HomeMy WebLinkAbout01/31/2017 04 2016 Strategic Priorities Review xs .1
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BUSINESS OF THE CITY COUNCIL
YAKIMA, WASHINGTON
AGENDA STATEMENT
Item No. 4.
For Meeting of: January 31, 2017
ITEM TITLE: Review 2016 Strategic Priorities
SUBMITTED BY: Cliff Moore, City Manager
SUMMARY EXPLANATION:
ITEM BUDGETED:
STRATEGIC PRIORITY:
APPROVED FOR r
SUBMITTAL: City Manager
STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
BOARD/COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION:
ATTACHMENTS:
Description Upload Date Type
D 2016 priority list 1/25/2017 Co r Memo
D priority updates 1125!2017 Cow'Memo
Council Goals - Management Action Plan
Priority Goal Council Staff Lead Other Depts
Cmte
Engineering,Finance,
1 Downtown plaza Economic Dev Econ.Dev
Info Systems,Public
Works,Police,Com.
Relations
2 School sidewalk grants NCBC Engineering Finance,Com.Dev.,
Public Works
3 Eastside pool and parks NCBC Public Works Finance,City Manager
Police,Com.Dev.,
4 Neighborhood outreach NCBC City Manager Finance,Public Works,
Com.Relations
Gang and at risk youth diversion and Police,Legal,Com.
5 Public Safety City Manager
intervention Dev.
6 Youth commission Partnership City Manager Clerk,Police,Public
Works,Com.Relations
7 Deliverables/reports for city grants Partnership Finance Clerk
Legal,Finance,Econ.
8 Port district Economic Dev City Manager Dev.,Airport,Com.
Relations
9 Wage theft enforcement options NCBC Legal
10 Homeless strategy and program options NCBC Com.Dev Public Works,Police,
Legal
11 Business incubator Economic Dev Econ.Dev City Manager,Finance
12 Bike lanes NCBC Engineering Public Works,Com.
Dev.
13 Cultural awareness Partnership Human ALL
Resources
14 Multicultural center Partnership City Manager TBD
15 Cannabis regulations and zoning NCBC Com.Dev Legal
16 Historic district NCBC Com.Dev Econ.Dev.,Legal
Legal,Public Works,
17 North First Street NCBC Engineering Com.Dev.,Finance,
Econ.Dev.
18 Ethics Committee NCBC Legal Clerk,City Manager,
Human Resources
Update on 2016 Council Strategic Priorities
(priority ranking order)
1. Downtown Plaza
At the January 10, 2017 Yakima City Council meeting, the Council agreed
to a December 31, 2017 timeline for $9,000,000 to be pledged and under
contract with a 5-year payment timeframe by the private sector to
complete the funding package for the project. The Council also appointed
Council members Dulce Gutierrez, Carmen Mendez and Maureen Adkison
as liaisons to the plaza funding committee. In first quarter 2017, City staff
will complete the SEPA process for the project and finalize the
coordination of the utility relocation work.
2. School Sidewalk Grants
In 2015, the City was awarded two Safe Routes to School grants. The
grants supply funds for the construction of sidewalks and other safety
amenities near Garfield Elementary, Adams Elementary and Washington
Middle School. These projects should be constructed this summer.
Last fall, the City applied for Safe Routes to School grants around
McClure Elementary and McKinley Elementary. The Engineering Division
recently received notification that the City had secured those grants,
therefore, design of these projects will be underway in the near future for
potential construction in 2018.
The City also received a $500,000 Complete Streets grant from the
Transportation Improvement Board. The funds will be used to install
sidewalks near five elementary schools. Four of the projects will tie into
and lengthen the sidewalks constructed by the Safe Routes to School
grants. The projects are: construct sidewalk on one side of Swan Avenue
from McGuiness Park to Campbell Lane; construct sidewalk on both sides
of Race Street, where missing, from 8th Street to Naches Avenue;
construct sidewalk on the south side of Prasch Avenue from 20th Avenue
to 16th Avenue; construct sidewalk on the south side of Viola Avenue from
10th Avenue to 4th Avenue; and, construct sidewalk on the west side of
Powerhouse Road from Robertson Elementary to Englewood Avenue.
