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HomeMy WebLinkAbout02242020 City Council Minutes City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes February 24, 2020 Volume 41,Page 112 CALL TO ORDER The February 24, 2020 regular meeting of the Seward City Council was called to order at 7:00 p.m.by Mayor Christy Terry. OPENING CEREMONY Police Chief Tom Clemons led the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag. ROLL CALL There were present: Christy Terry presiding and Sue McClure geese John Osenga Tony Baclaan Dale Butts Julie Crites comprising a quorum of the Council; and Scott Meszaros, City Manager Brenda Ballou,City Clerk Jennifer Alexander, City Attorney Excused—Seese Absent—None CITIZEN COMMENTS ON ANY SUBJECT EXCEPT THOSE ITEMS SCHEDULED FOR PUBLIC HEARING • Jessi Bradshaw was interested in serving on the Planning&Zoning Commission. She had been living in Seward for about five years. She loved the town, helped coach the rowing team, worked remotely for a tech company, and had been an Olympic athlete trainee in 2012. Steve Leirer said 20 acres had recently been donated to the Kenai Peninsula Borough. He and his family owned some property near that property,at the head of the bay,and thought perhaps he would deed it over to the city. After serving on the Seward Airport Committee, he understood how important it was to control the Resurrection River in order to protect the infrastructure. Leirer said he would contact the planning department to determine next steps. Cindy Ecklund was up for re-appointment on the Planning&Zoning Commission,and was interested in continuing her service.She supported Liz DeMoss being appointed to the commission, as well,because DeMoss was a real estate agent and a business owner. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes February 24, 2020 Volume 41, Page 113 Carol Griswold wanted to speak about Ordinance 20-001. She said at the January 27,2020 council meeting,the city attorney was asked to provide guidance on illegal spot zoning,but there was no information included in the packet. Griswold believed this rezone was an illegal spot zone, and the ordinance should be amended to R2 to comply with the Land Use Plan.Mayor Terry interrupted the speaker and requested she come back with her comments during the public hearing. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA Motion (McClure/Baclaan) Approval of Agenda and Consent Agenda Motion Passed Unanimous The clerk read the following approved consent agenda items: Resolution 2020-016, Authorizing The City Manager To Utilize The On-Call Engineering Contract With R&M Consultants Inc. For Engineering Support Services For The Replacement Of G, K, And L Floats At The Seward Boat Harbor In An Amount Not To Exceed $137,059, And Appropriating Funds. Resolution 2020-017, Delegating Authority To The Kenai Peninsula Borough To Implement, Administer, And Enforce The Provision Of The Uniform Code To The Alaska Intergovernmental Remote Sales Tax Commission, And Supporting Adoption Of Kenai Peninsula Borough Ordinance 2020-03. Approval of the February 10, 2020 City Council Regular Meeting Minutes. Schedule joint work sessions with the Boards & Commissions to review annual priorities on March 9,2020 starting at 5:15 p.m.for the Port&Commerce Advisory Board(PACAB),5:45 p.m. for the Planning & Zoning Commission (P&Z), and 6:15 p.m. for the Historic Preservation Commission (HP). SPECIAL ORDERS, PRESENTATIONS AND REPORTS Proclamations & Awards—None City Manager Report.Scott Meszaros reported the following purchase orders over$5,000 had been approved by the City Manager since the last council meeting: No report was provided. Baclaan wondered if the city wanted to participate in Wellness Week,specifically perhaps the Police and Fire Departments. In response to Terry, Baclaan said there would be several events scheduled, and he believed things would start on March 27, 2020 and go through the first week of April. Meszaros said he had reached out to both chiefs, and would follow up and provide council with updates on the city's involvement. Baclaan thanked Fire Chief Clinton Crites for the detailed report included in the City City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes February 24,2020 Volume 41,Page 114 Manager Report. City Attorney Report.Jennifer Alexander was filling in tonight for Holly Wells,and said the city attorney report was in the packet. In response to Baclaan,Alexander said the firm regularly furnished detailed invoices to the city. Other Reports and Announcements Chamber of Commerce Report. Jason Bickling said last Saturday was the chamber's Community Awards Night; this was the first time the membership nominated and voted on the awards.The Seward Marine Front committee met last week and was focusing on prioritizing issues, such as solving some supply chain concerns. There would be a Sustainable Tourism meeting on Thursday at the K.M.Rae Building to discuss maximizing experience while minimizing impact.On March 12,2020 there would be a State of the Chamber presentation at 12:00 p.m.at the Breeze Inn. Baclaan