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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11/27/2012 03 Council General Information • BUSINESS OF THE CITY COUNCIL YAKIMA, WASHINGTON AGENDA STATEMENT Item No. • For Meeting of: November 27, 2012 ITEM TITLE: Council General Information SUBMITTED BY: CONTACT PERSON /TELEPHONE: SUMMARY EXPLANATION: 1. Weekly Issues Report 2. 11/18/12 Letter from Walt Ranta, Barge- Chestnut Neighborhood Association President regarding fire and emergency response times 3. 11/9/12 Letter from Lonnie Davis to Tony Sandoval regarding downtown Yakima S 4. 11/26/12 Yakima Airport Board agenda 5. 11/28/12 City of Yakima Planning Commission agenda 5. City Meeting Schedule for week of November 26, 2012 6. Preliminary Future Activities Calendar as of November 26, 2012 7. Preliminary Council Agenda 8. Newspaper /Magazine /Internet Articles: * "A Simple Technique for Improving Council Decision Making ," MRSC Insight, November 16, 2012 Resolution Ordinance Other (specify) Contract: Mail to: Contract Term: Amount: Expiration Date: Insurance Required? No Funding Source: Phone: APPROVED FOR SUBMITTAL: City Manager 4110 STAFF RECOMMENDATION: BOARD /COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION: ATTACHMENTS: Click to download ❑ info packet MEMORANDUM November 21, 2012 TO: The Honorable Mayor and City Council Members FROM: Tony O'Rourke, City Manager SUBJECT: Weekly Issues Report • CITY COUNCIL STUDY SESSION: The City Council has a study session on Tuesday, November 27 at 10:00 a.m. to review the Gang Free Initiative plan. • INTERVIEW LOBBYING FIRMS: The Council's Legislative Committee met earlier this week and reviewed proposals from lobbyists wanting to represent the City in Olympia. The Committee narrowed its focus down to three individuals and will be interviewing them next week. • DIRECTOR OF UTILITIES & ENGINEERING: Interviews for the Director of Utilities & Engineering are taking place next Wednesday and Thursday. Seven individuals will be interviewed (two internal candidates). • YVVCB HOLIDAY RECEPTION & SILENT AUCTION: The Yakima Valley Visitors & Convention Bureau's annual holiday reception and silent auction will be on November 29 from 5:00 -8.00 p.m. in the Convention Center Please let Cally know if you are interested in attending. HISTORIC NEIGHBORHOOD r Barge- Chestnut Neighborhood Association y„ rt:=` For a Safe, Viable and Historic Neighborhood CJ -ARGE k "; CJHESTNUT NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION November 18, 2012 Tony O'Rourke, City Manager City of Yakima 129 North 2nd Street Yakima, WA 98901 Dear Mr. O'Rourke: I am writing to you on behalf of the Barge- Chestnut Neighborhood Association (BCNA) to share concerns our members have expressed regarding fire and emergency response times in the City of Yakima. In the mid- 1990s, the closure of the Fire Station in the 3500 block of Summitview increased the distance fire crews must travel to reach the homes in our neighborhood, resulting in longer response times. This concern has increased as a result of reductions in staffing levels within the Fire Department. We have been monitoring the number of "brown out" days the Fire Department has experienced since the beginning of the year. Our Association is concerned over how these brown out days impact where and how quickly Yakima's firefighters can respond to emergencies and fires. The number of brown outs reported by the City of Yakima Firefighters Association differs from the number of days included in the formal reports Fire Chief Dave Willson has provided to the City Council. We understand the discrepancy is due to differing criteria for how long a brown out lasts before it is counted. Regardless of which definition is used, we believe any brown outs potentially pose a significant risk to homeowners and citizens experiencing a medical or other emergency situation. As you may know, our neighborhood consists of many older homes making them potentially more vulnerable to fire risks. No matter how well they are maintained, older homes may have unseen issues that could cause a fire. With older homes, comes an older population. As we understand the current safety rules, a minimum of four firefighters must be on site before any of them can enter a home to attempt a rescue. If the first response crew does not have the minimum number of firefighters to enter the home, this will delay any rescue attempts until the second crew arrives. This leaves our