Weekly Briefs Week of November 21, 2016

CITY MANAGER’S OFFICE

Message from Mark Deven Regarding Election Colleagues, as you are aware, on November 8 Arvada voters rejected Ballot Measure 2G, the proposed ½ cent sales tax increase which would have generated approximately $9 million annually to be spent on street maintenance and repairs. At the same time, we know—based upon extensive data analysis as well as input from our citizens—that our streets are deteriorating and we must address this problem. My takeaway from the election is that while our citizens do not support a tax increase, they nevertheless have an expectation that we will find a way to rise to the challenge of fixing our streets without raising taxes. I am aware that there is some angst in the organization about how we will redirect funds to meet our street maintenance needs. Some of you may even be thinking that, because the proposed sales tax would have generated an additional $9 million annually, that we are now looking to immediately redirect $9 million in our existing budget towards streets in order to increase the annual budget to $16 million. That is absolutely not the case. For one thing, even if we wanted to, we do not have the capacity to spend anywhere close to $16 million on street repairs in 2017—we don’t have contracts in place, inspectors, etc. In fact, had 2G passed we had planned to spend most of the new revenues on Ralston Road and W. 72nd Avenue improvement projects while the Streets Division ramped up their operations over five years. In 2017, we would have allocated approximately $1.8 million to street maintenance and then gradually increased each year to approximately $9 million by 2021. There is no doubt that we have some work to do in order to identify additional funds for streets. As I stated to you on November 9, our first task will be to take a hard look at the new programs and positions funded in the 2017-2018 budget and discuss which, if any, might be eliminated in order to provide additional funds to streets.

“SOME OF YOU MAY BE THINKING THAT, BECAUSE THE PROPOSED SALES TAX WOULD HAVE GENERATED AN ADDITIONAL $9 MILLION ANNUALLY, THAT WE ARE NOW LOOKING TO IMMEDIATELY REDIRECT $9 MILLION IN OUR EXISTING BUDGET TOWARDS STREETS IN ORDER TO INCREASE THE ANNUAL BUDGET TO $16 MILLION. THAT IS ABSOLUTLY NOT THE CASE.”

Next, at the end of almost every fiscal year—due to our conservative budgeting practices and a robust economy—the City typically has additional unencumbered revenues which are directed towards “one time” projects such as capital improvements or equipment. I am confident that we will be directing a good portion of these funds towards street maintenance for the foreseeable future. This decision will mean we will have less flexibility in taking on unplanned needs and requests. Finally, through our commitment to FOCUS and our transition to a result-oriented, data-driven and performance-based organization, we will thoroughly examine every program, service and project over the next 2-4 years in order to determine how to redirect our resources to meet our street maintenance needs. All of you are the reason why we succeed because you drive our success. Therefore, all of you will be involved and informed as we complete this journey. You will be asked for ideas, input, comments and suggestions. While we do not know exactly how we will do this, we do know that we have to involve and inform all of you. I envision this occurring through your work units, divisions and departments. I also anticipate that we will form working groups and committees as we did to develop our Vision, Mission and Values and use standing groups such as the Employee Committee to help guide and influence the recommendations we eventually discuss with our community and provide to the City Council. Colleagues, this is our time to truly show that we can live our organizational values of Innovation, Passion and Opportunity to help us meet this challenge while continuing to deliver superior services to our community. You are a tremendous workforce that exhibits dedication and commitment every day. Because of your dedication and commitment, you have also made this an incredible organization. I am optimistic that together we can tackle this latest challenge. Thank you for the incredible work that you continue to do on behalf of our community. You are our most important asset and I am honored to serve our community with you! The Deep Divers The DEEP DIVERS are a small group of data nerds working in various departments tasked with taking a “look under the hood” of all performance measures City wide. This is an important step in ensuring our measures are sound, measuring what is important and being used to generate conversations and ideas for innovation. The DEEP DIVERS will focus on public facing departments in 2017 and internal service providing departments in 2018. A department schedule is under construction and will be shared by the end of 2016. Review of Public Safety performance measures will begin in December 2016. Lastly, this team will be invited to STAT meetings in 2017 to discuss results with department staff.

EMPLOYEE COMMITTEE

Veterans, Come Get Your Mugs!

HUMAN RESOURCES

New Hire Whetstone, Scott E. Eff. 30-Oct-16, Animal Management Officer Montoya, Frank A. Eff. 1-Nov-16, Hospitality Services Supervisor Busch, Rachel L., Eff. 311-Oct-16, Police Officer Wallace, Zackary C. (Zack), eff. 10-Nov-16, Planner 1 Resignation Hutchinson, Hilary A., Eff. 11-Nov-16, Administrative Court Clerk Glynn, Samuel D., eff. 10-Nov-16, Police Officer Yanke, Geraldine E.. eff. 11-Nov-16, Police Officer Retirement Arko, John R., eff. 11-Nov-16, Construction and Inspection Supervisor Watson, Christine, eff 12-16-16, Police Support Specialist (Super: Thornton) Internal Posting Communications Supervisor All internal candidates can apply online at https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/arvada/promotionaljobs

If you are a Veteran and did not attend

the Veterans’ Day ceremony on November 11, please make sure you pick up your gift! These awesome

travel mugs are a gift from the Employee Committee to thank you for your service to our country. The mugs

are at the third floor reception area.

