by taking a position against our state;

however, it is not a lawsuit per se, but a friend of the court breach, which

allows us to state our position and concerns.



When no one expressed any concerns or objections, City Manager Cavezza pointed

out that he would mention this at the Council Meeting to get it on the record

without a formal resolution.



Williams Road Park:

City Manager Cavezza reminded everyone of the problems we had when we sold the

Williams Road Park. He contended that we were wrong and should not have sold

it; therefore, he is sending the people who want to buy it a letter explaining

why. He continued by saying that when that community was developed, this area

was set aside and sold to the City for $10.00 as a park for that community;

basically, it needs to stay that way for that community. He added that

according to our lawyers, we are not obligated to sell, because we have not

closed or signed the contract. He admitted that it was unfortunate, but what

we have learned from that is why would we ever accept a park, for example if a

developer constructs a community and has greenspace and wants it to be a park

and they want the City to take care of it; then, he is not sure this is the way

to go. He pointed out that there is a park in the community where he lives in,

but the residents pay to take care of it. He maintained that this would be a

more appropriate way to handle that type situation.



Mayor Pro Tem Rodgers recalled the reason this was done was because it was

considered to be a 235 subdivision, which was a government-subsidized

subdivision. He maintained that those people could not afford to take care of

a park, because they could barely afford to make the house payment. Councilor

Turner Pugh asked if we do any kind of searches on land that we are proposing

to sell, at which time, City Manager Cavezza responded by saying that Lynette

Gross is capturing all of the property we own to include all of the leases.

Community Reinvestment Manager Lynette Gross agreed that a title search is done

on every piece of property, but what we found out is that we need to not only

research the deed, but we also need to research our plats. She explained that

in the past, she was not doing research on plats, but this has been corrected.



Convention and Trade Center:

City Manager Cavezza advised that we have met with Governor Sonny Perdue on

December 17, 2003, and basically said that there are no funds this year for it,

but the governor did suggested that we look at a bonding arrangement much like

the Performing Arts Center. He said this would mean that it could possibly be

funded by the state, but the deed to the Trade Center would go to the state for

fifty (50) years, but everything else would stay the same; that is one option.

Mayor Pro Tem Rodgers expressed his concerns with the length of time the state

would hold the title to the Trade Center. Councilor McDaniel asked that the

marina be included in that.



City Manager Cavezza said that we would set up a separate meeting on this

issue, because we have to talk this through and reach a decision. He reminded

everyone that there are some concerns, because the other part of it that we

have to look it is that there is currently an outstanding $5 million bond that

the Trade Center has that would have to be satisfied; that is another issue.

In response to Councilor Turner Pugh, City Manager Cavezza replied that the

advantage to the city would be that we would receive $22 million. He pointed

out that we are working with Attorney Ed Sprouse to look at how they were able

to do the Performing Arts Theater.





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Meeting adjourned at 8:54 a.m.





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Sandra T. Davis, Deputy Clerk of Council