2018, 06-19 Study Session MINUTES
SPOKANE VALLEY COUNCIL MEETING
STUDY SESSION
Spokane Valley City Hall Council Chambers
Spokane Valley, Washington
June 19,2018
Attendance:
Councilmembers _ Staff _
Rod Higgins, Mayor Mark Calhoun, City Manager
Pam Haley, Deputy Mayor John Hohman,Deputy City Manager
Brandi Peetz,Councilmember Chelsie Taylor, Finance Director
Linda Thompson, Councilmember Mike Stone, Parks &Rec Director
Ben Wick, Councilmember Cary Driskell, City Attorney
Sam Wood, Councilmember Bill Helbig, City Engineer
Arne Woodard, Councilmember Marty Palaniuk, Planner
Ray Wright, Sr.Traffic Engineer
Christine Bainbridge, City Clerk
Mayor Higgins called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m.
ROLL CALL: City Clerk Bainbridge called the roll; all Councilmembers were present.
ACTION ITEMS:
I. 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 June 19,2018 Request for Council Action Form Total: $2,335,687.72
b.Approval of Payroll for Pay Period Ending May 31,2018: $472,953.53
c. Approval of May 22, 2018 Council Meeting Minutes, Formal Format
d. Approval of May 29,2018 Council Meeting Minutes, Study Session Format
e. Approval of June 5, 2018 Council Meeting Minutes, Study Session Format
It was moved by Deputy Mayor Haley, seconded and unanimously agreed to approve the Consent Agenda.
2. Second Reading Proposed Ordinance 18-012, Code Text Amendment,Hotel/Motel in Industrial Zone-
Marty Palaniuk
After City Clerk Bainbridge read the ordinance title, it was moved by Deputy Mayor Haley and seconded
to approve Ordinance 18-012 amending chapters 19.60.050 and 19.65.080 SVMC to allow hotels/motels
in the Industrial zoning district. Planner Palaniuk gave a brief overview of this privately-initiated code text
amendment, which would permit hotel/motels with a building footprint greater than 25,000 square feet, in
the industrial zones on principal arterials,which includes east along Broadway Avenue in the Yardley area,
north of the River along Sullivan, and north of the River along Barker, although Barker is not currently
classified as a principal arterial, there are plans to reclassify it as such in the future; and for those with a
footprint greater than 25,000, a conditional use permit would be required. Mayor Higgins invited public
comment; no comments were offered.
Councilmember Wick said he feels we have a limited amount of industrial zoned land and as some of the
neighbors had mentioned, feels it should be left for industry, and Councilmember Woodard said he sees
this as a potential enhancement of the industrial park. After brief discussion on the motion, it was moved
by Councilmember Thompson and seconded to amend the motion to cap the footprint up to 25,000 square
feet. Councilmember Woodard said that it would be based on the footprint and not on the square footage,
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so a hotel/motel could be built with additional floors.Councilmember Wood mentioned this had been before
the Planning Commission,and Councilmember Wick noted the Commission was split on this issue. [Note:
according to those minutes, the Planning Commission vote to recommend approval was five in favor, and
two opposed,] Mayor Higgins invited public comment. Mr. Dwight Hume: said he was speaking on behalf
of the proponent, said the idea was to cater to the Industrial Park and to the businesses that have need to
accommodate overnight room stay or for training purposes; he noted that the proposal would not have a
negative impact on other industrial uses; and the conditional use permit was designed to create an
opportunity for the hearing examiner discernment if there were any unforeseen issues or impacts. There
were no other public comments. Vote on amending the motion:In favor: Councilmembers Wick, Thompson
and Peetz. Opposed:Mayor Higgins, Deputy Mayor Haley, and Councilmembers Wood and Woodard. The
motion to amend failed. Vote on the original motion to approve the ordinance as drafted:In favor:Mayor
Higgins, Deputy Mayor Haley, and Councilmembers Wood, Woodard, and Peetz. Opposed.'
Councilmembers Thompson and Wick. Motion carried.
3. Motion Consideration: Termination Notice to Spokane County Regarding Hearing Examiner Interlocal
—Cary Driskell
It was moved by Deputy Mayor Haley and seconded to authorize the City Manager to send 180 day notice
to Spokane County of the termination of the Interlocal Agreement for Hearing Examiner Services in the
City of Spokane Valley. City Attorney Driskell explained the background of the proposal to terminate the
Hearing Examiner Interlocal agreement, as noted in his June 19,2018 Request for Council Action. Mayor
Higgins invited public comment;no comments were offered. Vote by Acclamation:In Favor: Unanimous.
