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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2017-10-09 Committee of the Whole MinutesTukwila City Council Committee of the Whole Meeting City Hall Council Chambers October 9, 2017 — 7:00 P.M. MINUTES COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE CALL TO ORDER/PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Council President Robertson called the Tukwila City Council meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. and led the audience in the Pledge of Allegiance. OFFICIALS Present were Council President Robertson; Councilmembers Joe Duffie, Verna Seal, Kathy Hougardy, Kate Kruller, Thomas McLeod. Councilmenber Quinn was not present. CITY OFFICIALS David Cline, City Administrator; Kimberly Walden, Municipal Court Judge; Rachel Bianchi, Communications and Government Relations Manager; Derek Speck, Economic Development Administrator; Brandon Miles, Business Relations Manager; Bruce Linton, Deputy Police Chief; Rick Mitchell, Police Commander; Jay Wittwer, Fire Chief; Jack Pace, Department of Community Development Director; Nora Gierloff, Department of Community Development Deputy Director; Stephanie Brown, Human Resources Director; Vicky Carlsen, Deputy Finance Director; Laurel Humphrey, Council Analyst; Andy Youn, Deputy City Clerk. MOMENT OF SILENCE Council President Robertson asked that the Council and audience observe a moment of silence for victims of the recent wildfires in Northern California. More than 1,000 homes have been destroyed and at least 10 lives have been lost. SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS a. Oath of Office to Police Commander Todd Rossi (Badge #146) Bruce Linton, Deputy Police Chief, introduced Commander Todd Rossi to the City Council. Over the past 17 years, Commander Rossi has performed very well in the various roles he's undertaken in the department. He demonstrated his ultimate potential by volunteering to lead the Professional Standards division, one of the toughest jobs in the Police Department. Commander Rossi has served as Sergeant and as an Acting Commander, and implemented the first long range training calendar for the department. He is currently the Patrol Division Commander, overseeing patrol operations. Commander Rossi served in active duty as a U.S. Army Ranger and deployed to Haiti in 1994, supporting Operation Uphold Democracy. In addition, while serving the City of Tukwila as a Community Police Officer, he was deployed to Iraq in support of Iraqi Freedom as a Civil Affairs Team Sergeant. He continues to serve at the highest enlisted rank as Command Sergeant Major, where he is the senior enlisted advisor in a training support battalion at Joint Base Lewis-McChord. Judge Walden administered the Oath of Office to Todd Rossi, Badge #146. Commander Rossi's wife, Krista, pinned on his badge. The Councilmembers expressed their appreciation and support of Commander Rossi's promotion. Tukwila City Council Committee of the Whole Minutes October 9, 2017 Page 2 of 5 b. Recognition of Tukwila businesses that were recipients of the 2017 King County Executive's Small Business awards. Derek Speck, Economic Development Administrator, introduced Andrea Reay, President/CEO of the Seattle Southside Chamber of Commerce. On September 21st, King County Executive Dow Constantine presented his annual small business awards for King County businesses. This year, Tukwila small businesses took home three total awards, tied with Redmond for the most awards handed out. Mr. Speck noted Tukwila had the most awards per capita. The Tukwila businesses that took home awards were: • Industrial Revolution for best exporting small business of the year. Industrial Revolution is located in the Segale business park and makes outdoor equipment, which can be found at REI and Amazon.com. Its products are also found in countries worldwide. Its vision is to equip every outdoor enthusiast. Keith Jackson, the owner and CEO, thanked the City for nominating his business for the awards. He gifted the Councilmembers with candle lanterns. • Pacific Rim Environmental for Green/Sustainable small business of the year. Pacific Rim Environmental is located on Southcenter Boulevard and does everything from asbestos removal, lead abatement and remediation to air quality monitoring. Jeff Lewis, President and CEO; Tricia Lewis, Vice President; and Allison Lewis, Project Administrator, were present tonight. Mr. Lewis stated his business began with 2 employees 27 years ago, and has grown to 17 employees. He thanked the Council, the City and the Southside Chamber of Commerce for their support. • Odin Brewery was awarded best overall small business in the County. Odin was one of the first businesses to recognize the vision of the future Southcenter area and chose to locate in the area and made a $3 million investment with the property. Odin has grown from 4 employees to 