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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2006-07-25 Government Operations Committee Minutes � ' � � Government Operations Committee Juty 25, 2006 . � Minutes � Councilor Attendance: Greene, Hawes, Farrington, Palmer Staff Attendance: Barrett, Farrar, Heitmann, Winslow, Arno Others: Matt and Pat Brann, Gerald Oleson, Eilene Hodges, � � 1. Status Report/Update Regarding Club Gemini Operations, 190 Harlow Street � Committee members had previously requested that an update regarding operational issues at Club Gemini be scheduled for June. Due to scheduling , ' conflicts, a suggestion was made to move the discussion to a July meeting. The owners of Club Gemini and other interested parties were notified and inv.ited to • attend this meeting. Brann said he felt that the Club was okay with issues at � �this point but did mention noise outside of the building. Oleson, spokesman for Court Street Committee for Quality of Life, has been in contact with the Brann's � and City staff. The Committee is thrilled with the progress made by the Brann brothers in terms of cutting back on the noise. Oleson thanked the brothers. There has been, however, outside noise on Saturday evenings especially. It is � still an issue. He spoke about changing the closing hours to 12:30 or 1 am. Arno said the calls for service in terms of noise and the base level have decreased to almost zero. There is a very occasional complaint about the parking � lot. Police department staff is aware to take a zero tolerance approach to criminal activity in the parking lot to the extent that time and manpower allows. The department tries to have presence there at the Club's closing time. Ilene � Hodges from Franklin Place agreed with the improvements. She is pleased. Hawes said it appears that a point has been reached where all involved have done all that can be done. AI{ have been cooperative. Citizens as a committee , and a group are effective tools to improving the quality of life. She doesn't think another u pdate is necessary. The Police Department will report to the Committee if an increase in incidents occurs. Palmer concurred. Noise outside of the facility � needs continued monitoring. Hodges thanked the Council and police department for their cooperation. Farrington said that all involved should be proud of their � work. 2. Use of Portable Basketball Hoops within City Right of Ways and on City Streets � Over the past few years, there have been a growing number of portable basketball hoops appearing on City esplanades and the edge of City streets, with � accompanying ball playing activities occurring on City streets. This has been most prevalent in residential neighborhoods. This activity is currently prohibited � � � by City Ordinance. The City has been approached by residents who believe the � Ordinance should be more diligentiy enforced, while other residents have voiced concerns that it should be repealed. Given the strong viewpoints on this topic, � � and a recent request by a citizen to review of this situation, the Committee wanted to hear from the public and City staff. It also provides an opportunity to provide direction on whether the City should continue, modify or repeal the � current Ordinances relating to this topic. Barrett said the Ordinance, Section 234-8, goes back to the 60's and most likely was adopted earlier than that timeframe. Recent practice, as more portable hoops appear, has been to � respond to complaints either for loop location in terms of safety or a noise complaint. There are approximately 200 portable hoops in Bangor. Each November, a notice is sent to those that the City is aware of asking owners to � remove the hoops from the street. Staff has options for the Committee's review but Barrett suggested that citizens in attendance be given the opportunity to � spea k. Craig Popper addressed the Committee. He has been involved in wheelchair basketball from a very early age due to his physical challenges. Basketball is one � of the mosf important aspects of his life. He spoke of other neighborhood kids involved with the sport. Moving the hoops into the driveway would personally � create a problem for him. Karl, another young adult, said he feels strongly about the Ordinance that provides playing ball on residential streets. There is no easy alternative to playing in the street. Moving hoops to driveways is not an option. �' This sport allows kids to take up extra time on their hands and also lends to exercise for obesity. Paula Garland, 15 Poplar Street, said that neighbors delight in hearing the children's laughter while playing basketball. She submitted a i letter from her husband and shared the last paragraph with the Committee. It referred to the City of Bangor being selected as one of the best places in the US � to raise a family. Safety is of utmost concern but there is not a lot of traffic on Grant Street. The kids are safety conscious. Tracy Darcey, 81 Grant Street, has a basketball hoop, and feels it is a safe way for the kids and neighbors to gather ' for fun exercise. Steven Adam, 121 Grant Street, spoke in favor of the hoops. He pointed out that many kids from the neighborhood attended the meeting as well. He feels that this affects more than just