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HomeMy WebLinkAbout02082021 City Council Minutes City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes February 8, 2021 Volume 41,Page 368 CALL TO ORDER The February 8,2021 regular meeting of the Seward City Council was called to order at 7:05 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 Tony Baclaan Sue McClure Sharyl Seese (telephonically) John Osenga Liz DeMoss Ristine Casagranda(telephonically) comprising a quorum of the Council; and Norm Regis, Acting City Manager Brenda Ballou, City Clerk Brooks Chandler, City Attorney Excused—None Absent—None CITIZEN COMMENTS ON ANY SUBJECT EXCEPT THOSE ITEMS SCHEDULED FOR PUBLIC HEARING Patrick Messmer was President of the Seward Public Employees Association(SPEA)and opposed outsourcing the Human Resource position.It would cost more money and reduce the quality of service.The current HR person had been fair,honest,and pleasant to work with,and SPEA had a good relationship with the city. Messmer said the wage study recommendation for the HR position had been a grade 10,but the current employee requested it be lowered to a grade 9. Michelle Oliver thought outsourcing the Human Resource position would cost the city more money. She wanted to keep the position and the money local,and recalled a community experiment that was conducted years ago by a local business owner wherein employee paychecks were paid in$2 bills and everyone in town watched those bills get circulated over and over again. Lynda Paquette thanked administration for their work on the draft Request for Proposals for the forensic audit. She wondered if there could be a mechanism in place for citizens to submit a request for a review of their utility bill. Regarding the HR position,perhaps the job responsibilities for the position needed to be reviewed. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes February 8, 2021 Volume 41, Page 369 APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA Motion (Baclaan/McClure) Approval of Agenda and Consent Agenda Terry removed the executive session from the agenda. Casagranda removed Resolution 2021-018 from the consent agenda. Motion Passed Unanimous The clerk read the following approved consent agenda items: Resolution 2021-017, Approving The City Of Seward's 2020 Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan. Approval of the January 25, 2021 City Council Regular Meeting Minutes. Appoint Jim Pemberton to the Historic Preservation Commission with a term to expire May, 2022. SPECIAL ORDERS, PRESENTATIONS AND REPORTS Proclamations & Awards—None City Manager Report.Acting City Manager Norm Regis reported the following purchase orders between $5,000 and $30,000 had been approved by the City Manager since the last council meeting: $5,400 for 69 kV fuses for the Electric Department; $170,000 for the Boys & Girls Club contract per Resolution 2020-004 for the Parks & Recreation Department; $6,400 for a pump and supplies for the Electric Department; $5,060 for a 69 AMP 5-speed power fuse unit for the Electric Department; and, $9,350 for a Boss plow and plow box for the Electric Department. Regis reminded everyone that Third Avenue would be plowed tonight,so no one should park on the side of the road. In response to Casagranda, Regis said the names of the vendors were removed from the purchase order reports to mitigate fraud prevention. City Attorney Report.Brooks Chandler stated he had modified his report this month in an effort to show the total impact of the cost of attorney fees, in the form of a year-end summary. Other Reports and Announcements Interconnect Implementation Plan Quarterly Report by Rob Montgomery. 11 City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes February 8, 2021 Volume 41,Page 370 Electric Utility Manager Rob Montgomery reported that three customers were now interconnected to the city and using the net meter, and there was another one expected soon. If anyone was interested in interconnecting with the city,his department wanted to help.Montgomery said the process would be streamlined over the next six to eight months, but if someone was interested in connecting today,he would make it happen.He said there was a group of approximately 20 people in Seward who were interested in installing solar panels in the near future. Planning & Zoning Commission Quarterly Report by Cindy Ecklund.No report. Port & Commerce Advisory Board (PACAB)Annual Report by Laura Schneider. Port & Commerce Advisory Board Chair Laura Schneider reported that PACAB had again reviewed the viability of having a heat pump rebate program.She said PACAB was pleased to be working with the Electric