2021, 07-13 Formal Meeting MINUTES
City of Spokane Valley
City Council Regular Formal Meeting
Tuesday,July 13, 2021
Mayor Wick called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. The meeting was held in City Hall with Council, staff
and the public participating in person and remotely via Zoom meeting.
Attendance:
Councilmembers Staff
Ben Wick,Mayor Mark Calhoun, City Manager
Brandi Peetz, Deputy Mayor John Hohman,Deputy City Manager
Pam Haley, Councilmember Cary DrisIcell, City Attorney
Tim Hattenburg Councilmember Erik Lamb, Deputy City Attorney
Rod Higgins, Councilmember Dave Ellis, Police Chief
Linda Thompson, Councihnember Chelsie Taylor,Finance Director
Arne Woodard, Councilmember Bill Helbig, City Engineer
Jerremy Clark, Sr. Traffic Engineer
Marty Palaniuk, Planner
Jenny Nickerson, Building Official
Christine Bainbridge, City Clerk
INVOCATION: Pastor Manuel Denning of Fountain Ministries gave the invocation.
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: Members from Girl Scout Troop #2057 led Council, staff, and the
audience in the Pledge of Allegiance.
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.
INTRODUCTION OF SPECIAL GUESTS AND PRESENTATIONS: n/a
COMMITTEE,BOARD,LIAISON SUMMARY REPORTS
Councilmember Thompson:reported that she attended the Veterans Stand Down at the downtown Salvation
Army, which she said included useful tools for everyone, including a bag which had in it, among other
things,a bandana with the Veterans Association phone number; said she attended a NLC(National League
of Cities) listening session with young adult leaders who discussed some of the various aspects of life that
impact a young adult's success; attended an AWC (Association of Washington Cities) ad hoc committee
on equity, inclusion and diversity; met with the SRTC (Spokane Regional Transportation Council) where
she noted prioritized projects included three from our City; attended the NLC Summer institute on public
safety and crime prevention, said they had a pre-meeting about that and that she is on a committee for
alternatives for justice systems working on prevention and reducing the racial disproportionality.
Councilmember Higgins: said he attended the Regional Clean Air Committee and that they discussed that
this fire season is looking like it will be very severe, and he cautioned people to keep their air conditioner
filters clean.
Councilmember Haley: said she attended the Continuum of Care Board meeting where they went further
into the Point in Time count to find out why people are homeless; said there are some disturbing numbers
as homelessness is trending up by about 33% a year;mentioned the federal grant which gives every county
the opportunity to choose one project which will be determined by choosing the best project in each county;
she mentioned there is no place to transposition people when they are ready to get out of a shelter as the
apartment vacancy rate is extremely low; said the STA (Spokane Transit Authority) Board approved a
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Approved by Council: 07-27-2021
contract to install the high performance transit amenities, and she mentioned sales tax revenue is still going
strong.
Deputy Mayor Peetz: said all Councilmembers attended the Browns Park ribbon cutting, which was very
well attended despite the heat, and that one of the speakers included Gary Brown,whose father donated the
property;said she attended the Government Action Committee meeting where City Engineer Adam Jackson
gave a great presentation on the Street Sustainability Committee; went to the Transportation Committee
meeting, and said the three main goals they will be working on for this year include development of a PR
campaign to help the public opinion on infrastructure and to educate people on why transportation is so
important, and the advocacy effort going forward to make sure we are proactive, and to work with law
makers to find sustainable funding.
Councilmember Hattenburg: said he also attended the Veterans Stand Down and was equally amazed at the
available resources; said he attended the STA performmnce development meeting and mentioned that Rt 90
is one of their highest performing routes.
Councilmember Woodard: said he also attended the Browns Park ribbon cutting and that this is a remarkable
park, and he extended thanks to the Parks Department and to the City's PIO for putting together a great
program; said it was very well attended and kids were everywhere.
MAYOR'S REPORT
Mayor Wick reported that he too found the Browns Park ribbon cutting a very successful event and that the
park accommodates kids of all abilities; said he attended the SRTC meeting and that they appointed a new
executive director who starts work mid-August; said they also established a deputy director position; and
he mentioned the regional priorities previously brought up by Councilmember Thompson; he spoke about
upcoming legislative sessions with the possibility of a special session in October to focus on transportation;
said he and others met with State Representative Fey for a tour of our grade separation projects, and he
spoke about some of our legislative priorities; mentioned that the County hired an architect to look at the
stadium as there are proposed changes to the stadium master plan, switching the stadium from a short to a
long season, adding that the stadium wasn't originally designed for that; said he met with the regional
homelessness group to discuss priorities; that the Covid recovery group was held with mayors and the
County Commissioners to talk about how to respond to Covid in a coordinated fashion,and said today was
the last meeting as they relinquished the topic back to the Board of Health as this moves from a pandemic
to an epidemic; and he also mentioned the Farmers Market, held Friday evenings at CenterPlace.