elderly and disabled residents particularly at risk. Brown outs also limit the City's ability to assist nearby communities with which we have mutual aid agreements. We are concerned that if the City is not able to respond to the needs. of neighboring communities, they may also stop reciprocating when we have a need for additional fire crews in an emergency. We understand that there is a plan to call in firefighters on overtime during a brown out when a response is needed from one of our partner communities. Although this may work as a temporary solution, it still leaves the City in a brown out status. If additional fire crews can be called in BCNA • do 211 S. 24 Avenue • Yakima, WA 98902 to help neighboring communities, why can't they be called in to help the community that they are paid to protect? Finally, we are writing to express our concern over how the Fire Department's staffing levels and brown out days potentially impact the City of Yakima's fire rating because this rating is used by most insurance companies to determine the cost of fire insurance. We understand that the City's fire rating was recently re- assessed and the rating remained unchanged. However, we remain concerned about future re- assessments and whether the City will be able to retain its current rating. We understand that the City has experienced a number of tight budget years, however, the BCNA believes that solutions must be found to make our city safe for the public at large and to keep the City's fire rating at a level that, at a minimum, maintains the current rating. We believe that fire protection, like police protection, should be given significant attention in discussions and budget decisions as the City establishes priorities for public safety. The main purpose of this letter is for the BCNA to convey a message to you, the Fire Chief, and the City Council, that staffing the Fire Department at a level that prevents brown outs, ensures that the City's fire rating does not fall, enables the City to live up to its mutual aid agreements, and allows our dedicated firefighters to respond to emergencies and fires rapidly, efficiently, and safely, is a top public safety concern for the City's citizens. As you know, in the Citizens' Survey recently completed by the City of Yakima, 84% of the survey respondents rated the City's Fire Services as either Good or Excellent. The BCNA wants to ensure that the Yakima Fire Department continues to enjoy this level of support and respect from the citizens of Yakima. Please let us know how we can support you and your staff in addressing this issue. Sincerely, Walt Ranta, BCNA President cc: Dave Willson, Fire Chief City Council Representatives BCNA • do 211 S 24 Avenue • Yakima, WA 98902 7„--As . I., BB 0 ® K /z' ° ; THE REVOLUTIONARY CONCEPT IN BOAT LIFTS (ALSO A SUPPLIER FOR RECYCLED PLASTIC LUMBER) L Jo, a November 9,2012 Mr. Tony Sandoval P.O.Box 10301 Yakima , Wa. 98909 Mr. Tony Sandoval Following is my feelings about the growth of downtown Yakima. By the way I personally will not be able to attend the council meeting on Nov. 20 which I had counted on And I wanted to be there by all means. When we were young; Front Street was out of bounds. It was no place to be seen or heard from, if we were caught in the area we were grounded for some time by our folks. It was where the bad things happened. Now as times have changed it is one of the most charming areas in the city. Where else does people from out of town go when they come to Yakima. As the owner of Russillos Pizza and Gelato, if you only knew the comments that we receive from the out of town guests about the way they have cleaned the area up. The amount of visitors that come to the board walk on "Track 29" looking for shops to see are outrages. The Downtown committee should go to work on saving the District. Where else does out of town quests have to walk and see anything. If that area were in Seattle you would not be able to get onto it. Every city has a district that visitors go to . Yakima has the chance to develop that area not do away with it. If you had a row of wine tasting shops it would be ideal for the out of towners. I am sure every council member knows how many visitors come to the valley to see the Wine Country. If at any time if there is anyway that I can assist with this project let me know. Myself and family have come home to invest in developing the area with no real need , but being raised in the city and representing it on the