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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/01/2018 00 Misc Distributed at the MeetingDistributed at the Meeting ..3-1-18 COUNCIL BRIEFING MEETING March 1, 2018 City Manager Updates 1 Legislative Update (Attached) 2 Strategic Plan Process, schedule, agenda, questions 3 Letter from De Long, Baule and Austin, draft response (Attached) 4 Update on Fire Chief search plan 5 Selah Transit Agreement 6 Salvation Army request 7 Ann Macfarlane workshop 8 Update on possible capital construction project -- State Legislative Update March 1st, 2018 Distributed at the Meeting LIFT Legislation The House version of the City -requested legislation allowing local infrastructure investments to be carried forward from year to year for the purpose of matching state funding contributions under the Local Infrastructure Financing Tool ("LIFT") program, HB 2858, passed the House on Wednesday, February 28th on a 96-2 vote HB 2858 now moves on to the Senate, which several weeks ago passed its own version of the City -requested legislation, SB 6177, on a 47-1 vote The Senate is expected to vote on HB 2858 in the next few days Passage of HB 2858 is critical to the City's efforts to build road, water, and sewer infrastructure to serve the former Boise Cascade Mill site Representative Norm Johnson, Senator Curtis King, and the City's Olympia lobbyists, Tony Sermonti and Susie Tracy, deserve the City's sincere thanks for working hard on the LIFT legislation this session $150,000 Yakima Gang Prevention Program Budget Proviso Last week, both the House and the Senate unveiled proposals for supplemental operating, capital and transportation budgets By last week's end, the Senate had passed its version of all three Funding for a proposed City of Yakima's pilot gang prevention program was included in the Senate operating budget proposal in the requested amount of $150,000 The House's proposal included half of the requested funding ($75,000) and did not include specific language that was requested by the City The City's lobbyists are working to get the House budget proposal changed to mirror the adopted Senate language and dollar figure Senator King reached out to House budget leadership late last week to seek those changes The City's lobbyists are also working with Representative Chandler, ranking member of the House Appropriations Committee, regarding requested changes to the House budget language Voting Rights Act A modified version of the Washington State Voting Rights Act (SB 6002) passed the House on Tuesday, February 27th on a 52-46 vote The Senate passed SB 6002 earlier this session, but the bill was revised slightly by the House so must now be returned to the Senate for concurrence The Senate is expected to vote on SB 6002 in the next few days Breed -Based Dog Restrictions Legislation prohibiting local jurisdictions from imposing breed -based dog restrictions was introduced early this session Both SB 5094, prime sponsored by Senator Palumbo, and HB 1090, prime sponsored by Representative Appleton, appear to be dead for this session With the legislature's short session in its next -to -last scheduled week, a lot of activity is occurring currently At this point, all indications are that the legislature will adjourn on or before its scheduled March 8th short session end date Distributed at the Meeting 3-/-( t AGENDA City Council — City of Yakima Strategic Planning Session — March 17, 2018 a Show approved vision and mission statements b Show the four priority areas agreed upon c Open the floor for presentations on committee structures d Discussion e Committee assignments Stephens, Jodi From: Claar Tee, Sonya Sent: Tuesday, February 27, 2018 1.13 PM To: Stephens, Jodi Subject: FW March 1 Council Briefing Session Attachments: 20180225110714 pdf Importance: High From Moore, Cliff Sent: Monday, February 26, 2018 2.03 PM To All City Council <ccouncil2@YAKIMAWA.GOV> Cc Cutter, Jeff <Jeff Cutter@yakimawa.gov>, Cortez, Ana <ana cortez@YAKIMAWA.GOV>, Claar Tee, Sonya <Sonya ClaarTee@yakimawa.gov>, Price, Cally <Cally Price@yakimawa.gov> Subject: March 1 Council Briefing Session Council, In preparation for your next Council Briefing Session on March 1, here is a list of items I have ready for the City Manager Update section. 1 Legislative Update Earlier today Randy provided a written update for your review Staff will be ready for any follow up questions 2 Strategic Plan Process, schedule, questions — should be a short conversation given your direction at the Feb 21 Special Meeting on this 3 Letter from De Long, Baule and Austin, draft response (see attached — is this the approach you would like to take in responding?) 4 Homelessness Update on TYT application and looking at options for the period between March 15 and November 15 5 Update on Fire Chief search plan 6 Discussion about the donation offered for Naches Parkway If any Council member would prefer to include any of these items during the Council Reports section of the meeting, please let me know and I will remove it from my list. I know that several Council Members will have possible items for the joint City Council/School Board meeting and they will come up under Council Reports You have requested that a Plaza Update be a regular item and I am assuming that will be led by a Council Member under Council Reports as well Thanks Cliff Cliff Moore City Manager City of Yakima 129 N Second Street 1 Victor De Long, Chair Downtown Association of Yakima [address] John Baule, Chair Yakima Valley Tourism [address] Rich Austin, Chair Greater Yakima Chamber of Commerce [address] Re Letter of January 31, 2018 regarding homeless issues. Gentlemen Thank you for your letter of January 31, 2018 regarding the challenges associated with homelessness. The City shares your desire to build on the successful revitalization of the downtown area and create a healthy and vibrant downtown core for our residents and visitors. As a downtown property owner, the City is familiar with challenges presented by the homeless population in the area Homelessness is a community issue, and one that cannot be solved by the City alone As you probably have read in the newspaper, Transform Yakima Together has asked the City to approve a year-round 24 hour homeless shelter for homeless individuals and families. The project's proposed location