Staff will continue to seek funding to build and improve sidewalks near
schools.
3. Eastside pool and parks
The possibility of building a public swimming pool on the eastside of
Yakima
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has been a point of discussion for Council and the community over the
past
few years. Early construction cost estimates for a high-quality multi-
purpose outdoor pool is approximately $2.75 million. This is based on a
3,900 sq. ft. outdoor leisure pool built in 2005 in Lewisville, Texas
consisting of:
• Zero-depth entry
• Double-looped waterslide
• Recreational water amenities for children
• Three spraygrounds, totaling 1,450 sq. ft., equipped with aquatic
features such as drenching tumble buckets and raindrop water
umbrellas
• Aquatic playground with scaled-down slides
The entire aquatic facility, including parking, sat on approximately 4.2
acres. This information was provided by Counsilman — Hunsaker, the
swimming pool consultant that designed the Lewisville pool and recently
evaluated the City of Yakima's Lions Pool.
Staff estimates that if a similar outdoor pool were to be built here, it could
generate close to $60,000 in revenue per year to help offset approximately
$150,000 in annual operational costs. Maintenance costs would also
need to be factored into the total annual cost to operate and maintain the
proposed outdoor pool. The revenue source for both the construction cost
of the proposed outdoor pool and its annual operational and maintenance
cost would need to be determined. Sufficient parking will also need to be
addressed as part of this proposed project.
Once funding sources are identified, it is then recommended that if the
City is to proceed forward with this project, a Public Advisory Committee
be formed to gather valuable input from city residents to best determine
the desired amenities and the location of the proposed outdoor pool.
In the meanwhile, the City is continuing to pursue what has become a
lengthy "conversion process" from the Recreation & Conservation Office of
the State of Washington (RCO) that would allow for the construction of the
YMCA aquatic/fitness center on 7.5 acres at Chesterley Park and the
construction of a new 31 acre public City park next to the SOZO Sports
Complex. The City is tentatively scheduled to attend the RCO Board
meeting in May to determine the outcome and final decision from RCO.
In accordance with the contract between the City and the YMCA, if the
RCO conversion is successful, the City is to bond for $4.5 million for the
construction of the City's share of the proposed new YMCA aquatic
facility. In addition, the City would still need to identify approximately
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$300,000 for the City's share of the pool's annual operational expenditures
beginning in the second half of 2019 or in early 2020. However, should
the RCO conversion prove to be unsuccessful, the YMCA aquatic/fitness
center project would not proceed forward and the current contract with the
YMCA would expire. Should that happen, Council could determine
whether funding for the construction of an eastside pool would be
available or not.
4. Neighborhood Outreach
Aside from efforts being undertaken by the Council's Neighborhood and
Community Building Committee, the Neighborhood Outreach strategic
initiative established by the City Council in 2016 could be further
considered and developed by the Community Integration Exploratory
Committee during the committee's one-year process that will occur during
2017. The committee could explore potential, tangible goals that could
assist in meeting the Council's Neighborhood Outreach strategic initiative
objective. The committee could focus on policies, programs, events,
services, partnerships, etc. that could serve to help bridge real and
perceived divides in the community and help foster greater cooperation,
understanding, and unity within the community. Council may wish to
consider the involvement of the Community Integration Exploratory
Committee in implementing the Council's Neighborhood Outreach
strategic initiative.
Yakima Police Department reaches out to the community through a variety
of events and activities including: National Night Out, annual open house,
citizen academy in both English and Spanish for adults and youth, and
through involvement with the schools.
5. Gang and at risk youth diversion and intervention
For all intents and purposes, the contract with the Yakima Police Activities
League (YPAL) serves as the primary city effort at engaging at risk youth
with a view to reducing gang activities. At Council's request, the contract
with YPAL for 2017 was reviewed and modified to bring a broader array of
services to be delivered by the agency at the Washington Fruit Community
Center at Miller Park. The revised contract will engage approximately 200
youth in evidence-based prevention and intervention services designed to
mitigate the effects of the environmental influences that inhibit the ability to
thrive in school or home environment. Project strategies include:
outreach, targeting 200 chronically truant youth and their families, life skills
training, academic support and instruction aimed at improving school
success, and positive youth development programs including increased
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mentoring opportunities, culinary arts, wrestling, and boxing for up to 60
youth. Case management including home visits, referrals, and family
advocacy services will also be provided for up to 20 of the highest risk
youth and their families.
