Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/06/2001 Business Meeting 13 7 CITY OF YAKIMA, WASHINGTON BUSINESS MEETING OF THE CITY COUNCIL MARCH 6, 2001 - 2:00 P.M. COUNCIL CHAMBERS - 129 NORTH 2 STREET 1. ROLL CALL Present: Council: Mayor Mary Place, presiding, Council Members Clarence Barnett, Lynn Buchanan, Larry Mattson, John Puccinelli, and Bernard Sims Staff: City Manager Zais, City Attorney Paolella and City Clerk Roberts Absent: Henry Beauchamp 2. INVOCATION /PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE An invocation was given by Council Member Puccinelli, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance led by Council Member Barnett. 3. OPEN DISCUSSION FOR THE GOOD OF THE ORDER /SPECIAL PRESENTATION A. PROCLAMATIONS - Although there were no proclamations, Mayor Place took this opportunity to congratulate the West Valley Girls basketball team on their state championship • win and wished Eisenhower well in their upcoming match. 4. CONSENT AGENDA Mayor Place referred to the items placed on the Consent Agenda, questioning whether there were any additions or deletions from either Council members or citizens present. Item number 8 was added to the Consent Agenda. The City Clerk read the Consent Agenda items, including resolutions and ordinances by title. SIMS MOVED AND BUCHANAN SECONDED TO APPROVE THE CONSENT AGENDA AS READ. The motion carried by unanimous roll call vote; Beauchamp absent. (Subsequent paragraphs preceded by an asterisk ( *) indicate items on the Consent Agenda handled under one motion without further discussion.) *A. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE FEBRUARY 20, 2001 BUSINESS MEETING The minutes of the February 20, 2001 Business meeting were approved, having been duly certified accurate by two Council members and no one present wishing to have said minutes read publicly. 138 MARCH 6, 2001 5. AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION David Hawkins, 1705 Gordon Road #22, as a board of director for the Slow Pitch Association, spoke in support of the sports center noting the revenue advantages of the facility. He said a facility of this type would create rapid return on investment. Bob Mason with the North East Neighborhood Association presented an official Certificate of Merit award for outstanding performance by Linda Rossignol, Nathan Thompson and Royale Schneider for making a difference in the appearance of N.E. Yakima. PUBLIC HEARING 6. PUBLIC HEARING ON PROPOSED EXPANSION OF THE CBD PARKING EXEMPTION AREA Bill Cook, Director of Community and Economic Development, described the various options included in the proposed expanded parking exemption. He clarified that with this change, although businesses will have to consider parking issues, future development in those areas would no longer have a zoning requirement for parking. ® Mayor Place opened the public hearing Mayor Place opened the public hearing asking those who are in opposition to expanding the parking exemption area to come forward. Joe Morrier, 402 E. Yakima Avenue, spoke against the expanded exemption area saying the City has complained about parking problems in downtown Yakima for years and it doesn't make sense to him to extend the exempted area without providing for any additional parking. Bob Mason, 612 North 2nd Street, spoke against the expansion saying there are enough parking problems now. Bev Luby Bartz, 114 North 7 Street, said she understands the purpose is to bring more business to the area, but not to the detriment of those who are already here. She said she lives in this area and parking is already a problem. She does not want customers and employees to park in front of her house so she can't get to her home because a business doesn't supply parking. She suggested looking into changing the codes or making administrative adjustments rather than changing the zoning in a geographic area. Lynne Kittelson, 305 North 9 Street, said that although she has a problem with putting so much surface land under concrete by requiring parking, she thinks something will have to be done to mitigate the impact on our neighborhoods. It is her opinion that the immediate surrounding streets will suffer. Some of her ideas were limiting how many cars people can park on the street, possibly needing a 2 • MARCH 6, 2001 139 permit to park on the street, and using the alleys to access parking in back of their properties. Gary Roose, who lives at 121 Basalt Springs Way in Naches but has property next to Gary's Red Apple Market, asked if Council had thought of the possibility of shuttle service to parking lots away from the center of downtown to relieve the immediate downtown area parking problems. He said he has some vacant property and may consider it for that purpose. Council Member