CITY OF LAREDO

CITY COUNCIL MEETING

M2004-R-01

CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS

1110 HOUSTON STREET

LAREDO, TEXAS 78040

JANUARY 12, 2004

5:30 P.M.

I. CALL TO ORDER

With a quorum present, Mayor Elizabeth G. Flores called the meeting to order.

II. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

Mayor Flores led in the Pledge of Allegiance.

III. ROLL CALL

In attendance:

Elizabeth G. Flores, Mayor

Alfredo Agredano, Council Member, District I

Hector Garcia, Council Member, District II

John C. Galo, Mayor Pro Tempore, District III

Johnny Amaya, Council Member, District IV

Eliseo Valdez, Jr., Council Member, District V

Gene Belmares, Council Member, District VI

Jose A. Valdez, Jr., Council Member, District VII

Juan Ramirez, Council Member, District VIII

Gustavo Guevara, Jr., City Secretary

Larry Dovalina, City Manager

Cynthia Collazo, Assistant City Manager

Anthony McGettrick, Assistant City Attorney

IV. MINUTES

Approval of the minutes of November 3, 2003, November 17, 2003 and December 1, 2003.

Motion to approve the minutes.

Moved: Mayor Pro Tempore Galo

Second: Cm. E. Valdez, Jr.

For: 8 Against: 0 Abstain: 0

V. COMMUNICATIONS AND RECOGNITIONS

Announcements

None.

Invitations

a. Invitation by the City of Laredo Convention and Visitors Bureau to the 2nd Annual

Laredo International Festival of Sister Cities, January 29 – February 1, 2004.

Nick Reyna, Director of Convention and Visitors Bureau, offered a formal invitation to the Mayor, Council Members, and the community to the 2^nd Annual Laredo International Festival of Sister Cities. He named the exposition participants which include: Mexico, China, Taiwan, Canada, and Spain. He thanked Council Member Ramirez, City Secretary and his staff, Parks and Recreations and their staff, the Civic Center staff, and the Convention and Visitor’s Bureaus staff for dedicating their time and effort to the Sister Cities Festival.

b. Invitation to the Tex-21 Reception and Quarterly Meeting on Thursday and Friday

January 29-30, 2004.

Rene Gonzalez, Director of State, Federal, and International Affairs for the City of Laredo, gave a comprehensive report on the importance of Tex-21. He noted that Tex-21 has been very helpful to the City of Laredo. He said delegations of individuals from a coalition of cities/counties will discuss transportation issues and how they affect the State of Texas. He added that the separation of the Border and Corridor Program will be the key issue.

Recognitions

a. Recognition of the nominees for the 2004 Women Hall of Fame. The following women

will be inducted on March 7, 2004: Sister Rosemary Welsh-Health, Diana Saucedo-Civic Volunteer, Michelle Hinojosa-Law Enforcement, Blanca Nalaschi-Professional, Esperanza Sanchez-Education and Raquel Valle-Senties-Arts.

Mayor Flores and City Council presented a Seven Flags Certificate to each of the six recipients of the 2004 Women Hall of Fame in the fields of Health, Civic Volunteer, Law Enforcement, Professional, Education, and Arts.

b. Recognition of the poster contest winners of the 2004 Women Hall of Fame, Aileen

Terrazas-Overall Winner, Ana Martinez-Division Winner, Eugenio Villarreal-Division Winner.

Mayor Flores and the City Council recognized the poster contest winners: Ana Martinez from St. Augustine Elementary; Eugenio Villarreal and the overall winner was Aileen Terrezas from Alma Pierce Elementary.

c. Recognition of the 2003 Retirees of the Laredo Fire Department.

Fire Chief Sosa recognized the retirees:

District Chief Phil Vaillancourt for 30 years of service;

District Chief Juan J. Rendon for 25 years of service;

Captain Ramon Lopez for 28 years of service;

Jorge Javier Lopez 28 years for years of service;

Roberto Mancha 27 for years of service;

Santiago Cavazos for 20 years of service;

Not present:

Ramiro Garza for 20 years of service.

Faustino Cordova for 24 years of service;

Raul Gonzalez, Jr. for 21 years of service; and

Ruben Venegas for 30 years of service.

d. Recognition of the Health Department’s Vital Statistics Registration staff for being

awarded the Exemplary 5 Star Vital Registration and Excellence Award from the Texas Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics.

Mayor Flores and City Council recognized Dr. Gonzalez, Health Director, and staff for being awarded the Exemplary 5 Star Vital Registration and Excellence Award from the Texas Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics.

e. Recognition of Nora Bertani, of the Convention and Visitor's Bureau Department, on her

selection as December 2003 Employee of the Month.

