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HomeMy WebLinkAboutApproved Minutes - 2002-03-19 AM 3�pi LAKC ° CITY COUNCIL MINUTES (' March 19, 2002 \�� Mayor Judie Hammerstad called the special City Council meeting to order at 7:30 a.m. on March 19, 2002, in the City Council Chambers. Present: Mayor Hammerstad, Councilors Turchi, Graham, McPeak, Hoffman, Rohde and Schoen. Staff Present: Doug Schmitz, City Manager; David Powell, City Attorney; Robyn Christie, City Recorder; Stephan Lashbrook, Community Development Director; Chris Jordan, Assistant City Manager; Bob Kincaid, Chief of Staff Historic Review AB: Jeanie McGuire, Kasey Holwerda; Kim Grueter; Gary Mimnaugh 3. REVIEW EVENING AGENDA Mayor Hammerstad noted that Councilor Hoffman would review the consent agenda. She pointed out that they have moved long-term housing findings to April 2, leaving the temporary sign ordinance as the only substantive discussion item at tonight's meeting. Councilor Graham said that she had a brief conference report. Councilors McPeak and Rohde agreed to present brief reports on the National League of Cities conference. Mayor Hammerstad commented that she thought that the Metro conference on Friday and Saturday, which she and Councilor Hoffman attended, was good. She mentioned that she did not attend Saturday. 4. REVIEW FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS Mayor Hammerstad mentioned that Andy Harris wanted to give a PowerPoint presentation on Springbrook Creek to the Council. She said that if it were something of interest to the public, they would schedule it for a TV night; otherwise, they would put it on a dinner night. 5. OTHER BUSINESS 5.1 Historic Resources Advisory Board Recommendation for Hart Property Councilor Rohde reported on the call he received from Bill Headlee regarding the Council's consideration of restoring the house on the Hart property. He described Mr. Headlee as antagonistic and angry. He relayed Mr. Headlee's comments: the house was only an outbuilding that should be demolished immediately, as it represented no valuable historic process, and, since the Council bought the property with open space bonds, it should not violate the public trust. Mayor Hammerstad mentioned that Mr. Headlee spoke to her at Rotary yesterday. Jeanie McGuire, HRAB Chair, argued that the City had an opportunity, given that this was its own property, to show the community that it cared about historic preservation. She spoke to trying something new and implementing one of the options listed in the Board's recommendation. She discussed the actions that the Board would take, including listing the property on the local landmarks list and nominating it to the National Register. City Council Morning Meeting Minutes Page 1 of 6 March 19, 2002 Ms. McGuire observed that the City has done many wonderful things to improve the city. She argued that the missing element was historic preservation. She spoke to turning that around and showing the citizens that the Council did care about history. Councilor Rohde asked why the Hart property was not on the list to begin with. Ms. McGuire explained that the list had had 160 items, which the Board reduced to 93 at the Council's request. She said that the Hart property did not make the cut; at the time, the Board deemed other items more historically important. Councilor Rohde recalled that the Board cut back the list in the face of individual property owners protesting their inclusion. He asked if the Historic Review Commission had thought it valuable but bowed to political pressure. Ms. McGuire said not to her knowledge. She explained that the property had not been on the list from which property owners in the early 1990s requested removal; the consultant Jane Morrison had already removed it. Kasey Holwerda clarified that the original inventory did include the Hart property but they removed it when the Council wanted the number of properties reduced; there were other homes more architecturally significant. Councilor Rohde asked what the motivation of the Council at the time was for paring the list down. Ms. Holwerda mentioned the condition of the homes (some had not been maintained in good condition). Ms. McGuire indicated to Councilor McPeak that the criteria for the original list had included that a building be 50 years old at the time and architecturally historic. Mayor Hammerstad mentioned the criteria under Goal 5 for an ESEE analysis, and the point system developed by the HRAB to rank the properties. She noted that many of the items came out of the Clackamas County Cultural Resource Inventory. She recalled that those homes in a deteriorated condition and unlikely to attract someone interested in reconstructing them to the period style were dropped off the list. Ms. McGuire commented that homes that appeared insignificant might be on the list for other reasons, such as they were the last example of a housing use (a worker's cottage) or someone important had lived there. Other reasons included that a noted architect had designed it or it represented a particular architectural style not common in the city. Ms. McGuire indicated to Councilor Rohde that the