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HomeMy WebLinkAbout09102012 City Council Minutes City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes Septemberl0, 2012 Volume 39, Page I CALL TO ORDER Lau The September 10, 2012 regular meeting of the Seward City Council was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by Mayor David Seaward. There was a moment of silence that followed in remembrance of the September 11, 2001 victims. OPENING CEREMONY Police Chief Tom Clemons led the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag. ROLL CALL There were present: David Seaward presiding and Jean Bardarson Christy Terry Vanta Shafer Bob Valdatta Ristine Casagranda Marianna Keil comprising a quorum of the Council; and Jim Hunt, City Manager Johanna Kinney, City Clerk Brenda Ballou, Deputy City Clerk Absent — None CITIZEN COMMENTS John French announced on behalf of the Prince William Sound Regional Citizens' Advisory Council (PWSRCAC) that their rotational board meeting would be held on Thursday, September 20, 2012 through Friday, September 21, 2012. This annual meeting rotates throughout seven different communities so he encouraged people to attend and give their input. There was a public reception planned at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, September 20, 2012 at the Alaska SeaLife Center. Also, September began PWSRCAC's planning cycle and they were open to accepting ideas for new projects. Matt Hershock spoke regarding Ordinance 2012 -009 and questioned why no manufacturers responded to the inquiries made by Council Member Casagranda as to the ingredients and health risks /benefits of adding substances to drinking water. He did not want anything added to Seward's drinking water until or unless the manufacturers responded and could give assurances that there were no health risks. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA L Motion (Keil/Shafer) Approval of Agenda City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes Septemberl0, 2012 Volume 39, Page 2 Keil requested to remove the introduction of Ordinance 2012 -009 and Ordinance 2012 -010 from the consent agenda. Terry requested the addition of scheduling a work session to discuss Ordinance 2012 -009. Keil requested the addition of scheduling a work session to discuss Ordinance 2012 -010. Motion Passed Unanimous SPECIAL ORDERS, PRESENTATIONS AND REPORTS Proclamations & Awards A Proclamation was presented to John Christianson on behalf of the American Legion in honor of Patriot Day. A Proclamation was presented to John Christianson on behalf of the American Legion to recognize American Legion Day. A Proclamation was presented to Patty Linville to proclaim October as Information Literacy Month. Borough Assembly Report, Sue McClure stated the Assembly had two meetings since her last report. The Assembly was continuing to accept money from the state, including $3,976,000 for the Bear Creek Volunteer Fire Department's multi -use facility. The new facility would begin construction next spring and would hold the fire department, as well as borough annex offices and the Seward Bear Creek Flood Service Area Board (SBCFSAB) office. On October 13, 2012, McClure would be holding annual meetings to discuss each community's capital funds wish lists and to discuss plans for utilizing revenue - sharing dollars. Metco, Inc. received the contract for the Beach Drive catch basin and culvert project in Lowell Point. There was a mutual aide agreement in place between the Bear Creek Volunteer Fire Department and the Lowell Point Volunteer Fire Department. SBCFSAB was now at -large for all seats, and there remained one open seat which would be by appointment and would not require an election. Valdatta asked what would be the borough's contribution would be towards paving Dieckgraeff Road. McClure deferred to the City Manager for a response, but also offered to look into the plan. Terry asked what the floodplain designation was for the new proposed location of the Bear Creek Volunteer Fire Department. McClure said the current property was in a floodplain zone, and assured council that the new location would be on a higher elevation. City Manager's Report, Jim Hunt stated the following expenditures between $10,000 and $50,000 had been approved by the City Manager since the last council meeting: a purchase order was issued to Bering Marine for an amount not -to- exceed $15,423.10 for bulk salt and $41,575.14 for surface work performed on Dieckgraeff Road was approved for payment to Metco, Inc. Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell made a courtesy visit to city offices and met with Community Development Director, Ron Long. Harbormaster Mack Funk joined Treadwell along with other community members for a breakfast meeting and the Lt. Governor also spoke with Mayor Seaward via telephone. Topics of the visit included SMIC development and prioritizing capital requests to be City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes Septemberl0, 2012 Volume 39, Page 3 t'. included in the Governor's budget package targeted for mid - December. A wheel rim on the 50 -ton boat lift failed on August 26, 2012, resulting in the lift being out of service for four days. The cause of the failure was still under investigation. The harbor crew removed the fence on the sidewalk on the east side of 4`" Avenue across from the Fish House and the Breeze Inn. The plan was to re- install the fence along the new boardwalk across Port Avenue from the Railroad Depot. A contract was issued to Service Electric for upgrading the lights in City Hall which was the final expense associated with that grant. A grant application for the North Seward