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2015, 03-31 Study Session MeetingMINUTES SPOKANE VALLEY CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING STUDY SESSION FORMAT Spokane Valley City Hall Council Chambers Spokane Valley, Washington March 31, 2015 Attendance: Councilmembers Staff 6:00 p.m. Dean Grafos, Mayor Arne Woodard, Deputy Mayor Chuck Hafner, Councilmember Rod Higgins, Councilmember Ed Pace, Councilmember Ben Wick, Councilmember ABSENT: Bill Bates, Councilmember Mike Jackson, City Manager Mark Calhoun, Deputy City Manager Cary Driskell, City Attorney Erik Lamb, Deputy City Attorney Mike Stone, Parks & Recreation Director Eric Guth, Public Works Director John Hohman, Community Development Dir. Sean Messner, Traffic Engineer 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. SRTMC (Spokane Regional Transportation Management Center) Interlocal — Sean Messner Senior Traffic Engineer Messner explained that we have been involved with the Regional Transportation Council for at least ten years; that it is a partnership that includes our City, Spokane County, Spokane City, WSDOT (Washington State Department of Transportation), STA (Spokane Transit Authority), and SRTC (Spokane Regional Transportation Council). Mr. Messner said that the purpose of this agreement was to give us a regional management center to help monitor traffic cameras and help promote better flow of traffic; he said the proposed amendment continues our level of service for this year with no monetary change as the purpose of this amendment is to formalize WSDOT as the lead agency; he said the other terms of the agreement would continue moving forward with the status quo. Mr. Jackson added that the initial agreement was prior to our incorporation; that we started paying dues but the interlocal was never changed to include us; SRTC no longer operates as the lead so a new agreement was needed. Deputy Mayor Woodard asked about the sentence on page 4 of 5, "There is nothing restricting any agency from forming a new agreement for similar purposes as the SRTMC" and whether there are limited choices. Mr. Messner explained that does not limit choices; that the City of Spokane has their own traffic operating center and a direct link to SRTMC; that there is nothing preventing agencies from doing something similar, and said we would like to do that as well. There was some discussion about bringing cable into our building as well as a new city hall; of the opportunity to apply for CMAQ grants; and that ideally we would like to perform those functions that are occurring now at the TMC. Mr. Jackson said that we agreed to continue on an interim basis, there is no charge to us this year; that some entities want to maintain the regional aspect and that we need to look at what we get for what we pay; and again that this is an opportunity for everyone to look into this as it seems that in the future, it could be fairly economical as well as more convenient, for us to have this in-house. Mr. Messner said that this will be coming back to Council with one of two options: to continue with the SRTMC, or sign another interlocal agreement or another mechanism to dissolve our participation in the Council Study Session: 03-31-2015 Page 1 of 3 Approved by Council: 04-14-2015 SRTMC. Mr. Messner also explained that we would be looking at ownership of fiber as there are numerous components in those traffic signals, and not a lot of documentation of who owns what. Mr. Jackson said that since this is a one-year temporary agreement, and will need to be decided on in November, this gives us time to gather more information in order to make a decision. Council concurred that staff should bring this back at a future meeting. 2. University Overpass Study — Sean Messner Traffic Engineer Messner gave Council a briefing on the Overpass Study, said the study began a few years ago and it has turned out to be an extensive study with lots of data; said we are "coming down the final stretches of the study" as we try to determine where we might be in 2040; said there is no crossing in the study area and the bike/pedestrian plan shows a need for some form of crossing. He said the purpose of this study was to identify those deficiencies and to plan for the future; said the report is in the process of being finalized and will contain about 400 pages. Mr. Messner went over the Study's background and purpose, goals and objectives, area in question, existing levels of service and travel time, existing pedestrian and bike networks, showed the areas of existing transit, preliminary alternatives, and performance measures. He then explained some of the alternatives on Argonne, such as a new southbound lane, or a four- or six -lane diverging diamond, with the new southbound lane on Argonne as the preferred alternative for congestion relief. Mr. Messner also discussed congestion relief for Pines, and mentioned the preferred pedestrian/bicycle alternative for Montgomery Drive. Discussion included mention of the idea of a bridge for bicycle traffic only versus bicycles and automobiles; and projecting growth in neighborhoods like University or Painted Hills. Mr. Jackson said that tonight's agenda item is informational, and if we receive grant funding for a new southbound lane on Argonne, that would come to Council for approval; adding that Council could see