Buchanan commented that we did have a shuttle service downtown and it helped our parking problem considerably but we sold it for 25 cents on the dollar to get rid of it. Mayor Place closed the Public Hearing. • Council Members ask questions, then make motions Council Member Barnett asked staff to review areas 1, 2, 4 and 8 against the four questions listed in the study session material that should be considered in making a decision. Mr. Cook addressed those points as follows: • Question 1: If the area under consideration becomes fully built where will the necessary employee and customer parking be located? The assumption is the market will satisfy its own needs. Some businesses, by their own decision, built twice as many spaces as they needed, but that's not going to be the case for an in -fill building where they need all the property. Area #3 will probably not change significantly from what it is. Council Member Puccinelli commented that, in his opinion, area #3 would not have an impact on the citizens. Area #2 is probably already fully developed, but if anything new came in, parking would end up on the street. Area #1 has the greatest potential impact. Currently, from a zoning standpoint, if the Convention Center adds on another 25,000 square feet they will require 240 to 300 new parking spaces. This will be talked about at the study session on March 27. One important thought is if people are coming into town for functions and staying at the hotels, they will not require parking. But any local business will have an impact. Area #5 — Except for the one parcel next to the Red Apple Market there aren't many new development sites. New parking demands in that area should not be significant. But if a developer doesn't feel it is important to put the parking with the building it would go out on the street. Area #4 The likelihood of new development in this area is not as high. There are a number of small retail and small commercial businesses in the area already. There are a couple of large sites on 5 Avenue that might result in some large development but Mr. Cook thinks anyone building a new, large, and expensive building will be concerned about supplying parking. 3 140 MARCH 6, 2001 • Question 2: Assuming a parking exemption will attract new development, is the area under consideration a logical addition to existing CBD development? Mr. Cook said the answer is yes, the Council made that decision in the study session • Question 3: What impact will the parking exemption have on the neighborhoods? That was discussed earlier. • • Question 4: Is the area served by Public Transportation? The answer is yes. SIMS MOVED AND MATTSON SECONDED TO PREPARE LEGISLATION TO EXPAND THE EXISTING BOUNDARY TO INCLUDE AREA 1 ON THE MAP. The motion carried by a 5 -1 voice vote, Buchanan voting nay; Beauchamp absent. SIMS MOVED AND PUCCINELLI SECONDED TO PREPARE LEGISLATION TO EXPAND THE EXISTING BOUNDARY TO INCLUDE AREA 2 ON THE MAP. The motion failed by a 3 -3 voice vote, Mattson, Place, and Buchanan voting nay; Beauchamp absent. MATTSON MOVED AND SIMS SECONDED TO PREPARE LEGISLATION TO EXPAND THE EXISTING BOUNDARY TO INCLUDE AREA 3 ON THE MAP. The motion failed by a 3 -3 voice vote, Mattson, Buchanan, and Place voting nay; Beauchamp absent. MATTSON MOVED AND SIMS SECONDED TO PREPARE LEGISLATION TO EXPAND THE EXISTING BOUNDARY TO INCLUDE AREA 4 ON THE MAP. The motion failed by a 4 -2 voice vote, Barnett, Buchanan, Place, and Puccinelli voting nay; Beauchamp absent. SIMS MOVED AND PUCCINELLI SECONDED TO PREPARE LEGISLATION TO EXPAND THE EXISTING BOUNDARY TO INCLUDE AREA 5 ON THE MAP. The motion failed by a 3 -3 voice vote, Barnett, Place, and Buchanan voting nay; Beauchamp absent. CITY ,MANAGER'S REPORTS 7. PRESENTATION FROM CONSULTANT RE TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION ESTABLISHING TELECOMMUNICATIONS AS AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PRIORITY • Randy Beehler gives background on the telecommunications project Randy Beehler, Cable Communications Manager, explained that in 1999 the City received a grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration to get a picture of their telecommunications environment. A Telecommunications Planning Committee was formed. The grant was used to hire Metropolitan Communications Consultants (MCC). Mr. Beehler then introduced Richard Lee, the President of MCC. • 4 14',1 MARCH 6, 2001 • MCC President, Richard Lee, gives overview of their findings. Mr. Lee explained their method of measuring the infrastructure in Yakima. Three companies own infrastructure in Yakima: Qwest, Avista Communications, and Charter Communications. A fourth company, Fairpoint Communications, has made plans to build infrastructure in Yakima. He spoke about the capabilities of the