2020, 04-28 Regular Formal Format MINUTES
SPOKANE VALLEY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING
FORMAL FORMAT
Spokane Valley City Hall
Spokane Valley, Washington
April 28,2020
Mayor Wick called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. The meeting was held remotely via ZOOM meeting.
Attendance:
Councilmembars Staff
Ben Wick,Mayor Mark Calhoun, City Manager
Brandi Peetz,Deputy Mayor John Hohman,Deputy City Manager
Pam Haley, Councilmember Chelsie Taylor, Finance Director
Tim Hattenburg, CounciImember Cary Driskell, City Attorney
Rod Higgins, Councilmember Bill Helbig, City engineer
Linda Thompson, Councilmember Mike Stone, Parks &Recreation Director
Arne Woodard, Councilmember Jenny Nickerson,Building Official
Christine Bainbridge, City Clerk
ROLL CALL City Clerk Bainbridge called the roll; all Councilmembers were present.
APPROVAL OF AGENDA: It was moved by Deputy Mayor Peetz, seconded and unanimously agreed to
approve the agenda.
INTRODUCTION OF SPECIAL GUESTS AND PRESENTATIONS nla
MAYOR'S REPORT: Mayor Wick announced that he received a resignation letter today from Planning
Commissioner Matt Walton, who is resigning his commission because he is moving out of our City limits.
Mayor Wick said the appointment was only recently made and he has only been to two meetings since
being appointed, and his term expires the end of this year. Mayor Wick asked Council if there were any
objections to him re-reviewing the applications from those who had applied before, and there were no
objections. Mayor Wick also mentioned that he received several requests for us to send letters of support
to the Governor, including a letter asking that the CARE dollars that went to the state be allocated to cities
within counties with a population over 500,000,that were not a part of the initial outlay, and there were no
objections from Council. Mr. Calhoun said he will look at the AWC (Association of Washington Cities)
letter and draft one specific to Spokane Valley for our Mayor's signature; and again, there were no
objections from Council. There was also some discussion about FEMA and CAREs allocations and what
those funds could be used for. Mayor Wick mentioned the Cares Act 4.0, which he said is in development,
and that the National League of Cities sent out requests for municipalities to send letters to the federal
delegations encouraging them in the next package to include revenues directly to all municipalities to be
used for stabilization of budgets to help replace lost revenues;there were no objections. Mayor Wick noted
our region is sending letters to the Governor to encourage the continued use of the National Guard to help
with the operation of the 2"d Harvest Food Bank,and there were no objections to being part of the regional
request; and finally Mayor Wick said we have been asked to send a letter to the Governor to encourage
restoring elective surgeries; and again, there were no objections.Mr. Wick also mentioned that last Friday
he did proclamation for Arbor Day as our celebration was delayed due to COVID.
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 April 28,2020,Request for Council Action Form Total: $1,083,439.01
Regular Formal Council Meeting: 04-28-2020 Page 1 of 5
Approved by Council: 05-I2-2020
b. Approval of Payroll for Pay Period Ending April 15, 2020: $378,220.35
c. Approval of Council Meeting Minutes of April 7,2020 Study Session Format
d. Approval of Council Meeting Minutes of April 14,2020 Formal Meeting Format
It was moved by Councilmember Hattenburg, seconded and unanimously agreed to approve the Consent
Agenda.
NEW BUSINESS:
2. Resolution 20-007 Adopting Spokane County Hazard Mitigation Plan—Jenny Nickerson
It was moved by Deputy Mayor Peetz and seconded to approve Resolution 20-007 adopting the Spokane
County Hazard Mitigation Plan April 2020 update. Building Official Nickerson extended apologies for
bringing this back as a separate item rather than on the Consent Agenda, as previous discussions were
focused on only adopting our portion of the plan, but she explained that the entire plan needs to be adopted
in order to qualify for federal funding under the Disaster Mitigation Act,and said we will likely see future
updates. Councilmember Thompson asked about scour protection for 25 critical bridges and she asked if
there are any identified in Spokane Valley. Ms.Nickerson said she will consult with City Engineer Helbig
to confirm. There were no public comments. Vote by acclamation: in favor: unanimous. Opposed.' none.
