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The City Council met in regular session on July 23, 2001, in
City Council Chambers. A quorum being
present, Mayor Cleveland L. Rippons called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Those Commissioners in attendance were
Commissioners Bohlen, Watkins, Weldon, Atkinson and Travers.
Heidi Adams led
in the Lord’s Prayer. Commissioner
Atkinson led in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Commissioner Watkins made a motion to approve the minutes of the July
16, 2001 Council meeting as distributed.
Commissioner Weldon seconded the motion. The motion was passed unanimously.
Lorraine Dickerson to Thank City Council for Donation
to American Heart Association—Mrs. Dickerson
thanked the Council for the $500 donation they made to the American Heart
Association. The Council won the money
in a contest sponsored by Wawa.
Pat Patterson to Present
Old Picture of Race Street to Council—Mr.
Patterson was given a picture of Race Street dated 1906. He presented it to Mayor Rippons to hang in
the Mayor’s Office. Council thanked Mr.
Patterson for his gift.
Sgt. Doyle from CPD to Discuss National Night Out
(Proclamation and Noise Variance)—Heidi Adams read the proclamation, Mayor Rippons
signed it and presented it to Sgt. Doyle.
The Cambridge Police Department will be celebrating National Night Out
on August 7, 2001 at the Pine Street Substation. Commissioner Watkins made a motion to allow the Police Department
to block Pine Street from Cedar Street to Cross Street and to grant a variance
from the noise ordinance on August 7, 2001 from 6:00 pm until
9:00 pm. Commissioner Travers
seconded it. The motion was passed
unanimously.
Review Lease Agreement for Empowerment Center—Council received a request
from the Pine Street Committee to delay reviewing this agreement until they
have ample time to meet with their attorney.
Commissioner Atkinson made a motion to honor their request. Commissioner Watkins seconded it. The motion was passed unanimously.
Discussion on Revising
ASOP #2 – Travel Policy—The State
has made changes to their travel policy by increasing the mileage from 31¢ to
32¢ per mile and the cost for dinner increased to $21. The City’s travel policy is based on the
State’s policy. Commissioner Atkinson
made a motion to accept the recommendation to update the City’s travel
policy. Commissioner Weldon seconded
the motion. The motion was passed
unanimously.
Discussion on Revising
ASOP #24 – Procurement Policy—The
revision would allow the City to acquire items through contracts of the State
or another municipality instead of going out to bid. Commissioner Atkinson made a motion to adopt the revision to ASOP
#24. Commissioner Watkins seconded it. The motion was passed unanimously.
Sign Resolution for
Community Legacy Grant Application—The
application is due on July 24, 2001.
The City has prepared several proposals and has also received several
proposals from other organizations within the City. Jim Michael read the dollar amounts for the various projects:
§
Sailwinds Parks Improvements
-- $461,156
§
City Marina -- $750,000
(half would come from DNR Waterway Improvement)
§
Economic Development
Tourism Specialist -- $50,000 (for 1 year)
§
Historic High Street
Improvements (from Poplar to Church)
-- $456,360
§
Downtown Streetscape
(Pine, Poplar, High and Race Streets) -- $53,100
§
Harriet Tubman
Organization – No dollar amount provided at this time.
§
Housing Authority of
Cambridge (site planning, acquisition,
etc.) -- $350,000
§
Cambridge Community
Development Corporation (planning grant) -- $20,000
Commissioner
Atkinson feels the Council should prioritize the proposals. Jim Michael reported that the proposals
total $1.7 to $1.8 million dollars and it’s not likely that we will
receive that much money. The State has
$10 million available for this program.
Commissioner Watkins feels we should send them all in without
prioritizing them because the State may have other criteria for prioritizing
applications. Commissioner Weldon
suggested a priority list with priority given in no particular order to the
request for Governor’s Hall improvements, the Economic Development Director,
the request for Downtown Streetscape, and the request for Historic High Street
improvements. He would also include the
planning grant for CCDC in tandem with the Economic Development Director. He feels these should be the highest
priorities. He would also include the Marina.
Commissioner
Watkins feels the Harriet Tubman Organization is a priority in his mind and he
would hate to leave it off because they don’t have their plans in place. He would like the State to prioritize
them. Commissioner Atkinson made a
motion to submit all the applications and to prioritize based on Commissioner
Weldon’s recommendation. Commissioner
Travers seconded it. The motion passed 4
to 1 with Commissioner Watkins opposed.
Mayor
Rippons read a Resolution allowing the City to submit a Community Legacy
Application to the Maryland Department of Housing and Community
Development. Commissioner Atkinson made
a motion to approve the resolution.
Commissioner Weldon seconded it.
The motion was passed unanimously.
ADDITIONAL
ITEMS
At the request of Mr.
Collison, Commissioner Atkinson made a motion to go into Executive Session
following the meeting. Commissioner
Weldon seconded it. The motion was
passed unanimously.
With no further business,
Mayor Rippons adjourned this portion of the meeting at 7:43 p.m.
I
hereby certify that the foregoing is a true and accurate account of the Council
meeting Monday, July 23, 2001, insofar as I personally am aware.
Heidi
R. Adams
Executive
Assistant
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