Carrollton City Council Regular Worksession & Meeting - October 25, 2022

The Carrollton City Council met on Tuesday, October 25, 2022, beginning with a 5:45 p.m. pre-meeting/worksession at City Hall (1945 E. Jackson Road) and a regular meeting at 7:00 p.m. Mayor Steve Babick presided. The agenda included an executive session, discussion of the Governance Policy, proposed short-term rental regulations, a managed competition update, proclamations, consent agenda approvals, and a public forum. No minutes of this meeting were available; this summary is based on the agenda and raw transcript. The agenda listed all worksession items before the regular meeting, but in the transcript some worksession items were handled after the regular meeting portion.

Presentations & Recognitions

• Council presented a proclamation recognizing October 25, 2022, as Historic Downtown Carrollton Association Appreciation Day.
• Council proclaimed October 2022 as Breast Cancer Awareness Month, honoring breast cancer survivors including Susan Falconer.
• Council recognized City Secretary Chloe Sawatzky as the Texas Municipal Clerks Association's 2022 Emerging Leader.

Consent Calendar

• Approved unanimously by consent (motion by Mayor Pro Tem Andrew Palacios, second by Councilmember Young Sung): agenda items 12-18, 20-27, and 29-34. Items 19 and 28 were pulled for individual consideration.
• Approved items included the September 27, 2022, meeting minutes; four Pierce Enforcer pumper trucks ($4,079,618.44); one Peterbilt 567 diesel tractor ($177,053.64); nine Chevrolet Tahoes ($579,712.95); the Neighborhood Improvement Program RFP #22-032 (VA Construction primary, HD Way Concrete secondary, $1,100,000 first year, $3,300,000 total); the Frankford Road school zone flashing-sign ordinance; the Fire Department civil service reclassification (Apparatus Operators from 29 to 39, Sub-Apparatus Operators from 30 to 20, total positions unchanged at 173); the Duncan Heights development agreement with EGAJ, LLC ($400,000); a resolution denying Oncor Electric Delivery Company's proposed rate increase (about $251 million systemwide/4.5%, including an 11.2% residential rate increase); the ESO Solutions Fire Department records management agreement ($245,846.20 total); the Whitlock Addition engineering contract with Dunaway Associates ($957,600); the Hyas Group retirement consulting contract; the Garrett Demolition contract for 1415 W. Trinity Mills Road ($115,000); and appointments/ratifications to the Capital Improvements Plan Advisory Committee, Neighborhood Advisory Commission, Library Board, Parks Board, Property Standards Board, Planning and Zoning Commission, Traffic Advisory Committee, and Civil Service Commission.

Public Comments & Testimony

• No public comment speakers came forward before the consent agenda vote.
• During Public Forum, James Lockridge spoke about code enforcement and property rights. He said a code compliance officer had called him a liar in an email, described citations involving a trailer and vehicle parking as harassment, asserted that property rights could not be taken away from residents, called for accountability for what he termed rogue code officers, and warned that the situation could get dirty and ugly quickly.

Discussion Items

Governance Policy and Rules of Procedure

• Mayor Pro Tem Andrew Palacios, speaking for the Finance/Governance/Judicial Committee, presented recommended revisions to the City's Governance Policy and Rules of Procedure, originally adopted in 1999 and last updated around 2015.
• The proposed policy would be adopted by ordinance as consent item 19, but it was pulled for individual consideration. Council discussion focused on proposed language in sections 3.3 and 3.4 (restrictions on using official position to endorse, promote, or discuss city issues), 5.18 (non-compliance as official misconduct), 8.2 and 8.3 and the final ethics bullet (limits on individual council member inquiries and staff interactions), and travel/reimbursement provisions in 10.5 and 10.8.
• Councilmembers raised concerns that some language was overbroad, redundant with state law or the City Charter, could restrict legitimate community engagement, scholarship or reference letters, and could create too large a barrier between council and staff. Others questioned whether the 30-day reimbursement deadline and reimbursement for prepaid in-town events were workable.
• No vote was taken on the ordinance. Council directed the committee to rework the redline and return with revisions.

Proposed Short-Term Rental Amendments

• Staff presented proposed amendments to Title IX, Chapter 97 (Hotel Code) to regulate short-term rentals (STRs), defined as residential premises used for lodging for less than 30 days. Owner-occupied properties would be classified as bed-and-breakfasts, but the proposed regulations would apply to both.
• Staff reported an estimated 250-300 active STR listings in Carrollton across at least 30 hosting platforms. Nationally and globally, Airbnb had 14 million listings and a $74 billion global market in 2021.
• Complaint categories over the previous three years included parking, high grass and weeds, trash, unregistered rentals, excessive noise, and too many people.
• The proposal, modeled substantially on Arlington's court-upheld ordinance, would require a lodging license, hotel occupancy tax registration, a local emergency contact, host rules on site, annual interior inspection, off-street parking on driveway or garage only, occupancy limits, no conversion of garages or rooms into extra bedrooms, quiet hours from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m., and no special events.
• Council consensus was to move forward with drafting the redline ordinance. Staff said the next steps would include Council review of the detailed redline, Planning and Zoning Commission review of zoning text changes, and later updates to the tax code and fee schedule.
• Councilmembers asked about the registration and inspection process, insurance requirements, notification and grace periods for existing STR owners, and rising demand around the 2026 World Cup. Councilmember Fleming noted that the upcoming Texas Legislature may attempt to preempt city STR restrictions and suggested San Antonio and Farmers Branch as useful models.

Managed Competition Update

• Krystle Boise, Strategic Services Director, presented the results of a managed competition review of four Public Works divisions: asphalt, concrete, contract administration, and drainage.
• The asphalt and drainage divisions were found substantially competitive; concrete was found uncompetitive but committed to performance targets; contract administration was under-resourced.
• The resulting reorganization will grow contract administration from 3 to 6 people, including a new Public Works manager over outside contracts (Kirk Iverson); reposition drainage as a special operations division; merge asphalt and concrete crews into a streets division; maintain a utility replacement division; and add a compliance officer reporting to the Public Works director.
• The plan eliminates five vacant FTE positions, producing recurring personnel savings of $170,000, with no new net cost. Managed competition has saved Carrollton taxpayers more than $45 million over 20 years.

Mayor and Council Reports & Information Sharing

• Councilmembers shared community updates, including Coffee with a Cop, the November 5 Festival at the Switchyard, a city golf event on November 3, the American Legion Post 597 golf fundraiser on November 12, Ghost Town Halloween events, Cartoberfest at Three Nations, early voting, and recent business ribbon cuttings.
• Members also expressed condolences related to the recent deaths of a Carrollton police officer and Philip Parker, and thanked the community for its support.

Key Outcomes

• Consent agenda items 12-18, 20-27, and 29-34 were approved unanimously.
• Item 28, the appointment of Liz Castaneda to the Museum and Historical Advisory Committee, was approved individually on a motion by Councilmember Young Sung, seconded by Councilmember Pendleton. Councilmembers Polter and Fleming voted no. Polter, who had asked the council to consider an alternate, cited concerns about Castaneda's conduct and what he described as a history of harassment; other members stressed that accusations should not be made from the dais.
• Item 19, the Governance Policy ordinance, was pulled from the consent agenda and not adopted; Council referred it back to the Finance/Governance/Judicial Committee for further revision.
• Council gave staff consensus to proceed with the short-term rental regulatory package, returning later with a redlined ordinance, P&Z review, and related tax/fee updates.
• The managed competition update was received; no formal vote was required.