the Little City neighborhood. He � feels the Ordinance is very outdated and was designed to protect property from potential damage. The Council needs to give thought to the issue. It was last amended in 1967. He realizes that noise tolerance levels are different for various � individuals. Vicky Karlsson, 9 Linden Street, is in conflict with her neighbors over this issue. � She presented and read her statement. She referred to living in Bangor Gardens at one time and the nerve-racking noise of basketball being played in the streets. She was told that if she could identify ordinances in place governing this issue � that the Bangor Police Department would have to enforce them. She created � � � � two ordinances. She thoroughly researched the issue. The Department did start to respond to complaints at that time. She indicated that two of her neighbors at that time were Police Department employees. She doesn't think it is � reasonable to think that any officer will enforce an ordinance due to a complaint of kids playing basketball on the street. She then moved to Little City where she � thought it was a quiet neighborhood. Problems arose with neighbors. She said that a member of the police department lives in her current neighborhood, and has a hoop in his driveway, and feels that this individual has been rude. She has � dealt with the Bangor Police Department regarding problems with kids in her area. She continued to talk about her neighbor child of the Bangor Police department. She felt favorable consideration was given to the ofFcer and proper � follow up was not provided. Two months ago this employee did remove the basketball hoop from his driveway. Two weeks ago it was put back in place. She has been in contact with Code Enforcement. She is concerned about the safety � of children playing in the street. A win-win situation could have been the outcome if all had worked together, she indicated. She suggested a basketball hoop be installed at the neighborhood park and would be willing to become � involved. Mrs. Popper, 131 Grant Street. She did not agree with Karlsson's comments � regarding the children. She felt the subject matter was the Ordinance, not personal issues. She doesn't think that Code Enforcement feels this is a serious � safety issue for children. If so, the Ordinance would be enforced. The Chief has indicated that the City has not taken a pro-active approach to enforcing this particular Ordinance but only when a complaint is lodged. She appreciates that � approach as it allows her children and others to engage freely in healthy physical activity. She further stated that if it is not going to be enforced, the Ordinance should be removed. If it is going to remain, it.will need to be enforced � throughout the entire City. If outdated, the Ordinance needs to be removed. If . . needed to be in place, it needs to be rewritten. � Chris Popper, 131 Grant Street, talked of his tenure on the Bangor City Council and the Council's desire to enact ordinances that would be enforced. He recalls � removal of some inefFective ordinances. There are ordinances on the books that deal with a variety of problems. Common sense dictates that one would not place a hoop on a busy street or intersection but a residential area is different. , He feels this is not a safety, traffrc or a noise issue. The City does have an ordinance dealing with noise and agrees that the current Ordinance dealing with hoops is obsolete. � Mrs. Buetera and her husband of 126 Grant Street, enjoy the children playing on the street. She asked if this meeting is about the ordinance or about attacking a ■ family, which happens to be her neighbor. She feels a particular family and the ■ career of that family are being targeted. � , � Barrett reviewed the options presented by staff. Safety and the purpose of r residential streets were among the issues-discussed. The current Ordinance could be updated and enforced. Barrett said it would not be a top priority of the i Police or Code Enforcement. Regarding the current policy, he wondered if it was fair to only respond to complaints. Most complaints are the location of the hoop ■ and a safety issues. From time to time, there have been noise complaints ■ regarding the basketball hoops. There is an option to eliminate that portion of the Ordinance dealing with hoops. Another option is to follow the City of ' Portland which permits ball playing on streets only in accordance with certain regulations (limited to local streets, yield right of way to vehicular traffic, no performance structures but temporary ones can be put in place but needs . t reflective tape, registration process, residential streets that are not part of a bus route with no more than finro traffic lanes and a 25 mph speed limit.) Barrett talked about the purpose of residential streets in Bangor. He thinks that what t makes Bangor difFerent is its neighborhoods. It has old neighborhoods that were designed under different standards. Barrett's personal opinion is for the City to � find a way to permit basketball hoops on residential streets. Winslow said he would be remiss if didn't express his concerns about kids playing ■ in the street and traffic. It is not a comfortable mix. He receives a lot of calls ■ about speeding in residential