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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council Meeting - Council - Minutes - 07/07/1992 Kent, Washington July 7, 1992 Regular meeting of the Kent City Council was called to order at 7: 00 p.m. by Mayor Kelleher. Present: Councilmembers Bennett, Houser, Johnson, Mann and White, City Administrator Chow, City Attorney Lubovich, Planning Director Harris, Public Works Direc- tor Wickstrom, Fire Chief Angelo, Police Chief Crawford, Finance Director McCarthy, Human Resources Director Olson, and Informa- tion Services Director Spang. Councilmembers Orr and Woods were excused and Parks Director Wilson was not in attendance. Approx- imately 100 people were at the meeting. PUBLIC Employee of the Month. Mayor Kelleher announced COMMUNICATION that Fred Hewitt of the Code Enforcement Division of the Fire Department has been chosen as the Employee of the Month for July. He noted that Hewitt began his career with the City in 1979 as a Building Inspector. Fire Chief Angelo noted that Hewitt is knowledgeable, practical and works well with people in the construction community as well as with his fellow City employees. DARE Donation. Jerry Jackson, Manager of Mitzel ' s Restaurant in Kent, explained that last May Mitzel ' s Restaurants began a coloring contest and sold special pies to benefit the DARE program. He noted that the restaurants had raised $6000, and presented Kent' s share in the amount of $773 . 00 to Bob Bradley of the DARE program. Bradley stated that they appreciate the corporate sponsorship throughout the City and thanked each and every one of them. Kent Recreation Center. Ms. N. Hibbard asked that something be done about the Kent Recreation Center. She cited loud noise and music which lasts all night on weekends, fights, drinking, litter and so forth. She noted that she has spoken with the manager to no avail, and has called the Police. The Mayor noted that there are representatives from Kent Recreation present at tonight' s meeting and suggested that they and other interested citizens meet with representa- tives from the appropriate City departments after tonight's meeting. Police Chief Crawford agreed to speak with them. Ms. Hibbard noted that she had written a letter to the newspaper about this and that she would provide a copy to the City. 1 July 7 , 1992 CONSENT WHITE MOVED that Consent Calendar Items A through CALENDAR L be approved, with the exception of Item 3K which was removed, and including the additions to Item 3A. Johnson seconded and the motion carried. MINUTES (CONSENT CALENDAR - ITEM 3A) REMOVED AT THE REQUEST OF BILL DOOLITTLE Approval of Minutes. Approval of the minutes of the regular Council meeting of June 16, 1992 . Bill Doolittle, 412 N. Washington, stated that he feels the minutes do not reflect the tone and the mood in the room on June 16th regarding budget issues. He said he had reviewed the video tape of the meeting and that there were a number of quotes by various councilmembers who wanted to be on the public record, and he feels those statements should be put in quotes. He listed them as follows: WOODS: "I was shocked and dismayed to receive the confidential memo/letter on Thursday at 5 : 00 o'clock at my door. " Leaning over the dias she said "I am not pleased. I want the public record to know that I am not pleased and if my council colleagues remember it in a different way than I do, I would stand corrected at this point. I am not happy with this proposal, I want something else tried. And I have been waiting to say this since last Thursday afternoon at 5: 00 o'clock. And I may appear angry right now, but you (addressing McCarthy) are very, very fortunate, you and Mr. Chow, that you did not see me on Satur- day, Sunday and Monday. " (Applause) CHOW, when asked by White whether Executive Committee meetings are open to Councilmem- bers: "If we choose to invite you. " JOHNSON: "I no longer have confidence in the City administration, as a councilmember, to adequately provide me with the necessary information, not only on the budget, but on any matter. Simply, they're not doing their job. As Mr. White said, if they were working 2 July 7 , 1992 MINUTES for his organization, I ' ll go even farther and say I would fire them if I was the person in charge. " ORR: "I do want to add, just to be on the public record, I was very disturbed to receive this information in the way I received it and at the time I received it. And to receive a proposal that goes against everything this council has said for months and months and months, giving us the alter- native of laying off the bulk of the people that is said we need to lay off in our public safety. " There was no objection from