August 6, 2001

The Town Council of the Town of Easton met today at 7:00 P.M.

The following Council members were present: Mr. Ford, Mr. Jensen, Mr. Reed, Ms. Jackson-Amis and President of the Council Mr. Willey. Also attending the meeting were Mayor C. Eugene Butler, Chief of Police George Harvey, Town Engineer Tim Glass, Town Attorney Christopher Kehoe, Administrative Support Supervisor Richard Warfield and Town Planner Tom Hamilton.

Ms. Jackson-Amis opened the meeting with prayer. She led those present in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Mr. Reed motioned the approval of the minutes of July 16, 2001 meeting, seconded by Mr. Ford and carried unanimously.

Master Alex Haschen was present to address the Council regarding a skateboard park. Mr. Haschen stated that he lives on Harrison Street and is present to request the consideration of a skate park in Easton, Maryland. Mr. Haschen stated that he wrote to the Mayor in May and was contacted shortly thereafter by Director of Parks and Recreation, Mr. Michael Morse to discuss the construction and design. Mr. Haschen presented letters of support for the skate park from local businesses. He thanked the Mayor and Council for their time and consideration.

Ms. Jackson-Amis commended Mr. Haschen on his perspective.

Mr. Michael Morse, Director, Easton Parks and Recreation was present and commended Alex on his presentation. Mr. Morse reiterated Mr. Haschen’s request. Mr. Morse encouraged the Council to address their needs in the very near future, as these enthusiasts are very serious about their sport.

Mayor Butler questioned the size of the facility needed. Mr. Morse stated that there are a lot of questions to be answered. Mr. Morse stated that he has visited some facilities and has quite a bit of information to refer to. He stated that it is important to get the user groups involved in the design process.

The President of the Council questioned if the insurance issue had been resolved. Mr. Morse stated that it is an issue and needs to be addressed but is an obstacle many municipalities are overcoming. The President of the Council asked if the skate park issue would be addressed during the upcoming Park Board meeting. Mr. Morse stated that Alex had been added to their agenda.

Mr. Jensen stated that he had contacted LGIT informally and they suggested that the Town of Easton call them for guidelines as they are willing to work with people building skate parks if they are working within their perimeters.

Mr. Ford encouraged the potential users to stay involved through the design and location process.

Ms. Anastasia Wrightson was not present on behalf of the Harrison Street merchants to address the Council regarding the closing of Harrison Street.

The President of the Council brought to the floor a memo from the Mayor recommending the appointment of Ms. Brenda Mitchell to the Housing Authority Commission to finish Ms. Carlene Phoenix’s term. The President of the Council stated that the Mayor’s memo also recommended the appointments of Mr. Ed Miller, Mr. H. Hoyt Heinmuller, Mr. Steve Mangasarrian, Mr. Bill Westphal, Ms. Ellen General, Ms. Vergie Tilghman and Mr. Durrie Hayes to the Economic Task Force. The President of the Council asked for any comments.

Mr. Jensen stated that he has a concern regarding the Economic Task Force that he had mentioned to the Mayor. He stated that he is a little concerned that some of the folks on this list were not involved in previous discussions and are not necessarily people that have a direct stake in the downtown. Mr. Jensen stated that his concerns are with Mr. Heinmuller and Mr. Hayes not because they would not do a good job.

The President of the Council asked for any additional comments.

Ms. Jackson-Amis stated that she does not know the person recommended for the Housing Authority. She stated that it would have been good to discuss in more detail each and every recommendation. Ms. Jackson-Amis stated that she does not have any information on the Mayor’s appointments.

Mr. Ford questioned if Ms. Cindy Stone would be involved in the Task Force meetings. The Mayor stated that she would.

Mr. Ford made a motion to approve Ms. Brenda Mitchell’s appointment to the Housing Authority, seconded by Mr. Reed and carried with Ms. Jackson-Amis abstaining.

Mayor Butler stated that he recommended that Mr. Hayes be appointed to get the Town and the County closer together on this matter. Mr. Jensen stated that he thought this was a good idea. Mr. Jensen stated that he thinks very highly of Mr. Heinmuller and he has read Mr. Hayes Economic report, which was very helpful. Mr. Jensen stated that he felt that the members should be those that would generate more grass roots support.

Ms. Jackson-Amis asked what the term would be for this Task Force. The President of the Council stated that they would be outlining a job description and making a nomination for the Economic Director. Ms. Jackson-Amis asked if the Council would have the final approval. The President of the Council stated that the Council would approve the recommendation.

Ms. Ellen General asked if another Task Force would be assigned after the first one to set the to do list and what will be done next.

Mr. Jensen asked for clarification on what the Task Force would be doing. Mr. Ford discussed his recollection.