Mayor Flores and City Council publicly recognized Nora Bertani as Employee of the Month for December 2003.

f. Recognition of Felix Garcia, of the Bridge Department, on his selection as 2003 City of

Laredo Employee of the Year.

Mayor Flores and City Council recognized Felix Garcia for his selection as the 2003 City of Laredo Employee of the Year.

Communiqués

Mayor Pro Tempore Galo said he hoped that everyone had a nice holiday. He asked Code Enforcement and other City departments to focus on cleaning the City of Laredo’s streets and lots.

Cm. Agredano wished everyone a Happy New Year. He informed the public of several functions in District I to be held in the month of January including a ribbon cutting ceremony at the Mario Tijerina Park and a Ground Breaking at the Cielito Lindo Fire Station. He also mentioned the expansion of the Santa Nino Library which has been in motion since he took office. Finally, he thanked Rogelio Rivera, City Engineer, and the Public Works Department for paving eight sidewalks in his District I. He also wished his wife a Happy Birthday.

Cm. Garcia wished the Mayor a Happy belated Birthday. He mentioned the ground breaking ceremony for the Fire Sub-Station on 359 and the Santa Clara Park. He added that staff should be completing the lighting project on Clark Street. He thanked the Fire Department EMS team at Station # 8 for allowing him to accompany them to several different responses on Saturday, January 10, 2004.

Cm. Amaya said he is looking forward to serving the constituents of District IV for the year of 2004. He added that he will strive for the betterment of all the citizens of Laredo with the assistance of the Mayor and Council Members. He was happy to announce the grand opening of the Inner City Park. He advised that under his administration they have laid 140 sidewalks in District IV. Finally, he said he would continue to discuss traffic problems with the Laredo Independent School District to ensure safer conditions for the youth of Laredo.

Cm. E. Valdez thanked the Mayor, fellow Council Members, City Manager, and staff for the hard work they have done during his tenure as City Council Member. He said their commitment allowed him to serve a wonderful eight years. He noted many changes that have taken place in the last eight years and specifically asked for the citizens of Laredo to be the eyes and ears for the Laredo Police Department in caring for the each other, parks, and buildings.

Cm. Belmares wished everyone a Happy New Year. He said he was committed in continuing improving District VI through innovative programs, cost effective programs, and unity among Council Members. He thanked the Mayor and fellow Council Members for their support throughout the previous year.

Cm. J. Valdez, Jr. said that several projects that have been initiated in previous years are coming to a close. He said District VII will be having several ribbon cuttings in the next few months. He mentioned that he would be working for recreation centers, splash parks, and an elderly center. He went on to say that he would like to let the public know that the Council is there to help and serve. He encouraged the community to contact their Council Member with any concerns.

Cm. Ramirez thanked everyone for the work they have done in District VIII and throughout the City of Laredo. He added that he would continue to establish the Laredo Water Park for everyone to enjoy. He said the water park would be a great source of employment for students. He wished everyone a Happy New Year.

There was a moment of silence was acknowledged for families that lost loved ones during the holiday season.

Mayor Flores read the following speech:

“After serving you as your Mayor for 11 months in 1998, I said that in January, 1999 and 1998 had been a banner year for the City of Laredo. I repeated that statement in January, 2000 and the year 2001 and again in January 2004, I am about to tell Laredo that 2003 was indeed a BANNER year for Laredo. In fact, we are not the only ones that believed in Laredo’s steady climb to bigger and better things. The Milken Institute Best Performing Cities index rated Laredo as the 7^th best performing city in the United States and the 1^st in Texas. The index measures where jobs are created, economies are growing and businesses are thriving.

We have not forgotten our responsibilities in all our neighborhoods and for all our families. Cm. E. Valdez worked with Council and City staff to upgrade and widen major arteries, such as McPherson Road and other intersections including those along Hillside at McPherson and Springfield. We also opened up Jacaman Road to promote the cross traffic from McPherson to the Loop. Cm. Agredano and Cm. J. Valdez have seen tremendous growth in their districts and worked hard to plan for a fire station and fire fighters that would serve those two districts. Cielito Lindo is now a community that is well on its way and the Laredo Community College 2^nd Campus will soon open. He has seen the results of TxDOT’s investment in Highway 83 and worked hard with the City to compliment the state’s investment. But he and I as well as the other Council Members wanted more parks, because that is what the people of Laredo wanted. So the people of Laredo will see seven new parks and five major improvements to existing facilities including those started last year. There is the Zacate Creek Linear Park, the Inner City Park , soon to have its grand opening, the Eastwoods Park, Eistetter Park, Lafayette Street Park, El Cuatro Park, and many major improvements to all parks. I commend all my Council Members for working with their new district lines and improving those neighborhoods. I thank Mayor Pro Tempore Galo, Cm. Agredano, Cm. Amaya, Cm. Garcia, Cm. Ramirez, Cm. Belmares, and Cm. Valdez and Cm. Valdez for their help in getting so many projects completed on time and on budget. I hope we continue to work with the City Manager and our budget that well this year.

