Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2004-09-27 Committee of the Whole MinutesCALL TO ORDER/PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: TUKWILA CITY COUNCIL City Council Council Chambers September 27, 2004 7:00 p.m. COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE MEETING MINUTES Calling the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. and leading the audience in the Pledge of Allegiance was Jim Haggerton, Council President. OFFICIALS: Rhonda Berry, City Administrator; Lucy Lauterbach, Legislative Analyst; Jim Morrow, Public Works Director; Alan Doerschel, Finance Director; Viki Jessop, Administrative Services Director; Stephanie Brown, Human Resources Specialist; and Bob Baker, Deputy City Clerk. Steven M. Mullet, Mayor, was absent due to illness. SPECIAL PRESENTATION: Employee Health Care Information Dick Charles, The Charles Group, Inc. Introducing the City's broker of record, was Viki Jessop, Director of Administrative Services. Ms. Jessop spoke highly of Mr. Charles and the Charles Group, Inc. Mr. Charles has served the City for many years. Richard Charles, 8250 165' Avenue NE, Suite #210, Redmond, gave Council a presentation entitled, "The Five Elements of Self Funding" and an explanation of those elements. Self- funded claims and reserves are those benefits, which are the direct responsibility of the sponsor of the plan. Reserves for claims incurred, but not yet reported, are held and invested by the sponsor. The "Individual Excess" contract insures all covered paid medical claims occurring within the plan year, over a pre- determined amount (i.e., over a $95,000.00 deductible). The "Aggregate Excess" insurance contract limits the actual annual paid claims liability of the sponsor for the City under the "Self- Funded Claims" portion of the plan. Additional financial protection called "Monthly Cash Flow Accommodation" is also available. Tukwila uses a 200% Aggregate. Through the "Administration Agreement" the Third Party Administrator provides all necessary claims adjudication, plan administration, management reporting, and coordination with Preferred Provider Organizations and Utilization Review Organizations. Mr. Charles explained that when a client "self funds," they put into place a plan where the employer creates the plan design. One of the benefits when a City self funds is that they can choose the benefit level. The Insurance Committee and City management have worked to offer the best plan available while containing related costs. Explaining a few benefits of the flexibility of self- funding, Mr. Charles noted it may be tailored to fit the exact needs of the group. This means the employer is free to select only those benefits they feel are valuable to their employees and dependents. Falling under Federal ERISA guidelines, the employer is not subject to state mandated benefits. This includes the Washington Health Care Services Act of 1993. An employer is able to "sit on the sidelines" and observe what impact the reform will have. They also City of Tukwila Page 2 of 7 City Council Committee of Whole Meeting Minutes September 27, 2004 maintain the option and control to participate in the mandates of reform, but the choice and timing are theirs. Other flexibility benefits include customized administration, cost containment, competitive stop -loss coverage, control of funds and predictable fixed costs. Before closing, Mr. Charles provided an "Executive Summary of Self- Funded Plan" document showing average number of City employees (by years), budget, fixed costs, claims cost and gains /losses. Final note of the report reads, "On 12/31/03 the City reserves (combined for Actives and Retirees) is $1,107,000." CITIZEN COMMENT: David Montoya. Tukwila resident, spoke of a "rat" infestation in his neighborhood. His 1955 Buick has been invaded and the rats have nested in his engine compartment. A close -by neighbor of Mr. Montoya relayed knowledge of the problem. Mr. Montoya sought the assistance of the City Council. Rhonda Berry, City Administrator, asked for an address for the potential origination of the problem. She also noted issues with rats lies with the Washington State Department of Health, yet did not know if they would handle eradication of the rodents. The address given (when the issue was initially raised last week) was 14712 56 Avenue South. After initial investigation by City staff, it was determined the address is incorrect. The address should be located on 65 and 149 Code Enforcement staff worked to find the owner of the home where the problem was believed to have originated. Although an owner may be determined through King County Records, owners