HomeMy WebLinkAbout10/01/1996 Business Meeting •
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CITY OF YAKIMA, WASHINGTON
OCTOBER 1, 1996
BUSINESS MEETING
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 Lynn Buchanan, presiding. Council Members Henry
Beauchamp, Ernie Berger, John Klingele, John Puccinelli, and
Bernard Sims present on roll call. Council Member Clarence
Barnett absent and excused. 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
Puccinelli.
3. OPEN DISCUSSION FOR THE GOOD OF THE ORDER
A. PROCLAMATIONS (IF APPLICABLE)
Council Member Berger read a proclamation declaring
October 6 -12, 1996 as RSVP Volunteer Week urging citizens to
become volunteers.
Council Member Puccinelli read a proclamation declaring
October 7 -13, 1996 as Yakima Symphony Orchestra Week in
celebration of its 25th consecutive season.
Council Member Klingele read a proclamation declaring
October 6 -12, 1996 as Week Without Violence encouraging
citizens to replace violence with sports and fitness
activities.
Mayor Buchanan read a proclamation issued in honor of W. K.
"Pete" Moore, Fire Chief, in dedication of the new Fire
Training Facility.
Mayor Buchanan read a proclamation recognizing outstanding
women educators by declaring October 1996 as Alpha Delta
Kappa Month.
• 4. CONSENT AGENDA
Mayor Buchanan referred to the items placed on the Consent
Agenda, questioning whether there were any additions or
deletions from either Council members or citizens present.
The City Clerk then read the Consent Agenda items, including
resolutions and ordinances by title. It was MOVED BY SIMS,
SECONDED BY KLINGELE, THAT THE CONSENT AGENDA, AS READ, BE
ADOPTED. The motion carried by unanimous roll call vote;
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OCTOBER 1, 1996
Barnett absent. (Subsequent paragraphs preceded by an
asterisk ( *) indicate items on the Consent Agenda handled
under one motion without further discussion.)
*5. APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF SEPTEMBER 3, 1996 BUSINESS MEETING
The minutes of the September 3, 1996 Business meeting, was
approved, having been duly certified accurate by two Council
members and no one present wishing to have said minutes read
publicly.
6. SPECIAL PRESENTATION BY JUDGE STEPHEN BROWN RELATING TO
JUVENILE JUSTICE CENTER AND TRUANCY PROGRAM
Judge Brown thanked the Council and the city voters for
their support for the construction of the new Juvenile
Justice Center completed last summer. He reported the
modern facility is running efficiently and is operating at a
70 -bed capacity with room for future growth. Now there are
beds available for dependency cases, truancy cases, District
Court juvenile programs, as well as Juvenile felony cases.
Judge Brown specifically detailed the success of the Truancy
Program. He provided a brief history of the local volunteer
program and reported it has had the most successes of all
Truancy programs throughout the state according to a summary
from the Institute of Public Policy that came out the end of
August. Judge Brown provided contact information and urged
citizens to volunteer for the Community Truancy Board and
the Guardian Ad Litem Program.
6A. SPECIAL PRESENTATION BY BEV LUBY BARTZ, REPRESENTING THE
COALITION OF NEIGHBORHOODS ASSOCIATION
Bev Luby Bartz, representing the Coalition of Neighborhoods,
presented Council with a second place award they received at
the Sunfair Parade. The Boy Scouts and the Alley Cats were
recognized for their community involvement to achieve this
award.
7. PUBLIC HEARING TO CONSIDER PROPOSAL THAT THE TRANSIT SERVICE
FARE STRUCTURE BE MODIFIED TO ALLOW DIAL -A -RIDE CLIENTS TO
RIDE THE FIXED ROUTE BUS SYSTEM FARE FREE
Bill Schultz, Transit Manager, explained this proposal is
presented in an effort to find a cost effective means of
transportation for some Dial -a -Ride clients who can make use
of the fixed route transit service. The 35 cent fare which
would be waived is off -set by the $12 -$14 cost per trip
under the Dial -a -Ride system. While the savings won't be
large, staff believes the incentive may be worth a try.
Mayor Buchanan opened the public hearing and invited
testimony from the public. There being no one, he closed
the public hearing. It was MOVED BY BEAUCHAMP, SECONDED BY
KLINGELE, TO APPROVE THE PLAN. The motion carried by
unanimous voice vote; Barnett absent.
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OCTOBER:: 1, 1996
8. AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION
Larry Mathews, 805 South 17th Avenue, requested assistance
with a clearview problem on 16th Avenue between McLaren and
Tieton Drive. He was advised the issue is being processed
through the proper legal procedure to be resolved.