Baseball Field In 1953 I would like to see the development go further. Downtown Yakima has the chance to be one of the exciting spots to come to in the State. But we have to have something other than just the Wine industry. Look at Leavenworth they have nothing but outside shows and a little shopping area that has nothing on Yakima and their Historical District. Lets look to the future and kick ourselves in the butts and get something going to create a Downtown Yakima District it would make us all look good. PO BOX 937 • PUYALLUP, WASHINGTON 98371 • (253) 845 -4010 • CELL. (253) 988 -4688 • FAX. (253) 848 -9038 www aqualiftinc.com • Email: lonnie.davis @prodigy. net Yakima has weather , location, outstanding Hotel systems , good eatery locations but nothing for the visitors to go see in the Down Town Area. Quests will ask us at the Restaurant where is there something to see in Yakima. The Board Walk on'Track 29' should be full on weekends, and something for the People of Yakima to go to at all times. I am going to add this to my letter and see if this will add a little light onto the subject. In 1953, 14 young men and myself and the coach and business manager boarded a Train and the way we went out across the United Stated of America to play American Legion Baseball representing the City of Yakima. Upon returning home we won the World Series in Miami Florida. When arriving to thousands of people in our Home City we were the darlings of the State. By the way the welcoming home ceremony was on Front Street where "Track 29" stands today. On November 3rd of 2012 Mr. David Edler ex -mayor and our team of 1953 were inducted into The State American Legion Baseball Hall of Fame. The only people that were there from Yakima were Mr. David Edler and the members of our Team. Not one city father or council member or representative of the City attended. There happened to be 350 people at the ceremony. I do not know how many times I heard about the legion baseball program in Yakima. There are three World Championship Legion Teams in the State of Washington and all three are from Yakima. What I am trying to say the best way that I can is that the City Fathers and Council members do not work on old things and try to preserve them and it is a shame. I say once again and I mean it I have tried to help the Downtown Historical District and the Downtown Committee and I will continue to do so. The City of Yakima has had some outstanding guests, if you were to go look at the bricks that lay just off of the sidewalk with names of people who purchased them and explain the" Track 29" Area and the gentleman that developed it. I was going through them the other day and spotted a name that some of you will remember and the Name is Willie Nelson. Like him or not he is a world re -known artist. I hope that I have explained my feelings and would be available to assist anyway that me and my family can. Lonnie 5 s 4 , 5c 2406 W. Washington Ave, Suite B Yakima, Washington 98903 (509) 575 -6149 (509) 575 -6185 FAX November 26, 2012 BOARD MEETING AGENDA YAKIMA AIR TERMINAL — McALLISTER FIELD AIRPORT BOARD ROOM - 2 floor, terminal building 5:30 PM Study Session Public Meeting to Follow Roll Call Study Session - 2300 W Washington Ave - terminal conference room • Seaport announced they are leaving Yakima Airport December 15. • Relocate security server — discussion. Business Meeting 1) Audience Participation. Audience participants are invited to address items that are not listed on the regular business meeting agenda. 2) Consent Agenda All items noted with an asterisk ( *) are considered routine by the Board and will be enacted by one motion without discussion A citizen or board member may request that the Board remove an item from the Consent Agenda; if such a request is approved, the item will be considered in its normal sequence on the Agenda. 3) Pg. 1 * Approval of Board Minutes from October 22; November 5 and November 14 special call study session 4) Pg. 5 *Boarding Reports 5) Pg.15 *Funds Disbursed 6) Finance Reports (distributed at meeting) 7) Board Members Report 8) Airport Staff Report Agenda Nov 26, 2012.doc 1 9) Old Business a) Noland Decoto b) RFP for Management and Operations of the Airport and Air Service Development 10) New Business 11) Pg 29. Reso — YAT -R- 2012 -034 — Declare Surplus Property 12) Pg 30. Reso — YAT -R- 2012 -036 — Accept Intergovernmental Agreement for Financial Services with Yakima County. 