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Home My WebLink About12/12/1995 Joint Meeting 398: CITY OF YAKIMA, WASHINGTON DECEMBER 12, 1995 JOINT MEETING WITH YAKIMA COUNTY AND UNION GAP The City Council met on this date at 7:30 a.m. at the ESD #105 Administration Building Conference Center, 33 South 2nd Avenue, Yakima, Washington. Council Members present were Mayor Pat Berndt, Clarence Barnett, Henry Beauchamp (present after 7:50 a.m.), Ernie Berger, Lynn Buchanan, John Klingele, and Bernard Sims. City Manager Zais, Assistant City Manager Rice, Marketa Oliver, Administrative Assistant to the City Manager, and Deputy City Clerk Skovald were also present. Yakima County Commissioners present were Bettie Ingham, Bill Flower, and Jim Lewis. Jeff Sullivan, Yakima County Prosecuting Attorney, Dan Hesse, Public Works Director, and Dema Harris, Director of Administrative Services were also present. Union Gap Council members present were Bill Ackerman, Mayor Pro Tem, Betty Boyd, Bud Laidler, Donna Miller and Phil Salzman. Union Gap staff members present were City Manager Paul Burlingame, Assistant City Manager Kathleen Holscher, and City Clerk /Treasurer Pauline Groth. Representatives from the Recycling Industry, members of the media as well as a number of concerned citizens also attended this meeting. Commissioner Ingham welcomed the group and reviewed the agenda. Communitv Vandalism Committee Presentation Mayor Berndt provided a brief overview of the Draft Community Vandalism Report. The Report includes recommendations from the Community Vandalism Committee developed from suggestions received from a variety of sources within the community in an effort to decrease and deter youth violence, graffiti, and vandalism. Jeff Sullivan summarized a variety of programs in effect resulting from the Community Vandalism Committee's recommendations. He described what is currently being done and emphasized what course of action should continue by law enforcement entities and what measures local legislative authorities can take to decrease gang - related activities. He suggested some effective ways to handle specific problems and urged the Council's support and endorsement of policy development for issues such as nuisance abatements, anti - loitering regulations, the diversionary program in connection with the accountability boards, strengthening building and fire codes, voluntary restrictions on the sale of spray paint to minors, the establishment of a county -wide curfew, youth access to gainful activities at school other than sports, the ability to use the I/ civil process to remedy graffiti, legislation to address street terrorism similar to the California Penal Code, and changing the age of competency to 10 years old and above for all criminal offenses. Mr. Sullivan reported the large incidents of youth involvement in a variety of crimes and explained the difference between serious violent offenses and violent offenses. He also 399. Adjourned Meeting -- December 12, 1995 identified proposed changes in sentencing guidelines for juveniles for serious violent, violent'•and non - violent crimes. Mr. Sullivan concluded his presentation with an explanation of the truancy law process. Police Chief Don Blesio outlined details of the local level emphasis on gang related activities on Yakima Avenue and around the downtown business area, in particular the addition of a foot patrol beat. He reported there has been a decrease in incidents of gang - type graffiti, but an increase in the tagger -type of graffiti which is showing up on indicators such as stop signs, traffic signal boxes, and etched glass on cars. City Prosecutor Susan Woodard reported that the draft pedestrian interference ordinance will address foot traffic in public areas where juveniles and others mainly congregate because they 'tend to intimidate. It is written in a way which defines various elements and is written in conjunction to use with the foot patrol in the downtown area. There was a considerable amount of discussion about elements of the draft proposed legislation with a legal opinion requested by Council Member Barnett concerning its enforcement. Commissioner Jim Lewis directed attention to the issue of limited funding for juvenile incarceration expenses for violators of this proposed legislation. There was discussion among the group about whether the penalty for these types of violations would be an infraction or a misdemeanor and who pays for those expenses. Commissioner Ingham thanked the law enforcement people for attending the meeting and encouraged the entities to write to the legislators urging support of proposed street terrorism legislation. Legislative Priorities Local officials provided a brief update on joint legislative priorities, particularly the issues of Mandates and Juvenile Violence. Commissioner Ingham commended Mayor Berndt for her excellent leadership ability she has demonstrated during her tenure as Mayor. Curbside Recvclina After providing a brief history of the curbside recycling issue, I/ Dan Hesse pointed out the fact that the Solid Waste Management Plan requires recycling to reach a 35% recycling goal in the near future. Research indicates the current rate is at 20 %, so approximately another 40 tons per year needs to be recycled to reach the goal. The Solid Waste Management Plan calls for a curbside program in the Yakima Urban Area including Union Gap, Selah, Terrace Heights and West Valley areas. Union Gap and Selah have implemented their own programs with a user pay, volunteer program utilizing a private hauler. Mr. Hesse also directed attention to the educational value of curbside recycling which is a 2 4.00 Adjourned Meeting -- December 12, 1995 good reason why it should be implemented. Mr. Hesse reviewed specific points contained in the Draft Request For Proposal, including fees and materials to be collected. He explained the three options that were developed, including: (A) Issue the RFP as developed for the urban area. Decide to award contract after deciding on the appropriate program and . after evaluations of proposals. This is the County staff recommendation. (B) Delete I/ the All -Pay service from RFP and issue City and Urban Area as user - pay. (C) Allow a commercial hauler to provide user -pay curbside recycling within the City of Yakima as with current service to unincorporated urban area. There was discussion about the convenience of a residential curbside recycling program accompanied by a steady average increase in people wanting curbside recycling service. Various officials and members of the recycling industry expressed concern about the inherent negative impact of increased refuse rates associated with implementing a mandatory curbside recycling program because many private haulers currently accept recyclable materials at no charge. There was continued discussion about the basic reason for developing a curbside recycling program which is to reduce the amount of waste of reusable material. This would also help meet statutory regulations and would also preserve landfill space, thereby prolonging the life of the landfill. Council Member Barnett pointed out that residential curbside recycling would cost the most to implement and would generate the least amount of waste reduction. Other issues such as adding green and brown glass to the list of recyclables, drop boxes already implemented throughout the county and the educational benefits of a residential recycling program were also topics of discussion. Dan Hesse asked for Council direction on how to proceed. It was the general consensus of the City Council to put this issue on the tentative agenda for the next meeting or two, make a decision and then let the County know what the City will do. The meeting adjourned at 8:45 a.m. READ AND CERTIFIED ACCURATE BY: ��., /�.�� M-- C • / ,. IL MEMBER DATE 40 ! •- ! e- -q7 CO CIL MEMB! - DATE ATTEST: k AL 1) GVv CITY CLERK MAYOR Minutes prepared by Deputy City Clerk Skovald. An audio tape of this meeting is available in the City Clerk's Office. 3