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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2015-01-05 City Council Minutes Approved City Council Minutes—January 5, 2015 At 7:00 p.m. Mayor Laurie Gere called the regularly scheduled Anacortes City Council meeting of January 5, 2015 to order. Councilmembers Eric Johnson, Ryan Walters, Erica Pickett, Brad Adams, Liz Lovelett, John Archibald and Matt Miller were present. The assembly joined in the Pledge of Allegiance. Citizen Hearings No one present wished to speak. Mayor/Council Communication and Committee Reports Proclamation of Stop Human Trafficking Day: Mayor Gere read a statement proclaiming January 11, 2015 to be Stop Human Trafficking Day in the City of Anacortes and urged all citizens and community organizations to support the national observance of this day by helping to educate residents about human trafficking in America and around the world. Gayle Kersten, 2108 Cascade Court, thanked the mayor and Council for the proclamation and invited the public to free upcoming events including a rally at noon on Sunday, January 11, 2015 at 12th and Commercial, a January 26, 2015 community workshop at the Anacortes High School auditorium from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m., and a January 28, 2015 training at the Swinomish Casino from 9:00 to 11:30 a.m. for educators, school counselors, faith leaders, youth pastors, volunteers and professionals who work with youth. Mr. Adams reported from the Planning Committee which met earlier in the evening. He elaborated on topics discussed including preparation of signage reminding the public that vegetation removal is not allowed along the Guemes Channel Trail, the draft FEMA coastal flood map in which is being reviewed by the Planning Department, and upcoming Washington State Department of Commerce training for Capital Facilities Plan preparation. Mr. Miller reported from the Personnel Committee that it had met since the last full Council meeting and would discuss its work under Agenda Item 7c, Ordinance 2942: Mayoral Benefits, later in the evening. Consent Agenda Mr. Johnson moved, seconded by Ms. Lovelett, to approve the following Consent Agenda items. Vote: Ayes—Walters, Pickett, Adams, Lovelett, Archibald, Miller and Johnson. Motion carried. Approval of Vouchers/Cancellation of Checks Council voted unanimously that the following vouchers/checks audited and certified by the City's Auditing Officer(Finance Director) and subsequently reviewed and approved by the Council Finance Committee on December 16, 2014 and December 30, 2014 are approved for payment as of January 5, 2015. Claims Check Numbers 74789 through 74942 in the total amount of$1,094,668.56 EFT Numbers 74784 through 74788 in the total amount of$65,256.98 Pre-Written Claims Check Numbers 74779 through 74783 in the total amount of$528.33 Payroll for December 19, 2014 in the total amount of$856,866.60 Check Numbers 40142 through 40169 in the total amount of$21,407.05 Direct Deposit Numbers from 56804 through 57008 in the total amount of$610,154.96 EFT Numbers from 1746 through 1752 in the total amount of$225,304.59 Payroll for January 5, 2015 in the total amount of$735,661.93 Check Numbers 40170 through 40204 in the total amount of$31,216.98 Direct Deposit Numbers from 57009 through 57200 in the total amount of$385,968.69 EFT Numbers from 1753 through 1756 in the total amount of$318,476.26 In the same motion Council: approved the minutes of December 15, 2014 as if read; and accepted as complete the R Avenue Storm Project with Scimitar Construction. Anacortes City Council Minutes January 5, 2015 1 OLD BUSINESS Water Utility: Three Million Gallon Tank Construction and Funding Public Works Director Fred Buckenmeyer handed out hard copy of his slide presentation for the evening following up on the December 1, 2014 City Council meeting on this topic. Mr. Buckenmeyer summarized the critical role the 3MG tank plays in the water distribution system within the City limits and in the wider region and the corrosion problems identified by consultants during 2011 inspection of the tank. He noted that the tank was constructed in the 1970s and has had no significant maintenance since construction. Mr. Buckenmeyer reviewed the extent of recommended repairs which were estimated to take 5-6 months and noted that the tank cannot be out of service for that long. He discussed various options for using temporary tanks during the repairs and explained why those options were not workable. In contrast, Mr. Buckenmeyer advised that building an entire second 3MG tank would cost about$3.8M and then the rehabilitation of the existing tank would cost about$2.2M for a total project cost of$6M. He said constructing a new concrete 3MG tank and then demolishing the existing tank would cost about$5.1 M altogether and would achieve no system redundancy. Mr. Buckenmeyer concluded that staff's recommendation remains to build a new 1 MG tank adjacent to the existing 3MG tank and then rehabilitate the existing 3MG steel tank which will