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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1985-01 Hazelnut Newsletter - Mayor and Council Review 1984HAZELNUT GARY VAN DUSEN, MAYOR MAYOR AND COUNCIL REVIEW 1984 1984 was a busy and productive year. We were able to ac- complish a lot for our community in setting policy, providing municipal services, and undertaking capital improvements. A great deal of time was also spent in planning, coordinating and responding to a variety of important issues and projects. Listed below is a summary of a few of the major accomplish- ments of 1984. Many of these items will be highlighted. 1984 HIGHLIGHTS Ordinances and Resolutions: - Approved three industrial development revenue bond pro- jects. - Adopted updated Public Works construction standards. - Adopted new State Enviroment Policy Act (SEPA) amend- ments. - Amended Traffic Code. - Adopted capital improvement planning process. - Adopted Park and Open Space Masterplan. - Adopted Sister City Ordinance. 1 Projects - Completed 53rd Avenue and south 166th residential street project. - Completed Andover Park West drainage improvements. - Acquired property for North Hill water improvement project. - Reconstructed 11th and 17th tees at Golf Course. - Made Fire Station #51 more energy efficient. - Painted exterior of City Hall and improved grounds. - Installed holiday banners. - Installed Andover Park East street lights. - Completed planning and engineering on a number of con- struction projects. Agreements, Miscellaneous: - Signed agreement with Seattle/King County Economic De- velopment Corporation. - Worked toward METRO ETS line project. - Worked toward METRO Transit Center project. - Approved Green River Management Agreement. - Met with South Central School District Board and King County Council to discuss issues of mutual concern. - Hired a full-time City Administrator. CHALLENGES, OPPORTUNITIES AND CHANGE DORIS PHELPS 1984 Council President CHALLENGES -OPPORTUNITIES As we moved into the 1980's, we were promised a decade of challenges, opportunities and continuing change and so far we have not been disappointed. City officials in Tukwila and nation-wide are re-evaluating local government from every as- pect in an active and assertive way. City business as usual can no longer be tolerated. A status quo agenda will not take us into the future. As a,wise friend once said to me, "you can only coast by going downhill." Tukwila, however, could never be viewed as coasting along. This City has experienced many transitions on its way from a rural small town incorporated in 1908 to a major regional business center and modern subur- ban city of today. And we have not arrived yet! I was honored to serve as Council President in 1984 and am pleased to report to you the City Council is prepared to meet the diverse needs and interests of the community. In last April's Hazelnut, I reported that the City Council met in an annual goal -setting session to establish a work program for the coming year. Most of the work then was assigned to Council commit- tees where recommendations were formulated by Council members, the City Departments and citizens' input . As a result, many major projects and plans included in this issue of the Hazelnut were completed and others were initiated during 1984 to be completed in 1985. A major plan of the City, the annual budget, allocates the necessary resources to efficiently deliver services to citizens each day. However, beyond day-to- day operations and annual plans, there is a greater responsibil- ity to plan for future years. The Council recognizes this important and difficult task. We will continue to look forward with our goals to meet future challenges, to better represent you and to assure quality development and growth of the City. BUD BOHRER During 1984, the city struggled with two major Metro pro- jects: the effluent transfer pipeline and the proposed selection of a bus transfer station. In 1985 one of my objectives is to strengthen the City proc- esses and staff who support our intergovermental and long- range planning processes. The objective of these changes will be to improve our City's planning and to better coordinate ma- jor inter -governmental efforts