The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink About10222018 City Council Minutes City of Seward, Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes October 22, 2018 Volume 40, Page 553 CALL TO ORDER The October 22,2018 regular meeting of the Seward City Council was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by Council Member Sue McClure. OPENING CEREMONY Lieutenant Alan Nickell led the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag. SWEAR IN NEWLY ELECTED OFFICIALS: 1. Sharyl Seese, Council Member, Term Expiring October, 2021 2. John Osenga, Council Member, Term Expiring October, 2021 3. Kelley Lane, Council Member, Term Expiring October, 2020 * * Council Member Kelley Lane was sworn in on Friday, October 19, 2018 because she would be travelling tonight with the 50`"Anniversary Sister City delegation to Obihiro, Japan. ROLL CALL There were present: Sue McClure presiding and Suzanne Towsley Sharyl Seese John Osenga comprising a quorum of the Council; and Jeff Bridges, Interim City Manager Brenda Ballou, City Clerk Absent—Horn, Lane, Squires CITIZEN COMMENTS ON ANY SUBJECT EXCEPT THOSE ITEMS SCHEDULED FOR PUBLIC HEARING Justin Sternberg was the new Blue Pipeline manager;the K.M. Rae Building would be his new office. Six applicants from Seward had applied for the incubator;there would be two rounds of interviews to review the applicants. Sternberg thanked the Chamber of Commerce for their support, and Jenn Elhard at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. There would be a conference on May 23 & 24, 2019 at which Sternberg was hoping to bring 50 people to Seward from around the world,plus between 50 and 100 Alaskans, to discuss fishing and marine industries. Brad Snowden brought an image of the cruise ship dock he wished to see built. He wanted to then build a parking lot where the waterfall was. City of Seward, Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes October 22, 2018 Volume 40, Page 554 Christy Terry said, although Norm Regis was out of state, she wished to speak about the success of the Harbormasters Conference held in Seward two weeks ago. Terry thanked local businesses for their support, and commended the Harbor Department for their hard work. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA Motion (Towsley/Seese) Approval of Agenda and Consent Agenda McClure noted that the proclamation for Lee Poleske was included in the city calendar,but was not on the agenda for tonight; this item would come on November 26, 2018. McClure added an item to Other New Business to appoint Lynda Paquette and Erin Lemas to the Port & Commerce Advisory Board with terms to expire July, 2021. Motion Passed Unanimous The clerk read the following approved consent agenda items: Approval of the October 1, 2018 Special Meeting Minutes. Approval of the October 8, 2018 Regular Meeting Minutes. Resolution 2018-084, Approving Amendment #1 To The Employment Agreement With The City Clerk And Appropriating Funds. SPECIAL ORDERS, PRESENTATIONS AND REPORTS Proclamations & Awards—None Chamber of Commerce Report. Jen Leahy welcomed the newly-elected officials to council and invited them to reach out for any information.Chamber membership was staying solid at about 400 members, thanks to Kris Harris. Last week there was a Pioneers Conference, and Harbormasters Conference;the chamber assisted with both,and local businesses reported a bump in business during both events. Bear glacier would be featured on the statewide visitors guide. The Seward destination guide would be created in-house at the chamber for 2019.Small Business Saturday,November 24,2018. City Manager Report. Interim City Manager Jeff Bridges reported the following purchase order between$5,000 and $30,000 had been approved by the City Manager since the last council meeting: $548,376 to Jaffa Construction for the Lowell Canyon water storage tank refurbishment project. The Parks & Recreation Department has released a Request for Proposals for cleaning services with the following criteria: City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes October 22, 2018 Volume 40, Page 555 Clarity of the Proposal 5% Performance, Experience, and Quality of Work 35% in Providing Services of a Similar Nature Organizational Structure (including financial 20% stability), Equipment and Personnel Qualifications& Resources Available for Performance of the Agreement and timeliness of similar projects Additional Services That May Be Provided 5% by the Proposer Cost to the City 35% 100% Bridges congratulated Harbormaster Norm Regis for receiving the Harbormaster of the Year award, and Police Chief Tom Clemons for being sworn into executive committee for the International Association of the Chiefs of Police. Kris Erchinger had been selected to serve on Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) special