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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2004-09-14 Government Operations Committee Minutes � GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS COMMITTEE MINUTES September 14, 2004 Councilors Present: Richard Greene, Peter D'Errico, Anne Allen, Dan Tremble Staff Present: Bob Farrar, Frank Comeau, Brian Enman, Norm Heitmann Others Present: Golf Concessionaires Jeff and Tina Murdy, Dawn Gagnon � The meeting convened at 5:00 p.m. 1. Consideration of Beer Sales on Bangor Municipal Golf Course Grounds Councilor Greene stated that the state passed legislation allowing beer sales to golfers on golf courses, however, city code does not allow beer sales at the municipal golf course. The current concessionaires are trying to get permission to � allow for beer sales at the municipal golf course. Councilor Greene introduced Brian Enman to speak. Brian Enman was asked to do a pros vs. cons list of selling beer at the golf course. One positive would be to allow the concessionaires to make more money on the golf course. Brian Enman expressed his opinion is that the best place for beer is not on the golf course, but in the clubhouse when the golfers are done golfing. There are a number of tournaments when the clubhouse is closed to the general public and perhaps the beer sales could be limited to tournaments like that. Brian Enman thinks that there could be problems that could arise, because some people could end up having "too many"and then it falls on the city staff. Brian Enman expressed that he is not in favor of general sales on the golf course, but he would be supportive of beer sales for private tournaments. Councilor D'Errico inquired about current beer/ liquor sales in the restaurant. Jeff Murdy responded that beer and liquor are currently being sold in the restaurant but that the beer and liquor must be consumed in the restaurant or on the deck. Councilor Greene asked if Tina or Jeff Murdy would like to speak about this. Jeff Murdy did speak. The Murdys are interested in getting approval from the council to sell beer on the Golf Course though they intend to work with Brian • Enman as to when the sales would be allowed. Their main goal is to get the � approval up front, then to determine when and how beer sales would be appropriate. Had talked about some weekend sales at the hot dog stand, etc. They aren't intending to drive around the course and "push"the beer, but they want to be able to sell it to golfers as they come to the concession stand. Would like to work with the Golf Course and the Council to make it work for everybody. Jeff Murdy addressed the issue of liability and mentions that the sales would be closely monitored, just as they are in the restaurant. Councilor Allen asked if the beer is being sold as the golfers are playing their game of golf. Murdy answered, "yes" and mentioned that most golf courses have carts that drive around and offer sales of water, juice, beer, etc. Heitmann mentioned that Maine was one of three states that had banned this completely, now that Maine has passed it there are two remaining. There are a number of golf courses in the state that are currently looking in to beer sales. He went on to mention a few of them including Penobscot Valley is selling it a concession stand, outer Hermon is looking into it. Portland has a city ordinance against it and they are not making any changes there. Mayor Tremble agrees with Brian Enman that beer sales should be added on a trial basis for a year for tournaments, etc. He doesn't favor opening sales up for everyday, but to try weekends and tournaments. Mayor Tremble went on to � mention why the governor said that he signed this bill. That was because the resorts were telling him that they were losing business to other resorts in New England that allowed it. Mayor Tremble thinks that there are certainly other resorts in the area looking into this and would be concerned about losing business to these other resorts in the area if it was not allowed at this golf course. Mayor Tremble thinks that if it were limited to tournaments then it would be a good idea. He also mentioned that if beer sales are prohibited that even though it's not allowed people may bring their own beer on the golf course and it's even more of a liability. Councilor Allen asked if it is better to offer these sales from a stationary point as opposed to a cart should these sales be allowed. Tina Murdy stated that she is not sure that that's what the state agreed on. It was her understanding that it was to be on a cart, and is unsure as to how Penobscot Valley is doing it unless they have a special kind of license. If there is a stationary facility then there has to be running water, bathrooms, etc. Allen questions what the actual law is. The law states that it must be mobile unit. City council can approve a stationary place for sales of beer. Councilor Greene deferred to City Solicitor Norm Heitmann. Norm Heitmann stated that he does not know how Penobscot Valley does either because the law clearly states cart. Unless they have a cart that doesn't move that has a cooler in the back of the cart. The state law requires that other than a � cart that beer be in the concession area. Concession area may be able to be � more than one building. If the state were willing to define