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REGULAR CITY COUNCIL MEETING
The Regular City Council Meeting was held on April 13, 2020 at 7:39 p.m. with Council President
Hare presiding. Council members present via video or telephone were Mr. Anderson, Mr. Sudler,
Mr. Neil, Mr. Slavin, Mr. Cole, Mr. Polce, Mr. Taylor, and Mr. Lindell.
Staff members present via video or telephone were Police Chief Johnson, Ms. Peddicord,
Mrs. Mitchell, Mr. Hugg, and Mrs. McDowell. Mayor Christiansen was absent.
The invocation was given by Mr. Taylor, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.
ADOPTION OF AGENDA
Mr. Neil moved for adoption of the agenda, seconded by Mr. Lindell and unanimously carried.
Mr. Neil moved for adoption of the consent agenda, seconded by Mr. Lindell and carried by
a unanimous roll call vote.
ADOPTION OF MINUTES - SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING OF JANUARY 27, 2020
The Minutes of the Special Council Meeting of January 27, 2020 were unanimously approved
by motion of Mr. Neil, seconded by Mr. Lindell and bore the written approval of Mayor
Christiansen.
ADOPTION OF MINUTES - REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING OF MARCH 9, 2020
The Minutes of the Regular Council Meeting of March 9, 2020 were unanimously approved
by motion of Mr. Neil, seconded by Mr. Lindell and bore the written approval of Mayor
Christiansen.
EMERGENCY ORDINANCE #2020-06 WAIVING CERTAIN CHARTER, CODE, POLICY
AND PROCEDURE REQUIREMENTS DURING THE COVID-19 VIRUS STATE OF
EMERGENCY
Mrs. Donna Mitchell, City Manager, reviewed Emergency Ordinance #2020-06 Waiving Certain
Charter, Code, Policy and Procedure Requirements During the Covid-19 Virus State of Emergency.
Responding to Mr. Sudler, Mrs. Mitchell provided a sewer system issue as an example that the
ordinance could be applied to. She stated that due to the urgency, they would reach out to the
different contractors and find who could get the job done quickly. Mrs. Mitchell noted that it is what
they have done in the past when there has been an emergency situation.
Responding to Mr. Anderson regarding eliminating the section for monthly Council meetings,
Mrs. McDowell stated that the Charter requires that City Council meet not less frequently than once
each month. The Ordinance would allow them to forego having a meeting if actionable items were
not pending. Mr. Hare noted that the online meetings are an option if needed.
By motion of Mr. Lindell, seconded by Mr. Cole, Council, by a unanimous roll call vote,
adopted Emergency Ordinance #2020-06 retroactive to March 23, 2020 and with the
understanding that it would be revisited in 30 days, as follows:
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CITY COUNCIL MEETING OF APRIL 13, 2020 PAGE 2
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DOVER, IN
COUNCIL MET:
WHEREAS, the Governor of the State of Delaware, The Honorable John C. Carney, declared a State
of Emergency effective Friday, March 13, 2020, at 8:00 a.m. EST pursuant to provisions of Title 20,
Ch. 31 of the Delaware Code because of the public health threat from the COVID-19 virus restricting
public gatherings and, in particular, directing that public meetings of public bodies may be conducted
electronically rather than conducting open meetings to be attended by the public; and
WHEREAS, Sec. 9 of the Charter of the City of Dover provides that Council shall meet not less
frequently than once per month and it appears that regular meetings of Council cannot currently be
held electronically due to the many issues involved and the status of electronic means to allow
participation by members of the public; and
WHEREAS, it is the decision of Council to cancel all public regular meetings of Council in the
future until the State of Emergency is withdrawn and the declaration of the Governor no longer needs
to be enforced.
THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED by the Mayor and Council of the City of Dover:
1. After the regular meeting of Council to be held on March 23, 2020, which will be held to cover
essential issues that must be considered at the meeting, no further regular meetings of Council
shall be held until the threat to public health created by the COVID-19 virus has been resolved.
2. The authority for canceling future Council Meetings in violation of the Charter requirement is
provided in Title 20 of the Delaware Code, Sec. 3127(b ), which states that during a State of
Emergency, whenever the restrictions imposed pursuant to this chapter are inconsistent and in
conflict with those required by any other statute, local ordinance or regulation, the provisions of
the emergency order imposed pursuant to this chapter shall govern.
3. Therefore, the directive above referred to by Governor Carney does prevail and supersede Sec. 9
of the Charter requiring at least one meeting per month.
4. If the emergency provisions issued by Governor Carney are withdrawn, then regular Council
meetings will proceed as required by the Charter.
5. Passage of this ordinance canceling future regular meetings of Council impacts all of the actions
of departments and agencies of the City so that passage of this ordinance shall also apply to all
meetings, code requirements and deadlines of all departments and agencies of the City pending
resolution of the State of Emergency. Furthermore, the passage of this ordinance provides
Council authority to the City Manager to waive policies and procedures for business continuity.
ADOPTED: APRIL 13, 2020 (EFFECTIVE: MARCH 23, 2020)
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CITY COUNCIL MEETING OF APRIL 13, 2020 PAGE 3
AMENDMENT TO COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT ACTION PLAN -
CORONAVIRUS AID, RELIEF, AND ECONOMIC SECURITY ACT (CARES)
Mrs. Donna Mitchell, City Manager, reviewed the Proposed Budget Amendment to the 2019
Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Action Plan with the Allocation Authorized by the
Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
Responding to Mr. Anderson, Mrs. Mitchell stated she would have to check with Mrs. Tracey
Harvey, Planner/Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Administrator, to see if Code
Purple is eligible. Mr. Polce suggested looking into eligibility for Hopes and Dreams, as well as
Peoples Place.