Motion carried.
3. Mayoral Appointment: Citizen to Human Rights Task Force Mayor Wick
It was moved by Deputy Mayor Peetz and seconded to confirm the Mayor's recommended appointment of
James "JJ" Johnson to the Spokane County Human Rights Task Force for a four-year term beginning
immediately upon appointment, and expiring March 31, 2024. Mayor Wick said he interviewed all four
applicants and appreciated all who applied as well as the letter of support from the Human Rights Task
Force Director endorsing Mr. Johnson's reappointment. There were no public comments. Vote by
acclamation: in favor: unanimous. Opposed: none. Motion carried.
ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS:
4. Community Development Block Grant(CDBG)Requalification—Mike Basinger
Mr.Basinger gave a brief background on this grant as noted on his Request for Council Action(RCA)form,
and reiterated the four options,further explaining that option 4 is what we are currently doing; he noted that
Council had previously determined they are not interested in pursuing option 1 or 3, and had asked him to
contact the County about entering into a joint agreement; he said he had several conversations with the
County. Mr.Basinger explained that a joint agreement means we accept entitlement status and ask Spokane
County to administer our CDBG program in addition to its own program; lie said discussions revealed that
such a joint agreement would require a duplication in services while increasing administrative costs to
oversee both programs.Mr. Basinger went over the list of duplications that would occur,as shown on page
2 of his RCA. Further, Mr. Basinger noted that Spokane County realizes that the 20% for administration
would not cover the full cost should we move forward with a joint agreement, and for those reasons, he
noted the idea of a joint agreement is not appealing to Spokane County.
In his conversations with the County, Mr. Basinger said he expressed our concern that with our current
arrangement,we feel we are not getting the deserved recognition;he asked if they would consider increasing
our set-aside amount from its current 20%,and said that we are 33%of the total County population;he also
asked if funds which currently can only be used for infrastructure,could be expanded to public services like
those performed by SNAP or Meals on Wheels; he also suggested adding our logo to all official
correspondence, and to increase the number of our representatives on the committee. He said the County
would look into those suggestions.
Council discussion included comment about the program overall,that in the past we usually got more than
the 20% set-aside; comment that now is not the time to go on our own and that we have already committed
our allocation for this year and next year for the Harvard paving and sewer project; comment from Mr.
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Approved by Council: 05-12-2020
Basinger that the County said they would need all the funds to administer the program and even that would
not cover it; that they have 4.5 FTEs which does not include audit and financial responsibilities. Mr.
Basinger also explained that the County Consolidated Plan sets out the plan for those funds and our
interlocal stipulates the funds must be used for infrastructure only. Mayor Wick stated that if we were our
own entitlement, we would set the rules on how to allocate the money. There was also mention of the
HOME funds and Mr. Basinger explained that the interlocal states we will not go after those funds as we
participate in the larger county program; he said it is unknown if we would be able to pursue those HOME
funds if we were our own entitlement;he said he contacted HUD several years ago and they were not certain
then;that he also contacted them recently but with the current pandemic,they are extremely busy so he has
not heard from them. Mr.Basinger stated that he spoke with Mr.Crowley with Spokane County,who stated
that he is passionate about the CDBG funds and wants the best for the community and the region, that it
usually costs more to administer the program over the funds currently provided, and if we remove our city,
it will likely affect the sub-recipients. In response to a question from Mayor Wick, Mr. Basinger said the
other cities are part of the larger urban consortium; that we have a pretty unique arrangement, and if we
weren't part of the Iarger program,there would be other impacts.Mr.Calhoun added that concerning option
4, the status quo, that both Mr. Basinger and Mr. Crowley mentioned there is an economy of scale by us
working with the County; but if the Council collectively wants to be our own entitlement,perhaps we could
work with the County, but said he wonders if the $130,000 would offset their costs; that he is concerned
that we do not have existing staff or expertise to take on these administrative responsibilities.
