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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11222021 City Council Minutes City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes November 22,2021 Volume 41,Page 550 CALL TO ORDER The November 22, 2021 regular meeting of the Seward City Council was called to order at 7:00 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 Sue McClure John Osenga Liz DeMoss lain Mike Calhoon Randy Wells comprising a quorum of the Council; and Stephen Sowell, Acting City Manager Brenda Ballou, City Clerk Excused—Casagranda Absent—None CITIZEN COMMENTS ON ANY SUBJECT EXCEPT THOSE ITEMS SCHEDULED FOR PUBLIC HEARING Christiana Smith thanked council for creating a welcome environment for citizens to express themselves;at the last meeting,her daughter had spoken,and had been nervous,but it was a positive experience. She encouraged council to approve the ice melt purchase for the animal shelter because she thought it would be very beneficial and a smart use of funds. Lynda Paquette requested the city build a new sewage lagoon inside city limits;in the city manager report in tonight's packet, it appeared all the recommendations from the recent engineer report about the Lowell Point Sewer Lagoon would not be pursued by the Public Works Department. She was very concerned that the residents of Lowell Point would have to continue to live with toxic sewage odor; she said the lagoon was outdated and not being maintained. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA Motion(McClure/Osenga) Approval of Agenda and Consent Agenda City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes November 22,2021 Volume 41,Page 551 McClure moved Resolutions 2021-133, 2021-134, and 2021-135 onto the consent agenda with no objection from council. Motion Passed Unanimous The clerk read the following approved consent agenda items: Resolution 2021-131,Authorizing The City Manager To Enter Into Amendment No.1 To The Agreement Between The City Of Seward And Boys& Girls Club Of The Kenai Peninsula. Resolution 2021-132, Supporting Full Funding ($20,160,062) For The State Of Alaska Municipal Harbor Facility Grant Program In The FY 2023 State Capital Budget. Resolution 2021-133,Approving The Purchase Of An Ice Melt System For The Seward Animal Shelter From Dawson Construction In The Amount Of$31,998.65 And Appropriating Funds. Resolution 2021-134,Repealing Resolution 2021-111 And Authorizing The City Manager To Purchase(1)2022 Ford F-150 Crew Cab With Kendall Ford Of Anchorage For The Purchase Of A Vehicle For The Building Department Using The State's Competitive Procurement Fleet Vehicle Contract In The Amount Of$38,586.00,And Appropriating Funds. Resolution 2021-135,Repealing Resolution 2021-128 And Authorizing The City Manager To Purchase(3)2022 Ford Explorer Police Package Vehicle From Kendall Ford Under The State Of Alaska Fleet Vehicle Contract,With Associated Upfitting And Police Specific Equipment From Alaska Safety,Dell Technologies, ProComm Alaska,And The Printer,In An Amount Not To Exceed $194,831.91,And Appropriating Funds. Non-objection to the renewal of liquor license #5287 — Restaurant/Eating Place — Public Convenience for Seward Brewing Co.Note: This license is being extended with this renewal from Seasonal to Year Round. Non-objection to the renewal of liquor license#5288—Brewpub for Seward Brewing Co.Note: This license is being extended with this renewal from Seasonal to Year Round. Appoint Michael Brown and Brandii Holmdahl to the Port & Commerce Advisory Board (PACAB) with terms to expire July, 2024 and July,2023,respectively. Direct the city clerk to advertise the vacancy on the KPB Planning Commission with a deadline on December 6, 2021 at 5:00 p.m. Authorize the mayor to send a letter to the KPB Assembly encouraging them to meet in Seward on April 19, 2022. SPECIAL ORDERS, PRESENTATIONS AND REPORTS City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes November 22, 2021 Volume 41,Page 552 Proclamations & Awards Recognizing and commending Dispatcher Donald (Donnie) Lane for saving a life. Recognizing and commending Patrol Officer David McKillican for saving a life. City Manager Report. Acting City Manager Stephen Sowell said the preliminary third quarter sales tax results looked promising.The federal infrastructure money also looked promising; the Lowell Creek Diversion Tunnel would be the number one priority for the city to address with those funds.Regarding the Lowell Point Sewer Lagoon,all seven items that the engineer reported on would absolutely be addressed by the city; all items would remain on the city manager report until each was accomplished. Calhoon asked for further information on the future electric bond payment. In response, Sowell said the city did not have a firm date,but the bond bank would likely tell the city in April or May, 2022 that the city's bond would close. Sowell said the finance department was working on drafting a resolution regarding the electric revenue bond. Acting Finance Director Sam Hickok confirmed that the city was waiting for the bond bank to provide a date.The later the bond was issued,the more likely the city would not have to make any payments in 2022.Hickok said he had contacted the financial consultant for the bond bank to discuss whether the electric department made enough revenue to make the payments,and they indicated the city would have enough to make the bond payments. McClure noted there would be a tsunami mapping presentation on December 7,2021 at the library; she encouraged people to attend. Terry thanked administration for completing the fencing around the Fort Raymond electric substation. Terry thanked Hickok for conducting the internal audit on utilities;she understood that many discrepancies had been found, and wondered if there was a report that could be provided without exposing confidential customer information.Sowell clarified that the internal audit was separate and distinct from the forensic audit; the internal audit had revealed about one-third of accounts being underbilled. Sowell