Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout1997-10-13 Committee of the Whole MinutesSPECIAL ISSUES: Recvcline Update Non Represented Salary Study TUKWILA CITY COUNCIL October 13, 1997 7:00 p.m. Council Chambers City Hall COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE MEETING MINUTES CALL TO ORDER: Council President Jim Haggerton called the Committee of the Whole meeting to order and led the audience in the Pledge of Allegiance. COUNCILMEMBERS PRESENT: Council President Jim Haggerton, Councilmembers Pam Carter, Joe Duffle, Allan Ekberg, Joan Hernandez, Pamela Linder, and Steve Mullet. OFFICIALS: John Rants, Mayor; John McFarland, City Administrator; Steve Lancaster, Community Development Director; Vicki Witschger, Administrative Services Director; Alan Doerschel, Finance Director; Jane Cantu, City Clerk; Vernon Umetsu, Associate Planner; Ross Earnst, Public Works Director; and Lucy Lauterbach, Council Analyst. Administrator McFarland recently attended an awards luncheon sponsored by the Southwest King County Chamber of Commerce. One of the awards categories was for the "Green Business of the Year." The award recognizes those businesses which practice recycling. All of the nominees for the southwest region were from the City of Tukwila, with South Town Auto winning the award. Administrator McFarland said Tukwila has one of the most active commercial recycling programs in the area and congratulated Ms. Fox on the effectiveness of the program. Administrator McFarland introduced Rebecca Fox, who provided a recycling update and showed a video on recycling. Ms. Fox distributed a copy of the newsletter insert of the program. King County also publishes a recycling newsletter which is sent to all county businesses which includes the insert about the local recycling program. Director Witschger responded to questions from the Council regarding the Non represented salary study. Director Witschger referred to the memorandum included in the Council's agenda packet and indicated the Advisory Committee has met but did not complete its review process and will be meeting again on October 14. She indicated there are some concerns from employees regarding the system, implementation, and other concerns. Councilmember Hernandez expressed some concerns with the financial impact to the budget and what the financial impact to employees who may already be receiving salaries higher than the recommended respective salary level would be. Director Witschger said the financial impact is approximately a 2.2% increase in the budget, implemented as is, as calculated in July 1997. This equates to $57,798. Director Witschger said some employees fall below the mid point, some are on the mid point, and a few are over the mid point. Employees who are below mid -point could be impacted if their current salary system includes broader steps with a 5% City of Tukwila City Council of Whole Meeting Minutes Page 2 of 8 October 13, 1997 increase between steps. There is some concern with employees that their increase would be less than a step increase. Employees currently at the mid -point would require a performance evaluation element which would require the employee to successfully pass that element of the program. There is some concern that since a performance element has not been structured or implemented, this may affect any increases related to performance. Employees who are currently above the mid -point are concerned since increases are applied based on performance and do not include cost -of- living increases. Employees would have to pass performance measurements each year to be eligible for a salary increase. Additionally, there are approximately five employees who are off the schedule and would be considered as redlined. Councilmember Carter said many employees might have agreed to the general philosophy of the new salary system until they realized how much the new system affected them financially. There are some concerns regarding the loss of an annual COLA. There was also some concern that there would not be some type of adjustment, separate from the COLA. The study suggests readjusting salary levels every two years against the market. The City's current ordinance readjusts salaries every three years. The Council would have to consider what course to take in light of no annual COLA increase. Council President Haggerton said the Council should recognize that not all employees can be at the top end of any salary system. The City has its share of excellent employees, but not all employees are perfect. The proposed salary system is expected to be somewhat more difficult for employees to exceed expectation standards. Director Witschger said the salary plan is based on a pyramid structure with an "A" level consisting of lower paying positions and the "F" level consisting of higher paying positions. Council President Haggerton said there will always be some unhappy employees whenever a new salary system is implemented. The City is trying to create an equitable pay system for all employees. He said the consultant did a good job and the Committee did a good job working through some of the issues and he believes that overall, it is a good program. Director Witschger explained that the different levels are referred to as "bands" and along with the designated band, an employee's rating also includes a number, which corresponds to the "coordinating or non coordinating" function in each respective position. If an employee is in the "non- coordinating" function, the employee does not supervise any