thanked Bidding for the awards event and said the chamber staff was great. He wondered how Seward's chamber budget compared to other communities. In response to Baclaan,Bickling said the chamber would start advertising tomorrow for the destination marketing and advertising staff position. Presentations 2020 Census Presentation by Griffin Plush. PUBLIC HEARINGS Ordinances for Public Hearing and Enactment Ordinance 20-001,Amending The Land Use Plan And Zoning Designation Of The West Half Of Federal Addition Blocks 7, 14, And 17, Except Lot 7A Block 17, From Single Family Residential(R1)And Two Family Residential(R2)To Office Residential(OR).This ordinance was introduced and amended on January 13, 2020.It had a first public hearing on January 27, 2020 and was postponed. It is coming back tonight for a second public hearing and enactment. The ordinance was first moved by McClure and seconded by Osenga, and the main motion is now back on the floor. Community Development Director Jackie Wilde said this rezone supported the future use of many of the properties being affected.This rezone,in her and the city attorney's opinion,was not spot zoning, and was consistent with the guidelines provided in the Comprehensive Plan. Notice of the public hearing being posted and published as required by law was noted and the public hearing was opened. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes February 24, 2020 Volume 41, Page 115 Carol Griswold was alarmed by the commercialization of the residential zones.She wanted to live in a town that was zoned residential, and not commercial. She thought this rezone would destroy a valuable residential neighborhood. Griswold saw this rezone as benefitting only the residents in this specific area, and not the whole town. Cindy Ecklund was the applicant for this rezone. She said Office Residential zoning supported residential development. No one else appeared and the public hearing was closed. In response to Osenga, Wilde said there were 13 lots affected, three of which were double lots. In response to Terry, Wilde said the total area affected was 1.69 acres. In response to Terry, Wilde confirmed that,due to the size of the area under consideration,the zoning was not required to be contiguous. In response to Terry, Wilde said single family homes were allowed in an Office Residential (OR) area. Osenga expressed concerns about the potential impact on residential housing,since so many people talk about a housing shortage in Seward. In response, Wilde said accessory dwelling unit were allowed in OR, so someone who owned a home could convert a garage into an apartment if they wished. Baclaan thought this rezone had the potential to both cut housing and increase housing; there were pros and cons to this rezone. Baclaan thought it would be interesting to see how the opening of a new hotel,new micro-apartments,and 11 new homes in the Gateway subdivision would impact the housing shortage in Seward; perhaps the nightly rental market would become saturated. Butts thought this rezone would allow the current residents the opportunity to expand the potential uses of their properties. Motion Passed Unanimous UNFINISHED BUSINESS—None NEW BUSINESS Other New Business Schedule a second work session to continue discussing Electric Department rates, classifications, utility infrastructure management, current contract regarding power factor adjustment penalty,current status/process of selling electric utility,update on current demand meter project,update on the air-to-air project,clarifying billing,and timeline or schedule for pole replacement. Council scheduled a work session on March 23, 2020 at 5:00 p.m. Schedule a joint work session with the Seward Bear Creek Flood Service Area Board (SBCFSAB) to discuss diverting the Resurrection River back to the east bank channel. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes February 24, 2020 Volume 41, Page 116 Motion (Terry/McClure) Schedule a joint work session with the Seward Bear Creek Flood Service Area teino Board (SBCFSAB) on March 16, 2020 at 6:00 p.m.to discuss mitigation measures for Resurrection River. Motion Passed Unanimous Appoint two(2)council members to attend legislative meetings in Washington,D.C.in April, 2020. Terry said it was most effective to have two members of council attend these meetings; she could not attend. In response, Osenga expressed interest in attending, as well as Baclaan. Baclaan said Lynda Paquette would also be interested in attending as a representative of the Port & Commerce Advisory Board (PACAB), and she would pay for her own expenses. Terry wished to keep the focus on council's priorities. Terry said the airport should be a priority being discussed, and requested that the city's federal lobbyist be prepared to discuss; she learned in Juneau that there were 9 federal dollars to every 1 state dollar at stake, so it was much more appropriate to have a federal-level discussion. Follow up discussion and responses to the questions from the Electric Department work moo session held on February 3, 2020. Electric Utility Manager John Foutz