YPAL utilizes a Youth Services Coordinator (YSC) to conduct targeted
outreach and provide service coordination. The YSC works collaboratively
with school district representatives, law enforcement and other
community-based organizations to identify potential program participants,
construct Individualized Service Plans (ISP) for each participant and
coordinate the implementation of the ISP over the project period. The
Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) questionnaire, along with other
diagnostic and screening tools administered by the partners will facilitate
the case management candidate's identification.
The YSC to conducts outreach and coordination activities which are both
prevention and intervention in nature. The focus of the outreach services
is to increase awareness of the project, youth problem behaviors, and how
to avoid them. Screening is intended to link participants to appropriate
prevention/intervention services both internal and throughout our
partnership network. Targeted outreach will be established to identify
highest risk youth. The YSC will collect vital information necessary for the
development of Individualized Service Plans (ISP) for each of the 30
participants and will perform the following routine tasks:
• Identify participant needs and goals to aid in the development of
a comprehensive intervention plan-ISP.
• Coach and provide role models/mentors for each participant.
• Coordinate appropriate crisis responses to participants following
episodes of violence.
• Provide assistance to families in distress, ranging from
accessing alcohol/drug/mental health services to helping
resolve family conflicts with appropriate referrals.
• Visit participants who become incarcerated during the project
period and helping to reconnect them to services when they are
released from custody.
• Resolve conflicts and/or mediating between participant, families,
peers, and/or agencies.
• Act as a liaison between participant and service
providers/schools to facilitate participant access to services.
• Work with clients who are seeking employment; from helping
develop resumes to identifying their skills and qualifications to
helping participants apply for jobs or work with workforce
services programs.
The Positive Youth Development (PYD) program opportunities (mentoring
and culinary arts) will begin on or around the first week of February, 2017.
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The culinary arts program follows an 11 week lesson plan with lessons
occurring twice weekly for 60 to 90 minutes each. Culinary arts are further
augmented by nutritional education and healthy lifestyle food choices
provided by a Nutrition Education Assistant with WSU extension staff.
PYD classes are led by skilled instructors with experience teaching
content to children and youth. Classes will consist of no more than 10
participants per cohort. The culinary program will capitalize on the past
involvement with Junior League, featuring their healthy cookbooks and
curriculum designed to educate children and parents on making healthy
living choices. Once a month, on a Thursday evening, a local chef will be
chosen to "cook" with the combined cohorts, demonstrating healthy food
preparation. This activity will be ongoing every month.
A mentoring program will be phased in as volunteers and participant
numbers increase.
Traditional YPAL programs, such as wrestling and boxing, will continue on
a seasonal basis, offering activities for a period of 22 consecutive weeks
and made available to a minimum of 60 project participants. Certified
volunteer coaches will provide basic [developmentally appropriate]
instruction in each sport. Both sports opportunities will emphasize the
importance of sportsmanship both in and outside the "ring." The project
will provide all the necessary safety equipment at no cost to the
participant. While in season, "practice" will take place at least twice weekly
for a period of 50 minutes.
Life skills classes will continue throughout the school year. Each class will
consist of no less than 5 and no more than 10 participants with priority
given to youth receiving case management. Life skills is curriculum-based
with eleven (11) 45-50 minute sessions that will be offered at each school
and at YPAL in 2017.
The life skills curriculum, the Violence Prevention Project (VPP), is a
prevention program whose aim is to prevent violence by enhancing the
conflict-resolution skills of both male and female middle and high school
students aged 12 to 16. This is accomplished primarily by working on
participant communication and relationship-building skills. VPP's other
goals are to address the social setting in which violence occurs and to
improve academic performance. Participants' tolerance for aggression and
violence is lowered by targeting the environment and teaching students
about group dynamics. Academic performance is improved by building
students' self-concept and working on goal setting.
