CCW Minutes

COUNCIL COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE The Council Committee of the Whole met on March 28, 2023, at 6:00 p.m. with Council President Sudler presiding. Members of Council present were Mr. Anderson, Ms. Arndt, Mr. Boggerty, Mr. Hare, Mr. Neil, Dr. Pillsbury (via WebEx), and Mr. Rocha. Mayor Christiansen was absent. Civilian members present for their Committee meetings were Dr. Short (Safety Advisory and Transportation), Mr. Shevock (via WebEx), and Mr. Contant (via Webex) (Legislative, Finance, and Administration). Mr. Hosfelt (Safety Advisory and Transportation) was absent. ADOPTION OF AGENDA Mr. Neil moved for adoption of the agenda, seconded by Mr. Anderson and unanimously carried. SAFETY, ADVISORY, AND TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE The Safety, Advisory, and Transportation Committee met with acting Chairman Sudler presiding. Adoption of Agenda Mr. Rocha moved for adoption of the agenda, seconded by Mr. Boggerty and unanimously carried. Request for Waivers – Appendix A – Subdivisions, Article VI – Subdivision – General Requirements and Design Standards, Section A – Streets, Section B – Sidewalks, and Section E – Lots (Plan for Lands of Wyoming LCC at Jefferson Terrace Extended as Ekaman Subdivision): Waiver to create an Alternative Lot Configuration and Reduced Frontage on a Public Street (Stormwater Management Lot); Waiver for Elimination of Sidewalk Requirement on Monroe Terrace for Residual Lot; and Waiver to allow Increased Percentage of Lots on Cul-de-Sac associated with the Conceptual Subdivision Plan to subdivide property consisting of 4.2311 acres into six (6) Lots. (Mary Ellen Gray, Planning and Community Development Director) Ms. Mary Ellen Gray, Planning and Community Development Director reviewed the background and analysis regarding the Request for Waivers for Jefferson Terrace regarding planning reference: SB-23-01. The Planning Commission recommended approval of the Subdivision Waiver Requests for the following: to allow an Alternative Lot Configuration and Reduced Frontage on a Public Street (Stormwater Management Area Lot) and to allow an Increased Percentage of Lots on a Cul-de-Sac. The Planning Commission recommended the denial of the Waiver Request for the Elimination of the Sidewalk Requirement along the Public Right-of-Way Frontage of Monroe Terrace (Residual Lot). Responding to Mr. Rocha, Mr. Kyle Burchard, Mountain Consulting Project Engineer stated that he is unfamiliar with the 2015 plan and asked why it was not brought to the final stages. Mr. Burchard stated that he had spoken with Jason Lyon, Director of Water & Wastewater/Engineering Services about what factors are affecting the drainage at this location. There is a combination of things, the existing facilities have silted in overtime upstream, thereby releasing an additional volume of water during storm events. Also, there may be some issues with the culvert that is leaving the Westview subdivision.

COUNCIL COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE MEETING MARCH 28, 2023 PAGE 2 Mr. Burchard stated that they are aware of trees that have fallen across the stream in previous weather events that may be obstructing some of the capacity of the channel. Mr. Burchard stated that the project will be put through a full review with the Kent Conservation District to assess the drainage to ensure compliance. Mr. Burchard explained that the flooding noted in the public comments at the Planning Commission was due to some of the deferred upstream maintenance and some obstruction of the stream channel. As this project moves forward those matters should be addressed by the city and the owner of the property in addition to toll stormwater management compliance with DNREC regulations. Responding to Mr. Rocha, Mr. Burchard stated that he believes there is a likelihood that the combination of maintenance attention to the existing infrastructure for drainage as well as the appropriate design and engineering of the drainage for the subdivision will yield improvements for the neighbors that are upstream. Responding to Mr. Rocha, Mr. Lyon stated that to the west of the potential property to be developed there is an area that is technically called a dry pond, that is holding some silt. The city owns that land and has the jurisdiction to fix the area that is not currently dry. Mr. Lyon stated that his team is working with Public Works to get that done. As for the culvert, Mr. Lyons’s team will have to do a little more investigation. The pond drains on a culvert under the road underneath Westview Terrace to the stream that cuts through the property. Responding to Mr. Rocha, Mr. Lyon stated that Kent Conservation District is the entity that reviews all stormwater construction and improvements in the city, and they would not let that happen. They look at the pre-development, how much water drops from the northern or highest elevation, where the raindrop would fall, and how long it takes to get out of that property. The difference between the pre-development versus the post-development cannot be any greater. That includes the quantity of water and the speed at which it releases. So, that is why there is a pond on the conceptual plan, to catch the water ahead of time before it hits the stream, and it will manage the flow of that water to mimic what it was before the development. Responding to Mr. Rocha, Mr. Lyon stated that in his opinion it is going to make it acceptable for that development to come in with the improvements that are being talked about upstream and the potential of getting rid of the debris in the stream. Cleaning that up, allowing more of a channel for more water to access it, should improve the current situation. Mr. Neil stated that he lives on a piece of property that is surrounded by wetlands and it had to have a drainage ditch for it to be built on. When there is a problem they have to go to the city and ask if they can do something about it because the owner of the property is not doing something about it. Twice now there have been major changes to get swales and other things that are going into it. Mr. Neil stated that he asked former City of Dover Code Inspector Dave McGinnis, why? Mr. McGinnis stated, “What do you expect, you are on a swamp”. Mr. Neil stated that is anecdotal, but that is what he sees on this property. He has done more research, pulled this in, and brought maps in of the before and after just so he could have a full understanding that council will not be putting a group of people in a situation that is going to cause them to have concerns with the height of their house, and where it rains down, and that have you.