13) Executive Session as allowed under RCW 42.30.110, Section G - Personnel. Expected to last approximately 30 minutes. 14) Good of the Order 15) Adjournment The next Board Public Meeting will be held at 5:30PM on Monday, December 17, 2012. Agenda Nov 26, 2012.doc 2 " COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT a \ Planning Division l 129 North 2 Street, 2 floor Yakima, Washington 98901 (509) 575 -6183 • Fax (509) 575 -6105 www.buildingyakima.cont • www.yakimawa.govlservices /planning City of Yakima Planning Commission PUBLIC HEARING City Hall Council Chambers Wednesday November 28, 2012 3:30 - 5:00 p.m. YPC Members: Chairman Ben Shoval, Co -Chair Bill Cook, Ron Anderson, Al Rose, Scott Clark, Dave Fonfara, Paul Stelzer City Planning Staff: Steve Osguthorpe, Community Development Director/Planning Manager; Bruce Benson, Supervising Planner; Jeff Peters and Joseph Calhoun, Associate Planners; Chris Wilson, Assistant Planner; and Rosalinda Ibarra, Planning Technician Agenda I. Call to Order II. Audience Participation III. Introductions: A. Paul Stelzer - Yakima Planning Commission Member IV. Public Hearing: Amendments to the Adult Entertainment Business Ordinance V. Shoreline Master Plan Stakeholder's Meeting - Review of the Goals and Policies VI. Other Business VII. Adjourn to December 12, 2012 CITY MEETING SCHEDULE For November 26, 2012 — December 3, 2012 Please note: Meetings are subject to change Monday, November 26 12:00 p.m. Capitol Theatre Board Meeting — Capitol Theatre 12:00 p.m. Greenway Board Meeting — Greenway Visitors Center Tuesday, November 27 10:00 a.m. City Council Study Session — Council Chambers 1:30 p.m. County Commissioners Meeting — Council Chambers 3:00 p.m. Bid Opening — Council Chambers Wednesday, November 28 5:30 p.m. Historic Preservation Commission — Council Chambers Thursday, November 29 9:00 a.m. Hearing Examiner — Council Chambers 1:30 p.m. EMS Board Meeting — Yakima Regional 5:00 p.m. YVVCB Holiday Reception & Silent Auction — Convention Center Monday, December 3 10:00 a.m. City Council Media Briefing — Council Chambers 3:00 p.m. Bid Opening — Council Chambers 3:30 p.m. Civil Service Commission — Council Chambers Office Of Mayor /City Council Preliminary Future Activities Calendar Please Note Meetings are subject to change leeting Organization ' Purpose 'Participants.,ry Meeting; Location ate/Time ss Mon. Nov. 26 1200 p.m. Capitol Theatre Board Board Meeting Bristol Capitol Theatre Meeting ... 1 . 2 . 2022 .= _GreenwayllozdfVlesaLBoard Meetin Ettl Greenwa Visitors Center Tue. Nov. 27 10 00 a m City Council Study Session Scheduled Meeting Council Council Chambers Wed. Nov. 28 5.30 p m. Historic Preservation Scheduled Meeting Bristol Council Chambers Commission Thur. Nov. 29 1.30 p.m. EMS Board Meeting Board Meeting Lover (alt) Yakima Regional 5 00 p m. Yakima Valley Visitors & Scheduled Event Open Convention Center Convention Bureau Annual Rece•tion Mon. Dec. 3 • _w.m. 10:00 a.m. City Council Media Briefing Scheduled Meeting Ensey Council Chambers Tue. Dec. 4 00 p.m. Miscellaneous Issues Scheduled Meeting Cawley TBD 12:00 p.m. YVVCB Executive Scheduled Meeting Adkison Zesta Cucina Committee Meeting 5 00 p.m. City Council Executive Scheduled Meeting Council Council Chambers Session 6 00 • m Cit Council Meetin Scheduled Meetin• Council Council Chambers Wed Dec. 5 a.,,. ,.a�.�........�, .�..�...Y,mm �..�.. .��_.•. 4.00 p m. Regional Fire Authority Scheduled Meeting Adkison, Cawley, Station 95 Coffe Thur. Dec. 6 4:00 p m. Gang Free Initiative Steering Scheduled Meeting Ettl, Adkison, TBD Committee Meeting Coffey 4.00 p m Casey Family Open House Scheduled Event Open 404 N 3rd Street Fri. Dec. 7 8 a.m. SistereLlteetin • Scheduled Meetin• Adkison CED Conference Room Mon. Dec. 10 8:30 a.m. Pension Board Meetings Board Meeting Coffey HR Conference Room 10.00 a.m. City Council Media Briefing Scheduled Meeting Coffey Council Chambers Tue. Dec. 11 1 :00 p m Miscellaneous Issues Scheduled Meeting Cawley, Adkison TBD 2.00 • m. Cit Council meetin• Scheduled Meeting Council Council Chambers Wed. Dec. 12 9.30 a.m. Yakima River Basin Water Scheduled Meeting Lover Arboretum Integrated Plan 3.30 p m. Planning Commission Scheduled Meeting Ensey Council Chambers Meeting 5.30 p.m. Parks & Recreation Scheduled Meeting Adkison Council Chambers Commission Thur. Dec. 13 , 1 00 p.m. Harman Center Board Board Meeting Adkison Harman Center Meeting 1 30 p.m. Yakima Regional C lean Air Scheduled Meeting Lover Council Chambers Meeting 5 p.m YCDA Board Meetin• Board Meetin• Adkison New Vision Office Mon. Dec. 17 1 30 p.m. YVCOG Executive Scheduled Meeting Ensey YVCOG Office Committee Meeting Tue. Dec. 18 ._ .._�,.