There was Council consensus with the exception of Mayor Wick,that staff continue conversations with the
County to include our logo, increase our representatives on the committee, discuss increasing our set-aside
amount, and remain with the current option. It was noted that Mr. Basinger will report back with the
outcome of those conversations and will do what we can to address those suggested changes.
5. Shoreline Master Plan Update Grant—Mike Basinger
After Mr. Basinger went over the information contained in his Request for Council Action form, it was
noted that we must complete the update regardless of the grant, so Council agreed staff should pursue the
grant funds. Mr. Basinger said he believes the$28,000 will accomplish that update;that he spoke with two
consultants, both of whom said they believe they could do the review for$28,000. Mr. Basinger said some
staff time might also be needed.
6. Balfour Park, Recreation&Conservation Office(RCO) Grant Discussion Mike Stone
Parks and Recreation Director Stone introduced Mr. Dell Hatch, principal with Barnardo Wills, who Mr.
Stone explained,did our original Master Plan. Mr. Stone explained that Council has reviewed this issue on
four previous occasions, including the April 7 meeting where discussion was held regarding the impact if
we reduced this project to $1 million. Mr. Stone said that tonight staff will go over the preferred overall
master plan with the full build-out, show that plan from an aerial perspective,talk about budget costs, and
the scope of work for Phase 1 along with alternate scopes to meet the $1 million budget, with the goal of
determining whether to move forward for an RCO grant for that park. Mr. Stone added that if we reduced
the project to$1 million,it should address three key elements: (1)the Park is envisioned as our community's
gathering space; (2) Council indicated they would like to see a Phase 1 project that connects visually and
physically to Sprague Avenue and City Hall; and (3) that the City's grant application needs to be as
compelling and competitive as possible.
Via his PowerPoint presentation, Mr. Hatch showed the site address,the approximate overall project scope
boundary line, plans showing the preferred overall master plan with full build-out, including an aerial
perspective, and project cots comparing 2013 costs to 2020 costs, and how our costs have increased over
the last seven years, keeping in mind an average inflation rate, and they also showed a depiction of an
amphitheater with a$2.5 million dollar project budget,compared with a$1 million dollar budget.As shown
on slide 17, phase 1 scope of work summary with a $1 million dollar budget evaluation to include the
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Approved by Council: 05-12-2020
improvements for the phase 1, would exceed the $1 million dollar budget. Mr. Hatch showed a depiction
of a reduced amphitheater scope which would eliminate the stage, eliminate vehicle access from E. Main
Avenue or Sprague, not include site utilities, and have a much reduced landscape and actual amphitheater
with no grade changes. Another option Mr. Hatch showed,was a$1 million dollar alternate with a passive
park scope, as shown on slide 19 and 20, and would include site utilities, a hardscape picnic shelter,
landscape, access from E. Main Avenue, and connections to the existing Balfour Park.
Moving to slide 21, Mr. Stone said that staff is seeking Council guidance on whether it is Council's desire
to seek an RCO grant for Balfour Park and if so,what value should be pursued including a$500,000 grant;
whether Council wants to pursue a$1 million grant to reimburse a portion of our out-of-pocket acquisition
cost for the Flora property;all while keeping in mind our current financial challenges, and that any funding
would likely need approval by the legislature in their 2021 session.
Discussion included comment about whether a$1 million grant would be competitive; and that the library
property and some remaining park could be left undeveloped. Mr. Hatch stated he thinks the larger picnic
shelter with the patio and extended turf could be built for$1 million and that it would be more competitive
than trying to do a very reduced version of an amphitheater. Mr. Stone added that we are looking for
something that will set this project apart from others, and that the struggle is how to sell this particular
project and be competitive; that there will likely be over 100 grant applications, and that he will give it his
best shot, but wants Council to be aware of what we will be up against. Councilmember Higgins suggested
deferring this until we can do it right,and to wait and see how things go. Councilmember Thompson asked
about making it one huge lawn with trees and a place where people could gather, but Deputy Mayor Peetz
said she prefers not moving in that direction,just to have to remove irrigation and turf later as we don't
want to waste money; but we could always apply later in the year, and Councilmember Hattenburg agreed
deferring this project to a later time.
