REGULAR SESSION OF THE BRIGHAM CITY COUNCIL PRESENT: Dennis Fife Mayor Ruth Jensen Brian Rex Mark Thompson Tyler Vincent ALSO PRESENT: Rick Bosworth Human Resource Manager Jim Buchanan Emergency Services Director Mary Kate Christensen City Recorder Jared Johnson Community Development Director Paul Larsen Economic Development Director Kristy Law Recreation Manager Bruce Leonard City Administrator Mike Nelsen Police Lieutenant Tyler Pugsley Public Works Director Jason Roberts Finance Director/Deputy City Recorder Paul Tittensor Police Chief EXCUSED: Scott Ericson Mayor Fife called the meeting to order and excused Ericson who was out of town. The Reverence Period was given by Bishop David Hipp of the LDS Fourth Ward. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited. Approval of Minutes: A motion to approve the minutes of the July 18, 2013 Council meeting was made by Jensen, seconded and unanimously approved as distributed. INTRODUCTION OF EMPLOYEES Ambulance Division CONSENT Appointment to the Library Board PUBLIC HEARING Transfer of Property at Approximately 35 North 100 East to the Brigham City Redevelopment Agency NEW BUSINESS Request for Approval of Stipend Program for Paid-On-Call Employees as Discussed in Work Session Resolution Authorizing the Mayor to Sign Documents with Western States Lodging Related to a Rural Economic Development Loan PLANNING COMMISSION BUSINESS Recommendation on Review of the West Forest Street Corridor Overlay PUBLIC COMMENT INTRODUCTION OF EMPLOYEES Ambulance Division Susann Baird, Shelby Bowen, Holly Thayne and Tom Gibby were introduced as new EMTs in the Ambulance Division. CONSENT Appointment to the Library Board It was recommended Scott Lyons be appointed to the Library Board.
Page 2 of 5 PUBLIC HEARING Transfer of Property at Approximately 35 North 100 East to the Brigham City Redevelopment Agency Mr. Larsen came forward and explained that this public hearing is to discuss the resolution authorizing the transfer of property from Brigham City Corporation to the Brigham City Redevelopment Agency. Don Dunbar, Brigham City Mr. Dunbar thanked for the Council for all they do. They have a difficult and thankless job. He is opposed to this. It is a form of redistribution of wealth. Whenever there is a government that is spending the way this government is and trying to micro manage local authorities there is going to be trouble. There are always strings attached. He has never seen a government funded program that did not have strings attached. He felt that they are trying to micro manage and interfere with decisions being made on a local level. Aside from that, government has no business being in business. The proper role of government is police and fire protection; protecting our rights. The free market economy should provide this. He is in favor of eliminating blight downtown and having a robust free market economy on Main Street. He wants to see business thrive. The federal government has a lousy record of solving problems. Sometimes things sound really good but the unintended consequences the City cannot afford. The federal government is running out of money. They are trying at every level to take over with federal grants and federal manipulations. This government is built from the grass roots up. The Founding Fathers believed that the government that governs least governs best. We are opposed to local government; we are in favor of local government so the people can have hands on input at the local level. This funding for the Hampton Inn sounds good but it is a slippery slope. It is also directly unfair to Crystal Inn or Best Western that cannot get the benefits of this. Anytime the local government opens the door for federal funding or grants you are opening the door for disaster because they will take over. Don t let this precedence spread any further. This is just like industrial revenue bonds. If anything goes sour the taxpayers are the ones that will foot the bill. Next month he would like to talk about the increase in the water rates. Rocky Mountain Power has a monopoly that needs to be stopped. He said he is in favor of the City diverting the funds from utilities to build a power plant to cover the immediate area in Brigham City for local use. This would make it so the City is not subject to endless rate increase. The City needs to be independent, not only from the federal government, but from other monopolies as well. DeAnna Hardy, County She agreed with everything Mr. Dunbar said. This is not the City s role to be taking the citizen s money and buying up property to do business transactions. It is not right. God gave us our freedom. Government was instituted to protect those freedoms. Part of that property is our money. This Council and the previous Council is not protecting our money. Government is taking over everything our recreation, our entertainment, our health care, our labor. This transaction is constitutionally wrong. She keeps wondering who is going to stand up for the citizens constitutional rights. Travis Johnson, New York State Mr. Johnson said he is in favor of the hotel. It can create new jobs with the construction of it and also after it is completed. It can also help with the revitalization of the City. He noticed just after being in Brigham City for a few hours that the City looks run down. It looks impoverished. Building this hotel and maybe not keeping it as a City owned property but with an independently owned owner will help the City and give it the push that will keep the City going on the right path toward becoming a relatively nice looking municipality. Lee Johnson, Brigham City Mr. Johnson said the Council does a lot of work and does a lot of good. It is hard to recognize this when the state and federal government seems to be a mess. It is all going to come crashing down eventually. Detroit has already had that crash. We need to back up and get back to what is the responsibility of government. It is not to grant rights, but to protect rights. Not to create fun and exciting things. DeLoy Mecham, County Mr. Mecham said he does not like how the Council picks and chooses who should come in the City and who shouldn t. He talked about an example in Tremonton City. There are all kinds of people with their hands out. Everyone would like help if it were possible. He has been just the opposite. He ll figure it out one way or another even if he has to collect aluminum cans along the side of the road. However, the 47% that are getting a handout cannot be dropped over night. It will take a lot of time and it needs to start at the local level.
