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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1998-08-24 Committee of the Whole MinutesTUKWILA CITY COUNCIL August 24, 1998, 7:00 p.m. Tukwila City Hall Council Chambers COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE MEETING MINUTES 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 Duffie, Joan Hernandez, Jim Haggerton, Dave Fenton, Pam Carter, and Steve Mullet. OFFICIALS: John Rants, Mayor; John McFarland, City Administrator; Bob Noe, City Attorney; Jack Pace, Senior Planner; Ross Earnst, Public Works Director; Alan Doerschel, Finance Director; Don Williams, Parks Recreation Director; and Lucy Lauterbach, Council Analyst. SPECIAL ISSUES An ordinance extending the current curfew regulations for minors: Chief Haines said after reviewing the statistics and discussing the curfew with supervisors and police officers, the current curfew ordinance is helping to reduce juvenile crime. Based on current data, juvenile population between the ages of 10 to 17 will increase substantially in the next 12 years. Councilmember Duffie expressed support of the curfew. Chief Haines reported no complaints have been received by the Police Department about the curfew ordinance. Councilmember Carter inquired about the disposition of children detained for curfew violations when the parent or legal guardian cannot be located. Chief Haines indicated at the time the curfew ordinance was enacted, the state approved residential centers that would temporarily house children involved in curfew violations. Since that time, the state has not pursued building the centers and the option is not available to the police. Often, police officers search diligently for a parent or guardian and generally, most children are placed with the parent or guardian. DSHS does not accept children detained for curfew violations. Chief Haines said locating a parent or legal guardian hasn't been an issue for Tukwila police. Operationally, the curfew has been positive for the department; not a hindrance. Councilmember Haggerton said after the Finance and Safety Committee reviewed several documents and issues, the Committee is recommending renewal of the curfew ordinance. Councilmember Fenton referred to statistics revealing reduced juvenile crime rates. Chief Haines indicated that overall, crime rates have reduced for both adult and juvenile crimes, and it is very difficult to pinpoint the reason for crime reduction. Overall, Chief Haines said multi- faceted police and community efforts contribute to reduction in adult and juvenile crimes along with the demographics of the population. He recommended Councilmembers extend the curfew, and during the next year, the department would provide detailed statistical analysis as a result of the newly automated system implemented in May. C. O. W. Minutes of August 24, 1998 Page 2 of 13 Councilmember Hernandez said she was present during the Committee review and discussion and indicated although juvenile crime rates have been reduced, the curfew also gives police another tool to use which often helps in reducing other types of crime. The Committee is recommending the curfew be extended for another year with another review after the end of the year. Councilmembers approved of extending the curfew for another year and referred action to the next regular Council meeting. A resolution adding the Police Captain classification to the Non Represented Salary Schedule and modifying the Police Lieutenant classification: Mayor Rants said Chief Haines has proposed a reorganization in the Police Command structure which would delegate the responsibilities of the Assistant Chief position into three Captain positions (converting the three Lieutenant positions to Captains) and adding a Lieutenant position (essentially replaces the Assistant Chief position). Mayor Rants supports the proposed reorganization. Chief Haines referred to charts outlining the current Police Department Command Structure and the proposed structure. The proposed reorganization eliminates three Lieutenant positions and replaces them with Captain positions consisting of a Patrol Captain, Support Services Captain, and an Investigations Captain. The new Lieutenant position would report to the Patrol Captain. The new command structure affords more administrative support to Patrol and allows more of the administrative oversight such as planning, work load studies, and community policing efforts to occur in that area. Chief Haines reported other jurisdictions currently employ the same type of proposed command structure and are experiencing success. Chief Haines said personnel are currently available to fill the positions and it provides several promotional opportunities to individuals. Council President Linder noted there would be no budget increase resulting from the proposed command structure and there would be advancement opportunities along with cross training. She indicated she did not see any drawbacks to the new proposed structure and asked if there were any. Chief Haines indicated he wasn't aware of any drawbacks except the officers would grow into the positions and the department wouldn't have fully trained Captains but personnel