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2015, 02-17 Workshop Meeting MINUTES SPECIAL WORKSHOP MEETING SPOKANE VALLEY CITY COUNCIL City Council Chambers 11707 E. Sprague Avenue Spokane Valley,Washington February 17,2015 8:30 a.m. Attendance: Councilmembers Staff Dean Grafos,Mayor Mike Jackson, City Manager Arne Woodard, Deputy Mayor Mark Calhoun,Deputy City Manager Bill Bates, Councilmember—via phone Cary Driskell, City Attorney Chuck Hafner, Councilmember John Hohman, Community Development Dir. Rod Higgins, Councilmember Eric Guth, Public Works Director Ed Pace, Councilmember Mike Stone, Parks & Recreation Director Ben Wick, Councilmember Morgan Koudelka, Sr. Administrative Analyst Rick VanLeuven, Police Chief Others in attendance: Erik Lamb, Deputy City Attorney Mike Huffman,Valley News Herald Chris Bainbridge, City CIerk Matt Lyons, Spokane Valley Police Dept. Tom Towey Mayor Grafos called the meeting to order at 8:30 a.m. City Clerk Bainbridge called the roll; all Councilmembers were present,with Councilmember Bates participating via conference phone. Overview: Discussion Topics—Mike Jackson City Manager Jackson explained that today's meeting is one of two annual workshops; that it is a time for casual conversation and to get some direction from Council. [Items were discussed in the order shown below.] 1. Information Items: Work Plan, Legislative Agenda, 2015 Business plan [under separate cover] Mr. Jackson mentioned the Workplan under Tab #1, which includes budget goals for Council and major projects for all departments; said that this document is the department's timeline to keep things on track throughout the year; and said he uses it as a reference for how we are doing. Concerning the Business PIan, Mr. Jackson said that each year at this time departments submit their performance measures and workload indicators as we work to finalize this plan, even though we always consider it a draft as the material contained within the Plan gets refined over time. Mr. Jackson said if Council has any questions about who does what or about the organizational structure, that information can be found in the Business Plan, adding that it builds a good history of how we're handling the workload. He said that in the next week or so, staff will start to build the new business plan for 2016; that we lead the budget with this business plan, so before we do the budget, each department considers the resources needed and anything they propose will be included in the business plan. Mr. Jackson said it has been a good process, that we use a lot of the same language year after year rather than try to do a complete re-write each time. Mr. Jackson also noted the Legislative Agenda, which can be found under Tab #1 immediately after the Workplan, and which can be referenced when we telephone Lobbyist Briahna Taylor at 11:00 a.m. today. Mr. Jackson said we will work our way through the agenda and have plenty of time at the end for brainstorming; and that Council can stay with an item as long as desired as there are some items which will likely generate more discussion than others. 2. Economic Development Update (incentives,etc.)—John Hohman,Erik Lamb Mr. Jackson said that this is an opportunity to discuss incentives, and noted a recent interesting article concerning the State of Washington considering holding back some of the tax breaks they had previously given Boeing, if the company reduces its overall Washington state workforce. In reality, Mr. Jackson said, Workshop minutes: 02-17-2015 Page 1 of 12 Approved by Council: 03-10-2015 these types of issues can end up being a "double-edged sword" as whenever an incentive or tax break is given, someone needs to pay those taxes, or you do without the service. Mr. Jackson said coming up soon on an agenda,staff will bring an incentive "toolbox"to Council for adoption consideration. Director Hohman explained that the PowerPoint slides included in the packet, are to give Council an overview of some of staffs different work items, and to get a feel for how the program is maturing. He mentioned that part-time employee Gloria Mantz is now working with Economic Development Coordinator Mike Basinger. As noted on the slides, Mr. Hohman explained the Washington Department of Commerce's Five Levels of Economic Development, followed by the steps for the Comprehensive Plan Update. Mr. Hohman said we want a very detailed, vibrant chapter of the comp plan that will give an overview and policies of where we are going, and then devise a strategic plan; said he hopes to get into a detailed plan that supports investments, encourages envisioned development, and attracts visitors, customers, and businesses. Mr. Hohman also noted that information technology will continue to be updated to ensure interoperability with the permit system of SmartGov, enable a system that works across the Internet, and provide interactive maps; he said there are additional internal aspects that we looking at as staff works to develop a tool to help customers as they come in the door, and have it available on the web for easy public access. Concerning retail business, Mr. Hohman explained that our City has a tremendous retail source, and that staff is working to identify some of the gaps; he said GSI(Greater Spokane, Inc.) is also focused on high- tech; said we want to be more active in facilitating retail to fill any identified gaps and support property owners, brokers, and retailers, all of which will increase our retail tax base. Mr. Jackson stated that we realize GSI doesn't work with retail, and our City economic development will focus on retail; that we realize manufacturing brings retail, we also realize people want to locate in a community with a wide variety of retail services and restaurants, and said this is a step forward, and that over the next year we will see the City develop more of a plan. Mayor Grafos agreed with the importance of retail and in identifying gaps, and Deputy Mayor Woodard commented that we might want to look at what Missoula is doing and track their retail; he said they don't do a lot of manufacturing but their retail is diverse. A question came up about personnel, and Mr. Jackson said we are soliciting for an Economic Development Specialist, which once hired, would give us 2.5 people dedicated to economic development. There was some brief discussion about personnel, and Mr. Hohman said that we would not use only those 2.5 people, but others with various areas of expertise when needed. Deputy City Manager Calhoun commented that the 2.5 personnel has been included in the 2015 budget with no net increase of employees as the change was accomplished through re-organization. Keeping in mind the importance of and need for retail, Councilmember Wick said we do not want to lose the focus on manufacturing. Mr. Hohman explained