of long duration and major impor- tance to the City. CHARLES SIMPSON City water and sewer projects do not sound very exciting, but I can assure you they are an important part of running our City. Last year we began to lay the groundwork for Metro's Ef- fluent Transfer System which is designed to help clean the Du- wamish River and Puget Sound. Another issue we dealt with will lead to equalizing water pressure for residents on the North Hill who sometimes suffer from weak pressure. The best part of my job has come in staying in touch with the 2 community. In sports, school, meetings, and on social occa- sions it has been a pleasure for me to talk and exchange ideas. 1985 promises to be another exciting year. I hope that I will be hearing from you! ED BAUCH The year 1984 saw the starting of engineering design for many projects which were being planned for several years. Ma- jor water and sewer projets; three bridges, Grady Way, Foster Point, and T -Line; and a major new park on the hill west of 1-5 were among those projects. The City Council held many com- mittee meetings and public hearings in order to approve pro- jects which best fit the needs of our citizens. Construction on the projects in the future may sometimes cause inconvenience or delay but when they are complete you will have a safer and more enjoyable place to live. MAE HARRIS The highlights of 1984 as I saw them were mostly low lights, with a few bright spots thrown in. In other words, more energy was expended discussing and debating projects than actual starts. METRO figured largely in the City of Tukwila progress pic- ture in 1984. First, the Metro Park and Ride Lot site was final- ized. That was a plus. Then, much time and thought was given by a task force of citizens and officials to the selection of the Metro Regional Transit site in Tukwila. After many months of deliberation and frustration, the project was put on hold by mu- tual consent of both the City and Metro. That was a big minus. Then, the Metro decision to run the effluent pipeline to carry the effluent from Renton Treatment Plant I to Elliot Bay on a route paralleling Interurban Avenue again caused much dis- tress and controversy. The final compromise route is perhaps a plus and a minus. The upgrading of the southern part of Andover Park West to correct a flooding problem was a plus. The beginning of the sidewalk plan for the Central Business District was also a plus. The actual beginning of construction of the long-awaited, long - planned Grady Way Bridge was a real plus. I guess 1984 was not so bad after all! JOE DUFFIE I would like to say how much I have enjoyed working with the Mayor, City Administrator, Staff, Department Heads and Coun- cil Members for the last four years. I would also like to take this time to say how wonderful it is to serve the citizens and the business district of Tukwila. 1985 will be a hard year. I am looking forward to working to help make Tukwila a beautiful city in which to live, work, and own a business in. WENDY MORGAN 1984 marked a year of strong united Council actions in di- rect response to citizen concerns. The Council exercised its powers to have a park-and-ride lot located at the north entrance to the City. The Council persuaded Metro to place most of the proposed effluent transfer pipeline on the east side of the river where it will have minimum impact on businesses along the Interurban. The strength of the Council is in large part related to the information it has to work with. "Keep those cards and letters coming!" BOARDS, COMMISSIONS, AND COMMITTEES SERVING THE CITY The City has eight standing Boards, Commissions and Committees serving your needs. The citizens serving on these Boards do so without compensation, and spend a great deal of time serving the community. They deserve very special thanks. Planning Commission members meet to consider planning and development proposals facing the City. PLANNING COMMISSION & BOARD OF ARCHI- TECTURAL REVIEW (BAR) - All Planning Commission members wear two hats. The other is as Board of Architectural Review members. The Planning Commission as BAR serve as advisory bodies to the City Council for planning, zoning, subdi- vision and architectural design review. They meet the