CITY OF MORROW, GEORGIA
Regular Council Meeting
October 11, 2005
PRESENT AT MEETING: ALSO PRESENT:
Jim Millirons, Mayor John Lampl, City Manager
Virlyn Slaton, Mayor Pro Tem
Thomas J. LaPorte, Councilman
Charles O. Sorrow, Councilman
C. R. Huie, Councilman
Mayor Millirons called the regular meeting of the Morrow City Council to order at 7:35 p.m. The meeting took place in the Council Chambers of the Morrow Municipal Complex, 1500 Morrow Road, Morrow, GA 30260. Everyone stood for the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag. Councilman Sorrow gave the invocation.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Work Session - October 11, 2005
Regular Meeting - October 11, 2005
Councilman Sorrow made a motion to approve the minutes, seconded by Councilman Huie. The motion passed unanimously.
PUBLIC HEARING:
It is the intention of the City of Morrow to annex property at certain addresses on Lake Harbin Road, Carla Drive, and Meadowbrook Lane pursuant to Chapter 36 of Title 36 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated. The proposed zoning classification of the property upon annexation is RS-80. The current Clayton County zoning is RS-180.
(All materials referenced in the presentation can be found with the official minutes or in the Annexation Supplement 2005 in the City Clerk’s office.)
John Lampl, City Manager
City Manager Lampl began by noting it was a pleasure to submit petition for City of Morrow, specifically related to residential property, known commonly as the intersection of Lake Harbin and Meadowbrook. This annexation encompasses a number of parcels, parcel portions and road scapes. As the City continues with the annexation plan included in the 2004 Comprehensive Pan, this annexation is merely one more piece of that puzzle. Comprehensive Plans for cities and counties ultimately determine future zoning requirements. Looking at the Future Land Use map for Clayton County, Morrow is almost in the center, with Southlake Mall as a prominent identifier. Just to the right of that is Lake Harbin road and the color on the map is yellow, meaning medium density residential. In the County this is RS-180, RS-18A or RS -110 which in a nutshell is single family detached residential with four units per acre. Looking at Morrow’s Comprehensive Plan, done at the same time as the County’s, the proposed zoning for this property is RS-80 which is compatible also allowing four units per acre of residential. City Manager Lampl submitted the Comprehensive Plans for both the City of Morrow and Clayton County for public record.
Looking at annexation and why it is in the best interest of the resident, Mr. Lampl pointed out some City attributes. The City did not have new housing for the better part of 30 years until D.R. Horton developed Fox Croft. Ultimately Ansbury Corporation come through and built Central Park, where two of the Councilmen live. In these developments the houses are a good size, even though the lots size is small. They are traditional to the RS-25 zoning in houses size but not the 2,500 square foot lot. Referring to a slide Mr. Lampl explains that a particular house is a little over 2,800 feet with two garage and brick exterior.
The new subdivision off of Lake Harbin, Harbin Terrace, is another development by the Dr. Horton and has proven that there is still a residential market. In this development the lowest package will go for $190,000. But on average the houses are $225,000 to $325,000 the property has a ten acre lake and the City anticipates very nice residential property.
Mr. Lampl went on to explain that another important element in Morrow is code enforcement. It is a fact that a comparable property outside the City of Morrow vs. one inside the City sells for approximately $20,000 less. There is empirical evidence to support this fact. Mr. Lampl suggests that values will rise and that if a $300,000 house can sell, there is proof that a residential market is still alive.
Referring to a slide, Mr. Lampl pointed out that certain properties outside the City have been greatly devalued because of neglect. If you have someone with no pride in their property absentee landlords, neglect is a problem. In Morrow, even with leased property, landlords have come to understand that if you want to do business in this City that they will have to maintain their property well and respectfully.
Looking at the BG classification, these zones are on the Southern side of I-75, around Southlake Mall and Mt. Zion. The mixed-use classifications are along 54 Hwy and Lee Street. These developments can be expensive and Mr. Lampl refers to a slide depicting Smyrna’s mixed use developments to illustrate the types of development for which the City is planning. These progressive developments in Smyrna as taken their assessed value from 300 million to 3 billion in the last 12 years, they have been very successful. The days of the strip center along Hwy 54 are over and the Comprehensive Plan outlines this philosophy.
The Gateway Village development will be Morrow’s new downtown. The rail station will start to define the transportation corridors. I-75 and Hwy 54 are traditional transportation, the City has grant money to commence construction of a pedestrian trail system will tie pedestrian traffic into the Atlanta-Macon rail line. The 1.5 million dollar street project and the 2 million dollar parking structure will all support the rail line which is anticipated by 2007.