Page 3 of 5 Dan Van Zeben Mr. Van Zeben said he wanted to clarify a few things that have been spoken incorrectly. No one is putting a hand out. The developers are paying hard cash for this property. He said he also believes in libertarian rights, but as this relates to the REDLG loan, they are taking an opportunity. This loan is not what is being discussed during this public hearing, but when it was discussed with the Council, it was presented that they are providing two forms of collateral and insurance for the million dollar loan. The City is not taking on any liability for this, they are. They are not looking for a handout from Brigham City; they are looking for an opportunity to develop the downtown and increase the ability to have Academy Square developed. A motion to close the public hearing was made by Vincent, seconded and carried. MOTION: Thompson made a motion to approve the resolution transferring property at 35 North 100 West to the Brigham City Redevelopment Agency, seconded by Vincent, Rex, Thompson and Vincent voted aye, Jensen voted nay. The motion carried 3-1. NEW BUSINESS Request for Approval of Stipend Program for Paid-On-Call Employees as Discussed in Work Session This was discussed in detail in the work session prior to this Council meeting. MOTION: Vincent make a motion to approve the stipend program of paid-on-call employees as discussed in the work session, authorize a position for a parttime employee, realign and reorganize to meet the needs of the division and create a special service fund. The motion was seconded by Thompson and unanimously carried. Resolution Authorizing the Mayor to Sign Documents with Western States Lodging Related to a Rural Economic Development Loan Mr. Larsen explained that this resolution will enable the Mayor to sign the documents related to the REDLG loan with the hotelier. MOTION: Rex made a motion to authorize the Mayor to sign documents with Western States Lodging related to a Rural Economic Development Loan, Thompson seconded the motion. Rex, Thompson and Vincent voted aye, Jensen voted nay. The motion carried with a 3-1 vote. PLANNING COMMISSION BUSINESS Recommendation on Review of the West Forest Street Corridor Overlay Mr. Larry Jensen, Chair of the Planning Commission, and Lynn Duce, Vice-Chair of the Planning Commission, came forward. The Council previously asked the Planning Commission to review the Forest Street Corridor Overlay. Mr. Jensen reported that in an attempt to review this overlay, they started by looking at the history of the overlay. They requested staff report to the Planning Commission. They had public comment, with only three property owners present. One was extremely in favor; one was less so; one was neutral. After going through this process, the Planning Commission agreed with the history and that the reasons for the overlay are still valid. Forest Street is an corridor into Brigham City and they believed it should be protected and treated as such. Their recommendation is that the overlay should remain. The uses may need to be changed from time to time, but only in a minor way. Vice Chair Duce added that this was a unanimous decision.