second Thursday of the month at 8 p.m. at City Hall. Current members include Joseph Orrico, Gerald Knudson, Eileen Avery, Randy Coplen, Leo Sowinski, Richard Kirsop and Dave Larson. BOARD OF APPEALS - The Appeals Board serves as a technical board to hear appeals for substitutions to construc- tion techniques and material that may be presented by the Uni- form Building Code. The Board of Appeals meets as needed. Current members include: Robert Fadden, Thomas Sconzo, G.J. Colin, Norman Seethoff and Robert Rohrbach. PARK COMMISSION - The Park Commission meets the first Wednesday of each month at 7 p.m. at the Tukwila City Hall. Their responsibilities are to advise the city officials con- cerning recreation services, and park facility acquisition, devel- opment and use. Members are: Wayne Nelson (Chairman), Ann Crain (Vice Chairwoman), Wynn Anderson and Clarence Moriwaki. 3 SISTER CITY COMMITTEE - The Sister City Commit- tee serves to initiate and coordinate activities with Tukwila's Sister City, Ikawa, Japan. The committee meets as needed. Current members include Dan Saul, Gerry Myklebust, Barbara Coplen, Kathy Ostrom, Sara Jane Rants, John McFarland and Doug Gibbs. CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION - The Civil Service Commission meets the second Monday of the month at 5 p.m. Their duties are to administer the recruitment and testing of police and fire personnel and to serve as an appeals board for employee suspension or terminations. Current members in- clude Eleanor McLester (Chairwoman), Anna Bernhard and Skip Traynor. Norma Booher is the Secretary/Chief Examiner. ARTS COMMISSION - The Arts Commission is to repre- sent the City's arts interests, to recommend acquisition of art work, to advance art in the community, and help obtain, funding for the arts. They meet the first Wednesday of each month at the Tukwila City Hall at 6:30 p.m. Commissioners include: Wil- liam Gorjane (Chairman), Leslie Campbell, Berdene Saul, Bar- bara Kuhn and Dennis Hidell. Board of Adjustment members meet to hear variance requests to the zoning code. BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT - The Board of Adjustment meets the first Thursday of the month at 8 p.m. Their duties are to consider requests for variances to the City zoning ordinance. Current members include Mrs. Rudolph Regel, Catherine Harris, Anne Altmayer, Cheryl Wheeler, and Richard Goe. TUKWILA POLICE DEPARTMENT In 1984 the members of the police department responded to 4,501 calls for service from citizens. There were NO homocides, 3 rapes, 16 robberies, 6 aggravated assaults, 139 burglaries, 1,241 thefts and 37 auto thefts. Officers patrolled 206,540 miles. They issued 2,143 traffic cita- tions and made 66 D. W I. arrests. TUKWILA E EXPLORERS The police department maintains an active explorer post with 22 members. These youngsters provide a valuable service to the community and are exposed to the law enforcement profession. 4 Don Pierce was sworn in by Mayor Van Dusen as the City's new police chief in August. With Chief Pierce is his wife Joan, daugh- ter Amy, and son Jon. Tom Kilburg, a 13 year veteran of Tukwila's police force was hon- ored as the department's Employee of the Year for 1984. A COMMUNITY WORKING TOGETHER TO PREVENT CRIME OPTIMIST CLUB () OF GRE Tukwila's active crime prevention program has been instrumen- tal in keeping the crime rate low. FIRE DEPARTMENT The administration of the Fire Department has undergone changes during the year 1984. These changes have resulted in increased productivity of the Department and its personnel, even with reduced resources. The application of the Department's computer expands al- most monthly. Much has been accomplished in the records - keeping of the Department. 1984 was a very different type year for Fire Prevention and Suppression. Even though Fire Prevention activities were maintained at a somewhat high level of efficiency, we still expe- rienced a fire loss of $1,032,827. This encompassed two arson fires in habitational type occupancies, two arson fires in retail sales outlets, one arson fire in an office building, one arson fire in a church, one arson fire to a vehicle, seventy-seven acciden- tal fires and twenty fires of suspicious or undetermined origin. 