said he provided a laydown of responses to council's questions from the February 3, 2020 work session. In response to Foutz, Terry said PACAB had provided a recommendation for providing rebates for air-to-air heat pumps. In response to Terry,Baclaan said he wanted the demand meter policy discussion to continue; perhaps the final decision of requiring a customer to have a demand meter could be made less subjective by including a review by the finance director along with, and in support of, the electric utility manager's decision. Baclaan wished to clarify that the original questions he had regarding Chugach was how much the city paid Chugach versus how much the city sold;the laydown provided only the first half of that answer. Foutz was working with the finance department to find an answer,but it was difficult because there was a three month lag for the Chugach bills. In response to Terry,Foutz said he had already reached out to the city's two largest customers who were being impacted by the power factor adjustment costs. Baclaan wondered if the city was utilizing all the tools available within the city's finance software program to display information on customers' bills to help educate and inform. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes February 24, 2020 Volume 41, Page 117 Vote and appoint two (2) applicants for the Planning & Zoning Commission with terms to expire February, 2023. Applicants are: Cindy Ecklund,Jessi Bradshaw, and Liz DeMoss. City Clerk Brenda Ballou passed out ballots to council,collected them,and read the first vote counts: Ecklund 5 Bradshaw 0 DeMoss 5 Motion (Terry/McClure) Appoint Cindy Ecklund and Liz DeMoss to the Planning & Zoning Commission with terms to expire February, 2023. Motion Passed Unanimous INFORMATIONAL ITEMS AND REPORTS On-Going City Project and Goal List. January, 2020 City and Providence Financials. CITIZEN COMMENTS111 Cindy Ecklund thanked council for approving Ordinance 20-001. Regarding the salmon stream along Second Avenue, the culverts from the lagoon had been raised, and public works told her it was done purposefully to prevent salmon from going upstream and mitigate bear activity. Liz DeMoss thanked council for voting her onto the Planning&Zoning Commission(P&Z). Norm Regis attended the Harbormasters Association meeting in Juneau last week;one of the updates he learned was that vessels will automatically be registered when fishermen registered for their fishing licenses. The state announced it had started tracking derelict vessels through the Division of Natural Resources (DNR). COUNCIL AND ADMINISTRATION COMMENTS & RESPONSE TO CITIZEN COMMENTS Wilde thanked council for the process for the rezone ordinance. She reminded everyone that P&Z would have a work session on Thursday to discuss walkable murals. Crites appreciated being on council; she had done her homework and was pleased to be involved in the process. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes February 24, 2020 Volume 41, Page 118 Baclaan complimented Mayor Terry for doing an amazing job representing Seward in Juneau last week; she was very knowledgeable about Seward history. He also complimented the harbormaster and the city manager for representing the city well. Baclaan encouraged every citizen to pick one service project in the community and get involved. Butts congratulated Cindy Ecklund and Liz DeMoss. He thanked everyone who attended tonight's meetings, and appreciated all the emails that he received from citizens. He reminded everyone to wash their hands. Osenga thanked everyone for coming tonight. He enjoyed the 2020 census presentation,and congratulated Cindy Ecklund and Liz DeMoss. McClure thanked all three applicants,and congratulated Cindy Ecklund and Liz DeMoss.She had received a compliment about the roads in Seward being well taken care of,and she expressed her appreciation to the Public Works Department.On Thursday,Lee Poleske would be presenting at the Resurrection Bay Historical Society(RBHS) about the Iditarod at 7:00 p.m. at the library. Terry congratulated Chamber of Commerce award winners Tony Baclaan, Amy Hankins, Kevin & Stacey Lane, Scott Reierson, and Cindy Clock. She commended Baclaan for his many service efforts in so many ways throughout the community. Terry was proud to be in Juneau with Baclaan. Terry thanked everyone for applying for P&Z. She wished Vice Mayor McClure a happy birthday. EXECUTIVE SESSION Go into executive session to evaluate the City Clerk. Motion (Terry/McClure) Go into executive session to evaluate the City Clerk following a five minute recess. Motion Passed Unanimous Council recessed at 9:20 p.m. Council resumed at 9:25 p.m. Council went into executive session at 9:25 p.m. Council came out of executive session at 10:25 p.m. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes February 24, 2020 Volume 41, Page 119 ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 10:25 p.m. • Brenda J. Ballo , MMC Christy Te City Clerk Mayor 'IIIIuI1//,,• (City Sea}ey OF SEA ,�✓✓ '•., sss G`•'G �P0r•.••�•G • • ▪ • . SEAL `• • • • _._. ti. 4. ti•.....OF ASP.••'