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City Council Work Session
City Hall - Council Chambers
1900 N. Civic Square
Goodyear, AZ 85395
Monday, November 4, 2024
Immediately following the Regular Meeting that begins at 5:00 p.m.

Mayor
Joe Pizzillo
_______________

Vice Mayor
Laura Kaino
_______________

Councilmember
Sheri Lauritano
_______________

Councilmember
Wally Campbell
_______________

Councilmember
Bill Stipp
_______________

Councilmember
Brannon Hampton
_______________

Councilmember
Vicki Gillis
_______________

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PROCEDURES

Pursuant to A.R.S. § 38-431.02, notice is hereby given to the members of the Goodyear City Council and to the general public that the Council of the city of Goodyear will hold a meeting open to the public. Public body members of the city of Goodyear will attend either in person or by telephone conference call and/or video communication. The Goodyear City Council may vote to go into Executive Session, pursuant to A.R.S. § 38-431.03(A)(3), which will not be open to the public, to discuss certain matters. Meetings are conducted in accordance with the City Council Meetings Council Rules of Procedure adopted by Resolution No. 2018-1879.

THE CITY OF GOODYEAR ENDEAVORS TO MAKE ALL PUBLIC MEETINGS ACCESSIBLE TO PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES. With 48-hour advance notice, special assistance can be provided for sight and/or hearing-impaired persons at this meeting. Reasonable accommodations will be made upon request for persons with disabilities or non-English speaking residents. Please call the City Clerk (623) 882-7830 or Arizona Relay (TDD) 7-1-1 to request an accommodation to participate in this public meeting.

Si necesita asistencia o traducción en español, favor de llamar al menos 48 horas antes de la reunión al (623) 882-7830.

City Clerk's Office: 1900 N. Civic Square, Goodyear, AZ 85395 (623) 882-7830 www.goodyearaz.gov/cityclerk
City Council Meeting Live Broadcast: https://www.facebook.com/goodyearazgov/videos

Monday, November 4, 2024

Meeting Agenda

Immediately following the Regular Meeting that begins at 5:00 p.m.

CALL TO ORDER

ROLL CALL

AGENDA ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION

ALL ITEMS LISTED ARE FOR DISCUSSION ONLY. NO ACTION CAN NOR WILL BE TAKEN.

PROPOSED URBAN CAMPING ORDINANCE

Summary

Council to review the proposed amendment to Article 11-1 of Goodyear City Code, which would add a prohibition against unauthorized camping in public places. (Jenna Goad, Assistant to the City Manager)

PAVEMENT CUT POLICY

Summary

This is a request for Council to review proposed updates to the City's pavement cut policy, and to seek Council guidance on the proposed policy changes. (Sumeet Mohan, P.E., Public Works Director, and Brian Harvel, Streets Superintendent)

RIGHT-OF-WAY MANAGEMENT FEES AND FINES

Summary

Council to review and discuss the proposed traffic control permit and right-of-way management fee schedule. (Katie Wilken, Development Services Director)

ADJOURNMENT

POSTING VERIFICATION
This agenda was posted on 10/30/2024 at 5:03 p.m. by VM.

ITEM #: 1.
DATE: 11/04/2024
AI #:2204

CITY COUNCIL ACTION REPORT

SUBJECT:

PROPOSED URBAN CAMPING ORDINANCE

STAFF PRESENTER(S):

Jenna Goad, Assistant to the City Manager

OTHER PRESENTER(S):

Brian Issitt, Chief of Police

Summary

FISCAL IMPACT

There is no direct budget impact associated with the approval of this text amendment. If in the future it is determined that a diversion program is justified, a budget request will be submitted.

BACKGROUND AND PREVIOUS ACTIONS

The City of Goodyear Police Department has a Homeless Outreach Team (HOT) consisting of two officers and one shared sergeant. The HOT regularly engages with individuals experiencing homelessness to offer resources and other support. Those efforts are supplemented by an agreement with Phoenix Rescue Mission for additional street outreach. The 2018 U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruling in the Martin v. Boise case previously limited what restrictions could be enacted regarding sleeping or camping in public places. Under existing laws, individuals can be cited for trespassing on private property and for other illegal behavior, but the Martin v Boise ruling limited the ability to restrict otherwise legal behavior on public property.

