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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05112015 City Council Minutes City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes May 11, 2015 Volume 39, Page 529 CALL TO ORDER The May 11, 2015 regular meeting of the Seward City Council was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by Mayor Jean Bardarson. OPENING CEREMONY Police Chief Tom Clemons led the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag. ROLL CALL There were present: Jean Bardarson presiding and Marianna Keil Ristine Casagranda Christy Terry David Squires Dale Butts Iris Darling comprising a quorum of the Council; and Ron Long, Assistant City Manager Johanna Kinney, City Clerk Absent—None CITIZEN COMMENTS ON ANY SUBJECT EXCEPT THOSE ITEMS SCHEDULED FOR PUBLIC HEARING Tim McDonald said there were swan nests at Mile 1 of Nash Road again this year. He said it looked like a promising fishing season as a large concentration of red salmon was spotted across the bay. McDonald stated he was looking forward to the City Manager's report on the sewage lagoon dredging project at Seward Marine Industrial Center(SMIC)and Lowell Point,as well as the status of the broken 330-Ton Travelift. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA Motion (Keil/Terry) Approval of Agenda and Consent Agenda Vice Mayor Keil added Resolutions 2015-043 and 2015-044 to the consent agenda with no objection from council. Motion Passed Unanimous The clerk read the following approved consent agenda items: Resolution 2015-041, Adopting The Revised 2014-15 Historic Preservation Commission Priorities. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes May 11, 2015 Volume 39, Page 530 Resolution 2015-043, Accepting A Grant In The Amount Of $974.40 From The Alaska Highway Safety Office For The Click It Or Ticket Campaign During The May 2015 Enforcement Period,And Appropriating Funds. Resolution 2015-044, Accepting A Grant In The Amount Of $793.80 From The Seward Community Foundation For The Seward Animal Shelter Pet Vaccine Clinic To Be Held In Late May 2015,And Appropriating Funds. SPECIAL ORDERS,PRESENTATIONS AND REPORTS Proclamations &Awards Special Olympics Law Enforcement Torch Run Day Proclamation. Matthew Morris, In Support Of Being Selected To Participate In The Annual DownUnder International Games As A Member Of The USA National Wrestling Team. Public Works Week Proclamation. Harbor Opening Weekend & Blessing of the Fleet Proclamation. Congratulations to Eddy Olesiuk, For Achieving The Triple Crown Award At The Alaska State Wrestling Tournament. Borough Assembly Report. Sue McClure brought thanks from the assembly for the wonderful dinner the city provided when they met in Seward last month. While in Seward, the Borough Assembly accepted cruise ship head tax funds to be distributed to Seward, and also appropriated$50,000 to Seward to create a new Comprehensive Plan. The assembly voted down the ordinance to repeal the seasonal exemption on non-prepared food, so it stayed the same. The mayor's budget was recently presented to the assembly and it was also online for the public to view. On May 19,2015,the borough annex in Seward would act as a center for Seward residents to call in to the assembly meeting and provide comments on the proposed borough budget. Currently, the mayor proposed giving$2 million more to the school district. McClure anticipated amendments to raise the school district funding to the cap. Last Tuesday, the assembly accepted approximately $850,000 from the State Department of Homeland Security for repairs from the 2012 flood,which affected Seward. The discussion on raising the sales tax cap from $500 to $1,000, after much discussion and amendments, was postponed to the July 7, 2015 meeting. June 2, 2015 was the second and likely final public hearing on the annual budget. City Manager's Report. Ron Long noted the following purchases were approved by the City Manager since the last council meeting: $21,600 to CMI for the lease of a mini-excavator for the Public Works Department, $10,592.18 to JWC Environmental for a remanufactured Muffin Monster grinder for the Wastewater Department, $13,335.00 to Potelcom for the Electric Department,$41,500 to Dryden and Larue for a recloser at the Spring Creek Substation,$29,261.48 to Valley Power Systems for materials for generator#5,and$19,700.00 to Storm Chasers,to replace outboard motors on the harbor boat. Long shared the latest news in the state budget was that the City ofSeward,Alaska City Council Minutes May 11, 2015 Volume 39, Page 531 cruise ship formula funding was back on the table and he hoped it would stay that way. Casagranda expressed concerns with city utility accounts and accounts with Alaska Waste for garbage services