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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2025, 06-03 Formal B MeetingMINUTES City of Spokane Valley City Council Meeting Formal B Format Tuesday, June 3, 2025 Mayor Haley called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. The meeting was held in person in Council Chambers, and also remotely via Zoom meeting. Attendance: Councilmembers Staff Pam Haley, Mayor John Hohman, City Manager Tim Hattenburg, Deputy Mayor Erik Lamb, Deputy City Manager Rod Higgins, Councilmember Kelly Konkright, City Attorney Laura Padden, Councilmember Robert Blegen, Public Works Director Jessica Yaeger, Councilmember Chelsie Walls, Finance Director Ben Wick, Councilmember John Bottelli, Parks & Rec Director Al Merkel, Councilmember Tony Beattie, Senior Deputy City Attorney Virgina Clough, Legislative Policy Coordinator Dave Ellis, Police Chief John Whitehead, HR Director Jill Smith, Communications Manager Jenny Nickerson, Building Official Justan Kinsel, IT Specialist Marci Patterson, City Clerk INVOCATION: Pastor Steve Shoop with Spokane Valley Assembly of God provided the invocation. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: Council, staff and the audience stood for the Pledge of Allegiance. ROLL CALL: City Clerk Patterson called roll; all Councilmembers were present. APPROVAL OF AGENDA It was moved by Deputy Mayor Hattenburg, seconded and unanimously agreed to approve the agenda. SPECIAL GUESTS/PRESENTATIONS: 19 tole W., I►A E19 to]e0 GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT OPPORTUNITY: After Mayor Haley explained the process, she invited public comments. Tracy Christian, Spokane Valley; Ben Lund, Spokane Valley; Councilmember Merkel poised a point of order during Mr. Lund's comments and noted that he was speaking about campaigning and Mayor Haley noted that he may not speak about campaigning but allowed him to finish speaking as long as it was not campaign related. Dan Allison, Spokane Valley; Gloria Killian, Spokane Valley; Bob West, Spokane Valley all provided comments on various topics. ACTION ITEMS: 1. Public Hearing: Ordinance 25-009, Sign Code - Kelly Konkright Mayor Haley opened the public hearing at 6:14pm. Mr. Konkright provided details with a PowerPoint presentation that included background on the update to SVMC 22.110 prohibiting signs on traffic devices, details on the current regulations, legal considerations for the ordinance, the new amendments to SVMC 22.110.060, and post public hearing steps to take. Mayor Haley invited public comments. Daryl Williams, Spokane Valley; Bob West, Spokane Valley; John Harding, Spokane Valley; Mike Dolan, Spokane Valley; Council Meeting Minutes: 06-03-2025 Page 1 of 4 Approved by Council: 01-13-2026 Ben Lund, Spokane Valley all provided comments. Council did not have any additional comments. Mayor Haley closed the public hearing at 6:28 pm. 2. Ordinance 25-009: Second Read: Sign Code - Kelly Konkright After City Clerk Patterson read the Ordinance title, it was moved by Deputy Mayor Hattenburg and seconded to adopt Ordinance No. 25-009 Amending SVMC 22.110.060 to Prohibit Signs on Traffic Devices. Mr. Konkright answered some of the questions that came up during the public comments in public hearing. Council noted that it is best not to have signs near the traffic control devices as not to confuse drivers or distract them. Vote by acclamation: in favor: Unanimous. Opposed: None. Motion carried 3.Ordinance 25-007: Second Read: CTA- 2024-002 - Tony Beattie After City Clerk Patterson read the Ordinance title, it was moved by Deputy Mayor Hattenburg and seconded to approve Ordinance Number 25-007, CTA 2024-0002, amending Chapters 17.80 and 22.130 SVMC related to removing right-of-way permit procedures from the development code and other matters related thereto. Mr. Beattie noted that there had not been any changes since the last presentation on the CTA-2024- 002. Vote by acclamation: in favor: Unanimous. Opposed: None. Motion carried. 4. Ordinance 25-008: Second Read: Right of Way Permit update - Tony Beattie After City Clerk Patterson read the Ordinance title, it was moved by Deputy Mayor Hattenburg and seconded to approve Ordinance Number 25-008 adopting new chapter 9.50 SVMC and amending chapter 7.05 SVMC related to updating right-of-way permit procedures and enforcement, and other matters related thereto. Mr. Beattie stated that there is public comment, but there have been no changes since it was last presented to council. Mayor Haley invited public comments; no comments were offered. Vote by acclamation: in favor: Unanimous. Opposed: None. Motion carried. 