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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1998-07-27 Committee of the Whole MinutesMinutes of July 27, 1998 Page 1 of 11 CALL TO ORDER: Council President Linder called the Committee of the Whole Meeting to order and led the audience in the Pledge of Allegiance. COUNCILMEMBERS PRESENT: Council President Pamela Linder, Councilmembers Joe Duffle, Joan Hernandez, Jim Haggerton Dave Fenton, Pam Carter, and Steve Mullet. OFFICIALS: John McFarland, City Administrator; Steve Lancaster, Director Community Development; Keith Haines, Chief of Police; Finance Director Alan Doerschel; Evelyn Boykan, Human Services Coordinator; and Lucy Lauterbach, Council Analyst. SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS TUKWILA CITY COUNCIL July 27, 1998, 7:00 p.m. Tukwila City Hall Council Chambers COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE MEETING MINUTES Tukwila's Domestic Violence Task Force: Chief Haines, Co -chair of Tukwila's Domestic Violence Task Force introduced fellow Co -chair Coordinator Boykan, Mercedes from the Domestic Abuse Women's Network (DAWN), and Ellie, a domestic violence survivor. Domestic Violence is a significant problem in Tukwila and ranks as one of the highest policing problems in the City today. Domestic violence includes all age groups, not just adults. Ellie, a domestic violence survivor shared her story of surviving a domestic violence situation. She said she believed domestic violence only happened to uneducated people or to people who chained smoked and had alcohol problems. During her pregnancy, she suffered many bruises and in her seventh month of pregnancy, she was thrown over a sofa. During the course of the abuse, she suffered a dislocated jaw. Ellie indicated her husband's family was wealthy and her husband was well educated and came from a good family. She was not able to identify what was happening to her during the course of the abuse. She stated the abuse occurred over 10 years ago. At that time, resources for abuse victims were not available and laws not enacted to protect domestic violence victims. She indicated that if the current intervention tools were available to her then as they are now, she may not have had to escape the situation by fleeing and living underground for eight years to protect her and her son from violence and possible death. Ellie said she finally found a support group and was amazed to discover other people experiencing the same type of violence. She currently works as a legal advocate in the field of domestic violence and shared how the violence that happened to her affects her to this day. Ellie said the systems in place for violence abuse victims has much improved from 10 years ago. Early intervention and prevention are the keys to ending domestic violence. Violence is not only an adult issue, it also concerns children. Studies have shown that domestic violence repeats itself by children carrying over the behavior into adulthood. Minutes of July 27, 1998 Page 2 of 11 Ellie said she is pleased to see funding for a half -time legal advocate in Tukwila. She said Puget Sound is a leader in the nation on dealing with domestic violence and reviewed some local jurisdictions programs coming on line to handle domestic violence issues. She thanked City Council for their efforts and said abuse victims need their support to leave their abusive environment and indicated it is often difficult for people to understand why women do not leave their abusers. Council President Linder asked how people who have never experienced domestic violence can recognize it after it occurs. Ellie said there are many outreach programs educating the public on what domestic violence is, but there is a tremendous need for more educators. Chief Haines reviewed local domestic violence abuse statistics for Tukwila. In June, 45 instances of domestic violence occurred. They include: 1 domestic violence rape 3 domestic violence malicious mischief 6 violations of domestic violence protection orders 17 domestic violence disputes 18 domestic violence assaults Chief Haines provided interpretations of the different domestic violence categories. Fifty -two domestic violence incidents have occurred in Tukwila during the month of July. Chief Haines said under state law, if police determine probable cause of domestic activity, they must arrest the offender. Chief Haines said analysis is currently being done to determine where domestic violence is occurring, who is involved, how many are residents, and how many are visitors to better understand why domestic violence is occurring and how to reduce occurrences. Coordinator Boykan reported the numbers of domestic violence may seem high, but literature reveals reported incidents are only a small fraction of what is actually occurring. However, more people report domestic violence today than in the past. Tukwila's Domestic Violence Task Force started in 1992. At that time, a coordinated domestic violence response was developed throughout King County. Seattle and King County took the lead and a mission statement was developed which encompassed the protection of victims and accountability of abusers. Within the last two years, task force efforts have intensified with monthly meetings. Membership recruitment is focused on the entire community. Members include citizens, churches, civic organizations, offender treatment program