the Council to Doolittle ' s request and the Mayor directed the City Clerk to add the quotes into the minutes. HEALTH & (CONSENT CALENDAR - ITEM 3E) SANITATION Soosette Creek Lift Station. ACCEPTANCE of the bill of sale and warranty agreement submitted by Kent Pump Station Cost Sharers for continuous operation and maintenance of approximately 2 , 098 feet of sewer main extension, 2 , 625 feet of force main and a lift station constructed for the Lindental development in the vicinity of 116th Avenue S.E. and S.E. 266th Street with release of the cash bond supplied for these improvements to be in conjunction with acceptance of the Lindental plat, as recommended by the Public Works Commit- tee. (CONSENT CALENDAR - ITEM 3F) Dally Tynes Apartments Bill of Sale. ACCEPTANCE of the bill of sale and warranty agreement sub- mitted by Kent-Kangley Associates for approxi- mately 1, 640 feet of water main extension, 1, 705 feet of sanitary sewer extension constructed in the vicinity of 116th Avenue S.E. and Kent-Kangley and release of the cash bond after expiration of the one-year maintenance period, as recommended by the Public Works Committee. 3 July 7, 1992 HEALTH & (CONSENT CALENDAR - ITEM 3G) SANITATION Arco AM/PM Mini Market Bill of Sale. ACCEPTANCE of the bill of sale submitted by Atlantic Richfield Company for continuous operation and maintenance of approximately 430 feet of street improvements and 116 feet of storm sewer improve- ments constructed at West Valley Highway and So. 180 and release of the cash bond after expiration of the one-year maintenance period, as recommended by the Public Works Committee. (CONSENT CALENDAR - ITEM 3H) West Valley Masonry Bill of Sale and Latecomer Agreement. ACCEPTANCE of the bill of sale and warranty agreement submitted by B.G. McElderry for continuous operation and maintenance of approxi- mately 309 feet of sanitary sewer extension con- structed in the vicinity of So. 228th and West Valley Highway, waiver of the one-year maintenance period with immediate release of cash bond and authorization for staff to prepare and the Public Works Director to sign a Latecomer Agreement for future connections to this main, as recommended by the Public Works Committee. TRAFFIC (CONSENT CALENDAR - ITEM 3J) CONTROL Six Year Transportation Improvement Plan 1993- 1998. AUTHORIZATION to set July 21 as date for public hearing on the City' s Six Year Transporta- tion Improvement Program 1993-1998 , as recommended by the Public Works Committee. (CONSENT CALENDAR - ITEM 3K/REMOVED FROM CONSENT CALENDAR AND CHANGED TO OTHER BUSINESS - ITEM 4G) REMOVED AT THE REQUEST OF CHARLIE KIEFER 272nd/277th Corridor. AUTHORIZATION to set August 4 as the date for the public hearing on a proposed Council action relating to implementation of the FEIS preferred alignment for the 272nd/277th Corridor project, as recommended by the Public Works Committee. Public Works Director Wickstrom explained that the final environmental impact statement on this corridor is complete and staff would like direc- tion from the Council to submit to King County the EIS and the accompanying documents for the estab- lishment of the preferred alignment as denoted in 4 July 7 , 1992 TRAFFIC the EIS. He noted that in order for the County to CONTROL concur with the project, they must establish the route. He explained that the purpose of the requested public hearing is to receive input on whether or not Council wishes staff to move ahead with the project. Charlie Kiefer, 10926 SE 274th, said he appre- ciates having a public hearing on this corridor since it is not required. He invited councilmem- bers and others to attend a meeting he could set up before August 4th to discuss their concerns with the environmental impact statement. He said that the more the Council understands citizens ' concerns, the better off everyone will be. He requested from the Public Works Department a copy of the boundaries of the Local Improvement Dis- trict which will be formed to pay for this arte- rial. Wickstrom noted that the boundaries have not been established at this time, and that there are enough no-protest agreements to form the LID. WHITE MOVED to set August 4th as the date for the public hearing on a proposed Council action relating to implementation of the FEIS preferred alignment for the 272nd/277th corridor project. Houser seconded and the motion carried. LATECOMER (CONSENT CALENDAR - ITEM 3I) AGREEMENT Robinson Sewer Extension Latecomer Agreement. AUTHORIZATION for staff to prepare and the Director of Public Works to sign a Latecomer Agreement for future connections to the sanitary sewer extension constructed in the vicinity of 94th Avenue So. and So. 232nd Street, as recom- mended by the Public Works Committee. BIDS (BIDS - ITEM 5A) LID 338/LID 339/Decant Stations/94th Avenue Storm. Bid opening was June 23 with three bids received, all of which exceeded the engineer' s estimate. The projects were originally combined in the hope of attracting better bids. However, after review of the bids received and a survey of the current construction climate, staff recommends the bids be rejected and the project re-bid as separate pro- jects. 