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Home My WebLink About1988/03/08-Agenda-Pre-Council AGENDA A"- Pre-Council Meeting March 8, 1988 8:30 a.m. Pre-Council Chamber FOR ACTION TODAY 1) Award of Contract - Pavement Repair at 5800 Meadowbrook Drive (M&C C-10818) - Richard Sawey, Director, Water Department ( 5 Min. ) 2) Confirmation of Budget Reduction Plans (M&C G-7471 ) - Douglas Harman , City Manager (10 Min.) 3) Questions/Answers Concerning Current Agenda Items - Douglas Harman , City Manager ( 5 Min.) FOR DISCUSSION ONLY 4) Review of Code Enforcement Activities - Tom Davis , City Services Director (15 Min.) 5) Report on Vacant Building Fires - Chief Larry McMillen , Fire Department (10 Min.) 6) Status Report on Crime Watch Voice Mail Program - Rod Bremby, Assistant to the City Manager ( 5 Min.) 7) Animal Vaccination Clinic (I . R. No. 7264) - Dr. Brooks Taylor , Director, Health Department ( 5 Min.) 8) Five Year Financial Forecast - Charles Boswell , Director , Office of Management Services (20 Min.) 9) Status Report on Exec Express - Councilman Steve Murrin (10 Min.) OFFICIAL RECORD CITY SECRETARY The Meeting Ends at 9:55 a.m. FT �OniH� TES The purpose of the Pre-Council meeting is to allow the Mayor and Councilmembers to discuss informally items on the agenda and to secure information from the City Manager and staff. Although the meeting is open to the public, citizens are requested to reserve comments and questions for the subsequent City Council meeting so they will be a part of the public record. PRE-COUNCIL MEETING MARCH 8, 1988 , PRE-COUNCIL CHAMBER ��CC1VEa `� APR 181988 ABSENT: Council Member Louis Zapata r` t4 ITEMS: 1. AWARD OF CONTRACT - PAVEMENT REPAIR AT 5800 MEADOWBROOK DRIVE (MSC C- 10818) - RICHARD SAWEY, DIRECTOR, WATER DEPARTMENT Council Member Williams noted that his questions regarding MSC C-10818 had been answered in previous meetings with the city's legal staff. 2. CONFIRMATION OF BUDGET REDUCTION PLANS (MSC G-7471) - DOUGLAS HARMAN, CITY MANAGER No discussion. 3. QUESTIONS/ANSWERS CONCERNING CURRENT AGENDA IT::MS - DOUGLAS HARMAN, CITY MANAGER None. 4. REVIEW OF CODE ENFORCEMENT ACTIVITIES - TOM DAVIS, CITY SERVICES DIRECTOR City Services Director Tom Davis rioted that only S77,000 remains in the FY 87-88 budget for abatement of code violations. He estimated that the money would be enough to cover only the cutting of weeds for the remainder of the year. He stated that the Code Enforcement Division would need approximately 5185,000 to continue its current rate of abatement. Regarding the abatement of substandard structures, Mr. Davis stated that the average cost for demolition is $1200 and the average cost for boarding and securing is $365. He also noted that the Code Enforcement Division has S500,000 in outstanding citations, a large source of potential revenue. He suggested that a series of complex problems with the Municipal Court system results in the poor collection rate. He noted that 165 individuals have five or more outstanding citations and 32 have ten or more outstanding citations. Council Member Lancaster, who serves on the Courts Committee which oversees the performance of Municipal Court judges, stated that the main factor contributing to poor collections is that the code violations are criminal rather than civil. Repeat offenders can slow the judicial process by requesting jury trials for each citation. He recommended that the Legal Department hire a full time environmental prosecutor to pursue the cases more aggressively. Council Member Webber asked how many of the cases involve single-family dwellings. Mr. Davis stated that most of the violations involve single- family, owner-occupied properties. 5. REPORT O5 VACANT BUILDI\G FIRES - CHIEF LARRY MCMILLEK, FIRE DEPARTME\" With the aid of a brief slide presentation, , ire Chief McMillen demonstrated the growing fire problems associated with vacant buildings. He cited the following statistics as Pvidence of the increasing magnitude of she problem: a. In 1985, 106 vacant str..._tares were destroyed totaling :372,29: in losses. 5. In 1986, 226 vacant structures were destroyed totaling 51 ,483,970 in losses. c. In 1987, 281 vacant strucLzres were destroyed totaling 52 ,353, 170 in losses. d. in Jin.: ry and February 1988, 18 and 24 vacant structures were cestroyed, respectively. Chief McMillen stated that the greatest number of fires in vacant structures is concentrated in three areas of the city: Poly, Near Southeast , and Southside. He warned that the problem will continue to worsen if the Code Enforcement Division must slow the demolition of vacant structures. 6. STATUS REPORT ON CRIME WATCH VOICF MAIL PROGRAM - ROD BREMBY, ASSTSTA\T TO THE CITY MANAGER Assistant to the City Manager Rod Bremby npdated Council on the status of the Crime Watch Voice Mail Program. According to Mr. Bremby, a reduction in crime in the Meadowbrook section of the city where the program has been piloted may be attributable to use of the voice mail system. He stated that an appropriation of 510,000 to 512,000 would be necessary to continue the program through the remainder of the fiscal year. He indicated that 575 ,00; would be needed to purchase the system outright. The Police Department is hoping to receive grant funds for the program sometime after October 1988. Mr. Brembv cautioned that discontinuing the program temporarily would likely be disruptive to the crime prevention efforts in Meadowbrook. Mr. Brembv stated that the city is also exploring the possibility of using the voice mail system for the police DECOR function. Such an application would eliminate the long wait police officers frequently experience when dictating reports over the telephone. t ANIMAL VACCINATION CLINIC (I.R. NO. 264) - DR. BROOKS TAYLOR, DIRECTOR, HEALTH DEPARTMENT Health Department Director Brooks Taylor briefed Council on plans to offer low cost rabies vaccinations for pet dogs in Fort Worth. According to Dr. Taylor, less than three percent of all dogs in Fort Worth are vaccinated. The low vac=cination rate is due to several factors including lack of attention to the issue, ignorance of the law requiring rabies vaccination, and pet owners' feelings of infringement . Dr. Tavlor stated that a mobile unit which offers low cost vaccinations will no longer be advertised by the city because the operation is a free enterprise. He indicated that Fort Worth veternarians are eager to cooperate with the city in developing a viable vaccination and registration program. R. FIVE YEAR FINANCIAL FORECAST - CHARLES BOSWELL, DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT SERVICES Management Services Director Charles Boswell presented Council with copies of the city' s five year financial forecast. He explained that the forecast is intended as a tool for long rar.r,e planning. The new format of the forecast allows for quarterly updates using the latest economic trend indicators. Such ;;ndates should make the document a more useful planning tool . 9. STATUS REPORT ON EXEC EXPRESS - COVNCILMAN ST YE MURRIN No discussion.