Academic Support [Tutoring] is an intervention providing academic and
nonacademic development for the 30 high risk participants in support of
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their school reintegration and completion needs. Daily tutoring sessions
will be available each day of operation throughout the academic year.
Positive Youth Development (PYD) activities, which can be both
prevention and intervention in nature but also aim to provide high risk
participants with alternatives to what they seek through antisocial
behavior.
6. Youth Commission
In 2011, the City Council added two youth positions to the Parks &
Recreation Commission. These are two-year terms and require applicants
to be between 16 and 22 years of age at the time of appointment. Staff is
seeking Council direction on additional efforts to encourage the
involvement of youth in City government.
7. Deliverables/reports for city grants
Council expressed a desire to receive more frequent, reliable, and
consistent reporting from organizations that receive City funding either
through operating agreements or professional services agreements. To
provide this accountability information, the Economic Development
Manager is contacting each organization the City contracts with and ask
for the reporting guidelines outlined below. All newly written contracts will
include this information in the agreements.
For each operating agreement (Capitol Theatre, Yakima Valley Trolley,
Convention Center) the City will ask that a representative from the
organization make two annual 10 minute presentations to Council
updating the Council on performance issues and items related to their
respective operating agreement.
For each organizational funding agreement (Yakima County Development
Association, Rural Community Development Resources, Downtown
Association of Yakima), the City will ask for bi-annual reports relating to
the terms in the agreement.
For each event funding agreement (4th of July, Cinco De Mayo, Downtown
Summer Nights), the City will include language asking the organizer to
give a written report to the Council within 30 days of the event including
attendance and financial outcomes. The applicant would not be eligible for
funding in the future if the report is not submitted on time.
8. Port District
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Exploring the potential of a public authority district as a tool to support
economic development and enhance Yakima's competitiveness to attract
and retain businesses is included in the draft City of Yakima Economic
Strategic Plan. The plan will be presented to the Yakima City Council for
consideration at the February 7, 2017 council meeting. The core project
team for this initiative will be led by the business community (represented
by Yakima County Development Association, Greater Yakima Chamber of
Commerce, and Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Yakima) and assisted
by the City Manager, City Attorney, Economic Development Department
and Yakima Air Terminal representatives. The plan includes a 4th quarter
2017 timeline for the completion of a document that will evaluate the
process to establish a port district or other public authority district, an
investigation of Washington State laws and an evaluation of pros and cons
for establishing a district.
9. Wage Theft Enforcement Options
The City Council appointed seven city residents to the Exploratory
Committee on "Ethics and Equal Rights" in November, 2016. The
Committee was directed to examine various community issues that affect
fairness in the city and prepare a report at the end of the year with
recommendations. One of the issues cited in the examples of community
issues for examination was "wage theft". The Ethics and Equal Rights
Committee meets monthly. In January and February they are meeting
every two weeks to get the project started. They will make quarterly
reports to the Council Neighborhood and Community Building Committee.
10. Homeless strategy and program options
The City of Yakima has historically taken a long-term view on developing a
strategy to improve housing opportunities for low income residents and
those individuals who become homeless. Between 2005 and 2016, using
HOME and CDBG funds, the city invested $12,032,571 in affordable
housing projects in our community. That investment contributed to the
creation of 1,303 affordable housing units in Yakima. In addition, many
senior aged residents have been able to stay in their homes and delay
entry into assisted care, thereby preserving their independence and
saving the families the expense of advanced care facilities or becoming
homeless seniors. Typically, city funds support projects that have a variety
of funding sources and often, that city contribution is the final piece of the
funding puzzle that enables a project to move forward. Many formerly
homeless individuals are now residing, or have resided in the 1,303 units
the city helped support.
In concert with the city's long-term housing strategy, for more than a
decade, Yakima County, through its Human Services division, was the
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lead agency in receiving local, state and federal funds to provide services
for individuals who are described as "chronically homeless". Many of these
individuals struggle with mental and physical health issues, chemical
dependency and post-traumatic stress disorder. Through a Request for
Proposal (RFP) process, the county provided funds to a variety of non-
profit entities in the Yakima Valley to enable the provision of shelter,
treatment, permanent supported housing and case management for the
chronically homeless.