that we want to collaborate with our partners such as GSI, Mycroft, Visit Spokane, the Chamber of Commerce and others to recruit manufacturing and promote our City; said staff is also working on certified sites to move to the next level for a national person or entity to do the certification. Mr. Hohman said that staff is reviewing the different aspects of the comp plan, including criteria, zoning, permitting, SEPA, utilities,traffic, and other areas to see if there is anything we can do for specific areas, such as the property to the west of Mansfield, or the Mirabeau area;that staff is working to identify traffic concerns so projects can come in with relative ease. A previously noted, Mr. Hohman said we don't rely solely on internal staff as we have an on-call contract with EcoNorthwest and are working with them on an economic analysis of different projects; he said they did an analysis for us on the Appleway Trail, and they are working on the industrial area as well, in areas such as between Flora and Barker; said if we are going to invest, we want to make sure we get a return on our investment, and consultants such as EcoNorthwest help with their careful and analytical research, and they get the data to make sure we are on the right track. The subject of funding mechanisms came up including loans, grants such as from CDBG (Community Development Block Grants), or the DOC (Department of Commerce), private participation, or various combinations, all in an effort to spur economic development and/or development of public infrastructure which aids in stimulating job growth and development. Mr. Jackson noted that some of these issues Workshop minutes: 02-17-2015 Page 2 of 12 Approved by Council: 03-10-2015 would include terms where the developer makes payments, adding that it would take an extraordinary project for the City to make the investment, and that generally we are looking at tools to help the developer obtain financing. Mr. Hohman said that in several of these cases, the City would be the applicant so it would be a type of public/private cooperation. Continuing through the PowerPoint slides, Mr. Hohman said that streamlining the permitting process continues to be part of their big focus in their efforts to provide excellent customer service; and he mentioned that Jenny Nickerson had received over sixty complimentary letters,e-mails and phone calls. After Mr. Hohman discussed staffs continued work with code text amendments, and working on an online tool to help restaurants, Councilmember Pace asked if staff is or could research ways to lower the inspection costs with the health permit business, and said one option would be for the city to pay into that. Mr. Hohman explained that the Health Department is involved from a regulatory point, that he is not familiar with that process, but can do some research. Mr. Hohman also said that they continue to integrate GIS with our existing permitting software, that it works well but is not graphical, and they would like to be able to show the customer more graphically, all the different information about the properties; he mentioned they continue working with the marketing consultant, that they have had some good commercials last year, and mentioned the billboard advertisements, which he said appear to be working as we have heard from people in Moses Lake and elsewhere about our marketing efforts. After Mr. Hohman noted the items in the "Incentive Toolbox," the discussion moved to the "Economic Development Incentives" memo behind tab 2. Mr. Jackson invited Council's feedback on the toolbox idea, and encouraged Council to let him know if there is something more they would like added to that toolbox. A question came up concerning financial assistance to developers, and Deputy City Attorney Lamb explained that we are limited by our State Constitution from just giving money to developers for them to construct a building or bring business here, which in turn led to discussions about incentives in general; that we are limited as we have no local B&O(Business and Occupation)tax, no impact fees, and the only utility tax we have is on telephones. Mr. Hohman said staff will be coming to Council in the future with a more in-depth look at some of the developer driven incentives/expenditures listed in the memo; that the goal is as we identify particular areas in the strategic plan on which to focus, like retail, we will work to determine what tools we can use to assist businesses locating here,and said the idea is to have a quick and easy reference material. Mr. Hohman stated that we want a flexible development code, and as we work through that code, we want to make sure it works for customers and staff, and to simplify things as much as possible, and he gave the example of the recent ordinance amendment concerning extensions to file plats, as well as eliminating some of the criteria for a plat extension. On the top of page 2 concerning the Direct City Incentives, Mr. Lamb explained that the City is not spending money as a budget line item, but that those items could represent a loss of City revenues; he mentioned the last bulleted item concerning multi-family tax exemptions, and said for example, this could be an eight-year exemption, which means the City would lose those revenues for future years. Mayor Grafos said this might be something to merge into the comp plan as we look at areas north of Trent where there is apartment activity. Deputy Mayor Woodard said he would like to encourage revitalization along Sprague and Appleway; that with these incentives, we don't lose current taxes and haven't lost anything, but more that we would not yet have started to realize those revenues. Mr. Jackson added that it would also depend on the investment the City would have to make as well; and said that developers are looking for that quick permitting process and turn-around time; and Mr. Lamb concurred that an expedited process is important as developers realize that time is money. Further discussion included focusing development on a specific area, like Trent; the pros and cons of a TIF (tax increment financing); that the idea would be to entice a developer; mention from Mr. Calhoun that our current property tax levy each year while static for the last several years, still includes new construction so we would not want to change that; talk of the use of general obligation or revenue bonds to finance infrastructure or other public capital projects, noting that there must be an existing revenue source to repay those bonds or seek voter approval for an increased tax levy. The Hotel-Motel Lodging Workshop minutes: 02-17-2015 Page 3 of 12 Approved by Council: 03-10-2015 Tax was also discussed, including the maximum additional amount of 1.3% the City could levy; and Deputy Mayor Woodard said he would like to have further