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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06082015 City Council Minutes City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes June 8,2015 Volume 39, Page 548 CALL TO ORDER The June 8,2015 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 Marianna Keil Ristine Casagranda Christy Terry David Squires Iris Darling comprising a quorum of the Council; and Jim Hunt, City Manager Johanna Kinney, City Clerk Will Earnhart, City Attorney Absent—Dale Butts CITIZEN COMMENTS ON ANY SUBJECT EXCEPT THOSE ITEMS SCHEDULED FOR PUBLIC HEARING Sharyl Seese thanked council for their letter of support for the volunteer hospice program in Seward.The group pursuing this,who was under Seaview Community Services,was awarded a grant to determine the feasibility of a volunteer hospice program. Seese invited the council to a meet and greet event Thursday at the museum to find out what this program was about. She thought a volunteer hospice program would help everyone in the area in a time of need. Tim McDonald spoke on the council meeting and pointed out this was a council meeting and it was the public's chance to see how the city was working. He looked up records, and it was the mayor's prerogative to point out a point of order.Administration was out of order at the last meeting for their comments in saying he was out of order. Comments like this didn't give a good impression of the relationship between the public and the administration.McDonald stated the public needed to trust the council and the administration and admonished administration for their comments last week. Richard Noren asked for a variance or exception to the city's garbage removal requirement policy. He had received a bill and didn't understand why he was being forced by the city to do business with a vendor. Noren paid taxes for the transfer station and used it. The city was forcing mass amounts of people to use a service he didn't think they should have to use. Things like wind and wild animals kept Noren from using the garbage pickup service and so he took his garbage to the City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes June 8, 2015 Volume 39, Page 549 dump once a week and also recycled. He had lived here for five years and all of a sudden it was a problem. Noren asked the council to look at the welfare of the community. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA Motion (Keil/Casagranda) Approval of Agenda and Consent Agenda Terry moved Resolution 2015-053 to the consent agenda with no objection from council. Motion Passed Unanimous The clerk read the following approved consent agenda items: Resolution 2015-053, Accepting The 2015 Volunteer Fire Assistance Grant (VFA) In The Amount Of $6,170.10 And Authorizing The 10% Matching Funds Of $685.50 And Appropriating Funds. Resolution 2015-055, Setting The Mill Rate (Unchanged) For 2015, At 3.12 Mills. Resolution 2015-056, Supporting The Qutekcak Native Tribe's Federal Recognition Efforts. Approval of the April 27,2015 and the May 11,2015 Regular City Council Meeting Minutes. Approve the Public Convenience/Eating Place Liquor License application for The Cookery. SPECIAL ORDERS, PRESENTATIONS AND REPORTS Proclamations & Awards—None Borough Assembly Report.Sue McClure reported the assembly successfully passed their budget at the last meeting,and it was a good experience.They funded the schools to the budget cap for the first time in many years. The overall mill rate stayed the same. At their next meeting, the assembly would be discussing the citizen initiative to put back in the pro and con statements on ballot issues in the borough election pamphlet. It was deleted originally because it was difficult to objectively obtain both statements,but with this citizen initiative it could be reinstated.The assembly was revisiting the anadromous stream ordinance. There was a proposed ordinance to repeal the 50 foot setback protection for the Kenai River Watershed and the Kasilof Watershed, which would substantially scale back the original ordinance. There were also some code changes proposed concerning utility special assessment districts and road assessment districts. The assembly was looking at changing the requirement of obtaining 70% of the neighborhood to agree with an assessment district to 60%. The Nikiski area had been plagued with crime lately. There have been some community meetings, and residents were considering forming a service area for crime prevention. If so, such an action would have to go to a vote of the people. McClure thanked those locally who sent in emails concerning the budget. City Manager's Report.Jim Hunt stated a purchase order for$35,619 was issued to HD Supply Power Solutions for purchasing transformers. Hunt also handed out and read Lowell Point City ofSeward,Alaska City Council Minutes June 8,2015 Volume 39, Page 550 Sewage Lagoon update#11. Long showed council a copy of a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permit received for the Seward Marine Industrial Center (SMIC) breakwater project, which was about a year's worth of work to obtain. The city was closing a bid for construction on June 26, 2015. He thanked the volunteers who helped on the last phase of the Mariner's Memorial Project,which consisted of the public,city staff, and members of the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Munro. He was honored to attend a conference on building a sustainable future for Alaska in Fairbanks last weekend and said it was a worthwhile exercise. Keil said they had received some financial reports, but