As a general rule, this process was well understood by providers and the
homeless community, and it functioned reasonably well. Annual Point In
Time surveys of the homeless population suggest that over the past
decade, the total number of unsheltered individuals has declined
modestly, but there is no doubt that there are still a number of unsheltered
individuals in the Valley. While previously homeless individuals have been
helped to find a positive pathway forward, other members of our
community have fallen into homelessness and they need support and
services.
In 2015, the county disbanded its Human Services division and handed
the lead agency responsibility for the management of local, state and
federal funds and the provision of homeless services to the Yakima Valley
Conference of Governments (YVCOG). For reasons that are complex and
varied, YVCOG has not been able to fully replicate and implement the
program previously managed by the county and as a result, the issue of
serving the unsheltered in the city of Yakima has become extremely
problematic. Without mandate and without funding, the city did step in and
authorize a homeless encampment on city property from July through mid-
November 2016.
That encampment closed as the winter cold-weather shelters opened in
the community on November 15, 2016. Since that point, the city and the
provider community have been diligently exploring options for services
once the shelters close March 15. At Council direction, city staff have
reviewed options presented in Council Member Dulce Gutierrez's 10 Point
Plan to Serve the Homeless and provided Council with information about a
number of possible locations for a homeless encampment. In addition,
Council members and staff have worked behind the scenes to ensure that
the YVCOG staff are aware of the urgent need to develop and implement
the RFP process so that providers are able to receive funding as soon as
possible. This process has been frustrating and at this writing, it appears
that the RFP process will not open until mid-February.
Given this time frame, it is unlikely that services, including day and
overnight shelters, will be in place when the winter cold-weather shelters
close on March 15. The Yakima City Council continues to wrestle with this
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issue and has created an ad-hoc committee, made up of the chairs of the
Council's Public Safety, Neighborhood and Community Development and
Economic Development Committees to continue studying the question.
This ad-hoc committee met for the first time on January 17 and will
continue to meet as needed and will be supported by staff.
On a positive note, the YVCOG Executive Committee did approve a new
Five Year Homeless Plan on January 18. While this plan focuses on a
"Housing First" approach, it does include opportunities for providers and
jurisdictions to seek funding through the RFP process for emergency,
interim shelter options, which could include a tent encampment. In
addition, the YVCOG Executive Committee has agreed to review a staff
recommendation to set aside $800,000 in local funding for a cash reserve
($500,000), a shelter project ($200,000) and a demonstration project
($100,000), and perhaps make a portion of that funding available in the
2017 RFP cycle. City staff will continue to monitor the efforts of YVCOG in
the weeks ahead and inform the Council of its actions.
Finally, in addition to looking for ways to address the needs of individuals
currently being served in the winter cold-weather shelters or who have
been able to access motel vouchers, there are a number of long-term
efforts underway. The Housing Authority recently received approval to
convert the Yakima Armory on 16th Avenue to permanent supported
housing units for veterans; Justice Housing Yakima is preparing a design
and funding request for a "Tiny Home Village" project to build up to 30
small residential units around a community center building; and Yakima
Neighborhood Health is close to completing an application for the
conversion of Roy's Market to multi-unit efficiency housing designed to
serve chronically homeless individuals. By agreement, this application
would need to meet city code requirements for this zoning district in which
the property is located. Once complete, the application will be presented
to the hearing examiner for consideration. The public will have an
opportunity to provide comments and testimony at the hearing.
11. Business incubator
Establishing a high-quality, technical assistance incubator to boost
effective business start-ups in Yakima is included in the draft City of
Yakima Economic Strategic Plan. The plan will be presented to the
Yakima City Council for consideration at the February 7, 2017 council
meeting. The core project team for this initiative will be led by the City of
Yakima Economic Development Department and assisted by Yakima City
Manager, the Downtown Association of Yakima, the Greater Yakima
Chamber of Commerce, the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Yakima
and Rural Community Development Resources. The City is currently
soliciting Request for Qualifications from firms to help complete a real
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estate evaluation study of potential sites for the project. A contract
approving the work will be submitted to the Yakima City Council at the
March 7, 2017 council meeting.