would become trained and advance in the positions as they gained experience. Responding to a question from Councilmember Carter, Chief Haines indicated the Captains would be responsible for assigned districts within the community and would be attending community meetings, scanning police reports pertinent to their community area and using the information to develop solutions to reduce crime. Councilmember Fenton inquired as to whether the Captains would be locked into their assigned position or have the ability to change assignments. Chief Haines indicated he foresees some changes in assignments, but in the long -term of three to five years. One year would be too soon for any changes. Councilmember Haggerton asked Chief Haines if he anticipates the Captains trading patrol districts. Chief Haines said there is no plan now, but the idea is being explored to sector the City differently over the next year. A Community Policing Work Group comprised of different members from the department is reviewing the concept to determine if it would benefit the City to change the districts. Council President moved the issue to the Special Meeting scheduled later in the agenda. C. O. W. Minutes of August 24, 1998 Page 3 of 13 Discussion of Foster Point traffic alternatives! Councilmember Carter reported there were two main issues concerning Foster Point traffic and crime. She would be reporting on the traffic issue. Traffic concerns relate to traffic speed and volume of traffic. The proposed bridge at 48 Avenue South should help, as it will close access at S. 130 Place. Future connections between S. 129 and 48 Ave S. has not been determined, as the complete engineering of the bridge has not been finalized. The Committee reviewed numerous options and is not recommending a preferred solution. One of the recommended options of widening S. 129 is not supported by the Committee due to the cost ($120,000). One way streets also did not receive much support from the Committee. Signs will be required regardless of the option selected. She referred to the road maps and reviewed the options pertaining to road closures or speed humps. Speed humps inhibit speeding beyond 25 MPH by strategically placing the speed humps in such a manner that vehicles could not exceed 25 mph without sustaining vehicle damage. Councilmember Carter referred to the memorandums from Chief Haines and the Fire Department outlining different options. The Committee recommends the decision should be made at the COW level. Council President Linder indicated she has also requested a traffic count at 56 Approximately 2,800 vehicles travel on 56 daily. The traffic count at 124 (9,000) is also provided since some of the options may inadvertently route more traffic to 124 Councilmember Duffle said he was under the impression 124 was improved to handle more traffic. Director Earnst said 124 was built to residential standards. It was not built to handle truck traffic. It was widened to include parking along the sidewalk. The additional parking was provided for community center overflow parking. Councilmember Fenton asked if Baker Commodities has been informed about the traffic situation. Director Earnst said they attended one of the neighborhood meetings and are aware of the situation. With the exception of closing of 130 as an option, they would not be affected. Councilmember Mullet said there are three safety issues to consider. One is the Steel Mill Hill Bridge left turn, the second is the one -way section under the freeway, and the third is traffic through the neighborhood. He would like to see the problem solved and not a Band -Aid approach applied. If the proposed bridge were built it would cut off 130 from the Steel Mill Hill Bridge. If the bridge project continues, this option would not be available. Councilmember Mullet said he favors closing the street or installing speed humps. His preference is closing the street for a period of six months to a year until the bridge project begins development. If the bridge project does not occur, then other options would need to be evaluated. Councilmember Fenton said he has spent time talking with the neighborhood and said there are obvious traffic issues which need to be resolved. Originally, closing the street was his preferred option but with the uncertainty of the bridge project, he's not sure if this would be the right option. Speed humps would not only affect speeders it would also affect the neighborhood. Based on all the options, Councilmember Fenton said closing the street for a temporary period would be his choice. Councilmember Hernandez thanked the Foster Point neighbors for bringing the issue before the Council and said she supports the speed humps. She questioned the impact to fire and police if 130 was closed. Chief Keefe responded and said if the street was closed, Fire Station 53 would respond the quickest, as the route on C. 0. W. Minutes of August 24, 1998 Page 4 of 13 124` to Baker would be sufficient to reach the Foster Point area. The other fire engines would either come through Foster Point by cutting the road chain, if the road is blocked in that manner. However, if there were concrete barricades, the engines would be blocked from