Mr. Anderson moved for adoption of the amendment, seconded by Mr. Neil.
Responding to Mr. Hare, Mrs. Mitchell stated that Kent County was not on the allocation sheet;
however, Dover, Wilmington, and New Castle County were included.
Mr. Anderson moved adoption of the amendment. The motion was seconded by Mr. Neil and
carried by a unanimous roll call vote.
POSTPONEMENT OF PUBLIC HEARINGS AND FINAL ACTION ON REQUESTS FOR
ANNEXATION/REZONING OF PROPERTIES LOCATED AT 1448 NORTH LITTLE
CREEK ROAD AND 1385-1389 MCKEE ROAD
Mr. Dave Hugg, Director of Planning and Community Development, provided background
information regarding the postponement of the Public Hearing and Final Action of requests for the
Annexation/Rezoning of the properties located at 1448 North Little Creek Road and
1385-1389 McKee Road.
Staff recommended postponement until new Planning Commission and City Council Public Hearing
dates could be scheduled upon the withdrawal of the State of Emergency.
Responding to Mr. Hare, Mr. Hugg stated that the next Planning Commission meeting will probably
be held electronically in anticipation of still being under quarantine. He noted that the normal
meeting would be May 18, 2020 and they were working with the Commission members. Mr. Hugg
stated they are also working with the Board of Adjustment and the Historic District Committee to
determine their capabilities to do an electronic meeting. Mr. Hugg advised that there were five
applicants who are in some stage of submission that would have otherwise come before the Planning
Commission in April or May. He noted that they are trying to orchestrate getting all of those people
together and that they will most likely have a virtual meeting no later than May 18, 2020.
Mr. Slavin encouraged Mr. Hugg to schedule meetings on consecutive days or to take advantage of
the daytime hours and hold these meetings, by May 18, 2020 or sooner, so that they can get through
the backlog.
Mr. Slavin moved for approval of Staff’s recommendation, seconded by Mr. Cole and
unanimously carried.
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CITY COUNCIL MEETING OF APRIL 13, 2020 PAGE 4
CITY MANAGER’S UPDATE ON COVID-19 OPERATIONS
Mrs. Donna Mitchell, City Manager, provided the following update on COVID-19 Operations:
“The City posted the first notices of the Continuity of Government Plan on
March 20, 2020 explaining the changes in our services effective March 23, 2020 in
accordance with the Governors Executive Order for social distancing and essential
services.
All public buildings have been closed, and employees are in rotating crews to fulfill
public service needs. Where possible some employees are working from home. We
do have several employees quarantined and some without day care.
Leaf, brush, and bulk collection was suspended effective March 23, 2020 to focus on
the trash pick-up for public health reasons, with rotating staff to protect the crews.
Additional notices were advertised this past Thursday and Sunday.
Our plan is to maintain the suspension of these services, due to health reasons. We
have requested a bulk truck to attempt to pick up the brush that is in the roads for
emergency vehicles. We ask our residents to not put out brush or bulk until such time
the Governors Executive Order is withdrawn. The City at that time will publish
public notices for Spring Clean up and the re-establishment of our bulk pick up
schedule.
We have been adjusting our plans as we get new information. Customer Service has
opened the drive through window on Monday - Friday from 9 to 3. Today's service
was impacted with a breakdown in the mechanical components of the drive through
window. We have put in a service call. We asked our customers to use the drop box
in the meantime.
All Department Heads have been working hard and helping their staff where
possible. The Mayor has been in the office every day and helps to man the phones,
and assist with the fire service and feeding the volunteers.”
Responding to Mr. Sudler, Mrs. Mitchell stated that they have suspended bulk trash pick up. She
noted they have tried to focus on getting the trash itself picked up with the rotating crews. She stated
that they are going to have one employee switched from water/sewer to sanitation to try to get what
is in the streets picked up. Mrs. Mitchell noted that the intention is not to reestablish the service right
now, just to try to get what people have put out picked up because they did not get the notice timely.
Responding to Mr. Anderson, Mrs. Mitchell stated that she has been riding by and checking on the
public sanitation stations put out by the City and so far they have been doing really good. She noted
that she asked the Facilities Supervisor to let her know if there were any problems on the sanitation
side and that they are having them serviced three times a week. She was told by others that they have
actually seen lines for them.
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CITY COUNCIL MEETING OF APRIL 13, 2020 PAGE 5
Responding to Mr. Anderson, Mrs. Mitchell stated they had a miscommunication with the parks, but
they are open now. She advised that the gates were not being opened, but they are now and that they
have had people ask about using the boat ramp because they want to go fishing. Mrs. Mitchell noted
that based on an idea that was provided by somebody, she asked Staff to shrink wrap the playground
equipment to discourage people from using it because of COVID-19's ability to adhere to those
surfaces. She noted that they bought bulk shrink wrap and were working on that.
Responding to Mr. Anderson, Mrs. Mitchell stated they were documenting those expenses for
reimbursement. She noted that they are documenting everything and have set up separate payroll
codes for employees who are being quarantined to track all of the time for possible reimbursement.
Responding to Mr. Sudler, Mrs. Mitchell stated that the basketball courts were a problem because
they were getting groups of people that were not social distancing. She was not sure if they took
down the nets or had to fix them in such a way that they could not get the balls through the hoops.
