2020, 06-30 Regular Formal MINUTES
City of Spokane Valley
City Council Regular Meeting
Study Session Format
Tuesday,June 30, 2020
Mayor Wick called the meeting to order at 6 pm. The meeting was held in City Hall with Council and staff
participating via ZOOM.
Ben Wick,Mayor Mark Calhoun, City Manager
Brandi Peetz, Deputy Mayor John Hohman,Deputy City Manager
Pam Haley, Councilmember Cary Driskell, City Attorney
Tim Hattenburg, Councilmember Mike Stone,Parks&Rec Director
Rod Higgins, Councilmember Erik Lamb, Deputy City Attorney
Linda Thompson, Councilmember Adam Jackson,Planning/Grants Engineer
Arne Woodard,Councilmember Bill Helbig, City Engineer
Carly Johnson,Legal Intern
Chad Knodel,IT Manager
Christine Bainbridge, City Clerk
ROLL CALL: City Clerk Bainbridge called the roll; all Councilmembers were present.
APPROVAL OF AMENDED AGENDA: It was moved by Deputy Mayor Peetz, seconded and
unanimously agreed to approve the amended agenda.
OATH OF OFFICE: City Clerk Bainbridge administered the oath of office to incoming Police Chief Dave
Ellis.
PROCLAMATION: Mayor Wick read the proclamation In Support of our Police Officers.
ACTION ITEMS:
1. Motion Consideration: Potential Grant Opportunities, Pedestrian/Bike Safe Routes to School — Adam
Jackson
It was moved by Deputy Mayor Peetz and seconded to authorize the City Manager or designee to apply for
the Pedestrian & Bicycle Program and Safe Routes to School Program grants for the three projects
identified in Table 1 (Le. PBP-1 Appleway Trail Crossing at Sprague Avenue: City Hall to Balfour Park;
SRTS 1 Sidewalk Improvements: Bowdish Road from 126 to 16f'`; and SRTS--2 Sidewalk & Crossing
Improvements Bowdish Road from 1e to 22"d.) Mr. Jackson briefly explained the projects for
consideration. There were no public comments. Vote by acclamation: in favor: unanimous. Opposed:none.
Motion carried.
3. Motion Consideration: Department of Transportation Construction Contract, Barker Grade Separation
Project—Bill Helbig
It was moved by Deputy Mayor Peetz and seconded to authorize the City Manager to finalize and execute
the Barker Road/BNSF Grade Separation Interlocal Agreement GCB 3305 between WSDOT and the City.
City Engineer Helbig went over some of the details of the contract as noted in the Request for Council
Action form; said we don't have the resources to manage a project of this size so WSDOT (Washington
State Department of Transportation) would be our partner; said we would have oversight and be able to
watch the construction; he also noted that as Trent is a state highway, the roundabout would be theirs so
they have a big say in how this project goes; he said this gives WSDOT the responsibility to make sure all
the requirements of the federal program are followed. Councilmember Thompson asked about a public
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Approved by Council:07-14-2020
outreach and ribbon cutting as she would like to share what's been going on with the community. Mr.
Helbig agreed and stated that WSDOT will not be taking over any of that, and that this contract does not
include that; he said this is just for construction administration. Mr. Helbig also mentioned that WSDOT
cannot award the project without our concurrence. Mayor Wick asked if there were any public comments;
City Clerk Bainbridge replied that there are none. Vote by acclamation: in favor: unanimous. Opposed
none. Motion carried.
NON-ACTION ITEMS:
3a. Memorandum of Understanding with Spokane County Regarding COVID-19—Cary Driskell
Note: this was formalIy item#2 and was moved to a non-action item as part of the amended agenda. City
Attorney DriskeIl explained that we received this several weeks ago with an indication that it needed to be
approved within a short time period;he said we usually have more time to comment back, and that we did
send the County our comments and edits, some of which were necessary for clarity and others to correct
inaccuracies; said he sent the proposed changes to the County, but they approved the Memorandum of
Understanding without including the changes. He further explained that when the pandemic hit in March,
local leaders realized the importance of meeting regularly to discuss various impacts and how to address
those; said that over time it was realized that there was a need to transition from the original group to a
different group, which he said is reflected in the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU); he said to his
knowledge, Spokane County is the only jurisdiction that has adopted the document, and that we are here
tonight to gain input from Council on next steps.