A family environment is created through Lisa Sewell and the tourism staff. The Day in the Park and Safe Halloween, for those who have children and grandchildren, Summerfest on the Fourth of July is one of the best fireworks presentations in South Atlanta. Morrow offers a family environment for raising children, one in which to be proud. City planners and leaders understand that all these offerings create an opportunity in the best interests of the residents in this annexation.
Mr. Lampl explains that Morrow is one of the few cities in Georgia that have received a City of Excellence award and Morrow is one among only four other cities that have received two of these awards, one award for be a Trendsetter in public safety. The City’s leadership matters, it is stable and reliable. As Clayton County faces changes in leadership, the importance of stability is increasingly apparent.
City Manager John Lampl turned the floor over to Public Works Director Jeff Eady.
Jeff Eady, Public Works Director
Mr. Eady presented the new Public Works patch.
Mr. Eady introduced himself and noted that he has been with the City for 23 years. Public Works’ directive is to deliver quality service and maintain a quality infrastructure. Public Works provides physical infrastructure essential to the City and its economic and social development. Mr. Eady went on to explain that Public Works provides the physical base on which the City operates, this necessary for the City to exist and prosper.
Public Works services two different customer groups, internal from department to department and external from department to public. The Public Works department is divided into sectors, transportation, community development and solid waste management, parks, public facilities and vehicles and equipment. Each of these divisions is broken down even further into smaller divisions. This enables budget and project management.
The transportation goal is to maintain, rehabilitate and construct a network to ensure public safety, promote the economy and enhance the quality of life. The department is responsible for approximately 26 miles of paved street. Morrow has one of the busiest road networks in Clayton County, hosting as many as 50,000 cars a day on the major arterials and 12,000 to 18,000 on the minor arterials. The department tries to get 10 years of life from each road, assessing when necessary the need to grade and pave. The paving determinate is based on 10 criteria.
Street and drainage maintenance also falls under transportation. Maintaining right of way, patching and sealing are done to maximize life before resurfacing. The streets are swept 12 times a year, or monthly, this keeps the storm drains clean and avoids backup onto the roads. During the Christmas season we pay special attention so the City looks nice when the 80,000 to 100,000 people show up daily.
Public Works is also responsible for sidewalks and traffic control signage as well as street lights, their placement and wattage. Mr. Eady explained that the City takes street lighting seriously and invited the public to notify him if there are lights out in the City.
Mr. Eady told the audience that the Public Works department is always looking for ways to enhance and maintain the quality of life in Morrow and therefore increase property value. One such way is to install subdivision markers for neighborhoods throughout the City. These markers are each lighted and landscaped. Some neighborhoods have adopted the markers and take care of them.
The City of Morrow uses decorative sign posts adding value to the City. At the intersections there are mast arms, getting away from the traditional less attractive features. Mr. Eady let the audience know that he attended a meeting this day with GDOT at the traffic management center. This meeting was an effort to further the project of installing mast arms all along Hwy 54.
The Public Works department also stamps the streets and paints these surfaces, helping to create a sense of place. Many of the neighborhoods in Morrow have their own park, “pocket parks”. Individual parks in eight neighborhoods, some with playground equipment some only meeting plazas. Each neighborhood is evaluated to see if they can accommodate a park, if the land is available. If so, the Public Works department designs and constructs the park. Currently, Mr. Eady explained, the City is working on a pedestrian trail system, the design of Phase I is almost 99% complete. The project should be ready to bid in a couple of months and will commence at Westwood Way and terminate around Navaho.
Mr. Eady referred to a slide to highlight Morrow’s newest park at the corners of Graceland and Morrow Road and Hammack. Here there will be a connection to the trail system with meeting areas and a gazebo.
The Public Works department also manages pest control. And although mosquito season is ending, spraying usually occurs once a week. Typically this is done Wednesdays, depending on the weather.
The department is also responsible for the engineering, planning, design review, field inspection and project management on the subdivisions and commercial development in the City. The last two subdivisions were just approved and if you go by Lake Harbin Terrace you will see the streets have already been paved. Streets are inspected after 24 months to ensure they are in good shape. The department looks to ensure the construction projects are designed to enhance the public safety and traffic flow impacts and to minimize environmental impacts.
Public Works is also responsible for Solid Waste Management. We collect both commercial and residential garbage. Our residential practice of picking up at the back door twice a week is only $51.25 quarterly. That is a good deal for “back door”, you do not have to roll your cart to the street. When you drive through Morrow one thing you will not see are hundreds and hundreds of big trash cans sitting at the curb. We also offer curb side service for anything such as appliances, furniture and limbs and debris and that is at no charge. The department does charge for bagged yard waste @$1.75 per bag. There are 371 commercial customers and 968 residential customers. The department looks to increase that number by approximately 200.