Hart property house did not make the cut due to the deteriorated condition of the house. Councilor Rohde contended, based on the Council's tour of the home, that it was something that could be restored. Ms. Grueter recalled that, at the time of the paring down of the list, there were monumental properties around the lake that were listed on the National Register, and the Board felt that it had best put those on its limited list instead of something in poorer condition; since then, those lake homes have been demolished. Ms. McGuire indicated to Councilor Rohde that the original house had been demolished long before the original inventory. She mentioned to Councilor Turchi that the Morrie house, which had been part of the home estate, was still on site but slated for demolition. She argued that the demolition of the Morrie house was a reason to save the Trueblood house, which would be the only house in that part of town remaining on the landmarks list. Mayor Hammerstad directed attention to the decision tree provided by Mr. Powell. She asked if the Council had an interest in attempting to preserve the property. Councilor Hoffman spoke in support of trying to preserve the property and following the HRAB's recommendations in trying to find someone willing to rehabilitate the property. He observed that there were many legal methods to accomplish that. Councilor Hoffman argued that the Council did not do a disservice to the open space concept if the pathway to the river went by a house with a little yard. He mentioned seeing preserved houses in Europe that were in natural settings with pathways going by them. City Council Morning Meeting Minutes Page 2 of 6 March 19, 2002 Councilor Graham observed that 16 neighbors have expressed an interest in preserving the home. She said that her impression was that the neighbors did not want the building razed but rather removed. Councilor Rohde concurred but indicated that Mr. Headlee had said that all the neighbors were opposed to the house at that location. Councilor Schoen observed that the neighbors did not want the house unoccupied. Councilor McPeak spoke in support of attempting to preserve the house, but only if the market generated a buyer and it did not cost the City any money. She suggested imposing a time limit and a City resource limit. She commented that she would be delighted if a private party with money stepped forward to rehabilitate the house. Councilor Schoen asked what the intention of the seller of the property had been. David Powell, City Attorney, said that the deed required keeping the property in open space with the exception of any use of the residence on the property. Councilor Schoen concurred with Councilor McPeak's comments that no City funds be spent on the rehabilitation, with the exception of a little bit of staff time. Ms. McGuire asked if the City would spend funds upfront (for administrative and legal fees) if it were subsequently reimbursed from the sale or lease of the property. Gary Mimnaugh noted that the City would have demolition costs, if it chose that route. He suggested that the City agree to spend at least $15,000. Councilor Schoen stated that, given the pressure on the budget, he did not consider spending $20,000 on this house to be a high priority, when they had so many $20,000 needs. He indicated that if they could recoup upfront expenses, he would go along with it but not spending money as an investment. Councilor Graham referenced the letter from Kenwood Construction Company, which mentioned a demolition cost of$13,850. Councilor Schoen held that they could demolish it for less money. Councilor Turchi concurred with Councilor Hoffman that it would not be difficult to find people interested in moving into an old home and fixing it up. He commented that he thought it would cost less than the $300,000 outlined in the HRAB's memo. He said that he was not anxious to spend City money on it either, observing that staff time was also money. He reiterated that, with the proper incentive and right conditions, someone would move in and fix it up. Ms. Grueter recounted an anecdote in which her young daughter saw the house and wanted to preserve it to the extent that she was willing to give up the "extras in Lake Oswego" in order to do so. She stated that she would resign from the Board, and her family would put in a bid for the house. She mentioned that six other people have asked to be notified when the house was for sale. She concurred that there were people interested in preserving these homes. Ms. Grueter informed that Council that she contacted Dr. Sam Trueblood in Los Angeles, who was born in that house and was very interested in sharing its history. She described this as an opportunity for the community to walk into the house and enter a 'time warp.' She agreed that they needed to put it on the market. Mayor Hammerstad commented that her sense of the Council was that it was willing to do something other than demolish the house, and therefore, the City would look at attempting to preserve it. She spoke in support of leaving their options for preserving it open-ended in order to allow people to respond to an RFP with