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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2024-11-19 Council Special Minutes Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 1 EDMONDS CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING APPROVED MINUTES November 19, 2024 ELECTED OFFICIALS PRESENT Mike Rosen, Mayor Vivian Olson, Council President Chris Eck, Councilmember Neil Tibbott, Councilmember Michelle Dotsch, Councilmember Susan Paine, Councilmember Jenna Nand, Councilmember ELECTED OFFICIALS ABSENT Will Chen, Councilmember STAFF PRESENT Michelle Bennett, Police Chief Phil Williams, Acting Public Works Director Kim Dunscombe, Acting Finance Director Angie Feser, Parks, Rec., & Human Serv. Dir. Todd Tatum, Comm., Culture & Econ. Dev. Dir. Rob English, City Engineer RaeAnn Duarte, HR Manager Bertrand Hauss, Transportation Engineer Jeff Taraday, City Attorney Scott Passey, City Clerk Jerrie Bevington, Camera Operator 1. CALL TO ORDER The Edmonds City Council meeting was called to order at 7:22 pm by Mayor Rosen in the Council Chambers, 250 5th Avenue North, Edmonds, and virtually. 2. ROLL CALL City Clerk Scott Passey called the roll. All elected officials were present with the exception of Councilmember Chen. COUNCILMEMBER PAINE MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON, TO EXCUSE COUNCILMEMBER CHEN. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. APPROVAL OF AGENDA COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER TIBBOTT, TO APPROVE THE AGENDA. Councilmember Nand asked if would be more appropriate to consider her series of amendments once the meeting reached Council Business Agenda Item 5.3 or to amend the agenda now. City Clerk Scott Passey suggested it be done when that agenda item comes up. Councilmember Nand relayed her intent to make a motion that will seek to group budget amendments that reduce expenditures from the General Fund and consider them before amendments that add obligations to the General Fund. COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER TIBBOTT, TO REMOVE AGENDA ITEM 5.2, PROSECUTOR SERVICES RFP, AS IT WAS INCLUDED ON THIS WEEK’S AGENDA IN ERROR. AMENDMENT CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 2 COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON MOVED TO REMOVE AGENDA ITEM 6, EXECUTIVE SESSION TO DISCUSS PENDING OR POTENTIAL LITIGATION PER RCW 42.30.110(1)(I), AS IT WAS NOT NEEDED TONIGHT. AMENDMENT CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. MAIN MOTION AS AMENDED CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. 3. AUDIENCE COMMENTS Gordon Black, Edmonds, representing North Sound Bicycle Advocates and the users of the Interurban Trail, explained two years ago trail advocates began an effort to address a safety issue on the Interurban Trail. Many councilmember have attended site visits and listened to the case to make the trail safer. They are heartened by the support from elected officials in Edmonds, Shoreline and around the region. Everyone agrees improving the trail between King and Snohomish County and Shoreline and Edmonds is a worthy idea. In May they were encouraged there was collaboration in the works. Before any construction can begin, there needs to be a project study; King County allocated $75,000 in its 2025 budget for this study and they are awaiting confirmation that a similar contribution will be provided by Snohomish County. Last night Shoreline City Council unanimously approved a budget amendment to provide $40,000 for the study. He was hopeful Edmonds would join its neighbors in this endeavor; not by contributing money, but by managing the bidding process, a win for Edmonds’ budget and the trail’s future. Volunteers are ready to support city staff with the bidding and review process. He thanked the council for their vision for trails, safer biking and walking and less dependance on automobiles. Ziggy Boddendeitchel, Everett, a business owner in Edmonds’ downtown core, relayed their intent to raise awareness and seek definitive action in regard to an event that occurred in the late afternoon of November 14, 2024, on 4th and Bell where a group of teens allegedly challenged each other to vandalize businesses in the area that display Pride flags in support of the LGBTQ+ neighbors and visitors. Sugarology was unfortunately on the receiving end of this act of targeted violence and had their flag ripped from the building, an act that cause tangible damage to the building. Although the youth who did this was caught by a parent and made to apologize, no contact information was taken by shop staff to pass onto police for accountability. It may seem silly to raise the alarm based on the actions of a few teenagers, but their concern lies squarely in the potential actions of adults emboldened by the inactions and silence of the community thus far. They were concerned about the potential withdrawal of visible support for vulnerable communities as businesses may feel the need to prioritize their own protection. They continued, as of this morning, no statement has been made by council, the mayor’s office or law enforcement to address this event or its wider implications in either local news service. Actors and agitators of this variety thrive in environments of fear and silence; silence is acceptance. Particularly in the conditions of fear and uncertainty that have descended on those who stand to suffer greatly in the coming years, they branded silence as unacceptable. They called on everyone in the room and anyone listening to speak out, organize and act appropriately against this sort of violence before it is allowed to take deeper root in the city. A statement would be nice, a plan of action would be better. There is an opportunity to let any perspective agitators know that this sort of behavior has no place in Edmonds. They suggested a level- headed, forward-thinking, take-action initiative. The prevailing notion among some is Edmonds is somehow insulated against or immune to acts of targeted hate and discrimination, that Edmonds is nice and that these sorts of things couldn’t possibly happen here. They asked how the city expected to maintain the status quo in Edmonds with inaction and silence; silence is acceptance and acceptance at a certain point becomes complicity. Robert Torrres Miller, Edmonds, spoke in favor of the bridge over SR-104 on the Interurban Trail. As Gordon Black stated, most of the money is promised including a unanimous vote by the Shoreline City Council last night. He is trying to teach his 10-year old son how to live more responsibly in the face of climate change, rising energy costs, etc.; a big part of that is motivating him to use his bike. The safest place Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 3 in Edmonds is the Interurban Trail, but when they ride the trail, they are basically trapped on Ballinger to the south because SR-104 has too many cars moving too fast across too wide a road with an intimidating hill on the other side and at the north they are stuck behind Target where the trail basically becomes Maple Leaf drive and crosses over I-5 with a tiny bike lane on a fast-moving 2-way bridge. The Interurban Trail is the only safe place he can take his 10-year son to ride his bike in Edmonds. There are fragments of bike lanes here and there; he lives on Sierra Drive adjacent to a 4-block section of bike lane that goes to the new pedestrian crossing. The Interurban Trail is more than just a nice idea or a regional connector, it actually matters a lot to parents and kids in the community as a way to reach the greater region in a way that recognizes sustainability and community. Michael Rainey, president and executive director, Washington State Council of County and City Employees, AFSCME Council 2, a union which represents over 16,000 public sector employees in Washington State, including the dedicated bargaining unit at the City of Edmonds. These hardworking individuals form the backbone of the community, tirelessly ensuring that essential services are delivered to all residents. He advocated for the AFSCME employees impacted by proposed budget amendments C8, C15A, C15B, C15C and C19. While he understood councilmembers must represent the public and provide a responsible and balanced, budget, he reminded that the employees affected by these proposed changes are not just numbers on a spreadsheet; they are mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, sisters and brothers providing valuable public services to the community. Cutting their jobs or resources is not just a financial reduction, it could have a devastating impact on the livelihoods of families and a blow to the services they provide to the community. Mr. Rainey continued, urging the city council to consider the profound consequences these amendments will have on real people and to strive for solutions that preserve public servants’ dignity and essential roles and to remember that behind every line item in a budget are real people who significantly impact the daily lives of the citizens of Edmonds. As the city strives for fiscal responsibility, do not forget the human cost of these decisions. As the union representative for AFSCME Local 3517, he also reminded that any proposed changes require union engagement through collective bargaining; the union and city must collaborate to find solutions to protect employees’ jobs and livelihoods. Together they can find a responsibility and equitable solutions that supports employees and provides the high quality services the community deserves. 4. RECEIVED FOR FILING 1. BUDGET QUERIES 5.0 - COUNCIL BUDGET QUESTIONS AND ADMINISTRATION/STAFF RESPONSES 5. COUNCIL BUSINESS 1. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN TRANSPORTATION ELEMENT Transportation Engineer Bertrand Hauss introduced the team: City Engineer Rob English, Acting Public Works Director Phil Williams, and Patrick Lynch and Paul Sharman, Transpo Group. He explained the goal of the presentation was to review the current draft Transportation Plan. The team presented to the planning board a couple weeks ago; the planning board’s input regarding the goals and policies are not reflected in this presentation. Another meeting is scheduled with the planning board next week. The project list and prioritization will be presented to council in a couple weeks. He reviewed. • Key Plan Updates Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 4 • Edmonds Transportation Vision “Edmonds is a community where every resident, regardless of their income, background, or ability can safely travel on foot, by bicycle, transit or vehicle to their destination both within the city and to neighboring areas.” • Goals and Policies Goal 1: Create a complete and connected system that offers efficient transportation options to implement the regional transportation plan Goal 2: Participate in land use transportation planning with PSRC, Snohomish County, and surrounding jurisdictions to support and promote Vision 2050 Goal 3: Support and enforce traffic laws designed to provide safety for all users. Goal 4: Develop City’s transportation system to serve existing and future land use and promote economic growth Goal 5: Minimize adverse impacts of transportation improvements on the natural environment Goal 6: Maintain inventory of City’s transportation facilities and establish appropriate level of service (LOS) guidelines and standards Goal 7: Establish infrastructure planning and financing strategies with other agencies (consistent with regional mobility goals and land use plans) Goal 8: Street Design and Traffic Calming Goal 9: Public Transit and Transportation Demand Management Goal 10: Parking Supply goal Goal 11: Additional Active Transportation Goal Patrick Lynch, Transpo, reviewed: • Roadway Functional Classification Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 5 o A well-connected, hierarchal system of streets enhances overall safety and mobility o Four primary classifications  Principal Arterial (State Facilities)  Arterial  Collector  Local Streets o No proposed changes • Planned Pedestrian System o Highlights Edmonds’ vision of an interconnected system of on-street and off-street facilities that are accessible to all o Newly added to the Transportation Element to highlight the importance of a comprehensive system of pedestrian facilities • Planned Bicycle Network o Highlights Edmonds’ vision of an interconnected system of on-street and off-street facilities that are accessible to all o Newly added to the Transportation Element to highlight the importance of a comprehensive system of bicycle facilities Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 6 • Existing and Planned Transit Network o Existing (2024) fixed-route transit network (operated by Community Transit) o New Route 102 from Edmonds to Lynnwood TC (started March 20, 2024) o Key connections throughout City  Downtown  Edmonds Station  Aurora Village o New routes added in September 204  Align with new light rail service  New route along 9th Ave/100th Ave from Downtown Edmonds to MLT transit station o Community Transit planning additional improvements in next 20 years (frequency) Mr. Sharman reviewed Multimodal Level of Service (MMLOS): • MMLOS Program o Corridor Travel Time  Speed to LOS determined by Highway Capacity Manual (industry standard) as a percentage of speed limit - LOS on roadways still LOS C for collector and D for arterials - State facilities still LOS D/E - Transit LOS captured in corridor travel time o Active transportation (pedestrian and bicycle) system assessed on system completeness of planned network • Council Approved Land Use Growth Alternatives Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 7 • Vehicle Level of Service (without improvements) o Identify existing LOS for vehicle speeds on collectors/arterials o Identify future LOS for vehicle speeds without capital improvements o Forecast roadway LOS failure on SR 99 o Intersection improvements needed too • Active Transportation Projects o Active Transportation Network  Segments from 2015 plan  Street classification  Speed Limit  Average Daily Traffic (ADT)  Proximity to active transportation generators  Alignment with land use growth alternatives o A few routes will require additional study given geometric constraints (OVD & 196th St SW) • Roadway & Intersection Projects o Intersection Improvements  Traffic signal  Mini roundabout  Mid-block crossings  Additional travel lanes o Corridor improvements  Signal adaptive systems  Revitalization projects  Access management Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 8 Mr. Hauss reviewed • Public Outreach o Transportation Committee  Meetings started in November 2023  Meet on monthly basis  Last meeting held on November 18 o Transportation Survey  Survey closed June 10  Evaluation of results o Community meetings (as part of comprehensive plan)  Held on May 30, 2024  Goals and policies of Transportation Plan discussion o Public Open House  September 18, 2024  Project list discussion • Schedule • Remaining Items o Completion of final project list (based on selected Land Use Growth Alternative) and project prioritization o Approval of comprehensive plan by planning board o Comprehensive plan public hearing o Plan adoption Councilmember Eck recognized the amount work involved in developing the Transportation Plan. She looked forward to hearing the planning board’s recommendations and having them incorporated into the plan. She appreciated how the team quickly pivoted after receiving the growth plan and syncing that up with the Transportation Plan. She appreciated how the plan looks at more than just LOS for automobiles. Moving into the future, the system must provide safer ways for the community to get around regardless of their mode of travel. There is a sense of urgency so there will need to be an understanding of the financial implications and funding. Councilmember Dotsch commented on the new growth targets and excess growth in some areas; she was curious about the LOS based on putting growth in areas that do not have a lot of road infrastructure such as 196th and 88th. With regard to truck routes, she recalled when doorbelling on 220th, residents indicated they get a lot of freight traffic on 220th which is not allowed. None of the maps indicate the tonnage allowed on roads. It appears a lot of trucks are cutting through; she was unsure how to be more clear with companies delivering in Edmonds or with signage to limit large trucks on residential streets that are not capable of handling that traffic. Mr. Hauss said the signage for those routes can be verified. The issue is enforcement once signage is installed. If there are certain carriers using that route consistently the City could definitely Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 9 reach out to them to ensure they use the truck routes. Councilmember Dotsch commented traffic flows lead drivers including truck drivers to look for shortcuts. Councilmember Dotsch referred to the map on packet page 53 that shows a connection between Main and 88th east of Maplewood. Looking at the street map, that section is not open, it is a small, one-person path. She talked to the neighbors in that area who indicated there are no lights and she was unsure why it shown on the map as a street. She suggested Maplewood would be a better route as 88th is inaccessible from Main. Occasional bikes come flying down there and it is a disaster waiting to happen if it is promoted as a bike route. If the city wanted to make it bigger, it would require acquiring private property or construction on a steep slope. Maplewood would be a great option for the proposed pedestrian route with a bike lane to connect to Maplewood Park. She noted that section was also in the previous Transportation Plan and likely was just carried over. Mr. Hauss offered to check on it. Councilmember Paine commented she enjoyed serving on the Transportation Committee. The most transformative change between this Transportation Plan and the previous Transportation Plan is moving from intersection LOS to corridor LOS. She requested the team explain why corridor LOS was more useful for cities and the strong tie with MMLOS. Mr. Sharman responded the intersection LOS standard is based on average vehicle delay traveling through the intersection; how long a driver waits at a traffic light determines the LOS. The corridor travel time based LOS system is a great metric because it is what people experience on a day-to-day basis, similar to the green, yellow and red on Google Maps. The corridor LOS shows a percent of free flow speeds; for example if traffic travels at 50% of the posted speed, that would be a LOS F. The same governing/research body that established the intersection LOS grades came up with a corridor based LOS metric that is comparable to the LOS letter grades. The letter grades carry over into the new LOS standard, but instead of based on delay at intersections, it is based on travel speeds on collectors and arterials that are indicative of the overall system performance within the City. The Vehicle LOS (w/o improvements) map was displayed. Mr. Sharman continued, the other benefit is when there is a LOS failure, mitigation must occur in the way it is measured. If there is a LOS failure at an intersection today, the intersection has to be built out. In the future, if a corridor travel time fails, the solution is not necessarily an intersection improvement. Most of the delay on a corridor does occur at intersections so intersection improvements are still a valid and reasonable way to improve corridor travel time, but other things can be done such as improving signal coordination through an intelligent transportation system (ITS) so lights turn green at the same time to improve traffic flow throughout the corridor. It opens the city to other system improvement and provides more flexibility with regard to capital improvements. With regard to freight routes, Councilmember Paine asked if the freight routes are GIS mapped so they are published and can be picked up by freight carriers’ transponders. Mr. Hauss answered he believed so but would verify that with the City’s GIS staff. Councilmember Paine commented this has been a marvelous project and fun to work on. Council President Olson thanked the team for implementing things she has heard at meetings and through community feedback. Discussions about the Transportation Plan and pedestrian