5 Ordinance 25-011: First Read: Reckless Endangerment with a Controlled Substance - Kelly Konkright, Tony Beattie After City Clerk Patterson read the Ordinance title, it was moved by Deputy Mayor Hattenburg and seconded to advance Ordinance 25-011 to a second reading; or take other action Council deems appropriate. Mr. Beattie presented a PowerPoint presentation that included an overview of the current state statute, the ordinance prohibited conduct that includes the endangerment with a controlled substance, the ordinance penalties that include up to 364 days in jail and a maximum of a $5000.00 fine. Council discussed various penalties, exclusion of cannabis in the controlled substance definition and the possibility of adding the endangerment to all those around that would be exposed. Mayor Haley invited public comments. Bob West, Spokane Valley; Mike Dolan, Spokane Valley; John Harding, Spokane Valley; Ben Lund, Spokane Valley provided comments. Vote by acclamation: in favor: Unanimous. Opposed.• None. Motion carried. Mayor Haley called for a recess at 7: 03prn for seven minutes and that the ineeting would resume at 7: IOpm. 6. Motion Consideration: Councilmember Merkel Settlement Offer regarding Spokane County Superior Court Case No. 25-2-00710-32 - Kelly Konkright Prior to reading the motion, Mayor Haley asked Councilmember Merkel to recuse himself as this motion was a direct conflict of interest. Councilmember Merkel refused to recuse himself from the motion and discussion. Mayor Haley asked the IT staff to turn off Councilmember Merkel's microphone as he refused to recuse himself. It was moved by Deputy Mayor Hattenburg and seconded to decline Albert Merkel's offer to resolve the pending litigation in Spokane County Superior Court Case Number 25-2-00710-32. Mr. Konkright explained the background information and noted that the city is not seeking monetary amounts, but just that Councilmember Merkel be required to produce the records and have a judge determine if the items are a public record. Mr. Konkright further explained that the lawsuit has been filed and a July date has been set for the first hearing and that no court order has been entered other than assigning a judge to the case. Mr. Konkright also spoke about the terms that were submitted as part of the settlement offer that included: 1. dismiss the case with prejudice and 2. pay for an independent master to review the public records. Mr. Konkright stated that he has no recommendation one way or another as it is not his place. Mayor Haley invited public comments. Gloria Killian, Spokane Valley; Joseph Ghodsee, Spokane Valley; Tracy Council Meeting Minutes: 06-03-2025 Page 2 of 4 Approved by Council: 01-13-2026 Christians, Spokane Valley; Mike Dolan, Spokane Valley; John Harding, Spokane Valley; Debbie Shrock, Spokane Valley; Al Shrock, Spokane Valley; Ben Lund, Spokane Valley; Bob West, Spokane Valley; Daryl Williams, Spokane Valley all provided comments. Councilmember Yaeger stated that she strongly opposed the offer and spoke about Councilmember Merkel's disregard for the public records act and that this is a slap in the face of our public. Mayor Haley spoke about the narrative from Councilmember Merkel and that she also is opposed to the offer. City Manager Hohman noted that there have been three investigations done thus far and further explained the three investigations in detail. Vote by acclamation: in favor: Mayor Haley, Deputy Mayor Hattenburg, Councilrnembers Wick, Higgins, Padden and Yaeger. Opposed: None. Motion carried. NON -ACTION ITEMS: 7. Admin Report: Emergency Plans Update - Virginia Clough Ms. Clough introduced Mr. Mark Conrad, Spokane Emergency Management and then explained the various city emergency plans and the updates that have taken place thus far. She also explained the upcoming training exercises and the updates to the various plans that are up and coming. Mr. Conrad provided input on the overall emergency management in our region. Councilmember Padden asked about the citizen input and if there was a way for citizens to participate in comments. Mr. Conrad provided details on the opportunity