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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12122022 City Council Minutes City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes December 12, 2022 Volume 42,Page 180 CALL TO ORDER The December 12, 2022 regular meeting of the Seward City Council was called to order at 7:00 p.m.by Mayor Sue McClure. OPENING CEREMONY Police Chief Alan Nickell led the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag. ROLL CALL There were present: Sue McClure presiding and John Osenga Liz DeMess Mike Calhoon Randy Wells Kevin Finch Robert Barnwell comprising a quorum of the Council; and Janette Bower, City Manager Brenda Ballou, City Clerk Brooks Chandler, City Attorney(telephonically) Excused—DeMoss Absent—None CITIZEN COMMENTS ON ANY SUBJECT EXCEPT THOSE ITEMS SCHEDULED FOR PUBLIC HEARING Marc Swanson, outside the city, said it was a sad day last week when Mike Olson passed away. He remembered him fondly and recalled that Olson used his coffee shop to showcase local artists; he was also the founder of what evolved into the Seward Music&Arts Festival. Tim McDonald, inside the city, wanted to talk about the Lowell Creek Diversion Tunnel project again.He said the city owned the mountain,and the tunnel belonged to the city.It was a$185 million project, and the US Army Corps of Engineers was building it for us. Another$150 million was being spent on the new 1,200-foot Alaska Railroad dock. McDonald said these were huge amounts of money,and he wondered what those projects were doing for Seward.He asked where the synergy was;the walls of the tunnel could be mounted with water generators to produce electricity. He thought the tunnel project belonged to the city, even if the city wasn't putting a penny into it. McDonald said it was no way to run a government to spend$150 or$200 million bucks and only get one thing done, and a new tunnel wasn't really that important because we already had a tunnel. Kat Sorensen,inside the city,thanked public works for snow plowing,and the city for all the holiday lights around town.The Chamber of Commerce was creating a holiday lights map;residents City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes December 12, 2022 Volume 42,Page 181 could vote for their favorite locations. The New Year's Eve fireworks show would be held at 8:00 p.m. this year. Skip Reierson, inside the city, said the town looked great with all the holiday lights. Regarding the electric utility department,he reminded council of the laydown he had passed out at a previous meeting where he made suggestions about funding infrastructure projects.He believed the 2022 sales tax revenue, which was projected to be $1.3 million over projected, would provide the opportunity to pay off the Seward Marine Industrial Center(SMIC)interdepartmental loan from the electric enterprise fund. He encouraged council to take action and pay off the outstanding interdepartmental loan balance of approximately$1 million before the end of 2022. He also said there was no reason to build up cash reserves in the hospital fund, and asked council to transfer$2 million from the hospital fund to the Mt.Haven reserves fund in order to mitigate risk to the city for the bond. Mica Van Buskirk, inside the city, was impressed with the current administration and council and the attention that was being given to city infrastructure. She wished council would make a community recreation center a priority; she referenced several city plans that all referred to an indoor recreation facility, including the 1999 Strategic Plan, 2030 Comprehensive Plan, and the Parks&Recreation Master Plan. She asked council to put the recreation center back on the capital improvement list tonight; she also asked council to set aside property for this purpose. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA Motion (Osenga/Wells) Approval of Agenda and Consent Agenda Calhoon removed Resolutions 2022-123 and 2022-128 from the consent agenda. Motion Passed Unanimous The clerk read the following approved consent agenda items: Ordinance 2022-017, Amending Seward City Code, Title 4 — Elections. This ordinance was introduced and will come for public hearing and enactment on January 9, 2023. Ordinance 2022-018, Amending the Land Use Plan to Rezone Lot AT, Forest Acres Subdivision, located at 2607 Dimond Blvd, from Rural Residential (RR) Zoning District to Resource Management(RM)Zoning District. This ordinance was introduced and will come for public hearing and enactment on January 9, 2023. Resolution 2022-124, Authorizing The City Manager To Enter Into A Contract With Cornerstone Credit Services, LLC For The Provision Of Collection Agency Services. Resolution 2022-125, Accepting Grant Funds in the Amount of$20,000 from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), For the Purchase of Veterinary Equipment for the Animal Shelter. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes December 12, 2022 Volume 42,Page 182 Resolution 2022-126,Adopting the Calendar Year 2023 City of Seward Fee Schedule. Resolution 2022-127,Authorizing the 2023/2024 City of Seward Employee Positions. Action Memorandum 2022-015,Approving Amendment No.2 to the Contract with Chandler, Falconer, Munson, & Cacciola for the Provision of Basic Legal Services through August 1, 2023, for a Total of$96,000 Annually. November 28, 2022 City Council Special Meeting Minutes. November 28,2022 City Council Regular Meeting Minutes. Non-Objection to Renewal of Liquor License,Non-Objection to the Transfer of Liquor License Ownership, and Approval of Restaurant Designation Permit for Ms. Gene's Place #4696 — Beverage Dispensary—Tourism. Non-objection to the Renewal of Liquor License for Yukon Bar#1245—Beverage Dispensary. SPECIAL ORDERS, PRESENTATIONS AND REPORTS Proclamations and Awards—None City Manager Report City Manager Janette Bower said she and the electric utility director had a meeting with the city attorney today regarding due diligence items for the potential sale to Homer Electric Association (HEA). She anticipated having a report on the due diligence process ready for council by February. Bower reported that she signed the closing documents for the sale of the property at Fort Raymond to Chugachmiut. Harbormaster Norm Regis received an offer from the US Coast Guard for land at SMIC. This would come to council in January, 2023 for consideration. In response to Wells,Bower explained that the community's responsibility for snow removal was for business owners to remove snow from sidewalks within 24 hours. Wells said in many communities in the lower 48,he found that business owners were often required to remove snow. McClure thanked Bower for the holiday lights;many community members had reached out to commend the city. City Clerk Report—None City Attorney Report City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes December 12, 2022 Volume 42,Page 183 City Attorney Brooks Chandler(telephonically)reported that November had been a fairly busy month: the sale of the property to Chugachmiut had been finalized, the appeal hearing for an administrative decision had been settled,and tonight there was the potential for selling another piece of property to the Alutiiq Pride Marine Institute (APMI) on the agenda. The sale to HEA was currently in the due diligence phase, which involved quite a bit of work;he expected to receive an initial draft of a sale agreement soon. His firm had worked on some personnel matters, a lease assignment, and ordinances, as well. Other Reports and Announcements Kenai Peninsula Assembly Borough Representative Cindy Ecklund reported tomorrow night the assembly would be considering ordinances for supplemental funding of the Seward Bear Creek Flood Service Area(SBCFSA)Fund to replenish the emerging situations budget and to fund site maintenance projects for Lost Creek and Sawmill Creek. Another ordinance would provide interim funding for preliminary design and development of the 13 bond-funded school projects;this appropriation would allow five of the 13 projects to get started, and among those five projects was the Seward High School track and field. Ecklund said another ordinance would be accepting Year Two Opioid Settlement Funds;she hoped there would be a healthcare entity in the eastern peninsula that would be interested in applying for those grant funds, otherwise the funds may simply go to the Central and South Peninsula Hospitals. The assembly would be accepting grant funds for the fish passage project;the partnership with US Fish&Wildlife would result in planning,prioritizing,conceptual design,and stakeholder meetings to improve fish passages within the KPB road service area. In addition, Ecklund reported there would be an ordinance for introduction to eliminate the requirement for mailing informational election brochures,and also to eliminate the requirement for the borough clerk to seek authorship of pro/con ballot proposition statements. The KPB special election for borough mayor would be held on February 14, 2023 and the candidates were David Carey,Linda Farnsworth Hutchings,Peter Micciche,and Zachary Hamilton;the term would expire in October, 2023. There was only two weeks between the special election on February 14th and the potential runoff election on March 7th,so the borough clerk's office was requesting to have the three- week ballot testing requirement