1984 provided for records in number of calls responded to (2,057) as well as the total fire loss of $1,032,827. During 1984 the Department requested assistance from the outside three hundred and eleven times. We were requested to respond to other agencies three hundred and forty-six times. Front Row (left to right) Verna Aal, Joan Meyer. Back Row (left to right) Fire Chief Hubert Crawley, Asst. Chief Jim Hoel, Fire Mar- shall Gibbs, Fire Prevention Officer Lavern Peterson. 5 (Left to Right) Lt. Loren McFarland, Firefighter Craig Byron, Fire- fighter Jack Stevens, Firefighter Dave Ewing, Firefighter Steve Kohler, Firefighter Steve Wheeler, Lt. Ted Ebert. (Left to Right) Lt. Gary Sacha, Firefighter Dave Green, Firefighter Phil Lyons, Firefighter Tedd Fehr, Firefighter Dennis McCollum, Firefighter Sam Ruljancich, Firefighter Richard Brewster. (Left to Right) Lt. Ron Walker, Firefighter Peter Taylor, Firefighter Peter Wojcik, Firefighter Rudy Peden, Firefighter Marty Grisham, Firefighter Dave Ray, Lt. Mike Alderson. TUKWILA FIRE DEPARTMENT PROJECT SAFETY CITY "Safety City" is a display furnished by Encyclopedia Brittanica to promote safety of children in traffic and fire safety. The display was placed in Southcenter Mall and lasted seven days. Fire fighters were on hand to instruct several thousand children in "Stop - Drop - Roll" in case their clothes catch fire. FIRE SERVICE RECOGNITION Fire Fighters spent over 1300 manhours, both on duty and off duty, in promoting Fire Prevention on Southcenter Mall. 22 dif- ferent agencies were brought together for the three day show. Estimates by Southcenter put the public viewing the display at 150,000. HAZARDOUS MATERIALS TRANSPORT CLASS Working with rail, truck, and government agencies, the Tukwila Fire Department hosted a regional school dealing with hazard- ous materials. 48 Fire fighters from the Puget Sound area at- tended this three day school. Nine trucks, seven rail cars were the focus of the only "hands on" type of training offered in the State. 6 PUBLIC WORKS PROJECTS ANDOVER PARK WEST FLOODING IN 1984 Will not happen in the future due to reconstruction of the street and installation of gate control in storm sewer system in 1984. 200 TONS OF DEBRIS WERE REMOVED FROM THE 48" SOUTHCENTER PARKWAY STORM DRAIN DURING 1984. BEFORE AFTER PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT Left to Right: City Engineer, Ross Earnst; Public Works Director, Byron Sneva; Senior Engineer, Phil Fraser; and Engineering In- tern, Pat Brodin; Assistant Engineer, Sally Heye; and Depart- ment Secretary, Celia Square. PUBLIC WORKS: From Good Streets to Clean Pipes Public Works Maintenance Division I (water, sewer, and streets) accomplishments included 10,000 feet of sewer in- spection, miscellaneous cleaning and repairs, rebuilding one major pressure reducing valve system, installing alarms at sewer lift stations, got emergency standby generators on-line, completed the water valve check program, and acquisition of property for the North Hill Reservoir. Major street improvements included reconstruction of 53rd Avenue and South 166th Street, Andover Park West storm drainage, and Andover Park East street lights. Maintenance work included street patching or overlaying, cleaning and clearing right-of-ways and river bank, trails, storm drains, re- pairing, and/or replacing traffic buttons, traffic signs and catch basins. The City also inventoried street lights and made ar- rangements to complete street light conversion from mercury vapor to energy efficient high pressure sodium. Public Works Maintenance Division 11 (Buildings, Grounds, and Shops) included sprucing up and improving the City Hall grounds, Bicentennial Park, and Tukwila Park. At the City's Foster Golf Course, major improvements in- cluded new fencing, more benches, restroom remodel, two new grass tees, and upgrading maintenance equipment. There were a number of general building maintenance pro- jects completed at City Hall, library, golf course, community center, maintenance shops and fire stations. Highlights in- cluded energy conservation measures and roofing repairs. Engineering Division initiated or completed work on 34 dif- ferent engineering projects, including streets, bridges, water, sewer, and other capital improvements. 