more information later for the Pines area, but won't see more infoimation on the University area for quite some time. 3. Marijuana Legislative Update — Erik Lamb Deputy City Attorney Lamb stated that staff has been keeping close watch on several marijuana -related bills; that last January there were about eighteen proposed bills, but now there are a few less which is more a result of consolidation of bills rather than bills that have died. Mr. Lamb mentioned that the two primary bills are Senate Bill 5052 and House Bill 2136; that 5052 is the reconciliation of medical and recreational marijuana; he said he spoke with Lobbyist Briahna Taylor this morning and said there is so much change going on with these bills, that several of them change almost daily. He said the two bills are tied together and that 2136 is the revenue sharing bill; he said that Ms. Taylor said there is strong confidence in Olympia that 5052 will pass in some form. Mr. Lamb said that 5052 would eliminate collective gardens in a timed, phased -out approach with operations ceasing July 2016; but the collective gardens have been replaced with the cooperative, which was limited to four people but now can have up to ten with no restrictions of how the people cycle through; said they would have to register with the Liquor Control Board, with the big issue of where they can be located; originally they had to be twenty- five miles from a retail shop. He said the House wants it to one mile, and the Senate prefers fifteen miles. Mr. Lamb said the Department of Health would create standards while it focuses on the THC which is the hallucinate part, as well as the cannabidol, which is the medicinal part. Under bill 5052, Mr. Lamb explained, people between eighteen and twenty-one can enter to purchase, and qualified patients can get arrest protection by carrying some type of card to demonstrate patient status. Mr. Lamb said all that is tied to 2136, the revenue sharing part which will modify the existing tax to collect a 30% single tax at the retail level; which all boils down to very limited distribution. Mr. Lamb mentioned there was a proposal to change the definition of "public place" to tie it to the existing definition of public place in the title for liquor to make it clearer. Mr. Lamb mentioned that we have commented on 2136 and other bills to try to include language regarding private consumption lounges, but that has not yet been successful, although we are still trying. Mr. Lamb mentioned the idea Council Study Session: 03-31-2015 Page 2 of 3 Approved by Council: 04-14-2015 of providing more flexibility concerning the 1,000 -foot buffer, with some jurisdictions feeling that was too restrictive while others felt it needed more flexibility. The number of allowed plants to be grown at home was also mentioned, and Mr. Lamb said the idea of allowing everyone to grow up to six plants at their home appears to be a dead issue. He said the bill about purchasing by minors hasn't gone anywhere as legislators are trying to focus on the big picture for now. Mr. Lamb said this legislative session began January 12, and the last day of the regular session will be April 26. 4. Advance Agenda — Mayor Grafos. There were no suggested changes to the Advance Agenda. 5. Council Comments — Mayor Grafos. Mayor Grafos mentioned that today is our City's twelfth birthday. 6. City Manager Comments — Mike Jackson City Manager Jackson said that concerning Senate Bill 5694 for our lien authority, the proposal has gone to the House Finance Committee and that they will take testimony beginning at 8:00 a.m. Friday, and that he and City Attorney Driskell are planning to attend and comment. Mr. Jackson said the House Finance Committee has concerns that our first lien authority might inhibit the ability to collect state property tax which primarily supports the schools, although Mr. Jackson said he doesn't think that it would be inhibiting; he said we will also have to straighten out the language about the combined assessment and lien authority cap as none of the cities would appreciate limiting the ability to impose a special assessment. Mr. Jackson said that Deputy City Manager Calhoun received an AWC (Association of Washington Cities) action alert and he tried to contact Lobbyist Briahna Taylor about the senate budget proposal to reduce revenue sharing for liquor to all cities of about $20 million, so over a two-year period, that would be a $400,000 reduction for our city; and said he would like for us to oppose that reduction if Council concurs. They all nodded in agreement. Concerning vaping lounges, Mr. Jackson said if we can't pass some restrictions for state control, we can come back and discuss the issue more with Council to see what we can do as a city; but said it seems the first thing would be to address consumption by minors or over -consumption by anyone. Mr. Jackson said the Liquor Control Board does not inspect premises since there is nothing in the laws about vaping lounges; therefore there are no rules or regulations for any agency to make sure there are no minors in those establishments. It was moved by Deputy Mayor Woodard, seconded and unanimously agreed to adjourn. The meeting adjourned at 7:00 p.m. ATTEST: Dean Grafos, Mayor Christine Bainbridge, City Clerk Council Study Session: 03-31-2015 Approved by Council: 04-14-2015 Page 3 of 3