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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2001-08-13 Committee of the Whole MinutesCOUNCIL ATTENDANCE: TUKWILA CITY COUNCIL August 13, 2001 7:00 p.m. Tukwila City Hall Council Chambers COMMITTEE OF WHOLE MEETING MINUTES CALL TO ORDER/PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: Calling the meeting to order at 7:05 p.m., Council President Joan Hernandez led the flag salute. OFFICIALS: Mayor Steven M. Mullet; City Administrator John McFarland; Council Analyst Lucy Lauterbach; Deputy City Clerk Bob Baker; Steve Lancaster, Community Development Director; Jim Morrow, Public Works Director; Public Works Coordinator, Frank Iriarte; and Associate Planner Moira Bradshaw. Present were Council President Joan Hernandez; and Councilmembers Joe Duffie; Pam Carter; Jim Haggerton; Pamela Linder; David Fenton and Richard Simpson. CITIZEN COMMENT /CORRESPONDENCE: Jackie Dempere. 4033 South 128th. Tukwila, spoke against an alleged discrepency between documents received early in the bidding process for surplus property. Ms. Dempere was the highest bidder for that surplus property. Recently, she spoke with a representative from the Department of Community Development and learned about a bond requirement by the owner of the home as well as the housemover. She spoke out against this requirement. She asked Council to "do something" or she will have to relinquish the home to the City. Mayor Mullet assured Council and the audience that all must abide by this rule. It is nothing new and other homes have been moved within the City under this requirement. SPECIAL ISSUES: a. Temporary, non exclusive franchise agreement: XO Communications Frank Iriarte, Public Work Coordinator, presented the staff report on this item. No staff representative was present from XO Communications. XO Communications was formerly known as Nextlink Washington, Inc. They provide a wide array of voice and data telecommunications services including local and long distance, video conferencing, high speed internet access and other business to business solutions. XO Communications recently purchased an existing 4 -inch conduit system that was constructed by 360 Networks in 1998. They have submitted a permit request to pull fiber optic cable through the conduit system. When completed, this project will allow XO to service customers within the Puget Sound area and provide redundancy to the entire network. The proposed agreement will exert very little impact to the City's right of way. City of Tukwila Committee of Whole Meeting Minutes August 13, 2001 Page 2 of 10 To avoid confusion, Ms. Carter clarified the fiber -pull route will be located along Interurban Avenue South to South 56th Street; not South 156th Street. Council consensus was to forward this item to the August 20, 2001, City Council Regular meeting agenda. b. Temporary, non exclusive franchise agreement: Electric Lightwave Electric Lightwave has been doing business within Tukwila for nearly 12 years. At this time, they are seeking new routes which would need to be incorporated into a new franchise agreement. In January 1999, Electric Lightwave was granted a franchise agreement when they added routes to those which were currently existing. The initial franchise agreement was encapsulated into Ordinance 1764. That ordinance was then repealed by Ordinance 1858 in 1999. Electric Lightwave has now submitted a fiber optic proposal to service the Tukwila Qwest Cybercenter. They will add new, critical routes, which of course, are not part of either Ordinance 1764 or 1858, therefore a new franchise agreement and subsequent ordinance are being sought. The preferred route will be laid out in the final ordinance. Additionally, Electric Lightwave is seeking a waiver from the undergrounding ordinance which requires undergrounding for new lines. Their routes will be on the Interurban trail, and down by Segale in the south. Public Works staff will work to resolve waiver request issues through the permitting process, while the franchise agreement and corresponding ordinance may be considered and /or adopted. The proposed project will consist of a mixture of boring, trenching, and aerial operations. Council consensus was to forward this item to the August 20, 2001, City Council Regular meeting agenda. c. Temporary, non exclusive franchise agreement: MCI Worldcom Mr. Iriarte reported MCI Worldcom Network Services (MWNS) was granted a route specific franchise ordinance in 1997 (Ordinance 1791). This agreement allowed the construction, operation and maintenance of telecommunications transmission lines within the City's right of way. MWNS has submitted a fiber optic proposal to place additional fiber optic ducts and cables within the City's right of way. This proposal will allow additional, diverse routes for redundancy and would tie into the MCI Switching Office at 12682 Gateway Drive Center. Again, a new ordinance is proposed, which would include the routes suggested as well as those contained in Ordinance 1791. It is proposed that future routes would be handled through the miscellaneous