and had heard some residents were being threatened to have their electricity shut off for not paying their garbage. Butts asked for an update on the sewage lagoon dredging project, specifically at the SMIC lagoon. Long read a special report prepared by the Public Works Director. Last week, it was observed that a large amount of trash and debris on the beachfront by the SMIC sewage lagoon. Staff worked to clean up all debris with the assistance of Spring Creek Correctional Center crews. Public Works staff notified the State of Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation(DEC). DEC crews conducted a site visit shortly after being notified. It appeared the debris came from the nearby prison, whose staff had been very responsive with this process. Darling said she went to the site today and it was explained to her that Spring Creek Correctional Center didn't have a filter on their output going to the lagoon and Public Works worked very diligently to get that area cleaned. She hoped staff would work with the prison to get some kind of filter for this output. Butts hoped the entire tributary would be checked for debris. Terry said she was trying to understand how the water was discharged into the bay. Long said a lot of people were working on this and hoped to have a full report to council. Keil said she had been getting complaints that the city was now charging to use the RV dump station. Terry noted at the April 13,2015 meeting,council was told they would be given a resolution to consider formally stating the council's right to opt out of the federal grant the Seward Community Health Center (SCHC) was applying for, which could obligate the city to fund a large hospital improvement project.Long said he could bring something forward or wait until the SCHC board had more information on the work and research done on this potential project. Terry would like to see a simple resolution come forward first as to not complicate things. She was expecting this to come back to council, and felt it was a fail-safe they should have had in place. Squires agreed and said sooner rather than later would be better. Keil agreed something simple would be preferred. In response to Squires, Long confirmed the 330-Ton Travelift was repaired, per the manager's report. City Attorney's Report. Will Earnhart said his firm was busy with administration on legislation, contracts, and working on bond refinancing. Other Reports,Announcements and Presentations Council Travel Report from Council Member Casagranda at the Kenai Peninsula Climate Change Conference. Seward Community Health Center Annual Report by Executive Director Pat Linton. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes May 11, 2015 Volume 39, Page 532 PUBLIC HEARINGS Ordinances for Public Hearing and Enactment Ordinance 2015-002, Amending The Land Use Plan And The Rezoning Of Lot 4, Fort Raymond Subdivision, From Institutional (INS) To Auto Commercial (AC). Motion (Terry/Casagranda) Enact Ordinance 2015-002 Long noted a map of the proposed parcel in the packet. The Auto Commercial Zone was a better definition for what the Chamber of Commerce was operating in. Long stated it was a more consistent use and recommended enactment. Notice of the public hearing being posted and published as required by law was noted and the public hearing was opened. Tim McDonald noted this abutted the closed down Seward Air Force Recreation Camp, which was a large piece of property and could be a nice business district. They should make it all commercial, he felt. That piece of land was up in the air and wondered why this wasn't being discussed. No one else appeared to address the Council and the public hearing was closed. Motion Passed Unanimous UNFINISHED BUSINESS—None NEW BUSINESS Resolution 2015-042,Approving An Engineering Contract With Moffat&Nichol To Further Study The Feasibility Of A Public Crane Up To Five Ton In Size At Two Different Locations In The Small Boat Harbor For The Amount Of$9,862.00,And Appropriating Funds. Motion (Casagranda/Squires) Approve Resolution 2015-042 Harbormaster Mack Funk stated there was a lot of interest in the harbor obtaining a public crane. The city followed the council's direction by passage of Resolution 2015-002 by putting out a request for quotations to ascertain the feasibility of up to a five ton crane on either I Dock or the Travelift bulkhead. Squires was interested in what went out to quote. Funk stated the scope of work provided to council went out to all potential proposers. Darling said it seemed like everyone wanted a crane. She'd talked to several people that said a 2.5 ton crane would be way too small and she feared it would be a waste of money. A five ton City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes May 11, 