Page 4 of 5 The Planning Commission also recommended that the design guidelines be formally adopted. In addition, they feel there should be better signage on West Forest. When a person goes east from the Bird Refuge, the signs indicate they can go to Ogden or Tremonton, but there is not a sign that says over the freeway there is a town where they can get something to eat, a place to stay, a park, a swimming pool. Mayor Fife said the City will work with UDOT and staff on this. PUBLIC COMMENT DeAnna Hardy, County Ms. Hardy stated that she was disappointed in the Council s decision to move forward with the hotel. They are getting a special deal. The other hotels in this area did not get tax increment and they did not get a government funded loan. The federal government does not have any money. There is no gold to back up what they are doing so the U.S. is eventually going to collapse. All the cities and the states throughout this entire country are practicing socialist principles and it will not work. We will all fall because you will not change. Travis Johnson, New York City Mr. Johnson said he was glad the Council made this choice. In some instances when the free market fails, like it seems to have done in this community, government needs to get involved in order to save it. Detroit is an example of where government got too involved. He did not think Brigham City will become the next Detroit. In order to get businesses interested in coming to Brigham City, you need to give incentives. He likes what Buffalo and Niagara Falls have done. The more businesses that come here and the more revenue that comes back to the City, the better off the City will be. DeLoy Mecham, County Mr. Mecham said people are getting confused about government and the way the government works. He looks at it in a totally different way. He asked if any of the Council are familiar with the CAFR (Comprehensive Annual Financial Report) funds. The government does not sell anything they acquire. They save their money and they hide it. There is plenty of money if you just know where it is. The federal, state and local governments own a lot of property throughout the U.S. They own enough property that if they sold it all it would pay off the national debt. The CAFR fund is money that is there but they deceive the citizens. They are breaking us; we are not breaking them. One day they will own it all. When that happens they will tell us all what to do. He asked everyone to call their representatives. He said Utah s CAFR funds are over $6 billion which has nothing to do with their budget. Don Dunbar Mr. Dunbar said regarding the Hampton Inn project, he felt it should be a simple buy and sell of City property, which cities are allowed to do, except for the promissory note. Why would the City need to sign a promissory note? Anytime he signs a promissory note he is in debt and is obligated to whatever terms there are. He said the small print probably has that the federal government has strings attached somewhere. The federal government is in a bad economy. A depression worse than in 1934. He refuted what Mr. Johnson said about how free enterprise has failed Brigham City. It has not. This is an agricultural county that is full of successful farmers and ranchers. His mother and father had a 22,582 acre ranch free and clear. There are many, many successfully businesses here. The small mom and pop and the sole proprietor built America one City and one county at a time. Their ranch was sold because of rules and regulations and taxes and fees and the power to tax and the power to destroy. Rather than producing 1500 herd of beef so everyone could enjoy steaks and hamburgers, they are out of business. They went out of business because of one single taxing entity the Utah State School Board. Paying taxes on over 22,000 acres is difficult. They saw this socialist government coming in 1975 and liquidated. Mr. Johnson is wrong when he says free enterprises have failed. The book Communist Manifesto by Fredrich Engles and Karl Marx says that socialism has failed in every country it has ever been tried. The socialism, the redistribution of wealth, the graduating and progressive income tax failed in Italy, Indonesia, and in Detroit. If this doesn t stop it is going to fail here. The government has no business being in business. The government s role is not to raise revenue, not to generate industrial revenue bonds and not to bring in taxes. It is limited to protect citizens rights and provide police, and fire protection. The rest is up to free enterprise. Becky Maddox Ms. Maddox said the population is getting tired of having to come back with the same complaints. People pay more who use more. We don t need tiered utility bills; we don t need graduated
Page 5 of 5 income tax. That is the distribution of wealth and it is the basic foundation of communism and socialism. Our country is far into that land. The hotel will compete with hotels that are already in town and they are barely keeping their heads above water and the City is trying to compete with them and put them out of business. Then there will be more people on the tax rolls, then the City will need more tax money to support them because the City, state and federal government think they have to be supported. Government keeps taking away to force citizens to pay taxes. In a socialist government, and what is happening in Brigham City, is people will finally get fed up and say, my child needs braces, I can t afford braces because the government is taking away any extra money they have and they will quit working so hard and give up. Then the City will not have any money to tax and will still have the bills to pay. Then the Council will have to put their homes and their property on the promissory note. If the Council is going to do promissory notes, they better put their own collateral behind it, not the citizens. It is not fair; it is not right; it is not constitutional. The constitution stands between the people and the federal government. The Council has sworn to uphold and honor that document. We need the Council to stop this nonsense of Hampton Inn and do it now before the City gets in more trouble. The people do not want another hotel in this City and the Council does not have the right to make them have it. Rex explained that Mr. Dan Zeben and his partners will pay back the million dollars and will pay close to 2% interest for a letter of credit per year on the outstanding principle. One of the partners has pledged his own personal collateral to cover the million dollar loan. Brigham City is protected doubly against having to pay the loan. The Council has taken measures to protect the taxpayers. The meeting adjourned to an RDA meeting at 7:56 PM.