personnel, hospital personnel, City officials, business members, and apartment managers. Coordinator Boykan said the task force resembles most committees in that members serve, leave, and are replaced with new members from the community. She stated that those members who have served and have become more personally educated on the issue carry on the educational message. Council President Linder asked if Judge Lukevich's role has made a difference. Coordinator Boykan said the judge has made a significant difference and was part of the action plan and has been very supportive concerning prosecution, addressing the issues, obtaining the information that is needed, and researching judicial practices concerning domestic violence. Minutes of July 27, 1998 Page 3 of 11 Councilmember Fenton noted that 60% of Tukwila residents live in apartments and asked how many apartment managers are on the task force. Coordinator Boykan said currently, no apartment managers sit on the task force. Several outreach programs include joint training exercises and community education under the umbrella of the Block Watch Program. Responding to a question from Councilmember Mullet about whether the cultural diversity of the City contribute to an increase in the number of domestic violence cases, Coordinator Boykan said there is currently no statistical data relating to cultural backgrounds. However, there are numerous cultural barriers such as a tendency of discouraging the sharing of family information outside the immediate family. Education to those agencies that serve specific cultural groups is ongoing. Councilmember Haggerton asked if the task force is balanced as far as the number of men versus women members. Coordinator Boykan said the task force membership is evenly divided between men and women. Mercedes, a community advocate at DAWN explained the services of DAWN. DAWN serves women and children of South King County who are victims of domestic violence. As a community advocate, Mercedes helps women and children create violence -free lives through information and referral, emotional support, access to support groups, and bilingual services. The goals of the task force is increasing community education, outreach, involvement, access to services, improving inter agency coordination and communication, pursuing grants and other sources of funding to combat domestic violence, promote and coordinate domestic violence training for City staff and the community at- large, hold abusers accountable through the criminal justice system and through treatment programs, enhance and strengthen intervention for victims and their families, and evaluate goals and their implementation for effectiveness and direction. Councilmember Haggerton said his concern with domestic violence evolves around the fact that victims don't come forward when the violence begins. He suggested including that concern as a goal for the task force. Mercedes said there are strong denial mechanisms that many women have that prevent them from seeking help. Many are in marriages they are committed to and do not believe they can easily leave. Early intervention and prevention is the key and it begins at school by educating both boys and girls. Councilmember Hernandez asked if there is a waiting period for women who need shelter. Mercedes responded that when the emergency women's shelter is full, no other women and children can be admitted which creates other problems. She indicated that throughout the country, there are three times more animal shelters than women shelters for battered women. She said when the South King County emergency shelter is full, victims are referred to the eastside, Seattle, or another county as needed. The shelter can house up to 21 women and children for 28 days and shelter advocates for both women and children are on staff. Support groups are available for chemical dependency and domestic violence. Coordinator Boykan reviewed the task force action plan. Specific targets have been defined and Judge Lukevich has actively supported task force goals and the action plan. Under his support, bail has been increased. Another action plan includes reviewing the plan with City Council and obtaining Council support. Apartment manager training and community training is ongoing with additional training efforts focused around other training avenues and community events. October is traditionally the month for domestic violence education, training, and prevention training and programs. Minutes of July 27, 1998 Page 4 of 11 Coordinator Boykan said Tukwila's is pursuing a local law enforcement block grant for a legal- advocate in 1999. An increase in volunteers is another action item being pursued to help organize meetings and education/training events. The task force is also increasing its involvement regionally to provide more networking and resource opportunities. Chief Haines announced that each supervisor on each police shift will become a certified notary public. This will enable police to notarize statements from victims. If completed in a proper format, the statements can stand in place of the victim in the event the victim recants her statement. Chief Haines said the department also has an emergency voucher program that is used for temporary shelter for abuse victims. Chief Haines reviewed major accomplishments of the task force. They include: Increased police training and understanding of this issue