WELLNESS COMMITTEE

High Blood Pressure in My Eyes?? We’ve all heard of high blood pressure—that looming number that may or may not permit that

pint of Rocky Road. But did you know that the term “hypertension,” often used to describe high blood pressure, also measures high intraocular pressure in your eyes? Ocular hypertension is a condition where the pressure in your eyes is too high. Continually high pressure within your eyes can eventually damage the optic nerve, leading to glaucoma or permanent vision loss.

What should you know? While often unavoidable, or when genetics are in play, here are a few other possible causes of ocular hypertension:

• high blood pressure • certain medications • eye trauma • diabetes • other eye conditions • heart disease

What to avoid:

• a diet with excess salt, hydrogenated oils, trans fats, red meat, alcohol, sugar • stress • smoking

What can you do?

• Schedule your annual exam – your VSP doctor can detect high IOP and high blood pressure, just by looking at the blood vessels in the eye.

• Self-care – hypertension can lead to bleeding in the eye, blurred vision, damage to the optic nerve, glaucoma, and even vision loss.

• Maintain a healthy diet – there are some great alternatives and substitutions out there. Even just cooking at home instead of eating out, can make a tremendous difference.

• Get active – exercise regularly, get on your feet, at home and at work. While there is no guaranteed way to prevent hypertension, you can help avoid it by focusing on your health and wellness and always making time for your eye exam.

AEDA Small Business Saturday is THIS Saturday! The Saturday after Thanksgiving (November 26, 2016) is known nationally as Small Business Saturday. The Arvada Chamber of Commerce, Arvada Economic Development Association (AEDA), Olde Town Arvada Business Improvement District, and the Arvada Visitors Center are partnering in a month-long promotion to encourage people to “Shop Small Arvada” on November 26. Small businesses create jobs, boost Arvada’s economy, and preserve neighborhoods. By simply choosing to shop Arvada, you are investing in the community. Each purchase made in Arvada goes to pay for City services such as police, parks, and street maintenance. Keeping the dollars in Arvada helps create and retain quality jobs. Small businesses are the nation’s largest employer and account for the majority of job growth. As part of the promotion, Arvada Small Businesses were asked to complete a small survey including questions such as: “Tell us why you feel Arvada is the best place to manage and/or own a small business,” and "What does your business have planned for Small Business Saturday?" Based on the more than 20 entries, four businesses were selected to be featured in the campaign. The featured businesses are: 5340 Coffee and Events, Lovely Boutique, Rolling Sands Yoga Boutique & Fitness Store, and Smart Cow Yogurt Bar. On Shop Small Saturday, there will be plenty of activity going on throughout Arvada. One example is the first 100 people in Olde Town Arvada at 10 am will receive FREE breakfast from the School House Kitchen & Libations and FREE Apex day passes. To learn more about this offer and to review a complete list of activities and discounts in Arvada, visit: http://visitarvada.org/events/small-business-saturday/.

PUBLIC WORKS Last week, the Streets Division poured a new piece of sidewalk and added a drain at Columbine Park near W. 52nd Ave. and Quay St., requiring 8 1/2 yards of concrete.

W. 56th Avenue (Vance St to Wadsworth By-Pass) Project Update The City's contractor, CEI, has substantially completed the W. 56th Ave. project. The items remaining for final completion of the project, including installation of decorative street lights along W. 56th Ave., is scheduled for January, 2017. Closure of the RTD Park-N-Ride access from Wadsworth By-Pass will not occur until the G-Line is opened and RTD's bus operations moves to the Transit Hub. On Monday, November 21, the contractor will place the traffic signal at 56th/Wadsworth By-Pass into full operation (take it out of flashing mode) and open W. 56th Ave. in both directions. Message boards are currently in place notifying drivers of this proposed signal activation. W. 55th Ave. and Wadsworth By-Pass Intersection Reconstruction Update The W. 55th Ave. and Wadsworth By-Pass intersection reconstruction project will convert the full movement signalized intersection into a three-quarter (right-in, right-out and left-in) movement and partially signalized intersection. CDOT may issue the Notice To Proceed for construction to start in January 2017; however it is dependent on weather. Otherwise they will issue a Notice To Proceed by March, 2017. Therefore, there may be 3-4 months of both intersections functioning with traffic signals. It’s Official: The G Line Will NOT Open in 2016

The Regional Transportation District (RTD) announced last week that the G Line will not open in 2016. They have given no further information as to when we might expect the opening. Here are their three key messages as provided by their communications staff: • RTD and Denver Transit Partners (DTP), contractor for the G Line, are past the testing

window (number of days needed to fully test, commission and certify the corridor for operations) for the G Line to open in Fall 2016. It will be opening in 2017.