14. Last year, Odin acquired Hilliard's, which has allowed Odin to double its distribution. Mr. Speck relayed that Dan Lee, Co -Owner and CEO, serves on the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee, Branding Advisory Committee, and is working with the City to bring community events to Baker Boulevard. Mr. Lee stated he represents 15 employees and that Odin Brewery's vision is to become a magnet for the brewing industry for the Western region. He thanked the Council for their continued support. The Councilmembers expressed congratulations to the award recipients for their contributions to the City and commended Brandon Miles from the City's Economic Development team for his work with the business community. PUBLIC COMMENTS There were no public comments. SPECIAL ISSUES a. An update on regulations related to Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) Councilmember Hougardy indicated this item was discussed at the Community Development and Neighborhoods Committee meeting on August 14, 2017. The committee members were unanimous in recommending approval. Nora Gierloff, Department of Community Development Deputy Director, explained that affordable housing is a significant regional issue. At the Housing Policy Work Session in March 2017, the Council prioritized an update to Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) zoning standards to be followed by an amnesty program for existing units. Seattle's experience with loosening restrictions on ADUs and Portland's dramatic increase in the number of ADUs built over the past few years have spurred a policy debate about this housing type. Tukwila City Council Committee of the Whole Minutes October 9, 2017 Page 3 of 5 City staff reached out to the public about this issue in mid-July by developing a survey about possible changes to current ADU standards. Ms. Gierloff noted the purpose of this outreach was primarily to get a sense of the public support for or opposition to possible changes. 165 responses were received, with an overall majority supporting changes to all of Tukwila's current standards. Staff also reached out to the neighboring cities of Kent, Renton, Burien and SeaTac to find out more about their experiences and the common denominators around us, and compare them to our current regulations. Ms. Gierloff stated, in general, Tukwila's regulations are more restrictive than the jurisdictions nearby. The experiences of these cities indicate that while ADUs are gaining in popularity, it remains difficult or uneconomic for many owners to create legal ADUs. Policy options to consider include: 1. Begin allowing detached ADUs a. Only if lot meets minimum area required in the zone b. Not allowed if there is an attached ADU on site c. Unit may be up to 800 square feet (must still meet maximum building footprint of 2,275 sf and maximum impervious area of 4,875 sf for a 6,500 sf lot) d. Limit height to 25 feet or the height of the main house, whichever is lower 2. Reduce lot area requirement from 7,200 SF a. ADUs allowed on lots that meet the minimum area for the zone, even if the Low Density Residential standard were lowered from 6,500 SF to 6,000 SF in the future b. Same lot area standard for attached or detached ADUs 3. Attached ADU size limit a. Unit could be up to half of the total square footage of the main house, OR b. Retain limitation of 1/3 of total square footage 4. Owner occupancy a. An owner must occupy one of the units for at least 9 months of the year, though this is very difficult to enforce, OR b. Remove owner occupancy requirement 5. Parking a. Require 3 on-site parking spaces for lots with an ADU, OR b. Continue to require 4 spaces if the ADU is over 600 sf 6.Occupancy limit a. Limit number of residents based on square footage of ADU, unlikely to be able to apply to families Ms. Gierloff noted that the next steps are to forward the selected policy options to the Planning Commission for a public hearing and recommendation. The other step is to determine whether any policies should be removed before moving these options forward. She stated she is looking for feedback from the Council. Todd Smith, 13325 Macadam Road, asked whether any Councilmember has property that would benefit from updates to the ADU regulations, and whether there was a conflict of interest. Council President Robertson clarified that not all Councilmembers own property and that, in general, when broad zoning regulations are considered, impacts are impossible to avoid and therefore it is difficult to determine how an individual would benefit. Council President Robertson stated he would have the City Attorney look into the matter of conflict of interest and communicate back regarding the issue. Tukwila City Council Committee of the Whole Minutes October 9, 2017 Page 4 of 5 Wayne Werle, 13921 56th Avenue South, asked if property owners would be required to live in the primary residence or the detached