Stipulated Orders of Continuance Helped develop south King County Regional Domestic Violence Task Force Increased public awareness and education New cameras for police investigation of domestic violence cases More background information to judge Law Enforcement Block Grant funding for a legal advocate for 1998 Councilmember Carter asked about education directed to young girls of dating age. Mercedes responded and said currently there is no curriculum in the Tukwila School District addressing domestic violence. She has presented to some middle school students in a health class. Mercedes and the health teacher are planning on more presentations during health class. Coordinator Boykan said teens often do not relate to domestic violence and that education is focused on developing self esteem and personal strength. Chief Haines said the next meeting of the Domestic Violence Task Force is on Thursday, July 30 at 9:30 a.m. at the Tukwila Community Center. Chief Haines said if the responding officer finds probable cause that domestic violence has occurred the officer is mandated by law to make an arrest at the scene. If a domestic abuse suspect flees the scene, the police are required to search for the suspect for at least four hours. Councilmembers and staff continued to discuss how police handle and document domestic abuse and share information between police agencies. Administrator McFarland commended and acknowledged the efforts of the task force in its integrated approach to understand, educate, and act against domestic violence within the community. Council President Linder suggested adding information on the police web page about domestic violence such as community resources or how to obtain a restraining order against an abuser. Undate on Regional Governance and Finance: Administrator McFarland said the first efforts to draft a proposal for Regional Governance and Finance was ultimately rejected by the Suburban Cities membership. Minutes of July 27, 1998 Page 5 of 11 Essentially, the cities rejected their own work. A task force steering committee was tasked to address the issues as identified in the survey (distributed to each city by Suburban Cities). Tukwila's concerns, which were also mirrored by other cities included urban subsidy not adequately addressed, issues related to the handling of PAA's, and the failure of the proposal to address failing infrastructure issues within the unincorporated areas that might be annexed to cities with the requirement to bring failing infrastructures up to urban standards. Other concerns evolved around human services issues such as the quality, cost, and accessibility of services and local control. The pool element of the proposal was also not acceptable. Administrator McFarland said the redraft of the plan for review has been significantly modified and forms the foundation for a revised proposal to be presented to the Growth Management Planning Commission Steering Committee. He informed Councilmembers that no action was needed to ratify the proposal but he would like Councilmember's consensus on whether the proposal has merit for consideration. Some of the revised changes that are pertinent to Tukwila include: 1. Urban subsidy has been renamed as "Net Regional Revenue" along with a revised definition of what constitutes "Net Regional Revenue." The county had some strong arguments with the Gardiner Study which identified the urban subsidy to be between $18 -$20 million. However, the McIntyre Study estimated the urban subsidy to be even higher at $76 million (bad news for the county). Net Regional Revenues are funds available from regional sources that are not being applied to pay for regional services. After netting out the rural subsidy, which is approximately $16.1 million (proposed), and $20 million to Seattle, the balance of Net Regional Revenue is approximately $39 million for suburban cities. The suburban city portion would be expended first to pay for regional human services of $7.6 million (in addition to what the county currently spends). 2. The pools will not be released to the cities until they and the county have completed a regional aquatics study. The pools can not close until 2008 due to Forward Thrust bond covenants. 3. The Proposed Annexation Area (PAA) policies would incorporate identified transition areas that would include a three -year period for negotiations with the county. Additionally, another 10 -year time period would be imposed requiring cities to annex the areas. If, at the end of the 10 -year period annexation did not occur, it would still be the understanding that the city would annex at some future time, so as not to penalize the citizens of those annexation areas indefinitely. Administrator McFarland said three PAA areas, which are approximate to Tukwila are White Center/ North Highline, Skyway, and South Park. These areas have been tentatively identified as the areas of greatest need with respect to infrastructure improvements. They are targeted first for the $50 million per year infrastructure investment program that would be in addition to the Net Regional Revenue. The money can be leveraged with Public Works Trust Fund money with a dollar per dollar match. This equates to a 10 -year, 1 billion plus interest infrastructure investment program for these areas. There is not enough money based on initial analysis, but enough to do some things that are critically needed such as