2016, 08-09 Regular Formal MINUTES
City of Spokane Valley
City Council Special Regular Meeting
Formal Meeting Format
Tuesday, August 9,2016
Mayor Higgins called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m.
Attendance: Stc
Rod Higgins,Mayor Mark Calhoun,Acting City Manager
Arne Woodard,Deputy Mayor Cary Driskell, City Attorney
Caleb Collier, CounciImember Mike Stone, Parks&Rec Director
Pam Haley,Councilmember Erik Lamb, Deputy City Attorney
Mike Munch,Councilmember Eric Guth, Public Works Director
Ed Pace, Councilmember John Hohman, Comm & Eco. Dev. Director
Sam Wood,Councilmember Chelsie Taylor, Finance Director
Mark Werner, Police Chief
Steve Worley, Cap. Improvement Program Mgr.
Mike Basinger, Eco. Development Coordinator
Chris Bainbridge,City Clerk
INVOCATION: Pastor Bill Dropko of Greenacres Christian Fellowship Church gave the invocation.
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: Council, staff and the audience stood for the Pledge of Allegiance.
ROLL CALL: City Clerk Bainbridge called the roll;all Councilmembers were present.
APPROVAL OF AGENDA: It was moved by Deputy Mayor Woodard,seconded and unanimously agreed
to approve the agenda.
INTRODUCTION OF SPECIAL GUESTS AND PRESENTATIONS:N/A
COMMITTEE,BOARD,LIAISON SUMMARY REPORTS:
Deputy Mayor Woodard reported that he represented the Mayor at last Thursday's ribbon cutting of the
new business Painting with a Twist. There were no other Council committee reports.
MAYOR'S REPORT: Mayor Higgins reported that he attended the Regional Clean Air Agency meeting
where they discussed recent complaints about the odor of blooming marijuana plants; attended a GSI
(Greater Spokane, Inc.) business round-table discussion where the underlying theme was the trouble
attracting a competent work force, and excessive government regulations.
PROCLAMATION: nla
PUBLIC COMMENTS: Mayor Higgins invited public comment. Mr.Rob Chase of Liberty Lake, asked
Council to re-visit the TPP(Trans Pacific Partnership)and the ramifications at the local level; said the City
of Spokane issued a resolution against it last February and that this affects governments at the state and
local levels; said GSI is for it but that is the only one for it that he is aware of, and said he would like
Council to put this on an upcoming agenda. Mayor Higgins said he has been working with the Chamber to
put together a forum and thought they would have contacted him by now. There were no further public
comments.
Minutes Regular Council Meeting:08-09-2016 Page I of 6
Approved by Council:08-23-2016
1. CONSENT AGENDA: Consists of items considered routine which are approved as a group. Any
member of Council may ask that an item be removed from the Consent Agenda to be considered separately.
Proposed Motion:I move to approve the Consent Agenda.
a.Approval of claim vouchers on Aug 9, 2016 Request for Council Action Form Totaling:$442,844.46
b. Approval of Payroll for Pay Period Ending July 31,2016: $408,501.37
c. Approval of July 26,2016 Council Meeting Minutes,Regular Formal Meeting Format
d. Approval of August 3,2016 Council Meeting Minutes, Special Formal Meeting Format
It was moved by Deputy Mayor Woodard, seconded and unanimously agreed to approve the Consent
Agenda.
NEW BUSINESS:
2. Proposed Resolution 16-010 Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction Policy—Steve Worley
It was moved by Deputy Mayor Woodard and seconded to approve Resolution 16-010 adopting a
Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction Policy. Mr. Worley explained that having a greenhouse gas
emissions policy would be an asset when applying for state grants; that previously Council had asked for
comment from the community and staff held a public meeting July 27, 2016; four people attended. Mr.
Worley said that although he did not attend,staff told him the meeting included good discussions with some
people concerned at first, but after going over the verbiage of the policy,and staff explaining that the policy
doesn't include anything more than what we already do,the citizens understood, although some thought it
needed more"teeth"to the policy,while others liked the way it was worded. Councilmember Collier asked
how many more points this would give us in our grant applications, and Mr. Worley replied that it depends
on the grant;sometimes as few as one,two or three, but for other grants it could add twenty to thirty points,
adding that sometimes just a point or two can make the difference between getting the grant or not. Mayor
Higgins invited public comment; no comments were offered.