The street recycling cost this year was almost $900,000 thousand dollars. Over 860 streets were recycled using a method that prolongs the life of worn streets. We built many sidewalks at the request of Council and helped Laredo Independent School District with their school projects. Next year Laredo will see the completion of three Police Workstations; one on Highway 359, one on Loop 20 at Del Mar, and one on the Mines Road.

Our City staff and Council members all worry about police protection for all the citizens of Laredo. This is reflected in our budget every year as public safety budget numbers grow. Thankfully, our police are well trained and through their diligence and hard work Laredo enjoys additional police money from the drug busts and cash seizures that happen more often than not in their traffic stops. In 2003, we added a $360,000 Mobile Command Center located with crime fighting equipment for your safety. But at the end of the day, equipment is just that…ready to be used by the expertise and courageous police officers that serve Laredo. Our homeland security is in place.

The Fire Training and Law Enforcement Center has had a great year with plenty of attention from many Texas cities and cities in South and Central America. Our fire fighters and EMS personnel are well trained and have saved many lives and property in Laredo and Webb County. Our most recent fire in Mirando caused by the train derailment ate up most of the County’s contribution to that department. This showed the expertise, readiness, and responsiveness of our firefighters and the commitment of this Council and Mayor to supplement the County’s budget to help all residence. We automated and saved many trees thanks to our MIS Department, Mr. Guevara, Rodger Rodriuez and staff with computers that we added for our Council agendas. Laredo is reading more books and using more computers thanks to the efficient staff at the Laredo Public Library and it is growing very rapidly.

Cm. Ramirez often says that the Rio Grande is the reason Laredo is here. Well under this administration, Laredo’s River has had a lot of attention. We have continued to buy the Vega land and have continued to work to make it more accessible and restore it to its beauty. We have removed debris and concrete from old fallen bridges to increase the flow and protect the river. We will not turn our backs on our river. With this comes our work to downtown Laredo. There are very few towns in Texas that have the attraction that Laredo has to its downtown, that is, its value and quality shopping and it is the only way to cross into Nuevo Laredo. And although some decisions were made many years ago to build Bridge II away from the downtown, both Laredo and Nuevo Laredo, with the help of our federal agencies, have worked hard to make it easier for people to cross and come shopping downtown. People that walk the bridges are shopping downtown. Our Metro parking and aggressive purchasing in downtown Laredo for parking spaces has added a considerable amount of parking spaces downtown for all the shoppers that drive. We will continue to work on a multi-level parking as we work with the El Portal City Project and the El Portal mall.

Our bridges have kept up with the traffic and bridge employees have helped the needy children of Laredo by contributing their time for fundraisers and delivering gifts. This year the City of Laredo will be distinguished for its contributions for the United Way Campaign. Working on a daily basis with state and federal agencies help bridge personnel give the best of service.

As you know, we celebrated the opening of a new Municipal Court at 4610 Maher; opened the year with a first and great Festival of Sister Cities that we will repeated at the end of this month; we had an enormously successful George Washington Celebration, thanks to all the volunteers of that association and all the City staff that worked hard to pull it off. We all hope to repeat that and more.

Shakira, Sesame Street Live, Monster Trucks, rodeos, and hockey were all successful this past year. But what sticks our in my memory and will remain there for all my life are the first high school graduates in their entire splendor. Thanks to each high school and their administration and board members for making each one so special. Not having to worry about inclement weather was great for parents, planners, and graduates.

And it ain’t over. More entertainment, more graduations, and more award winning hockey games are yet to come. This summer, as you all know, we have a New Law in Laredo. The indoor kind, arena football will be here and nine games will be played in Laredo.

El Metro has added more busses, more lifts, and better service while protecting the environment. The busses are very clean and they run CNG. There was a bus donated because the City of Galveston bought a bus but forgot they didn’t have a CNG station.

As we prepare for Miss Texas USA we asked all Laredoans to get involved in what will be the largest “convention” of people that will repeat their visit to Laredo for five years. The Convention and Visitor’s Bureau should be complimented for selling Laredo and for bringing all the exciting events that you have hosted this year. Their plans for next year will be equally inviting if not more challenging.

