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Home My WebLink About08302019 City Council Special Meeting Minutes City of Seward,Alaska City Council Special Meeting Minutes August 30, 2019 CALL TO ORDER Volume 40,Page 792 The August 30,2019 special meeting of the Seward City Council was called to order at 5:00 p.m. by Mayor David Squires. OPENING CEREMONY Citizen Carol Griswold led the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag. ROLL CALL There were present: David Squires presiding and Sue McClure Suzanne Towsley JeremySharyl Seese John Osenga Kelley-Lanecomprising a quorum of the Council; and Brennan Hickok,Assistant City Manager Jessica Stallard, Acting City Clerk Excused—Lane, Horn Absent—None CITIZEN COMMENTS ON ANY SUBJECT EXCEPT THOSE ITEMS SCHEDULED FOR PUBLIC HEARING Glenda Jones believed the Jesse Lee Home should be saved and used as a historical monument. Iris Darling asked council to think about saving the Jesse Lee Home as a historic monument for Seward. She said many volunteers donated their time,money,expertise,labor,and vision to the Jesse Lee Home. She said this structure had touched many lives. She wanted council to allow Sue Lang and the new volunteers to regroup under the new governor. She asked council to give the Friends of the Jesse Lee Home(FJLH) the extension they had requested. Rhonda Hubbard was strongly opposed to council extending the contract for the FJLH.She suggested council memorialize the Jesse Lee Home by building a park for Seward at the site of the home. Margaret Anderson said she cared about the history of the Jesse Lee Home,but she felt that it was time to move on and deal with the property that had been unoccupied for over 50 years. She was opposed to council extending their five year contract with the FJLH. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Special Meeting Minutes August 30, 2019 Volume 40,Page 793 Darryl Schaefermeyer said it was time to take down the Jesse Lee Home and he agreed with Hubbard's suggestion of building a memorial park out of the home. Ristine Casagranda was concerned that certain members of council got special communication with the city manager. She asked the council as a whole to meet with the city manager to let him know how to proceed with the Jesse Lee Home project. She wanted the $1.1 million grant to be used for the Jesse Lee Home regardless of what council decided to do with the home. She hoped the public would get the chance to vote on the outcome of the home. Lynda Paquette said the Jesse Lee Home was the birthplace of the Alaska flag, and some citizens believed that special consideration should be given to it because of that. She added to Casagranda's concerns by saying that it was believed that the city manager and a council member had a private conversation about the FJLH during the recess at Monday night's council meeting. Cheryl Seese said the Historic Preservation Commission(HPC)was working on plaques to recognize the Jesse Lee Home and the Alaska flag would be a part of those plaques. Sue Lang said the city had an opportunity to maintain some incredible historical architecture with the Jesse Lee Home. She asked council to consider extending the contract with the FJLH. Kyle Walker asked if the city attorney had been consulted about the legality of extending the contract for this piece of land without a resolution. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA Motion (McClure/Osenga) Approval of Agenda and Consent Agenda There were no consent agenda items. Motion Passed Unanimous NEW BUSINESS Consider extending the Friends of the Jesse Lee Home Agreement. Seese read an email from Assistant City Manager Brennan Hickok stating that he believed the ownership of the Jesse Lee Home should come back to the city for them to use the$1.1 million grant on hazardous mitigation and then, the FJLH should ask for another contract once the hazardous mitigation had been conducted. Seese wanted the FJLH's contract to be extended, and she was concerned that the city manager might not allow the FJLH to apply for another contract. Council suspended the rules to speak to Dorene Lorenz telephonically. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Special Meeting Minutes August 30, 2019 Volume 40,Page 794 Towsley agreed that it was important to keep the history of the Jesse Lee Home,but she felt that there were many ways to accomplish this. She wanted to give everyone in the public a chance to speak. She was concerned that if the FJLH did not get their due process,then it could be a liability for the City of Seward. She wanted the city to consider a short extension for the FJLH contract.She was concerned that the city manager might be taking unilateral direction from individual council members. Osenga was opposed to any extension of the FJLH contract.He said the FJ LH had five years to complete their project and did not. McClure was opposed to extending the contract,even though the history of Seward was her passion,because the contract stipulations had not been met and the majority of her constituents were opposed to council extending the contract with the FJLH. Council suspended the rules to speak to Sue Lang. Squires said the meeting in the hallway during the recess at the August 26, 2019 council meeting between himself,Sue Lang,and City Manager Scott Meszaros was to make sure that the city manager was going to meet with Sue Lang,as directed by council.In response to Squires,Sue Lang verified this. In response to Squires,Lang said nothing had been spent on hazardous mitigation because the hazmat rules changed in 2017. She said time and labor were being donated by a contractor for the installation of the sewer and water and no money was spent on this.There was no contract with this contractor,because the FJLH were waiting on him to give them his time frame for completing this project. In response to Towsley, Lang said she had been with the project since March, 2018. In response to Squires,Dorene Lorenz said not a significant amount had been spent on water and sewer.Squires said he was shown a piece of paper showing the sewer design