Council discussion included comments from Councilmember Pace that he feels this "agenda" is being
forced by those outside the City, and other Councihnembers voiced concern with "H -- Global." After
further brief discussion and hearing a suggestion from City Attorney Driskell to remove H. Global and
move that sentence as a new number 3 under K, it was moved by Deputy Mayor Woodard and seconded to
move the contents under H Global to new number 3 under K, and to also remove H Global. Mayor Higgins
again invited public comment; no comments were offered. Vote by acclamation on whether to amend the
motion: In Favor: Unanimous. Opposed.' None. Motion passed. Vote by Acclamation, and by show of
hands, on the fully amended motion to approve Resolution 16-010 adopting a Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Reduction Policy as amended: In Favor: Mayor Higgins, Deputy Mayor Woodard, and Councihnembers
Munch and Wood. Opposed: Councihnembers Collier; Haley and Pace. Motion carried.
3.Mayoral Appointments: Councilmembers to Committees—Mayor Higgins
Mayor Higgins explained about the need to fill certain committee board vacancies, and as a result of his
recommendations, it was moved by Deputy Mayor Woodard and seconded to appoint Councilmeinbeis
Mike Munch and Parr Haley to the Health District Board, to appoint Councihnember Collier to the
Emergency 9-1-1 Board, to appoint Councihnember Haley to the Spokane Transit Authority, to appoint
Mayor Higgins, and to appoint Councilmember Haley as alternate, to the Visit Spokane Board, and to
appoint Councihnember Collier to the Wastewater Policy Advisoiy Board. Mayor Higgins invited public
comment;no comments were offered. Vote by Acclamation:In Favor: Unanimous. Opposed.'None.Motion
carried.
PUBLIC COMMENTS: Mayor Higgins invited public comment; no comments were offered.
Minutes Regular Council Meeting:08-09-2016 Page 2 of 6
Approved by Council:08-23-2016
ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS:
4. Legislative Update and 2017 Legislative Agenda—Mark Calhoun,Briahna Murray
Mr. Calhoun explained that Briahna Murray and Chelsea Hager, from Gorton Thomas Honeywell
Governmental Affairs, are here tonight in follow-up from the June 14 budget workshop, to discuss and
eventually seek Council consensus on a draft legislative agenda. Ms. Murray introduced Chelsea Hager,
and the two shared explaining the various aspects of the state budget process,as shown on their PowerPoint
presentation. In looking at the draft legislative agenda concerning Balfour Park, Deputy Mayor Woodard
said that he would like to change that agenda item since we do not yet know what will happen with the
library and feels we are"jumping the gun;" said he would like to change the first section to include mention
of the park features for Appleway Trail, and to complete that project so the public can see the lineal park;
said lie feel that would be a much smaller request and feels the delegation would support it, whereas he
feels there is less support for Balfour Park due to the uncertainty. Mr. Calhoun noted that we secured funds
for the Appleway Trail with our own funds and a variety of grants; that there was no construction this year
but will be two segments in 2017, with the final segment in 2020; said we used our own money to fund
University to Pines but the area presently doesn't include any amenities,and that the plan is to pursue some
state assistance for that. Councilmember Pace mentioned that he gets a Iot of comments about the Iack of
amenities on the Trail, that he isn't sure if a lot of people have bought into the idea of a lineal park, but
feels people would appreciate Balfour Park more,especially with the new City Hall in the area,which could
all stimulate development in that area; that lie likes the idea of adding Appleway to the legislative agenda,
but looks for public input.
