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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05272014 City Council Minutes City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes May 27, 2014 Volume 39, Page 330 CALL TO ORDER The May 27, 2014 regular meeting of the Seward City Council was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by Mayor Jean Bardarson. OPENING CEREMONY Lieutenant Doreen Valadez led the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag. ROLL CALL There were present: Jean Bardarson presiding and Ristine Casagranda Christy Terry Marianna Keil Dale Butts Iris Darling comprising a quorum of the Council; and Jim Hunt, City Manager Johanna Kinney, City Clerk Brenda Ballou, Deputy City Clerk I„„ Absent—David Squires CITIZEN COMMENTS ON ANY SUBJECT EXCEPT THOSE ITEMS SCHEDULED FOR PUBLIC HEARING Wadeen Hepworth thanked council for considering her application to the Historic Preservation Commission. She had owned a home in Seward since 2000, and although she divided her time between Seward and Anchorage,she was committed to attending all the meetings in person. John French encouraged council to accept Wadeen Hepworth's application for the Historic Preservation Commission.He also encouraged others to apply for Historic Preservation Commission. Sue McClure spoke as Seward's Borough Assembly Representative and reminded everyone that the assembly would be voting on the borough budget on June 3, 2014. The assembly would be considering Ordinance 2014-20 on June 17,2014,which proposed that the entire borough convert to by-mail voting only. She was seeking input from the public on this issue. This ordinance would also propose eliminating the "Pro"and"Con" statements on propositions historically included in voter pamphlets, and it would still allow citizens to vote absentee in-person. Brad Snowden said he filed to run for governor for the third time,and this time he intended to start campaigning in about three weeks. He was asking for support from everyone in Seward and stated he had the vision, passion and perseverance to be successful. City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes May 27, 2014 Volume 39, Page 331 Jennifer Elhard had been sending her children to the Teen and Youth Center for several years,but could not afford to do it this year because the rates had increased to the point of becoming unaffordable for her family. Celeste Lemme supported lowering the Teen and Youth Center rates for summer camps.She thought the rates should be the same for everyone regardless of income. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA Motion (Keil/Terry) Approval of Agenda and Consent Agenda Motion Passed Unanimous The clerk read the following approved consent agenda items: Resolution 2014-049, Authorizing The City Manager To Sign An Extension Of A Special Services Contract Between The City Of Seward And The Department Of Public Safety Providing Dispatch And Clerical Services To Public Safety Employees In The Seward Area For Forty-Eight Thousand And Five Hundred Dollars ($48,500.00). Appoint the following people to the Historic Preservation Commission: John French with a term to expire May, 2017, and Wadeen Hepworth with a term to expire May,2017. SPECIAL ORDERS, PRESENTATIONS AND REPORTS Proclamations & Awards Proclamation for Seward Elementary School teacher Terri McKnight,a BP Teacher of Excellence recipient for 2014. Certificates of Appreciation for retiring employees Jim Pipkin and Charlie Forrest. Chamber of Commerce Report,Cindy Clock stated the chamber's membership drive was underway and July 11,2014 was the early bird special deadline for display ads.There were currently 329 members of the chamber.An agreement had been signed with the Travel Channel to allow them to use"Alaska Starts Here"©for the title of a series on Seward. 50,000 Silver Salmon were released at Bear Creek from the Trail Lake hatchery, and Alaska Fish and Game released 95,000 Silver Salmon into the lagoon. KTUU Channel 2 signed on to be the official television station for the 2014 Mt. Marathon Race. Alaska Airlines was sponsoring the halibut tournament captain's prize for a drawing for two round-trip tickets.The alternate energy group met last week and were encouraged to hold monthly social gatherings to obtain public feedback and input. Lemonade Day Alaska was scheduled for June 14,2014.Clock said the 4th of July Festival would be held for three days,and the chamber expected over 30,000 visitors. City Manager's Report, City Manager Jim Hunt stated the following purchase orders between $10,000 and $50,000 had been approved by the City Manager since the last council meeting: $13,504 to Resurrection Bay Auto Parts,Inc.for the purchase of a ProGuard Plus leverless City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes May 27, 2014 Volume 39, Page 332 tire changer for the city shop; $14,700 to Construction Machinery