and bicycle access highlight the need for a neighborhood hub in north Edmonds. She recognized it was too late in this comprehensive plan cycle, but wanted to plant the seed to look at that during next year’s comprehensive plan review. Next, she referred to the community vision statement, “Edmonds is a charming and welcoming city offering outstanding quality of life for all with vibrant and diverse neighborhoods, safe streets, parks and a thriving arts scene shaped in a way to promote healthy lifestyles, climate resiliency and access to the natural beauty of our community.” When she read the vision statement for the transportation section specifically, she was disappointed not to see specifics chosen for the community that are personal to Edmonds and it wasn’t a reach to identify those in the transportation section. For example, quality of life for all speaks to ADA accessibility and neighborhoods built around hubs and centers where everyone can Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 10 get there via all modes; climate resiliency speaks to non-motorized transportation modes and access to transit; healthy lifestyles speaks to biking and walking/running; and access to natural beauty speaks to riding the seaside rail and roads and paths to beaches and parks. Council President Olson continued, instead of developing a more generic vision statement for transportation, she preferred to elaborate on the actual community vision statement and how the Transportation element upholds what is important to the community. She suggested the vision statement for every element of the comprehensive plan harken back to the community vision statement and show how the section upholds and implements it. Mr. Hauss advised this is the same vision statement that was in the prior version and it hasn’t been updated. He offered to discuss potential modifications internally so it is more consistent with the other plans. Councilmember Nand commented this document was so beautifully put together by the engineers that she did not feel there was much to improve on. She was excited to see Policy T-9.1, packet page 65, Explore future funding for a city based circulator bus that provides local shuttle service between neighborhoods, Firdale Village, Perrinville, Five Corners, Westgate and downtown. That is a brilliant idea to incorporate and something she would really like to see in the future. She recalled during council retreats and other meetings, there have been discussion about ways to generate revenue; one of her ideas was to invite a franchise for e-bikes and scooters to locate in Edmonds to include multimodal opportunity for those who don’t own e-bikes or scooters, but still want to utilize those services. From a revenue generation standpoint, the City would have the opportunity to tax the franchise. She asked if that was something that could go through the public process as a potential action item, if not in this iteration, the next one. Mr. Hauss commented that was something the team could definitely look into. Councilmember Tibbott expressed support for measuring rate of speed on routes versus at intersections, commenting that will be an improved way of looking at the transportation system. He referred to packet page 139 related to transit routes, relaying he was surprised to only see one route going to the Orange BRT line. Although Edmonds is identified as a high capacity transit (HCT) city, it does not have access to light rail. The Existing and Planned Transit Network slide was displayed. There are some east-west connections to the light rail station, but no intersection with hubs to rapidly get residents to light rail. Mr. Hauss responded there are light rail stations in Mountlake Terrace and in Lynnwood; there are bus routes that go directly from downtown Edmonds to those light rail stations without requiring a transfer to the Orange line. Councilmember Tibbott observed Route 166 on 196th goes directly to the transit station, but it stops every block and can take 30 minutes or longer to get from downtown to the transit station. Mr. Hauss responded he rides transit more regularly now and finds their schedule is right on time and matches up with the light rail times. The headway for the light rail is about 10 minutes so there is time to exit the bus and get to light rail. Councilmember Tibbott relayed his understanding that even with limited routes, the timeliness has improved. Mr. Hauss agreed, noting if one arrives at the bus stop a minute late, they will likely miss the bus which is great because in the past, buses’ arrival time varied widely. He complimented Community Transit for that improvement since light rail came to Lynnwood and Mountlake Terrace. Councilmember Tibbott asked if the schedule is published. Mr. Hauss answered all the times are on their website and frequencies are about every 30 minutes. Councilmember Tibbott said while in Phoenix recently, he had an opportunity to take Waymo, a driverless car, and found it to be a great way to get around. He noted an interior Edmonds transit system would also address some of the issues he raised. 2. PROSECUTOR SERVICES RFP This item was removed from the agenda via action taken under Agenda Item 3. Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 11 3. COUNCIL 2025-26 BUDGET DELIBERATIONS, INCLUDING POSSIBLE VOTING ON BUDGET AMENDMENTS PROPOSED BY COUNCILMEMBERS DURING MEETING Councilmember Nand asked if this would be the appropriate time to propose reordering amendments. Mayor Rosen answered yes. COUNCILMEMBER NAND MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER PAINE, TO GROUP AMENDMENTS THAT WOULD REDUCE GENERAL FUND EXPENDITURES IN 2025 AND 2026, AND CONSIDER THOSE FIRST BEFORE CONSIDERING AMENDMENTS THAT INCREASE GENERAL FUND EXPENDITURES IN 2025 AND 2026. Councilmember Nand suggested grouping C6, C8, C12, C13, C14, C15A and C19, amendments to reduce General Fund expenditures. She suggested then considering C15B, C15C, C16, C17, C18 and Staff Recommendations 8 and 9. She suggested considering Staff Recommended amendments 3-7 last as they do not have General Fund impacts. COUNCILMEMBER PAINE MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER NAND, TO HAVE C15 A-C CONSIDERED AT ONE TIME. Councilmember Nand suggested the council consider C15(A) last in the list of reductions and then consider C15(B) and C next. Councilmember Paine agreed with that order. AMENDMENT CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. COUNCILMEMBER DOTSCH MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER PAINE, TO WITHDRAW COUNCIL AMENDMENT C1 BECAUSE C18 IS A NEW VERSION OF THAT AMENDMENT. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Council President Olson suggested in the first grouping of reductions, that C19 be discussed, but not necessarily voted on, prior to voting on C8 and C15 because it is a new approach to achieving the same end. COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER TIBBOTT, TO GROUP C8, C15 AND C19, AND DISCUSS C19 BEFORE THE VOTE ON ANY OF THEM. Councilmember Nand asked when Council President Olson would like to have C19 discussed within the expenditure reduction proposals. Council President Olson suggested discussing it first, noting C19, C15 and C8 all have major reductions in workforce. The council has heard about C8 and C15 previously, but have not yet heard about C19. She did not want the council to vote on C8 and C15 before discussing C19. AMENDMENT CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Councilmember Nand commented the council passed conflicting amendment as Councilmember Paine’s amendment was to put C15(A) at the end of consideration of reductions/expenditures so it could be grouped with C15(B) and C15(C). A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMEMBER NAND AND SECONDED TO UNCOUPLE COUNCILMEMBER PAINE’S PROPOSED AMENDMENT C15(A) FROM THE GROUPING PROPOSED BY COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Reduce City Hall Operations to 32 hours/week except for Police, Court and Wastewater Treatment - Amendment #C8 Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 12 Councilmember Paine commented C8 is very similar to C15(A); C8 is Councilmember Chen’s amendment to reduce City Hall operations to 32 hours/week and C15(A) is to reduce City Hall operations to 35 hours so those two should be bundled. COUNCILMEMBER PAINE MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER NAND, TO BUNDLE C8 AND C15(A) IN THE FIRST GROUP. Councilmember Nand suggested considering Councilmember Dotsch’s proposed amendment of a 10% reduction prior to the amendments related to a reduced work week. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. 10% General Fund Labor/Benefits Expenditure Reduction – Amendment #C19 A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMEMBER DOTSCH AND SECONDED TO REDUCE GENERAL FUND LABOR/BENEFITS EXPENDITURE BY 10% FOR BOTH 2025 AND 2026. Councilmember Dotsch explained this would amend the funds allocated for salaries and benefits by 10%, reducing the budget by $2.5M in 2025 and $2.69M in 2026. She noted those were initial numbers and may be revised. The proposed amendment should be considered as an alternative to other amendments contemplating a 32- or 35-hour work week. This amendment intentionally does not specify staffing/programming reductions that would be necessary as a result of this amendment; those reductions would be best determined by the administration. These reductions could be a combination of eliminating positions (impacting both labor and benefit expenditures) or reducing positions to a partial FTE (impacting only labor expenditure). This method of eliminating or reducing positions has more long-term intent than furloughs or a reduced work week, ,and indicates that fiscal recovery will require more long-term strategies than this biennium. Councilmember Dotsch continued, there is a structural imbalance in the budget; the City’s biggest expenditure is labor as it is for all cities and has grown the most in the past five years, second only to debt service. In 2019, General Fund labor in the adopted budget was $17M; in 2025 the proposed General Fund labor budget is $25M, a 32% increase. She acknowledged inflation, increased