Ms. Murray said that since this is a draft,there will be many opportunities for changes, and the hope is to
have a final version in September; said the support of the community helps make projects successful, but
we also need the support of the local legislators and seek their feedback and ask them to be advocates for
these items; said the focus should be on one project that is ready to go and has a lot of credibility, as well
as a clear vision on how to spend the funds and deliver on the project; and said this can be adjusted in the
upcoming weeks. Councilrnernber Collier voiced his agreement with Councilmember Pace; said he has
concerns with the Appleway Trail as it is a hindrance to traffic on Sullivan/Evergreen as people try to cross,
and is a safety issue; said with Balfour Park, the idea is to have a central hub and probably better use of
funding. Ms. Murray stated that we are not sure what Balfour Park will be,while we have kept to our word
about a lineal park and the Trail;adding that the lesser capital funding request would probably get attention
when the issues are more clear on Balfour. Councilmember Haley said she hears the trail is not close to
what citizens thought it would be as it lacks such things as landscaping; said it makes more sense to make
the trial more in line with the original concept. Ms. Murray said we can continue to refine the agenda in
the upcoming weeks,and Mr. Calhoun suggested leaving the agenda as it is and that Council can add a fifth
item following the discussion on the 23`d,with a motion set for September 6. Conncilmembers nodded in
agreement. Concerning protecting the state-shared revenues, Mr. Murray said the next session will be
challenging and there is no guarantee of success.
Councilmember Pace said he likes the agenda but there are some missing areas that are lower priority but
were brought up during the June workshop,and include such things as right-to-work,prevailing wage,B&O
(business and occupation)tax,Labor and Industries,plus rule making by un-elected bodies like the Human
Rights Commission or the Department of Ecology, and mentioned the idea of taking the power away from
those commissions but said he is unsure how to state that. Ms. Murray said she wants to make sure the
items see a path to success,and said some of those items would be hard to see that success,and asked about
having her company work on those when there is no political pathway for it. Councilmember Pace
suggested the idea of narrowing this down but said lie wasn't sure of the structure, and Ms. Murray
suggested perhaps having a statement of having a business-friendly climate. Mr. Calhoun said staff will
work on adding those for further discussion at the August 23 meeting, with the idea of reaching some
Council consensus on what to early forward for the September 6 motion. Council nodded in agreement.
Minutes Regular Council Meeting:08-09-2016 Page 3 of 6
Approved by Council:08-23-2016
Councilmember Wood said he wants to push back on the B&O tax as he feels that tax is insulting to
businesses and is an unfair progressive tax;and Mayor Higgins added that it would be inappropriate to talk
about B&O without L&I as they go hand-in-hand.Ms. Murray said she will be at the September 6 Council
meeting when Council considers approval of the legislative agenda,and will also present a proclamation to
thank the Fourth District Legislators for their work last session.
Mayor Higgins called for a recess at 7:11 p.m.; he reconvened the meeting at 7:23 p.m.
5.2017 Budget Estimates Revenues and Expenditures--Chelsie Taylor
Finance Director Taylor went over the information concerning the 2017 budget estimates for revenues and
expenditures as noted on her August 9,2016 Request for Council Action form; and reminded Council that
the spreadsheets are a work in progress as the budget continues evolving, although she doesn't anticipate
any material changes.After going through the PowerPoint presentation on the fund appropriations for 2017,
including the proposed increase of one FTE(full time equivalent)staff person,Mr.Calhoun said that person
will be needed to maintain the new city hall building, and at this point, the decision has not been made to
have that as an employee or contract for the work, and that between now and this next September when we
move into the building, he will determine if we will have a meaningful workload for an additional person,
and if so, the idea is to have that person as well as the two maintenance personnel at CenterPlace, all take
care of the City's buildings, including CenterPlace, the Police Precinct, and the shop on Euclid.
Councilmember Collier asked how many years have we not increased the property tax and what did that
save the citizens,and Mr. Calhoun and Ms.Taylor said they will bring back that information at a subsequent
meeting.
Mr.Calhoun mentioned the funding challenges as shown on page 4 of the Request for Council Action form;
and said those items will be an ongoing discussion as he works with finance, legal and public works to
address those issues. There was other discussion about the fluidity of the budget and if figures change
substantially,or revenues drop drastically,a budget amendment could be implemented;mention by Deputy
Mayor Woodard of the railroad separation project and that he would like Council to consider including
funds in the budget to bring the Pines Road design up to 90%., and suggested bringing figures back at the
next budget discussion about the Barker and other separation projects. There was Council consensus to
discuss that more at the September 13 council meeting.