discussion and more information at a future study session. The "Local Admissions Tax"was discussed as well, including questions about what could or could not be included, with Councilmember Pace asking for example, if that could be applied to fairgrounds and not movies. Mr. Lamb explained that this would be more of a class and not a specific business or location. It was agreed that should be included in a future discussion as well. A question arose concerning the TPA (Tourism Promotion Area) and if there are any areas not at that $2.00 rate/charge, and that too will be included in future discussions. Discussion continued concerning the information in the remainder of the memo, including the various aspects of forming Local Improvement Districts (LID); the idea of including a trail into an LID was brought up and Mr. Lamb said that would need further research. [At approximately 10:00 a.m., Councilmember Bates excused himself from the meeting until after lunch.] Mayor Grafos suggested having a test LID; to send out a letter and see what it would cost to have for example, sidewalks in a specific area. Mr. Guth said some of the cost would depend on the design, and whether it would it be a separate sidewalk, or curb and gutter, and/or storm sewer facilities and sidewalk; and said it would be difficult to prioritize some of those areas. Deputy Mayor Woodard said we would use City funds for this test, and he liked the idea of picking an area to examine for a test. Mr. Jackson said staff will bring this back with an area to develop into a test area. The discussion turned to a"Main Street Tax credit." Councilmember Hafner said the question to consider, research and answer, is why do people want to come to Spokane Valley, and what can Council do to move some of those concepts forward. Mr. Lamb explained that this is an idea to provide funding to form a main street area and establish a revitalization program where developers could receive a tax benefit; said it would have to be approved by the Department of Archeology; they could only contribute $250,000 a year, and within each area the amount is limited to $100,000 with a state-wide total limit of$1.5 million; he said there are currently thirty-four entities fighting for those funds; said there is pending legislation that would double all those programs. Councilmember Hafner said this could help in establishing our identity especially once we get our new city hall. Mr. Lamb said staff has identified some areas and will come back to a future meeting with specifics. Mr. Jackson said Council could also pass a resolution to provide for tax-exempt bonds as was done with the MacKay Manufacturing projects years ago. Councilmember Pace said he would like to see an Apple or Microsoft campus here and that it would be interesting to see if anyone has done any studies on what it would take to attract those businesses. Mr. Hohman said staff could work to incorporate that idea into an economic analysis as part of the comp plan review. Mayor Grafos called for a recess at 10:15 a.m., and reconvened the meeting at 10:26 a.m. 3. Law and Justice Council—Cary Driskell City Attorney Driskell explained the history and composition of the Law and Justice Council (LJC), which he said is required by state statute, although the County didn't have one for about twenty-four years. He explained that the County examined the entire law-related system to see what areas might need assistance, and they came up with a blueprint reform in 2013, which identified that the Law and Justice Council needed to be reformed, which the County did in 2014, as evidenced by the County's resolution 14-0392, which establishes the Council and Administrative Committee, including the composition, purpose, terms, meeting rules and regulations, officers, mission statement, and powers and duties. As noted in the chart included in the Council packet, it appears the membership of the LJC is evenly split with ten members who are electeds, and ten who are non-electeds. Mr. Driskell noted that he is on the list, and that Mr.Jackson is the alternate; and Police Chief VanLeuven is also a member. Mr. Driskell said the committee meets monthly and he included that committee's February 11 agenda to show the types of issues addressed during the meetings. Because we represent other municipalities, Mr. Driskell said that he and Mr. Jackson determined they needed a way to report to all the other municipalities, so a copy of the report they generated last week is also included in today's materials. Workshop minutes: 02-17-2015 Page 4 of 12 Approved by Council: 03-10-2015 Councilmember Pace asked if the purpose and mission hinted toward a move to a region-wide metropolitan police; said he believes police departments should be separate from County Sheriffs Departments, and feels this smacks of a hidden agenda. Mr. Jackson said he had not heard of an agenda issue for a unified police department, but would like to be clear about this Council's feelings in case the topic was to surface. Chief VanLeuven said he feels that mission and purpose is merely to address duplication of services; said they work with the Spokane Police Department when it comes to shared technology as it makes for more efficient communications; likewise they work collaboratively with the Spokane Police Department in maintaining records; and they also have a joint forensics unit; all to make law enforcement more efficient and effective, and said that he has not sensed an issue of having a metropolitan police department. Councilmember Hafner said as a member of the 9-1-1 Board, he has not heard any conversation about a territorial resource; however, in looking at the County's resolution, he noted the fourth "whereas" clause does not mention our City. Mr. Jackson reminded everyone that we contract with Spokane County for these services so we are included; that this was designed this way on purpose to be formed by Spokane County and the City of Spokane as the major service providers in the region. Deputy Mayor Woodard said three to five years ago, he knows the sheriffs office was trying to negotiate with the City of Spokane to combine the two police forces, but that he hasn't heard anything more on that since; said it is a concern and that we want to make sure we keep our identity. Chief VanLeuven said the Sheriffs Office intent is to continue to contract with Spokane Valley for the best law enforcement services possible. Mr. Driskell said we might see or hear comments from some who want a consolidation, but that only represents one view; and from the LJC standpoint, there are "no sacred cows" as they have to look at all the options to determine the best process for what they do. Councilmember Pace said he has no objections at examining all options, but this is a matter of identity; and that we contract with