waived for that election. Ecklund stated that there were two recreational service areas within the borough: Seldovia and Nikiski. Both areas were funded by service area mill rates. She suggested council consider researching the potential for a new recreational service area from the Y to Lowell Point before making a final decision to forgo pursuing a recreation center. Barnwell asked for elaboration on having a recreation service area from Tern Lake to Lowell Point. In response,Ecklund said if a recreation service area was considered,she would recommend the boundaries be from the Y to Lowell Point; she had asked for the borough finance director to provide figures for what a.25 mill rate could generate and had provided that to McClure. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes December 12, 2022 Volume 42,Page 184 Presentations—None PUBLIC HEARINGS Ordinances for Enactment—None Resolutions Requiring Public Hearing Resolution 2022-117, Adopting the City of Seward 2023 and 2024 Operating Budget and Setting the Mill Rate. This resolution had a public hearing on November 28, 2022 and is coming tonight for a second public hearing and approval. The original motion was made by DeMoss and seconded by Wells; the main motion is on the floor. Bower reminded council that this resolution would have to be approved tonight to stay in keeping with the city's Charter. Notice of the public hearing being posted and published as required by law was noted and the public hearing was opened. Stephanie Millane,outside the city,thanked council for their work on the budget.She was a small business owner and she depended on the Chamber of Commerce to help with marketing. The chamber provided a beautiful website for visitors to use in planning their visit to Seward,and those visitors provided revenue through sales tax and bed tax. Millane asked council to provide the chamber full funding in their budget. Melissa Schutter, outside the city, had served on the Chamber of Commerce board since 2014. She wished to provide her support for the chamber's budget.The chamber earned the funding it was provided by the city, as a pass through of the bed tax revenues that the chamber directly impacted. The chamber worked year-round to bring visitors to Seward, and many local businesses relied on the chamber to promote tourism, something that non-chamber members benefitted from. Kat Sorensen,inside the city,was the Executive Director of the Chamber of Commerce.She thanked council for their ongoing support of the chamber. Since the last council meeting,she and the board had worked to hone the chamber's budget. There were nearly 300,000 visitors who passed through Seward each year. The chamber's lean team who worked diligently on behalf of the community. Cliff Krug,inside the city,owned a business in Seward. He thanked the city for the holiday lights and for the snow clearing. This year his store had processed over 29,000 transactions. He believed his business was in better place with the Chamber of Commerce than it would be without the chamber.The chamber was run professionally and effectively;the chamber's work touched every business in town year-round. In his opinion, the chamber needed more funding rather than less. Marketing was a dynamic industry; getting the messaging out to a multitude of platforms was critical, and he thought the chamber did a wonderful job. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes December 12, 2022 Volume 42,Page 185 Tim McDonald,inside the city,urged council to fund at least a portion of a recreation center, and wondered if the Jesse Lee Home property could be used as a location for the facility.He thought an open-walled,roofed area could be sufficient as a basketball area or an ice rink and wouldn't cost a fortune. He believed the maintenance on something like that would be minimal. No one else appeared and the public hearing was closed. Wells didn't want to reduce the chamber's budget below$300,000;he believed the chamber earned every penny. Finch thought the chamber should have a complete list of businesses on their website. In response to Osenga,Bower said the chamber's budget was proposed to be set at$300,000. Wells said COVID-19 has severely impacted the chamber's budget,yet they still managed to win the Chamber of the Year Award. Wells said if the chamber's budget wasn't being set at $300,000 in this budget, the chamber would receive 50% of the bed tax revenues, which would actually be more than$350,000. Barnwell thought it would be advantageous for the chamber to be able to count on a set budget amount. The chamber did a lot for the community, and it was important that they had consistency. McClure said budgets