2015 Volume 39, Page 533 crane would be big enough for offloading fish,but not for the seine net fishermen. It was conveyed to her the city would benefit the most from an 8 ton crane. Motion (Casagranda/Darling) Amend Resolution 2015-042 to change all references from "up to a five ton crane" to "an eight ton crane". Squires said Resolution 2015-002 was proposed to council as considering an eight ton crane, and council amended that resolution to"up to"a five ton crane. The Port and Commerce Advisory Board(PACAB)recommended an eight ton crane. He thought an eight ton crane would be better across the bay,and a five ton crane would be helpful in the harbor,to at least get the city started and some needs met. Long said there were a number of private cranes in Seward. When Coastal Villages was asked what size crane they would want across the bay at SMIC, they said a five ton crane. This resolution was about the engineering and design services for a potential crane. One things they found that if they were to put it on the wooden I Dock, it would take a lot of work to support that crane, and the bigger the crane,the harder it would be to accommodate it. Earnhart cautioned the council to approve this amendment because the terms of the proposal were specific to the council resolution previously approved,which was for up to a five ton crane. If council wanted a feasibility study on an eight ton crane,they would need to fail this resolution and start the Request For Proposals process over. Earnhart didn't recommend council change the terms of the quotes that went out to the public at this point. Motion to Amend Failed Yes: Casagranda No: Darling, Keil, Butts, Squires, Terry, Bardarson Motion to Amend (Darling/Casagranda) Amend Resolution 2015-042, by changing the title of the resolution as follows: "TO FURTHER STUDY THE FEASIBILITY OF A FIVE TON PUBLIC CRANE UP TO FIVE-TON IN SIZE..." Squires thought this limited the city's possibilities. It was just a study and it was just up to five tons in size. Casagranda thought this could be a waste of time,dealing with a study for a 2.5 ton crane,if that was deemed too small. In response to Butts,Darling said everyone she talked to said a 2.5 ton crane was a waste of money and a liability. Butts emphasized this was only to determine the feasibility of different sized cranes in two different locations. Casagranda stressed PACAB recommended studying the feasibility of up to an eight ton crane last year. They should remember they were looking for a crane for fishermen. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes May 11, 2015 Volume 39, Page 534 Terry asked if the vendor broke down the deliverables, Funk said it was a lump sum only. Long said this resolution wouldn't eliminate the ability to construct an eight ton crane later down the road. Motion to Amend Failed Yes: Darling, Casagranda No: Keil,Terry,Butts,Squires,Bardarson Terry wanted to see this move forward,especially with the development about to happen at SMIC. Darling wanted to vote against as she didn't want to study obtaining a 2.5 ton crane. Main Motion Passed Yes: Terry, Butts, Squires, Bardarson No: Darling, Casagranda,Keil Council and staff took a moment to publicly thank Harbor Master Mack Funk for his work with the City of Seward and stated he would be missed. Other New Business Items Approval of the March 23,2015 and the April 13,2015 Regular City Council Meeting Minutes and the March 31,2015 Special City Council Meeting Minutes. Motion (Keil/Casagranda) Approve the March 23,2015 and April 13, 2015 Regular City Council Meeting Minutes and the March 31, 2015 Special City Council Meeting Minutes. Motion to Amend (Keil/Casagranda) Amend the March 23, 2015 meeting minutes, changing the vote count on the motion to request that the Planning and Zoning Commission have a discussion on Resolution 2015-020 as a public hearing item on their April 7,2015 meeting agenda and make a recommendation to council from a unanimous vote count to Keil and Darling casting a no vote. Motion to Amend Approved Unanimous Consent Main Motion Approved Unanimous Direct the Planning and Zoning Commission to develop guidelines and a process for non-profit requests for city property. (Terry) Terry stated she brought this forward because request for land donations had not been an easy process lately. She provided a copy of Resolution 1994-101,which established the city's current land disposal process. She would like to refine the process of how City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes May 11, 2015 Volume 39, Page 535 people came to the city for proposals regarding land disposal. She thought the Planning and Zoning Commission and the city administration could have a work session and work together to develop a more refined