provide some system redundancy and additional water storage for a total estimated project cost of$4.2M (in 2014 dollars). In response to a question from Mr. Miller, Mr. Buckenmeyer added that a new 3MG tank would have an expected life of 40 years and the rehabilitated 3MG tank should last another 30 years. Mr. Buckenmeyer then shared a slide summarizing the funding cost for each $1 M of project cost under five possible funding scenarios including using the General Fund, an interfund loan, a 10 year loan, a 20 year bond, and a Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) loan (if available). He reviewed the information about meter equivalency (MEQ) presented at the December 1, 2014 meeting. Mr. Buckenmeyer next responded to councilmember requests for discussion of the long term water system capital projects list, sharing the first seven years (2015-2021)of the 20-year system wide projection. He addressed questions from councilmembers about the current rate of replacement of asbestos concrete pipe and the one-every-seven-years cycle for reservoir maintenance. He then displayed a comparison of revenues at current rates and expenses for the in-city distribution system showing an approximate $1.1 M shortfall per year, or$9.34/MEQ/month, excluding funding for the 3MG tank repair. Mayor Gere elaborated that the calculations were provided in response to Council's expressed desire to move from a strategy of borrowing for capital projects to a strategy of setting rates to build capital reserves. Ms. Pickett inquired why the historical three-year water rate studies had not recommended rates sufficient to achieve that goal. Mr. Buckenmeyer explained that the water rate studies addressed projected costs for the regional system, including the in city share of the regional costs, but not the costs of the retail system within the city. Mr. Walters thanked staff for providing the information necessary to support capital facilities planning for the water system. He calculated that a retail surcharge of $5/MEQ/month for the 3MG tank and an additional $9.34/MEQ/month for other in-city capital needs would be required. Mr. Miller asked how that compared to the rate increase necessary to pay for the new Water Treatment Plant. Mr. Buckenmeyer said the retail rates had increased roughly$5/MEQ, phased in over three years, to pay for the new plant. Mr. Walters inquired about the urgency of rehabilitating the existing 3MG tank. Mr. Buckenmeyer encouraged maintaining infrastructure to avoid urgent conditions and advised that it was time to take serious steps to further the 3MG tank project. Mr. Johnson requested a cash flow analysis that would show when sufficient capital reserves would accumulate to address the projected needs and cautioned that there are many simultaneous demands on the General Fund. Mr. Walters echoed the request for a cash flow analysis. Ms. Pickett urged maintaining the integrity of the water utility supporting itself through water rates. She supported funding options that avoid interest costs or recover interest for the General Fund. Mr. Buckenmeyer supported the efforts of Mayor Gere and Council to make the water utility self-sufficient. Anacortes City Council Minutes January 5, 2015 2 Mr. Buckenmeyer presented a slide comparing the cost of water for an average single family residence in Anacortes with the cost for residential customers of Bellingham, Stanwood, Everett, Skagit PUD, and Oak Harbor. He noted that the 2014 monthly cost of$20 in Anacortes was between $10/month and $40/month lower than in all the other communities and added that the other communities had all raised their rates for 2015. Mr. Buckenmeyer returned to a prior slide summarizing the cost of$1 M under various funding scenarios and requested direction from Council on which funding option to pursue for the 3MG tank repair. Mayor Gere observed that the topic was tentatively on the agenda for continued discussion at the next two Council meetings. Ms. Lovelett expressed concern about the cumulative impact of various rate increases on low income families. She urged deciding first what kind of tank should be built, determining its useful life, and then deciding how to fund it. Mr. Walters supported the staff recommendation of building the new adjacent 1MG tank and then rehabilitating the 3MG tank. At approximately 8:06 p.m. Mayor Gere invited comments from the audience. Vernon Lauridsen, 2219 32nd Street, said he was pleased with Council's far sightedness. He supporting planning for system redundancy and for ongoing maintenance of capital assets. Regarding funding, Mr. Lauridsen said the City's annual report shows$9.7M of fund balance in the General Fund and he urged considering spending some of that money to deal with the one-time crisis of the 3MG tank. He opposed increasing rates to resolve what amounts to a crisis when the City has that much money in the bank. He said a massive event like an earthquake would be dealt with regionally so did not justify a large fund balance. Frank Spargo, 1408 11th Street, thanked