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HomeMy WebLinkAbout02/08/1994 Business Meeting 135 CITY OF ..,YAKIMA, ; WASHINGTON FEBRUARY 8,' 1994 BUSINESS MEETING I/ 1. ROLL CALL The City Council met in session on this date at 2:00 p.m., in the Council Chambers of City Hall, Yakima, Washington. Mayor Pat Berndt, presiding, Council Members Clarence Barnett, Henry Beauchamp, Ernie Berger, Bill Brado, Lynn Buchanan, and Bernard Sims present on roll call. City Manager Zais, City Attorney Paolella, and City Clerk Roberts also present. 2. INVOCATION /PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Council Member Buchanan. 6. PRESENTATION OF CITIZENSHIP AWARD This item was considered out of sequence of the agenda. Mayor Berndt presented a Certificate of Appreciation to Joe Chin, a Water Division employee. Mr. Chin found a purse in an alley and returned it to its owner. Mayor Berndt also mentioned a letter she received commenting on the excellent service provided by Mr. Chin and other Water Division employees. 3. OPEN DISCUSSION FOR THE GOOD OF THE ORDER A. PROCLAMATIONS (IF APPLICABLE) February 1994 was proclaimed PTA Month. The proclamation was accepted by Martha Rice. Judy Jacobson, Parks Recreation Coordinator, gave a brief status report of the upcoming Winter Games event. Currently there are 1700 registered participants. She also reported that Cascade Natural Gas is building a 20 -foot torch on Yakima Avenue on City property by the Yakima Center. 4. CONSENT AGENDA Mayor Berndt referred to the items placed on the Consent Agenda, questioning whether there were any additions or deletions from either Council members or citizens present. It was the general consensus of the Council to remove Item No. 13 from the Consent Agenda. The City Clerk then read the Consent Agenda items, including resolutions and ordinances by title. It was MOVED BY SIMS, SECONDED BY BUCHANAN, THAT THE CONSENT AGENDA, AS AMENDED, BE ADOPTED. The motion carried by unanimous roll call vote. 136 FEBRUARY 8, 1994 (Subsequent paragraphs preceded by an asterisk ( *) indicate items on the Consent Agenda handled under one motion without further discussion.) *5. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE FEBRUARY 1, 1994 BUSINESS MEETING The minutes of the February 1, 1994 Business meeting, was approved, having been duly certified accurate by two Council I/ members and no one present wishing to have said minutes read publicly. 7. PUBLIC HEARING ON APPEAL OF SEPA DETERMINATION FOR THE GREENWAY PATHWAY Mayor Berndt excused herself from the proceedings in accordance with the Appearance of Fairness Doctrine because she is an Ex- Officio Member of the Greenway Board. She yielded the gavel to Assistant Mayor Barnett. This being the time set for the public hearing, Assistant Mayor Barnett explained how the public hearing would be conducted and the format to be followed, including the swearing in of all persons who wished to testify, the marking and admission of exhibits as presented to the City Clerk, and presentation of opening and closing statements from the SEPA responsible official, the appellant, and the applicant. Pursuant to state law, there will be a taped recording of this Quasi - Judicial Hearing, and at its conclusion, the Council may wish to deliberate in executive session. City Attorney Paolella presented a legal briefing of the issues, including emphasizing the narrow procedural requirements concerning the December 28, 1993 Mitigated Determination of Nonsignificance (MDNS) threshold determination that has been appealed. He provided legal explanation of the standard as defined under the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) when an EIS is required The threshold determination was issued by Glenn Valenzuela, City of Yakima's SEPA Responsible Official, for a proposal submitted by the Yakima Greenway Foundation to construct a 3.5 mile pathway with some attendant parking areas adjacent to the Naches River and Highway 12. Although the Greenway Foundation submitted an application for a Shoreline Substantial Development Permit for the Greenway Pathway West, Mr. Paolella emphasized the approval or disapproval of the shoreline permit is not the issue to be decided by Council I/ during this public hearing because that is a separate matter. He indicated the focus of the testimony should be limited to the issue of whether the threshold determination was proper or not proper and whether the SEPA responsible official made a legally correct decision:in issuing the MDNS and thereby not requiring an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). Although Council will consider all evidence submitted, 2 137 FEBRUARY x 8, 1994 Mr. Paolella encouraged Counci.1 