01/19/2016 Minutes— CITY OF GRAND ISLAND, NEBRASKA
MINUTES OF CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION
January 19,2016
Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, a Stady Session of the City Council o�F the City of Grand
Island, Nebraska was conducted in the Council Chambers of City Hall, 100 East First Sheet, on
January 19, 2016. Notice of the meeting was given in the Grand Island Independenl on January
13, 2016.
Mayor Jeremy L. Jensen called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. The following Councilmembers
were present Mitch Nickerson, Mazk Stelk, Jeremy Jones, Chuck Haase, Julie Hehnke, Linna
Dee Donaldson, Vaughn Minton, Roger Steele, and Mike Paulick. Councilmember Michelle
Fitzke was absent The following Ciry Officials were pcesent Ciry Administrator Marlan
Ferguson, City Clerk RaNae Edwards, Finance Director Renae Griffiths, City Attorney Jerry
Janulewicz, and Public Works Director 7ohn Collins.
Mayor Jensen introduced Community Youth Council members Eshan Sood and Melissa Cuellaz.
INVOCATION was given by Community Youth Council member Eshan Sood followed by the
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE.
SPECIALITEM:
Uodate – Grow Grand Island. Chamber of Commerce President Cindy Johnson gave a history on
visioning in Grand Island which staRed in 1997. Hear[land Events Center, Moonshell a�d
MulticuLtural Coalirion were the fixst iniriafives.
PresenYed was the fo]]owing mission statemeut for Grow Grand Island (GGn: "Grow Grand
Island cuttivates bold ideas that create business and quality of life opportmiities in our region
through planning, pazmering and doing."
The goals for GGI were: to help existing businesses grow; assist and nurture entrepreneurial
eultuie; eohance community image and mazketing activities; improve educational attainment Yhat
align with employer needs; and continue to develop our community assets.
The GGI Executive Committee consisted of: Mayor Jeremy Jensen, CiTy Admi�istrator Mazlan
Ferguson, Hall County Supervisors Pam Lancaster and Jane Richazdson, Don Smith,
Implementation Chairman from the Grand Island Independent, Brad Mellema and Tony Schultz
with the Grand Island Convention & Visitors Bureau, Cindy Johnson and Kurt Haecker with the
Chamber of Commerce and Dave Taylor and Galen Stehlik with the Grand Island Area
�conomic Development Corporation.
Mayor Jensen's passions were for the Patriot Gazdens development project, State Fair-Fonner
Expansioq Highway 281 Corridor Development and Husker Hazvest Days partnership.
ImplementaYion Chairman Don Smith, 304 Pheasant Diive tliuilced Che City for the help in
promoting this project. His committee was working on the seven entrances to Grand Island.
Page 2, City Council SNdy Session, 7anuary 19, 2016
Reviewed were the entrances. The vision was to make distinctive, elegant, timeless welcoming
impressions along the Grad Island major coxridors. Reviewed was the process and schedule
through 2040 for the transportation plan. Growth of the City and traffic congestion through 2025
and 2040 were presented. Housing preservation, development and neighborhood initiatives were
reviewed.
It was mentioned that the Food & Beverage Tax would go before the voters at the May iQ 2016
Primary Election. This would continue the existing 1.5% tae on all food and beverage which
included alcohol.
Discussion - Cemeterv Expansioa Pazks and Recreation Director Todd McCoy gave a brief
background and reviewed the cemetery site selection and analysis process created by
Confluence. Through this process Confluence examined multiple sites as expansion possibilities
for the Grand Island Cemetexy. The following five siYes were chosen as potential expausion
propeRtes:
Site 1- Webb Road Sport Fields
Site 2- WesHawn Memorial Cemetery
Site 3- Undeveloped urban land
Site 4- Rural residential property
Site 5- Nebiaska Veteran Memorial Cemetery site
— Reviewed was the new Site at ihe Nebraska Veteran Memorial Cemetery.\
Site 5– Veterans Cemeterv Site:
Benefits – Iand is owned by the City so thexe ace no acquisition costs. An existing cemeYery is
on-site, so shazed mainteuance facilities and equipment would be possible. This site has a good
street presence and good views. There is multiple access points along both frontage roads, access
through tree line could happen in the future.
Challenges – traffic along the roads cou(d cause u�wa�ted noise. The tree plankngs must being
immediately Yo begin to build the desired cemetery chazacter. Noise from adjacent highway and
railroad tracks would need to be addressed to create a tranquil ceme[ery setting, buffers should
be a consideration in master planning.
Constraints – the veteian's cemetery must be incorporated into the fixture cemetery design and a
drainage way existi�g through the site. Further study would be required to determine the full
impacts.
The following total costs of expansion for each of the sites were presented along with the years
before fufure expansion would be needed:
Expansion Costs Future �xpansion
_ Site 1– Webb Road $ 642,500.00 42 yeazs
Site 2– Westlawn Cemetery $2,058,950.00 25 yeazs
Site 3– Undeveloped Urban $2,314,850.00 73 yeazs
Site 4– Rwal Property $2,35Q100.00 73 years
Sire 5– Veteran Cemetery $1,316,600.00 44 yeaxs
Page 3, City Council Study Sessioq lanuary 19, 2016
Discussion was held on the payback to the Cemetery Fund which was induded in these figures
along with the number of cremations.
The following the ope�ational costs were presented:
Year 1 Yeaz �
Site 7— Webb Road $ 15,000 $ 25,000
Site 2 — Wesflawn Cemetery $230,000 $23Q000
Site 3— Undeveloped Urban $ 8Q000 $16Q000
Sife 4— Rural Property $ 8Q000 $160,000
Site 5— Vetecan Cemetery $ 8Q000 $16Q000
Yeaz 10 Year 15
$ 45,000 $14Q000
$315,000 $315,000
$19Q000 $205,000
$255,000 $27Q000
b255,000 $27Q000
Additional staff was discussed. It was requested that Council be given a cosY per existing burial
site. Closure fund (Cemetery Tmst Fund) amounts were cequested for the Webb Road site.
.7erry 1-lirschman, 2315 Ga.teway Avenue requested that the Veteran Cemetery be kept stricUy foc
veterans and that the land be conerolled by the veterans. Jerry Poels, 3418 Deann Road spoke in
suppon of the veterans keeping the land.
Mayor Jensen stated we needed to look at Site 5— Vetecan Cemetery and see how it fit into the
bigger picture of the Patriot Gardens developme�t before fhis was bro�ght back So Couneil for
final approvaL He stated these 640 acres would take time to develop and needed to be studied by
a consultanY through a master plan.
Cemetery Superintendent Mark Sands, ] 022 West 9`h Street stated Chere was S years le$ in the
current cemetery and it eakes time to cxeate a �ew cemetery. Time was of the essence and there
needed Co be more acres designated for the cemetery.
ADJOtJRNMEVT: The meeting was adjourned at 8:50 p.m.
i�o,�l� ��ar�
RaNae Edwards
CiCy Clerk