the County, are affected by it and should have a seat at the table; he said our Police Chief should represent our police department, and Liberty Lake's Chief and Millwood's Chief should be there as well representing their departments; that Mr. Driskell should be a member as our municipal attorney, and that we should have one elected official as well, appointed by our Mayor; said it seems the County has some control over us that seems inappropriate as a municipality of about 93,000; said he discussed this topic with Commissioner Mielke who insisted that the State determined the makeup of the committee, but also heard it was the County's determination. Mayor Grafos said he disagreed as we do have a big seat at the table; that we have a contract with Spokane County; that the system is not broken; he feels we have a great situation and he is not in favor of changing that in any way; and with Mr. Driskell and Mr. Jackson on that council, said they will keep us informed; adding that the Sheriff has always been the law enforcement for the valley and that the intent is it will remain that way. Councilmember Hafner asked if this council is advisory and Mr. Driskell replied it is. Mr. Jackson noted the time; said we will be calling Lobbyist Briahna Taylor at 11:00 a.m., and he suggested moving to the New City Hall topic for about ten minutes. 10. New City Hall—John Hohman Mr. Driskell said that the property closure was two weeks ago yesterday. Director Hohman explained that an RFQ(request for qualifications) for an architectural firm was submitted, and that four firms responded; that he brought together a panel of staff to evaluate the firms, and three were selected to be interviewed, which occurred last Wednesday; said staff is in the process of evaluating the information to determine which firm would be most qualified; and said that staff is very aware of the importance of this choice as we are in the process of creating a legacy; he said everyone feels very fortunate to be working on this as it is an opportunity to work together for a first city hall; said the construction schedule and budget appear feasible; said Council might see an overall master plan with the city hall a piece of that, and other pieces as well which might be compatible and occur over the years, like a library and Balfour Park; as well as potential street improvements to Dartmouth Road; said they are working with the Magnussons to see if they need any assistance regarding what we can do for the re-development of that site; said he feels this is a big issue when the parking structure comes down, and that staff is working on a permit for that as well. Workshop minutes: 02-17-2015 Page 5 of 12 Approved by Council: 03-10-2015 In response to Councilmember Pace's question about Council and public input, Mr. Hohman affirmed those will be sought. Councilmember Pace said he feels it is important that this city hall be a monument to the area and the city's history, as well as cultural traditions and to recognize the previous townships, and perhaps have a place to display art. Councilmember Hafner asked about the misinformation concerning moving the Sheriffs Office training center. Mr. Jackson explained that the training center is moving to the former Mountain View Middle School; said that when we designated a portion of the building to be demolished, it went up to but did not include the training center; however, the County's lease is month-to-month and the building owner is looking for a longer commitment, so the County found a temporary home,and long term they are possibly looking at the West Plains area, with a possible joint training center with Fairchild Air Force Base. Mr. Jackson said we did not directly ask for that portion to be demolished and didn't even consider or know about the displacement of the training center until he spoke with the Sheriffs Office, which understands we had no intent to displace them. Even with the training center further away, Chief VanLeuven said he feels people would continue to use Spokane Valley hotels and restaurants, and said that the Spokane Valley Traffic School will also be held at the new location. 11. Miscellaneous Item: Existing City Hall Renovations—John Hohman Director Hohman said the renovated area is ready and the movers will be here this weekend; said once finance relocates,there will be some minor demolition to finance's former area and then we hope to move the permit center in about six weeks, depending on how quickly the contractor can work. 5. Legislative Update—Mike Jackson; Briahna Taylor At 11:00 a.m., a telephone call was placed to Lobbyists Briahna Taylor and Alex Soldano. Mr. Soldano gave an update on the Appleway Trail fund request and said they hope to receive an official notification within the next few weeks and in the meantime, is distributing more information. Ms. Taylor said the project is important, it appears to be gaining momentum, and Mr. Soldano added that the legislators indicated they would be willing to work with this if they knew that the Fourth District legislators were willing to make a commitment to the project. Ms. Taylor said for the local state shared revenues, it appears the liquor and streamlined sales tax mitigation are at greatest risk of being cut from previous discussions; said the McCleary decision is "still out there" and pressure continues not to raise taxes, which she said generally means more cuts; she also mentioned the possibility of having some tax loopholes closed; said she wants to make sure our city does not have revenues cut; mentioned some working legislation that would remove the cap placed by a previous statute for the amount of revenue cities get for their 2011 dollar amounts as an attempt to restore growth to the liquor profits; said prior to 2011, cities shared 50% in liquor profits and now that is down to about 35%; said there is no hearing set on the bill and she encouraged sending messages not to make those shared revenue reductions. Ms. Taylor and Mr. Soldano also discussed streamlined sales tax mitigation and that it would be targeted for cuts in the operating budget, said a draft letter was sent to Mr. Jackson last week about asking local legislators to talk to their budget leaderships not to cut the sales tax. Regarding our code enforcement recuperation efforts, Ms. Taylor said she met with Senators Roach and Padden and it became clear they would oppose anything with cities having a first lien, but said the cap would lessen their opposition, but not relieve it; said the cap was proposed to be reduced to $2,000. It was noted that although this topic was more positive than the last time, Community banks still testified against the bill and the hope is to restore the cap to $5,000. Mr. Driskell said the average cost of an abatement is $4,750, so $5,000 makes more sense than $2,000. Mr. Jackson said this is a good time to ask Council about the cap; that a$2,000 cap is better than no legislation and that work will still progress to raise it to $5,000; and he asked Council's opinion about the $2,000 cap. Deputy Mayor Woodard said ifs a good start and we would still have the right to have a junior lien for the difference. Mr. Jackson asked Mr. Driskell if a bill were to pass with a $2,000 cap, but an abatement amounted to $7,000, could we include a request for payment for $7,000, and would we be limited to apply for just the lien authority, but still include the other $5,000 in the property tax notice sent by the Assessor's Office. Mr. Driskell said he did not know, but it would Workshop minutes: 02-17-2015 Page 6 of 12 Approved by Council: 03-10-2015 likely require an agreement with the Assessor's Office. Ms. Taylor said she would have to examine the specific language; but the former process would still be in place; we would have a lower priority lien for the remaining$5,000 and could eventually recover those costs, but not as a first lien. Ms. Taylor said she will examine the language and clarify if necessary. Concerning marijuana legislation, Ms. Taylor said several bills were introduced with lots of talk about reconciliation of medical and recreation marijuana; she noted our City has a preference to eliminate the medical marijuana and have the regulations the same for all marijuana use; but she noted that none of the bills proposed removing medical marijuana, and the proposal gaining the most traction would create similar regulations for medical and retail establishments, and would remove the cap on the number of retail establishments, regardless of use; it would eliminate community gardens and allow people to grow marijuana in their own home if they are a patient or to do so on behalf of a medical patient if the patient were a juvenile. Ms. Taylor said she has arranged a meeting with some of the legislators to explore whether vaping lounges could be regulated under the existing authority, or have them separate. Regarding the juvenile or under age access to marijuana, as well as the appearance of being under the influence of marijuana, she said there are several bills introduced and said she should know more Friday after the deadline; she also noted there were several bills introduced concerning various formulas for marijuana revenue sharing, including whether a jurisdiction should receive local revenues if they chose to ban marijuana, and said most feel if marijuana is banned, that municipality should not receive revenue; said others feel if a city chooses to ban marijuana, a vote of the people should be held to affirm that ban; said these issues will continue to evolve and she urged legislators to aid in any effort to reconcile. Ms. Taylor said she shared with legislators the story about the vaping lounge. Mr. Jackson added that the Board needs to implement rules that would meet our needs as there is no law requiring identification checks prior to entering a vaping lounge. Mr. Lamb added that possession is illegal for anyone under 21 years old. Mr. Jackson said the issue also includes indoor smoking. Mr. Lamb said he notified the Health District about the smoking issue but so far has not heard from them. Ms. Taylor said she should have a good idea by this Friday of what bills will or won't advance. Concerning the long-range agenda item of Barker Road, Ms. Taylor said that a bi-partisan group released the transportation package last week, which included an 11.7¢ gas tax increase; that $8 billion will be regulated to projects, with a direct distribution of$350 million to cities and counties over sixteen years based on capital; said she sent out a full report to Council when the revenue report was released; that she discussed with this Senator Padden who is not planning to vote for it; said this will next be heard in the senate transportation committee Wednesday afternoon; that there are still several "sticking points" in the bill. Ms. Taylor said she has been advocating for Barker Road funding, but that project is not included in the transportation package, although the Spokane freeway is as it is felt that would be of benefit to the greater Spokane region; she noted we have chosen not to take a position on the gas tax revenue package, so she is simply monitoring the legislation. Councilmember Wick asked if there was anything that could be included to cover the grade separation on Barker. Ms. Taylor replied that we might be able to use multiple grant programs to add up to the full amount. Councilmember Wick also asked about the North/South corridor actually being allocated more funds than were requested, and Ms. Taylor explained that since the project was moved to a later start date, they higher difference accounts for inflation, with the project starting in 2018 instead of 2016. She also noted the exact project schedule has not yet been released. Ms. Taylor said she continues to be very directed on our City's priorities, and she looks forward to having Council and staff in Olympia next week. The meeting recessed for lunch at 11:50 a.m.,and reconvened at 12:23 p.m. Mayor Grafos acknowledged Councilmember Bates via conference phone. 4.Law Enforcement Cost Breakdown—Morgan Koudelka Senior Administrative Analyst Koudelka explained that Council expressed an interest in getting more details about our law enforcement costs, as all together, those cost represent about two-thirds of our total Workshop minutes: 02-17-2015 Page 7 of 12 Approved by Council: 03-10-2015 budget. Mr. Koudelka went over the figures shown on the accompanying information, and Councilmember Pace asked for a similar breakdown for the patrol piece. Mr. Koudelka explained that today's information is to give an overview of all the costs and to let him know if there are items Council would like to see in greater detail. Councilmember Pace noted that he would like more information on patrol; and he asked if our officers are paid the same at the City of Spokane officers. Mr. Koudelka replied they do not. Councilmember Pace said that doesn't seem fair that the City of Spokane officers get more pay and said there should be equal pay for equal work; and he would like Mr. Jackson to examine that issue. Mr. Jackson explained that there are two separate systems, with two completely different unions and difference pay scales. Councilmember Pace said he would like to approach this from a fairness perspective, as there is no excuse to be unfair. Mr. Jackson said that we rely on the County as a contractor, and it is up to the County to negotiate those rates; that if Mr. Pace is suggesting that the elected officials look at salaries of Spokane,that would be appropriate, but then added,but "who is to say which is correct and whether other salaries are escalating;" he