entering. Alternately, the fire engines would have to go to 42 and go around and down to get to the neighborhood. As far as residential fires, Fire Station 53 would be the only station affected. The other stations would be able to enter from Interurban. Chief Keefe said closure of the street would affect fire safety more for Baker Commodities than for the residents. Chief Keefe said the fire trucks are able to effectively drive over the newer speed humps since they are wider, however each truck carries much apparatus which would be affected as the engine rises and falls from traveling over the speed humps. Councilmember Carter remarked the easibility of patrolling streets influences patrol officer decisions concerning patrol drive areas. When there are no easy turnarounds, this may influence the number of police patrols through any neighborhood. Council President Linder said she is leaning toward the speed humps rather than closing the road. If the road were closed, more traffic would be rerouted to 124 Councilmember Haggerton said he's not comfortable with any of the suggested options, said it's a difficult problem, but does not have any suggestions for solving the issue. Councilmember Carter said the speed humps would slow traffic and annoy drivers. They would find another route rather than drive through an area with speed humps. She indicated they are effective in cutting traffic speed and reducing traffic, but not entirely eliminating all traffic. She pointed to the traffic options and raised the concern of whether the traffic options would have a negative impact on crime. In some respects, drug houses could increase. However, she reiterated the traffic solutions are meant only to solve the traffic issue and are not intended to address the crime issue. Councilmembers discussed the crime issues and traffic concerns within the neighborhood. The crime problem is a long -term issue which will take some time to resolve through community policing and community support. The traffic issue is one problem which can be addressed immediately and would provide some relief to the neighborhood. Jerry Wheaton, 13361 56 Avenue South, Tukwila, indicated road rage occurs where the road turns into a one -way road and speed bumps would be detrimental to animals. He supports closing the road. Councilmember Mullet said the speed humps would cover the entire area on 56 with some on 57 Tammy Miles, 13027 56 Avenue South, Tukwila, said closing the road for a year would give enough time to evaluate the impact on crime and would also provide a way to identify vehicles traveling through the area. Councilmember Fenton reiterated closing the street would only be a temporary measure. Charles Branson, 13009 56 Avenue South, Tukwila, thanked the City for its Web Page and pointed out where all the Councilmembers live within the City. He said he and his neighbors live with these issues day in and day out and Councilmembers do not have to contend with these issues on a daily basis. There is too much traffic through the neighborhood. Vehicles constantly throw out garbage, needles, and shotgun shell casings. C. O. W. Minutes of August 24, 1998 Page 5 of 13 Mr. Branson said the neighborhood wants something done and said traffic speed bumps are not effective and cited the speed bumps on the hill as an example of how ineffective they are. He asked the Council to close the street. Councilmember Carter affirmed to Mr. Branson Council is aware of the problem and has never said the problem does not exist. Council President Linder said many of the Councilmembers have visited the neighborhood and have witnessed first hand the concerns the neighbors have. Several Council Committees have reviewed the issue and are discussing alternatives which have the least impact to surrounding neighborhoods. Joanne McManus 5610 s 133 Tukwila, said she has been complaining about the traffic issue for years. Not only are there animals to worry about, there are concerns about children. One household on 56 has four children under the age of five. She pointed out the differences between 56 and 57 and indicated speed bumps would not work. She referred to the City of Burien and how ineffective their speed bumps are. She said the only solution to stopping the traffic and reducing the crime is to close the street. Dixie Archer, 13013 56 Avenue, Tukwila, said she has asked her neighbors to sign a petition and everyone, with the exception of two people, wanted the street closed. She reviewed this option with the Fire and Police Departments. The Fire Department said if the street was closed by using a chain barrier, it would most likely take the same amount of time to get through the area by cutting the chain as compared to driving over speed humps. The only difference is there wouldn't be any damage to the fire trucks. Baker Commodity has also attended the neighborhood meetings and is aware of the issues. She asked the Council to close the street and said although 124 may experience more traffic, it is better equipped to handle more traffic than 56 Council President Linder forwarded the issue to the next regular City Council meeting. An ordinance prohibiting the feeding of wildlife at narks within the City: Councilmember