said once the internal audit was completed,there would be a high level report provided.Hickok said the department was approximately 50%completed;he anticipated completing at about the same time as the forensic audit was completed.DeMoss wondered if the results could be provided indicating categories of accounts or by industry for greater understanding. Borough Assembly Report. Representative Cindy Ecklund (telephonically) stated the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding had been divided into three projects: Homer High School roof,Homer Elementary School water,and rebuilding bridges in the borough. Ecklund was hoping to receive more information about the projects at the December 7,2021 assembly meeting. She appreciated that council would be sending a letter to the assembly requesting they hold their meeting in April, 2022 in Seward. The borough mayor would be moving forward with a computer City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes November 22, 2021 Volume 41,Page 553 aided dispatch agreement with the City of Homer for 911 calls. Ecklund said she had been told that 911 calls out of Seward made on cell phones were routed to Soldotna,but landline calls went directly to the Seward dispatch. On November 15,2021,Ecklund participated in an Eastern Peninsula Highway Emergency Service Area(EPHESA)board meeting.Both Hope and Girdwood reported that they had received some "code blue" grant funding to improve equipment; also, forestry and firewood grants were reportedly open, and those funds perhaps should be explored by Seward. Ecklund said the Bear Creek Fire Department would be getting a new Firefighter 1 staff member soon, and would be receiving a new truck in February, 2022. Ecklund attended a Seward Bear Creek Flood Service Area board meeting; they were working hard on public education related to salmon habitats and flooding.The board was looking for more funding opportunities to help with the"Baby salmon live here"sign initiative. Ecklund reported she had been assigned as liaison to the Resiliency& Security Advisory Commission.As part of that,she attended a subcommittee meeting assigned to determine the costs associated with running borough-owned buildings. As a result of the research,it was expected that the borough would choose some of the buildings to make improvements to for cost savings.The City of Seward should be expecting a request for costs of borough-owned buildings in Seward.A second issue being addressed by the commission was for the Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) program; this was a program based out of Anchorage, and the goal was to help commercial businesses lower energy,utility, and building costs. On November 17& 18,2021,Ecklund took part in the Kenai Peninsula Homeless Coalition meetings; one of the meetings had been held in Seward to represent the Eastern Peninsula. The coalition was working on drafting a strategic plan,which would focus on data collection,housing& facilities, education&awareness, and transportation&implementation. The Mental Health Trust agreed to fund a coordinator for that effort for three years. Finally, Ecklund reported she had attended a Seward Site-Based Council meeting; she said the Seward schools were still in need of filling many positions.All the open positions were listed on their website. Other Reports and Announcements Chamber of Commerce Report. Executive Director Kat Sorenson (telephonically) announced she had been hired as the chamber's new executive director.She had been working at the chamber as the communications director for almost two years.The chamber hosted Start Up Week, which was successful,and included a session on financing a small business.Last weekend,Sorenson attended the Pacific Marine Expo in Seattle, and the brand new Seward Marine Guide had been distributed.This coming weekend would be Shop Small Weekend,encouraging people to shop local; various specials and raffle drawings would be held at many locations throughout the city. Sorenson said the wheels were in motion for having fireworks on New Year's Eve. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes November 22, 2021 Volume 41,Page 554 Seward Community Health Center 311 Quarter 2021 Report.Executive Director Craig Ambrosiani said he provided a report in the packet, and asked if council had any questions. Terry wondered what the quality indicators were that were mentioned in the report. In response,Ambrosiani explained they tracked about 14 different quality indicators,including things like depression screening,body mass index(BMI),and counseling. With testing for COVID being provided car-side,Ambrosiani said some of those factors could not be measured;also,there had been some staff turnover that had impacted the documentation of indicators. But adjustments had been made, and new staff was being trained on how to document certain indicators, so he believed the reporting was getting back on track. Terry appreciated that there was a behavioral health consultant in the schools. Ambrosiani said that engagement was going well,and had been successful;they were considering expanding the program into the middle school and high school. McClure wondered how the mobile clinic would be used.Ambrosiani said the SCHC had the funding to purchase and renovate a small RV that could be used to visit patients having chronic illnesses, like diabetes, allowing for more convenient visits;this could also enable them to deliver specialty telemed services to patients from remote locations, like from Moose Pass. Presentations Online Business License Portal Demonstration. PUBLIC HEARINGS Resolutions Requiring Public Hearing Resolution 2021-129,Adopting The City Of Seward 2022 Operating Budget And Setting The Mill Rate. Motion (McClure/DeMoss) Approve Resolution 2021-129 Sowell said the preparation process for this budget had been very thorough,and the budget being presented was balanced.He said the city manager thought this was a very honest and realistic budget. Hickok said there were significant health insurance plan savings,which enabled the motor pool contributions to be reinstated, as well as a $126,766 surplus put into the street operations infrastructure budget for sidewalks and roads. 