process by resolution. Terry wanted a clearer process for the citizens to navigate through and felt this would diminish concerns on how city disposal practices should be handled and any concerns about the process not being transparent. Squires supported this idea, and added that the process of the city receiving donated land should be also addressed and follow the same refined process. Keil suggested this be a council work session as they were the policy making body on this subject. She didn't know if directing this to the Planning and Zoning Commission was the right approach in establishing a policy. Terry agreed, it was just her initial thought to bring it to the Planning and Zoning Commission first, but she agreed with Keil's approach as well. INFORMATIONAL ITEMS AND REPORTS—None COUNCIL COMMENTS Keil congratulated Funk and wished him well in his future endeavors. Terry said she was proud of the two young wrestlers with Marathon Wresting that were honored tonight. She noted the Marathon Wrestling team got second place statewide as well. She thanked Deborah Altermatt, the American Legion, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Mariner's Memorial committee for a successful Harbor Opening Weekend. Butts thanked those who volunteered for the Pink Cheeks Triathlon. He applauded all of the wrestling coaches in the community and commented how neat it was to see that former wrestlers were coming back to the community to coach. Butts thanked Mack Funk for his work with the city. Casagranda was curious to see how things were going at the Jesse Lee Home and would like an update in the future. Squires said regarding the crane, it was important to note the council told the people they intended to do something,so it was important they follow through by passing the resolutions taking the action. He reminded council they weren't buying a crane right now; they were studying the feasibility of one. No other council had gotten this far and they should keep going. Darling said they had a great council and had the same thing in mind—moving forward. She noted council had a work session scheduled tomorrow to review the policies on contingencies for city projects and contracts. She hoped the public would participate. In her short time on the council, Darling stated she had enjoyed working with Funk. Bardarson hoped everyone had a Happy Mother's Day. She would be gone this weekend and would be sad to miss the harbor festivities. She thanked Funk for his many contributions to the harbor and to the city. City ofSeward, Alaska City Council Minutes May 11, 2015 Volume 39,Page 536 Long thanked Funk for being a great person to work with. He was a great mentor to his staff and a great representative of the city. Long reminded everyone Friday was "Wear Your Personal Floatation Device to Work"Day. CITIZEN COMMENTS Bruce Martin had a problem about the city turning off his electricity because he didn't pay his garbage bill. The garbage collection service was not being performed and he took his own garbage to the dump because the vendor quit doing the service. He would continue to take his garbage to the dump. Alaska Waste wouldn't let him make payments,either. Martin didn't think it was right that in turn they would turn off his electricity. He felt taken advantage of and added he was living on a limited income. Tim McDonald said he noticed the contingency letter issued tonight by Darling regarding tomorrow's work session. He didn't realize the city normally asked for a 10% contingency, he thought it was around 2%. Because of this, McDonald thought contingencies did need some oversight. He didn't want to muddy the waters over the crane,but he saw there was no engineering of it;the resolution approved was just for a feasibility study. Why didn't the city pay this vendor to engineer a crane pad. McDonald wondered why the city wasn't looking at other locations for a crane. He said most boats had small cranes already;the city didn't need a small crane. McDonald thought the city should pursue an 8 ton crane on T Dock. He would like to hear if there was a cost overrun on the sewage lagoon sludge removal and disposal contract. He was happy to hear Casagranda's report on her attendance at the recent climate change conference and was glad to hear people were looking for answers and having discussions,but noted it still came down to dependence on petroleum or coal. They needed to change that energy source and switch to hemp. COUNCIL AND ADMINISTRATION RESPONSE TO CITIZEN COMMENTS—None ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 9:26 p.m. e4a/a„„di..- 1 . ilk Jo anna Ki VW, CMC an Bardarson 441"41- ALid. C' Clerk Mayor (City Seal) OF see s 'oo'®, peap....®.,,,�. `��69 I ® SEAL a ° . Te e oo 5 • ,e.� f�,P O° ''`•TicOF A �S*"''•