COUNCIL COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE REPORT - MARCH 10, 2020
The Council Committee of the Whole met on March 10, 2020 at 6:01 p.m., with
Council President Hare presiding. Members of Council present were Mr. Anderson,
Mr. Sudler, Mr. Neil, Mr. Cole, Mr. Polce (arrived at 6:22 p.m.), Mr. Taylor, and
Mr. Lindell. Mr. Slavin was absent. Mayor Christiansen was also present. Civilian
members present for and their Committee meetings were Mr. Caldwell and Col. Dix,
Retired, (Parks, Recreation, and Community Enhancement), and Mr. Contant and
Mr. Shevock (Legislative, Finance, and Administration). Mrs. Doyle (Utility) was
absent.
UTILITY COMMITTEE
The Utility Committee met with Chairman Cole presiding.
Adoption of Agenda
Mr. Sudler moved for adoption of the agenda, seconded by Mr. Neil and
unanimously carried.
Evaluation of Bids - Puncheon Run Pump Station Improvements
Mr. Jason Lyon, Assistant Public Works Director, reviewed the background and
analysis regarding the evaluation of bids for the Puncheon Run Pump Station
Improvements.
Staff recommended awarding the contract to Kuhn Construction Company for the
City of Dover Puncheon Run Pump Station Improvement Project, Bid #20-0017PW,
for $732,200.
Mr. Neil moved to recommend approval of Staff's recommendation. The
motion was seconded by Mr. Anderson and unanimously carried.
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CITY COUNCIL MEETING OF APRIL 13, 2020 PAGE 6
By consent agenda, Mr. Neil moved for approval of the Committee’s recommendation,
seconded by Mr. Lindell and carried by a unanimous roll call vote.
Mr. Hare moved for adjournment of the Utility Committee meeting, seconded
by Mr. Neil and unanimously carried.
Meeting adjourned at 6:08 p.m.
PARKS, RECREATION, AND COMMUNITY ENHANCEMENT
COMMITTEE
The Parks, Recreation, and Community Enhancement Committee met with Chairman
Anderson presiding.
Adoption of Agenda
Mr. Anderson requested the agenda be amended to switch item #2 - Presentation
from the Hope Commission and item #3 Review of Active Recreation Area Plans
(Request for Cash-in-Lieu) - 1504 and 1506 College Road (Planning Reference
#SB-20-01).
Mr. Hare moved for adoption of the agenda, as amended, seconded by Mr. Neil
and unanimously carried.
Report from Silver Lake Commission
Ms. Tricia Arndt, Chair, Silver Lake Commission, gave a brief history of her time
with the Silver Lake Commission and a report of the Commission.
Ms. Arndt stated the Commission acts as an advisory body to formulate
recommendations to Council and Staff through the Parks, Recreation, and
Community Enhancement Committee. She noted they provide a forum for public
involvement, coordination with other government bodies and institutions. They
typically meet quarterly to discuss the issues and, as needed, to discuss and review
project plans that may have an impact on water quality, or if they are adjacent to the
park or near the park. Mrs. Arndt advised another activity that they partake in is
funding letters in support of grants that the City seeks for different projects. She
stated most recently she provided a support letter for the Outdoor Recreation Parks
and Trails grant application. Every year they also organize a park clean up in
conjunction with the lake draw down. She noted it is an opportunity for property
owners to have a predictability in doing repairs to docks and also to clean up the
shoreline. They also assist with community events such as the canoe and kayak
activity.
Ms. Arndt noted that Commission members are all frequent park users. She stated
one woman is in the park every day with her dog and always knows when City of
Dover Police do not shut the gate and she will let the Commission know when the
gate should be shut in the evening because that is a safety issue. Ms. Arndt noted they
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CITY COUNCIL MEETING OF APRIL 13, 2020 PAGE 7
consider their role to be that of outreach, as a community liaison, and they are
looking forward to assisting the City with the park master plan when they move
towards that.
Mr. Neil asked how frustrated the people were who Ms. Arndt came into contact with
regarding the closure of the park down because of the backup from the County sewer
system. Ms. Arndt stated the response by the County, the City and Delaware
Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) was on
point. She noted that they have an aging infrastructure and it is an opportunity to call
that to light and that they need to focus on it because when they have pipes that are
that old, things like that would happen. Ms. Arndt stated another opportunity would
be that if Kent County needs to replace sewer line in that area, this would be a chance
to either reroute or improve some sidewalk, or add riparian buffer, or get some
plantings in. She stated if they are going to dig up the area anyway, then there is an
opportunity to put it back better than it was before.
Col. Dix noted that there is a problem with feeding the ducks. He stated they are not
suppose to feed the ducks bread, but people go to the park with bags of bread.
Responding to Col. Dix, Ms. Arndt stated she is personally not doing anything to
change people's habits regarding feeding the ducks bread. She noted an opportunity
might be to put up educational signage. Col. Dix stated there are signs by the
Countrie Eatery stating not to feed the ducks. He suggested dispensing corn or
whatever is good for ducks. Responding to Col. Dix, Ms. Arndt stated she would not
feed the ducks at all, because they should be foraging for their own food sources and
should not be fed artificially from humans.
Col. Dix noted that there are lots of elderly people who enjoy that park, but they just
do not seem to want to put park benches in. Responding, Ms. Arndt stated that there
may be an opportunity in the future when the Parks, Recreation, and Community
Enhancement Committee looks at the master plan for the park. She noted Col. Dix's
request and stated she would anticipate public outreach and input to that process.
Responding to Mr. Caldwell, Ms. Arndt stated the safety issues regarding the park
are often perception issues. She noted that she has never felt unsafe in the park and
frequently goes with her children. She noted that all of the members of the Silver
Lake Commission are in the park often at different times of the day, but she does not
go at dusk. She stated she also does not enter the park at night because no one should.