is outside of the downtown area, off of North 16th Avenue The Hearing Examiner recently heard testimony both for and against the location and project and his determination is pending. If that application is approved, and survives an appeal (if one is filed), there will be a place for up to 150 homeless persons to sleep, eat and obtain services. Further, there are additional projects that are in the works that will provide housing for the homeless. The Roy's Market affordable housing project plans to break ground this year, and will provide transitional housing, with management, to up to 40 individuals. This affordable housing project will provide housing for 40 people who may have been previously homeless, removing more people from our streets and providing them services they need to be successful. Other affordable housing projects are in the pipeline, including one focused on veterans. Once these affordable housing projects have been completed, the City believes there will be fewer homeless people on the streets. In response to your specific requests, the City has taken a role in developing additional solutions. In addition to the affordable housing projects listed above, the City has taken an active role in the YVCOG Homeless Planning and Policy Council—the group that makes recommendations regarding funding of housing and other services for the homeless. The City Council is regularly updated as to those meetings, and a City Council member sits on the Board that makes ultimate funding decisions (the YVCOG Executive Committee) The zoning code currently limits the types of uses in each district. Currently most of the downtown is designated Central Business District, or CBD The CBD zone is approximately located from Martin Luther King Jr Blvd to East Chestnut (in some areas to East Walnut (from S. Naches to Front Street and N 2nd Ave to S 6th Avenue)) and from 9th Street to 7th Avenue Missions, which are most commonly associated with homeless individuals, are only allowed in the CBD with a Type 2 enhanced review, requiring notification to all property owners within 300 feet, and a hearing examiner's public hearing to hear testimony regarding the proposal Similarly, Group Homes and Halfway Houses also must go through the same basic procedures under a Type 3 review in the CBD Churches and community centers can be located within the CBD under a Type 1 administrative review because under the current code those uses are presumed compatible with the surrounding property uses. To change the review, or remove the ability for certain uses in certain zones, a change must be made to the ordinance The Planning Commission is currently looking at a number of changes to Title 15, the Zoning Code, and the City Council recently opened up the one time per year that the city-wide Comprehensive Plan can be amended You may want to address the Planning Commission directly and ask the Commission to review the zones in which these uses can be sited, as well as the type of review necessary to evaluate a proposal The zoning code, review types and chart of zoning district uses can be found in Title 15 of the Yakima Municipal Code You also may wish to participate in the monthly Homeless Planning and Policy Council meetings. These meetings are open to the public and include many of the homeless service providers, including Transform Yakima Together, Yakima Neighborhood Health Services, Catholic Family Charities, and People for People HPPC meetings are the second Tuesday of each month at 10:00 a m. (see the YVCOG website for further details) Another option may be to attend the monthly Homeless Network meeting, which is held at YNHS This network is a group of providers seeking to increase collaboration in providing homeless services, and may be a good place to voice concerns and work constructively on improving communication between the business community and the service providers. The City also is invited to attend those meetings and a City Council member is assigned to attend when available The City seeks to work with all sectors of the community on this community issue We look forward to seeing your organizations represented at these various meetings, and involved in the discussion when amending or evaluating our zoning code If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me Sincerely, January 31, 2018 Mayor Kathy Coffey City of Yakima 129 North 2'd Street Yakima, WA 98901 Honorable Mayor and Members of Yakima City Council RECEIVED CITY OF YAKIMA FEB 062018 OFFICE OF CITY COUNCIL The Greater Yakima Chamber of Commerce, Downtown Association of Yakima and Yakima Valley Tourism have been at the forefront of creating a healthy and vibrant downtown. The millions of dollars in public and private investment that went into revitalizing our downtown have paid huge dividends and brought new life to Yakima and its visiting guests. A major challenge Yakima and other cities have faced in recent years is the increase in homelessness — especially in downtown areas. As you know, business owners in Downtown Yakima voice many problems of loitering, litter public urination/defecation, destruction of property, drug deals, prostitution and other illegal activities which they believe have increased in the last five years. This has had a direct and negative impact on our local businesses and potential revenue, and action is needed now We respectfully request that City of Yakima • Take a leading role in swiftly developing additional solutions that lead to real action in abating and minimizing these issues in the downtown area • Establish zoning ordinances to create a 'buffer zone' to prevent homeless services on the main arterials of the city • Encourage that existing homeless support providers with services in the downtown district be obligated to work collaboratively with local businesses, the city and our organizations to manage the mentioned negative results from the homeless population and those that prey on the homeless. We want to be part of the solution and will assist any way we can to create a safe place for all residents, customers, guests and visitors plus those currently dealing with homelessness. Please don't wait any longer to address this pressing matter Signed, V' tor Deng, Chair Dwnto n Association of Yakima John Baule, Chair Yakima Valley Tourism • • Rich Austin, Chair Greater Yakima Chamber of Commerce