permit process. The preferred route will be laid out, as an exhibit to the final, draft ordinance. City of Tukwila Committee of Whole Meeting Minutes d. An ordinance amending street vacation procedures. August 13, 2001 Page 3 of 10 Finally, MWNS will use direct boring as the primary construction method and will dig bore pits and pits for placement of handholds. Staff has mandated a comprehensive traffic control and restoration plan to ensure minimal disruption in the right of way. Councilmember Carter stated appreciation for the layout to the ordinance as shown on page 27 of the packet; versus that which was shown on page 45. This clarifies the area in question for the proposed routes. She asked that process be followed when completing the final, draft ordinance for consideration. Council consensus was to forward this item to the August 20, 2001, City Council Regular meeting agenda. Jim Morrow, Public Works Director, presented the proposed ordinance to Council and spoke in favor of its adoption at the Regular meeting on August 20, 2001. The work on the newly proposed ordinance has been done to clean up the record and to reflect current City practices. The responsibility of Street and Alley vacations has shifted from the City Clerk's Office to that of Public Works. Additionally, the Planning Department will be removing from its code, the $120.00 filing free for the vacation petition. Due to the shift of duties and the need for improvements to the Tukwila Municipal Code, Public Works staff has created the newly proposed ordinance. The draft ordinance changes responsibility from the City Clerk's Office to the Public Works Department, adds definitions, adds a $120.00 filing fee and denotes what constitutes a complete application, adds a two -year expiration period; re -words the valuation and compensation sections (and adds a 3 -month time limit for an appraisal), describes property trade in lieu of payment; allows for waiving compensation for governmental agencies; provides procedural direction to the application, adds verbiage to ensure a vacation does not cause landlocked lots, explains when the vacation is approval and when it takes effect. Mr. Morrow emphasized the desire to make the process as simple as possible for the applicant. Council consensus was to forward this item to the August 20, 2001, City Council Regular meeting agenda. e. Equipment purchase for 2002 Mechanical Street Sweeper Noting the need to replace the mechanical street sweeper, Mr. Morrow presented the proposed purchase to Council. He explained this would complete the plan which began in 2001 with a supplemental $67,000.00 Street Fund contribution to the 501 Fund and $13,000.00 in 2002. The sweeper may be purchased from the State of Oregon's contract; and takes approximately 4 months for delivery. It is imperative to order now as the Oregon State contract expires on February 7, 2002. Waiting until next year to order could result in our missing out on the opportunity to order from the Oregon State contract. City of Tukwila Committee of Whole Meeting Minutes Council consensus existed, allowing the Public Works Director to place the order now. f. Selection of contest winner Clean-up ideas from Tukwila Days August 13, 2001 Page 4 of 10 This contract allows for the purchase of a sweeper by Washington State municipalities provided the purchase does not have a negative impact on Oregon customers. In this case, there would be none. The anticipated cost of the street sweeper is $145,000.00 Depreciation accumulation of $65,000.00, along with the supplemental contributions in 2001 of $67,000.00 and $13,000.00 in 2002, will fund the necessary $145,000.00. Using the Oregon contract, the City will save time and effort of developing bid specifications and soliciting bids. Moreover, receiving the sweeper at the beginning of the fiscal year (January), will minimize the ongoing usage of the existing unit. To that end, Mr. Morrow spoke in favor of Council allowing staff to proceed with the purchase of the mechanical sweeper with delivery and invoicing in 2002. Councilmember Linder noted this item appeared on the Community Affairs and Parks Committee agenda recently; where no consensus among the members existed. The City Council sponsored a contest for the best anti littering suggestion, during the 2001 Tukwila Days event. While at the Committee level, there was no clear consensus as to who the winner should be as all suggestions were very good. One item the Committee did agree upon was to send a letter to all those who submitted suggestions, thanking them and stating appreciation for their involvement. Council conducted a ballot vote to determine the winner of the contest. Six responses were received; with Councilmember Duffle abstaining from the vote. The winning idea (#19) received three votes. It states, "I have two boys 3 and 6 years old. Whenever we go to a park or playground we bring a bag and pick up garbage before we leave. If everyone did this it would help control the litter problem. The person presenting this idea will be awarded a $45.00 gift certificate to a local area