• R Line will also open in 2017. RTD and Kiewit, contractor for the R Line, want to make sure the train and signals are tested and functioning properly. Testing is projected to be complete by the end of December.

• RTD is communicating with the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) on the Full Funding Grant Agreement (FFGA) for $1.03 billion that was contingent on A, B & G being open by end of year.

UTILITIES

Field Trip! Utilities Operation Support and IT staff went on a field trip with Wastewater/Stormwater Manager Steve Wyant to see first hand the work that is completed in the field by Wastewater staff. These two teams have been working together for the last year to get the new Cityworks Asset management software configured for their specific uses. The field trip helped establish a better understanding of what type of work the CCTV and jetting crews do and how their work will be coordinated within the new application.

First Stop Staff watched the TV van review a newly installed sewer pipe to validate initial warranty acceptance. Second Stop Participants watched an established section of pipe being jetted using the new equipment. Jetting sewer pipes helps to maintain proper performance and mitigate potential problems.

Last Stop A tour of the Alkire lift station in west Arvada.

Steve Wyant gave the participants lots of information about the sanitary system and educated them on new challenges facing the system. A big takeaway: NEVER FLUSH the “flushable” personal hygiene wipes. They are having detrimental effects throughout the system beginning in private lines and beyond!

RALSTON HOUSE

Last Chance to Sign Up for Workplace Giving These are your last few days to sign up to contribute to a nonprofit of your choice through workplace giving. Please make sure to take advantage of this unique, simple and easy way to make a difference in our community. This year's workplace giving campaign ends on November 30. Simply log on to https://www.ipledgeonline.org/_arvada/ and follow the prompts. When asked for “Employer ID Number” enter 84-6000633 and complete the steps to schedule your pledge through a payroll deduction.

ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Change Your Desktop! As part of our Organizational Development initiative, it is important that our new Vision, Mission, and Values are incorporated in our daily work. We now offer new desktop screens that incorporate our Vision statement. In addition, a desktop shortcut can be created to "The Arvada Compass," an interactive site which begins to weave together various strategies such as OD, employee performance management, FOCUS, process improvement, and more into the total picture of pursuing excellence. See the email from City Manager Mark Deven for instructions on downloading these new features. We have some fabulous screenshots to choose from, including:

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

Pre-Application Meetings this Week The Greenhouse Restaurant at Welby Gardens The Welby Gardens/Country Fair plant nursery located at 17201 W. 64th Ave. discussed the possibility of converting the center portion of their greenhouse to a “greenhouse restaurant”. Approximately 4,500 sq. ft. of the center portion of the greenhouse would house the restaurant along with outdoor seating in conjunction with the outdoor sales area of the Country Fair Gardens. Some of the items on the menu at this location would be grown on-site in the adjoining greenhouses. This type of use would be an allowed use within the PUD-BPR (Business/Professional/Residential) zoning. The project would require Preliminary Development Plan (PDP) and Final Development Plan (FDP) review. The PDP would require public hearings before the Planning Commission and City Council. The FDP would be reviewed administratively. Staff also noted that in addition to the other standard PDP and FDP requirements, a traffic study will be necessary to help evaluate any additional signal and intersection improvements that may be required at W. 64th Ave. and Easley. Acidulous Brewing The Acidulous Brewing owners inquired about the possibility of rezoning and developing a parcel of property located at 14812 W. 69th (W. 69th /Indiana) for a brewing and tasting room operation. The property is currently zoned P-1 (Professional Office) for office uses and would need to be rezoned to PUD-I (Industrial). In addition, the majority of this lot is located within the existing floodplain of Ralston Creek which would add to design considerations as part of this development. Staff provided input as to process and design considerations including how the storm system would drain south to the creek, limited access and added right-of-way for Indiana and the need to coordinate with CDOT regarding access and improvements along Indiana and auto turn analysis to ensure fire vehicle access. The applicant also briefly discussed the possibility of locating this proposed facility at 6370 McIntyre which is zoned PUD-BPR (Business/Professional/Residential) and would also require a rezoning to PUD-BP (Business/ Professional); however, this site would not have the floodplain and access issues. The applicant will further evaluate options and decide whether to pursue one of the locations discussed or keep looking for other properties. If the initial property is pursued, the applicant will be required to submit applications for a rezoning and a Preliminary Development Plan, both of which would require public hearings before the Planning Commission and City Council. 15000 Block of W 64th Ave. Dr. Michael Woods and his consultant met with staff to discuss annexing the 0.91 acre, vacant property directly east of 6390 Joyce Drive. Dr. Woods would like to construct an 8,000 sq. ft. medical office building for his dental practice, along with other providers. The applicant is currently discussing a shared access agreement with the owner of 6390 Joyce Drive to utilize the existing driveway off of W. 64th Avenue. Staff discussed two potential zone districts with the applicants: P-1 (Professional Office) and PUD-BP (Planned Unit Development – Business/Professional). The annexation will require public hearings at Planning Commission and City Council. If the applicant chooses to pursue PUD-BP zoning, the Preliminary Development Plan will also require public hearings at Planning Commission and City Council and would likely run concurrent with the annexation. If the applicant chooses to pursue P-1 zoning,