their best solution for the house. She observed that whoever bought the house had to be willing to allow public access through the property, since the City bought the property in order to provide a connection down to the George Rogers pathway. Mayor Hammerstad agreed with Councilor McPeak that the City needed to put a timeline on the restoration, rather have the house sit for 10 years in the process of restoration. She observed City Council Morning Meeting Minutes Page 3 of 6 March 19, 2002 that it had a lot of potential and a lot of problems, especially if people, in responding to an RFP, came up with solutions that were incompatible with the public use of the property. She commented that it was worth trying. Councilor Hoffman asked if anyone knew the process that other jurisdictions used when they had a property that they wanted to sell and rebuild. Ms. Grueter said that she could not speak to that, although she tried to find out, as it happened a great deal on the East Coast. She mentioned the use of a long-term lease with very strict guidelines and deed restrictions. She indicated to the Councilor that they were in the process of gathering the documentation from other jurisdictions. Mr. Powell noted that, if the Council moved forward with this, he would contact the Historic Preservation League and other organizations to gather information. Ms. Holwerda recommended contacting the U.S. Forest Service, which had a 100-year lease on Mt. Hood. Councilor Rohde suggested sending this back down to the HRAB and charging them with finding a way to save the house. Mayor Hammerstad noted that the Board would need to work with the City Attorney. She observed that the Board also needed to involve the community in order for its effort to be successful. She suggested that the Board also talk with Mr. Headlee. Mayor Hammerstad mentioned the background of the purchase. She explained that, when the City purchased the property, the owner was going to donate the proceeds to the Lakewood Center; that did not happen and there were bad feelings now. Councilor Hoffman spoke to HRAB moving quickly on this issue. Mayor Hammerstad directed the Board to develop a time line, per Councilor McPeak's suggestion, with an outside maximum of accomplishing the sale or lease by one year from now. Mayor Hammerstad recalled that the neighbors had asked for no further action on a pathway or public use of the property until the Council made a decision on the use or demolition of the house. She held that the Council's statement that it would not demolish the house at this point allowed the City to move forward with planning on that property. Councilor Schoen spoke to developing a footprint in order to establish clearly what went where and what rights went with it. Mayor Hammerstad said that HRAB would develop alternatives. She mentioned one alternative of selling off the front portion of the property up to Highway 43, which would re- route the pathway closer down to George Rogers Park. She indicated to Councilor Schoen that the City could sell the land if it put the purchase price back into the open space pot of money. Mayor Hammerstad commented that the City did not want to be left with a conflict and headache about the use of the property with respect to public use and private ownership. She observed that it would not have heavy public use. Councilor Schoen mentioned the prohibition on partitioning the property. Mayor Hammerstad clarified to Jay Lewis that the City could sell off the property with deed restrictions requiring preservation of the current house and prohibiting partitioning. She explained that this effectively meant that the only thing that could be done with the property was preservation of the current house; no one could build an apartment complex on the land. She emphasized that this large piece of property would remain in its current state. Mayor Hammerstad indicated to an audience member that the City would not improve the property to a park; the only thing that the City would do would be to build the pathway. 6. EXECUTIVE SESSION Mayor Hammerstad recessed the meeting at 8:50 a.m. to Executive Session pursuant to ORS 192.660(1)(i), to consult with counsel regarding litigation, and (e) to consult with persons authorized to conduct real property transactions. Mr. Powell reviewed the Executive Session parameters. He noted that one of the Executive Session items was the Field Turf matter, with City Council Morning Meeting Minutes Page 4 of 6 March 19, 2002 which Councilor Hoffman had a conflict of interest, as a member of his firm represented Bones Construction. Councilor Hoffman said that he would leave when the Council discussed that item. 7. RETURN TO OPEN SESSION Mayor Hammerstad reconvened the morning meeting at 9:00 a.m. Councilor Schoen moved to approve the stipulated peremptory writ of mandamus. Councilor Graham seconded the motion. A voice vote was taken and the motion passed with Mayor Hammerstad, Councilors Turchi, Graham, McPeak, Hoffman, Rohde and Schoen voting `aye.' [7-0] • Temporary Sign Ordinance Mayor Ham merstad mentioned that she would probably invite testimony from audience members. She referenced