Public Works accomplishes all these functions with nine fulltime employees, two trustee laborers from Clayton County. The trustees take care of the house keeping duties for City Hall and the Municipal Complex. Morrow also works between two and six inmates daily. Each individual is kept busy. Mr. Eady noted that the crew at Public Works is a great team and the team as been in place for almost seven years. These men and women work very hard and do everything possible to deliver quality service.
Public Works understands that this annexation is in the best interest of the residents. He assures the audience that the services provided have minimal impact on daily activities. Mr. Eady reiterated the sentiments of the City Manager, development guidelines and code enforcement, the fact that we require pedestrian lighting and sidewalks as well as parks all make Morrow all create an opportune environment for the residents.
This also includes the City beautification initiatives such as sign posts and street printing. The street sweeping and right of way maintenance have an important positive impact on the community. In the County, you can notice they get to right of way when they can. Morrow is on a schedule of every ten days, unless weather prevents.
Public Works believes that the City will maintain property values for the home owners and even increase them. Mr. Eady stated that the Public Works Department will have no problem taking care of the additional homes.
Public Works Director Jeff Eady turned the presentation over to Katherine Capps.
Katherine Capps, Director Emergency Communications
The 911 Center is the center of communications for the Police, Fire, EMS and Public Works, Court Services and GCIC. The Center handles both emergency and non emergency calls for Morrow and neighboring Lake City. The Center also handles the notification of secondary services for the City. These include Animal Control, Code Enforcement, Public Works, Traffic Engineering and the Water Authority when they are needed.
Last year the Center handled 54,877 calls for service. Thirty six thousand two hundred and eleven of these were handled by the Morrow Police Department. Last year the Center also handled 69,938 incoming telephone calls of which 18,846 were 911 calls.
The question stands, “how will the 911 Center be affected by the proposed annexation?” Throughout the area proposed for annexation, in the last twelve months, there were six calls for service. These were all police calls, no fire and no EMS calls. Of the six police calls, one was a burglary, two suspicious person, one a domestic, one was assist motorist, a person passing through and one 911 hang up call.
In Morrow, the 911 Center offers an added service of dispatching to 911 hang up calls. This ensures that the citizens are safe and secure. We do not merely log the phone call, we check to make sure all is well. This is a service not offered by Clayton County.
All Morrow Dispatchers are also EMD certified. They are certified by a leading agency, the National Academy of EMD. We are one of only five Centers in the metro Atlanta area in which all dispatchers are certified. Our Center utilizes the leading technology in the industry. This is made possible by the Mayor and Council and the citizens in the community.
Morrow 911 employs the enhanced 911 system. This system provides the caller’s address and telephone number. The Center is Phase II compliant, this means that if you call from a cell phone, either on the road or from home, dispatchers can pin point your location and view your call back number.
With mapping technology, the 911 Center is able to send the closest police officer. Referring to a slide, Ms. Capps pointed out the Comet Tracker Software used to track police officer activity. The Center’s technology also includes a 911 simulator used for public education. Currently we are working with both the elementary schools and several community programs. The Center also monitors the traffic flow through the City using six Department of Transportation cameras. In place, there is also am emergency warning system to notify citizens and businesses of severe weather or chemical hazards in and around the City.
Katherine Capps submitted Clayton County call logs for the record. The floor was then turned over to Mark Herendeen, Fire Department Chief.
Mark Herendeen, Fire Chief
Chief Herendeen introduced himself and noted that his career in Fire has lasted 28 years. He went on to explain that the Morrow Fire Department is less than one mile from the proposed area of annexation. The closest Clayton County Fire Department is 1.7 miles. Morrow is closer and faster and can be on the scene within approximately two minutes. The Department’s average response time throughout the City is 3.45 minutes. This is well below the National standards. As shown on the map, the proposed annexation area is a straight shot from the Fire Department. The closest Clayton County station is 1.7 miles and they have only one rescue squad, which means they may not be in the station. Morrow has two rescue squads in the station. Chief Herendeen referred to a slide showing the Department’s equipment, which is very up to date.
The Fire Department provides ALS emergency rescue squad, which is paramedic level on each rescue vehicle and also, we respond with fire engines with paramedics if the rescue squads are on calls. Morrow prides itself in the paramedic levels and is one of the first in the area to put paramedics on engines. Chief Herendeen explained that Morrow is blessed to have nine person shifts with a seven man minimum. Technically, accounting for vacations, sick time and holidays, there are 7 to 8 people on each shift.
