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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019-08-12 City Council Minutes Approved City Council Minutes—August 12,2019 Mayor Pro Tem Matt Miller called to order the Anacortes City Council meeting of August 12,2019 at 6:00 p.m. Councilmembers Eric Johnson,Ryan Walters,Brad Adams, Carolyn Moulton,Bruce McDougall and Matt Miller were present. Councilmember Anthony Young was absent. The assembly joined in the Pledge of Allegiance. Announcements and Committee Reports Mr. Miller thanked Community Service Officer Karl Wolfswinkel and the many other city staff for the very successful National Night Out on August 6. Public Safety Committee: Mr. Miller reported from the committee meeting on August 6. Mr. Miller said Fire Department staff addressed the Fire Station 3 remodel, increased response volume and expanded service area from Station 3,the recent wildland fire community meeting, and staffing challenges. He said Police Department staff reported on impacts of implementing HB2025,work with the Washington State Patrol on ferry security, and citizen input on the Neighborhood Block Watch program. Port/City Liaison Committee: Mr. Johnson reported from the committee meeting on August 6. He listed topics discussed including the northwest basin redevelopment project status and a planned September 19,2019 open house for that project,progress on the Maritime Strategic Plan update, and the city's upcoming Shoreline Master Program update. Mr. McDougall moved, seconded by Mr. Walters,to excuse the absence of Mr. Young. The motion carried unanimously by voice vote. Mr. Walters asked staff to rectify reported problems with the audio and/or video recordings of the recent City Council meetings. Other councilmembers indicated problems had also been experienced with city Facebook pages. Public Comment Mr. Miller invited those who had signed up to speak about topics not already on the agenda to queue up at the microphone. Grace Hill, 1308 34th Street, spoke in favor of a ban on plastic bags. Ms. Hill provided a written copy of her remarks which was added to the packet materials for the meeting. Wayne Huseby, 3318 W 2nd Street,requested that the City ban lightweight thin-film grocery bags. Mr. Huseby provided a written copy of his remarks which was added to the packet materials for the meeting. John Strathman, Guemes Island, spoke in favor banning single-use plastic bags in Anacortes. Mr. Strathman provided a written copy of his remarks which was added to the packet materials for the meeting, along with a folder of information on the topic that Mr. Strathman and Friends of Skagit Beaches distributed to all councilmembers before the meeting. Julia Frisbee,4001 W 4th Street, spoke in favor of a ban on plastic bags. Ms. Frisbee said that she was also speaking as a friend of Transition Fidalgo whose board members had said they would be at the Council meeting to support a bag ban ordinance if the Council meeting had not conflicted with the group's own regular meeting. Anacortes City Council Minutes August 12,2019 1 Doug Thurber,Post Office Box 159, spoke against banning plastic bags and described how the bags can be and are reused and recycled. Callie Martin,4003 Broadview Drive, spoke in favor of a plastic bag reduction ordinance and said Anacortes could lead the county in this effort. Andrea Doll, 1319 8th Street, spoke in favor of taking collective action to defend and protect local marine waters [from plastic bags]. Kimberly Draper, 3608 Malland Court, spoke in favor of a plastic bag ban in Anacortes. Consent Agenda Mr. Adams moved, seconded by Mr. Johnson,to approve the following Consent Agenda items. The motion carried unanimously by voice vote. a. Minutes of August 5,2019 b. Approval of Claims in the amount of: $370,160.04 c. Resolution 2051: Sole Source Declaration for Sewage Pump Station Aluminum Hatch Covers d. Resolution 2052: Sole Source Declaration for WWTP 60" Screw Pumps Replacement Parts The following vouchers/checks were approved for payment: EFT numbers: 94160 through 94216 and 94250 through 94251,total$233,811.35 Check numbers: 94159 and 94217 through 94249,total$179,695.26 Wire transfer numbers: 254038 through 254241,total $3,137.64 OTHER BUSINESS Parks and Recreation Update Parks&Recreation Director Jonn Lunsford updated Council on current projects and programs in the department. Mr. Lunsford's slides were added to the packet materials for the meeting. He reported on the returfing project at Marguerite and Don Daniels Field and thanked the Daniels Family Foundation for its generous donations at the park and the Anacortes Baseball Club for its donation for the returfing project. Mr. Lunsford reported on the status of the Grand View Cemetery Expansion which would be presented to the Planning Commission for a Conditional Use Permit in the near future. He reported on the status of the Washington Park float and dock repair following the storm damage caused in February. Mr. Lunsford thanked Transpac Marinas,Inc. for its generous donation of time and design services and thanked 40th District Senator Liz Lovelett for successfully pursuing$200K of grant funding for the project from the state legislature. Mr. Lunsford highlighted fall recreation offerings including youth soccer,the Mt. Erie road and trail run on October 12, and the Wonderland Walk December 13 and 14 at Washington Park. Mr. Lunsford next reported on the proposed bike skills course at the former A Avenue landfill in the ACFL. He summarized constraints on the site due to wetlands and conditions of the landfill cap. Mr. Lunsford described six other sites around Anacortes that had been considered as alternative locations for a bike skills park since the idea was first raised 17 years prior and explained why none of those sites were ideal. Mr. Lunsford presented the proposed phasing that had been considered by the Forest Board for the 1.5 acre area and summarized the public meetings that had been held to discuss the proposal including Forest Board meetings in March,April, June and August and Planning Commission and City Council meetings in May. He discussed likely costs,required permits and consultations with Skagit Land Trust,Friends of the ACFL and Skagit County. Mr. Lunsford responded to councilmember questions about the possibility of co-locating the skills park with the Ben Root Skate Park,history of the landfill, and Forest Board recommendations for the site. Anacortes City Council Minutes August 12,2019 2 Mr. Miller invited those who had signed up to speak on this topic to queue up at the microphone. Stacey Curtis spoke about health concerns at the site that she had raised at the August 5,2019 City Council meeting and reported on information she had received from Skagit County Health