said there are many comparisons of all costs. Mr. Koudelka continued going through his data, and said staff continues to work with the County to have line items costs by unit. A question arose about the Police Precinct, and Mr. Koudelka stated that we own the building, and via a separate interlocal agreement, lease it and charge the County for a portion of those costs. Indirect costs were discussed, with Mr. Koudelka explaining that staff tracks the trend; that some have changed, but over time they tend to even out; said this has tended to be a little more frustrating as we don't have much control over indirect costs, but we continue to explore ways to patrol those costs so we can better predict the overall costs. Mr. Koudelka said he could show some history of indirect costs and Mayor Grafos said he would be interested in seeing those figures over the last couple of years. Concerning equal pay for all officers, Councilmember Hafner likened that to different school districts paying different wages; that they are not all the same as they are accomplished by union contracts, and it depends on the union negotiations. Councilmember Pace said he understands that, but still thinks this is something that needs to be fixed, as "fair is fair." Other discussion included law enforcement costs including purchase and use of data cards; JAG grant funds; one time cost impacts such as arbitration; and the drug task force. 6.Railroad Quiet Zones—Mark Calhoun Deputy City Manager Calhoun noted that included in the council materials, is a summary report concerning a previous quiet zone study; and that at that time Council considered the $83,000 cost for David Evans to do a study, and Council decided not to move forward. Mr. Calhoun pointed out the number of crossings, including two in Millwood, that it might not be possible to have a quiet zone with Burlington Northern around the Park and Vista area as the railroads are required to blow their horns and whistles as they enter the yard. The idea of wayside horns was also included in the information, and Mr. Calhoun said if Council wants, staff could get some assistance from a consultant to help with deterring cost; that Public Works did some research in 2011 and came up with an estimate of between $65,000 and $185,000 for each area; said that wayside horns would cost from $30,000 to $100,000; adding that there are no funds budgeted in 2015 for any of these expenses; and if Council would like to move forward, we can discuss how to fund the studies and projects during the 2016 budget development. Councilmember Hafner suggested that Council get all the information needed as these are expensive studies and projects; said Council has numerous projects; that he is not questioning the importance of the safety factor, but rather that we don't want to eliminate some of the projects already determined necessary. Deputy Mayor Woodard added that having a quiet zone doesn't ensure the railroad won't blow their horns; and that unless the grades are separated, there is no way to assure the horns don't get blown. Councilmember Wick noted that the railroads will not fund these projects, and if we want to do it, we would have to come up with funding. Mayor Grafos suggested this is somewhat of a "dead-end street" even if we did authorize the funds. Deputy Mayor Woodard suggested waiting to see what happens from local and federal government;that we don't want to forget about it entirely, but suggests monitoring what we can. Mayor Grafos concurred. Workshop minutes: 02-17-2015 Page 8 of 12 Approved by Council: 03-10-2015 7. Civic Facility Capital Projects Fund—Mike Jackson/Mark City Manager Jackson explained that during the Finance Committee meeting, the money for city hall and other projects was discussed; said a railroad quiet study amount is included, but we might want to remove or include as a lower priority, adding that it is not currently funded. Mr. Calhoun said most of these figures have been discussed previously, and he explained some of the pending/potential projects as noted in the worksheet; and said these figures will be updated when the 2014 books are closed. Discussion included mention of the city hall line item; bond cost issues; that there could be unforeseen projects that would change the figures; that we are doing everything possible to keep us within budget, and that Council should have further figures prior to the June budget workshop. Mayor Grafos said he feels the priorities are correct and the list should remain as it is. Mr. Jackson said that we would not typically move that money ahead until 2016, at which time we will know whether or not we have the cash needed for a quiet zone project. 8. Public Works Projects—Eric Guth Public Works Director Guth briefed Council on the three projects as noted in the workshop materials; said staff has spent several months negotiating with the property owner on the Mansfield Avenue connections for right-of-way purchase, and said he is hopeful the area will be signed by the end of this month; and after the final right-of-way negotiation, the project moves before the TIB (Transportation Improvement Board)for approval to move forward. 9. Historic Buildings and Buildings Codes—Doug Powell and Luis Garcia Director Hohman explained that this is a follow-up discussion of several weeks ago when Ms. Gloria Mantz talked about us becoming a Certified Local Government, and some ensuing questions as how the historic preservation ordinance works regarding existing building codes; he said Messrs. Powell and Garcia are here to give an overview of the different codes and how they relate to historic preservation. Mr. Powell went over the information contained in the packet materials in order to provide a better explanation of how codes apply to historic buildings when those buildings need repair, alternations, or reconstruction; followed by an explanation from Mr. Garcia concerning the hierarchy of the International Family of Codes, and what addresses existing buildings, and specifically historic buildings; noting that whatever is done, it cannot Iessen the fire safety regulations or precautions, adding that it is the building Official who is the safety professional. Mr. Powell explained that some regulations are left to the discretion of the building official and the situation to determine if there is a life safety item, such as smoke detectors. Mr. Garcia added that there could be no waiving of design requirements, and nothing could be done to compromise the level of safety to the historic structures. He explained that the applicant appeal process is for those who might feel the specific letter of the code was applied inappropriately, which appeal would be handled by the Hearing Examiner as per our Municipal Code; he noted that the Hearing Examiner also does not have the authority to