Mr. Powell's decision tree. She expressed her hope that the result of the discussion would be Council direction to Mr. Powell on the ordinance he would bring back to Council in two weeks. She discussed the procedure she preferred to follow with respect to handling different options. Councilor Schoen indicated that he would have to leave. He mentioned his support on the Bones Construction matter. He stated that he did not support hearing numerous Portland people testifying before the Council on the Lake Oswego sign code. He suggested limiting discussion to new items. Mayor Hammerstad said that she would try to do so. Mayor Hammerstad asked for permission from the Council to limit the testimony at the public hearing on the sign ordinance. Councilor Schoen moved to authorize the Mayor to limit the testimony at the temporary sign ordinance public hearing in two weeks, to five minutes for neighborhood organizations and three minutes for individuals. Councilor McPeak seconded the motion. Councilor Schoen left the meeting at 9:05 a.m. Mayor Hammerstad indicated to Councilor Graham that this permission applied only to the public hearing; it was not carte blanche permission applying to all public hearings. A voice vote was taken and the motion passed with Mayor Hammerstad, Councilors Turchi, Graham, McPeak, Hoffman, and Rohde voting `aye.' [6-0] Councilor Rohde asked if the Council would make the decision this evening or simply take testimony and make the decision in two weeks. The Council discussed the question. Councilor McPeak spoke of discussion tonight and decision in two weeks. Mayor Hammerstad argued that the Council should be able to make a decision at the public hearing, as it would have an ordinance before it. Mr. Powell directed the Council to the options listed on page 9 regarding limiting the number of signs or the location of signs. He indicated that, while the options were legally all right, they did pose an enforcement problem. Mr. Powell discussed the possibility of the directional arrow language (which was similar to the Wilsonville ordinance) as leading to non-content neutrality. He explained that it effectively limited right-of-way signs to those advertising an open house, some kind of sale or some event on the property. He noted that the courts were muddled on content neutrality. He said that the safe tack was complete content neutrality (as Portland did) and not to have those kinds of restrictions. Mr. Powell acknowledged that there were ordinances out there that had those restrictions. He advised the Council that in moving towards that kind of ordinance, it was pushing the envelope a bit. City Council Morning Meeting Minutes Page 5 of 6 March 19, 2002 At Mayor Hammerstad's request, Stephan Lashbrook, Community Development Director, described the directional open house signs used in Wilsonville. He explained that Wilsonville required them at the corner, based on the theory that that was where they needed to be in order to direct people to the location. He said that Wilsonville allowed more than one sign per corner. Mr. Lashbrook recalled that he raised the same enforcement issues mentioned by Mr. Powell but the Council adopted it anyway, and it seemed to work. The Council discussed the process for the evening. Mr. Powell indicated to Councilor Turchi that his having a property for sale by a local realtor did not constitute a conflict of interest because of the class exception. He mentioned that he could declare a potential conflict. Councilor McPeak noted that the letters showed a great deal of misunderstanding. She spoke to clarifying for the audience that the City currently had a basic temporary sign ordinance, which the ordinance proposed changing but not as indicated in the letters. 8. EXECUTIVE SESSION Mayor Hammerstad recessed the meeting at 9:10 a.m. to Executive Session pursuant to ORS 192.660(1)(i), to consult with counsel regarding litigation. Mr. Powell reviewed the Executive Session parameters. Mayor Hammerstad excused Councilor Hoffman. 9. RETURN TO OPEN SESSION Mayor Hammerstad reconvened the morning meeting at 9:20 a.m. Councilor Graham mentioned receiving a letter from attorney Martin Schedler regarding floodplain standards. She asked if his concern related to Measure 7 issues. Mr. Powell indicated that anytime the Council did a legislative enactment that limited the ability to use property, Measure 7 could potentially apply. He said that he would review the letter. Mayor Hammerstad pointed out that the Planning Commission was currently trying to work out the more difficult issues involved. She said that the Commission working group was looking at the use of the developed property that lay within the 100-year flood plain. Mr. Powell observed that, in order to get FEMA flood insurance, a jurisdiction had to commit to most of the controversial elements under discussion. 8. ADJOURNMENT Mayor Hammerstad adjourned the meeting at 9:25 a.m. Respectfully submitted, --2t647/1f-) Robyn Clfistie City Recorder APPROVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL: ON April 16, 2002 ie Hammerstad, Mayor City Council Morning Meeting Minutes Page 6 of 6 March 19, 2002