Opposed:None. Motion carried.
4. Motion Consideration: Land Acquisition, 729 S Carnahan—Cary Driskell, Bill Helbig
It was moved by Deputy Mayor Haley and seconded to authorize the City Manager to finalize and execute
all documents necessary to complete the acquisition of the property at 729 South Carnahan in an amount
not to exceed $362,100. City Attorney Driskell went through the background of this proposed land
acquisition, all as noted in the July 19,2018 Request for Council Action,adding that the additional $10,000
is in case there are unknown incidental costs and if we don't need to spend that,we won't. Mayor Higgins
invited public comment. Ms. Nina Fluegal, Spokane Valley: she asked why we were doing this when the
market is so "hot" and why not wait until the market settled down, or do something like we did on 8th and
McDonald with bigger stop signs or flashing lights;said these people knew what they had when they bought
the property. There were no other public comments. There were some Council comments concerning the
need to quickly re-sell this property, and Mr. Driskell agreed and mentioned that he had received a letter
from the property owner's attorney about specific concerns with threats posed by the intersection,and that
if we had pursued condemnation, the attorney would take it as trying to drive up the price. Vote by
Acclamation:In Favor:Mayor Higgins,Deputy Mayor Haley, and Councilmembers Wood,Peetz, Woodard
and Thompson. Opposed: Councilmember Wick. Motion carried.
PUBLIC COMMENTS: Mayor Higgins explained the process, and then invited public comment. Ms.
Leilani DeLong, Spokane Valley: she spoke regarding the invocations given before a Council meeting,said
she has never seen an Islamic person or someone from the Mormon Temple, or Catholic Church, or Jewish
Synagogue or someone from the Buddhist faith give an invocation, and she would like to see that diversity
as if reflects the entire Spokane Valley; and said she may be contacted for information on how to contact
some of those mentioned.
NON-ACTION ITEMS:
5. Intelligent Transportation System/Spokane Regional Transportation Management Center (SRTMC) -
John Hohman,Ray Wright, and Ms. Becky Spangle of WSDOT
Mr. Holman said that the SRTMC has been a regional collaboration of the Washington State Department
of Transportation and multiple jurisdictions,all working together to improve traffic flow and safety, and he
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Approved by Council:07-03-2018
introduced Ms. Becky Spangler of SRTMC, and City Senior Traffic Engineer Ray Wright. Via their
PowerPoint presentation,Mr. Wright explained that as part of the last Comprehensive Plan update,the issue
of traffic congestion was examined;he noted our morning and evening commute peaks are growing longer
in duration, and the level of service on some of the major arterials during those peaks is degrading as the
delay grows. Ms. Spangle explained that some options to consider to address these delays include building
more capacity, or maximizing the efficiency of the existing infrastructure; she mentioned the region-wide
ITS infrastructure with approximately 70 miles of fiber in service; said that SRTMC is working to provide
the solution to these traffic issues by providing information to the public for better travel choices, along
with the efficient use of existing infrastructure. Ms. Spangle mentioned the I-90 operations study projects
which include a ramp metering system, wrong-way notification system, and queue or merge warning
system, all of which will aid in reaching the target of no serious and no fatal incidents; she went over the
SRTMC objectives and funding,and noted that partner funds of$15,000 per agency have not been collected
for three years, but they are scheduled to resume in 2019. Mr. Wright stated that next steps for Spokane
Valley include implementing the priority projects identified in the 2011 ITS Strategic Plan to install or
update fiber optic systems along Mullan Road as well as Sprague/Appleway, and to increase the fiber
capacity along Sullivan from Mission to Indiana. Council thanked Ms. Spangler and staff for their
presentation.
6.Burlington Northern/Santa Fe Railway, 2nd Rail Project Update-Bill Helbig
City Engineer Helbig went through the PowerPoint presentation explaining about the BNSF proposed rail
expansion project; he spoke of the proposed second mainline track parallel to existing track, that it would
be 4.4 miles long and would require modifications at existing road crossings as well as to existing railroad
communication infrastructure; said the project is slated for design and permitting in 2018, with actual
construction in 2019; he mentioned potential temporary closures of some roads such as at the Evergreen
Road and Flora crossings, the Barker Road crossing for the expansion to the south,which project he said is
being coordinated with our grade separation project;he said that the Sullivan road crossing future expansion
would require new bridges,the Pines Road crossing would also require closure but that timeframe has not
yet been determined,and that project is also being coordinated with our grade separation project. Mr.Helbig
said staff and BNSF have been meeting on these issues, and we have contracted with Fletcher& Sippel as
legal consultant for the project coordination. Mr. Helbig mentioned there could be a possibility of a need
for a third track in the future, but that also has not yet been determined.