PROCLAMATIONS: n/a
GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT OPPORTUNITY [11:After Mayor Wick read the process for giving
public comments, it was noted we had one request to speak during this public comment opportunity,
however,the speaker apparently wasn't signed into the zoom meeting.Mayor Wick opened the floor to in-
person speakers.
Mr. Dan Allison, Spokane Valley: mentioned the passing of Gene Strunk; also noted that parking on the
Barker Road Bridge doesn't appear to be wide enough to accommodate parking and to also have a safe
view and passage for those walking or on bicyclers on the bike lane going north.
Mr. Bob West, Spokane Valley: said it has come to his attention there are a lot of untruths being spoken
about our Police Department; said that according to a nationally recognized data driven organization, we
rank above the national average for the best place to live, and from a crime standpoint, said they got their
analysis from an FBI Uniform Crime Reporting System and other factors; said the false narratives are
without facts and are being used for personal gain; said we got an overall rating of a B, and a C+for crime
and safety; he mentioned some Spokane Valley Police Department recent accomplishments such as live
streaming for 911 calls; said it is time for those in our community who are making these divisive and
misplaced truths to start giving credit where credit is due; said that if they are in a leadership role and are
going to complain. . . At this point Mayor Wick asked Mr. West to stop speaking as this feels too much
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Approved by Council: 07-27-2021
like a campaign-related issue, and the Mayor asked Mr. West to keep the focus on non-campaign related
topics.
Mr. John Harding, Spokane Valley: asked what is the definition of city business; said he hopes it includes
citizens' rights to have a valid vote; said anything manmade can be changed and in the case of machines,it
has been proven the machines can be manipulated, and he suggested we have an audit after the election.
Ms.Nina Fluegal, Spokane Valley: mentioned the high weeds, and possible noxious weeds on Appleway
Trail; said it was a nice job developing Browns Park, but suggested having slip strips on all splash pads for
all the parks; and she asked about the status of a proposed skate park.
Mr. Mark Small, Spokane Valley: mentioned he had an accident recently at Flora and Broadway and said
he had a nice conversation with the officer, who mentioned that officers are being directed not to pursue
people or get involved in dangerous situations; and said he hopes they can continue to do their jobs and
protect the public.
1.PUBLIC HEARING:Traffic Impact Fee Studies: Mirabeau&N.Pines Subareas—Bill Helbig,Jerremy
Clark
Mayor Wick opened the public hearing at 6:38 p.m. City Engineer Helbig went over the background of the
fee rate studies and of the need for a public hearing, followed by Mr. Clark pointing out on the map, the
study intersections, existing and future levels of service; he also went over the fair share analysis and
potential funding. Mayor Wick opened the floor to public comments. There were no comments from the
in-person audience. One person signed up to speak via zoom. Ms. Barb Howard, Spokane Valley: spoke
about doing traffic studies from 2019 and talked about much more development and apartments are going
to be built along the corridor. Just prior to closing the public hearing, Mayor Wick asked for any further
public comments from the floor.Ms.Nina Fluegal, Spokane Valley: asked about the fee and whether it was
a one-time fee or annual. Mayor Wick explained that this is an opportunity to comment and not dialogue.
There were no other public comments, and at Mayor Wick's request,Mr. Clark explained the definition of
an impact fee and how they are calculated, and that they are paid at the time of the building permit. Mayor
Wick closed the public hearing at 6:51 p.m.
2. First Reading Proposed Ordinance 21-008 Adopting Traffic Impact Fee Studies—Bill Helbig, Jerremy
Clark.
After City Clerk Bainbridge read the ordinance title, it was moved by Councilmember Woodard and
seconded, to suspend the rules and approve Ordinance No. 21-008, adopting the Transportation Impact
Fee Rate Study and underlying traffic studies, as proposed. Mr.Helbig reiterated that this ordinance adopts
the studies. Vote by acclamation: in favor: unanimous. Opposed: none. Motion carried.