Duffle said the ordinance prohibits feeding of wildlife by citizens in any of the City's parks. Director Williams referred to the revised draft ordinance that clarifies some administration issues the original ordinance contained. The revised draft provides better clarity. Director Williams said the issue was revisited due to a complaint of a woman feeding ducks at Tukwila Pond Park and throwing rocks at geese to discourage them from taking the food meant for the ducks. Also, a chef at one of the hotels was observed feeding the birds daily. The Tukwila Pond Park was originally designed to discourage waterfowl from habitating in the area. The feedings encourage ducks and geese to stay in the parks, which results in sanitary issues and excessive personnel hours required for cleanup. Director Williams said another woman has been observed feeding wild cats on the river trail. This ordinance would also prohibit such activity. Enforcement of the ordinance would be by the Tukwila Police Department and Tukwila Pond Park would have signs posted announcing the prohibition of feeding animals. Councilmember Haggerton said during the Committee's review, it was recommended to change the language to include all parks in Tukwila, not just Fort Dent. C. 0. W. Minutes of August 24, 1998 Page 6 of 13 Councilmember Carter said unless signs were posted, many citizens would assume it is ok to feed the birds and recounted her own personal experiences with her children feeding ducks and geese. She suggested signs alerting the public regarding the feeding prohibition be posted both at the Community Center and Fort Dent. Councilmember Hernandez referred to people and businesses feeding cats on the Green River Trail and suggested alerting them about the ordinance prohibiting feeding of animals. Director Williams said they would inform businesses of the ordinance. Councilmember Hernandez asked if the ordinance would prohibit catching fish from any park that borders the Green River. Director Williams said he has reviewed the issue with the Department of Fish and Game. The Department has indicated they govern the water at Tukwila Pond Park and it is under their jurisdiction to enforce fishing regulations. The City controls what occurs on the land surrounding bodies of water. Director Williams continued discussing fishing issues pertaining to the location of where the fishing and where the City has jurisdiction versus jurisdiction by Department of Fish and Game. Director Williams said the prohibition of fishing in City parks currently exists in the current ordinance. Director Williams continued reviewing specific sections of language in the proposed ordinance concerning feeding and harming wildlife and fishing. The benefits of posting signs advising citizens of the prohibitions was also debated and discussed. Joanne McManus 5610 S 133 Tukwila, referred to the mini -park on 56 and indicated the Parks Department has improved the area for fishing. She claimed it is a Tukwila park that currently allows fishing. Ms. McManus said she also feeds the baby rabbits at the golf course and stated the new ordinance would prohibit such feeding. Councilmember Carter said she understands the intent of the ordinance but there are wording changes staff should consider. She pointed to the section concerning the prohibition of motor vehicle operation on public parks and recommended changing the wording to reflect, "Tukwila parks." The prohibition of fires, except in devices or fire pits should also include some reference that it pertains to fires in parks. The section concerning facility use reservation should be reworded as group activity at Tukwila City parks. Director Williams said through the efforts of the City Attorney, staff has repealed a number of older park codes and consolidated them into the new ordinance. As a result, Council is reviewing some of the older codes, such as motor vehicles that were in force prior to the opening of Fort Dent. Consequently, there may be a number of codes that are outdated and need to be reviewed by staff and Attorney Noe. It was not staff's intent to review every provision in the proposed ordinance. He suggested taking Council's concerns and reviewing the ordinance to insure concerns are addressed. Council President Linder said the revised proposed ordinance could be forwarded to the next regular Council meeting. 1999 Budget issues: Mayor Rants referred to his memorandum to City Council concerning the status of the budget process and goals and policies that have been in place for several years and indicated the Council will want to continue with many of those funding policies, such as the revitalization of Pacific Highway and the Community Resource Center. Mayor Rants suggested the City's staffing level should also be reviewed to insure service levels are maintained. He referred to Director Lancaster's recent report on the recent C. O. W. Minutes of August 24, 1998 Page 7 of 13 development activity and indicated revenues from fees and permits have surpassed the 1998 budget in the first eight months of the year for development activities. Mayor Rants says he foresees no changes in the rate of development activity and anticipates new revenue streams from