upgrading water, sewer systems, transportation, and other services. Additionally, in providing local services within unincorporated urban areas, the county must live within the revenue stream generated from those areas. The purpose is to get the county out of the business of providing urban services and incent areas to annex into cities if they want urban -level services 4. In Human Services, there would be no revenue transfer from the suburban cities to the county. The Net Regional Revenues would fund these programs. There would be a two -year transition period. Minutes of July 27, 1998 Page 6 of 11 Administrator McFarland said there are many other unanswered questions within the proposal but the current proposal does provide some assurances that there is greater responsibility and authority by the sub regional councils that would actually deal with the issues. He said he still has some concern on how the plan might impact local programs, however, the plan does allow for program enhancements and recognizes the importance of school support systems. The guiding principals of the plan are regional services should be funded by regional revenues, the plan should not require cities to transfer additional taxing authority or pay additional dollars to the county. The county needs to live within its means. The county practices deficit spending. Their population level has reduced due to annexations but county personnel continue to grow. Incentives should be provided for annexation. Those incentives are the infrastructure investment fund, the special targeting fund, and the disincentive created by asking the county not to engage in program enhancements in those areas that have been identified for annexation. In addition, a process would establish how those unincorporated areas unclaimed by jurisdictions could be annexed. Specialized police services would be considered as part of Phase 2 of the study. Currently, cities are working with the county in emergency services and through information sharing. Examples include the automated fingerprint information system that the county is administering, the E911 program, emergency disaster planning, and the Office of Emergency Services that link with the state. Administrator McFarland said he supports the plan although the recent presentation to King County elected officials Ron Sims, Cynthia Sullivan, Chris Vance, and Lois Miller did not receive positive feedback. He said he suspects some changes to the plan because of the initial reaction. The plan has strong support from some of the larger SCA city members. Twenty -two jurisdictions need to approve the plan so it can be presented to the Growth Management Planning Commission Steering Committee (GMPC) and then to the county. Councilmembers discussed the proposed plan and concurred to support the plan as presented. Councilmembers individually voiced their support of the plan. SPECIAL ISSUES Modification of the process for considering Comprehensive Plan amendments: Director Lancaster said during the last several years of reviewing proposed amendments to the Comprehensive Plan there has been one aspect of the review process that has created some confusion. Staff informally reviewed the concern with the Community Affairs and Parks Committee and asked for suggestions on improving the process. Based on the Committee's expressed interest to address the issue, staff prepared information and reviewed it with the Community Affairs and Parks Committee for input. The recommended suggestion pertains to eliminating the distinction between "significant changes" and "non- significant changes." The distinction has not been clearly articulated either in the City's code or in the ability of staff to provide Council guidance in the process. Staff believes eliminating the distinction will make the process easier to understand without giving away any authority the Council has in terms of how they make decisions on potential Comprehensive Plan amendments. This is a policy process versus a legislative process and the Council's authority is extensive. Minutes of July 27, 1998 Page 7 of 11 Director Lancaster reviewed two flow charts; one depicting the current Comprehensive Plan review process and a newly proposed Comprehensive Plan amendment process. The new proposal removes the distinction of the impact and allows Council to make a threshold decision whether to (1) reject proposal, (2) refer to Planning Commission, or (3) defer proposal. The final three steps (1) environmental review, (2) Planning Commission Hearing /Recommendation, and (3) City Council Review /Discussion would remain the same. Director Lancaster said the state does not provide specific rules on how cities process Comp Plan amendments other than the amendment has to be consistent with the Growth Management Act and the state is notified 60 days in advance of any amendment becoming final. Council President referred to the new language in Chapter 18.80 TMC Section 18.80.050 Council Consideration and said she would like input from Councilmembers who were seated when the existing language was adopted and the reason for adopting it. Councilmember Mullet indicated he was not sure why the language "significant" and "non- significant" was used. Councilmember Carter recalled at that time, Council wanted sufficient time to see if the process worked and decided to include the language for a few years to see how effective the process was