NEW BUSINESS:
3. 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 Ai enda.
a. Approval of Claim Vouchers on July 13, 2021,Request for Council Action Form: $4,530,305.32
b.Approval of Payroll for Pay Period Ending June 30,2021: $575,435,53
c.Approval of June 15, 2021 Council Meeting Minutes, Special Meeting Budget Workshop
d. Approval of June 22, 2021 Council Meeting Minutes,Formal Format
e. Approval of June 29, 2021 Council Meeting Minutes, Special Meeting, Executive Session
f. Approval of June 29, 2021 Council Meeting Minutes, Study Session Format
g. Approval of July 6, 2021 Council Meeting Minutes, Study Session Format
It was moved by Deputy Mayor Peetz, seconded and unanimously agreed to approve the Consent Agenda.
GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT OPPORTUNITY 121: There were no public comments offered in-
person, and no one signed up to speak viz zoom.
Council Meeting Minutes,Formal: 07-13-2021 Page 3 of 4
Approved by Council: 07.27-2021
ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS:
4. Batch Text Amendments—Marty Palaniuk, Jenny Nickerson
Via his PowerPoint presentation,Mr.Palaniuk explained that the purpose of the batch code text amendment
is to prohibit cargo shipping containers as an accessory use in all residential zones, including the fairly
newly created R-4 zoning districts as well as changes to SVMC (Spokane Valley Municipal Code) Title
19. He noted the Planning Commission conducted a public hearing and deliberations, and they voted seven
to zero to recommend to Council that CTA-2021-0001 be approved. After brief discussion, there were no
objections from Council to moving this forward for a first reading. Ms. Nickerson added that during the
Planning Commission meeting, at least one Commissioner expressed some interest in exploring this topic
further. Mr. Hohman said they have seen at least up north, a project that used a shipping container as a
coffee stand,and said we could potentially see this as a request in residential and commercial areas. Mayor
Wick asked Council if they wanted to hear more on this topic and there was no interest expressed in
pursuing that further.
5. American Rescue Plan Act—Chelsie Taylor,Erik Lamb
Deputy City Attorney Lamb explained about the American Rescue Plan Act(ARPA), which the President
signed into law on March 11, 2021;he said that the ARPA provides funding for a wide variety of purposes
including direct assistance to small businesses,for homeless and affordable housing purposes, and to state
and local governments; said that we will receive approximately $16 million from the ARPA established
Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery Fund (CLFR), and that the Department of Treasury will distribute the
funds in two tranches: one this summer and the second in the summer of 2022. Via his PowerPoint, Mr.
Lamb also explained that this funding is for expenses incurred between March 3,2021 and December 31,
2024; and he went over the four primary categories of eligible uses. Councilmember Thompson asked if
we could hire someone to coordinate this program and Mr. Lamb said that ARPA can be used to administer
the funds. Mr. Calhoun said that he likes that idea and that ARPA is complex and additional assistance
would be helpful.
6.Advance Agenda--Mayor Wick
Deputy Mayor Peetz asked about the slip strips for the splash pads,and Mr. Calhoun said he will follow up
with Mr. Bottelli.
CITY MANAGER COMMENTS:
City Manager Calhoun mentioned there are two future Central Valley School Dedications, one of which is
Tuesday, August 31 at 6 pm,which is the time of our Council meetings, and he sked if Council wanted to
cancel that meeting to attend the dedication;he reminded Council that we will also be cancelling the August
3 meeting so Councilmembers can participate in National Night Out. After brief discussion Councilmember
Thompson suggested having one or two Councilmembers attend the dedication, and the remainder of
Councilmembers seemed to agree with that idea. Mr. Calhoun said we will hold the Council meeting as
usual on August 31, 2021.
7. Executive Session [RCW 42.30.110(I)(b)1: Acquisition of real estate
It was moved by Deputy Mayor Peetz, seconded and unanimously agreed to adjourn into executive session
for approximately 30 minutes to discuss acquisition of real estate, and that no action is anticipated upon
return to open session. Council adjourned into executive session at 7:40 p.m. At 8:05 p.m. Mayor Wick
declared Council out of executive session, at which time it was moved by Deputy Mayor Peetz, seconded
and unanimously agreed to adjourn.
AZT Ben Wick,Mayor
Christine Bainbridg , City Clerk
Council Meeting Minutes,Formal: 07-13-2021 Page 4 of 4
Approved by Council: 07-27-2021