tp give particular attention and careful consideration`' "to • the SEPA Environmental Checklist, and particularly to the MDNS, which under state law, is entitled to substantial weight. Council's decision will be limited to either affirming or reversing the issuance of the MDNS. As part of that decision process, Council may consider related factors, including whether the environmental checklist is adequate, and does it evaluate the reasonably foreseeable environmental impacts that would arise as a result of the proposal. Another factor for Council consideration is whether the mitigation measures contained in the threshold determination adequately address potentially significant, adverse environmental impacts so that a full EIS is not required. After all Council Members declared no exparte contact, Assistant Mayor Barnett opened the public hearing and placed all witnesses who will be testifying under oath by swearing them in. At this time, Assistant Mayor Barnett called for testimony from the SEPA Responsible Official. Dan Valoff, Associate Planner, explained the purpose of the public hearing and provided background information about the application. With the aid of illustrations of the site plan depicting the Greenway proposal, Mr. Valoff listed the parameters of the proposed asphalt bicycle /pedestrian pathway, which is from North 6th Avenue, along the Naches River, to North 16thvenue then proceeds over the North 16th Avenue overpass,' and continues along the South DOT Right -Of -Way of SR97, ending with a 37- space parking lot at Myron Lake. Since the majority of the proposal is within the city limits, the City of Yakima took lead agency jurisdiction for the environmental review of the proposal under SEPA. All permits to date for the existing Greenway Pathway have been issued a DNS by the City of Yakima, Yakima County, and the City of Union Gap. It should also be noted that in 1976 an EIS was prepared by Groenig Development for the overall development of the Aspen Lake and Willow Lake area. There has not been any substantial change in the condition of this area to warrant a new EIS for Willow Lake or the Aspen Lake area. The Greenway Foundation resubmitted a revised environmental checklist after comments were received from reviewing agencies who had inspected the site; a MDNS was issued on December 28, 1993. Mr. Valoff specifically outlined five mitigation measures attached to the proposal. Staff recommends that the City Council 'uphold the SEPA responsible official's threshold determination for the issuance of the MDNS based on comments received by agencies with environmental expertise and the lack of supporting factual information identifying significant, adverse environmental impacts by those filing the appeal. 3 138 FEBRUARY 8, 1994 Glenn Valenzuela, who is the Director of Community and Economic. Development and the City's SEPA Responsible Official, described the fac taken into consideration when a threshold determination is made. The checklist is not only reviewed to determine whether it is adequate, but to determine whether the proposal would likely have any probable significant, adverse environmental impacts based on the proposed action, the information in the checklist, and any I/ other additional information. Mitigation measures are attached 'to the proposal when information is received from technical experts from outside agencies. These observations are considered a valuable' source of information and are heavily relied upon to 'identify significant effects. Mr. Valenzuela denoted the significance of each of Exhibits 1 through 8 as they pertain to the proposal and then submitted them individually to City Clerk Roberts. In answer to a question from Council Member Beauchamp, Mr. Valenzuela explained the complaints pertain to the lake side of the freeway as opposed to the river side of the freeway. At this time, Assistant Mayor Barnett called for the presentation and testimony of the appellants. Jerry Groenig announced that Jay Sandlin, Attorney, will represent him concerning some comments that need to be made. He identified the October 1992 letter that is in the file still confirms his position. After denoting its significance and requesting permission from Assistant Mayor Barnett, Mr. Sandlin submitted Exhibit No. 9 to City Clerk Roberts. He indicated people from Willow Lake and Lake Aspen and Mr. Groenig would be testifying about issues contained in City Attorney Paolella's legal brief. Mr. Sandlin submitted Exhibit No. 10 to City Clerk Roberts. He referred to The Yakima Greenway Master Plan Update 1991 and described how the Yakima Greenway Foundation's operating guidelines and plan guidelines do not relate to the proposal location