Industrial, LLC for a 6-month lease of a Hitachi mini excavator; $17,966.00 to Electric Power Systems, Inc. for mechanical and lbw electrical engineering design for the electric warehouse; and, a $43,455 requisition to ClearBlu Environmental for the purchase of four aerators for the Lowell Point Lagoon. The North Seward Water Storage Tank property acquisition was complete. CRW was finalizing the design and work on an Invitation to Bid for the project construction. With the approval from the Kenai Peninsula Borough,a location for the sewage sludge was identified.M.L.Foster was drafting an Invitation to Bid, and the details for the project would be announced on June 3, 2014. Sidewalk repairs were underway and the completion date was June 15, 2014 The Finance Department completed a week of software training to setup and implement the new financial accounting system. The go live date for the core elements of the general ledger, accounts payable, accounts receivable and purchasing was July 1, 2014, and then payroll, fixed assets,and other miscellaneous modules would be added in October. The Finance Department was recently awarded its 21st consecutive annual Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting by the Government Finance Officers Association for the 2012 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR). In response to Butts, Hunt said administration had not budgeted for a new maintenance position. Terry suggested that when replacing water lines the city should keep in mind the possibility of upsizing the water lines to accommodate the heat pump and/or increased sprinkler requirements. Also,the trash dumpster behind Safeway continued to be a problem and a potential bear attractant. She also was concerned how purchases made from the same vendor requiring a procurement process versus being within the City Manager's authority. Other Reports,Announcements and Presentations Presentation by the Friends of the Jesse Lee Home. PUBLIC HEARINGS Ordinances for Public Hearing and Enactment Ordinance 2014-003, Amending Title 14 Of The City's Code Of Ordinances To Provide For Interconnection Of Small Renewable Energy Sources To The City's Electrical Distribution System. Motion (Darling/Casagranda) Enact Ordinance 2014-003 Long said this ordinance was the collective result of several months of public input and research,and was loosely modeled after Homer Electric Associations' process.Administration had made a concerted effort to simplify the language, based on council's feedback. Notice of the public hearing being posted and published as required by law was noted and the public City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes May 27, 2014 Volume 39, Page 333 hearing was opened. Mike Insalaco said he had been working with Utilities Manager John Foutz to provide eri input and was in favor of this ordinance, but suggested that it include an appeal process for engineering. No one else appeared to address the Council and the public hearing was closed. Long said there should be no appeal for engineering or safety, and was concerned that there was no one qualified to sit on an appeal board should the need arise. He agreed, however, that appeals should be heard for administrative issues. Terry believed there should be an appeal process included with this ordinance, as there was precedence with the city's flood, electric and fire code. She thought it could be accommodated. In response to, Long replied that there had been some public interest expressed for this ordinance prior to the last construction season,but thought perhaps some people were waiting to see what happened before jumping in. Council recessed at 7:56 p.m. Council resumed the meeting at 7:59 p.m. Terry said administration was amenable to postponing this ordinance in order to add language g g e that would allow for a peer review or second engineer opinion in the event of an appeal. Motion to Postpone (Terry/Keil) Postpone the Enactment of Ordinance 2014- 003 to the June 9,2014 meeting. Motion to Postpone Passed Unanimous Ordinance 2014-004, Amending Portions Of Seward City Code §15.10.140.B Specific Definitions, §15.10.225 Land Uses Allowed And §15.10.225 Land Uses Allowed Table; To Allow Mobile Vendors And Roving Vendors To Operate On City Owned Property (As Designated) And Within Public Rights Of Way. Motion (Keil/Butts) Enact Ordinance 2014-004 Long said administration recommended enacting this ordinance. Notice of the public hearing being posted and published as required by law was noted and the public hearing was opened. No one appeared to address the Council and the public hearing was closed. Darling said several people had contacted her and, although there was some support expressed,most seemed concerned that it would take business away from the year-round businesses or create a carnival-like atmosphere. She wanted to guard against vendors coming to Seward just for