Ms. Arndt stated it is a matter of taking her own personal responsibility.
Mr. Caldwell thanked Ms. Arndt and the Silver Lake Commission for their efforts
and the job they are doing with a number of activities that have been initiated
including activities in the spring and in the fall for cleanup, keeping track of the
water quality, making sure that they are in compliance with State standards as much
as possible and giving public input. He noted they are going to be doing a review of
commissions and the like for the effectiveness and it is important that the Silver Lake
Commission's work be noted.
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CITY COUNCIL MEETING OF APRIL 13, 2020 PAGE 8
Review of Active Recreation Area Plans (Request for Cash-in-Lieu) - 1504 and
1506 College Road (Planning Reference #SB-20-01)
Mrs. Dawn Melson-Williams reviewed the background information of Active
Recreation Area Plans (Request for Cash-in-Lieu) - 1504 and 1506 College Road
(Planning Reference #SB-20-01).
Staff recommended acceptance of the $4,250 Cash-in-Lieu of Recreation Area
Construction donation, as the amount complies with the requirements of the Zoning
Ordinance.
Responding to Mr. Neil, Mrs. Melson-Williams stated that the applicant had to
submit the appraisal. She noted that the zoning ordinance outlines standards for the
appraisal, so the cost of the appraisal is burdened on the applicant. She stated the full
appraisal document is in the Planning Office, but they identified a couple of key
pages out of it for the packet.
Mr. Neil stated it is odd when someone is trying to save money, and they have an
appraisal. If they are trying to sell it, that appraisal will be high and if they are trying
to buy it, it is going to probably be lower or at least neutral. He noted that it all
depends upon who is driving that cost and in this case that is low. If they were going
to put a lease land community on there, each one of those tiny slivers is going to be
very high and they will ask for lot rent at a very high level because of it.
Col. Dix asked how did the City end up in the situation of having little parcels of
parks. Responding, Mrs. Melson-Williams stated that the zoning ordinance includes
requirements for active recreation associated with the development of residential
developments. She noted in the past there may have been approaches with
subdivisions to identify a small park area within that subdivision to meet those active
recreation requirements. There have been some changes over the years to the
provisions for active recreation, one of which is this exemption, which either reduces
the amount of land that is required, or it sets up and establishes this cash-in-lieu of
construction. Mrs. Melson-Williams stated in Staff's opinion, this make the most
sense for small types of developments. She noted in their comprehensive plan they
did identify that the recreation area concepts Citywide and the provisions of the code
are something that needs additional research and perhaps changes as to how they
function.
Col. Dix asked if this is not the time to make the changes. He noted it sounds like
these little parcel park ideas are out of vogue, and if they are out of vogue, they
should change the ordinances and get on with the normal way of doing business.
Responding, Mrs. Melson-Williams stated it has certainly been identified as one of
the provisions of the zoning ordinance that needs additional research and perhaps
updating. She stated given how development activity happens now, it is one of many
code provisions that need a lot of research and work to bring forth changes to allow
them to work better with development activities.
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CITY COUNCIL MEETING OF APRIL 13, 2020 PAGE 9
Mayor Christiansen gave a quick overview of how these items came about. He stated
with the building boom of the 1960s in the City, it was the comprehensive plan's
intention to provide neighborhood parks for individual communities and
developments that came about within the City. The developers put land aside for
small pocket parks. He noted early in the 1980s it was determined that due to the
maintenance that was required by the City to provide these parks because they
became the City's possession, it made better sense during that building era of the
City's continued growth that cash be taken in lieu of providing these pocket parks in
the individual areas because the new comprehensive plan featured several large and
major parks in the City. Mayor Christiansen stated the dollars that were saved on
maintenance went toward the larger issue of the inception of the Dover Park,
Williams Park, and eventually Schutte Park as it came into being.
Responding to Col. Dix, Mr. Anderson stated they have taken care and currently have
a mechanism, but it has been determined by Staff that they can do it better. He noted
that will probably be a review in the next year.
Responding to Col. Dix, Mayor Christiansen stated it is the best formula and best
matrix for recouping money for long-term maintenance of the small parks that still
exist, as well as putting money into projects like the revitalization of Dover Park, and
the continued development of Schutte Park, and Silver Lake.
Mr. Neil moved to recommend acceptance of $4,250 Cash-in-Lieu of Recreation
Area Construction donation, as the amount complies with the requirements of
the Zoning Ordinance, as recommended by Staff. The motion was seconded by
Mr. Hare and unanimously carried.
By consent agenda, Mr. Neil moved for approval of the Committee’s recommendation,
seconded by Mr. Lindell and carried by a unanimous roll call vote.
Presentation from the Hope Commission
Ms. Tamera Fair, Executive Director, Hope Commission, reviewed a presentation
titled, "Dover March City Council Meeting - Wilmington HOPE Commission
Overview," and provided a handout titled, "Delaware's Premiere Re-entry Program,".
Mr. Sudler thanked Ms. Fair for allowing him to visit their site in Wilmington and
noted that he will provide pictures to City Council and the Parks, Recreation, and
Community Enhancement Committee of how clean and professional the atmosphere
is.
Mr. Sudler asked how does the Hope Commission aid the City of Wilmington with
mental health, gang prevention methods, loitering, and pan handling. Responding,
Ms. Fair stated that they have a behavioral health specialist onsite and each of the
individuals that they work with has a one-on-one. She noted one of the courses in the
Texas Christian University is the cognitive behavioral intervention, so those are
methods that address that aspect. She advised that the other elements are folded into
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CITY COUNCIL MEETING OF APRIL 13, 2020 PAGE 10
what the Commission does, in the cognitive behavioral intervention, they teach how
to make appropriate choices because a lot of times, the individuals that they work
with have not had the opportunity to know what is right from wrong. Their
methodology of what choices are acceptable in society or not come from those
criminogenic risk factors.