different infrastructure. He then suggested that the potential for economic development success would be with the party that had the widest coverage and that currently is Charter Communications. • • Mr. Cook supports the report recommendations Bill Cook, Director of Community and Economic Development spoke about Yakima being at a unique time in history with the development of a technological infrastructure that is reasonably priced. He said without great effort we can do so much for the community by connecting to the region and the world. He went on to explain that the report recommends a priority work plan with emphasis on the City's leadership in meeting their telecommunication goals. He said the City can provide that leadership by building a favorable telecommunication environment, encouraging the development of infrastructure and services, and increasing the communities awareness of the benefits of advanced communications. They can also provide leadership by updating policies and procedures making it easier for new providers to enter the market. This can be done by existing staff with existing resources. • Gary Webster describes the Telecommunications Planning Committee Gary Webster, President and CEO of the Chamber of Commerce and Chairman of the Telecommunications Planning Committee, said they served as a coalition for vendors in the community and oversaw the process. They now expect the Telecommunications Planning Committee (TPC) to serve as a bridge between the City government and the community. • George Chappel gives an update of Qwest equipment locally George Chappel, Regional Manager for Qwest Southwest and Eastern Washington, reported Qwest upgraded the second central office to state of the art digital switch and that both central offices are now state of the art. He said that since the Telecommunications Act of 1996, their infrastructure is open to all competitors and they are willing to help encourage competition. • Summary and action Mr. Beehler summarized by saying some of the things we should do are already being done, they are working on a series of seminars, and the work to update policies is going on. He said the report provided two key things; a good deal of solid information we didn't have before and a clear strategy to follow in meeting our telecommunication goals. 5 142 MARCH 6, 2001 The City Clerk read the resolution by title, SIMS MOVED AND BUCHANAN SECONDED TO ADOPT THE RESOLUTION. The motion carried by a unanimous roll call vote; Beauchamp absent. RESOLUTION NO. R- 2001 -37, A RESOLUTION establishing telecommunications as an economic development priority of the City of Yakima and directing implementation of the priority work plan developed as part of Phase 1 of the City's Telecommunications and Technology Planning Project. *8. CONSIDERATION OF LEGISLATION RELATING TO BILLBOARD SIGNS REQUESTED BY BRESSLER OUTDOOR ADVERTISING: A. RESOLUTION GRANTING THE PLACEMENT OF BILLBOARD AT 5 WEST WASHINGTON AVENUE RESOLUTION NO. R- 2001 -38, A RESOLUTION granting the appeal (UAZO #18 -00) by Bressler Outdoor Advertising of the Hearing Examiner's September 26, 2000 Decision affirming the Code Administration Division's decision to deny a sign permit to place a proposed billboard at 5 West Washington Avenue. B. RESOLUTION DENYING PLACEMENT OF BILLBOARD AT 105 EAST "E" STREET RESOLUTION NO. R- 2001 -39, A RESOLUTION denying the appeal (UAZO #16 -00) by Bressler Outdoor Advertising of the Hearing Examiner's September 26, 2000 Decision affirming the Administrative Official's decision denying Bressler's Class (2) application to place a billboard at 105 East "E" Street. *9. PRESENTATION AND REQUEST FOR APPROVAL OF CONSTRUCTION OF LABYRINTH AT GILBERT PARK The staff recommendation to approve the construction of a labyrinth at Gilbert Park at no cost to the City was approved. *10. CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING EXECUTION OF PROFESSIONAL SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH SHELLY PELZEL FOR COMPUTER SERVICES RESOLUTION NO. R- 2001 -40, A RESOLUTION authorizing the City Manager of the City of Yakima to execute a Professional Services Agreement with Shelly Pelzel, for computer setup and installation services. *11. CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTIONS AUTHORIZING EXECUTION OF AGREEMENTS FOR AQUATIC SERVICES FOR: I , A. YAKIMA ATHLETIC CLUB SWIM TEAM RESOLUTION NO. R- 2001 -41, A RESOLUTION authorizing and directing the City Manager of the City of Yakima to execute an agreement with the Yakima Athletic Club Swim Team for pool rental. 