not the general report for the enterprise fund balances.Hunt said they could provide that.Keil also asked administration to explain to the public that the public voted to use the current vendor for garbage pickup and prior to this contract the waste charge was on the utility bills. Hunt said the enforcement mechanism was unwieldy, but the city had a law for mandatory garbage pickup and billing. Until this process was reexamined,the city needed to enforce the code provision and the public needed to adhere to it. Terry went to sign up for the reading program at the library last Saturday, and saw it was closed. She understood it was short staffed. Council received a letter that staff wouldn't be able to staff Historic Preservation Commission until after the summertime. Administration reported staff support would only be provided for the minimum time required for meetings,which was quarterly. 111 City Clerk Johanna Kinney clarified the city code stated the minimum requirement for the Historic Preservation Commission to meet was twice a year,not quarterly. Regarding the library,Hunt said the hours were cut back in the library museum until they were fully staffed for safety reasons.Terry requested the limited hours be on the city's website. Darling said it was good to know the hours of the museum as well. Hunt stated he wanted to improve the signage in the Railroad welcome area and would ask for an appropriation for this out of the cruise ship tax. Casagranda hoped there would be some mention of the downtown area.Keil asked if those would be quotes or proposals for that.Hunt said it would depend on the price but they would go out for competitive procurement. In response to Casagranda, Long stated the benches for the bus stops had been shipped and once they arrived some assembly would be required. In response to Bardarson, administration said they intended to begin the budget process in July with departments, and anticipated they would approach council in September. Casagranda stated she heard complaints about Lowell Point residents and businesses not getting advance notice when the helicopter came in to install the bio domes at the sewage lagoon. Casagranda said it seemed there was an employee shortage for the City of Seward and generally around town. She felt it had a lot to do with the shortage of housing. She'd like to see the city take on some kind of role in fixing this. Hunt said he'd been approached to discuss zoning and build some moderate sized housing units. Bardarson added one of the Planning and Zoning Commission priorities was to examine creating 30x100 foot lots. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes June 8, 2015 Volume 39,Page 551 City Attorney's Report. Will Earnhart reported he sent a memo to the council on marijuana legislation throughout the state. The city was waiting to see what the state would do first before making any of their own rules regarding marijuana.Earnhart was working with the City Clerk and City Manager on setting a training date for council and boards and commissions on the Open Meetings Act and various processes,possibly in July. He would be working with administration to bring back the garbage ordinance for review. Earnhart noted garbage was considered to be a little different than other utilities in a municipality. Garbage didn't need infrastructure; it was more of a public health and public safety issue. It didn't mean there couldn't be other waivers or processes in place. But something needed to be in place to maintain public safety. Other Reports,Announcements and Presentations—None PUBLIC HEARINGS Resolutions Requiring A Public Hearing Resolution 2015-052,Authorizing The City Manager To Enter Into A Lease Amendment With Carl I. And Kim Hughes To Extend The Term Of Their Lease By Thirteen Years, To Add Two Thirty-Three Years Options,And To Add Their Son John C. Hughes. Motion (Terry/Casagranda) Approve Resolution 2015-052 Long said this was a fairly uncomplicated lease amendment. The lessee's requested an extension of lease and also to add another member as a lease holder.This had been reviewed by the attorney and performance measures were already incorporated into the original lease,but Long said they could be firmed up if council wished. Notice of the public hearing being posted and published as required by law was noted and the public hearing was opened John C. Hughes was requesting to be signed on as a lessee and wanted to carry on in his father's footsteps and keep his family in town.He took pride in Seward and was excited to be a part of this business community. Carl Hughes started a charter business 25 years ago in Seward so he could stay in town and have the opportunity to see his children grow up in their community. Hughes started his business with just him and his wife. They now had a four boat, eleven employee business that contributed sales and property tax to Seward. When the initial lease was awarded in 1997, Hughes didn't anticipate carrying on the business in his family, but was pleased to see now his family wished to continue his charter company after he retired.He was not opposed to adding additional performance clauses, but also felt his reputation spoke to how they operated in Seward, morally and ethically. Hughes asked council to approve this resolution. No one else appeared to address the Council and the public hearing was closed. I Terry said the existing lease spoke on failure to construct a building,but they already had a building. Long stated Article 1.5 of the original lease addressed development of leased land, City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes June 8,2015 Volume 39, Page 552 specifically, constructing a building on the land for the operation of the business. Long said construction was not the objection and the continuance of this operation could be more explicitly stated. Long also referred to Article 4 of the original lease, which addressed the use of the leased land.He again stated there were other mechanisms that could be in place for capital improvements. Bardarson stated she supported this extension. Motion to Amend (Casagranda/Terry) Amend Resolution 2015-052, by adding "OF LOT 7,BLOCK 6,SEWARD SMALL BOAT HARBOR SUBDIVISION" to the title. Motion to Amend Passed Unanimous Motion to Postpone (Darling/Casagranda) Postpone Resolution 2015-052 to the June 22, 2015 meeting. Kinney noted if council wanted to postpone this resolution to another meeting,they may want to consider making all the proposed changes first so the revised version can be noticed for the public. To allow for more discussion, Darling and Casagranda withdrew the motion to postpone with no objection from council. Motion to Amend (Casagranda/Squires) Amend Resolution 2015-052 to add the following additional section to the lease amendment: "ARTICLE 4.1 USE OF LEASED LAND.LESSEE shall continue to operate their marine, retail and other related businesses throughout the term of the lease, and failure to do so constitutes a condition of default." Motion to Amend Passed Yes: Casagranda, Squires, Darling, Terry, Bardarson No: Keil Motion to Postpone (Darling/Casagranda) Postpone Resolution 2015-052 to the June 22,2015 meeting. Earnhart said the changes made tonight would not be considered substantial in nature and wouldn't necessarily need to be re-noticed, so if council wished, they could likely vote on the approval of this resolution tonight. Darling and Casagranda withdrew the motion to postpone with no objection from council. Main Motion Passed Unanimous City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes June 8, 2015 Volume 39, Page 553 UNFINISHED BUSINESS—None NEW BUSINESS Resolution 2015-054,Authorizing Use Of The Capital Credit Refund From Chugach Electric In The Amount Of$211,659 To Extent Primary Electrical Service And Add A Fourth Recloser At The Spring Creek Substation,And Appropriating Funds. Motion (Terry/Keil) Approve Resolution 2015-054 Hunt stated the city received a capital credit from Chugach Electric Association for$211,659. Based on input received, the administration recommended a portion of these funds be used immediately to install a primary electrical extension in the Seward Marine Industrial Center(SMIC). Long added the estimated cost was $110,000 and would service nine lots at SMIC. And adding a recloser would extend service beyond the nine lots.Administration had considered giving a rebate to every customer, which by their calculations would have come to approximately $71 per account. Staff thought providing this electrical extension would be a better contribution to the community and would come at a lesser cost than a customer rebate. Council had made comments in the past that they wanted the city to move forward and install infrastructure when opportunities presented themselves; staff felt this was one of those opportunities, especially with the new development at SMIC coming ahead. Casagranda said this project was half of what the credit from Chugach was and asked what the city would do with the other portion. Long anticipated the other half would be banked for other future uses, likely something electrical in nature. In response to Darling,administration said the$110,000 cost was an estimate determined by the Electric Department. In response to Squires,Long stated he didn't think this work would be done in house as the Electric Department was extremely busy and also short staffed. Squires noted Mustang Avenue was not platted, and asked if the city had an easement platted for this area. Long believed they did. Council requested the City Clerk make a technical change to the title of the resolution, changing the word "extent" to "extend". Motion Passed Unanimous Other New Business Items—None INFORMATIONAL ITEMS AND REPORTS Proclamation recognizing National Hospital Week, May 10-16, 2015. COUNCIL COMMENTS City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes June 8, 2015 Volume 39, Page 554 Terry said they had a work session coming up with the Seward Community Health Center (SCHC)on June 18,2015 and hoped administration was working on coming up with answers to the SCHC's due diligence questions. She wanted to know if administration thought they needed to meet with council prior to that session. Terry noticed that on council agenda statements,there was a new option under attorney review of"not applicable". It seemed like if it was not applicable for the attorney to review or not review, it should still be marked "yes" or "no" in addition to "not applicable". It wasn't a clear answer to her. She understood the idea, but it wasn't quite the entire story.Long said this additional option was intended to address the matter of why didn't the attorney review everything, as some things did not warrant a need to spend money on simple pieces of legislation. So the thinking was if the attorney did not review the legislation, the "not applicable" option was to answer the question"Why not?"Long was open to suggestions on how to improve the attorney review on agenda statements. Squires said tonight they approved money for installing electric at SMIC,and he applauded administration for doing this, as he has stated repeatedly it was the city's