5 July 7 , 1992 BIDS WHITE MOVED the bids for LID 338/LID 339/Decant Stations/94th Avenue Storm be rejected and the project re-bid. Johnson seconded and the motion carried. (BIDS - ITEM 5B) Central Avenue Improvement. Bid opening was held June 26 with six bids received. The low bid was submitted by West Coast Construction in the amount of $853 , 894 .89. Staff recommends this bid be accepted and the project awarded to West Coast Construction, subject to approval of TIB. WHITE MOVED the bid of $853 , 894 . 89 from West Coast Construction be accepted and the contract awarded for the Central Avenue Improvement project, sub- ject to TIB approval . Bennett seconded and the motion carried. DOWNTOWN (CONSENT CALENDAR - ITEM 3D) PLAN Downtown Plan Zoning Program. Jerald Klein asked that this item, as follows, be removed from the Consent Calendar for discussion: "Adoption of Ordinance No. 3050 amending the Zoning Code and Ordinance No. 3051 amending the Zoning Map to implement the Downtown Plan Zoning Program approved by the City Council at its June 2 , 1992 meeting. The proposal establishes three zoning districts, outlines new development standards for the downtown area, creates a design review process for new sidewalks, and lighting of pedestrian corri- dors. " There was no objection from Council to removing this item from the Consent Calendar and discussing it. Mr. Klein stated that he represents several prop- erty owners who will be affected by the Downtown Plan. He provided to Councilmembers a copy of a Kent Downtown Plan Clarification Statement and outlined three technical corrections he felt the Council would want included. The corrections are as follows: A. DCE needs to include "business offices" as a permitted use. Business offices are per- mitted in DLM and DC. 6 July 7, 1992 DOWNTOWN B. DCE needs to include recreational, enter- PLAN tainment and cultural activities. The pur- pose of DCE specifically includes "recrea- tional" uses, but there are no recreational uses permitted. Furthermore, the Downtown Kent Plan specifically calls for the encour- agement of "entertainment, cultural, recrea- tional and civic activities. C. DCE needs to include light manufacturing. Policy 2 of the Downtown Kent Plan reads: Recognize that the existing manufacturers are a vital part of the Planning Area and should be encouraged to participate in the develop- ment and growth of the Planning Area. The recent decision of Lucas v. South Carolina precludes regulatory taking without "just compensation" unless for the "prevention of harmful use. " But light manufacturing is not a harmful use if it can be mixed with residential use in the DLM. Planning Director Harris pointed out that a number of hearings on this matter had been held by the Planning Commission and the City Council, and that if Council chooses to make changes, the issue should be looked at further at a workshop. Plan- ning Manager Satterstrom assured Klein that busi- ness offices would be a permitted use in the DCE zone, even though that is not enumerated under that district. He said language similar to that in Items A and B could possibly be incorporated into the document without changing the meaning or intent of the proposed ordinance, if Council so desires, but that Item C would diverge from the intent of the Downtown Zoning and would be incon- sistent on the Downtown Plan. He said that the only industrial zoning is labeled DLM and that it is currently being utilized as industrial . At this point the Council chose to put this item back on the Consent Calendar. 7 July 7 , 1992 ANNEXATIONS (PUBLIC HEARINGS - ITEM 2A) West Hill Island Annexation. This is the date and time set for a public hearing on the West Hill Island Annexation. This area of unincorporated King County is less than 100 acres in size and is entirely surrounded by the existing boundaries of the City of Kent. As a result, the City Council is authorized, on its own motion, to annex the area by ordinance after the public hearing is completed. If annexed, the West Hill Island will assume its share of the City' s existing indebtedness and will be subject to the existing zoning requirements for newly annexed territory under the Kent City Code. Planning Director Harris pointed out the location of the annexation and noted that