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HomeMy WebLinkAbout07112022 City Council Minutes City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes July 11, 2022 Volume 42,Page 68 CALL TO ORDER 11 The July 11, 2022 regular meeting of the Seward City Council was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by Mayor Christy Terry. OPENING CEREMONY Police Chief Alan Nickell led the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag. ROLL CALL There were present: Christy Terry presiding and Sue McClure John Osenga Liz DeMoss Ristine Casagranda Mike Calhoon Randy Wells comprising a quorum of the Council; and Janette Bower, City Manager Brenda Ballou, City Clerk Sam Severin, City Attorney Excused—None Absent—None CITIZEN COMMENTS ON ANY SUBJECT EXCEPT THOSE ITEMS SCHEDULED FOR PUBLIC HEARING Tim McDonald,inside the city,had noticed an increase in traffic this summer.He thought if the east runway at the airport was fixed,perhaps the west runway could be used as a bypass to Port Avenue from Nash Road,thereby reducing traffic on the highway.He also believed the airport could be fixed easily with 2,000 feet of sheet pile and that the Alaska Railroad would want to pitch in on the cost; he suggested the city put $10 or 20 million towards it. McDonald believed every utility customer should have a vote on the sale of the Electric Department. Bruce Jaffa,outside the city,supported the contract for Your Clean Energy and said it would help the PACAB Ad Hoc Committee accomplish their goals.He said the community of Moose Pass was having an issue with the state's plans to work on the Seward Highway;the highway was critical to everyone in this area,and Moose Pass would be severely impacted by the state's plans to widen the road. David Paperman,inside the city,appreciated Alaska's no billboard law.He thought the city code was pretty clear about political signs being considered temporary signs, and there were strict limits outlined in code as to the size of signs allowed. He was concerned that there were already a City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes July 11, 2022 Volume 42,Page 69 number of large political signs on display throughout the community. He asked the city to enforce the sign code to keep Seward beautiful. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA Motion (McClure/Casagranda) Approval of Agenda and Consent Agenda Motion Passed Unanimous The clerk read the following approved consent agenda items: Ordinance 2022-009,Amending Seward City Code Section 2.25.045 Finance Department.This ordinance was introduced tonight and will come for public hearing and enactment on July 25,2022. Resolution 2022-082,Authorizing The City Manager To Enter Into A Contract With Electric Power Systems,Inc.(EPS)For Engineering Services For The Design To Upgrade The Voltage And Transformer Capacity Of Seward's Fort Raymond Substation To 115kv In A Not-To- Exceed Amount Of$239,472,Including A 20 Percent Contingency. Action Memorandum 2022-003, Authorizing the City Manager to Enter into a Professional Services Agreement with Your Clean Energy to Provide Consulting Services to the Heat Loop Ad Hoc Committee and Provide Services as Authorized by the City Manager as Requested by the Ad Hoc Committee in an Amount Not to Exceed$19,520. Approval of the June 27, 2022 City Council Regular Meeting Minutes. Non-Objection to the Renewal of Liquor License#4617—Beverage Dispensary for Chinooks Waterfront. SPECIAL ORDERS, PRESENTATIONS AND REPORTS Proclamations and Awards—None City Manager Report. City Manager Janette Bower reported that she had requested another extension of the heat loop project grant and learned the extension had been approved through the end of this year.Regarding funding for the Seward Community Jail,Bower reported that funding had been increased,but no contract had not been received yet by Seward or any other communities; the current contract would expire at the end of this month. McClure asked that the new Parks & Recreation Department Director be introduced at the next meeting. In response to Casagranda, Bower said the city's new gardener had started today. McClure said she had been receiving complaints about political signs,and had reached out to administration.Terry asked if a notice could be sent out to the community to inform people what the code allowed; she believed citizens would provide their own oversight and compliance. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes July 11,2022 Volume 42,Page 70 Terry asked if a condolence card could be sent to the Japanese Consulate in Anchorage,as well as the cities of Obihiro and Kushiro, to express condolences on the assassination of former Prime Minister Abe. Terry reminded the public that road work would be happening on Lowell Point Road this week and next, and flaggers would be present. City Attorney Report. City Attorney Sam Severin reported that his firm had worked on code enforcement issues,helped draft a minor offense fine fee schedule as part of the recodification process, and had advised on personnel matters. Borough Assembly Report.Borough Assembly Representative Cindy Ecklund said the assembly would be matching the increase in wages for election workers to follow suit with the state. They would be instituting practices and a fee schedule relating to stop work orders.The application process for marijuana establishments would be changed to remove planning commission review from the process in order to streamline the process. There would be changes made to the appeal process for material sales which would more clearly define aggrieved party. There would be a live auction and online sale of 18 borough properties on August 13,2022;fair market value indicated the borough could receive approximately$1.7 million from the sale. The borough intended to use the revenue from the property sale to cover the expense of the Land Management Department.Ecklund said any citizen had the opportunity to recommend parcels to be included in the sale;the borough had access to 13,000 acres they could get from the state