waive any code requirements. In response to a question about what one might expect if for example, rafters were removed and the owner wanted to go back and replace them; Mr. Powell said the rafters would have to be built to the current codes. Councilmember Pace suggested it would be nice to have some flexibility to be able to roll back the code as it was when the original rafters were built. Mr. Powell stated that under the IEBC (International Existing Building Code), there are some permitted controlled departures from full compliance with the technical codes, but any departure must not compromise the minimum standards for fire prevention and life safety features; said for example grand stairways would no longer comply with today's code, so some things could be changed provided there is no hazard increase. Mr. Hohman said that the intent of an historic preservation program would be to preserve those structures that had some significance and try to protect those as much as possible; sometimes those property owners can get a tax reduction under the program, but the program is built more for protection than trying to keep those structures the way they are, which is why any modification would have to go through the Commission; and he noted that further research will be needed in order to determine the criteria that Workshop minutes: 02-17-2015 Page 9 of 12 Approved by Council: 03-10-2015 would be used by the commission; and said if a building were to move to a different location, it would no longer be historic because it would be on a new foundation, and again, said more research would be needed for these issues. Councilmember Pace suggested a new foundation shouldn't make a difference regarding the building's historic value,but Mr. Hohman explained that in the original home,there were no living spaces below, and with a new place with Iiving spaces below,there must be ingress and egress; and said there would likely be several resolutions to examine for each scenario. Deputy Mayor Woodard suggested that historic preservation is not relevant to where the structure might be, but rather to what it looks like; and suggested it should not make any difference where a building sits. Deputy Mayor Woodard also stated that the only person to determine if a property stays on an historic preservation roster, should be the property owner. [At 1:52 p.m., Councilmember Bates excused himself from the remainder of the meeting, and thanked Council for the opportunity to phone into the meeting.] Councilmember Hafner asked how many historic buildings, structures or properties are in Spokane Valley, and staff indicated that would need further research. Councilmember Hafner suggested a thorough study of this issue before coming to any conclusion. Mayor Grafos suggested staff start working on an ordinance to include that the property owner would have the ultimate decision on whether to keep the building on the historic register if the owner wants to take advantage of the tax credit. Councilmember Pace said he prefers the local historic society administer this program and that our City not work with Spokane City. 11. Miscellaneous Items Marijuana: Vaping, underage consumption and consolidation of medical and recreational marijuana were issues that we would like addressed by legislators, said Mr. Jackson; but added that it does not look like we will get the kind of system our Council proposes; said growing will be difficult to enforce with all the medical dispensaries, as there are no regulations covering that; said we are not doing enforcement at this point. Mr. Lamb further explained that the legislative move appears to be toward allowing endorsement through the medical shops; said one of the bills eliminated collective gardens but gives them about a year or so to shut down or get a state license for a medical retail shop; said there remains some unregulated access points and gaps in the system; cooperatives will be allowed with four patients but that the patients and the cooperatives must be registered. As noted in his conversations last Monday with legislators, Councilmember Higgins reported that it appeared vaping lounges could be addressed through the medical system, but that too appears to have changed. Mr. Jackson said that even if the state lifts the ban on the number of retail, this Council might want to control how many to allow within the community, and said that perhaps that could be the next debate. Mr. Lamb added that it would take a two-thirds vote to amend the original initiative, and now just like any other amendment, that is two years after the initial vote, a majority vote would be needed to modify any language. Mr. Jackson stated that he feels our approach is logical in not imposing a ban. Chief VanLeuven said he is not aware of any police departments that are tracking marijuana crimes, but Spokane Valley Police Department does, and said there is a definite increase in marijuana related crimes, including driving under the influence; and stressed the need for a law addressing MW(minor in possession)by consumption. Oil and Coal Trains: Mr. Jackson mentioned yesterday's derailment in West Virginia; said staff sent a letter to the Department of Ecology (DOE) about their transport study; said they responded and said they had included the City of Spokane, but Mr. Jackson said he explained to them once again,that they did not include anything the City of Spokane Valley; he said the DOE indicated they would take our comments under consideration. Gambling Tax: Mr. Calhoun briefly discussed the downward trend from gambling tax revenues; said Council twice heard during Council comments about the Back Pearl's owner's feelings that our gambling taxes were high; the information in the Council packet shows the gambling tax rates as permitted by the State, and what those rates are for the City of Spokane and the City of Spokane Valley, as well as what any reductions might mean in terms of reduced revenues. Mr. Jackson noted that he also plans to visit with the owner of the Black Pearl. Workshop minutes: 02-17-2015 Page 10 of 12 Approved by Council: 03-10-2015 12. Council Brainstorming—Open Discussion Open discussion included the following comments, ideas, and suggestions: Sports Facilities in Spokane Valley: The idea of having something in our city (sports plex) as opposed to downtown; what kind of facility would bring us visitors: discuss the idea starting from scratch; what kind of facility are we lacking; cost to operate, return on investments; nothing budgeted this year; likely cannot use lodging funds for such an endeavor; Mr. Lamb said it would have to be part of tourism, promotion and marketing site; might be able to do a general study; and that it would need further research. Councilmember Wick said the LTAC (Lodging Tax Advisory Committee) hasn't had a