05272009461
MINUTES
CITY OF DUNN
DUNN, NORTH CAROLINA
The City Council of the City of Dunn continued the City Council Meeting of Tuesday, May 19, 2009,
on Wednesday, May 27, 2009 at 2:00 p.m. in the Dunn Municipal Building. Present at the continued
meeting was Mayor Oscar N. Harris, Mayor Pro Tern N. Carnell Robinson, Council Members Buddy
Maness, Bryan Galbreath, Billy Tart, Chuck Turnage and Joey Tart. Also present was City
Manager Ronnie Autry, Finance Director Mark Stephens, Recreation Director Perry Hudson, Chief
Building Inspector Mike Blackmon, Planning Director Steven Neuschafer, Librarian Mike Williams,
Police Chief B.P. Jones, City Attorney P. Tilghman Pope, City Clerk Debra West, and Daily Record
Reporter Reece Murphy.
INVOCATION
Mayor Harris reconvened the meeting at 2:00 p.m. and gave the invocation. Afterwards, the Pledge of
Allegiance was repeated.
AGENDA AD.IUSTMENT AND APPROVAL
Motion by Council Member Joey Tart and seconded by Council Member Turnage to adopt the May 27,
2009 meeting agenda with changes, if any, as listed below.
Items Added to the Agenda:
• Consideration to reschedule the June 9, 2009 regular meeting date
Agenda Items Removed:
• none
Consideration to Reschedule
.Lune 9. 2009 Reeular Meetine Date
After discussion, consensus of the Council was to convene the regular meeting as scheduled on June 9,
2009, hold any advertised public hearings at that time, and take action on any time - sensitive issues with the
possibility of recessing the meeting to a date and time certain.
Rental Housinn Ordinance
I
Mayor Harris opened the floor for discussion of this issue which was deferred at the May 19, 2009 Special
Call/Budget Work Session.
Manager Autry stated that any rental housing fee assessments will need to be set for adoption in the fee
schedule effective July, 2009. During the Budget Retreat in February, it was proposed to set the inspection
fee at $30.00 for the first mandatory inspection with no fee for subsequent inspections.
Council Member Billy Tart staled that he has received feed -back from property owners who are upset over
the requirement that every unit had to be inspected. He added that at this time, he would propose that the
City implement a registration fee but not a mandatory inspection for every unit. He suggested they adopt
an ordinance similar to what other cities have to avoid a lawsuit.
Mayor Harris stated that the ordinance will become law effective July 1, 2009; however, the cost for a
rental housing inspector has not been factored into the budget. The ordinance cannot be implemented or
enforced if adequate staffing is not in place.
Mayor Pro Tern Robinson stated that this is a matter of whether they are going to keep things status quo.
He added that there was a consensus among the Council members that what they were doing was not
working and research was done to find out what other towns were doing with regard to rental inspections.
Inspector Blackmon stated that he did the research about the ordinance. He added that the original
ordinance adopted by the Council was the same ordinance that Elizabeth City has enforced since 2005.
Mr. Robinson stated that they will experience resistance to any change they make. This is not an issue of
dollars and cents; it's an issue of where their priorities are. There are people in town whose livability needs
improving and they have on the table, a solution that moves the City in that direction. The cost of doing
J business is going up and having the money to implement the rental housing inspector is probably .01 cent
on the tax base. It is worth having decent housing and attracting the whole town, not just one side, to
economic development. Also the tax base of the City is reducing every time the City tears down a house
which leaves a vacant lot.
Mayor Harris stated that there is a need for a commercial development coordinator in the City of Dunn and
would likely be the vehicle by which the City could rebuild some of these properties, make some affordable
loans and make housing affordable in those areas where the banks, at this particular time, will not reach out
to. The other issue is enforcing the minimum housing code which the City has made great strides; however,
you do not do it in the face of a potential lawsuit, which would delay and keep the City from enforcement
of the ordinance. They are not talking about gutting the ordinance, but to make it more practical so that
they have a vehicle by which to inspect a house if they feel it needs it. If funds are not available to make an
ordinance enforceable, then they need to look at ways to enforce it without it costing a great deal of money.
He suggested implementing a rental housing registration /permit and should a property owner not comply
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with the minimum housing code upon inspection, then their registration/permit would be revoked and they
would not be authorized to rent that unit. With the current rental housing ordinance in place, the mandatory
inspection is what most property owners are objecting to. They want to accomplish the goal of decent rental
housing but they need to be good stewards of the taxpayer's money by finding a different approach.
Mayor Pro Tom Robinson stated that the City Attorney did due diligence in researching and preparing the
current ordinance. Every ordinance is open to a lawsuit challenge. If the rental ordinance is enforced, then
they could begin the steps to have these houses inspected. The Council agreed that what was on the books
before the adoption of the rental housing ordinance was not working. He suggested other avenues to fund
the rental inspector by way of reducing spending, reduction in force, furloughs or look at some of the
appropriations already made in the budget. It would take approximately .01 cent on the tax rate to fund the
rental housing inspector. They need to protect the senior citizens and children who live in substandard
housing.