�._,.. 12 00 •:m. Miscellaneous Issues Scheduled Meetin• Cawle , Adkison TBD Wed. Dec. 19 1200 p.m. PAL Board Meeting Board Meeting Coffey PAL Center 320E2_ Arts Commission Scheduled Meetin• Adkison CED Conference Room PRELIMINARY FUTURE COUNCIL AGENDA December 4 5:00 p m. Executive Session — Council Chambers • Consideration of Matters Concerning Real Estate 6:00 p.m. Business Meeting — Council Chambers • Resolution authorizing Interlocal agreement with Selah to provide building inspection services • Resolution authorizing Certain Uncollectible Central Accounts Receivables to be written off • Resolution authorizing Certain Uncollectible Utility Bills to be Written Off • Resolution authorizing Certain Uncollectible Parking Citations to be Written Off • Resolution declaring Cougar or Husky Day in conjunction with Yakima Downtown Rotary Auction • Resolution withdrawing Comprehensive Plan Amendment and Rezone from further Council consideration and rescinding the Council's direction to remand this matter back to the City of Yakima's Planning Commission • Resolution authorizing amendment to the existing Professional Services Agreement with Pharmer Engineering for the Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (UASB) Bioreactor and Electrical Improvements project • Resolution authorizing Memorandum of Understanding with the Washington State Liquor Control Board for office space for a liquor agent in YPDs building • Resolution accepting and authorizing the City of Yakima's 2013 assessment from the Yakima Valley Conference of Governments • Legislation regarding the financing and purchase of one Fire Apparatus. A. An ordinance authorizing the acquisition of one Fire Apparatus and the execution of a related financing contract with the Office of the State Treasurer and other related documentation. B. A reimbursement resolution declaring that the City reasonably expects to reimburse expenditures for the purchase of the Fire Apparatus with the proceeds of the financing contract. 7:00 p.m. Public Hearing — Council Chambers 11/21/2012 1 52 PM A Simple Technique for Improving Council Decision Making I MRSC Insight Page 1 of 2 A Simple Technique for improving Council Decision Making Posted on November 5, 2012by Byron Matsuyama One of the things that has always fascinated me as a student and observer of local government has been the process that local legislative bodies use to discuss, debate, and formulate policy decisions. To my mind, much of what constitutes "good government" is a direct consequence of an open, fair, and effective legislative decision - making process. The open and fair parts are regulated by state laws relating to issues such as campaign finance reporting, public records disclosure, and open public meetings. Effectiveness, on the other hand, is left to the local legislative body. While there are a lot of moving parts in this process and, therefore, lots of opportunities to improve it, one critical aspect, and the focus of this blog post, has to do with the way local legislative bodies deliberate on the policy issues that come before them. When acting in their formal legislative capacity, local councils come together for a very specialized purpose — to discuss, debate, and finally decide on important issues affecting their communities. It is at this point during the give and take of their policy discussions, where arguments are put forth, opinions are swayed, and votes are taken. It's not true that councilmembers always come to such meetings with their minds already made up, as some citizens and members of the press seem to think. So, it is important not only that these discussions take place, but that they be conducted in ways that promote the best possible exchange of information and ideas. To this end, one simple but effective technique designed to improve this process was suggested by Ann Macfarlane, one of MRSC's long -time Council /Commission Advisors, in her 2009 column, "Using the Round Robin Method for Efficient Council Meetings." Ann's column contains some sage advice for local legislative bodies interested in improving both the efficiency and the quality of their meetings. In it she argues that the "round robin method" for council deliberation contained in Roberts Rules of Order is one of the best ways to promote a "fair and