between North 16th Avenue and North 40th Avenue. Mr. Sandlin described certain deficiencies in the environmental checklist because it refers only to the north side of the river and there are portions of the proposal that are not adjacent to the river. He expressed concern that the property rights of privacy and security would be denied and mitigated measures concerning this issue need to be included. Mr. Sandlin submitted Exhibit No. 11 and commented about the I/ crime statistics for the existing Greenway path. There were questions and discussion from Council Members Buchanan and Sims concerning the statistics and police activity not being any greater than other areas of the City. Mr. Sandlin indicated a police services analysis had not been made available to him. Betty Aarons expressed concerning about the environmental issue of effects on animals and water fowl, littering of 4 139 FEBRUARY -8° 1994 garbage, and other contaminat ; on 1: in the area. She did not want the bird habitat to be disturbed, especially the nesting areas. The area needs protection. There needs to be adequate fencing of no less than six feet tall. She thinks the MDNS should be overturned. Marylou Borgert submitted Exhibit 12. She expressed concern that not enough money has been allowed for adequate fencing between the path and the lake. She explained this issue should be addressed along with concerns about noise, debris, security, appearance, maintenance of the plantings, weed abatement, and a provision for an on -call maintenance person. She requested the MDNS be overturned and a DS issued. She explained that the Department of Fisheries and the Yakama Indian Nation have no authority or jurisdiction of manmade lakes; therefore, it is up to the property owners to protect the lake. She requested the property owner's concerns be addressed. Ms. Borgert also expressed concern about the safety of pedestrians on the freeway overpass. There was discussion and questions asked by Council members concerning the amount of debris originating from the highway, the pedestrian traffic and public access impact on the lake, and the possibility of property owners sharing the cost of the fence. Diane Reinecker addressed the crime issue and the need for public services for the proposal area. The environmental checklist does not address this issue, and existing Greenway crimes have increased during the last three years. She referred to the two""Jparking lots in the proposal and commented that with the amount of people using the parking facilities, crime will probably increase in the area. After reading a letter from Police Chief Green to Daniel Hesse, Ms. Reinecker submitted Exhibit No. 13 to City Clerk Roberts. She expressed concern about the need for more public services for the Greenway, restroom facilities, parking lots and pedestrian traffic, crime, and littering. She disagreed with the cost estimate of the shrubs, vaulted pit restrooms, and fencing; she requested the figures be reviewed. She requested the environmental checklist be amended to address the concerns she indicated. Mike Quigley, Ace Hardware, requested a fence be installed between the freeway and the lake. In answer to a question concerning paying for part of the fence, Mr. Quigley indicated that Ace Hardware would probably not, but he was not authorized to make that decision. Kriste Graves commented that there are already complaints about the existing Greenway because of its inadequate width and the need for a separate bike path as well as the need for increased safety standards. She submitted Exhibit No. 14 to City Clerk Roberts. She expressed her objection to the 5 140 FEBRUARY 8, 1994 expansion of the Greenway and suggested a utilization report on the Greenway be done. Peggy Smith explained her husband was a charter member of the Greenway concept and that it was modeled after'a Bend, Oregon pathway. Although Ms. Smith supports the Greenway, she disagrees with the proposed route because she thinks it should run adjacent to the Yakima River, and the proposed addition is very costly. I/ After submitting Exhibit No. 15 to City Clerk Roberts, Joe Schons addressed environmental issues of concern and referred to several terms and their definitions. He provided explanation concerning why he believes the SEPA responsible official is in error with MDNS threshold determination. He presented Exhibit No. 16 to City Clerk Roberts. A video tape regarding traffic on the highway overpass was shown with Mr. Schons narrating from the podium. He expressed concern about the amount of traffic and the narrow width of the overpass, which would be dangerous to bicycle /pedestrian traffic. He expressed concern the SEPA checklist did not address