property tax and sales tax. The Council should also consider reviewing multi family licensing. Information concerning multi family licensing has been collected from other jurisdictions. Mayor Rants indicated that if the Council wants to pursue that direction, code enforcement should be pursued in a proactive fashion versus a reactive fashion. He is recommending a staff position to increase code enforcement within the City. Another item concerns initiating an airport parking tax. Mayor Rants said he has reviewed the issue and projects potential revenue of up to $200,000 $250,000 per year from an airport parking tax. This revenue could be dedicated to bonding for the City by either the sales of bonds or debt recovery of councilmanic bonds. Alternatively, the City could use the revenue to fund infrastructure improvements over a period of time. He recommends the Council seriously consider implementing the tax. The projected revenue could be included in the 1999 budget with follow -up work and an ordinances drafted if the Council concurs with idea. Mayor Rants indicated the 1999 budget includes approximately the same amount of revenue as last year, which will not require huge cuts in the CIP to balance the O &M, as it has in the past. Mayor Rants recommended four new projects in the CIP. To fund the new infrastructure projects, Mayor Rants proposed implementing the airport parking tax. The four projects include purchasing the building next to City Hall, solving the parking lot issue, improve the community resource center, and improvements to Highway 99. Additional grant funding or state highway funding could also be pursued for Highway 99 improvements. The neighborhood plan for Highway 99 refers to infrastructure improvements such as cross streets (tying 42 to Military Road). Some funding has to be leveraged to initiate these improvements. Mayor Rants said he wants this review of budget issues and policies with the Council so he can effectively present a budget that works from both the Council perspective and the City's perspective. Mayor Rants recommended hiring a new permit technician in DCD as the position is warranted now and funding is available from permits and fees. He asked for consensus on the request. Council President Linder asked how the funding of the proposed projects would occur and referred to the $130,000 allocated from the annual CIP from the Facilities Replacement Allocation budget line as an example. Director Doerschel reviewed the bulleted items in the packet and said the $130,000 is the property tax on City Hall that has been preserved and is uncommitted and that has been accumulated for a future facilities project. The second item is the projection of estimated rent payments of the 6300 building. At this time, it is estimated at $190,000 per year but could increase up to $240,000 in later years. He explained that the rent could be converted into debt service payments to pay for the building. The City could also rent out some of the space since the City uses less than 50% percent of the building now. Minolta rents the remaining space. The third item is levying a '/2% percent real estate transfer tax. The first 1/4% percent has been levied by the City, which dedicates the revenue to the 301 fund for parks. An optional 1/4% percent has never been levied by the City and is available to collect and can be levied anytime property is sold. Over the last five years, the City has averaged approximately $280,000 in revenue per year from the first 1/4% percent. The second 1/4% percent can be allocated to fund anything as long as 1/4% percent of the 1/2% percent is allocated to parks. C. O. W. Minutes of August 24, 1998 Page 8 of 13 Councilmember Haggerton asked how the 1 /4% percent allocation relates to new office buildings on Highway 99. Director Doerschel responded and said large sales of parcels can account for thousands of dollars of real estate tax and cited several examples. The seller pays the tax. Director Doerschel said the tax could be assessed 45 days after the ordinance is adopted and collected several months after that. Council President Linder referred the increased tax option to the Finance and Safety Committee for review and consideration. Councilmember Fenton referred to the new staff position for DCD and indicated he has received some complaints concerning the permit process and recommends approval of the staffing request. Councilmembers Mullet and Carter concurred. Discussion ensued on forwarding the request to a Committee for review. Councilmembers agreed to send the request to the Finance and Safety Committee for discussion, review, and recommendation. Councilmember Carter referred to the code enforcement issue and said she has called the Code Enforcement Officer many times and understands the frustrations of citizens whose complaints are not handled promptly. However, the Code Enforcement Officer is doing the best he can do and she approves of paying for the cost of an additional code enforcement officer through various fees from business licenses. She would like the Council to consider increasing business related fees to fully fund code enforcement positions. Administrator McFarland indicated the issue has been reviewed