areas. Due to the nature of calls, it is difficult to pull out the ones specifically related to kids playing basketball in the streets. His � best guess is 2-3 dozen a year at the Police Department regarding noise or traffic concerns. The Chief was made aware of one of his employees who had a hoop on the street's edge and was in violation of the City's Ordinance. He referred it t to Code Enforcement, which is typical of how the Police Department handles . such complaints, and the situation was corrected. He felt it appropriate. He agrees that police officers need to be held to a higher standard but did not want ' to dictate to his employees on how to raise their children. Winslow is in favor of either strengthening the ordinance or develop one that likens to Portland's � ordinance. He questions who will be responsible for managing it. Hawes agreed with the importanee of neighborhoods and keeping the citizens � happy. She said the Ordinance needs to be updated. She referred to Bangor parks that offer full and half basketball courts. Perhaps they should be an � alternative for kids. ' Popper spoke of Portland's ordinance agreeing with reflective devices. Another resident said that it might be difficult for younger kid's accessibility to park areas. � For example, Little City Park does not have a basketball hoop. Hawes said the committee has reached a point where it needs to decide of the � current ordinance should be eliminated or revised. If updated, it needs to be � � , � enforceable. She expressed concern about the police department's ability to enforce the ordinance with the department's limited personnel. Paimer is supportive of neighborhoods in Bangor and need to for opportunities for physical � activity. At parks, he thinks that the oider kids take over the areas and the younger ones are left out. He is concerned about safety of children playing on � the streets. He agreed with reflective tape, suggested signage indicating `children at play,' and common sense from both the driving public and children at play. Farrington agreed that the Ordinance needs to be updated. He referred to � the Penjajawoc Marsh/Mall team which reached an agreement as well as the Club Gemini issue. The participation of citizenry works. � Greene asked Wellington for his views. He agreed that all sides had been well represented and that options are available for the Committee's consideration. Winslow said that a resident at Wing/Vernon Streets, who could not be present, supports the ordinance and is concerned with noise and safety. There are 4 hoops in his vicinity. Greene spoke about parental responsibility. Hawes made a motion that the issue and information presented at tonight's meeting be � forwarded to a Council Workshop Session to hammer out details of the current Ordinance and,.if agreed upon by Council, a new ordinance, the locations of the � hoops, and a review of thru-streets on which hoops would not be allowed due to the amount of traffic. The public session would allow greater input from the citizens. Palmer seconded the motion and asked that staff review other areas of the City's Ordinances that might be in need of updating. Heitmann referred to �� one in particular that needs to be eliminated regarding fruit peelings on public ways. Responding to a citizen, Heitmann referred to the section of the I Ordinances dealing with basketball hoops and specifically the"built up portion of Bangor." He indicated it would not stand in a court of law. Until this Ordinance is amended or deleted, his recommendation is that no one be prosecuted under � this Ordinance given the poor language from 1967. Responding to Hawes, Heitmann did not encourage trouble among neighbors but he feels that no prosecution under this ordinance as written would be successful and he felt i� � , would be a waste of City resources to try. Councilor Hawes' motion was passed by the Committee. � 3. Voting Ballot for Annual Election of Maine Municipal Association Executive Committee Officers and Directors , Each year, the member municipalities have an opportunity to vote on the election of ofFicers and directors to serve on the MMA Executive Committee. A � five-member Nominating Committee is appointed to review nominations submitted by municipal officials and conduct interviews with those municipal officials qualifying and interested in serving as the MMA Vice President. The MMA Nominating Committee completed its task to put forth a Proposed Slate of � Officers and Directors to serve on the MMA Executive Committee in 2007. This � � , information was mailed to all member municipalities along with information on � the petition process as established by MMA Bylaws. It is now time for each member municipality to cast its vote. The positions of President and three � Directors are not contested, while the position of Vice President has a candidate nominated by the Nominating Committee as well as two candidates nominated by petition. A motion was made and seconded to recommend staff approval to � cast the City's ballot for Nicholas Mavodones as MMA President; Anne Swift- Kayatta as Vice-President; and Stephan Bunker, Scott Harriman and John Sylvester for the three vacant Director positions. . � Committee adjourned at 6:45 pm. � � . � i 1 1 t 1 . . ! 1 i � 1 � t ____ . 1