12/07/2009 Meeting Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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Special Council Meeting Minutes December 7, 2009 Page 4 ?. / ANY OTHER MATTER BEFORE COUNCIL Council President Buckholtz asked if there was any further discussion or questions. Relative to the legislation passed this evening, Council President Buckholtz stated we are supporting an effort along with other municipalities to tell the State that we want the moratorium on drilling. Mayor Rinker stated in all candor, the constant refrain in this that's been very very fiustrating for all of us and Mayor Rinker is not saying this to patronize, it's a fact that people such as you, the NEOGAP voice is getting attention. It's creating enough agitation. It's creating enough discomfort that it's getting attention. The question is, what do we accomplish with it. Mayor Rinker thinks he would be nai've if he were to say NEOGAP is going to accomplish everything that NEOGAP wants to accomplish because it represents a perspective one point of view. But because you have put that pressure in there, it's getting some results. As superficial as it may seem, the fact that Director Logan keeps coming up to this area, that he is meeting now on a more regular basis, that he's willing to talk with representatives from the Mayors and Managers Association which represents close to 60 communites, what we do with it, that's our responsibility collectively as well, how we can leverage this. This is in effect _-, negotiating in some fashion. t? Some of you were still downstairs, but the request is that Mayor Rinker send a letter down to the Senators. A two-three sentence letter has been drafted saying, we want you to know that we support Senator Grendell's and the NEOGAP proposals. Mayor Rinker is signing that. We will get that out tomorrow. Mayor Rinker has sent a number of letters periodically. The moratorium, this piece of legislation is a similar one These all at least sustain the voice or the chorus if you will. But they don't do the final work which is what the vote is all about. Mayor Rinker's understanding in talking with our lobbyist, Tim Cosgrove, from Squire Sanders, whom our association has used over the years, and employed him really to be our legislative aide if you will for all manner of kinds of issues. This is one where two or three months ago he was saying it's not on the radar screen and then last month he said it is and he effectively said it's in large measure because of how the NEOGAP movement, the grass roots movement, has been making noises. And also because we represent a unique area. The fact of the matter is that we are a high density area and we are a hot spot. At least that's gotten some attention and we have more of a voice. The thing that Mayor Rinker had talked about earlier and really feels is valid is what can we do to insert into this legislation some mechanism that gives municipalities a chance to have input before, not after, the permit. Mayor Rinker can tell you sitting as far away as Ron Wynne is with Director Logan, he confronted him with, well okay, you have this on-site evaluation, you have your engineers and our people and there's good, objective discussion about health and safety issues. You may adjust screening.