restaurant. The $45.00 was collected, personally, by members of the City Council. Second place, and the winner of $35.00 gift certificate (also to an area restaurant), was "suggestion #7." It states, "Have a pride in community contest. A lot of Tukwila looks like a dump. People don't take care of their yards, fences, or parking strips. Let's get some pride in where we live. Maybe some seniors need some help! Provide permanent garbage cans around the neighborhood." Money for this gift certificate was also donated, personally, by members of the City Council. Winners will be notified by Lucy Lauterbach, Legislative Analyst. Additionally, the Council President will work with Ms. Lauterbach to formulate a thank you letter, previously mentioned. Finally, this item will be forwarded to the Community Affairs Parks Committee for further action and consideration of ideas presented. Consideration of a hoped -for, long -term plan will be the focus of that discussion. City of Tukwila Committee of Whole Meeting Minutes g. August 13, 2001 Page 5 of 10 Demonstration program: Innovative mixed -use development for urban renewal area along T. I. B. Moira Bradshaw, Associate Planner, presented staff's report on this item, which was previously before the Community Affairs Parks Committee. Generated by City Administration and Staff, the idea behind the program is to look for opportunities to stimulate redevelopment in the Tukwila International Boulevard Corridor. The concept of the program is to develop criteria for eligible projects; project size and phasing; review processes and types of standards and criteria within the zoning code which could be waived. Waiving of some criteria may provide incentive for developers. The proposed program would require an amendment of the City's Zoning Code; (requiring a recommendation from the Council); consideration of and public hearing by the Planning Commission; and remand of the item to COW and Regular meeting for adoption of an ordinance, if so chosen. Noting City staff is in favor of more than just a retail presence on corridor, Ms. Bradshaw reviewed some of the ideas suggested for the basic criteria mentioned earlier. Eligibility Project location within an urban renewal area proposed minimum size of 2 acres (possibility for phased development). Review Code Amend. Proposed Type 5 review process, requiring a public hearing and decision by the City Council. Due to potential for requirement waivers, staff believes Council may want to make such decisions. Create /modify Board of Architectural Review Chapter of the TMC (18.104); to provide the scope and authority for the program and to specify the authority for and criteria to be followed on waivers from TMC standards. Amend permit application types and procedures Chapter of TMC and add Demonstration Program for Innovative Mixed Use Developments to the Type 5 table. Standards Waived Currently, landscaping and setbacks may be waived subject to certain requirements being met. Examples of additional waivers to consider would be height, parking and recreation space requirements. Decision on Waivers Applicants would be required to request waivers from code standards, any requests would be laid out in staff analysis /report and approval would be granted by Council, using the Type 5 review process. Waiver of other standards would be developed for the Demonstration Program and defined in the City's design review criteria or guidelines. Council discussed the proposed project amongst themselves and with staff. Clarification was given by staff where necessary. While Councilmember Duffle had nothing to add, the remaining City of Tukwila Committee of Whole Meeting Minutes August 13, 2001 Page 6 of 10 Councilmembers spoke in favor of the concept which would (potentially) eliminate some "red tape department directors being able to have greater discretion and authority in some areas; speed up processes; and jump start the development on the T. I. B. Corridor. Anna Bernhard. Tukwila. asked what the City would do in the event of a request from someone outside the urban renewal area for the same concessions granted to those within the urban renewal area. Response from Council and City Administration indicated that should this scenario occur, the City can consider them on a project by project basis. Based upon discussions between Council and staff, Ms. Bradshaw reiterated what was said and noted the item would be forwarded to the Planning Commission for consideration and public hearing. h. Transit oriented Development Master Plan for Longacres area. Steve Lancaster, Director of Community Development briefed Council on the Transit Oriented Development Master Plan (TOD). With assistance from the Ball -Janik firm, the City previously submitted an application for federal funds to assist with the Urban Center planning effort, and to develop a detailed master plan and development strategy for TOD in the Longacres Commuter Rail Station area. While not yet in the House appropriation bill, the City has learned from Senator Patty Murray's office that its request for $1.5 million has been included in