Recessed Meeting – City Council – Jan. 18, 2022

RECESSED MEETING ~ CITY COUNCIL

(Recessed January 18, 2022)

PRINCETON, MERCER COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA

Reconvened January 24, 2022

 

A Recessed Meeting of the Common Council for the City of Princeton, Mercer County, West Virginia was reconvened in the Council Chambers of the Municipal Building on Monday, January 24, 2022, at 6:30 p.m.  The purpose of the meeting was to conduct a public meeting to seek citizen input, comments or opinions relative to activities the City should include in an application for Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds for demolitions.  In attendance were Mayor David Graham; Vice Mayor Marshall Lytton; Council Members Dewey Russell, Jacqueline Rucker (by telephone); James Hill, Joseph Allen and James Hawkins; City Manager Michael Webb and City Clerk Kenneth Clay.  A quorum was constituted thereby.

 

Also present were Code Enforcement Director Ty Smith, Economic Development Specialist Samuel Lusk and Brenton Pannell of Region I Planning and Development Council (via Zoom).

 

  1. CALL TO ORDER

Mayor David Graham called the meeting to order.

 

  1. PUBLIC HEARING AND PRESENTATION BY REGION I

Mayor Graham moved the Council meeting into a public hearing at 6:30 pm. and called on Mr. Brenton Pannell of Region I PDC for a presentation explaining the process to apply for a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG).

 

Mr. Pannell explained the requirements and timeline for applying, as follow:

 

  • The City of Princeton is applying for a HUD/CDBG to fund the Demolition of Blighted/Abandoned Properties Project.

 

  • This public meeting is being held to meet citizen participation requirements on CDBG funded projects.

 

  • The City of Princeton will be he applicant for CDBG funding.

 

  • $250,000 is the maximum amount of CDBG funds that can be requested for the demolition of blighted/abandoned properties.

 

  • There is no match required for HUD/CDBG Demolition projects, but providing one is encouraged.

 

  • The City of Princeton currently has identified approximately 15 structures for demolition through this project.

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  • There is a performance period of one year for the completion of the project.

 

  • The deadline to apply for the HUD/CDBG is March 3, 2022 by 5:00 p.m.

 

  • A second public hearing will be held 15 days from today’s meeting as required under the application process.

 

At this time Mayor Graham opened the floor for questions.

 

Councilman Dewey Russell asked if the 15 structures on the demolition list constituted the full extent of the project.

 

Code Enforcement Director Ty Smith explained that two of the structures on the list are commercial, while the rest are residential.  However, Mr. Smith added that he still was working on compiling the demolition list.

 

Councilman James Hill asked if the grant also would cover asbestos remediation.

 

Ty Smith replied in the affirmative and added that the federal wage scale applies, also.

 

Brenton Pannell remarked that he was not sure about the issues just raised, but would look into them and advise later.

 

City Manager Mike Webb remarked that the grant should allow for asbestos removal, but would verify whether that is the case.

 

Mr. Hill asked how much the City’s matching amount would be on a $250,000 grant.

 

Mr. Webb replied that City officials would consider the match later at the next public meeting.

 

Mr. Hill offered that the City could apply for other grants.

 

Mr. Webb replied that the HUD/CDBG is the primary source of demolition funding this cycle.

 

Mr. Hill asked how much time would be allotted to complete the demolition project and when would the project begin.

 

Mr. Pannell replied the work under the grant must be completed within a year and the City should be notified as to the ruling on the grant application two months after submission.  The one year time limit for completion of the project starts from the approval date, he further explained.

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The City Manager remarked that it will be July or August when we hear about the outcome.

 

Councilman James Hawkins asked what would happen if provide no match on the grant.

 

Mr. Pannell replied that he could not tell the outcome.

 

Mr. Webb remarked that not having a matching amount won’t hurt us, but having one will help.

 

Mr. Russell inquired as to how much should the City provide as match.

 

The City Manager replied that the matching amount could range from $5,000 to $20,000.

 

Mr. Russell asked if ARPA funds could be used for the matching amount.

 

Mr. Webb replied that it could, but the funds are already in the City budget to cover a match.

 

Mr. Hawkins asked how much it would cost to demolish the structures currently on the list.

 

Code Enforcement Director Ty Smith replied that it would cost $160,000 to demolish the

structures already on the list.

 

Mr. Russell asked if all the structures that qualify for demolition must be identified before we apply.

 

Ty Smith replied in the affirmative.

 

Mr. Pannell added that the grant application requires addresses for each structure on the demolition list.

 

Ty Smith explained that some buildings are on the bubble, but added he would know for sure before the application is submitted.

 

Mike Webb commented that all preparations must be made before the application is submitted.

 

James Hill asked if any more commercial buildings were on the radar.

 

Mr. Smith replied that a couple of commercial buildings are being consider and might be added to the list.

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Mayor Graham urged Mr. Smith to add all the structures he can to the list.

 

Council Member Joe Allen asked if the City was doing the back section of Dr. Taylor’s building on Mercer Street.

 

Ty Smith replied that Dr. Taylor’s building was being done as a private job.

 

Dewey Russell remarked that the condition of a building cannot always be determined from the exterior, but Ty Smith will know the condition of the interior of the buildings.

 

Mr. Hill agreed that the City should demolish as many dilapidated structures as possible.

 

There being no further comments, Mayor Graham moved the recessed Council meeting out of public hearing mode at 6:49 p.m. and announced that the next public hearing would occur on Tuesday, February 8th at 6:30 p.m.

 

III.  MEETING RECESSED UNTIL TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 8th,

AT 6:30 P.M.

 

** (NOTE FOR THE RECORD:  The recessed meeting date was moved later to Wednesday, February 16th, 2022, at 9:00 a.m.)

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