the site development plan would be reviewed administratively contingent on annexation and zoning. New Development Applications for the Week 8811 Ralston Road The owner of the property is requesting a variance to construct a six-foot tall privacy fence along Ralston Road that will be setback approximately 16 feet from the front property line. Section 6.5.8 of the Land Development Code (LDC) limits the maximum height of fences to four feet if the fence is closer than 25 feet to the front property line. The property is zone Residential Low Density (R-L) and is 51,228 square-feet in size and contains a 2,000 sq. ft. detached single-family residential unit. This variance request will be heard by the Board of Adjustment at their December 13, 2016 meeting. 6275 Simms St. The applicant, ICI, is requesting to rezone the property from P-1 (Professional Office) to B-2 (General Business) to allow for the storage of work equipment in an existing garage on the property. The equipment would be associated with the drywall business. No modifications to the site are proposed with this rezoning. The rezoning will require hearings before the Planning Commission and City Council. 5905 W 60th Ave. The applicant, CJ Kirst with Tahoe Consulting, is requesting to rezone the property at 5905 W. 60th Ave. from R-L (Residential Low Density) to CC-B (Clear Creek Residential Sub-District). The property is located within the Clear Creek/I-76 Area Plan, a joint effort between the City of Arvada and Jefferson County and subject to the Clear Creek/I-76 Comprehensive Development Plan and Intergovernmental Agreement. This agreement includes the subject property in the CC-B Sub-District. The Land Development Code does not require a site development plan or a concept plan for rezoning actions within the Clear Creek/I-76 Plan Area. The proposed rezoning is scheduled for a public hearing at the December 6, 2016, Planning Commission meeting and the February 6, 2017 City Council meeting, with first reading at the January 9, 2017, City Council meeting. Neighborhood Meeting Summary 5219 Allison St. The developer, Royal Oak, LLC, presented a plan for 35 townhome units on the property at a neighborhood meeting on Wednesday, November 16. Approximately 16 residents were in attendance. The townhome units would be a combination of two and three story units. The property is currently zoned R-I (One and Two Family Residences). The property would need to be rezoned to PUD-R to accommodate the proposed townhome units. The Comprehensive Plan Land Use designation for the property is Medium Density Residential, which allows for a density of up to 12 units per acre. The proposed density of the project would be at the 12 units per acre limit. The project site is bisected by the Bayou Ditch, which is planned to be piped through the project as part of the proposal. No significant concerns were raised at the meeting. The attendees did ask questions regarding how the ditches on the property will be re-routed, about the architecture and exterior materials, improvements to Allison Street and how the site will be landscaped to buffer adjacent properties. Should the project move forward, applications for rezoning and a Preliminary Development Plan will be required, both of which would be reviewed at public hearings before the Planning Commission and City Council.

ARVADA CENTER

I 'll Be Home for Christmas Nov 18 – Dec 23, 2016 World Premiere Lyrics & Original Music by David Nehls Book by Kenn McLaughlin Directed by Gavin Mayer Main Stage Theatre November 18 - December 23, 2016 Previews: November 15 – 17 @ 7:30 p.m. Performances: Tues – Sat @ 7:30 p.m., Wed @ 1 p.m., Sat – Sun @ 2 p.m. “Although I know, it's a long road back I promise you I'll be home for Christmas.” Set in 1969, the Bright family prepares for their annual Christmas variety show, one of the most-watched and anticipated television events of the year. In the midst of rehearsals, they welcome their eldest son home from the war. A decorated hero and former teen idol, Simon is challenged by his return to civilian life and the expectation and anticipation of performing again. I’ll Be Home For Christmas is set in the hours leading up to and during the live TV broadcast, featuring rich costumes, great dance numbers and exciting new music along with many seasonal favorites. Bring the entire family to this holiday music spectacular! City of Arvada Employee Offer: $15 tickets in prime or value seating for any 11/18-12/23 performance, limit 4 OR $10 tickets in prime or value seating to 11/15 preview performance, limit 4 Purchase through box office at 720-898-7200 and reference promo code 6338.