7. 22nd Avenue Traffic-Bill Helbig, Ray Wright
Mr. Calhoun stated that at the conclusion of this presentation, staff will be seeking consensus to move
forward with the two traffic mitigation measures of the use of radar speed signs, and placing truck
restrictions on the roadways. Mr. Helbig stated that staff met with some of the neighbors for an exchange
of ideas, and to hear some of their concerns, such as speeds, volume, road design, and no pedestrian
facilities. As noted in the speed study, Mr. Helbig said the actual speeds fall within established standards
and that according to the MUTCD (Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices), stop signs are not
warranted for 22' Avenue. Mr. Helbig also mentioned that the City practice is not to have speed bumps
or humps because of snow removal issues. So based on the studies,Mr. Helbig said staff recommends the
two traffic mitigation measures of using radar speed signs, and truck restrictions. There was some
discussion about the County's restrictions of through trucks on their roads, which means the trucks are
using 22nd; and Councilmember Wick mentioned the idea of having some collaboration with the County to
encourage them to improve their street structures so their restrictions don't impact our roads. There was
consensus from Council to proceed with the two mentioned mitigation efforts, and Mr. Helbig said staff
will endeavor to bring this before Council July 10 for a resolution to include this neighborhood as a no
truck area.
Mayor Higgins called for a short recess at 7:43 p.m.,; he reconvened the meeting at 7:52 p.m.
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8.Repeal of SVMC 2.45 -Cary Driskell
As noted in his June 19, 2018 Request for Council Action, City Attorney Driskell explained about the
adoption of SVMC chapter 2.45 addressing a Department of Public Safety, and he explained that there is
no need for this as those safety services are provided by independent safety entities such as the Fire
Department and Health Department, or by the Spokane County Sheriff's office through contract, and that
we do not have any legal control within their jurisdiction, and if a safety issue does occur, that the City
Manager would communicate as needed with those entities to protect the health and safety of our citizens.
Mr. Driskell also noted that although this Council has not done so in the past, it might consider if it feels
comfortable doing so, that when this comes before Council for a first ordinance reading, to suspend the
rules and adopt the ordinance on the first reading, since this is not a matter of any controversy. Council
agreed to have staff proceed.
9.Advance Agenda—-Mayor Higgins
There were no suggested changes to the Advance Agenda.
10. Information Only: Department reports
Department reports were for information only and were not reported or discussed.
11. Council Check in—Mayor.
Mayor Higgins announced that there would be no Council meeting next week as Councilmembers attend
the AWC Conference in Yakima. Councilmember Thompson said the Youth Voice had a meeting last week
and they will do workgroups over the summer,then reconvene the large group in October,and said she and
the group appreciated Council's feedback.
12. City Manager Comments—Mark Calhoun
City Manager Calhoun said a media release was just issued explaining that the Park Road pool circulation
pump is no longer functioning and a replacement pump has been ordered and is expected to arrive
tomorrow, installed Friday,tested on Saturday, and it is hopeful the pool will re-open on Monday, and that
another media release will be issued with any update. Mr. Calhoun noted that we received notification from
AWC that this past week Councilmember Wick earned his advanced Certificate of Municipal Leadership,
and Councilmember Wick was congratulated for his accomplishment. Mr. Calhoun again announced that
there will be no Council meeting next week as Councilmembers attend the AWC Conference in Yakima,
so the next Council meeting will be July 3.
13. Executive Session- Mayor Higgins
It was moved by Deputy Mayor Haley, seconded and unanimously agreed to adjourn into executive session
for approximately thirty minutes to discuss potential land acquisition and litigation, and that no action will
be taken upon return to open session. Council adjourned into executive session at 8:02 p.m. At
approximately 8:31 p.m. Mayor Higgins declared Council out of executive session, at which time it was
moved, seconded, and unanimously agreed to adjourn.
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Council Study Session:06-19-2018 Page 4 of 4
Approved by Council:07-03-2018
SPOKANE VALLEY CITY COUNCIL MEETING
1
Tuesday, June 9, 2018
6:00 p.m. Study Session (Hybrid) Meeting
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