12. Bike Lanes
As opportunities arise staff does apply for funding to create and/or expand
bike lanes. For example, the City recently applied for a Surface
Transportation Block Grant (STBG) Set Aside grant to construct bike lanes
on Powerhouse Road from the mobile home park to Cowiche Canyon
Road. This section of Powerhouse Road has no paved shoulder and
proves to be an unsafe portion of the "Naches Loop", the most popular
recreational bike ride in the upper Yakima Valley. The City did not receive
this grant, but continues to look for other opportunities to apply for grants.
The Bike/Ped Committee has begun to look at the bicycle and pedestrian
policies that will be included in the 2040 City of Yakima Transportation
Plan and we expect the committee to continue to make recommendations
for bike lane projects on a regular basis.
13. Cultural awareness
In an effort to move the City forward, and to assist the executive
leadership address the changing needs of the community, staff has
researched options to provide cultural competency training to our staff.
Staff met with Laura Armstrong, Executive Director of La Casa Hogar in
Yakima, to discuss the training her team could provide. La Casa Hogar
has over 21 years of experience working with Latina/o families in the
Yakima Valley, offering them basic services and the education they need
to pursue better lives for themselves and their families in our valley.
La Casa Hogar utilizes their team of trainers and staff, all from Latin
America, to create a training that is focused around the Latina/o (primarily
Mexican) culture as it exists in the Yakima/USA context. In conversation
with Laura, she indicated her team would research the barriers that could
exist with regards to these community members and their beliefs about
government entities in general and some of the specific services we, as
the City, offer. This research would provide the foundation for a four hour
training that would be developed specifically for the City of Yakima. Their
training utilizes real life experiences from the families they have served,
first hand testimonies and role playing with their staff, in an effort to work
through some of the challenging situations that could arise.
Staff also identified another possible opportunity for cultural awareness
training when they attended a session given by Ms. Anindita Mitra at the
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AWC Conference in June last year. Ms. Mitra is trained and practiced as
an architect and is passionate about pursuing urban design and city
planning. During her architectural training she was exposed to a variety of
communities in India from villages and small towns to immigrant
communities in metropolitan areas. This experience exposed her to the
different communication and cultural norms that governed these
communities. Also widely travelled, culture remains at the crux of her work
that has taken her to diverse communities in Oakland, Hilo, Syracuse and
Topeka among others. An immigrant herself, over the years she has
developed tools that help her establish trusting relations with each of her
client communities that vary greatly in their age, ethnicity, education,
language and other factors.
Ms. Mitra proposed to develop a presentation that will introduce social
development terms for use in effective local governance and share
insights from modern day sociological studies to illustrate the benefits of
culturally intelligent governance and administration. Through several
exercises participants will become aware of their cultural reference points
and leave with tools to counter their personal blind spots for improved
communications and management across cultures.
Nora Liu also spoke at the AWC Conference last year about GARE a joint
project comprised of the Center for Social Inclusion and the Haas Institute
for a Fair and inclusive Society at UC Berkeley. Their work is built on the
knowledge that we will not be able to advance racial equity without the
transformation of government into an effective and inclusive democracy.
GARE offers a variety of training and organizational development
sessions, either in introductory workshops, specific topics or via an
extended learning curriculum. Their training team focuses on the
application of learning in the work place and utilizes strategies that are
most effective for leveraging change. GARE's research team will work with
City leadership to understand the context and background that we have in
the Valley to ensure their content is relevant and focused.
WSU Extension offers a 3-day course entitled Navigating the Difference
which is geared toward professionals who interact with the public they
serve. Over the three days they cover five competencies — Cultural
Awareness, Cultural Understanding, Cultural Knowledge, Cultural
Interaction, & Cultural Sensitivity.
The first two modules of the curriculum focus on cultural awareness and
understanding and emphasizes the wide variety of diversity dimensions
each person brings into the workplace and how those identities affect
interactions with others. The remaining three modules focus on methods
of gaining cultural knowledge, communicating across cultural difference,
and the concepts of privilege and power. Individuals must be aware of the
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barriers to intercultural communications, as well as the range of
communication styles and the functions of nonverbal communications, to
truly cultivate the skills necessary to live in a global world.
