HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council Meeting - Council Workshop - Minutes - 08/04/1998 i COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE
August 4, 1998
The regular meeting of the Kent City Council Committee of the Whole was called
to order at 5:05 p.m. by Council President Orr. Present: Councilmembers
Amodt, Brotherton, Clark, Epperly, Woods and Yingling, Operations Director/
Chief of Staff McFall, Police Chief Crawford, Public Works Director Wickstrom,
Planning Director Harris, Finance Director Miller, and Parks Director Hodgson.
Staff Present: Governmental Affairs Manager Laurent, Assistant Finance Director
Hillman, Risk Manager Chatwin, Financial Planning Manager Craig and Capital
Project Analyst Ekstrom. Approximately five others were also in attendance.
Approval of Minutes. WOODS MOVED to approve the minutes of the meeting
of July 7, 1998. Clark seconded and the motion carried.
Capital Facilities Plan/Levels of Service. McFall explained the background
of the Growth Management Act, noting that it required cities to engage in a
higher level Comprehensive Plan and that the Capital Facilities Plan has to be an
adopted element of the Comprehensive Plan. He added that in certain areas, the
City has to adopt levels of service and that Council would continually review and
adjust the levels of service over time to meet the needs of the city. He explained
that levels of service were adopted three years ago and have not been updated.
Finance Director Miller explained that in the past Comprehensive Plans were
prepared by planners and were not balanced with the amount of money that was
available. She said that requirements now include looking at land use,
transportation, utilities, housing, human services, and what neighboring cities
are doing in order to get all the pieces in place. She said there is a process for
amending the plan each year, and that Kent's first plan was adopted in 1995.
She stated that the Levels of Service result in accountability.
Miller noted that at the beginning of the process an inventory was done which
included the condition and capacity of every asset. She added that operation
and maintenance were also taken into consideration. She explained that no
other cities had Levels of Service to compare to, so information from Florida was
used, which may or may not be comparable. She said that five alternatives were
taken to the Council in workshops and eventually a plan was adopted which did
not include transportation. She noted for Yingling that improvements need to be
made regarding sanitary sewer, storm water and utilities.
Miller then explained that Category A covers transportation, sanitary sewer,
storm management and water, and noted that if those cannot be provided,
. building permits cannot be issued. She said Category B covers public safety and
quality of life issues, and that Category C covers facilities owned by the State,
August 4, 1998 Page Two
County and independent districts, such as libraries and schools. She outlined
the formula used to determine the needed quantity of capital improvements, and
the priorities among capital improvement projects. She noted that, at the time,
Council felt that maintenance and revitalization of existing buildings and
structures was more important than building new ones. She discussed financing
and debt policies as shown in the Comprehensive Plan, and noted it is time to
review all policies. She pointed out that other cities have now adopted policies
which could be used for comparison.
Miller then explained revenue sources and pointed out that some funds can only
be used for specific projects. She noted that the largest source of funds is
grants. She also explained expenditures and noted that the information in the
handout is from last year and that if the Performing Arts Center were removed
from the Parks section, their percentage would be less than the 19% shown and
that all other sections would be affected as well.
. Miller noted that a public hearing will be held at tonight's Council meeting, that
an amendment application and funds must be submitted to Planning by August
31st, and that while departments are currently preparing requests, there are
many unknowns including the hotel/motel tax and the space study. She pointed
out that there will be opportunities for review, and that the entire Capital
Facilities portion needs to be revised. She suggested getting all requests in,
having the departments complete their individual Plans, and getting the whole
thing balanced. She suggested including funds for a consultant to coordinate the
process and pointed out that the information and dollar amounts are now
outdated. She noted that a process is needed to measure and update the levels
each year, and added that the ties between capital and the operating budget
needs to be reviewed, as well as impact fees and the revenue based on Council's
direction. Orr pointed out that some mitigation measures are taken although
they may not be referred to as impact fees. Miller stated that by pulling all the
pieces together now, the needed policy changes can be recommended next year.
Miller confirmed for Woods that a stopgap measure will be done now which is
part of a year-long process so that next year there will be a comprehensive
document, and that the first phase has to be project-oriented. Clark stated the
need to expand certain capabilities such as alternative transportation, and asked
how to make that part of the long term plan. Miller suggested listing it in the
policy areas and comparing it to other what other cities are doing. Clark also
spoke about a fiber optic network throughout the city, and said it needs to be
included in some fashion. He reminded Council that access to fiber optic
August 4, 1998 Page Three
networks was included in the Downtown Marketing Plan discussed by the
Operations Committee this date.
Upon Brotherton's comments regarding timing, Miller noted that emergency
amendments are offered and that changes can be made once a year. Brotherton
noted that the employee population has not kept up with the growth in the city
and questioned whether the level or service has been lowered or whether staff is
more productive. He expressed a desire to have group meetings to discuss
assumptions. Miller explained for Orr that she would like to get the operative
side of the budget together this year and not to address the Levels of Service or
policies this year. She noted for Yingling that levels of service must be stated in
Category A, and that Public Works reviews those levels of service each year. She
added that comparisons are part of the process she would like to have a
consultant put in place. Yingling noted that the levels of service do not indicate
how well citizens are being served and Miller explained that a way to incorporate
that type of information has not been developed. Wickstrom noted for Orr that a
concurrency ordinance is in place. Miller then distributed copies of the
Transportation Levels of Service. Orr stated that another meeting of the
Committee of the Whole could be scheduled on this issue if necessary.
Wickstrom explained that when the service levels for the road system were
established, it was predicated on a 2010 horizon, and the capital improvements
that met those service levels were correlated to that 2010 horizon. He said there
is no reason for concern at this time. He noted for Orr that the service level is a
measure of capacity of the road, and an average capacity is used for a specific
area and that was predicated on how much money was available and what
Council was willing to spend. He added that with capital improvements that are
six years in the works, there are peaks and valleys. He explained that the
service levels which were established were based on capacity of the system, not
on how many miles per person.
Parks Director Hodgson stated that although there is currently no tracking
system in the CFP, the Parks Department is aware of how many acres they have
for different parks, and that as they acquire more, one of the challenges is how
to match the voids. He agreed to provide a chart to Councilmembers, and noted
for Yingling that the only way to determine if citizens are being well served is
through a citizen survey. Yingling stated that performance levels would be
helpful in determining service levels that are meaningful.
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August 4, 1998 Page Four
AWC Conference Report. Amodt stated that she has attended some AWC
(Association of Washington Cities) workshops this year and showed examples of
the books and information they provide. She explained the format of the
conferences and said attending is a good way to network with Councilmembers
and employees from other cities, and to get more education on City Issues. She
also displayed information from the Municipal Research & Service Center and
noted that they are an excellent legal resource. She pointed out that AWC has a
certification program, and urged Councilmembers to participate in AWC,
Suburban Cities and the National League of Cities.
Regional Governance and Finance Update. Clark noted that Suburban
Cities recently formalized a package and presented it to various levels of King
County government, whose initial response was negative. He said there may be
some outcries and there may be rapid movement on this issue. Woods explained
that the various responsibilities are supposed to be negotiated, and that there is
a ratification process. She noted that one of the ingredients in the Suburban
Cities proposal questions the County's revenue stream. She said that the
suburban cities are providing services now and would like to rearrange the
revenue. She noted that the August meeting has been cancelled, but that they
usually meet on the second Wednesday of the month.
Adiournment. The meeting adjourned at 6:28 p.m.
Brenda Jacobe , C C
City Clerk