the Senate transportation appropriation bill for fiscal year 2002. City staff is anxious to begin discussions with stakeholders with regard this project. Stakeholders include, but are not limited to Boeing, WSDOT, Sound Transit and the City of Renton. The goal of the stakeholders meeting is do develop a very preliminary development concept that Tukwila and their representatives in Washington DC can use in explaining the proposal during the upcoming budget negotiations. The following items are expected to be "explored" during the stakeholders meeting: 1. Potential benefits and need for changes to land use regulations in that area (building height, residential uses, parking standards, etc.) 2. Relocation of Union Pacific RR tracks toward the east (adjacent to existing BNSF RR tracks) to improve access, visibility and parcel size /shape for future development. 3. Extension of Strander Boulevard to the east, connecting with the Renton street system. 4. Potential extension of an additional east -west street south of I -405. 5. The need for additional surface street and interchange improvements. 6. Opportunities for enhancing the multi -modal nature of the Longacres Transit Station. 7. Opportunities for local circulator busses, pedestrian facilities, people movers or other options for connecting the Longacres area to the Southcenter area. 8. Options for use of the City's property holdings in the area. 9. Pedestrian and other amenities. 10. Incentives to attract desired land uses and intensities. City of Tukwila Committee of Whole Meeting Minutes August 13, 2001 Page7of 10 Mr. Lancaster noted no commitments of any kind will be made during the stakeholders meeting. It will be an exploration of possibilities to help focus our master planning work for the coming months. Councilmembers Haggerton, Linder and Fenton all spoke in favor of the project and noted they would like to see the tracks moved. Councilmember Carter also spoke in favor of the plan. Council consensus existed to allow City staff and Administration to move forward with and begin discussions with stakeholders, previously mentioned. i. FAST Corridor Interlocal Agreement for Funding between Port of Tacoma City of Tukwila Noting the proposed interlocal agreement went to the Transportation Committee earlier this evening, Jim Morrow, noted it is one of two remaining interlocal agreements the City must secure to obtain funding associated with the South 180th underpass. The Ports have combined to contribute $1.2 million to the project itself. The project is nearly $22 million in total. How the dollar value was split between the two ports has come about purely as a result of which entity has the largest amount of money. The focal point for this agreement works for both Ports. He has been able to move money around and the $950,000.00 will come from Port of Tacoma funds. Tukwila has experienced a recent incident wherein a freight mobility project came in significantly under the cost estimates; yet one of the funding partners removed their original funding commitment, equal to the amount the project came under. The opportunity and the concern it created was that any cost savings were not distributed amongst all funding partners. Based upon that, the City would like to expedite this item before language is added to every local agreement, trying to protect the interests and making a mess out of the various situations. Both Ports, as reported by Mr. Morrow, have been very good funding partners, and easy to work with. Councilmember Carter, on behalf of the Transportation Committee, spoke in favor of the project. Council consensus existed to forward this item to the August 20, 2001, Regular meeting for action. j. A resolution expressing support for the campaign to support racial justice, and for the observance of September 19, 2001, as Race Equality Day Council President Hernandez reported there is sufficient time to handle this item at a future meeting. To that end, she suggested it be forwarded to the September 10 COW meeting for discussion; and September 17 Regular meeting for acceptance. Having additional time to review the materials, Ms. Hernandez thanked the Council for forwarding this item to the September 6 Equity Diversity Commission meeting. Additionally, Ms. Hernandez asked Councilmembers to respond to the National League of Cities Campaign to Promote Racial Justice Survey found within the Council packet for this meeting. City of Tukwila Committee of Whole Meeting Minutes 9:00 p.m. 9:18 p.m. REPORTS: a. Mayor Council President Hernandez called a recess. Council President Hernandez reconvened the meeting. For general information, Mayor Mullet noted at least three houses have been moved within the City of Tukwila in the last three years. Two have been from his neighborhood. All had to put up bonds. Without arguing with Ms. Dempere earlier, Mayor Mullet did want the record clarified. All bidders received the same information; and all are treated fairly. The Mayor then reported the second of two bidders has written the City and informed them she has a lot ready should Ms. Dempere be unsuccessful