other employees located within the same band. In the "coordinating function, the employee could supervise a minimum of two people within the same band. The third element of the salary designation is the sub grade, which considers all other factors relative to the particular job. Councilmember Mullet requested additional information relating to the salary band, the coordinating or non- coordinating designation, and the sub -grade and indicated that the process seems somewhat complicated. He said Councilmembers should review the information to become better informed regarding the information in order to understand employee's concerns. Mayor Rants thanked the Council for their thoughtfulness in considering the employees with respect to the new salary plan. He said it is important to get more employee feedback. There is no timeline to implement a new salary system. However, it should not be implemented until all of the issues have been resolved and that although not everyone will be happy, once all of the input has been reviewed and the issues discussed, implementation is likely to move forward. Some of the issues to resolve are the employee position groupings and the new performance evaluation system. City of Tukwila City Council of Whole Meeting Minutes Page 3 of 8 October 13, 1997 Overview of Proposed 1998 Budget and Proposed 1998 -2003 Financial Plannine Model and Capital Improvement Plan Mayor Rants said that as preparation for the 1998 Budget and the planning model for the next six year period began, it became apparent the City is facing a shortfall of $10 million. He said the key issue was determining how to maintain service levels with reduced funding. The planning model was calculating a 5% growth in operations and maintenance. This amount has been reduced by 2 Over the six -year planning period, it provides only for an inflationary amount for the operation and maintenance of the City. It does not include new programs, but maintains current programs. It provides the ability to address the needs of the City's citizens but does not provide any flexibility, whatsoever. Mayor Rants said this was the direction he provided to staff in developing their respective department budgets. There are, however, some concerns, specifically with the erosion of the capital program to support operations and maintenance. The six -year Capital Improvement Program will not be as robust as it has been in the past. Mayor Rants said the General Fund analysis reflects 68% of expenditures are for salaries and benefits. He said the Council would be presented with a balanced budget, which has been affected by legislative and economic conditions within the City. This has caused reductions and some eliminations. Mayor Rants said the balanced budget was achieved with minimal impact on residential and commercial programs. Any additional expenditures would be almost impossible to consider under the proposed budget. There are some major changes proposed on the capital planning model. Mayor Rants said the Capital program would be maintained, although some of the funding sources have changed. With the discovery of over $4.4 million in state funding for street overlay on Highway 99, the City's funding has subsequently been reduced. The City has enough to match the grant and will go forward on improving Highway 99. Mayor Rants referred to the City's policy to include sidewalks on streets around the City's schools. Funding has been included for South 150 from 42 to 46 Avenues for sidewalks. The continuation of the Allentown Water /Sewer system is pending on new hookups. Responding to a question from Councilmember Hernandez concerning sales tax revenue, Director Doerschel said he anticipates the City would receive approximately $13,550,000 by the end of year. The revenue split for sales tax between capital and O &M is approximately (in percentages) 80/20. Director Doerschel said he anticipates budgeted revenue for 1997 would be achieved and explained some of the economic factors occurring within the community relative to property tax revenue and how it affects budget estimates. He indicated that within the last several years, there has been some activity which has resulted in his forecasting more conservatively. Review of proposed design revisions to The Peaks (Sunshine Ridge) PRD Planner Umetsu referred to file numbers L95 -0053 and L95 -0054 and said Council has held a public hearing on the proposed changes. Council deliberations were held and the applicant was notified of the results. The applicant has responded to the Council's recommendations. Planner Umetsu pointed to the five issues resulting from the applicant's response and requested guidance by the Council. Most of the issues involve a concurrence or a simple decision. The most involved remaining design issue relates to the Building B western elevation. Planner Umetsu compared the previously approved elevation of Building B. City of Tukwila City Council of Whole Meeting Minutes Page 4 of 8 October 13, 1997 John Cane. 3422 Belvedier SW. Seattle. responded to Councilmember Mullet's question on the awning. He referred to the drawing of the proposed awning and indicated it was difficult to convey in a drawing the actual depth of the awning. He said he is proposing to install the awning over the garage for several reasons. The eye brow roof of the third story prevents awnings on the top windows, which would result in four of six windows having awnings. In addition, if the awnings were to be installed on the remaining two windows, other issues would