City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes May 27, 2014 Volume 39, Page 334 a summer season and then leaving to spend their winter money elsewhere. She did not feel like she could support this ordinance for those reasons. Keil said this concept had not previously come to fruition for many of the same concerns as Council Member Darling expressed, but she wanted to give it a try this year and make necessary adjustments in the future. Butts agreed that this was worth a try, and thought it may actually give businesses in town more access to customers rather than diminish their activity. Casagranda wanted to also give this a try,but thought the permit fees were perhaps not high enough. Motion Passed Yes: Keil, Butts, Terry, Casagranda, Bardarson No: Darling Resolutions Requiring Public Hearing Resolution 2014-047, Modifying The Electric Tariff To Add Language For Net Metered Customers To Receive Compensation For Producing Energy. Motion (Terry/Keil) Approve Resolution 2014-047 Hunt said the purpose of this resolution was to support customers who produced an excess of power. Notice of the public hearing being posted and published as required by law was noted and the public hearing was opened. No one appeared to address the Council and the public hearing was closed. Keil was pleased that this resolution was finally coming to be. Motion Passed Unanimous UNFINISHED BUSINESS Resolution 2014-046,Approving Teen and Youth Center Day Camp Fees.(Postponed from May 12, 2014; original main motion by Keil and seconded by Terry) Parks and Recreation Director Karin Sturdy gave a brief history of the rates for the Teen and Youth Center(TYC). She said the experimental rate modifications that were being charged for the past two years had resulted in a 50% drop in attendance. She said it was difficult to quantify many of the costs associated with running the summer day camps because there were several things that impacted it, including volunteerism, drop-ins, donations, and the TYC council member L., contributions. City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes May 27, 2014 Volume 39, Page 335 Terry expressed frustration that the information previously requested by council had not been provided until tonight's meeting. She was confused by the apparent discrepancies in camp expenses versus camper rates and wanted to see a demonstration of how the rates were derived in order to justify the costs to participants, regardless of whether the criteria were tangible or intangible. Keil said it was always a good exercise to establish what costs actually were when establishing rates for something. She said she wanted to see kids go to camp,and planned to support this resolution, but would be watching to see what impact lowering the rates would have on attendance. Motion to Amend (Terry/Casagranda) Amend Resolution 2014-046, changing Section 1 to read: "TYC day camp fees are amended as follows: Regular Day Camp fees $60 per week and $70 per week for Regular Day Camp late payment. Adventure Camp fees $100 per week and $120 per week for Adventure Camp late payment" and strike references to early bird fees. Motion to Amend Passed Yes: Casagranda, Butts, Darling, Terry, Bardarson No: Keil Motion to Amend (Terry/Keil) Amend Resolution 2014-046, adding a new Section 2 that reads: "For regular TYC day camp fees,Tier I and Tier II rates are amended to be half price and a multi- family discount of after two children enrolled, the third child and above is half price" and move all other sections down. Motion to Amend Passed Unanimous Council wished to review the TYC camp fees during the mid-budget cycle in October. Main Motion Passed Unanimous NEW BUSINESS Resolutions Resolution 2014-048,Establishing A Mobile Vendor And Roving Vendor Policy For Permitting Vendors On City-Owned Property. Motion (Casagranda/Terry) Approve Resolution 2014-048 City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes May 27, 2014 Volume 39, Page 336 City Clerk Johanna Kinney said changes recommended by council at the May 12, 2014 meeting had been incorporated into this resolution. Motion to Amend (Terry/Casagranda) Amend the Mobile and Roving Vendor Policy under "Mobile Vendor locations" by removing locations #3 and #5 in Waterfront Park and the South Harbor Uplands, respectively, and renumber the maps accordingly. Terry said she was very supportive of moving this resolution forward, but was sensitive to brick and mortar businesses in order to start smaller this year. She wanted to see what kind of demand came forth this year, and then possibly add more locations next year. Casagranda said she thought it might be awkward to add competitive spaces in future years after having given a vendor a"monopoly" on their space for the previous year. Bardarson said she was hesitant to accept this amendment because she wanted customers to have a choice of vendors to visit, and Butts expressed a similar