judicious discussion of issues in which each member has an equal opportunity to participate." Of course, local government advisory boards and commissions can also benefit from this type of discussion format. In a round robin format, each council or board member participating in key policy discussions is given the opportunity to speak once, going around the table, before anyone can speak a second time. While this may seem like a minor procedural issue, anyone who has spent any amount of time participating on a council, board, or commission knows that who speaks, when, and for how long, can often have profound impacts on the outcomes of many important policy discussions. The round robin format seeks to level the playing field a bit by ensuring that all council'and board members have the opportunity and, in fact, are prompted to weigh in on particular issues. Councils or boards that have no rules of procedure or that do not pay attention to the details of how their meetings are conducted are more prone to falling into habits and routines that can reduce their effectiveness as decision - making bodies. How many times have you been at a meeting where one or two members dominate the discussion, either because they are always the ones who speak up first or because. they feel compelled to answer every challenge to their point of view? Members don't have to be rude or inconsiderate to end up dominating the discussion. They may just be enthusiastic, which, unfortunately, can have the same negative impact. In either case, to the extent that other members who have valuable opinions to share become less inclined or able to add their thoughts to the mix, the quality of the discussion and ultimately the decision itself can suffer. Then there are situations where, for whatever reasons, some members may just be reluctant to jump in and offer their opinions. Follow http: / /insight.mrsc. org /2012/ 11 /05 /a- simple - technique- for - improving- council- decision -m... 11/16/2012 A Simple Technique for Improving Council Decision Making 1 MRSC Insight Page 2 of 2 Sometimes this is because they may feel that they are not as well- informed as they should be on an issue, or perhaps because they are concerned that their opinion will be rejected by the rest of the group, or may be unpopular with a wider audience. Ironically, when called upon, these same individuals often end up making key contributions to the overall discussion. In my experience as a member of the city of Kirkland's Planning Commission for the past eight years, including a year as the chair, I know that we make our best decisions when all our members have taken the opportunity to weigh in on whatever issue is before us. When, on the other hand, we have just one or two members who dominate the discussion, or where, for whatever reasons, some members are reluctant to offer their own point of view, then we become less effective. Particularly in our role as an advisory body to the city council, it is always more helpful to have a thorough discussion of the issues that will, in turn, provide a stronger record of our deliberations for the benefit of the city council as they go on to make their final policy decisions. To be effective, councils and boards should conduct their meetings in ways that promote the fullest discussion of the issues with the broadest possible participation by all of the council or board members. One of the simplest ways to ensure that this takes place is to make use of the round robin discussion format. I'm not suggesting that this approach is necessary for every single discussion. It is intended simply as a tool. Experienced mayors and board chairs know when their council or board will benefit most from a more structured discussion format. Share this: Twitter Facebook Email Like this: `, Like Be the first to like this. About Byron Katsuyama '' Byron has over 3o years of experience in local government policy and administration research including such areas as Corms of II & government, strategic planning, performance measurement, and general local government management. In his own community of Kirkland, Byron is a member of the city's planning commission. View as pr': , 'r Byron Kat ;r;.1::ua ibis ;;ni:ywas t,c; >b,c• in £last i'r„ rlar:ar Govr arsa- I=o6ey 13rc:ernare the permalink. MRSC Insight M;em,: (G- inu<rdTU,:n ?yTca L`lo ,it Ir Follow http: / /insight.mrsc.org /2012/ 11 /05 /a- simple- technique- for - improving - council- decision -m... 11/16/2012