Water Storage Tank project was submitted to Juneau. The Parks and Recreation Department was seeking a temporary, long -term location for Park Maintenance and Campgrounds operations due to the crumbling warehouse building in which they were currently housed. The Parking Department was researching the possibility of adding a charging station at the harbor for electric cars. Maggie Wilkins was hired as the Teen and Youth Center Coordinator and Jennilee Regis was hired as the Sports and Recreation Coordinator. The Electric Department was preparing to place several customers' services underground in the alley between First and Second Avenue and between Jefferson and Adams streets. The Alaska Peace Officers Memorial had its annual statewide law enforcement shooting competition and Corporal Pat Messmer and Officer James Rouleau both placed high. Shafer received several complaints from homeowners at Ballaine Avenue regarding a resident of the Bay Vista apartments who was putting out excessive amounts of bird food, resulting in large amounts of birds and rabbits, but also potentially drawing large animals. She was concerned about health and safety issues that were being created. Mayoral Report, David Seaward stated he attended the Founders Day presentation on August 28, 2012 held by the Resolution Bay Historical Society. On September 7, 2012 he spoke with Lt. Governor Treadwell and welcomed him to Seward. On September 4, 2012, Seaward joined a contingency of state legislators for a private tour from the Friends of the Jesse Lee Home. He also visited the Senior Center and learned of the seniors' concerns for traffic driving too fast on Third Avenue. Terry asked why the Friends of the Jesse Lee Home had not yet requested the property from the city. Long replied that the Friends of the Jesse Lee Home was seeking full funding of the project before they moved forward. Long added that administration had been invited to be a participant of their legislator tour event, but administration wanted to acknowledge the Open Meetings Act in the process which would mean an open invitation to the public to attend, and the Friends of the Jesse Lee Home wanted to keep the event private and by invitation -only. Terry asked if the board of the Friends of the Jesse Lee Home had made a decision regarding which school board they wished to join, either Galena or Kenai Peninsula. Other Reports, Announcements and Presentations - None PUBLIC HEARINGS L Ordinance 2012 -008, Revising Seward City Code Chapter 14.05 (Garbage And Refuse), Increasing Allowable Container Sizes, Changing "Occupant" To "Occupant And /Or Owner ", City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes September 10, 2012 Volume 39, Page 4 And Requiring Bear - Resistant Dumpster Lids And /Or Containers For Repeat Attractive Nuisance Violations. Notice of the public hearing being posted and published as required by law was noted and the public hearing was opened. No one appeared to address the Council and the public hearing was closed. Motion (Bardarson /Terry) Enact Ordinance 2012 -008 Hunt said they were requesting a change to the container size and repetitive attractive nuisance violations. Casagranda asked for clarification regarding the use of "person" in Section 1 (a) and whether that referred to exempting a residence or business as well. Finance Director Kris Erchinger said the intent of Section 1 (a) was to allow the city the ability to exempt someone from the requirement in the event they were paying redundant garbage fees between their residence and business. Casagranda requested the language be written less vaguely. Valdatta questioned the weights for each can as they seemed excessive, and Erchinger said the weights were industry standards that were being adopted by the city on recommendation from the contractor. In Section 4, Casagranda she wanted the months to be extended to May through November rather than May through August. Seaward asked who would be providing the bear - resistant container and dumpster lids for an additional $2 per month and Erchinger said the contractor would lease them. Seaward also thought the $100 fine per violation was excessive. Hunt said that fee was in keeping with nuisance abatement standards and were more cost - effective than remedying a problem after the fact. Bardarson added that $100 fine for the first incidence was excessive. Hunt said there was great discretion in the application of that fine. Keil asked who was arie responsible for enforcing the code and collecting the fines, and Erchinger said the Police Department and the Department of Fish and Game would be responsible for identifying violators, issuing citations and collecting fines. Keil Motion To Amend (KeiUTerry) Change Section 4 from "May through August" to "May through November" Motion To Amend Passed Unanimous Consent Motion To Amend (Casagranda) Change Section 1 from "The City may exempt a person from this requirement..." to "The City may exempt a person, not themselves, from this requirement..." Motion To Amend Died For Lack Of Second Motion To Amend (Terry /Keil) Change the 4th Whereas from "August" to "October" Motion To Amend Passed Unanimous Consent Motion To Amend (Keil/Casagranda) Strike the sentence in Section 1 (a) that reads City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes September] 0, 2012 volume 39, Page 5 "The City may exempt a person from this requirement only to the extent that they are paying for refuse service at another building or building site within the city." Motion To Amend Passed Unanimous Main Motion Passed Unanimous Resolution 2012 -070, Amending The Garbage Tariff, Increasing The Residential Rate Schedule By Approximately 25 %, Adding