for comments and input in the Hazard Mitigation Plan. Council thanked Ms. Clough and Mr. Conrad for the information and all the information in the COOP binder and found it helpful and noted the amount of detail and work that went into the plans. INFORMATION ONLY: 8. Banking Authority Resolution GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT OPPORTUNITY: Mayor Haley stated that the general public comment rules still apply and called for public comments. Mike Dolan, Spokane Valley; Joseph Ghodsee, Spokane Valley provided comments. COUNCIL COMMENTS Councilmember Merkel spoke about the bucket of lies tonight and noted that he was surprised to hear some of them. He also spoke about the settlement offer and stated that council chose to double down on the path that waste taxpayer money, erode public trust and serves no purpose other than to carry out personal vendetta. He also stated that everything the city has asked for, he had provided months ago and stated that he gave the city full access to his Nextdoor account and that nothing has been withheld. Mr. Konkright provided clarification regarding Councilmember Merkel's comments and noted that when he stated that he had provided everything he has that he has not given us everything we have requested and that is required. Mr. Konkright provided further clarification on the Nextdoor posts and that our software cannot capture what is posted on someone else's pages or posts. The city cannot comply with the requests as we do not have all of the information requested. Councilmember Merkel poised a point of information. Mayor Haley asked that Mr. Konkright finish his statement and Councilmember Merkel again stated point of information. Mr. Konkright finished his statement by explaining that the Nextdoor access is double factor authentication and the city does not have access to the second authentication portion which is Councilmember Merkel's personal cell phone. Therefore, the city does not have full access to the account. Mr. Konkright noted that this situation could be corrected if Councilmember Merkel used his city email address and created a Nextdoor account and set up our page freezer software to capture posts that were being made by Councilmember Merkel. Councilmember Merkel noted that he provided the two -factor authentication one time in early January. Mr. Konkright noted that it was provided once and only once and tried to explain and Councilmember Merkel continued to interrupt. Mayor Haley asked that he allow Mr. Konkright to finish his statement and Councilmember Merkel said no and that Mr. Konkright was not an elected official. After much back and forth, Councilmember Higgins poised a point of order and stated that Councilmember Merkel is trying to disrupt the meeting. Mayor Haley agreed and as that we move on. Councilmember Wick stated that we have spent a lot of time speaking about the litigation and he believes it can only be handled by the court at this point and that the city has more pressing matters to discuss at the meetings. Council Meeting Minutes: 06-03-2025 Page 3 of 4 Approved by Council: 01-13-2026 Councilmember Higgins spoke about words that kept echoing in his ear regarding things Councilmember Merkel had said in the past about shaking up council. Councilmember Padden spoke about the City of Spokane making a money grab for the utility tax funds and that they are looking to our citizens to pay it. She also spoke about Spokane Sports and the $282K grant for infrastructure on the course and that they will install a permanent finish line with the funds. She also noted the RAISE funding that we are receiving and will be installing another soccer mini pitch at Greenacres Park. She closed with a Habitat for Humanity update and that they will have the biggest build year and celebrate late Jimmy Carter legacy. Councilmember Yaeger spoke about the general public comment periods, the open public meetings act and an issue that had come up previously. She also spoke about the Nextdoor edited or deleted comments that the city does not have from Councilmember Merkel. Deputy Mayor Hattenburg spoke about the bus rodeo for the STA and noted that he rode the new double- decker bus recently. It was moved by Councilmember Yaeger, seconded and unanimously approved to extend the meeting to 9: 30 pm. MAYOR'S COMMENTS Mayor Haley spoke about the new STA double-decker bus