The Department has two fire engines, a ladder truck, two emergency vehicles, a chief car and a command car. The Morrow Fire Department holds mutual aid agreements with Forest Park and all the surrounding areas. If we need them, they will be there. Including himself, Chief explained, Morrow has 29 full time employees, nine people a shift, the Chief and the Fire Marshall which equates to 7.2 fire fighters per square mile, something the City can be proud of. Clayton County has 221 full time employees equating to 1 fire fighter per 2.6 square miles. Morrow has 1 fire fighter for every 168 residents; Clayton County has 1 fire fighter for every 1,027 residents. This data is based on the 2000 Census.
The City of Morrow Fire Department is funded 100% by the City’s General Fund. Clayton County is funded by the Cities for whom they provide coverage. That is, Cities pay a fee. The County’s EMS division is funded by the County’s General Fund. The County employees are designated fire or designated EMS.
Chief Herendeen addresses insurance ratings and ISO ratings. These rates are set by insurance agencies and designate the cost of premiums. In the City of Morrow the Department has a rating of 4 and in Clayton County they have a rating of 3. There is no difference between the 3 and 4 rating. An in house survey of nine insurance companies corroborates this finding.
The Morrow Fire Department can move 1700 gallons a minute with one five inch line. The County still uses 3 inch supply line and can only move 500 gallons a minute. The County has to drop three separate lines in order to move the same amount of water as Morrow. Actually is will be 200 gallons less and take a lot more effort.
Community involvement from the Morrow Fire Department includes making suggestions on where to place smoke detectors and help map pathways to exit the house. The Department has a fire house used in public education and gives free blood pressure checks; administering as many as six daily. In summary, Chief Herendeen notes, it is in the best interest of these residents to come into the City, the Department is close, dedicated and not always so busy that they are not there when needed and Morrow has quality, skill and professional employees.
Chief Herendeen turned the presentation over to Charlie Sewell, Morrow Police Department Chief.
Charlie Sewell, Police Chief
The Morrow Police Department feels that it is in the best interest of any new resident to move into the City. The Morrow Police Department provides surveys to any who calls and says “we are concerned with the security of our house.” Officers will schedule an appointment at a time convenient to the resident. The Department hosts, free of charge, Safe Halloween at the City Hall park, the Department and volunteers will do out of town checks. They actually walk around your house when you are out of town, checking every door and every window. There is a 12 week Citizens Police Academy, free to anyone and a Citizens Police Academy Alumni Association, proving various programs for alumni. The Department sponsors 55 Alive driving courses. There is an established PROUD neighborhood program, a community policing program. It stands for Protected, Respected, Organized Unified and Desirable. Each neighborhood has both a police and fire officer assigned to them. These all ensure that residents get personal attention.
Something in Morrow which is unique and that we are very proud of is our Citizen’s Corps. Under Homeland Security and Citizens Corps, we have a (CERT), Citizens Emergency Response Team and (VIPS) Volunteers in Public Service. They are trained to respond to manmade and natural disasters. Morrow had the first deployable CERT team in the state of Georgia. The CERT, VIP and Citizens Corp volunteers serve as extra eyes and ears, supporting our public safety network. They help to fight crime.
Morrow Police Department is full service. Every officer in their vehicle has the skills to process a crime scene, no outside agencies are necessary. You do not have to sit around waiting for someone else to show up. This Department does not take reports over the telephone, instead they respond personally to every call that comes in to the station or through emergency communications providing a higher level of service and the Department patrols neighborhoods and commercial areas even when they are not responding to calls for service.
Morrow’s average response time to emergency calls is 3 minutes and for non emergency calls is less than 7 minutes. As Ms. Capps reported there were six calls for service in the proposed annexation area over a year, this volume of calling will be no problem at all for the Morrow Police Department.
Morrow Police Department has three radar trailers. This is to help make travelers aware of their speed. The Department conducts civic presentations on everything from identify fraud to public safety.
Morrow’s full time police force consists of 31 sworn officers. This represents 7.75 officers for every square mile in the City. Clayton County’s 221 sworn officers represent 1.85 officers per square mile throughout the county. With 31 officers, there is one officer for every 158 residents. In Clayton County the officer resident ratio is 1 officer for every 873 residents.
The Department uses a global positioning satellite enabling a “closest available unit” style of dispatch enhances response times for both emergency and non emergency calls. Morrow has in car mapping and analysis so the Department can see where the crimes are occurring. We are proud that these technologies earned the Department an award for Technology in Public Safety. The Police Chief suggested that it is in the best interest of these residents to come into the City as code enforcement efforts will keep each home owner and all the neighboring homes to the same standards. This will increase property values and offer better services from public safety.