administered. Councilmember Carter said she supports the change and suggested that an additional requirement be added to Section 18.80.050 Council Consideration to read, "4. Does it fit with the current Comprehensive Plan." Councilmember Hernandez said during the Committee's review of the proposed change, it was also suggested to include additional language in Section 18.80.050 1. to clarify the language. She suggested rewording item number 1 to read, "Is there public need for the proposed change and is it already addressed in the Comprehensive Plan Dwight McLean, 13015 38 Avenue South, Tukwila said he opposes the proposed change and indicated the City Council reviewed the Comprehensive Plan and after much review and thought adopted the process. The public was involved in the process and the terminology was acceptable to the public. Mr. McLean said if any changes are contemplated now, no public input would be provided and he hesitates to change the current legislative process now. Changing the legislative process of Comprehensive Plan Amendments should be a very slow and thoughtful process that includes the public. There are differences between "significant" and "non- significant." He said the proposed language in Section 18.80.050 cannot be measured and that determining "significant" versus "non- significant" is much easier and clearer to interpret. Mr. McLean said people are going to be very suspicious of why changes are made and said making legislative changes should be a slow and careful process with much deliberation. The new draft leaves it open for Council interpretation even more. Councilmember Haggerton said if Council concurs with the proposed change, the issue will go to the Planning Commission for review and public hearings. Mr. McLean continued to express his displeasure with the way proposed changes are made. Councilmembers clarified the intent of the proposed change and reiterated what the public process would entail and how he and the public would have an opportunity to provide feedback. Minutes of July 27, 1998 Page 8 of 11 Councilmember Hernandez said the changes are an attempt to clarify the intent of the language and perhaps including the language "public need" is confusing and that is why the suggestion was made to include the additional language of whether it has been addressed in the Comp Plan. Mr. McLean ended his comments by reiterating that changes are not necessary to the Comp Plan and that time would give the Comp Plan a chance to work. Councilmembers concurred to send the proposed changes back to the Community Affairs and Parks Committee to review and clarify the proposed changes. Consultant contract with Microflex for sales tax auditing: Director Doerschel said last year the City contracted with Microflex for sales tax auditing. Microflex has techniques and tools to audit the business licenses issued in the City against sales tax reports. Director Doerschel said he has periodically worked on auditing sales tax receipts and reports and indicated it is very labor and time intensive. Subsequently, the City contracted with Microflex on percentage basis of what was recovered, which ultimately became a substantial amount. Staff began negotiations with Microflex to audit at a flat rate of $2,500 per month. Staff is proposing a contract with Microflex effective July 1, 1998 to June 30, 1999 at $30,000. One element Microflex is able to accomplish that staff cannot is auditing the Department of Licensing. On average, Tukwila has been losing approximately $30,000 per year to other cities and the county on boat and car licensing. Many people use a Seattle mailing address but are actually residents of Tukwila. Microflex has the capability of auditing and documenting these discrepancies. It may be possible for staff to accomplish this task next year depending on budget approval of an internal auditor. Mayor Rants said the City needs the service, whether by staff or by contract. Director Doerschel said the City is guaranteed to acquire enough sales tax to compensate Microflex. Director Doerschel reviewed some of the sales tax recoveries and reported that nearly one third to one half of the businesses in the mall use Seattle addresses. He said Tukwila is a unique City due to its location. As the sixth largest City in sales tax revenue, Tukwila has many Seattle mailing addresses. Lost sales tax can only be recouped within the last six months. Responding to a concern by Councilmember Carter, Director Doerschel said all hotels have been contacted to insure that vendors who participate in trade shows and other sale events obtain a business license from Tukwila and report sales tax revenue resulting from their sales. Councilmembers concurred to move approval of the Microflex contract to the next regular City Council meeting for action. REPORTS Mayor Rants reminded Councilmembers of the Sister City delegates arrival on Thursday, July 30 at 8:30 a.m. at Sea -Tac Airport. Councilmembers were asked to arrive at the Tukwila Community Center by 9:30 a.m. It was noted that the Special City Council Meeting on Friday, July 31, 1998 was incorrectly listed as beginning at 5:00 p.m. instead of 7:00 p.m. as determined by Council and staff. Mayor Rants noted the correction. Minutes of July 27, 1998 Page 9 of 11 Rants visited Maple Valley recently and reviewed the Regional Governance and Finance Plan with them. Maple Valley has expressed approval of the