6. Comprehensive Plan Draft Goals and Policy Discussion—Mike Basinger
Mr. Basinger explained that tonight is an opportunity to go over the draft goals and policies, and via his
PowerPoint presentation, gave Council an overview, including an explanation that goals are broad
statements of intent, while policies are more specific statements supporting the goals; and that those goals
and policies are based on GMA(Growth Management Act)requirements,as well as identified community
and economic development priorities; and he gave examples of those goals and policies. Councilmember
Pace asked if a plan to underground utilities will be included,and Mr.Basinger replied that he didn't recall,
but that undergrounding is very expensive and new development is encouraged to do undergrounding; but
said he will research that further. For goals and policies under Land Use, Councilmember Wood said he
hopes the emphasis in on supportive use rather than restrictive or inhibiting; mentioned the need for water
and the desire of some agencies to take away those rights which would control our growth; said he likes the
idea of bus turnouts so when people are driving down a road and a bus stops, all traffic wouldn't have to
stop as well. Mr. Basinger said he is looking for Council consensus on issues Council would like staff to
further examine. Deputy Mayor Woodard stated he agreed with the bus turnouts,adding that the challenge
would be predicting STA (Spokane Transit Authority) routes; agreed that he would Iike us to encourage
new development to underground utilities, particularly along major routes and tree areas. Councilmember
Pace mentioned the goals and policies listed on the LAND USE handout, specifically the third one down,
and said he would like to work on editing that as it sounds"planner-esque"rather than free-market; said he
Minutes Regular Council Meeting:08-09-2016 Page 4 of 6
Approved by Council:08-23-2016
is not sure about the goal as we want to make zoning and development regulations as flexible as possible
and let businesses make those decisions, as if they see those are in the best interest to look good then they
will, or not if they don't care. Deputy Mayor Woodard said he disagreed as he doesn't have a problem in
making things look good; but suggested to perhaps encourage in that area we are trying to develop. After
further discussion on that third goal to "Transform commercial, industrial, and mixed-use areas into
attractive, accessible districts that create economic vitality," it was determined to remove the goal in its
entirety. Mr.Basinger noted we are getting close to having an adoption schedule to present to Council,and
the latest schedule includes bringing both development and comprehensive plan together as a packet,
because it would be difficult to understand the concepts if not viewed together; and said this will require a
lot of work to keep this moving as planned.
7. Snowplow—Eric Guth
Director Guth explained that the snowplow purchase is contained in the 2016 budget adopted by Council,
and since the amount of the purchase exceeds the City Manager's signing authority,the plan is to bring this
back to Council at the August 23 meeting for discussion/approval from Council. As noted in his August 9,
2016 Request for Council Action(RCA),Mr. Guth explained the history and background regarding snow
operations and the current fleet; said with the current fleet we can take care of a storm in about twelve
hours; said the service is good and we don't get a lot of calls from residents; said the County was spending
about $800,000 for our City, and we spend about $500,000; and that the majority residents feel that the
plowing is better now than it was with the County. Mr. Guth said even with light snows, we still have
hillsides and bridges and spend a lot of time and money de-icing; out of the nine plows, three are for de-
icing,and he brought Council's attention to the show plow replacement schedule which examines the miles,
hours,repair records and number of breakdowns, and using that came up with a useful life of the trucks of
about 33 years; said the hardest thing is the weather and the chemicals they use,not the engine but the body,
and by using this schedule, it would allow for a spare and eventually retire and surplus the equipment at the
end of six years. Mr. Guth also noted that we put funds aside annually for these purchases, and the fund
balance is currently $325,000; said this plow has been discussed since 2014 and the purchase has been
delayed; that August 23 is scheduled for approval consideration; we opened the first bid August 5 for the
cab and chasse, which resulted in two bidders, with the low bid coming in at about$108,000; next will be
the accessories which should come in on the 18th, and said staff will have those results for Council at the
August 23 meeting.In response to Council questions about use of standby personnel,Mr.Guth said we put
out an RFP (request for proposal) annually for motor graders and typically have twelve to sixteen graders
on call, and if there is a major event, everyone in the area calls the graders and they shop themselves out to
various communities. Mr. Guth noted the funds would come out of the 501 fund,with the operation of the
plow, the fuel, from the street fund; said there was a shortfall in the street fund the last few years so he
showed some reductions in snow plowing to account for that deficit; said this year he is putting that back.