dwelling unit. He asked that the Council take the elderly population into consideration, and stated that elderly individuals may want to downsize and prefer living in a smaller space, which requires less maintenance. Council President Robertson responded that the Council would be considering the matter tonight, and that the City currently does not allow detached dwelling units. Mikkell Roeland, 13354 56th Avenue South, did not see the survey until it had already closed, and wanted to express that she feels ADUs makes Tukwila more attractive. She has considered moving to another city that allows ADUs. She also did not understand how allowing 3 versus 4 parking spaces would be determined per policy option 5. Council President Robertson explained the issue is to determine how many parking spaces would be required on-site, depending on the size of the ADU. For the record, Council President Robertson stated he sent an email to the full Council containing a December 16, 2016 report from "The Seattle Times" Editorial Board and Findings and Decisions of the Hearing Examiner for the City of Seattle. The Councilmembers asked clarifying questions of staff and commented on the policy options as follows: • In general, detached ADUs should be forwarded for further discussion. A height limit should be imposed for detached ADUs to allow for privacy at surrounding properties; only one attached or detached unit should be allowed on a site, not both. Storm water drainage may be an issue with reduced lot sizes. • Both attached and detached ADU size limits should be discussed further. • The owner occupancy requirement should not be removed. Although difficult to enforce owner occupancies, the City can look at strategies employed by other cities (signed affidavit, notice on title, and signed recorded covenant) to ensure ADUs remain safe for renters. • Flexibility may be needed regarding parking spaces because there is poor public transportation in this area, so there is a need for cars. Further discussion is needed on the number of required on- site parking spaces. • Short-term rentals (such as Airbnb) should be addressed, whether separately from ADUs or to restrict use of ADUs as short-term rentals. • Occupancy limits should be discussed further for safety reasons, but may be difficult to enforce. 8:12 p.m. 8:14 p.m. Councilmember Hougardy left the Council Chambers Councilmember Hougardy returned to the Council Chambers COUNCIL CONSENSUS EXISTED TO FORWARD ALL POLICY OPTIONS TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION FOR A PUBLIC HEARING AND RECOMMENDATION. b. A collective bargaining agreement with the Tukwila Police Officers Guild Stephanie Brown, Human Resources Director, stated she is pleased to bring forward a collective bargaining agreement to the Council. City staff, the City's Labor Relations Consultant, and the Executive Board of the Tukwila Police Officers Guild opened labor negotiations on July 26, 2016, in an effort to reach an agreement on a successor labor contract. A tentative agreement was reached during mediation on August 1, 2017, which resulted in a two-year agreement for 2017-2018. Ms. Brown explained that the collective bargaining agreement provides for a wage increase of 2.50% in 2017, and 2.75% in 2018 for Tukwila Police Officers. Sergeants will see a wage increase of 3.0% in 2017, and 3.25% in 2018. In addition, the Tukwila Police Officers Guild have agreed to accept the City's Self - Insured Medical Benefit Plan Design changes, which will result in savings to the City's health care plan. Tukwila City Council Committee of the Whole Minutes October 9, 2017 Page 5 of 5 The agreement provides for a new service incentive pay to recognize police officers after 20 years of service. The Police Department has also created a Recruiting Officer position. She noted the Council has been provided the collective bargaining agreement under separate cover. Councilmember Kruller referenced page 12 of the collective bargaining agreement and suggested an edit to correct a spelling error. COUNCIL CONSENSUS EXISTED TO FORWARD THIS ITEM TO THE CONSENT AGENDA AT THE NEXT REGULAR MEETING. REPORTS a. Mayor The Mayor was not in attendance. b. City Council Council President Robertson was recommended by Councilmember Kruller to open the Fabulous Aging 2017 event at the Tukwila Community Center earlier today in the Mayor's absence. Mr. Robertson reported that since the implementation of King County's "Meals on Wheels" approximately 30 years ago, the Meals on Wheels program has provided over 400,000 meals in the King County area. c. Staff There was no report. d. Council Analyst There was no report. 8:51 PM. COUNCIL PRESIDENT ROBERTSON DECLARED THE COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE MEETING ADJOURNED. De nis Robertson,Council President Andy Youn, uty City Clerk APPROVED BY THE COUNCIL PRESIDENT: 10/25/17 AVAILABLE ON THE CITY WEBSITE: 10/25/17