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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCouncil.Minutes.08-10-2004.Regular Proceedings of the City Council, City of Cape Girardeau, Mo. Special Session August 10,2004 33— SPECIAL SESSION–AUGUST 10, 2004 The Cape Girardeau City Council convened in a special joint session with the Cape Girardeau Public School Board of Education on Tuesday, August 10, 2004, at 6:00 p.m. with Mayor Jay B. Knudtson and School Board Chairman Charles Haubold presiding. Council Members present were Evelyn Boardman, Charles Herbst, Matthew Hopkins, Jay Purcell, and Hugh White. Marcia Ritter was absent. Members of the School Board present were Sharon Mueller, Tim Arbeiter, Robert Brown, Laura Sparkman and Steven Trautwein. William Bird was absent. Ms. Mueller made a motion, seconded by Mr. Brown, to adopt the agenda as distributed. The motion was approved upon a unanimous vote of the School Board. The agenda was adopted as distributed, upon Mr. Hopkins' motion, Ms. Boardman's second, and the following vote: Ayes, Boardman, Herbst, Hopkins, Knudtson, Purcell, Ritter, White. Nays, none. Mr. Haubold explained that the School Board held a retreat on Monday. City Manager Doug Leslie and City Planner Kent Bratton presented information on the TTF-3 project and outlined future residential growth in the city. The school would now like further discussions on development in the City. Mr. Leslie discussed several proposed developments, including Prestwick on Bloomfield Road, Arbor Heights on Perryville Road, senior citizen/couples condominiums on Bloomfield between Mt. Auburn and Silver Springs, and developments on County Road 206. Mr. Bratton discussed the Drury's mobile home development off Bloomfield behind the postal center. Mayor Knudtson discussed commercial development in and around the city, including Sears, P&G,hospital expansions, and future development just north of the city. Ms. Mueller stated that the Schools are more interested in the commercial tax base, and not residential, because this brings in additional taxes without costs of additional students; however, the development north of the city is not in the Cape School District. She questioned whether the school or the city takes the lead in attempting to change the school district boundaries. Mr. Leslie reviewed the increase in commercial and residential permits issued by the city this year, not including Kohl's and Sears. In continuing this discussion, the Mayor commented that many developers want to discuss TIF and tax abatements. There are projects that do align with the dynamics of a TIF, and he asked the School Board to discuss the benefits of these developments with an open mind. Upon questioning by Mr. Arbeiter, the Mayor further discussed what types of projects could fall under a TIF, how the City has developed guidelines to determine if a project would fall under a TIF, and how the projects could benefit the City and the School. Assistant Superintendent Rob Huff commended the City for adopting the TIF guidelines. Upon questioning by Mr. Haubold, Mr. Bratton explained enterprise zones, how these can affect a tax base, what businesses could qualify, and how long the tax abatement lasts. The Mayor noted that many developers look more towards economic development incentives to come to a city rather than tax abatements, such as Kohl's and Sears. In addition, the city is reviewing the present building codes to identify whether or not they are too restrictive for new commercial development. Mr. Trautwein questioned whether there were any new manufacturing developments coming up in the near future. Mr. Leslie explained that most sites for manufacturing development are on Nash Road, which is in Scott County. The city is working on annexation to the north, which could be a possible site for future manufacturing development. Proceedings of the City Council, City of Cape Girardeau, Mo. Special Session August 10, 2004 -34 Superintendent Mark Bowles explained that to change the school district boundary lines, a petition must be signed by ten percent of the residents of each district affected and then be put to a vote of the people. There is presently room for growth in the elementary schools. There are rooms in the Middle School, but not enough teachers; there are 25 to 30 students per class now. Many of the new residential developments are adding students to the schools that are already at capacity. The District has a Facilities Committee that is reviewing all the available buildings and the number of rooms available. [Mr. Herbst left the meeting.] Upon the request of Mr. Haubold, Mr. Leslie reviewed proposed projects to be included in the TTF-3 program. This is a "work in progress" and many of the projects could impact the Cape schools. Some of the projects include the Coker Road extension, West End Boulevard improvement, Bloomfield Road Phase III improvement to County Road 206, Vantage Drive and Big Bend Road. These projects are contingent on the transportation tax being approved by the voters in 2005. The Board and the Council finalized the meeting with general discussions about the school and the city, including teacher recruitment, school boundaries, revision of the school district boundary map, and perceptions of the school district. Ms. Mueller invited the Council to visit the Career and Technology Center, and urged the Council to use this as a tool to help bring new companies to the city. There being no further business, the School Board adjourned upon Ms. Mueller's motion, Ms. Sparkman's second, and a unanimous vote. There being no further business, the City Council adjourned upon Mr. white's motion, Mr. Purcell's second, and the following vote: Ayes, Boardman, Hopkins, Knudtson, Purcell, White. Nays,None. Absent, Herbst,Ritter. dir ,4110100:. Knudtson,Mayor Gayle L. o rad, City Clerk