Council Member Turnage asked Inspector Blackmon to explain how his department can enforce the rental
ordinance without funding a rental inspector. Mr. Blackmon responded that his department could inspect
units as best as possible with the staffing he has.
Mayor Harris stated that the issue before the Council, is will they fund the rental housing inspector position
or will they make changes to the rental ordinance to implement it with the current inspections staff.
Council Member Galbreath asked Manager Autry how much it would cost to fund an additional position
without a vehicle. Mr. Autry responded approximately $50,000.00 including benefits. A truck has already
been purchased.
Mayor Harris stated that the question before the Council is if they don't make any changes to the rental
housing ordinance, then they need to fund the rental housing inspector position because it's unfair to the
building inspector to place this responsibility on him in addition to his other duties. If the fee is not
implemented into the fee schedule, then it will cost the taxpayers approximately .01 cent to fund it. In
addition, there is a possibility that the ordinance will be challenged, resulting in a preliminary injunction
that could delay the City in implementing it for a period of up to two years. Proposed modifications could
be made to the rental housing ordinance, defer the effective date of the ordinance, or the Council will need
to fund the rental inspector position and leave the rental ordinance as written.
Council Member Billy Tart suggested modifying the rental housing ordinance to include a registration fee,
require three signatures to inspect a house, or give the building inspector authority to inspect a house based
on the exterior condition. Discussion was held about another public hearing being necessary to modify the
rental housing ordinance.
Mayor Harris suggested that the ordinance be modified to implement the registration fee and eliminate the '
mandatory inspection.
A motion was made by Mayor Pro Tern Robinson to establish the mandatory rental housing inspection fee
at $35.00. Motion died for lack of second.
Mayor Harris yielded to the Council to modify the rental housing ordinance for the purpose of establishing
an annual registration fee with no mandatory inspection and to call for a public hearing.
A motion was made by Council Member Billy Tart to direct the City Attorney to prepare proposed
amendments to the rental housing ordinance to include removing the mandatory inspection requirement and
fee, and establish an annual fee for rental housing registration and set a public hearing date.
Mayor Pro Tern Robinson questioned that if they remove the mandatory inspection, how would it be
different from what they have done in the past.
Inspector Blackmon stated that in his research of this ordinance over a year ago, Elizabeth City had the
same ordinance in place and it was working fine there. If they remove the mandatory inspection, then they
are back to the minimum housing ordinance. The City of Raleigh just initiated a fee schedule for all
landlords to register their property and they are just continuing with their minimum housing ordinance as
written. The City of Dunn rental housing ordinance has already been modified without seeing if it will even
work. If they take out the mandatory inspection, they need to repeal the rental housing ordinance and just
use the minimum housing code and then it would be up to the Council if they want to charge an annual
registration fee.
Manager Autry stated that the only change he could see from the minimum housing code is the ability to
inspect vacant units as a tenant moves in or out. Mayor Harris stated that is where it becomes impractical
for the building inspector to do this. With the constant vacancies, it would take an entire department to
inspect these vacant units.
Inspector Blackmon stated that in the present minimum housing ordinance, there is a part which addresses
vacant houses, but he simply does not have the manpower to go to all the vacant houses. In addition, the
minimum housing code allows inspection once the electricity or water is cut off, however, many landlords
leave the utilities in their name, avoiding the disruption of service subject to inspection by the building
inspections department.
Motion was seconded by Council Member Joey Tart.
Ayes Nays
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Billy Tart Maness
Joey Tart Robinson
Turnage Galbreath
Mayor Harris
Motion carried 4 -3.
3:10 pm: 5 minute session break
Town ofAneier Contract for
Building Inspection Services
Manager Autry stated that the proposed amended contract is for ten (10) man hours per week at a contract
price of $30,000.00 /year. With the current economy and construction being down, the Town of Angier is
proposing to amend the contract.
The current contract is for fifteen (15) man hours per week at $36,000.00 /year.
Mayor Harris entertained a motion to amend the contract.
Council Member Maness stated that with the increased amount of required inspections under the minimum
housing code, he questioned if the inspector will have adequate time to be able to perform these services.
He added that Inspector Blackmon indicated that he would not be able to do any mandatory inspections
without additional staff and if the complaint driven system that is going to have to be relied upon is going
to be increased as he anticipates, then he is concerned about the number of additional inspections that the
inspector is going to have to make within the City limits and how this will impact upon his available time
to perform services outside the City. Inspector Blackmon responded that presently, they are only spending
six to eight hours in Angier each week. He normally inspects in Angier just before arriving to work in
Dunn. The few hours that he and Inspector Steven King spend in Angier does not take away from what
they do in Dunn.
