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HomeMy WebLinkAbout02132017 City Council Minutes City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes February 13, 2017 Volume 40, Page 178 CALL TO ORDER The February 13, 2017 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 Dave Squires Sue McClure Deborah Altermatt comprising a quorum of the Council; and Jim Hunt, City Manager Johanna Kinney, City Clerk Will Earnhart, City Attorney Absent— Slater CITIZEN COMMENTS ON ANY SUBJECT EXCEPT THOSE ITEMS SCHEDULED FOR PUBLIC HEARING Lila Hurst said she was in attendance tonight representing the Seward Animal Shelter and on behalf of many citizens who were all excited about the attention and graciousness of appropriating funds to improve the existing shelter. She handed out a report regarding the emergent needs of the facility. She was proud that council was considering this action. Daniel Adams worked for Sources of Strength and was approached by Seward Prevention Coalition on a program to be implemented at the school on suicide prevention.He wanted council to be aware and participate if the possibility arose. This program was being conducted on the middle school and high school level.Adams praised the coalition for doing a great job in bringing programs like this to Seward. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA Motion (Keil/Casagranda) Approval of Agenda and Consent Agenda Keil added the non-objection to renewal of liquor licenses for Woody's Thai Kitchen, Christo's Palace,Tony's Bar,and Tony's Liquor Store to the consent agenda.Bardarson handed the gavel to City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes February 13, 2017 Volume 40, Page 179 Keil and noted a potential conflict of interest as she owned the building occupied by Woody's Thai Kitchen. Keil ruled a conflict did not exist and there was no objection from council. Motion Passed Unanimous The clerk read the following approved consent agenda items: Non-Objection to the Liquor License renewal for Woody's Thai Kitchen #5239. Non-Objection to the Liquor License renewal for Christo's Palace#822. Non-Objection to the Liquor License renewal for Tony's Bar#1153. Non-Objection to the Liquor License renewal for Tony's Liquor Store #1154. SPECIAL ORDERS, PRESENTATIONS AND REPORTS Proclamations & Awards—None City Manager Report.Jim Hunt noted two purchase orders between$10,000 and$50,000 were approved by him since the last meeting: • $34,226 to Moffatt &Nichol for crane design, bid and construction services • $18,500 to Harmon Construction to install two steel poles for the Electric Department In response to Keil, Long noted the Finance Department received the Government Finance Officer Association's Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting. In response to Casagranda,Long stated the backstop on the Little League field collapsed.He noted it had collapsed before as well. Long noted budgets had been cut in this department. At the time of the collapse,staff was responding to the severe winter storm and they were working under an emergency declaration and there were higher priorities. City Attorney Report.Will Earnhart said in the Orion litigation,Orion got their automatic extension on their brief. He worked with administration on leases, contracts, employment matters, and records retention policies.He complimented the city for giving ice grippers to all employees and being proactive in avoiding accidents. Other Reports, Announcements and Presentations Prince William Sound Regional Citizens Advisory Council (PWSRCAC) Report. City of Seward Representative Orson Smith introduced himself and noted a brief history of the PWSRCAC. Smith introduced Lisa Matlock who briefed the council on some recent state changes that affected Seward. There were changes proposed in area oil spill planning to create four City of Sewarck Alaska City Council Minutes February 13, 2017 Volume 40, Page 180 large subareas instead of the current ten areas within the State of Alaska.Matlock expressed concern with combining so many areas of Alaska into one subarea.Another change proposed was regarding dispersant avoidance areas, in creating a preauthorization area which made a less comprehensive process to allow chemical dispersant in the event of an oil spill.The transfer of tug and barge marine services contract from Crowley Marine Corporation to Edison Chouest Offshore was another change. Matlock stated the PWSRCAC was looking at the equipment coming in and thought it was as good or better than the current equipment and they hoped Edison Chouest would focus on training personnel with experience in Alaska. PUBLIC HEARINGS—None UNFINISHED BUSINESS—None NEW BUSINESS Resolution 2017-010, For Seward Animal Shelter Improvements, In An Amount Not To Exceed $20,000,And Appropriating Funds. Motion (Keil/Casagranda) Approve Resolution 2017-010 Hunt stated funding for improvements were in response to the public and council recommendations to make some necessary repairs for the facility and try to raise the level of care for the shelter. He hoped to identify a new site for a new shelter in the near future,but in the meantime the city needed to provide some improvements to the current shelter. In response to Squires, Police Chief Tom Clemons said security camera monitoring was planned to take place at the shelter.Hunt added he would see if it was viable to have round the clock monitoring at police dispatch. McClure noted council received about 30 support emails today from the public. She appreciated the public support and for reaching out. Casagranda said this resolution didn't specify installing a bathroom. Long said they were trying to go from what they were told from users and the public. They may have to come back to council more funds if needed. Altermatt was curious about if the animal shelter took care of animals outside city limits. Long said they couldn't use city staff to respond to calls outside the city, but they cared about all animals in the area.The borough could only adopt an additional authority if approved by the voters. Altermatt hoped they could have a more permanent structure in the future and perhaps include the borough somehow. Motion Passed Unanimous Resolution 2017-011, Entering Into A Sole Source Agreement With National Metering