result. With vinyl siding, anchoring is a difficulty without compromising the water proofing ability of the siding. Council President Haggerton asked what the significance was in changing the name of the development to The Peaks from Sunshine Ridge. Mr. Cane said the name change occurred before he joined the project and was not sure of the reason for the name change. Councilmember Hernandez asked what the proposed change is relating to the fence prototype. Mr. Cane said the prototype reflects a 2" x 4" bottom plate which the 2" x 2" pickets are nailed to. The pickets are faced with a 1" x 4" on each side. Staff's concern related to water penetration from leaching out from the 1" x 4" over the top of the 2" x 4" structure. Elevating the 1" x 4" alleviates the pocket for water to stand in which could eventually rot the fence. Councilmembers expressed agreement with the proposed revision to the children's play area. Councilmember Hernandez questioned the clearance between the play area and the retaining wall. Mr. Cane indicated there was approximately a 10 -12 foot clearance between the play area and the retaining wall. The retaining wall is approximately two feet high and will have a grassy area below the wall. Planner Umetsu reviewed the status of the proposed changes and indicated the entryways to Buildings A and B are fine as proposed. The proposed location of the play area and use of the timber are also acceptable. The fence design has been resolved and the addition of a brown color in the concrete for the retaining wall is acceptable. The sole remaining issue concerns the resolution of the west elevation. Mr. Cane said it is preferable to plant ivy along the retaining wall versus mixing brown in the concrete. The problem with mixing colors in concrete is the difficulty in obtaining the exact preferred color. The ivy would need to be maintained to insure the area surrounding the fire hydrant is clear. The retaining wall is needed to protect the fire hydrant. Mr. Cane indicated if the remaining issues are approved by the Council, he expects the project to be completed by January 1, 1998. Councilmember Hernandez asked if previous design review criteria had been reviewed and discussed at the public hearing could be reexamined. Planner Umetsu said all parties would probably agree the Council deliberations did not result in a formal action or actions. Certain decisions were made based on the review of the proposed design which if successfully implemented would cause the project to satisfy the multi family design criteria. If the suggestion could be implemented easily, staff and the applicant could probably resolve the concern. Councilmembers reviewed each of the five issues. Councilmembers concurred with staff recommendations except for the issue related to the awning on the vinyl siding. Councilmember Carter recounted the Council had requested some form of modulation on the side of the building. Councilmember Ekberg asked how much City of Tukwila City Council of Whole Meeting Minutes Consideration of Holding Council Meetings in Neighborhoods Page 5 of 8 October 13, 1997 of the building side would be blocked by the preceding building and what degree of visual blockage would occur. Mr. Cane said there is some visibility of the building side when entering the complex. Councilmember Linder asked what other design alternatives could be considered. Planner Umetsu said staff reviewed the best solution regarding an awning. From a design and a builder's standpoint, staff feels in this situation, the solution would be a wrought iron window box option which protrudes approximately six inches from each window. Mr. Cane responded and said anything that penetrates vinyl siding is a mistake. Water is the contractor's worst enemy. Unless the vinyl system has a component which allows penetration, it is not a prudent thing to do. He referred to the color print of the proposed building and noted the visual look of the building. He indicated he has reviewed many different options from flower boxes, laminated panels, and vinyl panels, all of which would penetrate the vinyl siding. Councilmember Ekberg said his previous suggestion of incorporating a different color or a patterned design vinyl panel in place of an awning or a flower box would have solved the design problem with the building side. However, since the vinyl siding has already been installed, that option is no longer viable. He noted trying to achieve a different look on the west side wall (with windows) as opposed to the east side wall (without windows) does not make sense. Councilmember Ekberg said he is not sure what the Council is trying to achieve if one building side is completely solid versus the building side with the windows. If we want to do something to one section, the same treatment should apply throughout the building. Councilmember Ekberg said he likes the proposed awning over the garages and supports that option as the resolution to the issue. Council President Haggerton polled the Council for consensus. Councilmembers Duffle, Hernandez, Ekberg, and Mullet concurred with the proposed recommendation. Councilmember Carter opposed the recommendation and Councilmember Linder said she could not offer a better alternative. Barry Olin 9725 SE 36 Suite 304. Mercer Island, explained the change in name from Sunshine Ridge to The Peaks of Tukwila was determined to be the appropriate name by the marketing team. Six different units will have different mountain range names attached to them which will tie to the different floor plans