and then sell. She suggested this process may help with the housing concerns in the Seward area. Other Reports and Announcements—None Presentations— Nonc PUBLIC HEARINGS — None NEW BUSINESS Other New Business Items Action Memorandum 2022-004, Directing The City Manager To Move Forward With The Hemlock Subdivision Project As Described In R&M Engineering Concept 4. Bower stated this was on the agenda because she wanted to have a conversation about this particular property,and also wanted to create a process for the establishment of a subdivision by the city. Osenga asked why the Planning&Zoning Commission failed to approve this subdivision. Community Development Director Jason Bickling said there had been two resolutions at P&Z for consideration, a replat and a rezone. Bickling said there had been citizens who did not support City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes July 11, 2022 Volume 42,Page 71 turning the campground into housing,and also the commission believed they would be approving a 40 house development scheme, and they did not support that many houses going on that property. DeMoss asked if the plan presented on page 47 in tonight's packet had been revised based on the comments received at the P&Z meeting. Bickling said R&M Consultants had provided the city with a number of concepts;the 40 house design was brought to P&Z because that was thought to be what the community wanted. Terry thought this should be a larger discussion with the community,and wished to delay the discussion until September when the public could be invited to provide input; she wanted all the options for various layouts to be provided. She said the city could release a proposal for any concept the citizens wished to have,including a provision that required a certain amount of green space,or restricted nightly rentals,or restricted owner occupation.She believed this was an important topic to get right,even if the public process slowed down the process by a couple of months. DeMoss said council had spent$100,000 to develop housing scenarios;a plan had been sent to P&Z, and P&Z had not approved the plan. She suggested it might be wise for council to make some sort of formal approval of the project to have a clear indicator that council supported this project moving forward. DeMoss said the feedback she received from citizens was far more supportive of the city moving ahead with housing than opposing it. Osenga thought public input was necessary and should be obtained. Terry stated that,just because council had appropriated money to develop design concepts, that did not and should not obligate the city to move forward with the project.The intention behind appropriating funds for design concepts was to explore possibilities,not a guarantee that the project would happen. McClure thought that having a work session in September to gain public input would be valuable. Wells appreciated what had been done so far on the concepts; he supported the project in general, regardless of the timing of when it came to fruition. Calhoon recalled that at the last meeting,council had directed a work session be scheduled, not to have an action memorandum brought forward.He thought the public commentary at the P&Z meetings had been telling;many people had emailed in their support for moving forward,and others had showed up in person to express their opposition to the project. He said what was presented to P&Z for consideration was a plan for 40 houses, and that was all. Calhoon thought it might be prudent to replat the property in order to separate the bike park first, and then move on to have a zoning discussion about the best use of the property and solicit input from the community. He supported slowing down and getting a better handle on the community's wishes and did not support moving forward with this at the moment. Motion (DeMoss/Terry) Approve the Hemlock Subdivision project 111 City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes July 11,2022 Volume 42,Page 72 and direct the city manager to advance the project to completion. Terry asked if the motion pertained specifically to Concept#4 in the packet. DeMoss said yes. Terry wondered what that would mean to administration,if the motion were approved. Bower said, among other things, a plan for water and sewer would have to be developed, and the project would go to P&Z for review. Wells said he was hearing that there were multiple design concepts provided,but he had only seen two of them so far,one with 40 single homes that had been brought to P&Z and Concept#4 in tonight's packet. He wanted to see all the concepts.Assistant City Manager Stephen Sowell said there were four options: 1)do nothing and leave the property as it was,2)40 single family homes,3) Terry interrupted and stated the motion on the floor was to approve Concept#4. Bower said her intent with this action memorandum was to have a decision on whether the project should continue,rather than to specifically choose Concept#4.Bower wanted to know if the project should continue,given the fact that P&Z had failed to replat and rezone resolutions.Osenga wondered why the action memorandum specified moving forward with Concept#4 if that wasn't the intention. Sowell said Concept #4 was brought forward on the recommendation of Community Development, based on the feedback received during the P&Z meeting that high-density options should be pursued. Casagranda wished to clarify with the maker of the motion that the motion on the floor was to approve Concept#4.DeMoss concurred.Casagranda wondered,if this motion were approved,would it mean that the city manager was being directed to keep putting resources toward developing this project as presented, or that a work session was still possible and one development plan was not being locked down. Terry understood that administration wished to move forward with the support of council, and while she supported the idea of creating new housing, she was reticent to approve a specific concept without having all pertinent information like the geotechnical results. Calhoon also preferred to have more information available for consideration before making a decision to provide more specific direction. Motion Failed Yes: DeMoss No: Osenga, Calhoon, McClure, Casagranda,Wells, Terry Terry wondered when the geotechnical report would be provided.Sowell said he didn't have a timeframe. Terry suggested the city manager follow up on the report, and also consider getting a cost estimate for a plat from R&M Consultants, and cost estimates for utilities. