City Council Agenda and Packet 2019 08 20

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City Council Meeting Minutes July 30, 2019 Page 6 of 8 Councilmember Keany asked how long a moratorium can last. City Attorney Kelly stated 6-9 months is generally acceptable; longer than that may start to look like a ban and not be considered reasonable by the Courts. As long as the City is actively working on rules during that time extensions are generally considered reasonable. Councilmember Loo asked if staff has a recommendation of the five options. She asked if this work will be done in house or contracted out if we move forward; what are the costs in dollars and in staff time. City Manager Balser stated it is not exactly known, but the assumption is it would be in house and we could base our work on that from other municipalities as a start. Councilmember Loo stated #3 buys some time and gives some protections. Mayor Muckle stated he agreed it would be nice to only institute a moratorium if we need it. Mayor Pro Tem Lipton stated #3 is not enough protection for the community and this process has not be legally tested. He stated the simplest and most cost effective process is a simple moratorium. We may want to have this in place for any possible applications. City Attorney Kelly stated #3 can only be effective if the Council at that time has the appetite to enact a temporary moratorium on an emergency basis. Mayor Pro Tem Lipton stated he would like to have a strong message by enacting a moratorium. Councilmember Maloney stated he would like a moratorium connected to the rule making at the COGCC. Deputy City Manager Davis stated much of the COGCC's work will relate to the State and not pertain to local governments. Councilmember Stolzmann stated she thinks most residents want a total ban even though that is not a tool available to us. She stated #3 gives us the option to wait the longest possible time without a moratorium. Making rules now will require a great deal of time and cause unrest in the community with no real benefit. Deb Fahey asked where drilling is allowed now in Louisville. Director Zuccaro stated an applicant can apply for an SRU for any zone district in the City with a 350-foot setback from a structure. This complies with state law from the time when these rules were written. There are large areas of open space where drilling is still feasible and new horizontal drilling options may make our areas useful for drilling. Mayor Pro Tem Lipton stated he feels putting a pre -application process in place just to allow for a moratorium is dishonest. We would be better off being clear what we want by having a moratorium now and putting regulations in place in the time available. 35