Mr. Ford made a motion to approve the Mayor’s appointments to the Economic Task Force as submitted by the Mayor, seconded by Mr. Reed and carried with Mr. Jensen voting no.

Mr. Jensen made a motion to have a clear statement as what the Task Force is supposed to do. The President of the Council asked if he meant a mission statement. Mr. Jensen stated that is correct and it be complete before they meet. Mr. Jensen asked if this could be discussed during Executive Session. The Town Attorney stated that this would not be a matter for Executive Session.

The President of the Council asked the Mayor to let the Council members know when the meeting is set.

Ms. Jackson-Amis seconded Mr. Jensen’s motion to define a mission statement for the Task Force. The Town Attorney stated that he would draft a mission statement for the Council’s consideration. Mr. Jensen withdrew his motion.

The President of the Council brought a memo to the floor from the Town Engineer regarding proposed renovations to the Robert F. Potter Public Works Building.

The Town Engineer stated that there is a substantial difference between the bid amount which was $166,450 and the budget figure $324,000 which has been accruing for several years. The Town Engineer stated that the bid is just a portion of the total project description, which focuses on renovations to the interior of the building. He stated that the additional renovations will be bid later this year.

Ms. Jackson-Amis moved approval of the bid for renovations, seconded by Mr. Reed and carried unanimously.

The President of the Council brought Ordinance No. 432, "AN ORDINANCE OF THE TOWN OF EASTON AMENDING SECTIONS 402 (DEFINITIONS), 510.4 (PLANNED REDEVELOPMENT OVERLAY DISTRICT), 610 (SETBACKS FROM MAJOR ROADS), 608.4A (SUPPLEMENTAL STANDARDS) OF THE TOWN OF EASTON ZONING ORDINANCE" to the floor.

The President of the Council asked for any questions. There were none.

Mr. Ford made a motion to approve Ordinance No. 432, seconded by Ms. Jackson-Amis and carried unanimously following a roll call vote.

The President of the Council brought Resolution No. 5742 to the floor which authorizes the Town Clerk to make a budget transfer for funding for the Chesapeake Center.

The President of the Council asked for any questions. Ms. Jackson-Amis asked if there was any money in the budget for this. The President of the Council stated that the funding would be transferred from the Mayor’s Contingency Fund. There being no further questions, Mr. Ford moved Resolution No. 5742 for approval, seconded by Mr. Reed and carried unanimously following a roll call vote.

The President of the Council brought Resolution No. 5743 authorizing the Town Clerk to make budget transfers for the Easton Police Department to the floor.

Mr. Ford made a motion to approve Resolution No. 5743, seconded by Mr. Reed and carried unanimously following a roll call vote.

The President of the Council brought a letter from Ms. Rita Petitt, Petitt Enterprises, concerning the possible transfer of ownership of Blake Street Open Space to the Town of Easton.

The Town Planner, Mr. Hamilton, stated that the previous Council had approved the Blake Street project, which subdivided what was two large lots with ten existing houses to approximately 14 parcels to sell the houses. The Town Planner stated that he would like to meet with the Town Attorney and Town Engineer to bring back to the next meeting, a resolution that will serve everyone. He stated that there is a new tool regarding the maintenance of the open space in the amendments just recently adopted that will help this issue.

The Town Planner asked that this matter be deferred until the next meeting.

Mr. Jensen asked for clarification on the process. The Town Planner reviewed the previous PRD approval.

The President of the Council asked for any additional questions. There were none.

Mr. Jensen made a motion to table Ms. Petitt’s request until the next meeting, seconded by Mr. Ford and carried unanimously.

Mr. Russell Miles of the Easton Volunteer Fire Department was present. Mr. Miles presented the July report for the Department.

The President of the Council asked if there were any questions for Mr. Miles. There were none.

Mr. Miles asked the Town Engineer how far the Town owns on Chapel Road. The Town Engineer stated that the Town owns all the way to Route 50. Mr. Miles asked that a tree be trimmed in the vicinity of Route 50 and Chapel Road. The Town Engineer stated that it would be taken care of.

Mayor Butler stated that the Easton Little League Boys 11 and 12 year olds have won the State Championship Title and are now in Bristol, Connecticut. He stated that they won their first game Sunday morning 1-0.

Chief Harvey stated that he had a request for use of Idlewild Park’s Pavilion August 18 1700 to 2300 hours. He stated that the request is for the Avalon Theatre’s Passport to the Arts Bluegrass Band performance and they are expecting approximately 200 to 600 people. Chief Harvey stated that there will be a small amp and no alcohol permitted.

Ms. Jackson-Amis stated that there had been some concerns regarding double booking.

Mr. Ford moved approval, seconded by Mr. Jensen and carried unanimously.