Department. Three members of PACAB attended the AML Conference in November.The Seward Marine Industrial Center(SMIC)Development Plan had been updated,and had included input from JAG.In the 4th quarter of 2020,PACAB had discussions about how to hold the energy fair going forward;the subcommittee put together ideas about energy education that could be shared and posted online. PACAB moved evaluating infrastructure for future growth to 2021.PACAB had a productive year in 2020;the board was full,and they were looking forward to the work session with council in March. CARES Act Funding& Disbursement Report by Sam Hickok. Acting Finance Director Sam Hickok said the city received a total of$6.825 million from federal and the borough. Presentations Presentation of audit results for Payroll, PERS Contributions,and Credit Cards by Mladen Begojevic from Clear Idea Accounting & Consulting. Credit cards were not included in this audit. PUBLIC HEARINGS Ordinances for Public Hearing and Enactment Ordinance 2021-002, Amending Portions Of Seward City Code Chapter 3 - Personnel To Adjust The Pay Scale Cap And Annual Leave Accrual Rate As A Result Of The Classification And Compensation Study Conducted By GovHR USA,LLC.This ordinance was introduced on January 25, 2021. Motion (Baclaan/McClure) Enact Ordinance 2021-002 Regis said this had been negotiated with SPEA and was coming to council for approval. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes February 8, 2021 Volume 41, Page 371 Notice of the public hearing being posted and published as required by law was noted and the public hearing was opened. All comments were submitted in writing, unless otherwise noted. Patrick Messmer (telephonically) was President of the SPEA, and he supported this ordinance.When the wage study was implemented,many employees did not receive a raise;for long- term employees,this leave accrual was a way to reward loyalty and longevity. He said it cost the city less money to provide leave than it did to provide raises. Michelle Oliver supported this ordinance,and encouraged council to pass it to demonstrate their support for long-term employees. Karen Corrigan(telephonically) supported this ordinance,but was disappointed not to see more supporting documentation from GovHR related to leave accrual. She said Seward was behind most other communities when it came to leave accrual. For any employee who had personal health issues, or had children, using leave was often necessary. She was concerned with some of the language that suggested satisfactory performance would not guarantee an automatic pay increase,and superior performance would be required; she requested that council amend the language. No one else appeared and the public hearing was closed. Motion to Amend (Terry/Baclaan) Amend Ordinance 2021-002 by adding a new Section 2 which reads, "Adjusted annual leave accrual will begin February 28, 2021."and moving all other Sections down. Motion to Amend Passed Unanimous Casagranda wondered if an employee could actually take two or more months of leave. In response, Regis said extended leave was rare and usually associated with a medical issue. Beyond that, Regis said, employee leave requests had to be pre-approved by their department head, and department head leave had to be pre-approved by the city manager. Main Motion Passed Yes: Osenga, Seese, McClure, DeMoss, Baclaan, Terry No: Casagranda UNFINISHED BUSINESS Items Postponed from Previous Agenda Resolution 2021-013,Authorizing The City Manager To Amend The Participation Agreement With The State Of Alaska Public Employees Retirement System(PERS)To Include The Chief Of Police Position In Participation. This item was postponed from January 25, 2021. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes February 8, 2021 Volume 41,Page 372 In response to Casagranda, Hickok said SB242 was in place at the time this position was removed from PERS, which allowed the former police chief to be excluded from PERS. Baclaan requested a training on PERS to better understand the system,the city's liability,etc. Seese concurred. Motion Passed Unanimous Resolution 2021-015, Authorizing The City Manager To Enter Into An Agreement With Electric Power Systems,Inc.To Repair And Upgrade The Control System For Generator#3 In The Amount Of$258,778, Plus Ten Percent Contingency Of$25,878, For A Total Not-To- Exceed$284,656,And Appropriating Funds. This item was postponed from January 25, 2021. Chandler stated there was no conflict of interest for the city's volunteer representative on the Railbelt Reliability Council to also be the owner of a large share in the company, Electric Power Systems, Inc., and could be awarded this