Police Chief Sewell turned the floor over the Grant Wainscott,
Economic Developer.
Grant Wainscott, Economic Developer
Mr. Wainscott introduced himself as the Economic Developer and President of the Morrow Business and Tourism Association. You may ask yourself what does residential annexation have to do with commercial development? Mr. Wainscott suggested that one has everything to do with the other. He wants the public to understand that Morrow is on top of retail and commercial trends. As Mr. Lampl mentioned, the days of strip centers are over. Morrow believes in much more responsible development, less environmental impact, denser developments which lend themselves to pedestrian traffic, less motor vehicle traffic that reduces accidents and pollution and creates a more livable community. Residential and commercial developments go hand in hand.
In 2000, the Urban Land Institute, one of the finest development institutes, came into Atlanta and did a major survey with participation from Metro Chamber, Georgia Power, Universities and all different groups. They were paid a fair amount of money to develop guiding principals for how we can grow responsibly. Using this study as a tool Morrow updated its Comprehensive Plan, focusing on land use and annexation plan.
To maintain a balance of development patterns annexation of commercial and industrial properties and residential will be involved. These goals from the Comprehensive Plan match the conclusions set forth by the ULI study. The Comprehensive plan also addressed the economic development plan.
The City is working on major redevelopment districts which will affect residential values. If there is a higher density and a higher end retail component, it makes a much more attractive opportunity for new residents. Residents who are not looking to locate on U.S. 19/41, they want something of a higher caliber with better lifestyles.
One major district is across from Southlake Mall with almost 3 million square feet of warehouse space to be turned into an international wholesale district. The acquisition of the Aaron Rents Shopping Center initiates a Southlake Redevelopment Plan which is an approximately $150,000,000 redevelopment plan with mixed use and entertainment, ice rink, aviation museum and restaurants. It is a very aggressive plan for a city this size and it is already well underway. There are 24 acres that Morrow owns and an additional 30 acres which we will control in the next 60 to 90 days.
These are usually efforts not made by smaller cities. But Morrow believes in the long term economic stability of this area. Mr. Wainscott presented a flyer that what designed to promote the Lewis Welch property, a property that sat vacant for eight years. He went on to explain that Morrow, in developing the property did not choose used car lots, outdoor flea markets or some of the other proposals which were made when the City first acquired the property. Within 38 days of knocking the building down, the City had commitments on all the acreage at $700,000 an acre. That is one of the highest per acre prices in this area. People and retailers are interested in this area. Mr. Wainscott told the audience that in the next six to eight months, there will be an explosion of development in Morrow.
Mr. Wainscott referred to a slide which illustrated the County’s area for redevelopment. Mr. Wainscott noted that the only area the County is targeting which falls within the City is the Gateway Village, an area which includes Morrow, Lake City and Clayton County. He then pointed out that all of Morrow’s redevelopment plans compliment the County’s plans.
John Lampl announced that the Planning and Zoning board will meet next week to hear the request for the recommendation to the Council concerning the zoning for the area of the proposed annexation. The City is asking that the property remain residential. Mr. Lampl reminded the audience that today’s presentation was a public hearing and opened the floor for any comments or questions.
The Mayor complimented John and the staff for the work and efforts put into the presentation.
PRESENTATION:
Chief Sewell introduced three new Police Department employees
Captain Richard Chromi; Captain Jeff Baker; and Ms. Ashlie Monteagudo.
NEW BUSINESS:
Item 1: First Reading of Ordinance 2005-09 to annex:
1836 Lake Harbin Road 1864 Lake Harbin Road
1837 (only 235’ x 170’ fronting 1874 Lake Harbin Road
Lake Harbin Road) 1882 Lake Harbin Road
1846 Lake Harbin Road 1835 Carla Drive
1856 Lake Harbin Road 6421 Meadowbrook Lane
Item 2: Resolution 2005-13 appointing election officials for the General Election on November 8, 2005.
Councilman LaPorte made a motion to pass Resolution 2005-13, seconded by Councilman Huie. The motion passed unanimously.
City Manager Lampl: Thanked the new Police Department employees.
Mayor Millirons adjourned the meeting at 8:25 pm.
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JIM MILLIRONS, MAYOR
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VIRLYN SLATON, MAYOR PRO TEM
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C. R. HUIE, COUNCILMAN
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THOMAS J. LaPORTE, COUNCILMAN
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CHARLES O. SORROW, COUNCILMAN
ATTEST:
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Sylvia Redic, City Clerk