Chief Harvey stated that he had a request from the Avalon Theatre’s Passport to the Arts performance by the Sea Chanters on N. Harrison Street between Dover Street and Goldsborough, August 25 and September 22, 7:00 P.M. to 8:00 P.M. Chief Harvey stated that these events will require N. Harrison Street to be closed to all vehicular traffic between 5:00 P.M. and 9:00 P.M. He stated that organizers met with the business associate members and merchants have approved another concert similar to the concert that took place August 4.

Mr. Ford asked where the main complaints were from when they closed Harrison Street from the previous concert. The Chief stated that they were from the merchants and mainly because they were not notified beforehand that the road would be closed.

Ms. General stated that the concerns had been resolved as she spoke with the merchants at their meeting. She stated that the first concert got a rough start as they were learning how to do it. She thanked the Council for the opportunity to experiment and see how to make it work.

Mr. Ford made a motion to approve the concerts August 25 and September 22, seconded by Mr. Jensen and carried unanimously.

Chief Harvey discussed Easton Celebration’s carnival. He stated that there is a change this year as it is scheduled to take place on the V.F.W. grounds on Glebe Road. Chief Harvey stated that the carnival is scheduled to take place August 20 through August 25. Chief Harvey discussed the police officer’s overtime necessary for the event which will be approximately $1,739 to the Town and $532.52 if overtime is paid direct to the officers. Chief Harvey stated that the main problem has been alcohol. Chief Harvey recommended approval of the carnival.

Mr. Ford moved approval of the carnival, seconded by Mr. Jensen and carried unanimously.

Mr. Jensen discussed the truck signs on Goldsborough Street. He stated that he has noticed them on Dover as well as Bay Street and Port Street. Chief Harvey stated that the posted signs are hard to enforce due to the fact that they are not size specific in height or weight. Chief Harvey stated that they are looking at the issue. Mr. Jensen asked if we have a more specific ordinance in terms of truck traffic.

The Town Attorney stated that the ordinance has been around for many decades and it is his understanding that the signs relate to tractor-trailer traffic. He stated that he would report at the next meeting.

Chief Harvey stated Lt. Wade Roche is recovering from surgery at University of Maryland Hospital. He stated that Ms. Betty Mackert is also recovering from surgery and being treated. Chief Harvey stated that he hopes that they will be back to work soon.

Ms. Jackson-Amis stated that an employee of The Memorial Hospital at Easton who resides on Washington Street had contacted her. The resident has asked that the Town of Easton do something about trash collection, particularly downtown. She asked that the schedule for pick up be looked at so that businesses would not put their trash out on the weekend.

Mr. Glass stated that he is aware of the problem and they have addressed this with door hangers and pleas as this detracts from the downtown. He stated that he is open for suggestions and will try a little harder.

Ms. Jackson-Amis discussed the drainage issue referred to her by Mr. Stephen Hunter, via e-mail, regarding the problem with drainage in the alley between Washington and Harrison Street where the water comes onto his property. Ms. Jackson-Amis asked the Town Engineer to help her address this as quickly as possible.

The Town Engineer stated that he would meet with Ms. Jackson-Amis and update her on the situation.

The Town Attorney stated that he would like an Executive Session after the regularly scheduled meeting to discuss real estate, legal advice and personnel.

Mr. Ford thanked the Council for the kind words and support for his mother. He stated that he is confident that she will come home tomorrow after six weeks in the hospital.

Mr. Jensen stated that he had a nice time at the Little League Banquet and he wished the Little League 11 and 12 year old boys luck.

Ms. Jackson-Amis stated that Del. Rudy Kane had visited the Town of Easton and conducted a workshop. She stated that there was a good group from the community to talk about self-help housing.

The President of the Council asked if there was anyone in the audience to come before the Council.

Ms. Libby Dawkins, 11 N. Thorogood Lane stated that she had recently joined EBMA and encouraged other business members to please sweep their sidewalks. Ms. Dawkins stated that the trash issue being set out for pick-up was discussed during the recent EBMA meeting. Ms. Dawkins stated that all property owners should be making a better effort to keep the streets and sidewalks clean.

The President of the Council stated that the Human Relations Workshop originally scheduled for tomorrow evening is being postponed. The President of the Council asked that the Town Clerk contact the State of Maryland to schedule the earliest possible date for a representative to address the Town of Easton for a workshop.

The Town Planner stated that the Assistant Town Planner, Mr. Thomas had met with the Community Legacy group that was assigned to look at the Town of Easton’s application. He stated that Mr. Thomas had taken the group on a tour. He stated that from the 10 million dollars available, there have been over 100 million dollars in requests.

At 8:13 P.M., Mr. Ford made a motion to go into Executive Session, seconded by Mr. Reed and carried unanimously.

The President of the Council declared the Executive Session closed at 9:44 P.M.

There being no further business, the President of the Council adjourned the regularly scheduled meeting at 9:45 P.M.

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Richard T. Warfield, Jr. for Town Clerk