Mayor Wick said it appears this group doesn't vote on anything, and therefore he is not sure a formalized
group is needed; that as we hear more information from different experts, the group can continue to share
that information,but he doesn't see the benefit of the document. City Manager Calhoun said he has attended
many meetings of the emergency operations center, and feels we have now evolved past this; that if we
were to participate,he feels the necessary changes should be made,but also noted that in the future we need
to continue to engage with the County and other agencies and he too speculated if the document is
necessary. Councilmember Thompson also noted a typographical error in that the City of Spokane Valley
is not abbreviated SOV, but rather it should be COSY. Several Councilmembers voiced their opinion to
continue our participation, but if the County wants to entertain the changes, we would consider the
document further,and Mayor Wick asked City Attorney Driskell to convey that to the Commissioners, and
there were no objections.City Clerk Bainbridge noted that as this was originally an action item,we received
written comment from Mr. Anderson, and that she e-mailed those comments to Councilmembers.
4. Technology of Remote Council Meetings—Chad Knodel
IT Manager Knodel explained that with the onset of COVID-19, and the Governor's Proclamations, we
have been holding Council meetings via ZOOM technology, which allows for remote public participation
while adhering to social distancing requirements. Mr. Knodel explained that Zoom is a third party,
externally hosted service which connects across the Internet, and is subject to the quality of participant's
connections; that as the meeting host,we manage the participants by controlling the mute/unmute feature,
and of allowing participation to view the meeting without being able to comment except where permitted,
as per the process for allowing public comment. He further noted that there have been moments when a
Councilmember's voice is not audible but that most of the time that can be corrected by having that
Councilmember leave the meeting and re-join. Mr. Knodel said an option to address sound clarity would
be to equip each Councilmember with a headset with boom microphone; he noted there are other types of
meeting products available, but we have already purchased Zoom Video Conferencing with an annual
subscription ending April 2021.
There was discussion about hard-wired versus wireless, and which is more stable. Mr. Knodel also noted
that we provide a one-page document to remote participants as guidance for participating in the meeting.It
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Approved by Council:07-14-2020
was determined that staff will purchase and assign each Councilmember one headset to use during the
pandemic and remote meetings.
5. Potential Grant Opportunity: Transportation Improvement Board (TIB)—Adam Jackson
Engineer Jackson went through his PowerPoint explaining about the Transportation Improvement Board;
2020 funding opportunities with applications due by August 14,2020 and a 20%minimum required match;
said the sidewalk program has been suspended but there are funds for the Urban Arterial Program; he noted
the recommended projects of Argonne Corridor concrete reconstruction,and the Sullivan Road Preservation
and Sidewalk; he spoke of preliminary cost estimates of$2 million for the Argonne project,and$1.5 to$2
million for the Sullivan Road project;he noted he will have more refined costs when he brings this matter
back to Council July 14. Mr. Jackson again mentioned that applications are due in August, and said the
awards should be determined at the mid-November TIB board meeting. After discussion about possible
matching funds of 30% and available REET funds, it was noted that this item will come back to Council
for a motion consideration at the July 14 Council meeting.
6. Motorized Foot Scooters—Erik Lamb, Carly Johnson
Deputy City Attorney Lamb introduced Ms. Carly Johnson, legal intern, who just finished her first year at
Gonzaga. Ms. Johnson then went through the proposed changes for Spokane Valley Municipal Code 9.20
as noted in her Request for Council Action form, and went through the proposed changes as noted in the
red-line version of the draft ordinance. There was some discussion about streets with speed limits greater
than 25 mph and that it would be unlawful to have a motorized personal transportation device on those
streets except within designated bike lanes. Mr. Lamb added that the rationale for adding that clause is if
you can have bike lanes,why not include motorized bikes as an option.Mr.Lamb also mentioned that Lime
Bike Company wanted to enter into an exclusive contract with us about a year ago, but we did not as we
promote all businesses and don't favor one over another; and said there could be potential risks with us on
a contract with motorized bikes. There was some discussion about limiting motorized bikes to 15 mph on
trails. Councilmember Woodard asked about providing amending language to allow only motorized bikes
on trails and not any gas-powered bikes. Mayor Wick asked about separated sidewalks or trails and Mr.