Bulky Item Pickup Service And Lockable Dumpster Lids, Creating A Monthly Charge For The Rent Or Lease Of Dumpsters From The Contractor, Encouraging The Use Of Bear Resistant Garbage Cans, And Increasing All Other Rates By An Average Of 25% For 2013 And Providing For Automatic Annual Adjustments To The Rate Schedule During The Term Of The Franchise Agreement Beginning January 1, 2014 At A Rate Equal To 140% Of The Consumer Price Index. Notice of the public hearing being posted and published as required by law was noted and the public hearing was opened. Motion (Terry/Bardarson) Approve Resolution 2012 -070 Erchinger said administration had recently completed a request for proposal for waste services and included with that was a consideration for future rate increases. There had only been rate increases in Seward three times in the last 21 years and this resulted in rate shock increases for Seward's residents instead of smaller incremental rate increases. The proposal that was being recommended affected a 25% rate increase initially, but would result in smaller rate increases year over year for the next seven years and that would enable residents to have some predictability in their rates. Lois Uitdeflesch said if the city took over the garbage and if dumpsters were no longer used, she thought three men with a one -ton truck could pick up all the garbage in two hours. She believed that dumpsters were hardly filled to capacity anyway and the city could accomplish the task with far less equipment than it was currently using. Valdatta asked why there was not a fuel surcharge /adjustment outlined in the contract. Erchinger said the city had allowed proposal responders to include fuel adjustment factors in their proposals if they wished, but the successful proposer chose not to. Terry asked what the process would be for communicating the CPI rate changes to the public and Erchinger said the CPI change would take effect January 1 of each year (for the previous year's CPI rate change) and the city would be able to communicate that to the public by March of the same year. Seaward asked if the harbor's dumpster could be painted with artwork, similar to some of the others around town have been done. Erchinger said the dumpsters that have been painted were actually owned by the city, but other dumpsters were not owned by the city and the city would have to make arrangements with the contractor for approval and funding. Seaward called for a consensus City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes September 10, 2012 Volume 39, Page 6 of council, and Keil said they could review it during this fall' s budget cycle. Casagranda suggested the City Manager ask the contractor to consider painting their dumpsters. Motion Passed Unanimous Resolution 2012 -071, Recommending Kenai Peninsula Borough Approval Of The Forest Acres Subdivision Levee Replat; Creating Four (4) Parcels; Vacating Undeveloped Rights -Of -Way And Utility Easements While Dedicating New Rights -Of -Way And Utility Easements; Located South Of The North Forest Acres Levee And Predominantly Within The Resource Management Zoning District. Notice of the public hearing being posted and published as required by law was noted and the public hearing was opened. No one appeared to address the Council and the public hearing was closed. Motion (Terry /Keil) Approve Resolution 2012 -071 Long said this survey work was combined with another project in order to reap cost savings for the city, and they were able to move the cable easement as well. In response to Valdatta, Long confirmed that there would be no construction on this acreage and it would remain as conservation land going forward. Motion Passed Unanimous NEW BUSINESS J Ordinance For Introduction Ordinance 2012 -009, Establishing Criteria For Substances Added To Public Drinking Water For Purposes Unrelated To Potability. Motion (Casagranda /Terry) Introduce Ordinance 2012 -009 Keil requested administration provide comments. Hunt said he had not reviewed the ordinance fully. Terry pointed out that administration had the same opportunity as the public to review documents, and asked if administration would be prepared to comment by the next meeting and Hunt said he would. Casagranda was concerned that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had relinquished all oversight of ingredients going into public drinking water and the National Sanitation Foundation International (NSFI) was the private body that handled the product. She did not receive any information or disclosure in response to the requests she made of fluoride manufacturers. She felt strongly that City Council was the steward of Seward's public water supply and should hold itself accountable and should require full disclosure and compliance with law by any manufacturer or provider of additives to our public drinking water. Terry asked which agency monitored the quality and quantity of the chloride currently to Seward's public drinking water. She requested administration provide that information along with their comments about this proposed ordinance. Casagranda clarified that this ordinance pertained to City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes September] 0, 2012 Volume 39, Page 7 additives unrelated to potability, and that chloride was added to kill bacteria. Shafer said she wanted to know the impact of any additive being put into the drinking water before she could decide. Motion To Postpone (Keil/Shafer) Postpone Introduction of Ordinance 2012- 009 To The September 24, 2012 Council Meeting. Casagranda objected and said administration had an equal amount of time to review this information as anyone in the public. Casagranda said she had stated she had previously publicly informed council multiple times that she would be bringing forward this ordinance. Motion To Postpone Passed Yes: Shafer, Bardarson, Keil, Valdatta, Seaward No: Terry, Casagranda Ordinance 2012 -010, Amending Title 14 Of The City's Code Of Ordinances To Provide For Interconnection Of Small Renewable Energy Sources To The City's Electrical Distribution System. Motion (Terry /Shafer) Introduce Ordinance 2012 -010 Motion To Postpone (Shafer/Bardarson) Postpone Introduction Of Ordinance 2012 - ,,.. 