sentiment. Motion To Amend Failed Yes: Terry No: Keil, Butts, Darling, Casagranda, Bardarson Motion to Amend (Terry/Casagranda) Amend the Mobile and Roving Vendor Policy, changing the term of the permit for Roving Vendors to "May lSt through October 31St." Motion to Amend Passed Unanimous Motion to Amend (Terry/Casagranda) Amend the Mobile and Roving Vendor Policy under "Roving Vendor locations" by adding "The City of Seward shall limit the number of roving vendors to four(4)." Motion to Amend Passed Unanimous Motion to Amend (Terry/Casagranda) Amend the Mobile and Roving Vendor Policy under "Roving Vendor locations" by striking "...multiple Roving Vendor permits are allowable",and replace it with "...only one Roving Vendor permit per person or business shall be issued." Motion to Amend Failed Yes: Butts, Terry Casagranda No: Keil, Darling, Bardarson r. City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes May 27, 2014 Volume 39, Page 337 Motion to Amend (Terry/Casagranda) Amend the Mobile and Roving Vendor Policy under "Roving Vendor applications" by adding waitlist language that reads:"...and the next application on the waitlist will be taken up and processed. In addition, a roving vending permit which has been issued and which has been revoked or suspended or which has been voluntarily vacated by the permittee shall also cause the next application on the waitlist to be taken up and processed." Motion to Amend Passed Yes: Butts, Terry, Casagranda, Keil, Bardarson No: Darling Motion to Amend (Terry/Casagranda) Amend the Mobile and Roving Vendor Policy adding a new section under Roving Vendors that reads:"Applications:Permits shall be issued on a first-come,first-served basis. Applications will be date- and time- stamped as they are received, and will be maintained by City Clerk's office in the seiorder in which they were received." Motion to Amend Passed Unanimous Consent Council wished to review the Mobile&Roving Vendor Policy in September in order to make adjustments for the 2015 season. Main Motion Passed Unanimous Resolution 2014-050, Authorizing The Assignment Of The Maintenance And Operating Agreement Of The Shiplift And Drydock Area To Vigor Alaska-Seward LLC, And Authorizing The City Manager To Enter Into An Amendment. Motion (Darling/Casagranda) Approve Resolution 2014-050 Long said the resolution mirrored the long-term land lease for this property, but was contractual and short-term.This agreement was important for the equipment to be maintained and for the operations to be successful. Motion to Amend (Butts/Keil) Amend Resolution 2014-050 in the title, striking the word "authoring" and replacing it with the word "authorizing". Motion to Amend Passed Unanimous Consent City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes May 27, 2014 Volume 39, Page 338 Main Motion Passed Unanimous Other New Business Items Schedule a Work Session on Alternative Energy. Instead of scheduling a work session, council directed administration to schedule a smaller meeting with the Chamber of Commerce Core Group, and then follow up with a larger public town hall meeting to solicit feedback. Terry suggested that the Port and Commerce Advisory Board (PACAB) be included in those meetings. INFORMATIONAL ITEMS AND REPORTS Historic Preservation Commission Quarterly Report. COUNCIL COMMENTS Keil recognized all the recent retirements of city employees. Terry will be out of town for the first two weeks of June. Butts called attention to the volunteer fire fighters who were currently helping to fight the Funny River Fire. He also appreciated the community's activities in celebrating Memorial Day. Casagranda thanked Wadeen Hepworth and John French for serving on the Historic Preservation Commission. Darling thanked citizens for contacting her, and encouraged them to continue being involved. Hunt said Vigor Alaska had purchased the company Oregon Ironworks and he thought they would be a strong partner in developing the Seward Marine Industrial Center (SMIC). Long thanked council for moving forward with the mobile and roving vendor policy. Bardarson encouraged the public to come forward with feedback on the mobile and roving vendor program. CITIZEN COMMENTS John French commented as Vice Chair for the Historic Preservation Commission,and said going forward all reports would be created by the commission and not by staff COUNCIL AND ADMINISTRATION RESPONSE TO CITIZEN COMMENTS Keil commented on the presentation given earlier by the Friends of the Jesse Lee Home, home saying it appeared they were more organized than they had been in the past. iiimiromieur City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes May 27, 2014 Volume 39, Page 339 ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 9:21 p.m. si r Al e ' 1_ 14- &wcw..k.-- _1/C. 0 &eda'27JeVti Jo anna Ki Mr, CMC an Bardarson • y Clerk Mayor (City Seal) .••'OF SE W • • : . ( SE E.• . ��'ti4TE�OF.P`P�°°° ej NJ