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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03202018 City Council Special Meeting Minutes City of Seward,Alaska City Council Special Meeting Minutes March 20,2018 Volume 40, Page 390 CALL TO ORDER The March 20,2018 special meeting of the Seward City Council was called to order at 5:30 p.m. by Mayor David Squires. OPENING CEREMONY Finance Director Kris Erchinger led the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag. ROLL CALL There were present: David Squires presiding and Marianna Keil Ristine Casagranda Sue McClure Erik Slater Suzanne Towsley Jeremy Horn comprising a quorum of the Council; and Ron Long, Assistant City Manager Brenda Ballon, City Clerk Absent—None CITIZEN COMMENTS ON ANY SUBJECT EXCEPT THOSE ITEMS SCHEDULED FOR PUBLIC HEARING Melody Jordan spoke on behalf of a local business,asking for Resolution 2017-077,2017- 078, and 2018-008 to be rescinded; she provided some two dozen letters she had collected from concerned citizens to support her request. Jordan said she had performed a comparison of water usage over three months and was curious why the gallons were always even numbered; she was having difficulty following the tariff because it was convoluted. Andrea Rodriguez said her electricity usage had dropped from 82 kilowatts per day down to 46 kilowatts after her family had performed some home improvements. However,last month's bill showed a dramatic increase right backup to where it was before. She encouraged council to consider other sources of revenue generation in order to help people who were trying to raise families in Seward. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA Motion (KeilCasagranda) Approval of Agenda and Consent Agenda City of Seward,Alaska City Council Special Meeting Minutes March 20, 2018 Volume 40, Page 391 Motion to Amend Agenda (Casagranda/Keil) Amend the agenda by removing Resolutions 2018-020, 2018-021, 2018-022, and 2018- 023. Motion to Amend Passed Unanimous Main Motion Passed Unanimous NEW BUSINESS . 1 I 1 I . r 1 • 1 1 • . . . I •. • • . . ! . , a . . . . . . . • • I • • a . . . • . . . • . ' . . . . . . . •. . •. . . . • ., . . I . • I . I . . • . • • . . . . . . . . . 1 • . . • : . . • . . I . I • I .I . .• . I I . . . • . o . • . . . . . . a . . . . a . . a • . . , P . 1 • 1 .P . • . 1 1 • . . . . . . . . r 0 . . . . 11 . • . „ • I : • 11 n 1. • . . I . . • • . . 1 . •. _ ', . 1 • 1 I I . • I . 1 I . ' . . . .. . . . .. . . . . . . •. . . . . . • . . Y . . . . • • •• •. • A•rtei[d 2019. Special Orders, Presentations And Reports Presentation On Sewer Tariff Historical Rate Problem,Water Tariff Classification Issue,And Plan To Retroactively Revise February, 2018 Electric Bills. Other New Business Items Discuss Hiring External Classification And Rate Study For The Water And Sewer Tariffs. Long said the last rate study conducted on water,sewer,and electric had been done in 1993. Administration would like to have a rate study conducted on water and sewer. Public Works Director Doug Schoessler said the City of Kenai had a rate study conducted by CH2M Hill in 2011 which cost $34,000 and did not include a classification study; around the City of Seward,Alaska City Council Special Meeting Minutes March 20,2018 Volume 40, Page 392 same time, the City of Soldotna had a similar study performed by HDR and had paid around the same amount of money.Schoessler thought the money would be well worth spending on a new study since it had been so long;typically,studies are recommended to be conducted every 5-10 years.Long added that a study that combined rates and classification would cost more. In response to Squires, Schoessler said the benefits of having an outside agency hired to conduct a study were that it put the experts in charge of the analysis,and it ensured the results would be objective. Schoessler added that part of the analysis would include a review of the city's budgets for costs, revenues, and capital improvements. Erchinger stressed that having a classification study performed would be critical for the city, because it had been so long;she suggested having a Request for Proposals(RFP)for a rate study that included an Additive Alternate for a classification study,and thereby possibly mitigate sticker shock on the cost, as well as provide options for pursuing one or both avenues. In response to Squires,Erchinger said if the city chose to work with an outside agency,there could be the option to have some local citizens involved in the process,and the RFP could be written in such a way as to reflect the city's desire to have public input. Erchinger believed that on the whole, residential customers were paying too much; that said, it meant that some commercial customers were not paying enough,and she was concerned that a citizen-only study group may not be as objective in their findings because of their commercial interests. Casagranda said the City of Homer was successful in having a citizen group address a rate study; it took them nine months, and it resulted in a workable solution. In addition, Casagranda hoped that by having citizens involved in the process, the tariffs would become more easily understandable. Slater would be interested in exploring both ideas:to see what an outside agency would