were fluid documents, and there would be mid-year budget amendments. Motion Passed Unanimous Resolution 2022-121,Recommending Kenai Peninsula Borough Approval of the Preliminary Replat of Lot 4A-1 and Lot 4D, Block 7, Fourth of July Creek Subdivision, Seward Marine Industrial Center(SMIC),Raibow Replat,Creating Four Lots;Lot 4D-1,Lot 4A-2,Lot 4A-3, and Lot 4A-4;Vacating the West 5'Utility Easement of Lot 4D,Block 7,Fourth of July Creek Subdivision SMIC,Raibow Replat,and East 5'Utility Easement of Lot 4A-1,Block 7,Fourth of July Creek Subdivision SMIC, Raibow Replat. Motion(Osenga/Calhoon) Approve Resolution 2022-121 Community Development Director Jason Bidding said this was a preliminary replat at SMIC to allow JAG to lease a larger parcel in order to expand their current operations. Notice of the public hearing being posted and published as required by law was noted and the public hearing was opened. No one appeared and the public hearing was closed. Motion Passed Unanimous City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes December 12, 2022 Volume 42,Page 186 Resolution 2022-122,Authorizing The City Manager To Enter Into And Execute The Purchase And Sale Agreement And Related Documents With Chugach Regional Resource Commission (CRRC)For The Sale Of 1.52 Acres Of Land And The Related Improvements And Fixtures, Physical Address 101 Railway Avenue, Parcel 14920016, In The Amount Of$500,000. Motion (Osenga/Calhoon) Approve Resolution 2022-122 Assistant City Manager Stephen Sowell said the sale of this property was in the public's best interest, and the sale amount was appraised at fair market value. The property was required to continue to be used for mariculture purposes. Bower said this facility had a global impact and was an amazing facility. Notice of the public hearing being posted and published as required by law was noted and the public hearing was opened. Willow Hetrick, outside the city, was the executive director for the Chugach Regional Resources Commission(CRRC).Ownership of the property and the building would provide CRRC with the opportunity to expand and make improvements of the Alutiiq Pride Mariculture Institute (APMI) facility; it also provided opportunity to seek new financial support and funding sources. Hetrick said owning the asset would provide a permanent home for APMI and would enable APMI to become an anchor in the community.APMI had a relationship with the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA)that enabled them to cover their mortgage payments and make improvements.Hetrick thanked the city for being a great landlord for many years. Jeff Hetrick,outside the city,was the director of APMI.He was excited about the prospect of owning the property because it would enable them to expand by adding office space and research lab space.APMI produced a wide variety of mariculture.APMI assisted with the ocean monitoring program by identifying harmful algae and toxicity;partners around the state sent samples to the lab in Seward for testing.The success of APMI contributed to the community with its growing employee base,most of whom were long-time Seward residents. Hetrick invited the community to take a tour of the facility and see what they did. No one else appeared and the public hearing was closed. Wells appreciated the detailed explanations on why this sale would benefit the community. Motion Passed Unanimous UNFINISHED BUSINESS—None NEW BUSINESS Resolutions City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes December 12, 2022 Volume 42, Page 187 Resolution 2022-123, Authorizing The City Manager To Extend The Contract With Carmen Jackson CPA, LLC For Finance And Accounting Services Until December 31, 2023. Motion (Osenga/Calhoon) Approve Resolution 2022-123 Bower said this resolution would add$75,000 in 2023 to retain the Carmen Jackson firm as the finance director; the city continued to actively advertise the open position. Calhoon had requested this resolution to be removed from consent so that the public understood that this contract was in place only until a finance director could be found and hired. Bower added that Carmen Jackson also assisted with audit preparation and refining processes and procedures. She said the firm had been valuable to the city. Motion Passed Unanimous Resolution 2022-128, Adopting the City of Seward Six-Year Capital Improvement Plan. Motion (Osenga/Calhoon) Approve Resolution 2022-128 Bower said the city code required that a six-year Capital Improvement Plan(CIP)be provided to council for approval;the CIP did not appropriate any funding. She said this was a living document that could be amended as necessary. Motion to Amend (Calhoon/Osenga) Amend Resolution 2022-128 in the Capital Improvement Plan under the Water section for the item"Distribution Piping Upgrades (Ductile Iron Pipe)"by moving the amount of$3 million under the column for 2023. Motion to Amend Passed Unanimous Primary Motion to Amend (Calhoon/Barnwell) Amend Resolution 2022-128 in the Capital Improvement Plan under the Parks & Rec section by adding a new item for "Community Recreation Center" and adding the amount of$20 million under the column for 2026. Calhoon wanted to keep a Community Recreation Center on the radar in an official capacity. Barnwell concurred. Secondary Motion to Amend (Finch/) Strike the amount of$20 million and replace it with $100,000. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes December 12, 2022 Volume 42,Page 188 Secondary Motion to Amend died for lack of second. Bower said the CIP was used as a planning tool,so it was helpful to have realistic figures to work with. Primary Motion to Amend Passed Unanimous Main Motion Passed Unanimous Action Memoranda—None Other New Business—None INFORMATIONAL ITEMS AND REPORTS Boards and Commissions Minutes—None Other Items City Clerk's Travel Report for the Alaska Association of Municipal Clerks (AAMC) Conference in Anchorage. CITIZEN COMMENTS Cindy Ecklund, inside the city, said Capital Improvement Plans were a tool that could be used when speaking to legislators. Now that a community recreation center was on the CIP, if a potential funding opportunity came up,the city had a realistic plan. Tim McDonald,inside the city,was truly concerned about the Lowell Point Sewage Lagoon. He suggested the city run a study on the effluent from the lagoon to test for toxicity.McDonald said one cruise ship had 10 acres of painted hull below the water surface, and those ships represented a hazard to the bay as well. Tanguy Libbrecht, inside the city, appreciated all the work. Skip Reierson,inside the city,wished everyone an enjoyable holiday season.He wondered what council wanted the town to look like in the future;there were many,many projects that the city had built and supported for the benefit of the community.He said a community recreation center was one thing that had never been completed,although he recalled around 1990 the price tag was about $4 million. Kat Sorensen,inside the city,thanked council for getting through the budget cycle and for supporting the Chamber of Commerce. Happy Holidays. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes December 12, 2022 Volume 42,Page 189 Doug Schoessler,inside the city,thanked everyone for their support;the public works crews worked hard on snow clearing. He reminded everyone that parking downtown was restricted on certain days to enable snow removal. Mica Van Buskirk,inside the city,thanked council for continuing the discussion about the recreation center. She appreciated the snow removal crews. COUNCIL AND ADMINISTRATION COMMENTS & RESPONSE TO CITIZEN COMMENTS Bower thanked public works for the snow removal crews working so hard;there were only four employees removing snow and they were doing a great job. She was trying to find a good date for the council retreat. Finch appreciated the crews clearing snow. Have a safe and Merry Christmas. Barnwell was in Anchorage last week for the AML Conference. He had taken a tour of the city last week and was impressed with the operations. He was very proud of the city. Calhoon appreciated all the hard work done by the city crews. He was glad to be done with the budget;there would be tweaks in the future.On December 17,2022 at the American Legion there would be a Santa parade and gifts for kids starting at 11:00 a.m.On Christmas day,there would be a free community meal starting at 1:30 p.m.at the American Legion;meal deliveries could be made by contacting the legion.New Year's Eve would be the 101 S`Birthday for Post 5.Have a great holiday. Wells thanked the American Legion for their service,the borough assembly report, and all the citizen comments. Have a great holiday and a happy solstice. Osenga thanked everyone for coming to the meeting and thanked the crews for clearing the snow so quickly. Happy Holidays. McClure echoed all the sentiments. She had been in Anchorage last week and witnessed the terrible road conditions;in Seward,the roads were cleared beautifully. She enjoyed the open house last weekend at the museum. The New Year's Eve fireworks would be at 8:00 p.m. so everyone could enjoy them. She attended the Alaska Conference of Mayors last week. Merry Christmas. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 9:16 p.m. Brenda Ballow ''•+ P®RAT F O '•. Sue McClure City Clerk V/o a is •'� Mayor t2 (City Seal) : • 00 SVSL '•S qTE OF its** -sills