Lamb said a separated sidewalk is not a trail,and sidewalk use would be prohibited; he said staff could Iook
at where we have those thoroughfare type streets and see what's available in terms of bike lanes,sidewalks,
etc., and come back with a map showing the areas where the bikes would be allowed.
There was discussion about penalties and Mr. Lamb said he isn't sure of the state penalty amount and would
need to verify that; and that there are classes for civil infractions, but traffic citations are usually just a set
amount. Councilmember Hattenburg asked how many infractions there have been and Mr. Lamb said he
would try to get that information from the Police Department on how many penalties and infractions were
issued over the last several years. Mr. Lamb asked Council if they would like to proceed to a first reading
or want more information, and it was agreed to proceed to a first reading, and that changes could be made
then if needed.
7. Vapor Product Retail Sales—Erik Lamb
Deputy City Attorney Lamb explained that Council had requested information regarding our City's
authority to regulate the location of vapor retail shops,and if we could preclude such shops from being near
schools. Mr. Lamb explained that some of the problem is not just vapor retail stores but other stores that
sell it; said he checked and there are 57 stores listed that sell vapor products, including supermarkets and
gas stations; said we can't regulate zoning for all those without having to adopt a new definition for vapor
product retail sales and regulate that separately from other types of retail shops; and if we were to adopt
separate regulations, it wouldn't address any of those other stores. As contained in his Request for Council
Action form, to effectively limit vapor product sales near schools, he explained we would have to either
directly regulate vapor product sales in all types of retail stores, which we are preempted from doing, or
limit retail sales near schools, which would be impractical. Mr.Lamb stated that the State Board of Health
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Approved by Council:07-14-2020
passed an emergency rule last year prohibiting flavored vapor products,which rule expired in February but
said the Legislature may address the issue again in the future; and said that the State also raised the
minimum age to purchase vapor products from 18 to 21. Mayor Wick and Council thanked Mr. Lamb for
the informative report.
8. Advance Agenda—Mayor Wick
Mayor Wick asked about having a presentation from representatives from the hospitals on the COVID
impact to their hospitals. There were no objections.
9. Monthly Reports
The Finance Department Monthly Report and Police Department Monthly Report were information only
items and were not reported or discussed.
10. Council Check-in—Mayor Wick
Councilmember Haley reminded everyone that STA (Spokane Transit Authority) will resume fare
collection starting tomorrow;said the paratransit will still work even without receiving a note from a doctor.
CounciImember Thompson extended congratulations to Spokane Council Member Candice Munn who was
elected as AWC(Association of Washington Cities) Secretary; adding that it is nice to have someone from
our region. Councilmember Thompson also cautioned everyone to be safe on this long upcoming weekend,
as this weekend is notorious for deadly crashes involving drugs and/or alcohol.
11. City Manager Comments—Mark Calhoun
City Manager Calhoun stated that with the oath of office administered to Undersheriff Dave Ellis, he
officially takes on his duties tomorrow as Spokane Valley Police Chief. Mr. Calhoun extended thanks to
retiring Police Chief Mark Werner, who served as our Police Chief for the last four years; Mr. Calhoun
gave a brief background of Mark Werner's law enforcement history, and said that he has served well the
priorities of our community; and on behalf of the Directors, including the Administrative Analysts Morgan
Koudetka and John Pietro, said that we have all enjoyed working with Mark Werner and are the better
because of him.
It was moved by Deputy Mayor Peetz, seconded and unanimously agreed to adjourn. The meeting
adjourned at 7:50 p.m.
•
Ben Wick, Mayor
Christine Bainbridge, City Clerk
Council Meeting Minutes:06-30-2020 Page 4 of 4
Approved by Council:07-14-2020