proposed plan. Councilmember Duffie attended the Community Affairs and Park Committee meeting earlier today. Three agenda items included the adoption of the 1997 Housing Code; Comprehensive Plan amendment process change; and a Transit Advisory Committee update; plus an additional informal discussion on the Highway 99 name change. Duffie also attended the Foster Point neighborhood meeting. Information was distributed to attendees on how to form a block watch committee. The neighbors said they would be attending the Transportation Committee meeting to provide input regarding the bridge. Director Lancaster provided an update on the work program of the Transit Advisory Commission. Staff and the Committee are working with them to outline an agenda on key points regarding the Draft EIS for Light Rail to be presented to Council. A tentative joint Transit Advisory Commission/City Council meeting has been set for August 10 to report the results of the first phase of the consultant's work on the market analysis for a light rail station locations. Councilmember Hernandez thanked Mayor Rants for chairing the SCA Steering Committee on Regional Governance and Finance and for his work on the revised plan. Hernandez also attended the Community Affairs and Parks Committee meeting. Hernandez reported that her husband's car was burglarized while he was walking on a City trail in the morning. Hernandez said she would be hosting an Ikawa delegate. Council President Linder reported she received a letter of support for renaming Highway 99. Linder said she was contacted by a citizen who said RTA had approached him for permission to enter his property to assess a transit station on Interurban. Councilmember Mullet reported he attended the Part 51 meeting and that reportedly there is a noise monitor located somewhere in Tukwila. He asked Director Lancaster to check on the location. Councilmember Carter asked about the settlement on the Family Fun Center. Administer McFarland said some significant issues have been raised and the case is still pending. Carter referred to a letter from Suburban Cities and indicated cities that have reported support of the proposed Regional Governance and Finance Plan include Bellevue, Kent, Renton, Burien, Kirkland, Federal Way, and Mercer Island. Carter will attend a Transportation Committee meeting on Tuesday, July 28, 1998 and indicated the bridge is not an agenda item for discussion. Councilmember Duffie said the Foster Point representatives have no information on the bridge and are only seeking to gain some information. Carter asked staff to have Public Works supply a drawing of the proposed site so people could review the project. Minutes of July 27, 1998 Page 10 of 11 Carter asked about an itinerary for the Ikawa delegates and planned activities that include Council. Administrator McFarland reviewed the agenda and said a copy would be provided to each Councilmember. Councilmember Haggerton attended an ACC meeting on Thursday, July 23, 1998. He referred to the Department of Ecology's permit release on July 20, which recently headlined in the Tacoma News Tribune. The criteria imposed on the Port of Seattle is so stringent, they will have a difficult time of meeting the conditions. He indicated the permit criteria were more stringent than what ACC anticipated. Haggerton referred to a recent editorial in Seattle Times concerning the City of Everett's police cameras in a 12- block area of the city. He said the editorial was very biased and he intends to write a letter of complaint. He asked if the Council would like to jointly send the letter. Council President Linder suggested contacting Chief Haines regarding the issue to obtain some statistical data to refute some of the information contained in the editorial. Haggerton thanked Administrator McFarland for supplying the Year 2000 information he had requested after the AWC Conference. Haggerton requested feedback for the disposition of strategic planning tapes he obtained from the National League of Cities conference in March. He forecasted heavy meeting agendas for the rest of the year for Council and wanted to know if Councilmembers wants to pursue strategic planning this year or early next year. He suggested forwarding the tapes to Coordinator Lauterbach to coordinate. Councilmember Fenton indicated he has sent emails to all Councilmembers concerning the status of Council's position regarding the allocation of funds for opposing the third runway. Council President Linder said she never received the email. Fenton reviewed the email message and asked for Council's position. Councilmember Haggerton recommended adding the item to the Safety and Finance Committee meeting agenda. STAFF Administrator McFarland announced a meeting to be hosted by Metro and held in the Council Chambers on Tuesday, July 23 at 7:00 p.m. The meeting will review Metro's new bus service plan. MISCELLANEOUS Mayor Rants said an agenda discussion item on the 1999 budget has been added to the August 3 Regular Council meeting. He wants Council's input on the initial budget process to include what the Council's budget strategies are and items the Council feels are important to budget. Minutes of July 27, 1998 Page 11 of 11 ADJOURNMENT Councilmember Duffie moved, seconded by Councilmember Hernandez, to adjourn the meeting at 9:24 p.m. Motion carried. Pamela Linder, Council President AID Lm._sp Valerie Gow, Recording Sdcretary