Edward Meyer, 1014 South 23rd Avenue, reported on his
situation resulting from the sewer back -up at 24th and Nob
Hill Boulevard and the potential for future damage from
water run -off from that property which is under
construction. The issue regarding the water run -off was
referred to staff; the sewer back-up. issue is already being
pursued through the damage claim process.
Richard Andring, 203. South 8th Avenue, addressed the YVC
wall issue, stating the wall would most likely not support
any additional height. He was advised that a separate
cyclone fence is being installed today.
Betty. Gaudette, 701 North 6th Street, thanked the Council
for their support and staff's participation in the recent
Northeast Neighborhood Maintenance Walk.
Luz Gutierrez thanked the three Council members who voted to
place her on the Airport Board. She requested the Mayor to
review all the City's boards and commissions for membership
diversity.
9. CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING AWARD OF DIAL -A -RIDE
CONTRACT TO DIAMOND CAB
Bill Schultz, Transi•t reported three bids were
received during the bid process for the Dial -A -Ride
Contract. Followed by a period of analysis, the two lowest
bidders were interviewed by the Council Transit Committee.
It is their recommendation to award the contract to Diamond
Cab, d /b /a Access Paratransit, the lowest responsible
bidder. Mr. Schultz indicated the current average cost per
ride is $12 and the average under this contract would drop
to $10. this results in a savings of approximately
$300,000. For 1996 $866,000 has been allocated for the
Dial -A -Ride Budget. Council Members Sims and Klingele
questioned the expected savings wondering how realistic it
is to generate the amount of savings indicated. Mr. Schultz
explained the per boarding cost form of payment to be
utilized in this contract which will include separate fees
for wheelchair and non wheelchair passenger boarding.
Helen Bradley, Director of Aging & Long Term Care, spoke on
behalf of the seniors who have utilized the Dial A Ride
services furnished by People For People during the present
contract period. She spoke favorably, describing the
responsiveness and ability to get a lot done in a short
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OCTOBER 1, 1996
period of time demonstrated by People For People. She urged
the Council to consider the safety of the citizens and
possible liability of the City when making its decision, not
on costs alone.
Sheila Brogdon, a staff member of Aging and Long Term Care,
explained her agency does contract with People For People
for senior transportation services in Yakima. She monitors
their services and feels they provide a very good quality
service for the seniors. She described the quality training
People For People has provided their employees enabling them
to get the rider to their destination safely. She urged the
Council to consider the past performance of People For
People when making the decision to award the contract.
Council Member Berger indicated the City recognizes the
importance of addressing ADA requirements and the
responsibility associated with that; however, the budget
crunch and the ADA requirements have affected the budget
drastically and is expected to increase even more.
Mary McDaniels, 1418 South 44th Avenue, a DAR client,
commented the driver's knowledge and safety and attention to
client's needs is excellent, but the administrative costs
are too high. However, she urges that if the Council
accepts a lower bid that assurances are in place that the
quality of service will be maintained or improved. Council
Member Berger asked if she was recommending that the lower
bid not be accepted. Ms. McDaniels reiterated her earlier
statement about assuring the quality of the service remain.
She also asked if at the end of this year if it is mandatory
that this contract be renewed. She feels it is important to
cut cost, but also maintain the quality of service. Council
Member Berger explained if they don't meet the ADA
requirements then it won't be renewed.
Chris Fix, 302 W. Lincoln Avenue, Transportation Director of
People For People, explained People For People is very
disappointed with the decision and the bid process for the
contract. He does not feel the City of Yakima gave them
adequate time to respond to its decision to award the bid to
Diamond Cab. He indicated many people wanted to attend this
meeting but were unable to because of short notice for which
staff had apologized. Mr. Fix sympathized with the City's
budget problems, but feels neither People For People nor the
Dial -A -Ride program should take responsibility for that
situation. He explained he has talked to the Transit
Committee about costs reduction and feels his agency
submitted a very good bid. He feels a long term contract is
needed to project costs more economically. He requested the
Council to consider holding a public hearing so the Dial-A-
I/
Ride users could voice their opinion about the program.
Mr. Fix pointed out that People For People is a professional
service organization and is willing to make a smooth
transition if the Council decides to award the contract to
Diamond Cab.
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OCTOBER 1996 1 5 7
Lynne Kittleson, 305 North 9th Street, expressed concern
about the quality ofservice thatDiamond Cab can give. She
has experienced long delays when using Diamond Cab. She
asked that the Dial -A -Ride service costs be investigated
before the contract is awarded.
Richard Andring related a personal experience with Diamond
Cab concerning the fare he was charged. He asked what bid
prices were submitted by Diamond Cab. Council Member Berger
explained that it is $6.50 for no wheel chair and $10.00
with a wheelchair. Mr. Andring urged the Council to award
the contract to Diamond Cab because he feels they will
furnish service 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and maybe
Dial -A -Ride with Diamond Cab will encourage people to
utilize this service in the evening and ridership will
increase.