are not always the occupants of the homes. Statutes call for resolution for such issues with homeowners, not renters. Telephone numbers are not as easy to obtain. In response to Council inquiry, Ms. Berry noted Public Health Department employees must make a determination that the rats pose a problem. Education is a first -line response (by the Department) in the eradication of such rodents. Due to the confusion with the property address, Councilmember Duffle offered to obtain the proper address and "name from the mailbox." Kelly Montoya, wife to the previous speaker, informed the Council something must be done as the rats run around during broad daylight. Another very real problem with rats is that "poop abounds." Considerable discussion centered on the issue as it relates to responsible parties to handle the situation, number of people involved, contacting proper parties, notification and procedures. As decisions were not made (at this meeting), Council asked staff to report as progress is made. Clare Henson. 12414 Military Road South. Seattle, spoke in favor of Breas Way, a non profit organization, founded on behalf of her special -needs daughter. Trying to find ways to give back to the community, Ms. Henson's daughter spends her time picking up garbage in area parks especially Hill Top Park. A goal is to turn Hill Top into a special -needs park. Ms. Henson spoke of her commitment to her daughter and her life -long care. She wants them to have the ability to dream, to have leadership, a school and permanent home, to be "cultivated," and have a "real life." Ms. Henson's thoughts then turned toward annexation of Boulevard Park into the City of Tukwila. She represents Boulevard Park, a study group formulated and in the process of contacting people to put together a "positive marketing program" for Boulevard Park. City of Tukwila Page 3 of 7 City Council Committee of Whole Meeting Minutes September 27, 2004 Ms. Henson spoke in favor of the City helping with the efforts of which she spoke. Additional information will follow from the study group. Mike Moore. 14759 62n Avenue South Tukwila Resident, concurred with the Montoyas as it relates to the rat problem in their neighborhood. He spoke of an upswing in rat activity and out of concern for his wife and two daughters. SPECIAL ISSUES: a. Utility tax ordinance #1998) Review and Reaffirmation Alan Doerschel, Finance Director, spoke in favor of reaffirming the rate set in ordinance #1998. Since that ordinance was adopted, the City has seen an increase in economic growth and decrease in annual sales tax and other revenues. The City is currently faced with a permanent annual growth of less than 2 Property tax growth for 2005 will be approximately 1.5 With the proposed 2005 budget running 4.2% ahead of 2005 basic costs, the scheduled increase should occur as originally suggested. Mr. Doerschel noted the Finance and Safety Committee met on September 20, 2004 and were in favor of reaffirming the utility tax ordinance. A review (and subsequent approval) by the City Council of the enabling ordinance will raise the rate from 4% to 5% in 2005, and from 5% to 6% in 2007. Additionally, Mr. Doerschel reported the Seattle City Light franchise agreement does not require a review, but the intent is that the City should consider it. It should be acknowledged at the same time the Council makes known the utility rate increase. In response to Council inquiry, Mr. Doerschel noted that without the already -set scheduled increase to the utility tax rate, negative sums and figures would appear in the 6 -year Capital Improvement Plan. Councilmembers Duffie, Hernandez, Carter, Linder and Fenton spoke in favor of the proposed reaffirmation. Council consensus existed to forward this item to the next Regular meeting for action. b. All Hazards Emergency Management Plan and implementation procedures Jim Morrow, Director of Emergency Management, reported that ordinance #2018 established the City's Emergency Management Program. As a result, the Director of Emergency Management was empowered and directed to prepare an Emergency Management Operating Plan (hereinafter referred to as "the plan" or "plan Based on that directive, the plan has been prepared and was reviewed by Mr. Morrow. Calling the plan "dynamic," Mr. Morrow described it as a "living document" which changes nearly every week. Guidelines and mandates from the federal government, State and County dictate how the City is to proceed. In response to Council inquiry, Mr. Morrow reported three grants have been received from the Department of Homeland Security for equipment, yet none of it has gone to replace the needed radios (Nextel's, etc.). Additional work is required to determine the exact needs of the department to ensure efficient operations in the real times of need. City of Tukwila Page 4 of 7 City Council Committee of Whole Meeting Minutes September 27, 2004 Important to note, Mr. Morrow stated that when he is called upon to serve as the Emergency Management Director, Frank Iriarte automatically assumes the duties of Public Works Director. Others will contribute to the additional workload as it arises. Mr. Morrow then reported the need for an annual budget of $160,000.00. Currently, the budget for this program is set at $100,000.00 annually. Thanks are due, in large part, to the City's Vista Core Volunteer, Alyssa DeVoe, "who brought us to where we are today." Mr. Morrow will require a "full -time assistant to keep up with this and to set up training." As this item was informational, no official action is sought at this time. c. Consultant contract for Boeing Access Road Bridge design report Councilmember Hernandez noted review of this item at the September 13 Transportation Committee meeting. The bridge, built in 1945, is nearing the end of its functional life. City staff has learned the bridge qualifies for federal replacement funds. In order to apply for funds, a type, size and location study is needed for preliminary design information and costs. Sargent Engineers specializes in bridge design and has successfully completed many others for the City. Grant funds must be obtained to replace the bridge. Budget dollars for the design report are $100,000 and the proposed contract amount is $75,252.00. Jim Morrow, Public Works Director, stated the contract provides the basic and necessary information required to apply for grant funds and may allow the City to receive as much as $10 million. For consideration, consensus existed to forward this item to the next Regular meeting of the City Council. d. Draft ordinance amending land altering /grading regulations AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF TUKWILA, WASHINGTON, ESTABLISHING LAND ALTERING /GRADING REGULATIONS WITHIN THE CITY; REPEALING ORDINANCE NOS. 1591; 1770 SECTIONS 12, 13, 14 AND 15; AND 1838 SECTION 15; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY; AND ESTABLISHING AN EFFECTIVE DATE Councilmember Carter reported review of the proposed ordinance at the August 3 and September 21 Utilities Committee meetings. The current land- altering ordinance is based on the Uniform Building Code and contains surface water requirements from the King County Surface Water Design Manual. The proposed ordinance adopts specific standards, streamlines the language, omits redundancies and is in line with current requirements of the International Building Code. For consideration, consensus existed to forward this item to the next Regular meeting of the City Council. e. Draft resolution supporting the national commitment toward achieving "The American Dream" A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF TUKWILA, WASHINGTON, SUPPORTING THE NATIONAL COMMITMENT TOWARD ACHIEVING ACCESS FOR ALL IN ATTAINING THE AMERICAN DREAM Jim Haggerton, Council President, reported receipt of a request via e-mail from the National League of Cities. This year's NLC President included the proposed resolution and noted they are convening a City of Tukwila Page 5 of 7 City Council Committee of Whole Meeting Minutes September 27, 2004 roundtable on September 28 to discuss what cities can do in support of the effort. NLC wants cities across America to join in the campaign by way of doing a proclamation or resolution. Calling it a good thing to support, Mr. Haggerton said the project looks very worthwhile and lends its "voice" to the 225 million citizens (collectively) represented by the elected officials involved with the National League of Cities. For consideration, consensus existed to forward this item to the next Regular meeting of the City Council. f. Draft ordinance reaulatinq motorized scooters, EPAMDs and pocket bikes AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF TUKWILA, WASHINGTON, ESTABLISHING NEW REGULATIONS REGARDING THE USE OF MOTORIZED FOOT SCOOTERS, POCKET BIKES AND EPAMDS; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY; AND ESTABLISHING AN EFFECTIVE DATE Leading Council in a discussion of the proposed ordinance was Lucy Lauterbach, Legislative Analyst. The item was reviewed at the August 3 Finance and Safety Committee meeting. The item has also been reviewed at one prior COW meeting, where the issue of pocket bikes was raised and addressed. Raising concern over a recent Hazelnut article, Councilmember Carter spoke in objection to the article being written