010 To The September 24, 2012 Council Meeting. Motion To Postpone Passed Unanimous Resolution 2012 -072, Approving An Engineering Contract With R & M Consultants In The Amount Of $85,545 For The Design Of The D -Float Replacement Dock At The Seward Small Boat Harbor, And Appropriating Funds. Motion (Shafer/Keil) Approve Resolution 2012 -072 Funk said the engineering funds for this contract were 100% federally funded in a non - matching grant, and the city was able to obtain a 50/50 matching grant for the construction. The harbor had received four proposals for this project and Seaward asked if Funk could arrange for the contractor to do a public presentation. Funk said there would be public information provided, but not to a great extent because this was a continuation of an existing project and was considered more of a maintenance project than new construction. Shafer asked if the project would be timber or concrete, and which of those was the more prudent option. Funk said the city had requested timber dock system because that held up to Seward's environment better over time. Motion Passed Unanimous City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes Septemberl0, 2012 Volume 39, Page 8 Resolution 2012 -073, Establishing An Overall Project Budget And Authorizing Revisions For The Seward Community Library Museum Project, And Authorizing Change Order No. 4 For $263,493.17 To The Construction Contract With PCL Construction Services, Inc. Motion (Shafer /Keil) Approve Resolution 2012 -073 Long said the intent of this resolution was to tie together all the cumulative changes and updates that had taken place throughout the construction process. Overall, the project team and management team had done an exemplary job in keeping costs contained and preventing "scope creep." Shafer said she was glad to see this project be on time and under budget. Seaward thanked the committee for their work in raising funds and seeing this project through to fruition, and asked if the committee would consider looking at adopting any form of renewable energy for the building going forward. Long said they had contemplated and used all the energy - saving and energy- efficient products possible. Casagranda added that although this project appeared to be coming in under budget, she cautioned council to maintain its focus and diligence in the oversight of this project. Motion Passed Unanimous Council scheduled a work session on September 24, 2012 at 5:30 p.m. to discuss Ordinance 2012 -009, Establishing Criteria For Substances Added To Public Drinking Water For Purposes Unrelated To Potability. nsii) Council scheduled a work session on September 25, 2012 at 6:00 p.m. to discuss Ordinance 2012 -010, Amending Title 14 Of The City's Code Of Ordinances To Provide For Interconnection Of Small Renewable Energy Sources To The City's Electrical Distribution System. Council directed administration to seek feedback from communities currently utilizing an interconnect policy in advance of the work session. COUNCIL COMMENTS Bardarson reminded the public to use the bike paths rather than the roads because it was getting darker, and encouraged everyone to enjoy this beautiful fall season. Keil acknowledged the tragic passing of Darryl Deeter and requested that council send a card to his family. Seaward thanked everyone for attending the meeting and watching on television. He thanked Martha Fleming and GCI for broadcasting. CITIZEN COMMENTS John French commented that for Ordinance 2012-009 there were many details that should still be flushed out. City of Seward, Alaska City Council Minutes Septemberl0, 2012 Volume 39, Page 9 Maya Moriarty said council should not vote on Ordinance 2012 -009 because there had not Ir .. yet been cost analysis conducted about fluoridating the public drinking water. COUNCIL AND ADMINISTRATION RESPONSE TO CITIZEN COMMENTS Casagranda clarified that Ordinance 2012 -009 had nothing to do with a cost analysis. She said she wanted council to acknowledge their accountability to the public. There were testing standards in place for the effectiveness of chlorine, but there were no testing standards in place for fluoride or other additives. Terry asked council to consider changing code to require a first reading, second reading and then enactment of ordinances going forward. City Clerk Johanna Kinney stated as long as council met the minimum requirements for presenting ordinances per city code; it was council's option to have additional public hearings or readings. EXECUTIVE SESSION Motion (Bardarson /Shafer) Go into Executive Session to discuss City Manager's evaluation. Hunt stated he had originally wanted this to be on the tonight's agenda, but then decided to request council have his evaluation scheduled at a later time. iimp Motion Failed Yes: Casagranda, Seaward, Valdatta No: Keil, Bardarson, Shafer, Terry ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 9:32 p.m. „...,. ..., j 4' 4 a- n4t nnaKjnneYCZj7 D avid Seaward Clerk Mayor .„ (City Seal) ,..•,<44, ., ,'� +, [9 tCff r 1** CJ9/ . 8 '.e. e 0 R <;'s� O ♦ V ■ d N la e s E SEAL qp�, W 1N un o 's .' a 41, 4 4 , OF 0 -.....,.,.a..04