Emily Day, 607 South 9th Street, reported that she used
Dial -A -Ride six days a week going to work and to the store
and she explained that she has had long delays and does not
like the practices of the management of People For People.
Mary McDaniels pointed out that the Dial -A -Ride Service will
not be a 24 hours service even with Diamond Cab. The Dial -
A -Ride service, whether it be with Diamond Cab or People For
People, will still only be operating the hours that they
have been operating. Even though additional transit
services are needed and additional Dial -A -Ride services are
needed, this contract will not provide those additional
services should it- go to Diamond Cab even though they
operate 24 hours a day. If services are needed beyond the
establish service hours, people will be paying regular cab
rates for any services,,that :.,they require or will be charged
regular rates if it is beyond the service time.
Richard Andring asked what will be the service time
provided. Council Member Klingele reported that Dial -A -Ride
services are only required by Federal law to be provided the
same times as regular transit service, 6:00 a.m. to
7:00 p.m. Monday through Friday; 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Saturdays. Council Member Berger commented if we go broke
and can't afford a transit service, we will not, have a Dial -
A -Ride program either. We are only trying to save the
system; but with the costs increasing at the rate they're
increasing, choices have to be made to keep things solvent.
Mr. Andring asked if the law required Dial -A -Ride services
be provided because shuttle bus services were provided for
the Fourth of July activities. Mayor Buchanan and Council
Member Berger explained that was not a requirement.
Council Member Sims again questioned whether it was
realistic to believe that the costs to operate be
provided for approximately 25 percent less. Since these
were the bids that were submitted, he asked if the City was
bound by the lowest bid. City Attorney Paolella explained
all the bids could be thrown out and re -bid again.
Mr. Paolella further explained that under this contract,
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OCTOBER 1, 1996 .
there are protections built in to make sure that services
required under the law are provided. There is a 10 day
termination provision in the event the contractor failed to
provide the required services. Finally, there is a 30 day
termination provision in addition, which gives the city a
wide degree of discretion as far as continuing this or not,
if it's working.
Council Member Sims also asked where are we now in
relationship to other Dial -A -Ride services for other parts
of the state. Bill Schultz pointed out that on a per
passenger basis, our costs are very low compared to other
transit systems in the state. There may be one or two that
are lower, but the majority are higher in costs. $20 is not
unusual for a trip cost. Most of these are not contracted
services, most of them are provided by the transit systems
themselves.
Council Member Puccinelli questioned whether that is a fair
comparison because a lot of these Transit systems are PTBAs
and are spread out over a lot bigger transportation area.
Council Member Beauchamp commented, as a member of the
Transit Committee, both proposals were considered very
carefully. Concerning Diamond Cab's ability to perform, the
equipment they would use and trying to assess whether they
had the capacity to actually do the services and at the end
of the whole process, the Transit Committee could not find
adequate reasons that say they could not do it after hearing
all their answers to all the questions; yet we know we have
been getting excellent service by the current provider. On
the other hand we know the cost of the whole system has been
growing at an enormous proportion and we've been looking for
ways to bring costs under control. This bid did come in a
couple of hundred thousand dollars less and it was difficult
for the committee to ignore that.
City Manager Zais pointed out we are still projecting a
growth in demand for Dial -A -Ride Services and that growth is
still projected to occur, based on usage and demand for
services the last five years. What this would help offset
is some of that growth cost that is built into the budget.
Otherwise, it is going to compound with growth and impact
payment of the fee for service. It cost so much to provide
the service, but aside from that is the continuing demand
for the service. Mr. Zais suggested the low bidder respond.
Pam Scott, owner of Diamond Cab and Access Paratransit,
stated that one of the main things that she would like to
address is that the cabs will not be providing Dial -A -Ride
services. Access Paratransit will provide the service with
four wheel drive tour vans and eight sedans. If the
ridership creates a need for more, she will get more. She
spoke about the process she went through to prepare for this
opportunity. The City Transit Division, with the exception
of Bill Schultz, had a chance to meet some of the people
that are assisting her in establishing Access Paratransit
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OCTOBER 1 1996
up, her financial backer and her trainer. Arrow
Transportation, onew3o'fl, the biggest paratransit companies on
the other side, is providing the experience and a lot of
expertise in this process.
Mayor Buchanan announced that a message from a viewer
concerning Dial -A -Ride was just received and copies were
distributed to the Council Members.
Bill Schultz, Transit Manager, briefly explained how the
transition will take place which will include an agreement
between the contractors; the estimate is that Access
Paratransit will take approximately six weeks to get ready
to take over the contract. In that time staff will be
working with them and with the current contractor to try to
make a smooth transition. We need to actually come to an
agreement as to what the startup date will be and certainly
the current .contractor has a say in that as well.,. We will
try working with the various staffs involved to try to make
it as smooth a transition as possible. Council Member
Klingele requested the public be provided any changes in
phone numbers, etc.