7 The Buildings, Grounds and Equipment Maintenance Division includes from left to right: Mechanic, Elbert Field; Maintenance Operations, Patrick Kelso; Public Works Director Byron Sneva; Buliding Maintenance Supervisor, Roger Running; Greens - keeper, Chuck Morris; Park Foreman, Eugene Elfstrom; Division Superintendent, Mary Anderson; Senior Mechanic, Trevor Page; and Maintenance Operations, Rick Atkinson. Back Row (left to right): Ted Freemire, Raymona Brown, Byron Sneva, Jim Peterson, Mike Back, Larry Nees. Second Row (left to right): Mark Badten, Jerry Gibson, John Howat, Ralph Trepa- nier. Front Row (left to right): Dave Grage, Jeff Rhyner, Dave Carnes • cru • a 1985 SPRING CLEAN-UP April 19 - April 28 Let's give Tukwila a Spring Cleaning. CITY CLERK'S OFFICE City Clerk's Department Staff which serves you include (bot- tom L to R): Maxine Anderson, City Clerk, Maria Barker, Court Clerk. (Top L to R): Kathy Thomas, Court clerk, Christy O'Fla- herty, Admin. Secretary, and Marilyn Rendon, Court Administra- tor. The City Clerk's Office served many of you during the past year. We registered some of you to vote, sold you dog or cat licenses, processed your business license or just provided you information about your City. Following shows part of the activi- ties: Business Licenses Issued Cabaret Licenses Tow Truck Licenses Solicitor's Licenses Special Sales Permits Amusement Devices Amusement Centers 1,219 5 10 6 22 177 3 Municipal Court Judge Frank Payne and Court Administrator Marilyn Rendon. The personnel in the Municipal Court were newly employed during 1984 and they enjoy working for the city. They proc- essed all of the case work for Court Sessions and Jury Trials presided over by Judge Frank Payne who spent 458 hours in our Court. Following are the 1984 Court activities: Number of Court Filings 3,006 Jury Trials Prepared 53 Jury Trials Held 18 8 PLANNING DEPARTMENT 1984 PLANNING AND BUILDING DEPARTMENT STAFF: From left to right Bill McEwam, inspector intern; Norm Bray, building inspector, Planning Director Brad Collins; Associ- ate Planner Rick Beeler. Bottom row: Lorraine Cronk, Building official; Moira Carr -Bradshaw, Assistant Planner; and Becky Kent, Permit Coordinator. PLANNING AND BUILDING DEPARMENT Much of the attention of the Planning Division in 1984 was directed toward the Metro Transit Center site planning effort. The Tukwila Transit Center Task Force, comprised of members of the business and residential communities, spent many eve- nings devoted to studying and selecting a site for the South King County Regional Transit Center. The Metro 1990 Plan called for expanded transit service to center on four such facili- ties in North Seattle, Bellevue, Tukwila, and Federal Way. At this time no agreement has been reached on the best location for the Tukwila Transit Center, and Metro has postponed the sitting effort indefinitely. While disappointed, the Task force will continue its efforts when the opportunity arises again. A second Metro project, the Effluent Transfer System (ETS) pipeline alignment, was also a major concern in 1884. The City officials have worked closely with Interurban Avenue property owners and Metro officials to minimize the impact of this major utility construction project. After intensive negotiations, an alignment through Foster Golf Course and north along Interur- ban Avenue was selected by Metro in January 1985, and the City is continuing efforts to reach formal agreement with Metro on specific measures to help take care of problems caused by the construction of this $220 million pipeline through Tukwila. NEW BUILDING PERMIT VALUATION HITS NEW HIGH Building permits New Commercial Units Commercial Remodels Commercial Permit Valuation New Remodels New Residential Units Single Family Multi -Family Residential Remodels Residential Permit Valuation New Single Family New Multi -Family Remodels 8 224 4,991,874 5,418,622 5 80 13 320,938 2,701,695 187,931 RECREATION DEPARTMENT Under direction of Parks and Recreation Director Don Williams, the City staff joined with the business and residential community to provide a variety of educational and leisure activities. PARKS AND RECREATION The Parks and Recreation