Mr. Blackmon stated that even if the Angier contract is not renewed, his staffing is not to the point that they
can enforce the minimum housing ordinance; therefore, Angier's contract is not impeding upon inspections
in Dunn.
Motion by Council Member Joey Tart and seconded by Council Member Turnage to approve the amended
contract with Angier. Motion unanimously approved. A copy of the Amendment to Interlocal Agreement
for Building Inspection Services between the City of Dunn and Town of Angier is incorporated into these
minutes as Attachment #1.
Open Issues
City-owned Buildings
Report on the state of the City -owned buildings. Council Member Galbreath suggested that a report on the
status of the state of repairs on all City -owned buildings be provided by Inspector Blackmon to make the
Council aware of the condition of these City -owned buildings. Categorize as minor or major repair with
estimated costs.
Roof replacement for the Municipal Building
Cost projected at $160,000.00 to replace the roof ($72,000.00 is budgeted for repair and recommended by
Manager Autry). Mayor Harris stated that it would require approximately 2.0 -2.5 cents to pay the
additional $88,000 to replace the roof at the municipal building and library and to replace the windows in
the inspections building. Council Member Joey Tart suggested that the roof be replaced and not patched.
It was suggested that if both roofs were combined for the municipal building and library together, the bid
received may be low enough to replace both. Discussion was held about the need to replace the windows
in the inspections building, to make it cost effective and more energy efficient.
Mayor Harris suggested that the HVAC and window replacement be budgeted for the inspections building
at an estimated $25,000. Discussion was held about replacing the roof at the municipal building and
repairing the roof at the library. It was suggested to use fund balance to replace the roofs. Discussion was
held that with the diminishing fund balance, it would not be practical to use fund balance.
Manager Autry is proposing to set the tax rate at .46 per $100 valuation. Discussion was held about setting
the tax rate at .48 to allow for the replacement of roofs. Discussion was held about leaving the repairs as is
and leave the tax rate at .46. Discussion was held about it being irresponsible to patch the City -owned
./ buildings instead of making the necessary repairs. The buildings that need repair are major buildings of the
City.
Manager Autry suggested that they leave the proposed budget as is and see if the revaluations will come in
above the projected 15% and to monitor projected revenues, and obtain the actual cost to repair or replace
the roofs. It was discussed that with the appeals before the County, they expect the projected 15% to
decrease. Finance Director Stephens explained that state law requires that a budget be adopted by July V
or they must have an interim budget adopted. There is a law that allows municipalities to set the tax rate in
July and to adjust the rate in December /January; however, he is not aware of any municipalities doing this.
Discussion was held to instruct the City Manager to review the budget as proposed, reinstitute roof repairs
at the municipal building and library, and replace HVAC and windows in the inspections building with cost
cuts to any other areas.
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Manager Autry explained that by law, they must have a proposed budget by June 1, 2009. He asked that
the Council let him propose the budget as is, and he will work on the numbers during the month of June.
Motion by Council Member Billy Tart and seconded by Council Member Turnage to direct the City
Manager to present the proposed budget at .46 cents per $100 valuation, work on reducing expenditures to
allow for funding to replace the roof at the municipal building and library and replace the HVAC and
windows in the inspections building and to allow the Manager additional time to acquire more accurate
projections of revenues and receive bid proposals for roof replacements. Motion unanimously approved.
Ryan Rav
PAL Emnlovee
Chief Jones is proposing a $3.00 per hour adjustment for PAL employee Ryan Ray.
Recreation Snorts
Registration Fee
Fees were suggested at $20.00 for in -town participants and $60.00 for out -of -town participants.
Council Member Maness stated that they need an in -depth analysis of what these programs cost the City of
Dunn to evaluate the fees that should be charged. They want to keep the rates as low as possible but the
taxpayers of Dunn should not carry 40 % -50% of the burden for participants coming outside the city limits.
Council consensus to instruct Recreation Director Perry Hudson and Finance Director Stephens to provide
the Council with exact costs to the City to provide the sports programs /camps with exact figures collected
by in -town and out -of -town participants.
Director Hudson stated that he provides a service and suggested $20.00 for in -town participants and $40.00
for out -of -town participants. Mayor Harris suggested that Director Hudson analyze the percentage his
department is recouping through fees. The proposed budget revenue is projected at $20.00 and $40.00. It
was suggested that a water bill be used to prove in -town status of a participant.
Council Member Turnage suggested that the Recreation Commission give the Council a recommendation
about procedures to put in place with reference to determining in -town and out -of -town status.
Weedv Lot Mowine Fees
After discussion, consensus of the Council was to double the weedy lot mowing fees.
With no further business to discuss, a motion was made by Council Member Maness and seconded by
Council Member Joey Tart to adjourn the meeting at 4:26 p.m. Motion unanimously approved.
Attest:
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Debra G. West
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Mayor
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