labor costs, the addition of new positions, and adjustments in the salary schedules to align and be competitive and retain talent. In 2019 General Fund revenues were budgeted at $41M. In 2025 General Fund revenues are budgeted at $60M, but $7.5M of that is an interfund loan which is needed to keep the city running in 2025, but is not a revenue that can be budgeted in a future and in fact the City has to budget to pay it back rapidly. Therefore the comparative General Fund revenue budget for 2025 without the loan is $52.5M. Between 2019 and 2025, budgeted revenues went up 22% which sounds good until it is contrasted with a 32% increase in budgeted labor expenses and other major expenses in the General Fund. The City needs to adjust its workforce to a size that is better aligned with revenues; the City cannot afford to continue with a workforce of the current size which also means the City cannot afford the level of service this workforce is providing. Councilmember Paine asked Councilmember Dotsch to describe her conversations with HR and for the HR Manager to comment on this amendment. Councilmember Dotsch said she had a discussion with Acting Finance Director Kim Dunscombe regarding this amendment. The intent was not to use a scalpel to cut positions, but to allow the administration to determine how to make that percentage reduction to best fit HR issues or other issues. She did not have a direct discussion with HR. HR Manager RaeAnn Duarte commented a 10% reduction without specifics related to adjusting the work schedule or work hours would allow the administration to determine where to make adjustments and provide more opportunity for ideas and solutions to meet the 10% reduction. Councilmember Tibbott said he liked the idea of this budget amendment and believed the intent was to have the administration identify programs and services that could be reorganized or cut completely based Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 13 on the community survey. This amendment makes more sense than trying to reduce hours that may/may not be in service areas that are a lower priority. This amendment would begin to improve the structural imbalance in the long term versus being a short term fix and provides a very significant way for council to be involved in approving amendments that the administration will bring forward. Councilmember Nand thanked Councilmember Dotsch for bringing this amendment forward. She was concerned that Mayor Rosen already asked the administration to produce a budget that addressed the structural budget gap with $7.5M in cuts; the budget book is the product of that labor. Asking the administration to absorb an additional $2.9M in cuts without council identifying which programs and services they want cut places an undue burden on the administration so close to the December 31st deadline and it would create more uncertainty among the workforce which has expressed a lot of fear and uncertainty over their job security. She was also concerned about signaling to the workforce that the council expected them to produce the same level of service and program completion without identifying from the dais which programs the council wants cut. The council had this discussion in 2023 when Councilmember Chen asked the administration if they could identify $4M in cuts. She recalled Councilmembers Olson and Buckshnis going through the budget book and identifying $1.5M in cuts in specific programs and allocations which is council’s job. She was unable to support the amendment. Council President Olson said she would like to hear from staff and the mayor. This ultimately ends up being program focused and getting to the survey that was used to identify cuts that were already made. The council’s cuts have to go deeper because of the imbalance. The proposed $7M in loans is too much to borrow because the City has to pay that back. She supported taking the best approach, whatever that is determined to be. This approach is more enduring. With regard to uncertainty for staff, the reduced 32-hour work week is not sustainable and the uncertainty will continue if levies don’t pass. The council has to get down and dirty and determine the most critical programs that they will commit to 100% and keep programming and staffing in those areas no matter what happens and add things back as new revenue streams are implemented. She assured regardless of whether the levies pass, there will be new revenue streams. If the annexation to the RFA doesn’t pass, the City’s services will have to be core centric because that will be all the City can do with the available revenue. She appreciated this approach because it is something that can be counted on going forward and can be built upon versus the other reductions that are temporary and unacceptable to everyone. Council President Olson continued, in the context of budgeting by priorities, if the work environment is unattractive for all staff members, people will be looking for other jobs and leaving the City and when they do, it may/may not be in a priority program so the council may not be honoring the priorities the community identified. She recognized these are really hard decisions and assured the council has not forgotten the faces behind position. The council is in an impossible situation and the alternative is bankruptcy. Councilmember Eck appreciated that the council was looking everywhere, at every angle and having these necessary conversations and she applauded councilmembers for proposing these amendments. There is no great solution, but it is the council’s duty to figure this out and create a plan by the end of the month and start to move forward. She recognized this was not the last time the council would be having these conversations, but it hopefully will put the council on good footing for the next couple years. She wanted to be frank with the community, wherever the budget lands, there will be differences in service. Whatever programs remain, even if they are still staffed, there will be a service difference that people feel. She found it difficult to weigh in on this amendment when the council has not discussed the 35-hour/week option and wanted to hear the dialogue around both before making a decision. She feared if the council cut so much, the City would come to a standstill or something similar. It was not for lack of people wanting to do their jobs, but at some point getting work done at all would be stymied. She preferred to be as precise as possible. There is a risk making cuts that will take a couple years to recover, not just financially but as an organization that provides service to the community. She summarized her desire to weigh this with other proposed amendments. Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 14 Councilmember Paine asked how this would roll out, what would it look like. Ms. Dunscombe envisioned this as council setting a target for the administration to identify program reductions/eliminations using the priority based budget concept and staff would provide a recommendation for council to vote on. The number of 10% was a target and is actually $2.3M due to holiday buyback and overtime. This would be a target for the administration to look at the community survey, scoring of programs by the external advisory team, and determining whether programs in category 3 and 4 were required or could be reduced. That would be the process to reach the target number. It would still need to be presented as a staff recommendation for council to decide whether the programs proposed to be reduced/eliminated were appropriate. Councilmember Paine asked if this would need to be bargained. Ms. Dunscome advised layoffs are a management right; this reduction would result in layoffs. Councilmember Paine referred to the title of the amendment, 10% General Fund Labor/Benefits Expenditure Reduction, commenting it is not related to salaries and benefits, but rather layoffs. Ms. Dunscome answered that was correct. Parks, Recreation & Human Services Director Angie Feser described impacts to the Parks, Recreation & Human Services department. She acknowledged parks and recreation is a non-essential service. She imagined if council provided direction to find $2.3M, it would be more than 10% of her department’s budget. Options include park maintenance individuals which would impact park system and maintenance. Consideration would be given to things such as downtown lights which are non-essential and probably wouldn’t happen; reducing trash cans and litter and garbage service on Main Street which would impact business owners; closing restrooms on Olympic Beach, Brackett Landing North and installing porta potties instead; reducing restrooms in Civic Park possibly to none and installing porta potties which are a service and do not require employees; and decreased response time to litter, garbage and vandalism that the City experiences 3-5 times week in the downtown area and parks which most people are not aware of because staff responds so quickly. The goal is 24 hours, but it is usually before noon. As a result, parks and downtown would look very different, people would feel less safe and less comfortable which would impact economic development. Parks maintenance is a 7 days/week operation so eliminating positions and labor hours would be very impactful. Ms. Feser continued, with regard to recreation, the Frances Anderson Center is open more than 12 hours on weekdays and weekends which requires staffing the front office. The FAC is a revenue generating building where programs generate revenue to offset staff salaries and benefits. There would need to be a hard look at eliminating programs, but keeping in mind expenditures related to staff are covered by revenue. Eliminating staff is not just eliminating salaries and benefits, it also eliminates revenue. She hoped before a decision was made there would be another opportunity to describe details of what a 10% reduction would look like. Community, Culture & Economic Development Director Todd Tatum relayed his department was asked to make a 28% reduction. Like Parks, Recreation & Human Services, this not be a 10% reduction for his department, it would likely be much larger such as a 20-25% reduction. The programs his department runs include lobbying, grant strategies, communications, community engagement, support for seven boards/commission, arts and culture and economic development. At the current level in his department, he is struggling to get any strategic work done. The strategic work he is doing means he avoids doing most of his traditional tasks and being connected to the community in the way he has been. Another 25% reduction in his department would be an incredible uphill climb in economic development, real estate development/redevelopment, and business attraction and retention. He has been through this before; at his last job he was hired just as there was a 30% reduction in staff. The place was like a ghost town, staff didn’t talk to each other and it took about seven years to rebuild all the programs and systems that were lost. He concluded it is not a temporary reduction and then back up, this will require six years of recovery. Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 15 Acting Public Works Director Phil Williams commented Public Works is different. As stated in his budget presentation, of the $72M in the Public Works budget, only about 8% impacts the General Fund - streets, facilities, engineering and public works admin which is 3 people. Any reductions would be in Facilities which has a $2.8M budget and 11 employees and engineering which has a small footprint on the General Fund as much of engineer is paid for through development fees. It is not completely self-supporting but is in a large part. The rest of engineering is paid for by capital projects either REET or grants. Custodial staff and building maintenance in Facilities are currently funded by the General Fund and some capital programs are funded with bond funds. The General Fund receives revenue for some of that work such as the Public Works building which is paid for by the utilities. The Library pays about $80,000 into the General Fund for services Facilities provides. On a net basis, at least half of the funding is General Fund supported. Cutting 10% of those labor hours from Facilities would mean the loss of another custodian while the team takes on an additional 18 hours/week at the WWTP. Revenue from building rentals is doing well but the expenses are in Facilities who maintain and setup those spaces, make repairs, etc. Mr. Williams continued, there will be one vacancy in building maintenance operators next year; with a 10% reduction that would not be filled and another custodian may be lost which would further degrade the LOS in City buildings. He assumed the council did not intend to impose the same 10% reduction on utilities because cutting those labor hours would not save any General Fund dollars. This discussion has caused a nose dive in the morale in his department and other directors would likely say the same. He realized dramatic things need to be done, but it was his understanding there was a plan, $7M in cuts were made, and the City plans to have a vote on the RFA annexation in April. If that is successful along with the interfund loan in 2025, the budget is balanced in 2025 and a levy would be the final answer. If any of those dominos do not fall correctly, that seems like the time to take more drastic measures. He expressed concern with another 10% reduction on the heels of all the cuts staff has just absorbed. Acting Planning & Development Director Shane Hope agreed with what Mr. Williams about the timing for making decisions about drastic cuts, whether it is a 10% overall cut or a particular number of hours per employee. If revenues can be steadied through means already proposed, that drastic action may not be needed. As others have said, the fallout is people not only lose their jobs, but it also takes longer to rebuild programs, morale is severely reduced, and the level of service for things people depend on in the community are perhaps needlessly affected. She questioned whether this was needed right now pending some of the other things that can still be worked out. She commented such a reduction would also impact level of service in her department. Planning & Development covers a lot of its own expenditures; the advantage of a 10% overall reduction leaves some flexibility to decide how the cuts are made, it is not necessarily 10% in each department or division, but the effect overall is still huge. She hoped would the council think about whether this is the time for more drastic cuts prior to working out other options. Mr. Williams commented Edmonds employees are very proud of the work they do and the services they provide. They go out of their way to be kind, thoughtful and overly generous with their time with the public and take their work seriously. He knew with a 10% cut in labor hours and a proposal to reduce service levels, none of his staff would want to do that and would probably work extra hours to get as much work done as possible. He concluded a reduction would be a burden for the remaining employees who do not want to reduce service levels. Ms. Hope pointed out there are impacts to clients, not just the employees. In thinking about how to rebuild and regain revenues, quality of life is important to residents. Being able to provide for a healthy economy through appropriate development is a way to gain revenues over time versus reducing levels of service and stymying healthy development. Police Chief Michelle Bennett commented the Police Department already has 13 vacancies and with staff at the academy, she would have a huge concern with what could be cut and not detract from public safety. Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 16 That approach may be problematic for the Police Department especially if the intent is budgeting by priorities based on the survey. Municipal Court Administrator Uneek Maylor relayed the court already took a 10.8% cut. Per GR29, the judge can only determine what is reduced from the court and at this point the only thing that is not legally required is probation. The court has already taken as much as possible from probation, leaving only one probation officer. Knowing that public safety is the number one priority for the community, if the remaining probation officer is eliminated, when an individual leaves the court with a judgment and sentence or a condition of release to be taken out of custody or released from custody, they are given a notice of conditions they have to meet to be safe in the community. If the court does not have a probation officer, no one is monitoring that that person is meeting those conditions which would directly impact community safety. A judge cannot just keep a person in custody because there is no one to monitor the conditions. Ms. Maylor continued, the only other thing the court is not legally required to do is answer phones, but she was unsure the City wanted the court not to answer their phones and help the public understand what’s happening with their case, if their child is in custody, or they need to get in contact with their attorney and don’t know who it is. Answering the phone is a pretty basic customer service need in the community. In 2008 when Snohomish County made drastic cuts, the district court stopped answer the phones and gave pink slips to all the probation officers. Fortunately, the county council decided to allow the district courts to retain their probation officers, but the court stopped answering the phones. The Edmonds Municipal Court only has four clerks, there isn’t just one person assigned to answer phones. Much of the court’s supplies and travel are related to training required by court rules for her and the judge and supplies are funded by a grant and if the court is not doing community court using a reimbursement, even if it is cut, the City is not saving money because it is reimbursement. Mayor Rosen urged the council to take to heart what they heard from the directors. He agreed with Mr. Willliams’ comments about the impact on staff. Staff has already dealt with several unsettling issues including having a new mayor, budget issues, reductions in staff and programs, four director openings, etc. The service impacts will be significant and felt throughout the City; permits and business licenses will take longer, code enforcement, snow removal, repair of broken pipes, etc. will be impacted, there will be no backup for staff on vacation or sick, city hall will probably not have a receptionist, etc. He reminded the administration made cuts in the budget and tonight council amendments added back $380,000. Similarly, directors were asked to save $3.2M and council pushed back on many of those cuts. The council is asking the administration to make cuts to programs that he anticipated the council would try to restore if history repeats itself. Councilmember Nand expressed appreciation for the commentary by the directors, particularly Parks and Economic Development. She recalled a conversation with former Mayor Earling in 2018 where he was bragging about the fact that previously the downtown core was dead at 6 pm and he and his team worked extremely hard to develop the level of vitality that exists today. It is not something that happened by accident or could be expect to continue if downtown became a dirty, disheveled ghost town through extreme budget cuts. She found it apropos that at today’s Finance Committee meeting, staff indicated sales tax revenue is down 1% from last year, but $600,000 was added to REET through the Edmonds Green apartments. She questioned the impact on sales tax, REET, restaurants and real estate development if the council pursued this level of extreme services cuts within the City. Ms. Dunscombe commented that is a good point, everything the City does service wise affects other revenue sources such as REET or sales and use tax. She was unaware of a study that statistically linked those things but conceptually it makes sense that they follow each other. Council President Olson relayed the $7M loan is coming from funds in the City that are healthier than the General Fund. She recalled the state auditor’s office expected that loan to be repaid within 3 years. $7M is a lot of money and paying it back within 3 years means that revenue is