Each January, Goodyear's Police Department participates in the annual Point in Time (PIT) Homeless Count. This annual effort counts the number of people experiencing homelessness on the street and in shelters throughout Maricopa County. This one-night snapshot is a valuable datapoint that helps to inform the work of the Maricopa Continuum of Care, member agencies, and local partners in the effort to end homelessness. Goodyear's official 2024 PIT count was 30 unsheltered individuals. This is higher than the 22 unsheltered individuals counted in 2023, however, it matched the count of 30 unsheltered individuals from 2022.

STAFF ANALYSIS

In June 2024, the United States Supreme Court issued a decision in the Johnson v. Grants Pass case which expanded the restrictions that can be imposed related to sleeping or camping on public property. Several other Arizona cities including Gilbert, Glendale, and Phoenix have already enacted such restrictions.

Staff recommends updating City Code to include a prohibition against urban camping in order to protect and improve public health, preserve the parks and other public property for the enjoyment, safety, comfort and convenience of the public, and maintain a healthy and natural environment. This aligns with the Safe & Vibrant Community focus area in the FY25-27 Strategic Plan.

The draft ordinance would prohibit camping on public property or within 500 feet of a school, childcare facility, shelter, or park. Camping is defined as using property for living accommodation purposes on a temporary or permanent basis and includes activities such as: using tents or other structures for sleeping, storing personal belongings, making a fire, carrying on cooking activities, or doing any digging or earth breaking. The ordinance specifies that the Director of the Parks and Recreation Department may issue permits or make reservations to authorize youth organizations, schools, or similar entities to camp or park vehicles overnight in a park or preserve. There are additional exclusions for short-term camping in the parking lots of any stadium owned or operated by a public entity, using umbrellas or similar portable shade structures during daylight hours, landowners or family members camping on their own private property, and any person issued a special event permit or that has secured permission of the city.

If this amendment is adopted, the Chief of Police will issue standard operation procedures and training to all officers regarding the enforcement of this ordinance. A violation of this section would be a Class 1 misdemeanor. The maximum penalty for such a violation is up to $2,500 in fines, six months in jail, and three years probation. In addition to or in lieu of any sentence imposed for a violation of this section, the court may sentence a person to perform community restitution or order a term of education or treatment consistent with Arizona Revised Statutes §13-717. If justified, the Prosecutor's Office, in conjunction with the Court, will explore creating a diversion program.

Attachments

Draft Amendment to City Code 11-1-40

Presentation

ITEM #: 2.
DATE: 11/04/2024
AI #:2305

CITY COUNCIL ACTION REPORT

SUBJECT:

PAVEMENT CUT POLICY

STAFF PRESENTER(S):

Brian Harvel, Streets Superintendent and Sumeet Mohan, P.E. Director Public Works Department

Summary

FISCAL IMPACT

There are no direct fiscal impacts of this item, and the anticipated costs associated with the implementation of this policy are minimal.

BACKGROUND AND PREVIOUS ACTIONS

The Public Works Department is updating the City's pavement cut policy, which has been in effect since 2012. As Goodyear continues to grow, utility companies, developers and city projects routinely cut into our City streets.

Pavement cuts can be problematic for various reasons as they can:

Weaken the road and lead to the road surface sinking or deforming over time;
Create uneven surfaces that pose a risk to drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians; and
Require additional repairs increasing long-term maintenance costs.

The City's current pavement cut policy:

Focuses on a pavement cut surcharge, which imposes minimal fees for cuts into newer pavements (less than 36 months), with no pavement cut surcharge for older pavement;
Collects minimal fees, which are not sufficient to fund future pavement restoration projects; and
Results in a patchwork of pavement cut repairs in City streets.

The proposed policy would require pavement cuts to be repaired with new asphalt and crack sealing around the edges of the cut, and to be restored with a secondary asphalt treatment.

For streets with pavement less than two years old, the secondary treatment would be an asphalt overlay/inlay treatment to the full width of all impacted travel lanes.
For streets with pavement more than two years old, the secondary treatment would be a micro seal treatment to half the width of an arterial or collector street, or slurry seal treatment for the full width of a local street.
The secondary treatment would also extend 25 feet in both directions from the pavement cut(s).
Phoenix and Chandler have had similar requirements in place since 2017.
Staff informed our impacted stakeholders from the development community and utilities at the Development Forum held by the City on September 10, 2024.
Stakeholders were provided an opportunity to submit feedback between September 25, 2024 and October 25, 2024. Staff received one comment, which has been addressed in this proposed policy.