two separate buildings as the concession area then you would have alcohol and food, etc in the same building, but then you would be required to provide bathroom facilities, etc. So, if this is something that is being considered then he would like to know how - Penobscot Valley did it. But at the very least take a golf cart and park it on the course. Councilor D'Errico asked that according to what Mayor Tremble said as far as being limited to just tournaments, how many days of the year would that be? Enman responded that the Golf course would be closed 18-20 days during the course of the year where the golf course is closed for a tournament. Councilor D'Errico confirms that that is what they want to limit it to for the first year and then if the second year they would want to take it a step further? . Enman answered, "perhaps". Tina Murdy addressed that the state law states that if anyone is caught drinking alcohol outside of the allowed areas then she will lose her liquor license, even if someone brings their own beer to the course. ]eff Murdy added that there are in fact people who are bringing their own beer and so, not only are they at risk for losing their license, but they are missing a chance to make some money. � The Murdys would like to at least try tournaments and weekends and state that ; they are concerned too, if they see that it is not working they are just as concerned and would be willing to shut it down. Heitmann mentioned that there are certain rules that would be difficult to enforce, such as the person driving the golf cart could not drink beer, but everybody else on the cart can. Councilor Greene asked about the issue of licensing and wondered if there was a way for the Murdys to code the bottles or cans to prove that they are from them, not being brought onto the course by someone else?The Murdys said that they would probably either pour it into a cup or use some sort of plastic bottle. Councilor Greene confirms that this would be a way to determine that this was sold by the Murdys and not brought on the course so that the Murdys could protect their license. Councilor Allen asked if the golfers stop the game and have their beer, or if they stop get the beer and continue on? JefF Murdy answered that they continue with their game, much like picking up a bottle of water to get through the game, etc. Council approved of trial basis of beer sales for a year, limiting the sales to � tournaments and weekends, etc as discussed. A year from now they can � , reassess this issue, Councilor Greene stated that he would like to see some sort of tracking report to see how this effected the sales, etc. 2. Review of Year-end Public Swimming Pool Attendance and Revenue Figures Frank Comeau stated that the first year of operation of the Pancoe Aquatic Center was extremely successful and it out performed expectations. The total attendance was 27,836 a daily average of 416. Frank Comeau points out that this summer was not a good summer as far as the weather goes. States that there were some days where there were over 12-1300 people at the pool, there were also some days that it was pretty sparse because of the weather. The Dakin Pool attendance was pretty minimal with an average of 15.5 people a day. They had some nice days where there may have been 50-60 people there, but overall, it was low. Comeau continued on to address the revenue. He began with The Pancoe Aquatic Center; Season passes generated $6370, Rentals $1245, Daily Fees $41,671, Total of $49,286. Comeau went on to say that the projected revenue � was $10,000, and that he personally thought that they could get up to around $20-25,000. Down side, the staff budget was overextended. Had budgeted • $47,000 and spent around $52,000, maybe even $53,000. Added that the reason was due to several reasons, one was that the hours ended up being longer than originally budgeted for, there was more staff used on deck, and there were more people that signed up for swim lessons and that required more instructors. Councilor Allen stated that this is wonderful to see, and went on to ask if there were more swimming instructors hired to meet the needs of the people, did that pose a problem as far as running the classes within the pool area? Was Parks and Rec. able to work the classes in successfully? Frank Comeau replied that the pool was perfect for lessons and that it worked' out very well. Councilor Allen continued to ask about combining the pools by putting together some sort of program that would use both pools to meet the needs. Frank Comeau stated that it would be difficult because The Pancoe Aquatic Center met the needs so well. He continued to say that the Dakin Pool has become a neighborhood pool, and it meets a need in that particular neighborhood. Comeau , states that The Pancoe Pool is serving the entire city as well as the area. There were busloads coming form other towns, and it has become an area attraction. Councilor D'Errico said that he thought Parks and Rec. did very well overall. Councilor Allen asked if the staff from this year will carry over to next year? Frank Comeau said that it is hard to say, but that they were extremely happy • with the stafF this year, and he thought that the new pool itself generated � interest in the area as far as lifeguards, and other staff. He hopes to retain most of the stafF