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 Meeting Minutes November 22, 2021 Volume 41,Page 555 Ellen O'Brien wished to speak on behalf of Seward Area Hospice(SAH).She said SAH was a volunteer organization that was supported through grants and donations. Looking ahead,she said SAH would need help paying for staff to continue normal business operations. She was asking council to support SAH. There was a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between SAH and Providence to provide support to patients in the hospital,although the services had been interrupted by COVID; SAH was still trying to provide as much service as possible. No one else appeared and the public hearing was closed. Terry asked if council had any comments, and no one responded. Terry stated that this resolution would return on the December 13,2021 agenda for a second public hearing and approval. Resolution 2021-130,Adopting The City Of Seward Six-Year Capital Improvement Program. Motion (McClure/Osenga) Approve Resolution 2021-130 Sowell said the city would continue working with the state and federal lobbyists to get as much of the city's Capital Improvement Program(CIP)projects funded as possible. 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. Terry said she had attended a grant writing session at the Alaska Municipal League(AML) Conference last week, and that led her to wonder what capacity R&M would have for providing grant writing services; she thought the city might benefit from having multiple grant writing resources. Sowell said R&M had a team of grant writers and had many resources at their disposal;he thought it would be advantageous for R&M to assist with technical input on grants because of the engineers they had on staff. Sowell said the city would be open to engaging grant writers outside of R&M, as well. Terry stated that this resolution would return on the December 13,2021 agenda for a second public hearing and approval. UNFINISHED BUSINESS—None NEW BUSINESS Other New Business Items Discuss attendees for Juneau and Washington, DC travel. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes November 22, 2021 Volume 41,Page 556 111 Terry stated the trip to Juneau would be to meet with state legislators on January 24&25, 2022,and the trip to Washington,DC would be to meet with federal legislators from April 5-7,2022. She added that the city was already working with its state and federal lobbyists to set up meetings with legislators. Terry and McClure wished to go to Juneau.Terry, Osenga,and Casagranda wished to travel to Washington, DC. INFORMATIONAL ITEMS AND REPORTS September, 2021 City and Providence Financials. Council Member Randy Wells Oath of Office(delivered November 12, 2021). Small Business Saturday Proclamation. CITIZEN COMMENTS Lynda Paquette thanked Sowell for his reassurance that the Lowell Point Sewer Lagoon repairs would be addressed. She appreciated having two new board members on PACAB,and still wondered if virtual attendance could be a possibility. Christiana Smith stated the Kenai Peninsula Homeless Coalition met last week; it was a peninsula-wide coalition. At this week's PACAB meeting, there had been speculation about homeless people causing destruction at the harbor bathrooms.Part of the mission of the coalition was to provide emergency shelters,particularly when temperatures dipped below 20 degrees.She hoped the city would consider having conversations about this problem. She thought it curious that there was no city representation at the coalition's meeting,but yet the topic was discussed at the PACAB work session. She didn't want Seward to be overlooked due to a lack of participation. COUNCIL AND ADMINISTRATION COMMENTS & RESPONSE TO CITIZEN COMMENTS Sowell welcomed Wells to council.He thanked Ecklund for providing a great report tonight, and he appreciated her involvement. He thanked Lane and McKillican for their life saving efforts. Wells was happy to be at his first council meeting.He looked forward to working together as a team. Calhoon welcomed Wells to council.He wished everyone a great Thanksgiving;anyone who wanted to attend the Thanksgiving meal at the American Legion would be welcome. Meals would also be delivered by volunteers; call the Legion to sign up. He thanked the police department for doing a great job. City of Seward, Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes November 22, 2021 Volume 41, Page 557 Osenga welcomed Wells to the dais, and thanked Lane and McKillican. He reminded everyone about Shop Small Weekend, and wished everyone a Happy Thanksgiving. DeMoss welcomed Wells. She thanked to the city sending her to the AML Conference. She appreciated the demonstration for the online business license portal.She was interested in supporting Seward Area Hospice. DeMoss thanked Bickling for his quick improvements in the Community Development Department. McClure welcomed Wells, and thanked Ecklund for her report and her presence on the assembly. Regarding the KPB Planning Commission, McClure said the city was seeking citizens who were interested in serving. She hoped the borough assembly meeting would be held in Seward in April,2022. She welcomed Brown and Holmdahl to PACAB,and congratulated Sorenson for her new role at the chamber. McClure appreciated all the department heads for being available to answer questions about the budget. Terry met with US Senator Lisa Murkowski, and encouraged Murkowski's support for the Lowell Creek Diversion Tunnel. She encouraged citizens to shop local and not worry about shipping. December 3 &4, 2021 would be the holiday craft fair at the cruise ship terminal. Terry welcomed Wells to the dais. She congratulated the city clerk for becoming president of the Alaska Association of Municipal Clerks. She said she wished to include support for local non-profits in the budget discussions. 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