available. The council is counting Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 17 on the success of things that they are hopeful about, but there is no certainty that will happen. In addition to paying back the $7M loan, the City is responsible for paying interest on that money. She asked if staff could provide financial modeling showing whether it is realistic to expect to pay back $7M. Staff has said that is not necessary now, but she did not think that was true in her gut. Ms. Dunscombe responded the Saturday, November 2 revenue generating council meeting included a lot of those scenarios and she encouraged council to revisit that spreadsheet. She recalled one of the scenarios was yes to retaining the $6M, to having a levy lid lift and paying back the $7.5M in 2026; the amount of that levy lid lift was about $10.8M. There are different options for the levy, one year, permanent, the loan could be paid back in two years instead of entirely in 2026, etc. The options and scenarios are extensive. Ms. Dunscombe continued, consideration was also given to what that size levy lid lift meant to the taxpayer. If it is assumed the voters approve annexation to the RFA, that along with a levy lid lift will increase the amount paid by taxpayers. Putting that together in a spreadsheet to see the impact on the City and the taxpayers has been a worthwhile exercise. If councilmembers have questions about scenarios, she is happy to answer via email or phone or in another setting. That is definitely the key to understanding where the City can go from here. Council President Olson commented Ms. Dunscombe and her team’s support has been incredible. She reminded that bonding and borrowing money outside the City was not as good an option as originally thought. Internal borrowing was preferred due to the interest rate, but it was also discovered that bonding is reserved for capital projects where there is collateral and this is borrowing money for operations and maintenance. She suggested tabling this item until later in the meeting or Thursday’s meeting until council considers the other reductions in staff hours. Councilmember Eck pointed out if an area is chopped so much staff wise, it may be necessary to hire consultants to get certain critical work done. At some point she feared the council risks spending money due to cutting so much. Councilmember Paine commented she had a lot of respect for the directors who have been in the public sector for a long time and this does not sound unfamiliar. She referred to her experience in her work life and on the school board; cutting programs completely can take years to rebuild. She recalled running into a school nurse who indicated they were still rebuilding the program from cuts made in 2008. One of the options is to delay major cuts until after the RFA vote. She did not look favorably at the proposed amendment because it cuts too deep into the bone, requiring cuts that will be difficult to recover from and in ways that the council will regret. Her preference was to postpone making decisions until there was more information and data from staff about this proposal. She commented the number looks great; the council was encouraged to be creative, but there needs to be a critical evaluation. COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER TIBBOTT, TO POSTPONE TO THURSDAY’S SPECIAL MEETING. AN AMENDMENT WAS MADE BY COUNCILMEMBER PAINE AND SECONDED TO POSTPONE TO NEXT TUESDAY. Councilmember Paine relayed her understanding that HR Director Neill Hoyson would be back on Tuesday. Adding HR implications would be helpful for the discussion. Councilmember Nand preferred to vote on this tonight rather than leaving it hanging over the heads of the City’s 250 employees for another week. She was very concerned about the conversations the directors brought forth tonight about employee morale. She wanted to ensure, even as the council is going through this painful budget cycle, the hardworking City staff feel respected. Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 18 Council President Olson commented either way it will be left open. She preferred not to finalize votes on any amendments when a councilmember was absent and Councilmember Chen will be back next Tuesday. If the council voted and ended with a 3-3 vote, she recommended a motion to renew so Councilmember Chen could weigh in on the vote. Postponing to next Tuesday would achieve the same thing as a motion to renew by Councilmember Chen when he returns next Tuesday. Councilmember Nand asked if the mayor could break a tie vote. City Clerk Scott Passey relayed his understanding the mayor cannot break a tie vote on a budget amendment. AMENDMENT CARRIED (5-1), COUNCILMEMBER NAND VOTING NO. MAIN MOTION CARRIED (5-1), COUNCILMEMBER NAND VOTING NO. Police Leadership Structure – Amendment #C6 COUNCILMEMBER NAND MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON, TO TABLE UNTIL TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2024, WHEN COUNCILMEMBER CHEN WILL BE BACK AND ABLE TO SPEAK TO HIS PROPOSED AMENDMENT. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Reduce City Hall Operations to 32 Hours/Week Except for Police, Court and Wastewater Treatment - Amendment #C8 COUNCILMEMBER PAINE MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER NAND, TO POSTPONE TO NOVEMBER 26, 2024. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Reduce Council Training – Amendment #C12 A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON AND SECONDED TO REMOVE THE COUNCIL TRAINING BUDGET. Council President Olson explained she looked to see if there was any mandatory training not available on the AWC’s free e-training and there was none. It would be unfortunate for people not to be able to attend in person. The other angle she has on this proposal is the non-represented employees are being asked to take furloughs which council is not legally allowed to be included. It was not her intent that council not attend training, but if they choose to go to in-person, they pay out of pocket which would equate to a furlough cut. Councilmember Nand said she had intended to bring this amendment forward. The training budget for staff was cut in the 2023 and 2024 budget, creating an unpleasant paperwork task for staff to submit training expenditures as a deductions on their income tax versus the City funding it. The council can still attend AWC training, but will have to claim expenditures on their own taxes, an easy sacrifice for the council to demonstrate solidarity with the workforce. Councilmember Eck agreed this was the least and the best the council can do for the council budget given the circumstances. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Reduce Parks and Recreation Training – Amendment #C13 Council President Olson commented the Parks budget included mandatory and non-mandatory training. The intent is to remove any non-mandatory training. COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER TIBBOTT, TO REMOVE NON-MANDATORY PARKS TRAINING. Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 19 Ms. Feser said she responded to this amendment via email with additional information. Approximately 80% of the approximately $38,000 allocated for this program in the budget is staff time, time that staff spends training on their own, attending WCIA free training, online software training, and inhouse training between staff members. There is no expenditure related to most of the training. The budget includes $3200 for training on Active Net, the registration and rental point of sale software for all Parks revenue. The person in that position is proposed to be cut in 2025 so the staff member taking over management of that software needs to be trained. The program also includes a small amount of travel. Council President Olson said she did not have an opportunity to read the email and may need more time to review it. If the council is ready to vote, she will abstain. Councilmember Nand asked how this would be implemented, whether Ms. Feser would direct her staff not to spend time on non-mandatory training. Ms. Feser answered that would be a question for finance. When staff was asked to create programs, that included identifying operations and staff time allocation. If this was cut, she was unsure how it would work. COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER NAND, TO EXTEND TO 10 PM. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Ms. Dunscombe said she reached out to Mike Bailey and he agreed with what she thought would happen. She recommended allocating the staff hours to other programs and look for redundancies in those programs for a reduction that would equate to a similar amount. MOTION FAILED (0-5-1), COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON ABSTAINING. Reduce Mayor’s Office Travel – Amendment #C14 COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER TIBBOTT, TO REDUCE THE MAYOR’S TRAVEL IN 2025 FROM $6,000 TO $600. Council President Olson commented this is not an unreasonable ask. These are unreasonable times and council need to find cuts wherever possible. Councilmember Nand hoped the mayor did not feel targeted, but the council is seeking to demonstrate to the workforce that elected officials will also experience some pain. Mayor Rosen commented some of that money was for him to go to Washington DC and try to get money for the City. Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 20 Councilmember Eck commented the travel budget helps with revenue and learning from other mayors which can be helpful for the City. She asked if this would be problematic. Mayor Rosen anticipated a similar amendment for 2026, but could see a need to go to Washington DC in 2026. The remaining funds would allow him to attend AWC and meet with other organizations and mayors in Snohomish County. He was also not opposed to writing his own check. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Reduce Work Week to 35 Hours/Week with Exceptions – Amendment #C15(A) Councilmember Paine explained she intended the C15 amendments to be considered as a package deal, but that is not how the vote went. She was interested in discussing this but would not object to not making a decision tonight. COUNCILMEMBER PAINE MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER NAND, TO REDUCE THE REGULAR WORK HOURS FROM 40 HOURS/WEEK TO 35 HOURS FOR THE MAJORITY OF CITY WORK GROUPS. Councilmember Paine explained this was intended to reduce labor costs via a work hour reduction. Specific work groups would be exempted including the WWTP personnel, courts, police command and commissioned officers, and directors. The purpose is to reduce fiscal impacts of labor costs, offer some stability for the workforce via a 2-year commitment to reduced hours and still maintain a high quality work force without going through layoffs. Similar to earlier amendment for a 10% cut, this would be closer to 12% but with a delayed start time. She preferred the council not make a decision tonight and make other decisions first and maybe this would not need to be implement immediately or could be implemented piecemeal. The impacts of this proposal would need to be negotiated with the labor groups; the anticipate start would be mid-year 2025. Depending on what happens next year, it may need to be extended. Councilmember Paine continued, Amendment C15(B) would be voted on separately, a workforce planning study, which would help provide a better understanding of staffing needs. She asked Ms. Duarte to describe a workforce study. Ms. Duarte explained a workforce planning study looks at current assets, in this case staff, their skill set, demographics, and analyzing and aligning the direction the City wants to go, evaluating future needs and looking at the gap. The benefit of workforce planning is it would allow the City to right- size based on whatever programs are continued or modified so when consideration is given to reducing or increasing the workforce, it allows more strategic and educated decisions regarding how to address current needs and the future of the City. Councilmember Paine commented it is an evaluation tool that although not complicated, is technical and has to be done right and would be beneficial to have it done by an outside consultant. Ms. Duarte commented it is extremely beneficial to the talent acquisition strategy, talent management, and helps with informing decisions about training programs, succession planning, etc. which are common in any organization. Councilmember Paine commented C15(C) would be the creation of a new non-departmental fund to provide a supplementary funding source to resolve incidental project completion funding needs related to the transition to a 35-hour work week and other needs based on workforce cuts in the budget. It would provide a limited source of fund to complete projects which cannot be reasonably worked into a 35-hour work week, provide a limited source of funds for short projects where staffing has been reduced or eliminated, and provide a limited use of fund which aren’t yet identified, but directly related to the implementation of a 35- hour work week. Her intent was this would be a one-year transition fund of $100,000 to get through some of the pain. The fund would be managed by administration. She commented it would be helpful to hear from the directors regarding this topic. Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 21 Mayor Rosen clarified although there was discussion on the bundled C15(A), (B) and (C), the motion is related to C15(A) and he recommended discussion be limited to that amendment. Councilmember Nand said she was intrigued by Councilmember Paine’s package. She appreciated Michael Rainey, AFSCME, speaking to C8, the C15 bundle, and C19. The way Councilmember Paine structured her amendments would give the City’s workforce, directors and council time and leeway to handle the fiscal crisis and structural problems with property tax, examine how to restructure the workforce, and make things work more efficiently without the pressure of accomplishing it in a 2-3 month period by allowing 2 years to go through the process and hopeful in a way that is more reasonable and less traumatic for staff. She was generally in favor of the amendment and was excited to learn more. She recalled Councilmember Paine mentioning she experienced a 35 hour work week when employed by the City of Seattle. Councilmember Eck agreed this was a thoughtful plan and appreciated Councilmember Paine walking the council through it. Again, not an easy decision, but the work planning study was important and a good practice every couple years for all sectors. Should the City be in a in a better financial position in 2-3 years, the data would provide guidance in achieving certain levels of service in the community. Councilmember Dotsch asked the thought process behind 35 hours. Councilmember Paine answered it was one hour less per day. It would result in a pay reduction, but only one hour less per day from their job. When she worked for King County, they went from a 35 hour work week to a 40 hour work week. She acknowledged there are always tradeoffs. She recognized collective bargaining would be required, but typically through the Labor Standards Act, overtime doesn’t begin until 40 hours so 35 hours would provide a bit of cushion to get things done, hence C15(C), the project completion fund. Councilmember Dotsch asked if the reduction in hours is temporary, but there is a still a structural imbalance in 2027, what would that look like. Ms. Dunscombe answered she would have to consider the ins and outs; if this was approved, it would need to be turned around quickly into the financial software which is why she sent an email earlier this week to ask questions. She summarized she was unable to answer Councilmember Dotsch’s question because it depends. Council President Olson said she finds this intriguing. The council has to take one of these bigger moves, certainly not both. Her concern is making an across-the-board cut that doesn’t honor the community’s prioritization and will short change all the programs because there is less manpower going into all the programs. She has always wondered if some staff members would volunteer for this program versus having it imposed; there may be some people who would like a shorter work week. If there was a difference in the retention and morale of staff with one of the approaches versus another, that would be good information for council to have. To the extent Mayor Rosen may know that from feedback he has received or feedback staff can provide to council before taking a final vote, the council would be interested in hearing if there was a preference between these two very distasteful options. Councilmember Tibbott said he found the comments on this topic very helpful and interesting, both from staff and council. Whether a 10% across the City cut is implemented or the City goes to a 35 hour work week, it seems like those options could be introduced later in year as an amendment as other votes and situations unfold. He was really intrigued with C15(B) and assumed that would be part of either option. He suggested considering implementation of this option later in the year if it is needed. Councilmember Nand noted Councilmember Paine’s proposal immediately saves $3M in expenditures in 2025 and 2026 which would provide an opportunity to retain staff whose positions have been unfunded and are facing layoffs. The sister amendment Councilmember Paine proposed for a workforce planning study would allow restructuring to be implemented in a more strategic way and give the employees who are being laid off time to line up new position. She noted Snohomish County is also going a similar process; Councilmember Jared Mead wrote a great piece about performance auditing Snohomish County is doing to Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 22 restructure in a very thoughtful, data driven way and hopefully less traumatic and less stressful way for their staff. Following Councilmember Paine’s package of amendments provides the potential to add back some unfunded, laid off positions so staff isn’t losing their job in the new year as well as engage with a consultant similar to what Snohomish County is doing to look at ways to more strategically restructure and implement things in a less stressful way for the City’s workforce. Ms. Dunscombe advised she and Councilmember Paine have been in communication about determining an exact numbers that is reasonable for this reduction. They have not quite reach that number so she was hesitant to say it would be $3M. Mayor Rosen reminded the reduction would require union negotiations so all that could be counted on at this point was non-represented staff. COUNCILMEMBER ECK MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON, TO POSTPONE THIS TO TUESDAY’S AGENDA. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Workforce Planning Study – Amendment #C15(B) COUNCILMEMBER PAINE MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER TIBBOTT, TO COMMIT $20,000 FOR A WORKFORCE PLANNING STUDY TO BE COMPLETED BY THE FIRST QUARTER OF 2025 OR SOONER. Councilmember Paine noted this has been on HR Director Neill Hoyson wish list for a long time, it was discussed at the retreat earlier this year and has been discussed in the community. She recalled comments in the community that Mountlake Terrace has twice the staff as Edmonds. The study will be very useful to understand appropriate staffing levels for a city Edmonds’ size. She asked how long a workforce planning study would take. Her intent was to fund the study from the General Fund with savings from a to-be- determined hours reduction strategy. Councilmember Nand reiterated her support for Councilmember Paine’s package of proposals, but wondered it would be appropriate to table this item as well until a determination was made regarding the 35-hour work week. With the amendments Council President Olson brought forward, the council has only added $7800 in savings tonight. Ms. Dunscombe agreed along with a $10,000 contingency from the last deliberation. When the council adds projects and/or new initiatives, she requested the funding source be identified such as previously identified savings, fund balance, or increasing the $7.5M loan. Budget amendments can get the City into trouble if the amounts added and removed are not tallied. Councilmember Nand commented that is why she proposed grouping reductions and expenditures before considering additions and expenditures. COUNCILMEMBER NAND MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER PAINE, TO POSTPONE TO NOVEMBER 26TH. