Monday, June 01, 2009

City Council Liveblogging...

Giving this thing, live blogging, a go again.

Not going to time stamp each passage.

Meeting called to order. We have a quorum... in fact all elected leaders are attending tonight.

Doling out Council Liaison spot for boards and commissions. Councilman Keith Walker won't stay on as Planning and Zoning liaison, but the commission gets Councilwoman Robin Gordon. I can't keep up will all the appointments and I was frankly listening to who would be assigned to P&Z. Councilman Ray Lyons will be the back up liaison to P&Z.

I forgot to use the bathroom before the meeting started. Wish I could pause the meeting on the computer... but no. Need a Tivo or a DVR for this, darn it. Poor planning on my part. I'll hold out until after the call to public.

Call to public time... Harley Petit is the only person signed in to speak. Announcement about the next town hall event. Subject matter will be on drug use in the community.

Consent agenda time... meaning time for a bathroom break.

I'm back but don't know what they are covering as of yet. Doesn't look like all that many folks showed up for the meeting. Maybe those folks are following along here?? LOL!!

Issue was about a traffic signal for Bank and Gordon. Motion to approve carried. Still on consent agenda.

On to old business... Changing the name from Rattlesnake Wash (Mohave Drive) to Rancho Santa Fe Parkway. The mayor and councilman Kerry Deering excuse themselves from this item. The reasoning to make the change is fine, but I do find it funny that part of the reason to change the name from Rattlesnake Wash is so to avoid the stigma that there is a prevalence of rattlesnakes in the area. I don't know if there is a prevalence of rattlesnakes there or not, but I heard the area was aptly named... heard it from many locals (personally I don't want to really find out for myself).

Motion carried to change the name.

New business time... a request for an extension for a preliminary plat for the Walleck Ranch (Legacy) subdivision.

Wow... What is councils hang up on these prelim extensions?? Mrs. Gordon wants to put a fee increase for preliminary extensions (which now is $300) up for discussion at a later time.

Bill Nugent addresses council on item 'a' under new business. Seems kind of perturbed about water from a different development that has created a conditions to flow water onto his phase 5 of the development.

Councilwoman Watson just had an epiphany... said something to the effect that if council doesn't want to approve the extension of the preliminary plat, they don't have to. I'm not including this to be mean or disparaging... but honestly the final decisions in cases like this belong to that body of elected officials. I just get the feeling that council doesn't want to deal with these sorts of issues, the extension requests.

Sounds like council may not grant the extension based on the comments by at least four members of council at this point.

Nugent is back up at the podium. Pretty nice exchange. Telling to a large degree. If you aren't watching be sure to when the video is available on the city site.

Motion to approve and second... with conditions... passed by all.

Item 'b' under new business was quickly approved with no discussion.

Minor amendment to the General Plan up next. Mrs. Watson questions why C-1 zoning wasn't asked for. Now Harley Petit is wondering why the applicant couldn't just file for a conditional use permit for C-2 needed zoning. Just waiting for mentions of tattoo parlors and/or slaughterhouses (sorry Mr. Petit, I just had to).

Motion carried anyway.

Next item is simply a rezone for the land the minor amendment was just approved for.

The mayor commented about the C-1 and C-2 thing... he made a great point about 'good business'. Well done.

Next item is on the discussion to perhaps change the term for the office of mayor. Mr. Deering seems to be siding on not changing the term. Making well reasoned points (some sound like what I shared earlier). Mr. Lyons makes a funny by saying with all the turnover he's seen he wonders if the public would like to vote on each council seat every two years. Mrs. Gordon says that this decision should go to the voters after she tried to make a point about campaigning interfering with the mayor 'running the city'. Campaigning for office in Kingman is not all that much work (I've done it). Mrs. Watson says that voters should decide this issue. Now she is talking about a scenario that basically leads one to believe that she is thinking about running for mayor (Mr. Deering even asked if that was a declaration).

Mike Bihuniak, of the public, is making the point that things aren't broken so why change anything. Mike even says that campaigning in Kingman isn't all that big of a deal (sounds familiar) and then makes a comment about a candidate in the recent past getting petitions signed at a 'local watering hole'. Some laughter because he is talking about what many said that Bill Nugent did that very thing (and he is in attendance tonight). Mike is making other good comments as well.

Next up from the public is the Kingman Daily Loyd. Is proud of the fact that he has been named keeper of the conscience (oh brother). I'm sure the Daily Loyd will make some fine points, and include even some conspiratorial stuff... I'm checking baseball scores though (Met's lost, awesome!!). Oh... Loyd kept is short... and I agree with him.

Mayor says that council probably shouldn't put this issue forward, and even stated that he is planning to run again. He said other well reasoned things, mostly that even in his situation he is more than fine with the way things are.

Mrs. Watson wants to put the issue on the shelf until a later time.

No motion to do anything with it. I think it's a dead issue basically, until someone else bring it up again.

Meeting is basically wrapping up now, announcements being made. A ribbon cutting out at the airport for the passenger air service that is coming back to the airport. Mrs. Gordon still wants to see about putting an increase on bed taxes at hotels, would like to see it on an agenda. Also wants to have signage put up for public projects. Mayor announces a blood drive competition amongst the three main cities in Mohave County.

That's all folks. Motion to adjourn.

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