2015, 03-03 Study Session Meeting MINUTES
SPOKANE VALLEY CITY COUNCIL
REGULAR MEETING
STUDY SESSION FORMAT
Spokane Valley City Hall Council Chambers
Spokane Valley,Washington
March 3, 2015 6:00 p.m.
Attendance:
Councilmembers Staff
Dean Grafos, Mayor Mike Jackson, City Manager
Arne Woodard, Deputy Mayor Mark Calhoun, Deputy City Manager
Chuck Hafner, Councilmember Cary Driskell, City Attorney
Rod Higgins, Councilmember John Hohman, Community Development Dir.
Ed Pace, Councilmember Mike Stone, Parks & Recreation Director
Ben Wick, Councilmember Eric Guth, Public Works Director
Erik Lamb, Deputy City Attorney
ABSENT: Rick VanLeuven, Police Chief
Bill Bates, Councilmember Steve Worley, Senior Engineer
John Whitehead, Human Resources Manager
Carolbelle Branch, Public Information Officer
Chris Bainbridge, City Clerk
Mayor Grafos called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m.
ROLL CALL: City Clerk Bainbridge called the roll; all Councilmembers were present except
Councilmember Bates. It was moved by Deputy Mayor Woodard, seconded and unanimously agreed to
excuse Councilmember Bates from tonight's meeting.
1. Brown's Volleyball Project—Mike Stone
Parks and Recreation Director Stone went over the information contained in his Request for Council
Action Form, outlining the proposal; said the intent is to have a contractor in place by late March and
have the project completed prior to the volleyball season that begins mid-May. Mr. Stone mentioned the
drainage issues and of the location of the proposed courts; and said the package was put out to bid, they
received four bids last Friday, and are excited to be able to move forward, and that he seeks Council
consensus to bring this back as a motion consideration at next week's Council meeting. Mr. Stone noted
that this is just phase 1 and to complete the entire project will take the effort of Parks and Recreation, as
well as service groups and others as they seek alternatives for funding to eventually develop the entire
masterplan. Deputy Mayor Woodard said he heard that perhaps the sand volleyball isn't as popular as
anticipated, and he asked what would happen if we discover after three or four years that we don't need all
sixteen courts. Mr. Stone said this is a long process and $1.5 million is needed to complete the project;
that there will be new courts this year but it will take several years for the entire project; adding that the
neighborhood park concept will not be neglected as the volleyball courts progress; and if needed, any
aspect of the design could be changed.
Mayor Grafos said he liked the concept but would like to see those courts on the south end of the park and
leave the softball area intact on the north side, and have the contractors work from the south side forward
as the demand for the courts comes forward. After discussion about the lack of use of the softball
diamond, and that a major design change would necessitate re-bidding the project, as well as changing the
design of the masterplan which was previously approved, it was determined to keep the plans as Mr.
Stone discussed and to move forward with next week's bid award consideration.
Council Study Session:03-03-2015 Page 1 of 3
Approved by Council:03-10-2015
2. Proposed Amended 2015 Transportation Improvement Program(TIP)—Steve Worley
Mr. Worley went over the proposed amendment to the 2015 TIP, including removed projects, added
projects, and projects to be carried over; said the "removed projects" of Barker Road BNSF and Millwood
Trail might be moving forward, but not this year. Mr. Worley said a public hearing on these proposed
changes is set for next week's Council meeting.
3. Draft Interlocal Agreement with U.S. Geological Survey for Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR)
Survey Data—Eric Guth
Director Guth stated that this spring the U.S. Geological Survey will be flying a high density LiDAR
Survey over an area of Spokane County that the USGS believes may be susceptible to earthquakes; that
the flight includes the western part of our City at no cost, which gives us the opportunity to participate in
this survey and have them include the eastern half of our City. By including the eastern half, Mr. Guth
explained, the cost will be an estimated $50,000, but if we were to contract with them directly for this
service for just our city, it would cost 180% more. Mr. Guth explained that a flight was undertaken in
2007 but the data was not as accurate as it will be for this flight, nor did it include the density of data
collection proposed for this flight. Mr. Guth said staff recommends proceeding with the finalization of an
interlocal agreement with Kitsap County to include the eastern half of our City. Council concurred.