Regarding panhandling, Ms. Fair stated their workforce development program is
skillfully designed to help in that area. Teaching, first of all, the skills of how to
obtain a job. They also have pipelines of programs where they have worked with
employers who are willing to, once they go through, for example, their enhanced
workforce development program, that are willing to give individuals with justice
involved backgrounds and opportunity to an interview, and if they do well to actually
be employed. Ms. Fair noted say one of her goals is not to provide the individuals in
their program with 1099 jobs, but with careers because that is the way that they come
back, the high risk behavior that the individuals that they work with.
Responding to Mr. Sudler, Ms. Fair stated that the most challenging obstacle that the
offenders have to hurdle over during the program and after the program can change
for the individuals. She noted one of the hardest things is being ready to make the
change. One of the things that they do is they have a program called, "Inreach," where
individuals that are in their program are addressed before they leave the prison. They
do something called, "getting motivated to change," which is another cognitive
behavioral evidence-based practice in order to prepare the individual of what is going
to be expected. Ms. Fair stated first they need to see if the person is in the mindset
to begin to change. Regarding the hardest barrier, Ms. Fair stated that getting
motivated to change, to kind of plant the seed to start the process happens at the
Hope Commission, but soon as they come home, they leave that kind of confined
environment and now those risk factors, such as the peers that they were hanging out
with before. She noted that a lot of them have not actually ever worked a legal job.
Ms. Fair stated making sure they are on time for the program can be a barrier. She
noted they have two tracks, a day and evening track. Ms. Fair advised that a lot of the
individuals that they have in the evening are usually working, so they have a
10-minute grace period to make it to their first evening track class because they can
get held up at work. For those in the morning, even though they have individuals that
work overnight and may come in, typically because the first class starts at 10:00 a.m.,
they have to be there on time, otherwise they do not get credit for that class.
Therefore, that appears in their report at the reentry court, which is the accountability
portion of it. She stated she took a long way around to respond to Mr. Sudler's
question, but wanted to show the things that they are doing, the obstacles that they
face because there naturally is that pull of family and peers and the amount of money
those individuals were making prior to incarceration, so trying to show different
choices and to lower PTSD, which a lot suffer from as a result of that risky behavior,
are some of the things that they put in place.
Mr. Sudler asked how can the City of Dover implement a Hope program and what
would they have to do if that was deemed necessary amongst City Council and what
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CITY COUNCIL MEETING OF APRIL 13, 2020 PAGE 11
are some of the dynamics. Responding, Ms. Fair advised one of the things would be
data collection, which is looking at the individuals that are looking to assist,
collecting, and others listed in the presentation. She that one of the next steps that she
would look at is actually having a discussion from representatives of Dover with the
Board of the Hope Commission because that is an important aspect to see all the
work that goes on behind the scenes to get the program together. The other aspect is
the type of individual that they would need. She stated peers and case managers are
some key elements and having a clinical director to maintain the fidelity of the
program. She noted she was looking at it from the point of the individual's high crime
rate, lack of employment.
Ms. Fair advised that another aspect would be partners that would be willing to hire
individuals that come out of the program, that pipeline of individuals that would be
coming to the program. She stated they also have a community aspect where they
take walk-ins as well that are not in the evidence based, but they assess with
Medicaid, Medicare, and partner with Division of Social Services (DSS) and other
partners to help provide the services, as well as refer individuals to where the
appropriate places for them to get the services that they need. All that infrastructure
would probably need to be in place in order to do something like that in Dover. She
noted two other barriers are housing and transportation.
Responding to Mr. Anderson, Ms. Fair stated, regarding their funding, there is
fundraising that they get from private sources and they do get State and City funding.
She advised that they do a lot of funding from the private sector, from banks, from
some organizations. Ms. Fair noted that Christiana Care has been a wonderful partner
to them, as well as some of the banks like Bank of America and Comenity.
Responding to Mr. Neil, Ms. Fair stated right now they take in people just from
Wilmington who had been incarcerated. She stated they take in people from the zip
codes 19801, 19802, and 19805, and has expanded to New Castle.
Responding to Mr. Caldwell, Ms. Fair stated they are not 100% perfect and that some
individuals have trouble adjusting to society as a whole. She noted that is an area that
they deal with, but that is a reason for the evidence-based program that they adhere
to. She noted for example, anything that cannot be handled by their behavioral health
specialists, they refer, whether it is intensive outpatient, things of that sort.
Mr. Taylor asked if the adult education program is accredited. He noted some of the
jobs that they are sending people to have to have a GED or the equivalent and when
some of them are coming out of the institution, they do not have this. Responding,
Ms. Fair stated the jobs that they work with are sometimes just skill based. They refer
individuals to the West End to get their GEDs. She noted, for example, one of the
partnerships that they have is with the Delaware Center for Horticulture (DCH), they
have individuals that go through their skill program and the DCH then helps to place
those individuals. Ms. Fair stated some of the jobs that they look at and the partners
they work with, that is not necessarily a requirement. She advised that some
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individuals going to them have their GED, some have high school diplomas, and
some even have some college, so it is a variety that they work with.