that can carry more people and take up less space on the road compared to the extended buses. CITY MANAGER COMMENTS Mr. Hohman spoke about the update on the Pines BNSF project and said that they were waiting on the girders for the bridges and that they should arrive towards the end of July. They are also waiting for a window of time that the trains to experience less traffic in order to stop train traffic and complete the construction of the bridge. Mr. Hohman thanked Ms. Amsden for her tireless work and for keeping this project moving forward. Mr. Hohman also gave an update on the Cross -Country Course work being done and the horizontal boring for the waterline and that it didn't hit any boulders and is on budget and on track to be completed in September. EXECUTIVE SESSION Potential Acquisition or Sale [RCW 42.3 0.11 0(l)(b)]. (Proposed motion: I move Council adjourn into executive session for approximately 20 minutes to discuss potential acquisition or sale of real property, and that no action will be taken upon return to open session.) It was moved by Deputy Mayor Hattenburg and seconded that Council adjourn into executive session for approximately 20 minutes to discuss potential acquisition or sale of real property, and that no action will be taken upon return to open session. Vote by acclamation: in favor: Unanimous. Opposed: None. Motion carried. Council adjourned into Executive Session at 8:55p.m. At 9: 07p.m. Councilmember Merkel did not return with the rest of council and Mayor Haley declared Council out of executive session, at which time it was moved by Deputy Mayor Hattenburg, seconded and unanimously agreed to adjourn. ATTEST: Marci atterson, City Clerk Q�§, kA� Pam Haley, Mayor Council Meeting Minutes: 06-03-2025 Approved by Council: 01-13-2026 Page 4 of 4 PUBLIC COMMENT SIGN -IN SHEET SPOKANE VALLEY CITY COUNCIL MEETING Tuesday, June 3, 2025 6:00 p.m. GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT OPPORTUNITY #1 Please sign up to speak for up to THREE minutes and the Mayor will afford the public the opportunity to speak. The public comment opportunity is limited to a maximum of 45 minutes. You may only speak at one of the comment opportunities, not at both public comment opportunities. NAME TOPIC YOU WILL SPEAK PLEASE PRINT ABOUT YOUR CITY OF RESIDENCE A&a_C=:d' U oj Please note that once information is entered on this form, it becomes a public record subject to public disclosure. Marci Patterson From: hill.puzzles_Oe@icloud.com Sent: Monday, June 2, 2025 10:18 AM To: Council Meeting Public Comment Subject: Opposition to Settlement Offer in CM Merkel Matter [EXTERNAL] This email originated outside the City of Spokane Valley. Always use caution when opening attachments or clicking links. Meeting Date: June 3, 2025 Carol Woodward Spokane Valley Opposition to Settlement Offer in CM Merkel Matter I am writing this and want it put into the public record for that council meetings records. It is with great apprehension I am doing this because I have been threatened by members of what I call "At's "squad" before... so have others that have spoken in opposition to his type of politics. They are trying to silence us but this is to important to not speak up and have it put in the public record. Subject: Opposition to Settlement Offer in CM Merkel Matter Dear Mayor, Deputy Mayor, and Council Members, I am writing to strongly urge you not to accept Councilmember Merkel's proposed settlement offer. After thoroughly reviewing the offer and all accompanying documentation in the agenda, I believe that accepting this settlement would not serve the best interests of our city or its residents. CM Merkel has been found —not once, but twice —to have inappropriately posted city business on his personal social media platforms. These findings came from both an independent investigator and a Hearing Examiner. Despite these clear conclusions, he continues to claim innocence and, at one point, he and his followers even said, "Let the courts decide." I strongly encourage you to give him that opportunity. Let the matter go before a judge and allow the court to rule decisively. Accepting this settlement would deprive the city —and the public —of a legal ruling that could definitively clarify what constitutes "city business" under current laws and policies. Without that legal precedent, CM Merkel will once again claim no wrongdoing, now