4. 2014 Accomplishments Report—Mike Jackson
City Manager Jackson said he likes to take time at the end of the year to report what was accomplished in
the past year; he spoke of the importance of the Council set goals as they help direct staffs Workplan.
Mr. Jackson discussed the accomplishments of the Legislative and Executive Department; followed by
Deputy City Manager Calhoun speaking about Contract Administration, Public Information Office,
interspersed by Human Resources Manager Whitehead talking about Human Resources and the Front
Desk Reception, and then with Mr. Calhoun continuing to discuss the accomplishments of the Finance
and IT Department. City Attorney Driskell spoke about the Office of the City Attorney, followed by
Police Chief VanLeuven discussing public safety. At 7:50 p.m., Mayor Grafos called for a recess; the
meeting was reconvened at 8:01 p.m., with Mr. Stone talking about the various aspects of Parks and
Recreation, including Park Administration and Maintenance, CenterPlace Regional Event Center,
Aquatics, Recreation, and the Senior Center. Mr. Hohman spoke about the accomplishments of the
various divisions of his department, including administration, permitting, building, code enforcement,
development services, and economic development. Director Guth went over his department's
accomplishments in the areas of street maintenance, traffic, stormwater utility, and capital improvement
projects.
5. Advance Agenda—Mayor Grafos
Councilmember Hafner said this Council has very little input on the many proposals of levies, sales tax
increases, and bond issues prior to those issues going forth as a ballot issue; that two or three years ago
Council felt it was best not to take a stand either for or against those issues; and he asked about changing
that now to perhaps take a stand and/or at least listen to both sides. Mr. Jackson said the current
Governance Manual includes a procedure approved by Council of not hearing those issues during a
Council meeting; but if Council prefers a change, we could start by examining the information in the
Governance manual; he said it took some time for outside agencies to understand our stance on these
issues, but if Council wants to make an exception,that can be considered. Mr. Jackson said for a start,he
will put copies of the pertinent Governance Manual section in Council's in-boxes on their desk and we
can start from there.
6. The (a) Ops and Admin Quarterly Report; (b) Finance Monthly Report; and(c) Congestion Mitigation
Air Quality (CMAQ) 2018-2020 Call for Projects were for information only and were not reported or
discussed.
Council Study Session:03-03-2015 Page 2 of 3
Approved by Council:03-10-2015
7. Council Comments—Mayor Grafos
Councilmember Pace asked for Council consensus to include the City of Spokane Valley as a co-host
with STA (Spokane Transit Authority ) for a meeting in early April; the meeting is a Chamber of
Commerce Transportation Committee meeting to discuss bus transportation; he said these issues have
been coming up at the Greater Valley Support Network(GVSN) meetings about moving people from one
point to another; said the STA has agreed to bring in a consultant April 2 for a meeting at CenterPlace
from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Council agreed to be a co-host since this will not obligate the Council
financially or otherwise, as Council will merely be a co-host of the meeting.
Councilmember Hafner said he continues working with school principals about marijuana issues and they
are in the process of setting a preliminary meeting. Councilmember Wick announced he will be joining
those going with GSI (Greater Spokane, Inc.) to Washington, D.C. April 14. Mayor Grafos asked, and
Council concurred to cancel the April 7 study session since the week prior to that, March 31, is also a
study session.
8. City Manager Comments—Mike Jackson
Mr. Jackson said concerning the issue of supporting or opposing ballot measures, that Council always has
the option of waiving the rules for something in particular.
9. Executive Session: Potential/Pending Litigation [RCW 42.30.110(I)(i)
It was moved by Deputy Mayor Woodard, seconded and unanimously agreed to adjourn into Executive
Session for approximately thirty minutes to discuss potential/pending litigation, and that no action will be
taken upon return to open session. Council adjourned into Executive Session at 8:58 p.m. At 9:08 p.m.,
Mayor Grafos declared Council out of Executive Session, at which time it was moved by Deputy Mayor
Woodard, seconded and unanimously agreed to adjourn.
ATTEST: can Grafos,Mayor /
13-"L'ik-vik;112_
ristine Bainbridge, City Clerk
Council Study Session:03-03-2015 Page 3 of 3
Approved by Council:03-10-2015