cost, and to explore the idea of having a citizen group formed. In response to Horn, Long said the timeline for a study to be conducted was relative to the scope of work requested. Erchinger said different classifications had different issues,so if the RFP could be designed in such a way as to require public input sessions to focus on certain classifications,the information gathered may result in higher quality feedback. Squires wished to set direction for administration:develop an RFP for a water and sewer rate and classification study; include a requirement for the vendor to hold a public input session at the beginning of the process to outline how the vendor would be collecting data,how that data would be used, and listen to public concerns; include a requirement for the vendor to hold another public session,prior to finalizing findings,to show the public what data was collected,provide information about what direction the vendor thinks the data would be leading, and listen to public concerns. Casagranda felt the city did not need to spend any money on this issue, and that an ad hoc study committee comprised of citizens established today, could be very effective. An ad hoc City of Seward,Alaska City Council Special Meeting Minutes March 20, 2018 Volume 40,Page 393 committee could hold as many public input sessions as necessary and address any segment of the classifications. Erchinger mentioned that the Port and Commerce Advisory Board (PACAB) could be another resource for council to consider using to study the issues and obtain public input. Squires stated there were a number of varying ideas being discussed, and wanted each member of council to express their wishes: Horn said since it had been 25 years, he definitely thought they should go with an RFP and he definitely wanted to have public input included, regardless of who was running the study; Slater concurred with Horn, and also with the idea of having a citizen group work on the issue simultaneously; Casagranda liked the idea of engaging PACAB, and also wished to have a group of citizens be involved all along the way throughout the study;Keil was in favor of having a rate study done,and wanted to have PACAB involved;McClure wished to have an RFP released to see what costs might be, and liked the idea of having PACAB involved,too;Towsley also wanted to see what the costs would be for hiring a vendor,and liked the idea of simultaneously having an ad hoc citizen group and PACAB. Erchinger clarified that the RFP should be for a rate study with an additive alternate of a classification study, and council confirmed. Discuss Amending The Water, Sewer,And Electric Tariffs. Council directed administration to bring forward resolutions for public hearing and approval at the April 9, 2018 meeting. COUNCIL COMMENTS McClure appreciated everyone who came tonight; hoped it was obvious to citizens that council and administration were working hard to fix the problems with the tariffs. Towsley thanked everyone for coming tonight and being so involved. She was unclear on what the final direction was from council on involving PACAB and/or an ad hoc study group. Squires responded that administration would include PACAB into the development of the RFP,and it was up to council to pursue an ad hoc committee;encouraged council members to start considering who they would nominate for the committee. Squires reported he would be out of town starting April 9,2018 and returned April 19,2018. CITIZEN COMMENTS Darryl Schaefermeyer thanked everyone for the work they put in on this issue.He recalled back on November 27,2017 when these tariffs were discussed that he didn't realize what the impact would be on his business.He thought the most important thing a consultant could do for the city was a classification study,and that a rate study could follow;it was important to know who the customers were in each classification. Schaefermeyer would welcome council requesting assistance from PACAB. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Special Meeting Minutes March 20, 2018 Volume 40, Page 394 Melody Jordan thanked everyone for all their hard work. She thought that good will was worth more than money,and that an ad hoc committee would go a long way toward promoting good will because it would involve the citizens.Jordan disagreed with how the city used Enterprise Funds to pay off debt load between departments. COUNCIL AND ADMINISTRATION RESPONSE TO CITIZEN COMMENTS Casagranda reminded everyone that immediately following this meeting tonight was a work session to discuss the electric tariff and bills. Erchinger had personally followed up with every citizen who had spoken out at the last council meeting to help them understand what was happening with their utility bill. Long said administration would be bringing forward a change to a finance position,replacing an Accounting Technician with a Financial Analyst. Also there would be a proposal for a one-time Cost of Living(COLA) increase for employees for 2018 and 2019. Squires thanked Schaefermeyer for getting PACAB involved. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 8:24 p.m. 4 ;' -kc Brenda J. Ballou, i► David Squires City Clerk Mayor (City Seal)eof SEW** (� ••oeR R"t , joaT° p% (. ( sIL ) © t% fid'.•••:Ziele 1.• %or, tij OF AVP'