traffic issues. Mr. Schons submitted Exhibits Nos. 17 through 20 and provided explanation and comments for each. He commented that the probability of an impact exists and the SEPA responsible official did not address all of the probable impacts. He urged Council to overturn the MDNS and suggested the Greenway Foundation rethink their proposal. Gerald Heilman, who has a B.S. in Terrestrial Ecology, applauded the Yakima Greenway Foundation for their attempts to implement the proposal. He explained that the MDNS has addressed most areas of potential adverse impact and includes mitigation measures. However, the inherently unstable nature of the Riparian vegetation area lends itself to significant adverse impacts on this habitat if any further disruption occurs. He described the area between 16th and 6th Avenues as already being significantly degraded by human misuse and felt there would be a potential improvement from the proposal. He listed some recommendations and indicated they should have been included in either the original environmental checklist or in the mitigation measures. Mr. Heilman stated the mitigation measures are inadequate and because this habitat is highly sensitive, a environmental impact assessment is needed. Mr. Heilman submitted Exhibit No. 21 to City Clerk Roberts. Joe Schons submitted Exhibit No. 22 to City Clerk Roberts. I/ Dan Groenig explained he is not opposed to the Greenway, but he expressed concern about its proposed southside location, trespassing, crime and the public accessibility to the lakes from people on the pathway, as well as traffic hazards and littering. 6 • 141 FEBRUARY 8, 1994 Jack McGuire spoke....4 4 suppor.o:f the Greenway; however he expressed concern about the amount of money budgeted for the fence not being enough. He expressed hope that this issue could be worked out. I/ Laura Caruso, who is a Forest Biologist, explained she has five years experience writing EIS documents through the US Forest Service She felt the SEPA responsible official made the right decision._ Some of the concerns being expressed go beyond the scope of the project. • June Lodge suggested that the pathway be placed on the side of the road along the river instead of behind houses. Len Sali spoke in favor of the proposal. • Rod Knipper provided a brief history of the Lake Aspen area. He explained the Lake Aspen Office Park was in favor of the proposal. Upon questioning by Mr. Sandlin, Mr. Knipper clarified that Lake Aspen Office Park Association voted in support of the project. In order to clarify for the record, City Attorney Paolella asked City Clerk Roberts to verify the number of Exhibits that have been admitted so far during this hearing. City Clerk Roberts stated there are 22 Exhibits. (See Exhibit List attached and is part of the record of this public hearing.) • Assistant Mayor Barnett._; continued this public hearing until . February 15, 1994. The continuation will begin with testimony from the applicant, the Yakima Greenway Foundation. EXHIBIT LIST FOR PUBLIC HEARING ON Greenway Pathway West SEPA Appeal - February 8, 1994 t •;: : r«:;.;<::::;:.: i::>:::: i::::>::>::::;::>::;::: z::: s::» i::>:<;;::><:::;:::<_>::>::>:: i::>::>:::<:»::>::>:: is::»:: si>:: »>::> : >;:: >«::: »a:: i: :: <: >::i:::::.:i:«: » ::: >:;::: »: z <:::»:: >::r s:: >:: >:: >:: >:: >::r ::i:: >::i:: >:: »::: i »i::i » >i >:<: <:<::<:::: 1/ 1 Environmental Checklist & Cover Letter 11 Glenn Valenzuela 2 Agency Comment Letters 13 Glenn Valenzuela 3 WAC 197 -11 -350 Mitigated DNS 2 Glenn Valenzuela 4 WAC -11 -330 Threshold Determination 2 Glenn Valenzuela Process 5 WAC 197 -11 -600 When to Use Existing 11 Glenn Valenzuela Environmental Documents: Summary Draft EIS Aspen.Lake/Willow Lake Development 6 WAC 197 -11 -660 Substantive Authority & 2 Glenn Valenzuela Mitigation 7 142 FEBRUARY 8, 1994 7 Staff Report /attached letter from Yaka R Glenn Valenzuela Indian Nation supporting mitigation measures 8 Council Notes 1 Glenn Valenzuela 9 Packet of Hearing Material submitted t.123 Jay Sandlin Council 10 Yakima Greenway Master Plan Booklet Jay Sandlin Update 1991 11 Police Dept. Memo 1/6/94 & 12/1/93 & 4 Jay Sandlin cover letter 12 2/4/94 letter from Greenway to Willow 3 Marylou Borgert Lake Residents 13 10/21/92 letter to Daniel Hesse from 2 Diane Reinecker Police Chief Green 14 Letters to the Editor relating to the 2 Kriste Graves Greenway: 1/21 & 1/28/94 15 Title 197 WAC: 197 -11 -442 to 197- 11 -7.B2 Joe Schons & attached copies of exhibits 12, 13 16 Video tape regarding traffic on highwa, Joe Schons overpass 17 Excerpt from unlabeled document - 19 Joe Schons note at top states "Notice public use /bene- fit is not a top priority." 