by Lang,but it had not been submitted to the city for approval yet. Lang said Public Works Director Doug Schoessler told her that a dig permit would be needed to complete the sewer design. In response to Squires, Lang said she believed the time on the FJLH's contract should have stopped on Monday night when the request for the extension was made in writing.She said the FJLH did not submit the request for the extension sooner because she was busy with her summer rentals.In response to Squires, Lorenz said the FJLH requested work sessions with council that had been denied. She had hoped that the $1.1 million grant the city received would have been used on the hazmat abatement of the Jesse Lee Home. She said the FJLH were holding back their funding because they had matching grants of 60% in federal funds available to them that the city did not qualify for. In response to Osenga, Lorenz said the FJLH had a minimum that they had to spend on the project in order to match the 60%of federal funds and they expended the smallest amount possible, City of Seward,Alaska City Council Special Meeting Minutes August 30, 2019 Volume 40, Page 795 so they could receive the largest amount possible. They had to hold on to the funding until they had complete funding. She said some of the work could not be completed without construction documents. In response to Towsley,Lorenz said she met with previous Interim City Manager Jeff Bridges at least three times and he was concerned with the project and its timing. Council went back on the rules. Towsley said she co-sponsored this meeting, so the public could be involved in the conversation. She reminded everyone that it was a statewide topic because people from all over the state had lived at the Jesse Lee Home. Motion (Seese/Towsley) Direct the City Manager to extend the Friends of the Jesse Lee Home contract for at least 60 days. Squires was concerned that 60 days would not make a difference. He wanted the community to help decide the future plans for the Jesse Lee Home. Towsley said her goal was to have a transparent meeting. She wanted to give the FJLH the opportunity to speak to council about the Jesse Lee Home contract and the possibility of extending the contract. Motion to Amend (Seese/Towsley) Amend the motion by changing, "...for at least 60 days" to, "...for one year." Towsley wanted to end the city's relationship with the FJLH on good terms, so they could come back and ask for another contract at a later date. She believed a one year extension was too long. McClure said a one year extension was too long. Motion to Amend Failed Yes: Seese No: Towsley, McClure, Osenga, Squires Main Motion Failed Yes: Seese, Towsley No: McClure, Osenga, Squires COUNCIL COMMENTS Towsley thanked everyone for coming out to be part of the public process. She thanked council. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Special Meeting Minutes August 30, 2019 Volume 40,Page 796 Seese thanked everyone for coming to the meeting and speaking. She hoped the Jesse Lee • Home would re-apply for another contract. Squires said it was important that timelines in contracts were followed. He believed the request for extension should have been brought forward sooner. He sent the Atwood family his condolences on their loss and asked that everyone give them their condolences and privacy during this difficult time. CITIZEN COMMENTS Cheryl Seese said the Jesse Lee Home would be discussed at the September 12, 2019 Historical Preservation Commission meeting. She hoped to have a joint work session in the future with the City Council,Resurrection Bay Historical Society,and the Friends of the Jesse Lee Home. Rhonda Hubbard wanted to memorialize the Jesse Lee Home by creating a memorial park. She believed that the Jesse Lee Home was keeping people from buying houses in that neighborhood. Sue Ward said her family had restored their own home,even though they had been told that it could not be saved. She asked council to keep their options open,because she believed the Jesse Lee Home might still be savable. Sue Lang said she was looking forward to working with the city on this project.She thanked council for holding this special meeting. Iris Darling thanked everyone for coming to this meeting. She said she agreed that a lot of the project could have been completed sooner,but she knew some of the complications the FJLH had dealt with. She said the FJLH's architect passed away early on during the project. Margaret Anderson agreed with council's decision not to extend the FJLH's contract. Ristine Casagranda said she was referring to a letter the Mayor and Vice Mayor received from the city manager stating that he would not call this meeting without direction from council.She believed that all letters from the city manager should be sent to all members of council.She thought the upstairs of the Jesse Lee Home would be a good place for dance lessons, hosting guests in conventions, or having events for our school-aged children. She hoped the public process would continue and she hoped that the ideas for the Jesse Lee Home were affordable for the tax payers. Kyle Walker wanted to know where the city attorney was and if a lawsuit was pending. COUNCIL AND ADMINISTRATION RESPONSE TO CITIZEN COMMENTS Towsley said a lawsuit was not pending. Hickok said he told the city attorney that it was not necessary for her to attend this meeting. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Special Meeting Minutes August 30, 2019 Volume 40, Page 797 McClure had not heard anything about a pending lawsuit. Squires said he agreed that what happened with the Jesse Lee Home should be a public INJ discussion. He hoped the city manager would come up with a plan or timeline by the next council meeting explaining what the city's next steps were with the Jesse Lee Home, and the process for getting the items fixed on the property. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 6:33 p.m. 4,2414f\-41- U.COO-1 -(Ikk\O' Jessica Stallard David Squires Acting City Clerk Mayor (City Seal) .:y0FSEy` a•..GpFtPOI�� • 10 • }• SEAL . ,ti'• 7DFAr-Ps• . •"•.........,•