with the added Leverage of saying no court ever ruled against him. Accepting the settlement is, in essence, kicking the can down the road. Given his past behavior, there is every reason to believe he would not honor the terms of any agreement, bringing the city back to the same legal and administrative complications we face now. This includes continued delays in fulfilling Public Records Requests (PRRs), which exposes the city to significant liability and erodes public trust. Additionally: • There are still unanswered PRRs, and this settlement does nothing to resolve the legal risk or the backlog those requests represent. • The settlement would relieve CM Merkel of accountability for past behavior, setting a troubling precedent. • If this case proceeds to court and CM Merkel loses, the city would not be liable for his legal fees. Why would we forfeit that financial protection? • Paying an "independent master" to monitor his vast online activity —spanning social media, blogs, podcasts, and more —would place an unnecessary and excessive financial burden on the city. • The independent investigator and the Hearing Examiner have already determined that some of these posts constituted public records. Why would CM Merkel treat an "independent master's" findings any differently? CM Merkel has consistently used social media to insult, defame, and undermine city staff, fellow council members, and vital city projects. His behavior is disruptive and self-serving. Rather than focusing on his elected duties with professionalism and respect, he appears more interested in cultivating a political persona. If he devoted even a fraction of the time he spends on self -promotion to learning the city budget, governance manual, grant processes, and project planning, perhaps we wouldn't be in this situation. In summary: Don't settle. Let the court decide. That's what CM Merkel and his followers asked for, and that's what both they —and the public —deserve: a clear legal ruling and an end to this cycle of distraction and dysfunction. Title: "If we lose respect for the law, we invite chaos." —Dwight D. Eisenhower Good evening, Mayor Haley, Councilmembers, and City leadership. Ben Lund, proud 36-year Spokane Valley resident. Councilmember Merkel, I used to enjoy our version of "fireside chats" on Nextdoor—until your Ponderosa account was removed... again. That makes four times. Even the candidate you support against Mayor Haley had two accounts taken down for breaking Nextdoor guide lines. That's not community engagement —that's chaos. And is that what we should expect from your allies and endorsed canalaaies r lvlore rule-1 nreaxm le-g r You've claimed Mayor Haley, Jessica Yeager, and others are "weaponizing" Nextdoor against you. But let's talk about your actions: 1. Misinformation targeting opponents —you and your proxies do that often. 2. Reporting opposition posts to get them removed —another tactic used repeatedly. 3. Exploiting platform gaps —including using your influence as a Nextdoor moderator. One of your allies used his position to u__1_ T.C.1_ 1 1_:._,TT_ 1'__'._1'.__ 1 _/1___1___._ dltacK nle. 1 Illeu a complai L 1e was UlsG1plitied at lids ocull quiet ever since. Evidence available upon request. You claim to support the Constitution. Yet in a recorded interview with a citizen, you said, "The Constitution of the United States is just a piece of paper." Evidence is available upon request. That is disrespectful, especially just days after Memorial Day, when we remember the 1.2 million Americans who died defending that Constitution. (ABC News) Is that the same disrespect we can expect from the people you support'! Councilmember, I've been documenting your behavior since May of 2024. I've sent your thread and all the citizens comments to Lukins & Annis. They likely have over 1,000 pages of evidence, far beyond the 350 submitted in the lawsuit by Jessica Yeager. You've accused people like her of cyberstalking. Based on your own definition, I'm your guy. But I'm also a witness for the City. It is not my fault CM Merkel and his followers do not understand legality of my reporting.. Your actions have already cost Spokane Valley taxpayers $350,000. So I ask again: Why can't you just follow the rules? IF WE LOSE RESPECT FOR THE LAW, WE INVITE CHAOS. - DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER SPOKANE VALLEY, JUNE 3, 2025 - BEN LUND