18 Referenced pg. 3 of staff report 2/8/9 Joe Schons 19 Statistics on breakdown of crimes wit '41 Joe Schons the Greenway 20 Outline of Schon's testimony 3 Joe Schons 21 Written comments from Gerald Heilman's 4 Gerald Heilman testimony 22 9/30/93 letter from Dept. of Wildlife ID Joe Schons Glenn Valenzuela 8. AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION Joe Schons inquired about a notice in the paper indicating the City will auction off confiscated firearms. Mayor Berndt advised Mr. Schons that the City is following State law in the disposition of confiscated firearms. She further advised him that previous attempts to amend the law were not successful. 9. REPORT FROM PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT REGARDING ENGINEERING ANALYSIS OF CITY ONE - WAY STREET SYSTEM AND TRAFFIC PATTERNS I/ This item was continued to February 15, 1994. *10. NOTICE OF INTENT TO COMMENCE CASCADE VILLA ANNEXATION (STANDARD MOTIONS A & B) February 8, 1994 was set as the time of meeting with the initiating parties who have signed a Notice of Intent to 8 143 t y Li FEBRUAR48 , 1994 Commence Annexation. P .oceedings,.._,.the initiating party being Ed Epstein. The annexation proposed by Ed Epstein was accepted by the City of Yakima and that area to be annexed was required to assume its share of the City's existing indebtedness, and staff was directed to file a Notice of Intent to Annex with the Yakima County Boundary Review Board. *11. CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING EXECUTION OF AMENDMENT TO LEGAL SERVICES CONTRACT WITH HALVERSON AND APPLEGATE RESOLUTION NO. R 94 - 11, A RESOLUTION authorizing the execution of a Legal Services Contract with Halverson & Applegate, P.S. *12. CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING EXECUTION OF MUTUAL AID RENEWAL AGREEMENTS RESOLUTION NO. R 94 - 12, A RESOLUTION authorizing the execution of a Mutual Aid .Agreement with certain Fire Protection Districts and Cities located in Yakima County. 13. CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING EXECUTION OF AMENDMENT NO. 1 TO AGREEMENT FOR CONVEYANCE OF PROPERTY FOR YAKIMA AVENUE /I -82 INTERCHANGE AND FAIR AVENUE AND PROJECT PROGRESS REPORT This item was rernoved'fromthe.Consent Agenda and continued until February 15, 1994. *14. APPROVAL OF 1993 YEAR -END INSURANCE CLAIMS REPORT The 1993 Year -End Insurance Claims Report from Sedgwick James was approved. 15. OTHER BUSINESS None. Information Items: Items of information supplied to Council were: Agenda for February 16, 1994 Yakima Valley Public Transportation Benefit Area Board of Directors meeting; Agenda for February 10, 1994 Hearing Examiner meeting; Letter from President of Seattle Professional Engineering Employees Association complimenting Steve Finch and Jeff Schneider, Yakima Police Department. 1/24/94; December 1993 Monthly Project Progress Report for the Yakima Railroad Area; Letter to Governor Lowry from New Vision regarding Youth Work Rules. 1/31/94; Memorandum from Legal Department 9 1 144 FEBRUARY 8, 1994 regarding Damage Claims Referred to Insurance Company. 2/1/94; Traffic Engineering Citizen Request and Activity Report for January 1994; Notice of Grant Request from the Rotary Club of Yakima for Rebound Plus graffiti program. 1/10/94; Letter from U. S. Environmental Protection Agency regarding organization -wide audit report for January 1, 1992 through December 31, 1992; Legal Department Monthly Report for December 1993; Human Resources Monthly Report for January 1994; Agenda for February 3, 1994 Downtown Area Redevelopment Committee meeting and minutes of its November 4, 1993 and January 6, 1994 meetings; Union Gap, 01d Town News newsletter, February 1994; Yakima Labor Area Summary. December 1993; and Washington State Tourism Bulletin for January 1994. 16. EXECUTIVE SESSION REGARDING PENDING AND PROSPECTIVE LITIGATION The executive session regarding pending and prospective litigation was continued for one week; however, a brief executive session for collective bargaining was requested. It was MOVED BY BUCHANAN, SECONDED BY SIMS, TO MOVE INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION FOR APPROXIMATELY THREE MINUTES FOR THE PURPOSE OF DISCUSSING COLLECTIVE BARGAINING, WITH IMMEDIATE ADJOURNMENT THEREAFTER. The motion carried by unanimous voice vote. 17. ADJOURNMENT Following the conclusion of the Executive Session, the meeting adjourned at 6:00 p.m. I READ AND CERTIFIED ACCURATE BY 1 1 � � ►� A� . ' 1 _ �� 3 " 'Z( -t/ C' ICIL ME :ER DATE -r ,1, _ ,1 a 2 --1( c cm MEMBER DACE ATTEST: 14' ›. 1e6-4-e C;L" ‘kie.4"..41-7 CITY CLERK MAYOR I/ Minutes prepared by Deputy City Clerk Skovald. An audio and video tape of this meeting are available in the City Clerk's Office 10