in her ability to follow through with the process. b. City Council Councilmember Duffle reported receipt of a telephone call from Bill Holstein, Crestview Park area, regarding the fence. He expressed concern the City did not erect a fence "all the way down to the end of the park." Mr. Holstein would like Council to reconsider their decision and continue the fence "on down to the woods" thus, the end of the park. Ms. Linder noted a call from Mr. Holstein as well. She suggested the item be forwarded to the next Community Affairs Parks Committee. Mr. McFarland also reported receipt of a telephone call from Mr. Holstein. He agreed the item should be forwarded to subcommittee for consideration. The Mayor has asked Mr. Morrow to work with the Highline Water District to negotiate additional consideration. Next, Mr. Duffle stated dissatisfaction with his denied request for travel. August 13, 2001 Page 8 of 10 Councilmember Carter attended the August 7 Utilities Committee as well as the Annual Night Out Against Crime. Additionally, she attended the August 9 Transportation Policy Board meeting; August 10 Chamber of Commerce meeting; and this evenings Transportation Committee meeting. Ms. Carter reported an informal tour of a senior housing project with assisted and independent living conditions in Vancouver, WA. Although some units cost $1,400.00 per month, amenities include a workout room; dining facilities; etc. in two buildings. Finally, Ms. Carter reported purchase of the City of Renton's Centennial Playing Cards set. The deck includes historic photos of the City; and are available for $6.00 per deck. A planning committee began work on the project two years in advance of the celebration. Ms. Carter suggested Tukwila consider planning their Centennial events early, too. Council President Hernandez participated in the Annual Night Out Against Crime on August 7 as well as the Utilities Committee meeting earlier in the evening. Next, Ms. Hernandez reported receipt of an e -mail from Jim Street, former Seattle City Councilmember and retired King County Superior Court Judge. Mr. Street has invited Ms. Hernandez to serve on a Reinventing Task Force. She has declined the invitation at this time; yet noted she'd pass the invitation on to other elected officials in the south King County region. She also noted he sent information on a free conference related to reducing juvenile crime, where Mr. Street is a panel member. City of Tukwila Committee of Whole Meeting Minutes Finally, he reported an absence from August 15 through August 19, 2001. August 13, 2001 Page 9 of 10 Councilmember Haggerton attended the August 7 Utilities Committee meeting for Councilmember Simpson as well as the Annual Night Out Against Crime (with Police Officer Ted Rutt). Next, Mr. Haggerton reported the Washington State Department of Ecology issued a full, 401 permit for the third runway, which has been on the burner for three years; and been rejected twice. The permit was issued on Friday, August 10, 2001. The Airport Community Coalition is filing an immediate appeal to the Pollution Control Hearing Board. Councilmember Linder reported attendance at the "best" Annual Night Out Against Crime ever. She did suggest, however, that in the future, no committee meetings be held on the same night as the Night Out as it makes for late start. Next, Ms. Linder reported an August 9 Tukwila Backyard Habitat meeting. Their goal is for Tukwila to be the 4th community in the nation to be completely certified by September 21 (two years post project commencement). Councilmember Fenton also reported attendance to the "best" Annual Night Out Against Crime. He spoke positively of his experience in riding with Lt. Lori Sutter. He also noted how well Sutter knew community members by their first names and where they lived, etc. Secondly, he spoke in favor of inviting police officers who recently competed in the Police Olympics to an upcoming (Regular) Council meeting, so Council may show appreciation for their efforts. Councilmember Simpson thanked those who filled in for him (at Committee meetings) during his absence. d. City Attorney Not present. e. Legislative Analyst No report. f. Intergovernmental c. Staff City Administrator John McFarland reported recent distribution of information on the Open Public Meetings Act as it relates to e- mails. He, too, attended the Annual Night Out Against Crime. Next, he reported four Mariner's tickets were presented to the Mayor's Office, as a gratuity, from Puget Sound Energy. In turn, they were given to the manager /residents of the Okara Apartment Complex. None. City of Tukwila Committee of Whole Meeting Minutes MISCELLANEOUS: Ms. Linder noted that during her Night Out tour, she went to the Hill Crest. There, she learned it had been sold and the manager was looking for a new job. EXECUTIVE SESSION: None. ADJOURNMENT: 10:05 p.m. Fenton moved; Linder seconded; to adjourn the meeting. The motion carried 7 -0. Jon Hernandez, Council President r'`�t( t /1 Robert H. Baker, CMC, Deputy City Clerk Date Minutes Signed: September 4, 2001. August 13, 2001 Page 10 of 10