HomeMy WebLinkAbout03.25.24 Special Study Session NotesSpecial Study Session – City Council CITY OF WHEAT RIDGE, COLORADO NOTES
March 25, 2024
Upon adjournment of the Regular City Council Meeting, and after a short recess, the
Mayor called this Special Study Session to order at 7:57 p.m.
This meeting was conducted both as a virtual meeting and hybrid, where some
members of the Council or City staff were physically present at the Municipal building,
and some members of the public attended in person as well.
After calling the meeting to order, presiding official Mayor Starker stated the rules and
procedures necessitated by this meeting format.
Mayor Starker welcomed the Council, other elected officials, staff and interested
citizens.
The Mayor also explained the virtual/hybrid meeting format, how citizens will have the
opportunity to be heard, and the procedures and policies to be followed.
Council Members present: Janeece Hoppe, Scott Ohm, Jenny Snell, Korey Stites,
Amanda Weaver, Leah Dozeman, Dan Larson, and Rachel Hultin.
Also, present: City Manager Patrick Goff; City Attorney Gerald Dahl; Deputy City Manager, Alli Scheck; Sr. Deputy City Clerk, Margy Greer; Director of Public Works,
Maria D’Andrea; Community Development Director, Lauren Mikulak; Chief Building Official, Renee Meriaux, other staff, guests and interested citizens.
Public’s Right to Speak
No one came forward tonight.
Note about Wheat Ridge Speaks:
Citizens may visit the Wheat Ridge Speaks website and enter written comments of up to
1,000 words on any Council agenda item. The deadline for citizens to submit
comments is 12:00 Noon Mountain Time on the day of a Council session so that
Council members, other elected officials and City Staff have time to review the
comments before the meeting on Monday evening.
The City Clerk’s Office transcribes those Wheat Ridge Speaks comments into these
minutes, placing each comment along with the record for that agenda item.
There were no citizen comments entered into Wheat Ridge Speaks related to this
session.
1. Land Acquisition Process for Ward Transit Station Area Pedestrian Bridge
and Trail
Issue
In 2022, the city successfully received a portion of the needed construction funding
through the Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG) Transportation
Improvement Program (TIP) process to construct a pedestrian bridge over the RTD rail
tracks near the Ward Station along with a multi-use trail from the south end of the bridge
to the I-70 frontage road. To construct this project, it is necessary to acquire portions of
private property from landowners.
In total, property from fourteen (14) separate parcels must be acquired which includes
nine (9) right-of-way parcels, seven (7) permanent easements, and seven (7) temporary
easements. Staff are also proposing vacating a portion of the existing right-of-way,
currently owned by the City of Wheat Ridge, to an adjacent property owner to reduce
impacts to the acquisition of a portion of that property owner’s land.
Staff Report
Director of Public Works, Maria D’Andrea and, gave detailed presentations and overview of the proposed process, where the purpose of this project is to provide a safer crossing of the existing RTD rail tracks and install a multi-modal trail to allow for non-vehicular access from the south side of the rail tracks to the station, which is on the north side of the rail tracks.
Ms. D’Andrea summarized the acquisition process accordingly as listed
1. Donation Request.
2. Notice of Intent (NOI) letter
3. City Appraisals and Fair Market Value.
4. Initial Offer and Negotiations.
Discussion on the items included but were not limited to the following topics:
• Project Overview.
• Land Acquisition Process
• Eminent Domain
• Options to Eminent Domain
• Project Schedule
• Project Funding and Preliminary Cost Estimates
Ms. D’Andrea finished with the staff presentation and stated that a resolution would be needed to authorize the use of eminent domain, if needed. She stated additional steps would need to be authorized by City Council and will take place at future meetings.
Councilmember questions and comments:
CM thanked staff for the presentation and supported staff’s recommendations. Maria
D’Andrea answered questions regarding the history of the project, the cost of the
design, funding, schedules, and the eminent domain process.
2. 2024 Building Code Update
Issue
The City currently enforces the 2018 International Building Codes which were adopted
in Wheat Ridge in 2020. The City typically updates the building codes every 4-6 years.
With the recently released 2024 International Codes, staff is preparing to start the code
update process.
Staff Report
Community Development Director, Lauren Mikulak and Chief Building Official, Renee
Meriaux presented on the issue where they provided background information on the
International Building Codes (also called IBC or I-Codes) as they are published every
three years. It was stated that historically, the City has adopted every other version of I-
Codes. The last building code update was in 2020 when the City adopted the 2018
version of the IBC. That code update became effective in Wheat Ridge on July 1, 2020,
and included the entire I-Code series: on the code update process and to seek Council
direction to proceed with the adoption of the 2024 International Building Codes.
Topics of the report also included but were not limited to:
• 2024 I-Codes
• Local Amendments
• Peer Communities
• State Law
Ms. Meriaux finished by relaying that historically, the process for updating codes
includes engagement with and feedback from several stakeholder groups. The
proposed process for the 2024 code update is summarized below:
• Staff will meet at least twice with the City’s Building Code Advisory Board to
seek input and recommendations and to present the draft ordinance and
proposed local amendments.
• Staff meets with Fire Districts monthly, and upcoming meetings will include
discussion of code adoption.
• Staff will conduct one round of public engagement, with specific outreach to
local contractors, architects and developers to solicit feedback.
• If needed, staff will convene specific stakeholders to discuss local
amendments. For example, in 2019, local townhome developers provided
input on amendments specific to that building type.
• The Denver Metro Home Builders Association typically publishes and
distributes their opinion on the updated I-Codes.
Whereas the timing of next steps and code adoption will depend on staff resources
which are also being dedicated to the implementation of new permitting software. A
follow-up study session with Council will likely be scheduled for this summer.
Ms. Meriaux and Ms. Mikulak then stood by to answer questions.
Councilmember questions and comments:
CM thanked staff for their work and in answer to a specific question, Ms. Mikulak stated
that if any changes were made at the State Legislature which required change to the
local Code, staff would come before Council with those amendments.
MPT Stites proposed a consensus to commence the code update process. Consensus
was received.
3. Staff Report(s)
No report.
4. Elected Officials’ Report(s)
No report.
ADJOURNMENT
Mayor Starker adjourned the Special Study Session at 8:34 pm.
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Margy Greer, Sr. Deputy City Clerk
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Bud Starker, Mayor