COUNCIL COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE MEETING MARCH 28, 2023 PAGE 3 Mr. Neil stated that he took lots of notes as he went through and is concerned that the stormwater management area would have a residential frontage. If it says residential, could they put a house on it at a later date? Mr. Neil stated he believes there are a lot of things that have to be done before it goes back to the Planning Commission to make sure the city is not putting these people in a difficult situation with the water. Mr. Neil stated that Kent Conservation District noted that the stormwater management facilities are problematic and unacceptable when located within easements of residential lots. Are they there? Is it problematic? Mr. Neil stated he is an advocate for housing in the city. Council has to be extremely careful how this is handled because if it comes back and it does not look good, his vote will be no, no matter what the Planning Commission says about it. They do not know how many safeguards can be placed against Mother Nature, and this is dealing with Mother Nature with the water. Even when they plan for heavy rains, unexpected rain can do things. Mr. Neil stated that they are going to have to take a close look at how they are planning this, council can not give away waivers and put people in jeopardy when they buy their homes. Responding to Mr. Sudler, Ms. Gray stated no, this will not come back to council or committee once it has this approval and approval from the Planning Commission. Ms. Arndt stated that she would like to go through each of the waivers and provide her thoughts on which way her vote is leaning. For the first waiver, alternative lot configuration and reduced frontage on a public street. That one lot with the alternative configuration and public frontage is just for stormwater management, there is not going to be a house on that lot. So, she does not see any issue with that waiver in terms of the alternative lot configuration and the reduced frontage on that street. For the second waiver, the elimination of a sidewalk requirement, she would not be in favor of that because the policies and practices are to improve walkability, and a sidewalk waiver would be counterintuitive to that policy and practice. For the third waiver, to allow an increased percentage of lots on a cul-de-sac associated with the concept of a subdivision plan she would also not be in favor. The code is pretty strong on the emphasis of not encouraging dead-end streets. The city code says, “In no instance shall more than 20% of the lots in a proposed subdivision be on a cul-de-sac”. All of the lots in the proposal are on a cul-de-sac so, for that reason, she would not be in favor of that waiver either. Responding to Mr. Sudler, Ms. Arndt stated that it is within the municipal code, Appendix A – Land Subdivision Regulations, Article 6 – Streets, Item 15. Mr. Hare stated he heard there were going to be four houses but now he is seeing two other lots that are under a different LLC. Responding to Mr. Boggerty, Ms. Arndt stated that council should be voting on each of the waivers individually to avoid any confusion as to whether or not council is approving one, two, or three. Ms. Arndt moved to recommend approving the waiver to create an alternative lot configuration and reduce frontage on a public street for the stormwater management lot based upon the condition of it permanently remaining a stormwater management law. The motion was seconded by Mr. Anderson and carried with Mr. Neil voting no.