there are approx- imately 144 registered voters in the area. He also noted that this item is listed as a high priority on the City' s Target Issues. He explained that the City has held two meetings on the West Hill with citizens of the island. He said that he feels it will not cost a lot to serve this area because it is a low crime area and is served by the Federal Way Fire Department, although the Kent Fire Department also goes into it. He added that the City would most likely break even financially. Harris noted for White that the property taxes in this area will probably stay the same or go down. Mayor Kelleher declared the public hearing open. David Hofer, 23805 - 43rd Avenue South, said that in 1976-77 there was an annexation petition for a larger island and during that annexation the City and petitioners illegally tried to annex just a portion of it and the annexation petition failed. He said the City then recut the borders to fit where the yes votes were and resubmitted it without going back and repetitioning the people in the area. He said the residents acquired a lawyer who made the City redo the petition to get a fair vote, and since then they have become a smaller island. He said they were aware that because they were a smaller size, they could be annexed without going to a petition, but were assured by the City that that would not occur. He said the residents would much prefer that the City let them ask to be 8 July 7, 1992 ANNEXATIONS annexed. He pointed out that with this way of annexing, it is the electors who vote and not the property owners, which is not fair because the rentors will vote, but the property owners will be most affected by it. He also said there is a question on the constitutionality of this State law. Jim Kotter, 4326 S. 239th Place, said it is unfor- tunate that this has to happen, and that he is opposed to the taxes which would be charged. Jeanne Shiffelbein, 3714 S. 239th Street, stated that she is in favor of the annexation, noting that there has been an increase in thefts and crime in the area and she feels Kent would provide better protection than King County. Cheryl Sallee, 3940 S. 239th, noted that some residents disagreed with figures provided to them by the City and asked for more accurate information on the fees they would be paying. She agreed that King County does not provide good police response, and noted that Kent responded to her call to 911. Margaret Farris, 23666 - 41st Avenue S. , spoke in opposition to the annexation, saying she feels it is simply a move to get residents to help pay for Kent' s debt. She said she has not had a problem with service from King County. Steve Inman, representing Public Storage on Highway 516 and Military Road, said that part of the reason they developed that site was due to the property tax structure there which they like. He noted that he manages 15 other sites in other cities in the area and that simply being in Kent won't assure instant police response. There were no further comments and WHITE MOVED to close the public hearing. Houser seconded and the motion carried. Upon Johnson' s request, Assistant City Attorney Brubaker explained that because this area is less than 100 acres in size and is surrounded on all borders by the existing boundaries of the City of Kent, the City is authorized by State statute to annex this island by ordinance brought by the City Council . He said that once the ordinance is passed, it will not be effective for 45 days and that within that 45 day time period, 10% of the electors in the island area who voted in the last 9 July 7 , 1992 ANNEXATIONS general election will have the opportunity to cause a referendum election to be called. In that event the effectiveness of the ordinance would be stayed until the vote is scheduled in one of the next general elections, which would be either in September or November and that the electors of the island area would have an opportunity to vote as to whether or not they wish to be citizens of Kent or remain in unincorporated King County. WHITE MOVED that the Council adopt Ordinance No. 3049 annexing the West Hill Island, subject to the City' s existing indebtedness and to the zoning re- quirements of the Kent City Code. Johnson seconded and the motion carried. (OTHER BUSINESS - ITEM 4A) Chestnut Ridge Annexation. This date has been set for a public meeting with the petitioners of the Chestnut Ridge Annexation, a 190-acre area adja- cent to the City' s eastern border in the vicinity of 208th and 92nd Avenue. The City Clerk has given the required notification to the petitioners and public of this meeting. The motion was sup- ported by the Public Works Committee at their July 1 meeting. Public Works Director