Mr. Calhoun said staff will have all the financial information for the new plows as well as road preservation
funds, at the August 23 meeting. Mr. Guth also noted he hired temporary employees on a temporary basis
for the winter, and they are only paid when they work. Deputy Mayor Woodard asked about the statement
in the RCA about the truck being ordered with a dump box so it could be used to haul material during the
spring,summer and fall for small public works projects completed by staff,and he asked what those projects
would be. Mr. Guth said those are various projects such as asphalt or concrete repair, sometimes it also
involves helping if a Geiger crew is not available, or to pick up slash when trees cover sidewalks; said it is
not a tremendous amount as most of the projects are contracted. Deputy Mayor Woodard said he would
like a discussion with the contractors in the area to find out if anyone is interested or not; said he has been
asking this question and never had an answer; said this type of expansion could be seen as creep or empire
building;said we start with six temps,then there will be pressure to have more FTEs(full-time equivalent),
said he won't fight this purchase as we probably need this truck,but before lie votes for any more,he wants
a discussion with some of these contractors; said the County is not a contractor and we need to reach out to
companies that have chassis, spreaders,etc.
Minutes Regular Council Meeting:08-09-2016 Page 5 of 6
Approved by Council:08-23-2016
At 8:58 p.m., it was moved by Deputy Mayor IVoodard and seconded, to extend the meeting fifteen minutes.
Vote by Acclamation: In Favor: Mayor Higgins, Deputy Mayor r'Voodard, and Councdmenrbers Munch,
Haley, Collier, and Pace. Opposed: Councilrnember Wood. Motion passed. Mr. Calhoun said in looking
at the budget under tab 5, the final page, it shows the history of the FTEs and the number of employees
through 2017, and said that is pretty much static; said we want Council to see what we had and where we
are planning to go in the future, and this helps keep track of those figures.
8. Advance Agenda—Mayor Higgins
Councilmember Munch mentioned the City of Spokane's recent direction regarding trains,said the situation
is very disconcerting and that perhaps we could daft a resolution to state our position.City Attorney Driskell
said the issue regarding trains is more complex than it appears, and that it is not likely that any of our
Council or staff would propose what the City of Spokane is considering;that our Council expressed concern
about rail traffic with oil and coal as a matter of safety,but before we draft a resolution,said perhaps Council
could have more discussion. Deputy Mayor Woodard mentioned that he supports the railroad and the
opportunities for commerce, with Councilmember Munch stating they are a business and we want to see
them grow, and that he would hope they would come to the table and realize they have an impact on us and
help us. Mr. Driskell said given the complexity of the different issues, we are not opposed to train traffic
and what the means for commerce; and Mayor Higgins mentioned the priorities of Bridging the Valley, of
protecting the aquifer and that the nearest disaster relief agencies are in Missoula and the Tri-cities.
Councilmember Collier also mentioned the TPP as commented on by Rob Chase,and Mayor Higgins said
he would like to talk to Mr. Collier about that issue.
Deputy Mayor Woodard mentioned an upcoming Policy Center Annual dinner scheduled for September
20, and that lie would like to consider having a meeting Wednesday, September 21 instead of Tuesday
September 20. There were no objections.
INFORMATION ONLY(will not be reported or discussed)
The following items were for information only and were not reported or discussed: (9)CenterPlace Kitchen
Equipment, (10) Stormwater Management Program, (11) Audit Engagement Letter, and (12) 2016
Pavement Preservation Midterm Report.
CITY MANAGER COMMENTS
Mr.Calhoun mentioned that at next week's Council meeting,Public Works will make a presentation on the
City Hall progress, which will be done at each study session from this point forward; a video of the drone
pictures of the construction of the new City 1-fall was shown.
It was moved by Deputy Mayor Woodard, seconded and unanimously agreed to adjourn. The meeting
adjourned at 9:11 p.m.
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Minutes Regular Council Meeting:08-09-2016 Page 6 of 6
Approved by Council:08-23-2016