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Home My WebLink About2009-09-09 Finance and Safety Minutes City of Tukwila Finance and Safety Committee FINANCE AND SAFETY COMMITTEE Meeting Minutes September 9 2009 5 00p m. Conference Room #3 PRESENT Councilmembers Pam Linder, Chair; Joe Duffie and De' Sean Quinn Staff Shawn Hunstock, David Haynes, Rhonda Berry, Phi Huynh, Mary Miotke, Frank Iriarte, Nick Olivas, Katherine Kertzman, Derek Speck, and Melissa Hart Guests. Jeremy Eide, Jeff Robinson, City of SeaTac Economic Development Administrator CALL TO ORDER. Chair Linder called the meeting to order at 5 04 p.m. I. PRESENTATIONS No presentations II. BUSINESS AGENDA A. Accentance of COPS Grant Staff is seeking full Council approval to accept the grant award in the amount of $928,308 In April, the Police Department submitted a grant application request funding for eight officers, a Crime Prevention Commander, a traffic Officer, and a six person Urban District team. In August, the Police Department received notification of an award for three officers for 36 months. The total anticipated cost for the four year period is $1,942,752 The Grant revenue equals $928,308 with a balance of $$1,014,444 funded by the City The budget appropriation required for the 2009/2010 budget is $288,485 The award must be accepted by the Mayor on or before October 26, 2009 Staff utilized a PowerPoint presentation on the following: 36 Months of funding, capped at $928,308 12 months using local funding for 4th year Extensions for delays and breaks in service may be requested Program modifications must be approved by Department of Justice Officers must engage in Community Oriented Policing (description on the grant application) Three Person Team One Sergeant Two Officers Urban District Peak Hours, approximately 11 00 AM to 11.00 PM Tukwila Urban Center accounts for 34% of Calls for Service Chief Haynes indicated officers are pulled from residential areas to assist in covering the business districts With the addition of three officers dedicated to the TUC, the goal would be to increase the presence in the residential neighborhoods. The Finance Director and the Mayor have committed to locating the necessary funding for the additional three officers during the four years of the grant period, and will make every effort to locate funding for the period beyond the initial four years. After a lengthy discussion, the Committee members have requested, a briefing on the current staffing levels of 68 officers, compared to staffing levels in 1996 UNANIMOUS APPROVAL. FORWARD TO SEPTEMBER 14 COW FOR DISCUSSION Finance Safety Committee Minutes Seotember 9. 2009 Pape 2 B. Seattle Southside Visitor Center Lease Staff is seeking full Council direction regarding a new office location. Seattle Southside Visitor Center's current lease ended on August 31, 2009 and is now continuing on a month -to -month basis. After a lengthy review of available office space locations, staff has selected the two best alternatives and is now seeking Council selection of a preferred alternative Staff recommends moving the SSVS offices to a new location at 3100 South 176 Street, in SeaTac Staff indicated that in 2002 Tukwila and the City of SeaTac entered into an Interlocal Agreement for joint tourism and marketing services for the combined cities under the program title Seattle Southside Visitors Services. The partnership between the two cities has been mutually beneficial, and SeaTac is committed to assisting SSVS with acquiring a new space that will benefit both cities. Jeff Robinson, City of SeaTac Economic Development Administrator, indicated at their Hotel -Motel Advisory Committee (HMAC) meeting, the Committee indicated they have authorized the expenditure of a not to exceed $50,000 for moving and tenant improvements, if SSVS were to acquire a new office location in SeaTac Preserving the partnership between the two cities is the most important factor of the request. UNANIMOUS APPROVAL. FORWARD TO SEPTEMBER 14 COW FOR DISCUSSION C. Solid Waste Utilitv Tax Ordinance Staff is seeking full Council approval for a six percent solid waste utility tax on gross receipts of any solid waste and recycling activities within the City limits on commercial accounts. Residential accounts, defined as a single family residential structure, including mobile homes and duplexes, tri- plexes and four plexes, are not included. Condominium and apartment complexes are classified as a commercial account. The City is in need of increasing revenue and reducing expenditures in an attempt to address our current revenue shortfalls. The City currently taxes electricity, gas and telephone utilities at the maximum of six percent. The tax is also in recognition of the cost of maintenance of City streets given the nature of solid waste collection, the size and type of equipment used and the normal wear and tear on our streets by that equipment. In 2008, a survey was conducted by the Association of Washington Cities indicating over 140 cities tax solid waste at the six percent level. Staff has based their recommendation on the AWC Survey results. Current rates for a 6 -yard container are $57.37, with a six percent increase, the new rate would be $60 81, which equals an increase of $3 44 per month. A 6 -yard container is a common size used at multi family complexes. The Committee reviewed and discussed the impacts to the rental population. The Committee was unanimous regarding the six percent utility tax and the Commercial Residential definitions. Committee Chair Linder requested the information relating to the amount of the increase per month is published in the next Hazelnut. UNANIMOUS APPROVAL. FORWARD TO SEPTEMBER 14 COW FOR DISCUSSION D New Checkine Account. Shawn reviewed the history of the Finance Department's implementation of an armored car service several months ago with daily pickup and delivery to U S Bank, eliminating the need for Finance staff to drive to the bank each day The Municipal Court utilizes Wells Fargo Bank for their banking. The current contract with the armored car service is for U.S Bank. It was decided that the Court staff would drive their deposit to Wells Fargo daily, rather than contract with a separate armored car service, at an increased expense. The Municipal Court has now indicated they would like to change banks from Wells Fargo Bank to U S Bank effective October 1, 2009 The primary reason for this change is to enable the Court to take advantage of the armored car service currently that is being provided by Finance INFORMATION ONLY Finance Safety Committee Minutes Seotember 9.2009 Pape 3 E. Sales Tax Report Shawn reviewed sales tax receipts through the month of June. Once again, sales tax revenue collected by the City continues to decrease when compared to the prior year and budget estimates. Historically, June has been the second highest month for sales tax collections, however, we collected 30 73% less in June than estimated resulting in the City being 26% below budget for the year INFORMATION ONLY III. MISCELLANEOUS Meeting adjourned at 6 17 p.m. Nex meeting Tuesday, September 22, 2009 5 00 p.m. Conference Room #3 T S�— Committee Chair Approval Minutes by MH