that will be offered. This is the main reason for the name change. Council President Haggerton said the suggestion was raised during a Council retreat. Councilmember Duffle said he would be interested in conducting a community meeting but is not interested in conducting a Council meeting at another location due to logistical considerations. Councilmember Hernandez said if citizens had requested the option, she would consider holding Council meetings offsite. However, she is not aware of any citizen requests. Considering the meeting and communication logistics, it would be difficult to conduct offsite Council meetings. Most people are aware the Council conducts meetings every Monday night. Councilmember Ekberg said both the COW and the regular Council meetings should continue to be held at City Hall. However, some COW meeting's could be less informal with an open house format (coffee and donuts) for discussion between citizens and the Council. Councilmember Mullet said he originally proposed the suggestion and concurred with Councilmember Ekberg's suggestion to conduct several COW meetings more informally to allow for a two -way dialogue. Councilmember Carter suggested selecting several COW meetings with a light business agenda and incorporating extra time to meet and mingle with the citizens in selected areas within the community. Councilmember Linder agreed conducting offsite meetings would be difficult because of recording difficulties. She suggested increasing advertising of the meetings. Council President Haggerton said it is important to consider different ways to conduct meetings and agreed several informal COW meetings would be a good start. City of Tukwila City Council of Whole Meeting Minutes REPORTS: Page 6 of 8 October 13, 1997 Mayor Rants announced the Chamber of Commerce Governmental Affairs Committee met recently. The meeting focused on Renton's economic development staff person, who was hired by the City approximately five years ago. She has increased annual revenue by $2 million. They have been successful in recruiting new businesses by changing the design review minimum square footage requirement to 100,000 square feet. Tukwila requires design review of businesses over 5,000 square feet in size. The City of Renton is also establishing a City department titled the Economic Development Division which will employ up to four additional employees. Earlier in the week, Rants met with County Councilmember Dwight Peltz for a briefing on RTA and the airport. Staff and the Mayor met with him and reviewed some of the City's concerns along with some recommendations the City feels are important regarding the RTA and the airport. He said he found the meeting beneficial and is planning on meeting with all the south end County Councilmembers. Rants received a letter from Auburn asking for the City's support regarding the Burlington Northern Santa Fe and the right of preemption. The City joined Auburn in a lawsuit. Auburn has submitted a draft resolution for AWC proposing the AWC send the resolution to the National League of Cities and approach the right of preemption through the National League of Cities. The letter asks the National League of Cities to request the US Congress exempt this matter and clarify federal law does not preempt state, local, environmental, and land use planning. Rants asked the Council's concurrence to draft a resolution to submit with Auburn's resolution. Councilmembers agreed with the request. Rants referred to a letter from Mayor White to the Suburban Cities Association regarding the human services factor of Regional Governance. Mayor White states he opposes the action which changes the current funding decision making for provisions of human services at the local level. Rants said the Kent Council also concurs with Mayor White's position and they are worried the level and access to services would decrease. Moreover, a regional system could result in smaller agencies which provide vital services being swallowed up by larger regional agencies. Their Human Services Commission is advising them that in their view, the needs of Kent residents would be best served by retaining the current system of managing and funding local human services, while King County continues its responsibility to support human services throughout the county. Rants said this is just one position from one mayor and council and wanted to share the information with the Council. Rants referred to the selection of the new judge and indicated there were 17 applicants. He outlined the timeline for interviews. Beginning next week, panel interviews will be conducted with the City Administrator, the Police Chief, the Court Administrator, Judge Moore, and an another undetermined judge. Staff is also seeking input for each of the applicant's from the King County Bar Association. The week of October 27 will include activities researching the background of each of the candidates. Staff anticipates a recommendation to Council by November 2, 1997. This timeline would provide an opportunity for the Council to interview either in Committee or at a COW meeting for final selection. Rants invited Councilmembers to a work party on Saturday, October 25 beginning at 9:00 a.m. to work at the pond on planting trees and shrubs. City of Tukwila City Council of Whole Meeting Minutes Page 7 of 8 October 13, 1997 Councilmember Duffie reported on the stormwater drain work at the school and hopes the stormwater situation will be resolved this year. Duffie reported he has received many calls and hang -up calls