Wickstrom noted that a 10% petition has been received from the residents of Chestnut Ridge. He pointed out the location on the map and noted that the City has met with the residents in regard to the annexation process. He noted that approximately 495 people live in the area and that the zoning is primarily single family. He indicated that the assessed valuation is approximately $38 million, that it would cost approximately $51, 000 to bring things up to stan- dard, that there is a need for about $200, 000 worth of overlays in the next ten years, and that police costs would be approximately $35, 000 . He said that the Public Works Committee has reviewed this and supports it. He added that once the Council authorizes circulation of the 60% petition, the petitioners will circulate it through the area and try to secure signatures from people who represent 60% of the assessed value of the area. 10 July 7, 1992 ANNEXATIONS Howard Woodword, President of the Chestnut Ridge Homeowners Association, noted that they represent 93 homes and 50% of the valuation. He said they are interested in being members of the City of Kent as opposed to Renton, and that by annexing they would be better able to control the remainder of development in their area. He added that their location is a stepping stone to Benson Highway which would be an asset for businesses as the City grows. WHITE MOVED that the 10 percent petition for the Chestnut Ridge annexation be accepted, the boun- daries as identified by staff be accepted, the annexation area be subject to the City' s existing indebtedness and the 60 percent petition be circu- lated. Mann seconded and the motion carried. AMUSEMENT (OTHER BUSINESS - ITEM 4B) DEVICE Amusement Devices. The proposed ordinance amend- FEES ing the application of license fees on amusement devices under Kent City Code 5. 19 . 030 would exempt non-coin-operated amusement devices, excluding pool and billiard tables, from annual special licensing fees. Finance Director McCarthy explained that the Kent Recreation Center has twelve pool tables and the City currently licenses them at $12 . 50 each, that they have forty-one amusement devices which would normally be licensed at $50 each, and that they should also have an arcade license for $500 and a public dance license at $150. He noted that adopting an ordinance exempting non-coin-operated machines from the $50 each license fee would impact the City by $2 , 050. He said amusement devices in the City generate between $16, 000 and $18, 000 a year and the majority of those devices are not in arcades but in individual establish- ments, and noted that there is only one other arcade in the City. He said that if this ordi- nance is adopted, it is conceivable that arcades may move from individually coin-operated machines to non-coin-operated machines in order to fall under this category, which could potentially cause losses in revenue. Mann explained that although he had voted in favor of this in committee, he has 11 July 7, 1992 AMUSEMENT since received information regarding the fiscal DEVICE impact and the possibility of appearing to endorse FEES this particular business and has changed his opinion. There were no further comments on this issue. CODES (OTHER BUSINESS - ITEM 4C) 1991 Editions of Uniform Building Code, Uniform Plumbing Code, Uniform Mechanical Code, Uniform Housing Code and Uniform Code for the Abatement of Dangerous Buildings. Staff requests the adoption of the 1991 editions of the Uniform Building Code, Uniform Plumbing Code, Uniform Mechanical Code, Uniform Housing Code and the Uniform Code for the Abatement of Dangerous Buildings. These codes have received extensive review by the State Building Code Council and have been approved. The State Legislature has passed these codes into law which is effective July 1, 1992 . The action by the City Council will bring the City Code in alignment with State law. Any local amendments to these codes must be passed by the Local Government Agency and presented to the State six months prior to adoption. As of this date, City staff does not intend to recommend any local amendments. Fire Chief Angelo explained that this is simply adoption of a State law in effect right now and that there is nothing the City has added or changed, including fee changes. He also noted that the proposed ordinances referring to viola- tions of the codes change the penalty process form from criminal to civil, as requested by Council several months ago. City Attorney Lubovich explained Items 4D, 4E and 4F are related to this item. Chief Angelo said that there are no changes proposed by the City on any of those items. 