by the Mayor's office and that many of the infractions concern indigent citizens and that the City has to resort to liens on their property to get them to clean up the area. Councilmember Carter referred to the commercial business owner the apartment owner and inferred there could be codes that are more stringently applied in those circumstances. Administrator McFarland cautioned that creating a different set of rules for the violation of similar laws could result in equity issues. He indicated the City does not want to limit citizen's rightful access to an appeal process through an economic sanction. Councilmember Carter said she would like code enforcement differentiated for someone who is in a business situation and profiting from the situation. Administrator McFarland said the City now has the ability to issue on- the -spot citations that carry fines. He indicated there might be a way to enact a process to handle violations resulting from offenders who are gaining a profit from the infraction. Mayor Rants said he identified some new funding which would be allocated into the General Fund. Currently, the code enforcement officer position is paid from business license fees and other related fees. Mayor Rants said the current Code Enforcement Officer is very thorough and insures he is in contact with the property owner concerning code enforcement complaints. However, he does needs help. The complaints relate to timing issues and how fast the complaint is handled. Another position is needed. Discussion turned to the multi- family housing ordinance and fee. Councilmember Fenton indicated he had met with the Police Department and they are not in favor of implementing any new changes with respect to a multi housing fee. He indicated that more research and review is needed to determine if the fee can be legally tied in with the business license fee. C. 0. W. Minutes of August 24, 1998 Page 9 of 13 Attorney Noe said he has done some research and legally a license fee can be charged that includes covering the City's costs for conducting inspections. If a multi- family license is enacted, which includes an inspection for code compliance, a fee schedule can be designed to incorporate fees to cover the City's costs of code enforcement. Attorney Noe said the Hot Spots Task Force is reviewing a draft ordinance that should be ready for the Committee's review by September 9. Councilmember Fenton said it might be a good idea to get a summary of the Task Force's review of the issue. Councilmembers concurred to forward the issue to the Finance and Safety Committee for review and discussion. Council President Linder recessed the meeting for a five- minute break. Discussion of City Council 1999 Budget: Councilmembers reviewed and offered suggestions of what budget items for the City Council should be considered for 1999. Councilmember Carter proposed that Councilmembers be afforded the option of receiving a reimbursement for medical coverage or receive the same medical coverage as City employees. Discussion ensued on the proposal to raise the medical reimbursement budget line from $6,000 to $7,000 with individual reimbursements up to $1,200. Councilmember Haggerton said typically, Councilmembers have never submitted reimbursement to equal the total line item budget and that is why there is not a total of $8,400 allocated for the line item. Discussion ensued regarding the legality of the Council approving the medical benefit. Administrator McFarland said he would do further research to ascertain the legality of Council action in terms of medical benefits. Councilmember Fenton referred to the proposed increase for travel from $8,500 to $10,000 and said he supports the increase. Administrator McFarland explained that the City does not have a formal travel coordinator position and that individual departments have been successful in shopping for the best travel fares pertaining to travel outside the state for training purposes. Additionally, another travel budget line item is set aside for Councilmember trips to Ikawa (3 Councilmembers) in 2000 or 2001. Councilmember Carter said the Council should consider discussing the next visit to the Sister City trip soon. Councilmembers reviewed the miscellaneous line item and. Spending in 1997 totals $2,158 from a budgeted $2,500. The proposed budget for 1999 increases it to $4,000. Mayor Rants recommended the Council consider increasing the budget to insure Councilmembers can attend meetings and other events pertaining to regional issues. Councilmember Hernandez distributed a sample of a display board that could be used by Council during Tukwila Days or during conferences and workshops. The board costs approximately $218 and does not include the display photos or information pinned on the board. The display boards are compact and can be handled by one person and loaned between City departments. Councilmembers discussed budget goals for the City. Councilmember Hernandez said she would like the City to maintain better control of litter within the City. She indicated she has noticed a substantial increase of litter and said Renton does not have the same degree of litter as Tukwila does. Either more staff is needed for litter