6 14,3 MARCH 6, 2001 B. YMCA SWIM TEAM FOR POOL RENTAL RESOLUTION NO. R- 2001 -42, A RESOLUTION authorizing and directing the City Manager of the City of Yakima to execute an agreement with the YMCA Swim Team for pool rental. *12. CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTIONS AUTHORIZING EXECUTION OF PERSONAL SERVICES AGREEMENTS FOR FOOTCARE SERVICES WITH: A. DIANNE CRAWFORD, SP RESOLUTION NO. R- 2001 -43, A RESOLUTION authorizing and directing the City Manager of the City of Yakima to execute a "Geriatric Footcare Services • Agreement" with Dianne M. Crawford, S.P., to provide footcare services at the Yakima Senior Center. B. NADINE SMITH, RN RESOLUTION NO. R- 2001 -44, A RESOLUTION authorizing and directing the City Manager of the City of Yakima to execute a "Geriatric Footcare Services Agreement" with Nadine Smith, R.N., to provide footcare services at the Yakima Senior Center. *13. CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION APPROVING THE 4 QUARTER 2000 CLAIMS REPORT RESOLUTION NO. R- 2001 -45, A RESOLUTION accepting and approving the 4th Quarter 2000 Insurance Claims Report. *14. CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION AMENDING THE FOUR -PARTY WASTEWATER AGREEMENT MAP FOR TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS TO BOUNDARIES RESOLUTION NO. R- 2001 -46, A RESOLUTION directing the Mayor, City Attorney and the City Clerk to execute the attached Fourth Amendment for Wastewater Treatment and Disposal Service to the Four -Party Agreement. *15. CONSIDERATION OF ADOPTION OF 2001 FEDERAL LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES FOR THE CITY OF YAKIMA The City's 2001 Federal Legislative Priorities for 2001 were approved. *16. SET DATE OF CLOSED RECORD HEARING FOR MARCH 20, 2001 TO CONSIDER THE HEARING EXAMINER'S RECOMMENDATION TO REZONE PROPERTY AT 5110 TIETON DRIVE REQUESTED BY TIM MONAHAN March 20, 2001 was set as the date for a closed record public hearing to consider the Hearing Examiner's recommendation to approve the rezone of property located at 5110 Tieton Drive (Glenwood Square), requested by Tim Monahan. 144. MARCH 6, 2001 *17. SET DATE OF PUBLIC HEARING FOR MARCH 20, 2001 TO CONSIDER HEARING EXAMINER'S RECOMMENDATION ON COMPENSATION BY LIVING CARE CENTER FOR VACATION OF A PORTION OF KNOBLE STREET AND MAVIS AVENUE March 20, 2001 was set as the date of public hearing to consider the Hearing Examiner's recommendation regarding the compensation for the partial vacated right -of -way on Knoble Street and Mavis Avenue by Living Care Center, Inc. ORDINANCES • 18. CONSIDERATION OF ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING CONDEMNATION OF PROPERTY INSIDE YAKIMA CITY LIMITS FOR THE EXPANSION OF VALLEY MALL BOULEVARD AND EXECUTION OF INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT WITH THE CITY OF UNION GAP • Don Schussler asks for City of Yakima's help Don Schussler, 311 North 3 Street, representing the City of Union Gap, requested the City of Yakima's help. He explained the joint venture between the Cities of Yakima, Union Gap and the Department of Transportation to build an extension of 1 -82 out to the Yakima airport. They need help with the phase that takes it from 1 Street to 3rd Avenue, an $11 million project. When condemning property for this project, one set of property owners within the Yakima city limits protested. The courts said these two parcels could not be condemned by the City of Union Gap and that they must be condemned by the City of Yakima. They have developed an interlocal agreement that will allow Union Gap to proceed with the condemnation on the City of Yakima's behalf. This agreement is being put before the Yakima City Council in the form of an ordinance with an emergency clause and will require a unanimous vote. Mr. Schussler said a significant portion of the funding for this phase comes from the State of Washington. If the emergency ordinance does not pass and an alternate ordinance is passed requiring a wait of 30 days, there is a high possibility of that money going to some other municipality. • Yakima has invested in this project Discussion continued regarding the project in general and the expected benefits. Council Member Mattson spoke in support of the project stating it was a regional project with regional benefits. Mayor Place noted the Armory project would benefit from this roadway as well. Joe Morrier, 402 East Yakima Avenue, asked if the interchange at Valley Mall Boulevard and 1 -82 had been addressed with the DOE and when is this project supposed to be done. It was clarified by Mayor Place that the City of Yakima already has $600,000 into this project. Mike Pawlak with Bucher, Willis and Ratliff, project consultants for the City of Union Gap, explained the City of Yakima has $200,000 worth of funding allocated but there are also some partner projects that go along with this that the City has 8 145 MARCH 6, 2001 funds in as well. Council Member Sims questioned the location of the design. There