After Resolution No. R -96 -131 was read by title, it was
MOVED BY KLINGELE, SECONDED BY BERGER, TO ADOPT THE
RESOLUTION. The motion carried by unanimous roll call vote;
Barnett absent.
RESOLUTION NO. R -96 -131, A RESOLUTION authorizing and
directing the City Manager and City Clerk to execute a
transportation services agreement with Diamond. Cab Company,
doing business as Access,Paratransit.
*10. CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING EXECUTION OF
PROFESSIONAL SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH BLACK & VEATCH FOR
DEVELOPING COST OF SERVICE MODELS FOR THE WATER DIVISION
RESOLUTION NO. R -96 -,132 A RESOLUTION authorizing execution
of a contract for engineering services with Black & Veatch.
*11. CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING EXECUTION OF
AGREEMENT WITH CITY OF TOPPENISH AND TOPPENISH SCHOOL
DISTRICT FOR THE D.A.R.E. PROGRAM
RESOLUTION NO. R -96 -133, A RESOLUTION authorizing and
directing the City Manager and City Clerk of the City of
Yakima to execute an agreement to provide D.A.R.E. services
with the City of Toppenish and Toppenish School District No.
202.
*12. SET DATE OF PUBLIC MEETING FOR OCTOBER 15, 1996 ON THE EMERY
LANE FINAL PLAT
October 15, 1996 was set as the date of public meeting to
consider the final plat of. Emery Lane.
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OCTOBER 1, 1996
*13. CONSIDERATION OF ORDINANCE AMENDING THE MUNICIPAL CODE
REGARDING DEPENDENT COVERAGE FOR THE FIRE COMMAND STAFF
ORDINANCE NO. 96 -66, AN ORDINANCE relating to city and
employee contributions toward the city health care plan;
requiring the chief, deputy chief, and battalion chiefs of
the Fire Department to contribute towards dependent health
care coverage; and amending Subsections B, C, and D of
Section 2.04.030 of the City of Yakima Municipal Code.
14. OTHER BUSINESS
There was none.
Information Items:
Items of information provided to Council were: Agenda for
September 25, 1996 Yakima Housing Authority Board meeting;
Agenda for the October 1, 1996 Downtown Area Redevelopment
Committee meeting and minutes of its September 5, 1996
meeting; Monthly Annexation Status Report for October 1996;
Monthly Report of the Chief of Police for August 1996;
Monthly Report from Office of Neighborhood Development for
September 1996; Monthly Personnel Report from Human
Resources Division for August 1996; Legal Department
Monthly Report for June 1996; Assignments Pending in Office
of Environmental Planning as of October 1, 1996; and Agenda
for the September 26, 1996 Yakima International Airport -
McAllister Field Board meeting and minutes of its August 22,
1996 meeting.
15. EXECUTIVE SESSION REGARDING PROSPECTIVE LITIGATION
It was MOVED BY SIMS, SECONDED BY KLINGELE, TO MOVE INTO
EXECUTIVE SESSION, CONCERNING PROSPECTIVE LITIGATION
FOLLOWED BY ADJOURNMENT TO OCTOBER 8, 1996 AT 7:30 AM AND
OCTOBER 15, 1996 AT 7:30 AM. City Manager Zais reported
that the County has requested that the October 15, 1996
meeting be canceled. They have conflicts that day and have
asked that be suspended. It was MOVED BY KLINGELE, SECONDED
BY SIMS, TO AMEND THE MOTION TO STRIKE OUT OCTOBER 15, 1996
MEETING. The amendment passed by a 5 -1 voice vote; Berger
voting nay; Barnett absent. The question was called for a
vote on the motion as amended. The motion carried by
unanimous voice vote; Barnett absent.
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OCTOBER 1, 1996
16. ADJOURNMENT TO OCTOBER ,8, 1996 AT 7:30 AM FOR INFORMAL
DISCUSSION AT THE , ^WASTEWATER`•MAINTENANCE FACILITY, THEN TO
OCTOBER 15, 1996 AT 7:30 A.M. FOR JOINT CITY /COUNTY /UNION GAP
MEETING AT ESD #105 CONFERENCE CENTER
Following the conclusion of the Executive Session, the
meeting adjourned at 4:30 p.m.
READ AND CERTIFIED ACCURATE BY: Or
OUNCIL ME BER DATE
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COUNCIL NtER • DATE
ATTEST: •
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CITY CLERK L ' BUCHANAN, MAYOR
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Minutes prepared by Deputy City Clerk Skovald. An audio and video tape of this meeting are
available in the City Clerk's Office
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