Business is good. But we also worry about our families. We know that every business hires more people. And as businesses compete for the workforce, there will be better pay. Interest rates and more jobs coupled with the city’s down payment assistance program helped out many Laredo families in homes.

Our Health Department helped more people and have prepared for aggressive prevention programs for 2002. Rabies, West Nile Virus, TB, you don’t have a chance with our health professionals. Thank you Dr. Gonzalez and thank you for helping the people of Nuevo Laredo as well. Their Bi-National Agreements that you have keeps our communities safe.

We saw a hospital sell out, a new one being built, huge investments in our community that made our planning departments and our engineering departments work in high gear. We saw our Environmental Department touch every facet of our development and our daily work. We saw the value of our City Attorneys and the great staff we have in every City department. We saw our City streets clean because the trash was picked up. When we looked out into the state and national news we saw how much each decision by congress and the state legislation affected our daily lives and hoped more Laredoans will come out to vote. Was saw our soldiers come back weary and safe and some that left and didn’t return to war. We saw the capture of a fugitive. All of this affected our daily lives yet on the home front we had to think about Laredo and its future. The Council continued to set policy that helped the City Manager and his staff work conservatively so that no city employee will loose his job unless they’re insubordinate. Throughout the year the City Manager brought recommendations to this Council to operate even more efficiently as he saw the downward trends. Yet our projects for the people of Laredo did not suffer. Our 2004 budget looks strong. Our city is safe. Our vision is complete. Our goal is sincere and our work is committed to service. This year I predict we will see a 5^th bridge application from the City of Laredo accepted by both and state and federal governments. Today, I met the Presidente Municipal Jose “Pepe” Suarez, I am pleased to announce we will have a Memorandum of Understanding with Nuevo Laredo supporting our bridge application. You will see our clear view of a city government that works together, for all. You will continue to see a government that advocates for its citizens, grieves with them and celebrates their accomplishments. We will be aware of all the state and federal mandates that may adversely affect us through a strong legislative team. As we finished the city budget when our fiscal year started, we presented many projects, some yet to be finished and some that will get started. If you were not tuning in to those meetings you missed the opportunity to see just how exciting a year we will have. And as the year goes on and the projects are started, completed and announced I hope everyone will take interest in them and see their tax dollar, City staff, Council Members, and Mayor at work.

We wish you all a very happy and healthy New Year, and a promise to keep on working for you. Viva Laredo!”

VI. APPOINTMENTS TO COMMISSIONS, BOARDS AND COMMITTEES

None.

VII. PUBLIC HEARINGS

1. Public hearing and introductory ordinance amending the Zoning Ordinance Map of the

City of Laredo by authorizing the issuance of a Conditional Use Permit for a mechanic shop on Lots 11 & 12, Block 448, Eastern Division, located at 118 & 120 East San Carlos Street; providing for publication and effective date. The Planning and Zoning Commission has recommended approval of the proposed Conditional Use Permit.

Motion to open the public hearing.

Moved: Mayor Pro Tempore Galo

Second: Cm. Amaya

For: 8 Against: 0 Abstain: 0

Margarito Benavides and Elsa Gonzalez appeared before the Council to request approval of a Conditional Use Permit for a mechanic shop.

Motion to close the public hearing and introduce with the following conditions:

1. Hours of operation shall be limited to those between Monday thru Saturday 8:00 a.m.

to 6:00 p.m.

2. At least ten (10) percent of the lot area shall be devoted to landscaping. All property

shall be kept in an attractive fashion with landscaping properly maintained. All trash, garbage and all other waste shall be kept in sanitary containers, which at all times must be concealed from public view.

3. The entire lot shall be paved except for the area landscaped.

4. Seventy-five (75) percent of the buildings shall be composed of masonry,

glass, or brick.

Moved: Cm. E. Valdez

Second: Cm. Belmares

For: 8 Against: 0 Abstain: 0

Ordinance Introduction: Cm. E. Valdez

2. Public hearing and introductory ordinance amending the Zoning Ordinance Map of the

City of Laredo by rezoning 2.66 acres, as further described by metes and bounds on attached Exhibit “A” located approximately at the 3900 block of Bob Bullock Loop, from R-3 (Mixed Residential District) to B-4 (Highway Commercial District); providing for publication and effective date. The Planning and Zoning Commission has recommended approval of the proposed zone change.

Motion to open the public hearing.

Moved: Cm. J. Valdez

Second: Cm. Belmares

For: 8

There was no public input.

Motion to close the public hearing and introduce.

Moved: Cm. E. Valdez

Second: Cm. Belmares

For: 8 Against: 0 Abstain: 0

Ordinance Introduction: Cm. E. Valdez