C. 0. W. Minutes of August 24, 1998 Page 10 of 13 control or the burden of responsibility needs to shift to property owners to control litter on their property and right -of -way. Councilmember Duffie said street sweeping is also needed. Councilmember Fenton asked who is responsible for the property east of Computer City, as it needs to be cleaned up. Administrator McFarland said the issue was a subject of discussion at a staff meeting today. Some of the property is public and some is private property. In the past, staff has asked the adjourning property owner to take responsibility for the property and the City will continue to pursue that option along with evaluating other strategies, such as contacting the Chamber for assistance with local businesses to resolve these landscaping and maintenance issues. The City will be contacting the business community and asking for their cooperation. Councilmembers and staff discussed litter and who should be responsible for cleaning sidewalks. Administrator McFarland said the courts have ruled that public sidewalks are the responsibility of the public and that the issue tends to be a sensitive one with property owners regarding the cleaning of sidewalks. Councilmembers agreed there is a problem and indicated one way to affect change is to issue tickets for littering. Councilmember Hernandez referred to the Equity and Diversity Commission and said the Commission can use some staff support. The 1998 budget was $1,000 and Councilmember Hernandez indicated she had to use some of the budget for copying and anticipates the Commission needing a larger budget in 1999 as they expand their scope and establish goals. She mentioned other Commissions have much larger budgets and are assigned a dedicated staff person to provide administrative support. Councilmember Carter said the support involves more than completing meeting minutes, it involves mailing of meeting notices and other administrative duties required to maintain files for the Commission along with having funds to purchase refreshments for community meetings. Councilmember Hernandez said the mailing database also needs to be maintained. The school district has been providing the meeting space, refreshments, and some technical support. However, the City also needs to fund their share of the costs. Councilmember Hernandez said the budget amount has yet to be determined. Council President Linder suggesting sending the item to the Community Affairs and Park Committee to review. Councilmember Duffie referred to the litter problem and said during his visit to Texas he learned that individuals charged with misdemeanor offenses pick up litter to have the fine removed. He asked if Tukwila could consider a similar program. Attorney Noe said Tukwila does have the ability to establish such a program through a community service requirement imposed by the judge. However, the problem in Tukwila concerns the demographics and that most offenders do not reside in Tukwila, most are unemployed, many fail to attend their court hearing, and lot of them are scheduled for review hearings as they don't comply with paying a fine. Many people would rather serve jail time than perform community service. The judge is looking at the issue to see if it can be utilized more. Mayor Rants said there is a concern regarding the requirement to provide a guard for inmates picking up litter, and that he is hesitant to provide a police officer for that duty. Volunteers are about the only people the City could consider performing litter duty, as they do not require monitoring. He indicated the judge is reviewing the issue. Councilmember Mullet said his main budget focus next year is Highway 99 and the revitalization efforts and the installation of sewer in Allentown. Mayor Rants said the Council would be receiving an update in mid September regarding Highway 99 revitalization efforts. C. 0. W. Minutes of August 24, 1998 Page 11 of 13 Council President Linder referred to the sewer connections for Allentown and indicated if funding was not available, it may be time to consider a LID for funding. She indicated a property owner has expressed interest in forming a LID. Councilmember Mullet said the neighborhoods near the river should be connected to reduce water outflow to the river. The possibility of obtaining grant funding was discussed between staff and Councilmembers. Director Earnst said staff has researched this funding source and discovered that to qualify for grant funding, in most cases an emergency would need to be declared. Director Earnst said staff would monitor grant- funding opportunities. Councilmember Carter agrees with the need for sewer connections and said she would like to see residential projects included in the CIP as the revenue streams increase as a result of commercial activity. She supports allocating funds for ACC and anticipates legal expenses related to other things that may impact the City. A specific line budget line item would not be required as long as the budget provided flexibility to allocate legal expense funding. Councilmember Carter supports a volunteer coordinator position and is concerned with overburdening current staff with Home Page responsibilities. She