Agenda for Regular Meeting

Synopsis: This Resolution is being presented by the Administration for Council’s review and approval. If approved, Council would be authorizing the Department of Real Estate and Housing (RE&H) to receive title to a property at 2113 Pine Street from US Bank National Association Trustee. RE&H would ensure that the property is rehabilitated and sold to a homeowner who will live in the property. US Bank National Association Trustee will provide the City with a $13,000 contribution to assist RE&H with rehabilitation of the property.

Synopsis: This Ordinance is being presented by City Council for Council’s review and approval. If approved, Council would be authorizing the reestablishment of the Wilmington Civil Rights Commission for the purpose of securing freedom from discrimination for all individuals within Wilmington because of age, color, creed, mental or physical disability, familial status (including source of income), gender identity, national origin or ancestry, marital status, race, religion, sex, and sexual orientation. The anti-discrimination process would cover areas such as employment, housing, public accommodation, education, and credit.

Synopsis: This Ordinance is being presented by the Administration for Council’s review and approval. If approved by Council, the City of Wilmington, through the Department of Licenses and Inspections, would conduct building inspections and reviews for residential and business construction according to the International Code Council’s 2012 edition of the building code. This edition of the code would replace the 2003 edition under which the City has been conducting reviews and inspections. The new code will provide an updated level of protection for the citizens of Wilmington regarding the construction and safety of buildings while at the same time meeting the standards of today’s construction industry. The revised code has been reviewed and tested nationally to ensure the safety of occupants that dwell within structures and to hold those entities that build structures to the new code standards. The 2012 edition of the building code takes into consideration advances in construction technology, allowing for newer and safer methods of building construction, maximizing safety while allowing for the construction of more economically feasible buildings.

Synopsis: This Ordinance is being presented by City Council for Council’s review and approval. If approved, Council would be authorizing an amendment to the City’s Vacant Property Registration Fee Law that would create a category of “occupancy ready” and would exempt buildings that qualify for the new category from the imposition of an annual vacant property registration fee. Additionally, non-profit housing providers who receive a vacant building from the City for rehabilitation or receive public funds from the City for the acquisition, rehabilitation or redevelopment of a vacant building would be eligible for a waiver of the vacant property registration fee for a period of up to four years related to the rehabilitation and sale of a property. These non-profit housing providers will be billed only from the time that the entity received the property or funds from the City. This provision is retroactive for May 1, 2003. Finally, under this Ordinance, all non-profit agencies as defined by the IRS may be eligible for a four-year waiver of their vacant property registration fee.

Synopsis: This Ordinance is being presented by the Administration for Council’s review and approval. If approved, Council would be authorizing, based on information from the Director of the Department of Finance, the transfer of funds among City departments and offices as part of the City’s annual reconciliation of accounts. These fund transfers are carried out to ensure that all government department accounts are properly balanced for the fiscal year which ended on June 30, 2013.

Synopsis: This Ordinance is being presented by the Administration for Council’s review and approval. If approved, Council would be extending the authorization to the City Treasurer (from the current date of July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2014) to borrow money from the City’s budget reserve account, if necessary, to pay City expenditures and to replenish those funds no later than October 1, 2014. Although the Treasurer does not expect to have to take this action based on the current condition of City finances, the Treasurer has on occasions in the past been required to use money from the budget reserve account to pay the City’s bills and then replenish those accounts because either City tax and/or fee collections have lagged or unanticipated expenditures have arisen. The Treasurer’s authorization to pay City expenditures through this process is a normal and accepted financial practice and does not represent anything out of the ordinary as far as the City’s ability to fund its expenditures

Synopsis: This Ordinance is being presented by the Administration for Council’s review and approval. If approved, Council would be authorizing the City to borrow up to $4 million over a 20-year term to finance upgrades and improvements to the City’s water transmission and distribution system. Improvements and upgrades would include a redundant transmission network of large diameter piping in high service zones; improvements to the transmission and distribution of water in low service zones; reconfiguration of the 48-inch transmission water main along Baynard Boulevard and other improvements as needed. The borrowing would also fund administrative costs related to the capital projects and the cost of borrowing the money. The borrowing will be done in conjunction with the Delaware Drinking Water State Revolving Fund which will result in a more favorable interest rate for the City’s borrowing and lower closing costs. The City would be responsible in full for the payment of the principal and the interest on the borrowing as part of a General Obligation Bond issuance.

Synopsis: This Ordinance is being presented by the Administration and Council for Council’s review and approval. If approved, Council would be authorizing the City to adopt a new crime-fighting tool called ShotSpotter. This is gunfire detection, location and alert system that detects and locates gunfire and automatically alerts first responders within seconds of shots being fired. The term of the contract is for three years at a total three-year cost of $415,000. This Ordinance authorizes the City to enter into a contract for ShotSpotter but does not obligate the City to enter into a contract.

Synopsis: This Resolution is being presented by the Administration for Council’s review and approval. If approved, Council would be approving the Wilmington Police Department’s action of seeking a grant from the State of Delaware Special Law Enforcement Assistance Fund (S.L.E.A.F.) and State Aid to Law Enforcement (S.A.L.L.E.) programs in the total amount of $176,785.94. The WPD will use the funding for a variety of programs including the training of officers and the purchase of equipment for officers. The grant does not require a local match of funding.

Synopsis: This Resolution is being presented by the Administration for Council’s review and approval. If approved, Council would be approving the Wilmington Police Department’s action of seeking a grant from the State of Delaware Department of Public Safety’s Emergency Illegal Drug Enforcement Program (EIDE) in the amount of $31,944.36. The WPD will use the money to fund police officer overtime pay. The grant does not require a local match of funding.