Costs range from $250 per person to $10,000 per class depending on the
provider and program/sessions provided. Staff seeks Council guidance on
this matter.
Yakima Police Department requires its employees to attend a variety of
training courses dealing with implicit bias, communications and relations,
mental health issues, and several other areas of specific focus.
14. Multicultural center
Establishing a Latino cultural center (Centro de la Raza) to honor the
diverse cultural assets of the Yakima community is included in the draft
City of Yakima Economic Strategic Plan. The plan will be presented to the
Yakima City Council for consideration at the February 7, 2017 council
meeting. The core project team will be led by the Hispanic Chamber of
Commerce and supported by the City of Yakima. The plan includes a first
quarter 2018 timeline for completion of a business plan of how the project
would work, be funded, and operated.
15. Cannabis regulations and zoning
On July 5, 2016, the City Council adopted Ordinance 2016 -008 which
authorized recreational marijuana producers, processors and retailer in
certain zoning districts, subject to statutory buffer zones. That ordinance
was effective August 7, 2016. Adjustments to the ordinance were
implemented by the Council on September 20, 2016 to allow retail sales of
recreational marijuana in the Small Convenience Center (SCC) zoning
district and to modify the definition of day care centers to be consistent
with state law. Those changes took effect on November 6, 2016. To date,
three recreational marijuana businesses are in place (Happy Time, 1315 N
1st St; Sweet Relief, 1009 E Yakima Ave; and The M Store, 1503 E Nob
Hill Blvd. One license is pending at 1606 Fruitvale Blvd. Yakima is entitled
to a fifth retail business under state allocations. At this time, we are not
reviewing other applications. In addition, there is one testing laboratory
licensed in the City limits at 31 N First Avenue. Several producers and
processors have been licensed in Yakima County.
16. Historic District
A group of property owners and businesses initiated the concept of a
National Register Historic District to recognize the North First Avenue
collection of storage, packing, and distribution structures dating back to
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the early 1900's known as "Fruit Row". The City Historic Preservation
Commission voted August 24, 2016 to support the project. On August 10,
2016, a walking tour of the project was held with various groups
attending. The property owners will be requesting approximately $25,000
from the state budget (via Sen Curtis King) to support this project as an
economic development catalyst. A written estimate from Artifacts, Inc. was
submitted estimating $15,000 to prepare the National Register
Nomination. In addition, the group estimates $10,000 for signs, plaques
and public outreach material.
17. North First Street
Surface Transportation Program (STP) funding ($2,700,000) for the
construction of Phase 1 of this project, which is from `N' Street to SR 12,
should be available in 2018-2019.
Design of the North 1st Street Revitalization, Phase 2 project, which is
from MLK to `N' Street, is about 90% complete. The City has applied for a
FASTLANE grant in the amount of $8,580,000 to provide the remainder of
the funding needed for construction of this project. Also, if the City were to
approve funding for the Transportation Benefit District, the North 1st Street
Revitalization, Phase 2 project is one of the projects recommended for
funding. The City had previously received a Transportation Improvement
Board (TIB) grant of $1,500,000 for this phase. If funding for this project is
not secured soon, the TIB will take back the $1,500,000 grant.
18. Ethics Committee
In November 2016, the Yakima City Council seated two Exploratory
Committees for "Ethics and Equal Rights" and "Community Integration".
Each committee has 7 residents of the City, with limited staff support
conducting needs assessments and recommendations to the City Council
on the issues related to fairness and inclusion in the City. Both committees
were established for one year, with quarterly reports to the City Council
Neighborhood and Community Building Committee (NCBC). One primary
task will be to recommend whether or not the committee should be
retained as a permanent committee and if so, what tasks should be
covered by the committee. Both exploratory committees have had their
initial committee orientation, received public meetings and record retention
training (required), elected chair, assistant chair, and secretary. The Ethics
Committee met January 5 and January 17. The Community Integration
Committee will meet on January 25, 2017. Inclement weather has forced
rescheduling of several meetings in January.
P a $2 e 13 13