and included in the newsletter as the proposed ordinance has not yet been adopted. Discussions centered upon minor edits and revisions to the proposed ordinance and the inclusion of a statement regarding pocket bikes and where they are not allowed. Ms. Carter asked Ms. Lauterbach to obtain a legal definition for the term "pocket bike" from a legal authority or entity who has adopted a similar ordinance. Much discussion followed on items to be included in the proposed ordinance as well as those which should be eliminated. Ms. Lauterbach will bring another draft, proposed ordinance upon edits, revisions and completion to that which was reviewed at this meeting. For discussion and consideration, Ms. Lauterbach agreed to re -work the proposed ordinance and bring a newly drafted proposed ordinance to an ensuing City Council Committee of Whole meeting. REPORTS: a. Mayor Mayor Mullet was absent due to illness. b. City Council Councilmember Joe Duffie had no report. Councilmember Joan Hernandez recently completed a two -day Affordable Housing conference. She attended the September 21 Sister Cities banquet and the September 22 meeting with Julia Patterson. On September 24, Ms. Hernandez attended an event, sponsored by Boeing, at the IDS Center. Finally, she reported attendance to this evening's Finance and Safety Committee meeting. City of Tukwila Page 6 of 7 City Council Committee of Whole Meeting Minutes September 27, 2004 Council President Jim Haggerton attended the September 21 Sister Cities banquet and the September 22 Board of Directors meeting for the Cascade Water Alliance. He, too, attended the Boeing- sponsored event at the IDS Center on September 24. Councilmember Pam Carter distributed a written report from a September 21 SCATBd meeting. Ms. Carter attended last week's Utilities Committee meeting, as well as one on September 22 with Julia Patterson. Along with others from the Council, she attended the Boeing- sponsored event at the IDS Center on September 24. On September 25, Ms. Carter attended a Youth Town Hall Forum at Foster High School with Councilmember Duffie. Councilmember Pamela Linder provided Council with a heads -up on tomorrow's Community Affairs and Parks Committee agenda. Councilmember Dennis Robertson reported on grave concerns with King County Animal Control, their personnel, and the City of Tukwila's municipal codes as they relate to animal control issues. Recently dealing with a situation in his own neighborhood, Mr. Robertson spoke in favor of updating the City's ordinance with "breed specific" language related to pitbulls. City Administration and staff informed Mr. Robertson that before his taking office, breed specific language was introduced and unanimously "shot down" as the City heard from animal activists across America who promised to take legal action if the City were to adopt breed specific language and require "enclosures" when pitbull owners have them outside the home. Further, he was advised the City would be "looking for trouble" if it considered such action. Councilmember Robertson spoke emphatically of the need to have appropriate staff (from King County Animal Control) address the Finance and Safety Committee on this issue. Joanne McManus. 5610 South 133` Street. Tukwila, informed Council of the need to contact police over this very issue this week. Councilmember Linder noted she, too, had a frightening incident on Easter, 2004. In the opinion of Ms. Linder, the dogs are not to blame for their behavior it is the owner who is to blame as they raise the dogs irresponsibly. Lucy Lauterbach reported King County Animal Control services are down across King County due to funding shortages. Council spoke against breed specific language for pitbulls, yet spoke in favor of inviting the Director of King County Animal Control to a Finance and Safety Committee meeting to address the other issues mentioned at this meeting. Councilmember Fenton had no report. c. City Staff Rhonda Berry, City Administrator, reminded Council of, and invited them to the City's Wellness Fair on September 30, 2004. d. City Attorney Neither the City Attorney nor their representative was present. City of Tukwila Page 7 of 7 City Council Committee of Whole Meeting Minutes September 27, 2004 e. Legislative Analyst Lucy Lauterbach reminded Council of an October 6 "Tukwila Hill" Neighborhood meeting. This informal meeting will not have an agenda, and City staff is not required at the meeting. ADJOURNMENT: 10:17 p.m. FENTON MOVED; HERNANDEZ SECONDED; TO ADJOURN THE COMMITTEE OF WHOLE MEETING. The motion carried 7 -0. Haggeouncil President D ate Minutes signed: November 1, 2004 Robert Baker, CMC, Deputy City Clerk