Council for the good discussion and the new direction. He referred to his prior communications to Council on this topic. He requested that Mr. Buckenmeyer's slide presentation be posted on line. No other members of the audience wished to comment. Mr. Walters proposed a discussion rule for this item at the next Council meeting: decide what kind of tank to build, decide how to come up with the cash for that, and then decide how to adjust rates to fund projected capital projects going forward. Mr. Adams concurred. NEW BUSINESS Resolution 1907: Authorizing the Write Off of Billing Balances Deemed Uncollectible Finance Director Steve Hoglund presented the annual resolution authorizing the write off of uncollectible miscellaneous accounts receivable balances for which the statute of limitations had expired. He briefly summarized the six balances proposed for write off. Ms. Lovelett moved, seconded by Mr. Walters, to adopt Resolution 1907 authorizing the write off of miscellaneous billing balances deemed uncollectible. Vote: Ayes—Pickett, Adams, Lovelett, Archibald, Miller, Johnson and Walters. Motion carried. Contract Award: Infiltration & Inflow Prevention 2014 Mr. Buckenmeyer requested Council authorization to award a contract for continuation of the Inflow and Infiltration Prevention project at specified locations. Mr. Buckenmeyer reported that the Engineer's Estimate was $356,757.60 and that the City received nine bids for the work including the low bid from Tiger Construction in the amount of$342,167.77. He said that there had been a bid protest on the project but that on the advice of legal counsel staff recommended authorizing the mayor to execute a contract with Tiger Construction. Mr. Walter requested the basis for ignoring the bid protest. Mr. Buckenmeyer explained that the lack of the contractor's signature on the bid bond was a minor irregularity, that City specifications allow the City to waive minor irregularities, and that state case law supports counsel's recommendation. He added that all bidders had been notified of the City's intent to award the contract to Tiger Construction, that the protesting bidder was not present at the evening's meeting, and that the City would now wait two days to execute the contract to give the protesting bidder time to act if desired. Mr. Walters proposed televising bid openings. Anacortes City Council Minutes January 5, 2015 3 City Attorney Brad Furlong requested a brief recess. At approximately 8:23 p.m. Mayor Gere called a five minute recess. At approximately 8:26 p.m. the mayor called the meeting back to order. Mr. Johnson moved, seconded by Ms. Pickett, to award the contract to Tiger Construction in the amount of$342,167.77. Mr. Walters inquired if Council needed to condition the approval of the contract. Mr. Furlong said no. Vote: Ayes—Adams, Lovelett, Archibald, Miller, Johnson, Walters and Pickett. Motion carried. Ordinance 2942: Mayoral Benefits Administrative Services Director Emily Schuh summarized the history of the discussion of this topic as outlined in the Council packet for the evening. Ms. Schuh presented the latest proposal from the City Council Personnel Committee, Ordinance 2942 to amend Anacortes Municipal Code Chapter 2.14 to address mayoral benefits and expectations of the mayor. She reviewed in detail proposed new Section 2.14.040 regarding mayoral benefits. Ms. Schuh recommended adopting Ordinance 2942 to provide guidelines and expectations for the mayor. Mr. Miller, a member of the Personnel Committee, added that the ordinance addresses vacation buyout which brought the issue of mayoral benefits to a head. He supported the ordinance, saying it does not legislate the mayor's activities but addresses expectations better than the personnel policies. Mr. Walters also supported the ordinance. Mr. Walters moved, seconded by Mr. Johnson, to approve Ordinance 2942 clarifying benefits for the City's mayor and amending Chapter 2.14 Anacortes Municipal Code. Mr. Johnson asked whether the application of Personnel Policies 502-506 to the mayor had been addressed by the Personnel Committee as directed by Council at its September 2, 2014 meeting. Ms. Schuh and Mr. Miller explained the Committee's consensus that the Personnel Policies as adopted by Resolution 1897 did not require further revision as regards the mayor. Vote: Ayes—Lovelett, Archibald, Miller, Johnson, Walters, Pickett and Adams. Motion carried. Executive Session (15 Minutes): Real Estate Discussion per RCW 42.30.110(1b, c) At approximately 8:40 p.m. Mayor Gere announced that Council and City Attorney Brad Furlong would convene in Executive Session for approximately 15-20 minutes to discuss a potential real estate transaction about which open discussion could result in terms unfavorable to the City and that there would be no action taken following the executive session. There being no further business, at approximately 8:58 p.m. the regularly scheduled Anacortes City Council meeting of January 5, 2015 was adjourned. Anacortes City Council Minutes January 5, 2015 4