was discussion on the property and the need for it as a result of a 1993 alignment study. It was clarified that the entire parcel would not be condemned but just enough to acquire the right of way that is needed for the roadway and the approach to the bridge. ' The City Clerk read the ordinance; MATTSON MOVED AND PUCCINELLI SECONDED, TO APPROVE THE ORDINANCE. Council Member Sims stated he doesn't see this as an emergency. Aubrey Reeves, Mayor of Union Gap, spoke regarding the timing of the project related to obtaining the state funds. He also advised that the property owner is not against the project but that the issue is the value of the property. The question was called for a vote on the motion. The motion failed by a 4 -2 roll call vote, Sims and Buchanan voting nay; Beauchamp absent. The City Clerk read the alternate ordinance. It was explained that this ordinance removes the emergency clause and has the normal 30 day effectiveness provision. Also added was a sentence stating that Union Gap should give the City of Yakima copies of the pleadings as they go through the condemnation process. MATTSON MOVED AND PUCCINELLI SECONDED TO APPROVE THE ALTERNATE ORDINANCE. The motion carried by a 4 -2 roll call vote; Sims and Buchanan voting nay; Beauchamp absent. ORDINANCE NO. 2001 -8, AN ORDINANCE of the City of Yakima, Washington, relating to transportation facilities; authorizing condemnation; assigning to the City of Union Gap, Washington, authorization to acquire certain real property for the improvement of Valley Mall Boulevard, located within Section 31, Township 13 N., Range 19 E.W.M., Yakima County, Washington, and authorizing the City Manager of the City of Yakima to execute an Interlocal Agreement implementing this Ordinance. * 19. SECOND READING OF ORDINANCE AMENDING THE 2001 BUDGET AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS FOR CITY'S SHARE OF REPAIRS /MODIFICATIONS TO KEECHELUS DAM An Ordinance amending the 2001 budget and appropriating funds for the City's share of repairs and modifications to Keechelus Dam, having been read by title only at the previous meeting, was brought before the Council for a second reading. ORDINANCE NO. 2001 -8, AN ORDINANCE amending the 2001 budget for the City of Yakima; and making an appropriation of $12,095 in the 474 -Water Operating Fund and $8,064 in the 475 - Irrigation Operating Fund during 2001 to reimburse the Bureau of Reclamation for the City's share of repairs /modifications to Keechelus Dam. 9 146 MARCH 6, 2001 *20. FIRST READING OF ORDINANCE AMENDING THE 2001 BUDGET AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS FOR YEAR -END 2000 ENCUMBRANCES (NO ACTION REQUIRED THIS MEETING; SECOND READING SCHEDULED 3/20/01) An ordinance amending the 2001 budget and appropriating funds for year -end 2000 encumbrances having been read by title only was laid on the table for two weeks until March 20, 2001. 21. OTHER BUSINESS • Information Items Items of information provided to Council were: Agenda for March 1, 2001 DARC meeting and minutes from February 1, 2001 meeting; Agenda for March 7, 2001 Community Review Board meeting and minutes of its February 21, 2001 meeting; February 26, 2001 memo from Public Works regarding 2000 Leaf Pick -up Program; Planning Division Assignments Pending Report as of March 6, 2001; Eastern Washington Water Summit information: Summit meeting schedule change; Memo dated February 19, 2001 regarding Proposed Water Rights Administration Rule; Agenda for the March 5, 2001 Charter and Police & Fire Civil Service Commissions meeting; Seattle Post /nte / / igencer article dated February 28, 2001 entitled "32 Counties File Shoreline Claims . Against State "; Business Week article dated February 19, 2001 entitled "What a Dumpfest" regarding the retail economy; Notice of Public Meeting from EPA and report re Pacific Northwest Water Quality Temperature Criteria Guidance; Notice of Hanford Cleanup Budget Meetings in March 2001; March 2001 Hanford Happenings newsletter; and Winter 2000 -2001 Office of Community Development publication About Growth. 22. EXECUTIVE SESSION RE: PENDING AND PROSPECTIVE LITIGATION AND DISPOSITION OF PROPERTY (allow approximately 90 minutes) BUCHANAN MOVED AND SIMS SECONDED TO ADJOURN TO EXECUTIVE SESSION FOR APPROXIMATELY 60 MINUTES TO DISCUSS PROSPECTIVE LITIGATION AND DISPOSITION OF PROPERTY FOLLOWED BY ADJOURNMENT TO MARCH 20, 2001 AT 7:30 A.M. AT THE POLICE STATION /LEGAL CENTER FOR A STUDY SESSION ON REFUSE AUTOMATED PILOT PROGRAMNIDEO. The motion carried by unanimous voice vote; Beauchamp absent. At approximately 5:15 p.m. the City Clerk announced that the Executive Session would continue for another 30 minutes. 23. ADJOURNMENT Following the conclusion of the Executive Session the meeting adjourned at 5:35 p.m. 10