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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05222023 Joint Work Session with Boards and Commissions WORK SESSION NOTES Called by: City Council I Time: 5:00 pm Date: 5/22/2023 Purpose: 1) Joint Work Session with Boards and Commissions to discuss priorities Stephen Sowell, Norm Regis, Bob Tanguy Libbrecht, Barnwell Randy Wells, Sue McClure, HP Members Present: Present: Mary Ann Benoit, Art John Osenga, Mike Calhoon, Kevin LeMaster, Sue Ward Finch Libbrecht said HP was required to have 2 meetings per year and they currently have 4 meetings per year. The upcoming meetings would be August and November and are comprised of a work session followed by a regular meeting. He was interested in having a joint meeting with Planning & Zoning Commission. The walking tour map can now be acquired on mobile phones by scanning a QR code instead relying so heavily on the printed maps. This will help reduce costs of printing as well as being more environmentally friendly. Historic Preservation Month would be celebrating with a proclamation at tonight's council meeting. The applicant for the Historic Preservation Award will also be presented tonight to Al and Tiffany Siller. There is a Historic Preservation Facebook page. They are continuing to nominate historic sites for the Seward Historic Register. They have had success in transplanting historic lilacs and have an interest in historic plants. Libbrecht was seeking help with water and maintenance in Hoben Park from Parks & Rec. The HP commission would like to be involved in the Jesse Lee Home Park in regard to research and providing input. HP looks as the most endangered buildings in town and would like to help if possible. HP seeks to obtain a CLG grant in the latter part of the year. This will help homeowners renovate their historic property. These will be guidelines, rather than restrictions on homeowners. They are not intended to be over-reaching in any way. Benoit said 100,000 walking tour maps were needed per year. The QR code was estimated to replace 20%-30%which would be 20,000 to 30,000 maps that could be saved. At 10 cents a map that would be $2,000-$3,000 per year in savings. Plus, it would save paper and reduce waste. Wells asked if it was a QR code or a decal. Ward said any of the 26 signs also have QR codes. WORK SESSION NOTES Wells said in his experience, he felt QR codes would be very popular. Perhaps even 100% and paper maps 0%. He appreciated how the guidelines would be helpful and not restrictive. Ward gave an example of the historic guidelines such as windows would be vertical because horizontal windows are more modern. This is the type of information in the guidelines. McClure noted 4 of the HP members were also active members of the Resurrection Bay Historical Society. She appreciated the overlap. DeMoss arrived at 5:26 p.m. McClure continued that she would look into finding historic photos of the plants at Hoben Park. Ward said they were looking into white roses and lilacs. Called by: City Council I Time: 5:30 pm Date: 5/22/2023 Purpose: 1) Joint Work Session with Boards and Commissions to discuss priorities PACAB Members Stephen Sowell, Norm Regis, Bob Present: Bruce Jaffa, Present: Barnwell, Randy Wells, Sue McClure, Lynda Paquette, Dwayne John Osenga, Mike Calhoon, Kevin Atwood, Tom Miller, Finch, Liz DeMoss Bruce Jaffa noted he gave his quarterly report to council. At their most recent work session they talked about their Heat Loop Ad-Hoc committee. He found the grant process cumbersome, but it was moving forward. It would gain Seward a lot of attention. PACAB has reviewed the harbor fees and facilities and took into consideration user complaints and suggestions. Atwood, who is the Alaska Railroad Port Manager, said April had a docking for every day of the month. In the next 10 days there would be a pipe shipment which creates more work for longshoremen. Currently there are 90 cruise ships scheduled for Seward. The railroad would not be engaging in the dock expansion this fall. The railroad was looking at re-purposing the coal facilities because there has not been a coal ship since 2016. McClure asked Atwood if he could do a 10-minute presentation at an upcoming council meeting about the dock expansion. Miller said a few people reached to him to encourage him to join PACAB. He felt he had a lot of experience working on the water in various capacities. WORK SESSION NOTES Barnwell asked Atwood about Seward becoming a food security port. Atwood responded that with a new dock they would be able to accommodate a certain type of vessel. It was possible that Seward would be a back-up port. Barnwell asked how much product went out by rail compared to on trucks. Atwood said it depended on the product. All fracking sand went by rail, but the overall majority goes on rubber tire. Wells asked if PACAB had any say on harbor fees. Jaffa responded that they review what the harbormaster brings to PACAB meetings. Barnwell asked if PACAB would do research for a long-range plan for infrastructure since the sale of the electric utility failed. For instance, Barnwell was interested in micro-nuclear power and Nome was currently researching that. Jaffa responded that PACAB looked at alternative energy sources and that would include solar, tidal, geothermal, and mini-nuclear power. PACAB has broad experience, and they are able to bring in experts to speak at PACAB meetings. Personally, he felt there was too much workforce needed for a mini- nuclear plant in Seward. Paquette said PACAB had the ability to study a wide variety of topics. Seward was loaded with infrastructure and PACAB helped as needed. She felt that a joint meeting between PACAB and P&Z would be beneficial. Wells asked how often a joint meeting should happen and what would the benefit be. Paquette responded once a year would be sufficient, and the benefit would be to check in and be aware of all the current projects. Jaffa appreciated council supporting PACAB and restoring their priorities. DeMoss appreciated Barnwell's comment on the electric utility issue for PACAB to keep an extra set of eyes on for the future. Called by: City Council Time: 6:00 pm Date: 5/22/2023 Purpose: 1) Joint Work Session with Boards and Commissions to discuss priorities Planning & Zoning Stephen Sowell, Norm Regis, Bob Members Present: Clare Barnwell, Randy Wells, Sue McClure, Sullivan, Vanessa Verhey, Present: John Osenga, Mike Calhoon, Kevin Nathanial Charbonneau, Finch, Liz DeMoss Victoria Monaco WORK SESSION NOTES Claire Sullivan wanted to acknowledge the Community Development Department for their help. Sullivan thanked council for approving additional training for P&Z and the online training would make it possible for all commissioners to receive P&Z training. She extended the offer for training to the council members since it was a flat rate for the training membership. The idea of having an annual work session with HP and PACAB was on Sullivan's list of long-term priorities. Sowell noted he strategic plan had not been updated since 1999. Charbonneau said they had a good priorities list and he appreciated the input. He encouraged council to pass work down to their commission. Verhey said there was a lot of excitement about the cemetery plan. Monaco said their meeting attendance had been very solid lately. DeMoss appreciated the improved attendance. She had gone through the online process for short-term rentals and felt it went really smoothly. The old way of drawing diagrams of graph paper and dealing with a huge packet of paperwork was very tedious. Sullivan enjoyed the more casual work session format for relaying information back and forth whereas regular meetings can get bogged down in procedure. McClure noted in her past experience on P&Z they didn't receive any training and it was exciting that P&Z was now receiving training. Calhoon noted P&Z had a very difficult job and he admired their dedication. Work Session Adjourned 6:16 p.m. Notes by Kris Peck Deputy City Clerk