STAFF ANALYSIS

The proposed pavement cut policy is focused on restoration and repair of City streets, and not on charging fees or fines. Focusing on restoration is better for long-term maintenance of our City streets, and ensures that our City streets are left in as good or better condition than prior to the pavement cut. Updating our current policy is a critical component of our comprehensive Pavement Management Program. Attachment A provides a draft copy of the proposed street pavement cut policy along with additional information about the proposed policy in a frequently asked question format.

Attachments

Attachment A - Proposed Street Pavement Cut Policy - DRAFT

Staff Presentation

ITEM #: 3.
DATE: 11/04/2024
AI #:2300

CITY COUNCIL ACTION REPORT

SUBJECT:

RIGHT-OF-WAY MANAGEMENT FEES AND FINES

STAFF PRESENTER(S):

Katie Wilken, Development Services Director

Summary

Council to review and discuss the proposed traffic control permit and right-of-way management fee schedule. (Katie Wilken, Development Services Director)

FISCAL IMPACT

The proposed fee schedule (Attachment A) represents an increase in fees and potential fines and is anticipated to recover costs associated with management of the traffic control program. Notice of the proposed increase in fees was provided in accordance with state law. The proposed fee schedule is attached to this staff report.

No changes are proposed to application and plan review fees. There is currently no permit fee charged for traffic control permits which is meant to recover costs associated with inspections related to traffic restrictions and closures. The new fee is proposed at $264 per application, which at 950 Traffic Control Permits (TCPs) per year would be a net impact of $250,000 for the fiscal year.

BACKGROUND AND PREVIOUS ACTIONS

Traffic control permits are required for all construction work that takes place in City right-of-way or impacts traffic in the City's right-of-way. This includes work completed by private development, public and private utilities, and City capital improvement projects. The type of work being completed may include street and underground utility construction or maintenance, but can also include construction on adjacent private property that encroaches into city right-of-way. Road closures for community events may also require a traffic control permit.

Traffic Control Permit submittals have increased by 180% since 2020. There are significantly more construction projects occurring in Goodyear, which means there are more associated traffic restrictions. Some of these projects have had significant disruptions to our roadways, which impacts our residents and business community.

The City's traffic control policy was last updated in 2016. The current policy includes a base fee for most types of restrictions and closures of $75 per day, with the only exception being full arterial road closures. Whether a project restricts lanes on an arterial roadway or a local roadway, or if it is one lane or multiple lanes, it is the same fee. This means there is no financial incentive for developers or contractors to minimize the restrictions in our right-of-way or complete work in an expedient manner. Furthermore, our fee structure does not include sanctions for working outside of standards or approved timeframes, which makes enforcement of approved traffic control permits challenging.

In addition, to help mitigate the impact of increased development activity, City staff updated our internal Traffic Control Policies, and a traffic restriction and closure moratorium was issued in 2024 to coordinate construction work impacting City streets during Spring Training, NASCAR events, and the holiday shopping season. The moratorium was noticed to the development community and utility providers that Traffic Control Permits may be restricted or prohibited in certain areas of the City during the moratorium period. Moratoriums are common practice in many communities and have generally had a positive response.

STAFF ANALYSIS

City staff researched fee schedules of other Valley cities and there are a variety of approaches. However, Phoenix, Glendale, and Chandler have fee schedules that discourage full closures and major restrictions and encourage completing right-of-way work per an approved schedule. They also have sanctions that address non-compliance concerns, including life safety issues, working without a permit, working beyond the approved timeframe, and use of unacceptable traffic control devices.

Staff is proposing a fee structure (Attachment A) that is aligned with the Phoenix, Glendale, and Chandler models. The proposed fees were presented to the development community at our Development Advisory Forum meeting on September 10th, distributed via e-mail to the development community, and posted in accordance with state statute. To date, there have been no objections received.

The proposed fee structure includes:

Fees based on number of lanes restricted and the length (distance) of the restriction.
Fees that distinguish between arterials, major collectors, and all other roadway classifications.
New fees for restrictions impacting bike lanes, turn lanes, medians, and sidewalks.
Different fees for peak hours, non-peak hours and 24-hour closures to encourage minimal interruptions.
Proposed sanctions would address life safety issues, working without a permit or beyond the approve timeframe, and unacceptable traffic control devices.

Should City Council direct staff to move forward with the proposed changes, this item will be brought to City Council for action at the November 18, 2024, regular meeting. If approved at that meeting, the new fee schedule would go into effect on January 1, 2025. Staff will provide notice of the fee changes to stakeholders ahead of time through the website and development contacts.

Attachments

Proposed Traffic Control Fee Schedule

Presentation