City Council Minutes January 8, 2018 Regular Meeting

MEMBERS PRESENT: Jerry D. Roseberry, Mayor; and Councilmembers: George Holt; Jim Windham; David Eady; Mike Ready; and Jeff Wearing, Councilmember Sarah Davis was not in attendance.

OTHERS PRESENT: Matt Pepper, Assistant City Manager; Dave Harvey, Chief; Jody Reid, Utility Superintendent; Stacey Mullen, Deputy City Clerk, Hoyt Oliver, LaTrelle Oliver, Kendra Mayfield, James Johnson, Teresa Welch, Darryl Welch, Judy Greer, Cheryl Ready, Mike Besaw, Nancy Green, Janice Wearing, Josh Roberts, Melvin Baker.

Agenda – Attachment A

The meeting was called to order by the Hon. Jerry D. Roseberry, Mayor

Mayor’s Announcements:

Mayor Roseberry excused Lauran Willis, City Clerk, and Councilmember Davis from the meeting. In addition, he announced that city hall will be closed on Monday, January 15^th in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.

Organizational Meeting

M. Qadar A. Baig, Solicitor for the City of Oxford Municipal Court, administrated the Oath of Office for Mayor and Councilmembers: Mayor Jerry Roseberry, Councilmembers George Holt – Post 2, Mike Ready - Post 3, David Eady – Post 4, Jim Windham – Post 5, Jeff Wearing – Post 6. Due to her absence, Councilmember Sarah Davis will receive the Oath of Office at a later date.  Attachment B

M. Qadar A. Baig administrated the Oath of Office to Police Chief David Harvey. Due to her absence, Lauran Willis will receive the Oath of Office at a later date.

A motion was made by Windham, seconded by Ready, to accept the agenda for January 9, 2017. The motion was approved 6/0. Attachment C

Appointments:

Mayor Roseberry said this is the time of year wherein Council appoints individuals for the following positions: City Attorney, City Judge, City Solicitor, City Clerk, and Police Chief.  

A motion was made by Windham, seconded by Ready, to reappoint those individuals currently serving in the following positions: City Attorney David Strickland, City Judge Steve Hathorn, City Solicitor Qader Baig, City Clerk Lauran Willis, and Police Chief Dave Harvey. The motion was approved 6/0.

Mayor Roseberry said that Council must elect a new Mayor Pro-Tem. Going in order of past appointments this year falls to Councilmember Jim Windham

A motion was made by Holt, seconded by Eady, to elect Jim Windham as Mayor Pro-Tem for calendar year 2018. The motion was approved 6/0.  Attachment D

Pierce Street Corridor Re-design

Kendra Mayfield and James Johnson with Oxford College presented a diagram of the proposed Pierce Street Corridor re-design depicting the proposed parking area on Pierce Street and removing the formerly proposed roundabout. Councilmember Windham and Eady expressed concern that the proposed design is rather different from what the college had presented at previous meetings. In addition, they stated that the college had not yet constructed the road that the delivery trucks would use to service the dining hall, per a prior agreement between the city and the college.

A motion was made by Windham, seconded by Eady, to table the discussion on the Pierce Street Corridor Re-design project until the January work session. Motion passed 6/0. Attachment E

Asbury Street Parking

Kendra Mayfield and James Johnson also presented a re-design of the parking behind Allen Memorial Church on the Asbury Street side depicting 8 parking spaces behind the church and 15 spaces on the opposite side to extend up to the George Street park area.  Councilmember Windham expressed concerns about disturbing the appearance of the grass by the dining hall. He continued that it would be appropriate for Council to consider parking on the east side of Asbury Street.  Attachment F - G

A motion was made by Windham to table the discussion on the Asbury Street Parking project until the January work session. Motion failed due to lack of a second.

A motion was made by Ready to approve the parking as depicted in the drawings. Motion failed due to lack of a second.

DDA Funding Request
Mayor Roseberry reviewed with the Council the DDA’s request to receive an increase in funding from $30,000 to $50,000 to pay for the planning and design of the future development  

A motion was made by Windham, seconded by Eady, to increase the DDA’s budget allocation from $30,000 to $50,000 to cover the total costs of preparing for future development. Motion passed 6/0.

Intergovernmental Agreement between the DDA and City Council

Mayor Roseberry reviewed the changes to Sections 4, 5, and 6 of the IGA. Councilmember Eady expressed concern that Section 6 of the IGA failed to mention the E. Clark Street right-of-way as part of the property to be deeded to the DDA. Mayor Roseberry suggest that the Council adopt the IGA, and amend the document at a later date.  Attachment H

A motion was made by Ready, seconded by Holt, to adopt the Intergovernmental Agreement with a revision to include Tract B (the E. Clark R-O-W) as part of Tract 2 under Section 6 of the agreement. Motion passed 6/0.

Invoice Approval

Councilmember Holt had a question regarding the invoice labeled GMA/TRM for $1,189.84. Stacey Mullen, Deputy City Clerk, explained that the city pays an annual fee for telecommunication consulting services. In addition, Councilmember Holt asked whether the $5,000 donation from Stu Segall Productions to the Historical Cemetery Society would be considered as part of their budgeted allotment for the fiscal year. Roseberry said this was a special donation from the production company for the use of and filming in the cemetery.

INVOICES OVER $1,000.00 

Motion made by Holt, seconded by Eady, to approve invoices. Motion passed 6/0.

Adjourn

Motion made by Windham, seconded by Eady, to adjourn the Regular Session at 7:26 PM.

Respectfully Submitted;