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Home My WebLink About07112016 City Council Minutes City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes July 11, 2016 Volume 40, Page 80 CALL TO ORDER The July 11, 2016 regular meeting of the Seward City Council was called to order at 7:01 p.m. by Mayor Jean Bardarson. OPENING CEREMONY Police Chief Tom Clemons led the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag. ROLL CALL There were present: Jean Bardarson presiding and Marianna Keil Ristine Casagranda Dave Squires Dale Butts Sue McClure Deborah Altermatt comprising a quorum of the Council; and Jim Hunt, City Manager 111 Johanna Kinney, City Clerk Brenda Ballou, Deputy City Clerk Will Earnhart, City Attorney Absent—None CITIZEN COMMENTS ON ANY SUBJECT EXCEPT THOSE ITEMS SCHEDULED FOR PUBLIC HEARING Tim McDonald thought Seward was busier now more than ever,but he was bothered with the disrepair of the city's streets.He suggested the city consider using cement rather than asphalt.He thought.the road beds in Seward were stable enough to hold up to cement roads. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA Motion (Keil/Casagranda) Approval of Agenda and Consent Agenda Casagranda removed Resolution 2016-042 from the consent agenda. Bardarson added a City Attorney Report. Bardarson added a New Business Item to Discuss Scheduling A City Attorney Mid-Year Evaluation. Motion Passed Unanimous The clerk read the following approved consent agenda items: City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes July 11, 2016 Volume 40, Page 81 Resolution 2016-043,Appointing Jean Lewis As Temporary Deputy City Clerk. SPECIAL ORDERS,PRESENTATIONS AND REPORTS Proclamations &Awards City Manager's Report. City Manager Jim Hunt said no purchases had been made between $10,000 and $50,000 since the last meeting. He commended the Parks and Recreation Department for a good job keeping up with landscaping duties this year. Hunt noted that Hamilton Construction was back underway with the breakwater project.There was another water overflow on Dieckgraeff Road from breaching Japanese Creek over the weekend,and Hunt would be organizing a meeting with state, borough and University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) personnel to address the issue of bedloading this fall. Assistant City Manager Ron Long stated Seward Bear Creek Flood Service Area Board (SBCFSAB)had requested to join in with city efforts to save the eroding shoreline along Waterfront Park.Negotiations with AVTEC were unsuccessful and would result in the closure of the AVTEC gym beginning August 1,2016.Administration had met with Vigor to discuss updating certification processes for the city-owned Syncrolift.Long stated administration was appreciative of the$300,000 that remained in the budget for the Lowell Canyon Flood Feasibility Study. Long recognized the Police and Fire Departments for their volunteer assistance and material support for the Military Appreciation Combat Fishing Tournament,and wanted to note that no taxpayer dollars were spent for this. In response to Butts,Hunt stated City Hall would be sealed off in sections during the asbestos abatement and carpet replacement,and employees would be scheduled and staged to reduce closures and continue operations. In response to Casagranda, Long confirmed the AVTEC gym would be open for AVTEC students only after August 1,2016.Resurrection Bay Historical Society(RBHS)was still discussing what they would be presenting for the museum's Memorandum of Agreement (MOA). Hunt answered that the Public Works position had not been filled yet,but they would be interviewing six applicants.Long stated the purpose of the Wage Committee was to have a mechanism to look at and rank positions,not individuals,and eliminate the need for outside consultants.There was currently a backlog of positions for the Wage Committee to address;any recommendations from the committee would have to come before City Council for approval. Casagranda noted for the public that electric rates went down after January 1, 2016 so in any comparisons, there would appear to be big fluctuations. Long reiterated that during winter energy rates had been lowered for residents, and during summer they were being raised, resulting in the same net annual usage for year round residents. Bardarson reminded everyone that the fuel surcharge was a pass-through from Chugach Electric and was not from the city. Hunt commented the state was administering the road work program and would possibly begin next year.In response to Squires,Hunt confirmed the city was encumbered and guaranteed and there was no federal administrative sweep of these funds. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes July 11, 2016 Volume 40, Page 82 Keil clarified that the CHC extension was good for three years. City Attorney Report. Will Earnhart said there was a tentative agreement with IBEW. After several rounds of negotiations,the bottom line was an approximate 2%raise this year and 1% raise for next two years. There was a slight increase in pension contributions with the overall increase being 2.3-2.4%.More importantly,pay scale was more in line to attract qualified candidates, with Seward being at the top of scale for small communities but at the lower end of the scale for larger railbelt utilities on the road system.Earnhart congratulated the Police Chief and City Manager for their alertness in stopping an errant driver during the junior race for the Mount Marathon Race. In response to McClure,Earnhart stated his son ran the junior race for the first time and won his age division, and placed 12th overall. Other Reports,Announcements and Presentations—None PUBLIC HEARINGS—None UNFINISHED BUSINESS—None NEW BUSINESS Resolution 2016-042, Amending And Restating The ICMA Retirement Corporation Governmental Money Purchase Plan And Trust Document,In Response To Changes In The Internal Revenue Code And Rescinding 2016-027. Motion (Casagranda/McClure) Approve Resolution 2016-042 Finance Director Kris Erchinger said the intent of this resolution was to update the city's 401K plan with ICMA. It was a second retirement plan that had been added when a former City Manager did not wish to be in PERS. The Chief of Police was opted out of PERS and put into this plan as well. The other time this plan was used was when council recently negotiated a one-time contribution into the City Manager's plan. The city received notification from ICMA that the IRS had made subsequent changes to these plans and the IRS code,therefore,the city neededto amend the new language and eliminate the appendix. Erchinger said changes could be made to this plan with a subsequent resolution in the future. In response to Bardarson,Erchinger affirmed this document could not be changed to a range as it related to the contribution rate. In response to Casagranda, Erchinger stated the city must be in compliance with IRS regulations. The intent with this resolution was to incorporate the IRS regulations and not to make any changes to current practice. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes July 11, 2016 Volume 40, Page 83 City Clerk Johanna Kinney noted that the boxes being referred to as checked off on the application were visible on the hard copy,but did not transfer over to the digital copy to be viewable on the tablets. She suggested using the paper copy for this conversation. Discussion ensued on the agreement, amendments added,and were clarified by Erchinger. Motion to Amend (Casagranda/Bardarson) Uncheck the "Management Employees" box on Page 2 of the ICMA Agreement. Hunt stated having management employees selected would be a useful tool for recruiting qualified people if they did not want to be in PERS at the time of hire. Erchinger stated the time to negotiate with people would be delayed by a month and the city could possibly lose that employee.This allowed for a lower contribution rate than PERS and added flexibility for hiring. Motion to Amend Failed Yes: Casagranda No: Butts, Altermatt, Keil, Squires, McClure,Bardarson Main Motion Passed Yes: McClure, Squires, Altermatt, Keil, Butts,Bardarson111 No: Casagranda Other New Business Items Discussion To Schedule Mid-Year Evaluation For The City Attorney. Council decided to eliminate the mid-year evaluation of the City Attorney for this year, and conduct an annual evaluation in the first quarter of 2017. INFORMATIONAL ITEMS AND REPORTS Planning and Zoning Commission Quarterly Report. COUNCIL COMMENTS Keil said today the governor proposed a 3%sales tax on all sales,and she was not aware that the proposal included an exemption for cities that already had sales tax. She added the governor was also calling for double taxes on motor fuel, alcohol and cigarettes. • McClure was pleased with the Fourth of July weekend, and announced the chamber was looking for Silver Salmon Derby volunteers. Casagranda thanked all volunteers for the Fourth of July. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Minutes July 11,2016 Volume 40, Page 84 Butts echoed the Fourth of July accolades, and was pleased with the television coverage. Altermatt also thanked the Chamber of Commerce and all the volunteers. Hunt thanked Lieutenant Governor Mallott and his wife Toni for visiting Seward over the Fourth of July. Bardarson had dinner with Lieutenant Governor Mallott and his wife and showed him the Lowell Canyon Tunnel and SMIC and thanked him for his support on those projects. Bardarson asked Butts to provide a report on the Kenai Peninsula Economic Development District(KPEDD) following his meetings. She also thanked volunteers for the Fourth of July weekend,and especially enjoyed the mini-Mount Marathon Race. CITIZEN COMMENTS Suzi Towsley thanked council for all their work. She also thanked Casagranda for bringing up the discussion on the electric rates tonight,and thought a better explanation for citizens about the electric rates would be beneficial. Towsley also requested council consider a future revision to the Roving Vendor Program to allow for non-motorized vehicles like bicycles. COUNCIL AND ADMINISTRATION RESPONSE TO CITIZEN COMMENTS—None ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 8:15 p.m. 04//f 0/.4 • ,d J, • a Kinney, of C ean Bardarson City Clerk A-1,1-49C-4730.44' Mayor sot B (City evtA .. Se�b\ s• °?GO ��®• • • • • SEMI, . • •sto m • •o • 19r0. �, o