COUNCIL COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE MEETING MARCH 28, 2023 PAGE 4 Responding to Mr. Hare, Ms. Gray stated that the proposal is for a six-lot subdivision, four buildable lots, one lot for stormwater, and one residual lot. Responding to Mr. Hare, Ms. Gray stated that the lots do not have any frontage, or any access to it, as far as she can see on the plan. Ms. Gray stated she does not see how it could be a buildable lot if there is no access to it. Ms. Arndt moved to recommend approving the waiver for the elimination of sidewalk requirements on Monroe Terrace for the residual lot as recommended by staff. The motion was seconded by Mr. Anderson and denied by a roll call vote of 0-8. Ms. Arndt moved to recommend approving the waiver to allow an increased percentage of lots on the cul-de-sac associated with the conceptual subdivision, as recommended by staff. The motion was seconded by Mr. Anderson and denied by a roll call vote of 0-8. (Mr. Boggerty left at 7:20 p.m.) Review of the First Steps of the Loockerman Street Changes (Jason Lyon, Water/Wastewater Director) Mr. Jason Lyon, Water/Wastewater Director, reviewed the background and analysis regarding the Review of the First Steps of the Loockerman Street Changes. Responding to Mr. Rocha, Mr. Lyon stated that the large stormwater sewer has been separated. It was originally intended as combined, so it is very large. A standard sewer is a minimum size of eight inches in diameter, sometimes fifteen or twenty-four inches, however, Loockerman Street’s is larger than that. The storm sewer is in the street already so the pipe that is there does not have the same amount of capacity as it did when it was first constructed. Responding to Mr. Rocha, Mr. Lyon stated that his recommendation in the cost that was provided to the team was to realign the pipe, this is done without digging up the pipe. There are several ways to do this, it can be done with steam curing or ultraviolet curing. This increases the structural integrity of the pipe as well as eliminates any infiltration or inflow that goes in. If a cracked pipe were to happen and groundwater could seep in, that would eliminate that. Responding to Mr. Rocha, Mr. Lyon stated that currently wastewater from all of the local businesses is collected. Mr. Neil stated that he remembers in discussions that the city has had some trouble getting water from one side of Loockerman to the other side for things. Mr. Neil stated he presumes the wisest thing to do is whatever council can do, and whatever funding has to be found to do this must be done as quickly as possible. If the city is going to develop it, they better have everything in place. Mr. Anderson stated that he agrees with Mr. Neil. Mr. Anderson also stated that there will be some economic dislocation to the businesses there when this project starts. If the city is requesting a $3.5 million bond bill, it is probably just as easy to put in a $3.65 million request for economic dislocation. The Downtown Dover Partnership could administer the grants so that the city would not have to. Mr. Anderson stated that is something to think about so that the city does not lose any of the existing businesses while trying to bring in new residents and businesses.

COUNCIL COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE MEETING MARCH 28, 2023 PAGE 5 Responding to Mr. Anderson, Jason Lyon stated that yes he would imagine so. Mr. Lyon stated that he would like to envision this to be very much a staged, phased approach, block at a time, systematically going through it. They would always have to have a pedestrian detour, which is going to be a state-owned road, which is going to require that from DNREC. All these things have to be logistically figured out and if he could step back a moment to Councilman Neil's point about, getting everything ready. Mr. Lyon stated that the other thing that they have to start considering is future regulations. He means potentially the requirement of fire sprinkler systems. So the city needs to make sure when they install this water line, they need to consider that as well. To make that available so they do not have to dig the road up again. So those are really good points and he had not considered the economic portion of that. He knew it would disrupt them, but he did not consider funding. Committee action was not required. Follow up on the Capital School District Safety Concerns in the Hispanic Community (Council President Sudler) Council President Sudler reviewed the status of the Capital School District Safety Concerns in the Hispanic Community. Council President Sudler stated that The Capital School District did an excellent job of taking care of the concerns, and they have plans moving forward. Committee action was not required. Mr. Sudler moved for adjournment of the Safety Advisory and Transportation Committee meeting, hearing no objection the meeting adjourned at 7:45 p.m. LEGISLATIVE, FINANCE, AND ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE The Legislative, Finance, and Administration Committee met with Chairman Anderson presiding. Adoption of Agenda Mr. Neil moved for adoption of the agenda, seconded by Mr. Sudler and unanimously carried. Creation of an Economic and Community Development Fund (David Hugg, City Manager) Mr. David Hugg, City Manager, reviewed the background and analysis regarding the Creation of an Economic and Community Development Fund. Committee action was not required. Responding to Mr. Contant, Mr. Hugg stated that there are about 110 acres in ten lots. The majority are about ten acres a piece. The asking price is approximately $45,000 to $50,000 an acre. There are about six or seven under some kind of contract arrangement. So about $40,000 an acre times a hundred and some acres, so about $4 million. Mr. Hugg stated that he thinks that in his discussions with the committee chair, their first focus was to if he can use the word preserve, but to direct the proceeds from those sales so that we have an opportunity to continue to grow the business opportunities and community opportunities in the city.

COUNCIL COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE MEETING MARCH 28, 2023 PAGE 6 Responding to Mr. Contant, Mr. Hugg stated that he is suggesting that this committee, the Legislative Financial Administration Committee, be the entity that makes decisions on how the funds get dispersed from the account. Responding to Mr. Anderson, Mr. Hugg stated that from there it would, as with all committee actions, it would go to council. Mr. Hugg continued to state that that is why the draft is a not-to- exceed amount or as directed by council. So it was simply to get out a kind of placeholder for the amount of the fund. Committee action was not required. Update on the Movement of Conduit Bonds (David Hugg, City Manager) Mr. David Hugg, City Manager, reviewed the background and analysis regarding the Movement of Conduit Bonds. Mr. Hugg stated that he will share the information that was given to the council at a prior meeting as requested. Committee action was not required. Mr. Anderson moved for adjournment of the Legislative, Finance, and Administration Committee meeting, hearing no objection the meeting adjourned at 8:03 p.m. Mr. Sudler moved for adjournment of the Council Committee of the Whole meeting, hearing no objection the meeting adjourned at 8:04 p.m. Roy Sudler, Jr. Council President AB/ar Attachments Attachment #1 -