would also like more information and perhaps a briefing on court issues. Councilmember Haggerton said his budget goal wish list includes both Council and City goals. They include implementing a strategic plan for short-term and long -term policy direction for the City, increasing City Council participation in Sister City exchange trips (supported by budget dollars as previously reviewed), and develop and implement a plan to determine what issues go to what committee and what department is responsible for budgeting specific items. Goals for the CIP include completing 42 Avenue South from South 154 to Military Road, studying and improving the western extension of South Center Boulevard or South 154 to Pacific Highway South, and studying and improving the full length of Interurban Avenue within the City limits. Additionally, a City goal should also be added to review the organization of the Fire Department as it relates to battalion chiefs from a cost effective and operational efficiency standpoint. Councilmember Fenton said his goals include promoting pride within the community by promoting individual responsibility for one's surroundings. Complete a neighborhood by neighborhood analysis targeting revitalization to determine where the work problems are located and what the City can do to address the problems. He also suggested conducting a joint meeting with all the community related committees and boards. A joint meeting would provide an opportunity to review common problems and inform the various committees and boards of the City's goals and agenda regarding community revitalization. Councilmember Fenton said another goal is to determine how to promote the high -end real estate in the City and where the available rental spaces in Tukwila are located. He would also like to review pending PAA's to afford time to prepare action plans before a mandated transfer of jurisdictional control. Councilmember Fenton also suggested that to increase revenue, the City should explore parking tax, increase business license fees, and continue efforts to attract new business on International Boulevard and review infrastructure funding needs for streets, sewer, water, etc. C. 0. W. Minutes of August 24, 1998 Page 12 of 13 Council President Linder confirmed her wish list of goals to include some goals already discussed. They include: Volunteer coordinator position Sewer connections Economic Development staff position to support the goal of revitalization of Highway 99 and marketing the City for new development. Focus on teenagers get them involved regarding their wants and needs Mayor Rants said some of the goals are achievable and some revenue goals are achievable dependent on funding and that many of the goals have been on the CIP for years. Councilmember Haggerton suggested working on new revenue sources to determine different levels of new funding sources. Councilmember Carter said the previous comments related to Council brainstorming and strategic planning is an important aspect in achieving some of the goals Councilmembers have determined are important to the City. The Council usually schedules its retreat in January, which is timely, especially for new Councilmembers. Mayor Rants said typically staff usually reviews budget issues with the Council in May or June of each year. This year, due to the Regional Governance and Finance process, the review did not occur. He reaffirmed that next year the review would occur. He pointed out that the budget (finalized at the end of each year) primarily determines the policies and goals for the coming year. Discussion continued between Councilmembers and the Mayor regarding what needs to be accomplished and accomplishments that have occurred in Tukwila over the years. REPORTS Mayor Rants mentioned he had a great vacation. Councilmember Duffle said he had a nice vacation in Arkansas. Duffie attended a Community Affairs and Parks Committee meeting. The meeting agenda included a review of the 1999 CDBG proposal and a review on Riverton Park and utility connections. Councilmember Hernandez attended the Community Affairs and Park Committee meeting. Councilmember Carter is scheduled to attend a Transportation Committee meeting on August 25. The agenda will include a review of the completion of the 51 Avenue South bridge, metro transit zones (bus stops), and an alley in Cascade View that was referred to on comment /suggestion forms from Tukwila Days. Carter recently received an e -mail from Marc Styles who now works for the Daily Journal of Commerce. His focus will be on real estate and some port issues and asked Carter to pass on any City development plans regarding these areas. Carter mentioned the county's website has included the report on Growth Management that includes statistics for Tukwila and other jurisdictions. She said the information is useful in comparing Tukwila to other jurisdictions. C. 0. W. Minutes of August 24, 1998 Page 13 of 13 Councilmember Fenton is attending a Site Council meeting on Wednesday, August 26. I ADJOURNMENT Councilmember Duffie moved, seconded by Councilmember Hernandez, to adjourn the meeting at 10:21 p.m. to a Special Meeting. Pamela Linder, Council President Valerie Gow, Recording Secretary