from citizens who are convinced the City operates a group home on 144th. Some people have threatened not to reelect Duffie because of the group home. Duffie reported the group home is operated by the state and has not broken any rules or laws. Duffie said he reviewed the situation with Administrator McFarland and Mayor Rants. Councilmember Hernandez reported she recently escorted two visitors around Tukwila. She said she took them to approximately 40 different places in Tukwila and started the tour at noon and ended at 5:30 p.m. She reported they were impressed with the City of Tukwila. She recounted while visiting the Community Resource Center on Pacific Highway, the alarm system went off as she entered the building. She eventually got the alarm turned off and showed the visitors the surveillance camera. She said the women were very impressed with the various programs Tukwila has implemented. Council President Haggerton referred to a letter from Director Witschger to John McFarland regarding COW staffing and the request to withdraw the requirement that the City Clerk be present at the COW meetings. She asked the Council to review the letter for Council discussion later. Haggerton said he would be attending the South Central School District meeting on October 14. On October 15, he will be attending an ACC meeting and on Thursday, October 16, he will be attending the AWC Regional meeting. Councilmember Ekberg will be attending the Community Affairs and Parks Committee on October 14. Councilmember Mullet attended the community meeting with Administrator McFarland and Director Lancaster on the joint process between Tukwila, Seattle, and King County to resolve the annexation area. Quite a few residents attended who expressed interest in a strip of land where the bridge is located. The residents are concerned about utilities and the fact Seattle does not want them to annex to Seattle. Councilmember Carter attended an earlier Transportation Committee meeting and reviewed an agreement for a study by a consultant on access to the Burlington Northern yard. Also reviewed was a policy the county is considering regarding PAA's that involve regional road projects and how those projects would be funded (county versus City). Carter said Director Lancaster has met with representatives from light rail and a time sensitive scoping document is scheduled for release. The DCD staff will have an opportunity to comment before its publication for the 30 -day review period. This matter may also require direct routing to the regular Council meeting due to the short response time for the review. Carter will be attending the non represented employee salary study on October 14. She then requested a brief memo or oral presentation be prepared by staff on possible ramifications to the City regarding the upcoming ballot issue concerning the property tax initiative. Councilmember Linder attended the EDAB meeting earlier in the month. City of Tukwila City Council of Whole Meeting Minutes Administrator McFarland referred to the issue surrounding the group home and indicated the home operates under federal protection under the Federal Fair Housing Act and the City is not empowered to place any restrictions on the group home. McFarland said he has met with the group home manager and explained there are some people in the community concerned about the presence of the group home. The manager expressed surprise since he has been operating the home for the last 15 months. The City had no idea the group home was in operation until some renovation to the house required a building permit by the City. The City learned about the home in July. Some issues are being worked, such as required licenses by the state and the City. McFarland suggested the manager contact the school district superintendent and review possible school district concerns. At some point, the manager indicated he would be receptive to a community meeting or address the Council and answer any questions Councilmembers may have. McFarland reiterated there are no laws which can be changed by the Council that would impact the operation of the group home. There are some upset citizens in the community and staff has been informing them the home is protected under federal legislation. The home is operated under a private, non profit organization which houses voluntary patients for treatment. It is not a halfway house for felons. Currently there are nine residents in the home. The manager advises that no more than 12 residents would reside in the home at any given time. The Department of Health (DOH) is contending the home requires a license through their agency to operate the home. The City is tracking this issue with DOH. The average stay is between nine to 15 weeks and residents are adults. The home is coed. The Police Chief confirmed no calls for service have been received at the group home location. MISCELLANEOUS: Councilmember Duffie attended the Ryan Hill meeting. Residents are concerned about drugs and gangs. Another meeting is scheduled for October 21 and a neighborhood block watch program will be implemented. Tukwila has been responsive to the neighbors' complaints but residents complain Seattle refuses to offer any assistance. EXECUTIVE SESSION: Personnel Issue 9:52 p.m. RECONVENE: 9:57 p.m. ADJOURNMENT: Moved by Haggerton, seconded by Hernandez, to adjourn the meeting at 9:58 p.m. Motion carried. Counc'. esident J ggerton JielE. Cantu, CMC, City Clerk, for Recording Secretary Valerie Gow Date Minutes Approved: /99 Page 8 of 8 October 13, 1997