Department earlier in the afternoon. Ms. Curtis noted that the landfill closure conditions would be lifted in another 20 years and urged Council to take time to make the best long term decision for the site. At approximately 7:06 p.m. Mr. McDougall left the meeting. Bob Barry, 1914 22nd Street, spoke against the proposed siting for the bike skills park. Mr. Barry said the City has a moral obligation to stick to the policy that the forestlands are a natural area to be protected as such. Mr. Barry also warned that a bike skills park at that site would require additional and safer parking. Neil O'Hara,4407 Anaco Beach Place, supported the concept of a bike park in Anacortes but said the proposed site was inappropriate and unsuitable. Mr. O'Hara said using that site would violate the closure recommendation issued by DOE in 2009 which prohibits public access. He raised concerns about water quality impacts of developing the site. Kevin Foss,2219 28th Street, a member of Fidalgo Trail Riders, spoke in support of the proposed skills park. Mr. Foss summarized the history of the group's exploration of other potential sites over the past 17 years. Mr. Foss said the 2009 Comprehensive Plan contemplated a dog park on the site but that the Planning Commission had changed that to recreational use. He asked for clarification on whether recreational use is allowed in this public use zone and revision of the Comprehensive Plan if not. Marlene Finley, 1410 Kellogg Place, said the bike skills park was an excellent idea but the proposed location was flawed. She warned of user conflicts that would result and said a bike skills park would require the addition of restrooms, garbage cans,parking, signage, and a higher level of management. She urged considering a different location better suited to the proposed use. Bret Andrich,2016 10th Street, spoke in favor of the proposed bike skills park,recounting how he arrived at that position following his initial skepticism about the project. Mr. Andrich provided a written copy of his remarks which was added to the packet materials for the meeting. Stuart Ford, 12365 Windward Way, spoke in support of the proposed bike skills park and said it would provide a healthy place for generations of kids to be out of doors. Kathryn O'Hara,4407 Anaco Beach Place, spoke in support of creating a bike skills park in Anacortes but said it should be located somewhere else,not on top of a toxic waste dump next to a wetland. Ms. O'Hara requested more information about which locations were considered and rejected and other locations that might be considered. She also asked for more information about Skagit County 2009 report follow up and potential impacts of recontouring the site for the skills park. Brian Wetcher, 814 26th Street, spoke as a member of the Forestlands Advisory Board. He referred the Council to the brownfields restoration page on the Department of Ecology website. Mr. Wetcher noted that many people considered the proposed skills park a valuable asset and many others considered it an unnatural intrusion in the ACFL and that Council would have to decide. He urged Council to first adopt the revised ACFL Comprehensive Plan,then make a decision on use of the site consistent with the adopted plan.He also urged long term restoration and monitoring of the site and suggested Council make a site visit all the way around it. Kathleen Lorence-Flanagan, 2005 10th Street, said she was profoundly disappointed that this was the first time this topic had been brought before the public, after 17 years. She asked Council to answer the questions posed to Anacortes City Council Minutes August 12, 2019 3 it in a letter from Ross Barnes. Ms. Lorence-Flanagan echoed Bob Barry's earlier comments and opposed the skills park on the basis that it sounded totally counter to the quiet and peacefulness of the ACFL. Arlene Cook,2318 Forest Park Lane,reiterated her comments from the August 5,2019 City Council meeting, expressing concern that the bike park would cause abundant wildlife to relocate away from the area, including into private yards. She warned that the park would attract riders from out of town to the detriment of the forestlands. Ms. Cook said the prior week's commenters had succeeded in opening up public discussion of the proposal and said it was now up to Council to decide. Wim Houppermans, 3412 K Avenue, said he had come to hear about the Guemes Channel Trail,not the bike park. Mr. Houppermans said Council had promised a transparent process about the trail but he had just learned from the Anacortes American the prior week that it would cost$2.4M to go from Lovric's to 6"'Street and $400K to go from Edwards Way through to Ship Harbor,which had issues with the wetland buffer. He asked Council to update the Transportation Improvement Plan to remove the categorical exclusion from that wetland section. Mr. Houppermans said that since Mr. Lunsford did not address the GCT in his report perhaps he would do so the following week. Seth Kiser expressed frustration about people moving to Anacortes and then not wanting it to change, saying he had seen a great deal of development during his lifetime in Anacortes. Mr. Kiser said the bike skills park would be a great use of the old landfill site,would be wonderful for local youth, and would likely be accessed from other trailheads so parking would not be a huge issue. No other members of the public wished to address Council on this issue. Mr. Lunsford responded to questions from councilmembers about Conservation Easement restrictions on the site,projected costs for the skills park and management of its construction,parking needs,Forest Board guidance for the project,the planned timeline for Phase I and the potential for future phases, and timing for subsequent water sampling. Mr.Walters reminded that Council did not have to approve the park if it is a permitted use in the zone under current code and if allowed under the terms of any applicable conservation easements. Mr. Miller suggested that Mr. Lunsford come back to Council with an update once permits were in hand in order to keep the public informed. Mr. Lunsford reminded that the public can subscribe on the city website to notification of Forest Advisory Board meetings and agenda topics as well as Planning Commission and City Council meetings. Mr. Johnson asked that the skills park proposal be posted on the city website. He indicated that additional discussion of supporting infrastructure was warranted. Mr. Johnson also requested a matrix of public comments and staff responses to each. Mr. Lunsford agreed to prepare such a matrix. There being no further business,at approximately 8:07 p.m. the Anacortes City Council meeting of August 12,2019 was adjourned. Anacortes City Council Minutes August 12,2019 4