Department provides a variety of educational and leisure activities. The City sponsors on-going pre-school, teen and senior programs, as well as a variety of athletic and community education programs. The Community Center was used by 65 different groups in 1984. Selected Parks and Recreation Activity Statistics: 1984 Participation Athletics # Athletic Teams 149 # Participants 1,320 Classes Senior Citizens Youth Activities # Youth and adult classes 71 # Single day classes conducted 17 Total class attendance 10,436 # Social program participation attendance 2,660 # Health program (County nurse) visits 286 # Meals on Wheels/Food Co-op User Days 1,217 Ceramics class attendance 1,169 Southcenter van users 300 Special event attendance 1,375 Teen drop-in program attendance 4,366 Open gym participation attendance 1,259 Special events attendance 843 After school elementary program attendance 843 Foster Golf Course # Rounds played 62,012 Community # Renting groups 65 Center # of times rented 946 Rental #Times ball fields rented 142 9 Mayor Gary Van Dusen leads the I Tukwila Days Parade through the City. Council members, floats, decorated bicycles, an antique car, and costumed participants joined in the fun event. Four local youth were awarded ribbons by Tukwila's Chuck E. Cheese and Don Williams, Parks and Recreation Director, at the Children's Field Day as part of the I IP Tukwila Days celebration. Five local singers entertained at the I I Tukwila Days First An- nual Community Festival held at Tukwila Elementary School. HE HAZELNUT PUBLISHED QUARTERLY By the City of Tukwila 6200 Southcenter Boulevard Tukwila, Washington 98188 Written by City Employees BULK RATE U.S. POSTAGE PAID TUKWILA, WA. PERMIT NO. 12698 FINANCE DEPARTMENT Back Row Left to Right: Brad Williams, Kim Hart, Yemane Tefa- sion. Front Row Left to Right: Linda Grage, Alan Doerschel DOLLARS AND SENSE UTILITIES/LIDs Number Accounts Water/Sewer 1185 Number of Accounts More Than 2 Months in Arrears 8 Dollar Value Delinquent Accounts More Than 2 Months in Arrears $675 Total Number LID Accounts 182 Total Outstanding Principal, Interest, and Penalties $862,656 Number LID Accounts in Arrears More Than 1 Year 23 LID Accounts in Arrears More Than 1 Year Dollars $113,129 CITY ADMINISTRATOR Last year was my first year as your first City administrator and I enjoyed it immensely. When I arrived, I was pleased to find that Tukwila was doing most of the things that other well run cities were doing. After a year, I am pleased to report that the state of the City is good. Your City employees have a dedication and committment to excellence in service. Your Mayor and Council are on top of the issues. This is a great place to live, shop and work, and I look forward to serving you in the months and years ahead. Don Morrison, City Administrator 10 MAYOR'S OFFICE From Left to Right: City Administrator Don Morrison, Exec. Sec./ Personnel Officer Ellen Callahan, and Mayor Gary Van Dusen. GREETINGS TO ALL TUKWILA CITIZENS, BOTH PRIVATE AND CORPORATE! The contents of this report convey to you, the citizens, the highlights, the accomplishment and failure of your City govern- ment during 1984. We want to communicate to our taxpayers that everyone has been working toward a better Tukwila. We each, in our own methodology, measure City service based on how we percieve the reciept of that service. I believe the serv- ice rendered by the City has improved and we in Administration are committed to further improvement. I challenge each and every one of you to personnally be- come more involved with us for a better Tukwila. We have made progress in 1984, and 1985 will be even better; especially with good management, input and practices. The administrative motto for 1985 is "Excellence in Action." Make an action of contacting your City in 1985 and help contribute to our goal of excellence. The challenges for the City in the future are many -fold. We must make an effort to understand these challenges, including future economic and commercial business development, an- nexation, taxation, public safety, health and welfare, and other government services. During 1985 I look forward to continue working with every- one in this fine City of ours. Mayor Gary Van Dusen