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes July 11, 2022 Volume 42,Page 73 Motion (Terry/McClure) Schedule a joint work session in September with the Planning & Zoning Commission regarding the potential Hemlock Subdivision. Terry stated what she wished to see at the work session would be all the design concepts, including green space ideas, a draft Request for Proposals for developers, and attorney opinions about what restrictions may or may not be allowed related to vacation rentals and residency requirements. She wanted the community to have input about he various options. Osenga added that it would be good to also include information about how the campground performed this year.DeMoss suggested inviting a representative from R&M Consulting to attend the work session.Casagranda wondered if it would be possible to hear from another community that had been through this about their experience. McClure suggested holding the work session in a larger space,like the Community Room at the library. Terry requested the city manager find a date and set the work session at the Community Room at the library for at least two hours. Motion Passed Unanimous INFORMATIONAL ITEMS AND REPORTS—None CITIZEN COMMENTS David Paperman, inside the city, appreciated that council moved the housing discussion toward a public process. The housing shortage effected every employer in the community. If the Forest Acres Campground was going to be changed into the Hemlock Subdivision,the plan needed to be handled well. Paperman suggested that there were several other properties that should also be included in the conversation, like the old Air Force Rec Camp property. He suggested that good public policy could be used as a tool to manifest a good solution to address the housing concerns,as well as to preserve and protect Seward's interests and environment. Mary Tougas, inside the city, thanked council for their support in trying to find more affordable housing in Seward, and for providing for public input. Public process and proper development was what the community needed. Tim McDonald, inside city limits, said it was not government's job to create housing developments. He thought the housing market was hot, and all the city had to do was sell the property to developers and let them build housing; the city did not have to do all this legwork. McDonald believed 60%of Seward housing was owned by non-residents who used the homes for investment purposes.Regarding the potential sale of the utility,there were thousands of people in the community who had no voice,but they shopped in Seward and sent their children to Seward schools; he thought it was unconstitutional for residents living outside the city to not be able to vote in city elections. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes July 11, 2022 Volume 42,Page 74 Bruce Jaffa,outside the city,concurred that government should not be involved in housing developments;instead,the role of government should be to remove obstacles for developers in order to make it attractive for them to develop. Housing shortages did not belong to Seward alone,but to the entire country. Cindy Ecklund, inside the city,said she was on P&Z for many years and had reviewed the Land Management Plan;she recalled the recommendation for the Forest Acres Campground was to sell the property with a sound development plan. She believed the property would serve better as housing than a campground. COUNCIL AND ADMINISTRATION COMMENTS & RESPONSE TO' CITIZEN COMMENTS Bower appreciated tonight's discussion. • Wells thanked administration for their work. Calhoon said it was not the intention of council to get into the housing business, but he wished to find a good solution. He was glad everyone had a safe Fourth of July and was happy he had not heard of any issues. Casagranda thanked administration and department heads for coming to tonight's meetings. She appreciated the steps taken to include the public in the housing discussion. She had not heard citizens speak of annexation for a long time,but would be open to hearing from people about it.She agreed that other properties should be considered in addition to the Forest Acres Campground. DeMoss thanked Ecklund for representing Seward on the assembly and providing a report. She appreciated hearing Ecklund's input on the housing topic.DeMoss thought the city should focus on setting up a developer to get interested and let them create the best design concept. Osenga thanked administration for their work,and Ecklund for her report.He wanted council to move projects forward effectively. McClure appreciated Ecklund's work on the assembly.She appreciated how well the Fourth of July events were handled this year; she had heard a lot of positive feedback about the family friendly events that were held on Church Street. She commended everyone for the fast clean up,as well. She was starting to hear that the flowers around town were looking better. She was looking forward to the work session on housing. Terry thanked administration for starting the Capital Improvement Plan discussion early. PACAB had had a lot of engagement on housing;she looked forward to having a larger discussion. For anyone outside city limits,the boundary commission could be contacted regarding annexation or for any questions. City of Seward, Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes July 11, 2022 Volume 42, Page 75 ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 8:34 p.m. ii I Iie// / rends Ballow, C . r.: y Terry q City Clerk Mayor �j OF s a � e (City,,•ikk I ts All• • - � r EAI, . - 4IIu.••