12 July 7 , 1992 CODES MANN MOVED adoption of Ordinance No. 3052 adopting the 1991 Edition of the Uniform Building Code, Uniform Mechanical Code, Uniform Plumbing Code, Uniform Housing Code and the Uniform Code for the Abatement of Dangerous Buildings. White seconded, motion carried. (OTHER BUSINESS - ITEM 4D) Penalty for Violations of Uniform Building. Housing Mechanical and Plumbing Codes. Staff requests adoption of an ordinance providing for a civil penalty process for violations of the Uni- form Building, Housing, Mechanical and Plumbing Codes, at the same time repealing the criminal penalties from the Kent City Code. This proposed process is very similar to the Zoning Code Penalty Ordinance and will provide a more consistent enforcement of the City Codes. It will also remove the criminal aspect of violating the Uniform Codes and replace it with a civil pro- cedure. MANN MOVED the adoption of Ordinance No. 3053 enacting a civil penalty procedure for the viola- tion of the Uniform Building, Housing, Mechanical and Plumbing Codes. Houser seconded and the motion carried. (OTHER BUSINESS - ITEM 4E) 1991 Edition of Uniform Fire Code. Staff requests the adoption of the 1991 edition of the Uniform Fire Code. This code has received extensive review by the State Building Code Council and has been approved. The State Legislature has passed this code into law which is effective July 1, 1992 . The action by the City Council will bring the City Code in alignment with State law. Any local amendments to this code must be passed by the Local Governmental Agency and presented to the State six months prior to adoption. As of this date, City staff does not intend to recommend any local amendments. 13 July 7, 1992 CODES MANN MOVED adoption of Ordinance No. 3054 adopting the 1991 edition of the Uniform Fire Code. Houser seconded and the motion carried. (OTHER BUSINESS - ITEM 4F) Penalty for Violations of Uniform Fire Code Staff requests the adoption of an ordinance pro- viding for a civil penalty process for violations of the Uniform Fire Code, at the same time repealing the criminal penalties from the Kent City Code. This proposed process is very similar to the Zoning Code Penalty Ordinance and will provide a more consistent enforcement of the City Codes. It will also remove the criminal aspect of violating the Uniform Fire Code for first time offenders, and replace it with a civil procedure. MANN MOVED adoption of Ordinance No. 3055 enacting a civil penalty procedure for violation of the Uniform Fire Code. Houser seconded and the motion carried. COUNCIL (CONSENT CALENDAR - ITEM 3C) Request for Excused Absence Approval of a request from Council President Woods for an excused absence from the City Council meeting on July 7, 1992 since she will be out of town. (CONSENT CALENDAR - ITEM 3L) Request for Excused Absence Approval of a request from Councilmember Orr for an excused absence from tonight's Council meeting, since she is unable to attend. FINANCE (CONSENT CALENDAR - ITEM 3B) Approval of Bills. Approval of payment of the bills received through June 30, 1992 after audit- ing by the Operations Committee at its meeting at 2 : 00 p.m. on July 7, 1992 . Approval of checks issued for vouchers• Date Check Numbers Amount 6/16-6/30/92 119581-120121 $1, 205, 225. 02 14 July 7, 1992 FINANCE Approval of checks issued for payroll • Date Check Numbers Amount 7/2/92 01174126-01174689 $ 414, 605. 62 REPORTS Administrative Reports City Administrator Chow announced that Administration has held three meetings with employees regarding the budget shortfall and that approximately 250 employees participated. He added that forms for suggestions were also distributed to employees and that this information is currently being collated and will be forwarded to Human Resources and the Finance Department for their input. He noted that he has also asked department heads to submit proposals to increase revenues and to submit additional budget reductions. He said that Administration will meet with union leadership for their suggestions this week. The Mayor stated that he has asked Mr. Chow and other staff members to report back to the Council outlining these cost saving alternatives and how much money they may save, and recommending how to proceed. Johnson noted that both Orr and Woods, who are not in attendance, have indicated they would like to have a workshop on this subject and that McCarthy could present a financial update at that time indicating how much revenue could be saved or generated from the suggestions. Mayor Kelleher asked the councilmembers in attendance if they would agree to a workshop tentatively set for before the Council meeting on July 21st and they agreed. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned /at 8 : 15 p.m. Brenda Jacob r, CMC City Cler 15