Responding to Mr. Taylor, Ms. Fair stated there are a couple of ways they handle
those who have issues with addiction. She advised that depending upon the level of
addiction, they start with their behavioral health specialist. She noted when they
initially have their intake they do a couple of other assessments in place to get a
better sense of where the individual is. She noted if the behavioral health specialist
sees that the individual is truly struggling with addiction, they have an onsite
substance abuse group. She stated they do everything in stages because individuals
are different and they respond to different methods. If an individual continues to
struggle, then they do refer them to any of the other places that are better apt to deal
with them. She advised that this is where their case management also stays in place
because their behavioral health specialists in this instance, when it is substance abuse
related, is sort of like the point person and makes sure after meetings, Health
Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) guidelines getting signed off
from the individual, make sure that they are on the same page with who they have
referred them to.
Responding to Mr. Lindell, Ms. Fair advised that if she combined the State and city,
the funds average about $350,000 and that the Department of Corrections (DOC)
numbers are not based on the zip codes. She stated that the DOC's total is everybody
in their system in those years that had left in those years, that includes low risk
individuals as well as medium to high risk. She noted that was important because the
low risk individuals are individuals who in their assessment are usually not likely to
continue to commit crimes or recidivate. Ms. Fair stated that when they look at the
DOC's numbers compared to their number, their numbers are actual individuals that
they had in those years, graduation, and where they are now that they have checked
on. She stated their numbers are medium to high risk, so percentages actually could
be somewhat prorated to show actually a higher non-recidivism rate for those coming
out of Wilmington Hope Commission, in comparison because they do not have any
of the low risk individuals to mitigate the recidivism rate.
Responding to Mr. Lindell, Ms. Fair stated they have a rolling admissions, so it is
hard to take in a space of time, but in the presentation, it shows they graduate
probably 28 individuals per year. She noted if that is multiplied by the number of
years, if rounded to 33 times three, it is 90.
Mr. Polce asked if there is a desire for the commission to expand into housing
options for clientele. He noted if they have a justice involved individuals, does not
particularly mean they are transient, they could be living with someone. He asked if
Ms. Fair could speak on where the justice involved individual ins coming from, not
specifically the zip code, but if the majority of them are housed, and if that is a
requirement of the program, if it is not, is it something that the commission has a
desire to get into or have thoughts of. Responding to Ms. Fair, she stated in order to
graduate from their program, there are four pillars and one of those is stable housing,
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CITY COUNCIL MEETING OF APRIL 13, 2020 PAGE 13
they need also be drug free, employed and have 85% or more attendance. She advised
that individuals are coming from the DOC and are on a box. Ms. Fair stated most of
them return home, a lot of their families are in Section 8 housing so they are not
suppose to be staying there with a box, so that is where some of the consternation
relative to housing comes from. She advised to be released when someone has house
arrest of G.P.S., they must have a host, otherwise they remain at level five or within
the facility. For the commission, the individuals they are working with will have
housing when they go to the commission. She noted keeping that housing, some stay
with a significant other or others and what happens is sometimes they are thrown out
of the house which creates a whole other set of issues. Ms. Fair stated that relative
to the Hope Commission, they have come across in some instance places where
individuals have housing that they are willing to rent to justice involved individuals.
They have some housing referrals, but that is a major aspect.
Ms. Fair stated they would love to have more housing opportunities to actually have
their individuals that are coming home go directly into a place, where it is not trying
to find a residence, and that they can begin their probation outside of incarceration.
Mr. Polce noted when they think of justice involved individuals and the re-entry
pipeline, it is a continuum. He stated he was curious to what the Hope Commission
was doing because there are justice involved individuals who come out level five,
give an address, they will have their first meeting with their PO, and then they are a
ghost in the wind from that address. He asked ultimately do they work with those
individuals with the goal at the end being graduation and housing or do they have to
demonstrate that they are actually housed prior to becoming a participant with the
program. Responding, Ms. Fair stated before they go to the Hope Commission they
have to have housing. She stated there are a couple incidents where if an individual
did not, they are willing to work, but they cannot be on the box or anything like that.
They have those referral places and one of the things they actually are working on is
they have been talking to a couple of individuals who, for example, one individual
rehabilitates houses, so they are talking to try to be able to have that aspect up front
because they have had individuals that have been assigned to their program and they
cannot come until that residence part is taken care of.
Responding to Col. Dix, Ms. Fair clarified that box means a G.P.S. ankle monitor.
Mr. Hare moved to recommend acceptance of the report. The motion was
seconded by Mr. Taylor and unanimously carried.
By consent agenda, Mr. Neil moved for approval of the Committee’s recommendation,
seconded by Mr. Lindell and carried by a unanimous roll call vote.
Mr. Anderson encouraged members to be in contact with Ms. Fair's staff and get
some good referrals.
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CITY COUNCIL MEETING OF APRIL 13, 2020 PAGE 14
Mr. Hare moved for adjournment of the Parks, Recreation, and Community
Enhancement Committee meeting. The motion was seconded by Mr. Neil and
unanimously carried.
Meeting adjourned at 7:16 p.m.
LEGISLATIVE, FINANCE, AND ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE
The Legislative, Finance, and Administration Committee met with Chairman Lindell
presiding.
Adoption of Agenda
Mr. Neil moved for adoption of the agenda, seconded by Mr. Shevock and
unanimously carried.
Purchase of Replacement IBM Power System S914 Server (Sole Source Vendor)
Mr. Matt Harline, Assistant City Manager, reviewed the background and analysis
regarding the purchase of replacement IBM Power System S914 Server (Sole Source
Vendor).
Staff recommended authorizing the City Manager or her designee to accept the
proposals and purchase the equipment and operating system.