obligation to do this. Darling reminded everyone about the volunteer hospice program meet and greet event. She encouraged the public to attend. Long stated he was appointed to a borough wide marijuana task force.He noted in the lower 48,there were currently three or four neighboring states in lawsuits due to marijuana crossing state lines,which he thought was interesting. It wouldn't necessarily be as big of an issue given Alaska's location,but there was much to think about with the legalization of recreational marijuana use. Hunt mentioned in addition to the resolution of support for federal recognition for Qutekcak Native Tribe, he'd be drafting a letter of support, as well, from the city. He had not heard of any attempts to open up a marijuana store in Seward.Hunt thanked McDonald for reminding him about procedure and decorum in the council chambers. Long said they had plans to meet with staff to prepare for the council work session on June 18,2015. It was hard to prepare to answer some of the due diligence questions asked by the SCHC. He suspected administration's recommendation would be to not proceed with the grant award and project. Bardarson felt getting all the same players in the same room would be a good start. A big decision would be if they wanted to keep the hospital in the same location or move it altogether. Hunt said this issue was difficult to weigh in on because the administration was not intending to become immersed in a capital project. It was a challenge to provide answers to the questions submitted by the SCHC to the city administration,but all answers predicated upon decision of the city council. He was reluctant to make any recommendations at this point. CITIZEN COMMENTS Tim McDonald was thinking about the comments about the garbage service earlier tonight. It seemed like requiring garbage pickup was a monopoly on its citizens. It was true the voters approved this contract,but he believed this requirement extended beyond the city limits and if that was the case,those people outside the city had no say in the process. McDonald didn't think it was City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes June 8, 2015 Volume 39, Page 555 right to force everyone into this and it seemed like it was a constitutional question.The city needed to look at this operation and where they were going in the future.He anticipated some challenges on this utility structure to try and make it more user-friendly.Citizens outside the city limits also didn't get a vote on the conditions of things like the Lowell Point Road.McDonald asked council why they were even considering building a larger hospital. Richard Noren said,to him,the garbage pickup requirement was about a freedom of choice. It was his responsibility to take care of his garbage. If he presented a health hazard or sanitation issue,then he should be fined.Noren requested to be made aware when and where the city would be reconsidering this issue. Sue McClure, on behalf of the Resurrection Bay Historical Society (RBHS), reminded everyone to come out on June 21,2015 for the Annual Cemetery Walk hosted by resident historian Lee Poleske.It was a wonderful event.McClure stated she was President of the RBHS and said there were discussions underway to have their members help keep the museum open on some afternoons. On a personal note, McClure expressed distress the Library/Museum Department was so understaffed and unable to keep regular hours.RBHS was willing to step up and volunteer to help in this time of need. COUNCIL AND ADMINISTRATION RESPONSE TO CITIZEN COMMENTS Terry said the city sat as an electrical utility,and referenced Alaska Statute 29.35.050,which allowed municipalities to provide for waste and Alaska Statute 29.35.060 which also allowed municipalities to grant franchises by a vote of the people. Council couldn't simply override these provisions because it was currently mandated by a vote of the people of Seward. Squires agreed with McDonald on some of his points. He disagreed with the attorney that garbage was not a utility. Squires believed it was a utility and one that needed to be fixed to be able to accommodate some people with certain circumstances.He hoped they had a work session soon on this issue.Customers could cancel their electric service if they wanted,but that was not the same for garbage service and the city should fix that inconsistency. Squires said he would personally notify Mr. Noren when the council had a work session on this issue. Casagranda looked forward to having some better technology other than paper. Terry added if there were recommendations regarding the SCHC due diligence questions, she would appreciate them ahead of time. Long agreed with McDonald that Seward was one community inside and outside city limits. He corrected a couple of statements —the city was not requiring anyone outside city limits to do anything; no one had to hook up to electric,nor did they have to have garbage service. Hunt stated Lowell Point Road was owned by the Kenai Peninsula Borough and the city maintained it the best they could as time was available. Ordinances enacted by council became the laws of the city. The laws could be changed by changing the existing ordinances. He reminded City ofSeward,Alaska City Council Minutes June 8,2015 Volume 39, Page 556 everyone that the laws were established for the well-being of the community for health and safety purposes. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 8:56 p.m. Cht )- / / , PrZ) leiltd/CYLOC-44-/ Jo anna K', MC can Bardarson • Clerk Mayor (City Seal) z SEAL • = 5 .'cgTEO F�P�P. , •.