review committee for excellence in financial reporting. The Public Works Department did not have to get called out over this weekend for weather issues. Bridges would not close out the city's Declaration of Emergency for a few days until there was stable weather predicted. Bridges read a synopsis of the report regarding the investigation regarding: the propriety of all the statements made by the finance director on August 22,2018 to determine if in violation of the city's defamation and harassment policy and to determine if there was a violation of confidentiality or personnel code, and gate the allegations of fraud against Towsley,and to provide a report to the public. Towsley thanked Bridges for conducting the investigation in a professional and expedient manner. In response to Towsley,Public Works Director Doug Schoessler said,although today was a nice day,there was still a prediction of up to 3 inches of rain starting at 4:00 a.m.tomorrow. There was a concern about ground water pressure;at this point,all we needed was time to allow the water to settle. Seese thanked the Public Works Department for being so attentive and responsive during this flood event. McClure noted that the borough was paying close attention to this event as well. Schoessler added that State Representative Chenault and State Senator Micciche had toured the city, and U.S. Senator Murkowski would be in Seward tomorrow. City of Seward, Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes October 22, 2018 Volume 40, Page 556 In response to Towsley, Assistant City Manager Brennan Hickok said Andy Baker conducted a site visit to Lowell Canyon. City Attorney Report. The City Attorney Report is being provided in tonight's agenda packet, but will not be discussed until the November 26, 2018 meeting when the City Attorney is present. Other Reports, Announcements and Presentations Homeless Connection by Carolyn Roloff, M.D. Providence Seward Medical & Care Center Report by Joe Fong PUBLIC HEARINGS Ordinances for Public Hearing & Enactment Ordinance 2018-009,Amending The Zoning And Land Use Plan Designation Of City Owned Lot 7A, Fort Raymond Subdivision Replat Number 1, Located At 2101 Dimond Boulevard, From Institutional(INS)To Auto Commercial(AC). This ordinance was introduced on October 8, 2018 and is coming tonight for a public hearing and enactment. Motion (Seese/Towsley) Enact Ordinance 2018-009 City Planner Jackie Wilde said rezoning this Fort Raymond property to allow for different uses, including commercial and residential. 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. In response to McClure, Wilde said the Planning& Zoning Commission had unanimously supported this rezone. Motion Passed Unanimous UNFINISHED BUSINESS Motion (Seese/Towsley) Approve the September 24,2018 Regular Meeting Minutes. Motion to Amend Amend the September 24, 2018 regular meeting minutes by accepting the Clerk's note and clarifications. City of Seward, Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes October 22, 2018 Volume 40, Page 557 Motion to Amend Passed Unanimous Motion Passed Unanimous NEW BUSINESS Nominate, elect, and swear-in a council member as Vice Mayor. Towsley nominated McClure.No other nominations were asserted. By unanimous consent,council voted McClure as Vice Mayor. McClure took her oath of office and returned to her seat at the dais. Appoint a council liaison or direct individual Boards& Commissions to give periodic reports to the City Council. By unanimous consent, council directed the following reporting schedule for 2019: Planning & Zoning Commission 1Q19 Report in person at a council meeting 2Q19 Submit written report to city clerk for inclusion in council packet 3Q19 Report in person at a council meeting 4Q19 Submit written report to city clerk for inclusion in council packet Port& Commerce Advisory Board * 1Q19 Report in person at a council meeting 2Q19 Submit written report to city clerk for inclusion in council packet 3Q19 Report in person at a council meeting 4Q19 Submit written report to city clerk for inclusion in council packet Historic Preservation Commission Provide annual report to council * In addition, council appointed Towsley as liaison to the Port & Commerce Advsiory Board. Appoint a city representative to the Kenai Peninsula Economic Development District (KPEDD). By unanimous consent, council appointed Lane to be the city's representative for the calendar year 2019. Appoint City Council Liaison to the Seward Community Health Center Coordinating Committee. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes October 22, 2018 Volume 40, Page 558 By unanimous consent, council appointed Seese to be the council's representative on the Coordinating Committee for the Seward Community Health Center. Discuss rescheduling or cancelling the Wednesday, December 26, 2018 regular City Council meeting. City offices will be closed from 12:00 p.m. on Monday, December 24, 2018 and all day on Tuesday, December 25, 2018 in observance of Christmas. By unanimous consent, council cancelled the December 26, 2018 regular council meeting. Schedule a training work session to review and discuss City Council Rules of Procedure, workflows, processes, and practices. (Target early to mid-December) Council scheduled a work session to review the City Council Rules of Procedure on Monday, December 10, 2018 at 5:30 p.m. Amend the topic for the November 9,2018 work session to be: 1) Discuss procedures for the permanent city manager hire, and 2) Review and discuss mid-cycle budget amendments. By unanimous consent, council amended topic of the work session. Appoint Lynda Paquette and Erin Lemas to the Port & Commerce Advisory Board. By unanimous consent,council appointed Lynda Paquette and Erin Lemas to the Port&Commerce Advisory Board, with terms to expire in July, 2021. INFORMATIONAL ITEMS AND REPORTS City Clerk's memo announcing City Clerk's office closure November 13-14, 2018. On-Going City Projects and Goals. August, 2018 Financial Reports for the City of Seward and Providence Seward Medical and Care Center. Certificate of Achievement awarded to City of Seward by Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). COUNCIL COMMENTS Towsley was committed to serving on council and to using transparency,and urged everyone to be patient with the public process while the call for investigation was made. She was looking forward to continuing to serve for the next year. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes October 22, 2018 Volume 40, Page 559 Osenga thanked everyone and said he enjoyed his first meeting and was looking forward to serving on council. Seese reported that the Pioneers Conference was well attended last week, and it was a pleasure having them in town. McClure congratulated everyone on council,the new PACAB members,and Norm Regis on his award. She thanked everyone for their responsiveness with the flood event;there had been a good response from the borough.McClure appreciated the Electric Department for repairing street lights; she used Seward Listens on the city website to report street light outages, and received a quick response. McClure thanked her fellow council members for choosing her as vice mayor. CITIZEN COMMENTS Patrick Messmer was the president of the Seward Alaska Public Employees Association;he thanked council, administration, and the employees for supporting the union. It had been one year since the police officer involved shooting, so this was a tough time,but he appreciated everyone's support. Christy Terry welcomed Lynda Paquette and Erin Lemas to the Port&Commerce Advisory Board, and she was happy to have Towsley as council liaison. Terry thanked Joe Fong for his dedication to the community of Seward, and Angela Schwertfeger for all her work on the Harbormasters Conference. Rissie Casagranda thanked Terry for organizing the Harbormasters Conference. She congratulated all the newly-elected council members and vice mayor McClure. The investigation report provided by the city manager created new questions for her;she wondered why two personnel files had disappeared, and encouraged council to consider conducting a forensic audit on the city. Thanked Doug Schoessler and the Public Works Department for their responsiveness to the recent flooding. Casagranda thanked Lynda Paquette and Erin Lemas for submitting applications for PACAB. She wished to have clarification about who would be conducting the training on the City Council Rules of Procedure; she did not think it would be a good idea to pay the city attorneys to conduct any more training due to the expense. COUNCIL AND ADMINISTRATION RESPONSE TO CITIZEN COMMENTS Seese agreed that the city attorneys did not need to be involved with the training. She suggested perhaps an outside accountant should conduct a two-tier audit. McClure said the city clerk would work with administration for the training. EXECUTIVE SESSION Motion (Towsley/Seese) Go into Executive Session to discuss negotiation strategy for the APEA contract. City of Seward,Alaska City Council Meeting Minutes October 22,2018 Volume 40,Page 560 Motion Passed Unanimous Council invited Interim City Manager Jeff Bridges,Assistant City Manager Brennan Hickok, and Finance Director Kris Erchinger to remain. City Attorney Will Earnhart was contacted telephonically. Council recessed at 8:41 pm. Council resumed at 8:48 pm. Council went into executive session at 8:48 pm. Council came out of executive session at 9:21 pm. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 9: 21 p.m. 0/;/ � Brenda J. Ballou, MC Sue McClure City Clerk Vice Mayor (City Set's pF SEjj,'•., :& o %( -qoO • (� SEAL • -._ A = r. /1'7C,� R ,4•rF OF PA\- ' ..+`+