City Manager Calhoun mentioned that we have agreed to set aside $461,000 for frontage improvements;
he said we will bring those figures and information forward during our budget process,adding that the plan
was also to use a portion of the street wear fee to improve Herald and Main to the north of us; said we are
trying to clean up the area and give the community a vision of what it might look like; said we have scaled
the project down,but we don't want to just add turf and come in later and tear that out. Mayor Wick asked,
and Council confirmed that they have no strong desire to move forward on the RCO grant for the Balfour
Park, but do want to pursue the grant for the WSDOT property on Flora Road, and there was Council
consensus for this to come back on the May 12 agenda for a motion consideration.
7. Advance Agenda- Mayor Wick
Councilmember Thompson said that in connection with the COVID-19 crisis, people of color and people
living in poverty are so much more at risk, and that she'd like us to take a look at, in our region, dealing
with the COV1D-19, but also just looking at how we can help in the future for our community to be more
inclusive,looking at how we can make sure that education works for everybody,how medical accessibility,
how jobs preparation, as we look at the schools, she said she knows she will be on a webinar this Friday
with our schools through the Chamber, looking at how some of the districts are really struggling to reach
their students because they do not have computer access, they don't have anybody at home to help; that
she'd just like to bring our equity discussion forward with City policies; she said that our policies are good
but that she's just saying, how can we bring more of an equity lens to the work of our community and our
city to help us move forward as we come out of this crisis but be prepared for looking for those policies, as
something to put on a future agenda. Mr. Calhoun asked for clarification or if Councilmember Thompson
has something specific in mind.Councilmember Thompson said that she thinks the REAL program of Race,
Equity, And Leadership, has lots of equity policies and things you can look at through permitting, just
general systems; said she thinks our systems are excellent but how do we look at that and see how we can
better help our communities of poverty; just finding a time to come back and look at how we can let
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Approved by Council: 05-12-2020
everyone in our city to be able to take advantage of resources, take advantage of education; she said she
knows that some of that doesn't sound like city policy, but as we look at our policies of inclusion,that she
thinks that will help us really raise awareness of our whole community. Mr. Calhoun said he and the
department directors meet on Wednesday, and they can have that discussion, as well as touch base later
with CounciImember Thompson to try to deliver something that meets her request. Councilmember
Thompson said she certainly wants to help, and said as we are seeing like how we are advocating at the
federal level for funding to come to cities and towns, and realizing that we have to come together and say
this is important work that happens at city levels,and that many of the cities who give direct services,which
we don't do, but how do we make sure that our policies and what we can do concerning inclusion that
would help support cities across our region, as we look at homelessness and all kinds of things; she said
she had been participating in a few meetings with education, and they're trying to put out ideas and ways
to advocate for cities; she said she thinks it's just something she'd really like to see us bring forward.There
were no further Council comments nor any objection to adding this to an upcoming agenda.
8. Department Monthly Reports
The Department monthly reports were for information only and were not reported or discussed.
CITY MANAGER COMMENTS
City Manager Calhoun stated that this year's budget workshop will be held August 4th; that the Council
meeting the first Tuesday in August is usually cancelled so Councilmembers can attend National Night Out,
so by having the budget workshop held during the day,probably 8:30 a.m. until about 2:30 p.m., we won't
have to cancel a meeting and Councilmembers and others can partake in National Night Out.
9.EXECUTIVE SESSION: Pending Litigation, [RCW 42.30.110(1)(i)]
It was moved by Deputy Mayor Peetz, seconded and unanimously agreed to adjourn into executive session
for approximately 30 minutes to discuss pending litigation and that no action will be taken upon return to
open session. Council adjourned into executive session at 7:45 p.m. At 8:15 p.m. Mayor Wick announced
that the executive session would be extended an additional fifteen minutes. At 8:25 p.m. Mayor Wick
declared Council out of executive session,at which time it was moved, seconded, and unanimously agreed
to adjourn.
(Au
A E` Ben Wick, Mayor
Zia. - i 'r -
ristine Bainbridge, City Clerk
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Approved by Council: 05-12-2020