chance yet to meet; that the application process was not re-opened; submitted the idea of setting some funds aside from the allocations instead of funding the fully budgeted amount. Deputy Mayor Woodard said this is just a brainstorming session, not necessarily an opportunity to generate something that should be done within the near future; said we need to know what kind of facilities are needed by schools, including intermural type of adult sports, would like to have an opportunity to get public input about additional sport facilities needed; mentioned acquisition of property central to our City that could be used as a sport complex; said sports is a lodging tax item if handled correctly; that the school districts need some input and this could be part of the private/public partnership; perhaps more of a long-term vision. Councilmember Pace said he would like to see the entire topic, from schools to property acquisition, discussed further as a main topic; Mayor Grafos suggested including it as an element of economic development. Deputy Mayor Woodard said he would prefer to see discussion sooner than later; that we don't want to necessarily own the grounds for playing fields, but might be willing to help acquire and/or maintain. Mayor Grafos suggested waiting to see what the LTAC says about the issue, and Councilmember Wick agreed this might be able to be accomplished under the name of tourism; said he hopes to start at the LTAC then have it evolve. Deputy Mayor Woodard said we need basic information and a Performa of what is needed for our City; that we need to come up with our own plan as Eric Sawyer's plan might not be what best fits our City. Councilmember Hafner suggested a need to indicate to this community that we don't want the sports complex downtown, so if it comes to a vote, they will vote no. Councilmember Higgins said it was his understanding through speaking with Lee Cameron, that Eric Sawyer was telling others that our Council was 100% in favor of having a sports complex downtown, which is of course, not the case. There was some mention of an upcoming ballot measure and Mr. Lamb reminded everyone of the procedure as outlined in the State Statutes and this City's Governance Manual; and said that process (how to address ballot measures) might be a topic for a future meeting. Consider a study session to discuss renaming our City: Deputy Mayor Woodard suggested this might be a topic for a future study session, especially since we will be building a new city hall. Hot Topics Newsletter: Councilmember Pace said he feels it would be a good investment to do a complete citywide mailing every time the Hot Topics Newsletter is published. Mr. Jackson said that would be a good issue to discuss during the 2016 budget discussions; that direct mailing is very effective, but it is a matter of available funds. Councilmember Pace also suggested the idea of mailing to all businesses as well, and/or having the newsletter as an insert in the Spokesman Review and/or the Current, and in all the free newsstands. Rail and Transportation Concerns: Concerning the trains moving throughout the City, Councilmember Higgins said we need to be more focused with an idea to take action; like the overpass project. Councilmember Pace said he would like to pass a resolution stating we are pro-business and pro-commerce, and we want to protect citizens, and that we do not want to be a "bottleneck" for the trains and or trucks. Workshop minutes: 02-17-2015 Page 11 of 12 Approved by Council: 03-10-2015 Regarding funding the Barker overpass, Mr. Guth explained that the environmental assessment is complete and the project is about 30% designed, which was done in 2005 or 2006; said that might need to be updated; freight movement and future freight movement was viewed as a high priority. Mayor Grafos said he feels Pines Road should be put in that same position; mentioned the comp plan and grant,and said he would like to see what economic development tool we might be able to use as that under/overpass is important. Mr. Guth agreed and said they view all aspects of Bridging the Valley as priorities; with the North/South Corridor project, it seems logical to break these projects up and take them one at a time: Barker first, with Pines a very close second; then Sullivan; said staff has been trying to talk to the rail subcommittees, the Department of Ecology, and SRTC (Spokane Regional Transportation Council); mentioned that "Bridging the Valley" title is widely recognized, but we're trying to determine how the funding mechanism would work. Mayor Grafos suggested we could start by setting aside some funds. Art and Economic Development: Councilmember Pace said an assumption is that art is good for economic and community development, and that he would like to consider adding the arts as a funding group to our outside agency funding process; said he is not suggesting an increase in the total amount of money; that criteria and guidelines would need to be drafted; and he would be interested in hearing a report about what other cities do with their Parks and Recreation Art programs, including the placement of art. Lodging Tax and Tourism: Councilmember Wick asked about the maximum 1.3% tax and Mr. Jackson replied that issue can be researched and brought back for further discussion, including when those taxes expire or renew. Public Facilities District(PFD): Councilmember Wick asked about refinancing our bond and the PFD, and if we could tie all that together as a means to approach them about appointing our own person to their board. Mr. Calhoun said that he, Mr. Stone and Mr. Jackson met with Kevin Twohig about a variety of projects and that issue should be followed up as well. The idea of transferring parkland on the other side of the River was mentioned and Mr. Jackson said that too will need further research; said we could work with the State if we have an idea, but that it would take funding to manage that land or even enhance it; and said that perhaps we would not have to have ownership in order to work with the state parks; said the state parks has minimal resources. Mr. Jackson said a question to consider is whether the public land is accessible; said it is not very well advertised and we could discuss the promotion of the area with the state parks as well. Concerning acquiring the land, Mr. Jackson said we have not yet identified any future parkland acquisition, and Mr. Stone said that during the Parks and Recreation Master Plan Update process, there wasn't much discussion about that area and it did not come up with the public. It was moved by Deputy Mayor Woodard, seconded and unanimously agreed to adjourn. The meeting adjourned at 2:55 p.m. ATT S r: Dean Grafos,Mayor ristine Bainbridge, City Clerk Workshop minutes: 02-17-2015 Page 12 of 12 Approved by Council: 03-10-2015