contract. Motion Passed Unanimous NEW BUSINESS Resolutions Resolution 2021-018, Authorizing The City Manager To Enter Into An Agreement With Electric Power Systems To Procure, Configure, And Install Two New SCADA Servers To Replace Existing Servers At The Ft. Raymond Power Plant, To Include Capacitor Bank Graphics Which Mimic The Equipment At Ft. Raymond And A Cabinet To House The Servers,In The Amount Of$53,479,And Appropriating Funds. Motion (Baclaan/McClure) Approve Resolution 2021-018 Montgomery said the servers controlled the functions of the generators,and allowed the plant operators to run all six generators simultaneously. From a technical standpoint,the current servers had outlived their useful life. In response to Casagranda,Montgomery said these servers controlled all six generators.The previous resolution that was passed, Resolution 2021-015, addressed fixing the control panel for Generator#3 itself. IL Motion Passed Unanimous Other New Business Items Mayor appoint two Council Members to the Tabulation Team for the city attorney evaluation (to be held on March 8,2021). City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes February 8, 2021 Volume 41, Page 373 The mayor appointed council members Osenga and McClure to the Tabulation Team with no objection form council. Schedule a Joint Work Session with the Planning & Zoning Commission, the Port & Commerce Advisory Board, and the Historic Preservation Commission on March 8, 2021 to review and discuss Annual Priorities. Council scheduled the joint work session on March 8, 2021 to discuss annual priorities. The times would be: Planning&Zoning Commission at 5:00 p.m.; Port&Commerce Advisory Board at 5:45 p.m.; and, Historic Preservation Commission at 6:15 p.m. Discuss the clearing of Second Lake for Ice Skating. Terry said having Second Lake open for ice skating was a practice that the city had been providing for years; if policies and procedures needed to be developed, the department should do that. When conditions were acceptable, the lake should be available for skating. Council directed the city manager to open Second Lake for public ice skating as soon as possible. Motion (Terry/Baclaan) Continue to provide ice skating on Second Lake in accordance with the Parks & Recreation Master Plan. Motion Passed Unanimous .W Discuss the possibility of outsourcing Human Resources. Baclaan recalled direction provided to the former city manager to research the possibility of outsourcing Human Resources, which was not completed. He said mid-cycle budget amendments would be coming soon, and this was one item worth looking at. Baclaan said previously, risk manager duties were part of the position; he didn't know if that was still the case. Regis said there were no municipalities in Alaska that currently outsourced HR, but it had reportedly been attempted and failed three times. Terry appreciated Baclaan's concern about potential budget cuts due to COVID-19, and thought it was fair to consider all options; she was anticipating the city having some hard conversations about the budget this year. Casagranda wondered if a hiring freeze should be another option to consider. INFORMATIONAL ITEMS AND REPORTS 2020 Write-Offs for Harbor, Seward Marine Industrial Center (SMIC), and Electric Utilities. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes February 8,2021 Volume 41,Page 374 CITIZEN COMMENTS—None COUNCIL AND ADMINISTRATION COMMENTS & RESPONSE TO CITIZEN COMMENTS Regis reminded everyone to not park on Third Avenue tonight because the snowplows would be starting their work during the night. Seese appreciated Chandler being at the meeting. DeMoss thanked everyone who contributed to the city tour last week. There were a lot of people who worked for the city who really cared. She thanked Florence for doing research on ice skating solutions. Osenga thanked everyone for their reports. Be safe and be nice. McClure also enjoyed the city tour last week. She thanked Chandler for the new format of the city attorney report.She was excited about the Interconnect update and to see it moving forward. Baclaan thanked Jim Pemberton for applying to Historic Preservation Commission. He thanked administration for their work.The mid-cycle budget would be difficult,and he hoped there would be some creative solutions brought forward. Terry said the 2020 sales tax results showed the city was short$1.8 million.She thanked all departments for the city tour. The chamber's Seward Spends program would start later this week; people who spent$200 would receive$100 in gift cards in return.She thought the Hazard Mitigation Plan was well done. 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