Responding to Mr. Neil, Mr. Harline stated that the current machine is about nine
years old, almost starting its 10th year soon, the reason they are asking to replace it
is because they are no longer supporting the operating system software for the
machine. He noted the HTE system is still supported. Mr. Harline stated it was only
a couple of months and they are going to be using it to hold data. He advised they
could probably skate along, but it is guaranteed for five years and then at that point
they hope they will not need it. They have continued software maintenance on this
particular machine for now nine years and the original cost of that machine was
$10,000 greater than this one. Responding to Mr. Neil, Mr. Harline stated that in the
packet it included a package for the maintenance program.
Mr. Contant asked if they were looking at upgrading the server because the software
is not available, if they were hoping not to do this previously, and if there was
anything else housed on the server other than HTE. Responding Mr. Harline stated
that the server only runs the operating system HTE. Mr. Contant noted that he did not
see the specs listed, but stated for this type of system $15,000 is about double what
the minimum price is for the systems. Mr. Contant asked where does the system that
they are requesting lie in performance aspect to the lowest cost for this system, which
he thinks is about $6,000 or $7,000. He noted if they are only running one piece of
software off of this and they are only anticipating doing that for the next three,
hopefully not five years, do they need to buy one that is better than going with the
lowest option of that class.
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CITY COUNCIL MEETING OF APRIL 13, 2020 PAGE 15
Responding to Mr. Contant, Mr. Harline stated right now the full implementation of
Munis runs into the year 2023, so having it for five years for leeway and backup is
probably not a bad idea. He noted he did not think they need to get a better machine.
Mr. Contant stated the server that they currently have, unless they have made upgrade
to it is 9 ½ years old and the processor technology and the amount of RAM that
servers can hold now is significantly greater, so even if they went with the cheapest
option it would be about at least five times faster than what they were using. He
noted he was looking at cost savings. He asked if they needed something that fast if
it is serving a single purpose to bring the gap to their next piece of software, knowing
that anything out there right now would be able to handle the HTE system or if there
another planned use after HTE is discontinued and they move over the Munis.
Responding, Mr. Harline stated they do not have any planned use as far as he knew.
Mr. Harline stated that would be a question for Mr. Andy Siegel, Director of
Information Technologies (IT). He noted he was not sure how much, but could get
the answer. Mr. Harline noted if they authorized that much of an expenditure, they
can find a less expensive option and certainly would take that, but the support ends
at the end of March so they did want to move fairly quickly. He noted he did not
know if there would be ability to repurpose the machine. If they can, they would, and
they have done a lot of virtualization of servers.
Responding to Mr. Contant, Mr. Harline stated Munis is running on their server and
that they have already purchased the server to run that, he noted parts of it are up and
running. Mr. Hare noted what they are getting now might be a little more than what
they are going to need for the next three years, but if they went back to something
less, in three or four years from now they are going to have to make another change
and with this they will be able to do what IT needs to keep the systems going and it
might go for 10 years.
Mr. Contant stated he understood and if it was something that they are going to use,
especially for other software going forward, then he would recommend going with
the most they can afford at one time because it will carry you further, but at 10 years
ago when that system was purchased, he does not think anybody was thinking about
replacing HTE at the time and now they are. He stated he was trying figure out if it
is cost effective to go with the middle of the road server for something that only
serves one purpose, that they are hoping to discontinue far sooner than 10 years. Mr.
Harline stated they are hoping to be completely out of there in five years, by that time
they should have enough history in Munis that they do not need to save very many
files. He noted they can import a couple of years worth or as many as they want from
HTE for a fee. Mr. Harline stated with this machine, as they get completely up and
running with Munis, they can save a certain amount of history if they need it. He
noted for the variety depending upon what the particular functionality in Munis, there
are different amounts of history that they want to save, plus they also have budgeting
stuff they have in Excel many years back.
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CITY COUNCIL MEETING OF APRIL 13, 2020 PAGE 16
Mr. Taylor asked if they had to vote on the item tonight, he liked Mr. Contant's
approach and asked if they could table this until questions were answered.
Responding to Mr. Lindell, Mr. Harline stated the software supports ends at the end
of March.
Mr. Harline noted if they approve that amount of money and if there is a less
expensive machine, they can do that. Mrs. Donna Mitchell, City Manager,
recommended moving it onto Council and they can bring the answers back to the
next Council meeting to make sure everybody is comfortable. She noted they can
communicate with Mr. Contant in the meantime to get his questions.
Mr. Contant asked if Staff can look to see if there is a possibility of saving a few
dollars. He noted to keep in mind that they do not plan to keep this system the full
ten years and then just bring it back to Council at the next meeting so Council has the
information to vote on it. Mr. Sudler agreed with Mr. Contant.
Mr. Shevock stated he was always for saving money and asked if they save a dollar
now if they were going to spend more in three or four years. He noted that model
presented before the AS400 has come back and paid.
Mr. Neil questioned if the computer dies when the support system is not there. He
stated it continues and hopefully continue to work until they have the new server they
decide to buy to bring in. He noted that if they are going to approve it and then find
out that they can get a lesser system then they should do that, it would be his
understanding in making the second on the motion that is what they will do.
Mr. Contant noted that his biggest concern with letting the software lapse is that
when it is not in development anymore, it is more susceptible to being hacked
because no one is keeping up with the security protocols. Mr. Harline agreed and
noted that slightly more than half of the cost is the operating system and doubted they
could find a different option for that.
Mr. Lindell stated the best course of action is to go with advancing it to Council and
then getting the answers for the next Council meeting to the concerns and questions
that Mr. Conant brought up and then they will have that information as a Council to
vote.