Technical Services To Exchange All Electrical Meters In The Seward Electrical Service Area City ofSeward,Alaska City Council Minutes February 13, 2017 Volume 40, Page 181 And Perform Related Tasks, In An Amount Not To Exceed $178,684, And Appropriating Funds. I Motion (Keil/Casagranda) Approve Resolution 2017-011 Long stated this was the first part of the meter exchange project explained to council last week in their work session. Electric Utility Manager John Foutz gave a brief summary of what was discussed at the work session.Kodiak Electric switched out their meters and donated their electric meters to the city. The city inherited 5,000 meters which had many more capabilities than the city's current meters. Foutz stated this inheritance saved the city at least$300,000. The city intended to replace all meters on the electrical system. He explained the advantages of this upgrade and noted this resolution approved a contract that would switch out all electric meters in the Seward Electrical Service Area. The advantages of hiring a company for this service would allow for a much quicker process,which was planned for one month, in June of this year. The city intended to use the refund check from Chugach Capital credits, which would eliminate passing on any costs to the customer. McClure noted this covered everywhere that had electrical in the area,not just the city limits. Motion to Amend (Bardarson/Keil) Amend Resolution 2017-011 by striking "Automatic Meter Reading(AMR)meters" and replacing with "Electronic meters" Casagranda noted for the record she had family that held the current meter reading contract with the city. Motion to Amend Passed Unanimous Motion to Amend (Casagranda/Squires) Amend Resolution 2017-011,in the title and Section 3: striking $178,684 and replacing with $162,440, and in Section 3: striking "..., consisting of a base bid of $162,440 plus a contingency of$16,244,..." Long noted the contingency may not necessarily be going to the contractor, it may be an additional internal cost of the project. Allowing for this type of contingency would keep the project going without causing any delays in having to go back to the City Council. Motion to Amend Failed Yes: Casagranda No: Squires, Altermatt, McClure, Keil, Bardarson Altermatt appreciated Casagranda's efforts. She did not want this project to impact the citizens. It was important that as she voted for this, it was under the understanding that this would not come to the citizens as an additional cost. City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes February 13, 2017 Volume 40, Page 182 Main Motion Passed Unanimous Other New Business Items Schedule a joint work session with the Planning and Zoning Commission, the Port and Commerce Advisory Board, and the Historic Preservation Commission to review annual priorities. Council scheduled the work session for March 6,2017 for the following times: 5:15 p.m. — Planning and Zoning Commission, 5:45 p.m. — Port and Commerce Advisory Board, 6:15 p.m. —Historic Preservation Commission. Discussion on possible celebration ideas for the 50`h Anniversary of Sister City with Obihiro, Japan in 2018. Council requested this item come back on the next agenda to give members a chance to think of possible ideas. INFORMATIONAL ITEMS AND REPORTS Historic Preservation Commission Report to City Council. COUNCIL COMMENTS Keil thanked the public for their input on the animal shelter and thanked Lila Hurst for her advocacy of animal welfare. McClure was pleased about the animal shelter funds appropriated tonight. She thanked the gentleman who spoke on suicide prevention.The annual science bowl was coming up this weekend at the high school. It was an interesting competition with kids from all over the state. She reported that tomorrow night the assembly would be choosing Assembly Member Blaine Gilman's replacement out of four applicants. The deadline to apply for Brandii Holmdahl's seat was February 23, 2017. McClure encouraged people to use their ice grippers when they could. Casagranda wished everyone a Happy Valentine's Day. Altermatt congratulated the Alaska SeaLife Center on a successful gala which raised over $55,000. She thanked the snow removal crew and stated they were doing a great job. Altermatt thanked the public who made comments on the animal shelter. She stated she would be gone for the last meeting in February. Bardarson thanked Lila Hurst and everyone at the animal shelter for their many hours of service. She thanked all the volunteers and participants of the Polar Bear Jump. She was sorry the roads were so poor this year,but it was a great event nonetheless. Bardarson thanked the road crews for their work and cautioned everyone to be careful around town. Long said the Alaska SeaLife Center Gala was a great event and it was nice to see Phyllis Shoemaker receive the Marine Science Outreach Award. He wished everyone a Happy Valentine's Day. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes February 13, 2017 Volume 40, Page 183 Hunt added they were working with the clerk on what they could do to update the current audio for the broadcast system. McClure noted there were a lot of moose in town and to be aware and careful. CITIZEN COMMENTS John French addressed some of the concerns regarding oil spill prevention requirements.He noted there could be more than one state representative regarding regulation mandates. He thought the city needed to keep their eyes and ears open regarding any federal changes. Lila Hurst said the priority list provided to council noted the need for a bathroom at the animal shelter.Hurst stated staff wanted more care and attention to go towards improvements for the animals,but she was also advocating for a restroom at the facility for the staff. COUNCIL AND ADMINISTRATION RESPONSE TO CITIZEN COMMENTS—None EXECUTIVE SESSION Motion (KeiVAltermatt) Go Into Executive Session to evaluate the City Attorney The City Attorney was invited to attend the executive session. 111 Motion Passed Unanimous Council went into Executive Session at 8:25 p.m. Council came out of Executive Session at 9:30 p.m. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 9:30 p.m. i CcA r,i 4aKCMC n Bardarson erk Mayor (City Seal) i V<4,0% PQ �.**.® ,I1 ® _ Is f ` _ f ° ' 0 (ry O • ° i I.i L � °° w • . r, •