09-24-18 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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REGULAR MEETING September 24, 2018 Indianapolis which is great and I appreciate your wisdom. You are a very intelligent person that I can look at and I can see. Your insight is very great and all of the other ones but we also have insight here and intelligence here,too, that we have to have those conversations. And I appreciate this conversation whether we go thirty(3 0)years or fifteen(15)years.I don't think we are fighting over the issue of irresponsibility here.I am not challenging any of that.I am talking about priorities. Therefore, I'm glad that we had this because our citizens are asking us these questions through emails. For me to say the Administration is doing all this, they will ask why we are up here. We have to ask these kinds of questions and we have to challenge you and those kind of things and that is where I am. Thank you. Councilmember Gavin Ferlic stated, Just as a reminder, we are still in the question portion. Councilmember Regina Williams-Preston asked, Didn't I hear that voting on this tones doesn't preclude us from getting a ten(10) year bond or looking at different terms? Mr. Frierson replied, That is correct. Mr. Rompola stated, To clarify, if you vote on this tonight, you approve the parameters. Then it would be incumbent upon the City Administration to review with Herschel what makes most economic sense. It wouldn't necessarily come back before you for a vote. Councilmember Oliver Davis interjected, I'm ok with it not. My thing was not about a vote but to be informed on the understanding. My thing is, that is where I said it was an issue of once you determine that, I need to know that. Often times when you all meet afterwards, there is some kind of report and I have not seen that. Every time we do a bond. That kind of information I would like to have. Again, when we are getting emailed or Facebooked or all the other kind of stuff that you don't consider, it is just great to have. Councilmember Jo M. Broden asked, What are the total hours spent by the Bond Legal Counsel? Mr. Frierson replied, We are at a fixed fee so it is not based on a hourly rate. Councilmember Jo M. Broden followed up, And how far back does this go? Mr. Perri replied, They started working in Maw. Councilmember Jo M. Broden then asked, So the Zoo has had clean audits? Ms. Dean replied, Yes, every year. Councilmember Jo M. Broden asked, And the audit from the last AZA visit, could you round out the record and forward that to Council? Ms. Dean confirmed, Sure. Councilmember Jo M. Broden stated, Thank you. I think it is important for transparency's sake. The other question I had was a legal question with regard to the agreement and what happens once it expires. Is that an exclusive authority of the Park Commissioners Board? Will there be any Council involvement? Benjamin Dougherty, Deputy City Controller with offices on the 12th floor of the County-City Building, South Bend, IN, replied, I emailed it to you Councilmember Broden. It is a copy of the agreement recently approved this past June 2018 by the Park's Board and PZS to take effect January 1, 2018. That is the new fifteen (15) year agreement we have been discussing. The term of that agreement, which is a lease and management agreement for the Zoo property is limited to that fifteen (15) years. It will expire and conclude on December 31, 2033 unless there is an extension that is usually negotiated and agreed upon to take it beyond that date. That is the provision that states this that is referenced in the email I had shared. You will find it in Section two point four(2.4). I can't say where the renewal provision you had in mind comes from. Councilmember Jo M. Broden stated, It may have been from the existing. 24