Mr. Cole moved to recommend acceptance of Staff's recommendation of
authorizing the City Manager or her designee to accept the proposals and
purchase the equipment and operating system while also directing Staff to
provide answers to the specific issues that were addressed during the meeting.
The motion was seconded by Mr. Neil and unanimously carried.
Mr. Matthew Harline, Assistant City Manager, advised that he spoke with Mr. Jonathan Contant,
Legislative, Finance, and Administration Committee Member, and noted that the solutions that he
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CITY COUNCIL MEETING OF APRIL 13, 2020 PAGE 17
was offering would have required them to go with a different vendor. Mr. Harline stated that there
were a couple of misunderstandings about what the actual cost of a different IBM server would have
been. He noted that the actual savings of his solution would have been about $3,000.
Mr. Harline advised members that they moved forward with the vendor that they had been working
with for a number of years. He noted that they were going to be running billing on this server for the
next two years and they are going to be converting over to Munis, so the actual amount of traffic on
this server will be higher than they have been experiencing in the last couple of years. Mr. Harline
stated that after two or three years, hopefully it will drop off dramatically as they transfer over to
Munis from the HTE System on the AS 400 server. He stated that they believe this is the best
solution and, based on direction from Council, they moved ahead with the purchase.
Mr. Neil moved for approval of the Committee’s recommendation, seconded by Mr. Anderson
and carried by unanimous roll call vote.
Mr. Hare moved for adjournment of the Legislative, Finance, and
Administration Committee meeting, seconded by Mr. Shevock and unanimously
carried.
Meeting adjourned at 7:33 p.m.
Mr. Anderson moved for adjournment of the Council Committee of the Whole
meeting. The motion was seconded by Mr. Neil and unanimously carried.
Meeting adjourned at 7:33 p.m.
William F. Hare
Council President
By consent agenda, Mr. Neil moved for acceptance of the Council Committee of the Whole
Report, seconded by Mr. Lindell and unanimously carried.
MONTHLY REPORTS - FEBRUARY 2020
By motion of Mr. Neil, seconded by Mr. Lindell, the following monthly reports were accepted
by consent agenda:
City Assessor's Report
City Council’s Community Enhancement Fund Report
City Planner's Report (January and February 2020)
Fire Chief's Report
Police Chief's Report (January and February 2020)
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CITY COUNCIL MEETING OF APRIL 13, 2020 PAGE 18
APPOINTMENT RECOMMENDED BY COUNCIL PRESIDENT HARE - UTILITY
COMMITTEE - ANDREA B. MAUCHER (TO FILL THE UNEXPIRED TERM OF
MARGARET (SCARBOROUGH) HAASS - TERM TO EXPIRE MAY 2020)
Council President Hare recommended the appointment of Andrea B. Maucher to serve on the Utility
Committee for a term to expire May 2020 (to fill the unexpired term of Margaret (Scarborough)
Haass).
By consent agenda, Mr. Neil moved for approval of the appointment of Andrea B. Maucher,
as recommended by Council President Hare. The motion was seconded by Mr. Lindell and
carried by a unanimous roll call vote.
ANNEXATION/REZONING REQUEST/FIRST READING OF PROPOSED ORDINANCE
#2020-07 - PROPERTY LOCATED AT 679 HORESPOND ROAD, OWNED BY
JACJIM, LLC
A request was received to rezone properties located at 679 Horsepond Road, consisting of 2.00 +/-
acres, owned by JACJIM, LLC. The property is currently zoned BG (General Business
District)(Kent County Zoning Classification) and the proposed zoning is C-3 (Service Commercial
Zone) and AEOZ (Airport Environs Overlay Zone)(City of Dover Zoning Classification). (Tax
Parcel: ED-00-078.00-01-02.02-000; Planning Reference: AX-20-03).
Staff recommended that the request be referred to the Utility Committee and the Planning
Commission at their next scheduled meetings and that a public hearing be set before City Council
following Planning Commission action.
Mr. Neil moved for referral, as recommended, seconded by Mr. Sudler and unanimously
carried.
In accordance with Section 1-9 of the Dover Code, Council acknowledged the First Reading of
Proposed Ordinance #2020-07 as read by the City Clerk, by title only, as follows:
PROPOSED ORDINANCE #2020-07 AMENDING THE ZONING ORDINANCE AND
ZONING MAP OF THE CITY OF DOVER BY CHANGING THE ZONING
DESIGNATION OF THE PROPERTY LOCATED AT 679 HORSEPOND ROAD.
CITY MANAGER'S ANNOUNCEMENTS
None.
COUNCIL MEMBERS' ANNOUNCEMENTS
Mr. Anderson invited everyone to participate in a virtual chili cook-off on April 18th and advised that
more information could be found on his Facebook page. He noted that the beneficiary this year was
Kent County Code Purple.
Mr. Taylor invited everyone to participate in a neighborhood watch program in Downtown Dover.
He noted that they do four-hour shifts and they are not trying to stop crime or be police officers, they
simply observe and report. Mr. Taylor stated it has been very successful and if anyone wants to
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CITY COUNCIL MEETING OF APRIL 13, 2020 PAGE 19
participate to give him a call. He noted it would typically be two teams at a time. Mr. Taylor advised
that it is incredibly dark on New Street and Reed Street and they need lighting down there.
Mr. Slavin moved for adjournment, seconded by Mr. Lindell and unanimously carried.
Meeting adjourned at 8:17 p.m.
TRACI A. McDOWELL
CITY CLERK
All ordinances, resolutions, motions, and orders adopted by City Council during their Regular
Meeting of April 13, 2020 are hereby approved.
ROBIN R. CHRISTIANSEN
MAYOR
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