for next year. Councilor Greene verified that the revenue was $49286.80 and the expenses were around $52000, so there was a little bit of a loss overall. Frank Comeau agreed and then added that the revenue was almost $39,000 over projection. Councilor Greene thought that the Season passes would do better than they did. Frank Comeau pointed out that there were over 450 passes sold, and that they were only $10.00 per child. Councilor Greene asked a question that was raised by Mayor Tremble was on the rental fee structure and the availability of rentals. Greene asked Frank Comeau to expand on that. Frank Comeau stated that the only time available for rental was Sunday - evenings. The pool closed at 5:00 on Sundays so they opened it up for rentals from 5:30 to 7:30. The only other time that could have been made available was possibly Saturday evenings, but they thought that as busy as the staff was it would be difficult to get someone to work Saturday Evenings. The rest of the week the pool was open evenings from 6:00-8:00 anyway. Time was limited. Councilor Greene inquired if there were any other time slots where attendance was light that it could possibly be opened up for further rentals. Frank Comeau • responded that it would be difficult because there were lessons during the week from around 9:00 to 12:00 noon. From noon to 1:00 there was adult lap swimming, which was sparsely attended at times, but other times it was well attended. At 1:00 opened for general swim until 5:00, then again from 6:00 to 8:00. So there wasn't much extra time available. Councilor Greene stated that he was just trying to figure out ways to bolster the bottom line so at least it "breaks even". Councilor Greene asked if Frank Comeau would explain a little bit about if the decision is made to keep the Dakin Pool open what will be required to do that. Frank Comeau mentioned that the pool house/ bathhouse is in bad shape. Report from Anne Schnieder MMA loss consultant recommended that there either be some structural work done or preferable demolish it and build a new one. It is anticipated to cost somewhere around $200,000 to build a new bathhouse. Councilor Allen inquired about what is required in a bathhouse. Frank Comeau replied, "restrooms, showers and changing rooms". Councilor Allen asked if the plumbing was in need of repair or if it was just the structure of the building itself. Frank Comeau replied that it is the building itself, which is cracking. Councilor Allen asked for confirmation that the pool itself is sound and Frank Comeau confirmed that. � � Councilor Allen asked if there was a fee to use the Dakin Pool and Frank Comeau said that, ��no there is no fee". Councilor Greene asked how the equipment has help up. Frank Comeau said that overall it is very well, there were a few minor problems that were solved. The engineering and building was all done well. Will have to see how everything holds up during the winter. Councilor Allen asked about getting estimates for just the structure of the building at the Dakin Pool, and try to keep the building going without investing that amount of money. Frank Comeau agreed to look into that. 3. Agreement with SESAC to use copyrighted works. Proposed agreement with SESAC (Society of European Stage Authors and Composers) will allow the City to use the work of performers including sheet music, CD's, video, live or recorded music and not be in violation of U.S. copyright law. The base license fee is $420 and this is similar to agreements the City has in place with ASCAP and BMI. • Norm Heitmann stated that though the title insinuates that SESAC is only European artists, it is not. They have a lot of American artists, such as Kenny Rogers, Montgomery Gentry and other familiar and unfamiliar names. When songs are performed by someone at a City owned facility, then the City is responsible for making sure that it is not in violation of copyright laws and that it is properly licensed. SESAC is the third big company to own copyright materials after ASCAP and BMI. The penalty of an honest mistake will cost at least $750 up to $3,000. A known violation of the copyright law could cost as much as $150,000. City Solicitor Heitmann recalls two experiences where someone would go into a bar and would sit and listen for such violations, these violations are the responsibility of the owner of the facility. While it is a bit of a nuisance, Norm Heitmann suggests that this license fee be paid for to acquire a license. D'Errico asked whose budget this would be taken from and Heitmann responded that he believes in the past it has been from Bass Park since most of the music events are there, but he added that it should be discussed with City Manager Barrett to confirm that. Councilor Greene added that he is familiar with copyright laws within his profession and noted that it is also quite illegal to have a business that rebroadcasts a radio station while putting someone on hold on the telephone without a license to do so. Greene thinks that this issue seems more like a � � housekeeping issue and asks what is needed from the Council to move to get the license. Heitmann responded that he needs a recommendation to go before the Council and to have this on the agenda. A motion was made and seconded. This issue will go before the Council. The Committee adjourned at 5:35 p.m. � ;� � �