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Creation of a New Fund to Support the 35-Hour Workweek – Amendment #C15(C) COUNCILMEMBER PAINE MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER NAND, TO POSTPONE AMENDMENT 15(C) TO NOVEMBER 26TH. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Laboratory Services - Staff Recommendation #3 Ms. Dunscombe advised this is a non-General Fund recommendation. This item was missed in the budget input. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON AND SECONDED TO INCREASE PROFESSIONAL SERVICES IN THE AMOUNT OF $2,020.00 IN 2025. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY ODS Pump Replacement – Staff Recommendation #4 Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 23 Ms. Dunscombe explained this is to add funding for the ODS pump project in 2026. The cost is shared by the WWTP partners and was overlooked in the budget preparation. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON AND SECONDED TO ACCEPT THE STAFF RECOMMENDATION TO ADD THE ODS PUMP REPLACEMENT TO THE 2026 BUDGET. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Nutrient Removal Project - Staff Recommendation #5 Ms. Dunscombe advised this is a project related to the Puget Sound Nutrient General Permit. The cost is shared by WWTP partners. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON AND SECONDED TO ACCEPT STAFF RECOMMENDED CHANGE #5 FOR THE NUTRIENT REMOVAL PROJECT. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON AND SECONDED TO EXTEND UNTIL 10:10 PM. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. 112 Fund Adjustments - Staff Recommendation #6 Ms. Dunscombe advised this is a non-General Fund recommendation to true up street capital grant revenue and projects. The project details are provided on the amendment sheet. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON AND SECONDED TO ACCEPT STAFF RECOMMENDED CHANGE #6 TO FUND 112 REVENUE CHANGES. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Correct Hotel/Motel Tax Revenue - Staff Recommendation #7 Ms. Dunscombe advised this recommendation is to correct a double entry of hotel/motel tax revenue Fund 120 revenue in the proposed 2025 budget. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON AND SECONDED TO ACCEPT STAFF RECOMMENDED CHANGE #7 RELATED TO HOTEL/MOTEL TAX REVENUE CORRECTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. CCED Professional Services - Staff Recommendation #8 Ms. Dunscombe explained this recommendation is to correct a miscommunication between her and Mr. Tatum related to his department’s reductions in 2025. She included his reductions in 2025 and 2026 which was not his intent. This recommendation will move some of the proposed professional services in Fund 120 back to the General Fund. The funding source would be fund balance. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON AND SECONDED TO ACCEPT STAFF RECOMMENDED CHANGE #8 TO MOVE $49,000 FROM FUND 120 TO FUND 001. Councilmember Paine asked if the LTAC had accepted Mayor Rosen’s proposal regarding their budget. Mr. Tatum answered when he presented to council regarding lodging tax, it was primarily focused on 2025. The LTAC met the next day and talked about this; the LTAC has until Saturday to provide comment. He has received one comment so far which was opposed to spending fund balance from Fund 120 in 2026. Councilmember Paine observed staff’s recommendation is primarily a correction or recognizing a change in understanding. Ms. Dunscombe explained it moves spending for professional services back to the General Fund. It was a duplication of a reduction in 2025 that Mr. Tatum did not intend for 2026. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Reinstate Arts & Cultural Services Program Manager - Staff Recommendation #9 Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 24 Ms. Dunscombe explained this recommendation is intended to correct a miscommunication between her and Mr. Tatum. She inadvertently applied the reductions in his budget to both 2025 and 202 without fully understanding the impact it would have on the arts program. She apologized that highlighting the reinstatement of position in 2026 through a staff recommendation inadvertently places both the position and the program at greater vulnerability. Ultimately the decision to approve/not approve this recommendation rests with the council. She requested the council consider this as an effort to correct her error and support the continued success of this program. The funding source will be fund balance. COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER TIBBOTT, NOT TO ACCEPT THE STAFF RECOMMENDED CHANGE. Council President Olson acknowledged there was an upcoming vacancy in this position. Edmonds values the arts, it is important to her personally and she volunteers for the arts in Edmonds. Based on the survey feedback, the community highly ranked the arts but also said the City over-delivers. In this time of budget crisis, having two people focused on the arts and with a vacancy in one of those positions, the City will obviously not be able to deliver on all the current programs and modifications and prioritization will be required. This is a good opportunity to make savings in the budget. This position was on her radar before the mistake was made so Ms. Dunscombe did not need to take responsibility. She supported this reduction in the short term. Councilmember Eck acknowledged this is very difficult. She understood an error was made, and asked if Mr. Tatum’s department met their financial target. Ms. Dunscombe answered he met the target reduction in 2025; there is a vacancy upcoming in that position in 2025 and she included the vacancy in 2026. A lot of the positions that are being left vacant or were laid off were for both years, 2025 and 2026, and she did the same for this position. From a workplan perspective Mr. Tatum felt not having this position would severely impact his workplan in 2026. Councilmember Eck recalled directors were given direction to make reductions in 2025 and 2026. Ms. Dunscombe clarified the direction was given for 2025. Councilmember Nand asked whether the Edmonds Art Commission (EAC) would have to be disbanded if this position was not funded in 2026. Mr. Tatum answered the EAC is an ordinance mandated group and it would not have to be disbanded. Councilmember Nand asked if it would still be supported by a staff liaison. Mr. Tatum answered yes, the art assistant and he currently staff that commission and they will continue to staff it in 2025 and 2026. Councilmember Nand asked what reductions in capacity would he and other staff experience in 2026 if this position is not funded. COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER NAND, TO EXTEND TO 10:20 PM. MOTION CARRIED (5-1) COUNCILMEMBER TIBBOTT VOTING NO. Mr. Tatum explained the bottom line is he needs to build two new programs, business retention and expansion and real estate development and redevelopment which takes time, effort and requires him to abandon some things and putting him into a program manager position for a portion takes away his ability to do that. Funding that position frees up his time which is a critical piece. He recognized this was an arts position which is fluffy and nice, but the position is a member of the economic development team. There is also an opportunity with hiring a new person to make them more solidly economic development focused to fill out that team. Councilmember Nand said she has had this conversation with Ms. Neill Hoyson; paying higher level staff to do work that a lower-paid staff person could do. It is not a good use of a director’s time to fulfill program management duties. She supported the staff recommended amendment to reinstate funding for the arts and cultural services program manager in 2026. Edmonds City Council Approved Minutes November 19, 2024 Page 25 Councilmember Paine expressed appreciation for Mr. Tatum’s email regarding possible funding alternatives such as the municipal arts fund and cultural access sales tax. She would like to support funding for this position right now, but she would be happier to support it mid-2025 when there is funding to support the position. She was unsure about the municipal arts fund and was interested in the cultural access sales tax, recalling an estimate she heard from a community was $300,000. She suggested council consider reinstating funding for this position mid-2025. Mr. Tatum advised that could be done. Councilmember Tibbott agreed with Councilmember Paine’s suggestion. He expressed support for the motion not to approve the staff recommendation and bring it back next year when there is more information about revenue sources and the need in this area. COUNCILMEMBER NAND MOVED TO TABLE. MOTION FAILED FOR LACK OF A SECOND. MOTION CARRIED (5-1), COUNCILMEMBER NAND VOTING NO. Reinstate Funding for the Police Community Engagement/Crime Prevention Position – Amendment #C16 COUNCILMEMBER PAINE MOVED, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER NAND, TO REINSTATE FUNDING FOR THE POLICE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT/CRIME PREVENTION COORDINATOR POSITION. Councilmember Paine relayed this position provides a great service to our community by providing outreach to the public, making and keeping community connections regarding crime prevention programs. A MOTION WAS MADE BY COUNCILMEMBER NAND AND SECONDED TO POSTPONE TO NOVEMBER 26 WHEN THE COUNCIL CAN HAVE A DISCUSSION REGARDING SAVINGS THAT WOULD ALLOW THE COUNCIL TO RESPONSIBLY ENTERTAIN RETAINING POSITIONS SLATED TO BE DEFUNDED AND THOSE PEOPLE LAID OFF IN THE NEW YEAR. MOTION CARRIED (5-1), COUNCIL PRESIDENT OLSON VOTING NO. 6. EXECUTIVE SESSION TO DISCUSS PENDING OR POTENTIAL LITIGATION PER RCW 42.30.110(1)(I) This item and the following item were removed from the agenda via action taken under Agenda Item 3. 7. RECONVENE IN OPEN SESSION ADJOURNMENT With no further business, the Council meeting was adjourned at 10:16 pm.